Author: precious

Elon Musk’s social media platform X is racing to contain the backlash against its Grok chatbot as it opens an internal investigation just as regulators in the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom (UK) consider measures that could severely restrict or even ban the AI system in their jurisdictions. This investigation puts X in the unusual position of probing its own flagship AI product while facing some of the toughest regulatory pressure in the world. Why Grok Is Under Internal Review The internal investigation follows widespread criticism that Grok’s image-generating tools on X were used to generate sexually explicit…

America’s race to build bigger and more powerful AI systems has now clashed with a basic limitation – the electric grid is suffering under the load of new data centers that consume as much power as a whole town, and it is affecting common citizens. In response, the White House has brokered a new agreement called the “Ratepayer Protection Pledge,” under which major tech companies will pay for the extra electricity generation and grid upgrades their AI data centers require, instead of passing those costs on to households and small businesses.  Why AI Is Creating an Energy Problem The deal…

After intense regulatory pressure, Meta has reversed a policy that had locked third-party AI chatbots out of WhatsApp and is now allowing rival AI providers to operate on the platform, but at a cost. The company recently announced it would open WhatsApp’s Business API to general-purpose AI chatbots in Europe and in Brazil for the next 12 months, charging those providers between €0.0490 and €0.1323 per non-template message, depending on the country. This move follows formal warnings from the European Commission, which had threatened to impose emergency competition measures against Meta if the policy remained in place. Meta Policy That…

OpenAI’s top hardware leader has resigned just days after the company struck a high‑stakes artificial intelligence (AI) deal with the U.S. Department of Defense, raising fresh questions about how its technology will be used in future physical devices and military systems. Caitlin Kalinowski, who led hardware and robotics at OpenAI, said she was leaving over concerns that the Pentagon agreement was reached too quickly and without enough safeguards around issues like surveillance and lethal autonomy. What Happened And Why It Matters Kalinowski announced her resignation on March 7, explaining in posts on X and LinkedIn that she could not support…

SoftBank Group is seeking a loan of up to $40 billion to fund a new, expanded investment in OpenAI, a move that would mark the Japanese conglomerate’s largest-ever borrowing entirely in U.S. dollars. The loan, which would have a tenor of about 12 months, is being underwritten by four lenders, including JPMorgan Chase. Talks between SoftBank and the lending body are still ongoing, and final terms could change before any deal is closed. The proposed loan comes on top of more than $30 billion SoftBank has already committed to OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT. By the end of December 2025,…

OpenAI has raised a landmark $110 billion in a new funding round that values the ChatGPT maker at about $840 billion in post-money and cements it as one of the most valuable private technology companies in history. The raise comes less than a year after OpenAI closed a $40 billion round that was itself a record for a private tech firm. The Funding: Who Is Investing And How Much The $110 billion round is anchored by three giants that includes Amazon, Nvidia, and SoftBank. Amazon is investing about $50 billion, while Nvidia and SoftBank are each committing around $30 billion,…

Nvidia is committing $4 billion to photonics manufacturers Coherent Corp. and Lumentum Holdings in a move aimed squarely at scaling the backbone of its next-generation AI data centers. Each company will receive $2 billion through a mix of direct investment, long-term purchase agreements, and guaranteed access to future production capacity for advanced optical components. The goal is for Nvidia to secure enough high-end silicon photonics and laser technology to keep Nvidia’s AI infrastructure roadmap on track as model sizes and cluster scales keep climbing. Nvidia disclosed that it plans to invest $2 billion apiece in Lumentum and Coherent, both key…

OpenAI has tightened the rules around its controversial artificial intelligence (AI) deal with the U.S. Pentagon, adding new protections meant to limit government surveillance and address an escalating backlash, even from some of its own users. The amended agreement explicitly bars the use of OpenAI’s systems for domestic mass surveillance of Americans and restricts access for U.S. intelligence agencies. What Changed in the OpenAI Pentagon Deal The original agreement, announced in late February, allowed the Pentagon to use OpenAI’s models for any lawful purpose on its classified networks. This immediately triggered concern because it included intelligence and surveillance work. OpenAI…

OpenAI and Microsoft are publicly doubling down on their alliance, even as OpenAI signs some of the largest AI deals in the industry with other tech giants. A new joint statement from both companies maintains that their core partnership, licensing terms, and Azure cloud commitments remain unchanged despite fresh multibillion‑dollar arrangements with Amazon, Nvidia, SoftBank and others. OpenAI and Microsoft described their collaboration as “strong and central,” emphasizing that they continue to work closely across research, engineering and product development. Microsoft confirmed it still holds an exclusive license to OpenAI’s models and products for wide commercial use, preserving a key…

UK authorities have urged organisations to tighten their cyber defences after warning of a heightened risk from Iran-linked hackers as a result of the US-Israeli attacks on Iran. In a new advisory, the UK National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) warned UK organisations that have presence in the Middle East to prepare for potential Iran-linked cyber activity connected to the fast-moving, conflicting situation in the region. While the NCSC emphasised that, for now, there is “no significant change” in the direct cyber threat from Iran to the UK, they warned that this assessment could change rapidly as the conflict evolves. Its…