Amazon increases investment in AI company Anthropic to $8 billion

Amazon has announced an additional $4 billion investment in artificial intelligence company Anthropic, bringing its total investment to $8 billion while maintaining a minority stake. The investment marks Amazon’s largest outside investment in its three-decade history. As part of the agreement, Amazon Web Services (AWS) will become Anthropic’s primary cloud and training partner. Anthropic will …

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Hawaii newspaper ends AI news anchor experiment

A local Hawaiian newspaper, The Garden Island, discontinued its AI-generated news broadcast program after a two-month trial period, reports Guthrie Scrimgeour. The program, which featured AI presenters James and Rose created by Israeli firm Caledo, was the first of its kind in the United States. The virtual anchors struggled with pronunciation, displayed unnatural behavior, and …

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Enterprise AI spending shows dramatic increase in 2024

Business investment in generative AI reached $13.8 billion in 2024, marking a 500% increase from $2.3 billion in 2023, according to a new report from Menlo Ventures. Hayden Field reports for CNBC that OpenAI’s enterprise market share dropped from 50% to 34%, while Anthropic doubled its share to 24%. The findings, based on a survey …

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US commission proposes government-backed AI development program

A U.S. congressional commission has recommended launching a Manhattan Project-style initiative to develop advanced artificial intelligence systems, specifically targeting artificial general intelligence (AGI) capabilities. Reuters reporter Anna Tong reports that the bipartisan U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission emphasized the importance of public-private partnerships in this effort, citing competition with China as a key motivator. …

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Microsoft partners with HarperCollins for AI training using nonfiction books

Microsoft has reached an agreement with HarperCollins Publishers to use selected nonfiction books for training artificial intelligence models, as reported by Hannah Miller and Dina Bass for Bloomberg News. The deal allows Microsoft limited access to HarperCollins’ backlist titles, with authors having the option to opt out. The technology company plans to use the content …

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Meta creates new AI division for business tools

Meta is establishing a new product group dedicated to developing AI tools for the 200 million businesses using its platforms, Sara Fischer reports for Axios. Former Salesforce AI CEO Clara Shih will lead the initiative as VP of business AI, focusing on creating and monetizing AI solutions for business users. The group aims to build …

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Coca-Cola faces criticism over AI-generated holiday commercial

Coca-Cola has sparked controversy with its new AI-generated Christmas advertisement that recreates imagery from its 1995 “Holidays Are Coming” campaign, NBC reports. The video, created by three AI studios using multiple generative AI models, shows animated scenes of trucks and people celebrating with Coca-Cola products. Artists and creative professionals have strongly criticized the company’s decision …

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AI company Writer secures major funding round

Generative AI platform Writer has raised $200 million in Series C funding at a $1.9 billion valuation. As reported by Kyle Wiggers for TechCrunch, the round was co-led by Premji Invest, Radical Ventures, and ICONIQ Growth, with participation from major tech investors including Salesforce and Adobe Ventures. The company, founded in 2020 by May Habib …

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EU releases draft guidance for general purpose AI compliance

The European Union has published its first draft Code of Practice detailing how providers of general-purpose AI models must comply with the EU AI Act. According to tech reporter Natasha Lomas at TechCrunch, the 36-page document outlines transparency requirements starting August 2025 and risk assessment measures for powerful AI systems beginning August 2027. The code …

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OpenAI plans January launch of “Operator” AI agent

OpenAI is preparing to launch a new AI agent called “Operator” that can perform automated tasks like coding and travel booking on behalf of users, according to reporting by Shirin Ghaffary and Rachel Metz for Bloomberg. The company plans to release the tool in January 2024 as both a research preview and through their developer …

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