OpenAI and Meta are creating new AI models capable of reasoning

Today’s Highlights:

📰 News: All the AI giants pitch lofty ideas and release new products.

💰 Funding: Billions flow into Japanese and Korean AI.

⚡️ Top News Stories:

OpenAI and Meta gear up to launch AI models with advanced reasoning, setting a new benchmark in AI development

• OpenAI and Meta are set to release advanced AI models capable of reasoning and planning, aiming at closer approximations of human cognition.

• Meta plans to introduce Llama 3 soon, while OpenAI's next model, likely GPT-5, is also expected shortly.

• These models are designed to handle complex tasks with a focus on reasoning, a significant step toward artificial general intelligence.

• Llama 3 is designed to handle a more extensive array of questions and applications, indicating significant advancements over previous versions.

• Meta's Llama 3 will be integrated into various applications like WhatsApp and Ray-Ban smart glasses.

Meta's latest MTIA chips redefine AI model training, promising unparalleled efficiency and expanding future AI endeavors

• Meta announces faster, next-generation custom AI chips, the Meta Training and Inference Accelerator (MTIA), enhancing its AI services.

• MTIA is optimized for Meta's ranking and recommendation models, aiming for more efficient training and easier inference processes.

• The new chips are part of Meta's strategic plan to integrate AI deeply into its infrastructure, alongside future GPU advancements.

• The MTIA's capabilities may expand to training generative AI models, with the new version showing significantly improved performance in early tests.

Meanwhile, Gemini 1.5 Pro Now Available in 180+ Countries; With Native Audio Understanding, System Instructions, JSON Mode and More

• Google announces expansion of the Gemma AI model family, introducing CodeGemma and RecurrentGemma. CodeGemma is designed for coding tasks, offering code completion, generation, and instruction following. RecurrentGemma, optimized for efficiency, leverages recurrent neural networks for better memory usage.

• Google's also announcing their new Vids app to make video the new norm in workplace collaboration and productivity. Vids integrates Google's Gemini AI for automated storyboard, scriptwriting, and image creation, enhancing the video-making process.

• Google Photos got an upgrade as well: Photos introduces free AI-powered editing tools, including Magic Editor, previously exclusive to Pixel devices and paid subscribers. The suite includes Magic Eraser, Photo Unblur, Portrait Light, among others, enhancing photo quality and customization.

OpenAI's CEO engages global leaders to address AI's growing infrastructure needs, focusing on chips and energy

• Sam Altman is forming a global coalition to enhance AI infrastructure, including chip supply and energy capacity.

• Altman discussed collaborations in the UAE and plans further talks in the US, aiming to expand AI infrastructure support.

• His initiative addresses the growing need for chips and other resources critical for AI development.

• The focus includes raising funds for a semiconductor production network and exploring energy solutions like solar power or nuclear fusion.

• The initiative is under scrutiny for potential foreign investment concerns, especially connections to Middle Eastern funds and Chinese ties.

Adobe intensifies its AI prowess by acquiring videos to power its text-to-video generator, directly challenging OpenAI, while actively soliciting clips of common actions and expressions, offering $120 for submissions, with the goal of enhancing AI training for generative features within Photoshop and Illustrator.

Apple sets sights on revolutionizing its Mac lineup with M4 processors, geared towards elevating AI capabilities, according to Bloomberg, with anticipation building for the launch of M4-powered Macs slated to commence later this year and extend into early 2025, marking a swift progression following the recent M3 chip debut.

Dr. Andrew Ng joins Amazon's Board of Directors, signaling the company's AI focus, leveraging his expertise as Managing General Partner of AI Fund and founder of various AI-focused ventures and educational initiatives, enhancing Amazon's AI strategy.

In 2024, venture capitalists invested over $2.2 billion in generative AI startups, shifting focus from chatbots to innovative applications such as humanlike robots and voice generators, with Figure leading by raising $675 million from major investors like Microsoft and Nvidia, highlighting a broader industry pivot to more advanced AI solutions.

💰 Top Funding News:

Microsoft has committed $2.9 billion to enhance AI and cloud infrastructure in Japan, marking its largest investment there in 46 years, which includes opening a new Microsoft Research Asia lab and expanding digital skills training for 3 million people, aiming to accelerate Japan's economic growth and digital transformation.

President Yoon Suk Yeol's administration in South Korea has allocated 9.4 trillion won ($6.94 billion) to enhance its leadership in semiconductor technology through artificial intelligence, with investments targeting AI chip R&D and a 1.4 trillion won fund to boost AI semiconductor firms, aiming to secure a top-three global ranking by 2030, while also bolstering the industry's resilience against external disruptions like Taiwan's recent earthquake.

Cyera has secured $300 million in Series C funding, led by Coatue with participation from Spark Capital, Georgian, and AT&T Ventures, to enhance its AI-driven data classification engine that improves the security and management of data across diverse environments, aiding enterprises in meeting critical security and compliance demands.

Collaborative Robotics has raised $100 million in a Series B funding round, led by General Catalyst with contributions from Bison Ventures, Lux Capital, and Industry Ventures, to advance its autonomous mobile manipulator designed to operate safely alongside humans in sectors such as manufacturing, supply chain, and healthcare.

Simbian has launched a Fully Autonomous Security platform using advanced AI, securing over $10 million in an oversubscribed funding round led by Cota Capital, Icon Ventures, Firebolt, Secure Octane, and Rain Capital, enhancing security processes while integrating TrustedLLM™ for safer AI-driven actions.

Symbolica, using a structured AI approach based on category theory to enhance model interpretability and minimize large data dependency, has raised $33 million through Series A and seed funding rounds led by Khosla Ventures, with participation from Day One Ventures, General Catalyst, Abstract Ventures, and Buckley Ventures, aiming to develop AI architectures with human-like reasoning and transparency.

Neysa, an India-based AI startup, has raised $20 million in seed funding led by Matrix Partners India, Nexus Venture Partners, and NTTVC, to support its cloud-based platform designed to make AI project management more efficient and secure, enabling businesses to deploy, train, and manage generative AI models.

Alethea, focusing on disinformation detection and mitigation, has secured $20 million in Series B funding for its multi-channel AI platform, Artemis, which analyzes internet narratives to protect organizations from online threats, with GV leading the investment alongside Ballistic Ventures and Hakluyt Capital.

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