Welcome to the newest edition of ID Tech’s AI update. Here’s the latest big news on the shifting landscape of AI and identity technology:
Elon Musk is attempting to stage a hostile takeover of OpenAI’s nonprofit arm, which controls OpenAI. He’s leading a consortium that has pledged $97.4 billion for the takeover. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman responded that his firm is “not for sale” and suggested the bid was an attempt to “slow down a competitor”. As President Donald Trump observed when a reporter asked about Musk’s attacks against the planned Stargate AI project, in which OpenAI is a key player: “he hates one of the people in the deal.”
Anduril has taken over Microsoft’s mixed-reality headset program for the U.S. Army. The Silicon Valley hi-tech weapons startup will now oversee the development of the Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS), while Microsoft will serve as a secondary contractor. On his blog, Anduril’s colourful founder, Palmer Luckey, celebrated the achievement after having been previously ousted from an important role at Facebook. “Whatever you are imagining, however crazy you imagine I am, multiply it by ten and then do it again,” he wrote. “I am back, and I am only getting started.”
France and the United States appear to be aligned on the idea of deregulating AI development. Speaking at this week’s AI Action Summit in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron said Europe should take the “Notre-Dame approach” to AI regulation, referring to his government’s streamlining of red tape to restore the famous cathedral after a fire. Meanwhile, US VP JD Vance gave a speech calling for “pro-growth AI policies,” asserting, “The future of AI will not be won by fretting over safety.”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen took the occasion to announce a €200 billion AI investment plan aimed at keeping the EU competitive in the space. €150 billion will come from private and industry sources, while the EU budget will provide the rest. €20 billion of the “InvestAI” package has been earmarked for four AI “gigafactories”.
Chip-focused startups continue to raise a lot of cash. Nevada-based startup Positron, which aspires to compete with Nvidia, has raised $23.5 million. Meanwhile, Silicon Valley’s more established semiconductor startup Groq has received a $1.5 billion commitment from the government of Saudi Arabia, with the financing expected to aid the development of LPU-based (Language Processing Unit) AI inference infrastructure in the Kingdom.
OpenAI, meanwhile, is reportedly in the final stages of developing an AI chip of its own. When it’s ready, the design will be sent to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) for fabrication through its 3-nanometer process technology. The chip will be able to both train and run AI models, and will reduce OpenAI’s reliance on third-party chipmakers like Nvidia. Mass production is expected in 2026.
Cisco has raised its annual revenue guidance due to AI-driven demand for its cloud networking equipment and for the data centers using its tech. While it’s a relatively modest uptick in the high end of its forecast range, which went from $56.3 billion to $56.5 billion, it shows how the AI boom is impacting the broader tech ecosystem.
Tines has reached a $1.13 billion valuation after a $125 million Series C funding round led by Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, and featuring SoftBank Vision Fund 2, among others. The Dublin-based startup is building an AI-driven automation platform for complex workflows that is particularly focused on cybersecurity and IT operations.
Italian police have frozen nearly €1 million transferred to a Dutch bank account as part of a voice cloning scam. Fraudsters used AI to mimic the voice of Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto, and then communicated with high-profile business people including Giorgio Armani and Massimo Moratti, urging them to contribute to a fund aimed at releasing kidnapped Italian journalists. The Milan Public Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation.
The chatbot’s take: The longer version of the story is quite a bit more colourful than this…
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February 14, 2025 – by Alex Perala
