Tag Archives: partner

Elizabeth Holmes’ Partner Draws Millions for Blood Testing Startups

Posted on by
Reply

Elizabeth Holmes’ partner and father of her child is said to have secured millions in funding to launch a new blood-testing company, which bears a striking resemblance to the firm that led Holmes, the founder of Theranos, to federal prison.

As reported by the New York Times, Billy Evans, the heir to a hotel fortune, is promoting his new venture, Haemanthus, to potential investors. Evans’ concept involves a health testing company capable of analyzing users’ blood, urine, and saliva.

The business model of Haemanthus and the pitch provided by Holmes-led Theranos show significant similarities.

Holmes founded Theranos in 2003 after her healthcare technology startup attracted substantial investments, boasting hundreds of millions from high-profile backers. She asserted that her company had developed a method for rapidly and accurately testing small blood samples to arrive at a diagnosis.

Haemanthus, according to its January patent, claims its technology can utilize sweat, urine, saliva, and small blood samples for diagnostics. The company, initiated by Evans, who has two children with Holmes, was established in February 2024 and plans to start animal testing before moving on to human trials.


The technology claims made by Theranos inflated its valuation to $9 billion in 2014. However, a critical investigation by the Wall Street Journal revealed significant inaccuracies in Theranos’ assertions, indicating the tests were not only illegal but also produced false results.

The scandal culminated in 2018 when the company was dissolved, leading to criminal charges against Holmes and the firm’s president. Holmes received an 11-year prison sentence in 2022 for defrauding investors.

Marketing materials for Haemanthus, as reviewed by The New York Times, indicate that the technology employs lasers to analyze blood, saliva, and urine from pets, promising rapid disease, cancer, or infection detection.

Reportedly, Haemanthus aims to develop compact, wearable versions of its devices for human use in the long run, according to The Times.

Several investors have already expressed interest in the pitch. While reportedly receiving guidance from Holmes, Evans has managed to raise nearly $20 million from friends and other backers.

Evans met Holmes in 2017 during the fraud investigation that resulted in her imprisonment. He is said to reside in Texas with their child, while Holmes serves her sentence approximately two hours away.

Source: www.theguardian.com

Synthesia’s AI Avatar Generator to Partner with Shutterstock for Video Trading

Posted on by
Reply

The UK startup, valued at $20 billion (£1.6 billion), is utilizing artificial intelligence to create lifelike avatars. They have recently partnered with Shutterstock, a stock footage company, to enhance their technology.

Synthesia is paying Shutterstock undisclosed amounts to access their video library for training their AI models. By incorporating these clips into their models, Synthesia aims to improve the realism, vocal tones, and body language of their avatars.

Synthesia has licensed the actors’ portraits for a three-year period and compensates them for up to six hours of filming work. Illustration: Synthesia.io

In a statement, Synthesia expressed their goal of enhancing the realism and expressiveness of AI-generated avatars through this partnership with Shutterstock. They aim to bring these avatars closer to human-like performance standards.

The collaboration has sparked discussions around the use of copyrighted material by AI companies without proper permission. The UK government’s proposal to relax copyright laws has faced criticism from creative industry experts.

Synthesia creates digital avatars using human actors, which are then utilized by various companies including clients like Lloyd’s Bank and British Gas. Their technology is also employed by organizations like the NHS, the European Commission, and the United Nations for different purposes.

Recently, Synthesia announced that they would provide stock options to the actors featured in their popular avatars. The company licenses the actors’ portraits for three years and compensates them for filming work.

Skip past newsletter promotions
Synthesia prohibits the use of stock avatars for political or news-related purposes. Illustration: Synthesia.io

Synthesia does not allow the use of stock avatars for political or news-related purposes. Instead, they utilize Shutterstock footage to enhance their models’ understanding of body language and workplace settings. This helps in creating more realistic scenarios for the avatars.

Established in 2017 by two Danish entrepreneurs and two academics, Synthesia, based in London, reached a valuation of $2.1 billion this year through a funding round that raised $180 million.

Beeban Kidron, a vocal critic of the government’s copyright policies, highlighted the significance of the Shutterstock agreement as an indication of the government’s flawed stance on copyright issues.

The government argues that current copyright regulations need to evolve to support the full potential of AI and technology in the creative industry, media, and technology sectors.

Source: www.theguardian.com

The US and UK Formally Partner on Ensuring Artificial Intelligence Safety

Posted on by
Reply

The United States and Britain have revealed a fresh collaboration in the realm of artificial intelligence safety on Monday, amid increasing apprehensions about the upcoming advanced versions.

US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and UK Technology Secretary Michelle Donnellan will collaborate on developing cutting-edge AI model testing, following commitments made during the AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park in November. A memorandum of understanding was signed in Washington, DC.

“We all understand that AI is the defining technology of our era,” mentioned Raimondo. “This partnership will enhance efforts in both institutions to tackle risks related to national security and broader public concerns.”

Within this formal partnership, the US and UK will conduct at least one joint experiment using a publicly accessible model, and are also contemplating the possibility of personnel exchanges between the institutions. Both nations are committed to forming similar collaborations with other countries to promote AI safety.

“This is a groundbreaking agreement globally,” affirmed Donnellan. “AI is already a tremendous force for good in our society and has the potential to address significant global challenges, but only if we grasp the associated risks.”

Since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, generative AI capable of producing text, images, and videos in response to open-ended prompts could render certain jobs redundant, disrupt elections, and potentially overwhelm humans. It elicits both anxiety and excitement simultaneously.

The two countries aim to exchange vital information on the capabilities and risks linked to AI models and systems, along with conducting technical research on AI safety and security.

In October, Joe Biden signed an executive order aimed at mitigating AI-related risks. In January, the Commerce Department proposed the imposition of a requirement for US cloud companies to determine if foreign entities access US data centers for training AI models.

In February, the UK announced an investment exceeding 100 million pounds ($125.5 million) to establish nine new research centers and train AI regulators on the technology.

Source: www.theguardian.com