OpenAI Shuts Down $300 Billion Corporation

Openai announced on Monday that it had finalized a $40 billion funding agreement, doubling the valuation of the company from six months ago.

Led by SoftBank, the new funding round valued Openai at $300 billion and positioned it as one of the most valuable private companies alongside Rocket Company SpaceX and bytedance, the parent company of Tiktok.

The investment round follows the launch of the AI chatbot ChatGpt in late 2022, demonstrating the continued excitement in the high-tech industry for AI advancements.

Openai CEO Sam Altman expressed that the investment will drive innovations and make AI more beneficial in everyday life.

Openai also revealed that 500 million people are actively using ChatGpt weekly, with 20 million paying for the advanced version of the chatbot.

According to sources, the $40 billion investment will be split into two parts, with Softbank Group contributing 75% of the total amount.

Altman founded Openai as a nonprofit in 2015 with Elon Musk, transitioning it to a commercial enterprise in 2018 to attract the necessary funding for AI development.

Plans are in motion to shift the management of the company to a for-profit entity known as public benefit companies.

Musk filed a lawsuit against Openai and Altman, accusing them of prioritizing commercial interests over public good.

Openai aims to transition to public benefit companies by the end of the year, or risk a reduction in SoftBank’s contribution.

A bid from Musk and investors to acquire assets from Openai was rejected by the board of directors.

Altman’s efforts to separate the company from the nonprofit may face challenges due to the ongoing legal issues.

(Openai and Microsoft are facing a lawsuit alleging copyright infringement related to AI news content, which they have denied.)

Source: www.nytimes.com

Warner Bros Cancels Wonder Woman Video Games, Shuts Down 3 Studios

Warner Bros Discovery has decided to close three video game development studios in order to boost profitability in the gaming sector amidst a slow market recovery.

The studios being closed are Player First Game, WB Game San Diego, and Monolith Productions. Development of the Monolith Wonder Woman game will also be halted after the closure. A spokesperson stated, “Our initial goal was to provide players and fans with the best possible experience for iconic characters. Unfortunately, this is no longer feasible given our strategic priorities.”

The closure of these studios reflects the challenges faced by the video game industry, with gamers opting for established titles over new purchases due to budget constraints caused by inflation. Last month, the company announced the departure of David Haddad, former Chief of the Interactive Entertainment Unit, after 12 years.

Following suit with other industry leaders like Microsoft’s Xbox and Sony, Warner Bros. is aiming to reduce costs by closing offices.

The company will now focus on four major games in November, establishing a new development studio and investment strategy, with a focus on core franchises such as Harry Potter, Mortal Kombat, DC, and Game of Thrones, as per David Zaslav’s comments.

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The company’s previous investment in the suicide squad: killing Justice League did not yield the expected results.

Source: www.theguardian.com

Meta shuts down fact checker due to complexity.

The co-chairs of Meta’s oversight committee stated that the company’s systems had become “too complex” after deciding to eliminate fact-checkers, with Elon Musk’s X CEO welcoming the decision. ” he said.

Helle Thorning-Schmidt, co-chair of Meta’s oversight board and former Danish prime minister, agreed with outgoing international affairs chairman Nick Clegg, stating, “The metasystem is too complex.” He mentioned there was “excessive coercion.”

On Tuesday, Mark Zuckerberg surprised everyone by announcing that Facebook owners will stop using third-party checkers to flag misleading content in favor of notes from other users.

The 40-year-old billionaire revealed that Meta will “eliminate fact-checkers and replace them with community notes similar to `I will replace it with’. To the White House.”

Shortly after Mr. Clegg’s departure from Meta, the former British deputy prime minister who had been with the company for six years, Facebook Oversight Board was established under his leadership to make decisions about the social network’s moderation policies.

Helle Thorning-Schmidt told the BBC, “We appreciate the consideration of fact-checking. We welcome that message and are examining the complexity and potentially excessive enforcement.”

In replacing Mr. Clegg, Joel Kaplan, who previously served as deputy chief of staff for policy under former President George W. Bush, will take over the leadership role. Thorning-Schmidt mentioned that Mr. Clegg had been discussing his departure for a while.

Linda Yaccarino, X chief, expressed her approval of Meta’s policy change during an appearance at the CES technology show in Las Vegas by saying, “Welcome to the party.” The decision comes as a response to the positive reception from Mr. Yaccarino.

The shift will move the social network away from third-party checkers that flag misleading content in favor of user-based notes. This move has faced criticism from online safety advocates for potentially allowing misinformation and harmful content to spread.

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Yaccarino praised Meta’s decision as “really exciting” during a Q&A session at CES.

Describing X’s community notes as a positive development, Yaccarino emphasized its effectiveness in unbiased fact-checking.

Yaccarino added, “Human behavior is inspirational because when a post gets noticed, it becomes dramatically less shared. That’s the power of community notes.”

Mr. Zuckerberg, sporting a rare Swiss watch valued at about $900,000, criticized Meta’s current moderation system as “too politically biased” while acknowledging the potential impact on catching malicious content.

Source: www.theguardian.com

Superpedestrian, a scooter startup, shuts down U.S. operations and explores selling its European operations

super pedestrian electric scooter
The startup known for its self-diagnostic software is shutting down its U.S.-based scooter-sharing business and considering selling its European operations, TechCrunch has learned exclusively.

Alexander Berg, the company’s director of U.S. operations, confirmed the news to his team on a Zoom call Friday afternoon. Berg said the reason for the closure was economic, but declined to provide further details. “Investors have also put in money to keep us going to this day,” he said on a conference call. “It’s not because I didn’t try hard enough.”

The closure comes as the startup raises equity and debt funding including investors from Jefferies, Antara Capital, Sony Innovation Fund by IGV, and FM Capital, in addition to existing backers such as Spark Capital, General Catalyst, and Citi. This comes just 18 months after the company raised $125 million in Series C funding. Via Citi Impact Fund.

However, since then, the electric scooter industry has been in a somewhat difficult situation. Bird’s valuation plummeted after its listing, and the company was forced to exit multiple markets.

Superpedestrian itself has experienced a series of layoffs, including one just months after the end of its Series C round. The latest incident happened earlier this month, according to a post on LinkedIn.

The company pulled out of Chicago in September, citing competitive difficulties, but said its scooters operate in more than 60 cities in 11 countries. A representative for the city of Waco, Texas, where Superpedestrian recently launched a scooter squad, said by phone Friday that he had no knowledge of the impending closure.

Superpedestrian used technology, specifically diagnostic and safety software, to differentiate itself from competitors like Bird and Tier. The company strengthened its technology efforts with the acquisition of Navmatic in July 2021.

Using Navmatic’s technology, we developed and deployed a so-called pedestrian protection safety system. This system is a feature designed to detect and correct unsafe riding behavior, such as riding on sidewalks, in real time. Superpedestrian had planned to build a new scooter with its own branded pedestrian protection features and roll it out to 25 cities in the U.S. and Europe in 2022. Initial rollouts were expected to begin in pedestrian-dense cities in the U.S. and U.K. by early spring, the company said.

The story is unfolding…

Source: techcrunch.com