Industry Trend AI News & Updates

Altman Admits OpenAI Falling Behind, Considers Open-Sourcing Older Models

In a Reddit AMA, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman acknowledged that Chinese competitor DeepSeek has reduced OpenAI's lead in AI and admitted that OpenAI has been "on the wrong side of history" regarding open source. Altman suggested the company might reconsider its closed source strategy, potentially releasing older models, while also revealing his growing belief that AI recursive self-improvement could lead to a "fast takeoff" scenario.

VC Midha: DeepSeek's Efficiency Won't Slow AI's GPU Demand

Andreessen Horowitz partner and Mistral board member Anjney Midha believes that despite DeepSeek's impressive R1 model demonstrating efficiency gains, AI companies will continue investing heavily in GPU infrastructure. He argues that efficiency breakthroughs will allow companies to produce more output from the same compute rather than reducing overall compute demand.

DeepSeek's Reasoning Model Disrupts AI Industry and Raises International Concerns

DeepSeek's release of its R1 reasoning model has created significant industry disruption, displacing ChatGPT as the App Store's top app and prompting reactions from both tech giants and the U.S. government. The Chinese AI lab claims to have built its models more efficiently and at lower cost than competitors, though some remain skeptical of these claims.

Apple CEO Praises DeepSeek's Efficiency While Addressing AI Strategy

Apple CEO Tim Cook described DeepSeek's AI models as representing "innovation that drives efficiency" during an earnings call, while explaining Apple's hybrid approach to AI that combines on-device processing with cloud partnerships. He also noted that iPhone sales were stronger in regions where Apple Intelligence had been rolled out, despite overall slight sales decline.

OpenAI in Talks for $40 Billion Funding at $340 Billion Valuation

OpenAI is reportedly negotiating a massive funding round of up to $40 billion that would value the company at $340 billion, with SoftBank potentially leading the investment with $15-25 billion. The capital would help fund OpenAI's money-losing operations, which reportedly lost $5 billion against $3.7 billion in revenue in 2024, and support its ambitious Stargate data center project.

SoftBank Negotiating $25 Billion OpenAI Investment Amid Industry Competition

SoftBank is reportedly in talks to invest up to $25 billion directly in OpenAI, potentially becoming the company's largest single investor, surpassing Microsoft. This investment would be in addition to SoftBank's $15 billion commitment to Stargate, a massive data center project for OpenAI, with the total AI initiative potentially exceeding $40 billion.

Zuckerberg Pledges Hundreds of Billions for AI Despite DeepSeek Efficiency Claims

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has committed to spending "hundreds of billions of dollars" on AI development long-term, with over $60 billion allocated for 2025 capital expenditures alone. Despite market panic over DeepSeek's efficient models potentially reducing GPU demand, Zuckerberg maintained that massive AI infrastructure investments remain a strategic advantage for Meta as it aims to make its upcoming Llama 4 model the world's leading AI system.

SoftBank Negotiating $500M Investment in Robotics Foundation Model Developer Skild AI

SoftBank is reportedly negotiating a $500 million investment in Skild AI, a robotics software company building a foundational model for various types of robots, at a $4 billion valuation. The two-year-old company previously raised $300 million at a $1.5 billion valuation, with investors including Jeff Bezos, and represents part of a broader surge in funding for AI-powered robotics companies.

Former Google CEO Warns DeepSeek Represents AI Race Turning Point, Calls for US Action

Eric Schmidt, former Google CEO, has published an op-ed calling DeepSeek's rise a "turning point" in the global AI race that demonstrates China's ability to compete with fewer resources. Schmidt urges the United States to develop more open-source models, invest in AI infrastructure, and encourage leading labs to share training methodologies to maintain technological advantage.

DeepSeek's Efficient R1 Model Causes Nvidia Stock Plunge

Chinese AI startup DeepSeek released its R1 model which demonstrates impressive functionality using fewer resources than comparable US models. This development caused Nvidia's stock to plummet 16.9%, wiping nearly $600 billion from its market cap, as it suggests advanced AI models may not require expensive, high-end chips.