Artificial intelligence

Meta’s Behemoth AI model faces setback

Meta Platforms has postponed the release of its flagship AI model, known as ‘Behemoth,’ due to internal concerns about its performance, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.

Instead of launching as planned, engineers are struggling to deliver improvements that would meaningfully advance the model beyond earlier versions.

Behemoth was originally scheduled for release in April to coincide with Meta’s first AI developer conference but was quietly delayed to June. The latest update suggests the launch has now been pushed to autumn or later, as internal doubts grow over whether it is ready for public deployment.

In April, Meta previewed Behemoth under the Llama 4 line, calling it ‘one of the smartest LLMs in the world’ and positioning it as a teaching model for future AI systems. Instead of Behemoth, Meta released Llama 4 Scout and Llama 4 Maverick as the latest iterations in its AI portfolio.

The delay comes amid intense competition in the generative AI space, where rivals like Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic continue advancing their models. Meta appears to be opting for caution instead of rushing an underwhelming product to market.

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CoreWeave shares rebound after $4B OpenAI partnership announcement

Shares of AI cloud infrastructure company CoreWeave recovered on Thursday, gaining around 3% after the firm announced an expanded partnership with OpenAI worth up to $4 billion.

The deal helped ease investor concerns following the company’s earlier dip in trading.

CoreWeave stock had fallen as much as 9.1% earlier in the day after the company projected annual capital expenditures for 2025 would be roughly four times higher than expected revenue.

The forecast was included in CoreWeave’s first earnings report since going public in March.

The expanded agreement with OpenAI appears to have lifted investor sentiment, offsetting concerns about the company’s aggressive spending strategy as it builds out its AI-focused cloud infrastructure.

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OpenAI launches AI safety hub

OpenAI has launched a public online hub to share internal safety evaluations of its AI models, aiming to increase transparency around harmful content, jailbreaks, and hallucination risks. The hub will be updated after major model changes, allowing the public to track progress in safety and reliability over time.

The move follows growing criticism about the company’s testing methods, especially after inappropriate ChatGPT responses surfaced in late 2023. Instead of waiting for backlash, OpenAI is now introducing an optional alpha testing phase, letting users provide feedback before wider model releases.

The hub also marks a departure from the company’s earlier stance on secrecy. In 2019, OpenAI withheld GPT-2 over misuse concerns. Since then, it has shifted towards transparency by forming safety-focused teams and responding to calls for open safety metrics.

OpenAI’s approach appears timely, as several countries are building AI Safety Institutes to evaluate models before launch. Instead of relying on private sector efforts alone, the global landscape now reflects a multi-stakeholder push to create stronger safety standards and governance for advanced AI.

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TikTok adds AI tool to animate photos with realistic effects

TikTok has launched a new feature called AI Alive, allowing users to turn still images into dynamic, short videos. Instead of needing advanced editing skills, creators can now use AI to generate movement and effects with a few taps.

By accessing the Story Camera and selecting a static photo, users can simply type how they want the image to change — such as making the subject smile, dance, or tilt forward. AI Alive then animates the photo, using creative effects to produce a more engaging story.

TikTok says its moderation systems review the original image, the AI prompt, and the final video before it’s shown to the user. A second check occurs before a post is shared publicly, and every video made with AI Alive will include an ‘AI-generated’ label and C2PA metadata to ensure transparency.

The feature stands out as one of the first built-in AI image-to-video tools on a major platform. Snapchat and Instagram already offer AI image generation from text, and Snapchat is reportedly developing a similar image-to-video feature.

Meanwhile, TikTok is also said to be working on adding support for sending photos and voice messages via direct message — something rival apps have long supported.

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Tether unveils new AI platform to challenge Big Tech

Tether challenges Big Tech’s AI control with QVAC, a platform that runs AI agents on personal devices. Unlike traditional AI using centralised data centres, QVAC runs directly on devices like smartphones and brain-computer interfaces.

The company plans to release an open-source software development kit later this year to support developers.

Named after the AI in Isaac Asimov’s 1956 story The Last Question, QVAC aims to create a decentralised AI ecosystem. Tether’s CEO Paolo Ardoino said the platform gives users control over their data and computation, not large corporations.

The system can potentially support trillions of AI agents functioning autonomously and transacting in Bitcoin and USDT.

Tether positions QVAC as a framework to break the centralised dominance of tech giants such as Google and Meta.

The release date and price are unknown, but Ardoino says QVAC aims to be an ‘infinite intelligence platform’ that runs independently, boosts privacy, and ushers in a new AI era.

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Tencent sees strong Q1 growth as gaming rebounds, AI ads boost sales

Tencent Holdings, China’s largest tech company by market capitalisation, reported a 13% year-on-year revenue increase in the first quarter of 2025, driven by strong growth in gaming and AI-powered advertising.

The company posted revenue of 180 billion yuan ($24.97 billion) for the quarter ending March 31, surpassing analysts’ expectations of 174.6 billion yuan. Net profit reached 47.8 billion yuan, slightly below the forecast of 52.2 billion yuan, according to LSEG data.

Tencent’s domestic gaming revenue surged 24% to 42.9 billion yuan, while international gaming revenue rose 23% to 16.6 billion yuan. Key titles driving the growth included Dungeon & Fighter Mobile and Delta Force.

Advertising revenue climbed 22% year on year, helped by the rollout of AI-driven ad tech upgrades, delivering more targeted and efficient marketing tools across platforms.

The company’s Fintech and Business Services division, which covers cloud services, loans, and wealth management, also grew 16% to 27.6 billion yuan.

Tencent continues to invest heavily in AI. In March, the company said it would devote a low double-digit share of its 2025 revenue to AI-related capital expenditures. That follows 39 billion yuan spent on AI in Q4 2024.

Its proprietary large language model, Hunyuan, received a public release as version T1 in March. Tencent also became the first major Chinese firm to integrate technology from DeepSeek, a fast-rising AI startup.

DeepSeek’s models now power features within Tencent’s core services, including WeChat and its AI assistant, Yuanbao.

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NatWest hit by 100 million cyber attacks every month

NatWest is defending itself against an average of 100 million cyber attacks each month, according to the bank’s head of cybersecurity.

Speaking to Holyrood’s Criminal Justice Committee, Chris Ulliott outlined the ‘staggering’ scale of digital threats targeting the bank’s systems. Around a third of all incoming emails are blocked before reaching staff, as they are suspected to be the start of an attack.

Instead of relying on basic filters, NatWest analyses every email for malicious content and has a cybersecurity team of hundreds, supported by a multi-million-pound budget.

Mr Ulliott also warned of the growing use of AI by cyber criminals to make scams more convincing—such as altering their appearance during video calls to build trust with victims.

Police Scotland reported that cybercrime has more than doubled since 2020, with incidents rising from 7,710 to 18,280 in 2024. Officials highlighted the threat posed by groups like Scattered Spider, believed to consist of young hackers sharing techniques online.

MSP Rona Mackay called the figures ‘absolutely staggering,’ while Ben Macpherson said he had even been impersonated by fraudsters.

Law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, are now working together to tackle online crime. Meanwhile, Age Scotland warned that many older people lack confidence online, making them especially vulnerable to scams that can lead to financial ruin and emotional distress.

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AI hallucination at center of Anthropic copyright lawsuit

Anthropic, the AI company behind the Claude chatbot, has been ordered by a federal judge to respond to allegations that it submitted fabricated material—possibly generated by AI—as part of its defense in an ongoing copyright lawsuit.

The lawsuit, filed in October 2023 by music publishers Universal Music Group, Concord, and ABKCO, accuses Anthropic of unlawfully using lyrics from over 500 songs to train its chatbot. The publishers argue that Claude can produce copyrighted material when prompted, such as lyrics from Don McLean’s American Pie.

During a court hearing on Tuesday in California, the publishers’ attorney claimed that an Anthropic data scientist cited a nonexistent academic article from The American Statistician journal to support the argument that Claude rarely outputs copyrighted lyrics.

One of the article’s alleged authors later confirmed the paper was a ‘complete fabrication.’ The judge is now requiring Anthropic to formally address the incident in court.

The company, founded in 2021, is backed by major investors including Amazon, Google, and Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced crypto executive convicted of fraud in 2023.

The case marks a significant test of how AI companies handle copyrighted content, and how courts respond when AI-generated material is used in legal proceedings.

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Netflix’s ad-supported tier hits 94M users with big upgrades on the way

At its May 14 Upfront presentation in New York, Netflix unveiled a major expansion of its advertising strategy, highlighting the growth of its ad-supported tier, which now reaches over 94 million monthly active users globally.

Amy Reinhard, Netflix’ president of advertising, introduced the Netflix Ads Suite, a proprietary advertising platform now live in the US and Canada, with rollout to EMEA next week and all 12 ad-supported markets by June.

‘By controlling our own ad tech, we’ll be able to deliver newer tools, better measurement, and more creative formats,’ said Reinhard.

The Ads Suite offers enhanced data integration, allowing advertisers to match their first-party data with Netflix audiences via LiveRamp or directly. Netflix also announced partnerships with Experian and Acxiom, as well as a ‘clean room’ environment for secure data collaboration.

Netflix is also launching its own first-party measurement tools, beginning with brand lift metrics that link ad exposure to shifts in consumer perception and behaviour.

Reinhard also previewed AI-driven ad formats coming in 2026, including interactive midrolls and pause screens. These new formats will allow for personalised overlays, calls to action, and second screen engagement tailored to individual viewers.

CMO Marian Lee announced new co-branded campaigns with Wendy’s, Cheetos, and Booking.com tied to the return of Wednesday, promising advertisers the same creative treatment Netflix gives its own shows.

‘It’s all about bringing stories to life in ways none of us can do on our own,’ Lee said.

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Seattle startup ElastixAI raises $16 million for AI inference tech

A stealthy new AI startup in Seattle, ElastixAI, has raised $16 million to build technology that aims to reduce the cost and complexity of running large language models.

Rather than focusing on training, the company is developing an AI inference platform to optimise how these models operate, whether on cloud servers or edge devices. The funding round is led by Bellevue-based venture capital firm FUSE, with support from several others.

ElastixAI is led by CEO Mohammad Rastegari, formerly CTO of Xnor, a startup acquired by Apple in 2020. He co-founded the company with Saman Naderiparizi, also ex-Apple and Xnor, and Mahyar Najibi, who worked at both Apple and Waymo.

The team’s background in AI hardware and software gives them a unique edge in addressing challenges at a stage where AI models generate responses from trained data.

Instead of building a one-size-fits-all solution, the startup’s platform is designed for flexibility, allowing customers to fine-tune infrastructure to specific needs. ‘We saw a gap in delivering scalable and low-cost inference,’ said Rastegari.

The company remains in stealth but says its platform could serve both hyperscalers and enterprises looking to integrate AI into everyday operations.

With other players like Nvidia and Fireworks.ai competing in the inference space, ElastixAI may even count some of them as future customers.

Rastegari and Naderiparizi are also affiliate assistant professors at the University of Washington, and their startup reflects Seattle’s growing reputation as a hub for advanced AI development — a trend Apple has helped shape with several acquisitions in the region.

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