Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang announced that a design flaw impacting the company’s Blackwell AI chips has been resolved with assistance from TSMC, its long-term Taiwanese manufacturing partner. The production glitch had delayed chip shipments, initially set for the second quarter, affecting clients such as Google, Microsoft, and Meta.
Huang acknowledged Nvidia was solely responsible for the flaw, which had reduced production yields. He dismissed reports of tensions with TSMC, crediting the manufacturer for helping restore manufacturing efficiency. The chips, which involve the integration of seven different components, are now expected to ship in the fourth quarter.
Blackwell chips, Nvidia’s latest innovation, feature two silicon squares fused into a single unit, delivering speeds 30 times faster than previous models. They are designed for advanced tasks, including AI-driven responses from chatbots. Shares in Nvidia fell by 2% in early trading following news of the delay.
Huang made the announcement during a visit to Denmark, where he introduced Gefion, a new supercomputer featuring 1,528 GPUs. Built in partnership with the Novo Nordisk Foundation and Denmark’s Export and Investment Fund, Gefion is expected to enhance high-performance computing in the region.
OpenAI’s latest AI model, code-named Orion, is reportedly set to debut by December, with limited access initially granted to a few corporate partners, according to sources. Unlike previous releases available broadly on ChatGPT, Orion will first be shared with select companies, including key partner Microsoft. Engineers at Microsoft are preparing to deploy Orion on Azure by November, suggesting early access could be imminent.
Although Orion is seen as the successor to GPT-4, OpenAI has yet to confirm if the model will officially carry the GPT-5 designation. Publicly, OpenAI has downplayed the reports, with CEO Sam Altman dismissing them as “fake news.” An OpenAI spokesperson later clarified that the company has “no plans to release a model code-named Orion this year,” but they confirmed a commitment to releasing new technology.
Sources indicate that Orion could be up to 100 times more powerful than GPT-4 and separate from OpenAI’s o1 reasoning model, launched in September. Orion’s development has likely involved synthetic data generated by o1, referred to internally as “Strawberry.” OpenAI celebrated completing Orion’s training last month, which coincides with a cryptic post by Altman hinting at the model’s arrival, mentioning his excitement for “winter constellations.”
Orion is expected to advance OpenAI’s goal of creating a model capable of artificial general intelligence (AGI), a significant leap from current large language models. The prospect of Orion has drawn speculation, both for its potential capabilities and its selective release strategy, signalling OpenAI’s commitment to carefully refining its technology for high-level applications.
Presight and Colombia’s Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation have forged a significant partnership by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Abu Dhabi. The collaboration primarily focuses on advancing research and development in AI, data analytics, and innovation, particularly within emerging smart cities, energy transition, and climate action technologies.
To foster interaction among institutions in both regions, the partnership plans to organise seminars and conferences and establish mechanisms for technology transfer, thereby accelerating the adoption of AI and big data in Colombia. Consequently, this strategic alliance aligns with Colombia’s ambitions to enhance operational efficiency in smart cities while advancing its bioeconomy goals.
Furthermore, it represents a key step in Presight’s international expansion, reflecting Colombia’s desire to become a significant player in Latin America’s tech landscape. Leaders from both organisations have expressed their enthusiasm for this partnership.
It has been described as a milestone for advancing research and innovation in Colombia and the broader Latin American region. Additionally, the importance of the MoU in strengthening ties with the UAE has been emphasised, along with a commitment to ethical and sustainable AI initiatives. Together, Presight and Colombia aim to harness the potential of AI and big data to address pressing global challenges, thereby positioning themselves as leaders in innovation and technology in their respective regions.
The outcome of the US presidential election will not change the course of the tech conflict with China. Both Republican Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are expected to intensify measures aimed at limiting China’s access to American technology and resources, although their strategies will differ.
Harris is likely to adopt a focused, multilateral approach, building on Biden’s tactics by working with allies to curb the flow of advanced technology to China. In contrast, Trump’s strategy could include sweeping measures, such as expanding tariffs and aggressively enforcing export controls, possibly escalating tensions with allies who resist the US lead.
Both candidates aim to curb China’s technological advancement and its military capabilities. Harris has pledged to ensure the US remains at the forefront of the global technology race, while Trump continues to advocate for higher tariffs and tough restrictions, including denying China access to essential components like AI chips.
China has already responded to recent US actions by imposing restrictions on exports of critical materials, such as graphite and rare earths. Experts warn that the US should exercise caution, as some industries remain reliant on Chinese resources. The tech war will likely see new fronts, including connected devices, as the conflict deepens under the next administration.
Google has released SynthID Text, a watermarking tool designed to help developers identify AI-generated content. Available for free on platforms like Hugging Face and Google’s Responsible GenAI Toolkit, this open-source technology aims to improve transparency around AI-written text. It works by embedding subtle patterns into the token distribution of text generated by AI models without affecting the quality or speed of the output.
SynthID Text has been integrated with Google’s Gemini models since earlier this year. While it can detect text that has been paraphrased or modified, the tool does have limitations, particularly with shorter text, factual responses, and content translated from other languages. Google acknowledges that its watermarking technique may struggle with these formats but emphasises the tool’s overall benefits.
As the demand for AI-generated content grows, so does the need for reliable detection methods. Countries like China are already mandating watermarking of AI-produced material, and similar regulations are being considered in US, California. The urgency is clear, with predictions that AI-generated content could dominate 90% of online text by 2026, creating new challenges in combating misinformation and fraud.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has notified the US government about a potential breach of export controls involving Huawei. TSMC suspects that the Chinese tech company may be attempting to work around US restrictions that ban the chipmaker from producing advanced AI chips for Huawei, a target of American trade curbs since 2020.
The US imposed these controls to limit China’s access to high-end semiconductors, crucial for developing military technologies. While TSMC claims it hasn’t supplied Huawei since mid-2020, a recent customer order for a chip similar to Huawei’s Ascend 910B has raised concerns. The AI chip in question is designed for training large language models, a key area of competition in the tech rivalry between Washington and Beijing.
TSMC promptly reported the situation to the US Commerce Department, although no investigation has been launched against the company. The US and Huawei have yet to comment on the matter.
A Londoner who had his phone stolen while walking near the Science Museum believes Google’s new AI security update would have made a big difference. Tyler, whose phone was snatched by a thief on a bike, struggled to lock it remotely as he couldn’t remember his password. The update, which uses AI and sensors to detect when a phone is stolen, would automatically lock the screen to prevent thieves from accessing data.
Google’s new feature allows users to remotely lock a stolen device using just their phone number, a measure welcomed by Tyler as he believes it would have helped him secure his device in moments of panic. The initiative is part of a broader effort to combat phone theft, with mobile phones now accounting for 69% of all thefts in London. Last year, over 11,800 robberies involved phone thefts.
Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, also supports the update, having previously lobbied phone companies to make their devices less attractive to criminals. Tech experts say the update’s AI-driven security, combined with the Offline Device Lock feature, will make it harder for thieves to access stolen phones.
Tyler hopes the new technology will deter criminals from stealing phones altogether, as the devices would become worthless once locked. Without resale value, he believes phone thefts will be a waste of time for criminals.
Portuguese startup Sensei, specialising in contactless store technology, has secured €15 million in a Series A funding round led by BlueCrow Capital. The investment also saw participation from Lince Capital, Explorer Investments, Kamay Ventures, and existing backers like Metro AG and Techstars Ventures. This follows Sensei’s 2021 seed round of €5.4 million.
Sensei aims to establish 1,000 fully autonomous retail points by 2026, with current operations in Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, and Brazil. The company uses AI-powered sensors and computer vision to automate checkout, offering customers a seamless shopping experience and real-time store management for retailers.
As competition heats up in the contactless retail space, Sensei is up against major players like Standard Cognition, Trigo, and AiFi, which have raised substantial funds to develop similar technology.
AI tools were introduced at Everest PR to streamline tasks, but the results were not as expected. Founder Anurag Garg noticed that instead of boosting efficiency, the technology created additional stress. His team reported that using AI tools like ChatGPT was time-consuming and added new complexities, leading to frustration and burnout.
Garg’s team struggled to keep up with frequent software updates and found that managing multiple AI platforms made their work harder. This sentiment is echoed in surveys showing many workers feel AI tools increase their workloads rather than reduce them. A study revealed that 61% believe AI will increase their chances of burnout, with the figure rising to 87% among younger workers.
Even legal professionals are feeling overwhelmed by AI’s impact on their workloads. Leah Steele, a coach for lawyers, explained that tech-driven environments often lead to reduced job satisfaction and fear of redundancy. The Law Society also highlights the challenges of implementing AI, emphasising that learning new tools requires time and effort, which can add pressure rather than alleviate it.
While some argue that AI can empower small firms by enhancing productivity, others stress the need for proper usage to prevent overwhelm. Garg has now reduced his team’s reliance on AI, finding that a more selective approach has improved employee well-being and reconnected them with their work.
Zoom has announced a partnership with Suki, a leading AI medical scribe provider, to offer doctors on its platform an AI-powered tool that automates note-taking during telehealth visits. With Zoom accounting for over a third of telehealth appointments in the US, this move aims to help clinicians reduce time spent on paperwork, improving efficiency during virtual consultations.
The partnership marks Zoom’s shift from solely being a video-conferencing company to integrating AI tools designed for workplace efficiency, a vision supported by its CEO, Eric Yuan. Suki was selected after Zoom evaluated other AI medical scribe startups, further boosting Suki’s presence after raising $70M in funding earlier this month.
This development highlights a broader trend in healthcare, with companies like Amazon’s One Medical and Microsoft’s Nuance also leveraging AI for medical note-taking, helping providers manage documentation more effectively. Despite growing competition, investors believe there is still room for specialised AI solutions in both large healthcare systems and smaller medical practices.
