Capacity development

Trump weighs tariff cuts to secure TikTok deal

US President Donald Trump has indicated he is willing to reduce tariffs on China as part of a deal with ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese parent company, to sell the popular short-video app.

ByteDance faces an April 5 deadline to divest TikTok’s US operations or risk a nationwide ban over national security concerns.

The law mandating the sale stems from fears in Washington that Beijing could exploit the app for influence operations and data collection on American users.

Trump suggested he may extend the deadline if negotiations require more time and acknowledged China’s role in the deal’s approval. Speaking to reporters, he hinted that tariff reductions could be used as leverage to finalise an agreement.

China’s commerce ministry responded by reaffirming its stance on trade discussions, stating that engagement with Washington should be based on mutual respect and benefit.

The White House has taken an active role in brokering a potential sale, with discussions centring on major non-Chinese investors increasing their stakes to acquire TikTok’s US operations. Vice President JD Vance has expressed confidence that a framework for the deal could be reached by the April deadline.

Free speech advocates, meanwhile, continue to challenge the law, arguing that banning TikTok could violate the First Amendment rights of American users.

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Anduril confident in Trump-era defence priorities

Anduril, the AI-powered defence start-up founded by Palmer Luckey, is optimistic about the Trump administration’s approach to defence reform.

Company president Christian Brose said the administration’s focus on innovation aligns with Anduril’s work in low-cost autonomous military systems. The firm recently partnered with OpenAI to integrate advanced artificial intelligence into national security missions.

Brose, a former adviser to Senator John McCain, has long criticised traditional defence procurement processes and believes the administration’s willingness to do things differently presents a major opportunity.

The company is expanding its global footprint, with plans to build manufacturing facilities outside the United States. Australia has emerged as a key market, with Anduril’s AI intrusion detection software being trialled at RAAF Base Darwin, where US Marines rotate annually.

The firm is also bidding to produce solid rocket motors for Australia’s Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Enterprise.

Its Ghost Shark autonomous underwater system, developed in collaboration with the Australian Defence Force, is moving towards large-scale production, with a dedicated facility planned in New South Wales.

Autonomous military technology is a growing focus under the AUKUS treaty, which will see Australia invest heavily in nuclear-powered submarines with the support from the United States and the United Kingdom.

Brose emphasised that both crewed and autonomous systems will play a role in modern defence strategies, with the advantage of autonomous platforms being their faster production, larger deployment scale, and lower cost.

Anduril’s continued expansion highlights the increasing demand for AI-driven defence solutions in a rapidly evolving global security landscape.

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OpenAI unveils new image generator in ChatGPT

OpenAI has rolled out an image generator feature within ChatGPT, enabling users to create realistic images with improved accuracy. The new feature, available for all Plus, Pro, Team, and Free users, is powered by GPT-4o, which now offers distortion-free images and more accurate text generation.

OpenAI shared a sample image of a boarding pass, showcasing the advanced capabilities of the new tool.

Previously, image generation was available through DALL-E, but its results often contained errors and were easily identifiable as AI-generated. Now integrated into ChatGPT, the new tool allows users to describe images with specific details such as colours, aspect ratios, and transparent backgrounds.

The update aims to enhance creative freedom while maintaining a higher standard of image quality.

CEO Sam Altman praised the feature as a ‘new high-water mark’ for creative control, although he acknowledged the potential for some users to create offensive content.

OpenAI plans to monitor how users interact with this tool and adjust as needed, especially as the technology moves closer to artificial general intelligence (AGI).

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Google launches advanced Gemini 2.5 AI

Google has unveiled its new Gemini 2.5 AI models, starting with the experimental Gemini 2.5 Pro version.

Described as ‘thinking models’, these AI systems are designed to demonstrate advanced reasoning abilities, including the capacity to analyse information, make logical conclusions, and handle complex problems with context and nuance.

The models aim to support more intelligent, context-aware AI agents in the future.

The Gemini 2.5 models improve on the Gemini 2.0 Flash Thinking model released in December, offering an enhanced base model and better post-training capabilities.

The Gemini 2.5 Pro model, which has already been rolled out for Gemini Advanced subscribers and is available in Google AI Studio, stands out for its strong reasoning and coding skills. It excels in maths and science benchmarks and can generate fully functional video games from simple prompts.

It is also expected to handle sophisticated tasks, from coding web apps to transforming and editing code. Google’s future plans involve incorporating these ‘thinking’ capabilities into all of its AI models, aiming to enhance their ability to tackle more complex challenges in various fields.

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Former Cruise CEO Vogt’s Bot Company secures $150 million

Kyle Vogt’s new robotics startup, The Bot Company, has raised $150 million in a funding round led by Greenoaks, according to Reuters. Vogt, co-founder and former CEO of Cruise launched the company with Paril Jain, ex-Tesla AI tech leader, and former Cruise software engineer Luke Holoubek.

The startup, which aims to produce robots for household chores, raised its initial $150 million in May from notable investors including former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman and Stripe executives Patrick and John Collison.

The latest funding round comes less than a year after Vogt founded The Bot Company, following his resignation as CEO of Cruise in October. Vogt left Cruise after an incident in which one of its autonomous vehicles hit a pedestrian.

The Bot Company’s focus on robotics for everyday tasks signals Vogt’s continued drive to innovate in the tech space following his departure from Cruise.

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India’s Gen AI market to drive data centre growth

India’s Generative AI sector is poised for rapid growth over the next five years, driving an increased demand for data centres, according to a report by ANAROCK.

The market size of Gen AI in India is projected to rise from USD 1.1 billion in 2025 to USD 6.4 billion by 2030, expanding at a compound annual growth rate of 42 per cent.

The surge will require advanced infrastructure, with data centres playing a key role in managing computing power, storage, and data processing needs.

As AI-driven applications become more sophisticated, data centre operators are adapting their strategies to accommodate rising infrastructure demands.

The push for real-time AI applications will also drive the need for edge data centres, particularly in Tier-II cities like Jaipur, Ahmedabad, and Visakhapatnam, bringing computing closer to users and improving efficiency.

With the expansion of India’s data centre industry, there is a growing focus on sustainability and energy efficiency. Operators are increasingly relying on renewable energy sources and adopting energy-efficient solutions to meet rising power demands while aligning with India’s sustainability goals.

Over the past decade, the sector has attracted over USD 6.5 billion in investments, benefiting from infrastructure status that facilitates easier project financing.

With continued interest from global investors, India’s data centre industry is set for exponential growth, playing a crucial role in the country’s digital transformation.

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AMD vs Intel in the CPU market battle

The competition between AMD and Intel remains intense, despite Intel’s larger market share. In recent years, AMD has emerged as the preferred choice for gamers, often topping sales charts, including Amazon’s CPU best-sellers list.

Just yesterday, AMD dominated the top 15 spots instead of Intel. Surprisingly, the top processor was AMD’s Ryzen 7 9800X3D, a high-end gaming chip, priced at $480, despite its occasional stock shortages.

The top 15 list featured a mix of older and newer AMD processors, such as the Ryzen 5 5500 and Ryzen 5 5600X, indicating that AMD has successfully kept older hardware relevant and in demand.

However, today’s best-seller list paints a slightly different picture, as Intel has managed to secure several spots, with older models like the Alder Lake chips offering more affordable alternatives to current AMD processors.

Interestingly, Intel’s latest Arrow Lake processors did not make it to the top 50 best-sellers on Amazon. This suggests that many customers prefer the more affordable Intel options or turn to AMD, which has shifted the market dynamics significantly in recent years.

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Ampere Computing joins SoftBank in AI-focused expansion

SoftBank has announced a $6.5 billion acquisition of US chip startup Ampere Computing, marking a major step in its investment in AI infrastructure.

The deal, paid entirely in cash, reflects founder Masayoshi Son’s growing focus on AI as a transformative technology. Ampere produces data centre CPUs based on an architecture from SoftBank’s majority-owned Arm Holdings, with customers including Oracle.

The acquisition follows a series of multi-billion-dollar AI investments by SoftBank, including funding for OpenAI, the Stargate AI data centre project, and Cristal, an AI services joint venture in Japan.

Ampere, founded in 2018 by former Intel president Renee James, developed its own custom CPU cores—an approach typically seen in larger firms like Apple and Qualcomm.

Under SoftBank’s ownership, the company will operate alongside Arm, strengthening SoftBank’s growing collection of AI-focused chip technology firms.

Masayoshi Son described the move as part of his vision for ‘artificial super intelligence,’ highlighting the need for advanced computing power.

While SoftBank has seen mixed results in past investments, such as its troubled backing of WeWork, the company continues to place high-stakes bets on emerging technologies.

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Data centre surge exposes vulnerabilities in the US grid

A recent incident in Data Center Alley, a region outside Washington DC housing over 200 data centres, exposed a new vulnerability in the US power grid.

Last summer, 60 data centres unexpectedly disconnected from the grid and switched to on-site generators, causing a surge in excess electricity. However, this triggered the need for grid operators to scale back power output to avoid cascading outages.

The disconnection event, caused by a failed surge protector, forced regulators to address the growing risk of power imbalances due to the rapid expansion of data centres, especially those involved in AI and crypto mining.

As these centres consume increasing amounts of energy, grid operators face new challenges in maintaining stability.

Federal regulators like the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) are now studying the impact of such events and the risks posed by unannounced data centre disconnections.

The power consumption of data centres has tripled over the last decade and is projected to continue rising, prompting calls for updated reliability standards.

Industry stakeholders, including major tech companies, have expressed concerns about the potential costs and risks of requiring data centres to remain connected during voltage fluctuations.

With the growing presence of large data users, grid operators face a tough balancing act to ensure power stability while accommodating the demands of the data centre industry.

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Microsoft invests $2.2 billion in Malaysian cloud expansion

Microsoft is set to launch its first cloud region in Malaysia, featuring three data centres in the greater Kuala Lumpur area.

The centres, known as Malaysia West, will begin operations by mid-year, marking a significant step in the company’s $2.2 billion investment in the country.

However, this move is part of Microsoft’s broader plan to expand its cloud and AI services in Southeast Asia. Microsoft estimates the investment will generate $10.9 billion in revenue and create over 37,000 jobs in Malaysia over the next four years.

Laurence Si, managing director of Microsoft Malaysia, stated that the company’s operations in Malaysia remain on track despite concerns over US export controls on semiconductor chips.

Microsoft remains confident in its relationships with stakeholders and its ability to meet its investment commitments.

Local businesses are expected to benefit from enhanced cloud and AI capabilities, with the country aiming to become a leading hub for technological innovation in the region.

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