At the Industrial AI Expo in Seoul, Nvidia, Microsoft, and other global tech leaders are showcasing their latest AI technologies.
The three-day exhibition opened on Wednesday at COEX under the theme of integrating AI with industries.
On the sidelines, the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards signed an agreement with 10 significant industry associations to pool high-quality data for AI applications.
Officials say this collaboration will support innovation in the manufacturing supply chain.
The government emphasised its commitment to expanding AI-driven factories and physical AI systems to boost industrial competitiveness. Officials stressed that closer cooperation with the private sector will be essential to achieving these goals.
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Amazon has introduced Lens Live, an AI-powered feature that lets shoppers identify and buy products by pointing their phone camera at real-world items.
The tool builds on Amazon Lens by adding a live, real-time element to product discovery.
Lens Live is integrated with Amazon’s AI assistant Rufus, which provides AI-generated product summaries, suggested questions and insights to help users make informed decisions.
It is powered by Amazon SageMaker and AWS-managed OpenSearch, enabling machine learning at scale.
The feature has launched on the Amazon Shopping app for iOS, initially available to tens of millions of US shoppers, with no word yet on an international rollout.
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Apple is confronting a significant exodus of AI talent, with key researchers departing for rival firms instead of advancing projects in-house.
The company lost its lead robotics researcher, Jian Zhang, to Meta’s Robotics Studio, alongside several core Foundation Models team members responsible for the Apple Intelligence platform. The brain drain has triggered internal concerns about Apple’s strategic direction and declining staff morale.
Instead of relying entirely on its own systems, Apple is reportedly considering a shift towards using external AI models. The departures include experts like Ruoming Pang, who accepted a multi-year package from Meta reportedly worth $200 million.
Other AI researchers are set to join leading firms like OpenAI and Anthropic, highlighting a fierce industry-wide battle for specialised expertise.
At the centre of the talent war is Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, offering lucrative packages worth up to $100 million to secure leading researchers for Meta’s ambitious AI and robotics initiatives.
The aggressive recruitment strategy is strengthening Meta’s capabilities while simultaneously weakening the internal development efforts of competitors like Apple.
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Taiwan’s new Digital Minister Lin Yi-ching has unveiled his policy agenda, putting AI development, cybersecurity and anti-fraud at the forefront.
He pledged to build on the work of his predecessor while accelerating digital government projects.
Lin said the government will support the AI industry through five key tools: computing power, data, talent, marketing and funding.
Taiwan startups will gain free GPU access, revised regulations will release non-sensitive public data, and a sovereign AI corpus will be developed.
Cybersecurity and fraud prevention are also central. Measures include DNS blocking, government SMS codes, and partnerships with platforms like Google and Line to curb scams. Lin reaffirmed the government’s commitment to the digital certificate wallet.
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Statsig, founded in 2021, provides tools for developers to test and manage new features. Upon completion of the deal, Statsig’s founder and CEO, Vijaye Raji, will join OpenAI as the new chief technology officer (CTO) for applications.
Raji will report to OpenAI Applications CEO Fidji Simo and lead product engineering for key products such as ChatGPT.
The acquisition is part of a broader trend of significant deals for the AI company this year, which recently concluded a £6.5 billion all-stock acquisition of an AI device startup. OpenAI’s expanding valuation, which reached £300 billion following a March funding round, has supported this growth.
The company is reportedly discussing a further share sale that could increase its valuation to £500 billion. The completion of the Statsig deal is subject to regulatory approval, after which the company will continue to operate independently from its Seattle office, with its employees joining the OpenAI team.
Other leadership changes at OpenAI include the appointment of Srinivas Narayanan as CTO for B2B applications and Kevin Weil’s move to a new team focused on AI for Science.
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The company stated there is currently ‘no evidence’ that any customer data has been compromised and assured it is working at pace to restore systems in a controlled manner.
The incident disrupted output at key UK plants, including Halewood and Solihull, led to operational bottlenecks such as halted vehicle registrations, and impacted a peak retail period following the release of ’75’ number plates.
A Telegram group named Scattered Lapsus$ Hunters, a conflation of known hacking collectives, claimed responsibility, posting what appeared to be internal logs. Cybersecurity experts caution that such claims should be viewed sceptically, as attribution via Telegram may be misleading.
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Google may roll out a Play Games update on 23 September adding public profiles, stat tracking, and community features. Reports suggest users may customise profiles, follow others, and import gaming history, while Google could collect gameplay and developer data.
The update is said to track installed games, session lengths, and in-game achievements, with some participating developers potentially accessing additional data. Players can reportedly manage visibility settings, delete profiles, or keep accounts private, with default settings applied unless changed.
The EU and UK are expected to receive the update on 1 October.
Privacy concerns have been highlighted in Europe. Austrian group NOYB filed a complaint against Ubisoft over alleged excessive data collection in games like Far Cry Primal, suggesting that session tracking and frequent online connections may conflict with GDPR.
Ubisoft could face fines of up to four percent of global turnover, based on last year’s revenues.
Observers suggest the update reflects a social and data-driven gaming trend, though European players may seek more explicit consent and transparency.
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Bank of China’s Hong Kong-listed shares jumped 6.7% on Monday after reports that the bank’s local branch is preparing to apply for a stablecoin issuer licence. The Hong Kong Economic Journal said the branch has already formed a task force to explore potential issuance.
The move comes after Hong Kong launched its stablecoin licensing regime on 1 August, requiring approval from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. The framework sets strict rules on reserves, redemptions, fund segregation, anti-money laundering, disclosure and operator checks.
The regime has already drawn interest from major institutions such as Standard Chartered.
Chinese firms JD.com and Ant Financial have also expressed plans to seek licences abroad, potentially in Hong Kong, to support cross-border payments.
Advocates highlight the efficiency of stablecoins, noting that blockchain technology reduces settlement times and cuts intermediary costs. The benefits are particularly pronounced in emerging markets, where stablecoins hedge against currency volatility.
Regulators, however, have urged caution. The SFC and HKMA warned investors about speculation-driven price swings from licensing rumours, highlighting risks of reacting to unverified reports.
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The central bank highlighted the lack of a global regulatory framework and unified classification for virtual assets. Including crypto, which could violate IMF rules and impede Ukraine’s EU integration.
The European Central Bank considers it unacceptable for member states to include crypto in their reserves.
A draft law filed with parliament earlier this year would have allowed the NBU to acquire cryptocurrencies if desired. However, lawmakers and central bank officials have expressed caution, citing the high volatility of digital assets and potential risks to national financial stability.
Ukraine has seen rising crypto use since Russia’s 2022 invasion. According to a recent UK think tank report, a lack of comprehensive regulation has led to significant losses from crypto-related crime.
Authorities are continuing to prioritise security and financial prudence over speculative digital holdings.
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The regulatory approaches to AI in the EU and Australia are diverging significantly, creating a complex challenge for the global tech sector.
Instead of a unified global standard, companies must now navigate the EU’s stringent, risk-based AI Act and Australia’s more tentative, phased-in approach. The disparity underscores the necessity for sophisticated cross-border legal expertise to ensure compliance in different markets.
In the EU, the landmark AI Act is now in force, implementing a strict risk-based framework with severe financial penalties for non-compliance.
Conversely, Australia has yet to pass binding AI-specific laws, opting instead for a proposal paper outlining voluntary safety standards and 10 mandatory guardrails for high-risk applications currently under consultation.
It creates a markedly different compliance environment for businesses operating in both regions.
For tech companies, the evolving patchwork of international regulations turns AI governance into a strategic differentiator instead of a mere compliance obligation.
Understanding jurisdictional differences, particularly in areas like data governance, human oversight, and transparency, is becoming essential for successful and lawful global operations.
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