Numeric, an AI-driven accounting software company co-founded by Parker Gilbert in 2020, is gaining traction for automating the tedious and error-prone process of month-end and quarter-end financial closings. Frustrated with manual accounting work at a startup, Gilbert developed the software to streamline and accelerate the process by using AI to analyse and reconcile data from various accounting systems. Companies like Brex, OpenAI, and Plaid now rely on Numeric for their accounting needs.
In the past year, Numeric’s revenue has grown fourfold, reaching single-digit millions. This growth has attracted significant investor attention, leading to a $28 million Series A funding round led by Menlo Ventures, just five months after raising $10 million in seed funding. The round also saw participation from new investors like IVP and Socii, alongside previous backers such as Founders Fund and Long Journey.
Numeric’s software uses AI to perform flux analysis, identifying changes in financial line items and explaining discrepancies, which saves accountants time and improves accuracy. Although AI currently supports analysis and commentary rather than final calculations, Gilbert expects future versions of the software to expand these capabilities. Menlo Ventures’ Croom Beatty, who led the Series A round, highlighted Numeric’s ability to address complex accounting workflows, setting it apart in a market dominated by established players like BlackLine and FloQast.
The US government has launched the National Spectrum Research and Development Plan, aiming to boost America’s leadership in wireless spectrum innovation. Developed by the Wireless Spectrum R&D Interagency Working Group, the plan was initiated under the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, with significant contributions from the US National Science Foundation (NSF). The plan outlines strategies to address the rising demand for wireless spectrum, which is critical for national security, economic growth, and technological advancement.
The plan builds on President Joe Biden’s call for a coordinated national strategy to modernise spectrum policy. Key research areas include agile antennas, spectrum sharing, and interference resilience, with contributions from various federal agencies such as the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy, and the Federal Communications Commission. The NSF’s involvement highlights the plan’s focus on fostering interdisciplinary research and cross-sector innovation.
By providing a roadmap for future spectrum technologies, the National Spectrum R&D Plan opens new commercialization opportunities and encourages international cooperation, ensuring the US remains competitive in the global spectrum landscape.
Siemens is relying on its digital platform, Xcelerator, to drive future growth, especially in its factory automation business, which has faced slowing demand in China and Europe. Despite lowering its full-year sales forecast, Siemens reported an 82% jump in industrial software sales for the three months ending in June, mainly due to Xcelerator’s offerings, according to Peter Koerte, the company’s chief technology and strategy officer.
Xcelerator, launched in 2022, is a cloud-based platform that delivers hardware and digital services to a global customer base, boasting over a million monthly users. Siemens’ divisions, including mobility, smart infrastructure, and digital industries, leverage its offerings to enhance its operations. The platform collaborates with 400 partner companies, providing more than 900 solutions worldwide. However, Siemens has not disclosed specific financial figures for Xcelerator.
Xcelerator has achieved significant success in key markets, including China, India, Germany, and the US. Its advanced capabilities have enabled Siemens to secure major contracts, such as an order for 90 regional trains from Deutsche Bahn in August. By analysing data from these trains, Xcelerator enhances maintenance practices, boosts energy efficiency, and improves punctuality, showcasing its effectiveness in integrating digital and physical services to address customer needs.
Bosch is teaming up with US chip startup Tenstorrent to establish a standard platform for automotive chip development. The collaboration focuses on standardising the use of chiplets, which are essential components of modern chips, to create versatile systems tailored for various automotive needs. David Bennett, Tenstorrent’s chief customer officer, emphasised that this initiative aims to redefine how automakers approach silicon procurement and production.
By integrating diverse types and quantities of chiplets into complete processors, both companies seek to enhance cost efficiency and accelerate the introduction of new silicon products in the automotive sector. The rapid rise of electric vehicles has turned cars into complex computer systems powered by batteries, prompting a need for innovative chip solutions.
As the industry adapts to the complexities of electrification and automated driving, vehicle manufacturers are exploring new pathways to either build or acquire the necessary chips. Standardising the technical requirements of chiplet building blocks could lead to reduced costs, according to Bennett, enabling a more efficient and customisable approach to automotive design.
Although specific products or sales to automakers have not yet been established, the collaboration aims to produce a standard chiplet design. Such designs would allow automakers to customise their vehicles while saving costs compared to off-the-shelf components. Tenstorrent’s CEO, Jim Keller, previously led chip design efforts at Tesla, further strengthening the expertise behind this innovative partnership.
Industry ministers from the G7 advanced democracies have agreed that non-market practices in the semiconductor industry pose an urgent challenge that requires collective action. This consensus was announced by the Italian presidency and is a response to growing concerns about China’s influence in the sector. During the G7 summit in June, leaders had previously pledged to address what they called unfair business practices by China, particularly as the country aggressively advances its semiconductor manufacturing capabilities.
The majority of global semiconductor production takes place in South Korea and Taiwan, with Taiwan’s closeness to mainland China heightening concerns about potential military conflicts that could disrupt global supply chains. Due to Taiwan’s leadership in advanced chip manufacturing, major economies such as the US and European nations have enacted legislation to enhance domestic semiconductor production. Initiatives like the US CHIPS Act and corresponding European measures have allocated substantial funding to incentivise companies to set up chip production facilities within their countries.
Alongside semiconductor issues, the newly established G7 task force will also focus on undersea cable connectivity, which has grown increasingly critical. Recent outages in major undersea cables have underscored the necessity for a stable and secure global internet infrastructure. This expansion of the G7’s agenda aims to address broader technological stability, moving beyond semiconductor concerns to encompass essential aspects of digital connectivity.
Stripe has announced a new collaboration with Nvidia to enhance its AI offerings and improve fraud detection. The deeper partnership will see Stripe integrating Nvidia’s advanced AI technology, enabling global developers and enterprises to access GPUs and AI software through Stripe’s payment platform.
This collaboration highlights Stripe’s focus on leveraging Nvidia’s capabilities to support AI products. Stripe has introduced new features, including usage-based billing and enhanced global payment methods, to accommodate AI products that are international from the start.
Patrick Collison, Stripe’s co-founder, praised Nvidia’s role in advancing AI technology, while Nvidia’s CEO, Jensen Huang, recognised Stripe’s leadership in enabling businesses to use AI to fuel growth. The partnership comes as Stripe continues to integrate AI into services like Stripe Radar, which recently received AI-driven upgrades to boost fraud prevention.
Stripe, valued at $70bn as of July, has consistently relied on Nvidia’s computing platform to train its machine learning models. This expanded partnership is expected to drive further growth and innovation in AI technology.
The US Department of Justice has proposed remedies to dismantle Google‘s dominance in the search market, which analysts warn could undermine the company’s primary profit source and hinder its advancements in AI. The DOJ may seek to compel Google to divest parts of its business, including the Chrome browser and Android operating system, while also considering measures such as barring the collection of sensitive user data, requiring transparency in search results, and allowing websites to opt out of their content being used for AI training.
The proposed changes have already affected Alphabet’s stock, which fell by 1.5% after the announcement. Analysts indicate that if these remedies are put into action, they could diminish Google’s revenue while providing more opportunities for competitors like DuckDuckGo and Microsoft Bing, as well as AI companies such as Meta and Amazon. With Google’s share of the US search ad market expected to fall below 50% for the first time in over a decade by 2025, these remedies are viewed as essential for creating a more competitive landscape.
Despite the ambitious nature of the DOJ’s proposals, some experts are sceptical about their feasibility. Adam Kovacevich from the Chamber of Progress argues that these remedies could encounter legal challenges and may not withstand the appeals process. While investors appear doubtful that a forced breakup of Google will take place, the situation highlights the increasing scrutiny and pressure on the tech giant within a rapidly changing competitive landscape.
Meta has announced the expansion of its AI chatbot to 21 new markets, including the UK and Brazil, as it intensifies competition with ChatGPT. The chatbot is now available to millions of users, offering support in several additional languages. The expansion reflects the ongoing race among technology companies to capture global interest in AI tools.
The AI chatbot already boasts almost 500 million monthly active users and is expected to be accessible in 43 countries by the end of the year. Its broadening reach includes more languages, with Meta aiming for it to become the leading AI assistant by the end of 2024.
While Meta’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, revealed new character voices for the chatbot at the company’s Connect event, these will be rolled out at a later stage. Meta clarified that the new voices are part of a separate timeline, indicating a phased approach to the overall AI development.
In addition, Meta AI will soon be available through Ray-Ban Meta glasses in the UK and Australia, marking another innovative feature as the company seeks to integrate its technology into daily life.
On September 21, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh signed Decision No. 1018/QD-TTg, establishing Vietnam‘s strategy and vision for developing its semiconductor industry. This strategic plan outlines both short-term objectives until 2030 and long-term projections extending to 2050, emphasising five key tasks – developing specialised chips, promoting the electronics industry, enhancing human resources and attracting talent, drawing investment into the semiconductor sector, and implementing additional relevant measures.
The strategy includes a three-phase roadmap. In Phase 1 (2024-2030), Vietnam aims to leverage its geographical advantages and existing semiconductor talent to attract foreign direct investment (FDI). The goals are to establish at least 100 design companies, one small semiconductor chip manufacturing plant, and 10 packaging and testing facilities, with the semiconductor industry projected to generate over USD 25 billion in revenue annually. The workforce is expected to exceed 50,000 engineers and university graduates.
During Phase 2 (2030-2040), Vietnam intends to strengthen its position as a global center for semiconductors, targeting 200 design companies, two chip manufacturing plants, and 15 packaging and testing facilities. The expected annual revenue for the semiconductor industry is projected to surpass USD 50 billion, with a workforce growing to over 100,000 engineers and graduates.
In Phase 3 (2040-2050), Vietnam aspires to become a leading player in the global semiconductor arena, aiming for at least 300 design companies, three semiconductor chip manufacturing plants, and 20 packaging and testing facilities. The semiconductor industry’s revenue is anticipated to exceed USD 100 billion annually, while the electronics sector is expected to surpass USD 1.045 trillion. Despite the government’s ambitious strategy, challenges remain, including power shortages, competitive salaries for talent, and a weak technological foundation.
OpenAI has teamed up with Hearst Communications Inc. to incorporate content from its magazines and newspapers into the ChatGPT chatbot. This partnership, announced on Tuesday, enables Hearst to license material from well-known publications such as Esquire, Cosmopolitan, and Elle, along with more than 40 newspapers for use in OpenAI’s products. The content will be displayed in ChatGPT with proper attribution, providing transparency and easy access to the original sources.
Jeff Johnson, President of Hearst Newspapers, highlighted the significance of including journalism from professional journalists in AI products as generative AI advances. He stated that this partnership enables Hearst’s trusted and curated content to enrich OpenAI’s offerings, resulting in more timely and relevant information.
OpenAI has been working to establish similar licensing agreements with a range of publishers, such as Condé Nast, News Corp., and Time magazine, to train its AI models and ensure access to authoritative information. Many of these agreements include commitments to provide news summaries with proper attribution. However, not all media outlets are on board; the New York Times filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in December, alleging the unauthorised use of its copyrighted articles. OpenAI has contested these claims, asserting that the newspaper is not presenting the full context of the situation.
