Alliant Energy has secured several power supply agreements with data centres in Iowa and Wisconsin, as confirmed during a recent post-earnings call. The rise in popularity of AI tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT has spurred the demand for high-performance data centres, necessitating substantial electricity to process large volumes of data.
The company has been actively working to attract new customers in both states, successfully signing multiple deals with data centres. These agreements highlight Alliant Energy’s strategic efforts to expand its customer base amidst the growing data demands driven by advanced AI technologies.
Despite these new deals, Alliant Energy reported a decline in second-quarter profit, impacted by a settlement agreement related to its Interstate Power and Light unit’s retail electric rate review. This led to a pre-tax non-cash charge of $60 million in the second quarter.
The company’s quarterly adjusted profit for its utilities and corporate services segment fell by 13.8%, equating to 56 cents per share, compared to the previous year. Overall profit for the quarter ended June 30 was $87 million, down from $160 million a year earlier.
Startup Character.AI has entered into a non-exclusive licensing agreement with Google, allowing the tech giant to use its large language model technology. As part of the deal, Character.AI co-founders Noam Shazeer and Daniel De Freitas, former Google employees, will rejoin Google, specifically its DeepMind research team.
Character.AI will receive additional funding from Google, though the exact amount has not been disclosed. Dominic Perella, the startup’s general counsel, will serve as interim CEO. The agreement follows similar moves by Microsoft and Amazon, who have also acquired AI talent from startups to strengthen their AI capabilities.
The deal comes amid regulatory scrutiny in the US and Europe over how major tech companies consolidate AI resources. Character.AI previously raised $193 million in venture capital and discussed securing more funding from Google.
Design flaws could delay the launch of Nvidia’s upcoming AI chips by three months or more, according to tech publication The Information. That delay could impact major customers like Meta Platforms, Google, and Microsoft, which have collectively ordered tens of billions of dollars worth of chips.
In March, Nvidia introduced its Blackwell chip series as the successor to the Grace Hopper Superchip, designed for generative AI applications. Despite the reported setback, a Nvidia spokesperson stated that demand for the Hopper chip remains strong, with broad sampling of the Blackwell chips already underway and production expected to ramp up in the year’s second half.
Microsoft declined to comment further, while Meta and Google have not responded. According to sources cited by The Information, Nvidia reportedly informed Microsoft and another major cloud service provider of the delay earlier this week.
Coinbase’s second-quarter revenue surpassed Wall Street predictions, fuelled by a revival in trading volumes and positive market sentiment due to regulatory relaxation. That resulted in a 3% rise in the company’s shares. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved an exchange-traded fund (ETF) to track bitcoin and ether prices, resolving a prolonged regulatory conflict and boosting market confidence. CEO Brian Armstrong expressed hope for constructive future regulatory measures.
Despite ongoing disagreements with the SEC over crypto token classifications, the approval of spot bitcoin ETFs by major financial players like BlackRock and Fidelity has bolstered the sector’s credibility. As a result, the total market capitalisation has increased to around $2.36 trillion. Revenue from Coinbase’s subscription and services segment jumped 79% to $599 million, with total revenue doubling to $1.45 billion, exceeding analyst forecasts. The company reported a profit of 14 cents per share, compared to a loss in the previous year.
Why does this matter?
Coinbase’s strong Q2 performance signals a significant recovery and growth in the cryptocurrency market, driven by positive regulatory developments. The SEC’s approval of bitcoin and ether ETFs marks a pivotal moment, potentially attracting more institutional investors and increasing mainstream acceptance of digital assets.
Taco Bell is expanding AI voice technology in its drive-thrus to hundreds of US locations by the end of this year, according to parent company Yum! Brands. Customers at these locations may soon interact with a computer instead of a human when placing their orders, a move aimed at freeing up employees for other tasks and improving sales.
The expansion follows Taco Bell’s successful testing of AI at 100 locations across 13 states, which reportedly led to greater order accuracy, happier employees, and shorter wait times. This contrasts McDonald’s, which recently abandoned similar AI technology after customer complaints about incorrect orders.
‘Yum! Brands’ chief innovation officer, Lawrence Kim, expressed confidence in their approach, which involved two years of testing and improvements. Kim assured that AI would not replace human jobs but enhance the work experience by allowing employees to focus on priority tasks. He also highlighted the technology’s potential for broader applications across other Yum! Brands chains, including Pizza Hut, KFC, and The Habit Burger Grill.
Apple has requested a US judge to dismiss an antitrust lawsuit filed by federal and state regulators, accusing the tech giant of monopolising the smartphone market. The Justice Department, along with 19 states and Washington, D.C., allege that Apple maintains an illegal monopoly by imposing contractual restrictions and withholding critical access from developers.
In its defence, Apple argues that the limitations placed on third-party developers are reasonable and do not constitute anti-competitive behaviour. The company contends that being forced to share its technology with competitors would stifle innovation. Apple further asserts that courts should not be involved in overseeing product design and policy choices in rapidly changing technical markets.
Why does this matter?
The lawsuit challenges Apple’s restrictions and fees on app developers. It claims the company hinders interoperability between iPhones and third-party apps and devices, effectively locking users into Apple’s ecosystem and harming competition. However, Apple counters that no evidence proves its practices harm competition or consumers, who can switch to competitors if dissatisfied with iPhone features.
US District Judge Julien Neals will consider responses from both the government and Apple before deciding on the motion later this year. The legal case is among five major antitrust lawsuits against major tech companies, including Meta, Amazon, and Google.
An Israeli start-up, Run, is under scrutiny as the US Justice Department investigates its acquisition by Nvidia on antitrust grounds. The $700 million deal, announced in April, raises concerns over Nvidia’s growing dominance in the AI chip market. Run’s technology, which optimises graphics processing units (GPUs), has become highly valuable amid soaring demand for these chips.
Nvidia, which has seen profits surge due to its AI-adapted chips, is now under investigation for potentially anti-competitive practices. Regulators fear that the company’s control over high-end AI chips and related software could stifle competition and innovation in the AI industry. Nvidia spokesperson Mylene Mangalindan defended the company, emphasising its commitment to competition and innovation.
Why does this matter?
The Justice Department’s investigation is part of a broader regulatory effort to address potential monopolistic behaviours in the AI sector. To ensure fair competition, the DoJ and the Federal Trade Commission are examining the business practices of leading AI companies, including Nvidia and Microsoft.
The investigation into Nvidia’s acquisition strategy and business practices reflects broader concerns about market concentration in the tech industry. As regulators continue to scrutinise AI investments and mergers, the outcome of these investigations could significantly impact the future landscape of the AI market.
As per a report by the World Bank and International Labour Organization, between 2% to 5% of the jobs in Latin America and the Carribean are at risk of being redundant because of automation. The highest risk of automation confronts women and young workers in the formal sector. That is a huge challenge for one of the world’s most unequal regions, where most low-paying jobs are concentrated in the informal economy.
Despite the growth in AI, the report also highlighted how ‘gaps in digital infrastructure and other inequalities could hinder the potential impacts of generative AI in the region’. The figure hovers between 26% and 38% of the total employment in Latin America and the Caribbean regarding jobs being exposed by generative AI and being impacted by it somehow.
On the flip side, researchers also draw attention to the fact that AI could bring many benefits by enhancing workers’ productivity between 8% and 14% of jobs, especially for high-income earners working in the urban formal sector.
The Isle of Man, a self-governing British Crown dependency in the Irish Sea between England and Ireland, has launched a programme to upskill its residents on the use of AI. By tapping on the ‘enhanced productivity’ of the workers, the government intends to improve its GDP by 10%. Chief executive of Digital Isle of Man, Lyle Wraxell, explained how the program and a public roadshow accompanying it will help ensure that people ‘keep up with the rapidly evolving technology’.
The initiative, ‘Activate AI,’ will unfold in three stages: the first will focus on education, the second will enable the island to establish a global positioning, and the final stage will be acceleration. A new platform will launch by the end of August, providing 200 hours of complimentary training for businesses and individuals.
The programme’s applied AI service will help companies pair up with experienced firms to explore AI-driven solutions for their business challenges. Given that this facility will be provided free of cost, board member Jason Bissell highlighted how this approach will enable the creation of a partner ecosystem, allowing local businesses to experiment and understand the technology’s potential value.
US progressive groups and Senator Elizabeth Warren have called on the Department of Justice to investigate Nvidia for potential anti-competitive practices, citing the company’s dominant position in the AI chip market. Nvidia’s market value surged to $3 trillion this summer, driven by high demand for its advanced chips used in AI models. The groups, including Demand Progress, criticised Nvidia’s bundling of hardware and software, arguing that it restricts competition and stifles innovation.
The Department of Justice has been directed to oversee potential antitrust probes into Nvidia, while the Federal Trade Commission is investigating other tech giants like Microsoft and OpenAI. Nvidia maintains that it follows all regulations and supports a wide range of industries and innovators.
With approximately 80% of the AI chip market and nearly 100% of the market excluding cloud providers’ custom chips, Nvidia’s dominance is significant. Senator Warren has expressed concerns about the risks of a single company controlling the AI market. The Department of Justice has not commented on the case’s specifics, but antitrust officials are concerned about potential bottlenecks in the industry.
