SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son’s decision to partner with OpenAI and Oracle on a $500 billion AI venture, Stargate, showcases his bold, headline-grabbing approach to dealing with the Trump administration. The project, announced at the White House alongside President Donald Trump, promises to build AI infrastructure in the US and marks a significant part of Son’s earlier $100 billion investment pledge. SoftBank shares surged 11% following the news, reflecting investor confidence in the group’s aggressive strategy.
However, analysts argue that Son’s methods, rooted in rapid decision-making and high-risk bets, are difficult for traditional Japanese corporations to replicate. Japan Inc’s emphasis on long-term planning contrasts sharply with Son’s willingness to embrace Trump’s pro-investment stance to navigate potential tariffs and trade pressures. The reluctance of other Japanese executives to engage directly with Trump highlights a broader struggle to adapt in a politically charged environment.
Son’s flashy investments draw comparisons to his previous $50 billion pledge during Trump’s first term and underscore his vision for AI as a transformative technology. While his moves are reestablishing SoftBank as a global player after setbacks like WeWork’s collapse, questions remain about how the Stargate project will be funded and whether traditional Japanese companies can adapt their strategies to find similar success in Trump’s America.
Microsoft announced changes to its longstanding agreement with OpenAI following the AI leader’s new partnership with Oracle and SoftBank on a $500 billion AI data centre project, Stargate. The joint venture, unveiled by President Donald Trump at the White House, aims to solidify US leadership in AI, leveraging Nvidia chips and other cutting-edge technologies.
While Microsoft retains exclusive rights to OpenAI’s APIs, the amendments now allow OpenAI to build additional capacity outside of Microsoft’s infrastructure. This paves the way for Oracle’s involvement in Stargate, which will operate as a separate entity with governance rights shared among founding members and external investors like UAE’s MGX. SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son will chair the venture’s board.
Despite this shift, Microsoft remains a central technology partner, continuing to benefit from revenue-sharing agreements with OpenAI and maintaining exclusivity over key offerings through its Azure cloud service. “The key elements of our partnership remain intact through 2030,” Microsoft said, reaffirming its commitment to OpenAI’s long-term growth.
Oracle and OpenAI have not commented on Microsoft’s statements, but the partnership underscores the strategic realignments shaping the future of AI infrastructure in the US.
OpenAI plans to introduce AI ‘super-agents’ designed to handle complex tasks at an expert level, according to a report by Axios. These advanced systems aim to perform intricate, goal-oriented tasks, far surpassing current AI chatbot capabilities. The announcement is expected within weeks, sparking widespread interest and scepticism alike.
twitter hype is out of control again.
we are not gonna deploy AGI next month, nor have we built it.
we have some very cool stuff for you but pls chill and cut your expectations 100x!
CEO Sam Altman’s recent engagements in Washington DC, including a scheduled closed-door meeting with US officials, have intensified speculation. Social media rumours suggested a breakthrough in artificial general intelligence (AGI), prompting Altman to clarify that OpenAI has not developed AGI nor plans to deploy it soon. Despite this, the proposed super-agents are projected to be transformative, with potential applications ranging from software creation to business operations.
Critics argue the claims may be overhyped. Notable figures like computer scientist Gary Marcus dismissed the feasibility of achieving such advancements in the near term. Concerns about reliability and persistent issues like information hallucination remain significant barriers to broader adoption.
Controversy also surrounds OpenAI’s flagship AI model, o3, and its reliance on a benchmark test developed by Epoch AI, a group funded by OpenAI. The FrontierMath test, intended to measure mathematical prowess, has faced scrutiny over its role in showcasing the model’s capabilities.
Chinese AI company MiniMax has introduced three new models—MiniMax-Text-01, MiniMax-VL-01, and T2A-01-HD—designed to compete with leading systems developed by firms such as OpenAI and Google. Backed by Alibaba and Tencent, MiniMax has raised $850 million in funding and is valued at over $2.5 billion. The models include a text-only model, a multimodal model capable of processing text and images, and an audio generator capable of creating synthetic speech in multiple languages.
MiniMax-Text-01 boasts a 4-million-token context window, significantly larger than those of competing systems, allowing it to process extensive text inputs. Its performance rivals industry leaders like Google’s Gemini 2.0 Flash in benchmarks measuring problem-solving and comprehension skills. The multimodal MiniMax-VL-01 excels at image-text tasks but trails some competitors on specific evaluations. T2A-01-HD, the audio generator, delivers high-quality synthetic speech and can clone voices using just 10 seconds of recorded audio.
The models, mostly accessible via platforms like GitHub and Hugging Face, come with licensing restrictions that prevent their use in developing competing AI systems. MiniMax has faced controversies, including allegations of unauthorised use of copyrighted data for training and concerns about AI-generated content replicating logos and public figures. The releases coincide with new US restrictions on AI technology exports to China, potentially heightening challenges for Chinese AI firms aiming to compete globally.
The Pentagon is leveraging generative AI to accelerate critical defence operations, particularly the ‘kill chain’, a process of identifying, tracking, and neutralising threats. According to Dr Radha Plumb, the Pentagon’s Chief Digital and AI Officer, AI’s current role is limited to aiding planning and strategising phases, ensuring commanders can respond swiftly while maintaining human oversight over life-and-death decisions.
Major AI firms like OpenAI and Anthropic have softened their policies to collaborate with defence agencies, but only under strict ethical boundaries. These partnerships aim to balance innovation with responsibility, ensuring AI systems are not used to cause harm directly. Meta, Anthropic, and Cohere are tech giants working with defence contractors, providing tools that optimise operational planning without breaching ethical standards.
In the US, Dr Plumb emphasised that the Pentagon’s AI systems operate as part of human-machine collaboration, countering fears of fully autonomous weapons. Despite debates over AI’s role in defence, officials argue that working with the technology is vital to ensure its ethical application. Critics, however, continue to question the transparency and long-term implications of such alliances.
As AI becomes central to defence strategies, the Pentagon’s commitment to integrating ethical safeguards highlights the delicate balance between technological advancement and human control.
Microsoft has introduced a new chat service, Copilot Chat, allowing businesses to deploy AI agents for routine tasks. The service, powered by OpenAI’s GPT-4, enables users to create AI-driven assistants using natural language commands in English, Mandarin, and other languages. Tasks such as market research, drafting strategy documents, and meeting preparation can be handled for free, though advanced features like Teams call transcription and PowerPoint slide creation require a $30 monthly Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription.
With increasing pressure to generate returns on its substantial AI investments, Microsoft is betting on a pay-as-you-go model to drive adoption. The company is expected to spend around $80 billion on AI infrastructure and data centres this fiscal year. Following concerns about Copilot’s adoption, Microsoft has been pushing its AI tools more aggressively, offering businesses greater flexibility in using AI for automation.
In a move towards greater AI autonomy, Microsoft previously introduced tools allowing customers to create self-sufficient AI agents with minimal human input. Analysts suggest that such innovations could offer a simpler path to monetisation for tech companies, making AI-driven automation more accessible and scalable.
OpenAI has introduced a new beta feature called Tasks in ChatGPT, expanding into the virtual assistant market. Tasks will let users schedule future actions such as reminders for concert ticket sales or recurring updates like daily weather reports.
ChatGPT may also suggest tasks based on user conversations, with users retaining control to accept or decline them. The feature aims to compete with virtual assistants like Apple’s Siri and Amazon’s Alexa, both of which are being enhanced with AI capabilities.
The updated Alexa will include generative AI features for task automation, with Amazon CEO Andy Jassy announcing its launch in the coming months. Apple has also integrated ChatGPT into Siri under its ‘Apple Intelligence’ initiative, seeking user permission for queries sent to OpenAI’s service.
ChatGPT is rolling out a new task-scheduling feature that allows paying users to set reminders and recurring requests directly with the AI assistant. Available to ChatGPT Plus, Team, and Pro users, the feature can handle practical tasks like sending reminders about passport expirations or offering personalised weekend plans based on the weather.
The task system represents OpenAI’s early venture into AI agents that can perform autonomous actions. Users can set tasks through ChatGPT’s web app by selecting the scheduling option from a dropdown menu. Once enabled, the assistant can deliver reminders or perform regular check-ins, such as providing daily news briefings or checking for concert tickets monthly.
While the feature currently offers limited independence, OpenAI sees it as a foundational step towards more capable AI systems. CEO Sam Altman hinted that 2025 will be a significant year for AI agents that may begin to handle more complex tasks, like booking travel or writing code. For now, ChatGPT’s task feature remains in beta, with plans to refine it based on user feedback.
Microsoft has created a new internal division, CoreAI Platform and Tools, to accelerate its development of AI technologies. The restructuring brings together its developer teams and AI platform under one unit, aimed at making AI a central pillar of the company’s software strategy.
Jay Parikh, a former engineering leader at Meta and CEO of cloud security startup Lacework, will head the new organisation. Reporting directly to CEO Satya Nadella, Parikh will oversee various teams focused on AI infrastructure and tools. His appointment signals Microsoft’s continued push to lead in the fast-evolving AI space.
CoreAI’s formation reflects Microsoft’s increasing emphasis on “model-forward” applications, which Nadella described as reshaping software development across all categories. The company’s recent efforts include embedding AI tools across its productivity suite and cloud services, solidifying its place in the growing AI market.
This latest move builds on Microsoft’s broader strategy to remain a leader in AI innovation, following its high-profile partnership with OpenAI and ongoing investments in cloud-based AI solutions.
OpenAI has called for increased US investment and supportive regulations to ensure leadership in AI development and prevent China from gaining dominance in the sector. Its ‘Economic Blueprint’ outlines the need for strategic policies around AI resources, including chips, data, and energy.
The document highlights the risk of $175 billion in global funds shifting to China-backed projects if the US fails to attract those investments. OpenAI also proposed stricter export controls on AI models to prevent misuse by adversarial nations and protect national security.
CEO Sam Altman, who contributed $1 million to President-elect Donald Trump’s inaugural fund, seeks stronger ties with the incoming administration, which includes former PayPal executive David Sacks as AI and crypto czar. The company will host an event in Washington DC this month to promote its proposals.
Microsoft-backed OpenAI continues to seek further investment after raising $6.6 billion last year. The startup plans to transform into a for-profit entity to secure additional funding necessary for competing in the expensive AI race.
