Amazon is considering a second multi-billion-dollar investment in AI startup Anthropic, following an initial $4 billion stake. Amazon aims to expand its AI influence and leverage its cloud services, but faces disagreements with Anthropic over chip preferences. Alphabet has also invested in Anthropic. UK regulators are scrutinising both Amazon's and Alphabet's investments due to anti-competitive concerns.
Amazon is in talks to make another multibillion-dollar investment in AI company Anthropic, following a $4 billion investment last year. The new investment is expected to be of similar scale.
Enterprise tech providers are seeing strong growth from AI adoption. Palantir's revenue increased 30% year-over-year, with 54% growth in US commercial revenue. Lumen Technologies is experiencing higher demand for AI infrastructure support. DigitalOcean launched new AI offerings and saw 12% revenue growth. Helport AI's revenue jumped 132% as it expanded to over 30,000 users globally. These developments indicate widespread AI adoption across the tech industry.
Microsoft has integrated Copilot Pro AI features into Microsoft 365 subscriptions, replacing the previous $20 monthly add-on. This brings AI capabilities to core Office applications. The decision came after user feedback on standalone pricing. Microsoft 365 subscription prices have slightly increased to accommodate this change. The new pricing is available in select Asia-Pacific countries, with plans for global expansion.
Fortinet has expanded its AI-powered security assistant, FortiAI, to include FortiNDR Cloud and Lacework FortiCNAPP. FortiAI uses generative AI to simplify security analyses, helping with threat detection, alert clarification, and risk assessment. Fortinet continues to incorporate AI across its product portfolio.
Apple is exploring AI server production using its own Silicon processors, partnering with Foxconn and Lenovo for manufacturing in Taiwan. The company aims to support its AI services in data centres, focusing on inference rather than training large language models. Apple is seeking supplier support for engineering and design due to limited experience in data centre server design.
Lumen Technologies has secured over £3.5 billion in new AI-related business, focusing on data-centre connectivity. The company partnered with Google Cloud and aims to reduce debt with these deals. Despite a Q3 net loss, Lumen increased its full-year free cash flow forecast. The company's stock value has surged by over 450% in the past year due to its AI initiatives.
xAI, Elon Musk's AI startup, has opened its API to the public. Free credits are available until year-end, with pricing based on token usage. The API supports the grok-beta model, with new models in development. It's compatible with OpenAI and Anthropic SDKs, potentially easing integration with existing projects.
An $11 billion debt market has emerged for AI companies buying Nvidia chips, raising concerns about Nvidia's AI market dominance. This funding targets 'neocloud' groups, likely new AI-focused cloud computing companies, reflecting Wall Street's enthusiasm for AI technologies.
Snowflake's CEO criticised tech companies for not publishing AI hallucination rates, which can range from 1% to 30%. He emphasised that not knowing which part of an AI's answer is incorrect creates a trust problem, especially for critical applications. Snowflake's head of AI identified hallucinations as the biggest obstacle for generative AI use with external customers, suggesting improvements through guardrails and diverse data sources.
