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X gains a faster Grok model and a new ‘Grok button’
XAI, Elon Musk’s AI company, may be embroiled in an escalating lawsuit with OpenAI. But that’s not stopping it from shipping new products — on a Friday night, no less. This evening, xAI revealed that it has begun to roll out an upgraded version of its flagship Grok 2 chatbot model to all users on…
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OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever believes superintelligent AI will be ‘unpredictable’
OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever spoke on a range of topics at NeurIPS, the annual AI conference, Friday afternoon before accepting an award for his contributions to the field. Sutskever gave his predictions for “superintelligent” AI, AI more capable than humans at many tasks, which he believes will be achieved at some point. Superintelligent AI will…
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OpenAI whistleblower found dead in San Francisco apartment
A former OpenAI employee, Suchir Balaji, was recently found dead in his San Francisco apartment, according to the San Francisco Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. In October, the 26-year-old AI researcher raised concerns about OpenAI breaking copyright law when he was interviewed by The New York Times. “The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner…
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AI helps Telegram remove 15 million suspect groups and channels in 2024
Telegram launched a new page touting its moderation efforts, which have spiked since its founder’s arrest. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
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Kalshi CEO admits enlisting influencers to dis Polymarket in a now-deleted podcast segment
Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour confirmed on a podcast interview that his employees asked social media influencers to promote memes about the FBI’s raid on the home of his archrival, the CEO of Polymarket. Both companies offer competing events-betting markets, a new kind of betting industry where people wager about the outcomes of events ranging from…
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G2 Ventures Partners is raising $750 million for a third fund
The raise is a bullish vote of confidence in climate and sustainability startups. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
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Databricks is on track to raise a record $9.5+ billion round at $60B valuation
Databricks is close to finalizing a $9.5 billion round at a $60 billion valuation, including a secondary sale for employees that could climb even higher before it closes, Reuters reports. Just 17 days ago, Reuters reported that the deal was at $8 billion and a $55 billion valuation. Thrive Capital is leading the deal with…
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Exxon can’t resist the AI power gold rush
The oil and gas company announced that it’s planning to build a massive power plant for data centers. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
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UnitedHealthcare’s Optum left an AI chatbot, used by employees to ask questions about claims, exposed to the internet
Optum’s AI chatbot was found exposed online at a time when the healthcare giant faces scrutiny for its use of AI to allegedly deny patient claims. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
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What failed before might succeed now — or fail again — and other startup bets
Welcome to Startups Weekly — your weekly recap of everything you can’t miss from the world of startups. Want it in your inbox every Friday? Sign up here. This week in startup news, we have some contrarian bets, funding rounds from all around the world, new VC funds, and a final word of warning. Most…