Briefing Desk
Latest Briefings
Concise reporting on the developments shaping internet governance and infrastructure. Browse each area for recent news, context and watchpoints.
Amazon offers free credits to startups to use AI models
Amazon has expanded its free points program for startups to cover the cost of using its main artificial intelligence model.
Digital asset inflows recover while ETF activity slows down
Despite a net positive flow into the crypto market, spot bitcoin ETF demand seems to have slowed since its peak in the first week of March. Digital assets came back while ETF slumps Surprisingly, digital asset inflows into cryptocurrency investment products have made a notable comeback. After experi…
Form3 partners with Feedzai to unveil APP fraud prevention tool
Form3, an account-to-account platform, has partnered with Feedzai, a market leader in anti-fraud and financial crime software. The partnership reorganises the fintech realm In a groundbreaking move that promises to reshape the landscape of financial technology, two industry giants, Form3 and Feedzai…
Telegram launches ‘business’ features challenging Meta
Telegram, the renowned messaging platform, has set its sights on challenging Meta’s dominant position in the messaging app market with its latest move: the introduction of ‘Business’ features and revenue-sharing model. Telegram took its strategic step, reaching its profitable goal Telegram, the popu…
ICANN announces details for Asia Pacific Domain Name System Forum 2024
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has unveiled the itinerary for the Asia Pacific (APAC) Domain Name System (DNS) Forum 2024. Scheduled to take place from July 23-24, this hybrid event will be hosted at The Westin Resort Nusa Dua in Bali, Indonesia. The forum will facil…
Intel discloses US$7 billion operating loss for chipmaking unit
Intel disclosed on Tuesday that operating losses in its foundry business have worsened. The company is trying to recapture the technological lead that has been taken away by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) in recent years. Intel’s operating losses Intel said the manufacturing unit had an o…
Apple working on a contextual AI language model called ReALM
Researchers at Apple have published a new paper on an artificial intelligence (AI) model called Reference Resolution As Language Model (ReALM) that is purportedly capable of understanding contextual language. Resolution As Language Model The AI model is named ReALM, which is an acronym for Reference…
Copilot for Microsoft 365 gets GPT-4 Turbo, unlimited chats
Microsoft has announced a major upgrade to Copilot for Microsoft 365. The gist of the update is to prioritise access to the powerful GPT-4 Turbo model. This means that users can now receive a faster and more comprehensive response. GPT-4 Turbo GPT-4 Turbo offers a larger “context window” that allows…
Bitcoin 5% flash crash leads to $165M in liquidations
Leverage traders are nursing losses of over $165 million, as the price of bitcoin tumbled 5%. The sharp decline of cryptocurrency price on Tuesday The cryptocurrency market witnessed a significant downturn on Tuesday, sending shockwaves through the trading community as bitcoin plummeted by 5% within…
Major Thai crypto exchange bolsters workforce ahead of IPO
Thailand’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Bitkub, is preparing for its IPO and actively seeking financial advisors to support the process.
Global asset manager GoldenTree offloads crypto unit to Republic
Global asset manager GoldenTree sold its digital asset unit to investment firm Republic, aiming to seize opportunities in crypto market.
Yahoo purchases AI news platform Artefact from Instagram co-founders
Yahoo said Tuesday it acquired Artefact, the artificial intelligence news platform from the co-founders of Instagram, and plans to integrate its technology into Yahoo’s news and other sites, underscoring the challenges media startups face in growing revenues amid the dominance of big tech giants. Be…
Browsing in incognito mode is not as secure as one might suppose
The settlement, announced in federal court on Monday, aims to ensure more privacy for Chrome incognito mode users when they surf the web. Google Chrome’s “incognito” incognito mode mode has been in use for nearly a decade, and a legal solution to the way it works has brought it back into the spotlig…
The UK and US agree to create safety checks for AI
The UK and US have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate on rigorous testing for advanced AI systems. The partnership aims to align scientific approaches and develop robust evaluation methods for AI models, systems, and agents. Industry experts see this collaboration as crucial for pro…
Anthropic researchers find the hidden usage of large language models
A new vulnerability in large language models: ‘many-shot jailbreaking’ allows for inappropriate responses, by priming with harmless questions. Anthropic researchers find bug in LLMs How do you get an AI to answer a question it’s not supposed to? There are many such “jailbreak” techniques, and Anthro…
Advanced gas and odor detection through biomimetic chips
In a groundbreaking feat, HKUST engineers have introduced Biomimetic Olfactory Chips (BOC), heralding a new era in scent detection technology. These chips, mimicking human olfaction, offer exceptional sensitivity and distinguishability, revolutionizing odor analysis and opening doors to innovative a…
Apple Vision Pro’s spatial Personas: collaborative virtual interaction
Apple’s latest update for Vision Pro introduces spatial Personas, enhancing virtual collaboration. While innovative, users may encounter lingering uncanny valley effects. Improving realism: Apple’s personas evolve Apple Vision Pro: Does it live up to the hype? Much like the headset they’r…
Amazon’s free credits for startups now cover the use of AI models
Amazon Web Services (AWS) will now allow its free credits programme for startups to cover the use of major AI models from other providers, including Meta, Mistral AI, and Cohere, in addition to its own AI platform Bedrock. US$4 billion investment in Anthropic Amazon closed its $4 billion investment …
Yahoo acquires Artifact, AI news platform by Instagram founders
Yahoo announces its acquisition of Artifact, an AI news platform founded by Instagram co-founders, signaling the challenges faced by media startups against Big Tech dominance. The deal aims to integrate Artifact’s technology into Yahoo’s news services. Acquisition and integration On Tuesday, Yahoo a…
Andreessen Horowitz to invest $30M in tech-fuelled gaming startups
$750,000 will be handed out to a maximum of 40 companies, however, a16z’s early accelerator only accepts around 1% of applicants. a16z injects tech-fuelled gaming startups through ‘SPEEDRUN’ Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has announced it will be investing $30 million in technology-…
Ethereum Purge to limit the historical data stored via EIP-4444
The purge will introduce history expiration via EIP-4444 to limit the amount of historical data score, according to Vitalik Buterin. Ethereum takes its key step in the transition Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has shared the next steps for protocol simplification and node resource load decrease…
Tesla to adopt new assembly technology, reducing production costs
Tesla introduces “unboxed” assembly method, set to revolutionise manufacturing, lower costs, and enable a $25,000 car by 2025.
Schneider, NVIDIA to build AI ‘benchmark’ data centre design
Schneider Electric and NVIDIA will leverage their respective expertise to launch the first publicly available AI data centre reference design.
Gogo takes big step toward proper in-flight broadband internet
The Gogo Galileo global broadband service has achieved a major milestone in completing end-to-end connectivity using HDX antennas.
Apple: a new target aimed by the Biden DOJ in the monopoly hunt
After filing sanctions on companies like Amazon, Google and Meta platforms, the Biden DOJ takes its aim at Apple, the high-tech giant favoured by most local customers. DOJ targets Apple in monopoly crackdown The Biden administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ) continues its crackdown on high-tech …
Telegram launches new ‘business’ features, challenging Meta
Telegram’s new “Business” features challenge Meta’s dominance, requiring Premium subscription, driving subscriber growth to 5 million.
OpenAI worried its new voice tool will be used for scams
OpenAI has unveiled Voice Engine, an AI-based audio cloning tool, despite its potential for reading assistance and voice recognition. The company is concerned about potential abuse and is committed to developing safe and beneficial AI. Excellent technological capabilities OpenAI’s Voice Engine uses …
US and UK sign AI safety testing memorandum
The United States and United Kingdom signed a memorandum to align AI safety testing through their national AI Safety Institutes, including shared model-evaluation methods and at least one planned joint test.
Alibaba Cloud live broadcast triggers cloud computing price war
Alibaba Cloud, the cloud computing arm of Alibaba Group Holding LTD, held its first livestream event on affiliated e-commerce platform Taobao.
Major Chinese telecom companies shift focus to AI
China’s three major telecom companies have announced new plans to shift their investment focus from 5G to cloud computing and AI.
ChatGPT now accessible without registration
OpenAI will start allowing users to access its free-to-use ChatGPT generative AI chatbot without needing to sign up for the service beginning Monday. Access to ChatGPTs without requiring sign-up The San Francisco-based company said it will roll out ChatGPT 3.5 to the public on an instant basis witho…
Japan approves additional US$3.9 billion in subsidies for semiconductor firm Rapidus
Japan’s industry ministry said on Tuesday it had approved a subsidy of up to 590 billion yen ($3.9 billion) to chip foundry Rapidus to boost Tokyo’s plans to rebuild the country’s chip manufacturing base. Rapidus’s plans Rapidus Corporation was founded in 2022 by the Japanese government and eight do…
Taco Bell and Pizza Hut apply AI to fast food
Yum Brands has a vision for “AI-powered” fast food in which artificial intelligence shapes nearly every aspect of how its Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, KFC, and Habit Burger Grill restaurants are run. Applying AI-power in fast food According to the Wall Street Journal, Yum’s chief digital and technology man…
TikTok is bringing its dedicated STEM feed to Europe
TikTok extends its STEM feed to Europe, partnering with Common Sense Networks and Poynter to ensure content safety and reliability.
Alibaba to deliver parcels globally within 1 hour using rockets
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding is teaming up with a rocket developer startup Space Epoch with the ambitious goal of delivering packages to anywhere in the world within an hour. The great plan The experiment, which will be conducted by Alibaba’s Taobao marketplace and Beijing-based st…
China’s 3 largest telecoms companies announced plans for computing network and AI
China’s three major telecommunications companies China Telecom, China Mobile, and China Unicom announced plans to target cloud computing power and artificial intelligence (AI). 5G technology in China According to public data from the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the propo…
FTC launches strategy to combat $1.1B impersonation scam losses
The Federal Trade Commission has implemented a strategy to combat impersonation scams, citing damages exceeding $1.1 billion in 2023 alone.
Chat app Telegram challenges Meta with the launch of new ‘business’ features
Telegram, the popular messaging app, is taking on Meta’s WhatsApp and Messenger with the launch of its new ‘Business’ features. Telegram Business features Telegram Business was officially launched over the weekend, introducing features such as customising the start page, setting business hours, usin…
Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter album against AI music production
At the press conference for Beyoncé’s new album Cowboy Carter, Beyoncé made a surprise statement against the growing presence of artificial intelligence in music. How Artificial Intelligence Generated Art Works “The joy of creating music is that there are no rules,” said Beyoncé. “The more I see the…
Google consents to deleting browsing history gathered when using Incognito mode
Under a proposed class action settlement filed on Monday, Google agreed to destroy or cancel billions of records of web browsing data collected while identifying users in private browsing “incognito mode”. Settle an argument Google has settled a $5 billion lawsuit with plaintiffs, claiming no damage…
Is your organisation ready for advanced payment systems?
Financial institutions are under pressure to update their payment infrastructure, embracing AI innovations to maintain competitiveness, control costs, and ensure security in the face of an evolving financial landscape. Bank of America puts banking, investing, retirement into one app The i…
AI-powered fast-food innovation in progress
Yum! Brands plans to provide AI-powered fast food, and has been investing more in technology and automation in an effort to cut costs and increase sales. AI-powered fast food Yum! Brands has been increasing investment about $30 billion in technology and automation, almost double the amount of 2019, …
Taco Bell, Pizza Hut Embrace ‘AI-First’ for Fast Food Progress
Yum! Brands announces an AI-centric strategy, aiming to boost efficiency and customer service through technological innovation across its major fast-food chains. McDonald’s & Google AI integration: Will promised benefits materialize? AI-Powered operations Yum! Brands, the conglomerate res…
Samsung smartens its digital voice assistant Bixby with GenAI
As generative AI and large language model technology (LLM) emerge, Samsung is upgrading to smarten its digital voice assistant Bixby. Samsung plans to enhance Bixby with generative AI Samsung is gearing up to revolutionise its digital assistant, Bixby, by integrating generative AI capabilities. Also…
Current offers on MacBooks featuring Apple’s M-series chipsets
Apple sells a variety of MacBooks featuring its own M-series chips, ranging from the 13-inch M1 MacBook Air to the latest 16-inch MacBook Pro with M3, priced from $999 to $2,499. Deals on these models, including those with M1, M2, or M3 chips, are readily available. MacBook Pro models with M3 and M3…
Oculus Quest 1 won’t get new Quest Store apps from May onwards
From May, Oculus Quest 1 users lose new app support as Meta speeds up the headset’s phase-out, reflecting broader changes in VR tech affecting developers and consumers. Code snippet shows Quest headset support for panoramic photos End of Quest 1 support This is not a reflection of the dev…
Future PCs equipped with copilot AI to operate locally
Microsoft’s Copilot AI will operate locally on PCs instead of relying on cloud in the near future.The increasing local computing power is expected to enhance performance and privacy. Hardware achievement pave the way for AI PCs Intel is putting into efforts to enable Microsoft’s Copilot AI to run lo…
OVHcloud pioneers quantum computer to support Europe
OVHcloud brings together European quantum ecosystem to launch the first quantum computer commissioning for a European cloud service provider.
Google Podcasts in the US may be discontinued soon
Google is discontinuing its Podcasts app in the U.S., prompting users to switch to YouTube Music for uninterrupted access to their favorite podcasts. Migration deadline announced The company has commenced notifying users of the app that they are required to transfer their subscriptions to YouTube Mu…
Only 15 seconds needed to clone your voice, says OpenAI
The voice clone model Voice Engine has been in development since late 2022, and it can generate a synthetic voice according to a 15-second clip of someone’s voice. However, as generative AI continues to develop, ethical concerns follow as well. OpenAI introduces Voice Engine OpenAI has unveiled Voic…