DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Alphabet’s Revenue Jumps 15% to $80.5 Billion
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Nico Grant | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On Thursday, Alphabet, Google’s parent company, reported strong revenue growth in its latest quarter from its search engine and video platform, YouTube, as its market-leading position in online advertising continued to reap rewards despite recent fluctuations in the industry. Alphabet reported $80.5 billion in quarterly sales, up 15 percent from a year earlier, and above analysts’ estimate of $78.8 billion. Analysts had expected $18.9 billion. The company’s board also approved a $70 billion share repurchase program. Google’s search engine has proved most resilient to the fluctuations that have happened since, emphasizing its role as a gateway to the internet for billions of people.

Organizations: Google, Meta, Facebook

☆ Nvidia is now worth more than Alphabet and Amazon. These 4 charts show the chipmaker's surge to a $1.8 trillion valuation.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Nvidia passed Google owner Alphabet to become America's third most valuable company on Wednesday. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. AdvertisementNvidia is now worth more than its Big Tech rivals Alphabet and Amazon — as well as the entirety of China’s stock market . The chipmaker’s market capitalization passed Amazon’s on Tuesday and Alphabet’s on Wednesday to stand at $1.83 trillion at Wednesday’s closing bell. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: —, Alphabet’s Organizations: Nvidia, Google, Service, Big Tech, Business

☆ Nvidia is now worth more than Alphabet, one day after surpassing Amazon
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Krystal Hur | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Nvidia’s market capitalization rose to $1.83 trillion on Wednesday, nudging past Alphabet’s $1.82 trillion market cap. Shares of the Santa Clara-based chipmaker rose 2.5% to $739 a share, while Alphabet shares ended the session at $145.94. Earlier this week, Nvidia surpassed Amazon, closing with a higher market cap on Tuesday for the first time since 2002. Nvidia has been the biggest beneficiary of the AI mania dominating Wall Street. Most of the Magnificent Seven, the group of tech stocks that have led the bull market, have continued to race even higher this year with Nvidia leading the pack.

Persons: ”, Dave Sekera, “, Jensen Huang, There’s, ” Huang, ” CNN’s Gayle Harrington Organizations: New, New York CNN, Nvidia, Amazon, Big Tech, Morningstar, CNN, World Locations: New York, Santa Clara, Dubai

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google’s corporate parent returned to double-digit revenue growth during last year’s final quarter, signaling the internet powerhouse has regained its footing even as it grapples with regulatory and competitive threats to its digital empire. The results announced Tuesday by Alphabet Inc. marked the third consecutive quarter of escalating revenue growth for the Mountain View, California, company, with most of the sales coming through Google’s dominance of search and online advertising. The rebound followed an unprecedented drop in Google’s ad revenue coming out of the pandemic following nearly 20 years of uninterrupted growth. Alphabet’s revenue for the October-December period climbed 13% from the previous year to $86.31 billion. It marked Alphabet’s first quarter of double-digit revenue growth since the April-June 2022 period, at the tail end of the pandemic.

Persons: Google’s, durably, ”, Ruth Porat Organizations: FRANCISCO, Alphabet Inc, U.S . Justice Department, Microsoft, Google Locations: , California, pare

☆ CEO of GM's Cruise robo-taxi unit resigns amid US safety review
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Nov 19 (Reuters) - - Kyle Vogt, the CEO of General Motors' robot-taxi unit Cruise, has resigned from the company a day after apologizing to staff as the company undergoes a safety review of its U.S. fleet. The Cruise board met on Nov. 13 and the next day named GM general counsel Craig Glidden as Cruise's chief administrative officer. The board also said it would retain a third-party safety expert to assess safety operations and culture. Former Tesla President Jon McNeill, a GM director since 2022, was named vice chairman of the Cruise board alongside Barra, who is the chair. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in October opened an investigation into pedestrian risks at Cruise and the Cruise board hired law firm Quinn Emanuel to review Cruise management's responses to regulators investigating the Oct. 2 accident.

Persons: Kyle Vogt, Vogt, Cruise, Vogt's, Craig Glidden, Stephen Lam, Mary Barra, Glidden, Mo Elshenawy, Jon McNeill, Barra, Quinn Emanuel, Greg Bensinger, David Shepardson, Kenneth Li Organizations: General Motors, Reuters, GM, Cruise, Honda, REUTERS, California Department of Motor Vehicles, Traffic Safety Administration, Thomson Locations: United States, San Francisco , California, U.S, San Francisco

☆ GM's Cruise robo-taxi CEO resigns from company
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Kyle Vogt, chief technology officer, president & co-founder of Cruise, a Honda and General Motors self-driving car partnership, speaks on stage at the launch of the Cruise Origin autonomous vehicle in San Francisco, California, U.S. January 21, 2020. REUTERS/Stephen Lam/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 19 - The CEO of General Motors' robot-taxi unit Cruise, Kyle Vogt, has resigned from the company a day after apologizing to staff as the company undergoes a safety review of its U.S. fleet. "The last 10 years have been amazing, and I'm grateful to everyone who helped Cruise along the way," he wrote in the email. Cruise in recent months had touted ambitious plans to expand to additional cities offering fully autonomous taxi rides. Cruise competes with Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O) Waymo in deploying autonomous vehicles and had been testing hundreds in several cities across the U.S., notably its home of San Francisco.

Persons: Kyle Vogt, Cruise, Stephen Lam, Vogt, Greg Bensinger, Kenneth Li Organizations: Honda, General Motors, Cruise, REUTERS, Reuters, California Department of Motor Vehicles, Thomson Locations: San Francisco , California, U.S, Vogt, San Francisco

☆ Silicon Valley saw OpenAI with eyes wide shut
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Anita Ramaswamy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

NEW YORK, Nov 19 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Silicon Valley’s weekend episode with artificial intelligence company OpenAI seems much like the technology: the input is a mishmash, so the output is flawed. The Microsoft-backed (MSFT.O) company’s board fired boss Sam Altman, and now, according to reports, may bring him back. OpenAI has been the leader in AI technology, which is bolstering valuations in the face of slowing growth in Silicon Valley. By September, OpenAI was seeking a valuation of nearly triple that, according to Reuters. Yet with or without Altman, OpenAI’s issues are clear and abundant.

Persons: Sam Altman, Altman, Greg Brockman, Satya Nadella, OpenAI, ’, OpenAI’s, chipmaker, chatbot, Brockman, Greg, Lauren Silva Laughlin, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Microsoft, Stanford, UC Berkley, OpenAI’s, San Francisco, Wall Street, Thomson Locations: Silicon Valley, U.S

☆ Google antitrust trial crystallizes Apple’s risk
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Robert Cyran | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsNEW YORK, Nov 15 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The antitrust case against Google is spelling out some serious problems. The U.S. Department of Justice claims that Alphabet maintains its market dominance by striking deals to make Google the default search engine on other companies’ devices and browsers. One expert witness for Google said Apple receives 36% of the ad revenue Google makes from searches on Apple’s Safari browser. Kevin Murphy, an economics professor at the University of Chicago, and an expert witness for Google, made the remark, Bloomberg reported. The two companies have had a partnership since 2002, where Google shares advertising revenue generated from users of Apple devices, and Google is the default search engine for these devices.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Tim Cook, Bernstein, Kevin Murphy, Alphabet’s Google, Lauren Silva Laughlin, Sharon Lam Organizations: Apple, REUTERS, Reuters, Google, U.S . Department of Justice, Microsoft, U.S . Department, University of Chicago, Bloomberg, Alphabet’s, Thomson

☆ Amazon cuts jobs in music streaming unit
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The logo of Amazon is seen on the door of an Amazon Books retail store in New York City, U.S., February 14, 2019. Employees in Latin America, North America and Europe received notices that their jobs had been eliminated Wednesday, according to people familiar with the matter. “Some roles have been eliminated on the Amazon Music team. Amazon has been quietly trimming jobs, including communications staff in its Studios, Video and Music divisions last month. Amazon Music, which also includes podcasts, competes with Spotify , Pandora, Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O) Google and Apple (AAPL.O) in offering unlimited music streaming services for a fee.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Greg Bensinger, Peter Henderson, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: Amazon, REUTERS, Employees, Reuters, Amazon Music, Studios, Spotify, Google, Apple, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Latin America, North America, Europe, Washington, California, New York

☆ Google, Lendlease axe plans for $15 billion development in Bay Area
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-04 | by ( Manav Tanneeru | Alicia Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Alphabet’s Google has scrapped a development deal to build $15 billion worth of homes, offices and retail space in California’s Silicon Valley. The announcement comes amid a period of deep cost-cutting and layoffs for Google and during a time when commercial real estate is faltering. Billion-dollar investmentsIn June 2019, Google made a $1 billion pledge to help develop more affordable housing in the increasingly unaffordable region. A month later, Google partnered with Lendlease to redevelop its landholdings for a 10- to 15-year project valued at $15 billion. Lending to commercial real estate developers and managers largely comes from small and mid-sized banks, where the pressure on liquidity has been most severe.

Persons: Lendlease, “, ” Lendlease, Google’s, we’ve, ”, Sundar Pichai, “ We’ve, ” Scott Foster, Goldman Sachs Organizations: CNN, Google, San Francisco Bay Project, Alexa, Wall Street Journal, Lendlease Locations: Silicon, San Francisco Bay, San Jose, Sunnyvale, Bay, Mountain View

☆ US probes GM's Cruise robocars over pedestrian close calls
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

NHTSA previously made public another Oct. 20 letter in which it raised concerns over several hard-braking incidents by Cruise vehicles that resulted in collisions. Safety officials cited two videos where Cruise vehicles came close to pedestrians in crosswalks and appeared to nearly strike them. Cruise had been operating an Uber-like service with unmanned vehicles, primarily in San Francisco, but the company halted that service this week. As of Friday, Waymo vehicles continued driverless passenger operations in San Francisco, its main hub. Reporting by Greg Bensinger in San Francisco Additional reporting by David Shepardson in Washington Editing by Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Heather Somerville, Cruise, Greg Bensinger, David Shepardson, Matthew Lewis Organizations: General Motors Corp, REUTERS, FRANCISCO, General Motors, National, Traffic Safety Administration, NHTSA, Cruise, California Department of Motor Vehicles, Teamsters, Thomson Locations: San Francisco, California, U.S, crosswalks, Arizona, Texas, Washington

☆ Amazon's grey cloud is the new blue sky
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Mike Blake Acquire Licensing RightsNEW YORK, Oct 26 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Amazon.com’s (AMZN.O) cloud business is offering a small sliver of light. The performance matches last quarter’s growth and is in-line with what analysts were expecting, according to LSEG. Alphabet, in its earnings on Tuesday, said its similar unit’s growth rate slowed. Shares in the company led by Sundar Pichai declined by a tenth in two days. It’s not exactly a cloudless sky - AWS growth is slowing relative to last year, and its growth rate is still 10 percentage points below Alphabet’s.

Persons: Andy Jassy, Mike Blake, Sundar Pichai, It’s, Jennifer Saba, Lauren Silva Laughlin, Sharon Lam Organizations: Amazon Web Services, REUTERS, Reuters, North, X, Unilever, Thomson Locations: Laguna Beach , California, U.S, It’s

☆ Suzanne Vranica — Advertising Editor at The Wall Street Journal
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Suzanne Vranica | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Suzanne VranicaSuzanne Vranica covers the advertising and marketing industries and is part of The Wall Street Journal’s media & marketing bureau in New York. During her long tenure on the beat, she’s covered the inner workings of Madison Avenue and companies such as WPP, Omnicom, and Publicis. Her stories often chronicle how advertising across all forms of media is being disrupted by technology and data. Suzanne helped launch CMO Today, a web vertical started by the Journal in 2014 that addresses the rapidly transforming marketing businesses and the role of marketing in the C-Suite. A New York native, Suzanne is a graduate of Iona College.

Persons: Suzanne Vranica Suzanne Vranica, she’s, Suzanne Organizations: WPP, Omnicom, Google, Iona College Locations: New York, Madison, Westchester County

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google’s digital advertising sales growth accelerated during the summer, advancing a recent revival that helped its corporate parent Alphabet Inc. to deliver a quarterly profit that exceeded analysts' projections. The third-quarter results released Tuesday for the July-September period included a 9% increase in Google’s ad sales from the same time last year. Those gains were the main reason Alphabet’s total revenue rose 11% from a year ago to $76.69 billion. The upturn was even better than the 7% year-over-year increase in revenue that Alphabet produced in the April-June period when it reversed an unprecedented drop in Google’s ad revenue after nearly 20 years of growth. “While the traction it has among AI startups may bear fruit in the long run, it is not currently helping Google Cloud enough to satisfy investors.”The Cloud letdown appeared to take the luster off the third-quarter report for many investors.

Persons: stoking, Sundar Pichai, ”, Max Willens, “ We’re, ” Pichai, Department’s Organizations: FRANCISCO, Inc, Google's, Microsoft, Google, U.S . Locations: , California, East, Ukraine

☆ Feds probing safety of GM’s robotaxis around pedestrians
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Reuters —The US auto safety regulator has opened a probe into whether General Motors’ self-driving unit Cruise has taken sufficient precautions with its autonomous vehicles to safeguard pedestrians, it said on Tuesday. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said its Office of Defects Investigation has received two reports from Cruise of incidents in which pedestrians were injured, and has identified two further incidents via videos posted to public websites. NHTSA said the reports include Cruise autonomous vehicles “encroaching on pedestrians present in or entering roadways, including pedestrian crosswalks, in the proximity of the intended path of the vehicles”. In August the California Department of Motor Vehicles said it was investigating incidents involving Cruise in San Francisco, after a Cruise robotaxi was involved in a crash with an emergency vehicle. The California Public Utilities Commission voted in August to allow robotaxis from Cruise and Alphabet’s Waymo to operate around the clock, despite strong opposition from residents and city agencies.

Persons: Cruise, “, robotaxi Organizations: Reuters, General Motors, Traffic Safety Administration, NHTSA, California Department of Motor Vehicles, California Public Utilities Commission Locations: San Francisco, California, Cruise

☆ How the tech sector in Israel is navigating the war
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

London CNN —Israel’s vast tech sector has seen its fair share of crises, from financial downturns and the Covid-19 pandemic to periodic flare-ups in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “This is different than anything we’ve faced before,” said Avi Hasson, the CEO of Start-Up Nation Central (SNC), a non-profit that promotes Israel’s tech industry globally. “Seasoned investors with experience backing Israeli startups are not backing away due to the war,” said Samid of TechAviv. For many in Israel’s tech industry, the devastating circumstances have only served to underscore the sector’s famed resilience. “Israeli [tech] hasn’t stopped,” Hasson noted.

Persons: we’ve, ”, Avi Hasson, wasn’t, Leah Walters, Monday.com, Rafael Henrique, Yaron Samid, Jensen Huang, Jon Medved, “, Hillel Fuld, it’s, hasn’t, ” Hasson Organizations: London CNN, Hamas, Nation Central, CNN, Tech, SNC, Nasdaq, Tel, Nvidia, Israel Innovation Authority, ” Tech, Microsoft, Google Locations: Israel, Tel Aviv, “, Israeli

CEO Sam Altman has made the acquisition of more AI chips a top priority for the company. Meta's (META.O) custom chip effort has been beset with issues, leading the company to scrap some of its AI chips, according to a Reuters report. OpenAI's main backer, Microsoft (MSFT.O), is also developing a custom AI chip that OpenAI is testing, The Information has reported. Demand for specialized AI chips has soared since the launch of ChatGPT last year. Nvidia is one of the few chipmakers that produces useful AI chips and dominates the market.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, OpenAI, Sam Altman, Altman, Bernstein, Stacy Rasgon, Anna Tong, Stephen Nellis, Max A, Kenneth Li, Stephen Coates 私 Organizations: REUTERS, FRANCISCO, Reuters, Nvidia, Microsoft, Google, Amazon.com, Annapurna Labs, Devices Locations: WASHINGTON, San Francisco

REUTERS/Kevork Djansezian Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Sept 27 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Microsoft’s (MSFT.O) gaming master plan is slowly coming together. But Microsoft’s gaming revenue was still around 8% of group sales, or $15 billion, for the year ended June 2022. Given these risks, it makes sense for Nadella to grow his exposure to those parts of the gaming market which are less likely to be upended by cloud gaming. It remains possible that cloud gaming is a dog that doesn’t bark – or at least not for some time. As a result of the Activision deal, Nadella has a hedge of sorts against cloud gaming happening too fast.

Persons: Kevork, Satya Nadella’s, Ampere, ”, GamesIndustry.biz, Nadella, George Hay, Katrina Hamlin Organizations: Activision, REUTERS, Reuters, Bethesda, Microsoft, Satya Nadella’s Activision, Ampere, Sony, Nintendo, Reuters Graphics, Netflix, Gamers, Xbox, PlayStation, Big Tech, Apple, HK, reckons, Competition, Markets Authority, CMA, Xbox Cloud Gaming, Ubisoft Entertainment, Ubisoft, Thomson Locations: Los Angeles , California, United States, U.S

☆ Amazon devices unit morale wanes amid cuts, weak development pipeline
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Amazon hopes consumers will install Alexa-enabled devices in more rooms of their homes and become accustomed to using the system throughout the day, the sources said. Amazon has said its devices and services business is not profitable, without providing figures. Amazon is set to name as successor Microsoft's Panos Panay who oversaw development of the Surface, according to Bloomberg. Alexa employees were included in rounds of layoffs beginning last year resulting in 27,000 job cuts across Amazon. For years, Amazon has said it can sell devices for close to production cost and see a profit through services offered on them.

Persons: Jeff Bezos, Dave Limp, Alexa, Kinley Pearsall, Amazon, hasn’t, “, ”, Avi Greengart, Limp, Microsoft's Panos Panay, Gregg Zehr, Tom Taylor, Ken Washington, Andy Jassy, Siri, That’s, Bruno Borges, I‘m, Greg Bensinger, Ken Li, Claudia Parsons Organizations: FRANCISCO, Reuters, Alexa, Amazon, Devices, Google, Microsoft, Echo, “, Bloomberg, Astro, Medtronic, Intelligence, Amazon.com, Lightform, Thomson Locations: Amazon’s, Lab126, Alphabet’s, Vancouver, Canada

☆ Verizon executive testifies Google search always pre-installed on mobile phones
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( Diane Bartz | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File PhotoWASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department on Monday questioned a Verizon executive about the company’s decision to always pre-install Google’s Chrome browser with Google search on its mobile phones, as the government sought to show that Alphabet’s Google broke antitrust law to maintain its dominance in online search. Antonio Rangel, who teaches behavioral biology at the California Institute of Technology, testified last week that people are likely to stick with defaults like search engines or map apps on computers and mobile phones. In response, Google lawyer John Schmidtlein showed the court data indicating that users happily stick with Google’s search engine when pre-installed on their devices but switch away from others they like less. Companies have defended themselves by emphasizing that their services are free, as in the case of Google, or inexpensive, as in the case of Amazon.com. He may decide simply to order Google to stop practices he has found to be illegal or he may order Google to sell assets.

Persons: Arnd, Brian Higgins, “, Google’s, James Kolotouros, Antonio Rangel, John Schmidtlein, Trump, Judge Amit Mehta Organizations: REUTERS, WASHINGTON, U.S . Justice, Verizon, Google, California Institute of Technology, Companies Locations: Zurich, Switzerland, Washington, California, U.S

The Google sign is reflected in a rain puddle outside their offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., June 27, 2017. Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Sept 13 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Want to know how to remove Google as the iPhone’s default search tool? According to him, the search engine operated by Alphabet (GOOGL.O) enlists Apple (AAPL.O) to answer the query by directing users to its website. Using Google as the default search engine wasn’t Apple’s “choice,” Dintzer said. Follow @BenWinck on XFollow @thereallsl on XCONTEXT NEWSThe U.S. Department of Justice’s antitrust case against Alphabet’s Google started on Sept. 12.

Persons: John Schmidtlein, Kenneth Dintzer, Google, ” Schmidtlein, Schmidtlein, ” Dintzer, It’s, Tim Cook, Alphabet’s Google, Ben Winck, Lauren Silva Laughlin, Jeffrey Goldfarb, Sharon Lam Organizations: Google, Rights, Reuters, Apple, U.S . Department of, Yahoo, Verizon Communications, Microsoft, Netscape, U.S, U.S . Department, Alphabet’s, Thomson Locations: Cambridge , Massachusetts, U.S, Safari, Japan, Washington, New York

☆ DOJ fights uphill battle; Google a losing one
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Ben Winck | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The government, in its opening statements, argued that the $1.7 trillion company’s search engine partnerships illegally protected its monopoly, harming consumers. The problem for the DOJ is that consumers readily dole out their data, and not just to Google. Device manufacturers and browser creators choose Google because it’s the highest quality option, and users can easily pick another default search engine, John Schmidtlein, Google’s lead lawyer, argued. The government’s lawyers have their work cut out for them, but a DOJ loss won’t mean a Google victory. The company’s partnerships may set Google as the default search engine on devices and browsers, but users can usually change their default option with a few clicks.

Persons: General Merrick Garland, Jonathan Kanter, Kenneth Dintzer, Dintzer, Amit Mehta, John Schmidtlein, Google’s, DOJ doesn’t, Google's, Lauren Silva Laughlin, Sharon Lam Organizations: U.S . Justice, Alphabet's Google, Justice Department, Reuters, U.S . Department of Justice, Alphabet’s, Google, DOJ, Microsoft, Court, Big Tech, Alphabet’s Google, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON

☆ Artificial Intelligence Can Make Companies Greener, but It Also Guzzles Energy
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Nuha Dolby | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +9 min

Artificial intelligence can help tackle climate change, but to fulfill that promise companies need to find a way to limit AI’s own climate impact. Alphabet’s Google and American Airlines used AI to help planes create fewer vapor trails, which contribute to global warming. For many companies using AI there are both positive and negative effects on their carbon emissions and water use. In the U.S., where there is no central electric grid, training models in one state versus another can have a significant impact on carbon emissions. A Google data center in Oregon.

Persons: Omar Marques, Sasha Luccioni, Bloom, “, Luccioni, Andrew Selsky, Shaolei Ren, Ren, There’s, ” Ren, Amalia Kontesi, Equinix, ”, Christopher Wellise, Jacob Reynolds Equinix, Face’s, ” Luccioni Organizations: Sustainable Business, Google, American Airlines, Zuma, Bloom, Energy, Stanford, Associated Press, University of California Riverside, Research, Microsoft, Workers Locations: San Francisco, Bloom, U.S, California, Virginia, New York, Oregon, San Francisco and New York, Americas, Asia, Spain

☆ Google Turns to a Steady Old Hand to Fight Antitrust Charges
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Nico Grant | More About Nico Grant | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

If Google loses and a judge then approves remedies, it could eventually be forced to restructure in some way, and it could be hit with enormous fines and a prohibition on search distribution deals. That would translate to fewer users, deflated profits and perhaps even limits on how Google is able to innovate with new technologies like artificial intelligence. The company is counting on Mr. Walker, 62, once again. That Mr. Walker is defending an industry giant against the monopoly claims of regulators is an odd turnabout in his long career. He grew up in Palo Alto, Calif., in the heart of Silicon Valley, and graduated from Harvard and Stanford Law School.

Persons: Amit P, Mehta, Walker, Mr, Kevin Mitnick Organizations: Justice, Microsoft, Google, U.S, District of Columbia, Oracle, Supreme, Harvard, Stanford Law School, Justice Department Locations: Palo Alto, Calif, Silicon Valley

☆ Google targets DOJ antitrust chief with bias allegations in monopoly defense
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Google went on the offensive Thursday in a closely watched antitrust case dealing with the tech giant’s digital advertising dominance, questioning the motives of the Justice Department’s top antitrust official. Google’s filing targets Jonathan Kanter, the US assistant attorney general for antitrust, and his widely reported past legal representation of Google-parent Alphabet’s corporate rivals, such as Microsoft, Yelp and News Corp, among others. Google’s attorneys argue that Kanter’s past clients create an ethical conflict and should raise doubts about the US government’s overall lawsuit. They also cited evidence in the case that, prior to joining DOJ, Kanter lobbied in a personal capacity for the agency to pursue an antitrust case against Google. The Biden administration has sought to limit the scope of discovery to prevent Google from gathering evidence about Kanter’s advocacy, according to Thursday’s filing.

Persons: Jonathan Kanter, Kanter, AAG Kanter, Susan Athey, Athey, Biden, Trump, Leonie Brinkema, Judge Brinkema Organizations: CNN, Google, Microsoft, News Corp, DOJ, Justice, Stanford, Court, Eastern, of, US Locations: Alexandria , Virginia, United States, of Virginia, Manhattan, Virginia

Search resuls for: "Alphabet’s"

25 mentions found