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☆ Climeworks: 2023 CNBC Disruptor 50
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Cnbc.Com Staff | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The company created a demo prototype in 2012 and launched its first direct carbon capture plant in Iceland two years later. The company partners with CarbFix, which dissolves the captured carbon dioxide in water, then combines the mixture with basalt rock formations. The carbon dioxide converts into solid carbonate minerals in about two years. Climeworks also sells some of the carbon dioxide for use in sparkling water or soft drinks. Climeworks started providing certified carbon removal services to Microsoft, Spotify and Stripe earlier this year for an undisclosed price.

☆ Rocket builder Firefly takes on high-speed Space Force mission for crucial next launch
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( Michael Sheetz | In Michaeljsheetz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The Alpha rocket for the Space Force's Victus Nox mission stands on the launchpad at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The mission for the military's Los Angeles-based Space Safari team calls for flying a Millennium Space Systems-built satellite on Firefly Aerospace's Alpha rocket — on remarkably short notice. The Alpha rocket for the Space Force's Victus Nox mission stands on the launchpad at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. Space Force selected Firefly and Millennium for the Victus Nox contract in October, setting off a chain of events starting with the build phase. Firefly's opportunitywatch nowFirefly originally planned to fly a NASA mission on its third Alpha rocket launch, after the company reached space with its second launch in October.

☆ Elon Musk's Neuralink accused of 'obvious conflict of interest' by filling its animal-testing regulatory committee with staff who could profit, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk's Neuralink is testing its brain implant on animals ahead of plans for human trials. 19 of the 22 members of the animal-research oversight board are also Neuralink staff, per Reuters. Elon Musk's Neuralink has reportedly filled its committee overseeing animal testing with staff who stand to profit if the brain implant is approved by regulators, according to Reuters. Federal law requires certain animal research facilities to have a regulatory board called an Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, or IACUC. That's because Neuralink staff typically receive equity in the company, five current and former workers told Reuters.

☆ AI is going to offer every student a personalized tutor, founder of Khan Academy says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Will Gendron | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Sal Khan, the founder of Khan Academy, recently gave a TED Talk on AI's potential impact on education. The technology could offer personalized tutors to every student at a large scale, he said. Sal Khan, the founder of Khan Academy, an educational nonprofit that aims to provide free learning resources, is not necessarily fearful of the technology. In a TED Talk that was released this week, Khan explained the potential benefits of AI across the field of education, likening the possibilities to a personalized tutor for every student. Khan said AI could also offer personalized assistance to teachers, by helping with pre-class work like lesson planning, filling out report cards, and general administrative tasks.

☆ Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak voices concerns about AI and a need for regulation
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Jennifer Korn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

“I’m just a scientist who suddenly realized that these things are getting smarter than us,” Hinton told CNN’s Jake Tapper in an interview on Tuesday. Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, who was one of the signatories on the letter, appeared on “CNN This Morning” on Tuesday, echoing concerns about its potential to spread misinformation. “Tricking is going to be a lot easier for those who want to trick you,” Wozniak told CNN. Hinton, for his part, told CNN he did not sign the petition. “It’s not clear to me that we can solve this problem,” Hinton told Tapper.

☆ AI startup founders from Y Combinator's latest class reveal the top 3 things they learned from the accelerator
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Several AI startup founders who participated said the program had many more in person events. And they also said it was a huge benefit and made a difference being in San Francisco. For its winter 2023 cohort, Y Combinator accepted founders from 282 startups for its coveted startup accelerator program. Insider spoke with the founders of four AI startups that went through this latest batch and asked them to share what they learned most from the experience. "It feels like the next platform shift, and San Francisco is definitely the heart of it."

☆ AI pioneer quits Google to warn about the technology’s ‘dangers’
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Jennifer Korn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

He worked part-time at Google for a decade on the tech giant’s AI development efforts, but he has since come to have concerns about the technology and his role in advancing it. In a tweet Monday, Hinton said he left Google so he could speak freely about the risks of AI, rather than because of a desire to criticize Google specifically. “I left so that I could talk about the dangers of AI without considering how this impacts Google,” Hinton said in a tweet. OpenAI, Microsoft and Google are at the forefront of this trend, but IBM, Amazon, Baidu and Tencent are working on similar technologies. Obviously, I no longer think that.”Even before stepping aside from Google, Hinton had spoken publicly about AI’s potential to do harm as well as good.

☆ I got to play the latest 'Legend of Zelda' game early. Here's a preview of the biggest game the year.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( William Antonelli | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

"The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom," Nintendo's biggest game this year, is releasing May 12. Last week, Nintendo invited Insider to play a demo of the game. Here are my first impressions of "Tears of the Kingdom," a wonderfully creative game that delivers on its hype. There are few games that have built more hype and anticipation than the newest Zelda game, "The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom." "The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom" releases on May 12.

☆ Jai Paul Emerges, Tentatively, for His First Headlining Concert
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Jon Caramanica | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Tuesday night at Knockdown Center in Queens, nearly 2,000 people were handed something fragile and entrusted — implicitly implored — not to break it. For the last decade, the British electronic music producer and singer Jai Paul has functioned more as a memory than as an active musician. Since then, apart from the formal release of those demo recordings in 2019, he has stayed mostly quiet until this year. His show on Tuesday was his first true headlining concert, following performances at the two weekends of Coachella earlier this month. Which is to say, this was a precious, anticipated, frankly anxious affair — the materialization of a beloved and mercurial performer moving from the chimerical to the literal.

☆ At Microsoft, Charlie Bell's shackles are finally off. Watch out, Amazon.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +16 min

Many in the industry, including current and former Microsoft and Amazon executives, wonder whether there's a better job for Bell. It could get intense, with Bell going toe-to-toe with Jassy and getting into disputes with Selipsky. "There were two different sets of security products and actually different security organizations that were securing the products for Microsoft," Bell said. While Bell has imported some processes from Amazon, he has introduced them with a "Microsoft flavor," by using Microsoft productivity tools, one person said. "So many decisions get made at Microsoft by looking at PowerPoints, and sometimes those PowerPoints lack details," Rashid, the former Microsoft and Amazon executive, said.

☆ Why Fox News brass might be unnerved after seeing the ratings in the aftermath of Tucker Carlson’s firing
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

When Carlson hosted on April 17, he averaged 3.2 million total viewers and 445,000 in the key demo. On April 10, Carlson averaged 3.1 million total viewers and 438,000 in the key demo. And on April 3, Carlson averaged 3.2 million total viewers and 435,000 in the key demo. Carlson’s ratings dominance was why he had that 8pm perch. The numbers suggest that some of Carlson’s audience migrated over to Newsmax to sample the competitor’s showing.

☆ VCs are scrambling to invest in AI startups in Y Combinator's latest class: 'There's hysteria for a reason'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Stephanie Palazzolo | Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

VCs are scrambling to back the AI startups in Y Combinator's latest batch. Several generative AI startups have already secured funding from top firms, sources say. And while valuations are down across the board, YC AI startups are still hot. Startups focused on AI, and generative AI specifically, which saw a substantial jump in the latest batch, were some of the most highly sought after by investors. An AI feeding frenzyVC buzz was common across generative AI startups both in the application and infrastructure layers.

☆ Tupperware has been struggling for some time. These charts show how
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Alex Leeds Matthews | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Tupperware may be on the verge of collapse, but the 77-year-old business’ potential demise isn’t necessarily a harbinger of worsening economic conditions. Some business experts say that’s because Tupperware has failed to adapt to changing consumer behaviors. The Tupperware brand name is so iconic that it’s become shorthand for all food leftover storage. That might be part of the problem, as other brands have emerged to compete against Tupperware, sometimes at lower price points. Tupperware has historically only sold to consumers through “direct sales,” most commonly at “Tupperware parties.” These parties were gatherings where people who enjoyed the product would demo and sell the Tupperware brand to their friends and acquaintances.

☆ An outsourcing firm cut dozens of contractors who were training the language model behind OpenAI's ChatGPT
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Aaron Mok | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Invisible Technologies laid off 31 contractors hired to train OpenAI's GPT, Insider has learned. OpenAI has reportedly hired about 1,000 contractors globally as its ChatGPT AI gains popularity. San Francisco-based firm Invisible Technologies laid off 31 contractors as of March 16, according to internal Slack screenshots that Insider obtained. Hundreds of Invisible contractors known as "advanced AI data trainers" work with OpenAI to train its GPT bots, internal Slack screenshots show. Invisible laid off contractors based on performance metrics like "quality" and "throughput," Grace Matelich, a partner and operations manager at Invisible, said during the recorded meeting.

☆ An ex-Apple designer showed off a futuristic AI device that projects phone calls onto your hand
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A new device by Humane can project phone calls onto the palm of a hand. In a video of the event that Ali shared with Insider, Chaudhri's talk appeared to be interrupted by the insistent chime of a call. But instead of reaching for a device in his pocket, Chaudhri simply turned over his hand to gaze at his palm. A representative for TED indicated that the video that Ali shared was likely captured from a livestream. "Humane will be releasing further details on how the device works in the coming months," a company spokesperson told Insider.

☆ A.I. takes center stage at HIMSS health conference
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

HIMSS conference attendees walk the exhibition floor Source: HIMSSDebates over artificial intelligence and its role in health care took center stage at the HIMSS Global Health Conference in Chicago this week, where more than 35,000 physicians, executives, engineers and health-care workers convened to discuss the latest advancements in health and technology. Generative AI refers to programs that can use fairly complicated prompts from end users to generate text or images. Just as generative AI has captured the attention of the general public, it has also captivated the medical community. HIMSS attendees told CNBC they believe generative AI can help with these tasks. More than 35,000 people attended the HIMSS conference in 2023 Source: HIMSS

☆ Developer tool startups in Y Combinator's latest class are grabbing the attention of investors like Elad Gil and Google's Gradient Ventures. Here are 4 that have already landed funding.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Stephanie Palazzolo | Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Developer tool startups that were part of Y Combinator's latest class are drawing strong interest from several high-profile venture capitalists. Sequoia partner Lauren Reeder personally participated in the code review startup's recent funding round, according to a Sequoia spokesperson. That fundraising was at a $30 million post-money valuation, one person familiar with the deal said. Developer tool startups accounted for 26% of the companies in YC's winter 2023 batch, up from 16% of the summer 2022 class, according to the accelerator's startup directory. Have a tip on a startup funding round?

☆ I used ChatGPT to build a simple Chrome extension in 10 hours. Here's how I sold it for thousands on Acquire and what I learned about my fastest launch-to-exit ever.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Ihor Stefurak | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

He used ChatGPT to build a Chrome extension and sold it for thousands on Acquire. While it took 10 hours to build, Stefurak recommends using ChatGPT to help with certain projects. We crafted a Chrome extension and received $1,000 worth of pre-orders within 24 hours. I recommend using the AI chatbot if you're starting a simple project with JavaScript or Python. These models help enhance self-understanding and ultimately lead to better decisions and big overall improvements.

☆ Google employees who tested its ChatGPT rival Bard reportedly called it 'cringeworthy' and a 'pathological liar,' and said the AI's responses could 'result in serious injury or death'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Aaron Mok | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Google employees who tested Bard called it "cringeworthy" and a "pathological liar," per Bloomberg. Google employees tasked with testing their employer's AI chatbot Bard were not all that pleased by what they found, according to Bloomberg. After testing the bot, one employee reportedly called Bard "cringeworthy," and another called it a "pathological liar," according to screenshots of internal discussions obtained by Bloomberg. Google employees called the announcement "rushed" and "botched." Read Bloomberg's full report on Google employees' responses to Bard here

☆ Why MLM Sales 'Huns' Get so Much Hate on Reddit, TikTok
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Aimee Pearcy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

Over the past few years, MLM companies have been under increased scrutiny. MLM companies largely appeal to those who are disconnected and looking for a way to get on solid financial footingAt first, Stimson felt optimistic. And a 2018 AARP survey found that just 25% of MLM participants made a profit. US direct-sales companies, which include MLM companies, earned $42.7 billion in retail sales in 2021, according to the Direct Selling Association — a 21% increase from 2019. And two-thirds of MLM participants said that "knowing what they know now, they would not join the same MLM company again."

☆ Google-parent stock drops on fears it could lose search market share to AI-powered rivals
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Samantha Kelly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Shares of Google-parent Alphabet fell more than 3% in early trading Monday after a report sparked concerns that its core search engine could lose market share to AI-powered rivals, including Microsoft’s Bing. In an effort to address the heightened competition, Google is said to be developing a new AI-powered search engine called Project “Magi,” according to the Times. Google’s search engine has dominated the market for two decades. That’s particularly true when it comes to search engines, a product that many use to find accurate and reliable information. “This is going to impact every product across every company and so that’s, that’s why I think it’s a very, very profound technology,” he said.

☆ As NYC's first-ever rat czar gets to work, cities like Boston and Chicago are looking for inspiration to fix their own rodent problems
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Jordan Hart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

New York City Mayor Eric Adams appointed a "rat czar" to help eliminate rodents in the city. One Boston city official says the Massachusetts city should follow suit and hire a rat slayer of their own. Days later, Boston City Council President Ed Flynn recommended the Massachusetts city hire someone in a similar position ""to hopefully one day eliminate rats in Boston," the Boston Herald reported. In 2022, Chicago was named the number one "rattiest" city in the US over both New York City and Boston. "You can hear them screaming — ee, ee, ee, ee!"

☆ When I worked at Uber it was painfully obvious that too many of our women employees had to quit to raise kids. I started a childcare insurance company to fix that.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Lakshmi Varanasi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Siran Cao is the co-founder of Mirza, a platform for employer-sponsored childcare insurance. Siran CaoMy mandate was to onboard tens of thousands of drivers really, really, quickly. Even at a well-funded tech company like Uber, though, what struck me was how childcare became a daily operational disruption. The data shows that women who take just one a year off earn 39% less overall than women who don't. While women continue to quietly bear the bulk of this work, I don't believe this is solely women's issue.

☆ Inside the Rise and Fall of Kittyhawk, Larry Page's Failed Flying Car Company
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Hugh Langley | Rob Price | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +22 min

Killing off projects had become something of a tradition at Kittyhawk, the secretive flying-car startup launched by the Google cofounder Larry Page. Larry Page has used his Google money to found a series of flying car companies with one common goal: "to free the world of traffic." "When Bloomberg did their original exposé, that's when urban air mobility became a thing," a former Kittyhawk employee recalled. Everyone thought: If Larry Page is in this space, there must be something here." Interpreting "Larry-isms" or "learning to speak Larry" were essential skills for any Kittyhawk employee who wanted to retain their sanity.

☆ Y Combinator's latest class is a feeding frenzy for VCs looking to back AI startups: 'There's hysteria for a reason'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Stephanie Palazzolo | Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

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