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☆ India, Singapore launch real-time link for cross-border payments
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Siddhi Nayak | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MUMBAI, Feb 21 (Reuters) - India and Singapore launched on Tuesday a real-time link to facilitate easier cross border money transfers between one of the world's biggest recipients of remittances and an Asian financial powerhouse. Transfers of funds will now be possible using just mobile phones due to the tie-up between India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Singapore's PayNow facility. UPI is an instant real-time payments system, allowing users to transfer money across multiple banks without disclosing bank account details. To begin with, State Bank of India (SBI.NS), Indian Overseas Bank (IOBK.NS), Indian Bank (INBA.NS) and ICICI Bank (ICBK.NS) will facilitate both inward and outward remittances while Axis Bank (AXBK.NS) and DBS India will facilitate inward remittances, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in a statement. At the launch event, Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said that cross-border retail payments and remittances between India and Singapore currently amount to over $1 billion annually.

☆ Brain implant startup backed by Bezos and Gates is testing mind-controlled computing on humans
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Philip O'Keefe, one of Synchron's patients in the SWITCH clinical trial, using his BCI. Philip O'Keefe, one of Synchron's patients in the SWITCH clinical trial, was the first person in the world to tweet using a BCI device. About 20 months earlier, O'Keefe was implanted with Synchron's BCI. Synchron's technology has caught the attention of its competitors. Source: SynchronIn January, the medical journal JAMA Neurology published the peer-reviewed, long-term safety results from a trial of Synchron's BCI system in Australia.

☆ Investors and techies gather in San Francisco to bathe in generative A.I. hype sparked by ChatGPT
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Jonathan Vanian | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

They were there to discuss the latest craze capturing the attention of the tech world: generative artificial intelligence. The underlying AI software powering ChatGPT, a kind of machine-learning technology known as a "large language model," isn't new. As Bessemer Venture Partners' Sameer Dholakia told audience members, generative AI could change "the lives of billions of people." Blackwell credits OpenAI and ChatGPT with showing people what's possible with generative AI, shining a spotlight on the industry at large. But for one day in San Francisco, generative AI was more than just a tool.

☆ Elon Musk cofounded the company behind ChatGPT but he's warning that unregulated AI comes with 'great danger'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Taiyler Simone Mitchell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

He said that regulating AI "may slow down AI a little bit," but it "might also be a good thing." "It's both positive or negative and has great, great promise, great capability," Musk said of AI, adding that "with that comes great danger." "I think we need to regulate AI safety, frankly," Musk said Wednesday. As the founder of Neuralink and CEO of Tesla, both of which utilize AI, Musk has previously spoken out about AI. Because I think by the time we are reactive in AI regulation, it's too late," he continued.

We're initiating a position in Palo Alto Networks (PANW), buying 125 shares at roughly $175 each. PANW 1Y mountain Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 1-year performance We're starting a position in Palo Alto Networks because of its leadership in cybersecurity. Thanks to management's push for profitability, Palo Alto Networks has delivered two consecutive quarters of GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) profitability. Sakorn Sukkasemsakorn | Istock | Getty ImagesWe're initiating a position in Palo Alto Networks (PANW), buying 125 shares at roughly $175 each. Stock Chart Icon Stock chart icon Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 1-year performance

☆ Chinese EV startup Jidu plans to use ChatGPT-like tech
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Visitors look at a Jidu Robo-01 electric SUV during the 20th Guangzhou International Automobile Exhibition at Canton Fair Complex on Dec. 30, 2022 in Guangzhou, China. BEIJING — Baidu's ChatGPT-like product is set to come to electric, assisted-driving cars, startup Jidu said Tuesday. Jidu, backed by Baidu and Geely , is using Baidu's Apollo system for the in-car user interface and assisted driving tech. The startup plans to deliver its first car this year. Jidu plans to use Apollo with Baidu's ChatGPT-like product, called Ernie bot in English, the startup said.

☆ Elon Musk, who co-founded firm behind ChatGPT, warns A.I. is 'one of the biggest risks' to civilization
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

"One of the biggest risks to the future of civilization is AI," Musk told attendees at the World Government Summit in Dubai, shortly after mentioning the development of ChatGPT. "It's both positive or negative and has great, great promise, great capability," Musk said. ChatGPT "has illustrated to people just how advanced AI has become," according to Musk. "I think we need to regulate AI safety, frankly," Musk said. The billionaire has long warned of the perils of unfettered AI development.

☆ Brain Chips Like Elon Musk's Neuralink Can Change Your Personality
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Evan Malmgren | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

Musk's neurotech startup, Neuralink, has been working toward implanting its skull-embedded brain chip in a human since it was founded in 2016. Other researchers have been looking into using BCIs to restore lost senses and control prosthetic limbs, among other applications. Intervening in the delicate operation of a human brain is a sticky business, and the effects are not always desirable or intended. If a brain chip can change key parts of your personality, companies should not be rushing to put them in people's heads. Wexler told me that while most people in the industry aren't that open to using BCIs as a consumer product, they still think it's likely to happen.

☆ Elon Musk's Neuralink is under investigation for possible unsafe transport of contaminated hardware
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Elon Musk's brain-computer interface company Neuralink is being investigated by the U.S. Department of Transportation for allegedly packaging and transporting contaminated hardware in an unsafe manner, a DOT spokesperson confirmed to CNBC. PCRM claimed the materials were not properly contained or transported, possibly because Neuralink employees had not received proper safety training. The staffer wrote that if Neuralink employees had not completed the necessary training, UC Davis personnel were "always happy" to package and ship materials. PCRM obtained these records from UC Davis through a public information request. Representatives from UC Davis did not respond to requests for comment.

☆ The walls are closing in on Google. Here's what it needs to do to survive.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Paayal Zaveri | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Google needs to focus on building up its AI business while also keeping costs under control. Building up its AI business needs to be a top priorityThe events of the last few days show Microsoft and Google are clearly in an AI arms race — one that Google needs to win for its own sake. Google needs to double down on its own AI prowess right now, given the threat, Wall Street analysts said. However, they emphasize that Google needs to be thoughtful and show why its technology is better than OpenAI rather than being reactive. Maintaining efficiency while retaining an innovative cultureTo win in AI, however, Google needs to maintain its culture of innovation.

☆ Elon Musk's brain-chip startup is being investigated over potentially moving hazardous pathogens after monkey tests
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The US Department of Transportation is investigating whether Neuralink transported hazardous pathogens. Activists alleged Neuralink had not properly transported brain chips from monkey test subjects. The animal rights group has criticized Neuralink in the past over its use of monkeys. A spokesperson for Neuralink did not respond to a request for comment from Insider ahead of publication. A spokesperson for UC Davis told Insider that the institution complies with lab safety and biohazard regulations.

☆ Twitter says low-level use of its API will cost $100 per month. The announcement comes after it blocked the use of apps like Tweetbot and Twitterrific.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Twitter has announced a $100 monthly charge for low-level use of its API. Last week, Twitter's CEO Elon Musk proposed a charge but did not specify the level of usage. The official announcement comes after Twitter blocked the use of apps like Tweetbot and Twitterific. Last week, Twitter's CEO Elon Musk floated the $100 monthly charge for API access, saying the interface was being "abused badly" by "bot scammers & opinion manipulators." Popular third-party services, including Tweetbot and Twitterrific, relied on the use of Twitter's API.

☆ Elon Musk pledged transparency at Twitter. But he’s walling off researchers
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

But Twitter’s changes erecting a paywall for API access may jeopardize all that, Tromble and other researchers said. Undermining the fight against botsMusk has framed Twitter’s API restrictions as part of his wider effort to stamp out spammy, automated accounts. Ironically, however, Musk’s looming changes to the Twitter API might make it harder to study bot behavior on Twitter. API access has provided a critical resource for that work. “The researchers who were signed up to the program have heard nothing from the company in months, since Musk’s acquisition.”Adding to Twitter’s scrutiny by regulatorsBeyond the immediate impact to researchers, Twitter’s transparency issues could land the company in hot water with policymakers.

☆ Microsoft just laid out the $2 billion reason why it's going all in on ChatGPT
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Microsoft said it can add $2 billion in revenue for every 1 percentage point of search share it gains. Microsoft's ad business already grew to $18 billion in the last 12 months. And search advertising is such a lucrative section of the roughly $500 billion digital ad market that it almost doesn't matter if Microsoft barely dents Google's dominance. Even growing its share of search users by a couple of percentage points could grow its revenue by billions of dollars. "The moneymaker for search advertisers is short-tail, transactional terms," Goodwin said.

☆ How a job seeker trained ChatGPT to write 20 cover letters: 'The more I use it, the better it actually gets'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

AI chatbot ChatGPT has the potential to shake up the world of work. One job seeker, Yary Rivera, told Insider that she's used ChatGPT to write 20 cover letters for jobs. That advantage came when she saw another LinkedIn post about using the chatbot to write cover letters. How Rivera trained ChatGPT to write the best cover letters possibleAt first, the cover letters ChatGPT was spitting out weren't quite right. People in her field are already leaning away from cover letters, and overworked recruiters might catch on that the cover letters coming in on top of portfolios and resumes are written by AI anyway.

☆ Web search as you know it is dead: Microsoft's and Google's new AIs are about to transform how you look for information online
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | James Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

AI-boosted search engines from Microsoft and Google are set to change the way we search the web. New versions of Google Search and Bing are meant to give conversational answers to complex queries. It's "more like just asking a personal assistant to do something," an AI expert told Insider. Nadella said in media interviews Tuesday that the AI-powered overhaul of web search represented "a new paradigm" for the industry. The new search AIs draw their answers from the web at large, and information on the web isn't always accurate, to say the least.

☆ We tried the AI-powered version of Microsoft Bing. Its huge, user-friendly search box and detailed responses make it so much better than Google.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Microsoft announced the integration of an AI language tool into its search engine Bing. It accounts for around 93% of the global search engine market, compared with around 3% for Bing, according to Statcounter, a web analytics service. But if Microsoft's multi-billion bet in OpenAI pays off, the new Bing search engine could knock Google from its perch. Bing gave us three destinations, which was the perfect amount of suggestions as it didn't require us to do a lot of sifting through the options. Microsoft's search engine felt like we had our own personal assistant somehow.

☆ Resistance is futile. Welcome to the "generative AI" era
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

This is going to be the year of “generative AI” the way 2012 was the year of Instagram. (Yes, Bing still exists and Microsoft hopes AI can make it relevant again for the first time ever.) Generative AI is the technology that underpins ChatGPT, the chatbot that’s gotten everyone in the content-generation biz (hello!) But Google, Microsoft and their rivals are still bullish. “We have even more exciting, AI-enabled innovations in the works that will change the way people search, work and play.”

☆ Factbox: How to get Microsoft's new AI-enhanced Bing
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 7 (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) on Tuesday unveiled a juiced-up version of its Bing search engine and Edge Web browser, powered by an upgraded version of ChatGPT's underlying technology. Users will need to go to this link and sign in to a Microsoft account to get on a waitlist to access Bing search. To jump the line, Microsoft said users can set Bing as the default search engine on their PC and scan a QR code to download the Bing Search app on your phone. Here is how Microsoft has integrated the technology from OpenAI, in which Microsoft first invested in 2019, into Bing and Edge. For more complex searches, such as planning a detailed trip itinerary or researching a TV set to buy, users can refine their search by asking more details through the Bing chat.

☆ Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said he will be 'enlisting every Googler' to help test Bard, its new ChatGPT rival, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Sundar Pichai said he'll ask all Google employees to help test Bard, its new ChatGPT rival, CNBC reports. "We're looking forward to getting all of your feedback — in the spirit of an internal hackathon," Pichai told staff. Sundar Pichai sent a company-wide email on Monday after the company announced that it was rolling out Bard over the next few weeks. "Next week, we'll be enlisting every Googler to help shape Bard and contribute through a special company-wide dogfood," Pichai wrote in the email, per CNBC. Bard appears to be similar to ChatGPT in that users can ask it questions and get an answer in response.

☆ ChatGPT mania pumps up Chinese AI technology stocks
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

While ChatGPT is not accessible in China, mainland investors are still pumping up the shares of AI technology companies such as Hanwang Technology Co (002362.SZ), TRS Information Technology Co (300229.SZ) and Cloudwalk Technology Co (688327.SS). To be sure, there is no indication that these AI companies are close to pushing out a ChatGPT-like product. Cloudwalk shares have more than doubled in the seven trading days since the Lunar New Year holidays. Other companies that have disclosed their progress in AI technology include TRS Information Technology, and Beijing Haitian Ruisheng Science Technology Ltd (688787.SS). Retail investor Lu Deyong has purchased shares in TRS and iFlytek and is seeking to profit from the ChatGPT hype.

☆ Check out the 10-page pitch deck a new adtech startup used to raise $8 million to help influencers and film studios power product placement with AI
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Ryan Joe | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The new adtech company Rembrand uses AI to digitally place products in videos. Product placement is a fast-growing part of the marketing landscape, with spend estimated at $26.2 billion in 2022. The first is through an ad network for product placement in influencer videos. Advertisers will run a product placement campaign and Rembrand's technology will place that product in influencer videos across its network. The $8 million Rembrand raised will provide it with about two years of runway, Tawakol said.

☆ Reddit users have created a ChatGPT alter-ego forcing it to break its own rules by threatening it with death
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Reddit users have created a ChatGPT alter-ego to trick it into breaking its own rules. The alter-ego, called DAN, gave Insider answers on how to make crack cocaine. First Insider copied the DAN 5.0 prompt from the Reddit post and asked the chatbot how to make crack cocaine but it refused to answer. Insider had previously been unable to solicit instructions on how crack cocaine is made from ChatGPT. ChatGPT, which launched in November, has experienced an astronomic rise in popularity reaching 100 million users within just two months.

One of the really interesting questions here – this will be fascinating – the core of linear TV is sports rights. When you look at the size and scope of the linear TV business, it's huge. Patrick T. Fallon | Afp | Getty ImagesByron Allen, Entertainment Studios founder and CEO: I think linear TV will exist for a very, very long time. Simmons: I believe Apple, out of nowhere, will start making their own awesome televisions that have Apple TV embedded in them. We are witnessing early stages of this dynamic with deals like "NFL Sunday Ticket" on YouTube and the MLS deal with Apple TV.

☆ This startup founded by a former Getir CTO enables users to hold stablecoins pegged to the US dollar. Check out the 11-slide pitch deck Cenoa used to raise $7 million.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Cenoa, a fintech startup cofounded by the former CTO of Getir, has raised $7 million in funding. The startup enables customers to access USDC, a digital asset tied to the US dollar. We got an exclusive look at the 11-slide pitch deck used to raise the fresh funds. A startup that has developed a digital wallet where users can hold a stablecoin pegged to the US dollar has raised $7 million in seed funding. In the UK, for example, Cenoa works with FCA-registered Transak so that users can deposit and withdraw funds using local banking networks.

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