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☆ Elon Musk is $36 billion richer since returning from his triumphant China trip
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk has gained $36 billion in net worth over the last week, per Bloomberg. Musk is reaping the benefits after Tesla shares surged following his successful trip to China. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementElon Musk is $36 billion richer following his recent trip to China. Three years later, he's now behind LVMH boss Bernard Arnault and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, with a current estimated net worth of $202 billion.

Persons: Elon Musk, —, Elon, Musk, Dan Ives, he's, Bernard Arnault, Jeff Bezos, Tesla Organizations: Bloomberg, Service, Tesla, SpaceX, Amazon Locations: China, China . China

☆ Elon Musk will face intense competition if he tries to bring Tesla's full self-driving technology to China
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Elon Musk has moved closer to getting full self-driving technology approved in China, reports suggest. One local EV boss welcomed the move, saying regulators should "let a hundred flowers bloom." Tesla has moved closer to securing approval to operate its full self-driving technology in China, according to multiple reports, after CEO Elon Musk made a surprise visit to the country over the weekend. Getting FSD approved for China would be a massive win for Musk, who has bet Tesla's future on self-driving cars and robotaxis. AdvertisementMany of Tesla's local rivals are rolling out their own versions of Tesla's Autopilot, which is available in China, and full self-driving technology as competition rages in the country's EV market.

Persons: Elon Musk, Tesla, —, Elon, Musk, XPeng's, William Li, Xiaopeng, EVs, Warren Organizations: EV, Service, Huawei, Xiaomi, Weibo, Bloomberg Locations: China, Guangzhou

☆ Ford tapped the brakes on EVs and bet on hybrids. It's paying off.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewFord's bet on hybrids looks like it's paying off. By comparison, the company's pure EV business has struggled. Ford's crosstown rival General Motors, meanwhile, has reversed its "all-in" electric vehicle strategy and pledged to bring back hybrids into its North American vehicle lineup. Not to be outdone, Ford is also doubling down on hybrids, even as it cuts back on some EV investments. "The EV adoption rate globally is under pressure, and a lot of other auto manufacturers are pulling back on EVs and pursuing plug-in hybrids instead," said Musk in the company's earnings call.

Persons: —, Jim Farley, Farley, Ford, Elon Musk, Motors, Jim Baumbick Organizations: Service, Detroit, US, Toyota, Honda, Business, Ford Model, Motors, Volkswagen, EV, The New York Times, American, Elon Locations: North America

☆ Tesla is eyeing India — but a rival says that's 'good for the industry'
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Tesla has reportedly been considering building a new factory in India, the world's third-largest car market. MG Motor India executive Rajeev Chaba told CNBC the move could boost India's EV market. AdvertisementTesla has been eyeing an expansion into India — and one local auto executive thinks it'll be good for business. MG Motor India's CEO Emeritus Rajeev Chaba told CNBC that Tesla's potential entry into the Indian market could help boost the country's low rate of EV adoption. It'll be good for the industry, good news for the country, and for serious players like us," Chaba told CNBC.

Persons: Tesla, Rajeev Chaba, —, it'll, It'll, Chaba Organizations: MG Motor India, CNBC, EV, Service Locations: India

☆ ChatGPT's been acting weird — and it's probably our fault
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read previewChatGPT has been acting up in weird ways in recent months. AI models like GPT-4 are continually tweaked and updated, with OpenAI relying on interactions with users to train ChatGPT to become more conversational and useful. It works through a process called reinforcement learning from human feedback , where the AI model learns which responses are more favorable to users and adjusts accordingly. ChatGPT users said the bot was becoming lazyIn recent months, users of the chatbot, which reportedly now has around 1.7 billion users, have been complaining that it has been acting up.

Persons: —, OpenAI, James Zou, ChatGPT, Sam Altman, Zou Organizations: Service, Business, Stanford University, Stanford Locations: GPT

☆ ChatGPT will soon be able to remember your conversations
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

OpenAI is testing a new memory feature for ChatGPT. The startup said the new feature will enable ChatGPT to recall previous conversations. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . OpenAI said Tuesday that it is testing a feature that will allow ChatGPT to remember things users discuss with the chatbot in future conversations. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: ChatGPT, —, OpenAI Organizations: Service, Business

☆ Chinese tech startups quietly stop testing driverless cars on Californian roads
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Read previewChina’s leading ride-hailing firm has dropped out of a program that allows it to test self-driving vehicles on Californian public roads. Ride-hailing giant Didi has withdrawn from California’s autonomous vehicle testing program, according to the California Department of Motor Vehicles, as several rival Chinese firms also scaled back their self-driving operations in the state. Future Publishing/Getty imagesDidi is not the only Chinese company that appears to be scaling back autonomous vehicle testing in California, or pulling out entirely. That's a significant decline from the previous year, when Chinese autonomous vehicle companies conducted over 450,000 miles of testing. AdvertisementHe said that public backlash toward autonomous vehicles in cities like San Francisco had increased the risks of negative PR for companies testing the technology on public roads.

Persons: —, Didi, WeRide, AutoX —, That's, Sesame, Bob Latta, Cruise, that's, ” John Helveston, ” Helveston Organizations: Service, California Department of Motor Vehicles, Business, DMV, Baidu, Future Publishing, Pegasus Technology, NBC, Republican, Anadolu, Getty, George Washington University Locations: California, Shanghai, China, Jiaxing, San Francisco

☆ Jeff Bezos' Miami move could save him $600 million in taxes on stock sale
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Jeff Bezos' move to Miami could save him over $600 million in taxes, per CNBC calculations. But Florida has no capital gains tax, unlike Washington. AdvertisementJeff Bezos’ Miami move could be about to save him more than $600 million in taxes. As Florida has no capital gains tax, CNBC calculated that Bezos would save around $600 billion in taxes compared to if he sold the shares while based in Seattle. Washington state passed a new law imposing a 7% capital gains tax on sales of stocks or bonds worth more than $250,000, which went into effect in 2022.

Persons: Jeff Bezos, —, Bezos, Lauren Sanchez, Elon Musk Organizations: Washington, Service, CNBC, Business Locations: Miami, Seattle, Florida, Seattle . Washington, Cape Canaveral

☆ Tesla earned $1.8 billion last year from a side hustle
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-12 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Tesla earns regulatory credits by making and selling electric vehicles. Bloomberg, which initially reported on the filing , calculated that the company had pulled in almost $9 billion from selling regulatory credits since 2009. The company has expected revenue from regulatory credits to dry up as other automakers ramp up EV production. "It will continue for some period of time, but eventually this stream of regulatory credits will reduce," he added. However, that scenario has largely failed to materialize, with Tesla’s earnings from selling regulatory credits slightly increasing from last year, when it earned $1.776 billion.

Persons: —, Elon, Tesla, Zachary Kirkhorn, Kirkhorn Organizations: Service, Securities, Exchange Commission, Business, Tesla, Bloomberg, Ford, General Motors, BYD Locations: Europe, China

☆ Hertz halts plan to buy 65,000 electric cars amid EV slump
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-06 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The rental car giant is pausing plans to buy 65,000 electric cars from EV pioneer Polestar, according to comments made by Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath in an interview with The Financial Times . Hertz's estimated $3 billion agreement with up-and-coming EV maker Polestar in 2022 was seen as a major moment for electric vehicle adoption. AdvertisementIt came after Hertz struck a similar deal with Tesla and agreed to buy 100,000 of its EVs in 2021. However, since then the global EV market has stalled , with demand for electric cars slumping and major automakers rolling back some of their investments . AdvertisementThe company said in January it plans to sell 20,000 EVs from its fleet , including Teslas, Chevrolet Bolts, and Volvos.

Persons: Hertz, Thomas Ingenlath, Tesla, Elon, Ingenlath, Stephen Scherr, Polestar, Mary Barra Organizations: Financial Times, Polestar, Hertz, Teslas, Chevrolet Bolts, Volvo, Swedish, General Motors, Business

☆ Sam Altman says ChatGPT should be 'much less lazy now'
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Sam Altman wrote on X that ChatGPT should be "much less lazy now" after OpenAI rolled out an update. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementChatGPT has made a slow start to the year — but Sam Altman says the chatty AI is now past its winter slump. "Gpt-4 had a slow start on its new year's resolutions but should be much less lazy now," Altman wrote in a post on X .

Persons: Sam Altman, —, ChatGPT, Altman Organizations: Service, Business

☆ Battery swapping is taking off in China — and it could help rescue the EV revolution in the US
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

The Tesla rival pioneering battery-swappingFounded by entrepreneur William Li — sometimes referred to as "China's Elon Musk" — in 2014, Nio has built a network of more than 2,000 battery swap stations in China. Experts told BI that battery swapping offers a solution to many of those concerns — in theory. Ample battery swapping technology promises to swap out an EV battery in under five minutes. It's a heavy innovation because battery swap is closely connected with the vehicle design and the sales model," said Dr Shen. Ample, which in the future plans to charge users a battery subscription fee to use its swap stations, has battery swap stations operating in Spain, Japan, and California, where it has worked mainly with fleet providers such as Uber.

Persons: —, William Li —, China's Elon, Nio, Fei Shen, William Li, HECTOR RETAMAL, JAC, Shen, Dylan Khoo, John Helveston, Helveston, Khoo, John De Souza, De Souza Organizations: Service, Business, EV, Chery, ABI Research, George Washington University, Fiat Locations: China, Europe, West, San Francisco, Spain, Japan, California

☆ The Tesla shareholder who denied Musk his $55 billion payday is a former heavy metal drummer
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Richard Tornetta sued Tesla in 2018 over Elon Musk's $55 billion compensation plan. The Tesla shareholder is a former heavy metal drummer for the thrash-metal band Dawn of Correction. A Judge sided with Tornetta and struck down the pay package, calling it unfair to shareholders. AdvertisementThe Tesla shareholder who won a dramatic legal victory that denied Elon Musk his $55 billion compensation package used to be a heavy metal drummer. The EV maker will need to develop a new compensation plan for Musk, although it can appeal.

Persons: Richard Tornetta, Tesla, —, Elon Musk, of, Musk, Tornetta, Kimbal Organizations: Elon Musk's, Service, YouTube, Reuters, Business Locations: Delaware, Texas

☆ Tesla issues recall for most of its cars in the US over warning light issue
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Tesla is recalling 2.2. million vehicles due to an issue with their warning lights. The carmaker has started releasing a software update to resolve the problem. It's Tesla's second big recall in months after it updated 2 million vehicles over Autopilot fears. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementTesla is recalling two million vehicles in yet another safety headache for Elon Musk .

Persons: Tesla, It's, —, Elon Musk Organizations: Service, Traffic Safety Administration, Business

☆ Elon Musk might be right. Chinese EV firms could 'demolish' their US rivals.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Elon Musk warned Chinese EV firms could "demolish" rivals like Tesla without trade barriers. AdvertisementA decade ago, Elon Musk laughed off the threat posed by Chinese electric carmaker BYD . "The Chinese car companies are the most competitive car companies in the world," Musk told investors during Tesla's Q4 earnings call. I think the Chinese companies are more willing to take risks and gamble with something and see how it goes," he said. Something else that may stop Chinese EV companies from overrunning the US market with cheap models is range.

Persons: Elon Musk, Tesla, —, BYD, Musk, Biden, Zhang Fan, Fortune, we've, John Helveston, Helveston, Nio, Dr, Fei Shen, Shen Organizations: Service, EV, Companies, Chery, GAC, George Washington University, US, Nio's, BI Locations: Mexico, China, Europe

☆ Amazon named its new chatbot Rufus after a Welsh corgi that a couple often took to the office
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Amazon has named its latest AI chatbot after a dog that belonged to two of the company's earliest workers. The e-commerce giant launched a new AI-powered shopping assistant called Rufus on Thursday — and the chatbot shares a name with Amazon's first four-legged "employee." Rufus belonged to Susan Benson, Amazon's former editor-in-chief, and her husband Richard, who was an engineer. pic.twitter.com/DsXElz0fht — Amazon (@amazon) February 20, 2020Amazon named one of the buildings in its Seattle headquarters after the corgi, which died in 2009. There are pictures of him throughout its offices , including one hailing Rufus as Amazon's "official switch thrower."

Persons: Rufus, Amazon's, Susan Benson, Richard, corgi, Brad Stone's, Jeff Bezos, Andy Jassy Organizations: Amazon, corgi Locations: Seattle

☆ Apple fans finally got a proper look at one of the Vision Pro's more bizarre features — and some think it's terrible
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Some Apple fans were unimpressed by the Vision Pro's "EyeSight" feature when reviews came out this week. It displays the users' virtual eyes on the outer screen of the Vision Pro. AdvertisementApple fans got a proper look at one of the Vision Pro 's more bizarre features — and not all of them are impressed. The most surprising takeaway from all the Vision Pro reviews/videos is how universally awful the EyeSight display is. The Vision Pro goes on sale on February 2, with Apple reportedly having already sold around 200,000 headsets in preorder.

Persons: —, Apple Organizations: Apple, Vision, Service, Pro, Tech, Business Locations: Beta

☆ Hulu is the latest streaming service to crack down on password sharing
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Hulu has reportedly told subscribers it will be banning password sharing. The Disney-owned platform becomes the latest streaming service to crack down on account sharing. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementHulu has become the latest streaming service to crack down on password sharing. The Disney-owned streaming service updated its subscriber agreement last week to explicitly ban sharing a subscription outside of a single household, and has been emailing subscribers to tell them that the password-sharing crackdown will come into effect on March 14, per The Hollywood Reporter .

Persons: Hulu, — Organizations: Disney, Netflix, Service, Hulu, Hollywood

☆ ChatGPT probably won't help create biological weapons, OpenAI says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read previewOpenAI thinks there's only a slight chance that ChatGPT could be used to help create biological threats. Experts have warned that AI could be used to facilitate biological terror attacks, either by helping terrorists create biological and chemical weapons or by helping them plan their attacks. The GPT-4 group was given access to a research-only version of the model that, unlike ChatGPT, has fewer "security guardrails in place" it said. OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, made outside normal working hours.

Persons: —, there's, Dario Amodei, Mark Zuckerberg, OpenAI Organizations: Service, Business, Rand Corporation

☆ Ken Griffin says Chinese invasion of Taiwan could spark a new Great Depression
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Ken Griffin told CNBC that a war over Taiwan could spark a new Great Depression. AdvertisementKen Griffin has warned that a war over Taiwan could spark a new Great Depression. The Citadel founder told CNBC that a Chinese invasion of Taiwan would have "catastrophic" consequences for both the American and Chinese economies. And by catastrophic I think you're looking at Great Depression circumstances," Griffin told CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" during the MFA Network conference in Miami on Tuesday. Those chips are used in every part of our economy," Griffin told CNBC.

Persons: Ken Griffin, —, Griffin, CNBC's, Lai Ching, Xi Jinping, Joe Biden Organizations: CNBC, Service, Citadel, Network, Boeing Locations: Taiwan, Miami, Beijing, China

☆ Ken Griffin says watching Chinese EV firm BYD overtake Tesla was 'heartbreaking'
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ken Griffin told CNBC that BYD overtaking Tesla as the top seller of EVs was a "heartbreaking" moment. The billionaire warned the West needs a strategy to cope with a wave of cheap Chinese electric cars. It comes after Elon Musk said Chinese EVs would "demolish" their US rivals without trade barriers. AdvertisementBYD has finally knocked Elon Musk off his perch at the top of the EV ladder — and nobody is more disappointed about it than Ken Griffin. AdvertisementHis comments come after Elon Musk warned that Chinese EV companies would "demolish" their Western rivals without trade barriers being put in place.

Persons: Ken Griffin, Tesla, Elon Musk, —, BYD, Warren Buffett, Griffin, CNBC's, We've, Elon, … Organizations: CNBC, West, Service, Citadel, Network, EV, General Motors Locations: Miami, China, California

☆ China is building its own AI at a rapid pace
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Chinese tech giants are racing to catch up with US firms like OpenAI in the AI arms race. Over 40 AI models have been approved for public use by the government, per local news reports. China has tight controls on AI , with tech companies required to "adhere to socialist values." Unlike their US rivals, Chinese companies that develop their own chatbots face political as well as technological challenges. That has meant that many of the country's most advanced AI models have a tendency to avoid sensitive topics, such as the status of Taiwan.

Persons: —, Ernie, OpenAI's, Bytedance, China's, Ernie Bot Organizations: Service, Reuters, Baidu, Google, Apple, Huawei, Xiaomi, Bloomberg Locations: China, Taiwan

☆ Toyota tells drivers of 50,000 cars to get immediate repairs because their airbag inflators could explode
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read previewToyota has told drivers of around 50,000 of its vehicles in the US to get urgent repairs over fears that their airbag inflators could explode, causing "serious injury or death." This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Takata airbag inflators have been linked to more than 30 deaths and hundreds of injuries since 2009, and have been responsible for the largest safety recall in automotive history. AdvertisementToyota did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, made outside normal working hours.

Persons: — Organizations: Service, Business, Toyota, BMW, Daihatsu

☆ Elon Musk compares the AI race to playing poker — you need to spend billions every year just to sit at the table
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Read previewElon Musk has compared the AI arms race to a high stakes game of poker, with companies needing to spend billions on AI hardware just to stay competitive. "Tesla will spend more than that on Nvidia hardware this year. The table stakes for being competitive in AI are at least several billion dollars per year at this point," he added. AdvertisementThe billionaire previously said on X that Tesla is an AI and robotics company rather than a carmaker. In a post on X, he said he was "uncomfortable" building up Tesla's AI capacity without having more control of the company.

Persons: —, Elon, Tesla, Mark Zuckerberg, Musk Organizations: Service, Business, Nvidia, eBay, AMD, SpaceX

☆ Taylor Swift fans are furious about graphic fake AI images of the pop superstar being shared on X
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Swifties are furious with Elon Musk's X after AI-generated explicit images of the singer went viral. Fans of Taylor Swift are expressing their fury on the billionaire's social media platform X after graphic AI-generated images of the pop superstar went viral on the site. "Posting Non-Consensual Nudity (NCN) images is strictly prohibited on X and we have a zero-tolerance policy towards such content. The rising availability of AI image generators has fueled concerns that they could be used to create "deepfake" naked images of women. X did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, made outside normal working hours.

Persons: Swifties, Elon Musk's, —, Elon, Taylor Swift, Swift, Taylor, Musk, schoolgirls Organizations: Service, Media, Business Locations: Spain

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