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Happy Last Monday of February 2025, Team!

Hope you're all doing well. This week, Apple is gearing up to go all in on AI, investing and hiring aggressively to close the gap in the race. Meanwhile, space militarization is accelerating, with new players claiming more orbital real estate. Back on Earth, the US is slashing its AI Safety budget—because who needs safeguards in the age of AI, right? Plus, we’ve got the latest on crypto heists, valuations, trends, and breaking news. Let’s dive in!

• Microsoft Shifts OpenAI Funding to SoftBank.

• Space Militarization?

• US AI Safety Institute Funding Cuts Raises National Security and Innovation Concerns.

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• 📰 News and Trends.

Microsoft Shifts OpenAI Funding to SoftBank.

Microsoft is stepping back as OpenAI’s primary financial backer, allowing SoftBank to take over funding for OpenAI’s Stargate Project, a $500B AI infrastructure initiative. SoftBank will supply 75% of OpenAI’s compute needs by 2030 and fund most of a $40B investment round.

Microsoft remains a key tech partner and major shareholder but is capping AI spending at $80B, avoiding OpenAI’s soaring costs—projected to hit $320B by 2030. Meanwhile, OpenAI expects revenue to triple to $12.5B in 2024, mainly from ChatGPT. Ultimately, SoftBank fuels OpenAI’s superintelligence push, while Microsoft ensures its AI investments align with business growth.

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📰 AI News and Trends

• OpenAI Uncovers Chinese AI Surveillance Tool Tracking Western Social Media (NYT)

• X Rolls Out AI-Generated Ads in Push to Win Advertisers Back (AW)

• Google’s new AI video model Veo 2 will cost 50 cents per second (TC)

🌐 Other Tech news

• Apple to spend $500 billion in U.S. and to hire 20,000 (Axios)

• Substack bets big on video with new mobile video publishing and monetization tools as TikTok’s future remains uncertain (FC)

• TikTok Owner ByteDance Is Tech Darling Again With $400 Billion-Plus Valuation (Yahoo)

• DOGE is forcing US government workers to justify their jobs (Wired)

• ByBit Suffers Largest Crypto Hack in History, Losing $1.43B to North Korean-Linked Attack (TR)

Space Militarization?

China Accelerates Satellite Internet Race Against Starlink.

China’s SpaceSail and other state-backed projects are rapidly expanding to challenge Starlink and Jeff Bezos’ Project Kuiper in the satellite internet market. Beijing plans to launch 43,000 LEO satellites, with SpaceSail deploying 648 this year and up to 15,000 by 2030.

Western analysts fear China’s expansion could extend its internet censorship influence in the Global South. Meanwhile, Chinese military researchers are developing tools to track and counter Starlink’s network, increasing concerns over space militarization.

US AI Safety Institute Funding Cuts Raises National Security and Innovation Concerns.

The US AI Safety Institute, which researches AI risks and helps shape policy, faces major funding cuts due to fiscal constraints and shifting political priorities. These reductions could slow AI safety research, weaken US leadership in global AI governance, and increase national security risks as AI technologies advance without adequate oversight.

Critics warn that cuts may lead to reduced research on AI biases, security vulnerabilities, and existential risks, while also driving top AI talent abroad. The US risks falling behind competitors like China and the EU, who continue investing in AI safety.

To mitigate the impact, experts suggest securing private sector partnerships, diversifying funding sources, and strengthening public-private AI safety initiatives. Without continued investment, the US could lose its edge in AI governance, security, and ethical AI development.

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