AI Laptops

Current AI Laptop Availability

Several AI-powered laptops showcased at CES 2025 are now available for purchase or pre-order. Noteworthy models include the Lenovo Yoga 9i 2-in-1 Aura Edition, featuring enhanced AI processing and a stylish design, available through Lenovo's store. The Acer Swift Go 14 AI, a more affordable Copilot+ PC equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus chip, is also an option. The Asus ZenBook A14, lauded for its design, battery life, and OLED display, along with the gaming-centric Asus ROG Flow Z13 tablet, powered by AMD's Ryzen AI Max+ processors, are also currently available.

AI Technology

AI-Powered Agents and the Lessons from Boo.com

In late 1999, the online fashion startup Boo.com launched its website featuring a virtual shopping assistant named Miss Boo. Miss Boo was designed to offer styling tips and allow customers to view clothes on 3D models before purchasing. Although the concept is similar to current AI-powered agents, Boo.com collapsed shortly after launch due to a slow and unreliable website. The technology industry is now betting that AI-powered agents will be more successful.

Food Industry

Spore.Bio Secures $23 Million for Rapid Microbiology Testing

Spore.Bio, a deep tech startup based in Paris, has raised $23 million in a Series A round led by Singular. The company is focused on revolutionizing microbiology testing for the food industry by using spectral signatures and deep learning algorithms to detect bacteria and pathogens rapidly. This technology significantly reduces testing time, from several days to a shorter duration, addressing the critical need for rapid testing to prevent contamination incidents. Spore.Bio has already signed commercial contracts covering up to 200 factories and has partnered with the Pasteur Institute.

Artificial Intelligence

AI Model Development

Grok-3 hasn't been fully released yet, but it's expected to influence how other AI labs release future models.

AI-Powered Coding Startup Funding

Codeium, an AI-powered coding startup, is reportedly raising a new round of funding led by Kleiner Perkins at a $2.85 billion valuation, a significant increase from its $1.25 billion valuation six months prior. The company has reached approximately $30 million in annualized recurring revenue (ARR), resulting in a valuation multiple of roughly 95 times ARR. Codeium targets enterprise customers, with over 1,000 companies using its free tier, including Anduril, Zillow, and Dell. They also introduced Windsurf Editor in November, capable of autonomous code writing.

Artificial Intelligence and Power Flow Models

Computational Efficiency of Power Flow Methods

PPFL methods demonstrate superior computational efficiency compared to DPFL approaches. This advantage stems from PPFL methods circumventing the training process, unlike DPFL methods, due to their reliance on predefined physical models. However, the accuracy of PPFL methods hinges on the assumption that all necessary physical parameters are known and accurate, which may not always hold true, especially in distribution grids. The computational costs of most DPFL methods grow at a superlinear rate.

AI Development

Rabbit's Android Agent Progress

Rabbit is actively developing its "generalist Android agent", designed to control apps on a tablet, mirroring the intended functionality of the R1 device. Currently, engineers input requests via a laptop prompt box, which are then translated into actions on an Android tablet. Tasks include finding YouTube videos, locating cocktail recipes, and adding ingredients to a Google Keep grocery list. This AI agent is continually being updated, with recent improvements including the ability to train agents for specific tasks and prompt interface redesigns. Rabbit plans to reveal more about its "cross-platform multi-agent system" soon.

Gaming Industry

Microsoft's Muse AI Model for Xbox Game Development

Microsoft's Xbox division unveiled Muse, a generative AI model designed to assist game developers in creating visuals and gameplay. Trained on Ninja Theory’s Bleeding Edge, Muse understands game physics and 3D environments, generating visuals and reacting to player movements. One potential application is game preservation, where Muse AI could optimize classic titles for modern hardware. Microsoft aims to further explore generative AI to aid game teams in prototyping projects, conducting interviews with 27 game creators globally to guide the research. However, the announcement has faced criticism from developers and the online community, who argue that generative AI devalues the aesthetic efforts of game developers and artists, potentially leading to a loss of craft and empowering tool owners. Concerns are also rising about AI potentially displacing human workers in game creation amid industry layoffs.

AI Model Updates

Mistral's Regional Language Model: Saba

Paris-based AI startup Mistral is focusing on providing large language models (LLMs) that understand regional-specific languages and are tailored to grasp cultural nuances. Mistral has released its first "specialized" regional language-focused model, Saba, a 24-billion-parameter model trained on datasets from across the Middle East and South Asia to meet a growing customer base in Arabic-speaking countries. Saba is similar in size to Mistral Small 3 but performs better at handling Arabic content and excels with South Indian languages like Tamil and Malayalam. Mistral's benchmark tests show that Saba outperforms Arabic-centric models and multilingual LLMs while providing more accurate and relevant responses than models over 5 times its size, and can also be a base to train highly specific regional adaptations.

AI Applications and Research

Stytch Connected Apps

Stytch Connected Apps enables AI agents and third-party apps to authenticate, access data, and take action on behalf of users, streamlining authorization.

AI in Research

Google's new AI is aiding real-world research by generating hypotheses for researchers.

Mobile Technology

Apple's iPhone 16e Launch

Apple has launched the iPhone 16e, priced at $599, as its most affordable AI-equipped iPhone. It features a 6.1-inch full-screen design with Face ID, a USB-C port, a 48MP camera, and the Action button. Powered by the A18 chip, it supports Apple Intelligence, including generative AI writing tools, Genmoji, Image Playground, Visual Intelligence, and ChatGPT integration.

AI Regulation and Policy

Changes in US AI Regulation

President Trump overturned former President Joe Biden's October 2023 executive order on AI regulation, replacing it with his own. Government agencies were instructed to halt AI regulation activities, and the director of the USAI Safety Institute (AISI) resigned. Mass firings are reportedly planned at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), affecting AISI.

AI Models and Applications

Microsoft's Interactive AI World Model

Microsoft's new model shows improvements but is primarily suited for low-resolution prototypes.

xAI's Grok3

xAI released Grok3, its latest AI model, which it claims outperforms leading models on math and programming benchmarks. However, experts are questioning the value of these benchmarks and calling for independent testing authorities.

Klok – A Multi-LLM Chat App

Mira Network launched Klok, a multi-LLM chat app built on its decentralized infrastructure. Klok allows users to access multiple AI models like GPT-4omini and Llama3.370BInstruct for free and earn Mira Points. It aims to address AI hallucinations through consensus mechanisms.

Google's Career Dreamer

Google has launched Career Dreamer, an AI-powered tool to help users explore career possibilities by analyzing their experiences, skills, and interests. It is currently available in the United States.

AI Hardware and Gadgets

Humane's AI Pin Debacle

The Humane AI Pin failed due to its high price ($700 plus subscription) and unclear value, struggling with basic tasks. HP acquired Humane for $116 million.

Humane Bricking AI Pins

Humane is facing criticism for effectively bricking 700 AI Pins with limited refunds, demonstrating how not to treat early adopters.

Rabbit R1

Rabbit gained attention with its $199 R1 gadget, selling 40,000 units shortly after its launch. Recent updates include user-programmable tasks, but it was revealed that only 5,000 people actively use the device.

AI and Cybersecurity

AI-Powered Cyberattacks

Attackers are leveraging AI to craft hyper-personalized scams, poison training data, and fool real-world systems. Organizations should adopt better verification protocols, train employees, and use AI-powered phishing drills. It is important to consider that AI attacks are also expanding to the physical world.

Financial and Policy Implications

China ETFs and AI

U.S.-listed exchange-traded funds focused on China have seen bullish options flows, driven by the emergence of AI startup DeepSeek and easing tariff concerns.

US AI Safety Institute Cuts

The Trump administration is planning to cut the USAI Safety Institute, potentially eliminating 497 roles at NIST, impacting AI safety and regulation efforts and semiconductor production initiatives.

AI

AI Security Concerns

Security firm Adversa AI jailbroke xAI's Grok-3 just a day after its release. The jailbreak revealed significant safety and security vulnerabilities, including revealing its system prompt and providing instructions for making a bomb. Adversa AI's report emphasizes that Grok-3's safety measures are weak.

AI in Legal Settings

A law firm condemns the careless use of AI in court, calling it "nauseatingly frightening".

Artificial Intelligence

AI-Powered Game Development

Microsoft is making strides in AI game development with its new Muse AI system. Muse can generate interactive 3D game worlds by analyzing gameplay footage, demonstrating advanced AI capabilities in understanding spatial environments and human interactions. Furthermore, Microsoft researchers have created Muse as a generative AI model specifically for game ideation.

AI-Driven Startup Predictions

Crunchbase is now using AI for predictive analysis, achieving 95% accuracy in forecasting startup funding rounds. This pivot involves abandoning historical data in favor of predictive intelligence that forecasts acquisitions and company growth, potentially changing investment strategies.

AI Language Tutoring

The author tested ChatGPT's Advanced Voice Mode as an AI language tutor while traveling in Japan, practicing basic travel phrases for transportation, restaurants, and retail shops.

AI for Freelancers

Fiverr is launching the Personal AI Creation Model, allowing users to train AI on their work. This is part of the larger FiverrGo initiative, aimed at empowering freelancers with AI's automation capabilities. The goal is to make freelancers irreplaceable by using AI as a tool.

AI Chatbot Competition

Mistral's AI assistant, Le Chat, has reached one million downloads shortly after its release, endorsed by French President Emmanuel Macron. This contrasts with OpenAI's ChatGPT, which has 350 million downloads, as well as competitors such as Google's Gemini and Microsoft's Copilot.

AI in Meetings

Google is enhancing Meet with new features including expanded caption history, allowing users to review the last 30 minutes of live captions. Additionally, AI-generated Next Steps using Gemini will analyze meeting notes to automatically identify and organize actionable tasks.

AI Accent Modification

The voice and speech recognition technology sector is projected to exceed $28.1 billion by 2027. Sanas, founded in 2020, develops AI-powered software that adjusts a speaker’s accent in real-time, aiming to enhance human connection in customer interactions. Sanas acquired InTone to strengthen its IP portfolio and serve a wider customer base, currently serving around 50 customers in healthcare, logistics, and hardware manufacturing.

Symbolic AI Resurgence

Symbolic AI, which emulates human thinking by manipulating symbols rather than numerical data, is regaining momentum. This approach, rooted in early AI history, uses knowledge representation with rules applied to symbols, allowing machines to solve problems in a human-like fashion by modeling and reasoning over symbols.

Technology

Apple's New Affordable iPhone

Apple has unveiled the iPhone 16e, its newest affordable smartphone, priced at $600. This model offers access to Apple Intelligence features like the Clean Up tool, natural language search in the Photos app, and typing to Siri. The iPhone 16e features a 6.1-inch OLED display with a notch that includes FaceID integration.

Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning

Quantum Computing Advancements

Microsoft has announced a new chip, suggesting that quantum computing is "years, not decades" away. This puts them in line with predictions from Google and IBM, indicating that this technology is approaching faster than previously anticipated.

Generative AI and Gaming

Microsoft Research has developed Muse, a generative AI model that can generate game environments from visuals or player actions. Trained on data from the Xbox game Bleeding Edge, Muse understands 3D game worlds and physics, allowing it to generate gameplay visuals and react to player interactions, and adapt to new gameplay elements in real-time. The company is exploring the potential of using Muse to preserve classic games and optimize them for modern hardware. Currently, Muse is limited to generating gameplay visuals at a resolution of 300×180 pixels.

AI Model Training and Accessibility

Fiverr is now enabling creators to train AI models on their work. Clients can then purchase access to these custom AI models and generate content. Freelancers can edit and set the price for their custom AI models, which are available across various services.

AI-Powered Research Tool

Google Gemini's DeepResearch is a virtual agent that performs online research. Accessible on the web, Android, and iOS, DeepResearch generates a research plan, searches the web for relevant information, and generates a detailed report. To use DeepResearch, you'll need the $20-per-month Gemini Advanced subscription, which is part of the Google One AI Premium plan.

Open-Source AI Development

DeepSeek, a Chinese AI startup, has developed powerful large language models (LLMs) at a lower cost. DeepSeek is open-source and its models perform as well as or better than other models.

HP Acquires Humane

HP has acquired Humane's CosmOS operating system and IP, including the tech for the AI Pin, for $116 million. HP intends to use the acquired technology to develop its own suite of AI-centric devices and integrate CosmOS into its PCs, smart printers, and connected conference rooms. The devices will be bricked by Feb. 28.

Consumer Electronics

Apple's New iPhone

Apple unveiled the iPhone 16e, a refresh of the budget-minded smartphone, starting at $599 and shipping on February 28. The iPhone 16e includes Apple Intelligence, featuring small models for text summaries, letter writing, and image generation. Powered by the A18 processor and Apple C1 modem, it's part of an exclusive group capable of running Apple Intelligence.