Good morning. I’ve obtained Elon Musk on my thoughts, and never for causes you would possibly suspect.
It’s due to his never-boring Boring Firm, which presently has a little bit of a trespasser downside in Las Vegas. (Learn extra beneath from Fortune’s Jessica Mathews.)
Only some years in the past Musk promised to alleviate visitors in notoriously clogged Los Angeles; at present, he’s relocated to Texas and left a literal tunnel of damaged guarantees.
And I’m nonetheless caught in, properly, . —Andrew Nusca
P.S. We goofed the opposite day by implying that Google didn’t pay for information in Canada. The corporate struck a deal with the federal authorities virtually a 12 months in the past. Because of eagle-eyed reader Benoît for the catch. —Andrew Nusca
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And the Nobel goes to…AI
Two synthetic intelligence pioneers have received a Nobel Prize.
The distinguished honor goes to “godfather of AI” Geoffrey Hinton—, the one who dramatically give up Google final 12 months so he might warn the world of AI’s dangers—and to John Hopfield, whose work within the early Eighties helped lay the inspiration for at present’s machine studying know-how.
Each males considerably superior the idea of the substitute neural community, although neither invented it as such.
Hinton and Hopfield had been awarded the Nobel physics prize, which has confirmed to be a controversial resolution. There is no such thing as a Nobel prize class that maps clearly to pc science.
It’s true that each Hinton and Hopfield’s work drew closely on statistical physics, although it was additionally knowledgeable by different fields akin to neurobiology and cognitive psychology.
Some physicists are nonetheless irked, complaining that it ought to have gone to somebody working in “proper physics” as a substitute. One wonders what HAL 9000 would say about that. —David Meyer
Foxconn hooks up with Nvidia to construct an AI supercomputer
Foxconn is legendary for assembling Apple’s iPhones, however it could quickly be recognized for its personal know-how marvel: a large AI supercomputer, in-built partnership with Nvidia, that it says would be the quickest in Taiwan.
The Hon Hai Kaohsiung Tremendous Computing Middle, introduced Tuesday, will boast greater than 4,600 of Nvidia’s new, and super-scarce, Blackwell GPUs, in addition to 1000’s of CPUs, delivering a promised 90 exaflops of AI efficiency (a feat Foxconn claims will eclipse anything in Taiwan).
As soon as this beast is operational–the primary section is because of be accomplished by mid-2025, with full deployment in 2026–Foxconn will use it for AI-driven most cancers analysis, to develop new LLMs, and to give attention to good metropolis improvements.
Foxconn and Nvidia are additionally teaming up for a mission in Mexico. The 2 corporations introduced that Foxconn will construct the world’s largest manufacturing unit for Nvidia’s GB200 chips in Guadalajara. ¡Orale! —Sharon Goldman
The TikTok hits carry on coming
TikTok is dealing with a new set of lawsuits from 13 states attorneys basic, together with New York, California, and Washington D.C.
The fits accuse the favored video social media app of violating shopper safety legal guidelines by “intentionally” focusing on younger customers and hooking them to a platform that’s dangerous to their well being. (It’s price noting that Meta was sued by 4 instances as many state AGs virtually precisely a 12 months in the past; the instances are pending.) The lawsuits search product adjustments and monetary penalties.
As of final 12 months, TikTok stated it had 150 million customers within the U.S., and research have proven {that a} overwhelming majority of these customers are underneath 35 years previous. Whereas it isn’t public precisely what number of of these customers are underneath 18, just a few years in the past one-third of TikTok’s person base was reportedly underneath 14 years previous. TikTok’s CEO stated final 12 months the platform’s common person was “well past college age.”
At any price, add these lawsuits to the pile of authorized troubles dealing with TikTok, which is owned by China’s ByteDance. The platform has ongoing authorized challenges from The Division of Justice, and it is preventing on the Supreme Court docket an government order requiring ByteDance to promote it or be banned within the U.S. —Kali Hays
Elon Musk has tunnel intruders
Elon Musk has a trespassing downside within the subterranean transit system that considered one of his corporations, Boring Co., has constructed and operates underneath the Las Vegas Conference Middle.
A skateboarder obtained right into a tunnel and needed to be ejected. A pedestrian wandered round taking photos. Then there are the vehicles that unintentionally drive onto the transit system’s property by tailing shut behind the Teslas which are used to chauffeur passengers underground.
There have been at the very least 67 trespassing episodes since 2022, in keeping with paperwork seen by Fortune, obtained through a Freedom of Info Act request. And, because the starting of final 12 months, 22 automobiles have adopted the Teslas into the stations or tunnels.
Musk’s first operational tunnel system—with its funky pink, blue, and inexperienced lighting—is probably not the high-speed hyperloop he was raving about when he began the Las Vegas mission. Nevertheless it has nonetheless managed to seize the general public’s consideration—and that features individuals who aren’t alleged to be within the tunnels, however find yourself in them anyway. —Jessica Mathews
Roblox fudged its person knowledge, investor says
Hindenburg Analysis, a short-selling funding agency, has accused Roblox of inflating key metrics.
In a brand new report disclosing a brief place in Roblox, Hindenburg estimates the U.S. sport developer inflated the variety of customers of its namesake gaming platform wherever between 25% and 42% by not being clear in regards to the variety of alternate accounts or bots contributing to its every day lively customers, or DAU.
Roblox measures this distinction via a course of known as “de-alting,” former staff reportedly informed Hindenburg. Roblox additionally inflated engagement hours by roughly 100%, the agency claims.
Lately Roblox—which turned 20 this 12 months—has touted a rising person base whereas setting a lofty purpose of 1 billion customers. The corporate, which is publicly traded on Nasdaq, has informed buyers that it’s not worthwhile and won’t be for some time. (In its most up-to-date quarter, Roblox generated $893 million in income and a $206 million loss.)
Hindenburg additionally calls Roblox a “hellscape” for kids’s security, pointing to a Bloomberg Businessweek investigation, printed in July, detailing how management did not curb youngster abuse on the platform.
Roblox informed the Wall Avenue Journal the Hindenburg report is deceptive and motivated by an agenda. At some $40 per share, its inventory is down 15% within the final two weeks. —Jenn Brice
Extra knowledge
—Amazon antitrust watch begins. There should be one thing within the water.
—Anduril wins a $250 million Pentagon contract to intercept unmanned drones.
—Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund cuts its Nintendo stake. Even bullish buyers can’t escape the gaming slowdown.
—The following Instagram advert you see could also be edited by AI. So the place’s the beef?
—The UK is making a “Regulatory Innovation Office.” To innovate round all that, uh, regulation.
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