How Intel passed on a partnership with OpenAI
How Intel passed on a partnership with OpenAI
Experimental version of Gemini 1.5 Pro tops AI leader-board
Wall Street sees 'buying opportunity' amid AI pullback
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How Intel passed on a partnership with OpenAI
Years ago, the opportunity for Intel to invest in OpenAI, then a budding non-profit research entity specializing in the nascent field of generative artificial intelligence, arose, according to four sources directly familiar with the discussions.
Between 2017 and 2018, several months of negotiations took place between the executives of both companies, exploring various investment options. One proposal included Intel purchasing a 15% stake for $1 billion in cash, confirmed by three sources. Additionally, talks considered Intel acquiring another 15% stake if it supplied hardware to OpenAI at cost, according to two sources.
However, the deal did not materialize. A key reason for Intel's hesitation was then-CEO Bob Swan's skepticism about the market readiness of generative AI models, which influenced his decision against the investment. This viewpoint was echoed by three sources, who spoke anonymously to discuss sensitive information.
OpenAI saw Intel's potential investment as a strategic move to decrease dependency on Nvidia's chips and to facilitate the development of its own infrastructure, as noted by two sources. Nonetheless, the negotiations stalled, partly because Intel's data center division resisted the idea of producing hardware at cost, according to those familiar with the matter.
Adding context to these events, Intel recently experienced a significant setback, with its second-quarter earnings report causing a severe stock price plummet — more than 25% — marking its worst trading day since 1974….
Originally by Max A. Cherney of Reuters
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Experimental version of Gemini 1.5 Pro tops AI leader-board
Google DeepMind's experimental model, Gemini 1.5 Pro, has claimed the top position on the AI Chatbot Arena leaderboard, surpassing competitors Anthropic’s Claude 3.5 Sonnet and OpenAI’s GPT-4o. This marks the first time Google has secured the number one spot in the Chatbot Arena.
The previous leader, OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4o, was overtaken on August 1, following the quiet launch of Gemini 1.5 Pro's experimental release. Despite its low-key introduction, the model quickly captured the attention of the AI community, with social media buzzing as reports emerged of its superior performance on benchmark tests.
OpenAI's ChatGPT has long been regarded as the benchmark for generative AI since the debut of GPT-3. Its latest iteration, GPT-4o, along with Anthropic’s Claude-3, has dominated the field for the past year, consistently outperforming other models in various assessments.
One of the key evaluation tools is the LMSYS Chatbot Arena, which measures models across a range of tasks and assigns an overall competency score. In this arena, GPT-4o achieved a score of 1,286, while Claude-3 followed closely with a score of 1,271. In contrast, a prior version of Gemini 1.5 Pro had scored 1,261, but the newly released experimental version (Gemini 1.5 Pro 0801) has set a new benchmark with an impressive score of 1,300. Gemini 1.5 Pro is available for early use in the Google AI Studio….
Originally by Tristan Greene of Cointelegraph
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Wall Street sees 'buying opportunity' amid AI pullback
Artificial intelligence stocks, which have been a driving force behind the recent bull market, have experienced a notable decline over the past month. Major players in the sector, including Nvidia, Microsoft, Alphabet, and Amazon, have all seen their shares drop by more than 15% during this period. This downturn coincides with a broader market sell-off, with the Nasdaq Composite falling over 10% and the S&P 500 sliding more than 8%.
Despite the recent dip and growing skepticism surrounding earnings reports from these tech giants, some strategists believe the AI sector's momentum is far from over. In a research note released Monday night, the BlackRock Investment Institute maintained its bullish stance on U.S. equities, attributing its confidence to the "AI mega force" and viewing the current sell-off as a potential buying opportunity.
Julian Emanuel, a strategist at Evercore ISI, highlighted the recent surge in the CBOE Volatility Index as a chance for "patient buying." He noted that historical trends suggest that quick spikes in volatility often lead to higher stock prices a year later. "The rationale for AI, in a world where the global workforce is aging rapidly and efficiency will be critical to drive productivity enhancements, is greater than ever," Emanuel stated. He characterized the current market conditions as an "AI Air Pocket," presenting a unique opportunity to invest in a long-term growth theme.
Goldman Sachs' equity research team also weighed in, noting that while a basket of large tech stocks—including Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft, and Nvidia—has dropped 13% since July 10, earnings estimates for these companies have generally been on the rise. Since June 30, 2024, earnings projections for all but Microsoft have increased.
"The mega-cap tech stocks have dropped sharply, but their valuations continue to reflect AI optimism despite investor concerns about the likely timing," wrote David Kostin, Goldman Sachs' chief U.S. equity strategist, in a note to clients on Monday night….