Good morning! This is your daily ☕️ Techpresso.
On this day, 25 years ago, the Happy99 worm emerged, masquerading as a festive greeting while secretly propagating through emails and launching a series of costly malware attacks on Windows computers.
In today's Techpresso:
👋 Google DeepMind scientists in talks to leave and form AI startup
💡 Sam Altman is still chasing billions to build AI chips
🔒 Microsoft says Russian state-sponsored hackers spied on its executives
🌕 Japan just made moon history
🔬 Researchers develop world's first functioning graphene semiconductor
🎁 + 6 other news you might like
🔮 + 1 handpicked research papers and tools
👋 Google DeepMind scientists in talks to leave and form AI startupLINK
Two Google DeepMind scientists are in discussions with investors to start an AI company in Paris, potentially raising over €200 million.
The potential startup, currently known as Holistic, may focus on creating a new AI model, involving scientists Laurent Sifre and Karl Tuyls.
Sifre and Tuyls have already given notice to leave DeepMind, although no official comments have been made regarding their departure or the startup plans.
💡 Sam Altman is still chasing billions to build AI chipsLINK
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is raising billions to build a global network of AI chip factories in collaboration with leading chip manufacturers.
Altman's initiative aims to meet the demand for powerful chips necessary for AI systems, amidst competition for chip production capacity against tech giants like Apple.
Other major tech companies, including Microsoft, Amazon, and Google, are also developing their own AI chips to reduce reliance on Nvidia’s GPUs.
🔒 Microsoft says Russian state-sponsored hackers spied on its executivesLINK
Microsoft announced that Russian state-sponsored hackers accessed a small number of the company's email accounts, including those of senior executives.
The hackers, identified by Microsoft as "Midnight Blizzard," aimed to discover what Microsoft knew about their cyber activities through a password spray attack in November 2023.
Following the breach, Microsoft took action to block the hackers and noted there is no evidence of customer data, production systems, or sensitive code being compromised.
🌕 Japan just made moon historyLINK
Japan's JAXA successfully soft-landed the SLIM lunar lander on the moon, becoming the fifth country to achieve this feat, but faces challenges as the lander's solar cell failed, leaving it reliant on battery power. SLIM, carrying two small lunar rovers, established communication with NASA's Deep Space Network, showcasing a new landing technique involving a slow descent and hovering stops to find a safe landing spot. Despite the successful landing, the harsh lunar conditions and SLIM's slope landing underscore the difficulties of moon missions, while other countries and private companies continue their efforts to explore the moon, especially its south pole for water resources.
🔬 Researchers develop world's first functioning graphene semiconductorLINK
Researchers have created the first functional graphene-based semiconductor, known as epigraphene, which could enhance both quantum and traditional computing.
Epigraphene is produced using a cost-effective method involving silicon carbide (SiC) chips and offers a practical bandgap, facilitating logic switching.
The new semiconducting graphene, while promising for faster and cooler computing, requires significant changes to current electronics manufacturing to be fully utilized.
Other news you might like
UK parcel firm disables AI after poetic bot goes rogue.LINK
The Vision Pro’s first killer app is the web, whether Apple likes it or not.LINK
Elon Musk’s AI startup is halfway to its goal of landing $1 billion in funding.LINK
European Union may block Amazon's $1.7 billion iRobot acquisition over competition concerns, with decision deadline set for February 14.LINK
Mars helicopter Ingenuity loses contact with NASA on its 72nd flight amid navigation checks after an earlier descent anomaly.LINK
OpenAI faces antitrust scrutiny over its Microsoft partnership, threatening its ambition to create AGI and reshape the tech landscape.LINK
Latest research and tools
Spotify Lite: a lightweight, open source Spotify client that works without a Premium subscription and doesn't rely on Electron.LINK
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