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| Here's a look at today's Tech briefing: - Sam Altman reinstated as OpenAI CEO days after firing.
- Ubisoft joins other firms in pausing X ads.
- Nvidia reports record revenue.
- Sony accused of overcharging through the Playstation Store.
- Honor making preparations for IPO.
Beth
p/beth-duckett | |
| 1 | | Sam Altman is returning as OpenAI's CEO just days after his sudden removal by the AI company's board. Tuesday's decision came amid pressure from investors and employees, who demanded the board's resignation and threatened a mass exodus if Altman wasn't reinstated. More: - Greg Brockman, OpenAI's former president who resigned in protest of Altman's firing, will also return to the company.
- Under the new agreement, OpenAI will get a new board chaired by former Salesforce co-CEO Bret Taylor, along with directors Larry Summers, the former U.S. Treasury Secretary, and Adam D'Angelo, the CEO of Quora, who was part of the board that fired Altman.
- OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever, as well as Helen Toner and Tasha McCauley, have been removed as board members.
- In a post on X, Altman said that "everything I've done over the past few days has been in service of keeping this team and its mission together."
Zoom out: - Reports noted that Microsoft, a major investor in OpenAI with a 49% equity stake, was kept in the dark about the board's decision to fire Altman.
- Shortly after the firing, Microsoft hired Altman and Brockman to lead a new AI research team, but supported their return to OpenAI if negotiations proved successful.
- The change to OpenAI's board "is a first essential step on a path to more stable, well-informed, and effective governance," Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said on X.
- Danni Hewson, AJ Bell's head of financial analysis, said Microsoft will likely play a bigger role moving forward, resulting in a stronger partnership and more integration between the two companies
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| 2 | | Ubisoft has joined other major tech companies, including Apple, IBM, and Sony, in pausing its advertising on X. The moves come after a Media Matters report that found ads for companies like Apple, IBM, and NBCUniversal ran alongside pro-Nazi content on X. In addition, advertisers are withdrawing after owner Elon Musk last week endorsed a post on the platform echoing antisemitic conspiracy theories. More: - According to Axios, Ubisoft had been running ads on X for Assassin's Creed Nexus VR, which was released last week.
- Disney, Paramount, Lionsgate, NBCUniversal, Warner Bros, and Comcast have also stopped advertising on X.
- Last week, Media Matters discovered that ads from some of the companies were appearing alongside white nationalist and antisemitic content on X.
- X has since sued Media Matters, claiming that the U.S. media watchdog intentionally manipulated a feed and manufactured side-by-side images.
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| 3 | | Nvidia reported a record $18.1B in revenue for the quarter ending Oct. 29, up 34% from the previous quarter and a 206% surge over the same period last year. Major AI investments from tech giants have propelled Nvidia's sales to unprecedented levels. "Our strong growth reflects the broad industry platform transition from general-purpose to accelerated computing and generative AI," said CEO and founder Jensen Huang. More: - In fiscal Q3, Nvidia's profit skyrocketed to $9.2B, a substantial rise from $680M in the same period the previous year.
- Nvidia's AI-centric data center unit generated $14.5B in revenue for the quarter, a YoY increase of 279%.
- The company expects Q4 revenue of roughly $20B, topping analysts' estimates of $18B.
Zoom out: - The AI chip leader's blockbuster results on Tuesday highlight its exponential growth amid the AI boom.
- Nvidia still warned of a "significant" drop in data center sales to Chinese companies due to new U.S. export rules.
- "We expect that our sales to these destinations will decline significantly in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024, though we believe the decline will be more than offset by strong growth in other regions," the company said in a letter to shareholders.
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| 4 | | Sony is facing an up to $7.9B class-action lawsuit alleging that it overcharges customers by taking a 30% cut for games sold on the PlayStation Store. On Tuesday, a London tribunal ruled that the lawsuit, filed on behalf of nearly 9 million U.K. consumers, could proceed. More: - Consumer rights advocate Alex Neill filed the suit on behalf of consumers, claiming that Sony abused its dominant position by forcing digital games to be exclusively sold through the PlayStation Store, which charges a 30% commission to developers and publishers.
- The lawsuit alleges that Sony has been overcharging customers for years.
- Despite Sony's efforts to have the case thrown out, it is allowed to move forward and could cost Sony £6.3M ($7.86M) in damages.
- The tribunal ruled that customers who made PlayStation Store purchases after the 2022 case filing should be excluded from the potential claimant group.
Zoom out: - The case mirrors the ongoing debate about commission fees on other digital storefronts, including the trial of Apple vs. Epic Games.
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| 5 | | Smart speaker brand Sonos is set to expand into new markets in the coming years, with plans to launch high-end headphones and a streaming box for TVs. The products would place Sonos in direct competition with Apple, Sony, Bose, Roku, and Amazon. More: - According to Bloomberg, Sonos is planning over-the-ear headphones that could be released by April at a price point above $400, less than rival Apple's $549 AirPods Max
- Sonos' streaming box for TVs will reportedly launch by the end of 2024 or early 2025.
- It would cost $150 to $200, more than other streaming devices from Roku, Apple, and Amazon.
- Sonos is also reportedly considering developing wireless earbuds as a follow-up product.
Zoom out: - Through the new lineup, Sonos aims to boost sales, which have declined this year amid softening demand for its premium smart speakers.
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| 6 | | Chinese smartphone maker Honor Device Co. has started preparing for its IPO, three years after it was sold by Huawei Technologies due to U.S. sanctions. Honor was China's top smartphone vendor in the third quarter, with a 19.3% share, according to IDC data. Honor said its market position has improved significantly in the past three years, making an IPO the logical next step in its development. 
Background: In 2020, Huawei sold its budget smartphone brand Honor to a consortium of buyers, including the government of Shenzhen, where its headquarters are located. The move, prompted by U.S. sanctions that severely impacted Huawei's smartphone business, allowed Honor to continue operating and maintain business relationships with partners like Qualcomm. Next steps: Honor plans to adjust its board for diversity compliance ahead of the potential public listing, without saying when or what country it could list in. The firm will appoint Wu Hui, a former chairman of Shenzhen Water and Environment Group and a seasoned state-owned enterprise executive, as its new chairman. | | | |
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- Microsoft said it plans to invest $500M into growing its digital infrastructure in Quebec as it seeks to supercharge its cloud computing and AI in Canada.
- Apple CEO Tim Cook said the company has "very detailed" plans for his eventual succession, including choosing his replacement from within the company. Cook, 63, said his role is to make sure "there's several for the board to pick from."
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 | AI and technology writer | | Beth is a contributing editor and writer of Inside's AI and Tech newsletters. With a career in journalism since 2007, she has written for publications including USA Today and the Arizona Business Gazette. As a public policy and investigative reporter at The Arizona Republic, she earned a Pulitzer Prize nomination and a First Amendment Award for co-reporting on pension cost increases. She authored a book on the solar photovoltaic industry in 2016. Reach her at Beth.Duckett@yahoo.com. | | This newsletter was edited by Eduardo Garcia | |
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