AI Investment Soars, Robotaxi Safety Debated, and Tech Updates Emerge
Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) recently raised $1.7 billion for AI infrastructure, signaling continued confidence in the sector's growth, according to TechCrunch. The funding will support a16z's infrastructure team and investments in companies like Black Forrest Labs, Cursor, OpenAI, ElevenLabs, Ideogram, and Fal. Meanwhile, in Washington D.C., senators grilled representatives from Waymo and Tesla about robotaxi safety, liability, and competition with China, The Verge reported. In other tech news, Ikea is facing connectivity issues with its new Matter-over-Thread smart home products, and Overwatch 2 has reverted to being simply "Overwatch," according to The Verge.
A16z's investment reflects a belief in the ongoing "AI super cycle," according to Jennifer Li, a general partner with the firm's infrastructure team, as reported by TechCrunch. Li oversees investments in companies like ElevenLabs and Ideogram. The funding will address the talent crunch facing AI-native startups and the importance of search infrastructure.
The Senate hearing on robotaxis highlighted concerns about safety and the need for regulation. Waymo and Tesla urged lawmakers to pass legislation to regulate autonomous vehicles or risk getting lapped by China, according to The Verge. However, senators did not appear to be close to an agreement.
Ikea's new Matter-compatible smart home products are experiencing onboarding and connectivity issues, according to The Verge. Some users are struggling to connect the devices to their networks.
In the gaming world, Overwatch 2 has dropped the "2" from its name, reverting to its original title, Overwatch, The Verge reported. The sequel, announced in 2019, brought changes like five-on-five matches and new characters.
In related AI news, Anthropic announced that its AI chatbot, Claude, will remain free of advertisements, Ars Technica reported. This decision contrasts with OpenAI, which began testing ads in a low-cost tier of ChatGPT last month. "There are many good places for advertising. A conversation with Claude is not one of them," Anthropic wrote in a blog post. The company believes that including ads would be incompatible with Claude's purpose as a helpful assistant.
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