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Chipmaker AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) has unveiled a range of innovative AI solutions spanning from data centers to personal computers. The AMD Instinct MI300 Series features data center AI accelerators, while the ROCm 6 open software stack introduces new features supporting Large Language Models (LLMs). Additionally, the Ryzen 8040 Series processors come equipped with Ryzen AI capabilities.
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Venture Capital: Blackrock CEO Larry Fink Expects Climate Tech To Nurture The Next 1,000 Unicorns
Speaking at the Middle East Green Initiative Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Larry Fink, the CEO and Chairman of Blackrock (NYSE: BLK), said he expected the next 1,000 unicorns (startups valued over $1 billion) to emerge from climate tech areas such as green hydrogen, green agriculture, green steel, and green cement.
FinTech: Marqeta, Branch And Uber Freight Collaborate On Payments To Transporters
Card issuing platform Marqeta and digital wallet Branch, together with Uber Freight, have devised a system to speed up payments to Uber Freight carriers. Compared to the traditional routing of payments through the accounts payable process, which pays after 30 days or more, carriers can now expect payment within two hours of approved proof of delivery.
Digital Assets: A Cyberattack On The US Supply Chain Could Cripple The World (Ex-NSA Hacker)
David Kennedy, the founder of cybersecurity companies TrustedSec and Binary Defense, and a former marine who conducted cyber missions for the U.S. military and the National Security Agency, says the prospect of a successful cyberattack on the US supply chain gave him sleepless nights.
Artificial Intelligence: British Spy Agencies To Store Top Secret Data On AWS
The GCHQ, the UK’s signals intelligence body, along with MI5 and MI6, will host their top secret data on AWS servers to allow for data analytics and gain AI-powered insights form the vast trove. The contract with AWS is worth £500m to £1bn over the next decade, experts estimate. The data will be located in Britain, however, and AWS will not have any access to it.
Digital Assets: Twitter Co-Founder Jack Dorsey Warns Of Hyperinflation
Prices in the U.S. are trending higher, and Jack Dorsey, who heads Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) and Square (NYSE: SQ), warned in a tweet on Friday night of imminent hyperinflation. The term refers to rapid and uncontrolled general price increases, or inflation, measuring more than 50% per month. Dorsey tweeted: “Hyperinflation is going to change everything. It’s happening.”
Venture Capital: Civil Rights Watchdog NAACP Buys Stake In Hello Alice To Help Build Black Wealth
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) announced last week its acquisition of a stake in Hello Alice, an online platform that helps business with resources to launch and grow, and focuses on underrepresented entrepreneurs. Two white women, Carolyn Rodz and Elizabeth Gore, founded venture-backed Hello Alice. NAACP’s investment will advance the startup’s goal to achieve economic equality for Black communities.
FinTech: BNPL For Businesses Provider Billie Scores $100M Series C Funding
Billie, a fintech targeting its BNPL offering at the B2B market, announced today its $100 million Series C raise led by Dawn Capital, and joined by Klarna and Tencent, alongside existing investors Creandum, Speedinvest, Picus and GFC. At $640 million, the startup succeeded in quadrupling its valuation over a previous Series B round that raised $35 million in 2019.
Artificial Intelligence: AI Makes Sense Of The Monumental Literature On Climate Change
Publications on the impact of climate change have grown in number so huge, so fast that it is impossible to for humans to wrap their heads around the whole expanse of literature on the subject. AI can be trained to address the problem.
FinTech: Brex Wins ‘Decacorn’ Badge, Scores $300M Raise
Anonymous sources have confirmed to TechCrunch that fintech Brex has signed off on a term sheet for a $300 million fundraise led by Greenoaks and joined by existing investors. The sources said San Francisco-based Brex was valued at $12.3 billion after investors were impressed with its business momentum given that the fintech is expected to double its turnover this year.
Digital Assets: Coinstar Bitcoin ATMs Seen At Walmart Stores
Walmart customers can now buy bitcoin at many of its stores in the U.S. In a pilot operation, Walmart (NYSE: WMT) has allowed the installation of 200 Coinstar kiosks across US stores that work with crypto wallet firm Coinme and exchange cash for bitcoin. Walmart shoppers can therefore buy bitcoin at their local Walmart along…
Digital Assets: Crypto Exchange FTX Rakes In $420M At $25B Valuation
29-year old billionaire founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried is a majority owner of FTX. Just three months after closing a record $900 million Series B round, FTX, the Bahamas-headquartered crypto exchange announced its $420 million Series B-1 raise at a valuation of $25 billion. That valuation is up from $18 billion in July. In Thursday’s…
Digital Assets: Russian Energy Firms Seek Go-Ahead To Use Flared Gas For Mining Crypto
Russia’s crypto mining industry is in expansion mode after China’s clampdown on its crypto miners. Also wanting to join the party are Russian oil and gas companies that flare, or burn off, the natural gas released from their drilling operations. Known as “associated petroleum gas,” this is burnt if it cannot conveniently or economically be piped to a utility. The drillers want to use this flared gas, also a source of emissions, as an energy source for crypto mining data centers.
Artificial Intelligence: Rossum, The Document AI Company, Raises $100M
Rossum offers an end-to-end AI document processing solution that combines its cognitive data capture platform with a full suite of integration capabilities to automate document-based communications between diverse businesses. The startup announced this week its $100 million Series A raise from General Catalyst with participation by existing investors including LocalGlobe, Seedcamp, Miton and Elad Gil.
Alternative Investments/ESG: New York Life Floats ETFs For Gender Equality, Clean Oceans, Cleaner Transport
The three thematic ETFs meet investor demand for ESG approaches. IndexIQ, the New York Life Investments company, announced Wednesday the launch of three new ETFs. The IQ Engender Equality ETF (EQUL), IQ Clean Oceans ETF (OCEN), and IQ Cleaner Transport ETF (CLNR) represent an expansion of IndexIQ’s Dual Impact family of thematic investment strategies. (ETF…
FinTech: Wells Fargo Invests $10M In Cloud Payments Provider Volante
Volante Capital, a provider of cloud payment services and financial messaging, announced Wednesday an investment of $10 million by Wells Fargo Strategic Capital. Wells Fargo joins Wavecrest Growth Partners, BNY Mellon, Citi Ventures, PostePay and Visa Inc, the investors in Volante’s previous $35 million round held in August 2020.
Digital Assets: Short Seller And Forensic Finance Research Firm Hindenburg Offers $1M Bounty On Tether
Shortly after the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) ordered Tether to pay $41 million to settle charges for maintaining inadequate dollar reserves on its stablecoin, short-seller Hindenburg Research announced a $1 million bounty for information leading to previously undisclosed details about Tether’s financial reserves.
Venture Capital: Flock Freight, Which Uses AI To Pool Shipments, Nabs $215M
Flock Freight uses AI algorithms to optimize shipments, routes and vehicles. Its FlockDirect cloud-based product guarantees shippers shared space on a truckload by combining multiple shipments that are moving along the same route into one shared truckload. The system bypasses the inefficient Less-Than-Truckload (LTL) hub and spoke system. The company raised $215 million in a Series D that valued it at $1.3 billion and was led by existing investor Soft Bank Vision Fund 2.
Alternative Investments/Digital: Bitcoin Futures ETFs By Vaneck And Valkyrie Set To Launch
Wealth manager Vaneck has won SEC approval to launch a bitcoin futures ETF after October 23, according to a post-effective filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. This is the second such ETF to be cleared after the ProShares bitcoin ETF (NYSEArca: BITO), and will trade under the moniker XBTF.
Artificial Intelligence: Ai-Da, Humanoid And Ultra-Realistic Artist, Detained By Egyptian Security
Ai-Da draws using using cameras in her eyes, her AI algorithms, and her robotic arm. Glamorous-looking Ai-Da, a creation of Oxford-based Aidan Meller, is the world’s first ultra-realistic humanoid AI robot artist. She may also be the first robot artist to be at the center of a diplomatic row. En route this week to the…
FinTech: PayPal Looking To Acquire Pinterest At $70 Per Share
PayPal Inc (NASDAQ: PYPL) sounded out Pinterest (NYSE: PINS) recently on a takeover, Bloomberg reported. The two companies are said to have considered a potential price of $70 per listed Class A share.
Venture Capital: News From All Over
UP.Partners, a transportation-focused venture firm backed by investors including Alaska Air Group, ARK Invest Founder and CEO Cathie Wood, and Toyota subsidiary Woven Capital, announced its close of the inaugural $230 million early stage venture capital fund.
Digital Assets: Bitcoin At Fresh All Time High, Scales $66K
Bitcoin surged to a new all-time high of $66,283.96 today, driven higher by investors’ enthusiasm over the launch Tuesday of the first-ever bitcoin futures ETF on the NYSE. The leading crypto had previously touched a peak of $64,895 in April this year.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Alpha Architect Mulls ETF For Companies Led By High-Character CEOs
If you like CEO’s that have high character, a clean non-controversial record, and achieved solid financial returns for their company’s shareholders with a focus on ESG, you’re in luck. You can now invest in companies led by such CEOs though Alpha Architect’s Return on Character ETF.
Artificial Intelligence: Investors Use NLP To Analyze CEO-Speak
In 2020 an algorithm that was designed to spot hidden clues in spoken words pinpointed hesitant uncertainty in the words of IT executives discussing supply chain outages and a shortage of semiconductor chips. Though they maintained that all was fine, the algo didn’t think so.