News
Each day, DailyAlts tracks major developments across the alternative investment world. Our content is procured from primary contacts in the industry and secondary sources across the web. Our goal is to give readers the most up-to-date news and engaging experience to open new doors and areas of knowledge. Our stories cover nine separate verticals of the alternative investment industry.
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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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Digital Assets: BlackRock Makes Another Move To Woo Institutional Crypto Clients, Forms Private Trust For Bitcoin
BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) announced today a private trust that would offer institutional clients direct exposure to bitcoin, despite a pervasive bearish sentiment gripping the crypto assets market since it topped out in November, and recent high profile failures of major market players.
Alternative Investments/ESG: An “Anti-ESG” ETF, Backed By Thiel And Ackmann, To Gun For Fossil Investing
Strive Asset Management announced the launch of the Strive US Energy ETF (NYSE: $DRLL) which seeks to take advantage of a likely bull run in US energy stocks from an unfolding demand-supply imbalance in the global energy markets. Taking an anti-ESG stance, the ETF will mandate U.S. energy companies to reject shortsighted political agendas and to focus on long-term profitability, including through increased investment in oil and gas production.
Artificial Intelligence: Visionary.ai’s AI Software Enhances Image Quality In Real Time
Visionary.ai, an Israeli startup has made it its mission to overcome the limitations posed on image quality due to poor lighting conditions, such as low light, high dynamic range (such as when a person is silhouetted against a bright background), heavy rain, fog, increased motion, and sudden changes in intensity, like flashing headlights. Traditional, hardware-based image signal processors are unable to produce the desired image quality in these circumstances.
Digital Assets: Ripple Labs Eyeing Pieces Of Celsius In Bankruptcy Wreckage
Ripple Labs, the blockchain payments company that created the XRP cryptocurrency, is interested in purchasing assets of Celsius Network, the crypto lender that was forced into bankruptcy amidst the meltdown in the crypto assets market. Ripple itself is engaged in a high stakes legal battle with the SEC which has charged the company and executives for conducting a $1.3 billion unregistered securities offering by selling XRP.
FinTech: German Bank Nuri Files For Insolvency Amidst Macro Environment And Crypto Bear Market
Nuri, a digital banking platform and app, offered users crypto transactions as well as normal banking activities including a debit card. The firm announced it had filed for insolvency on August 9, 2022 in view of a “lasting strain” on the liquidity of its business amidst “significant macroeconomic headwinds and the cooling down of public and private capital markets,” as well as a crypto bear market.
Artificial Intelligence: AI Robot TX SCARA To Debut In 300 FamilyMart Stores In Japan
Telexistence Inc., the Japanese robotics company, announced the launch of its TX SCARA restocking robots in 300 FamilyMart convenience stores in Japan later this month as part of its AI-based “robot-as-a-service” for grocery retailers.
Alternative Investments/Digital: GraniteShares Launches The First Coinbase Leveraged ETF
US ETF issuer GraniteShares, which first launched leveraged ETFs on single stocks in the UK in 2019, and now offers 106 such products across Europe, has listed a suite of short and leveraged single stock Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange.
Alternative Investments/Digital/ESG: SoFi Launches Web3 And Smart Energy ETFs
SoFi Invest, the investing and trading arm of SoFi Technologies, announced the launch of two new ETFs, SoFi Web 32 (NASDAQ: TWEB) and SoFi Smart Energy (NYSE: ENRG) that provide exposure to two of the world’s fastest-growing industries.
FinTech: Lord Philip Hammond, Former UK Chancellor, To Join New £1B Fund
A host of luminaries have been roped in to lend their weight to a new £1 billion fund that is envisioned to boost the growth of the UK’s promising fintechs. According to SkyNews, Lord Hammond (pictured above) will join the advisory board of the new fund, the Fintech Growth Fund.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Chimera Capital Launches Shariah Turkish Equity ETF
The Chimera S&P Turkey Shariah ETF seeks to invest in the most liquid Shariah-complaint stocks listed on the Borsa Istanbul. Launched by Chimera Capital, an Abu-Dhabi-based investment management firm and subsidiary of Chimera Investment, the ETF tracks the performance of the S&P Turkey Shariah Liquid 35/20 Capped Index (Bloomberg: SPTSLCAP), provided by S&P Dow Jones Indices.
Venture Capital: Warehouse Robots Maker Geek+Raises $100M Series E1
Geek+, a Beijing-based maker of robotics for storage, picking, and sorting in warehouses, as well as material handling robots and unmanned forklifts for manufacturing, announced a new, $100 million series E1 funding series which included investment by Intel Capital, Vertex Growth, and Qingyue Capital Investment. (CISION PR Newswire)
Digital Assets: Singapore-Based Hodlnaut Suspends Withdrawals Amidst Crypto Downturn
Singapore-based crypto lender Hodlnaut has frozen withdrawals, swaps and deposits following an apparent liquidity crunch it attributed to “recent market conditions” and an intention to “focus on stabilising our liquidity and preserving assets.”
Artificial Intelligence: The FDA Clears ProstatID, An AI That Helps Detect Prostate Cancer From MRIs
Bot Image has developed an AI tool called ProstatID that combines AI with MRI scans to improve the detection and diagnosis of prostate cancer. According to Cancer.Net, prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men, except for skin cancer. This year, an estimated 268,490 men in the United States will be diagnosed with prostate cancer.
Digital Assets: Voyager Customers Can Soon Withdraw Dollar Balances
Voyager Digital (TSE: VOYG), the crypto lender currently in bankruptcy proceedings said Friday it had received permission from the court to restore access to customers for their cash held by the company at Metropolitan Commercial Bank (NYSE: MCB).
Artificial Intelligence: Baidu Gets Green Signal To Operate Robotaxis Without A Human Driver
Baidu Inc (NASDAQ: BIDU) announced today it had become the first and only company to offer fully driverless robotaxi services to the public in China, without human drivers in the car. Apollo Go, Baidu’s autonomous ride-hailing service, has been authorized to sell commercial fully driverless robotaxi services to the public on open roads during the daytime in Chongqing and Wuhan, two of China’s largest megacities.
Venture Capital: Softbank’s Vision Fund Posts $21.68B Quarterly Loss Amidst Tech Wreck
The meltdown in technology stocks following hardening interest rates has taken a massive toll from SoftBank (TYO: 9984) and its Softbank Vision Fund, one of the most prolific and high stakes investors in the sector. The Vision Fund’s $21.68 billion loss for the June quarter pushed Softbank into a corporate loss of $23.38 billion.
Venture Capital: Terabase Energy Raises $44M For Automating The Construction Of Utility Scale Solar
Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Prelude Ventures co-led Terabase Energy’s $44 million Series B financing round. SJF Ventures and other existing investors also participated. The funding will advance the company’s digital and robotic automation platform for the development, construction, and operation of utility-scale PV power plants.
Venture Capital: Chinese Biotech Sironax Raises $200M For Age-Related Degenerative Diseases
Sironax, a Beijing-based biotech firm focused on the treatment of patients with age-related degenerative diseases, announced a $200 million Series B funding led by Gaorong Capital and Yunfeng Capital, with participation from existing investors including Temasek, Invus, F-Prime Capital, Eight Roads, ARCH Venture Partners, K2 Venture Partners and lead investors from previous financings.
Digital Assets: Institutional Crypto Clients To Connect Via BlackRock’s Aladdin Platform To Coinbase Prime
Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) and BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) have agreed to create new access points for institutional crypto adoption by connecting Coinbase Prime and Aladdin, BlackRock’s end-to-end investment management platform. Coinbase Prime is built for institutions and is a full-service platform to provide them access to crypto markets at scale.
FinTech: Revolut Expands Its UK Crypto List, Adds 22 New Cryptos
Digital challenger bank Revolut has expanded its list of tradeable crypto tokens to 82 by adding 22 new tokens including ApeCoin, Request, Sandbox, and Ethereum Classic.
Alternative Investments/Digital: A Metaverse-Themed ETF From Betashares Debuts On The ASX
The BetaShares Metaverse ETF (ASX: MTAV) has debuted on the ASX on Thursday, August 5, 2022. It is the first Australian ETF providing dedicated exposure to a portfolio of leading global companies that are building, developing and operating the Metaverse.
FinTech: Some Emerging Market Fintechs In Hot Water As Central Banks Crack The Whip
After a months-long investigation, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has ordered Tag, one of the fastest growing startups in the country, to immediately refund all customer funds on grounds of “violations of SBP’s regulatory requirements and other concerns.”
Alternative Investments: The New York State Common Retirement Fund Allocates $3B To Alternatives In June
The monthly transaction report from the $280 billion New York State Common Retirement Fund showed an investment outlay of more than $4 billion in June. Significantly, and in a sign of the times, more than 75% of that was plowed into alternatives such as real estate ($2.2 billion) and private equity funds (over $1 billion).
Artificial Intelligence: Argo AI Appoints A Safety Advisory Council For Its Autonomous Vehicle Technology
Self-driving auto maker Argo AI has set up a panel of outside experts to oversee its efforts to improve the safety image of autonomous vehicles and the deployment of the associated technology. The announcement comes amidst a deteriorating public perception of these vehicles, as well as accidents that call for regulatory guidelines.