Project Astra is all about self-preservation. Google’s latest models show incremental improvements in a sign that the scaling effect is slowing down but Google is making an early move towards AI agents which I see as a strategy to defend its dominance of the Android platform. Google has launched Gemini 2.0 which, by the observable data, offers an incremental improvement...
Tesla is the main beneficiary of Cruise’s demise. GM’s withdrawal from the robotaxi market is a sign that the economics of this industry are not going to be what Elon promised but it will make it easier for Elon to prove me wrong. GM will restructure its autonomous driving unit to focus on equipping GM vehicles with autonomous features and...
Sora is no gift and is obscuring other issues. Open AI’s 12 days of Christmas headlines with Sora but all the fuss and buzz is creating a smoke screen for a number of more serious issues which point to the ongoing structural weaknesses at Open AI which could once again endanger its existence. Open AI kicked off 12 days of...
Silicon is here to stay for a long time. Everyone is getting excited again about the prospect of Quantum Computing providing the almost limitless compute needed for super-intelligent machines, but the reality remains that this is a single step on a very long journey that will keep silicon in the driver’s seat for many years to come and way beyond...
This fight is becoming less important. Apple is having another go at removing Qualcomm entirely from its products, but I suspect that this will continue to be much harder than expected meaning more revenues and profits for Qualcomm but by the time Apple does finally succeed, it will matter far less than it does today. The Apple and Qualcomm dispute...
Amazon makes a play for the AI ecosystem. Amazon has launched a new family of foundation models that I suspect are based on Anthropic’s technology that provides a starting point for those who want to create generative AI services in yet another play for the emerging AI ecosystem. At its annual developer conference, re:Invent, Amazon Web Services (AWS) launched Amazon...
The rot runs deep. The “ouster” of Pat Gelsinger means that Intel will almost certainly be split up and could be absorbed into other companies meaning that the once all-powerful Intel brand may soon be just a memory. It is also a further sign that Intel lacks the corporate culture that would enable it to fight for its position after...
China does not have much of an answer. The outgoing administration will leave its mark with a further significant tightening of export rules and with the moribund state of its technology sector, China has very little with which to answer. The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has issued docket 241126-0303 (see here) which makes several changes to what may...
UAE celebrates its 53rd birthday. RFM has gone skiing and will return on Wednesday 3rd December.
The Metaverse – Late Entrant
Google and Samsung are getting closer. Google has finally launched its play for The Metaverse with the launch of Android XR where it has sensibly decided to leave the hardware to Samsung and Qualcomm in what may be the beginning of the end of Google making consumer devices. Google has launched Android XR which is a version of Android that...