Author: TechBrunch

OpenAI is partnering with defense startup Anduril to bring its AI technology to systems used by the U.S. military to counter drone attacks. The Wall Street Journal reported that Anduril will incorporate OpenAI technology into its software to assess and track unmanned aerial vehicles. Anduril told the magazine that OpenAI's models could improve the accuracy and speed of drone responses and reduce collateral damage. As part of the deal, OpenAI's technology will not be used in Anduril's other weapons systems, the companies said. As WSJ points out, OpenAI and Anduril's partnership is just the latest example of big tech companies…

1863 Ventures, a nonprofit focused on providing capital and mentorship to early-stage underrepresented founders, is closing and reorganizing it into a for-profit company called New Majority Ventures, according to founder Melissa Bradley. It is said that it will become a group. The new organization will rely on financial sponsors and is said to be in talks with the Tides Foundation for this role. Bradley started 1863 Ventures eight years ago to support founders of color. Since then, the organization says it has supported more than 5,000 founders and created 2,000 jobs. 1863 had two funds: 1863 Venture Fund I, which…

If Mad Men's Don Draper is essentially an ad man, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff is likewise a salesman. Lately he's been touting (or more like gospel singing) AI agents and AgentForce, Salesforce's recently released agent creation platform. It's true that Benioff famously gushes about all of Salesforce's latest products, but on Tuesday, as part of the company's latest quarterly results, he also released numbers that back up why he's so excited. Benioff said Salesforce closed 200 deals for AgentForce in just one quarter and plans to hire 1,400 salespeople to help close more deals currently in the works. Ta. AgentForce…

Three members of Google's NotebookLM team, including a team leader and a designer, have announced that they are leaving Google for a new stealth startup. Former team leader Liza Martin said on LinkedIn that she and her two other co-founders, designer Jason Spielman and engineer Stephen Hughes, were “building something transformative in this space. “I couldn't shake the feeling that we had a great opportunity.” The startup is in complete stealth mode, with only a bare-bones website that doesn't reveal any details about its purpose or even its name. It's unclear whether the startup will focus on the things that…

Khloe Kardashian and Kris Jenner are seeking to raise $10 million for a new business called Khloud, according to an SEC filing. The company began fundraising last month and has already raised $4.49 million, according to filings posted Tuesday. According to trademark filings, trademarks partnered with Khloud were filed earlier this year for popcorn, granola and other types of snacks, and one was also filed for protein supplements. Brian Baum, a serial entrepreneur and co-founder of venture firm K5 Global, is listed as CEO, according to SEC filings. K5's other co-founder, Michael Kyves, is also said to be in a…

After weeks of anticipation, some Spotify users are underwhelmed by Spotify Wrapped, the streamer's personalized annual review feature, with many calling it “boring” or even a “failure.” Masu. The main complaint is that Spotify prioritized Wrapped's AI podcast over the other smart and creative data stories it typically offers. For example, stories that identify musical personalities, match you with cities that share your musical tastes, and explain the characteristics of music. Take advantage of your “audio aura” and turn your music playback history into a game to share with friends. Some are upset about the lack of more detailed statistics…

World Labs has announced a new AI feature that turns 2D images into miniature worlds. The tool, the first from Fei-Fei Li's highly touted startup, takes a prompt or 2D reference image and spits out a fully navigable 3D environment. By producing in 3D, World Labs can avoid some of the control and consistency issues with other image and video production devices. GenAI tools create scenes with persistent visual aspects, real-time control, and consistent geometry, allowing creators to create precise camera movements within the generated environment. However, the scene boundaries are still quite close. This kind of rapid generation could…

AWS, Amazon's cloud computing division, today announced the Education Equity Initiative, which aims to “empower educational institutions with technology to build digital learning innovations for underrepresented communities.” AWS is committing $100 million in cloud credits to this effort over the next five years. Tom Berry, who leads education efforts within AWS' social impact and responsibility team, told me that this initiative is a bit different from how the company has traditionally thought about these projects. Typically, these programs focus on building projects that directly train teachers and children. “We are learning from that work (which we have been doing with…

A new update to Instagram Threads, Meta's X competitor, will allow users to further connect with the Fediverse, also known as the open social web, which includes services like Flipboard, Mastodon, Pixelfed, and PeerTube. On Wednesday, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that users can now follow profiles from other Fediverse servers. Starting today, users who have turned on sharing to fediverse will be able to follow users on other fediverse servers who have liked, followed, or replied to federated profiles on threads. . Scrolling through a thread now takes users to someone's profile and allows them to see all their…

As companies move from experimenting with generative AI in limited prototypes to moving into production, they are becoming increasingly price-conscious. After all, using large language models isn't cheap. One way to reduce costs is to return to the old concept of caching. Another is to route simpler queries to smaller, more cost-effective models. AWS announced both of these features for its Bedrock LLM hosting service today at the re:invent conference in Las Vegas. First, let's talk about cash advance services. “Say you have a document and multiple people are asking questions about the same document, and you're paying money every…