Mark Zuckerberg has caused a stir with his efforts to develop artificial general intelligence, CIOs are concerned about Broadcom's changes to VMWare, U.S. tax changes are impacting startups, And in what can only be described as a sign of the end, Apple's new product did not sell out on its first day of release.
Welcome to the end of the world, as you can see with this hashtag trend. I'm your host, Jim Love. He is his CIO for IT World in Canada and TechNewsDay in the US.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, is creating a controversial artificial general intelligence (AGI) system that could potentially rival human intelligence. The ambitious project also threatens to be open sourced, sparking alarm among experts and academics.
Although the concept of AGI is still largely theoretical, Zuckerberg envisions this next-generation technology to become a major driver of technology services. Even Sam Altman has talked about the big advances in ChatGPT's upcoming version 5, but he's not yet ready to announce that AGI has been achieved.
AGI refers to AI systems that can perform a wide range of tasks with human-level or higher intelligence. The prospect of achieving such a breakthrough, and of making it available to the public, has raised concerns about its potential to escape human control and pose a serious threat.
Dame Wendy Hall, a prominent computer science professor and member of the United Nations' AI advisory body, called the idea of open source AGI “really, really scary” and criticized Zuckerberg's approach as irresponsible. She emphasized the urgent need for a regulatory framework to ensure public safety in the face of such powerful technologies.
Meta's previous decision to open source the Llama 2 AI model came under criticism for its similarities to “giving people a template to build a nuclear bomb.” This discussion extends beyond meta, with other tech giants like OpenAI and Google's DeepMind also pursuing AGI, each with their own definitions and timelines.
Sources of information include: guardian
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Broadcom's recent $69 billion acquisition of virtualization pioneer VMware marks a major shift in VMware's product and pricing strategies and is attracting the attention of chief information officers (CIOs) across industries. .
Since the acquisition closed in November, Broadcom has streamlined VMware's product offering from nearly 1,000 to just two bundles and moved from selling perpetual licenses to a full subscription payment model. The move is consistent with Broadcom's history of acquiring companies and leveraging its pricing power, but it has raised concerns among VMware customers. Additionally, Broadcom has laid off hundreds of VMware employees, but the company declined to comment on those layoffs.
The changes at VMware, which has about 330,000 customers under its Broadcom umbrella, are being closely watched by CIOs, who are considering alternatives due to concerns about potential price increases and support levels.
CIOs like Estes Express Lines' Todd Florence and Goya Foods' Suvajit Basu have expressed concerns about their future with VMware, especially given Broadcom's strategy to focus on its core base of approximately 600 enterprise customers. doing. While this approach has been successful in Broadcom's chip business, it is less common in software, raising questions about support and pricing for a broader customer base.
Forrester Research analysts note that migrating away from VMware can be costly and time-consuming for customers, but they also see potential benefits of the change, including a simplified product portfolio and increased customer engagement. I'm here.
This overhaul by Broadcom represents a pivotal shift in VMware's strategy, with CIOs and enterprises reevaluating their reliance on VMware's virtualization services and expanding their focus on broader IT and cloud computing. It's affecting the situation.
Sources of information include: wall street journal
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U.S. lawmakers are scrambling to clean up the mess caused by the 2017 changes to the U.S. tax code.
Previously, a company with $1.5 million in revenue and $1 million in research and development expenses would pay taxes on $500,000 of profit. Today, the same company can only deduct one-fifth of its annual research and development expenses, resulting in higher taxable profits. This change will leave some startups facing unsustainable tax bills.
The impact is particularly pronounced among proprietary companies, which are penalized for producing profits sooner. Venture-backed startups are less affected so far because they typically don't make a profit. But even those companies are changing their plans, and some are delaying adoption due to budget constraints.
This tax change will also affect large companies, especially those that conduct research and development activities overseas. In late 2022, chief financial officers from major companies including Ford and Netflix appealed to Congress to reverse the change.
There is now bipartisan support to address this issue. In the American Families and Workers Tax Relief Act of 2024, he proposes to postpone changes to Section 174 until January 1, 2026 and apply them retroactively. However, it is still in the early stages of the legislative process, and the outcome is uncertain.
Meanwhile, the Canadian government is moving on… just kidding. They have bigger things to do, concerned about technological innovation and its impact on Canada's economy.
Sources of information include: Axios
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Apple continues to come under attack from the European Union, which has proposed allowing third-party mobile wallets and payment providers to access the iPhone's NFC (near field communication) functionality.
The move is a response to the European Commission's antitrust investigation, which has been ongoing for nearly four years. The investigation accuses Apple of using iOS policies to unfairly restrict competition in the mobile payments market and benefit its own solution, Apple Pay.
Previously, third-party developers could use the iPhone's NFC functionality to read electronic tags, but were restricted from making NFC payments specifically for Apple Pay. If Apple's new initiative is accepted, users in the European Economic Area (EEA) will be able to make NFC contactless payments from within third-party iOS apps, separate from Apple Pay and Apple Wallet.
The change marks a shift in Apple's tightly controlled ecosystem. The proposed commitment would last for 10 years, and non-compliance could result in fines of up to 10 percent of Apple's global annual revenue.
The decision to open up NFC payments to third-party developers could have a significant impact on the mobile payments market, especially in the EU.
Sources of information include: The Verge
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And while this may not be news to other companies, Apple's Vision Pro didn't sell out on launch day, even though initial inventory was estimated at 60,000 to 80,000 units.
Vision Pro prices range from $3,500 to $3,899 depending on storage capacity, and while the 256GB model was quickly backordered, the 512GB and 1TB models were available for in-store pickup the day after release.
For Apple, this is surprising given the company's reputation for generating hype around new products and typically selling out quickly.
Marketed as a device that ushered in the “age of spatial computing,” the Vision Pro, like competing AR and VR headsets, appears to be facing challenges in gaining immediate traction.
Concerns have been raised about the Vision Pro's weight, which is comparable to a 12.9-inch iPad Pro, and the limited number of spatialization apps available at launch. Apple has only developed 15 stock apps for this device, and major third-party platforms such as Netflix, YouTube, and Spotify have no immediate plans to create spatialized versions of their apps for this device. .
This situation suggests that even with Apple's brand strength and marketing power, success in the AR and VR market may not be guaranteed.
Sources of information include: Note
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Finally, here are two pieces of news from OpenAI from last week. Open AI announces its first partnership with a university. Arizona State University plans to use OpenAI's Enterprise product for coursework and build personalized AI instructors for students.
Enterprise provides a secure environment that protects university and student data.
It also means there will be no usage cap for students. This could be a bonus in student recruitment, given that courses on AI prompts are among the most popular courses on university calendars. Similarly, there is probably no penalty for using AI to assist with assignments.
And a second article about OpenAI is going viral on YouTube. Last month, a YouTuber showed us how he accessed ChatGPT's main prompt. I haven't tried it, but it seems reliable. With the advent of this store, there is at least one more video showing how easy it is to publish custom GPT-driven prompts. All I can say is that it works.
We are moving into this new world at an unprecedented rate. But sometimes we wonder if we're moving at that speed, and in the safest and smartest way possible.
That's today's hashtag trend.
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I'm your host, Jim Love. Thank you for your attention. Have a wonderful Monday!
