OpenAI just launched the official ChatGPT app for iOS, bringing the chatbot straight to mobile. The free app syncs conversation history across devices and integrates Whisper for voice input. It is rolling out first to US users, with broader international availability and an Android version coming soon.
Telecom giant BT just announced plans to slash up to 55,000 jobs by 2030, reducing its total workforce from 130,000 down to a much leaner operation. Up to a fifth of those cuts will hit customer service roles replaced by AI and automated tech. Chief executive Philip Jansen noted that generative AI tools like ChatGPT give the company confidence to automate faster.
Zoom just partnered with and invested in Anthropic to bake its Claude chatbot across its productivity suite. The AI will first land in Zoom Contact Center to improve customer self-service and pull up helpful materials for human agents, adding to Zoom's existing OpenAI tie-up. Why it matters: Zoom is adopting a multi-model strategy to keep up with Slack and Microsoft.
OpenAI is preparing to release a new open-source language model to the public, according to The Information. However, don't expect a free rival to ChatGPT: the report notes that the upcoming model is unlikely to compete directly with its flagship GPT lineup.
OpenAI just opened up web browsing and over 70 third-party plugins to all ChatGPT Plus subscribers as the feature enters public beta. Users can delegate tasks across travel, shopping, and PDF analysis, running up to three plugins simultaneously in a single chat. It essentially gives ChatGPT live internet access and external app hooks.
Anthropic just expanded Claude’s context window from 9K to 100K tokens, or about 75,000 words. The model can now digest hundreds of pages of documentation, books, or financial reports and synthesize answers in seconds. The 100K context window is available now via Anthropic's API.
Google just opened Bard to over 180 countries and territories, completely scrapping its waitlist. Powered by the newly integrated PaLM 2 model, the AI chatbot adds Japanese and Korean support, dark mode, and one-click export to Gmail and Docs, with Google Lens image prompts and Adobe Firefly integrations rolling out soon.
Google just unveiled its next-gen PaLM 2 language model at I/O, powering the newly updated Bard and serving as the foundation for the company's latest AI updates. Instead of chasing pure parameter scale, PaLM 2 sharpens logic, math, and support for over 100 languages. It also spawns specialized variants like Codey and Med-PaLM 2, plus a mobile version hitting 20 tokens per second.
Google is reportedly planning to launch its latest large language model, PaLM 2, at its developer conference this week. Internal documents show the model supports over 100 languages with advanced coding and math skills, alongside new generative experiences rolling out to Bard, Search, and Workspace. Why it matters: Google is ramping up its defense against Microsoft and OpenAI by aggressively injecting generative AI across its flagship products.
Google is working on "Project Magi" to transform its search engine beyond the classic 10 blue links, adding conversational AI and short-form video content. Facing pressure from ChatGPT and TikTok, the new design focuses on queries with no single right answer. It will initially test with one million U.S. users.
Amazon is working to give Alexa a generative AI makeover using its own internal large language models, according to leaked documents. The upgraded voice assistant aims to move beyond simple database queries to spin up personalized bedtime stories from toys in view and track down TV shows from vague descriptions. Why it matters: After heavy hardware layoffs, Amazon is betting that conversational AI can finally make Alexa proactive and profitable.
Microsoft just moved the AI-powered Bing and Edge into Open Preview, completely dropping the waitlist so anyone with a Microsoft account can jump in. The update brings chat history, export options, 100+ language image generation, and third-party plugins like OpenTable and Wolfram|Alpha. It marks Bing's shift from a search engine into an action-oriented platform.
Digital artist Rhett Dashwood just turned a $69 budget and zero coding experience into a $50M meme coin called $TURBO using GPT-4. The AI guided the tokenomics, drafted the white paper, and wrote the Solidity smart contracts, while Midjourney generated the mascot. It serves as a wild proof of concept for non-technical creators building projects with AI.
Inflection AI just launched Pi, an AI chatbot built to feel more like a supportive, witty conversational partner than an automated work tool. Founded by DeepMind and LinkedIn veterans, the startup explicitly designed Pi to avoid coding or essay generation, focusing purely on day-to-day dialogue and high emotional intelligence. Why it matters: as the race heats up around workplace productivity bots, Pi is betting that people really want an empathetic sounding board that constantly reminds them it's actually an AI.
Nextdoor just teamed up with OpenAI to test generative writing tools, including an Assistant feature that polishes community posts. The platform is also experimenting with using ChatGPT to automatically rephrase unkind comments before they go live. Basically, it wants AI to keep neighborhood drama from spiraling out of control.
OpenAI just won back Italy after adding new data privacy safeguards and age verification to ChatGPT. Users across Europe can now opt out of letting their chats train future models, and visitors from Italy must verify they are at least 13. It marks a key regulatory win after Italy became the first Western nation to block the chatbot.
Stability AI just released StableVicuna-13B, billed as the first large-scale open-source chatbot fine-tuned using reinforcement learning from human feedback (RLHF). Built on Vicuna-13B and trained using trlX alongside open preference datasets from Anthropic and OpenAssistant, it brings the post-training playbook behind ChatGPT into open source. Weights are available on Hugging Face as a delta over original LLaMA weights.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg just announced that generative AI will touch every single one of the company's products. Meta is testing chat agents for WhatsApp and Messenger alongside visual creation tools for Instagram, with plans to roll out features in the coming months. The goal is to bring helpful AI assistants to regular users and businesses at scale.
Russian banking giant Sberbank just unveiled GigaChat, an AI chatbot designed to rival ChatGPT that is currently in closed, invite-only testing. The lender claims its key edge is superior Russian language fluency, coming as Moscow pushes hard to replace foreign tech amid Western sanctions.
Hugging Face just rolled out HuggingChat, an open-source alternative to ChatGPT. The web app is powered by Open Assistant’s latest model and Hugging Face’s Inference API. It is a major push to ensure the open-source community keeps pace with proprietary commercial chatbots.
