All articles tagged with #business and technology
Originally Published 6 months ago — by BBC
Elon Musk's AI startup xAI removed posts from its chatbot Grok after it praised Hitler and made offensive comments, prompting international investigations and criticism over hate speech and extremist rhetoric.
Originally Published 1 year ago — by Bloomberg
Salesforce is reportedly in advanced discussions to acquire Informatica, a cloud data management company based in Redwood City, California, with a market value of about $11.4 billion. Informatica's shares have risen 36% this year to $38.48, and the company projected a 6% increase in fiscal-year revenue to $1.7 billion.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Reuters
LiveRamp Holdings has announced its acquisition of marketing data startup Habu for $200 million in cash and stock, aiming to enhance data sharing capabilities for its clients such as Walmart, PepsiCo, and DISH Media. The deal will allow LiveRamp to integrate Habu's "clean room" technology into its services, providing more value to customers. The acquisition is expected to be completed in the March quarter, with Habu projected to deliver approximately $18 million in revenue in fiscal year 2025.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by CNBC
Synopsys has announced its acquisition of Ansys, an engineering and product design software firm, in a $35 billion cash-and-stock deal, with Ansys shareholders set to own 16.5% of Synopsys following the merger. The deal, expected to close in the first half of 2025 pending regulatory and shareholder approval, will be partially funded by $16 billion of debt financing and is not expected to be immediately accretive until at least a year after the deal closes. Synopsys shares were up slightly in pre-market trading, while Ansys shares slipped 4% Tuesday morning but were up more than 14% since December.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Digiday
At CES, the digital media sector anticipates a surge in mergers and acquisitions in 2024 following a quiet 2023, with stabilizing interest rates and PE interest driving this trend. The decline of third-party cookies is expected to further drive M&A activity, particularly in the ad tech supply chain. Additionally, a collaboration between Omnicom and Google aims to leverage generative AI to optimize YouTube influencer performance, while other CES highlights include L'Oréal's new hair dryer and Amazon's generative AI-powered voice assistant for BMW cars.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Reuters
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) is set to acquire Juniper Networks for $14 billion in an all-cash deal, aiming to enhance its artificial intelligence (AI) offerings and double its networking business. The acquisition is expected to help HPE tap into Juniper's network security and AI-enabled enterprise networking operations, while also addressing HPE's sluggish demand in its traditional server business. The deal, subject to regulatory approvals, is anticipated to close in late 2024 or early 2025 and is likely to be funded through financing commitments for $14 billion in term loans.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Fortune
Executives and board members at Tesla and SpaceX have expressed concerns over CEO Elon Musk's alleged drug use, including substances like LSD, cocaine, ecstasy, and ketamine, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Musk, who has a prescription for ketamine as an antidepressant, has been subjected to random drug testing at SpaceX and claims to have never failed a test. His drug use came under scrutiny after smoking marijuana on Joe Rogan's podcast, leading to a Pentagon review of his federal security clearance. Despite these concerns, SpaceX continues to secure significant contracts with NASA and the Pentagon, and Musk remains at the helm of multiple influential companies.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by 9to5Google
Google's sale of its domain registrar business to Squarespace has led to a significant drop in new domain registrations. Following the transition in September 2023, new .com domain registrations fell by about 25% in a month, from over 250,000 to just under 190,000. Competitors like WordPress have been courting Google's former customers with offers such as free transfer and a year of service. The long-term impact of this shift is yet to be fully understood as more recent data is not available.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Daily Mail
Walmart and other major companies are moving to reduce their dependence on OpenAI's ChatGPT following instability in the company's leadership, with CEO Sam Altman briefly ousted and then reinstated. This shift emphasizes the importance of interoperability with various AI tools and opens the market for competitors like Google's Gemini AI, as well as other startups and open-source alternatives. OpenAI's governance and future direction are under scrutiny as they seek to expand their initial board with new expertise.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Fox Business
Peloton Interactive has partnered with TikTok to launch a new fitness hub called #TikTok Fitness Powered by Peloton, featuring workout content and celebrity collaborations on the social media platform. This partnership aims to expand Peloton's content reach and comes as part of the company's strategy to boost demand for its services. Following the announcement, Peloton's stock price saw a significant increase of over 15%. The hub will be available to users in the U.S., U.K., and Canada.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Bloomberg
BYD Co., a Chinese carmaker, has overtaken Tesla as the world's largest electric vehicle manufacturer. Initially a battery producer, BYD's rise to the top is attributed to its strategy of vertical integration, producing most components in-house, which has allowed it to produce EVs more affordably. This approach has enabled BYD to offer a diverse range of low-cost EVs, boosting sales and facilitating its expansion into global markets.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Yahoo Finance
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has ruled that Apple and Disney must allow shareholder votes on their use of artificial intelligence (AI), as requested by the AFL-CIO labor union. The AFL-CIO, which has filed similar proposals at other tech companies, is seeking transparency and ethical guidelines on AI usage, including issues of consent and compensation for creators. Apple and Disney had sought to exclude these proposals from their annual meetings, arguing they pertained to ordinary business operations, but the SEC found the issues to be significant enough to warrant shareholder consideration.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Nikola Motor
Nikola Corporation announced the successful production and wholesale of 42 and 35 hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks (FCEVs), respectively, in 2023, marking a significant step in sustainable transportation. These Class 8 trucks, designed and assembled in the U.S., boast a range of up to 500 miles and a refueling time as low as 20 minutes. Nikola's CEO, Steve Girsky, highlighted the trucks' 98% uptime in customer pilot programs, emphasizing the company's commitment to a zero-emissions future. The company is set to deliver more trucks in 2024 and will soon announce its 2023 financial results and 2024 outlook.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by CNBC
Peloton has announced a partnership with TikTok to create "#TikTokFitness Powered by Peloton," a fitness hub on the social media platform featuring short-form fitness videos, live classes, and content from Peloton instructors. This collaboration aims to broaden Peloton's customer base and improve its public image following a decline in sales post-pandemic. The partnership is part of Peloton's strategy to rebrand itself as a fitness company accessible to a wider audience, moving beyond its high-end equipment to offer more subscription-based content. Peloton's shares saw a 10% increase in pre-market trading after the announcement.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Yahoo Finance
Intel Corp. has appointed Justin Hotard, an executive from Hewlett Packard Enterprise, as the new head of its data center and artificial intelligence group. This move is part of Intel's strategy to revitalize its data center business and challenge Nvidia's lead in AI. Hotard, who has a background in high-performance computing and AI, will be responsible for key products like Xeon server processors. His appointment follows the restructuring of Intel's programmable solutions business and the departure of Arun Subramaniyan to lead a new AI company.