Visa Joins The AI Agent Pay Brigade

⚡️ Headlines

🤖 AI

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang says China not behind in AI: Nvidia’s Jensen Huang claims China is not lagging behind the U.S. in AI development and warns that U.S. export restrictions may hurt innovation and competitiveness [CNBC].

Duolingo launches 148 new language courses: Duolingo rolls out 148 new language courses across multiple interfaces, significantly expanding its multilingual learning platform [Duolingo].

Astronomer’s $93M raise underscores a new reality: orchestration is king in AI infrastructure: Astronomer secures $93 million to scale its data orchestration tools, emphasizing infrastructure’s central role in modern AI workflows [VentureBeat].

Google’s Gemini could soon power AI features on the iPhone: Google is reportedly in talks with Apple to integrate Gemini AI into future iPhones, a potential shift in default on-device AI providers [The Verge].

Microsoft CEO says up to 30% of the company’s code was written by AI: Satya Nadella reveals that nearly a third of Microsoft’s code is now AI-generated, reflecting deep integration of tools like GitHub Copilot [TechCrunch].

Mark Zuckerberg is planning a premium tier and ads for Meta’s AI app: Meta is exploring monetization of its AI assistant with a premium subscription tier and integrated ads, according to Zuckerberg [The Verge].

DeepSeek quietly updates open-source model that handles maths, proofs: Chinese AI lab DeepSeek releases a stealth update to its open-source LLM, enhancing its performance on mathematical reasoning and formal proofs [SCMP].

🦾 Emerging Tech

Meta’s Reality Labs posts $4.2 billion loss in first quarter: Meta’s AR/VR division reported a $4.2 billion Q1 loss, continuing its pattern of heavy investment in the metaverse despite slow returns [CNBC].

SEC drops investigation into PayPal’s stablecoin: The SEC has ended its probe into PayPal’s stablecoin project, clearing regulatory uncertainty for the company’s crypto initiatives [Cointelegraph].

Ripple is said to have offered to buy stablecoin rival Circle: Ripple reportedly made a buyout offer for Circle, the issuer of USDC, indicating consolidation interest in the stablecoin market [Bloomberg Tax].

🤳 Social Media

Threads tops 350M monthly users after adding 30M in the quarter: Meta’s Threads app has reached 350 million monthly active users, fueled by rapid quarterly growth and engagement features [TechCrunch].

Grindr pivots to Anthropic, Amazon to power AI ‘wingman’ feature: Grindr will use Anthropic and Amazon’s AI models to enhance its matchmaking and “wingman” feature, aiming to improve user interactions [Bloomberg].

TikTok adds Promote lead gen, third-party messaging apps: TikTok expands its Promote suite with lead generation tools and integration with third-party messaging platforms for creators and businesses [Social Media Today].

🔬 Research

Mathematical Reasoning in Language Models: Are We There Yet?: A new arXiv paper benchmarks the capabilities of large language models on advanced mathematical reasoning tasks, identifying key limitations and paths forward [arXiv].

⚖ Legal

Apple failed to open App Store to competition, judge rules: A U.S. judge ruled that Apple did not comply with a previous order to open its App Store to third-party payment alternatives [Bloomberg].

Meta, app makers launch Washington lobby to fight Apple, Google: Meta and other developers have formed a lobbying group in Washington to push for more competitive app ecosystem regulations [Bloomberg].

🎱 Random

Indian court orders blocking of Proton Mail: An Indian court has mandated ISPs to block access to Proton Mail, raising concerns over privacy and censorship [TechCrunch].

🔌 Plug-Into-This

Visa Preps AI-Ready Credit Cards for Automated Shopping Transactions

Visa is launching a new initiative to integrate AI agents with its global payments network, enabling these agents to make purchases on behalf of users. By partnering with leading AI developers and tech firms, Visa aims to facilitate autonomous shopping tasks while maintaining consumer control through spending limits and oversight.

• Collaborations include companies like OpenAI, Microsoft, Anthropic, Perplexity, Mistral, IBM, Stripe, and Samsung.

• AI agents will handle routine purchases such as groceries or plane tickets, based on user-defined budgets and preferences.

• The initiative addresses the challenge of enabling AI agents to complete payments securely and legitimately.

• Pilot projects are launching now, with broader implementation expected next year.

• AI developers are interested in leveraging users' transaction histories, with consent, to provide more personalized shopping recommendations.

💳 Visa's move to empower AI agents with purchasing capabilities represents a significant shift in e-commerce, potentially challenging the dominance of platforms like Amazon and Google by offering a more personalized and autonomous shopping experience.

Marc Andreessen Says One Job Is Mostly Safe From AI: Venture Capitalist

Marc Andreessen asserts that the role of a venture capitalist is unlikely to be replaced by AI, citing the nuanced combination of intangible skills required, such as psychological analysis and human judgment. He emphasizes the importance of understanding entrepreneurs' behaviors and reactions under pressure, tasks he believes AI cannot replicate.

• Andreessen highlights the psychological aspects of venture capitalism, including assessing founders' mental resilience and decision-making under stress.

• He suggests that the success rate of venture capitalists is low, with even the best missing many great companies, indicating the unpredictability of the field.

• The role involves being part psychologist, guiding entrepreneurs through challenges and preventing both them and oneself from "going crazy."

• He posits that such human-centric skills are timeless and may remain relevant even as AI takes over other professions.

• Andreessen's perspective reflects a broader debate on the limits of AI in replicating complex human interactions and judgments.

💰 Big surprise coming from a VC, right? While Andreessen's confidence in the irreplaceability of venture capitalists underscores the value of human intuition and emotional intelligence, it also raises questions about which professions truly require uniquely human skills in an increasingly automated world.

Wikipedia Says It Will Use AI, but Not to Replace Human Volunteers

Wikipedia has unveiled a three-year AI strategy focused on augmenting, not replacing, its community of human editors and volunteers. The plan involves deploying AI to automate tedious tasks, improve information discoverability, and assist in translation and onboarding processes, all while adhering to principles of transparency and human agency.

• AI will be used to create tools that remove technical barriers, enabling editors to focus on content quality and consensus-building.

• The strategy emphasizes a human-centered approach, prioritizing open-source AI and multilingual support.

• Automation will handle repetitive tasks, freeing up human contributors for more nuanced editorial decisions.

• AI-assisted workflows aim to enhance the efficiency of moderators and patrollers without compromising editorial standards.

• The initiative reflects Wikipedia's commitment to maintaining its volunteer-driven model while embracing technological advancements.

🧑‍💻 Wikipedia's balanced approach to AI integration could serve as a model for how technology can support, rather than supplant, human contributions in collaborative knowledge platforms. Why not target 10x with both, vs. replace humans and stay at 1x?

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