In the most recent edition of “Week in Review,” several notable developments have been highlighted. Among these, Jeff Bezos is reported to have invested in the electric vehicle startup Slate, which aims to produce an affordable two-seater pickup truck priced at $25,000. Slate is accumulating substantial resources to achieve this goal, with plans to commence production by late 2026.
In another pivotal event, Sarah Wynn-Williams, Facebook’s former global public policy head, testified before the U.S. Senate, claiming that Meta, formerly known as Facebook, allegedly collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party to undermine U.S. national security.
Additionally, Trevor Milton, the founder of Nikola and recently pardoned following convictions for securities fraud, is reportedly seeking to acquire the bankrupt company’s assets, though it remains unclear if other bids have been made.
In terms of technological advancements, Waymo’s updated privacy policy suggests the company may utilize interior camera data from its robotaxis to develop generative AI models, with an opt-out option for users.
President Trump has endorsed an executive order that emphasizes coal as a critical resource for data center power, aiming to prevent the shutdown of coal-fired power plants.
Furthermore, a security breach at Berkshire Hathaway’s NetJets has disclosed service preferences for Elon Musk, indicating his preference for rapid, direct flights and a cabin temperature of 65 degrees.
OpenAI’s former CTO, Mira Murati, through her AI venture Thinking Machine Labs, has recruited notable advisors from the field, including former OpenAI chiefs Bob McGrew and Alec Radford.
Dropbox’s chief customer officer, Eric Cox, is set to resign, as noted in an SEC filing, with no named successor at this time.
Nest co-founder Matt Rogers expressed ongoing interest in HVAC challenges, despite Nest’s current direction deviating from his original vision.
At an educational summit on the impact of AI, U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon humorously referred to AI as “A1,” akin to the steak sauce, in what seemed to be an unintentional slip.
Lastly, the rising cost of benchmarking AI models is under scrutiny. Evaluating advanced models like OpenAI’s o1 reasoning model and Anthropic’s Claude 3.7 Sonnet model has become increasingly expensive. This issue highlights the growing complexity and size of AI models, as explored by Kyle Wiggers.