The pair of asset managers in the pole position for a spot bitcoin ETF now want to launch one for ether, the second-largest digital asset behind just bitcoin.
Driving the news: Cathie Wood's Ark Invest and 21Shares filed to launch the ARK 21Shares Ethereum ETF on Wednesday, in a first test of the Securities and Exchange Commission's position on a spot ether investment fund.
Google will start requiring election advertisers to disclose when an ad contains synthetic or altered content, the company announced today.
Why it matters: The explosion of generative AI has raised questions over its use to create deceptive content in an online political environment already rife with misinformation.
There's a growing bipartisan push to bar the use of artificial intelligence for the purpose of generating child sexual abuse content.
Driving the news: Attorneys general in all 50 states and four U.S. territories sent a letter to Congress this week calling for an explicit prohibition against AI-generated child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
Rick Klau spent nine years as a partner with Google Ventures, before leaving in 2020 to become California's chief technology innovation officer. Now he's back in the private sector with a startup that wants to revolutionize the humble hot water heater.
Driving the news: Klau is co-founder of Onsemble, which today will announce $3 million in seed funding and a rollout in three Northern California counties.
SaaSGrid, a business intelligence and dashboarding tool for SaaS startups, has raised $3.3 million in seed funding led by founding investor Craft Ventures.
Behind the scenes: Craft is one of Silicon Valley's busiest backers of SaaS startups, but it took the David Sacks-led firm a while to recognize the opportunity right under its nose.
As it looks to integrate AI directly into its main product, Slack decided one of the best places to start is offering people an easier way to catch up when they join a team or return from having taken time off.
Why it matters: As companies rush to add generative AI features to their products, figuring out where the technology is good enough today to be both useful and reliable has become a key strategic choice.
Duolingo will add hundreds of bite-sized music and math lessons to its app next month, the company announced Wednesday.
What's happening: After finding success by gamifying the process of learning languages, Duolingo is extending that model to two other areas: music and math.
The Federal Aviation Administration is clearing a regulatory path for drone operators to safely fly their aircraft over the horizon, without visual spotters.
Why it matters: It's a big step forward in the effort to safely integrate unmanned aircraft systems into the country's existing airspace.
DeepMind co-founder Mustafa Suleyman — now CEO of Inflection AI — is on a mission to convince Silicon Valley and Washington that powerful AI systems should be licensed by government to ensure the survival of humanity.
Why it matters: AI needs to be "contained," Suleyman argues, lest it slip free from human control.
Grayscale Investments is pressing the Securities and Exchange Commission for next steps in getting a spot bitcoin ETF launched.
Driving the news: The firm's legal counsel submitted a comment letter Tuesday asking for a meeting with the U.S. regulator, highlighting the urgency of the matter by pointing to investors left in the lurch without one.
Bitcoin may be volatile, but the returns for miners don't have to be. That's the message from GSR, a firm pitching hedging products that would make miners' revenue more predictable.
Why it matters: The $500 billion Bitcoin network would be considerably more resilient if its largest operators weren't in danger of going under every time there's a massive drawdown.
TikTok has posted a slew of new jobs in the past week for roles that include building more social networking and private messaging features.
Why it matters: Inside TikTok, there's concern that users are sharing TikTok videos externally on other social media and messaging apps when they want to discuss them with friends, sources told Axios.
Truth Social, former President Trump's social media platform, got a major reprieve on Tuesday, courtesy of shareholders in the blank-check company seeking to take it public.
Driving the news: Digital World Acquisition Corp. (DWAC) will get another 12 months to complete its troubled merger with Trump Media & Technology Group.
Zoom announced Tuesday it is building a new AI assistant into its software as it aims to hang on to its spot as the leader in video conferencing.
Why it matters: Tech companies have been racing to add generative AI to their products, with the effort particularly intense around helping workers get more out of meetings.
AI experts at leading universities favor creating a federal "Department of AI" or a global regulator to govern artificial intelligence over leaving that to Congress, the White House or the private sector.
Amid new signs that AI could transform cancer care, clinicians and health systems are taking stock of thorny ethical and practical questions that still stand in the way of the technology's widespread adoption.
Why it matters: Cancer remains the second leading cause of death in the U.S. and innovations like AI-enhanced mammography could detect cases sooner and cut down on unnecessary tests and treatments.
