This $1.8 trillion fund is all-in on AI

👋 Good morning/evening (wherever you are). It’s Tuesday.

It’s true, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund is all-in on AI.

Per Bloomberg (paywall):

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, won’t increase headcount in the near future because of its use of technology, including artificial intelligence, according to its chief executive officer.

“We do not foresee the number of employees increasing any further,” Nicolai Tangen told lawmakers in Oslo on Tuesday. The $1.8 trillion fund, which in recent years has grown its staff numbers, will now “focus on better efficiency through more use of technology,” he said.

The fund monitors news articles about its investments in 16 different languages and structures this information to get an overview of the companies’ accountability, Tangen said. While this monitoring previously took days, it “now only takes ten minutes,” with the use of AI, he added.

On a lighter note…

Check out this AI video I shared on LinkedIn — it won The People’s Choice award in Runway’s recent Gen:48 competition. In case you forgot the details, participants had 48 hours to create and submit their video project from start to finish.

OK let’s keep going ↓

Here’s what you should know:

• Nvidia to send 18,000 AI chips to Saudi Arabia

  “AI, like electricity and internet, is essential infrastructure for every nation,” said Jensen Huang, founder of Nvidia. “Together with Humain, we are building AI infrastructure for the people and companies of Saudi Arabia to realize the bold vision of the Kingdom.”

• AWS and HUMAIN announce partnership

  They’re investing over $5 billion in a strategic partnership to create a groundbreaking “AI Zone” in the Kingdom.

• Google tests replacing ‘I’m Feeling Lucky’ with ‘AI Mode’

  This is big news…Google rarely makes changes to its homepage.

• Legal AI tool Harvey will now be using models from Anthropic and Google

  Harvey will now use models from Anthropic and Google, moving beyond its initial reliance on OpenAI. Notably, Harvey was one of the first four startups backed by the OpenAI Startup Fund in December 2022.

• TikTok launches image-to-video AI tool

  With the new “AI Alive” feature, creators can easily animate their photos.

• Audible expands its AI-narrated audiobook catalog

  Audible now offers end-to-end AI-narrated audiobook production, handling everything from text ingestion to publication for selected titles.

• Spotify’s AI DJ now takes requests

  Just ask with your voice, and the DJ updates your playlist on the spot. It’s perfect…because now instead of harassing the DJ at your friend’s wedding, you can harass an AI DJ. No guilt, right? It’s not like it has feelings…

The numbers:

• Somite AI, a TechBio company using AI foundation models for cell therapy, raised $47M in a Series A led by Khosla Ventures.

• Theom, an AI-native data operations center platform, raised $20M in a Series A led by Wing VC.

• Glass Imaging, an AI startup enhancing digital image quality, raised $20M in a Series A led by Insight Partners.

• Zapia, a WhatsApp-based AI executive assistant for LatAm, raised $7.25M in a seed round led by Prosus Ventures.

Thought starters:

• Going ‘AI first’ appears to be backfiring on Klarna and Duolingo

• Inside the first U.S. medical school to fully incorporate AI into its doctor training program

• AI in Healthcare Series: Navigating Medical Innovation, Dr. Amy Abernathy, Highlander Health

• Google’s Jeff Dean on the Coming Era of Virtual Engineers

• OpenAI’s Sam Altman on Building the ‘Core AI Subscription’ for Your Life

Meme of the day:

Thanks for reading,

Eddie

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