The morning briefing.
While you slept: Nvidia's new Arm-based PC chips, SoftBank's bullish AI outlook, and European tech funding surges.
AI Hardware. Nvidia has made a significant move into the PC market, launching new Arm-based chips designed for AI workloads in laptops from major manufacturers like Microsoft, Dell, and HP. This expansion signals a broader industry shift towards integrating powerful AI capabilities directly into consumer devices. Meanwhile, Intel is also advancing its server-side AI capabilities with the new 288-core Clearwater Xeon 6+ processor.
Market Outlook. SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son declared the AI revolution will be "50 times bigger" than the dot-com boom, underscoring immense market potential. This bullish sentiment is reflected in continued investment, with UK businesses heavily spending on AI and cybersecurity despite emerging risks. Early-stage AI startups are also attracting capital, such as Cars24 committing $20 million to its AI Labs.
AI Applications. New frontier models continue to emerge, with MiniMax launching its M3 model featuring 1M context and native multimodal capabilities. OpenAI is restarting its robotics division, aiming for personal robots while initially focusing on infrastructure. However, concerns persist regarding the reliability of AI-generated code in cloud services and the need for human oversight in critical applications like supply chains.
European Innovation. European tech continues to attract substantial investment, with over €3.1 billion invested in the last week of May alone. Notable funding rounds include Invisix, an ASML spin-out, raising €20 million for chip metrology, and PLD Space securing €35 million to boost European launch capacity. This activity highlights a strong regional focus on deeptech and strategic independence.
Nvidia jumps into PCs with new Arm-based chip debuting in laptops from Microsoft, Dell, HP
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang unveiled a long-awaited Arm-based PC chip, breaking into PCs for the first time. The new chip will power fresh lines of Windows laptops from manufacturers including Dell, Microsoft, and HP.
AI revolution is '50x bigger' than the dotcom boom: SoftBank's Masayoshi Son
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son told CNBC that the AI revolution will be 50 times larger than the Dotcom revolution of the 2000s. He emphasized the immense investment opportunities and transformative potential of artificial intelligence.
Your cloud vendors are shipping AI-generated code, and more outages are coming
Cloud vendors are reportedly shipping AI-generated code faster than it can be tested, leading to concerns about increased system outages. This accelerated deployment of AI-assisted code could result in unforeseen stability issues for users.
The radar gap killing Western defences — and the Berlin chip startup closing it
Berlin startup Xavveo is expanding its deeptech perception technology, based on a proprietary chip, to address radar gaps in Western defenses. The company is tapping into fast-growing markets like drone detection and infrastructure surveillance.
Windows 11 is finally getting the Start menu changes we all wanted
Microsoft's new Windows 11 Start menu is receiving updates that are better than expected, signaling a positive direction for the operating system. These changes are aimed at improving user experience and functionality.
Return Helper raises $4M Series A to turn cross-border ecommerce returns into profit with AI
Return Helper, a tech-first provider of cross-border ecommerce returns solutions, has closed a $4 million Series A funding round. The company leverages AI to transform returns into profit for businesses.
Unastella, a South Korean rocket startup that launched from home, raises $24M
Seoul-based rocket startup Unastella has raised $24 million in funding, as it continues to develop its own launch vehicles and engines. The company aims to advance South Korea's independent space capabilities.
India’s AI deal with the UAE challenges U.S. cloud dominance
G42 will deploy U.S.-designed supercomputers in India as part of an AI deal with the UAE, offering a new model for governments seeking to own their AI hardware. This collaboration challenges the traditional dominance of U.S. cloud providers.
NVIDIA's Isaac Gr00t platform gives researchers access to frontier humanoid robotics
NVIDIA announced the new Isaac Gr00t reference design humanoid robot platform, combining humanoid robot technology with five-fingered hands and NVIDIA Jetson Thor compute. This platform provides researchers with advanced tools for robotics development.
Memory crunch sends PC prices into double-digit climb
A memory crunch is causing PC prices to climb by double-digits, with notebooks up 11% and desktops 10%. Chipmakers are reportedly prioritizing AI server components over consumer kit, impacting supply and pricing.
OpenAI starts with infrastructure robots but aims for "everyone having a personal robot"
OpenAI is rebuilding its robotics team, five years after its initial division was shut down. CEO Sam Altman's long-term vision is for everyone to have a personal robot, with near-term efforts focused on infrastructure-building robots.
MiniMax Launches M3 Model With 1M Context and Native Multimodal Capabilities
MiniMax has released its M3 flagship model, claiming it as the first domestic AI model to combine frontier coding, agentic capabilities, 1M-token context windows, and native multimodal processing in a single architecture. This represents a significant advancement in AI model development.
ASML spin-out Invisix raises €20 million Seed round to help chipmakers build what they “can’t yet see”
Invisix, an Eindhoven-based semiconductor metrology company spun out of ASML, has raised an oversubscribed €20 million Seed round. The funding will support the development of next-generation measurement tools crucial for advanced chip manufacturing.
If cores are what agents crave, Intel's new Clearwater Xeon 6+ might just quench their thirst
Intel has launched its first 2nm-class Xeon processor, the Clearwater Xeon 6+, featuring 288 cores. This new chip is designed to meet the increasing demand for high-core-count processors in AI agent workloads.