xAI raises $10Bn to take on OpenAI Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup xAI has secured $10 billion in debt and equity funding, as it looks to challenge rival OpenAI. The financing round was secured 50/50 between debt and strategic equity, according to Morgan Stanley, as Musk pursues an $80 billion valuation for his nascent […]
xAI raises $10Bn to take on OpenAI
Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup xAI has secured $10 billion in debt and equity funding, as it looks to challenge rival OpenAI.
The financing round was secured 50/50 between debt and strategic equity, according to Morgan Stanley, as Musk pursues an $80 billion valuation for his nascent project.
The funding will give xAI more firepower to build out infrastructure and develop its Grok AI chatbot as it looks to compete with ChatGPT and other AI models.
In May, Musk told CNBC that xAI has already installed 200,000 graphics processing units, or GPUs, at its Colossus facility in Memphis, Tennessee.
Microsoft to cut up to 9,000 Jobs
Microsoft has announced further job cuts, confirming plans to reduce its global workforce by about 4%.
The tech giant has said it plans to cut around 9,000 jobs to streamline its operations and increase investment in AI.
It is the largest round of layoffs at the software giant since 2023, when it axed 6,000 roles in May and followed up with another 300 job cuts in June.
Roles will be cut across sales, management layers, Xbox, King (Candy Crush), Zenimax and Rare, according to reports.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella confirmed the cuts aim to “position the company for success in a dynamic marketplace.”
Trump points finger at AT&T for call glitch
President Trump took to Truth Social to blame AT&T for disruption during a large conference call with faith leaders, accusing the carrier’s “equipment” of failing—marking his second similar complaint.
Trump urged AT&T’s leadership to intervene, threatening to switch providers for future calls, and apologised to participants for a roughly 20‑minute delay.
AT&T countered via X and Reuters, clarifying that its network was fine and that the issue stemmed from the third‑party conference platform.
NY bank hands logins and emails to AI agents
Artificial intelligence agents at the Bank of New York Mellon (BNY) have been given company logins and will soon have access to their own email accounts.
The bank’s IT boss told The Wall Street Journal that “digital workers”, as she described them, already have direct managers and, as well as having email accounts, may soon be able to communicate with the bank’s staff using tools such as Microsoft Teams.
According to the report, BNY chief information officer Leigh-Ann Russell said this could be months away. “This is the next level,” she told WSJ. “I’m sure in six months’ time it will become very, very prevalent.”
It comes as agentic AI continues to grow, while the finance sector adopts AI technology across a number of functions.
Huawei to face Iran sanctions trial after dismissal bid fails in US court
Huawei will be forced to face a US trial next year over allegations the Chinese telecoms firm breached sanctions against Iran after a judge declined the firm’s bid to dismiss the charges.
The Chinese technology giant had sought to dismiss all but three of the 16-count indictment brought against it, but US District Judge Ann Donnelly rejected Huawei’s efforts, saying the challenge was “premature”.
Huawei argued that specific counts should be dismissed because of a lack of evidence. The charges relate to alleged sanction breaches by Huawei partner Skycom, but the 52-page ruling also lists allegations including conspiracy to steal trade secrets and bank fraud. The trial has been scheduled for May 2026.
