TechCapsules

U.S. President Donald Trump urged technology firms that build large AI data centres to share financial gains with host communities, proposing bonuses for teachers and dividends for residents. The call followed a White House meeting with roughly 40 tech executives, during which the companies signed a voluntary accord on the development of “Super Intelligence” (SI), the administration’s new term for advanced AI. Trump emphasized partnerships between firms and local towns, suggesting direct payments to nearby citizens and [...]

Two former Google executives, Bonita Stewart and Jackson Georges Jr., have closed an $11.3 million fund, BAG Ventures, to back early‑stage AI startups that can demonstrate immediate enterprise value. The firm, which already invested in ten companies such as SXD, BizTrip and Nomadic, focuses on AI infrastructure, edge AI, security, governance and vertical SaaS, with check sizes of $100‑$500 k and plans to deploy the remaining capital over the next two years. BAG Ventures leverages a network of more than 150 limited partners—including [...]

CEOs of the world’s leading artificial‑intelligence firms gathered for a White House lunch with President Donald Trump on Tuesday, joining House Speaker Mike Johnson, Vice President JD Vance and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Attendees included Anthropic’s Dario Amodei, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Nvidia’s Jensen Huang, Alphabet’s Sundar Pichai, Microsoft’s Satya Nadella, AMD’s Lisa Su, Palantir’s Alex Karp and others. The meeting followed separate one‑on‑one talks between Trump and Amodei and a recent UN Security Council appearance by Altman and Amodei [...]

President Donald Trump rejected proposals for new federal artificial‑intelligence regulations after a White House lunch with roughly two dozen senior tech executives, including CEOs of Microsoft, OpenAI, Nvidia, AMD, Meta, and Tesla. Instead, the participants signed a voluntary accord committing industry to partner with independent auditors for safety assessments and to strengthen internal controls. House Speaker Mike Johnson described the framework as “voluntary” commitments with “robust internal controls and layers of internal and external review.” Trump argued [...]

McDonald’s is deploying a machine‑learning pricing engine across its U.S. and select international restaurants to set “optimal” menu prices for each location. The system analyzes millions of daily transactions, local competitor menus and an estimate of customer willingness to pay, then suggests specific prices for items such as the Big Mac. Screenshots show the tool flagging stores with “medium sensitivity” to price and displaying nearby competitor rates. While franchisees officially retain pricing autonomy, several owners say the corporation [...]

EliseAI, an AI startup founded in 2017, secured $350 million in a Series F round that doubled its valuation to $4 billion. The funding was co‑led by Andreessen Horowitz and Bessemer Ventures. The company automates administrative tasks for housing and healthcare firms, serving 1 in 6 U.S. apartments and surpassing $200 million in annual recurring revenue. It also unveiled Apollo, an AI teammate integrated into its platform to streamline leasing, maintenance, renewals, and patient paperwork.

Bank of America analyst Wamsi Mohan warned that Meta’s Muse AI agent could erode Apple’s services revenue by capturing discovery, referral, and transaction flows that currently go through Apple’s ecosystem. Muse, now the top free app on the U.S. App Store with over 3.4 million downloads, can browse the web, book trips, and process payments via Shopify, Expedia, and PayPal. Apple’s shares fell 2.5 % after the note, yet Mohan maintained a “Buy” rating and $370 target, citing Apple’s [...]

The U.S. government unveiled its first public‑facing AI chatbot, America.gov, developed with Google and SpaceXAI. Designed to withstand red‑team testing, the bot has not been easily jailbreaked. When queried about Minecraft, it produced an 1,800‑word monologue that mirrors the game’s “End Poem,” sparking speculation about embedded Easter eggs. The chatbot also confirms Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory, a fact still contested by former President Trump. The incident highlights the bot’s unexpected creative output and the challenges of [...]