AI News on December 26th

1. Microsoft Invests €20 Billion in French AI Startup Mistral

#Microsoft #Mistral #Investment #Europe

Microsoft has announced a strategic investment of 20 billion euros to establish a long-term partnership with French AI startup Mistral AI. The deal includes hosting Mistral's large language models on Microsoft's Azure cloud platform and supporting its global expansion, demonstrating Microsoft's commitment to fostering European technology.

2. Italy Orders Meta to Stop Blocking Rival AI Chatbots on WhatsApp

#Meta #Italy #Antitrust #WhatsApp

Italy's Competition and Market Authority has ordered Meta to suspend its policy that prevents companies from offering generic AI chatbots, such as ChatGPT and Claude, through the WhatsApp Business API. The regulator suspects Meta is abusing its market dominance to favor its own AI assistant, potentially harming competition.

3. EU Publishes Draft Code for Labeling AI-Generated Content

#EU #Regulation #Transparency #AIAct

The European Commission has published the first draft of its voluntary Code of Practice for labeling AI-generated content, a key measure under the EU AI Act. It introduces technical guidelines for marking synthetic audio, video, images, and text with watermarks and metadata.

4. U.S. "Genesis Mission" Gains Support from 24 Major Tech Companies

#USA #GenesisMission #Policy #Collaboration

The U.S. Department of Energy announced that 24 leading tech organizations, including Microsoft, NVIDIA, Google, Amazon, OpenAI, and Anthropic, have joined the national "Genesis Mission" initiative. This public-private partnership aims to leverage AI to accelerate scientific breakthroughs in fields like energy and biotechnology.

5. EU Accelerates Technical Standards for AI Act Implementation

#EU #AIAct #Standards #Compliance

European standardization bodies are accelerating the development of technical standards to support the implementation of the EU AI Act. Key standards for AI quality management and risk management systems are progressing to provide clear guidelines for companies.

6. EU Withdraws Proposed AI Liability Directive

#EU #Liability #Policy #Business

The European Commission has formally withdrawn its proposed AI Liability Directive, citing a lack of foreseeable political agreement. The move leaves the EU without a harmonized legal framework for consumer damage claims caused by AI systems.

7. NVIDIA Partners with AI Startup to Advance Chip Design

#NVIDIA #Partnership #Semiconductors #Design

NVIDIA has entered into a cooperation agreement with an AI startup, focusing on advancing areas related to chip design and technology.

8. Meta Challenges Italian Order on WhatsApp AI Policy

#Meta #Legal #Appeal #WhatsApp

In response to the Italian regulator's order, Meta has stated that the decision is based on a serious misjudgment and announced it will legally appeal. The company argues that allowing large-scale AI chatbot integration could overload the WhatsApp system.

9. Spanish Telecom Giant Integrates Microsoft Azure AI Tools

#Telefonica #Microsoft #Azure #Integration

Telefónica, the Spanish telecommunications giant, has announced an agreement to integrate Microsoft's Azure AI Studio into its digital ecosystem. This will allow employees to use generative AI models to interpret company data.

10. Analysis Contrasts U.S. and EU Approaches to AI Regulation

#Policy #USA #EU #Comparison

Industry analysts note a contrast in regulatory approaches between the United States and the European Union. The U.S. focuses on national initiatives to accelerate innovation, while the EU advances a comprehensive framework centered on risk management and transparency.