TechCheck

The European Union has now launched its first official investigations under its sweeping new competition law, the Digital Markets Act, targeting Apple, Google and Meta in particular. It’s a signal of European regulators going on the offense – identifying so-called gatekeepers and laying out rules to prevent future abuse of market power. But the tech giants now have battles going on multiple fronts – fighting regulators while also trying to keep up with megacap peers in the AI race.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Apple's strategy has always been to be the last and best mover. But generative AI is a different beast. Now, the tech giant looks to be scrambling. It's reportedly in talks to outsource key AI features on the next iPhone to one of its biggest rivals, Google, and has released a new Macbook Air it's selling as "the world's best consumer laptop for AI," but has the same features as past laptops. This week on TechCheck, we dig into how Apple has succumbed to the AI pressure. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The DOJ filed a historic 88-page suit against Apple, alleging that the tech giant of running an illegal monopoly. But we point out some more questionable allegations in the lawsuit, including the DOJ’s statements around CarPlay and Apple TV+. Plus, though all its megacap peers are currently facing regulatory investigations, Microsoft has somehow dodged scrutiny. We break down its regulatory playbook and secret to success.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Shares of Reddit are soaring after its debut on the NYSE, as investors look to parse out what the company’s AI proposition really is. Artificial intelligence was a big part of Reddit’s pitch to investors, disclosing that it’s expecting to make around $66 million, or around 7% of its revenue, from a data licensing deal with Google to train its large language model on Reddit data. We dig into just how sustainable that is, and whether Reddit can expect to increase licensing as part of its revenue stream mix in the current AI landscape.   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

TechCheck is at Nvidia’s headline developer’s conference, the GTC in San Jose, breaking down the AI ecosystem that CEO Jensen Huang has created. The chip company’s halo effect has reached the public and private markets, with Synopsis, Dell and Cadence higher on the keynote, and a who’s who of generative AI startup darlings speaking at the conference as well, including Anthropic, OpenAI, xAI, Mistral and Cohere.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Apple is now reportedly in talks with Alphabet to put Google’s Gemini AI model into iPhones. The partnership could shake up postions in the AI race, potentially acting as a strong rebuke to bears who worried that Google's Gemini large language model is falling short of competitor products. It might also cast doubt on Apple's AI strategy and whether it’s able to catch up to rivals.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Beijing now seems unlikely to let go of TikTok's secret sauce - it's source code - saying overnight that it would oppose a forced sale. That severely limits the options for parent company Bytedance, and poses a big challenge for any U.S. workers who might try and replicate the algorithm.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Among developers, Meta's latest open-source large language model, the Llama 2, is the hottest thing around. Wall Street also seems to be waking up to the proposition, with the stock far outperforming AI rivals like Google and Microsoft. But calling Meta's AI system "open source" is only part of the story. And the same might also apply to buzzy startups like Mistral and open source’s loudest advocates like Elon Musk. This week on Tech Check, we break down the promise of open source AI vs the myth. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A significant amount of U.S. money is invested in TikTok parent company ByteDance, including Carlyle Group, KKR, GGV, Sequoia, Tiger Global and more. Former Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin will likely have to go through them in his plans to put together a group to buy TikTok. Plus, Reddit’s IPO roadshow is underway. We break down what industry experts are now saying it could mean for the IPO pipeline.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Nvidia halo effect is alive and well. TechCheck spoke to the founder and CEO of Together AI, a newly minted unicorn that helps developers access Nvidia server chips to train their AI models, on how amid the scarcity of GPUs, it's all about making the supply of existing ones more efficient.   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.