OpenAI

Alibaba has launched its new AI chatbot app, Qwen, available globally and free to use, aiming to compete with ChatGPT and integrate into its wider digital ecosystem. The app has already drawn high user traffic and caused concern in the U.S. tech sector, highlighting Alibaba’s growing influence in AI development and adoption.

Apple was blocked from appealing a UK ruling that found it charged excessive App Store fees, potentially costing the company £1.2 billion. Meanwhile, a US judge allowed Elon Musk’s antitrust lawsuit over Apple’s AI integration with ChatGPT to proceed, keeping claims of monopoly and unfair exclusion alive.

OpenAI plans to develop AI tools that could replace traditional office software like Slack, Word, and Google Docs. This move puts it in direct competition with Microsoft, which has heavily invested in OpenAI but now faces a potential rival in its own market.

OpenAI has asked the US government to provide loan guarantees to help fund its trillion-dollar AI infrastructure plans. The company aims to lower borrowing costs and attract more investors while delaying profitability and an IPO.

OpenAI has signed a seven-year, $38 billion deal with Amazon to use AWS and hundreds of thousands of Nvidia GPUs for its AI projects. This move gives OpenAI more computing power and independence from Microsoft as it expands its global AI infrastructure.

OpenAI has launched its Sora app in Thailand, Vietnam, and Taiwan, letting creators make AI-generated videos using local languages. The app includes features like Cameos and Character Cameos while keeping safety controls and content moderation in place.

OpenAI has launched ChatGPT Atlas, an AI-powered web browser that lets users browse, search, and automate tasks directly through ChatGPT. The browser aims to challenge Google Chrome’s dominance and integrate AI into everyday online activities, with features like Agent Mode to perform actions on behalf of users.

OpenAI is making Singapore a key hub for its Asia-Pacific expansion, aiming to grow its team and work with major clients like Singapore Airlines, Grab, and Sea Group. The company is offering customised AI solutions and investing in partnerships and infrastructure to support the rapidly growing ChatGPT user base.

OpenAI has launched Instant Checkout, allowing ChatGPT users in the U.S. to buy products directly within chat, starting with single-item orders from Etsy. The feature works with stored payment methods and is expected to expand to over a million Shopify merchants, letting AI handle transactions while merchants manage fulfilment.

OpenAI’s Sora app has reached over one million downloads in under five days, growing faster than ChatGPT during its early launch despite being invite-only in the US and Canada. The AI-driven platform lets users create short videos with text prompts or “cameos,” but its rapid popularity has raised copyright and moderation challenges.