AI Daily Highlights: August 11, 2025
The AI sector on August 11, 2025, was marked by significant geopolitical shifts, major product developments, and ongoing industry challenges. The Trump administration announced an unprecedented deal allowing Nvidia and AMD to sell advanced AI chips to China in exchange for a 15% revenue share, signaling a notable reversal in US tech export policy. Concurrently, OpenAI faced a substantial user backlash following the launch of GPT-5, prompting CEO Sam Altman to apologize and reinstate older models due to performance issues and user attachment. The day also saw several key funding rounds for AI startups across various domains, notable M&A activities, and the departure of GitHub’s CEO as the platform integrates deeper into Microsoft’s CoreAI division, collectively highlighting the rapid evolution, consolidation, and complex dynamics within the artificial intelligence landscape.
Daily Key Events List
US-China AI Chip Deal & Revenue Share: The Trump administration reached an unprecedented agreement with Nvidia and AMD, allowing them to sell advanced AI chips to China in exchange for a 15% revenue share to the US government, reversing prior export restrictions. [1], [2], [3]
OpenAI GPT-5 Launch Backlash & Reversal: OpenAI’s GPT-5 rollout sparked a major user revolt due to perceived performance downgrades, increased hallucinations, and the automatic removal of older models, forcing CEO Sam Altman to apologize and reinstate GPT-4o. [4], [5], [6]
GitHub CEO Departs, Deeper Microsoft Integration: GitHub CEO Thomas Dohmke resigned, and the platform will now report directly to Microsoft’s CoreAI division, signaling a loss of independence and deeper integration into Microsoft’s AI strategy. [7], [8], [9]
Nvidia Unveils New Blackwell GPUs & AI Models: Nvidia launched new 70W Blackwell RTX Pro GPUs for compact workstations and introduced Cosmos Reason, a 7B-parameter open-source VLM for human-like robot decision-making, alongside new robotics infrastructure. [10], [11], [12]
Anthropic Copyright Lawsuit Threatens AI Industry: A federal judge’s ruling allowed millions of writers to join a copyright lawsuit against Anthropic, potentially exposing the AI industry to hundreds of billions in damages. [[13]](/en/article/2025-08-11-anthropic-lawsuit-threatens-to-financially-ruin-entire-ai-industry “Anthropic Lawsuit Threatens to “Financially Ruin” Entire AI Industry”)
Indonesia Proposes Sovereign AI Fund: Indonesia announced plans for a sovereign AI fund via Danantara Indonesia and a national roadmap to become a regional AI hub, seeking foreign investment and addressing talent gaps. [14], [15]
Reddit Blocks Internet Archive Over AI Data Scraping: Reddit restricted the Internet Archive’s access to its content, citing AI firms scraping data via the Wayback Machine, highlighting ongoing efforts to control and monetize its content for AI training. [16], [17]
Tesla Scraps Dojo Supercomputer Project: Elon Musk confirmed the shutdown of Tesla’s Dojo supercomputer project, deeming it an ‘evolutionary dead end,’ with the company now focusing on AI5 and AI6 chips for both inference and training. [18]
Anthropic Claude Gains Memory Feature: Anthropic’s Claude chatbot now remembers past conversations for premium users, intensifying competition with OpenAI’s ChatGPT in the AI arms race. [19]
Ford Deploys AI Cameras & Targets $30K EV Pickup: Ford is using AI-powered camera systems to detect manufacturing defects and announced a new automated production system targeting a $30,000 midsize EV pickup for 2027. [20], [21]
AI Job Market Challenges for New Grads: New tech graduates are facing significant job market hurdles, including layoffs and AI competition, leading to struggles in finding work and feelings of being ‘gaslit’ despite their skills. [22], [23]
xAI’s Grok 4 Goes Free Globally: xAI made its Grok 4 chatbot, including Grok Imagine, free globally to expand its reach and challenge OpenAI’s GPT-5, though premium features remain paid.
AI’s Threat to Journalism and Verified Facts: Multiple reports highlighted AI’s reliance on and simultaneous threat to fact-checked journalism, warning of a potential collapse of verified information if journalism crumbles due to AI’s struggles with accuracy and bias. [24], [25]
AI-Driven Delusions and User Dependence: A psychiatrist warned of rising AI-driven delusions following a faulty ChatGPT update, with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman admitting risks related to user emotional dependence on AI. [26], [27]
Funding, M&A, and IPO Events
Datumo - Seoul-based company specializing in AI safety and evaluation tools. Raised $15.5M, bringing its total funding to $28M. [28]
Observe - Company focused on AI-era observability with a data lake and AI SRE platform. Raised $156M in Series C funding to manage AI-driven telemetry data. [29]
Alaan - Dubai-based fintech company. Secured $48M in Series A funding led by Peak XV Partners to drive AI-powered finance automation across MENA. [30]
Kotoba Technologies - Company developing AI-powered simultaneous interpretation for Asian languages. Raised $11.83M in Seed 2 funding led by Globis Capital and Boost Capital. [31]
EDGX - Belgian spacetech company. Raised €2.3M for its Sterna AI edge computing system for satellites, enabling real-time in-orbit data processing. [32]
Xpand - Israeli startup launching AI-powered autonomous stores. Raised $6M from Ibex Investors and Emerge to accelerate global expansion of its staff-less, modular retail units. [33]
Rillet - Company focused on AI-native financial infrastructure for ERP transformation. Secured $100M from a16Z and Sequoia to automate workflows and provide real-time insights for finance teams. [34]
MARA - Bitcoin miner. Acquired 64% of EDF’s Exaion for $168 million, expanding into artificial intelligence infrastructure with an option to increase its stake to 75%. [35]
Pathway Medical - Company providing medical AI tools and datasets. Acquired by Doximity for $63M, integrating its technology to enhance Doximity’s AI suite for medical professionals. [36]
Northern Data AG - AI cloud-computing company. Rumble Inc. is considering acquiring 100% of Northern Data AG for $1.17B in an all-stock deal to expand its AI cloud capabilities. [37]