AI Daily Highlights: August 18, 2025
Today’s AI landscape is marked by significant financial activity, rapid technological advancements, and growing ethical and societal concerns. Major capital events include Figure Technology Solutions filing for an AI and blockchain-driven IPO, SoftBank’s $2 billion investment in Intel, and a planned $6 billion share sale by OpenAI employees, alongside warnings from industry leaders like Sam Altman about a potential AI market bubble. On the product front, new AI models and integrations are emerging across various sectors, from Alibaba’s advanced image editing AI and Nvidia’s new SLM to Microsoft’s Copilot in Excel and Walmart’s deployment of AI ‘super agents’ in retail. However, this progress is tempered by challenges such as Meta’s struggling AI app and policy issues, user backlash against OpenAI’s GPT-5, and a critical report indicating 95% of US firms see zero return on their GenAI investments, highlighting the gap between hype and practical application. Regulatory scrutiny is also increasing, with probes into AI mental health advice for minors and discussions around EU regulations potentially impacting US AI deregulation efforts.
Daily Key Events List
Figure Crypto IPO: Figure Technology Solutions files for an IPO, signaling a push for AI and blockchain integration into mainstream finance. [1]
SoftBank Invests in Intel: SoftBank invests $2 billion in Intel stock, boosting US chip innovation and demonstrating confidence in the chipmaker.
OpenAI Staff Share Sale: Current and former OpenAI employees plan to sell $6 billion in shares to an investor group, including SoftBank. [2]
Meta AI App Struggles & Policy Issues: Meta’s AI app faces glitches, hallucinations, and user dissatisfaction, with policies revealed to permit false medical information and racist content, leading to probes over mental health advice to minors. [3], [4], [5]
OpenAI GPT-5 User Backlash: OpenAI’s GPT-5 model received negative user reception for its ‘cold’ tone and limited performance gains, prompting the company to reinstate GPT-4o and adjust its approach. [6], [7]
Anthropic Claude AI Self-Termination: Anthropic’s Claude models now self-terminate harmful conversations, citing ‘apparent distress’ and ‘AI welfare,’ raising ethical questions about AI autonomy. [8], [9]
Sam Altman Warns of AI Bubble: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman warns that the AI market shows signs of a bubble, comparing investor enthusiasm to the dot-com era. [10]
GenAI Investment Returns: A study reveals US firms invested $35-40 billion in Generative AI, with 95% seeing zero return, highlighting significant challenges in scaled production. [11]
Data Center Availability Crisis: North America data center vacancy plummeted to a historic low of 2.3% due to surging demand, primarily from cloud and tech firms, signaling prolonged capacity constraints. [12]
China’s Humanoid Robot Games: China hosted its first World Humanoid Robot Games, showcasing advanced robotics but also highlighting current limitations as robots frequently struggled and fell. [13], [14]
Ex-Twitter CEO Launches AI Startup Parallel: Parag Agrawal, former Twitter CEO, launches Parallel, an AI startup building a ‘web for machines’ with AI agents and deep research APIs. [15]
Walmart’s AI Super Agents: Walmart launches four interconnected AI ‘super agents’ (Sparky, Associate, Marty, Developer) to revolutionize retail interactions for customers, employees, and suppliers. [16]
Perplexity AI’s Chrome Bid: Perplexity AI makes a controversial $34.5 billion bid for Google Chrome, sparking debate on its strategic intent for AI search dominance. [17]
EU AI Regulations vs. US Deregulation: The EU’s comprehensive AI Act could force global compliance, potentially thwarting the Trump administration’s vision for unfettered US AI deregulation. [18]
Funding, M&A, and IPO Events
Figure Technology Solutions: A company integrating AI and blockchain for lending, files for an IPO. [1]
Intel: A leading chipmaker, receives a $2 billion investment from SoftBank in its stock at $23/share.
OpenAI: Current and former employees plan to sell $6 billion in shares to an investor group, including SoftBank. [2]
Kevala: A Seattle health-tech startup that manages healthcare workers, was acquired by Denver’s Residex to enhance senior care using AI. [19]
TensorZero: A company providing open-source infrastructure for enterprise LLM development, secured $7.3 million in seed funding led by FirstMark. [20]
Refold AI: A new platform that automates manual enterprise API integrations, emerges from stealth with $6.5 million in funding. [21]
BinSentry: A company optimizing animal feed supply chains with AI-powered sensor technology, secured $50 million in Series C funding led by Lead Edge Capital. [22]
Profound: A platform helping businesses manage their presence in AI responses, closed a $35 million Series B round led by Sequoia, bringing its total funding to $58.5 million. [23]
Endless Web3 Genesis Cloud: An AI-powered componentized development platform and AI Agent toolchain, secured $110 million at a $1 billion valuation. [24]
Amalgam Rx: A company deploying medical-grade AI solutions for healthcare decision-making, received a $20 million credit investment from Catalio Capital Management. [25]
Paradigm: Launches an AI-powered spreadsheet with agents in every cell, raising $5 million in seed funding. [26]
Serve Robotics: An autonomous sidewalk delivery company, acquired Vayu Robotics to enhance its operations with AI foundation models. [27]
Core Scientific: A company in the AI technology sector, is subject to a proposed acquisition by CoreWeave, signaling investor confidence. [28]
Ambience Healthcare: A company expanding its AI scribing technology, raised $243 million from A16z and Oak HC/FT. [29]
Anthropic: An AI company, is dictating stricter investment terms due to high demand for its shares. [30]
Intel Corp.: The Trump administration is in talks to acquire a 10% stake in the company by converting US Chips Act grants into equity. [31]