US Department of Defense awards contracts to Google, xAI
OpenAI, Alphabet's Google, Anthropic and Elon Musk's AI firm xAI have won contracts aimed at scaling up adoption of advanced AI capabilities in the U.S. Department of Defense, the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office said on Monday.
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Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Trump unveils investments to power AI boom
Find out what's new on ST website and app. US President Donald Trump during the inaugural Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on July 15. PITTSBURGH - US President Donald Trump went to Pennsylvania on July 15 to announce $92 billion in energy and infrastructure deals intended to meet big tech's soaring demand for electricity to fuel the AI boom. Mr Trump made the announcement at the inaugural Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit at Carnegie Mellon University, with much of the talk about beating China in the global AI race. 'Today's commitments are ensuring that the future is going to be designed, built and made right here in Pennsylvania and right here in Pittsburgh, and I have to say, right here in the United States of America,' Mr Trump said at the event. The tech world has fully embraced generative AI as the next wave of technology, but fears are growing that its massive electricity needs cannot be met by current infrastructure, particularly in the United States. Generative AI requires enormous computing power, mainly to run the energy-hungry processors from Nvidia, the California-based company that has become the world's most valuable company by market capitalisation. Officials expect that by 2028, tech companies will need as much as five gigawatts of power for AI – enough electricity to power roughly five million homes. Top executives from Palantir, Anthropic, Exxon and Chevron attended the event. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Las Vegas Sands' new development part of S'pore's broader, more ambitious transformation: PM Wong Singapore 'Kpods broke our marriage, shattered our children': Woman on husband's vape addiction Business US tariffs may last well after Trump; crucial for countries to deepen trade ties: SM Lee World Trump says Indonesia to face 19% tariff under trade deal Multimedia Telling the Singapore story for 180 years Life Walking for exercise? Here are tips on how to do it properly Singapore CDL's long-time director Philip Yeo to depart after boardroom feud Singapore 'Nobody deserves to be alone': Why Mummy and Acha have fostered over 20 children in the past 22 years The funding will cover new data centres, power generation, grid infrastructure, AI training, and apprenticeship programs. Race to beat China Among investments, Google committed US$25 billion (S$32 billion) to build AI-ready data centres in Pennsylvania and surrounding regions. 'We support President Trump's clear and urgent direction that our nation invest in AI... so that America can continue to lead in AI,' said Ms Ruth Porat, Google's president and chief investment officer. The search engine giant also announced a partnership with Brookfield Asset Management to modernise two hydropower facilities in Pennsylvania, representing 670 megawatts of capacity on the regional grid. Investment group Blackstone pledged more than US$25 billion to fund new data centres and energy infrastructure. US Senator David McCormick, from Pennsylvania, said the investments 'are of enormous consequence to Pennsylvania, but they are also crucial to the future of the nation'. His comments reflect the growing sentiment in Washington that the United States must not lose ground to China in the race to develop AI. 'We are way ahead of China and the plants are starting up, the construction is starting up,' Mr Trump said. The US president launched the 'Stargate' project in January, aimed at investing up to US$500 billion in US AI infrastructure – primarily in response to growing competition with China. Japanese tech investor SoftBank, ChatGPT-maker OpenAI, and Oracle are investing US$100 billion in the initial phase. Mr Trump has also reversed many policies adopted by the previous Biden administration that imposed checks on developing powerful AI algorithms and limits on exports of advanced technology to certain allied countries. He is expected to outline his own blueprint for AI advancement later in July. AFP
Business Times
3 hours ago
- Business Times
Trump unveils US$92 billion worth of investments to power AI boom
[PITTSBURGH] US President Donald Trump went to Pennsylvania on Tuesday to announce US$92 billion in energy and infrastructure deals intended to meet big tech's soaring demand for electricity to fuel the AI boom. Trump made the announcement at the inaugural Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit at Carnegie Mellon University, with much of the talk about beating China in the global AI race. 'Today's commitments are ensuring that the future is going to be designed, built and made right here in Pennsylvania and right here in Pittsburgh, and I have to say, right here in the United States of America,' Trump said at the event. The tech world has fully embraced generative AI as the next wave of technology, but fears are growing that its massive electricity needs cannot be met by current infrastructure, particularly in the United States. Generative AI requires enormous computing power, mainly to run the energy-hungry processors from Nvidia, the California-based company that has become the world's most valuable company by market capitalisation. Officials expect that by 2028, tech companies will need as much as five gigawatts of power for AI - enough electricity to power roughly five million homes. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Top executives from Palantir, Anthropic, Exxon and Chevron attended the event. The funding will cover new data centres, power generation, grid infrastructure, AI training, and apprenticeship programs. Race to beat China Among investments, Google committed US$25 billion to build AI-ready data centres in Pennsylvania and surrounding regions. 'We support President Trump's clear and urgent direction that our nation invest in AI... so that America can continue to lead in AI,' said Ruth Porat, Google's president and chief investment officer. The search engine giant also announced a partnership with Brookfield Asset Management to modernise two hydropower facilities in Pennsylvania, representing 670 MW of capacity on the regional grid. Investment group Blackstone pledged more than US$25 billion to fund new data centers and energy infrastructure. US Senator David McCormick, from Pennsylvania, said the investments 'are of enormous consequence to Pennsylvania, but they are also crucial to the future of the nation.' His comments reflect the growing sentiment in Washington that the United States must not lose ground to China in the race to develop AI. 'We are way ahead of China and the plants are starting up, the construction is starting up,' Trump said. The US president launched the 'Stargate' project in January, aimed at investing up to US$500 billion in US AI infrastructure - primarily in response to growing competition with China. Japanese tech investor SoftBank, ChatGPT-maker OpenAI, and Oracle are investing US$100 billion in the initial phase. Trump has also reversed many policies adopted by the previous Biden administration that imposed checks on developing powerful AI algorithms and limits on exports of advanced technology to certain allied countries. He is expected to outline his own blueprint for AI advancement later this month. AFP
CNA
4 hours ago
- CNA
US auto safety nominee calls for active oversight of self-driving cars
WASHINGTON :President Donald Trump's nominee to head the nation's auto safety regulator will argue on Wednesday that the agency must actively oversee self-driving vehicle technology, a potential sign of a tougher approach than some critics expected. Jonathan Morrison, chief counsel of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in the first Trump administration, will testify to the U.S. Senate that autonomous vehicles offer potential benefits but also unique risks. "NHTSA cannot sit back and wait for problems to arise with such developing technologies, but must demonstrate strong leadership," Morrison said in written testimony seen by Reuters. The comments suggested NHTSA will continue to closely scrutinize self-driving vehicles. Some critics of the technology had expressed alarm over NHTSA staff cuts this year under a cost-cutting campaign led by Elon Musk, who was a close adviser to Trump and is CEO of self-driving automaker Tesla. The Musk-Trump alliance prompted some critics to speculate that NHTSA would go easy on self-driving vehicle developers. But the relationship began to unravel in late May over Trump's spending plans, and the two are now locked in a feud. NHTSA said last month it was seeking information from Tesla about social media videos of robotaxis and self-driving cars Tesla was testing in Austin, Texas. The videos were alleged to show one of the vehicles using the wrong lane and another speeding. Since October, NHTSA has been investigating 2.4 million Tesla vehicles with full self-driving technology after four reported collisions, including a 2023 fatal crash. "The technical and policy challenges surrounding these new technologies must be addressed," Morrison's testimony said. "Failure to do so will result in products that the public will not accept and the agency will not tolerate." Other companies in the self-driving sector also were subjects of NHTSA investigations including Alphabet's Waymo, which last year faced reports its robotaxis may have broken traffic laws. Waymo in May recalled 1,200 self-driving vehicles, and the probe remains open. Regulatory scrutiny increased after 2023 when a pedestrian was seriously injured by a GM Cruise self-driving car. The first recorded death of a pedestrian related to self-driving technology was in 2018 in Tempe, Arizona.
