Latest news with #Stoica
Yahoo
23-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Databricks, Perplexity co-founder pledges $100M on new fund for AI researchers
Andy Konwinski, computer scientist and co-founder of Databricks and Perpelexity, announced on Monday that his personal company, Laude, is forming a new AI research institute backed with a $100 million pledge of his own money. Laude Institute is less an AI research lab and more like a fund looking to make investments structured similar to grants. In addition to Konwinski, the institute's board includes UC Berkeley professor Dave Patterson (known for a string of award-winning research), Jeff Dean (known as Google's chief scientist), and Joelle Pineau (Meta's vice president of AI Research). Konwinski announced the institute's first and 'flagship' grant of $3 million a year for five years, and it will anchor the new AI Systems Lab at UC Berkeley. This is a new lab led by one of Berkeley's famed, Ion Stoica, current director of the Sky Computing Lab. Stoica is also a co-founder of startup Anyscale (an AI and python platform) and AI big data company Databricks, both from tech developed in Berkeley's lab system. The new AI Systems Lab is set to open in 2027 and, in addition to Stoica, will include a number of other well-known researchers. In his blog post announcing the institute, Konwinski described its mission as 'built by and for computer science researchers … We exist to catalyze work that doesn't just push the field forward but guides it towards more beneficial outcomes.' That's not necessarily a direct dig at OpenAI, which started out as an AI research facility and is now, arguably, consumed by its enormous commercial side. But other researchers have fallen prey to the lure of money as well. For instance, popular AI researcher Epoch faced controversy when it revealed that OpenAI supported the creation of one of its AI benchmarks that was then used to unveil its new o3 model. Epoch's founder also launched a startup with a controversial mission to replace all human workers everywhere with AI agents. Like other AI research organizations with commercial ambitions, Konwinski has structured his institute across boundaries: as a nonprofit with a public benefit corporation operating arm. He's dividing his research investments into two buckets that he calls 'Slingshots and Moonshots.' Slingshots are for early-stage research that can benefit from grants and hands-on help. Moonshots are, as the name implies, for 'long-horizon labs tackling species-level challenges like AI for scientific discovery, civic discourse, healthcare, and workforce reskilling.' His lab has, for instance, collaborated with 'terminal-bench,' a Stanford-led benchmark for how well AI agents handle tasks, used by Anthropic. One thing to note, Konwinski's company Laude isn't solely a grant-writing research institute. He also co-founded a for-profit venture fund launched in 2024. The fund's co-founder is former NEA VC Pete Sonsini. As TechCrunch previously reported, Laude led a $12 million investment in AI agent infrastructure startup Arcade. It has quietly backed other startups, too. A Laude spokesperson tells us that while Konwinski has pledged $100 million, he's also looking for, and open to, investment from other successful technologists. As to how Konwinski amassed a fortune enough to guarantee $100 million for this new endeavor: Databricks closed a $15.3 billion funding round in January that valued the company at $62 billion. Perplexity last month secured a $14 billion valuation, too. Does the world really need yet another AI 'good for humanity' research or with a murky nonprofit/commercial structure? No, and yes. AI research has become increasingly muddled. For instance, AI benchmarks designed to prove that a particular vendor's model works best have become plentiful these days. (Even Salesforce has its own LLM benchmark for CRMs.) An alliance that includes the likes of Konwinski, Dean, and Stoica supporting truly independent research that could one day turn into independent and human-helpful commerce could be an attractive alternative.
BBC News
24-02-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Ukrainians in Cumbria mark third anniversary of Russian invasion
Ukrainians living in Cumbria have come together to mark the third anniversary of Russia's invasion of their homeland.A service was held at Carlisle Cathedral on Sunday followed by a march for is estimated about 600 Ukrainians live in the Stoica, who organised the service and march, said: "I think it was really important for me and for the Ukrainian community in Cumbria to come here and remind the world about the ongoing struggle." The war has killed tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians, and destroyed swathes of began when Russia launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022 following its earlier annexation of Ukrainian Stoica added: "It's an opportunity for us to commemorate the people who died for our freedom." 'Hard to adapt' The UK welcomed many displaced people under the government's Homes for Ukraine closed, it allowed Ukrainian nationals and their immediate family members to apply for permission to come to the country if they had an approved those in Carlisle on Sunday to have used it was Olga Leintovea, who has two teenage sons."It was very hard for them to adapt," she said. "It took a while, but now we are more or less settled."I work in a school, they go to school, so at least we are here safe." Ms Leintovea said recent remarks by US President Donald Trump around peace talks had proved Trump last week called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a "dictator", blamed Ukraine for starting the war and said he believed Russia had "the cards" in any peace talks because it has "taken a lot of territory"."It's heart-breaking to hear that after all the support we've had from the Western world," Ms Leintovea said."Of course it's frustrating for us. That's why we need to be united - all Ukrainains, all Europeans - to stand for freedom and for peace." Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Yahoo
Virginia teen killed in crash in Dumfries
The Brief A teenage driver was killed, and three others were injured in a crash near Dumfries Road and Van Buren Road. The 2013 Audi A7, driven by 18-year-old Mihai-Mario Stoica, crossed the median into oncoming traffic, colliding with a 2024 Cadillac Escalade. The crash is under investigation, and the injured were transported to nearby hospitals. DUMFRIES, Va. - A teenage driver was killed and three others were injured in a vehicle crash late Sunday near Dumfries Road and Van Buren Road. Police report that 18-year-old Mihai-Mario Stoica of Woodbridge was driving a 2013 Audi A7 eastbound on Dumfries Road when the vehicle crossed the median into oncoming traffic, colliding with a 2024 Cadillac Escalade traveling in the opposite direction. Investigators believe Stoica was driving above the posted speed limit at the time of the crash. He was pronounced dead at the scene. A 25-year-old man who was a passenger in the Audi, an 18-year-old driver of the Cadillac, and a 32-year-old passenger of the Cadillac were transported to nearby hospitals with injuries. The crash remains under investigation. The Source Prince William County Police and FOX 5 DC
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Yahoo
18-year-old killed, 3 others hurt in Prince William County crash
PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. () — Three people were hospitalized and an 18-year-old passed away after a crash in Dumfries late Sunday night. The Prince William County Police Department (PWCPD) is asking anyone who may have witnessed the crash to contact police. On Feb. 16 shortly after 10:30 p.m., investigators responded to the two-car crash near Dumfries and Van Buren roads. Metro service to change for Presidents Day, weekend track work PWCPD said 18-year-old Mihai-Mario Stoica, of Woodbridge, was driving an Audi A7 east on Dumfries Road, above the posted speed limit, when he crossed the median and into oncoming traffic. He struck a Cadillac Escalade traveling in the opposite direction. Stoica was pronounced dead at the scene. A 25-year-old passenger in the Audi, as well as the 18-year-old driver and 32-year-old passenger in the Cadillac, were all taken to the hospital for treatment of varying injuries. They were all reportedly also men from Woodbridge. Anyone with information or who may have seen the crash is asked to contact PWCPD. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
