Tech

Oracle shares surged after hours due to optimistic growth projections driven by new cloud contracts, overshadowing slight earnings and revenue misses. Q1 revenue rose 12% to $14.93 billion. Remaining Performance Obligation skyrocketed 359% to $455 billion, fueled by deals like OpenAI’s 4.5 gigawatt data center agreement. Oracle is leveraging AI, integrating Google’s Gemini, and launching Oracle AI Database. Cloud infrastructure revenue grew 55%. Oracle projects significant revenue growth through 2030, with substantial capital expenditure increases planned.

Gemini, the crypto exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins, has received a $50M strategic investment from Nasdaq ahead of its IPO this week. Nasdaq aims to provide custodial services for financial institutions engaging with crypto, leveraging Gemini’s infrastructure. Gemini will become a key distribution partner for Nasdaq Calypso. This move follows Nasdaq’s SEC filing for tokenized stock trading, demonstrating a broader embrace of digital assets by traditional finance and aiming to maximize Gemini’s valuation. Gemini held over $21 billion in assets as of July.

Microsoft is mandating employees return to the office at least three days a week, reversing its pandemic-era remote work policy. Starting in February, the policy will first affect employees near the Redmond headquarters before expanding. Microsoft’s CHRO cites the need for in-person collaboration to drive innovation, particularly in AI development, as the reason for the change. The move raises questions about employee satisfaction and may be an effort to optimize real estate and foster community. This decision tests whether Microsoft can balance in-person collaboration with employee flexibility.

The UAE’s Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) introduced K2 Think, a compact reasoning model challenging OpenAI and DeepSeek. Developed with G42, K2 Think utilizes 32 billion parameters and Alibaba’s Qwen 2.5, achieving competitive benchmark results in math and science. MBZUAI emphasizes its focus on scientific advancements, aiming to accelerate research with limited resources. This development underscores the UAE’s ambition to become a key player in the global AI landscape, joining the US and China in the race for AI innovation.

GAC Group is aggressively expanding into the European EV market, showcased by the Aion V at the IAA Mobility show. The company aims for a 17-fold sales increase within two years, projecting 50,000 units by 2027. GAC showcased its Aion V and UT all-electric models and intends to introduce a plug-in hybrid. Despite EU tariffs, GAC plans to establish local manufacturing in Europe to enhance market responsiveness and reduce tariff impact, reflecting their long-term commitment to the region. Chinese EV brands are rapidly increasing market share in Europe.

Unitree Robotics, a Chinese humanoid robot company, is preparing for a $7 billion IPO to solidify its global position. The company is already profitable, with revenue exceeding $140 million, and has attracted investment from major tech players. Unitree’s IPO aligns with China’s strategy to lead in AI and robotics, supported by favorable government policies. While other players like Agibot and Tesla compete, Unitree currently has a commercialization advantage with competitive pricing. Global humanoid robot shipments are expected to rise significantly, indicating vast market potential.

Nebius Group shares surged in premarket trading after announcing a $19.4 billion agreement with Microsoft. Nebius will provide cloud computing power for AI workloads, generating an expected $17.4 billion in revenue through 2031. The deal highlights the increasing demand for specialized AI infrastructure. Nebius, which spun off from Yandex in 2023, specializes in GPUs for AI model training and boasts investors like Nvidia and Accel. The partnership also boosted shares of competitor CoreWeave, reflecting broader optimism in the AI infrastructure market.

Mistral AI, a European AI leader, secured €1.7 billion in Series C funding, led by ASML, valuing the company at €11.7 billion. ASML’s €1.3 billion investment grants them an 11% stake. This more than doubles Mistral’s previous valuation, highlighting strong investor interest in AI. The funding and partnership provide Mistral with resources to scale operations and enhance infrastructure, crucial given the link between AI software and hardware and ongoing chip shortages. It also emphasizes the growing importance of hardware-software collaboration in the AI industry.

A former Meta security head, Attaullah Baig, is suing the company, alleging WhatsApp has critical security flaws exposing user data. He claims 1,500 engineers had unrestricted data access and that Meta retaliated against him for raising concerns. Baig reported the issues to the SEC and OSHA. Meta denies the allegations, citing Baig’s poor performance and claiming his concerns misrepresent ongoing security efforts. The lawsuit raises questions about WhatsApp’s data security and whistleblower protection.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang will reportedly join President Trump on a state visit to the U.K., potentially alongside other tech leaders. This follows Nvidia’s increased engagement with the Trump administration amidst concerns about access to the Chinese market for its AI chips. Huang emphasizes that allowing Nvidia to export to China will bolster U.S. AI dominance and national security. Nvidia is seeking licenses to sell its Blackwell series chips to China, making the U.K. visit a potentially crucial opportunity for negotiations. The company anticipates selling up to $5 billion of H20 chips this quarter, depending on geopolitics.