💻 Nvidia's Blackwell Challenges, 🌊 Floating Wind Farms, and 🤖 the Dentist will see you now
Thomas's Innovation Wrap #89
Greetings,
Here’s your weekly wrap of technology, innovation, and finance news.
🛰️ Space
SpaceX is eyeing Australia as a potential Starship landing spot, discussing recovery options off the coast with US and Australian officials.
The plan would be to launch Starship from a SpaceX facility in Texas, land it in the sea off Australia’s coast and recover it on Australian territory. Getting permission to do so would require loosening U.S. export controls on sophisticated space technologies bound for Australia, according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
At Cape Canaveral, a new AI model by Atmo AI is significantly improving weather forecasting.
"Our forecast can run in about 10 seconds. This is a critical thing. You get sensor information coming every minute, and the bottleneck becomes the forecast itself. If it takes you nine hours to see the forecast, you will always be nine hours late."
Startups are developing stratospheric balloons to lift tourists 100,000 feet above Earth. Companies like Worldview aim to offer six-hour journeys for eight passengers at US$50,000 each, a cheaper alternative to suborbital flights (~US$450,000) and orbital trips (more than US$20 million).
🌞 Renewables
An offshore electric power grid on the US East Coast could enhance renewable energy transmission, potentially supporting 85 gigawatts of power by 2050 - enough for 40 million homes. This "meshed" design would connect multiple offshore wind farms to a shared transmission line, distributing electricity where needed along the coast. Meanwhile, in Japan, Sumitomo Corp. and JGC Holdings aim to mass-produce floating wind turbine platforms, targeting 100 platforms annually by 2030, in anticipation of the widespread adoption of floating wind farms in the 2030s.
Floating wind farms are expected to become wide-spread in the 2030s. Planned projects in Europe envision installing dozens of floating units per site.
The rapid growth of AI and data centres is straining power grids.
Boston Consulting Group predicts that by 2030, data centers will account for 16% of total US electricity consumption, up from 2.5% before ChatGPT's launch in November 2022. This projected increase is equivalent to about two-thirds of all US household electricity usage.
Scientists have discovered that giant clams off Palau's coast host nature's most efficient solar panels, with a theoretical efficiency of 43%, double that of most current solar panels.
Sweeney hopes this work can inform the design of algae-stocked bioreactors, in just one example of how evolution’s creative approaches to a single problem can offer inspiration for tackling technological challenges.
⚙️ Mobility
In Tennessee, AI now sets variable speed limits on a busy freeway to reduce traffic jams and improve safety.
In China, Xpeng has rolled out its autonomous driving system nationwide, becoming the first mainland carmaker to achieve this feat.
"The year 2024 is marking a watershed for the development of autonomous driving," He told a virtual briefing on Tuesday evening.
Uber and BYD entered a strategic partnership to bring 100,000 BYD electric vehicles to Uber's platform globally.
💎 Artificial Intelligence
Baidu has developed a novel "self-reasoning" AI framework that could make LLMs more reliable and trustworthy. This approach enables AI systems to critically evaluate their own knowledge and decision-making processes, potentially reducing the problem of AI "hallucinations" where models confidently produce incorrect information (see their paper).
Reddit has acquired Memorable AI, a startup that uses generative AI to optimise ad creative, in its first acquisition since going public.
AI is being used to determine the structure of small-molecule drugs, which could speed up drug development.
Today in Science, researchers report that a new AI tool can determine the structure of small molecules even with spotty data. The tool can decipher patterns in troves of data that were previously discarded as not good enough. The approach could make it easier for chemists to advance a wide range of compounds central to modern life.
"That is a game changer," says Horst Puschmann, a small molecule crystallographer at Durham University who was not involved with the work.
In what could be mistaken for a Black Mirror episode, Avi Schiffman has launched “Friend”, a $99 AI pendant that’s “always listening” and sends you messages as you go about your day.
🎤 Virtual Voices
Speaking of AI companions, OpenAI is now rolling out its advanced ChatGPT bot that they previewed back in May. It seems very realistic; here’s a demo of it counting to 10, then to 50, complete with appropriate breathing.
When OpenAI first introduced GPT-4o, the company faced a backlash over its use of a voice called “Sky,” which sounded a lot like the actress Scarlett Johansson.
Meanwhile, Meta is offering Hollywood stars millions for AI voice rights. They're in talks with celebrities like Judi Dench and Awkwafina to potentially voice a digital assistant called MetaAI.
Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, is racing to close deals so it has time to develop a suite of AI tools for unveiling at its Connect 2024 event in September. While it’s not entirely clear how Meta will be using the voices, it has discussed a chatbot that could serve as a digital assistant, à la Apple’s Siri, or a friend, the people said.
💻 Chips and Computing
Nvidia is facing significant challenges with its next-generation Blackwell GPU family, leading to shipment delays and a reworked product lineup. This will have far-reaching effects on Nvidia's supply chain and customers.
The core issue impacting shipments is directly related to Nvidia's design of the Blackwell architecture. The supply of the original Blackwell package is limited due to packaging issues at TSMC and with Nvidia's design. The Blackwell package is the first high volume design to be packaged with TSMC's CoWoS-L technology.
AMD reported a 115% year-on-year increase in Data Centre revenue, driven by Instinct AI accelerators and EPYC CPU sales.
Brazil is investing US$4.1 billion to develop its own supercomputer, while the US is allocating $400 million to Amkor for a new Arizona packaging plant.
👓 Virtual and Augmented Reality
Meta's Reality Labs saw Q2 2024 revenue jump 28%, with Quest 3 sales exceeding expectations. However, profits remained firmly virtual, with $353 million in sales translating to a very real $4.5 billion loss.
As VR technology progresses, researchers warn of “metacrimes” — virtual offences that feel disturbingly real due to advanced sensory techniques, challenging current crime reporting systems.
In 2022, researchers found that users, including children, encounter abusive behavior approximately every seven minutes in VRChat on Meta's Oculus headset.
In aviation, the first FAA-qualified VR flight simulator now allows helicopter pilots to train and receive credit using VR technology.
Loft Dynamics claims this VR-based simulator is both cheaper and smaller than traditional FAA-qualified flight simulators, which use a complex array of huge screens or projectors.
💲 Finance
AI chip maker Cerebras Systems is eyeing an October IPO, potentially seeking a valuation above $4 billion. The company has confidentially filed with the SEC, signalling its readiness to go public.
Design company Canva is acquiring generative AI startup Leonardo.ai. This move, following Canva's recent Affinity acquisition, aims to enhance the company's AI-powered design tools.
KoBold Metals, an AI-powered mineral exploration company, is reportedly eyeing a $2 billion valuation. The Bill Gates-backed company's success in using AI to discover a massive copper deposit has clearly piqued investor interest (see Innovation Wrap #86).
Massimo Giunco wrote a thought-provoking piece on the failings of Nike and their recent strategic shift towards direct-to-consumer and digital-first marketing.
The truth is that together, John and Heidi created a cannibal ecosystem that ate brand equity, product equity, gross margin, market share, demand creation budget and consumer connectivity. In just three years…
(Stock markets are under significant pressure, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 index having its worst day since 1987 today and NASDAQ futures currently down 5%, but I tend not to discuss general market moves in the Innovation Wrap — for that, sign up for updates on the Minotaur website.)
🤖 Robotics
A fully-automatic robot dentist has performed the world's first human procedure. The AI-controlled robot prepared a tooth for a crown in just 15 minutes, a task that typically takes human dentists two hours. The robot was made by Perceptive.
"We're excited to successfully complete the world's first fully automated robotic dental procedure," says Dr. Chris Ciriello, CEO and Founder of Perceptive. "This medical breakthrough enhances precision and efficiency of dental procedures, and democratizes access to better dental care."
South Korean firm LIG Nex1 has paid $240 million for a 60% controlling stake in Ghost Robotics, a Philadelphia-based developer of four-legged robots used by the military and law enforcement.
AES Corporation has introduced an AI-powered robot named Maximo to help install solar panels, potentially doubling installation speed and halving costs.
The robot was tested in various outdoor conditions at projects in New York, Virginia, Ohio, and Louisiana and has installed about 10 megawatts of energy to date. The solar farm AES is building in Kern County, California, to power Amazon's operations is expected to have 200 times that capacity.
Meanwhile, the humanoid robot race continues. OpenAI-backed startup Figure has teased its newest model, Figure 02 (video), claiming it to be "the most advanced humanoid robot on the planet." Details remain scarce.
💪 Augmented Humans
Synchron has successfully connected its brain implant to the Apple Vision Pro headset, allowing a 64-year-old ALS patient to play games, watch TV, and text hands-free.
"Using this type of enhanced reality is so impactful," said Mark, the implant recipient, "and I can imagine it would be for others in my position or others who have lost the ability to engage in their day-to-day life."
Elon Musk predicts BCI-enhanced gamers could outperform professionals within two years. However, challenges remain, as Neuralink's first trial participant experienced a performance decline post-surgery.
💊 Health
A 60-year-old man in Germany has become the seventh person declared HIV-free after a stem cell transplant. This case is only the second using donor cells not naturally resistant to HIV, potentially widening the pool of suitable donors.
The FDA has approved a new blood test for colon cancer screening called Shield (from Guardant Health). While not replacing colonoscopies, it could boost screening rates. The test, which detects DNA from cancerous tumours in the bloodstream, is 83% effective in finding colorectal cancers, but most effective at detecting later-stage cancers.
"What breaks my heart is that it's preventable," said Dr. William Grady, a gastroenterologist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle. "One of my biggest joys is when I'm doing colonoscopy and I can take out polyps" that, if left alone, would have progressed to cancer.
🛍️ Ecommerce
Amazon's "Just Walk Out" technology is getting an AI upgrade. The new multimodal AI model improves item identification and receipt generation, making the checkout-free approach more appealing to third-party stores.
"It increases the accuracy of Just Walk Out technology even in complex shopping scenarios with variables such as camera obstructions, lighting conditions, and the behavior of other shoppers, while allowing us to simplify the system," Jenkins wrote in a blog post.
Amazon is shifting focus to third-party integration. 170 locations already use Just Walk Out, with that set to double this year. The technology is finding its niche in stadiums and airports, with an RFID-powered version for clothing stores in development.
⚡ Other Snippets
Jeremy Howard has announced FastHTML, a new framework for writing modern web applications in pure Python. scalable interactive web apps with pure Python. I’m keen to properly try it out!
CNBC created a 43-minute documentary on how Russian hackers stole millions from US investors.
Reflecting evolving job markets, China has officially recognised live-streamers as a profession, along with AI system application specialists and smart car test drivers.
Have a great week,
Thomas
About Thomas Rice
Thomas Rice co-founded Minotaur Capital, a technology-driven, AI-led global equities fund, and is based in Sydney, Australia. He can be found on the X at @thomasrice_au.