Microsoft

Microsoft’s disclosure offers a rare insight into the tactics used in tax havens. The New York Times article.

Video game massacre at Microsoft: after last year’s 9,000 layoffs, another 4,800 workers will be let go. The Xbox division is particularly affected. Two studios regain their independence, and two other teams are said to have been sold. Not even id Software and Bethesda, known for their video games that sell millions of copies, are spared from layoffs.

Microsoft invests $2.5 billion in Frontier Company, a new unit with 6,000 experts who will work on-site with clients to accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence by businesses. All the details.

In its report to investors, Embracer opens up the possibility that Sony may delay the debut of the next console, the PlayStation 6, to the final years of the decade to avoid being at the mercy of continuously rising RAM prices. The budget smartphone brand Cmf is doing the same: no new models this year, as it would be too costly.

According to the AGCM, the information about the subscription price increase of the popular service, mainly used by companies, was “presented to consumers in a fragmented manner, without adequately highlighting that Microsoft 365 has been integrated with the AI services Copilot and Designer. Furthermore, consumers were imposed, as the default option and unless they exercised their right of withdrawal, a new subscription plan with a higher price.”

The European Commission has preliminarily determined that the cloud computing services of Amazon and Microsoft – namely AWS and Azure – are “gatekeepers” capable of controlling access to the digital market. But will this designation be enough to ensure the technological sovereignty of the Union?

The new Xbox CEO, appointed amid much controversy due to not having the same experience as her predecessor Phil Spencer, might be remembered as “lady scissors hands” since Microsoft is about to initiate unprecedented cuts, despite layoffs having continued for two years. The CEO has been clear: 20 billion have been spent over 5 years without seeing any results.

Announced last autumn and immediately met with controversy, the new Microsoft Teams feature that tracks whether an employee is connected to the company network or not apparently will be implemented. Redmond’s goal seems to be to replace the old check-in systems based on turnstiles and passes. Doubts remain regarding workers’ privacy.

Nintendo has also been forced by market adversities to raise the prices of its Switch 2 console, as its rivals Sony PlayStation 5 and Microsoft Xbox Series X|S have done in the recent past (and on multiple occasions). The move in Japan has already caused a drop in sales, but at the moment the gaming platform is collecting better data than its successful and bulky predecessors Switch 1 and Wii. Additionally, Redmond has to deal with the hemorrhage of users from its online subscriptions.

Two years after opening a file, the FTC is reportedly putting together a comprehensive antitrust dossier to determine whether the Redmond software company is favoring products like Azure in the cloud and, on the artificial intelligence side, Microsoft 365.

After graphics cards for video games and processors for artificial intelligence, Nvidia now aims to dominate the microchip market for computers as well. According to the company, the new Rtx Spark Superchip is set to “completely reinvent the way the PC works.” All the details.

The lawsuit filed by the Swedish pension fund Sjunde AP-Fonden, which accused former Activision Blizzard executives, including CEO Bobby Kotick, of breaching fiduciary duties to investors by accelerating the deal to favor Microsoft, will be resolved with a $250 million settlement.

AI “steals” jobs in the sense that positions are cut to fund it. The latest in this regard is Cisco, which announced the layoff of nearly 4,000 people to free up resources for investments in AI, but it is joined by Meta, Microsoft, LinkedIn, Amazon, and others. Facts, figures, and comments.

Microsoft and OpenAI have been bickering for quite some time. And the contract review binding the two software companies seems to reward the sometimes reckless leadership of Sam Altman, the “father” of ChatGPT.

Microsoft no longer has exclusivity in selling OpenAI’s artificial intelligence models, which can now more freely make agreements with other Big Tech companies. Here’s what this concretely means for the ChatGPT startup and the digital giant from Redmond.

The RAM crisis disrupts the market. Qualcomm could produce memory with the Chinese company ChangXin Memory Technologies, while Meta and Microsoft are forced to raise device prices.

Paris is swiftly advancing with the plan to equip the public sector with local software, abandoning those from outside the EU. The operation, already immense in itself as it requires cataloging the software used for conferences, such as antivirus programs, connection tools, email, and chat, stems from the need to replace Windows with Linux on the PCs of the Public Administration across all of France. But is this project truly feasible in a Europe that has little influence in the high-tech sector?

The Japanese giant, besieged by Chinese and South Korean competitors, is changing strategy: less consumer electronics and more PlayStation video games. At the same time, it is reducing the number of exclusives for PC, a sector closer to its rival Microsoft’s Xbox. The high cost of RAM makes everything even more uncertain and could extend the lifespan of machines on the market, whose prices continue to rise.

Google, Meta, Snap, and Microsoft call the EU’s decision not to extend the law that helps tech companies detect online child pornography “irresponsible.” Excessive privacy obsession or indispensable protection of private life? Here’s what the data says.

Two OpenAI executives take medical leave, triggering an earthquake in leadership. Meanwhile, some uncomfortable revelations describe Sam Altman as a sociopathic liar who does not live in the real world. Facts, figures, and comments.

According to the think tank International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, IBM, and Alibaba, through the use of AI and in collaboration with agrochemical companies such as Bayer, BASF, and Corteva, influence farmers on what to grow, often focusing on the most productive and profitable crops. Facts, figures, and comments.

No longer just venture capitalists, OpenAI is also opening up to individual investors and raising $122 billion, which propels its valuation beyond $800 billion, boasting “artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity.” Facts, names, numbers, and comments.

Cuts to human capital to finance artificial intelligence. This is now the trend undertaken by Big Tech, from Meta to Amazon, including Microsoft, and now Oracle has also initiated layoffs that are expected to be broader in scope than its usual gradual cuts. Facts, figures, and comments.

Tensions are rising between Microsoft and OpenAI, whose $50 billion deal with Amazon challenges the exclusivity on Azure and opens the possibility of a legal clash between the cloud and artificial intelligence giants. All the details.