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March 2, 2024
Issue No. 93
CURATOR:
Welcome to this week's AtherXplorer, covering the latest in gaming, blockchain, and everything in between.
This week’s top picks include:
Artificial Intelligence
Elon Musk Sues OpenAI for Abandoning its Mission to Benefit Humanity
Elon Musk is suing OpenAI CEO Sam Altman over claims the nonprofit has abandoned its mission to develop AI that benefits humanity. Musk alleges OpenAI's partnership with Microsoft transformed it into a de facto subsidiary focused on profits over open-source development.
When co-founding OpenAI in 2015, Musk and others committed to the nonprofit operating openly. However, the lawsuit says decisions like keeping GPT-4 secret were driven by commercial rather than safety reasons, making it a proprietary Microsoft algorithm.
Musk wants OpenAI to adhere to developing AGI for humanity's benefit instead of profiting Altman, Brockman and Microsoft. He has long advocated for safeguards in advanced AI to prevent societal harms.
The suit claims GPT-4 released in 2023 surpassed humans in legal exam reasoning and OpenAI is reportedly developing "Q Star," potentially an AI general intelligence. It alleges Altman's firing in 2023 let Microsoft replace OpenAI's board with less expert members to control decisions on attaining AGI. Regulators are examining the shared OpenAI-Microsoft relationship's competitive impacts.
Mistral AI Makes Waves as they Land Major Partnerships with IBM, Microsoft, and Others
The Paris-based Mistral AI startup has seen rapid success in partnerships since its founding nine months ago. This week, Mistral unveiled its flagship large language model Mistral Large, making it available on Microsoft Azure through a major deal. This positions Mistral as only the second company after OpenAI to offer such a model on Azure.
Mistral Large is designed to compete with OpenAI's GPT models in generating human-like text and conversation. Microsoft's choice to align with Mistral signals it views the startup as a leading innovator that enhances Azure's offerings and reduces reliance on OpenAI.
Mistral also inked an agreement providing an optimized version of its Mistral-8x7B model on IBM's Watson platform. This expands Mistral's reach into IBM's large customer base and allows enterprises to combine its capabilities.
Founded by former Meta, DeepMind and Google researchers, Mistral has swiftly developed advanced generative systems in just nine months. Backed by $415 million, it aims to compete head-to-head with players like OpenAI and Anthropic. With deals with Microsoft and IBM already securing its technology on major clouds, Mistral seems well-positioned as a major generative AI force going forward.
Tim Cook Says Apple will ‘Break New Ground’ in GenAI this Year
During Apple's annual shareholder meeting, CEO Tim Cook said the company will "break new ground" on generative AI (GenAI) this year. Some staff from Apple's canceled EV project were reassigned to GenAI initiatives.
While rivals invest heavily in GenAI, Apple has taken a slower approach to customer-facing uses. It briefly mentioned GenAI when introducing iOS autocorrect/prediction upgrades last fall. Bloomberg reports Apple plans to upgrade Siri and Spotlight search with GenAI models for more complex queries and conversations. It's also exploring automatic slide/playlist generation and Xcode coding suggestions.
These could arrive in upcoming iOS, macOS, and iPadOS versions demoed this summer. Apple engineers have also authored more GenAI-related research papers describing systems like animating 3D avatars from videos and animating still images.
Apple recently open sourced GenAI chatbot and image modification models. Bloomberg reported Apple invests $1 billion yearly in GenAI, including proprietary models like Ajax and an internal chatbot. Upcoming iPhones may have significantly upgraded neural engines for on-device AI processing.
In Other AI News…
Gaming
Sipher Odyssey’s Closed Alpha is Coming to an End
Sipher Odyssey’s Closed Alpha is coming to an end on March 4th, 2024. The developers recently announced the Closed Alpha end date and thanked all players who participated in during this testing phase.
Community members such as @realhanhpham, @SipherFan, @PC_PR1NCIPAL, and others expressed enthusiasm for having been involved in the early stages and contributing to shaping the game. One noted it was wonderful to be part of the journey with a leadership team and community that reflected the positive qualities of the game itself.
Tin Nguyen, World Architect and Founder, also chimed in to the news, acknowledging the invaluable role of Closed Alpha participants, and mentioning that their feedback and bug reports had been carefully considered. He also noted their feedback would help make Sipher Odyssey 10x better because of it.
The conclusion of closed alpha on that date will mark another milestone for the ambitious Roguelite ARPG game, which leverages blockchain technology to enable in-game asset ownership, among its cross-platform innovations within the genre.
More Industry Layoffs with Sony, EA, Supermassive, and More
Sony and various gaming companies recently announced major layoffs and canceled projects.
- Sony laid off around 900 employees across many of its first-party PlayStation studios, including Insomniac, Naughty Dog, Guerrilla Games, and closing London Studio entirely. Sony cited overgrowth as necessitating its layoffs and examining projects for viability. This came after Sony canceled its decade-long EV project, reassigning some staff to AI initiatives. A Twisted Metal game in development at Firesprite was canceled as part of the layoffs, with the Twisted Metal reboot studio London Studio being shut down.
- EA also laid off 670 employees, around 5% of its workforce, as part of a restructuring toward focus on owned IP, sports, and online games. This led EA to cancel an unnamed Star Wars first-person shooter from Respawn that had been announced in 2022. EA will help laid off employees find new roles but some positions will be lost.
- Supermassive Games, the developer of Until Dawn and The Quarry, laid off around 90 employees, equal to 30% of its staff.
The layoffs show how broader industry challenges are impacting companies, who are focusing resources on promises like Sony developing generative AI and EA focusing on bigger opportunities.
Pokémon Returns To Kalos With Legends: Z-A in 2025
During a recent Pokémon Day stream, Game Freak teased their next major Switch title - Pokémon Legends: Z-A. Images from the trailer show Pikachu hopping around a futuristic blue-lined city populated by familiar Pokémon like Pyroar, Flabébé, Klefki, and Hawlucha. The teaser hints that players will explore Lumiose City, a Paris-inspired area first seen in Pokémon X and Y, suggesting the game will be set in the Kalos region introduced in those games.
Architectural sketches paired with text about an "urban redevelopment plan" indicate the game may take place during Lumiose City's construction. This would parallel Legends: Arceus showing Hisui before modern Sinnoh. Beyond these glimpses into the game's setting and timeframe, no further gameplay or story details were provided in the brief teaser trailer.
With a planned 2025 release window, Pokémon Legends: Z-A is positioned as a follow up to the acclaimed open-world style of Legends: Arceus. Fans have been given their first look at a highly anticipated return to the aesthetics of the Kalos region from past generations, remixed with a new historical viewpoint of the region's development. However, players will have to wait until more information is revealed to learn more about Game Freak's next venture into the Pokémon franchise's past.
In Other Gaming News…
Web3, Metaverse, and NFTs
Bitcoin Price Rallies to $64K, Nears All Time High Prices
Bitcoin price rallied over 10% to reach a new high of $64,000 on February 28th, driven by anticipation of the upcoming supply halving event in mid-May which historically leads to strong upside price movements. Additional contributions came from steady inflows into newly launched bitcoin spot ETFs.
While some analysts warned the parabolic price action and high funding rates reflected unsustainable leveraged buying, options traders dismissed overextension concerns, citing continued strength in key options markets metrics like open interest and stable funding rates.
One analyst viewed the rally as fueled by a mix of derivative-driven momentum and natural spot demand from ETF flows. Another independent analyst reinforced the bullish short-term view by noting bitcoin's relative strength index exceeded 70, a level that in prior cycles corresponded with price uptrends lasting over 335 days.
Shortly after hitting $64,000, bitcoin saw a flash crash to $58,700 likely from selling pressure and leveraged long liquidations, though it recovered about 5% of losses. Currently consolidating at around $60,000, many expect bitcoin to break its record price before the halving event in roughly 52 days.
Ethereum L2 ‘Blast’ Launches its Mainnet, Unlocking $2B Worth of Crypto
Blast, a new Ethereum L2 network launched by the founder of NFT marketplace Blur, went live on its mainnet, unlocking over $2.3 billion worth of crypto that had been staked in its bridge from Ethereum. Users had locked funds in to earn a yield, and points that would entitle users to future airdrops on Blast.
As the total rose in recent days amid growing Ethereum prices, some funds are being withdrawn while others remain to take advantage of new apps and continued incentives. Early data shows total value has fallen below $1.9 billion.
A Paradigm VC who helped fund Blast said the launch plan crossed lines in both messaging and execution, and that much of the marketing cheapened the serious work. Blast's founder acknowledged Paradigm requested changes but said the launch decision was ultimately their own.
Many projects were also providing points within Blast’s ‘Early Access’ phase (AKA testnet) as the project aims to provide 50% of its airdrop towards developers and builders on its chain. Amongst these projects was ‘Risk’, which reportedly became the first to "rug", disappearing with over $1 million raised in a presale.
Immutable Launches Gods Unchained Companion App on Mobile
Immutable Games has launched the early access mobile version of its Web3 card game Gods Unchained on both Android and iOS after four years of development. The team had struggled to get approval from Apple and Google due to their policies around Web3 games, but feedback made it clear players wanted mobile access.
While not the full Web3 experience yet, the companion app allows on-the-go play to engage the growing global mobile audience projected to be a $111 billion industry in 2024. It offers key PC features like ranked battles, casual matches, Immutable Passport integration and deckbuilding. The launch follows Gods Unchained's Season 2 expansion and deals with Amazon Prime Gaming and Epic Games Store.
Immutable Games calls this a companion app rather than a full game for now. The team will continue developing Web3 functionality like direct NFT purchases and item ownership over three months of early access polishing, as regulatory and technical solutions emerge for balancing platform, developer, and player priorities regarding new models of digital ownership. Development had shifted focus over time due to changing platform policies regarding issues like in-app purchases, fraud prevention, and not de-incentivizing their payment systems.
In Other Web3 & Metaverse News…
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