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Welcome to this edition of Loop!

To kick off your week, I’ve rounded-up the most important technology and AI updates that you should know about.

‏‏‎ ‎ HIGHLIGHTS ‏‏‎ ‎

Let's jump in!

1. TikTok sells its US operations for just $14 billion

We start this week with TikTok, which has agreed to transfer its US operations. Following discussions between President Trump and Xi Jinping, American investors take a 65% stake in a new US-focused version of TikTok - while Chinese investors will retain less than 20% ownership.

Oracle, led by co-founder Larry Ellison, will spearhead the American consortium. They have agreed to manage TikTok's US operations and will secure a licence for the app's advanced recommendation algorithm.

It ends months of uncertainty for TikTok’s 180 million users in the US, who faced the real possibility that the app would be shut down. The deal values the new entity at just $14 billion, which is surprisingly low when you consider how valuable TikTok’s data is.

Larry Ellison and his investment group have got a very good deal here, as the platform has tremendous influence over popular culture and many businesses rely on it to gain traction.

If companies like Anthropic are valued over $180 billion, or OpenAI at $300 billion, there’s no way that US TikTok is worth just $14 billion. If we’re realistic, TikTok’s true valuation is likely around $200 billion.

2. UK announces its plan for a mandatory digital ID

The UK government has unveiled plans for a mandatory digital ID system that will change how Britons prove their identity for work.

By July 2029, all adults will need the digital credential to legally hold a job in Britain. The new ID will be stored on each person’s phone, which can be accessed on the upcoming GOV UK wallet app.

Currently, UK citizens need to provide companies with several documents - such as utility bills, driving licences, or their National Insurance number (similar to the US’ Social Security number).

But that won’t be necessary anymore, under these new plans. The UK’s Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has said that it will streamline the process for businesses and reduce pull-factors for illegal migration.

However, there has been a fierce pushback from privacy advocates. While this is often the case when any new technology is announced, it does seem to have cut through with the public - over 2 million people have signed a petition against it.

Critics worry about how the digital ID will be used in the future, as it could link a person’s name with their social media accounts. They also worry about how the data will be secured, as it will become a huge target for hackers.

But it’s worth noting that similar schemes have been rolled out in other countries. Estonia introduced a similar system back in 2002, which has been hailed as a success. Citizens regularly use it to access medical records, voting, banking and digital signatures. Australia and Denmark also have digital ID apps, although they’re not mandatory.

The government will announce more details in the coming months, so we’ll need to wait until then - but they need to provide a lot more info on how this credential will be secured.

3. Microsoft’s cooling breakthrough could lead to more powerful chips

The technique, called microfluidics, carves tiny channels into computer chips and runs coolant through them. The design borrows from nature, mimicking leaf vein patterns to distribute fluid efficiently across the silicon.

Since modern AI chips generate extraordinary amounts of heat, we use massive amounts of energy to keep them cool. But microfluidics could change that as you’re bringing liquid directly to the heat source - eliminating the insulating layers that often sit between chip and coolant.

Impressively, tests have shown that this removes heat three times more effectively than the copper cold plates - which are currently being used in data centres. Microsoft claims that GPUs run 65% cooler with this new approach.

Beyond saving energy, the tech could allow servers to boost their performance during busy periods and avoid overheating. But it’s not all plain sailing.

Making this at an industrial scale won't be easy. Another issue is that when we make things more efficient, we often just use more of them - a problem called the Jevons paradox. Even Microsoft's CEO admits this could actually increase AI's carbon footprint rather than shrink it.

4. Climate Trace’s tool can now identify 660 million polluters

Al Gore's nonprofit Climate Trace has unveiled a new AI tool, which is able to monitor pollution from over 660 million sources around the world.

Users can now see the harmful air pollution that flows out of facilities - such as factories, power plants, ports, mines, and oil refineries - in real time. You can also see where those plumes are heading and whether they’re blowing over your home.

The former vice president originally co-founded Climate Trace to track greenhouse gas emissions, but they included PM2.5 monitoring after he helped Memphis residents to fight against a crude oil pipeline.

Scientists have recently uncovered PM2.5's broader health impacts - beyond the well-known links to lung cancer and heart disease. Every year, nearly 9 million deaths are caused by PM2.5 pollution globally.

These microscopic particles can lead to low birth weight, kidney disease, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, dementia, and type 2 diabetes. Even pollution within legal limits causes tens of thousands of excess American deaths yearly.

As a result, local communities now have some hard data to back their concerns - as refinery plumes drift over their neighbourhoods - and Al Core hopes that they can use this information to pressure local politicians.

I’ve regularly flagged Climate Trace on this newsletter and it is an incredible organisation that uses a wide range of sources - from satellite imagery to shipping data - to calculate global emissions and spot the top polluters.

If you haven’t looked at their data yet, I highly recommend that you do. I’ve included a link below.

5. OpenAI launches ChatGPT Pulse to write your morning briefs

The company has launched ChatGPT Pulse, a new feature that can research topics overnight and delivers personalised updates to your phone, every morning.

Instead of waiting for you to ask questions, Pulse looks through your chat history, feedback - or even your Gmail and Google Calendar - to work out what you actually care about.

Each morning, these are shown as individual cards - which you can click on and ask ChatGPT follow-up questions. For example, if ChatGPT notices an upcoming trip to London, it will suggest restaurants that are nearby.

Or if you’ve recently damaged your ACL and have asked ChatGPT questions about the topic, it will include a follow-up card that offers tips on how to rebuild your strength.

The feature is part OpenAI's broader pivot, as we move towards a world where your AI works proactively and anticipates what you’re interested in.

However, it’s quite expensive for OpenAI to run and search through huge amounts of data, so it’s only available for OpenAI’s Pro subscribers that pay $200 a month.

Helsing reveals its autonomous fighter jet

This is another company that I regularly highlight on the newsletter. The German defence startup has now entered the race to develop autonomous aircraft and defend Europe’s skies from possible threats.

They have unveiled CA-1 Europa, a V-tailed drone that will take its maiden flight in 2027 and enter military service within the next four years.

Helsing's drone can operate on its own, swarm with other unmanned vehicles, or fly as a "wingman" alongside crewed fighters - echoing similar programmes from America's Anduril.

Back in June, the company revealed that they had successfully tested their AI system with a Gripen E fighter jet - which was able to control the aircraft over the Baltic Sea.

The move reflects a broader shift in defence technology, as AI defence startups challenge the traditional weapons manufacturers.

That has been accelerated by the Russia-Ukraine war, which has focused minds in both the US and Europe - leading to rapid rises in defence spending and fresh investment in new technologies.

If you’d like to read more about what Helsing are working on, you can click on the link below or read about their latest partnerships on autonomous robots.

DeepMind’s robots can now search the web to solve tasks

The company has updated their AI model for robotics, which is a significant leap forward from the previous version that was released in March.

These robots can now think several moves ahead and tackle complex tasks that would've stumped their predecessors.

To achieve this, Google’s researchers have used two models - with Gemini Robotics-ER 1.5 in charge of planning, understanding the robot’s environment, and can even search the web when needed.

It then sends clear instructions to another model, called Gemini Robotics 1.5 (yes, naming is hard), and this then controls the robot’s actions.

What's particularly interesting is that robots using these models can now share what they've learned with each other, even when they have completely different hardware.

Skills learned on ALOHA2's mechanical arms can transfer directly to other robots, like Apptronik's humanoid Apollo. This could change how we train robots and massively speed-up the way that they learn new skills.

Developers can already experiment with Gemini Robotics-ER 1.5 through Google's API, although the full Gemini Robotics 1.5 remains limited to specific partners for now.

🚗 Google's Waymo starts hiring in London, prepares to launch robotaxis in the UK

💰 Electronic Arts is about to be acquired for $50 billion

🎵 Suno releases a new version of its AI music generator

📱 Meta creates a new "Vibes" feed, only shows AI-generated videos

🎤 Nvidia open-sources its technology for voice animation

🎨 Figma has made its design tools more accessible to AI agents

🤖 Microsoft Copilot now supports Anthropic's AI model

📋 Google launches an AI-powered mood board, called Mixboard

🎧 Former NotebookLM devs release Huxe, an AI podcast app for news

🚀 Blue Origin wins major NASA contract, will deliver a lunar rover to the moon

This startup helps companies to analyse environmental data, which is constantly changing, and make urgent decisions. This is particularly important for insurers and energy firms.

Earthmover's platform is able to manage massive amounts of weather data - which can be hundreds of terabytes - and then turns it into simple dashboards that show key insights.

As a result, analysts are shown forecast maps and visualisations for the data - without having to write the complex code themselves.

In the last few years, we have seen how weather changes can create huge risks and opportunities for businesses. Wildfires can quickly destroy an insurance company’s profits, while wind patterns are important as they directly affect how much renewable energy is produced.

RWE, which is a German energy giant, is already using the platform to forecast supply and demand. While insurance startups, like Kettle, are using it to analyse wildfire risk and more accurately price their policies.

Their approach has clearly resonated with investors, as Earthmover has just secured $7.2 million in seed funding - which will help them to expand further and invest more in the product.

This Week’s Art

We’ve covered quite a bit this week, including:

If you found something interesting in this week’s edition, please feel free to share this newsletter with your colleagues.

Or if you’re interested in chatting with me about the above, simply reply to this email and I’ll get back to you.

Have a good week!

Liam

Share with Others

If you found something interesting in this week’s edition, feel free to share this newsletter with your colleagues.

Liam McCormick is a Senior AI Engineer and works within Kainos' Innovation team. He identifies business value in emerging technologies, implements them, and then shares these insights with others.