The AI ​​Race

SoftBank takes a hit in the AI ​​boom – posts unexpected loss

Japanese tech investor SoftBank has reported its first quarterly loss in nearly two years, Bloomberg reports. The loss amounted to $7.1 billion (approximately 70 billion SEK), whereas analysts had expected a profit of around 7 billion SEK.

A significant blow stems from SoftBank’s AI data center project in the U.S. The company has been forced to write down the project's value by $3.7 billion following changes to plans for the procurement of power supply equipment.

Meanwhile, concerns are growing that the expansion of AI data centers could slow down following the Democrats' performance in the midterm elections, AFP reports.

Anthropic launches new tools – competing with Microsoft

AI company Anthropic is set to unveil new "office tools" at a meeting on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg.

These include an assistant for video calls and a spreadsheet application, reminiscent of Excel and Google Sheets. The new services intensify competition with two of Anthropic’s own investors: Microsoft and Alphabet. Microsoft shares fell by a few percent following the news.

Anthropic is expected to make its stock market debut next week.