What's going on?

Tech titans IBM and Meta formed an AI alliance, set on pushing back the veil that’s shrouding the tech’s development.

What does this mean?

AI has the potential to save the world, end the world, and make a lot of important leaders very rich. So concerned that some of the biggest companies in the space may be less than laser-focused on the first one, some of the smartest minds have come together with a mission to develop AI solutions safely, slowly, and openly. The “safety squad” includes tech heavyweights like IBM, Intel, Oracle, and Meta along with acclaimed institutions like Harvard and Imperial College London, all hoping that the whole will be greater than the sum of its parts – for the world’s sake. That leaves Microsoft-backed OpenAI, Tesla, Alphabet, and Amazon on the outcasts’ table for once, but there’s no guarantee that the tortoise will beat the hares in this race.

Why should I care?

Zooming out: Let’s take things slow.
The alliance’s finer details haven’t been hammered out yet, but that’s right on brand for a group advocating for a slower approach. So is the committee format as a whole: it takes a lot longer for a group of companies with different individual backgrounds to reach a consensus than it does for a room of stereotypical tech heads to agree. And with much of the world concerned that AI developers’ breakneck speeds could end in a crash, this slow-and-steady force may attract quite the fan club.

For markets: More is more.
Despite being a slow burner for decades, AI became this year’s most popular theme overnight when ChatGPT launched. And it brought its reliable buddies along for the ride: a gaggle of high-tech chipmakers, including market darling Nvidia. The more the merrier, as far as they’re concerned, since that gang of suppliers stands to win a new customer every time an AI competitor comes along.