| Today's top headlines include: - State-backed hackers using ChatGPT to improve cyberattacks.
- Bitcoin market cap exceeds $1 trillion.
- Jeff Bezos sold $4B of Amazon stock in past week.
Beth
p/beth-duckett | |
| 1 | | Microsoft and OpenAI reported that hackers, including those backed by Russia, North Korea, Iran, and China, are using generative AI tools like ChatGPT to improve their cyberattacks. In the research published today, the partners said the state actors are using AI for things like social engineering techniques, drafting phishing emails, translating text, code debugging, and more. More: - The Russian-affiliated hacker group Forest Blizzard, linked to the Russia-Ukraine war, has used OpenAI's tools for research on satellite communication, radar imaging, and scripting, according to the companies.
- The North Korean hacking group Tallium, Curium/Crimson Sandstorm from Iran, and China-backed groups Charcoal Typhoon and Salmon Typhoon have also used large language models to improve their attacks.
- While the companies haven't identified any major LLM-based attacks, they have shut down accounts and assets linked to the groups.
Zoom out: - Microsoft and OpenAI said they are improving their defenses by investing in threat detection technology, being more transparent, and collaborating with other AI firms.
- While current AI use in cyberattacks is limited, Microsoft warned that future threats could include voice impersonation and AI-powered fraud, where even short voice samples can be used to train models "to sound like anyone."
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| 2 | | The price of Bitcoin climbed above $51,000 on Wednesday, reaching a market cap of over $1 trillion for the first time in over two years. Bitcoin's market cap, or the total value of all bitcoin in circulation, reached an all-time high of $1.28 trillion in November 2021. 
What the numbers show: Bitcoin's price soared above $50,948 today, a 25-month high, elevating its market cap to $1.017 trillion, per Coingecko. Following a 20% rise this month, Bitcoin has returned to the $1 trillion market cap and is on track for its largest monthly gain since October. Zoom out: The value of the total cryptocurrency market has now surpassed $2 trillion, according to Axios. If it were a single public company, crypto would be the world's fourth-largest, with Bitcoin alone ranking eighth, between Meta and Berkshire-Hathaway. What it means: The BTC price surge is partially due to enthusiasm over newly launched spot Bitcoin ETFs in the U.S. In January, the SEC gave the green light for multiple ETFs linked to Bitcoin's spot price, allowing mainstream investors to buy and sell Bitcoin with the same ease as stocks and mutual funds. The approvals were also a sign that mainstream financial institutions are still open to engaging with digital currencies, despite a turbulent two years marked by bankruptcies by major crypto exchanges, lenders, and brokerages. | | | |
| 3 | | Jeff Bezos has sold 24 million Amazon shares, worth over $4B, in the past week as the company's stock has surged, according to regulatory filings. It's the first time that the Amazon founder and executive chairman has sold company stock since May 2021. More: - Bezos sold 12 million shares worth $2B last week, followed by another sale of 12 million shares between Friday and Monday, the filings show.
- The move comes after Amazon disclosed Bezos' plans to sell 50 million shares by Jan. 31, 2025.
- While the former CEO hasn't given a reason for the sales, he recently announced his move from the Seattle region to Miami.
- Bloomberg notes that Bezos's move to Florida, which lacks Washington's 7% capital gains tax, has likely saved him $288M to date.
Zoom out: - Bezos, who stepped down as Amazon's CEO in 2021, is the world's second-richest person after Elon Musk, according to the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
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| 4 | | Alphabet's self-driving car company, Waymo, issued its first software recall after two of its robotaxis crashed into the same towed pickup truck in December. The collisions in Phoenix, Arizona caused only minor vehicle damage, with no injuries, according to Waymo. More: - The voluntary recall updates Waymo's self-driving car software to better predict the "future motion of a towed vehicle."
- In a Tuesday blog post, Waymo said it chose to pursue the recall after consulting with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and its own internal review of the accidents.
- The company, formerly Google's Self-Driving Car Project, is updating the software via regular maintenance and recharging at its depots, not through over-the-air updates.
- Waymo's driverless ride-hailing service, Waymo One, operates in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Austin, with over 10 million fully autonomous miles and one million ride-hail trips completed.
Zoom out: - The recall comes as self-driving cars face heightened scrutiny following a series of controversies and crashes.
- Last week, a Waymo robotaxi hit a cyclist in San Francisco, resulting in minor injuries.
- Its rival, GM's Cruise, has paused operations due to fallout from a pedestrian accident in October.
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| 5 | | OpenAI is equipping ChatGPT with a long-term "memory" feature to remember personal details from past conversations. Users can instruct ChatGPT to remember specific details, or the bot can gradually pick up and store data about users on its own. Currently, memory is in a test phase for only a "small portion" of users and will be turned on by default. More: - OpenAI says the memory will allow the chatbot to become more personalized, smarter, and more attuned to individual users' needs.
- Each custom GPT, including those in its GPT Store, will also have a unique memory.
- Using Books GPT as an example, the bot can remember a user's read books and preferred genres.
Zoom out: - While many users have requested a ChatGPT memory feature, concerns linger about the bot "knowing" personal information and using interactions for training data.
- OpenAI confirmed that memories will be used to train its models.
- However, the company said it designed the system to avoid remembering sensitive information, like health details.
- Users can turn off the feature entirely or use a "Temporary Chat" that doesn't retain info.
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| 6 | | Former Salesforce CEO Bret Taylor and former Google executive Clay Bavor launched Sierra, a startup providing AI agents for business-customer interactions. The company's early customers include SiriusXM, Sonos, Weight Watchers, and OluKai. More: - Sierra's AI helpers can offer tips, answer customer questions, and perform actions for employees, such as handling return tickets.
- Its conversational AI model understands customer conversations and companies' internal data, giving its AI agents contextual awareness about customer issues.
- In a blog post announcement, Sierra said that in the conversational AI era, the top customer experience comes from having a chat, not from installing apps or clicking links.
Zoom out: - In late January, Bloomberg reported that Sequoia Capital was set to lead an $85M funding round in Sierra, which would value the startup at close to $1B.
- Taylor, chairman of OpenAI's board and a former Twitter board member, left Salesforce in January 2023.
- He was once considered a potential successor to Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff.
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 | AI and technology writer | | Beth is a contributing editor and writer of Inside's AI and Tech newsletters. She has written for notable publications like USA Today and the Arizona Business Gazette. During her time as a public policy reporter at The Arizona Republic, she received recognition with a Pulitzer Prize nomination and a First Amendment Award for her collaborative reporting on pension cost increases. Beth also authored a book on the solar photovoltaic industry in 2016. You can reach her at Beth.Duckett@yahoo.com. | | This newsletter was edited by Eduardo Garcia | |
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