Sam Altman calls for ‘incredible scrutiny’ of major AI companies, including OpenAI and Microsoft

A U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on AI this morning featured testimony from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman (above) and other industry players.

• The discussion touched on OpenAI’s partnership with Microsoft, and the implications of the tech giant’s stake in the artificial intelligence powerhouse. 
• Altman, in a marked contrast from tech leaders of the past, actively encouraged legislative and regulatory oversight of the industry. What’s more, he said the oversight should focus on the small number of players, including OpenAI and Microsoft, with the capability to train and deploy the large language models that power generative AI tools. Read more. 

The pandemic sparked a surge in wine subscription services. A new Seattle startup is entering the market with a focus on small-batch winemakers and a tech-infused recommendation engine. Read about The Waves. 

Ken Washington, who oversaw the Amazon Astro home robot as the company’s vice president of consumer robotics, is leaving the company after less than two years. Read more. 

Microsoft is making a series of concessions to win regulatory approval for its $69 billion acquisition of Activision. As a result, the company’s strategy to boost its Xbox ecosystem may be less ambitious than previously planned. Read the analysis. 

Hot Links:

• The rate of change happening in AI “is unlike any other tech trend we’ve seen,” Box CEO Aaron Levie said in a tweet. Tech vet Paul Graham adds: “It's not just that AI can spread more easily. It's also more immediately usable.” 

• Job postings show that Amazon is adding ChatGPT-style search functionality to its online store. (Bloomberg)

• Amazon recently revamped its logistics network by creating regions across the U.S. in a bid to speed up delivery times. (Wall Street Journal)   

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