FinTech Weekly - The US Paves The AI Way - Issue #440

CNBC and Statista launched a list of the world’s leading fintechs, selecting top global firms based on key business metrics and fundamentals across nine categories. The analysis also highlighted the top countries in fintech, focusing on market capitalization, number of leading firms, and the presence of "unicorn" companies, with the U.S. and China standing out for having the most valuable fintech industries.

Voltage Park, a nonprofit funded by crypto billionaire and Ripple's co-founder Jed McCaleb, has invested around $500 million in 24,000 Nvidia H100 chips, aiming to lease affordable AI computing capacity to companies on both long- and short-term bases, addressing the AI chip shortage.

Before the Biden administration's significant executive order on AI regulation was unveiled, banks and fintech executives gathered at Money20/20 to discuss AI's potential use cases and implications. The executive order, expected to be signed by President Biden, aims to set new standards for AI safety, security, and equity, while also promoting innovation, competition, and American leadership globally, as the banking sector and other industries increasingly explore and integrate AI and machine learning technologies.

Chinese banks are adopting artificial intelligence to cut labor costs and boost efficiency, despite facing technical and regulatory challenges. The global enthusiasm for AI, fueled by Microsoft-backed OpenAI's ChatGPT, has prompted various industries, including banking, to integrate these intelligent systems into their operations, with potential annual value generation estimated between $200 billion to $340 billion for the banking sector. Morgan Stanley is at the forefront, training GPT-4 with its wealth management expertise to create a comprehensive resource for its financial advisers.

Colombian fintech startup Tuily has launched a business credit card and expense management platform, aiming to enhance financial access for small businesses, with support from Mastercard and issued by Paymentology. Despite a saturated market with players like Sempli, Clara, and Jeeves, Tuily, led by Jonathan Tarud, distinguishes itself by targeting smaller businesses new to the financial sector, striving to provide essential financial tools for their growth and stability.

BDC has committed an additional $50 million to its Seed Venture Fund, aiming to bolster emerging Canadian startups, particularly in pre-seed and seed stage software sectors like Enterprise SaaS, Digital Health, and FinTech, with a focus on AI-driven innovation. The fund plans to serve as a key player for seed-stage businesses across Canada, especially in regions with scarce seed funding, and seeks to fortify partnerships with incubators, accelerators, and early-stage investors nationwide.

Silicon Valley's dominance in the tech world is being challenged by the rise of artificial intelligence, offering European startups, like Mistral led by former Google DeepMind employee Arthur Mensch, a unique opportunity to level the playing field. Mistral, valued at €240m shortly after its inception, specializes in large language models similar to ChatGPT, positioning itself and other agile European startups to potentially rival their established American counterparts, as the global AI landscape continues to evolve.