Musk’s xAI Holdings Is Reportedly Raising The Second-Largest Private Funding Round Ever

AI

Elon Musk’s xAI Holdings is in talks to raise $20 billion in fresh funding, potentially valuing the AI and social media combo at over $120 billion, according to a new Bloomberg report that says talks are in the “early stages.” TechCrunch reported.

If successful, the deal would be the second-largest startup funding round ever, behind only OpenAI’s $40 billion raise last month.

The funding could help alleviate X’s substantial debt burden, which is costing the company a whopping $200 million monthly in servicing fees, per Bloomberg’s sources, with annual interest expenses exceeding $1.3 billion by the end of last year.

A raise of this size would also showcase AI’s continued investor appeal, as well as reflect Musk’s surprising emergence as a political power player inside President Trump’s White House.

CNBC reported: Elon Musk’s xAI Holdings is in discussions with investors to raise about $20 billion, Bloomberg News reported Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The funding would value the company at over $120 billion. according to the report.

Musk was looking to assign “proper value” to xAI, sources told CNBC’s David Faber earlier this month. The remarks were made during a call with xAI investors, sources familiar with the matter told Faber. The Tesla CEO at that time didn’t explicitly mention any upcoming funding round, but the sources suggested xAI was preparing for a substantial capital raise in the near future. 

The funding amount could be more than $20 billion as the exact figure had not been decided, the Bloomberg report added. 

Artificial intelligence startup xAI didn’t immediately respond to a CNBC request for comment outside of U.S. business hours. 

Reuters reported: Elon Musk’s xAI Holdings is in talks with investors to raise roughly $20 billion in funding for his newly combined artificial intelligence startup and social media business, Bloomberg News reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter. 

The transaction would value the company at more than $120 billion, the report said, citing one of the people.

The amount in the round could be more than $20 billion, the report said, adding that the total had not yet been decided, and terms could change.

xAI didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. 

xAI acquired X in a deal last month that valued the social media platform at $33 billion and allowed the value of Musk’s AI firm to be shared with his co-investors in the company formerly known as Twitter.

Apple Aims To Source All US iPhones From India In Pivot Away From China

Apple

Apple plans to shift the assembly of all US-sold iPhones to India as soon as next year, according to people familiar with the matter, as President Donald Trump’s trade war forces the tech giant to pivot away from China, The Financial Times reported.

The push builds on Apple’s strategy to diversify its supply chain but goes further and faster than investors appreciate, with a goal to source from India the entirety of more than 60mn iPhones sold annually in the US by the end of 2026.

The target would mean doubling the iPhone output in India, after almost two decades in which Apple spent heavily in China to create a world-beating production line that powered its rise into a $3tn tech giant.

China, where Apple manufactures the majority of its iPhones via third parties such as Foxconn, has been subject to the US president’s most aggressive levies, though he has since signaled a willingness to negotiate with Beijing.

In the wake of Trump’s tariff announcements, which wiped $700bn from Apple’s market value, the company rushed to export available Indian-manufactured iPhones to the US to avoid the then-higher tariffs imposed on China.

Apple has in recent years been steadily building capacity in India with contract manufacturers Tata Electronics and Foxconn, though it still assembles most of its smartphones in China.

The Guardian reported: Apple is reportedly planning to switch assembly of all iPhones for the US market to India as the company seeks to reduce its reliance on a Chinese manufacturing base amid Donald Trump’s trade war.

The $3tn (£2.3tn) technology company aims to make the shift as soon as next year, the Financial Times reported.

Apple has been swept up in Trump’s aggressive tariff policies, with the iPhone maker at one point among the biggest stock market casualties because of the prospect of its Chinese-made products being hit with a hefty import tax when they reach the US. 

However, the blow was softened by a White House decision to exclude smartphones from the heaviest Chinese tariffs, although Apple is still exposed to a 20% levy on all Chinese goods as part of the US president’s response to China’s role in producing Fentanyl.

The complex manufacturing process behind iPhones involve more than 1,000 components sourced from around the world – albeit they are largely put together in China. Apple is secretive about details of its production processes but analysts estimate that about 90% of its iPhones are assembled in the country.

Engadget reported: Apple may shift all of its US iPhone production from China to India in an effort to avoid Trump’s tariffs, according to a report from The Financial Times. The goal is to manufacture all 60 million iPhone devices sold to American consumers in India by 2026, doubling current production numbers in the nation.

That would be a stark shift, as Apple has manufactured the majority of its iPhone products in China since they debuted in 2007.

Apple first started building iPhones in India back in 2017 and in late 2023, pledged to build up 50 million iPhones in the nation within three years with suppliers Foxconn and Tata. With that in mind, it would only have to boost that number by 10 million to achieve the new 60 million unit goal.

NASA Issues Dire Warning: Budget Cuts Could Trigger Emergency ISS Deorbit #1816

Podcast

NASA and the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel are raising alarms about growing risks to the International Space Station due to structural damage, air leaks, and looming budget cuts. With SpaceX developing a deorbit vehicle, officials stress that the ISS may face an uncontrolled descent unless immediate funding and action are secured. Elon Musk’s call for an earlier deorbit adds urgency to this pivotal moment for space safety.

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US Calls EU Fines On Apple And Meta ‘Economic Extortion”

Information

The White House said on Wednesday that fines on Apple and Meta Platforms by the European Union were a “novel form of economic extortion” that the United States will not tolerate, Reuters reported.

Apple was fined 500 million euros ($570 million) on Wednesday and Meta 200 million euros, as EU antitrust regulators handed out the first sanctions under landmark legislation aimed at curbing the power of Big Tech.

The fines were seen as a development that could stoke tensions between EU and U.S. President Donald Trump who has threatened to levy tariffs against countries that penalize American companies.

The White House on Wednesday called the legislation, the Digital Markets Act (DMA), discriminatory. The fines followed a year-long investigation by the European Commission, the EU executive, into whether the companies comply with the DMA tat seeks to allow smaller rivals into markets dominated by the biggest companies.

Politico reported: An apparent setback for the U.S. tech sector — nearly $800 million in European Union fines against Apple and Meta — could be just what the industry needs to get its global anti-regulation campaign back onto President Trump’s radar.

Tech lobbyists have long wanted Washington to push back forcefully on the European Commission’s 2022 Digital Markets Act, a package of antitrust rules that lobbyists claim unfairly targets American tech companies.

On Wednesday the first penalties came down under the act €500 million against Apple and €200 million against Meta, along with significant requirements for both companies to change their business practices.

Now that the EU’s tech competition rules have finally hit U.S. companies directly, “we’re starting to see the rubber hit the road,” said Katie Harbath, a longtime former public policy director at Meta.

Just hours after the penalties were announced, lobbyists for Meta and top tech groups attacked the fines — notably referring to them as “tariffs,” a legally debatable point seemingly designed to get Trump’s attention.

The Wall Street Journal reported: The European Union fined Apple and Meta Platforms hundreds of millions of dollars and ordered the companies to comply with the bloc’s tech rules in a move that risks ratcheting up tensions with the Trump administration as officials pursue trade talks.

The European Commission, the EU’s executive body, on Wednesday slapped Apple with a 500 million euro fine, equivalent to about $570 million, for allegedly breaching the bloc’s Digital Markets Act. It fined Meta €200 million.

The commission also issued a cease-and-desist orders that could have a bigger impact than the fines. One order targets Apple’s App Store and the other takes aim at Meta’s use of personalized ads — important revenue streams for each company.

 

Apple, Meta Fined By EU, Ordered To Comply With Tech Competition Rules

Information

The European Commission fined Apple and Meta Platforms hundreds of millions of dollars and ordered the companies to comply with the bloc’s tech rules in a move that risks ratcheting up tensions with the Trump administration as officials pursue trade talks, The Wall Street Journal reported. 

The European Commission, the EU’s executive body, on Wednesday slapped Apple with a 500 million euro fine, equivalent to about $570 million, for allegedly breaching the bloc’s Digital Markets Act. It fined Meta €200 million.  

The commission also issued cease-and-desist orders that could have a bigger impact than the fines. One order targets Apple’s App Store and the other takes aim at Meta’s use of personalized ads – important revenue streams for each company.

The actions against Apple and Meta come amid heightened tensions between the U.S. and EU over trade policies and support for Ukraine. Trump has complained about EU tech regulations, which the U.S. has referred to as non-tarriff barriers to trade, and earlier this year threatened to respond to the bloc’s rules with tariffs.

The European Commission reported: Today, the European Commission found that Apple breached its anti-steering obligation under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), that Meta breached the DMA obligation to give consumers the choice of a service that uses less of their personal data. Therefore, the commission has fined Apple and Meta with €500 million and €200 million respectively.

The two decisions come after extensive dialogue with the companies concerned allowing them to present in detail they views and arguments.

Under the DMA, app developers distributing their apps via Apple’s App Store should be able to inform customers, free of charge, of alternative offers outside the App Store, steer them to those offers and allow them to make purchases.

The Commission found that Apple failed to comply with this obligation. Due to a number of restrictions imposed by Apple, app developers cannot fully benefit from the advantages of alternate distribution channels outside the App Store. 

Similarly, consumers cannot fully benefit from alternative and cheaper as Apple prevent app developers from directly informing consumers of such offers. The company has failed to demonstrate that these restrictions are objectively necessary and proportionate.

As part of today’s decision, the Commission has ordered Apple to remove the technical and commercial restrictions on steering and to refrain from perpetuating the non-compliant conduct in the future, which includes adoption conduct with an equivalent object or effect.

Meta reported: “The European Commission is attempting to handicap successful American business while allowing Chinese and European companies to operate under different standards. This isn’t just about a fine; the Commission forcing us to change our business model effectively imposes a multi-billion-dollar tariff on Meta while requiring us to offer an inferior service. And by unfairly restricting personalized advertising the European Commission is also hurting European business and economies.”

Refresh your TV with a new Roku Streaming Stick

ROKU, Streaming, ,

It’s been awhile coming but today Roku has announced updates to its streaming product line with the new Roku Streaming Stick and the Roku Streaming Stick Plus. These will be coming to the UK in early summer which is great news for Roku fans on this side of the pond. For those who don’t know about Roku, the company offers both streaming players that plug into an HDMI socket and Roku TVs, which builds Roku’s streaming experience into smart TVs. Don’t get confused by the Japanese gin of the same name.

The Streaming Stick provides HD resolution and the Streaming Stick Plus delivers up to 4K with HDR. Both models will come will with voice remotes which means you can simply talk into the remotes to start playing a show or open a channel. Rokus support all the major streaming platforms such as Netflix, Disney+ and Paramount+ along with all the terrestrial broadcasters such as BBC’s iPlayer or itvX.

The new models replace the Roku Express and Express 4K+ in the product line which means that all models in Rokus portfolio are now of the stick variety. The Streaming Sticks are both only a little wider than the HDMI socket meaning they’re not going to block any adjacent HDMIs if it’s all a bit tight round the back of the TV. Further, the Sticks will happily power off a USB port, so if the TV has a spare one of those, it’ll reduce the cable clutter without the need for a power brick or wall wart.

Both models will be available on 2nd June from all the usual retailers in the UK. Pricewise the Streaming Stick will come in at £29.99, with the Plus version selling for an extra tenner at £39.99. As far as I can tell, the existing Roku Streaming Stick 4K remains in place at £49.99 and offers Dolby Vision.

Rokus are a great way of continuing to use older TVs or where an existing smart TV is missing certain otherwise-expected apps (I’m looking at you LG). They have a  really great user interface that’s very simple to use (and there’s a complementary Roku smartphone app), so it’s much easier and cheaper to upgrade a TV with a Streaming Stick than it is to buy a whole new TV, plus you’re not contributing to e-waste, which is definitely a good thing.

 

Google VP Says The Company Pays Samsung An “Enormous Amount Of Money”

Information

Law GavelTestimony this week from Google’s antitrust trial shows that Google gives Samsung an “enormous sum of money” each month to preinstall the Gemini AI app on Samsung devices, reported Bloomberg, The Verge reported.

Now that Judge Amit Mehta has ruled Google’s search engine is an illegal monopoly, its lawyers are sparring with the DOJ over how severe a potential penalty should be.

Peter Fitzgerald, Google’s vice president of platforms and device partenerships, testified on Monday that Google’s payments to Samsung started in January. That’s after Google was found to have violated antitrust law, partially due to similar arrangements with Apple, Samsung, and other companies for search.

When Samsung launched the Galaxy S25 series in January, it also added Gemini as the default AI assistant when long-pressing the power button with its own Bixby assistant taking a back seat.

If the DOJ has its way, the results of these hearings could mean Google is forbidden from striking default placement deals in the future, would sell Chrome, and would be forced to license the vast majority of the data that powers Google Search. Google has argued that it should only have to give up the default placement deals.

Engadget reported: Google has been paying Samsung tons of cash every month to pre-install the AI app Gemini on its smartphones, according to a report by Bloomberg. This information comes to us as part of a pre-exiting antitrust case against Google.

Peter Fitzgerald, Google’s VP of platforms and device partnerships, testified in federal court that it began paying Samsung for this service back in January. The pair of companies have a contract that’s set to run at least two years.

Fitzgerald told Judge Amit Metha, who is overseeing the case, that Google provides Samsung with both fixed monthly payments and a percentage of revenue earned from advertisers within the Gemini app. The monetary figures are unknown, but DOJ lawyer David Dahlquist called it an “enormous sum of money in a fixed monthly payment.” 

Judge Mehta agreed and found that this practice constitutes a violation of antitrust law. He’s currently hearing additional testimony to remedy the illegal behavior, which is where this Gemini reveal comes from.

The Economic Times reported: Alphabet’s Google contemplated deals with Android phone makers such as Samsung last year that would provide exclusivity for not only each app, but also for its Gemini AI app and Chrome browser, according to a document shown at the second day of an antitrust trial.

The US Department of Justice and a broad coalition of state attorneys general are seeking an order from a judge in Washington who would require Google to sell its Chrome browser and take other measures. They hope to end what the judge found was Google’s monopoly in online search and related advertising.

In that ruling, US District Judge Amit Mehta found that Google protected its search monopoly through exclusive agreements with Samsung Electronics and others to have its search engine installed a the default on new devices.