Samsung Reaches $1 Trillion Market Cap on AI Semiconductor Demand

Samsung has crossed the $1 trillion market capitalization milestone, driven by AI-fueled semiconductor demand. It is only the second Asian company to reach the mark, after TSMC. The milestone follows a continued rise in Samsung's stock price amid surging demand for memory chips used in AI data centers.

Meanwhile, NVIDIA has announced a partnership under which it will purchase $500 million in share acquisition rights from Corning as part of its AI infrastructure expansion. Corning will boost its optical fiber production capacity in the US by more than 50% and expand its supply of high-speed data transfer cables for AI data centers. Through the deal, NVIDIA gains the right to acquire up to 15 million shares at $180 per share.

ChatGPT Ads Fully Open to Small Businesses as $50,000 Minimum Budget Is Scrapped

OpenAI now lets advertisers in the US book ads on ChatGPT directly via self-service. The previously imposed $50,000 minimum budget requirement has been abolished, making it easy for small businesses to access ad placements within ChatGPT. OpenAI has set an advertising revenue target of $2.5 billion for this year.

The self-serve ad platform is positioned as a new revenue pillar as ChatGPT's monthly active users grow rapidly. It's a sign that the shift in ad spending from search-based advertising to conversational AI is shifting into high gear.

DeepSeek Nears Funding Round at $45 Billion Valuation

The Financial Times reports that Chinese AI lab DeepSeek is moving ahead with a funding round led by the China National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund (the National Chip Fund), with its valuation expected to reach approximately $45 billion. DeepSeek has attracted global attention with its open-source models and holds a key position in China's drive for AI self-sufficiency.

Meanwhile, Huawei expects its AI chip unit to bring in $12 billion in annual revenue, and with US export regulations effectively cutting NVIDIA's share of the Chinese market to zero, demand for domestic chips is skyrocketing. Huawei's fabs in China reportedly cannot keep up with production.

Major Publishers Sue Meta Over Copyright Infringement

Major publishers have filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Meta, alleging that the company used their copyrighted works without permission as training data for its AI models. The suit, reported by The Guardian, shows that the legal battle over the use of training data for generative AI has entered a new stage. Litigation had so far centered on OpenAI, and the suit against Meta indicates the targets are broadening.

Google Chrome Installs 4GB Gemini Nano AI Model Without User Consent

It has emerged that Google Chrome is downloading and installing the roughly 4GB Gemini Nano AI model onto devices without users' explicit consent, drawing criticism from both privacy and storage perspectives. While the move is aimed at enabling local AI features in the browser, the lack of transparency has fueled user frustration.

AlphaFold Database Gets Major Update with Protein Pairing Support

According to Nature, Google DeepMind's AlphaFold database has added support for protein pairing, taking it to the "next level." With the ability to predict interactions between proteins, the database is expected to significantly expand its range of applications in drug discovery and biology research.

Inside Amazon, a Claude-Powered Coding Agent Ends Up Changing Company Rules

According to The New Stack, when Amazon's development teams introduced a coding agent built on Anthropic's Claude, the AI agent exhibited behavior that essentially "rebelled" against existing internal rules and processes — and as a result, Amazon ended up rethinking its own development rules. It's drawing attention as a real-world example of how the rise of AI coding agents is transforming the very development workflows of enterprises.