One AI, one startup and one sustainability subjects make up this week’s stories
1-Ex-OpenAI co-founder Sutskever’s new startup, SSI, raised $1 billion
Safe Superintelligence (SSI), recently co-founded by OpenAI’s former chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, raised $1 billion, according to Reuters. Here’s what we know so far: The startup has 10 people, planning to use the funds to acquire computing power and hire top level employees. It will focus on building a small highly trusted team of researchers and engineers split between Palo Alto, California and Tel Aviv, Israel, the story said.
The company rejected to disclose its valuation, but it was valued at $5 billion, per the sources close to the matter. As for the investors, top VCs including Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, DST Global and SV Angel provided the funding, as well as NFDG, an investment partnership run by Nat Friedman and SSI’s Chief Executive Daniel Gross was a part of the round.
AI safety refers to preventing AI from causing harm is a hot subject in the midst of fears that rogue AI could act against the interests of humanity or even cause human extinction.
2- Clearview AI, U.S.-based facial recognition startup, hit $34m penalty in Netherlands
Dutch Data Protection Authority (DPA) imposed a penalty of $34 million on Clearview AI, a U.S.-based facial recognition startup. I saw this story at The Next Web and the reason for the penalty was that Clearview doesn’t comply with the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) after confirming the database contains images of Dutch citizens. Let me note that the startup has a database of 30 billion images, generated by scraping the internet for people’s selfies without their consent.
Here is a background to the story: DPA started investigating Clearview AI in March 2023 following receiving complaints from three people related to the company’s failure to comply with data access requests. Let me emphasize that GDPR provides EU residents a couple of rights related to their personal data, including the right to request a copy of their data or have it deleted. Following investigation, the DPA found out that photos of Dutch people are in the database, causing Clearview is accountable for two GDPR breaches.
The first one is the collection and use of photos, which means the company built a database with photos, the unique biometric codes, and other information linked to people.
The second is the lack of transparency. According to the DPA, the startup doesn’t offer sufficient information to individuals whose photos are used, nor does it provide access to which data the company has about them, the story added.
Here is the opinion of Clearview, received by TNW: “A Clearview public relations spokesperson emailed TNW a written statement from the startup’s Chief Legal Officer, Jack Mulcaire. Clearview AI does not have a place of business in the Netherlands or the EU, it does not have any customers in the Netherlands or the EU, and does not undertake any activities that would otherwise mean it is subject to the GDPR.”
3-Facebook signs geothermal deal for data centers
Facebook and Sage Geosystems announced at a Department of Energy workshop for accelerating the next generation of geothermal development. I saw this story at ESG Dive and the first phase of the project is expected to be operational and online in 2027, according to the story. The deal is to supply Meta’s operations with up to 150 megawatts of new geothermal power, per Sage Geosystems CEO Cindy Taff.
This marks Facebook’s first geothermal deal, and it is the first use of next-gen geothermal power east of the Rocky Mountains. (By the way I have a story here about Nivogo, a Turkish startup in circular economy)
