😱Perplexity Declares War on Google

Today we will discuss:

• Perplexity CEO wants to dethrone Google—Aravind Srinivas is betting on AI-powered browsers and antitrust momentum to challenge Google’s long-standing control

• Don’t miss this week’s Workflow Wednesday—AI learning that sticks, sharpen your prompting skills with LearnPrompting.org, use Jenni AI as your research + writing assistant, and automate your AI-powered reading list with Notion, Zapier, and ChatGPT; now available at only $20/month! 

• Huawei targets Nvidia’s H100 with new AI chip—China’s semiconductor giant develops a powerful AI chip to rival Nvidia’s market leader

• In other AI news today—Elon Musk’s xAI seeks to raise $20 billion, Meta’s chatbots are allowed to engage in explicit conversations, DeepMind UK staff push to unionize over defense ties, and Meta’s AI models will be used by astronauts on the ISS for problem-solving

• Saved the best for last—8 must-try AI tools

Perplexity’s strategy to disrupt Google’s android monopoly and browser dominance

Key Points 

• Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas sees AI-powered browsers as the next major battleground and is betting they can challenge Google’s dominance in controlling how users access the web.

• Antitrust pressure on Google weakened its grip on Android phone makers, allowing Perplexity to secure partnerships that would have been impossible earlier.

♨️News - Aravind Srinivas, CEO of Perplexity AI, is challenging Google on two fronts: its dominance over the Android ecosystem and its control of the browsing experience.

While pushing for preinstallation deals on Android phones, Srinivas is preparing to launch Comet, a new AI-powered browser, next month. “A browser is essentially a containerized operating system,” he explained, arguing that it offers the best path to building autonomous AI agents capable of reasoning and acting across third-party services.

⚡Motorola deal marks a breakthrough - Perplexity recently scored a key win with Motorola, which will preload its app on the new Razr phones. Although the integration is not as deep as Srinivas had hoped, he sees it as a milestone made possible by the ongoing antitrust pressure on Google. "If Google had not gone through the DOJ trial, we would not have been able to make this partnership happen," he said. In the past, he explained, phone makers were often too concerned about upsetting Google to even consider new partnerships.

🥊Challenging the AI giants - While competitors like OpenAI and Google are also moving toward browser-based AI strategies, Perplexity is betting on user-side data and client-side reasoning. Srinivas believes that deeply personalized AI will depend on access to real-time user behavior, something browsers are uniquely positioned to capture.

👨‍💻Beyond the browser - When asked about the endgame, Srinivas made it clear that the browser was only the beginning. He sees more beyond that, with plans to build operating systems like Windows, Mac, Android, or iOS. While a browser is restricted and containerized, he believes the OS is where the ultimate opportunity lies.

Read the full story here. 

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Huawei’s new AI chip could be a key rival to Nvidia’s market leader

Key Points 

• Huawei’s Ascend 910D chip aims to rival Nvidia’s H100, boosting China’s AI capabilities despite US sanctions.

• Despite manufacturing challenges, Huawei is on track to ship over 800,000 AI chips this year.

☕News - Huawei Technologies is preparing to test its latest AI processor, the Ascend 910D, which it hopes will rival Nvidia's top-performing chips. 

This move signals the resilience of China’s semiconductor industry, even in the face of US efforts to curb its progress, including restrictions on access to critical Western chip-making technology.

💾A new chip on the block - The Ascend 910D is designed to challenge Nvidia’s H100, a key chip for AI training released in 2022. Huawei has integrated advanced packaging technologies, allowing the chip to combine multiple silicon dies for improved performance. However, the 910D is expected to be less energy-efficient than Nvidia’s H100, which could impact its competitiveness in certain markets.

🐲Strategic gains amid US sanctions - With the US government restricting Nvidia’s H20 chip sales to China, Huawei is poised to fill the gap. The company is preparing to ship over 800,000 Ascend 910B and 910C chips this year, with significant orders already coming from ByteDance and state-owned telecom firms. These restrictions have led some customers to increase their orders, seeing Huawei’s chips as a viable alternative.

🥸Ongoing challenges & strategic focus - Despite its progress, Huawei faces challenges in scaling production due to restrictions on advanced manufacturing facilities. However, the company continues to focus on improving system efficiency, working around limitations on creating more powerful individual chips.

Read the full story here.