Project Stargate sparks reactions from Microsoft, Meta CEOs

All I Know is I’m Good for My $80 Billion

Rarely does a one-liner so perfectly capture the state of the moment. Here, you have Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella saying he’s "not in the details" about Stargate, the supposedly multi-hundred-billion AI infrastructure project driven by his marquee investment, OpenAI.

Nadella not being read in on the nebulous details of Stargate says a lot about how much Microsoft and OpenAI have drifted apart. Microsoft is mentioned in the Stargate press release since OpenAI’s models are still exclusive to Azure. But the most striking aspect of Stargate is not that the money isn’t there for it yet; it’s that OpenAI’s biggest backer has decided to not participate in what Sam Altman is calling "the most important project of this era." As Nadella made clear on CNBC this week, he’s running his own, $80 billion AI infrastructure buildout and, going forward, OpenAI can get additional compute — with his blessing — elsewhere.

AMA with spez

Few companies had as good of a 2024 as Reddit. Since going public last March, the company’s stock has soared 300 percent, giving the social network a valuation of $32 billion.

It’s an about-face from where Reddit was before going public. I think that detour through questioning and relitigating core values of America, hopefully that era is coming to a close.

Are people playing politics? Of course, people always are. On the topic of moderation, we always just try to do things the right way, which, not coincidentally, are aligned with American values. It’s a Democratic platform. We believe very much in the power of people and the wisdom of crowds and voting processes. That is Reddit. So I’m glad to see a return to where we have been most of my life, which is an appreciation for free speech.

Elsewhere

• Competitors pounce on TikTok: With TikTok no longer available in US app stores and its in-app functionality technically constrained, everyone is doing their damndest to take advantage of the situation. Meta pre-announced its Capcut competitor and is trying to lure creators away with cash. Substack, Bluesky, and X are all making moves to encourage more video consumption. Meanwhile, President Trump says he’s OK with Elon Musk or Larry Ellison buying it. ByteDance is saying it wants to do a deal but seems increasingly backed into a corner. Ellison may have the guarantee that Oracle won’t be fined out of existence for violating the law right now, but Apple and Google have shown they are going to follow the letter of the law. With TikTok still not available to download in the US, its competitive threat to Meta, YouTube, and others decreases every day.
• Trump gets to work for Big Tech: Why are Zuckerberg and other CEOs bending the knee? Look no farther than the comments the president made at the World Economic Forum this week, where he trashed the EU’s Digital Markets and Services Acts as a form of "taxation." This kind of push back is exactly what Meta and other US companies have been praying for. We’ll see if it works for them.
• More headlines: OpenAI released its AI agent called "Operator" for pro-tier subscribers… Musk told X employees that "user growth is stagnant, revenue is unimpressive, and we’re barely breaking even"…. Apple reorged again as it plays catch-up in AI… Google is putting another $1 billion into Google Cloud via Anthropic and acquired part of HTC’s Vive team to beef up its Android XR efforts (yes, get ready for the return of Glass)… Epic Games gave an update on its push to compete with Roblox… Meta made a rare investment in Databricks.

More links

• What led to the DOGE falling out between Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk.
• A profile of DeepSeek, the Chinese firm that has a bunch of CEOs worried about how much they’re spending on models.
• Dan Shipper’s hands-on experience using OpenAI’s Operator agent.
• The "Humanity’s Last Exam" AI dataset.
• Brian Armstrong’s takeaways from Davos.
• A whistleblower is claiming Amazon’s $400 million deal for most of Covariant AI was a "reverse acquihire" designed to avoid antitrust scrutiny.
• Nvidia is the top tech company in Glassdoor’s latest list of the top places to work.
• The rise of the MAGA-bro podcast.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the article highlights the shift in the AI landscape, with Microsoft and OpenAI drifting apart, and Nadella’s $80 billion AI infrastructure buildout. It also touches on the competition between tech giants, the impact of Trump’s comments on Big Tech, and the rise of new AI agents and datasets.

FAQs

Q: What is Stargate?
A: Stargate is a supposedly multi-hundred-billion AI infrastructure project driven by OpenAI.

Q: Why is Microsoft not participating in Stargate?
A: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has decided to run his own, $80 billion AI infrastructure buildout and will not participate in Stargate.

Q: What is the significance of Nadella’s $80 billion AI infrastructure buildout?
A: It shows that Microsoft is not dependent on OpenAI for its AI infrastructure and can continue to invest in its own buildout.

Q: What is the impact of Trump’s comments on Big Tech?
A: Trump’s comments have given Big Tech a push back against the EU’s Digital Markets and Services Acts, which they see as a form of "taxation."