EU Allocates €1.3B for AI in Europe, SoftBank Eyes $1T Industrial Parks, as AI Systems Take the Helm of Innovation
Artificial Intelligence news nº 64/2025
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News 🗞️📰
Commission to Invest €1.3 Billion in AI, Cybersecurity, and Digital Skills: The EU Commission will allocate €1.3 billion under the Digital Europe Programme (2025-2027) to drive tech sovereignty in Europe by boosting AI deployment, cyber resilience, and digital skills through initiatives like AI Factories, Digital Innovation Hubs, and enhanced public digital services.
SoftBank Eyes $1 Trillion Investment for AI Industrial Parks in the US: SoftBank, led by CEO Masayoshi Son, is reportedly planning a massive investment to build AI-equipped industrial parks across the United States. This ambitious project aims to address automation demand and labor shortages by deploying AI-driven robotics, reinforcing American manufacturing competitiveness.
H&M to Use AI-Generated Digital Twins of Models for Marketing: H&M will create digital replicas of 30 models for use in social media and advertising. Models keep rights and receive fair compensation, but critics warn this could impact jobs on photoshoot sets.
Amazon Nova Act Unleashes Reliable Browser-Based AI Agents for Seamless Task Automation: Amazon AGI introduces a research preview SDK that empowers developers to build dependable AI agents for executing multi-step web tasks. The model excels in UI interactions and streamlines automation, making it easier to integrate autonomous agents into digital workflows. Explore it at nova.amazon.com.
AI Empowers Mining Companies to Discover Hidden Mineral Deposits: Earth AI leverages advanced algorithms to analyze overlooked geological data in Australia, uncovering promising deposits of critical minerals and revolutionizing resource exploration for the mining industry.
Runway Unveils Gen-4: Pioneering Consistency in AI-Powered Video Generation: Runway, backed by Salesforce, Google, and Nvidia, launches Gen-4—a next-generation video generator that ensures consistent characters, scenes, and dynamic motion across outputs. With a major Hollywood studio deal and ambitions toward a $4B valuation, the company is poised to reshape the film and TV industry, despite looming legal challenges over training data
OpenAI Seeks Community Input for Its First Open Language Model Since GPT‑2: OpenAI is gearing up to release its new open language model and invites developers, researchers, and enthusiasts to join feedback sessions to help shape its capabilities and utility.
When AI Builds AI, the Next Great Inventors May Not Be Human: AI systems are now self-improving—using synthetic data, model distillation, and machine-driven reinforcement learning to rapidly build and optimize their successors. With projects like Google's co-scientist model and Sakana AI’s automated CUDA engineer, the innovation process is shifting, hinting at a future where breakthrough inventions may come from AI rather than humans.
Brain Implant ‘Streams’ a Paralyzed Woman’s Thoughts in Near Real Time: A breakthrough streaming neuroprosthetic uses a wafer-thin implant and advanced AI to translate a paralyzed woman's brain signals into text and her own synthesized voice in under a second, restoring near-natural conversational ability and transforming communication for those with paralysis.
Amazon’s AI ‘Interests’ Feature Transforms Personalized Shopping: Leveraging generative AI, this new tool automatically scans Amazon’s vast inventory to deliver product recommendations that match your unique passions—streamlining discovery and keeping you updated on the latest items that fit your detailed interests.
Funding 💼💸
Google DeepMind’s Isomorphic Labs Secures $600mn to Accelerate AI-Driven Drug Discovery: Isomorphic Labs, the London-based drug discovery startup spun out of DeepMind and led by Sir Demis Hassabis, has raised $600mn in its first external funding round. The round was led by Thrive Capital, with participation from GV and additional investment from Alphabet, which remains the majority shareholder.
Yutori Secures $15M to Launch Autonomous AI Personal Assistants: Founded by former Meta AI executives including Devi Parikh, Abhishek Das, and Dhruv Batra, Yutori develops autonomous AI personal assistants for digital task execution. The $15M round, led by Rob Toews of Radical Ventures, saw participation from Felicis Ventures, Jeff Dean, and Fei-Fei Li, accelerating their agent-first web strategy.
Novarc Secures $50 Million Series B for AI-Driven Robotic Welding Innovations: Novarc Technologies, an AI robotics startup revolutionizing welding with its adaptive NovAI system, raised $50M led by Export Development Canada, with participation from Graham Partners, Seaspan, and InBC Investment, to accelerate R&D and expand market presence.
OpusClip Raises $20 Million to Democratize AI Video Editing: OpusClip, the generative AI platform transforming long-form videos into viral clips through smart AI clipping, editing, and search, secures $20M from SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and partners to expand its innovative suite and support over 10 million creators worldwide.
Worth Raises $25 Million to Revolutionize Underwriting Automation: Worth, an all-in-one fintech platform for onboarding and underwriting workflow automation, secured $25M led by TTV Capital. Its AI-driven solution streamlines risk management, accelerates decision-making, and enhances customer onboarding for leading financial institutions.
Sturdy.ai Secures $6M Seed Funding to Advance AI-Driven Revenue Threat Detection: Sturdy.ai, a leader in AI-powered customer intelligence, has raised $6M in a Series Seed round led by Voyager Capital, with participation from Fortson VC and Grotech Ventures. The platform performs real-time revenue threat root cause analysis across customer-facing channels, empowering teams to proactively mitigate churn and unlock new revenue opportunities. CEO Steve Hazelton emphasizes its role in unifying disparate customer data to drive actionable insights.
Island Raises $250M in Series E, Nearing $5B Valuation: Island, an enterprise browser company, has raised $250M in its Series E round led by Coatue Management, boosting its valuation to nearly $5B. With 450 customers and rapid ARR growth, Island’s secure, productivity-enhancing browser is redefining IT modernization for organizations of all sizes.
M&A 💰
Nvidia Acquires Synthetic Data Startup Gretel to Accelerate AI Model Training: Nvidia reportedly acquired Gretel for a nine-figure sum, integrating its synthetic data platform into Nvidia's generative AI services. Gretel's technology fine-tunes and packages models to overcome data shortages, positioning Nvidia to compete with tech giants already leveraging synthetic data.
Qualcomm Acquires MovianAI to Boost Its AI Innovation: Qualcomm has acquired MovianAI—the generative AI arm of VinAI from Vingroup—to enhance its suite of AI development tools and leverage innovative machine learning techniques across industries like smartphones, PCs, and software-defined vehicles.
Veltris Acquires BPK Technologies to Enhance Digital & AI Capabilities in Healthcare: Veltris, backed by Trive Capital and BayLink Capital, expands its digital engineering and data/AI expertise with the acquisition of BPK Technologies, reinforcing its strategic focus on Vertical SaaS and transformative solutions in the healthcare sector and adjacent industries.
DataArt Acquires ACL Tech to Expand Global IT Services in Latin America: New York-based DataArt has acquired Chile-based ACL Tech, a seasoned IT services provider serving financial and retail sectors across Latin America and the US. The deal, which closed on March 26, brings over 500 new team members with deep regional expertise and reinforces DataArt’s commitment to being a global IT services partner with a people-focused approach.
Nvidia Eyes Acquisition of Lepton AI to Enter Server Rental Market: Nvidia is reportedly nearing a deal valued at several hundred million dollars to acquire Lepton AI, a startup renting out servers powered by Nvidia's AI chips. This move would mark Nvidia's strategic entry into the server rental arena, further expanding its AI footprint.
Interesting Reads 💡🤔
5 ChatGPT Deep Research Workflows to Save Time & Money: Julian Horsey's guide outlines five innovative workflows that leverage ChatGPT's deep research capabilities—from building centralized intelligence databases to simulating customer interactions—helping professionals streamline tasks, make data-driven decisions, and boost productivity.
Vibe Coding: Your First Steps to AI-Driven Software Development: Explore how AI-powered vibe coding simplifies code generation, fosters creativity, and lowers technical barriers for beginners and pros alike, with essential tools, best practices, and community support to turn your ideas into reality.
RIP to RPA: The Rise of Intelligent Automation: Kimberly Tan highlights how generative AI is revolutionizing internal operations by replacing traditional RPA bots with adaptable AI agents. This shift enables the automation of complex, routine tasks, unlocking vast market potential for both horizontal enablers and vertical solutions.
How to Integrate AI Agents to Accelerate Business Value: The article introduces the Discover, Decide, Deliver framework, guiding leaders on embedding agentic AI across workflows to speed up decision-making, streamline operations, and rapidly deliver outcomes by seamlessly aligning digital processes with physical execution.
Generative AI Is Revolutionizing SEO – Adapt Now to Stay Ahead: Traditional SEO tactics are being upended by AI-driven content creation and personalized search. Marketers must blend AI efficiency with human creativity to optimize performance, authenticity, and ROI in this new landscape.
How Technology Has Transformed Private Espionage: AI and Open Data Empower Private Intelligence: In today’s digital age, AI-driven tools and vast open-source data have revolutionized private espionage, enabling vendors to outpace government agencies in risk profiling, real-time analysis, and actionable insights for global corporate security.
How to Use Claude to Create a Virtual Assistant in Under 10 Minutes: Kieran Flanagan’s guide shows you how to set up a virtual executive assistant with Claude’s Projects feature, streamlining tasks like meeting analysis, action item tracking, and follow-up messaging for enhanced productivity
Generative AI Adoption in Enterprises: A comprehensive survey report by Writer and Workplace Intelligence reveals high optimism for AI transformation despite challenges like internal silos, power struggles, and delayed ROI. It emphasizes the need for formal AI strategies, empowered AI champions, and reliable vendor partnerships to drive meaningful enterprise change.
The Next 10 Years Will Be About the AI Agent Economy: Gigi Levy-Weiss explains that AI agents will soon transform how businesses operate, turning software into on-demand services via agent marketplaces. He highlights a horizontal approach for SMBs, where cost-effective, scalable AI solutions democratize access to expert services and drive a winner-take-all market.
Will LLMs Lead to AGI? An Excerpt from Dwarkesh Patel’s The Scaling Era: Dwarkesh Patel explores the unpredictable evolution of LLMs—from their multitasking prowess and creative quirks to the massive global investments fueling their advancement. The piece questions whether these models will eventually achieve general intelligence, raising both hopes and concerns about their transformative impact on society.
Hebbia’s Matrix Revolutionizes Financial & Legal Research: Hebbia’s multi-agent platform leverages OpenAI’s models to automate 90% of complex financial and legal workflows. By orchestrating multiple AI agents, it boosts research accuracy to 92% and drastically reduces manual review time, empowering professionals to gain deeper insights and faster decisions.
Startups / Tools 🧰🛠️
Mirai: Mirai is an online application that harnesses on-device AI to enhance decision-making and user experiences. Developed by innovators with a proven track record in scalable AI solutions, it reduces latency, lowers costs, and maintains privacy by processing data directly on your device.
Anyword: Anyword enhances any AI model by integrating A/B-tested data at every generation step, delivering a 30% lift in business outcomes and empowering marketers with data-driven, high-performance content.
Scene: Scene is a smart, single-canvas platform that revolutionizes website creation by integrating prompt-based design, drag & drop blocks, and seamless collaboration—all in one place for faster, cost-effective web development.
Clockwise: Clockwise is an AI-powered calendar assistant that streamlines meeting scheduling, rescheduling, and availability sharing—all with a single click, transforming chaotic calendars into perfectly optimized schedules for teams and individuals.
AImReply: AImReply leverages advanced AI to simplify email drafting with customizable tone, real-time editing, and multi-language support, streamlining communications for businesses and personal use—all without any cost.
Pocketflow: Pocketflow is a resilient, modular platform that enables developers to build and maintain self-sustaining AI systems. Its open-source LLM framework supports LLM-powered programming, hosted text-to-agent orchestration, and durable task execution for reliable, scalable AI workflows.
PredisAI: Predis AI ad generator automates video ads, social posts, and product creatives, delivering a 40% cost savings and reducing production time by 70%.
Simplescrapper: A versatile tool for developers and no-coders, Simplescrapper makes web scraping effortless with one-click extraction, API integration, and AI-powered insights. Seamlessly export data to Google Sheets, Airtable, Zapier, and more, while automating tasks at scale with deep scraping, scheduling, and dynamic page support
NTV Highlights 🪩🎉
We are actively looking for AI startups
At Next Tier Ventures, we are actively looking for the next generation of AI startup founders ready to scale and create meaningful impact. Our investments range between $500K and $2M, accompanied by strategic support to help founders achieve their vision.
If you’re building cutting-edge B2B AI solutions let’s connect 👉
http://apply.nexttier.vc
We participated in the Business Digitalization Fair of the Canary Islands, Digeon Canarias 2025, in a presentation titled "Innovate, no matter what: where to invest in AI to lead tomorrow."
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