Catégorie : Business News

• OpenAI’s marketing campaign called « Shipmas » is underway.
• The campaign is set to include 12 days of product releases, demos, and new features.
• On the first day, OpenAI released an updated version of o1 and ChatGPT Pro.

OpenAI is releasing new features and products ahead of the holidays.

Fans had hoped the 12-day campaign, which OpenAI is calling « Shipmas, » would include an update of its text-to-video AI tool, Sora, as well as other updates to its ChatGPT and o1 models.

OpenAI hinted at its plans Wednesday in a post on X, saying: « 12 days. 12 livestreams. A bunch of new things, big and small. 12 Days of OpenAI starts tomorrow. »

CEO Sam Altman also alluded to the campaign Wednesday at The New York Times’ DealBook Summit. « We have a bunch of new, great stuff. We’re doing this kind of fun thing for the holidays. We’re doing 12 days of OpenAI, » he said. « We’ll either launch something or do a demo every day for the next 12 weekdays. »

Here’s everything OpenAI has released so far for « Shipmas. »

‘Shipmas’ Day 1

OpenAI started the promotion with a bang by releasing the full version of its latest reasoning model, o1.

OpenAI previewed o1 in September, describing it as a series of artificial-intelligence models « designed to spend more time thinking before they respond. » Until now, only a limited version of these models was available to ChatGPT Plus and Team users.

Now, these users have access to the full capabilities of o1 models, which Altman said are faster, smarter, and easier to use than the preview. They’re also multimodal, which means they can process images and texts jointly.

Max Schwarzer, a researcher at OpenAI, said the full version of o1 was updated based on user feedback from the preview version and said it’s now more intelligent and accurate.

« We ran a pretty detailed suite of human evaluations for this model, and what we found was that it made major mistakes about 34% less often than o1 preview while thinking fully about 50% faster, » he said.

Along with o1, OpenAI unveiled a new tier of ChatGPT called ChatGPT Pro. It’s priced at $200 a month and includes unlimited access to the latest version of o1.

‘Shipmas’ Day 2

On Friday, OpenAI previewed an advancement that allows users to fine-tune o1 on their own datasets. Users can now leverage OpenAI’s reinforcement-learning algorithms — which mimic the human trial-and-error learning process — to customize their own models.

The technology will be available to the public next year, allowing anyone from machine-learning engineers to genetic researchers to create domain-specific AI models. OpenAI has already partnered with the Reuters news agency to develop a legal assistant based on o1-mini. It has also partnered with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory to develop computational methods for assessing rare genetic diseases.

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‘Shipmas’ Day 3

screenshot/OpenAI

OpenAI announced on December 9 that its AI video generator Sora was launching to the public.

Sora can generate up to 20-second videos from written instructions. The tool can also complete a scene and extend existing videos by filling in missing frames.

« We want our AIs to be able to understand video and generate video and I think it really will deeply change the way that we use computers, » the CEO added.

Rohan Sahai, Sora’s product lead, said a product team of about five or six engineers built the product in months.

The company showed off the new product and its various features, including the Explore page, which is a feed of videos shared by the community. It also showed various style presets available like pastel symmetry, film noir, and balloon world.

screenshot/OpenAI

The team also gave a demo of Sora’s Storyboard feature, which lets users organize and edit sequences on a timeline.

Sora is rolling out to the public in the US and many countries around the world. However, Altman said it will be « a while » before the tool rolls out in the UK and most of Europe.

ChatGPT Plus subscribers who pay $20 monthly can get up to 50 generations per month of AI videos that are 5 seconds long with a resolution of 720p. ChatGPT Pro users who pay $200 a month get unlimited generations in the slow queue mode and 500 faster generations, Altman said in the demo. Pro users can generate up to 20-second long videos that are 1080p resolution, without watermarks.

‘Shipmas’ Day 4

OpenAI

OpenAI announced that it’s bringing its collaborative canvas tool to all ChatGPT web users — with some updates.

The company demonstrated the tech in a holiday-themed walkthrough of some of its new capabilities. Canvas is an interface that turns ChatGPT into a writing or coding assistant on a project. OpenAI first launched it to ChatGPT Plus and Team users in October.

Starting Tuesday, canvas will be available to free web users who’ll be able to select the tool from a drop-down of options on ChatGPT. The chatbot can load large bodies of text into the separate canvas window that appears next to the ongoing conversation thread.

Canvas can get even more intuitive in its responses with new updates, OpenAI said. To demonstrate, they uploaded an essay about Santa Claus’s sleigh and asked ChatGPT to give its editing notes from the perspective of a physics professor.

For writers, it can craft entire bodies of text, make changes based on requests, and add emojis. Coders can run code in canvas to double-check that it’s working properly.

‘Shipmas’ Day 5

OpenAI ‘Shipmas’ Day 5

OpenAI talked about its integration with Apple for the iPhone, iPad, and macOS.

As part of the iOS 18.2 software update, Apple users can now access ChatGPT directly from Apple’s operating systems without an OpenAI account. This new integration allows users to consult ChatGPT through Siri, especially for more complex questions.

They can also use ChatGPT to generate text through Apple’s generative AI features, collectively called Apple Intelligence. The first of these features was introduced in October and included tools for proofreading and rewriting text, summarizing messages, and photo-editing features. They can also access ChatGPT through the camera control feature on the iPhone 16 to learn more about objects within the camera’s view.

‘Shipmas’ Day 6

screenshot/OpenAI

OpenAI launched its highly anticipated video and screensharing capabilities in ChatGPT’s Advanced Voice Mode.

The company originally teased the public with a glimpse of the chatbot’s ability to « reason across » vision along with text and audio during OpenAI’s Spring Update in May. However, Advanced Voice Mode didn’t become available for users until September, and the video capabilities didn’t start rolling out until December 12.

In the livestream demonstration on Thursday, ChatGPT helped guide an OpenAI employee through making pour-over coffee. The chatbot gave him feedback on his technique and answered questions about the process. During the Spring Update, OpenAI employees showed off the chatbot’s ability to act as a math tutor and interpret emotions based on facial expressions.

Users can access the live video by selecting the Advanced Voice Mode icon in the ChatGPT app and then choosing the video button on the bottom-left of the screen. Users can share their screen with ChatGPT by hitting the drop-down menu and selecting « Share Screen. »

‘Shipmas’ Day 7

screenshot/OpenAI

For « Shipmas » Day 7, OpenAI introduced Projects, a new way for users to « organize and customize » conversations within ChatGPT. The tool allows users to upload files and notes, store chats, and create custom instructions.

« This has been something we’ve been hearing from you for a while that you really want to see inside ChatGPT, » OpenAI chief product officer Kevin Weil said. « So we can’t wait to see what you do with it. »

During the live stream demonstration, OpenAI employees showed a number of ways to use the feature, including organizing work presentations, home maintenance tasks, and programming.

The tool started to roll out to Plus, Pro, and Teams users on Friday. The company said in the demonstration it will roll out the tool to free users « as soon as possible. »

• I spent almost $150 to try a range of dishes at Cuts steakhouse in Atlanta while dining alone.
• I loved my steak, rolls, and appetizer, but some of the side dishes were underwhelming.
• The excellent service was a highlight of the visit, and I wish I had a Cuts location back home.

While in Atlanta for a conference, I knew I wanted to check out a Southern-style steakhouse.

I was visiting from New York City and love a good steak, so I was hoping to find something I couldn’t get back home.

Eventually, I settled on Cuts, a steakhouse and bar known for pairing « fine dining with authentic Southern flavor. » OpenTable even has it listed as the best steakhouse in Atlanta, based on its user-submitted reviews.

Cuts has two locations in Georgia and I visited the one in downtown Atlanta. I had no trouble getting a last-minute reservation for one on a Saturday evening.

Here’s what my dining experience at Cuts was like.

• My family tried and ranked plain Greek yogurt from four grocery stores.
• My daughter and I thought Trader Joe’s Greek nonfat yogurt had an odd flavor.
• The organic plain nonfat Greek yogurt from Wegmans was our winner.

My family consumes a lot of Greek yogurt — most brands are low in carbs, high in protein, and contain probiotics. Plus, it serves as a filling breakfast or snack for my daughter.

Though many brands offer Greek-style varieties, I find they’re often twice the price of standard plain yogurt. So, to see which Greek yogurt is the best value, I tried store-brand versions from Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Costco, and Wegmans.

I bought the most basic plain Greek yogurt I could find at each store and sampled them without any toppings. All were nonfat except the 365 brand from Whole Foods, which contained 3.5% milk fat.

Here’s how the Greek yogurt stacked up, from worst to best.

• OpenAI launched its widely anticipated video feature for ChatGPT’s Advanced Voice Mode.
• It allows users to incorporate live video and screen sharing into conversations with ChatGPT.
• ChatGPT can interpret emotions, assist with homework, and provide real-time visual context.

ChatGPT’s Advanced Voice Mode can now help provide real-time design tips for your home, assistance with math homework, or instant replies to your texts from the Messages app.

After teasing the public with a glimpse of the chatbot’s ability to « reason across » vision along with text and audio during OpenAI’s Spring Update in May, the company finally launched the feature on Thursday as part of day six of OpenAI’s « Shipmas. »

« We are so excited to start the rollout of video and screen share in Advanced Voice today, » the company said in the livestream on Thursday. « We know this is a long time coming. »

OpenAI initially said the voice and video features would be rolling out in the weeks after its Spring Update. However, Advanced Voice Mode didn’t end up launching to users until September, and the video mode didn’t come out until this week.

The new capabilities help provide more depth in conversations with ChatGPT by adding « realtime visual context » with live video and screen sharing. Users can access the live video by selecting the Advanced Voice Mode icon in the ChatGPT app and then choosing the video button on the bottom far left.

OpenAI

In the livestream demonstration on Thursday, ChatGPT helped an OpenAI employee make pour-over coffee. The chatbot noticed details like what the employee was wearing and then walked him through the steps of making he drink, elaborating on certain parts of the process when asked. The chatbot also gave him feedback on his technique.

To share your screen with ChatGPT, hit the drop-down menu and select « Share Screen. » In the « Shipmas » demo, ChatGPT could identify that the user was in the Messages app, understand the message sent, and then help formulate a response after the user asked.

During the company’s Spring Update, OpenAI showed off some other uses of the video mode. The chatbot was able to interpret emotions based on facial expressions and also demonstrated its ability to act as a tutor. OpenAI Research Lead Barret Zoph walked through an equation on a whiteboard (3x+1=4) and ChatGPT provided him with hints to find the value of x.

The feature had a couple of stumbles during the Spring Update demonstration, like referring to one of the employees as a « wooden surface » or trying to solve a math problem before it was shown.

screenshot/ChatGPT

Now that it’s out, we decided to give the feature a whirl — and so far, it seems pretty impressive.

We showed the chatbot an office plant and asked it to tell us about it, give context on whether it’s healthy, and explain what the watering schedule should look like. The chatbot accurately described browning and drying on the leaf tips and identified it as an Aloe Vera plant, which seems to fit the right description.

The new video feature will be rolling out this week in the latest version of the ChatGPT mobile app to Team and most Plus and Pro users. The feature isn’t available in the EU, Switzerland, Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein yet, but OpenAI said it will be as soon as possible.

• I tried meatball recipes from Ina Garten, Ree Drummond, and Guy Fieri to see which was best.
• Fieri’s was simple, with few ingredients, and Garten’s meatballs surprisingly lacked flavor.
• Drummond’s classic recipe, which was my favorite, produced tender, springy meatballs.

Meatballs are a handy staple I like to whip out whenever I want something that’s not too difficult to prepare but still impressive for my audience (aka usually just my husband and myself).

Plus, they’re a great appetizer to quickly throw together for holiday gatherings.

On the hunt for tasty, tender meatballs that would lend themselves well to nearly any sauce, I tested recipes from Ina Garten, Ree Drummond, and Guy Fieri.

Here’s how they stacked up.

• Donald Trump is getting donations left and right from the biggest names in business.
• OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was the latest to give $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund.
• Tech leaders are angling to get or stay in his good graces and help shape his administration’s tech policy.

The latest business trend? Donating $1 million to Donald Trump’s inauguration.

Business leaders across industries are trying to get on the president-elect’s good side ahead of his return to the Oval Office, and some are breaking out their wallets — or their company’s — to do so.

The president-elect is receiving donations to his inaugural fund from the likes of Mark Zuckerberg through Meta, Jeff Bezos through Amazon, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.

Meta confirmed to BI earlier this week that it’s donating $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund. Amazon told the Financial Times it’s also giving $1 million to the fund and will also air the inauguration on Prime Video.

OpenAI’s Altman plans to kick in $1 million of his personal money to the inauguration fund, Fox News reported Friday, citing a source who works with Altman. Amazon and OpenAI did not immediately respond to requests for comment from BI.

Some of the tech leaders are trying to make peace with Trump after he repeatedly criticized them in his first four years at the White House and subsequently sued some of them. Trump has been vocal about wanting to go after Big Tech in his second term as well.

Trump’s victory in November set off a chorus of CEOs publicly congratulating him — as well as phone calls with the president-elect and trips to Mar-a-Lago.

Trump told CNBC on Thursday that Bezos would visit him « next week » for a dinner and The Information reported that Google CEO Sundar Pichai would also travel to meet with Trump. In its landmark antitrust case against Google, the Justice Department asked a judge to force Google to sell off Chrome, its web browser.

Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Zuckerberg and Trump shared dinner at Mar-a-Lago last month months after Trump had threatened to imprison Zuckerberg if re-elected. Meta’s president of global affairs, Nick Clegg, told reporters earlier this month that Zuckerberg « is very keen to play an active role » in Trump’s tech policymaking.

Other big names in business were in attendance to watch Trump ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday, the same day he was named TIME’s Person of the Year.

Onlookers reportedly included the likes of Pershing Square CEO Bill Ackman, Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser, Target CEO Brian Cornell, Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon, and Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg.

Dancers at the New York City Ballet go through about 7,000 pairs of pointe shoes each year. That’s because traditional pointe shoes break down after only a few wears.

All of them come from Freed of London, which has been one of the world’s leading ballet-shoe manufacturers for nearly 80 years.

We went behind the scenes with the New York City Ballet and Freed of London to see how pointe shoes became such a big business.

• Costco membership also gives shoppers access to the club’s travel deals.
• The company revealed its largest booking in the last year was a 150-day cruise around the world.
• CFO Gary Millerchip said the package cost $293,000 for two travelers and included $38,000 in credit.

A Costco member shelled out nearly $300,000 on an around-the-world cruise package purchased through the warehouse club.

Costco memberships are widely known for giving access to deals on items ranging from bulk toilet paper to gold bullion, but one occasionally overlooked perk is the club’s travel deals.

The company offers all sorts of travel services, including vacation packages, car rentals, cruises, hotels, and flights. In fact, CFO Gary Millerchip said members made enough car rentals last year to fill every US Costco parking spot more than eight times over.

Millerchip also called out the largest cruise booking for the year: « a 150-day around-the-world cruise, starting from Fort Lauderdale and making stops in places like the Galápagos and Easter Islands. »

The CFO said the journey cost $293,000 for two travelers in the ship’s owner’s suite and included $13,000 in shipboard credits, as well as a $25,000 Costco Shop card.

Lindsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Many offerings include a Shop card « as extra value for booking with Costco, » he said.

The company did not specify which cruise line, although several that it sells — such as Azamara, Cunard, Holland America, and Regent Seven Seas — offer annual world cruise itineraries.

Cunard and Holland America have departures from Fort Lauderdale, according to Costco’s travel site, and packages start at around $1,000 for a weeklong itinerary.

Many of these extended around-the-world voyages have been selling exceptionally well over the last few years — especially Regent Seven Seas.

The luxury cruise line’s 132-night 2024 global voyage sold out in less than three hours when bookings opened in 2021, a record for the company. A year later, the 150-night 2025 iteration (its longest yet) was again fully booked out before reservations could open to the public.

Organizations that have recently discovered generative AI are at risk of overlooking an older and better-established form of AI, which the authors call “analytical AI.” This form of AI is by no means obsolete and is still an important resource for the great majority of companies. While a few applications of AI employ both analytical and generative AI, the two AI approaches are largely separate. To make decisions about the relative importance and value of generative AI and analytical AI, organizations must first understand the differences between the two technologies, and the different benefits and risks associated with each. They can then make decisions about which to prioritize under what circumstances based on their strategies, business models, risk tolerance, and other situations. Without an understanding of their differences, however, organizations risk under-utilizing one or both types to transform their businesses.

• Taylor Swift has been making bold fashion statements for over a decade.
• For performances, the singer often wears sparkly rompers and sheer dresses.
• And on the red carpet, Swift isn’t afraid to wear gowns with plunging necklines or daring slits.

Over the past few years, Taylor Swift has solidified her status as a powerhouse in the music industry.

From her massive Eras Tour and accompanying film to her record-breaking fourth album of the year Grammy win, Swift’s influence is nearly unmatched following the release of her 11th studio album, « The Tortured Poets Department. »

Though music is her bread and butter, Swift also holds sway in the fashion world, helping small brands make massive sales simply by wearing one of their designs. 

Her style has changed throughout her decade-plus in the public eye, and she has been experimenting with daring fashion more and more often in recent years.

Take a look at some of her most daring looks to date.