OpenAI announces new o3 model — but you can't use it yet ...
Welcome back to Week in Review. This week, we’re looking at OpenAI’s last — and biggest — announcement from its “12 Days of OpenAI” event; Apple’s potential entrance into the foldable market; and why Databricks is choosing to wait to go public. Let’s get into it.
OpenAI's Latest Announcement
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced the successors to its o1 reasoning model family: o3 and o3-mini. While the models are not widely available yet, safety researchers can sign up for a preview. The reveal marks the end of the company’s “12 Days of OpenAI” event, which saw announcements for real-time vision capabilities, ChatGPT Search, and even a Santa voice for ChatGPT.
Meta's Smart Glasses Upgrade
The Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses got a big upgrade this week. Members of Meta’s early-access program can now download firmware v11, which adds “live AI.” The feature lets wearers continuously converse with Meta AI to reference things they discussed earlier in the conversation — and it works with real-time video. Live translation between English and Spanish, French, or Italian, as well as functionality with Shazam are also included in v11.
AI Chatbot Exposed
UnitedHealth’s Optum left an AI chatbot, used by employees to ask questions about claims, exposed to the internet — and anyone could access it with a web browser. While the chatbot did not appear to contain or produce sensitive personal or protected health information, its inadvertent exposure comes at a time when its parent company faces scrutiny for its use of AI tools and algorithms.
Other Tech News Highlights
Oura nabs $200M: The smart ring maker closed a $200 million Series D funding round, bringing the company’s valuation to $5.2 billion. Oura says the cash will help the company expand its product offerings and further invest in product, science, AI, and more. Read more
You can now call ChatGPT from a landline: OpenAI announced a 1-800 number to call the chatbot — even from a landline or a flip phone. Users can call 1-800-CHATGPT, and the AI assistant will respond through the phone. Read more
Tesla tries to boost Model S sales: Tesla is bringing back its free Supercharging for some Tesla Model S cars at the end of the year. But it’s important to note that Tesla also just increased the price for the Model S by $5,000. Read more
For more tech news, visit TechCrunch.
