Nvidia surpasses Apple to become the world’s most valuable company

Pivot 5: 5 stories. 5 minutes a day. 5 days a week.

1. Nvidia surpasses Apple to become the world’s most valuable company

Global markets show resilience as US election results approach, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average increasing over 400 points and NVIDIA overtaking Apple as the world's most valuable company.

Key Chinese stocks performed well, with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and XPeng rising by 2.2% and 6.1% respectively. Commodities like US WTI crude oil prices rose by 0.7% and gold saw an increase of over 0.2%. The Bank of Canada expressed concerns over potential misinterpretation of rate cuts. Companies like NVIDIA and Apple faced issues, while Meta Platforms faced a fine in South Korea.

Read the full story here

2. Google accidentally leaked a preview of its Jarvis AI that can take over computers

Google's new AI prototype, Jarvis, has been released to the public through the Chrome Web Store. The prototype is described as a "helpful companion that surfs the web for you" through web browsers to perform common tasks like buying groceries, booking flights, and researching topics.

Jarvis can take control of a computer to complete these tasks without manual human input. However, access permissions prevented the app from performing any functions. Google removed Jarvis' store page before its planned reveal in December. Jarvis faces competition from Anthropic's Claude AI assistant, which can perform more than basic functions through a web browser.

Read the full story here

3. Microsoft is bundling its AI-powered Office features into Microsoft 365 subscriptions

Microsoft has resisted charging Microsoft 365 Personal and Home subscribers an additional $20 per month for access to AI-powered Office features. The company has made Copilot Pro features part of its subscriptions in select markets, including Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand. Microsoft also added its Microsoft Designer app to these subscriptions.

The subscriptions will receive AI credits to use Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, and Designer. However, only the subscription owner will have access to Copilot. The price increases vary across these markets, with some subscribers receiving more for their monthly subscription.

Read the full story here

4. Mistral launches a moderation API

AI startup Mistral has launched a new API for content moderation, powered by a fine-tuned model that can be tailored to specific applications and safety standards. The API can be applied to raw or conversational text and can be used to classify text into nine categories: sexual, hate and discrimination, violence and threats, dangerous and criminal content, self-harm, health, financial, law, and personally identifiable information.

Mistral claims its moderation model is highly accurate but admits it's a work in progress. The company is working with customers to build and share scalable, lightweight, and customizable moderation tooling and will continue to engage with the research community to contribute safety advancements to the broader field.

Read the full story here

5. Microsoft Outlook now lets you create personalized AI-powered themes

Microsoft has introduced a new feature in Outlook that allows users to use generative AI to create themes based on their personal preferences. These AI-powered themes are available to those with a Copilot Pro subscription and business accounts with Copilot enabled. Users can create themes inspired by over 100 locations or their own location, and can choose to have them dynamically update. Themes can be viewed in realistic, oil painting, or cartoon styles.

The new AI capability allows users to personalize the email service, similar to how they would personalize their desk with artwork or candles. This comes after Microsoft introduced AI-powered features to Notepad and Paint, including a "Rewrite" tool and new AI image editing tools.

Read the full story here