The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) issued a warning on Sunday about the possibility of an AI investment bubble bursting, which could disrupt credit markets as severely as the 2008 financial crisis. In its annual report, the Basel-based BIS identified risks driven by AI alongside inflation and fiscal pressures as significant challenges requiring close attention. The report highlights that disappointing returns on AI investments might lead to a sharp market pullback, causing broad financial instability.
California Governor Gavin Newsom and leading Democratic lawmakers have finalized a $351.7 billion state budget that includes a new tax on prewritten software downloaded electronically. Starting in fiscal year 2028, this policy will generate an estimated $900 million in state revenue and $1.1 billion for local governments annually.
On Thursday, Micron Technology briefly overtook Meta and Tesla in market capitalization, closing the week at about $1.27 trillion. Over the past month, Micron's stock price skyrocketed by more than 236%, hitting $1,132 per share—a striking jump from its sub-$100 levels before mid-2025. This impressive growth followed outstanding third-quarter earnings, with revenue soaring to $41.45 billion, a fourfold increase from the previous year.
Firmus Technologies, an Australian AI infrastructure firm valued at $5.5 billion, is set to establish its inaugural data centre in Indonesia through an eight-year collaboration with Nvidia. The new 360-megawatt Nvidia DSX AI Factory campus will be located in Batam, near Singapore, and developed alongside Singapore's DayOne. This facility aims to enhance AI capabilities and is expected to commence operations soon.
Baidu’s AI chip division, Kunlunxin, aims to launch an IPO in Hong Kong with an estimated valuation of $50 billion, according to a report by The Information. Interestingly, the company has requested that potential IPO investors also agree to purchase its semiconductors. This unusual condition has drawn attention, although Reuters has not independently confirmed the details. The IPO represents a significant step for Kunlunxin as it seeks to expand its presence in the semiconductor market.
This week, two Asian AI companies launched new products aimed at filling the void left by Anthropic’s halted Mythos and Fable 5 models. Tokyo’s Sakana AI introduced Fugu, an orchestration model that claims to deliver performance comparable to Fable 5 on key benchmarks. Meanwhile, Beijing-based cybersecurity company 360 Security revealed Tulongfeng, a vulnerability detection tool designed to compete with Mythos. These launches mark a strategic move to offer alternatives following Anthropic's export restrictions.
Trustpilot has announced a partnership with Shopify that will enable merchants on the platform to showcase and manage Trustpilot reviews directly within their online stores. This integration, launching on June 29, marks Trustpilot's first native collaboration with a major ecommerce platform. The financial details of the agreement have not been shared. The move comes as AI search engines increasingly rely on authentic user reviews, making this partnership timely and strategic.
OpenAI has appointed Prabhjeet Singh, the outgoing president of Uber India and South Asia, as its first managing director for India. Singh, who will start in September, will report to Kiran Mani, OpenAI's managing director for Asia Pacific. He will be responsible for driving consumer growth, enterprise adoption, partnerships, regulatory affairs, and operations in India, OpenAI's biggest market outside the United States.
The AI sector, which heavily supported Donald Trump in the hope he would avoid regulating the technology, is now calling for clear and formal rules. According to Politico, executives from leading AI firms have expressed frustration with the Trump administration's inconsistent oversight, suggesting it may be causing more harm than the current Biden administration's approach. This evolving stance highlights the industry's urgent need for structured governance.
After reducing its total staff by 1,100 jobs in May, Cloudflare’s engineering team experienced a significant growth of 45 percent, increasing from 1,308 to 1,894 members. This trend was identified through BNP Paribas data based on LinkedIn profiles and confirmed by CEO Matthew Prince. Despite an overall workforce reduction of 20 percent, the company’s focus on strengthening its engineering capabilities suggests a strategic shift. The CEO also indicated that this pattern of downsizing combined with targeted engineering growth is likely to occur across the industry.
