Altman to Microsoft; AstraZeneca Embraces AI; Weight-loss Buzz

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OpenAI: Where Next?

Twitch co-founder Emmett Shear has taken over as CEO of OpenAI following Sam Altman’s ousting. Microsoft [MSFT] announced that Altman is to head its new in-house artificial intelligence (AI) team, where he will be joined by Greg Brockman, OpenAI co-founder. CEO Satya Nadella said Microsoft will “move quickly to provide them with the resources needed for their success”.

AstraZeneca Embraces AI

The pharma giant said on Monday that it has set up a health-tech unit that will apply AI and digital solutions to clinical trials. Called Evinova, it is hoped the unit will significantly reduce the cost and time it takes to bring a drug to market. Two of the world’s leading drug-testers, Parexel and Fortrea [FTRE], have said they will work with the unit. According to AstraZeneca [AZN], the digital health market will top $900bn by 2032.

Weight Loss: the Talk of the Town

Third-quarter (Q3) earnings calls were peppered with references to weight-loss drugs, reflecting the success and popularity of Novo Nordisk’s [NVO] Wegovy and Ozempic, and Eli Lilly’s [LLY] Mounjaro. Reuters analysis of transcripts found terms including “GLP-1” “obesity” and “weight-loss medications” were mentioned 256 times across 29 calls from US and EU healthcare and consumer companies — more than double the 127 mentions in Q2.

Mastercard’s Fraud-Busting AI Partnership

Mastercard [MA] has partnered with Feedzai, a tech platform that uses AI to fight money laundering and financial scams. According to CNBC, Feedzai will integrate with Mastercard’s CipherTrace Armada platform, which helps banks monitor more than 6,000 crypto exchanges for signs of suspicious activity; Feedzai estimates that 40% of scam transactions take place via a crypto exchange.

Cruise CEO Hits the Road

Kyle Vogt, co-founder and CEO of Cruise — the General Motors-owned [GM] self-driving car company — has resigned. This comes just weeks after the firm announced it is halting its driverless operations, and California revoked permits for its vehicles following an accident. Cruise’s board said that it has accepted the resignation and was working to “strengthen public trust”.