Who let the vids out? OpenAI is at war with its own Sora video testers following brief public leak Group behind stunt says they're being used for "unpaid R&D" and "art washing." Kyle Orland Nov 27, 2024 12:10 pm | 10 A shot of a cool dog riding a skateboard, from a short video generated by Sora during its brief public access leak Tuesday. Credit: Sora / Kol Tregaskes A shot of a cool dog riding a skateboard, from a short video generated by Sora during its brief public access leak Tuesday. Credit: Sora / Kol Tregaskes Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreOpenAI has cut off testing access to its Sora video generation platform after a group of artists briefly shared their own early access in a publicly usable webpage Tuesday. The group, going by the moniker PR Puppets, claims the stunt was a protest against being asked to work as unpaid R&D and bug testers while participating in "art washing" of AI tools. But OpenAI says participation in the early alpha test is voluntary and has no requirements that testers provide feedback.PR Puppets posted its "Generate with Sora" access point to Hugging Face at about 8:30 Eastern time Tuesday morning, according to Git commit logs. Quickly, AI experts on social media noticed the posting and confirmed that the page connected to endpoints on OpenAI's actual Sora API and hosting on a videos.openai.com domain, presumably with authentication tokens provided to testers by OpenAI itself.That access was revoked within hours, but not before plenty of eager followers managed to generate their own videos and share them on social media. An OpenAI spokesperson told The Washington Post the company is temporarily pausing all test access to Sora to evaluate the situation. Other users dug into the code to discover hints of different modes and "styles" that might be in development for Sora.Who's using whom?In an open letter addressed to their "Corporate AI Overlords," the PR Puppets group said that it was protesting on behalf of roughly 300 artists that had been provided early access to Sora only to "provide unpaid labor through bug testing, feedback and experimental work for the program for a $150B valued company [OpenAI]." The group claimed only a select few of those artists will see their work pay off in the form of wider screening for their Sora-created films and complained that OpenAI requires approval before any Sora alpha output can be shared publicly."We are not against the use of AI technology as a tool for the arts (if we were, we probably wouldn't have been invited to this program)," PR Puppets writes. "What we don't agree with is how this artist program has been rolled out and how the tool is shaping up ahead of a possible public release. We are sharing this to the world in the hopes that OpenAI becomes more open, more artist friendly and supports the arts beyond PR stunts." An excerpt from the PR Puppets open letter, as it appeared on Hugging Face Tuesday. Credit: PR Puppets / HuggingFace In a statement provided to Ars Technica, an OpenAI spokesperson noted that "Sora is still in research preview, and were working to balance creativity with robust safety measures for broader use. Hundreds of artists in our alpha have shaped Soras development, helping prioritize new features and safeguards. Participation is voluntary, with no obligation to provide feedback or use the tool."Throughout the day Tuesday, PR Puppets updated its open letter with signatures from 16 people and groups listed as "sora-alpha-artists." But a source with knowledge of OpenAI's testing program told Ars that only a couple of those artists were actually part of the alpha testing group and that those artists were asked to refrain from sharing confidential details during Sora's development.PR Puppets also later linked to a public petition encouraging others to sign on to the same message shared in their open letter. Artists Memo Akten, Jake Elwes, and CROSSLUCID, who are also listed as "sora-alpha-artists," were among the first to sign that public petition.When can we get in?Sora made a huge splash when OpenAI first teased its video-generation capabilities in February, before shopping the tech around Hollywood and using it in a public advertisement for Toys R Us. Since then, though, publicly accessible video generators like Minimax and announcements of in-development competitors from Google and Meta have stolen some of Sora's initial thunder.Previous OpenAI CTO Mira Murati told The Wall Street Journal in March that it planned to release Sora publicly by the end of the year. But CPO Kevin Weil said in a recent Reddit AMA that the platform's deployment has been delayed by the "need to perfect the model, need to get safety/impersonation/other things right, and need to scale compute!"Kyle OrlandSenior Gaming EditorKyle OrlandSenior Gaming Editor Kyle Orland has been the Senior Gaming Editor at Ars Technica since 2012, writing primarily about the business, tech, and culture behind video games. He has journalism and computer science degrees from University of Maryland. He once wrote a whole book about Minesweeper. 10 Comments

DOJ: AI is not its own market Googles plan to keep AI out of search trial remedies isnt going very well Judge: AI will likely play larger role in Google search remedies as market shifts. Ashley Belanger Nov 27, 2024 11:54 am | 2 Credit: SOPA Images / Contributor | LightRocket Credit: SOPA Images / Contributor | LightRocket Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreGoogle got some disappointing news at a status conference Tuesday, where US District Judge Amit Mehta suggested that Google's AI products may be restricted as an appropriate remedy following the government's win in the search monopoly trial.According to Law360, Mehta said that "the recent emergence of AI products that are intended to mimic the functionality of search engines" is rapidly shifting the search market. Because the judge is now weighing preventive measures to combat Google's anticompetitive behavior, the judge wants to hear much more about how each side views AI's role in Google's search empire during the remedies stage of litigationthan he did during the search trial."AI and the integration of AI is only going to play a much larger role, it seems to me, in the remedy phase than it did in the liability phase," Mehta said. "Is that because of the remedies being requested? Perhaps. But is it also potentially because the market that we have all been discussing has shifted?"To fight the DOJ's proposed remedies, Google is seemingly dragging its major AI rivals into the trial. Trying to prove that remedies would harm Google's ability to compete, the tech company is currently trying to pry into Microsoft's AI deals, including its $13 billion investment in OpenAI, Law360 reported. At least preliminarily, Mehta has agreed that information Google is seeking from rivals has "core relevance" to the remedies litigation, Law360 reported.The DOJ has asked for a wide range of remedies to stop Google from potentially using AI to entrench its market dominance in search and search text advertising. They include a ban on exclusive agreements with publishers to train on content, which the DOJ fears might allow Google to block AI rivals from licensing data, potentially posing a barrier to entry in both markets. Under the proposed remedies, Google would also face restrictions on investments in or acquisitions of AI products, as well as mergers with AI companies.Additionally, the DOJ wants Mehta to stop Google from any potential self-preferencing, such as making an AI product mandatory on Android devices Google controls or preventing a rival from distribution on Android devices.The government seems very concerned that Google may use its ownership of Android to play games in the emerging AI sector. They've further recommended an order preventing Google from discouraging partners from working with rivals, degrading the quality of rivals' AI products on Android devices, or otherwise "coercing" manufacturers or other Android partners into giving Google's AI products "better treatment."Importantly, if the court orders AI remedies linked to Google's control of Android, Google could risk a forced sale of Android if Mehta grants the DOJ's request for "contingent structural relief" requiring divestiture of Android if behavioral remedies don't destroy the current monopolies.Finally, the government wants Google to be required to allow publishers to opt out of AI training without impacting their search rankings. (Currently, opting out of AI scraping automatically opts sites out of Google search indexing.)All of this, the DOJ alleged, is necessary to clear the way for a thriving search market as AI stands to shake up the competitive landscape."The promise of new technologies, including advances in artificial intelligence (AI), may present an opportunity for fresh competition," the DOJ said in a court filing. "But only a comprehensive set of remedies can thaw the ecosystem and finally reverse years of anticompetitive effects."At the status conference Tuesday, DOJ attorney David Dahlquist reiterated to Mehta that these remedies are needed so that Google's illegal conduct in search doesn't extend to this "new frontier" of search, Law360 reported. Dahlquist also clarified that the DOJ views these kinds of AI products "as new access points for search, rather than a whole new market.""We're very concerned about Google's conduct being a barrier to entry," Dahlquist said.Google could not immediately be reached for comment. But the search giant has maintained that AI is beyond the scope of the search trial.During the status conference, Google attorney John E. Schmidtlein disputed that AI remedies are relevant. While he agreed that "AI is key to the future of search," he warned that "extraordinary" proposed remedies would "hobble" Google's AI innovation, Law360 reported.Microsoft shields confidential AI dealsMicrosoft is predictably protective of its AI deals, arguing in a court filing that its "highly confidential agreements with OpenAI, Perplexity AI, Inflection, and G42 are not relevant to the issues being litigated" in the Google trial.According to Microsoft, Google is arguing that it needs this information to shed light" on things like "the extent to which the OpenAI partnership has driven new traffic to Bing and otherwise affected Microsofts competitive standing" or what's required by "terms upon which Bing powers functionality incorporated into Perplexitys search service."These insights, Google seemingly hopes, will convince Mehta that Google's AI deals and investments are the norm in the AI search sector. But Microsoft is currently blocking access, arguing that "Google has done nothing to explain why" it "needs access to the terms of Microsofts highly confidential agreements with other third parties" when Microsoft has already offered to share documents "regarding the distribution and competitive position" of its AI products.Microsoft also opposes Google's attempts to review how search click-and-query data is used to train OpenAI's models. Those requests would be better directed at OpenAI, Microsoft said.If Microsoft gets its way, Google's discovery requests will be limited to just Microsoft's content licensing agreements for Copilot. Microsoft alleged those are the only deals "related to the general search or the general search text advertising markets" at issue in the trial.On Tuesday, Microsoft attorney Julia Chapman told Mehta that Microsoft had "agreed to provide documents about the data used to train its own AI model and also raised concerns about the competitive sensitivity of Microsoft's agreements with AI companies," Law360 reported.It remains unclear at this time if OpenAI will be forced to give Google the click-and-query data Google seeks. At the status hearing, Mehta ordered OpenAI to share "financial statements, information about the training data for ChatGPT, and assessments of the company's competitive position," Law360 reported.But the DOJ may also be interested in seeing that data. In their proposed final judgment, the government forecasted that "query-based AI solutions" will "provide the most likely long-term path for a new generation of search competitors."Because of that prediction, any remedy "must prevent Google from frustrating or circumventing" court-ordered changes "by manipulating the development and deployment of new technologies like query-based AI solutions." Emerging rivals "will depend on the absence of anticompetitive constraints to evolve into full-fledged competitors and competitive threats," the DOJ alleged.Mehta seemingly wants to see the evidence supporting the DOJ's predictions, which could end up exposing carefully guarded secrets of both Google's and its biggest rivals' AI deals.On Tuesday, the judge noted that integration of AI into search engines had already evolved what search results pages look like. And from his "very layperson's perspective," it seems like AI's integration into search engines will continue moving "very quickly," as both parties seem to agree.Whether he buys into the DOJ's theory that Google could use its existing advantage as the world's greatest gatherer of search query data to block rivals from keeping pace is still up in the air, but the judge seems moved by the DOJ's claim that "AI has the ability to affect market dynamics in these industries today as well as tomorrow."Ashley BelangerSenior Policy ReporterAshley BelangerSenior Policy Reporter Ashley is a senior policy reporter for Ars Technica, dedicated to tracking social impacts of emerging policies and new technologies. She is a Chicago-based journalist with 20 years of experience. 2 Comments

Companies that recognize current market opportunities -- from the need to safely implement revolutionary technology like AI to the vast proliferation of cyber threats -- have remarkable growth prospects.

Platforms like X can shape political viewsAlgi Febri Sugita/ZUMA Press/AlamyThe algorithms behind social media platforms can change your attitude towards people with different political views in just one day, suggesting that tech companies really can have a strong influence on how we perceive others.Most social media platforms use algorithms to sort a users feed, generally ranking posts by someones likelihood of engaging with them and presenting the most engaging first but this may inadvertently be pushing people apart.The trend in polarisation more

2024 has been a great year forsci-fi, from time travel stories to those set in spaceMatt Mawson/Millennium Images, UKIt has been a good year for science fiction, with a novel set on the International Space Station winning the 2024 Booker prize. Orbital is a beautiful, sublimely written, hopeful book that takes place over 16 orbits of Earth.One might argue that it isnt science fiction. After all, the ISS is a real place and the book is simply a novelisation of ordinary life upon it. Author Samantha Harvey describes it as space pastoral. But then what

Nature, Published online: 28 November 2024; doi:10.1038/d41586-024-03907-zRemarkably preserved footprints of Homo erectus and Paranthropus boisei offer direct evidence that extinct hominin species coexisted.

Nature, Published online: 28 November 2024; doi:10.1038/s41586-024-08433-6XXX.

MIT Technology Reviews Whats Next series looks across industries, trends, and technologies to give you a first look at the future. You can read the rest of themhere. NASAs huge lunar rocket, the Space Launch System (SLS), might be in trouble. As rival launchers like SpaceXs Starship gather pace, some are questioning the need for the US national space agency to have its own mega rocket at allsomething that could become a focus of the incoming Trump administration, in which SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is set to play a key role. Its absolutely in Elon Musks interest to convince the government to cancel SLS, says Laura Forczyk from the US space consulting firm Astralytical. However, its not up to him. SLS has been in development for more than a decade. The rocket is huge, 322 feet (98 meters) tall, and about 15% more powerful than the Saturn V rocket that took the Apollo astronauts to the moon in the 1960s and 70s. It is also expensive, costing an estimated $4.1 billion per launch. It was designed with a clear purposereturning astronauts to the moons surface. Built to launch NASAs human-carrying Orion spacecraft, the rocket is a key part of the agencys Artemis program to go back to the Moon, started by the previous Trump administration in 2019. It has an important role to play, says Daniel Dumbacher, formerly a deputy associate administrator at NASA and part of the team that selected SLS for development in 2010. The logic for SLS still holds up. The rocket has launched once already on the Artemis I mission in 2022, a test flight that saw an uncrewed Orion spacecraft sent around the moon. Its next flight, Artemis II, earmarked for September 2025, will be the same flight but with a four-person crew, before the first lunar landing, Artemis III, currently set for September 2026. SLS could launch missions to other destinations too. At one stage NASA intended to launch its Europa Clipper spacecraft to Jupiters moon Europa using SLS, but cost and delays saw the mission launch instead on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket in October this year. It has also been touted to launch parts of NASAs new lunar space station, Gateway, beginning in 2028. The station is currently in development. NASAs plan to return to the moon involves using SLS to launch astronauts to lunar orbit on Orion, where they will rendezvous with a separate lander to descend to the surface. At the moment that lander will be SpaceXs Starship vehicle, a huge reusable shuttle intended to launch and land multiple times. Musk wants this rocket to one day take humans to Mars. Starship is currently undergoing testing. Last month, it completed a stunning flight in which the lower half of the rocket, the Super Heavy booster, was caught by SpaceXs chopstick launch tower in Boca Chica, Texas. The rocket is ultimately more powerful than SLS and designed to be entirely reusable, whereas NASAs rocket is discarded into the ocean after each launch. The success of Starship and the development of other large commercial rockets, such as the Jeff Bezos-owned firm Blue Origins New Glenn rocket, has raised questions about the need for SLS. In October, billionaire Michael Bloomberg called the rocket a colossal waste of taxpayer money. In November, journalist Eric Berger said there was at least a 50-50 chance the rocket would be canceled. I think it would be the right call, says Abhishek Tripathi, a former mission director at SpaceX now at the University of California, Berkeley. Its hard to point to SLS as being necessary. The calculations are not straightforward, however. Dumbacher notes that while SpaceX is making great progress on Starship, there is much yet to do. The rocket will need to launch possibly up to 18 times to transfer fuel to a single lunar Starship in Earth orbit that can then make the journey to the moon. The first test of this fuel transfer is expected next year. SLS, conversely, can send Orion to the moon in a single launch. That means the case for SLS is only diminished if the price of 18 Starship launches is less than an SLS launch, says Dumbacher. SpaceX was awarded $2.9 billion by NASA in 2021 for the first Starship mission to the moon on Artemis III, but the exact cost per launch is unknown. MICHAEL DEMOCKER/NASA NASA is also already developing hardware for future SLS launches. All elements for the second SLS for Artemis II have been delivered, a NASA spokesperson said in response to emailed questions, adding that SLS also has hardware in production for Artemis III, IV, and V. SLS can deliver more payload to the moon, in a single launch, than any other rocket, NASA said. The rocket is needed and designed to meet the agencys lunar transportation requirements. Dumbacher points out that if the US wants to return to the moon before China sends humans there, which the nation has said it would do by 2030, canceling SLS could be a setback. Now is not the time to have a major relook at whats the best rocket, he says. Every minute we delay, we are setting ourselves up for a situation where China will be putting people on the moon first. President-elect Donald Trump has given Musk a role in his incoming administration to slash public spending as part of the newly established Department of Government Efficiency. While the exact remit of this initiative is not yet clear, projects like SLS could be up for scrutiny. Canceling SLS would require support from Congress, however, where Republicans will have only a slim majority. SLS has been bipartisan and very popular, says Forczyk, meaning it might be difficult to take any immediate action. Money given to SLS is a benefit to taxpayers and voters in key congressional districts [where development of the rocket takes place], says Forczyk. We do not know how much influence Elon Musk will have. It seems likely the rocket will at least launch Artemis II next September, but beyond that there is more uncertainty. The most logical course of action in my mind is to cancel SLS after Artemis III, says Forczyk. Such a scenario could have a broad impact on NASA that reaches beyond just SLS. Scrapping the rocket could bring up wider discussions about NASAs overall budget, currently set at $25.4 billion, the highest-funded space agency in the world. That money is used for a variety of science including astrophysics, astronomy, climate studies, and the exploration of the solar system. If you cancel SLS, youre also canceling the broad support for NASAs budget at its current level, says Tripathi. Once that budget gets slashed, its hard to imagine itll ever grow back to present levels. Be careful what you wish for.

Netflix's drama series "Senna" follows the Formula 1 driver's career and 1994 death.The show touches on his relationship with his ex-wife, Lilian de Vasconcelos Souza, and girlfriend, Adriane Galisteu.Senna didn't have any kids, but he was dating Galisteu at the time of his death.Netflix's new limited series "Senna" gives the Hollywood treatment to late Formula 1 star Ayrton Senna's professional career and personal life.The six-episode scripted series, starring Gabriel Leone as the titular character, retells many of the most well-known parts of Senna's racing career, from his beginning in karting to his eventual success in Formula 1 as a three-time world champion. It also touches on the Brazilian driver's death at 34 years old at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix after he crashed into a concrete wall."Senna" also delves into the driver's romantic relationships. Senna never had kids, but he had three serious relationships throughout his life: Lilian de Vasconcelos Souza, his first wife; Xuxa Meneghel, a Brazilian TV host; and Adriane Galisteu, a Brazilian actor, TV host, and model, who was also his girlfriend at the time of his death.Here's what to know about his relationships with de Vasconcelos Souza and Galisteu.Senna was briefly married to Lilian de Vasconcelos Souza, his childhood friend Alice Wegmann as Lilian and Gabriel Leone as Ayrton in "Senna." Netflix In the Netflix series, Senna and his girlfriend Lilian (Alice Wegmann) move from Brazil to Norfolk, England, so he can compete in Formula Ford, typically an entry-level race for Formula 1 drivers. As Senna progresses as a driver, she struggles to adapt to living in England. When Senna breaks his promise and pursues racing beyond the year he agreed to, he and Lilian divorce.Their relationship played out similarly in real life.According to Tom Rubython's 2004 biography "The Life of Senna," Lilian de Vasconcelos Souza (alternatively spelled Liliane Vasconcelos Souza) was from a "wealthy Brazilian family."She and Senna were childhood friends who married in February 1981 in So Paulo shortly before moving to England.As depicted in the Netflix drama, de Vasconcelos Souza didn't have a life of her own in the UK. She mainly attended Senna's races and supported his career.When Senna decided to drive in England for the 1982 season, de Vasconcelos Souza told him their marriage would end. The pair quietly divorced, and she stayed out of the spotlight. Ayrton Senna at the Japanese Grand Prix in 1989. Paul-Henri Cahier/Getty Images In a 2010 interview with Brazilian news site G1, de Vasconcellos Souza, who was then working as a designer, reflected on her relationship with Senna and her omission from Asif Kapadia's documentary "Senna: No Fear, No Limits, No Equal."She said it was "a very well-made film," but she was "bothered" that she wasn't included in it given her relationship with Senna. De Vasconcellos Souza also said she always knew she "was his second passion" after racing.Additionally, De Vasconcellos Souza told G1 that she and Senna's different views of having kids in the future caused their split.She said she became unintentionally pregnant with Senna's child, and he told her the plan would be for her to raise the baby in Brazil while he stayed in Europe to continue his racing career. De Vasconcellos Souza said she miscarried three days later."At that moment, something was cut off inside me because his goal was to enter Formula 1, and mine was to have a husband that I loved and to start a family," she said.After her divorce from Senna, she remarried and had a son in 1984. De Vasconcellos Souza was in her third marriage when she heard about Senna's death on TV. She didn't attend Senna's wake or funeral but stopped by the cemetery where he was buried. She also visited his mom, Neyde Senna, and stopped by his So Paulo home.Senna was in a relationship with Brazilian model and actor Adriane Galisteu at the time of his death Ayrton Senna and Adriane Galisteu on vacation in February 1994. Gianni GIANSANTI/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images The final two episodes of "Senna" depict Senna's relationship with Galisteu. In the show, they properly meet when Senna celebrates his Brazilian Grand Prix victory at a club.In the last episode, she calls Senna, scared and concerned, after hearing about Simtek driver Roland Ratzenberger's fatal crash on the Imola track during qualifying. When Senna dies from a crash into a concrete wall the next day during the race, she's seen watching the tragedy unfold on TV.In real life, Galisteu and Senna dated from 1993 until his death at the San Marino Grand Prix in Italy.Galisteu met Senna when she worked as a hospitality hostess for the oil company Shell at the 1993 Brazilian Grand Prix. Although they crossed paths in the hospitality suite during the race weekend, they didn't have their first interaction until Senna's Brazilian GP celebration at Limelight Club.During their relationship, they traveled the world together, visiting Monaco, Hungary, and other destinations where the F1 races occurred.According to Rubython's biography, Senna planned to stay in Portugal with Galisteu for five months during the European race season in 1994 and not return to Brazil during that time, which was customary for him. This caused a rift between them and Senna's family, who felt Galisteu wasn't good enough for him. Adriane Galisteu at Ayrton Senna's funeral in Brazil in May 1994. Pool RIBEIRO/SASSAKI/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images Galisteu saw Senna for the last time on April 3, 1994, weeks before his death. She was taking an English language course in Brazil in preparation for spending time in Europe and living with Senna.Per the biography, Galisteu said that Senna told her he had plans to marry her someday, switch from Williams to Ferrari, and conclude his career with the Italian team.Galisteu watched the San Marino GP from a TV in Senna's Portugal home. She was among the mourners at Senna's funeral in Brazil in May 1994.After Senna's death, Galisteu married Brazilian businessman Roberto Justus from 1998 to 1999. She's been married to Alexandre Idice since 2010, and they have a son named Vittorio.Galisteu still models and is active on Instagram, where she posts pictures of her photoshoots, her family, and tributes to Senna.All episodes of "Senna" are streaming on Netflix.

On Monday, Donald Trump threatened more tariffs on China, blaming Beijing for fentanyl.China criticized Trump's tariff threats, calling them ineffective and unjustified.Global markets have reacted cautiously, with companies adjusting strategies amid higher trade tensions.Post-election, Donald Trump is amplifying his threats to slap higher tariffs on imports into the US and China is unsettled.On Monday, the president-elect took aim at Canada, Mexico, and China on his Truth Social platform, saying he was planning sweeping tariffs on imports from the three countries.In particular, Trump doubled down on China, saying he'd sign an executive order on his first day in office to impose an additional 10% tariff on imports from China.The tariffs, Trump said, are because China is to blame for "the massive amounts of drugs, in particular Fentanyl, being sent into the United States."Beijing hits backChina has already been the target of Trump's tariff threats in his campaign trail."China's position against unilateral tariff increases is consistent," He Yadong, a spokesperson for China's commerce ministry, said at a scheduled news briefing on Thursday. "Imposing arbitrary tariffs on trading partners will not solve America's own problems."China's foreign ministry did not address Trump's tariff threat, but Beijing took major issue with Trump's comments that it isn't doing enough to stop the flow of drugs to the US."China is one of the world's toughest countries on counternarcotics both in terms of policy and its implementation," China's foreign affairs ministry said in a Thursday statement.China's state media rallied around Beijing's official position."The excuse the president-elect has given to justify his threat of additional tariffs on imports from China is farfetched," wrote China Daily in a Tuesday editorial.Markets are muted as investors wait and seeGlobal markets were jolted following Trump's post on Truth Social on Monday, but the effects have been felt mostly in foreign exchange. The Chinese yuan alongside the Canadian dollar and the Mexican peso lost ground against the greenback.China's equities markets came under some pressure on Tuesday following Trump's post. But they have largely recovered as investors take a wait-and-see stance while assessing if Trump's comments were simply bluster that he's using to extract concessions."The equity market reaction has so far been very benign, we would argue likely on the back of the transactional interpretation," George Saravelos, the global cohead of foreign-exchange research at Deutsche Bank, wrote on Tuesday.US and Chinese companies are on edgeThe business world isn't so relaxed.Some US companies are already thinking ahead, front-loading imports to the US to avoid higher tariffs, economists from Goldman Sachs wrote in a Tuesday analysis of earnings calls and media reports.The CEO of Shenzhen Lingke Technology, a Chinese lighting manufacturing that produces in several countries including China and Thailand, told Nikkei Asia on Wednesday that US importers have placed larger-than-usual orders since Trump's election victory."The thinking is that American clients want to lock in as many profits as possible before a new round of tariffs kick in," Wu Zhiqiang, the company's CEO, told the media outlet.To be sure, global firms and Chinese manufacturers have already been diversifying their operations to manage concentration risks following Trump's first term and the COVID-19 pandemic.Larger companies, like Taiwan's Foxconn a key supplier to Apple have moved some production work to other emerging countries like India and Vietnam, so they may have some breathing space."Clients may decide to shift production locations, but looking at Foxconn's global footprint, we are ahead. As a result, the impact on us is likely smaller compared to our competitors," Young Liu, the chairman of Foxconn, told reporters in Taipei on Wednesday.However, some smaller companies reliant on Chinese manufacturing and plants in China are uncertain about the future of their businesses, Al Jazeera reported in early November.It doesn't help that China's domestic consumption and overall economy have been struggling to recover following the pandemic.Against the backdrop of economic gloom and a potential escalation of trade tensions with the world's top economy, China's homegrown firms are expanding overseas, particularly in emerging markets like Southeast Asia and Africa, and in China's Belt and Road partner countries.Macquarie analysts wrote on Monday that they expect a wave of Chinese investment into Southeast Asia, focused on consumer goods, logistics, and technology.