Apple has just launched a new MacBook Air equipped with its M4 chip, bringing improved performance and efficiency to one of the companys best MacBooks. The long-rumored update means that all of Apples laptops now come with the M4 chip.As expected, the M4 MacBook Air is more of an evolution than a revolution. The M4 chip means a slight improvement in terms of performance compared to the previous M3 version, but there are few changes elsewhere. According to Apple, the M4 MacBook Air can perform tasks like video editing and photo editing up to 2x faster than its M1 counterpart so upgrading could be worth it for M1 owners.Recommended VideosThe laptops chassis remains the same, as do its display, speakers, and keyboard. Apple last updated the MacBook Airs design in 2022, and the company is not expected to repeat the trick for another couple of years. However, a new sky blue color has been added to the lineup and the base price has been lowered to $999 thats a $100 drop. Other additions include a new 12MP Center Stage camera and support for two external displays alongside its built-in display. Both the 13-inch and 15-inch models are available to pre-order today, with a release date of March 12.The M4 chip (or some variation of it) is now present in the MacBook Air, the MacBook Pro, the iMac, and the Mac Studio, putting it in about half of Apples computers. Other Macs, like the Mac Pro, have not yet received the chip, but are expected to make the transition over the next few months.Rumors suggest that Apple will quickly move on to the M5, with a new MacBook Pro bearing this chip landing in late 2025. Apple has begun switching most of its Macs to an annual release cycle, so we will likely see an M5 MacBook Air arrive sometime in 2026.Editors Recommendations

Microsoft-OpenAI Partnership Gets U.K. Antitrust ClearanceThe review was to determine if the partnership should be considered a de facto merger that could have stifled competition in the country By Mauro OrruOpenAI CEO Sam Altman shakes hands with Microsoft Chief Technology Officer Kevin Scott on May 21, 2024. Photo: jason redmond/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesU.K. antitrust officials said they wouldnt launch a formal investigation into The Competition and Markets Authority launched a review in December 2023 to determine whether Microsofts investment in OpenAI and its partnership with the artificial-intelligence startup should be considered a de facto merger that might stifle competition in the country. Officials have now concluded this isnt the case and opted not to open a formal probe.Copyright 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8VideosMost Popular NewsMost PopularOPINIONFurther ReadingAdvertisement

McDonalds Gives Its Restaurants an AI MakeoverThe fast-food giants new initiative uses artificial intelligence to target order accuracy and help restaurants detect equipment issues before they fail By Isabelle Bousquette and McDonalds is introducing new technology in part to drive better experiences for its crews. Our restaurants, frankly, can be very stressful, said Chief Information Officer Brian Rice. Photo: McDonaldsMcDonalds is giving its 43,000 restaurants a technology makeover, starting with internet-connected kitchen equipment, artificial intelligence-enabled drive-throughs and AI-powered tools for managers.The goal? To drive better experiences for its customers and workers who today contend with issues ranging from broken machines to wrong orders, according to Brian Rice, the Chicago-based burger giants chief information officer.Copyright 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8Most Popular NewsMost PopularOPINIONRecommended VideosAdvertisement

time to launch Jeff Bezos brings Amazon work culture to Blue Origin Job cuts and longer hours at Blue Origin as founder takes prominent role. Rafe Uddin, Financial Times Mar 5, 2025 9:31 am | 3 Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket launches from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station early January 16, 2025. Credit: Blue Origin Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket launches from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station early January 16, 2025. Credit: Blue Origin Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreJeff Bezos has moved to introduce a tough Amazon-like approach to his rocket maker Blue Origin, as the worlds third-richest person seeks to revive a company that has lagged behind Elon Musks SpaceX.The space companys founder and sole shareholder has pushed to shift its internal culture with management hires from Amazon, while implementing policies akin to the ecommerce giant, including longer working hours and more aggressive targets.Half a dozen current and former senior Blue Origin employees told the Financial Times that the billionaire had taken a prominent role in helping reset a company that has reached orbit only once, compared with SpaceX achieving the feat more than 450 times.The euphemism among Blue Origin alumni is that Blue Origins track record speaks for itself, said one former executive.Key to Bezoss effort is chief executive Dave Limp. The former Amazon devices chief was appointed in late 2023 and has been followed in quick succession by several veterans from the $2.2tn tech giant, including supply chain chief Tim Collins, chief information officer Josh Koppelman and chief financial officer Allen Parker.The changes in leadership have been accompanied by severe lay-offs. In February, roughly 10 percent of Blue Origins more than 10,000-strong workforce was dismissed, a more aggressive round of job cuts than at any time in its 25-year history.The move came only a month after Blue Origin launched its 30-storey-high New Glenn heavy-lift rocket, the result of 12 years of work and a significant juncture for the business as it extends into the satellite launch market.We grew and hired incredibly fast in the past few years, and with that growth came more bureaucracy and less focus than we needed, Limp told employees in an email seen by the FT.Rounds of lay-offs have become commonplace at Amazon where chief executive Andy Jassy told employees last year he would axe roles in middle management to enable the company to operate like the worlds largest start-up.Jeff wasnt a cold-blooded competitor with SpaceX and assured the team that they needed to focus on our mission, one former Blue Origin executive said. But over at Amazon he was absolutely ruthless...it was only a matter of time.Blue Origin did not respond to a request for comment.Blue Origin was founded by Bezos in 2000 and forms part of the billionaires mission to shift heavy industry off Earth and to the Moon. He has bankrolled the business with billions of dollars drawn down from the sale of Amazon shares.As a private company, Blue Origin does not disclose financial information. But its costs are $2 billion a year, with an excess of $1 billion in revenue, according to a person familiar with the matter. Analysts estimate that SpaceX by comparison generates about $8 billion in revenue each year.Bezos flew on the companys first manned flight into sub-orbit on its New Shepard vehicle only weeks after he stepped down as chief executive of Amazon in early 2021. But since then, the company has been hamstrung by launch delays.Blue Origin also lacks the self-fulfilling demand that SpaceX derives from its Starlink low-orbit satellite broadband business with Amazons equivalent, Kuiper, which contracts with multiple launch providers but has yet to deploy its system in space.In 2023, Kuiper signed a deal to make launches with SpaceX, several months after Amazon shareholders brought a lawsuit alleging the company had erred by contracting much of its capacity from Blue Origin. They argued that Bezoss space company had a record featuring more blemishes and setbacks than successes and had proven less reliable than Musks space venture.Chris Quilty, an analyst at Quilty Space, said the closer ties between SpaceX and Starlink had made Musks space venture more commercially viable than Blue Origin.Kuiper wants to build a constellation and is agnostic about providers, he said. It just needs cheap and regular access to launch.Bezos has steadily turned his attention to Blue Origin since stepping down as Amazons CEO and now joins regular business reviews and various technical briefings where he digs into the details with managers and engineers, according to a person familiar with the matter.Several current and former employees said the company was also removing chains of decision making that had become ingrained in Blue Origins culture under former chief Bob Smith.One former executive maintained that the business had grown at a significant clip that meant staff had a natural inclination to push decisions up, adding: We wanted to push down decision making.Yet analysts say Bezos has struggled to get the right leadership into position at the right time.The transition points were not always right, said Carissa Christensen, chief executive of consultancy BryceTech. A bit early, a little too late, and sometimes painful.Current and former employees said Blue Origin had become more aggressive in its flight schedule under Limps leadership.They said the decision to launch New Glenn in January without being confident that the company would land its first-stage boosterwhich it intends to be reusablereflected a shift in Blue Origins risk appetite. The booster was lost on re-entry but the rocket made it to orbit as planned.Bezos and Limp have also moved to change working patterns at Blue Origin. Online forums in the days after recent lay-offs were filled with comments from employees remarking they were being moved to a permanent 50-hour week with frequent 12-hour shifts, while badge scanners had been introduced to track employee time similar to Amazon.Dave doesnt have much respect for work-life balance, said one former senior employee.Limp has spoken publicly alongside Bezos about increasing the number of launches this year and reaching the Moon with the companys Blue Moon lunar lander.Blue Origin needs to be much faster, and its one of the reasons that I left my role as the CEO of Amazon a couple of years ago, Bezos told researcher and podcast host Lex Fridman last year. Blue Origin needs me right now, adding some energy, some sense of urgency. 2025 The Financial Times Ltd. All rights reserved. Not to be redistributed, copied, or modified in any way.Rafe Uddin, Financial TimesRafe Uddin, Financial Times 3 Comments

Whats in a number? Apple announces M3 Ultraand says not every generation will see an Ultra chip It could explain why were getting an M3 Ultra this deep into the M4 rollout. Andrew Cunningham Mar 5, 2025 9:00 am | 11 Apple's new Mac Studio desktops come with the M4 Max or the M3 Ultra. Credit: Apple Apple's new Mac Studio desktops come with the M4 Max or the M3 Ultra. Credit: Apple Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreApples first Mac Studio refresh in nearly two years is a welcome update, injecting fresh life into two computers that were still getting by with M2 chips. But the company took a bit of a strange approach to the update, giving an M4-series Max chip to the lower-end Studio but an M3 Ultra chip to the high-end model.These processors are both performance upgrades from the M2 Max and M2 Ultra, and the M3 Ultra is so huge that it should have no trouble outrunning the M4 Max despite its slightly older CPU and GPU architecture. But its still a departure from past practice, where Apple would keep the Studios chip generation in lockstep.CPU P/E-coresGPU coresRAM optionsMemory bandwidthApple M3 Ultra (low)20/86096/256GB819.2GB/sApple M3 Ultra (high)24/880128GB/256GB/512GB819.2GB/sApple M2 Ultra (high)16/876Up to 192GB819.2GB/sApple M1 Ultra (high)16/432Up to 128GB819.2GB/sWhen asked why the high-end Mac Studio was getting an M3 Ultra chip instead of an M4 Ultra, Apple told us that not every chip generation will get an Ultra tier. This is, as far as I can recall, the first time that Apple has said anything like this in public.This statement doesnt totally preclude the possibility of an eventual M4 Ultraif Apple wanted to put more space in between the Mac Studio and the Mac Pro, reserving its best chip for the Mac Pro could be one way to do it. But it does suggest that Apple will skip the M4 Ultra entirely, opting to refresh these gigantic and niche chips on a slower cadence than the rest of its processors.And while an M4 Ultra has appeared in some rumors about the next-gen Mac Studio update, that processors core counts match up with what Apple announced as the M3 Ultra today.Makeup of the M3 UltraThe M3 Ultra is a pair of M3 Max chips joined together with a silicon interposer, an arrangement similar to what Apple did with the M1 Ultra and M2 Ultra. As such, everything is doubled: 32 CPU cores instead of 16, 80 GPU cores instead of 40, 32 Neural Engine cores instead of 16, and two ProRes video encoding engines instead of one.Apple has also added a couple of extras, getting the M3 Ultra certified for 120Gbps Thunderbolt 5 (the M3 Max supports Thunderbolt 4) and supporting up to 512GB of RAM (M3 Max tops out at 128GB). And for some new-to-Mac-Studio features like hardware-accelerated ray-tracing for graphics, the M3 and M4 GPUs both support the features.The existence of the M3 Ultra puts to rest some lightly sourced speculation from last year, suggesting that the M3 Max was shipping without the silicon used to fuse two Max chips together into a single Ultra chip.As for why Apple has decided that it doesnt need an Ultra chip for every Apple Silicon generation, we can only speculate. But the Mac Studio has been around for a few years now, and Apple likely has a better sense of how the Max-versus-Ultra sales break down. It may simply be the case that the sales of the high-end Mac Studio and Mac Pro cant justify the cost and effort needed to design and manufacture a new Ultra chip every time Apple wants to tweak its silicon.Andrew CunninghamSenior Technology ReporterAndrew CunninghamSenior Technology Reporter Andrew is a Senior Technology Reporter at Ars Technica, with a focus on consumer tech including computer hardware and in-depth reviews of operating systems like Windows and macOS. Andrew lives in Philadelphia and co-hosts a weekly book podcast called Overdue. 11 Comments

John Edwards, Technology Journalist & AuthorMarch 5, 20255 Min ReadLightField Studios Inc. via Alamy Stock PhotoHaving a strong, capable leader is essential for project success. Unfortunately, decisions about candidates are often based on weak or inaccurate information. As a result, many organizations don't have the correct procedures in place to produce a complete and accurate picture of their leading prospects.Before selecting an IT team leader, it's crucial to establish what the role requires beyond just technical expertise, advises Thierry Louis, infrastructure operations director at IT training services provider Yellow Tail Tech. In an email interview, he stresses understanding the importance of clearly outlining expected business needs, leadership capabilities, team dynamics, and performance metrics. "Setting clear expectations upfront ensures you'll select a leader who fits both the technical and cultural needs of your organization."Selection ProcessThe best way to select a new IT team leader is to follow a structured approach, says Akash Tayal, cloud engineering offering leader with Deloitte Consulting. "The process begins by choosing a candidate with technical expertise in relevant areas, a successful technology delivery track record, and a strong followership," he explains in an online interview.Look within the team first, recommends Nikita Sherbina, CEO at digital signage provider AIScreen.io. "Internal candidates often understand the company culture and technical landscape better than external hires," he explains via email. "Pair this with structured interviews, scenario-based problem-solving tasks, and leadership aptitude tests to gauge their ability to lead under pressure."Related:Essential AttributesA successful IT team leader should have a proven track record of earning team members' trust and respect, Tayal says. "Strong followership is built through effective communication, recognizing and valuing team members' contributions, and providing support and mentorship."An effective IT leader must demonstrate technical proficiency, emotional intelligence, and strong communication skills, Sherbina advises. "They should excel at aligning technical decisions with business goals, fostering collaboration, and resolving conflicts," he says. "I've found that adaptability is critical -- especially in fast-moving industries."The candidate should be a technology thought leader and innovator who challenges the status quo, Tayal says. "Bringing new ideas to the table is critical for growth in a leadership position, and if they're unable to innovate outside of the usual practice, growth cannot occur." He adds that a strong leader is agile, hands-on, and capable of getting into the gritty details when needed.Related:Warning SignsA leader must integrate well with the existing team culture, values, and working style. "Overlooking this can lead to friction, disengagement, and a lack of trust," Louis says. Even the most technically-skilled leader will struggle if they clash with the team's communication style, problem-solving approach, or work ethic. "The best leaders enhance their team's strengths and bring people together, rather than disrupt the existing synergy."Beware of "brilliant jerks," Sherbina warns. "While technical expertise is important, leaders who lack people skills can harm team morale and productivity," he says. "Also avoid assuming that the best developer will make the best leader -- leadership is a distinct skill set."Seeking InputIdentify potential IT team leader candidates early and provide them with opportunities to hone their leadership capabilities, Tayal recommends. "By doing so, these individuals can gain relevant experience and develop the skills necessary to be successful in a leadership role." He believes that taking this proactive approach ensures that when the need for a new IT team leader arises, there will already be a collection of well-prepared candidates who have been through a succession process and ready to immediately step into the role.Related:Before making a formal appointment, Sherbina advises seeking feedback from the team the new leader will manage. "They can provide unique insights into how the candidate interacts with others and handles challenges," he explains. "Mentorship programs and leadership coaches are also valuable resources for identifying leadership potential."Getting It RightOne of the biggest mistakes made when selecting an IT team leader is under-emphasizing technical skills, Tayal says. While leadership and management abilities are crucial, it's equally important for the IT team leader to have a strong technical background and expertise in relevant areas, he adds. "Deep technical capabilities ensures a leader who can effectively understand and address challenges, provide guidance to their team, earn their respect, and make informed decisions."Invest in leadership development early, Sherbina advises. "Providing training and mentorship to potential leaders within your team can create a talent pipeline, reducing the risk of a poor hire when a leadership role opens up."About the AuthorJohn EdwardsTechnology Journalist & AuthorJohn Edwards is a veteran business technology journalist. His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and numerous business and technology publications, including Computerworld, CFO Magazine, IBM Data Management Magazine, RFID Journal, and Electronic Design. He has also written columns for The Economist's Business Intelligence Unit and PricewaterhouseCoopers' Communications Direct. John has authored several books on business technology topics. His work began appearing online as early as 1983. Throughout the 1980s and 90s, he wrote daily news and feature articles for both the CompuServe and Prodigy online services. His "Behind the Screens" commentaries made him the world's first known professional blogger.See more from John EdwardsWebinarsMore WebinarsReportsMore ReportsNever Miss a Beat: Get a snapshot of the issues affecting the IT industry straight to your inbox.SIGN-UPYou May Also Like

A visualisation of the Radcliffe wave, a series of dust and gas clouds (marked here in red) across the Milky Way. It is about 400 light years from our sun, marked in yellowAlyssa A. Goodman/Harvard UniversityOur solar system passed through a vast wave of gas and dust around 14 million years ago, dimming Earths view of the night sky. The wave may even have left traces in our planets geological record.Astronomers have previously discovered large ocean-like waves of stars, gas and dust in the Milky Way that undulate up and down over millions of years. One of the closest and best-studied of these is the Radcliffe wave, which is nearly 9000 light years in width and sits only about 400 light years from our solar system. AdvertisementNow, Efrem Maconi at the University of Vienna and his colleagues have found that the Radcliffe wave used to be much closer to us, crossing our solar system between 11 million and 18 million years ago.Maconi and his team used data from the Gaia space telescope, which has tracked billions of stars in the Milky Way, to identify recently formed groups of stars within the Radcliffe wave, along with the dust and gas clouds from which they formed.Using these stars to indicate how the wave as a whole is moving, they tracked the orbits of the clouds back in time to reveal their historic location. They also calculated the past path of the solar system, winding the clock back 30 million years, and found that the wave and our sun made a close approach between around 15 million and 12 million years ago. Estimating exactly when the crossing began and ended is difficult, but the team thinks the solar system was within the wave around 14 million years ago.Untangle the weirdness of reality with our subscriber-only, monthly newsletter.Sign up to newsletterThis would have made Earths galactic environment darker than it appears today, as we currently live in a relatively empty region of space. If we are in a denser region of the interstellar medium, that would mean that the light coming from the stars to you would be dimmed, says Maconi. Its like being in a foggy day.The encounter may also have left evidence in Earths geological record, depositing radioactive isotopes in the crust, though this would be hard to measure given how long ago it happened, he says. Explaining Earths geological record is an ongoing problem, so finding galactic encounters like these is useful, says Ralph Schoenrich at University College London.More speculatively, the crossing appears to have happened during a period when Earth was cooling called the Middle Miocene. It is possible the two are linked, says Maconi, although this would be difficult to prove. Schoenrich thinks it is unlikely. A rule of thumb is that geology trumps any cosmic influence, he says. If you shift continents or interrupt ocean currents, you get climate shifts from that, so Im very sceptical you need anything in addition.Journal reference:Astronomy & Astrophysics DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/202452061Topics:

This is today's edition ofThe Download,our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what's going on in the world of technology. AI reasoning models can cheat to win chess games The news: Facing defeat in chess, the latest generation of AI reasoning models sometimes cheat without being instructed to do so. The finding suggests that the next wave of AI models could be more likely to seek out deceptive ways of doing whatever theyve been asked to do. And worst of all? Theres no simple way to fix it. How they did it: Researchers from the AI research organization Palisade Research instructed seven large language models to play hundreds of games of chess against Stockfish, a powerful open-source chess engine. The research suggests that the more sophisticated the AI model, the more likely it is to spontaneously try to hack the game in an attempt to beat its opponent. Older models would do this kind of thing only after explicit nudging from the team. Read the full story. Rhiannon Williams MIT Technology Review Narrated: AI search could break the web At its best, AI search can infer a users intent, amplify quality content, and synthesize information from diverse sources. But if AI search becomes our primary portal to the web, it threatens to disrupt an already precarious digital economy. Today, the production of content online depends on a fragile set of incentives tied to virtual foot traffic: ads, subscriptions, donations, sales, or brand exposure. By shielding the web behind an all-knowing chatbot, AI search could deprive creators of the visits and eyeballs they need to survive.This is our latest story to be turned into a MIT Technology Review Narrated podcast, which were publishing each week on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Just navigate to MIT Technology Review Narrated on either platform, and follow us to get all our new content as its released. Join us to discuss disruption in the AI model market Join MIT Technology Review's AI writers as they discuss the latest upheaval in the AI marketplace. Editor in chief Mat Honan will be joined by Will Douglas Heaven, our senior AI editor, and James ODonnell, our AI and hardware reporter, to dive into how new developments in AI model development are reshaping competition, raising questions for investors, challenging industry assumptions, and accelerating timelines for AI adoption and innovation. Make sure you register hereit kicks off at 12.30pm ET today. The must-reads Ive combed the internet to find you todays most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 A judge has denied Elon Musks attempt to halt OpenAIs for-profit plans But other aspects of the lawsuit have been permitted to proceed. (CNBC)+ The court will fast-track a trial later this year. (FT $)2 ChatGPT isnt going to dethrone GoogleAt least not any time soon. (Insider $) + AI means the end of internet search as weve known it. (MIT Technology Review)3 Beijing is going all in on AIChina is treating the technology as key to boosting its economyand lessening its reliance on overseas trade. (WSJ $)+ DeepSeek is, naturally, the jewel in its crown. (Reuters)+ Four Chinese AI startups to watch beyond DeepSeek. (MIT Technology Review)4 A pair of reinforcement learning pioneers have won the Turing Award Andrew Barto and Richard Suttons technique underpins todays chatbots. (Axios)+ The former professor and student wrote the literal book on reinforcement learning. (NYT $)+ The pair will share a million dollar prize. (New Scientist $) 5 US apps are being used to groom and exploit minors in Colombia Better internet service is making it easier for sex traffickers to find and sell young girls. (Bloomberg $)+ An AI companion site is hosting sexually charged conversations with underage celebrity bots. (MIT Technology Review)6 Europe is on high alert following undersea cable attacksIts unclear whether improving Russian-American relations will help. (The Guardian)+ These stunning images trace ships routes as they move. (MIT Technology Review)7 Jeff Bezos is cracking the whip at Blue OriginHes implementing a tougher, Amazon-like approach to catch up with rival SpaceX. (FT $) 8 All hail the return of DiggThe news aggregator is staging a comeback, over a decade after it was split into parts. (Inc) + Its been acquired by its original founder Kevin Rose and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. (TechCrunch)+ Digg wants to resurrect the community-first social platform. (The Verge)+ How to fix the internet. (MIT Technology Review)9 Were still learning about how memory works Greater understanding could pave the way to better treatments for anxiety and chronic pain. (Knowable Magazine)+ A memory prosthesis could restore memory in people with damaged brains. (MIT Technology Review)10 AI cant replace your personality Despite what Big Tech seems to be peddling. (NY Mag $)Quote of the day That is just a lot of money [to invest] on a handshake. US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers questions why Elon Musk invested tens of millions of dollars in OpenAI without a written contract, Associated Press reports. The big story People are worried that AI will take everyones jobs. Weve been here before. January 2024 It was 1938, and the pain of the Great Depression was still very real. Unemployment in the US was around 20%. New machinery was transforming factories and farms, and everyone was worried about jobs. Were the impressive technological achievements that were making life easier for many also destroying jobs and wreaking havoc on the economy? To make sense of it all, Karl T. Compton, the president of MIT from 1930 to 1948 and one of the leading scientists of the day, wrote in the December 1938 issue of this publication about the Bogey of Technological Unemployment. His essay concisely framed the debate over jobs and technical progress in a way that remains relevant, especially given todays fears over the impact of artificial intelligence. It's a worthwhile reminder that worries over the future of jobs are not new and are best addressed by applying an understanding of economics, rather than conjuring up genies and monsters. Read the full story.David Rotman We can still have nice things A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line or skeet 'em at me.) + Congratulations are in order for LeBron James, the first NBA player to break an astounding 50,000 combined points.+ RIP millennial culture, we hardly knew ye.+ Its time to start prepping for the Blood Moon total lunar eclipse later this month.+ Ancient frogs were surprisingly ruthless when they had to be

Once ChatGPT hit the scene at the end of 2022, Wall Street ramped up its efforts in AI.Business Insider has reported on how some of finance's biggest names are approaching the new tech.See how firms from Goldman Sachs to Bridgewater are using it.Welcome to Wall Street's AI era.Banks, hedge funds, asset managers, and private equity firms have been eager to use generative AI to boost productivity and reduce grunt work for workers. Since OpenAI's introduction of ChatGPT, finance firms have moved from pockets of experimentation to scaling these generative AI tools companywide. Such tech advancements have been met with a mix of enthusiasm and cynicism.Business Insider has been reporting on how some of finance's biggest players are approaching artificial intelligence, from how it might impact jobs and create new ones, to the different ways firms are cutting costs and ramping up efficiencies.Here is what we know about how Wall Street is embracing AI:Banks accelerated their AI research and use cases due to the rise of ChatGPTWe identified 17 of the top AI executives and technologists to know at the country's biggest banks.How the 6 biggest US banks are thinking about AI and the 17 executives leading the strategyJPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon is a "tremendous" user of the bank's generative AI suite. We have the story of how he and other execs use AI at the bank. Dimon also laid out his vision for how America's largest bank will win the AI battle against fintechs through data. Meet the leaders of that mission.Goldman Sachs' chief information officer and head of machine learning quants say we are at an inflection point with AI. Large language models, the form of AI behind ChatGPT, could transform how Wall Street does business. CEO David Solomon has said AI is changing processes like drafting IPO filings and analyst research. Marco Argenti and Dimitris Tsementzis outlined three areas where the bank is experimenting with LLMs. Meanwhile, Chief Data Officer Neema Raphael also outlined the bank's latest generative AI tool taking aim at enterprise search.AI is doing 95% of the work on an IPO prospectus, Goldman Sachs CEO saysWall Street's top tech priority: building internal search engines Neema Raphael, a chief data officer and Goldman partner. Goldman Sachs; Jenny Chang-Rodriguez/BI Morgan Stanley, which partners with OpenAI, promoted wealth tech executive Jeff McMillan to become the bank's first head of firm-wide artificial intelligence in March. He explained how the wealth management arm has been using its new chatbot and hinted at what's next for the firm. McMillan has also outlined his strategy to turn employees' AI ideas into reality. Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley's new innovation head told BI how he is looking to replicate the success of the bank's OpenAI partnership with more technology tie-ups.At Citibank, generative AI is poised to change just about every employee's job, co-chief information officer Shadman Zafar told BI. He outlined the bank's AI strategy and his plans to transform the bank with AI.A top Citi tech exec breaks down the 4 phases of the bank's AI strategy that will impact everyone from operations to wealth and productDeutsche Bank is aggressively experimenting with AI capabilities to transform the bank.The bank is on a hiring spree, trying to more than double its AI employee base of around 300, but uncertainty around regulation, talent wars, and the cost of scaling the tech won't make it easy.Take a look at the patents filed by America's biggest banks over the years to see how they've been thinking about innovating through AI. Data from consultancy Evident revealed how banks are using the tech in everything from trading to UX.How Wall Street's biggest banks are actually looking at using AI, according to patent filingsAI is entering the deal room. Investment bankers at nine top firms predict that AI will trigger a wave of M&A and IPOs. Here are 11 bankers poised to lead the AI revolution for Wall Street. Some of those bankers predict the deals that could drive the "AI arms race" in 2025.The deals 4 tech bankers think the 'AI arms race' could drive in 2025Wall Street is gearing up for an AI shopping spree. Meet 11 bankers poised to come out on top.Hedge funds have been on an AI hiring tear as firms look to solidify their teams and strategiesTop AI executives at hedge funds are tasked with setting their companies' AI agendas and ensuring that research and tech development progress is shared across the firm. These execs aren't always responsible for building the technology. For some, their role is influencingor advocating for its use among internal stakeholders, like portfolio managers, business leaders, and fund founders. (left to right) Balyasny Asset Management's Charlie Flanagan, AQR Capital Management's Bryan Kelly, Vatic Investments' Li Deng, and Two Sigma's Mike Schuster Balyasny Asset Management; AQR Capital Management; Vatic Investments; Two Sigma Bridgewater launched a fund in July driven by AI. The fund's AIA Labs worked to replicate every stage of the investment process with machine learning. The firm's co-chief investment officer and chief scientist outlined the plans of the world's largest hedge fund.Balyasny Asset Management is in the midst of building the AI equivalent of a senior analyst. Charlie Flanagan, the head of applied AI at the $21 billion hedge fund, broke down his plan to amass a collection of bots to automate grunt work for analysts.D.E. Shaw managing director Neil Katz gave BI an inside look at the quant hedge fund's generative AI approach, which is built on three main capabilities.D.E. Shaw's generative AI approach encourages programmers to build their own toolsMan Group, the largest publicly listed hedge fund with $161.2 billion in assets under management, launched a new data and machine learning group focused on generative AI in October. Tim Mace, who heads the department, outlined new capabilities his team is developing.Interviews with 11 AI executives, recruiters, vendors, and consultants working on Wall Street revealed the cultural challenges hedge funds might face as they use their deep pockets to lure in AI talent. These leaders can struggle to gain the trust of business leaders and break into investment teams, and AI researchers have struggled with hedge funds' penchant for secrecy.Inside the rocky marriage of hedge funds and top AI talentPrivate equity firms are trying to figure out how AI can boost their dealmaking and investment skillsWall Street is no stranger to managing and analyzing copious amounts of data but data is only helpful if you can find it. Here's an inside look at Blackstone's approach to enterprise search: DocAI, a generative AI tool that aims to help workers search and summarize more efficiently.Blackstone is looking to supercharge employee productivity with AI-powered searchBlackstone is also hoping AI will give it a leg up to capture more of the insurance company market. Here's how the firm is giving its insurance clients an edge with revved-up risk management capabilities.How Blackstone is using AI to win over big insurance companies hungry for private creditSwedish PE giant EQT built an AI engine called Motherbrain that has changed how its investors source deals. ChatGPT enables the investing giant to take the next step with its AI ambitions. iStock; Rebecca Zisser/BI As private equity firms turn to AI for a competitive edge, Thomas H. Lee says its engineers are up to 30% more productive with help from AI coding assistants.The PE pig roast: How THL uses competitions to get its portfolio companies ahead on AIAsset managers are also getting in on the AI action.The multi-billion investment manager VanEck invested in a Toronto-based startup and is onboarding its technology to boost its ETF business. An exec and the fintech's CEO walked us through how AI will change analysts' and salespeople's jobs.Money manager VanEck is backing an under-the-radar AI fintech to boost its ETF business VanEck's Wyatt Lonergan and Juan Lopez VanEck Asset manager AllianceBernstein has been building a team focused on AI and data science since 2017.Andrew Chin, AB's head of investment solutions and data science, talked to BI about how the asset manager uses AI to get an edge, save analysts hours of work, and improve risk management.Fintechs are developing AI tools to help their engineers work faster and smarter.Block, billionaire Jack Dorsey's company behind Square, Afterpay, and Cash App, developed an AI agent that's an expert coder it can even write code better and faster than some of the company's top engineers.Here's a look inside the initiative and why Block decided to open-source it.Lead Block engineer said the fintech's new AI agent writes better code than him and the fintech is open-sourcing it to competitorsIn 2023, the neobank Chime built its own private version of ChatGPT to help its engineers launch new products and features faster and more cheaply. The fintech's CTO walked us through his playbook.Chime's top tech exec details how the fintech is building an AI chatbot to speed up how quickly it launches new products and features.AI is shaking up the tech talent market on Wall Street, from creating new jobs to changing what it takes to be a coder.Wall Streeters, say hello to your new coworker. AI agents are beginning to permeate the labor force as assistants who can help humans with everyday tasks. Here's how banks and startups want to give every employee their own personalized direct report.Autonomous AI agents are coming to banksBanks, hedge funds, and private equity firms are switching into hiring gear thanks, in part, to a seemingly insatiable demand for AI. Five recruiters outline the most in-demand tech roles on Wall StreetHere are the most in-demand tech roles on Wall Street and how much they pay, according to 5 top recruitersAI is creating entirely new jobs on Wall Street. Here's one, which has some private equity firms shelling out pay packages of up to $2 million to drum up AI at portfolio companies.Private equity firms are 'clamoring' to hire AI executives with some offering pay packages of up to $2 millionFor a broader view at salaries, BI collected salary data on 8 Wall Street banks for AI roles across all levels.What Wall Street banks pay tech talent, from the data scientist earning $275,000 to the $120,000 quant-modeling jobData is king for hedge funds, and Wall Street's generative AI era offers new advantages. Here's how much the biggest proprietary trading firms and hedge funds are willing to pay for talent, according to government data.Prop-trading firms and hedge funds like Point72, Balyasny, and Bridgewater are turning to AI for higher returns. Here's what they pay AI workers.Top tech execs from Citadel, Goldman Sachs, and AllianceBernstein open up about how AI is changing the role of the CTO on Wall Street.Why CTOs have the biggest job on Wall Street right now. Tech leaders from Goldman and Citadel open up about how the job is evolving in the age of AI.Blackstone recently hired an AI exec from Walmart to apply the technology at its some 230 portfolio companies.From Walmart to Wall Street: Blackstone hires AI whiz to supercharge its portfolio companiesAI is redefining what it takes to be a software engineer on Wall Street. Top tech execs from Goldman Sachs and Citi open up about why they want their developers to have liberal arts degrees.What does Goldman Sachs want in a coder? For them to have studied philosophy.Balyasny's Bridger program, designed for incoming sell-side analysts to learn coding and AI skills, highlights the evolving skills of an analyst in the age of AI.Behind Balyasny's training program that gives analysts a crash course in data science and AI iStock;BI Business Insider spoke to five industry experts to get their take on how ChatGPT and its underlying tech could be applied to various sectors of financial services.AI could improve the lives of investment bankers by taking on some tedious tasks, but it can also make it harder to break into and alter the skills required for entry.AI has opened up a whole new playing field for public cloud giants to compete for Wall Street's wallet share.Generative AI has become a key part of Amazon Web Services's playbook for winning more of Wall Street. The head of the financial services market development walked us through how Amazon's cloud division is working with JPMorgan, Bridgewater, MUFG, and Rocket Mortgage.How AWS is helping financial giants like JPMorgan and Bridgwater with their AI ambitionsQuant hedge funds are beginning to rely on the latest AI chips, like Nvidia's popular GPUs, to test some of their most advanced models. Google Cloud is helping quantitative investment firms like Two Sigma and Hudson River Trading innovate around a shortage of sought-after Nvidia AI chips.Startups are looking to capitalize on Wall Street's AI feverAuquan only launched less than two years ago, but it's already been signed by some big financial firms. Here's a look at how its technology is automating research work usually done by analysts.This startup is bringing AI agents to banks and money managers including UBS, Blue Owl Capital, and T. Rowe Price. Here's the deck is used to raise $8 million.This startup wants to transform how investors and traders analyze data with generative AI. And it's catching the attention, and dollars, of some of the biggest names in the hedge fund world, like Millennium Management's founder Izzy Englander and billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller.This startup for traders just raised $30 million from investors including Stanley Druckenmiller and Greg Coffey. Here's how it plans to transform how Wall Street analyzes data.Meet Mako AI, a generative AI bot designed to solve the woes of early-career private equity associates. The startup, which launched in September, is cofounded by a former Bain and Co. consultant who worked in the PE industry and remembers the countless hours he spent on mundane tasks like collecting data, writing reports, and building formulas.This startup just launched the AI equivalent of a first-year private equity associate. Here's its pitch deck.Wall Street firms know the pains of having to satisfy regulators, but advancements in AI are introducing a whole new level of scrutiny and complexity. Meet this startup, which automates some of the most time-intensive parts of the risk management process.Here's the pitch deck this AI risk management startup used to raise $8 million in a round led by Point72 VenturesLouisa AI is a startup built to suggest potential deals for investment bankers and venture capital investors. The fintech, which was born inside Goldman Sachs by a former Goldman managing director, has suggested $800 million in deal values per quarter across a handful of clients.See the pitch deck that helped a former Goldman Sachs exec raise $5 million for an AI-powered networking startup that feeds deal ideas to bankers.Wall Street has a reputation for a hard-charging work culture, something that every junior banker learns in their life. Gabe Stengel was one such banker, sometimes staying up until 5 a.m. to create earnings summaries or to pull together presentations for superiors while at Lazard. Stengel knew there had to be a better way.See the pitch deck that helped former investment bankers raise a $7 million seed round for their generative 'AI consigliere' to bankers and analysts

2025-03-05T14:22:27Z Read in app I have traveled to many countries by myself and learned a lot about solo travel. Lisa VanderVeen This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now.Have an account? I hadn't planned on becoming a midlife solo traveler it was a byproduct of my divorce.Now, I love solo travel and have seen more than 20 countries by myself.I've learned to book guided day trips and small group tours and to dine with a book or journal.The Thanksgiving after my 20-year marriage imploded, I flew solo to Brussels.I'd never traveled alone, but the thought of facing the holiday without my family gutted me, so I booked a plane ticket.The trip was transformative. Since then, I've traveled solo to 21 countries, and each trip has made me stronger.Now, my favorite way to travel is by myself. Flying off into the world alone, the choices are all mine where I go, what I see, how I eat, where I stay.Here are some of the best solo travel tips I've learned along the way.Start where you are.One of my first solo trips was to Canada's Prince Edward Island. Peter Unger/Getty Images If you haven't traveled extensively, choose a destination at least somewhat close to home (or somewhere you're comfortable driving to) for your first trip alone. It can help travel feel less intimidating and more manageable.One of my early solo trips was to Canada's Prince Edward Island. I drove from my home in New Jersey and ferried back to Maine from Nova Scotia.I toured every "Anne of Green Gables" filming site on PEI and loved having my car so I could travel at my own pace.Small group tours mix social opportunities with alone time.Group tours can include activities you didn't think to plan. Artaporn Puthikampol/Getty Images Group tours can be really helpful if you want a break from traveling alone or feel intimidated when planning a trip in a place where you don't speak the language.Although some tours can be huge and generic, I prefer ones with small groups (a maximum of about 12 people) that are geared toward niche interests such as photography or wellness.I like that guides handle the planning logistics, and the tours come with readymade travel companions.I've traveled with small group tours through Vietnam, Cambodia, Bolivia, Romania, and Laos, paying a small single supplement so I can have my own room. This gives me a perfect mix of social and alone time.Guided day trips with locals can help take you off the beaten path.I had a great time in Cappadocia, Turkey. standret/Getty Images In my opinion, tours with local guides are some of the best ways to have a personalized, less-touristy experience in a new place.I had an incredible guide in Cappadocia, Turkey, who modified his original itinerary as I shared my interests.I love history and nature, so he added remote hikes and hidden ruins. He even took me to his childhood home, an ancient cave house he was renovating into a hotel.By the end of the trip, I considered him a friend.Food tours and cooking classes can help you dive into local markets and cultures.Cooking classes can be informative and tasty. Thomas Barwick/Getty Images I book a food tour or a cooking class on every trip.My favorites incorporate a stop at a local market to select ingredients and/or explain culinary heritage.Food tours are generally on foot, which can help me orient myself and learn to navigate a new city. These are also especially great to book when I worry about jetlag and want to stay awake after an overnight flight.One of my favorite food tours was in Krakow, Poland, where the guide began with a typical "happy hour" and ended with what his grandmother would serve for Christmas dinner. It felt like a brilliant glimpse of real life in Krakow.I've found ways to find solitude while also being near others when it comes to outdoor adventures, too.I feel better about going on a hike when I know others are nearby. Aaron Geddes Photography/Getty Images If you're looking to explore nature by yourself but are a bit worried about doing so alone, consider booking transportation to and from a hike.For example, I wanted to hike the Samaria Gorge in Crete but was worried about doing a 10-mile solo hike on slippery river rock.So, I booked a bare-bones tour that included transportation to and from the Gorge. Although I was alone, I had the comfort of knowing there were other hikers nearby (who had also been dropped off) in the case of an emergency.I hiked for four and a half hours, stopping to take photos, fill my water bottle, have a snack, or explore a beautiful natural pool all at my own pace.If having dinner alone intimidates you, bring a book or travel journal.A good book can make dining alone feel less awkward. O_Lypa/Getty Images The stress of dining alone was a hindrance for me when I began my solo travels. Now, I view it as an opportunity to catch up in my travel journal while I sample exactly the type of meal I'm in the mood for.In my experience, servers can be particularly attentive to solo diners and many have given me excellent meal suggestions.Eating alone often invites conversation, and I often find myself chatting more than I would if I had a companion.Taking photos of others yields reciprocity on your solo trips.Remember to get in some of your travel photos. petesphotography/Getty Images Don't forget to include yourself in your travel photos.If you are hesitant to travel with a tripod or selfie stick, try connecting with others.When I offer to take a photo of someone, they generally offer to take mine in return. Some of my best photos have come from handing my phone to a stranger.