Microsoft's big AI hires, U.S. vs. Apple, and graffiti-fighting drones
GeekWire
GeekWire
4.4 • 116 Ratings
🗓️ 23 March 2024
⏱️ 29 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
This week on the show, we peel back the layers of Microsoft's hiring of AI pioneer Mustafa Suleyman and colleagues from Inflection AI, considering how it plays into the trend of the Redmond company striking deals that look a lot like acquisitions, without actually being acquisitions. Then, we delve into the U.S. Justice Department’s landmark antitrust lawsuit against Apple, and consider the parallels to the DOJ's prior case against Microsoft. And finally, we ponder Washington state's plan to fight graffiti with drones.
Additional Links
- S. "Soma" Somasegar: Analysis: Microsoft’s big hires foreshadow bold new move into consumer AI
- Newcomer: Microsoft’s Non-Acquisition Acquisition (second item)
- The Information: Microsoft Agreed to Pay Inflection $650 Million While Hiring Its Staff
- Bill Barr in the Wall Street Journal: Siri, Does Apple Violate Antitrust Law?
- DOJ: Justice Department Sues Apple for Monopolizing Smartphone Markets
- The Verge: DOJ’s sweeping Apple lawsuit draws expert praise
With GeekWire co-founders Todd Bishop and John Cook.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Drone technology is going to be used in Washington State to address graffiti. |
| 0:05.8 | Wipe out graffiti, literally, by painting over it. |
| 0:09.2 | They're called spray drones. |
| 0:12.0 | Wait till the graffiti artists get their hands on these. |
| 0:15.0 | Right? |
| 0:17.0 | Hi and welcome to GeekWire. |
| 0:22.0 | I'm GeekWire, co-founder Todd Bishop and I'm |
| 0:25.1 | GeekWire co-founder John Cook. We are coming to you from Seattle where we get to |
| 0:28.5 | report each day on what's happening around us in business, technology and |
| 0:32.0 | innovation. |
| 0:33.0 | What happens here matters everywhere and every week on this show |
| 0:36.0 | we get to talk about some of the most interesting stories in the news. |
| 0:39.0 | Coming up later on, the Department of Justice's lawsuit against Apple over the iPhone and some |
| 0:46.2 | interesting subplots related to Microsoft and Amazon, plus a novel new use for drones that might just make your neighborhood a little bit cleaner |
| 0:57.1 | someday, especially if you're in Washington State. So stick around for that. But first, John, there was a fascinating story that I covered a little |
| 1:05.3 | bit this week related to a new hire by Microsoft. In fact, there's multiple hires. The company |
| 1:11.0 | hired Mustafa Suleiman, who is the CEO and co-founder of a company called |
| 1:16.9 | Inflection AI, plus some of his colleagues from that company, to be the new CEO of a new group inside Microsoft called |
| 1:26.3 | Microsoft AI. This was interesting when you first looked at it on the surface and |
| 1:32.0 | the more you appeal this one back, |
| 1:35.1 | the more interesting it gets. |
| 1:36.9 | And in fact, I have a theory that goes even beyond what anybody else has speculated about related to this hire. |
... |
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