AI News Digest: Jan. 31, 2025
Welcome to the sixth issue of the AI News Digest! We want to hear from you: Are these AI stories valuable? What else would you like to see in future editions? Let us know: send us an email or comment in our LinkedIn Group.
TOP NEWS
What to know about DeepSeek and how it is upending A.I. The Chinese AI company DeepSeek launched its own large language model (LLM), taking the world by storm with its capabilities despite how inexpensive it was to train the model. The news decimated the stock market, especially impacting companies like NVIDIA and Meta. New York Times
Beyond the illusion - The real threat of AI: WEF global risks report 2025The 2025 WEF Global Risks Report highlighted AI's risks, from job loss to ethical concerns, as calls for stronger regulations continue to increase to ensure the technology's benefits align with societal well-being. Forbes
Trump revokes Biden executive order on addressing AI risksOn Inauguration Day, President Trump revoked an executive order from former President Joe Biden in 2023 that aimed to reduce AI risks for consumers, national security, and workers. Republicans claimed the order only hindered AI development. Reuters
CLIMATE & SUSTAINABILITY
Comment: How empowering smallholder farmers with AI tools can bolster global food security AI tools are helping smallholder farmers improve resilience and savings, but broader adoption requires increased investment in agricultural adaptation. Reuters
FINANCE/INSURANCE
Better artificial intelligence (AI) stock for 2025: Nvidia vs. Microsoft With Microsoft's AI-driven growth fueled by Azure's expanding contracts and Nvidia's focus on boosting Blackwell processor production to meet surging AI infrastructure demand, both companies are well-positioned in lucrative AI markets. Yahoo Finance
AI RISK
'The Brutalist' sparks controversy after film's editor reveals use of AI The new movie 'The Brutalist' stirred up outrage after its director revealed AI was used for certain parts of the film, specifically to help perfect the Hungarian accent for lead characters. NBC News
GOVERNMENT
A look at Vatican City’s new artificial intelligence law The Vatican City enacted its first law against the use of AI for discriminatory purposes. Some banned practices include employing AI systems that harm the security of the Vatican City, using AI to draw inappropriate depictions of individuals, and more. CBCP News
AI TECH DEVELOPMENTS
Microsoft just built an AI that designs materials for the future: Here’s how it works Microsoft unveiled its powerful new AI system called MatterGen, which generates novel materials with specific desired properties. The tool has the potential to revolutionize materials discovery, accelerating the development of better batteries, more efficient solar cells and other critical technologies. VentureBeat
NORTHEASTERN AI NEWS
Agentic AI: Institute for Experiential AI Position Amid growing excitement and confusion around agentic AI, the Institute for Experiential AI released a new position paper cutting through the chaos to explain what agentic AI really is, the market challenges, and the need for human-in-the-loop AI systems. The Institute for Experiential AI
Stargate AI infrastructure plan could help drive industry forward, says Northeastern AI expert The new $500 billion Stargate Project between the federal government and some of the biggest companies working in AI could help drive industry, but will it last? Usama Fayyad spoke with Northeastern Global News about what it will take for the project to be successful, and the need for an administration that ensures businesses are acting responsibly. Northeastern Global News
What's Next for AI in 2025? 2025 is set to be a pivotal year for AI, with shifts in administration, evolving regulations, and monumental investment projects already underway. With all these changes, Northeastern University leaders explored what you should keep an eye on in this month’s In the AI Loop newsletter. The Institute for Experiential AI
ABOUT THE DIGEST
This newsletter is a special collaboration between Northeastern University students studying AI, data science, and computer science, and experts at The Institute for Experiential AI.
Northeastern student curators include:
- Mihalis Koutouvos (PM), second-year, computer science
- Kaviarasu Annadurai, graduate student, robotics
- Mohammed Hussain Shariff, graduate student, applied machine intelligence
- Gabriella Hylton, third-year, computer science and economics
- Hayli Wynn, second-year, computer science and business
- Junxin Zheng, graduate student, computer science
- Yuxi Zhou, graduate student, computer science
Northeastern's Institute for Experiential AI review and editorial team includes:
- Ricardo Baeza-Yates, director of research
- Hamit Hamutcu, senior advisor, strategy & marketing
- Tim Weidinger, director of business development
- Digital marketing and content team
