TL;DR

U.S. expands AI chip export curbs; Nvidia nears $4T; EU firms push to delay AI Act.

Highlights

• U.S. to require export licenses for advanced AI chips shipped to Malaysia and Thailand, aiming to block indirect flows to China 1.
• 45 CEOs from major European firms urge the EU to delay the AI Act, citing lack of guidance and competitiveness risks; Brussels rejects calls for a formal pause 2.
• Ilya Sutskever becomes CEO of Safe Superintelligence Inc. after co-founder Daniel Gross moves to Meta ; Meta continues aggressive AI talent recruitment 3.
• TSMC delays second Japan fab, reallocates investment to U.S. plants amid potential U.S. tariffs on imported chips 4.
• Nvidia’s market cap nears $4 trillion, briefly surpassing Apple’s record, driven by sustained AI data center demand 5.
• Apple has explored launching a cloud service for developers using its own silicon, potentially reducing Nvidia/AWS dependence 6.
• Meta pilots “Project Omni” chatbots that initiate user conversations across major platforms, raising privacy and safety concerns 7.
• Independent publishers file EU antitrust complaint against Google ’s AI Overviews, alleging unfair traffic and revenue diversion 8.
• AI-driven Iranian drones used by Russia in Ukraine; Ukraine and Turkey deploy new AI-guided drones and munitions 910.
• UK unveils 10-year NHS plan with AI-powered digital health tools; concerns raised over digital exclusion and privacy 11.
• China expected to see over 100 DeepSeek-style AI breakthroughs in 18 months; U.S.-China AI talent competition intensifies 12.
• Ford and BT CEOs warn of large-scale AI-driven job cuts, but new research suggests most firms are only piloting basic automation 13.
• Over half of U.S. managers now use AI tools for promotions, raises, and layoffs, signaling rapid HR adoption 14.

Commentary

U.S. export controls continue to reshape the global AI hardware landscape, now targeting Malaysia and Thailand to close indirect supply routes to China 1. This move forces chipmakers like Nvidia and AMD to tighten compliance and may further fragment global supply chains. TSMC ’s decision to delay its Japanese fab and accelerate U.S. investment underscores how policy uncertainty and potential tariffs are driving capital allocation, with implications for both hardware availability and regional chip strategies 4.

Regulatory pressure is mounting in Europe. The call from 45 CEOs to delay the AI Act highlights industry concerns over compliance uncertainty and competitiveness, especially with statutory obligations for general-purpose models looming in August 2025 2. The EU’s refusal to formally delay the Act, combined with ongoing antitrust scrutiny of Google ’s AI Overviews 8 and privacy questions around Meta ’s proactive chatbots 7, signals an increasingly interventionist regulatory environment for AI developers and deployers.

The competition for AI talent remains intense. Meta ’s recruitment of Daniel Gross and other high-profile researchers, alongside China’s efforts to drive domestic breakthroughs and attract overseas engineers, illustrates the strategic importance of human capital 312. For AI companies, talent acquisition and retention are now as critical as hardware access, especially as U.S.-China friction limits cross-border chip flows 12.

On the enterprise side, Nvidia’s valuation surge reflects persistent investor confidence in generative AI as a growth driver 5, while Apple ’s exploration of a developer cloud using its own silicon points to potential shifts in the AI infrastructure market 6. Meanwhile, rapid adoption of AI in HR 14 and warnings of job displacement from industry leaders 13 contrast with research suggesting most firms are still in early stages of automation 13. This dichotomy highlights the need for nuanced workforce strategies and upskilling initiatives as AI adoption deepens.