China’s answer to OpenAI 🤫

Plus: AI heavy-hitters join forces

Welcome back! We already got some major news out of the new Trump administration yesterday (keep reading for more). Hearing this headline, it hit me—navigating the fast-paced AI space can feel overwhelming. There’s so much happening, pretty much all the time.

That’s why I’m starting to expand my content to include real-time coverage via streaming. Let’s keep up together, one step at a time.

Big tech joins forces in new AI deal

President Trump, SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son, Oracle’s Larry Ellison, and OpenAI’s Sam Altman. Photo via AP

President Donald Trump just announced a $500 billion AI infrastructure investment in the US. As part of the deal, OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank will join together to form a new company called Stargate—aimed at building “the physical and virtual infrastructure to power the next generation of AI.”

By the numbers:

  • The trio of companies will invest $100 billion in Stargate to start, with potential to cough up $500 billion in the coming years.

  • The project is expected to create 100,000 US jobs, according to Trump…if all goes to plan.

Keep in mind: These kinds of joint investment announcements with deep-pocketed companies are not unusual in the early days of any president’s term. But Trump has signaled that he’s focused on tech—he’s also already reversed an executive order passed by former President Joe Biden to monitor and regulate AI risks.

Cheaper and better AI?

Chinese AI lab DeepSeek just launched R1, a reasoning-focused model that it claims outperforms OpenAI’s o1 on benchmarks like MATH-500 and SWE-Bench Verified. With 671 billion parameters, R1 excels at tasks requiring logic and accuracy, like physics and programming.

It’s available for developers on Hugging Face under an MIT license.

Why it matters: DeepSeek is offering R1 at 90–95% lower costs than OpenAI, making advanced AI more accessible. Plus, China is making rapid progress in AI amid mounting US-China tensions over tech export controls.

Discover How to Save 10+ Hours Per Week Using AI as Your Personal Assistant

Are you drowning in tasks while dreaming of a way to clone yourself? Your AI productivity breakthrough has arrived.

  • Get the exact templates used by top performers to delegate 80% of their routine work to AI

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  • Master AI delegation in under 60 minutes with our step-by-step implementation guide

  • Track your time savings with our built-in ROI calculator

  • Leverage advanced prompts that turn ChatGPT into your 24/7 productivity partner

  • Future-proof your workflow with regular template updates as AI technology evolves

Imagine completing a full day's work by lunch, knowing your AI assistant handles the rest. Over 10,000 professionals have already transformed their productivity using these templates.

Keep tabs on your tabs 💻️ 

Via Side Space

Side Space uses AI to organize your tabs into vertical spaces, helping you stay focused and productive while browsing. It’s perfect for multitaskers with too many tabs open (guilty).

How you can use it:

  • Automatically group tabs into spaces for work, shopping, or personal research.

  • Save and restore tab groups for recurring projects, like weekly reports or coursework.

  • Sync tab spaces across devices to keep your workflows seamless.

Pricing: Free plan for up to 5 spaces. Pro plan at $39 one-time payment for unlimited spaces.

Make your ideas 3D 📦️ 

Via Shapen

Shapen transforms photos into high-quality 3D models, making it easy for creators, architects, and designers to explore new dimensions.

How you can use it:

  • Convert a photo of a building into a 3D architectural model for client presentations.

  • Design game characters or product prototypes for 3D printing or animation.

Pricing: Free plan available with daily generations. Basic plan at $20/month for 500 images and 50 3D models.

Rewrite your thinking ✍️ 

Via Reset

Reset is a self-therapy journaling app that helps you track and manage anxiety using evidence-based cognitive behavioral therapy techniques. Over an 11-week program, it guides you through restructuring thoughts and building healthier mental habits.

How you can use it:

  • Identify triggers and reframe negative thoughts using personalized prompts.

  • Uncover patterns in your emotions to improve your mental health.

Pricing: Free plan available. Unlimited plan at $8/month with advanced insights.

Jobs, announcements, and big ideas

  • VCs are doubling down on scalable, secure AI startups.

  • Trump overturns AI safety measures, sparking policy uncertainty.

  • OpenAI and Meta are racing to build the ultimate AI assistant.

  • BCG is hiring a Global Product Director to lead and expand its portfolio of generative AI offers globally.

  • Join JPMorganChase as an Applied AI and ML Data Scientist to develop cutting-edge AI models for digital solutions.

Are you using ChatGPT wrong? I'll walk you through ways to unleash GPT o1’s full potential.

LIVE in the AI Sandbox: (Something new…) Stick around as I test out the hottest AI tools on the spot.

Thanks for reading! See you Friday for another round-up of the latest news and tools in AI.

—Matt (FutureTools.io)

P.S. This newsletter is 100% written by a human. Okay, maybe 96%.