Musk’s xAI to Invest Over $20 Billion in Mississippi Data Center

/in /tarafından

xAI, the artificial intelligence company founded by Elon Musk, will invest more than $20 billion to build a large-scale data center in Southaven, Mississippi, state Governor Tate Reeves said on Thursday.

The investment comes as booming demand for generative AI drives tech companies to sharply expand computing infrastructure. Data centers have become a focal point for spending by AI startups and hyperscalers seeking to train increasingly powerful models.

According to the governor’s statement, xAI expects to begin operations at the Southaven data center in February 2026. Musk had previously announced on December 30 that xAI had acquired a data center named “MACROHARDRR,” saying the facility would lift the company’s total computing capacity to 2 gigawatts, though he did not disclose the investment size or location at the time.

The Southaven site is located near a power plant recently acquired by xAI and close to its existing data center footprint in Memphis, Tennessee, the statement said. Memphis is home to xAI’s flagship supercomputer cluster, Colossus, which the company has described as the largest in the world.

The expansion highlights xAI’s aggressive push to compete more directly with leading AI developers such as OpenAI and Anthropic, whose ChatGPT and Claude models dominate much of the current generative AI market.

xAI’s spending underscores the heavy cash demands of the AI race. Bloomberg reported earlier on Thursday that the company burned $7.8 billion in cash during the first nine months of the year, reflecting the high cost of advanced data center hardware and large-scale model training.

Big Tech to Avoid Strict Obligations in EU Digital Rules Overhaul, Sources Say

/in /tarafından

Major U.S. technology companies including Alphabet, Meta Platforms, Netflix, Microsoft and Amazon are set to avoid strict new regulatory obligations under the European Union’s upcoming overhaul of digital rules, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter.

Despite strong lobbying from telecoms companies for tougher measures targeting Big Tech, the companies will instead fall under a voluntary framework as part of the planned Digital Networks Act (DNA), the sources said. The European Commission has declined to comment.

The DNA, which will be presented by EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen on January 20, is aimed at boosting Europe’s competitiveness and encouraging greater investment in telecoms infrastructure. The proposal will still need approval from EU member states and the European Parliament before it can become law.

Under the draft rules, Big Tech firms will be encouraged to cooperate voluntarily with telecoms operators in discussions moderated by BEREC, rather than being subject to binding obligations similar to those imposed on telecoms providers. One source described the approach as a “best practices regime” with no new mandatory requirements.

The planned overhaul will also address spectrum policy, with the Commission setting out guidance on licence duration, sale conditions and pricing methodologies to be used by national regulators during spectrum auctions, which often generate billions of euros for governments. While the goal is to harmonise spectrum allocation across the EU and reduce regulatory burdens for telecoms firms, some national regulators are expected to resist what they may see as increased centralisation of power.

In addition, the Commission plans to issue guidance on the rollout of fibre infrastructure, a key element of the EU’s digital strategy to narrow the gap with the United States and China. Governments may also be allowed to extend the 2030 deadline for replacing copper networks with fibre if they can demonstrate they are not ready to meet the target.

The EU’s digital policy push has drawn criticism from Washington in recent years, with U.S. officials arguing that new rules unfairly target American companies. Brussels has repeatedly rejected those claims.

MiniMax, China’s Second ‘AI Tiger’, Doubles in Hong Kong IPO Debut

/in /tarafından

Shares of MiniMax Group, one of China’s so-called “AI tigers,” surged on their first day of trading in Hong Kong on Friday, with the stock more than doubling as investors piled into the consumer-focused artificial intelligence firm.

MiniMax closed at HK$345 per share, compared with its offer price of HK$165, valuing the company at around $13.7 billion. The shares climbed as high as HK$351.8 during the session. The strong debut followed the company’s initial public offering, which raised about HK$4.8 billion ($620 million) to fund research and development.

The performance outpaced that of fellow AI tiger Zhipu AI, which rose 13% in its Hong Kong debut a day earlier. Zhipu AI extended gains on Friday, climbing another 20.6% and pushing its valuation close to $9 billion.

Analysts said MiniMax’s focus on consumer-facing applications helped fuel investor enthusiasm. “MiniMax’s consumer orientation appealed more to investors seeking high-growth opportunities, while Zhipu’s enterprise and government focus was seen as more stable but less exciting,” said Lian Jye Su, chief analyst at Omdia. He added that strong benchmark results for MiniMax’s open-source foundation models also boosted sentiment.

Founded in early 2022 by former SenseTime executive Yan Junjie, the Shanghai-based company develops multimodal AI models capable of processing text, audio, images, video and music. Its popular products include Hailuo AI, a video generation tool, and Talkie, an AI character interaction app that allows users to engage with virtual personas.

“This is only the beginning,” Yan said at the listing ceremony, adding that he hoped the pace of technological progress in AI would remain rapid over the coming years.

MiniMax’s cornerstone investors include Alibaba Group, the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Boyu Capital and Mirae Asset. The listing comes amid strong global investor appetite for AI-related stocks, as China accelerates efforts to build homegrown technology champions.

Hong Kong has seen a sharp rebound in IPO activity, emerging last year as the world’s leading listing venue. Companies raised about $37.2 billion from 115 new listings, the highest level since 2021, according to LSEG data.