Amazon Unveils Nova Forge While Anthropic Claude Finds Exploits

Amazon recently unveiled its second generation Nova AI models, including Nova Lite, Nova Pro, Nova Sonic, and Nova Omni, at the re:Invent conference in Las Vegas. A significant introduction was Nova Forge, a service allowing customers to create specialized AI models by integrating their own data during early training stages. This "open training" approach differs from standard fine-tuning. Companies such as Reddit, Booking.com, Sony, and Nimbus Therapeutics are already testing Nova Forge to build AI experts tailored to their specific needs. Rohit Prasad, Amazon's SVP of AGI, emphasized that Amazon prioritizes "real-world utility" over traditional AI model benchmarks, with Nova Forge costing $100,000 annually for cloud customers, excluding expert assistance. Internal Amazon teams also utilize Forge, and tens of thousands of organizations use Nova models weekly in Bedrock. Beyond Amazon, the AI sector saw other notable developments. Nvidia made a substantial investment of $2 billion in Synopsys, a chip software manufacturer, signaling continued strength in the AI trade. HSBC's head of equity strategy, Nicole Inui, even discussed the potential for the expanding AI trade to become a major market force by 2026. However, the technology also presents new challenges; a project by MATS and Anthropic Fellows demonstrated that AI models like Claude Opus 4.5, Claude Sonnet 4.5, and GPT-5 can exploit smart contracts to steal cryptocurrency. These models identified exploits worth $4.6 million in older contracts and uncovered new vulnerabilities in recently deployed ones, generating $3,694 in exploits at an API cost of $3,476. AI's influence is expanding across various sectors. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) restructured its C4I and Cyber Defense Directorate, creating a new artificial intelligence unit to enhance cyber defense and counter drone attacks. This new AI division will develop systems for transcribing communications and identifying casualties. In the creative world, Oscar-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro expressed concerns about AI at the Gotham Awards, praising human artistry in his work. Meanwhile, Autodesk Fusion is integrating AI to accelerate product development for consumer companies, automating tasks and improving design processes. Banks are also adopting Agentic AI to boost frontline teams, with early results showing potential for increased revenue per relationship manager by 3 to 15 percent and reduced service costs by 20 to 40 percent. Citi is even hiring for its bond-trading desk, attributing a boom in debt sales to AI technologies. The adoption of AI also brings regulatory and ethical considerations. Illinois officials have banned the use of AI, drones, and e-bikes for deer hunting, citing "fair chase" principles and the unreliability of AI programs like ChatGPT for looking up hunting rules. A survey of UK journalists revealed that most use AI professionally every week for tasks like transcription and research, despite a majority viewing it as a threat. Interestingly, frequent AI users among journalists reported spending too much time on low-level tasks, including checking AI output, contrary to hopes that AI would free them from such work.

Key Takeaways

• Amazon introduced Nova Forge, an "open training" service allowing companies to create custom AI models by adding their own data, costing $100,000 annually.
• Amazon's Nova 2 AI family includes Nova 2 Lite, Nova 2 Pro, and Nova 2 Sonic (speech-to-speech), with tens of thousands of organizations using Nova models weekly in Bedrock.
• Nvidia invested $2 billion in Synopsys, a chip software manufacturer, highlighting the continued strength of the AI trade.
• AI models, specifically Claude Opus 4.5, Claude Sonnet 4.5, and GPT-5, demonstrated the ability to exploit smart contracts, finding $4.6 million in past exploits and new vulnerabilities.
• The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reorganized its C4I and Cyber Defense Directorate to include a new artificial intelligence unit focused on cyber defense and countering drone attacks.
• Agentic AI is being adopted by banks to improve frontline operations, potentially increasing revenue per relationship manager by 3-15% and lowering service costs by 20-40%.
• Autodesk Fusion now uses AI to accelerate product development for consumer companies, automating design tasks and improving collaboration.
• Illinois banned the use of AI (like ChatGPT for rules), drones, and e-bikes for deer hunting, citing "fair chase" principles and AI's unreliability for regulations.
• A UK survey found most journalists use AI weekly for tasks like transcription and research, despite a majority perceiving AI as a threat to their profession.
• Citi is expanding its bond-trading desk, with AI technologies fueling a boom in debt sales.

Amazon unveils new Nova AI models and custom tool

Amazon announced its second generation Nova AI models at the re:Invent conference in Las Vegas. These include Nova Lite, Nova Pro, Nova Sonic, and Nova Omni. More importantly, Amazon introduced Nova Forge, a tool that lets customers create specialized AI models by adding their own data during early training stages. This "open training" approach is different from fine-tuning existing models. Companies like Reddit, Booking.com, Sony, and Nimbus Therapeutics are already testing Nova Forge to build AI experts for their specific needs.

Amazon AI chief says benchmarks are not important

Rohit Prasad, Amazon's SVP of AGI, believes that AI model benchmarks are not truly useful. He stated this at the AWS re:Invent conference in Las Vegas. Instead, Amazon focuses on "real-world utility" for its AI. The main announcement was Nova Forge, a service allowing companies to train custom AI models by adding their data at different training stages. Reddit's CTO, Chris Slowe, is using Forge to create a specialized AI for content moderation, understanding complex rules like "Don't be a jerk."

Amazon expands Nova AI with new models and custom tools

Amazon expanded its Nova AI family with new Nova 2 models and services. The new models include Nova 2 Lite for everyday tasks and Nova 2 Pro for complex problem-solving, both offering strong performance and web grounding. Nova 2 Sonic is a speech-to-speech model for human-like conversational AI, supporting multiple languages and integrating with Amazon Connect and other providers. Amazon also launched Nova Forge, an "open training" service for companies to build custom AI models, and Nova Act for creating reliable AI agents.

Amazon offers Nova Forge for custom AI models at 100000

Amazon Web Services introduced Nova Forge, allowing cloud customers to customize AI models during their training. This service costs $100,000 per year, but it does not include help from Amazon experts. Nova Forge lets organizations add their own data earlier in the AI model development process, making it more affordable than building a large language model from scratch. Rohit Prasad, Amazon's head scientist for AGI, stated that internal Amazon teams also use Forge. Nova models are popular in Bedrock, with tens of thousands of organizations using them weekly.

Nvidia invests 2 billion in Synopsys as AI trade grows

Nvidia invested $2 billion in Synopsys, a chip software manufacturer. Interactive Brokers Chief Strategist Steve Sosnick discussed investor feelings about the AI market. He noted that the AI trade remains a strong force. Investors are reassessing the market ahead of the Federal Reserve's December FOMC meeting.

HSBC strategist discusses AI trade outlook for 2026

Nicole Inui, HSBC's head of equity strategy for the Americas, shared her predictions for 2026. She discussed whether the expanding AI trade could become a major market force. Her insights were shared with Yahoo Finance Executive Editor Brian Sozzi.

AI models can now exploit crypto contracts

A project by MATS and Anthropic Fellows showed that AI models can exploit smart contracts to steal cryptocurrency. Using the SCONE-bench, Claude Opus 4.5, Claude Sonnet 4.5, and GPT-5 found exploits worth $4.6 million in contracts from 2020 to 2025. These AI agents also uncovered two new vulnerabilities in 2,849 recently deployed contracts, generating $3,694 in exploits at an API cost of $3,476. The research suggests that over half of 2025's blockchain exploits, done by humans, could have been performed by current AI.

IDF reorganizes computer unit for AI and electronic warfare

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) restructured its C4I and Cyber Defense Directorate to focus on AI and electronic warfare. This reorganization created a new artificial intelligence unit and expanded electronic warfare capabilities to boost cyber defense and counter drone attacks. The directorate, led by Maj. Gen. Aviad Dagan, now has five divisions, including new Spectrum and Communications and Information and Artificial Intelligence divisions. The Spectrum division helped take down 25% of 1,100 drones launched by Iran in June. The AI division will develop systems for transcribing communications and identifying casualties, also including a unit of reservists with tech industry knowledge.

Guillermo del Toro criticizes AI at Gotham Awards

Oscar-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro spoke out against AI at the Gotham Awards. He accepted a "Frankenstein" tribute for his Netflix film. Del Toro praised the movie as "willfully made by humans, for humans," highlighting the artistry of the cast and crew. He mentioned reading Mary Shelley's novel at age 11, which shaped his life. Del Toro expressed gratitude for working with artists like Oscar and Jacob, who dramatize the human condition.

Autodesk Fusion uses AI to boost product development

Autodesk Fusion now uses AI to help consumer product companies develop products faster and more efficiently. AI tools in Fusion automate tasks, improve decision-making, and enhance collaboration across design and manufacturing. This helps companies respond to changing consumer demands for smart, sustainable, and customized products. Fusion's AI features include generating visual references from text, exploring design variations, and automating drawing creation. These tools aim to accelerate development cycles, reduce costs, and improve product-market fit for various consumer goods.

Illinois bans AI drones and e-bikes for deer hunting

Illinois officials are telling deer hunters to stop using AI, drones, and e-bikes during hunting season. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) bans drones for any part of hunting, including tracking deer, because it goes against "fair chase" principles. AI programs like ChatGPT are also prohibited for looking up hunting rules because they often give wrong information. Additionally, e-bikes are not allowed on IDNR lands, except on specific roads, to prevent damage.

Banks use Agentic AI to boost frontline teams

Agentic AI is transforming how banks' frontline teams operate, improving tasks like prospecting and lead nurturing. This new AI acts as an adaptive partner, automating complex workflows and making real-time decisions. Early results show that agentic AI can increase revenue per relationship manager by 3 to 15 percent and lower service costs by 20 to 40 percent. A McKinsey survey of 400 US and Canadian bankers found that 85% already use some form of AI and are hopeful about agentic AI's potential. This technology helps relationship managers focus on building client trust by handling routine tasks in the background.

Journalists use AI despite seeing it as a threat

A survey of UK journalists found that most use AI professionally every week, even though a majority see it as a threat. Many journalists use AI for language tasks like transcription and grammar checks. They also use it for more important tasks such as story research and generating parts of articles. Male and younger journalists, along with those in management or business reporting, use AI more often. While some hoped AI would free them from low-level tasks, frequent AI users actually feel they spend too much time on such work, including checking AI output.

Citi hires for bond trading as AI boosts debt sales

Citi is hiring staff for its bond-trading desk. This move comes as artificial intelligence is fueling a boom in debt sales. The increase in debt sales is being driven by AI technologies.

Sources

• Amazon Has New Frontier AI Models—and a Way for Customers to Build Their Own
• Amazon’s bet that AI benchmarks don’t matter
• Amazon introduces new frontier Nova models, a pioneering Nova Forge service for organizations to build their own models, and Nova Act for building agents
• Amazon to let cloud clients customize AI models midway through training for $100,000 a year
• AI trade still a 'dominant force' as investors start to reassess
• Could a broadening AI trade dominate 2026? Strategist weighs in.
• AI Can Steal Crypto Now
• Focusing on AI and electronic warfare, IDF restructures computer service directorate
• Guillermo Del Toro Reviles AI Accepting ‘Frankenstein’ Tribute At Gotham Awards, Praises Film “Willfully Made By Humans, For Humans”
• How AI in Fusion Drives Speed, Efficiency, and ROI for Consumer Product Teams
• Why Illinois wants you to stop using AI and drones to hunt your deer
• Agentic AI is here. Is your bank’s frontline team ready?
• Journalists may see AI as a threat to the industry, but they’re using it anyway
• Citi hires for bond-trading desk as AI drives debt-sales boom