Microsoft Shifts AI Financing While Meta Seeks Power Market Entry

Major tech companies like Microsoft, Meta, and Google are adopting new strategies to finance their extensive AI growth. They are increasingly leasing computer power and securing funding for data centers by shifting financial risks to smaller firms and lenders. This approach allows them to rapidly expand computing capacity while externalizing debt. Trillions of dollars are involved, and a shift in AI demand could significantly impact these smaller partners, also making data center financing less transparent due to the involvement of many private entities. Meta Platforms Inc., for instance, filed an application in September to enter the wholesale power-trading market, following in the footsteps of Microsoft, Google, and Amazon. This move addresses the massive electricity demands of its data centers, which are projected to quadruple in the next decade, allowing Meta to buy, sell, and potentially generate its own power. However, the rapid expansion of AI data centers faces growing opposition from voters in states like Virginia, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, who cite concerns over noise, diesel exhaust, rising energy costs, and minimal local job creation despite significant tax breaks. Google's Chief Scientist, Jeff Dean, envisions AI transforming healthcare by creating a continuously learning system where every medical decision informs future ones. This aims to provide personalized guidance and allow doctors worldwide to benefit from collective medical intelligence, despite challenges like privacy and regulation. Concurrently, South Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced plans in December 2025 to boost its AI-applied medical products industry, starting in 2026, by creating special approval processes and simplifying rules to facilitate global expansion. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints updated its General Handbook in December 2025, providing guidelines that emphasize AI cannot replace divine inspiration or personal relationships. It advises members to use AI positively for tasks like research but warns against using it for spiritual guidance or inputting private data. Meanwhile, Wisconsin Democrats introduced a bill to combat deepfake scams, proposing Class A misdemeanor charges for harassment and Class I felony charges for financial gain. This comes as Allie K. Miller, CEO of Open Machine, highlights that 90% of employees underuse AI tools, treating them as simple "microtaskers" rather than powerful partners, wasting company investments. The widespread use of AI detection software in schools is causing problems for students, as research consistently shows these tools, including popular ones like Turnitin, GPTZero, and Copyleaks, are often unreliable and lead to false accusations. Despite this, school districts continue to invest thousands in them. In the business sector, the rise of AI-assisted coding introduces new data security and privacy risks. Companies like HoundDog.ai are addressing this by advocating for proactive, code-level security controls to prevent issues like sensitive data exposure and noncompliance with regulations like GDPR, rather than relying on slower, post-deployment detection methods. Finally, impact.com and Evertune partnered in December 2025 to help brands understand and improve their visibility in AI-generated search results.

Key Takeaways

  • Microsoft, Meta, and Google are shifting financial risks for AI data center expansion to smaller firms and lenders, involving trillions of dollars.
  • Meta Platforms Inc. applied in September to join the wholesale power-trading market, a strategy already used by Microsoft, Google, and Amazon, to manage soaring data center electricity demands.
  • Voters in states like Virginia, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania are increasingly opposing AI data center growth due to concerns over noise, pollution, rising energy costs, and limited local job creation.
  • The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints updated its General Handbook in December 2025, advising members to use AI for positive tasks like research but not for spiritual guidance or sensitive data.
  • Google's Chief Scientist, Jeff Dean, envisions AI creating a continuously learning healthcare system where past medical decisions inform future ones, aiming for personalized guidance globally.
  • South Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety will launch support measures in 2026 to boost its AI-applied medical products industry, including special approval processes and simplified rules for global expansion.
  • Wisconsin Democrats introduced a bill to criminalize deepfake scams, proposing Class A misdemeanor for harassment and Class I felony for financial gain, to protect vulnerable individuals.
  • Allie K. Miller, CEO of Open Machine, states that 90% of employees underuse AI tools, treating them as "microtaskers" rather than powerful partners, leading to wasted company investments.
  • Unreliable AI detection software, including Turnitin, GPTZero, and Copyleaks, is causing problems for students through false accusations, despite school districts spending thousands on these tools.
  • Proactive, code-level security solutions, like HoundDog.ai's privacy code scanner, are becoming crucial to prevent data privacy risks in AI-assisted coding and ensure compliance with regulations like GDPR.

Big Tech Shifts AI Risks to Smaller Firms

Major tech companies like Microsoft, Meta, and Google are finding new ways to fund their AI growth. They are leasing computer power and securing financing for data centers without taking on all the debt themselves. This strategy helps them quickly add computing power while pushing financial risks onto smaller companies and lenders. Trillions of dollars are at stake, and if AI demand changes, these smaller partners could face big problems. This approach also makes data center financing less clear, as many involved companies are private and less known.

Meta Enters Power Trading Amid Soaring AI Demand

Meta Platforms Inc., owner of Facebook, wants to join the wholesale power-trading market. The company filed an application with US regulators in September to manage the huge electricity needs of its data centers. AI systems require a lot of power, and companies like Microsoft, Google, and Amazon already trade electricity. This move allows Meta to buy and sell power, potentially making extra money and using its own data center batteries or generators. Experts predict data center power demand will quadruple in the next decade, making power trading a smart move for Meta.

Church Handbook Adds AI Use Guidelines

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints updated its General Handbook in December 2025 with new guidelines for using artificial intelligence. The handbook states that AI cannot replace divine inspiration or real relationships with God and others. It encourages members to follow the Savior's example in learning and teaching. Four principles guide AI use, advising members to use AI positively for tasks like research, but not for spiritual guidance or sensitive advice. It also warns against putting private Church or member data into outside AI tools.

Church Handbook Guides Members on AI Use

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints released updated guidance on artificial intelligence in its General Handbook on December 16, 2025. The handbook teaches that AI cannot replace divine inspiration or personal relationships with God and others. It encourages members to follow Jesus Christ's example in learning and teaching. Four key principles advise using AI positively for tasks like research and editing, but not for spiritual guidance or sensitive advice. Church leaders, including Elder David A. Bednar and Elder Gerrit W. Gong, have also shared similar messages, emphasizing that AI is a tool and not a replacement for God or revelation.

impact.com and Evertune Partner for AI Search

On December 16, 2025, impact.com and Evertune announced a new partnership in New York. impact.com is a leading commerce partnership marketing platform, and Evertune specializes in Generative Engine Optimization and AI marketing. This collaboration will help brands see how they appear in AI-generated search results. It will also provide tools within impact.com to act on these insights and improve their visibility.

Voters Oppose AI Data Centers in Key States

A growing number of voters in states like Virginia, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania are opposing the rapid growth of AI data centers. Residents, like Elena Schlossberg of Save Prince William County, call these centers a "plague" due to noise, diesel exhaust, and rising energy costs. While tech companies argue data centers are vital for AI's economic benefits, locals see them as large boxes that offer few jobs for huge tax breaks. This grassroots movement is causing political issues, with data center opposition becoming a key election topic. Experts note an unprecedented level of anger among citizens as they face direct impacts like higher bills and noise.

South Korea Boosts AI Medical Product Industry

On December 16, 2025, South Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced plans to boost its AI-applied medical products industry. Starting in 2026, the ministry will roll out support measures to encourage development, use, and export of these products. Key efforts include creating a special approval process for digital medical products and simplifying rules for new technologies. The ministry will also set up standards for AI-driven drug development and offer tailored support to speed products to market. This initiative aims to help high-quality South Korean AI medical products expand globally.

Google Scientist Aims for AI to Transform Healthcare

Jeff Dean, Google's Chief Scientist, shared an ambitious "moonshot goal" for artificial intelligence in healthcare. He envisions a future where every past medical decision helps inform every future one, creating a constantly improving learning system. This would transform medical knowledge from isolated decisions into an interconnected system, benefiting both clinicians and patients. Dean acknowledged challenges like privacy concerns and complex regulations, but believes these can be solved through careful innovation. His vision aims to provide personalized guidance and allow doctors worldwide to benefit from collective medical intelligence.

Wisconsin Democrats Propose Deepfake Scam Bill

Wisconsin Democrats, led by Senator Sarah Keyeski and Representative Jenna Jacobson, introduced a bill to fight "deepfake" scams. This legislation would make creating deepfakes to harass or intimidate someone a Class A misdemeanor. Using deepfakes for financial gain would become a Class I felony. The lawmakers highlight how deepfake technology can mimic voices and images to trick vulnerable people, like seniors, into losing money. This bill comes as Governor Tony Evers warns against federal efforts that might limit states' ability to regulate AI, which could weaken existing protections in Wisconsin.

Expert Says Most Employees Underuse AI Tools

Allie K. Miller, CEO of Open Machine and a tech expert, states that most employees are not using AI tools to their full potential. She believes 90% of workers only use AI as a "microtasker," like a simple search engine, instead of a powerful partner. This limited use, such as asking AI to rewrite emails, wastes company investments in AI subscriptions. Miller suggests companies should move beyond basic use to more advanced modes, like "Companion," "Delegate," and "AI as a Teammate." She predicts AI will soon prompt users and lift entire teams, becoming a core part of business operations.

Unreliable AI Detectors Cause Student Problems

Many teachers are using AI detection software to check student work, even though research shows these tools are often unreliable. Ailsa Ostovitz, a 17-year-old student, was wrongly accused of using AI on multiple assignments, leading to a docked grade. Her school district, Prince George's County Public Schools, advises against relying on such tools due to their inaccuracies. Experts like Mike Perkins confirm that popular AI detectors like Turnitin, GPTZero, and Copyleaks frequently make mistakes. Despite these known issues, school districts across the US are still spending thousands on this software, causing problems for students.

Code-Level Security Prevents Data Privacy Risks

The rapid growth of AI-assisted coding means companies face new data security and privacy challenges. Current solutions are often too slow because they only detect problems after data is already in use. Experts argue that prevention is better, by building security and privacy controls directly into the code development process. HoundDog.ai offers a privacy code scanner for this purpose. This proactive approach can prevent common issues like sensitive data appearing in logs, outdated data maps, and unauthorized AI integrations that risk noncompliance with privacy rules like GDPR.

Sources

NOTE:

This news brief was generated using AI technology (including, but not limited to, Google Gemini API, Llama, Grok, and Mistral) from aggregated news articles, with minimal to no human editing/review. It is provided for informational purposes only and may contain inaccuracies or biases. This is not financial, investment, or professional advice. If you have any questions or concerns, please verify all information with the linked original articles in the Sources section below.

AI Big Tech Data Centers Financial Risk Energy Consumption Power Trading AI Ethics Religious Guidance Data Privacy AI Marketing Generative AI Public Opposition Environmental Impact AI in Healthcare Medical Technology South Korea Deepfakes AI Legislation Employee Productivity AI Tools AI Detection Software Academic Integrity AI-assisted Development Data Security Regulatory Compliance

Comments

Loading...