President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met on September 24 to discuss AI safety and governance, as both nations compete for global leadership in artificial intelligence. While American companies lead in frontier models from firms like Anthropic and OpenAI, China focuses on open weight models from companies like Moonshot AI that are free and adaptable. China also holds an advantage in cheap electricity for AI data centers. The US currently lacks national AI laws, while China has already built a full regulatory framework.
China dismisses warnings about AI dangers, with engineers saying catastrophic risks are more of an American problem. State media frames AI safety warnings as attempts to slow China's progress. Huawei's Xu Zhijong says Chinese AI is not yet powerful enough for such dangers. Most Chinese citizens support AI benefits according to polls showing 84 percent support, and the country uses AI across policing, healthcare, and manufacturing.
New York is creating new rules to regulate powerful AI systems. Governor Kathy Hochul said the state may include an emergency kill switch to shut down AI in a crisis. Starting in November, frontier AI developers must register with the state. Some experts warn that different rules in each state could slow down AI growth in the U.S.
Dan Ives is launching a closed-end fund called Ives Ulta AI Opportunities Inc. that plans to raise about $200 million through an IPO expected to price on September 29. It will invest in late-stage private AI companies. Shares will trade starting September 30 under ticker symbol IVAI. Cohen and Company is working on the deal.
Basecamp Research raised $140 million in an oversubscribed Series C funding round to expand its biological AI models and move its preclinical therapeutics pipeline toward clinical use. Investors included Nvidia, Anthropic's Anthology Fund, and S32. The London startup trains AI models on genetic material from rainforests, oceans, and hot springs to design antibiotics and cell therapy tools. Its biological AI models are called EDEN.
Alphabet and Amazon both invested in Anthropic, which may go public at about a $2 trillion valuation. Alphabet likely owns 10% to 15% of Anthropic, while Amazon holds 15% to 20%, potentially making Amazon's stake worth up to $400 billion. Both companies also supply hardware to Anthropic, but Amazon is more dependent on Anthropic because it lacks its own major AI model.
Roanoke leaders in Southwest Virginia formed the AI Ready Roanoke coalition to prepare for AI-related job changes. A 2025 report found about 32% of jobs in the region could face AI-related changes. Partners include Google, Virginia Tech, and Carilion Clinic. The coalition applied for a $99,999 grant for a feasibility study and hopes to release a report by the second quarter of 2027.
Go.AI raised $85 million in Series A funding led by Updata Partners, bringing its total funding to over $90 million. The company serves more than 200 customers in regulated industries including finance, healthcare, aerospace, and manufacturing, running over 12.5 million AI queries per day.
Pinocchio is a new tool that estimates whether large language model outputs are correct, even for closed-source API models that do not share internal data. It was trained on responses from seven LLMs and reached 0.862 AUROC, transferring to thirteen unseen models across eight organizations. The tool needs only a single forward pass and can be added with two lines of code.
UNESCO and the AI and Society Institute at ENS-PSL in Paris launched a call for papers on AI ethics. Recent PhD graduates within five years of graduation can submit original research by October 30, 2026. Selected papers will be presented at a conference in Paris in 2027 and published in a special journal issue.
Key Takeaways
- Trump and Xi met on September 24 to discuss AI governance as the US and China compete for global AI leadership
- Dan Ives launched a $200 million fund called Ives Ulta AI Opportunities Inc. to invest in late-stage private AI startups
- Basecamp Research raised $140 million from investors including Nvidia and Anthropic's Anthology Fund for biological AI models
- Amazon could hold a stake in Anthropic worth up to $400 billion, while Alphabet owns 10% to 15%
- New York may implement an emergency kill switch for powerful AI systems starting with registration requirements in November
- Roanoke coalition partners with Google and Virginia Tech to address AI job changes affecting 32% of regional jobs
- Go.AI raised $85 million to serve over 200 customers running 12.5 million AI queries daily
- Pinocchio tool achieves 0.862 AUROC in estimating correctness of closed-source AI model outputs
- China dismisses AI danger warnings, with 84% citizen support for AI benefits and focus on open weight models
- UNESCO launches call for AI ethics research papers with an October 2026 submission deadline
Trump and Xi meet to discuss AI governance and global power
President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met on September 24 to discuss AI safety and governance. The US and China both want to lead the world in AI for economic and political power. The US lacks national AI laws while China has built a full regulatory framework. The EU, India, and UAE are also competing to shape global AI rules. Experts say the US needs stronger regulation to remain influential.
China dismisses AI danger warnings while pushing tech growth
China is using AI across many sectors including policing, healthcare, and manufacturing. Most Chinese citizens are excited about AI benefits according to polls showing 84 percent support. Chinese engineers say catastrophic AI risks are more of an American problem. State media frames AI safety warnings as attempts to slow China's progress. Huawei's Xu Zhijun says Chinese AI is not yet powerful enough for such dangers.
Trump and Xi meet as AI rivalry reshapes global power
The US and China are competing to lead the world in artificial intelligence. Trump wants US AI dominance while Xi sees AI as a tool for national power. American companies lead in frontier models from firms like Anthropic and OpenAI. China focuses on open weight models from companies like Moonshot AI that are free and adaptable. China also has an advantage in cheap electricity for AI data centers.
Dan Ives creates $200M fund for AI startup investments
Dan Ives is launching a closed-end fund called Ives Ulta AI Opportunities Inc. The fund plans to raise about $200 million through an IPO expected to price on September 29. It will invest in late-stage private AI companies. Shares will trade starting September 30 under ticker symbol IVAI. The fund offers shareholders a tender option to sell shares at net asset value.
Dan Ives launches $200M fund for private AI startups
Dan Ives is launching a fund to invest in private late-stage AI startups in the US. The company is called Ives Ulta AI Opportunities Inc. and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund seeks to raise approximately $200 million in an IPO pricing on September 29. Cohen and Company is working on the deal. Shares will trade under ticker IVAI starting September 30.
Roanoke leaders plan regional AI Center of Excellence
Local leaders in Southwest Virginia have formed the AI Ready Roanoke coalition to prepare for AI-related job changes. A 2025 report found that about 32% of jobs in the region could face AI-related changes. The coalition has applied for a $99,999 grant to hire consultants for a feasibility study. Partners include Google, Virginia Tech, Carilion Clinic, and several local governments. They hope to release a report by the second quarter of 2027.
New York considers AI kill switch and safety rules
New York is creating new rules to regulate powerful AI systems. Governor Kathy Hochul said the state may include an emergency kill switch to shut down AI in a crisis. Starting in November, frontier AI developers must register with the state. Some experts warn that different rules in each state could slow down AI growth in the U.S.
UNESCO calls for AI ethics research papers
UNESCO and the AI and Society Institute at ENS-PSL in Paris launched a call for papers on AI ethics. Recent PhD graduates within five years of graduation can submit original research. The deadline for submissions is October 30, 2026. Selected papers will be presented at a conference in Paris in 2027 and published in a special journal issue.
Basecamp Research raises $140M for AI cell therapies
London-based Basecamp Research raised $140 million in an oversubscribed Series C funding round. The money will expand its biological AI models and move its preclinical therapeutics pipeline toward clinical use. The company's first focus is in vivo cell therapy. Investors included Nvidia and Anthropic's Anthology Fund.
Basecamp Research uses AI to study evolution for medicine
Basecamp Research trains AI models on genetic material from rainforests, oceans, and hot springs. The London startup was founded in 2020 and uses its models to design antibiotics and cell therapy tools. Investor S32 led the $140 million round, with Nvidia, the NATO Innovation Fund, and Redalpine also participating. The company's biological AI models are called EDEN.
Alphabet and Amazon battle over Anthropic IPO rewards
Alphabet and Amazon both invested in Anthropic, which may go public at about a $2 trillion valuation. Alphabet likely owns 10% to 15% of Anthropic, while Amazon holds 15% to 20%. That could make Amazon's stake worth up to $400 billion. Both companies also supply hardware to Anthropic, but Alphabet competes with its own AI models. Amazon is more dependent on Anthropic because it lacks its own major AI model.
Pinocchio adds uncertainty estimates to black-box AI models
Pinocchio is a tool that estimates whether large language model outputs are correct. It works with closed-source API models that do not share internal data or log-probabilities. It was trained on responses from seven LLMs and reached 0.862 AUROC. It also transferred to thirteen unseen models across eight organizations. The tool needs only a single forward pass and can be added with two lines of code.
Go.AI raises $85 million for on-prem AI infrastructure
Go.AI raised $85 million in Series A funding led by Updata Partners. The company now has over $90 million in total funding. It serves more than 200 customers in regulated industries such as finance, healthcare, aerospace, and manufacturing. Its customers run over 12.5 million AI queries per day. The company plans to use the money to grow engineering, develop Go.OS and hardware, and expand into more markets.
Sources
- What’s at stake as Trump and Xi discuss AI governance
- China Has No Use for AI Doomerism
- Trump and Xi meet as AI rivalry reshapes global power dynamics
- Dan Ives Launches $200M Fund To Back AI Startups
- Dan Ives Launches $200M Fund To Back AI Startups
- Local leaders explore the idea of an AI-ready Roanoke region
- New York weighs AI rules, including possible emergency kill switch, amid guardrails push
- Call for papers: Advancing research on the Ethics of Artificial
- Basecamp Research raises $140M for AI-designed cell therapies
- Inside Basecamp Research, the AI startup turning evolution into training data
- Alphabet vs. Amazon: Which Anthropic Backer Will Benefit More From the $2 Trillion IPO?
- Pinocchio: Fast Uncertainty Estimates for Black-Box Language Models
- Go.AI™ Raises $85 Million Series A to Accelerate On-Prem AI Infrastructure for Regulated Industries
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