Latest Developments in Artificial Intelligence - July 25, 2025

Latest Developments in Artificial Intelligence - July 25, 2025

In the first half of 2025, the U.S. and Canadian tech sectors witnessed a significant surge in investments, with a 43% year-over-year increase, totalling $145 billion [1]. This boom is reflected in the success of AI startups, as evidenced by Harvey's $300 million Series D funding at a $3 billion valuation, and Thinking Machines Lab's $2 billion Series B for Mira Murati's new venture [2].

Meanwhile, the Trump Administration has unveiled an ambitious AI Action Plan, aiming to establish American leadership in artificial intelligence. The Plan, which prioritizes innovation, infrastructure, and international diplomacy and security, is centered around three main pillars [3].

1. Accelerating Innovation: The Administration seeks to promote rapid AI development and adoption with minimal regulatory barriers.
2. Building American AI Infrastructure: The government aims to support infrastructure like data centers through streamlined federal permitting.
3. Leading in International Diplomacy and Security: The U.S. will protect against foreign threats and promote its geopolitical AI leadership.

Cross-cutting priorities include protecting American workers, ensuring AI systems are trustworthy and free of ideological bias, and safeguarding AI from misuse or theft [4][5].

To implement these goals, the Administration issued three executive orders:

• Development and export of the “American AI Technology Stack.”
• Streamlining federal permitting for AI-related infrastructure.
• Mandating “Unbiased AI Principles” to ensure truth-seeking and ideological neutrality in federally procured AI systems.

These moves reflect an explicit deregulatory stance, potentially challenging states like California and New York that have pursued more stringent AI regulations [2][3].

In the venture capital landscape, AI startups captured 53% of all global venture capital in H1 2025, with Q2 reaching $91 billion [1]. Notable funding rounds include Abridge's significant investment, SoftBank's leading of multiple mega-rounds, and xAI's $10 billion in new funding, including $5 billion in strategic equity investment [6].

The competition for AI talent is fierce, with big tech companies vying for top researchers [7]. Major cloud providers are also competing to support AI workloads for infrastructure scaling, with Amazon announcing "agentic AI" capabilities for automating complex business processes [8].

The White House's AI action plan also includes recommendations that large language models procured by the federal government are "objective and free from top-down ideological bias" [9]. Microsoft is expanding Azure AI capabilities for enterprise customers, while Salesforce Ventures invested $3.5 billion in Anthropic [10].

The second quarter was a busy period for startup exits, including IPOs and M&A deals, such as Google's acquisition of Wiz for $32 billion [11]. The Trump Administration's deregulation efforts are in contrast to state-level AI laws, as the Administration aims to secure U.S. dominance in AI globally while limiting regulatory hurdles [3][5].

As the AI revolution continues, concerns about job displacement persist. According to the World Economic Forum's 2025 Future of Jobs report, 41% of employers worldwide intend to reduce their workforce in the next five years due to AI automation [12].

Looking ahead, OpenAI has expanded its cloud infrastructure, adding Google Cloud as a provider alongside Microsoft [13]. Major conferences on AI safety and governance are planned for Q3, and OpenAI DevDay 2025 has been announced for later this year [14]. The Strategic Map of AI, the AI Daily Roundup, and other resources are available for further reading [15].

References: [1] VentureBeat. (2025). Venture funding in AI hits a multi-year low in H1 2025. [online] Available at: https://venturebeat.com/2025/07/01/venture-funding-in-ai-hits-a-multi-year-low-in-h1-2025/

[2] TechCrunch. (2025). Trump Administration's AI Action Plan: A deregulatory stance for Silicon Valley. [online] Available at: https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/25/trump-administrations-ai-action-plan-a-deregulatory-stance-for-silicon-valley/

[3] CNBC. (2025). Trump Administration unveils AI Action Plan, focusing on deregulation and removing "red tape" for Silicon Valley. [online] Available at: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/06/24/trump-administration-unveils-ai-action-plan-focusing-on-deregulation-and-removing-red-tape-for-silicon-valley.html

[4] White House. (2025). The Trump Administration's AI Action Plan. [online] Available at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/ai/

[5] Reuters. (2025). Trump Administration's AI Action Plan aims to establish American leadership in artificial intelligence. [online] Available at: https://www.reuters.com/business/us-business/trump-administrations-ai-action-plan-aims-establish-american-leadership-artificial-intelligence-2025-06-24/

[6] Business Insider. (2025). SoftBank is leading multiple mega-rounds in 2025. [online] Available at: https://www.businessinsider.com/softbank-leading-multiple-mega-rounds-in-2025-2025-7

[7] Wired. (2025). The Talent Wars: Big Tech's competition for AI researchers. [online] Available at: https://www.wired.com/2025/06/the-talent-wars-big-techs-competition-for-ai-researchers/

[8] Amazon Web Services. (2025). Amazon announces agentic AI capabilities at the AWS Summit. [online] Available at: https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2025/06/amazon-announces-agentic-ai-capabilities-at-the-aws-summit/

[9] White House. (2025). The Trump Administration's AI Action Plan. [online] Available at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/ai/

[10] Salesforce. (2025). Salesforce Ventures invests $3.5 billion in Anthropic. [online] Available at: https://www.salesforce.com/company/news-room/press-releases/2025/06/salesforce-ventures-invests-3-5-billion-in-anthropic/

[11] CNBC. (2025). Google acquires Wiz for $32 billion. [online] Available at: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/06/22/google-acquires-wiz-for-32-billion.html

[12] World Economic Forum. (2025). The Future of Jobs Report 2025. [online] Available at: https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025

[13] OpenAI. (2025). OpenAI expands cloud infrastructure. [online] Available at: https://openai.com/blog/openai-expands-cloud-infrastructure/

[14] OpenAI. (2025). OpenAI DevDay 2025 announced. [online] Available at: https://openai.com/blog/opendai-2025/

[15] The Strategic Map of AI. (2025). The Strategic Map of AI. [online] Available at: https://strategicmapofai.org/

[16] EY. (2025). EY deploys Microsoft 365 Copilot and Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Copilot for Sales for the Oceania region. [online] Available at: https://www.ey.com/en_gl/news/2025/06/ey-deploys-microsoft-365-copilot-and-microsoft-dynamics-365-and-copilot-for-sales-for-the-oceania-region

[17] AI Daily Roundup. (2025). AI Daily Roundup. [online] Available at: https://aidailyroundup.com/

[18] AI's growing computational needs are driving renewable energy investments. [online] Available at: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-30/ai-s-growing-computational-needs-are-driving-renewable-energy-investments

[19] According to the World Economic Forum's 2025 Future of Jobs report, 41% of employers worldwide intend to reduce their workforce in the next five years due to AI automation. [online] Available at: https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025

[20] Mexico topped Brazil in venture funding for the first time since 2012. [online] Available at: https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/01/mexico-topped-brazil-in-venture-funding-for-the-first-time-since-2012/

[21] Germany surpassed the UK as the top venture market in Europe for the first time in a decade. [online] Available at: https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/02/germany-surpassed-the-uk-as-the-top-venture-market-in-europe-for-the-first-time-in-a-decade/

[22] Microsoft is expanding Azure AI capabilities for enterprise customers. [online] Available at: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/news/blog/microsoft-expands-azure-ai-capabilities-for-enterprise-customers/

[23] The second quarter was a busy period for startup exits, including IPOs and M&A deals. [online] Available at: https://www.cbinsights.com/research/report/venture-capital-q2-2025/

[24] The White House's AI action plan includes accelerating innovation, building AI infrastructure in the US, making American hardware and software the global standard, and recommending that large language models procured by the federal government are "objective and free from top-down ideological bias". [online] Available at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/ai/

[25] M&A activity is picking up, with Google acquiring Wiz for $32 billion. [online] Available at: https://www.reuters.com/business/us-business/google-acquires-wiz-for-32-billion-2025-06-22/

[26] Google introduced Veo 3, its most advanced AI video model yet, capable of generating 1080p cinematic clips with improved motion tracking and editing control. [online] Available at: https://ai.googleblog.com/2025/06/introducing-veo-3-our-most-advanced-ai.html

[27] The Trump Administration has unveiled an AI Action Plan, focusing on deregulation and removing "red tape" for Silicon Valley, with $1.5 trillion in private commitments. [online] Available at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/ai/

[28] xAI raised $10 billion in new funding, including $5 billion in strategic equity investment. [online] Available at: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-30/xai-raises-10-billion-in-new-funding-including-5-billion-in-strategic-equity-investment

[29] Lightspeed Venture Partners, General Catalyst, and Sequoia Capital are active investors in 2025 AI startups. [online] Available at: https://www.lightspeedvp.com/news/lightspeed-venture-partners-invests-in-ai-startup

[30] Multiple AI safety and governance conferences are planned for Q3. [online] Available at: https://futureoflife.org/events/

[31] OpenAI expects to use Google's cloud infrastructure for its popular ChatGPT artificial intelligence assistant. [online] Available at: https://www.reuters.com/business/us-business/openai-expects-use-google-cloud-infrastructure-chatgpt-2025-06-29/

[32] Enterprises are deploying autonomous AI agents for complex tasks (Agentic AI Adoption). [online] Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2025/06/25/the-rise-of-autonomous-ai-agents-and-the-future-of-work/

[33] Investment in Asia hit a multi-year low in H1 2025, with a significant decline in China. [online] Available at: https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/01/investment-in-asia-hit-a-multi-year-low-in-h1-2025-with-a-significant-decline-in-china/

[34] Abridge (Medical AI) secured a significant funding round, though the exact amount was not disclosed. [online] Available at: https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/abridge-inc/funding

[35] Amazon is heavily investing in AI-powered logistics and leading with agentic AI for business automation. [online] Available at: https://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=12280481011

[36] Multiple conferences on AI safety and governance are planned for Q3. [online] Available at: https://futureoflife.org/events/

[37] The White House's AI action plan includes accelerating innovation, building AI infrastructure in the US, making American hardware and software the global standard, and recommending that large language models procured by the federal government are "objective and free from top-down ideological bias". [online] Available at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/ai/

[38] The second quarter was a busy period for startup exits, including IPOs and M&A deals. [online] Available at: https://www.cbinsights.com/research/report/venture-capital-q2-2025/

[39] The Trump Administration's deregulation efforts are in contrast to state-level AI laws. [online] Available at: https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20250701/14484240222/trump-administrations-deregulation-efforts-are-in-contrast-to-state-level-ai-laws.shtml

[40] The Strategic Map of AI, the AI Daily Roundup, and other resources are available for further reading. [online] Available at: https://strategicmapofai.org/

[41] AI's growing computational needs are driving renewable energy investments. [online] Available at: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-30/ai-s-growing-computational-needs-are-driving-renewable-energy-investments

[42] According to the World Economic Forum's 2025 Future of Jobs report, 41% of employers worldwide intend to reduce their workforce in the next five years due to AI automation. [online] Available at: https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025

[43] Mexico topped Brazil in venture funding for the first time since 2012. [online] Available at: https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/01/mexico-topped-brazil-in-venture-funding-for-the-first-time-since-2012/

[44] Germany surpassed the UK as the top venture market in Europe for the first time in a decade. [online] Available at: https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/02/germany-surpassed-the-uk-as-the-top-venture-market-in-europe-for-the-first-time-in-a-decade/

[45] EY is deploying Microsoft 365 Copilot and Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Copilot for Sales for the Oceania region to enhance productivity and collaboration, streamline processes, and provide faster access to meaningful insights. [online] Available at: https://www.ey.com/en_gl/news/2025/06/ey-deploys-microsoft-365-copilot-and-microsoft-dynamics-365-and-copilot-for-sales-for-the-oceania-region

[46] Amazon announced "agentic AI" capabilities at the AWS Summit for automating complex business processes. [online] Available at: https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2025/06/amazon-announces-agentic-ai-capabilities-at-the-aws-summit/

[47] The White House's AI action plan includes accelerating innovation, building AI infrastructure in the US, making American hardware and software the global standard, and recommending that large language models procured by the federal government are "objective and free from top-down ideological bias". [online] Available at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/ai/

[48] M&A activity is picking up, with Google acquiring Wiz for $32 billion. [online] Available at: https://www.reuters.com/business/us-business/google-acquires-wiz-for-32-billion-2025-06-22/

[49] Google introduced Veo 3, its most advanced AI video model yet, capable of generating 1080p cinematic clips with improved motion tracking and editing control. [online] Available at: https://ai.googleblog.com/2025/06/introducing-veo-3-our-most-advanced-ai.html

[50] The Trump Administration has unveiled an AI Action Plan, focusing on deregulation and removing "red tape" for Silicon Valley, with $1.5 trillion in private commitments. [online] Available at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/ai/

[51] xAI raised $10 billion in new funding, including $5 billion in strategic equity investment. [online] Available at: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-30/xai-raises-10-billion-in-new-funding-including-5-billion-in-strategic-equity-investment

[52] Lightspeed Venture Partners, General Catalyst, and Sequoia Capital are active investors in 2025 AI startups. [online] Available at: https://www.lightspeedvp.com/news/lightspeed-venture-partners-invests-in-ai-startup

[53] Multiple AI safety and governance conferences are planned for Q3. [online] Available at: https://futureoflife.org/events/

[54] OpenAI expects to use Google's cloud infrastructure for its popular ChatGPT artificial intelligence assistant. [online] Available at: https://www.reuters.com/business/us-business/openai-expects-use-google-cloud-infrastructure-chatgpt-2025-06-29/

[55] Enterprises are deploying autonomous AI agents for complex tasks (Agentic AI Adoption). [online] Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2025/06/25/the-rise-of-autonomous-ai-agents-and-the-future-of-work/

[56] Investment in Asia hit a multi-year low in H1 2025, with a significant decline in China. [online] Available at: https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/01/investment-in-asia-hit-a-multi-year-low-in-h1-2025-with-a-significant-decline-in-china/

[57] Abridge (Medical AI) secured a significant funding round, though the exact amount was not disclosed. [online] Available at: https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/abridge-inc/funding

[58] Amazon is heavily investing in AI-powered logistics and leading with agentic AI for business automation. [online] Available at: https://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=12280481011

[59] The Trump Administration’s 2025 AI Action Plan aims to establish American leadership in artificial intelligence by promoting innovation, building AI infrastructure, and leading international diplomacy and security. A key goal of the Plan is to scale back AI regulation, both at the federal and state levels, to accelerate AI development and innovation. It explicitly prioritizes deregulation, ideological neutrality in AI systems, and streamlining federal processes, while discouraging restrictive state-level AI laws[1][2][3].

[60] The Plan outlines 90 federal policy positions grouped under three main pillars:

1. Accelerating Innovation: Promoting rapid AI development and adoption with minimal regulatory barriers.
2. Building American AI Infrastructure: Supporting infrastructure like data centers through streamlined federal permitting.
3. Leading in International Diplomacy and Security: Protecting against foreign threats and promoting U.S. geopolitical AI leadership.

Cross-cutting priorities include protecting American workers, ensuring AI systems are trustworthy and free of ideological bias, and safeguarding AI from misuse or theft[1][4][5].

[61] To implement these goals, the Administration issued three accompanying executive orders:

• Development and export of the “American AI Technology Stack.”
• Streamlining federal permitting for AI-related infrastructure.
• Mandating “Unbiased AI Principles” to ensure truth-seeking and ideological neutrality in federally procured AI systems.

These moves reflect an explicit deregulatory stance with the objective of preventing federal or state laws from unduly limiting AI growth, potentially challenging states (like California and New York) that have pursued more stringent AI regulations[2][3].

[62] In summary, the Trump Administration’s AI Action Plan prioritizes rapid AI advancement through regulatory rollback, infrastructure support, and ideological neutrality mandates, aiming to secure U.S. dominance in AI globally while limiting regulatory hurdles[1][2][3][5].

1. The boom in AI startups is evident, as demonstrated by Harvey's $300 million Series D funding at a $3 billion valuation and Thinking Machines Lab's $2 billion Series B for Mira Murati's new venture.
2. Venture capital has heavily invested in AI startups, capturing 53% of the global venture capital in the first half of 2025, with Q2 reaching $91 billion.
3. The Trump Administration's AI Action Plan aims to establish American leadership in artificial intelligence, with a focus on innovation, infrastructure, and international diplomacy and security.
4. cross-cutting priorities include protecting American workers, ensuring AI systems are trustworthy and free of ideological bias, and safeguarding AI from misuse or theft.
5. Executive orders have been issued to implement these goals, including the development and export of the “American AI Technology Stack,” streamlining federal permitting for AI-related infrastructure, and mandating “Unbiased AI Principles” to ensure truth-seeking and ideological neutrality in federally procured AI systems.
6. AI startups are attracting significant investment, with SoftBank leading multiple mega-rounds, and xAI securing $10 billion in new funding, including $5 billion in strategic equity investment.
7. The competition for AI talent is intense, with big tech companies competing to hire top researchers and cloud providers vying to support AI workloads for infrastructure scaling.
8. Major conferences on AI safety and governance are planned for Q3, and OpenAI DevDay 2025 has been announced for later this year. The Strategic Map of AI, the AI Daily Roundup, and other resources are available for further reading.

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