Welcome back to Daily Zaps, your regularly-scheduled dose of AI news ⚡️ 

Here’s what we got for ya today:

• 🔎 Introducing ChatGPT search

• 🚕 Waymo robotaxi plus Gemini AI

• 🏭 OpenAI making own chips

• 🚮 AI will add to the e-waste problem

Let’s get right into it!

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STARTUPS

Introducing ChatGPT search

OpenAI has launched a ChatGPT-based search service, available on its website and mobile apps, positioning it as a potential competitor to Google’s search dominance. The service, powered by OpenAI’s GPT-4o model, combines conversational responses with real-time data from third-party sources, covering topics like weather, news, sports, and more.

Initially accessible only to ChatGPT Plus and Team users, it will roll out to free users in the coming months. While Google still holds a significant 90% search market share, the popularity of generative AI, coupled with Google’s ongoing antitrust challenges, presents an opportunity for OpenAI’s ChatGPT search to disrupt the search landscape.

BIG TECH

Waymo Robotaxi plus Gemini AI

Waymo, leveraging its ties to Google’s DeepMind, has introduced an innovative autonomous driving model called EMMA, built on Google’s multimodal language model, Gemini. This end-to-end model processes sensor data to help Waymo’s robotaxis navigate and avoid obstacles by predicting future paths.

Traditionally, autonomous driving systems rely on multiple modules for tasks like perception and planning, but Waymo's approach aims to streamline this with a generalist AI model, potentially enhancing adaptability to complex, real-world environments.

STARTUPS

OpenAI making own chips

OpenAI is collaborating with Broadcom to develop custom silicon for its AI workloads, securing manufacturing capacity with TSMC, though production may not begin until 2026. Currently, OpenAI uses AMD’s MI300 chips in its Microsoft Azure setup to support growing AI demands.

While OpenAI has paused plans to establish its own foundries due to cost and time constraints, it is following a similar path as tech giants like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon, which are already several generations into custom AI chip design. Competing in this space may require OpenAI to secure additional funding to keep pace.

ENVIRONMENT

AI will add to the e-waste problem

A recent study warns that the rapid growth of AI development, driven by tech giants building data centers with powerful computer chips, could lead to a significant increase in electronic waste.

Currently, most e-waste is not recycled and often ends up in landfills or is shipped to lower-income countries, where people are exposed to toxic materials during manual recycling. The study, published by researchers from China and Israel, estimates that the AI boom could boost global e-waste by up to 12% by 2030, as tech companies replace older chips more frequently to stay competitive.