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

Here’s what we got for ya today:

• 🤖 Claude 3.5 Sonnet beats ChatGPT

• ✈️ Countering CCP Drones Act

• 🎥 AI video startup HeyGen raises $60M

• 🔌 AI is exhausting the power grid

Let’s get right into it!

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STARTUPS

Claude 3.5 Sonnet

Anthropic has released Claude 3.5 Sonnet, an AI model that outperforms its predecessor, Claude 3 Opus, and other competitors like OpenAI's GPT-4 in several areas, including reasoning, knowledge, and coding. Claude 3.5 Sonnet is described as "frontier intelligence," working twice as fast as Claude 3 Opus and setting new industry benchmarks.

It offers advanced capabilities for writing, editing, and executing code, understanding complex instructions, and generating high-quality content. Additionally, it excels in vision tasks such as interpreting diagrams and transcribing text from images.

Claude 3.5 Sonnet is also available via Poe.com. You can use it today at https://poe.com/Claude-3.5-Sonnet, and the longer context version at https://poe.com/Claude-3.5-Sonnet-200k.

GOVERNMENT

Countering CCP Drones Act

The Countering CCP Drones Act aims to restrict the FCC from issuing new licenses to Chinese drone manufacturer DJI and is part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) FY2025. The Act has passed the House and awaits Senate approval, which could take weeks or months. Supporters argue it addresses security concerns with Chinese drones, while critics believe the urgency is politically motivated.

This legislation has significant implications for drone owners and public safety agencies, as it could limit the use of DJI drones, although current models will not be immediately affected. Organizations representing over 6,000 police and fire agencies oppose the Act, arguing it overlooks operational needs and relies on unproven alternatives.

STARTUPS

AI video startup HeyGen raises $60M

HeyGen, an AI video generation platform, has raised $60 million in Series A funding, valuing the company at $500 million. Their platform enables businesses to create, localize, and personalize studio-quality videos without traditional production resources. CEO Joshua Xu highlights their mission to democratize video production for all business sizes. HeyGen has rapidly grown from $1 million to over $35 million in annual recurring revenue and has been profitable since Q2 2023.

Their technology, used in campaigns for McDonald’s and speeches by political figures, can also localize videos into 175 languages. The new funding will accelerate their product development, focusing on Enterprise Security, AI Ethics, and Trust & Safety, while addressing potential misuse through strict consent and moderation protocols.

ENVIRONMENT

AI is exhausting the power grid

Microsoft is investing in cutting-edge technology to generate power from atomic fusion by 2028. Fusion, the process that powers the sun, has eluded scientists for decades, but Microsoft and its partners hope to harness it to meet the massive electricity needs of AI. Helion, a fusion startup backed by Microsoft, is developing a fusion generator that could revolutionize energy production, but many experts remain skeptical about achieving this breakthrough in the near future.

As AI technologies, like ChatGPT, require exponentially more power, tech companies are also exploring other experimental clean-energy projects, such as small nuclear reactors and geothermal energy. Despite their ambitious goals, critics argue these companies continue to rely heavily on traditional energy sources, including coal and natural gas.