NerdNews

Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian says the company has $106 billion of unfulfilled contracts and expects to realize about half of that in revenue within two years, driven by demand for AI services. Kurian highlighted Google's AI capabilities, including its optimized AI systems and high-bandwidth optical networking, and noted that 65% of Google Cloud customers are already using AI tools in a meaningful way.

Microsoft has signed a nearly $20B deal with Netherlands-based Nebius Group, formerly known as Yandex N.V., for access to its GPU infrastructure over five years. The deal will deliver dedicated capacity to Microsoft from Nebius's New Jersey datacenter, with the total contract value expected to be around $17.4B, potentially rising to $19.4B if Microsoft exercises its option to acquire additional services.

Microsoft will use Anthropic's AI in Office 365 apps, reducing reliance on OpenAI. The move comes amid a growing rift with OpenAI, which is pursuing its own infrastructure projects and a potential LinkedIn competitor.

Apple has unveiled three new Apple Watch configurations: the Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 3, and Apple Watch SE 3. The Series 11 features hypertension alerts and sleep quality tracking, while the Ultra 3 includes satellite connectivity and a larger screen. The SE 3 has a faster chip and supports always-on display. Prices start at $249 for the SE 3, $399 for the Series 11, and $799 for the Ultra 3.

Apple introduced two new wireless chips, C1X and N1, in the iPhone Air, enabling features like 5G connectivity, Wi-Fi 7, and Thread. These custom-designed chips offer improved performance and power efficiency, allowing for a thinner design. The C1X modem supports sub-6Ghz 5G and 4G LTE, and is up to two times faster than the C1 modem, while using 30 percent less energy. The N1 chip enables Bluetooth 6, Wi-Fi 7, and Thread for smart home control.

Microsoft has temporarily paused the integration of Copilot in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 22. The company plans to shift to using GitHub Copilot, which will eventually replace the existing Copilot functionality. This change is based on user feedback and survey results, which showed that 75% of respondents wanted to leverage GitHub Copilot in SSMS. The SQL Server team believes that this change will create a more unified experience across the Microsoft ecosystem.

Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Series enables on-device AI processing, reducing cloud reliance and latency. It achieves 45 trillion operations per second, making local AI workloads possible. Model optimization and hybrid architecture also contribute to this shift.

Anthropic's Claude Code automated security reviews can catch some bugs but miss others and create new risks by executing code while testing it. Researchers found that the AI-driven review can be misled by crafted code and may not detect certain vulnerabilities, highlighting the need for human oversight.

Gartner analysts warn that relying on AI tools can cause developers to lose critical thinking and foundational technical skills, recommending periodic reviews and testing to maintain these skills.

Mercor, an AI training startup, is in discussions for a Series C round, targeting a $10B+ valuation with a $450M run rate. The company connects businesses with domain experts for AI model training and has seen significant revenue growth.

Apple has unveiled three new Apple Watch configurations: the Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 3, and Apple Watch SE 3. The Series 11 features hypertension alerts and sleep quality tracking, while the Ultra 3 includes satellite connectivity and a larger screen. The SE 3 has a faster chip and supports always-on display. Prices start at $249 for the SE 3, $399 for the Series 11, and $799 for the Ultra 3.

Apple's AirPods Pro 3 features heart-rate sensing, improved audio, live translation, and a smaller charging case. Available for preorder at $249, the headphones will arrive in stores on September 19. A rumored high-end variant with an infrared camera is expected to launch in 2026.

Nvidia announced the Rubin CPX, a new GPU designed for context windows larger than 1 million tokens, optimized for processing large sequences of context, and meant to be used as part of a broader 'disaggregated inference' infrastructure approach. The Rubin CPX is slated to be available at the end of 2026 and is expected to improve performance on long-context tasks like video generation or software development.

Nokia has launched a new research and development facility in Oulu, Finland, to focus on 5G and 6G innovation, including AI-powered networks. The facility will host 3,000 personnel and cover the entire lifecycle of product development, from R&D to manufacturing and testing. Nokia aims to shape the future of mobile communications and address the shifting market conditions driven by the forthcoming AI super cycle.

Apple has announced several new products, including the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone Air, Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 3, Apple Watch SE 3, and AirPods Pro 3. The iPhone Air is Apple's thinnest phone yet, with a 6.5-inch screen and ProMotion support up to 120Hz. The Apple Watch Ultra 3 has satellite connectivity and a larger display, while the AirPods Pro 3 have improved ANC and a new design.

SpaceX has acquired $17 billion in wireless airwaves from EchoStar for its Starlink direct-to-cell services, indicating a strong push into the satellite-to-phone market. This move allows SpaceX to operate independently without needing partnerships for spectrum, potentially disrupting existing collaborations like Apple's with Globalstar.

A Chinese company, Geedge Networks, has been selling censorship and surveillance systems to at least four countries in Asia and Africa. The systems, modeled on China's Great Firewall, allow governments to monitor online information, block websites and VPN tools, and spy on specific individuals. The leak of over 100,000 documents reveals the company's technical capabilities and its plans for expansion.

A supply chain attack on npm has compromised multiple packages, including debug and chalk, with cryptocurrency-stealing malware. The attack, which occurred on Monday, has reached one in 10 cloud environments, but the attackers have only stolen around $925 in cryptocurrency. The attack highlights the fragility of the modern JavaScript ecosystem and the importance of securing the software supply chain.

The UAE's Institute of Foundation Models has released K2 Think, an open-source AI model that rivals China's DeepSeek and OpenAI's ChatGPT. With 32 billion parameters, K2 Think outperforms larger models in standard benchmark tests and leads in math performance. The model is designed to be more focused on math, coding, and scientific research.

The United Arab Emirates has released an open-source AI model called K2 Think, which performs advanced reasoning tasks as well as models from OpenAI and DeepSeek, but with fewer parameters. K2 Think has 32 billion parameters and is specialized for reasoning, capable of answering complex questions through simulated deliberation. The model was developed using several thousand GPUs and will be incorporated into a full large language model in the coming months.