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WHAT'S AT STAKE TODAY ⚡
- OpenAI hires the team behind Xcode coding assistant Alex 🤖
- Tesla shareholders to vote on investing in Musk's AI startup xAI 🚗
- Bret Taylor's Sierra raises $350M at a $10B valuation 💰
- Snapchat's new Lens lets you create AI images using text prompts 📸
- Atlassian's $610M bet, and why everyone's fighting over your browser 🌐
- Warner Bros. sues Midjourney for AI images of Superman, Batman, and other characters ⚖️
- Roblox announces short-form video feed for gameplay clips, new AI tools for creators, and more 🎮
- Why is an Amazon-backed AI startup making Orson Welles fan fiction? 🎭
OpenAI acquires Alex coding assistant team for Codex division
OpenAI hires the team behind Xcode coding assistant Alex
OpenAI continues its strategic talent acquisition spree with another acqui-hire, bringing aboard the team behind Alex, a popular AI-powered coding assistant designed specifically for Apple's Xcode development environment.
The announcement came through a post on X by Alex founder Daniel Edrisian, who revealed that his startup's team would be joining OpenAI's Codex division. This division is responsible for developing the company's AI coding agent capabilities, making the Alex team a natural fit for OpenAI's expanding developer tools portfolio.
Alex, which received backing from Y Combinator, was founded in 2024 with an ambitious goal: integrating AI models directly into Xcode when Apple's development suite had no native AI capabilities. Edrisian described their original vision as building a "Cursor for Xcode," which seemed like a far-fetched idea at the time.
"When we started out, Xcode had no AI. Building a 'Cursor for Xcode' sounded crazy, but we managed to do it anyway. And, over time, we built the best coding agent for iOS & MacOS apps," Edrisian wrote in his announcement.
However, the competitive landscape shifted significantly when Apple updated Xcode earlier this year to natively support ChatGPT and other AI models, eliminating the need for external tools like Alex. While Edrisian didn't explicitly cite this as a reason for joining OpenAI, the timing suggests Apple's move may have influenced the decision.
According to Alex's blog post, the startup will continue supporting existing users despite the transition. However, new downloads will cease after October 1, and no new features will be added to the platform. The team committed to maintaining the product as long as current users continue utilizing it, ensuring a smooth transition period.
The Alex team consisted of three people according to Y Combinator's listing, though it remains unclear whether all employees will join OpenAI. The company has not yet responded to requests for comment regarding the specifics of the acquisition or the number of team members joining.
This move represents another example of OpenAI's preference for acqui-hires over traditional acquisitions. Rather than purchasing entire companies, OpenAI has consistently focused on acquiring talented teams and their expertise. This strategy allows the company to integrate specialized knowledge while avoiding the complexities of full corporate acquisitions.
The acquisition comes on the heels of OpenAI's much larger deal earlier this week, where the company announced it was acquiring product testing startup Statsig for $1.1 billion. This pattern of strategic team acquisitions demonstrates OpenAI's commitment to rapidly expanding its capabilities across multiple domains.
For OpenAI's Codex division, the Alex team brings valuable experience in mobile development tools and deep understanding of Apple's ecosystem. Their expertise in creating AI-powered coding assistants specifically for iOS and macOS development could prove invaluable as OpenAI continues expanding its developer-focused offerings.
The acqui-hire trend appears to be gaining momentum in the AI space, as established companies seek to quickly acquire specialized talent and proven technologies. For startups like Alex, joining larger organizations offers the resources and scale needed to compete in an increasingly crowded AI tools market.
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Tesla shareholders vote on xAI investment proposal next month
Tesla shareholders to vote on investing in Musk's AI startup xAI
Tesla shareholders will vote November 6 on whether to invest in Elon Musk's AI startup xAI. The proposal, from Florida shareholder Stephen Hawk, aims to strengthen Tesla's AI, robotics, and energy ambitions through strategic collaboration.
This follows SpaceX's $2 billion xAI investment commitment. The vote coincides with Tesla's proposal for a new $1 trillion compensation package for Musk, potentially giving him 25% control to lead the company's AI efforts amid weakening EV sales and robotaxi challenges.
⚡ More AI Bites
- 💰🤖 Bret Taylor's Sierra raises $350M at a $10B valuation
- 📸🎨 Snapchat's new Lens lets you create AI images using text prompts
- 💼🌐 Atlassian's $610M bet, and why everyone's fighting over your browser
- ⚖️🦸 Warner Bros. sues Midjourney for AI images of Superman, Batman, and other characters
- 🎮📱 Roblox announces short-form video feed for gameplay clips, new AI tools for creators, and more
- 🤖🎭 Why is an Amazon-backed AI startup making Orson Welles fan fiction?
🎙️ NEW EPISODE DROP:
The Future of Human + AI Collaboration | What are The Smarter Ways to Use AI
I sat down with Dimitriy Wolf — social engineer, psycholinguist, and advisor to presidents, sheikhs, and TEDx speakers — to break down why most people use AI wrong.
We covered how to think *with* AI (not just prompt it), how to build authentic brand voices, and what yachts have to do with artificial intelligence.
If you're still using ChatGPT like a search bar — you're getting left behind.
⚡ Trends for the Future
Scale AI's former CTO launches AI agent that could solve big data's biggest problem
Isotopes AI emerges with $20M to bridge data-business gap.
Isotopes AI emerged from stealth Thursday with a substantial $20 million seed round, tackling a decades-old challenge in data analytics: the disconnect between technical teams who manage big data infrastructure and business users who need actionable insights from that data.
The startup's AI agent, called Aidnn, enables business managers to query their data using natural language, automatically gathering information from various sources including finance apps, ERP systems, CRM platforms, and cloud storage. The agent can provide answers and draft comprehensive planning documents without requiring technical expertise from users.
Isotopes' founders bring exceptional credentials to this crowded market. CEO Arun Murthy co-created Hadoop at Yahoo over 20 years ago, sparking the Big Data revolution of the 2010s. He later co-founded Hortonworks, which went public in 2015 before eventually merging with Cloudera. After managing 200 people at Cloudera, Murthy joined Scale AI as CTO in 2021, describing the experience as "getting a PhD at Scale" in understanding AI model development.
Murthy witnessed the data access problem firsthand even at major data companies. He recalls embarrassing moments during quarterly analyst calls where executives couldn't answer basic operational questions because they lacked data access, despite selling big data solutions.
Joining forces with former Hortonworks colleagues Prasanth Jayachandran and Gopal Vijayaraghavan, Murthy founded Isotopes in late 2024. Their seed round was led by Vab Goel at NTTVC.
The founders' deep technical background enables Aidnn to perform sophisticated multi-step operations far beyond simple chatbots. For complex tasks like analyzing monthly recurring revenue trends, the agent can extract metadata, clean and normalize data, join datasets, prorate revenue, and aggregate results while maintaining context memory throughout the process.
Aidnn transparently shows its reasoning, assumptions, and identifies data anomalies while making actionable recommendations. The platform promises enterprise deployment without sharing sensitive data with external AI model providers.
Despite Isotopes' sophistication and 10 pending patents, competition is fierce from established players like Salesforce's Tableau and numerous well-funded startups with impressive founding teams.
⚡ You’re Smart. Strategic. Intentional. So Let’s Be Real:
Where Are You Holding Back— On Purpose?
Every smart operator has something they’re intentionally avoiding.
Not because they’re lazy — but because it’s risky, unknown, or just... a bit *uncomfortable*.
So what’s that thing for you?
That one decision, move, or experiment you know would push you forward — but you’ve been choosing not to do it.
Tell us — and we’ll share a tactical POV or tool to help you rethink it.
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AI is humanity's gateway to unlimited potential, giving us the power to solve our most complex challenges and create a future where innovation benefits everyone.
Telle Whitney was the CEO and President of the Anita Borg Institute, where she dedicated her career to advancing women in technology and creating more inclusive tech environments. Her leadership in promoting diversity and inclusion in computing has influenced how the technology industry approaches equity, and she has consistently advocated for ensuring that AI development includes diverse perspectives to create systems that serve all communities fairly.
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- ✅ AI Agent Template for Ad Generation
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- ✅ Entry to win a Free AI Strategy Audit
Episode 1: AI Education Without Limits
I sat down with Dr. José Fernández from the Miami Dade College AI Center to explore how AI is transforming education.
We discussed how students today can access world-class AI training with almost zero student loan debt — making innovation more accessible than ever.
Episode 2: What if your story were your sales strategy?
I sat down with Maury Rogow, a Hollywood producer and branding mastermind behind $2.5B in brand growth.
We talked about why the brands that feel effortless aren’t the loudest — they’re just the most aligned.
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