FinTech Weekly | Issue 81

DeepL, a translation platform, raised $300 million to deepen the development of AI functions

On May 22, 2024, the translation platform DeepL announced a $300 million financing led by Index Ventures, with a platform valuation of $2 billion. Although DeepL provides free online translation services, its most advanced technology mainly serves users who pay through the enterprise translation as a service model. Since its establishment in 2017, DeepL provides services to over 100000 enterprises, governments, and organizations in 63 regional markets worldwide, assisting them in internal communication, customer support, and international market expansion tasks.

 

Information link:

https://nordic9.com/news/deepl-to-raise-300...

Comment: January 2023, DeepL has entered the ranks of unicorn startups and become one of the most disruptive institutions in the field of machine translation. In blind testing, professional translators rated their translations three times higher than competitors such as Google, Microsoft, and Meta.

 

Focusing on the development of organic solar panels, the Swedish Entrepreneurship Alliance received a financing of 330 euros

Recently, the European Union provided 3.3 million euros in financing to an institutional alliance led by Swedish startup Epishine to support the development of organic solar panels. The so-called "organic solar panels" refer to carbon based solar panels that use organic molecules instead of silicon to conduct electricity. This new type of solar cell is lightweight, flexible, cost-effective, semi transparent, and printable. In addition, it can also convert indoor light into electrical energy, such as sunlight shining through open windows or artificial light (such as light-emitting diodes or halogen lamps).

 

Information link:

https://www.epishine.com

Comment: However, this type of battery panel also has shortcomings. For example, it degrades faster than silicon solar panels, which means they are not very suitable for outdoor use. However, they are very suitable for powering small electronic devices such as remote controls, wireless keyboards, or IoT devices.

 

The South Korean government will provide 15.4 trillion Korean won policy funding support to startups in 2024

On May 16, 2024, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) of South Korea held a conference to promote investment in innovative and entrepreneurial enterprises. The meeting pointed out that various policies launched since April 2023 have shown signs of recovery in innovation and entrepreneurship investment in South Korea, and invited beneficiary companies to share their experiences in investment mergers and acquisitions, operations outside the Seoul metropolitan area, and overseas expansion. In 2024, South Korea will provide a total of 15.4 trillion Korean won in policy funding support to related enterprises, an increase of approximately 30% year-on-year.

 

Information link:

https://www.weiyangx.com/435770.html

Comment: Through the venture capital program of Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK), early startups will receive at least 500 billion Korean won in assistance. In addition, the Korean Development Bank (KDB) - Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK)'s 1.2 trillion Korean won secondary fund began investing in projects in May this year to promote and optimize the functionality of the secondary market.

 

AI infrastructure startup CoreWeave receives $7.5 billion in debt financing

On May 17, 2024, artificial intelligence infrastructure startup CoreWeave announced a $7.5 billion debt financing. This financing is led by Blackstone Fund, Multiple institutions including Coat, Carlyle, BlackRock, and Magnetar participated in the investment. Just two weeks ago, CoreWeave has just completed an equity financing of $1.1 billion, with a platform valuation of $19 billion.

 

Information link:

https://www.blackstone.com/news/press/coreweave...

Comment: A CoreWeave spokesperson declined to comment on whether the company will use Nvidia GPUs as collateral for a new round of debt financing. According to Reuters, this type of GPU was used as collateral in a round of $2.3 billion debt last year.

Origami Risk will launch generative artificial intelligence solutions for risk management parties

Origami Risk is a technology company specializing in insurance software as a service (SaaS) and has announced plans to launch a new GenAI solution suite for risk management. This product is designed to help risk and insurance professionals adopt artificial intelligence to ensure safe and effective integration into their operations. Meanwhile, Origami has launched a GenAI product pilot program, inviting selected customers to contribute to the development of the company's artificial intelligence capabilities.

 

Information link:

https://www.origamirisk.comOrigami R iskhttps://www.origamirisk.com

Comment: The AI risk identification tool developed by Origami can help risk managers identify and mitigate risks during the planning phase of AI implementation. It evaluates potential artificial intelligence cases, both existing and under development, to help managers prioritize their activities and address the risks and opportunities brought by each case.

 

Collaboration between Cytora and SambaSafety on Intelligent Vehicle Data

Cytora collaborates with the driving risk management platform SambaSafety to improve the commercial automotive insurance underwriting capabilities of insurance companies by combining SambaSafety's driving risk management platform with Cytora's risk handling capabilities. Based on this collaboration, SambaSafety's detailed intelligent driving data is embedded into Cytora's risk management platform, enabling more comprehensive operation of data in different businesses, such as risk clearance, input, and classification. This collaboration will help develop a more concise workflow, covering from initial data submission to final insurance quotes.

 

Information link:

https://www.origamirisk.com

Comment: SambaSafety significantly improves the practicality of the platform by managing driving data to assess risk exposure.

 

Swiss Reinsurance considers the choice of iptiQ business

Swiss Re recently announced that after a strategic review, it will withdraw from its iptiQ business and consider options for different business directions. IptiQ is a digital B2B2C insurance company of Swiss Re, helping partner companies provide life and non life insurance products under their own brand. The company operates in approximately 10 countries in Europe, Australia, and the United States, with over 900 employees.

 

Information link:

https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/international/2024/05/16/774483.htm

Comment: Last year, IptiQ has released performance guidance: 2.7 million policies, $1.1 billion in underwriting premiums, and $247 million in losses (consistent with Swiss Re's guidance), indicating that the business is expected to achieve its goal of breaking even by 2025.

 

Munich Reinsurance Company launches a new generation of artificial intelligence underwriting solutions

Munich Reinsurance has launched GenAI Co Pilot, a generative artificial intelligence tool, on its REALYTIX ZERO platform. This move aims to help clients, including major insurance companies, create professional insurance products more efficiently. This is the first time that Muzai has deployed generative artificial intelligence in its operational environment. The REALYTIX ZERO platform was established in 2018 and is a cloud based underwriting solution that leverages Munich Reinsurance's expertise to help insurance companies and brokers digitize and automate their underwriting processes.

 

Information link:

https://www.remarkgroup.com/zh/insights/fa-zai-ren...

Comment: The new product is built on the REALYTIX ZERO platform, processing user prompts to generate detailed insurance product plans, and then refining and publishing these plans through an online product studio within a few hours.

BBVA collaborates with OpenAI to deploy ChatGPT among its employees

Spanish banking giant BBVA has partnered with ChatGPT developer OpenAI to develop a standardized AI tool among its employees. The Bilbao based group has stated that it has now begun deploying 3000 ChatGPT Enterprise licenses among its central service employees in Spain and plans to expand the licenses to employees in other "major countries" of the group at an appropriate time. ChatGPT was launched by OpenAI in November 2022 and is recognized for its ability to generate content and provide answers for complex business queries. The service attracted over 1 million users in the first five days of its launch, breaking records. According to a statement, BBVA stated that its deployment of this technology aims to "improve productivity and process efficiency while stimulating innovation throughout the group.".

 

Information link:

https://tw.fazzaco.com/newsdetail

 

The immigration bank platform Majority earned $20 million in "driving profits"

Majority, a fintech startup, provides a mobile banking platform for American immigrants and raised an additional $20 million through the latest round of financing. The fifth round of financing for the platform includes $12.5 million in equity and $7.5 million in debt, led by a group of experienced fintech founders. This includes Klarna co-founder Victor Jacobsson Magnus Nilsson and Jacob de Geer, co founders of Hjalmar Winbladh and Izettle at Ark Kapital, as well as venture capital firm Avid Ventures Subsequent investments by Valar Ventures and Heartcore Capital.

 

Information link:

https://www.36kr.com/p/2302629670710275

 

JPMorgan Chase promises an additional £ 40 million to promote UK economic growth

JPMorgan Chase announced a new round of investment in the UK aimed at "helping young people and underserved communities access economic opportunities" and "promoting sustainable economic growth.". The commitment of £ 40 million has brought the company's total investment since 2019 to £ 90 million, which will be shared over the next five years. This investment focuses particularly on "financial health and career and skills" and is divided into two initiatives: £ 24 million to improve employment opportunities for young people and underserved communities, and £ 16 million to help families establish a "stronger financial future". In order to lower the threshold for entry-level positions in banks, the company is committed to creating more inclusive employment opportunities by expanding skill based recruitment.

 

Information link:

https://esgnews.com/zh-CN

 

Commercial banks launch instant payment service FedNow through Temenos Payments Hub

Commerce Bank is a comprehensive service bank headquartered in Kansas City, USA, which has launched FedNow instant payment services in the latest developments of its modernization strategy. The bank's new real-time payment function is achieved through continuous cooperation with Temenos. Previously, the bank deployed the core banking platform of this Swiss supplier in 2022 and later utilized its Infinity loan disbursement solution in February of this year. Now, commercial banks have chosen Temenos payment centers, as suppliers have said, combining complex banking products with high touch, high-tech delivery, as well as FedNow services.

 

Information link:

https://www.temenos.com/news/2023/07/19/temenos...

IKEA launches energy insights in its applications

IKEA piloted the new energy insight feature, allowing customers to monitor their electricity consumption and use energy more intelligently. This feature is now available in the IKEA smart application in Sweden and will be further improved and developed within the year. As energy costs and consumption continue to attract the attention of homeowners, IKEA has begun to create digital experiences and smart energy products aimed at helping customers save energy and make better decisions about household electricity usage. The pilot launch of Energy Insights in IKEA's smart application marks the beginning of this initiative, aimed at enhancing customers' understanding of their energy usage and helping them develop energy-saving habits.

 

Information link:

https://www.ittime.com.cn/news/news_89700.shtml

 

Microsoft's carbon emissions have surged by nearly 30%

Microsoft recently stated in its annual sustainability report that its total emissions for 2023 increased by nearly 30%, largely due to the expansion of data centers running artificial intelligence and cloud computing systems. The report points out that "the climate challenges we face are to some extent unique to us as a leading cloud provider, as Microsoft is currently expanding its data center scale." Currently, the company is competing with competitors including Amazon and Google to invest in building a large amount of infrastructure that supports generative artificial intelligence. Microsoft has also invested billions of dollars in OpenAI and is building its own AI tools.

 

Information link:

https://finance.sina.com.cn/stock/usstock/c/2024...

 

European Securities and Markets Authority ESMA releases ESG Fund Naming Guidelines

On May 14th, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) released its final guidelines on the use of ESG and sustainability related terms in investment fund names. According to ESMA, as the demand for ESG themed funds increases sharply among investors, asset management companies have begun to include sustainability related terms in fund names to attract investors, leading to an increase in the risk of greenwashing. In the final guide, ESMA has lifted 50% of sustainable development related thresholds while retaining the requirement of an 80% minimum investment ratio to meet the sustainability characteristics of using "sustainable" funds.

 

Information link:

https://www.esma.europa.eu/press-news/esma-news/...

 

GRI releases "Basic Points of CSRD" to explore the key themes implemented

On May 15th, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) released a new publication discussing key themes related to the implementation of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), a legislation passed by the European Union in December 2022 and now in effect. The CSRD Essentials simplify key aspects of the new directive and are the result of joint work by GRI, European Parliament member and CSRD reporter Pascal Durand, and Lefebvre Sarrut Group.

 

Information link:

https://www.globalreporting.org/news/news-center/...

Establishing a Semiconductor Research Institute in the UK to provide support for key areas of national strategy

On May 21, 2024, the UK announced the establishment of the Semiconductor Research Institute, responsible for overseeing its £ 1 billion chip industry development strategy. The UK government has stated that the Semiconductor Research Institute will bring together government, university, and industry forces to ensure that chip researchers have the necessary tools and infrastructure to advance the design and development of composite chips, serve as a bridge and link between semiconductor technology companies and international partners, and promote the development of related professional skills.

 

Information link:

http://www.casisd.cn/zkcg/ydkb/kjzcyzxkb/2023/zczxkb...

 

The EU's Artificial Intelligence Act has been officially reviewed and passed

On May 21, 2024, EU member states reached a final agreement on the world's first major law regulating artificial intelligence. It is reported that the Artificial Intelligence Act adopts a risk-based regulatory approach for artificial intelligence technology, which means that different applications of the technology will be treated differently depending on the degree of threat they pose to society. For example, the law will prohibit artificial intelligence applications that are considered "unacceptable" in terms of risk levels. The characteristic of such applications is the so-called "social scoring" system, which ranks citizens based on the aggregation and analysis of citizen data, predictive policing, and emotional recognition in the workplace and schools.

 

Information link:

ww.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=0fce3ea3-1766-4536-9fe4-9a6f8e8c9fc0

 

The UK Artificial Intelligence Security Research Institute will open a US office

Recently, the UK Institute for Artificial Intelligence Security announced that it will open an office in San Francisco, USA this summer to promote international dialogue on artificial intelligence security. The timing of this announcement is crucial, as experts have warned that rapidly developing artificial intelligence may pose an equal threat to human survival as nuclear weapons or climate change, and therefore global coordinated regulation of this emerging technology is necessary. Meanwhile, the second Global Artificial Intelligence Security Summit, hosted by the governments of South Korea and the United Kingdom, will also be held in Seoul, South Korea this week.

 

Information link:

https://www.163.com/dy/article/J2L4M05S05566WVY.html

 

Tokyo District Court in Japan Rejects AI Patent Application: Inventors Limited to Humans

Recently, the Tokyo District Court ruled that devices invented by artificial intelligence cannot be patented, on the grounds that the inventor must be a human. The plaintiff applied for a patent for an AI independently invented device, but it was rejected by the Patent Office. The court believes that according to the Basic Law of Intellectual Property Rights, inventions are "products created by human activities", and many parts of the world are cautious about AI as the inventor of the law.

 

Information link:

www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/zh/news/k10014451961000/

Peak XV Partners: In the long run, China will continue to be an important global investment market

Recently, Shailendra Singh, Managing Director of Peak XV Partners, stated in an interview that although some capital has flowed out of China in search of diversified development due to changes in the geopolitical situation, in the long run, China will still be a huge economy and will cultivate more excellent enterprises. He said that although India or Southeast Asia may benefit from this in the short term, how to maintain long-term cooperation with China is still a serious issue that needs to be considered worldwide.

 

Information link:

https://www.peakxv.com

 

In 2023, foreign investment in Germany has significantly increased, with China ranking third in terms of investment projects

The German Federal Agency for Foreign Trade and Investment (GTAI) released the 2023 foreign investment situation in Germany on May 14th. In terms of investment amount, Germany's total absorption of foreign investment (FDI) in 2023 was 34.8 billion euros, an increase of 37.5% from 25.3 billion euros in 2022. From the perspective of investment direction, a large number of projects focus on Germany's key industries for the future, such as semiconductors, renewable energy, and pharmaceuticals. From the perspective of investment source countries, in 2023, out of 1759 foreign investment projects in Germany, the United States (235) and Switzerland (202) ranked in the top two, while China ranked third with 200 projects, setting a new high for investment projects in Germany since 2017.

 

Information link:

http://de.mofcom.gov.cn/article/ywzx/202405/20240503510523.shtml

 

The 2024 Global Trade and Investment Promotion Summit will be held in Beijing

On May 13, 2024, the 2024 Global Trade and Investment Promotion Summit, hosted by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, was held in Beijing. The theme of this summit is "mutual trust and cooperation: choice in change". Delegates to the summit conducted in-depth discussions on important issues of concern to all parties, such as Chinese path to modernization, healthy development of Sino US economic and trade relations, artificial intelligence, green low-carbon development, stability of the industrial chain supply chain, and contributed business wisdom to the recovery and development of the world economy.

 

Information link:

www.ce.cn/xwzx/gnsz/gdxw/202405/14/t20240514_39002854.shtml

 

Asian chip and AI related stocks rose driven by Nvidia's strong revenue expectations

Asian chip and artificial intelligence (AI) related stocks rose, and Nvidia once again gave optimistic revenue expectations, indicating that AI computing spending remains strong. The company also announced the splitting of one share into 10 shares. The company expects a revenue of $28 billion in the second quarter, while analysts estimate it to be $26.8 billion; The first quarter performance also exceeded expectations. NVIDIA's stock price rose by over 7% after hours. In Japan, Advantest's stock price rose 5.2% at one point; Disco rose 5.2%, Ibiden rose 5%, Lasertec rose 4%, Tokyo Electric rose 3.8%, while Japanese electricity production rose 2.8%. The South Korean stock market, TSE rose 6.8%, Wonik IPS rose 3.3%, SK Hynix rose 3.2%.

 

Information link:

https://finance.sina.com.cn/7x24/2024-05-23/doc-inawemww2541461.shtml

Science: 25 Top Scientists Call for Stronger Actions to Prevent AI Risks

With the second AI Security Summit (May 21-22) held in Seoul, South Korea, 25 of the world's top AI scientists are calling for stronger action to address AI risks worldwide. In an expert consensus article published in the journal Science, the expert group outlined the urgent policy priorities that should be taken globally. The article points out that global leaders need to seriously consider the possibility of developing universal AI systems that surpass human capabilities within the next decade.

 

Information link:

news.sciencenet.cn/htmlnews/2024/5/523089.shtm

 

JPMorgan Chase executive Erdos: New employees will receive artificial intelligence training

JPMorgan Chase is providing artificial intelligence training to every newly hired employee to prepare them for the technology that CEO Damon likened to having the same impact as printing and steam engines. "Everyone who comes here this year will receive timely engineering training to prepare for the future of artificial intelligence," said Mary Erdos, head of asset and wealth management at JPMorgan Chase on Monday at the company's Investor Day. Erdos stated that artificial intelligence provides assistance to its department in two aspects: saving time and increasing revenue.

 

Information link:

https://www.36kr.com/newsflashes/2784949667431300

 

SEC: In case of data leakage, financial institutions must inform users within 30 days

On May 15, 2024, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) passed a new reform policy requiring institutions (including securities firms, investment firms, registered investment advisors, and transfer agents) to notify users of data breaches "as soon as possible, but no later than 30 days" upon learning of the breach. In addition, The SEC also requires the above-mentioned institutions to provide these users with detailed information on the leaked information, as well as the self-protection measures that affected consumers can take. These requirements also expand the scope of non-public personal information and will cover personal information obtained by institutions from another financial institution.

 

Information link:

https://www.secrss.com/articles/66279

 

Italy ranks first among the circular economy powers in the European Union

According to reports from the Italian Foundation for Sustainable Development (CEN) and the National Agency for New Technologies, Energy, and Sustainable Economic Development (ENEA), Italy was one of the earliest EU powers to develop a circular economy. Comparing the circular performance of the five largest economies in the European Union (Italy, France, Germany, Spain, and Poland) using indicators from the European Commission, Italy ranked first with a score of 45, followed by Germany (38 points), France (30 points), Poland, and Spain (26 points).

 

Information link:

http://it.mofcom.gov.cn/article/jmxw/202405/20240503509773.shtml

 

 

 

 

 

Disclaimer: The content is from the Internet, WeChat official account and other public channels. We are neutral about the points in the article. This article is only for reference and exchange.