🧠OpenAI New ‘Canvas’ GPT For Writing And Coding

Good morning. It's Friday, Oct. 4, and we're covering, OpenAI Secures $4 Billion Credit Line, Total Liquidity To Over $10 Billion, OpenAI Unveils New ‘Canvas’ GPT For Writing And Coding Projects, Kim Jong Un Threatens Nuclear Strikes On South Korea, and much more. First time reading? Sign up to get this newsletter: Sign up here.

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MARKETS

Cryptocurrency Prices by Market Cap

• The global cryptocurrency market cap today is $2.13 Trillion, a 1.91% increase in the last 24 hours.

• The total crypto market volume over the last 24 hours is $78.88B, which makes a 14.38% decrease.

• The total volume in Defi is currently $4.46B, 5.65% of the total crypto market 24-hours.

• The volume of all stablecoins is now $72.26B, which is 91.60% of the total market 24-hour volume.

• Bitcoin’s dominance is currently 56.91%, a decrease of 0.02% over the day.

NFT Mania Returns With Record $56.3 Million CryptoPunk Sale

A CryptoPunk NFT has made headlines by selling for a record $56.3 million, the specific NFT, Punk 1563, features a pixelated woman and was sold for 24,000 ether (ETH) reviving memories of the last cryptocurrency bull market when high-priced NFT sales were common. This sale eclipses the previous record of $23.7 million set in February 2022, just before the crypto market downturn. (Read Deeper)

BUSINESS & FINANCE

OpenAI Secures $4 Billion Credit Line, Total Liquidity To Over $10 Billion

OpenAI has secured a $4 billion revolving credit line, increasing its total liquidity to over $10 billion, following the closure of a funding round valued at $157 billion. This funding round raised $6.6 billion from various investors, including Microsoft, Nvidia, and Thrive Capital, among others. The credit line, which is unsecured and can be drawn over three years, allows OpenAI to invest in research, infrastructure, and talent while keeping its operations agile.

Takeaway: OpenAI’s rapid growth, especially after launching ChatGPT in late 2022, has attracted investments in AI infrastructure. Despite generating $300 million in revenue last month, an increase of 1,700% from last year, the company expects a loss of around $5 billion this year due to high costs associated with acquiring Nvidia graphics processing units for its large language models. (Read Deeper)

Ford Unveils Redesigned 2025 Expedition SUV With New ‘Ultimate’ Models

Ford has unveiled the redesigned 2025 Expedition SUV, featuring enhanced technology, refined interiors, and new off-road capabilities. Key updates include a 24-inch driver display and the BlueCruise hands-free driving system. The lineup introduces new models, including the off-road-focused Tremor and the luxury-oriented Platinum Ultimate. Powered by a 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 or a high-output version with 440 horsepower, the SUV comes in standard and extended "Max" versions. Pricing has not been announced yet, but current models range from $55,000 to $84,000.

Why It Matters: Ford's redesign is aimed at challenging competitors like General Motors' Chevrolet Tahoe, Suburban, and GMC Yukon, along with newer rivals such as the Jeep Wagoneer, Kia Telluride, and Hyundai Palisade. Full-size SUVs now account for 2.7% of the U.S. market, up from 2% in 2017, reflecting increased consumer interest in the segment. (Read Deeper)

TECHNOLOGY & SCIENCE

OpenAI Unveils New ‘Canvas’ GPT For Writing And Coding Projects

OpenAI has launched a new “ canvas “ feature for ChatGPT, designed to enhance writing and coding projects. The canvas provides a separate workspace where users can generate content, edit specific sections, and collaborate more naturally with the AI. It includes features for adjusting text length, tone, and language and offering coding tools like in-line documentation, code explanations, and suggestions for edits. Initially available to ChatGPT Plus and Teams users in beta, the canvas will roll out to Enterprise and Edu users next week and eventually to all users.

Why It Matters: This interface allows users to generate content within the canvas, and then highlight sections to edit specific parts, rather than regenerating entire responses. The update places OpenAI in direct competition with tools similar to Anthropic and Cursor. Editable workspaces like Canvas are becoming increasingly common as practical tools for AI-generated writing and coding. (Read Deeper)

Voyage AI Develops RAG Tools To Combat AI Hallucinations

Voyage AI, founded in 2023 by Stanford professor Tengyu Ma, is creating retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) tools aimed at reducing the inaccuracies often associated with AI-generated content, known as "hallucinations." The company has over 250 customers and recently raised $20 million in Series A funding, bringing its total funding to $28 million.

Takeaway: Voyage AI’s RAG solutions improve search and retrieval accuracy by using vector embeddings to convert various data forms into numerical representations, which helps AI models better understand the context. The company serves clients such as Harvey, Vanta, Replit, and SK Telecom, tailoring its RAG solutions to specific sectors including finance, legal, coding, and multilingual needs. (Read Deeper)

AROUND DE WORLD & POLITICS

Kim Jong Un Threatens Nuclear Strikes On South Korea

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has threatened to destroy South Korea with nuclear strikes if provoked, following recent remarks from South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol. Yoon warned that if North Korea used nuclear weapons, it would face overwhelming retaliation from the U.S.-South Korean alliance, leading to the collapse of Kim's regime.

Takeaway: Kim's aggressive rhetoric follows North Korea’s recent unveiling of a nuclear facility and ongoing missile tests. The country's parliament is also expected to constitutionally declare a permanent separation from South Korea. Despite the escalatory rhetoric, experts believe Kim is unlikely to use nuclear weapons first due to the military strength of the U.S. and its allies. (Read Deeper)

Israeli Strikes Cut Off Fleeing Routes As Conflict Escalates With Hezbollah

Israel conducted a military strike near the Masnaa border crossing with Syria, cutting off a crucial route used by people fleeing the recent bombardments. Lebanese Transport Minister Ali Hamieh reported that the strike created a s crater, further exacerbating the humanitarian crisis as over 300,000 people, primarily Syrians, have sought refuge in Syria. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) accused Hezbollah of using the crossing to smuggle military equipment and have ordered evacuations in over 20 southern Lebanese towns.

Takeaway: Concerns are rising that the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah could draw in the U.S. and Iran, prompting nations to prepare evacuation plans for their citizens in Lebanon. President Joe Biden expressed doubt about the possibility of an all-out war but acknowledged the need for measures to prevent escalation. The ongoing conflict has severely affected civilians, with more than 1.2 million people displaced in Lebanon and nearly 2,000 casualties reported. (Read Deeper)

ENTERTAINMENT & SPORTS

Chelsea Begins Conference League Campaign With 4-2 Win Over Gent

Chelsea kicked off their Conference League campaign in style, securing a 4-2 victory against Gent at Stamford Bridge on Thursday evening. The match started brightly for the Blues, with Renato Veiga opening the scoring in the 12th minute. The young midfielder met a precise cross from Mykhailo Mudryk, heading the ball into the net to give Chelsea an early lead. (Read Deeper)

Lucas Coly, French-American Rapper, Dead At 27yrs

Lucas Coly, the French-American rapper known for his 2016 hit "I Just Wanna," has died at the age of 27. His manager announced the news on October 3, expressing deep sorrow in an Instagram statement, urging people to appreciate others while they are alive. The cause of death has not been disclosed. Coly rose to fame on Vine over a decade ago and gained a substantial following on YouTube, where he released music in both English and French. (Read Deeper)

PODCAST(WHAT WE ARE LISTENING TO)

• The Most Important Thing: Howard Marks is indeed a highly respected figure in the investment world. His insights often focus on understanding market cycles, risk assessment, and value investing principles. (Listen)

EXTRA BREVITI

• Harris Leads Trump by 66 Electoral Votes in 2024 Election Forecast, According to Data Scientist Thomas Miller. (Read More)

• The International Longshoremen’s Association, representing 45,000 dockworkers has reached a tentative agreement to suspend their three-day strike until January 15. (Read More )

• Mark Zuckerberg has overtaken Jeff Bezos to become the second-richest person in the world, with a net worth of $206.2 billion. (Read More)