Connect with us

Business

Meta in talks for Scale AI investment that could top $10 billion

Published

on



Meta Platforms Inc. is in talks to make a multibillion-dollar investment into artificial intelligence startup Scale AI, according to people familiar with the matter. 

The financing could exceed $10 billion in value, some of the people said, making it one of the largest private company funding events of all time. 

The terms of the deal are not finalized and could still change, according to the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private information. 

A representative for Scale did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Meta declined to comment. 

Scale AI, whose customers include Microsoft Corp. and OpenAI, provides data labeling services to help companies train machine-learning models and has become a key beneficiary of the generative AI boom. The startup was last valued at about $14 billion in 2024, in a funding round that included backing from Meta and Microsoft. Earlier this year, Bloomberg reported that Scale was in talks for a tender offer that would value it at $25 billion.

This would be Meta’s biggest ever external AI investment, and a rare move for the company. The social media giant has before now mostly depended on its in-house research, plus a more open development strategy, to make improvements in its AI technology. Meanwhile, Big Tech peers have invested heavily: Microsoft has put more than $13 billion into OpenAI while both Amazon.com Inc. and Alphabet Inc. have put billions into rival Anthropic.

Part of those companies’ investments have been through credits to use their computing power. Meta doesn’t have a cloud business, and it’s unclear what format Meta’s investment will take.

Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg has made AI Meta’s top priority, and said in January that the company would spend as much as $65 billion on related projects this year.

The company’s push includes an effort to make Llama the industry standard worldwide. Meta’s AI chatbot — already available on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp — is used by 1 billion people per month. 

Read More: The 10 Defense Tech Startups to Watch in 2025

Scale, co-founded in 2016 by CEO Alexandr Wang, has been growing quickly: The startup generated revenue of $870 million last year and expects sales to more than double to $2 billion in 2025, Bloomberg previously reported

Scale plays a key role in making AI data available for companies. Because AI is only as good as the data that goes into it, Scale uses scads of contract workers to tidy up and tag images, text and other data that can then be used for AI training.

Scale and Meta share an interest in defense tech. Last week, Meta announced a new partnership with defense contractor Anduril Industries Inc. to develop products for the US military, including an AI-powered helmet with virtual and augmented reality features. Meta has also granted approval for US government agencies and defense contractors to use its AI models

The company is already partnering with Scale on a program called Defense Llama — a version of Meta’s Llama large language model intended for military use. 

Scale has increasingly been working with the US government to develop AI for defense purposes. Earlier this year the startup said it won a contract with the Defense Department to work on AI agent technology. The company called the contract “a significant milestone in military advancement.” 

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com



Source link

Continue Reading

Business

Deloitte is now offering employees a unique wellness benefit: subsidized Legos

Published

on



Workplace wellness—the trend of companies trying to offset job stress with benefits like time off for volunteering, discounted gym memberships, and free therapy—is a buzzy concept that some employers are taking to heart more than others. 

Deloitte is apparently leaning in hard, according to Business Insider, which found that it has updated its list of subsidized items—already including fitness classes and gaming consoles—to include, among other perks, Legos.

The $1,000 subsidy toward “Legos and puzzles” is meant to “empower and support your journey toward thriving mentally, physically, and financially and living your purpose,” say policy documents, according to BI.

Also included in the list of approved items for subsidy, as of June 1, are kitchen appliances like blenders and refrigerators, spa services, personal portable cooling fans, and ergonomic or cooling pillows.

“Most of the responses are things like ‘Lego?!?!? Finally!’ or jokes about how they can now rationalize buying the coveted Millennium Falcon Star Wars Lego set,” one employee told BI, referring to Lego’s most expensive set yet, costing $850 with over 7,500 pieces.

Perhaps Deloitte, one of the world’s Big Four consulting firms along with along with EY, PwC, and KPMG, wants to avoid any misunderstanding among its employees about its desire to support wellness: According to its own 2024 Workplace Well-being report findings, 82% of company executives globally believe their company is advancing human sustainability in general—but only 56% of workers agree.

Further, around 90% of executives believe working for their company has a positive effect on worker well-being, skills development, career advancement, inclusion and belonging, and their sense of purpose and meaning—but only 60% of workers agree.

Deloitte appears determined to go the extra mile—with Legos— to make sure its leaders and workers are in sync. As one X commenter noted: “Building wellness one brick at a time. Honestly, not a bad way to de-stress.”

More on workplace wellness:

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com



Source link

Continue Reading

Business

Oil prices jump and Dow plummets 1.8% after Israel’s attack on Iran stokes fears of wider war

Published

on



© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.



Source link

Continue Reading

Business

Israel’s attacks on Iran may keep Fed rate cuts on hold, just as inflation was looking better

Published

on



  • Surging oil prices in the wake of Israel’s large-scale air strikes on Iran could reignite inflation, which has shown signs of cooling despite President Donald Trump’s tariffs. Israel has signaled its attacks will be sustained, raising the risk oil prices will remain high and drag inflation up, too, preventing the Federal Reserve from lowering interest rates.

Israel’s large-scale attacks on Iran sent oil prices surging, and the prospect of a prolonged conflict that keeps crude higher could dash hopes for rate cuts from the Federal Reserve.

West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude both jumped about 6% Friday to $72.11 and $73.46 per barrel, respectively. That comes after months of subdued prices had helped keep inflation in check, despite fears President Donald Trump’s tariffs would add upward pressure.

Lower-than-expected readings earlier this week on consumer and producer prices had raised hopes the Federal Reserve could have more leeway to lower interest rates later this year.

But those hopes suddenly dimmed after Israel launched air strikes across Iran early Friday, targeting its nuclear weapons facilities and top military leadership.

The 10-year Treasury yield jumped 6.9 basis points on Friday to $4.426, reversing a dip in the immediate aftermath of the attacks, as rate-cut optimism cooled.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has signaled Israel’s offensive will be sustained for as long as necessary to eliminate Iran’s nuclear threat.

Iran has already retaliated by launching drone attacks and canceling another round of talks with U.S. officials over easing sanctions on Tehran in exchange for concessions on Iran’s nuclear program.

That sets up the region for a potentially extended conflict, maintaining pressure on oil prices and inflation. While Israel hasn’t yet targeted Iran’s oil production and export facilities, such an attack or Iran blocking the Strait of Hormuz, a key choke point in the global oil trade, could send crude soaring by $20 per barrel or more, analysts estimated.

According to Capital Economics, a surge to $80 to $100 a barrel could add an up to 1.0 percentage point rise in inflation in developed markets.

“We suspect such a spike in prices would result in more OPEC+ production coming online though, thereby limiting the length of the inflation shock,” Capital Economics said. “But any rise in energy inflation would be another reason for central banks to proceed cautiously with cutting interest rates, and for the Fed to remain on the sidelines for now.”

With the risk of a recession easing as Trump has backtracked on his most aggressive tariff rates, any Fed rate cuts would have to come from continued cooling in inflation.

After the latest inflation data, Trump continued to harangue Fed Chairman Jerome Powell about lowering rates, ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee’s meeting next week.

Policymakers are expected to keep rates on hold again amid concerns tariffs may have a bigger impact on prices over the summer, when companies run out of pre-tariff inventory and can no longer eat the cost of higher duties.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com



Source link

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © Miami Select.