Financial News
Revealing Robust Oil and Gas Company Macro-Strategies using Deep Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning
Radovic, Dylan, Kruitwagen, Lucas, de Witt, Christian Schroeder, Caldecott, Ben, Tomlinson, Shane, Workman, Mark
The energy transition potentially poses an existential risk for major international oil companies (IOCs) if they fail to adapt to low-carbon business models. Projections of energy futures, however, are met with diverging assumptions on its scale and pace, causing disagreement among IOC decision-makers and their stakeholders over what the business model of an incumbent fossil fuel company should be. In this work, we used deep multi-agent reinforcement learning to solve an energy systems wargame wherein players simulate IOC decision-making, including hydrocarbon and low-carbon investments decisions, dividend policies, and capital structure measures, through an uncertain energy transition to explore critical and non-linear governance questions, from leveraged transitions to reserve replacements. Adversarial play facilitated by state-of-the-art algorithms revealed decision-making strategies robust to energy transition uncertainty and against multiple IOCs. In all games, robust strategies emerged in the form of low-carbon business models as a result of early transition-oriented movement. IOCs adopting such strategies outperformed business-as-usual and delayed transition strategies regardless of hydrocarbon demand projections. In addition to maximizing value, these strategies benefit greater society by contributing substantial amounts of capital necessary to accelerate the global low-carbon energy transition. Our findings point towards the need for lenders and investors to effectively mobilize transition-oriented finance and engage with IOCs to ensure responsible reallocation of capital towards low-carbon business models that would enable the emergence of fossil fuel incumbents as future low-carbon leaders.
The Top 10 Leaders in AI Companies - IEMLabs Blog
Best AI Technology leaders are Google, Amazon, IBM, Microsoft, Salesforce, Oracle, NVIDIA, Intel, SAP, and Adobe. The global artificial intelligence market is expected to grow from $2.9 billion in 2019 to $19.6 billion by 2024, at a CAGR of 42.6% during the forecast period. The growth of the artificial intelligence market is driven by the increasing demand for intelligent virtual assistants, such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home, and the increasing adoption of AI-based technologies by enterprises. According to Zion Market Research, The global artificial intelligence market is anticipated to increase from $59.7 billion in 2021 to $422.4 billion by 2028. Robotics, automation, and AI are causing disruption in almost every business.
Nvidia Issues Muted Outlook as Videogaming Business Slows
Graphics chip maker Nvidia Corp. issued a muted outlook and reported a sharp decline in quarterly sales, driven by waning consumer demand for its videogaming chips after a pandemic-fueled boom and the onset of the cryptowinter. America's largest chip company by value on Wednesday said revenue fell 17% to $5.93 billion after gaming-segment sales more than halved in its fiscal third quarter. Net profit was $680 million. The sales were above expectations in a survey of analysts by FactSet, but net profit fell short. A flood of Nvidia's products are being unloaded by people who had used them in calculation-intensive cryptocurrency mining that may be denting demand, Nvidia's Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress said.
Meeting camera startup Owl Labs lands $25M and partnership with HP
Owl Labs, a startup developing a linuep AI-powered meeting hardware, today announced that it raised $25 million in a Series C round led by HP Tech Ventures (HP's venture capital arm) with participation from Sourcenext, Matrix Partners, Spark Capital and Playground Global. The closing of the tranche marks the start of a strategic partnership with HP, Owl Labs CEO Frank Weishaupt says, which will see HP invest in Owl Labs' various product offerings while providing sales coverage and outreach with enterprise customers. HP, notably, recently acquired Poly, which developed a range of video and voice devices and software for virtual conferencing. Weishaupt sees no conflict, arguing that Poly's products are complementary with Owl Labs' and show "HP's commitment to transforming the workplace to a hybrid model." "The funding will allow Owl Labs to continue its accelerated growth โฆ Owl Labs will use the investment to support product development and increase global adoption of the company's products, including the [Owl Labs'] product line," Weishaupt told TechCrunch in an email interview.
SoftBank's Masayoshi Son to Drop Flamboyant Earnings Presentation
Masayoshi Son, the billionaire boss of SoftBank Group Corp., has long presided over a quarterly earnings ritual of zany slide presentations. One included a goose laying multibillion-dollar golden eggs and another flock of unicorns flying upward along a chart of growth in artificial intelligence. Mr. Son is planning to step back from the routine when the giant technology investor delivers its earnings Friday, instead greeting attendees with short remarks before handing the baton to his chief financial officer, according to a SoftBank agenda for the event. It is slated to be a more sedate presentation than those from Mr. Son, who also isn't planning on taking questions from the media, according to people familiar with the company. The more subdued role--which is likely to continue, the people said--comes as Toyko-based SoftBank, the world's most active startup investor in recent years, is in the midst of a difficult run.
Ouster and Velodyne agree to merger, signaling consolidation in lidar industry
Ouster and Velodyne, two lidar companies, have agreed to a merger in an all-stock transaction, the companies said Monday. Both Ouster and Velodyne will maintain a 50% stake in the new company, according to the agreement that was signed on November 4. The merger comes as many in the industry, including autonomous vehicle technology company Cruise's CEO Kyle Vogt, have been expecting another round of consolidation in the lidar space. That's in part because there are too many lidar companies for how many OEMs are implementing the sensor for autonomous driving applications. It's also because many of these companies, including Ouster and Velodyne, went public via special purpose acquisition (SPAC) at potentially inflated valuations that were based on projected revenue, not actual revenue. Earlier this year, Velodyne acquired AI and lidar company Bluecity.ai,
AMP Robotics Raises $91 Million in Series C Financing
AMP Robotics Corp. ("AMP"), a pioneer in artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and infrastructure for the waste and recycling industry, has raised $91 million in corporate equity in a Series C financing, led by Congruent Ventures and Wellington Management as well as new and existing investors including Blue Earth Capital, Sidewalk Infrastructure Partners (SIP), Tao Capital Partners, XN, Sequoia Capital, GV, Range Ventures, and Valor Equity Partners. This new round of funding follows a $55 million Series B financing led by XN in January 2021. "Our focus from the outset has been our application of AI-powered automation to economically and sustainably improve our global recycling system" "Advancements in robotics and automation are accelerating the transformation of traditional infrastructure, and AMP is seeking to reshape the waste and recycling industries," said Michael DeLucia, sector lead for Climate Investing, Wellington Management. "By bringing digital intelligence to the recycling industry, AMP can sort waste streams and extract additional value beyond what is otherwise possible." AMP will use the latest funding to scale its business operations while continuing its international expansion.
11 Best Metaverse Stocks to Buy
In this article, we will be taking a look at the 11 best metaverse stocks to buy. To skip our detailed analysis of these stocks and the rise of the metaverse, you can go directly to see the 5 Best Metaverse Stocks to Buy. With the rise of the Internet, many other new developments have come to the forefront. This includes the rise of the metaverse, which is a hypothetical iteration of the Internet as a single, universal, and immersive virtual world. Such a world includes the use of virtual reality and augmented reality technology, to facilitate its growth and development.
Parks Associates: Nearly 40% of US Internet Households Report Owning Some Security Solution
Consumer research featured in the Residential Security Tracker reveals that in Q2 2022, nearly 40% of US internet households reported owning some security solution, such as a home security system, networked cameras, or a video doorbell. Seven percent of US internet households, approximately seven million households, own a network camera or video doorbell but no security system. "Together, these smart home products add to the market for security solutions, as millions of households find a camera solution is'safe enough' for their needs," said Jennifer Kent, Vice President, Research, Parks Associates. "The current market for residential security solutions is a mix of devices, systems, installation methods, and attached services that offer consumers more choice than ever before." In the firm's July 2022 survey, Parks Associates expanded its definition of home security services to better capture fee-based self-monitoring and video storage services.
SureDone Launches SureFit Year, Make and Model Search Engine for BigCommerce and Shopify
SureDone has launched SureFit, a Year, Make and Model search engine built for automotive, motorsports and powersports parts and accessory sellers using BigCommerce, Shopify or SureDone's integrated storefront and shopping cart. SureFit was designed with the input of brands, enterprise companies and high growth sellers to support fitment searches on their e-commerce websites. Visitors to parts and accessory websites want to find the specific parts that fit their vehicle. Leveraging the SureFit Year, Make and Model Search on a website results in visitors finding the parts they need and being confident they will fit. In addition, visitors will see additional available parts for their vehicle resulting in increased time on site and increasing multiple part purchases with a lower cart abandonment rate.