Dark Factories

A 'Dark factory' is a fully automated facility where robots, AI-driven systems, and IoT devices handle all production processes. It require little to no human intervention. Since no workers are needed on-site, these facilities do not require lighting—hence the term “dark factory.” 

Siemens (Germany), Tesla (USA), Adidas (Germany & USA) and Lights-Out CNC Machining (China) are some of the companies adopting dark factories.

If this concept is the future of industrial production, what are the pros and cons?

Dark factories represent a significant shift in industrial production, offering efficiency, cost savings, and scalability. However, they also raise concerns about employment, adaptability, and security.

Read more here.

Image: Chris Wildt via CartoonStock

Gen AI vs Agentic AI

Two recent buzzwords in tech convesation - 'Generative AI' and 'Agentic AI'.

Generative AI, such as ChatGPT or DALL-E, creates something new.

Agentic AI seeks solutions, making it more suited for complex, decision-intensive tasks. Examples are nutritional and wellness coaching based on individual needs.

An AI becomes agentic when it possesses the ability to:

1. Set Goals.

2. Make Decisions.

3. Take Action.

4. Adapt & Improve.

More here and here.

Image: Timo Elliott.

Musk, UK and EU's New Communication Regulations

According to this article, Musk and Zuckerberg are promoting a version of free expression that defines censorship purely in terms of state action and is highly tolerant of censorship by private actors. It is also not in line with an approach to free speech in the EU. Bottom line? Economic interest.

Image: Cartoon Movement.

Changing Patterns in Electric Vehicles Market

Electric vehicles (EVs) are reshaping global trade in transport equipment. By the end of 2023, EVs accounted for more than a third of all car imports in value terms. Full story here.

Image: South China Morning Post.

Source: WTO

DeepSeek and the AI Narrative

Wall Street is throwing tantrums on DeepSeek. 

DeepSeek's R1 is a large language model (LLM), which is basically a cheaper, more efficient ChatGPT, built on a fraction of OpenAI’s budget and using fewer chips than any other leading chatbot.

DeepSeek has created a massive earthquake in the AI sector. Full story here.

Image: Mint.

Tik Tok's Cold War

TikTok has become a new front in the rivalry between China and the United States. The US is now ready for a war against a foreign billion-user social media entity, which hosts approximately 170 million American users. This direct clash opens a new front in the ongoing US-China confrontation.

Now, the EU must respond. Full story here.

Image: The Jamestown Foundation.

DeepSeek

US stocks dropped sharply on Monday (27 January) after DeepSeek, a Chinese artificial intelligence company released its latest version on 20 January. The company claimed its latest AI model was built at a fraction of the cost of industry-leading because it uses fewer advanced chips. Nvidia lost nearly $600 billion. - the biggest one-day loss in US history.

DeepSeek, a one-year-old startup, presented a ChatGPT-like AI model called R1, which has all the familiar abilities, operating at a fraction of the cost of OpenAI’s, Google’s or Meta’s popular AI models. The company said it had spent just $5.6 million on computing power for its base model. You can read here and here.

Image: Hedgeye