Sam Altman, chief executive officer of OpenAI, during a fireside chat organized by Softbank Ventures Asia in Seoul, South Korea, on Friday, June 9, 2023.
SeongJoon Cho | Bloomberg | Getty Images
OpenAI and Anduril on Wednesday announced a partnership allowing the defense tech company to deploy advanced artificial intelligence systems for “national security missions.”
It’s part of a broader, and controversial, trend of AI companies not only walking back bans on military use of their products, but also entering into partnerships with defense industry giants and the U.S. Department of Defense.
Last month, Anthropic, the Amazon-backed AI startup founded by ex-OpenAI research executives, and defense contractor Palantir announced a partnership with Amazon Web Services to “provide U.S. intelligence and defense agencies access to [Anthropic’s] Claude 3 and 3.5 family of models on AWS.” This fall, Palantir signed a new five-year, up to $100 million contract to expand U.S. military access to its Maven AI warfare program.
The OpenAI-Anduril partnership announced Wednesday will “focus on improving the nation’s counter-unmanned aircraft systems (CUAS) and their ability to detect, assess and respond to potentially lethal aerial threats in real-time,” according to a release, which added that “Anduril and OpenAI will explore how leading edge AI models can be leveraged to rapidly synthesize time-sensitive data, reduce the burden on human operators, and improve situational awareness.”
Anduril, co-founded by Palmer Luckey, did not answer a question about whether reducing the onus on human operators will translate to fewer humans in the loop on high-stakes warfare decisions. Luckey founded Oculus VR, which he sold to Facebook in 2014.
OpenAI said it was working with Anduril to help human operators make decisions “to protect U.S. military personnel on the ground from unmanned drone attacks.” The company said it stands by the policy in its mission statement of prohibiting use of its AI systems to harm others.
The news comes after Microsoft-backed OpenAI in January quietly removed a ban on the military use of ChatGPT and its other AI tools, just as it had begun to work with the U.S. Department of Defense on AI tools, including open-source cybersecurity tools.
Until early January, OpenAI’s policies page specified that the company did not allow the usage of its models for “activity that has high risk of physical harm” such as weapons development or military and warfare. In mid-January, OpenAI removed the specific reference to the military, although its policy still states that users should not “use our service to harm yourself or others,” including to “develop or use weapons.”
The news comes after years of controversy about tech companies developing technology for military use, highlighted by the public concerns of tech workers — especially those working on AI.
Employees at virtually every tech giant involved with military contracts have voiced concerns after thousands of Google employees protested Project Maven, a Pentagon project that would use Google AI to analyze drone surveillance footage.
Microsoft employees protested a $480 million army contract that would provide soldiers with augmented-reality headsets, and more than 1,500 Amazon and Google workers signed a letter protesting a joint $1.2 billion, multiyear contract with the Israeli government and military, under which the tech giants would provide cloud computing services, AI tools and data centers.
— CNBC’s Morgan Brennan contributed to this report.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk postponed a scheduled trip to India this week where he was to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, citing “heavy Tesla obligations.”
Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images
India has been striving to become a global manufacturing hub, having successfully invited major companies such as Apple to set up as well as expand production in the country.
To further bolster its manufacturing prowess, the South Asian nation has been eyeing Tesla to set up its base in the country. And the carmaker that has appeared reluctant for long is now signaling interest in the market as the Indian government attempts to welcome it by implementing a new EV tariff policy.
Tesla is reportedly recruiting and scouting showroom locations in the country, following a meeting between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tesla CEO Elon Musk earlier this month.
“One thing is for sure, Tesla is coming to India based on the recent news, and the government is also very serious about it,” Puneet Gupta, Director for the Indian automotive market at S&P Global Mobility, told CNBC.
India introduced an EV policy last year that proposes to lower the import duties on EVs to 15% from about 70%, with the government set to start accepting applications under this policy before March-end, according to domestic news agency IANS.
This relaxation only applies to premium EVs priced at over $35,000 and requires investments totaling nearly $500 million and long-term plans to set up local manufacturing.
The EV policy represents a targeted move to appeal to Tesla’s business interests, signaling India’s readiness to support EV manufacturing, Ammar Master, a South Asia director of Automotive at GlobalData, told CNBC.
“The Indian government has been proactive in its attempts to lure Tesla into establishing its manufacturing base in India,” he said.
The automaker, however, faces several headwinds to breaking into the world’s third-largest auto market.
It’s unclear if Tesla’s entry makes sense under India’s investment scheme, with any plans the automaker might have likely to be rolled out slowly and in a measured way due to several entry barriers, Gupta and other analysts said.
Price and commitment issues
According to a recent research note by Bank of America, if Tesla were to enter this scheme, it would translate to minimum landed car prices of $40,000.
At this price, Tesla EVs would enter India’s market at a very high price point, above what existing Indian OEMs cater to and implying a small addressable market, BofA said.
Under the planned EV scheme, Tesla would also need to follow a 3-year timeline for setting up manufacturing facilities in India, reaching a 50% domestic value addition within 5 years.
Analysts say jumping into this commitment would be premature for Tesla, based on their current price points.
A research note from BNP Paribas on Monday stated that local production in India won’t make sense unless Tesla can reduce its vehicle prices to below $30,000 to allow for mass volumes in India.
Meanwhile, Tesla has yet to signal significant interest in setting up a manufacturing base in the country, with its recent job openings consisting of mostly consumer-facing positions.
Additionally, geopolitical barriers may influence Telsa’s decision to produce cars in India under the new Donald Trump administration. In an interview alongside Tesla CEO Elon Musk last week, President Trump said that Tesla manufacturing in India would be “very unfair.”
The company has also been working on completing the production of manufacturing plants in Germany and Texas.
‘Slow and measured’
Given the price and investment challenges, experts told CNBC that Tesla’s India foray will start with exporting cars to the market to test the waters first.
“We expect Tesla’s entry into India to be slow and measured, given the low average price point in the market,” BNP Paribas said, noting that the company has plans to launch more affordable models later this year.
Meanwhile, S&P Global Mobility’s Gupta said that Tesla will likely push India to tweak its EV tariff policy further, allowing it to start shipping to the country more easily before making any investment promises.
Some local media sources in India have reported that government may further tweak the EV policy to attract Tesla considers the market.
“Even if they commit to the current proposal, it will be after six months or so,” added Gupta.
However, while the Indian EV market remains small, getting a foothold there could be a valuable endeavor for Tesla as it looks for new markets amid intense competition with Chinese EV makers such as BYD.
“With the current momentum, we project that Passenger BEV sales in India will reach 1 million units by 2030, accounting for 20% of total sales,” said GlobalData’s Ammar Master.
For the third year in a row, CNBC is working with market research firm Statista to list the world’s top financial technology companies.
Including startups, scaleups and established tech players, the top global fintech list aims to assess companies using an objective, key performance indicator-based methodology.
You can find out more information on the research project and methodology by clicking here.
Woman using digital tablet and credit card to do shopping.
John Lamb | Digital Vision | Getty Images
Applications are now open for companies to register their information for consideration by Statista’s researchers. To qualify, a company must focus primarily on developing innovative, technology-based financial products and services.
This year, we’re also digging deeper into the research to name the standout companies operating in the U.K. — the largest fintech market in Europe, as measured by the amount of funding raised.
Applications from companies headquartered in the U.K. will — in addition to being considered for the global fintech list — also be considered for a separate list of the U.K.’s top fintech companies. Firms do not need to fill in a separate application to be considered for the U.K. ranking.
Last year, fintech startups in the U.K. raised $3.6 billion in venture capital, ranking second worldwide and first in Europe for funding, according to industry trade body Innovate Finance. The country is also home to Revolut, Europe’s biggest fintech unicorn with a $45 billion valuation.
How to apply
Companies can submit their information for consideration by clicking here. The form, hosted by Statista, includes questions about a company’s business model and certain key performance indicators, including revenue growth and employee headcount.
The deadline for submissions is April 25, 2025.
If you have any questions about the lists or need assistance filling out the form, please reach out to Statista: topfintechs@statista.com.
Successful companies will be listed in the category that most closely reflects their business model. This year, insurance technology will be included as a category in the global fintech list. The other categories are payments, neobanking, digital assets, alternative financing, wealth technology, and enterprise fintech.
You can check out last year’s list here, which included well-known brands such as Mastercard and China’s Ant Group, global unicorns such as Brazilian digital lender Nubank and buy now, pay later firm Klarna, as well as smaller disruptors including payments platform Primer and investing app Stash.
Charles Liang, CEO of Super Micro Computer Inc., during the Computex conference in Taipei, Taiwan, on June 5, 2024.
Annabelle Chih | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Super Micro Computer reported its delayed financial results on Tuesday just in time to meet the Nasdaq’s listing deadline. Shares of the server maker popped 22% in extended trading after the filing.
“In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company at June 30, 2024,” BDO, the company’s auditor, wrote in the filing, adding that the results are “in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted” in the U.S.
Super Micro filed updated and audited financials with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for its fiscal 2024, ending in June, and the firsttwo quarters of the company’s fiscal 2025. The filing reduces any near-term possibility that the server maker could be delisted from the Nasdaq, an overhang that had weighed on Super Micro’s stock price.
“The Company has received correspondence from the Nasdaq staff that the Company has regained compliance with the filing requirements, and the matter is now closed,” Super Micro said in a press release.
Last year, after the company delayed its annual report, it lost its auditor, Ernst & Young, citing governance issues. Super Micro had until Tuesday to become current and file audited financials with the SEC.
Read more CNBC tech news
Super Micro said in a note from management as part of the filing that it had identified material weaknesses in internal controls over financial reporting, including IT issues, a lack of documentation over manual journal entries and insufficient controls to address segregation of staff duties. Super Micro said that it is hiring additional accounting and audit employees, as well as upgrading its IT systems.
Super Micro also said in Tuesday’s filing that a special committee of its Board overseeing its financial statements did not believe that EY’s resignation was “supported by the facts” examined by the committee.
In December, Super Micro said a review found “no evidence of misconduct.” At the same time, it removed its former chief financial officer, David Weigand. The company has not named a new CFO.
Still, the business has been growing rapidly because of soaring demand for Nvidia’s graphics processing units, or GPUs, which are used to develop artificial intelligence. Super Micro builds systems around Nvidia’s GPUs, and Elon Musk’s xAI is a customer.
According to the company’s updated and audited financials, Super Micro’s sales more than doubled in its fiscal 2024 to $14.99 billion.
Super Micro said it still faces risks related to its late financial reports, including litigation, reputational harm, and potentially lower credit ratings.
The stock has rebounded so far this year from a brutal last nine months of 2023. Before Tuesday’s postmarket surge, it was up 52% so far in 2025.
