The Kardashians…for Geeks!

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The Blends Briefs
TL’DR: Here’s a sneak peek into today’s newsletter

• Sam Altman got fired (and maybe reinstated) as OpenAI CEO

• Worldcoin price crashes after Sam Altman departs OpenAI.

• BlackRock files for spot Ethereum ETF.

• South Korean Pension Fund buys $20M worth of Coinbase stock.

• Binance to start crypto exchange in Thailand.

• Dictionomics: XRP

The Kardashians for Geeks!

This weekend was crazy with the shocking news of the OpenAI board firing the CEO, Sam Altman. Sam was fired from his position on Friday after a board meeting. The decision came as a shock to many in the AI community, who regarded Altman as a visionary leader and a champion of ethical and responsible AI. The reasons for his dismissal are not clear, but some sources suggest that he had disagreements with some of the board members over the direction and governance of the research organization. He also faced criticism for some of his controversial views and actions, such as endorsing a presidential candidate, supporting a brain-computer interface startup, and creating a secretive AI project called DALL-E. Some observers speculate that these factors may have contributed to his downfall.

Altman had been the CEO of OpenAI since 2019 when he stepped down as the president of Y Combinator, a startup accelerator. He was instrumental in securing a $10 billion investment from Microsoft and launching GPT-3, one of the most advanced language models in the world. He also advocated for creating a global AI alignment standard and ensuring that AI benefits all of humanity. Altman was replaced by CTO Mira Murati, who was elected by the board as the interim CEO. As per the OpenAI statement, Greg Brockman will be stepping down as chairman of the board and will remain in his role at the company, reporting to the CEO. But the drama is not over!

Greg tweeted that he was shocked by the news, and he was told through a virtual meeting that Sam was fired, and Greg was removed from the board but “was vital to the company and would retain his role”. As per many news sources, the board's decision was not disclosed to any investors, even Microsoft, which was informed of the decision one minute before it went public. 

The Twitter/X tech community was on fire over the weekend with huge support for Sam and Greg. It was reported that many OpenAI employees will leave the company as a kind of support to Sam. But if you think this is the end, hold on a second. Ironically, due to the clash back against the board, they are now in discussion with Sam about returning as CEO. The Verge reported that the Board has ​​agreed in principle to resign and to allow Altman and Brockman to return but has since waffled. Our guess is that Sam will show up at work by Monday, which will be the TikTok edition of Steve Jobs leaving Apple and then coming back later as the CEO. 

OpenAI is now facing several challenges in the AI field, such as model commoditization, margin compression, the hits business, user decline, increased competition, profitability concerns, GPU shortages, and the emergence of new competitors.  The company's ability to navigate these challenges will determine its trajectory in the ever-evolving landscape of AI and technology.

Global Biscuits

Worldcoin price crashes after Sam Altman departs OpenAI.
The price of Worldcoin's WLD token dropped 14% following the announcement of Sam Altman's departure from OpenAI, the organization that founded Worldcoin. Worldcoin, a biometric cryptocurrency project, aims to authenticate human identity online through iris scanning. Altman's departure has led to a decline in the WLD token's price, marking a 42% drop from its all-time high in July.

BlackRock files for spot Ethereum ETF.
BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, has officially filed for a spot Ethereum exchange-traded fund (ETF) with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The ETF, named iShares Ethereum Trust, aims to reflect the performance of the price of ether (ETH). BlackRock had previously filed for a spot Bitcoin ETF in June, and both applications are pending regulatory approval. Coinbase Custody Trust Company has been selected as the custodian for the proposed spot Ether ETF, and the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate from CF Benchmarks is chosen as the ETF's benchmark.

Tastes of the regions

South Korean Pension Fund buys $20M worth of Coinbase stock.
The South Korean National Pension Service reportedly acquired nearly $20 million worth of Coinbase (COIN) shares during the third quarter, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The move indicates South Korea's increasing interest in digital assets. In July, South Korea's National Assembly passed the Virtual Asset User Protection Act, a step toward establishing a legislative framework for the crypto industry. The pension fund purchased 282,673 Coinbase shares at $70.52 per share, with the investment now valued at around $27.7 million, representing a 40% gain.

Binance to start crypto exchange in Thailand.
Binance is set to launch a cryptocurrency exchange in Thailand through a joint venture with Gulf Energy Development. The joint venture, called Gulf Binance, has received approval from Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission to commence operations. Initially, the digital asset platform will operate by invitation only, with plans to open to the general public in early 2024. Binance and Gulf Energy first announced their agreement for the joint venture in early 2022, with Gulf Binance obtaining licenses from Thailand's Ministry of Finance in May 2023.

Dictionomics
XRP 

XRP, a digital asset created by Ripple Labs, operates as a cryptocurrency on its native decentralized platform, the XRP Ledger. It aims to revolutionize the financial sector by facilitating swift and cost-effective cross-border transactions. Characterized by its scalability, capable of handling up to 1,500 transactions per second (TPS) with a confirmatory settlement time of around 3-5 seconds.

For example, in 2021, XRP's market capitalization was around $20-30 billion USD. At its peak, XRP reached an all-time high price of over $3 USD per token. Over the years, Ripple Labs has partnered with various financial institutions and remittance companies, intending to leverage XRP's technology for faster and cheaper international money transfers.

The adoption and usage of XRP in real-world applications, like cross-border payments, have been notable. Financial institutions such as Santander and MoneyGram have piloted the use of XRP for cross-border transactions, aiming to expedite settlement times and reduce costs.

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