Good morning, and welcome to today’s edition of Vertica’s AI Update podcast. I’m your host, and it’s October twenty-first, twenty twenty-four. In today’s episode, we explore significant developments in the AI and e-commerce sectors.Our main story focuses on Perplexity AI, an emerging player in AI-augmented search engines, as it seeks to raise five hundred million dollars with a goal of reaching an eight billion dollar valuation. This fundraising follow’s the company's rapid value growth, driven by its unique approach that combines search engine capabilities with a chatbot interface, enabling about fifteen million daily queries and boasting an annualized revenue of fifty million dollars. Despite challenges such as allegations of unauthorized web scraping and a cease-and-desist letter from The New York Times, the company shows promising potential in transforming digital interactions, particularly in e-commerce.We also discuss the generative AI landscape, which saw startups raising three point nine billion dollars in the third quarter of twenty twenty-four, demonstrating strong market confidence. Generative AI’s capabilities are expanding, with significant implications for e-commerce, including enhanced customer personalization and automation strategies.Additionally, we highlight a report from Anthropic revealing emerging ethical challenges in AI, such as the potential for circumventing safety measures. This underscores the need for robust safety frameworks, especially within e-commerce where handling sensitive client data is paramount.Edward Kim, co-founder of Gusto, presents an alternative approach to AI development by advocating for the involvement of non-technical team members in designing AI interactions. This can enhance the integration of AI tools with a focus on human-centric solutions.In our notable news segment, we touch on Apple’s latest iPad Mini hinting at AI advancements, the importance of secure cross-platform interactions in AI, public trust in AI for financial guidance, and new insights into website performance enhancement for e-commerce.Thank you for tuning in to this update on the developments in artificial intelligence. Stay tuned for more insights and the latest stories tomorrow. Have a great day!
