Perplexity AI’s $8 Billion Valuation, Drone Racers Recruited By Military

Perplexity AI Raising $500M at $8 billion Valuation. Perplexity AI, a Jeff Bezos-backed AI search company, is reportedly in talks to raise $500 million in funding, which would more than double its valuation to $8 billion. The company, which offers an AI-powered conversational search engine, has seen rapid growth, handling around 15 million queries daily and generating approximately $50 million in annualized revenue. This marks a significant increase from its $3 billion valuation in June 2024. The funds will help Perplexity compete with industry giants like OpenAI and expand its enterprise services. However, the company has faced legal challenges, including disputes with publishers over content usage.

Adobe unveiled new AI-powered features across its Creative Cloud apps. At the company’s annual creative conference this week, Adobe unveiled new product updates and tools across its suite of editing software, including Premiere Pro, Photoshop, Illustrator and its AI model Firefly. For Photoshop, the Generative Fill tool now creates more photorealistic images, while the Distraction Removal feature simplifies removing unwanted elements. Premiere Pro gains generative AI capabilities for video editing, such as expanding shots and filling missing footage. Lightroom introduces Generative Remove to quickly clean up photos and Lens Blur for selective focus. Adobe Express now supports 3D motion graphics and bulk content creation, optimizing workflows for social media and branding.

US Air Force and the Drone Racing League Expand Talent Recruitment Efforts. Somebody call Palmer Lucky! The Inaugural Drone Racing Championship is taking flight in 2025. If Anduril is not racing to sponsor this thing then Elon should jump in and put an X on it. Imagine an epic steaming series in which modern gladiators dodge killer drones the size, and lethality, of flying shotgun shells, which weigh about an ounce. In the future the most lethal pilots may not be the ones flying planes.

News about IVAS, the Army Version of HoloLens, Keeps Getting Worse. The Army seems to have suddenly realized $80,000 per unit may be a bit pricey for their needs. The problem lies in the stupidity of the is original spec. Army, here’s some free consulting: put more sensors on the helmet, attach flip down displays like the night vision glasses, network them through a phone or a puck, and call in the airstrikes. It will cost under $5,000. I can’t be the only one who’s thought of this. The HoloLens is overkill.

Runway has unveiled Act-One, a new tool built on its Gen-3 Alpha technology. Designed to deliver highly realistic and expressive character performances, Act-One captures intricate details like micro-expressions, eye-lines, and pacing, allowing filmmakers to blend AI-generated characters into human performances. The tool can generate cinematic scenes from various camera angles, offering deeper character portrayals and opening new possibilities for emotionally complex storytelling. Additionally, Keyframes, a feature for Gen-3 Turbo, allows users to set first and last frame inputs, enhancing control and consistency in animated sequences. Runway says Act-One will gradually roll out to users.

This column, formerly called “This Week in XR,” is also a podcast hosted by the author of this column, Charlie Fink, Ted Schilowitz, former studio executive and co-founder of Red Camera, and Rony Abovitz, founder of Magic Leap. This week our guest is Deniz Özgür, co-founder, co-CEO, Spacerunners. We can be found on Spotify, iTunes, and YouTube.