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The AI search firm Perplexity routinely lets users try out state-of-the-art large language models on its site, but the company moved quickly to put Chinese company DeepSeeks new R1 model front and center in its user interface. That offers users a chance to find out what the buzz is all about, without sending their data through the DeepSeek app, which is hosted in China. While some AI thought leaders such as Thrive Capitals Josh Kushner, Scale AIs Alexander Wang, and Andurils Palmer Luckey hurried to debunk or downplay DeepSeeks achievements, Perplexitys CEO Aravind Srinivas believes the Chinese companys models are something special. In the past few years, there have been a handful of revolutionary moments in AI that have transformed the landscape, Perplexity cofounder and CEO Aravind Srinivas wrote in a subscriber email Tuesday. I wholeheartedly believe that this is yet another moment. Users of Perplexitys free and premium tiers can now choose to use DeepSeek via a menu button within the search bar. (Users can also select OpenAIs o3 mini model.) Its one of the core models, says Perplexity chief business officer Dmitry Shevelenko. And what’s really neat about it is we’ve also developed a user interface . . . where you can actually see the chain of thought, so you can actually see how the model is thinking in real time, and that’s something that was never possible before. Because DeepSeek operates within the Peoples Republic of Chinas regulatory framework, the company had to prevent its models from talking about politically sensitive topics, such as the Tiananmen Square protests. Perplexity was able to remove those guardrails from the open-source version of DeepSeek-R1. Perplexity also says any user data shared with the chatbot stays with the companys servers in the U.S. and Canada; nothing is shared with DeepSeek or China. Of the models available on Perplexity, DeepSeek R1 is unique in that it shows the chain of thought the LLM followed to reach an answer. Some of the innovations the DeepSeek researchers put into its models were driven by a need to economize on computing power. The company said it trained its models, for example, using less-powerful Nvidia H800 chips after the U.S. chip bans cut off access to Nvidias most powerful GPUs. The end result was the creation of models that show state-of-the-art intelligence while requiring far less computing power than comparable models to run. Thats good for Perplexity. There are efficiencies, says Shevelenko. I mean, I think we’re still too early to know the exact inference cost breakdown, but just the fact that it’s open-source and you’re not paying the private model provider, that’s already the major efficiency.
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A record $1.39 billion will be legally wagered in the United States on Sunday’s Super Bowl match-up between the two-times defending champion Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles, the American Gaming Association (AGA) said on Tuesday. In years past, the trade group representing the U.S. casino industry did not break out an estimate solely for legal bets but rather one for all wagers, including those placed online, with a sportsbook, unlicensed bookmaker or casually with friends. But with years of legal operations in several U.S. states, the AGA said it now analyzes historical revenue data and other trends to develop a legal wager estimate for major U.S. sports betting moments. The AGA’s estimate for Super Bowl bets is up 11.2% from the $1.25 billion that gambling and research firm Eilers & Krejcik predicted would be legally bet on last year’s NFL championship in Las Vegas between the Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers. “No single event unites sports fans like the Super Bowl, and that excitement extends to sports betting, with this year’s record legal handle reflecting its widespread appeal,” AGA President and CEO Bill Miller said in a news release. “This figure underscores the positive impact of the legal marketfrom protecting consumers to generating tax revenue that benefits communities across the countrywhile enhancing the game experience for all.” In 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down federal ban on sports betting. Since the ruling, 38 states and the District of Columbia have now legalized sports betting in some form. The NFL’s championship game creates an annual betting bonanza and this year’s edition will be played in New Orleans for a record-tying 11th time. The Chiefs, appearing in the Super Bowl for the fifth time in six years and seeking an unprecedented third consecutive NFL championship, are slight favourites to beat the Eagles in a rematch of the February 2023 title clash. Frank Pingue, Reuters
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E-Commerce
Aja Wilson has come to realize what is delayed is not always denied. The two-time WNBA champion and three-time league MVP proudly released her long-awaited Nike signature shoe and athletic apparel collection in her hometown of Columbia, South Carolina, where she helped lead the South Carolina Gamecocks to their first national championship in 2017 and had her college jersey retired on Sunday. The release of the predominantly pink shoe and apparel collection which she said reflects her girly, girly side has been 10 months in the making since she signed the lucrative six-year contract with Nike. It’s a deal Wilson says signals the continued growth and interest in womens sports. It was just a matter of time, honestly, Wilson said. Because we are in it and we live it, we see how much we’re valued and worth. But now to see everyone in the basketball community finally catch up, it means the world. To say that I can put out a shoe, and to do this here at home, it’s truly special and I’m so excited to see what the future has to hold. The price of the shoe will be $110 for adult sizes and $90 for youth sizes. It will be available for purchase in the spring. At 28, Wilson is one of the most recognizable faces in women’s sports. She won an ESPY in 2024 for Best Female Athlete and led the Las Vegas Aces to back-to-back WNBA championships in 2022 and 2023. She has been named an All-Star six times since entering the league after being selected the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2018. Many in the women’s sports world wondered what has taken so long for Wilson to get her own shoe deal. Last year’s sensational WNBA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark had a deal for a Nike signature shoe ahead of Wilson. The delay didn’t surprise A’ja’s father, Roscoe Wilson, who called his daughter a meticulous planner. “Ever since A’ja was a child, she’s been that way,” Roscoe Wilson said. She would have toys and collectibles as a kid and she would line them up and look them and make sure they were lined up correctly, then change them around. So I always just took that as her way. She’s always been meticulous in her planning. She sees how she wants things to go before she finishes.” So this is a product of her vision from a long time ago, he proudly added. His daughter’s vision is not just a big deal for the Wilson family. Wilsons A-One is important for womens sports, but it’s also important for sports in general, said Joe Favorito, a longtime sports marketing executive and professor at Columbia University. Companies have been cutting back on custom lines for years and you don’t see this very often anymore, Favorito said. “They have to know there is going to be a big return. Companies have to be very selective. So this is impressive and it is very rare.” Favorito believes the shoe will particularly appeal to young women and people of color. It speaks to the diverse audience, not only for women but also people of color, Favorito said. They are creating a shoe that young women can wear, can feel comfortable in and that is revolutionary. Wilson’s shoe deal comes about after Clark signed the richest sponsorship contract for a women’s basketball player in history last April worth $28 million over eight years. Wilson said she loved the process of picking out the colors and helping design the shoe and collection, but acknowledged that the release is a weight off her shoulders. Among the many unique features in the design is a replica of the tattoos she wears on her arms - a tribute to her parents for supporting her through the years stitched onto the tongue of the shoes. To see it finally go live, it’s fun and I could not wait, Wilson said. The jersey retirement was great, but to have people get answers to their questions about what this shoe is about, it makes my heart really happy. Added her father Roscoe Wilson: The platform she has and the space she is in I think she has used it brilliantly to make a statement about herself, which carries over to womens sports. She relays her message through how she carries herself and how she plays. Steve Reed, AP sports writer
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E-Commerce
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