BlackRock’s BUIDL Gains DeFi Access with Liquid Staking, Mastercard Partners with JPMorgan for Cross-Border Payments, Goldman Sachs and more!
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Welcome to QX Snapshots - a weekly recap of the key news on emerging technologies. In this newsletter, you will get a "digest" of the latest info on Enterprise Blockchain, AI, Quantum Technology, and more.
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[Blockchain] BlackRock’s BUIDL Gains DeFi Access with Liquid Staking, Mastercard Partners with JPMorgan for Cross-Border Blockchain Payments, Goldman Sachs Spins Out GS DAP, and SBI Sumishin Offers Mitsui Security Tokens. BlackRock's tokenized money fund BUIDL is gaining new DeFi capabilities through Securitize and Elixir's launch of liquid staking tokens. The deUSD RWA Institutional Program allows BUIDL holders to access DeFi opportunities while earning T-Bill yields. BlackRock recently expanded BUIDL to multiple blockchain networks, including Aptos, Arbitrum, Avalanche, Optimism, and Polygon. BUIDL leads the tokenized treasury market with $540 million in assets, part of a growing tokenized RWA sector that represents a potential $30 trillion market opportunity. Meanwhile, Mastercard's Multi-Token Network (MTN) is partnering with JPMorgan's newly rebranded Kinexys Digital Payments (formerly JPM Coin/Onyx) to enhance B2B cross-border payments. Through a single API integration, mutual customers will benefit from faster settlement and improved transparency. The collaboration aims to reduce time zone friction and leverage blockchain technology for efficient payment processing. Kinexys is planning to introduce on-chain foreign exchange capabilities by Q1 2025. Also, Goldman Sachs announced plans to spin out its blockchain platform GS DAP from its Digital Assets business, aiming to transform it into an industry-owned distributed technology solution. TradeWeb, their first partner, will help develop new commercial use cases for the platform. Goldman will continue scaling its Digital Assets business while advancing the platform's capabilities. Also, SBI Sumishin NEObank has begun offering Mitsui security tokens to its 7.7 million customers through Alterna, Mitsui's direct-to-consumer platform launched in 2023. Already partnered with Sony Bank and J Front Retailing, Alterna eliminates traditional intermediaries, reducing costs and lowering minimum investments to ¥100,000. Mitsui's latest token, backed by an Ibis hotel building, was issued on MUFG's Progmat platform, which has facilitated 27 issuances worth ¥135 billion, mostly in real estate.
[AI] DeepSeek Launches AI Model to Rival OpenAI's o1, Claude Integrates with Google Docs, 'The Matrix' for Infinite Video Generation, and Humanloop is GA. DeepSeek, a Chinese AI company backed by High-Flyer Capital Management, has released DeepSeek-R1, a reasoning AI model competing with OpenAI's o1. Like o1, it spends extended time processing queries for improved accuracy and claims comparable performance on AIME and MATH benchmarks. However, it struggles with some logic problems and blocks politically sensitive queries due to Chinese regulations. This development comes as traditional AI scaling approaches face diminishing returns, leading to new techniques like test-time compute. DeepSeek plans to open-source the model and release an API. Meanwhile, Claude now offers Google Docs integration for Pro and Work plan users, allowing direct addition of documents to conversations via URLs or recent document selection. Documents automatically sync with Google Drive updates, and multiple docs can be added within context window limits. While conversation history is preserved if access is lost, Claude can only read main text content, not images, comments, or suggestions. Also, a team of researchers at Alibaba, University of Hong Kong and others have introduced The Matrix a foundation world model for infinite-length video generation. It features 720p rendering, real-time frame control at 16 FPS, and employs a novel shift-window denoise process. Trained on AAA games, the project includes an open-source GameData Platform for collecting clean action-frame pairs, using tools like Cheat Engine and Reshade for data capture. And, Humanloop, an LLM evals platform, has announced general availability after two years of development. The platform helps enterprises build and scale AI products by providing tools for prompt development, systematic evaluation, and production monitoring. Key features include a collaborative environment for engineers and domain experts, an evaluation framework for quality assurance, and enhanced tracing for complex AI systems. HumanLoop aims to address the challenges of AI development by enabling teams to test, iterate, and deploy LLM applications.
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[Quantum Technology] Quantum Insider Launches Innovation Index for Quantum Tech Adoption, Alice & Bob Debut GPU-Accelerated Quantum Simulator, and Quantinuum's Nexus Platform Exits Beta. The Quantum Insider and HorizonX Consulting have launched the Quantum Innovation Index to measure quantum technology adoption across different economic sectors. The index evaluates companies based on workforce capabilities, R&D investment, and industry partnerships, using proprietary data and public sources. Starting with the automotive sector, it aims to identify first-movers and track adoption in a potential $1 trillion market. The index assesses quantum engagement through patent activity, proof-of-concept initiatives, and ecosystem collaborations, helping organizations benchmark their quantum strategies against competitors. Meanwhile, Alice & Bob has released Dynamiqs, an open-source quantum simulation library that leverages NVIDIA GPU acceleration to achieve up to 60x faster simulations of quantum systems. Developed with contributions from leading institutions and powered by JAX and Diffrax libraries, Dynamiqs addresses complex quantum simulation challenges through GPU acceleration and differentiability. The library enables researchers to perform large-scale simulations, parameter sweeps, quantum optimal control, and parameter estimation. This tool particularly benefits the simulation of Quantum Processing Units (QPUs) and their components, advancing the quantum computing field. Also, Quantinuum's Nexus platform is exiting beta, offering comprehensive quantum workflow management and execution capabilities. Initial testing by select users has demonstrated impressive results: Unitary Fund used it to study Local Friendliness violations at larger scales, Phasecraft implemented material time dynamics simulations with all-to-all connectivity, and Edinburgh's Quantum Software Lab achieved the largest verified measurement-based quantum computation (52 vertices). Originally limited to internal use, Nexus now provides broader access to researchers and developers from various sectors, integrating seamlessly with Quantinuum's software and hardware ecosystem.
[General technology] Microsoft, Meta, and DOJ Crack Down on Cybercrime Networks, U.S. Uncovers Front Companies Funding Missiles, and 145,000 ICS Systems Found Exposed Worldwide. Microsoft, Meta, and the DOJ have announced major actions against cybercrime networks. Microsoft seized 240 websites linked to the ONNX phishing kit, operated by cybercriminal Abanoub Nady. The DOJ shut down PopeyeTools, a marketplace for stolen financial data, charging three administrators and seizing $283,000. Meta removed over two million accounts associated with pig butchering scam centers. Meanwhile, threat actors are impersonating U.S. tech companies through front companies to evade sanctions and fund missile programs. The U.S. government seized 17 fraudulent websites in October 2023 that helped North Korean IT workers conceal their identities to obtain remote work. SentinelOne identified four additional front companies copying legitimate businesses' websites, plus a new one called Shenyang Huguo Technology. These operations, tracked as Wagemole, are evolving to include malware attacks and insider threats, with workers funneling income back to North Korea through Chinese bank accounts. Also, Censys research has discovered over 145,000 internet-exposed Industrial Control Systems (ICS) across 175 countries, with the U.S. accounting for more than 48,000 exposures. The distribution shows 38% in North America, 35.4% in Europe, and 22.9% in Asia. Different regions use varying ICS protocols, with many dating back to the 1970s. While ICS-targeted attacks have been rare, recent incidents like FrostyGoop malware and water authority breaches highlight growing vulnerabilities. Most exposed systems operate on business-grade ISPs, making it difficult to identify and notify owners of security risks. And, five alleged members of the Scattered Spider cybercrime group have been indicted in the U.S. for conducting sophisticated phishing attacks. The group targeted company employees through SMS messages, stealing credentials to access corporate networks accounts. They allegedly stole $11 million and targeted 45 companies globally.
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Writing/Researcher at The Grid | | Previous: Research Lead at EEA (Enterprise Ethereum Alliance) & QualitaX, Marketing at Kava Labs
1moWow, I didn't realize Claude has Google Docs integration. I wonder if they plan to make this an extension of something like "project knowledge"