Issue #63

Google pays AI researchers to do nothing, employers flooded with fake applicants, AI now indistinguishable from humans, and more.

‍News from April 3 - April 10, 2025

Musk Fights Tariffs

Elon Musk attempted unsuccessfully to convince President Trump to reverse his widespread tariffs, making several "personal" appeals to the White House this weekend. Simultaneously, Musk publicly criticized Trump's tariff architect Peter Navarro on X. Musk: "A PhD in Econ from Harvard is a bad thing, not a good thing." Navarro: “Elon sells cars. He’s simply protecting his business interests as any businessman would do.”

Tesla stocks dropped another 10% on Friday following China's announcement of a 34% retaliatory tariff on US goods. Subsequently, Musk called for a US-European free trade zone while speaking at a meeting of Italian politicians. According to reports, Trump has told his inner circle that Musk will soon depart from his government advisory position.

Source

Google Pays AI Researchers To Do Nothing

Google allegedly pays AI researchers to do nothing instead of joining competitor AI companies. 

Google’s AI division, DeepMind, reportedly forces employees to sign strict noncompete agreements, prohibiting them from working at other AI companies for up to one year and even paying some people not to work. DeepMind’s London office isn’t bound by the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) bans on most noncompete agreements. 

Disgruntled AI researchers contacted Nando de Freiotas, Head of AI at Microsoft, asking for help. Nando de Feriotas: “Every week, one of you reaches out to me in despair to ask me how to escape your notice periods and noncompetes… Please don’t reach out to me. Above all, don’t sign these contracts. No American corporation should have that much power, especially in Europe. It’s abuse of power, which does not justify any end.”

‍Source

Employers Flooded With Fake Applicants

The surge in deepfake interviewees applying for jobs means that 1 in 4 job candidates will be fake by 2028, says Gartner. 

Industry experts claim that cryptocurrency and cybersecurity firms have seen the highest surge, with more than 300 US firms mistakenly hiring fake recruits with ties to North Korea for IT work. These fraudsters use generative AI to manipulate their voice and face. Once hired, they install malware to demand ransoms from the companies or steal their data, trade secrets or money. 

The fake recruits use stolen American identities to apply for remote positions and mask their location using deployed remote networks. Some have sent millions of dollars in wages to North Korea to help build missile systems. Lil Infante, founder and CEO of CAT Labs: “Every time we list a job posting, we get 100 North Korean spies applying to it.”

Source

Bulletin Board

• British Army Builds Semiconductors. UK army chiefs will invest £200 million into Octric Semiconductor, a state-owned chip plant in County Durham nationalized by the Ministry of Defence last September. The investment will create hundreds of jobs and ensure domestic supply of semiconductor chips amid growing fears of a global trade war. These critical components are essential for military and defense technology. MoD spokesperson: “A clear signal of us backing British defence firms long-term and prioritising production here in the UK”. Source
• AI Indistinguishable From Humans. ChatGPT 4.5 convinced a group of humans it was human 73% of the time in a pre-peer-reviewed study. In this test, 300 participants were assigned the role of ‘interrogator’ or ‘witness’ along with a chatbot. The human interrogators had to interact online with witnesses and decide which was human or chatbot. Cameron Jones, researcher at UC San Diego's Language and Cognition Lab: "4.5 was even judged to be human significantly more often than actual humans!" The test follows Alan Turing’s ‘Imitation Game’ theory that if you can’t distinguish between a machine and a human’s responses, that machine can think like a human. Source
• US Bond Sale Breaks Records. Investors sold US bonds at record-breaking speed in preparation for US rate cuts and the impact of Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs on April 9. On Monday, the range of a 10-year yield was at its widest in two decades, at a record-breaking gap of 50 points. There were so few buyers that the mass sale of US Treasury bonds pushed yields out of line with swaps. This comes after the S&P 500 lost 10.7% in three sessions. Martin Whetton, Head of Financial Markets Strategy at Westpac: "What do you sell if you need to meet margin calls or liquidity? Treasuries and gold.” Source
• Clean Energy Powers The Globe. Clean energy fueled 40% of global electricity in 2024 because solar power capacity doubled in the last three years. Think tank Ember found that hydropower, one of the world’s oldest clean technologies, retained top place, comprising 14% of global energy production, followed by wind (8%) and solar (7%). According to Ember, clean power will one day even surpass overall energy demand, which is growing due to the widespread adoption of AI, the building of data centres and heat pumps, and the manufacturing of EVs. Phil MacDonald, Ember’s managing director: “Those expecting fossil fuel generation to keep rising will be disappointed.” Source
• Countries Ask Trump For Tariff Relief. 75 countries have asked the White House to negotiate with Trump over tariffs, the White House says. After Trump imposed a baseline tariff of at least 10% on nearly all countries and duties between 50-60%, several trading partners have openly called for a deal like the EU. White House sources say over 50 countries have contacted them directly. Delegations from Japan, South Korea and Italy have been sent to the US to negotiate. Trump: “These countries are calling us up… They are dying to make a deal. ‘Please, please sir, make a deal. I’ll do anything sir.’” Source

Disclaimer: This blog offers insights into international business and global events for informational purposes only. It is not intended as investment or business advice. WeavePay is not liable for any decisions made based on the content provided.

We're on a mission to partner with ambitious international businesses. If your team has the vision and meets the criteria, join us at WeavePay for tailored payment solutions that have helped hundreds of global companies succeed in the complex global market. Subscribe and reach out to see if we're a match.