If you know you need to learn how to use AI but you're not sure where to get started, then the team at Volaris has you covered. For just $27, you can get their step-by-step course for using AI to replace your day to day.

Click here to check it out now.

_{Read Time: 10 Minutes}

Today’s Menu

• Meta launches massive superintelligence push with Scale AI partnership

• Bitcoin consolidates near highs as DeFi explodes on regulatory optimism

Markets

TODAY IN AI

Meta launches massive superintelligence push with Scale AI partnership

Meta has made an unprecedented commitment to artificial intelligence leadership by tapping Scale AI's 28-year-old CEO Alexandr Wang to helm a new superintelligence laboratory focused on building models that surpass human capabilities. The social media giant is investing a historic $14.8 billion for a 49% stake in Scale while aggressively poaching approximately 50 top researchers from rival companies.

The compensation packages being offered reach seven to nine figures, with Mark Zuckerberg personally closing some of the recruitment deals. This represents one of the largest talent acquisition efforts in AI history, signaling Meta's determination to regain technological leadership after recent setbacks.

The timing is strategic, coinciding with Llama's underwhelming performance and a concerning exodus of Meta researchers to competitors. By securing Wang and his team, Meta gains not only exceptional talent but also enhanced control over Scale AI's data services, which nearly every major AI company relies upon for training frontier models.

Scale AI's data platform has become critical infrastructure for the AI industry, providing the high-quality training datasets that enable breakthrough model development. Meta's significant stake ensures preferential access to these resources while potentially limiting competitors' data availability.

The superintelligence laboratory represents Meta's most ambitious AI initiative to date, explicitly targeting capabilities that exceed human performance across multiple domains. This goal alignment with AGI development puts Meta in direct competition with OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google's DeepMind.

What this signals about AI competition: Meta's massive investment indicates the company views AI leadership as existential to its future success. The willingness to pay unprecedented compensation and acquire such a large stake in a critical supplier demonstrates how AI development has become a winner-take-all competition where access to talent and data determines outcomes.

TODAY IN CRYPTO

Bitcoin consolidates near highs as DeFi explodes on regulatory optimism

Bitcoin maintains steady trading near $110,000, remaining just 2.1% below its all-time high as markets await crucial inflation data and Federal Reserve signals. Meanwhile, Ethereum has shown stronger momentum, climbing 4% to $2,795 and outperforming Bitcoin in recent sessions.

The most dramatic action has occurred in decentralized finance tokens following surprisingly optimistic comments from new SEC Chair Paul Atkins. His suggestion of an "innovation exemption" to help fulfill President Trump's vision of making America the "crypto capital of the planet" triggered explosive rallies in DeFi names, with Uniswap surging 24% and Aave jumping 13%.

Atkins' statement represents a dramatic shift from Gary Gensler's "regulation-by-enforcement" approach, suggesting the new administration will encourage blockchain innovation through clearer regulatory frameworks rather than punitive actions. This philosophical change could unlock significant capital flows into previously restricted DeFi applications.

However, trader sentiment remains surprisingly cautious despite positive price action. Funding rates across major exchanges like Binance remain negative, with the average rate sitting at just 1.3% annualized—levels typically associated with market bottoms rather than near all-time highs.

This disconnect between price performance and trader positioning creates potentially bullish conditions. When prices grind higher while sentiment stays cautious, it indicates substantial dry powder on the sidelines ready to fuel further upside once sentiment shifts.

The negative funding rates suggest more traders are betting on pullbacks than breakouts, potentially setting up a scenario where positive catalysts could trigger significant short covering and momentum acceleration.

Strategic insight: The combination of regulatory optimism, institutional adoption, and cautious trader positioning creates an asymmetric risk-reward setup favoring upside. While Bitcoin consolidates near highs, the underlying conditions suggest renewed volatility could drive prices substantially higher if current resistance levels break decisively.

Want to share The Future of Disruptive Tech with a friend, family member, or coworker? Pass this link along to them.

Thanks for reading!

Until next time,

Damon James