February Tech Round-Up: Breaking Through the Generative AI Noise
Since ChatGPT burst on the scene in 2023, the terms ‘generative AI’ and ‘large language model’ have been burned into our consciousness. This month we examine the use of these tools in corporate life, and we break down the enigma that is Deepseek. Enjoy, from all of us at North Ridge Partners.
Original Thinking From North Ridge Partners
The DeepSeek storm has been brewing for weeks. Even as Silicon Valley’s AI CEOs were enjoying their rockstar status at the Presidential Inauguration, DeepSeek emerged like a bolt of lightning. Here’s what it means for the AI ecosystem.
Generative AI consultancy Gen8 and its founder Tim Sharp have trained thousands of professionals in the use of LLMs in the workplace. Tim spills the beans on who’s doing what, what’s working, and what’s not. Read all about it here.
Big Tech
Big Tech kisses the ring of POTUS. The headline says it all.
Meta kissed the ring of Elon, stopping all fact checking, meanwhile reporting a rip snorting Q4, with 21% revenue growth and net income of $62 billion. The Zuck predicted Meta's chatbot will have one billion actives in 2025.
Microsoft missed the DeepSeek drama, delivering 12.3% in Q2 25 revenue growth, with net income jumping over 10% versus PCP. Azure grew at 31%, missing expectations, with the short-term outlook missing the mark.
Apple grew Q1 25 revenues by 4%. Quarterly profits were $36.33 billion, up 7.1% from PCP. Earnings were a mixed bag, with slipping iPhone sales (down 11% in China) offset by rising Services revenues.
In a triumph of hype over reality, The King of DOGE danced through an awful set of numbers, claimed Tesla would be the world’s largest company, and promised to launch new robot, robotaxi and Model 2 products. Back in the real world, Tesla sold fewer cars in 2024, its FY24 revenues increased by only 2%, and net income dropped by 71% to $2.32 billion (although last year’s profit was bolstered by a $5.9bn one-off).
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Asia Pacific Tech News
Apple’s year of living dangerously: Indonesian dilemma.
Year of the Dragon ends with China’s AI roaring loudly.
“Better than DeepSeek”: Alibaba reveals Qwen2.5-Max.
Microsoft wants to buy TikTok, says Donald Trump. Join the queue!
Stuff We Found Interesting
Even if they’re far from perfect, personal agents are here. Watch them closely - they’re the start of a massively disruptive wave.
Apple is stuck between a rock and a hard place, and a very hard place as it tries to balance U.S., Chinese and Taiwanese concerns.
Move over All-In, there’s a better tech podcast, and it’s called BG2. This week Brad Gerstner and Bill Gurley unpack some creative accounting in the giant tech platforms’ investments in LLMs.
Tech Investment Banking Across Asia Pacific
North Ridge Partners advises tech companies across the Asia Pacific on strategy, capital raising and M&A. We’re experienced dealmakers who have built and sold many tech companies. In partnership with GP Bullhound, we have 200 bankers in 17 global offices.
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