The most important news pieces from the AI world are here for you, whether you’re an AI enthusiast or just wish to keep an eye on what’s going on.
Focus Topic: Why do Estonian companies and individuals use AI so differently?
AI adoption in Estonia is rising – but not equally. According to the latest report from Statistics Estonia, 49% of internet users in the country have already used AI tools like ChatGPT, mostly for writing, answering questions, or content creation. Yet only 22% of companies report using AI in their daily work. What explains this gap?
Data analytics has become mainstream in Estonian businesses – usage jumped from 19% to nearly 50% in just two years. It’s now seen as essential for customer understanding and decision-making. But AI, while easier to access and integrate than ever before, still lags behind in corporate environments. Meanwhile, individuals, especially younger generations, are adopting it quickly in both personal and professional contexts.
One reason for the disconnect might be social perception. Bigbank’s chief economist Raul Eamets points out that employees may avoid disclosing AI usage at work, fearing it would downplay their own contribution. This creates a blind spot in reporting, where actual use may be much higher than what companies officially acknowledge.
Closing this gap will depend on awareness, skills, and bold investment decisions. While large enterprises are leading adoption (53% already use AI), smaller companies still hold untapped potential. Estonia has the digital backbone, the talent, and now the data – what’s needed next is making AI not just visible, but strategic in every business layer. Read more about the report here.
LLMs & AI Models
- xAI introduced Grok 4 Fast, claiming it delivers the best price-to-intelligence ratio on the market – 47x cheaper than earlier Grok 4 with a 2M-token context window.
- Microsoft added multi-agent Copilots to Teams, helping with agendas, notes, Q&A, project status updates and document management via SharePoint integration.
- xAI plans to raise $10B, aiming for a $200B valuation – funds will go to Nvidia/AMD GPU purchases and Memphis cluster expansion to catch up with OpenAI and Anthropic.
- Google integrated Gemini into Chrome, now available on Mac, Windows and mobile – users can ask for help with tabs, content summaries and task execution. Only in the US.
- Google launched Agent Payments Protocol (AP2), allowing AI agents to securely make purchases on behalf of users – supporting cards, transfers and stablecoins.
- OpenAI announced new restrictions for teen users of ChatGPT, including usage pattern age-detection, linked parental tools and filtered content policies.
- OpenAI redesigned the ChatGPT interface, merging memory, custom instructions and personal preferences into a single view.
- OpenAI and Harvard released a study showing 70% of ChatGPT usage is personal, 30% work-related – use is expanding especially in lower-income countries. I will be diving into it in details soon.
- OpenAI launched GPT-5 Codex, a code-focused model that adjusts compute by task complexity – from 1-second fixes to 7-hour autonomous builds, with IDE integrations.
- Microsoft brought free Copilot Chat to Office 365 apps, integrating side-panel AI assistants into Word, Excel and more for seamless task support.
New Tools
- Luma AI launched Ray3, an autonomous reasoning video model that creates 4K HDR videos in under 5 minutes – includes visual feedback and frame-level annotation.
- Notion 3.0 introduced AI agents, capable of creating docs, managing databases and workflows, with custom instructions and upcoming multi-agent teamwork.
- Meta presented new AI smart glasses, including Ray-Ban Display with Neural Band control – but live demo failed due to command errors and call interruptions.
- World Labs released Marble, a model for generating persistent and navigable 3D worlds from photos or text prompts – usable in interactive web projects.
- ElevenLabs launched Studio 3.0, an all-in-one audio production tool combining AI voices, effects, subtitles, and video editing in one timeline.
- YouTube unveiled over 30 AI tools, like Veo 3 Fast for Shorts, automatic dubbing in 20 languages, and AI-powered editing for highlight moments.
- Reve upgraded its creative platform, adding a precise AI image editor, natural language controls, and draggable UI – with open beta API for developers.
👉 Explore these tools: Ray3 | Notion 3.0 | Marble 3D | Elevenlabs Studio | Reve
Other Quick Picks
- Sylvester Stallone wants to reprise Rambo, using AI to create a younger version of himself for a possible prequel film.
- Architects argue AI can’t replace creativity, saying it helps speed up processes but cannot replicate human emotional intuition or artistic vision.
- Alphabet hit a $3T valuation, plans $85B investment in tech including a new UK data center, despite facing EU fines and regulatory pressure.
- Delphi-2M AI model can predict risk for over 1,000 diseases up to 20 years in advance, trained on 400K UK and 1.9M Danish patient datasets.
- OpenAI and Google won gold medals at ICPC, solving nearly all algorithmic problems at the world finals, outperforming 139 top university teams.
- Jensen Huang praised Gemini Nano Banana, highlighting 300M new image uploads and his daily use of multiple models for peer-evaluation.
- AI-designed viruses worked in lab tests, with 16 synthetic viruses successfully infecting bacteria – a breakthrough in synthetic biology.
- Harvard’s AI tool PDGrapher identifies gene-drug combos to revert diseased cells back to healthy ones – now used in cancer and Parkinson’s research.
- Demis Hassabis says learning how to learn will be the most important skill in the AI age – AGI could arrive within the next decade.
🇪🇪 AI News from Estonia
- Estonian Architects argue AI can’t replace creativity, saying it helps speed up processes but cannot replicate human emotional intuition or artistic vision. Read here.
- Dan Bogdanov warns of tech dependency, urging Estonia and Europe to develop local AI solutions to protect digital sovereignty. Read here.
- EY and Oxford Economics report shows that only 26% of public sector leaders use AI, despite 63% believing in its potential to improve services. Read here.
- DriveX Technologies entered the US market, partnering with Auto Glass Experts to deploy its AI solution for windshield damage inspections.
- AI in logistics needs transparency, says MyDello’s IT lead – hybrid models remain most realistic as full automation is not yet explainable. Read here.
🎙️ AIPowermentPodcast dropped a new episode featuring Stenver Jerkku, an AI-first entrepreneur leading Soldera, discussing how AI is transforming the renewable energy sector. In the episode, he breaks down how their platform automates key processes in origin certificate management, sales, and scalable energy models. You’ll hear how Soldera’s AI agents have replaced tasks typically handled by lawyers, marketers and sales assistants – and how the team uses tools like Clay to fully automate B2B lead prospecting.
🎧 Listen to AIPowerment Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.
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📚 If you would like to participate in one of my trainings or listen to speaking engagements, here are the upcoming ones:
- Training “AI võimalused finantsvaldkonnas” @ Äripäeva Akadeemia, 21.05.2025-28.11.2025 – information
- Training “AI võimalused projektijuhtimises” @ Äripäeva Akadeemia, 17.10.2025-28.11.2025 – information
- Speaking at The Institute of Internal Auditors Estonia annual conference, 01.10.2025 – information
