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🏗️ Softbank’s $1 trillion AI Plan
PLUS: Meta x Oakley Debut Smart AI Glasses 🕶️
AI Insights
June 20, 2025
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Hey friends — big moves in AI today.
SoftBank is eyeing a $1 trillion AI empire in Arizona. Meta just launched smart glasses with vision AI. Google’s Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite is officially live. Suno is turning text into chart-ready music, and MiniMax is going after Veo with a budget rival.
Let’s get into it 👇
Today’s Highlights:
SoftBank’s Son pitches $1T AI hub in Arizona
Meta x Oakley debut smart AI glasses
Google rolls out Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite
Meta tried (and failed) to acquire SSI
MiniMax launches cheaper Veo 3 competitor
Turn your ideas into hit songs with AI
AI tool of the day
Latest AI and tech news
Read Time: 4 mintue
LATEST AI NEWS
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SOFTBANK
Image Source: Bloomberg / Getty Images
SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son is reportedly planning a $1 trillion industrial complex in Arizona focused on AI, robotics, and advanced manufacturing, an ambitious vision aimed at reshaping America’s tech landscape.
The Details:
Son envisions the complex as a U.S. equivalent of China’s Shenzhen, bringing together robotics, AI, and chipmaking firms under one ecosystem called “Project Crystal Land.”
SoftBank is seeking collaboration with TSMC, although the chip giant’s level of interest remains uncertain. TSMC is already investing $165 billion in U.S. chip plants.
Talks have been held with U.S. Commerce Secretary and state officials to explore tax incentives for companies joining the initiative.
Son is reportedly approaching other tech leaders like Samsung to participate in the project, though discussions remain in early stages.
If realized, the $1 trillion project would dwarf the $500 billion Stargate initiative (backed by OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle) that’s aimed at building nationwide data centers.
Why it matters:
This could become one of the largest tech hubs globally, offering the U.S. a chance to lead in AI and robotics manufacturing. It reflects a strategic push to reduce reliance on foreign supply chains and strengthen domestic innovation capacity.
META
Image Source: Meta
Meta has officially launched a new generation of smart glasses in collaboration with Oakley, designed for both athletes and everyday users. These high-tech glasses feature 3K video capture, AI assistance, and long battery life.
The Details:
The Oakley Meta HSTN smart glasses offer double the battery life of Meta’s Ray-Bans, with 3K video capability and up to 8 hours of use.
Meta AI is integrated, enabling users to ask questions, translate languages, or control the glasses hands-free.
A charging case delivers up to 48 hours of additional power, and a quick 20-minute charge gets you to 50 percent.
The glasses include a front-facing camera, speakers, and microphones to support music playback, photos, and calls.
Six color and lens combinations are available, with optional prescription lenses. Select models use Oakley’s Prizm Lens tech for enhanced vision in different lighting.
Why it matters:
Meta’s partnership with Oakley pushes wearable tech into the athletic and activewear space. With smart features, stylish designs, and AI support, this launch could redefine how consumers interact with eyewear, especially as Meta builds toward a more immersive, AI-driven future.
Image Source: Google
Google has previewed Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite, a lightweight reasoning model built for high-speed and low-cost performance, while officially releasing Gemini 2.5 Pro and Flash for general use.
The Details:
Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite is designed for low-latency, high-throughput tasks like classification and summarization, with “thinking” turned off by default.
Despite minimal thinking, it delivers better accuracy and faster token generation than Gemini 1.5 Flash and 2.0 Flash, thanks to an upgraded architecture.
Developers can now dynamically adjust the model’s “thinking budget” using an API parameter, controlling how much the model reasons before answering.
Gemini 2.5 Flash-Lite is optimized for low cost, while Gemini 2.5 Flash focuses on fast, everyday use cases, and Gemini 2.5 Pro targets complex reasoning and coding.
Pricing updates: Gemini 2.5 Flash now costs $0.30 per 1M input tokens (up from $0.15) and $2.50 per 1M output tokens (down from $3.50), with no difference for reasoning modes..
Why it matters:
This release shows Google’s focus on customizable AI speed, cost, and depth of reasoning. Flash-Lite offers developers flexibility for budget-sensitive applications while still benefiting from the Gemini family’s smart architecture.
AI TOOL OF THE DAY
Creatify lets you turn any product URL into high-converting video ads with just a few clicks. No need for filming or editing. Just paste the link, pick your avatar, and watch Creatify handle the rest.
AI & TECH NEWS
Meta offered to acquire Safe Superintelligence, the $32B AI firm led by Ilya Sutskever—but was turned down. Now, Zuck is recruiting SSI co-founder Daniel Gross and Nat Friedman instead. Both will join Meta under Alexandr Wang, as Meta also grabs a stake in their VC fund NFDG.
Chinese startup MiniMax dropped Hailuo 02, its latest video AI that generates 6s clips in 768p or 1080p for just $0.49. Thanks to a clever training trick called Noise-aware Compute Redistribution, it’s 2.5× faster, with better prompt control and triple the model size—undercutting Google’s Veo 3.
Microsoft is preparing thousands more job cuts—mainly in sales—as it doubles down on AI. After cutting 6,000 jobs in May, it now plans to reallocate resources toward a massive $80B AI push, focused on data centers and capacity upgrades to stay ahead in the AI race.
IBM just launched the first unified platform to manage AI risk at scale, combining Guardium AI Security and watsonx.governance. It helps businesses comply with global laws, automate red teaming, and detect threats across cloud and code—making AI safer, auditable, and regulation-ready.
AI TUTORIAL
No instruments. No studio. No limits.
Suno AI lets you create full songs—vocals, instruments, and lyrics—from a single idea or prompt. Whether you’re a musician or just having fun, it’s the easiest way to sound like a pro.
Steps to follow:
Sign Up: Head to suno.ai and create your account
Enter a Prompt: Describe your vibe (theme, lyrics, mood—your call)
Generate Music: Let Suno build your track
Customize: Edit and fine-tune your song
Download & Share: Instantly export your music and post it anywhere
TOP AI TOOLS
🌐 Boltweb - AI web builder to create standout landing pages fast.
🎨 Wan - AI drawing tool for artistic content creation.
🎤 Zunamu - AI interview coach to prep job seekers effectively.
🗣️ Ztalk - Real-time AI voice translation for video calls.
🔥 SpicyGen - Turn AI images into creative, engaging videos.
🛒 Minea - Track e-com ads with AI to boost sales and profits.
AI MEME OF THE DAY
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