China’s open-source AI closes the gap

Good morning, AI enthusiasts. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said China was “nanoseconds” behind the U.S. in AI just days ago — and Moonshot AI’s latest release suggests he wasn’t exaggerating.

With the open-source (!) Kimi K2 Considering coming for models like GPT-5 and Claude Sonnet 4.5 at a fraction of the worth, China’s next ‘DeepSeek’ moment could have just arrived.

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In today’s AI rundown:

• Kimi K2 Considering takes open-source to latest level

• OpenAI walks back federal backstop comments

• Create polished presentations with Kimi K2 Slides

• Microsoft sets up latest Superintelligence Team

• 4 latest AI tools, community workflows, and more

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS

MOONSHOT AI

📶 Kimi K2 Considering takes open-source to latest level

The Rundown: Alibaba-backed Chinese startup Moonshot AI just released Kimi K2 Considering, an open-source reasoning model that matches or exceeds models including GPT-5 and Claude 4.5 Sonnet across a series of benchmarks at much lower cost.

The main points:

• Kimi outperformed GPT-5 and Sonnet 4.5 on several agentic benchmarks, also achieving a brand new top rating of 44.9% on Humanity’s Last Exam.

• The model also showed large improvements over its predecessor from just 4 months ago on coding, though still barely trailing behind the highest models.

• K2 Considering also can autonomously chain together 200-300 tool calls to perform tasks, while also excelling in creative writing.

• The model reportedly cost under $5M to coach, with its pricing coming in significantly below the present frontier models.

Why it matters: Nvidia’s Jensen Huang said just days ago that China is ‘nanoseconds’ behind in AI. Whether he was referencing Moonshot or not, this actually speaks to that sentiment. K2 Considering is the closest each open-source and Chinese labs have been to the frontier, with pricing that makes it a really serious alternative to top closed options.

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OPENAI

⏮️ OpenAI walks back federal backstop comments

The Rundown: OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar reversed course after her comments suggesting the corporate wanted federal guarantees for infrastructure spending were heavily criticized, with Sam Altman saying that OAI opposes bailouts for personal AI firms.

The main points:

• Friar initially told the WSJ that OAI sought a federal “backstop” to assist finance AI investments, later saying she “muddied the purpose” with poor word selection.

• White House AI czar David Sacks also rejected the thought of a federal bailout, saying other major frontier AI firms could replace any failed competitor.

• Altman posted an announcement rejecting government guarantees for personal AI buildouts, saying “we must always fail” if OpenAI “screws up.”

• Altman also addressed criticism of OAI becoming “too big to fail” and its massive spending, detailing revenue projections and future compute trends.

Why it matters: The AI leader’s spending was already scrutinized, and Friar’s backstop comments just poured gasoline on the fireplace. While it didn’t sound like they were an intended position, OAI’s circular dealmaking, national infrastructure efforts, and escalating financial commitments are actually creating more questions than answers.

AI TRAINING

🎉 Create polished presentations with Kimi K2 Slides

The Rundown: On this tutorial, you’ll learn how one can use Kimi Slides to generate complete, skilled presentations from a single prompt, handling layout, structure, and design routinely using a 1T parameter AI model.

Step-by-step:

1. Go to Kimi, log in, and choose Kimi Slides from the dashboard (free credits available for testing)

2. Enter your presentation prompt (e.g., “Create a marketing strategy presentation for a small coffee shop”) and choose from Preset Mode (structured) or Adaptive Mode (creative/visual)

3. Select a template from the minimalist to colourful design options, then click “Generate Slides” (takes 5-10 minutes for 14-18 slides)

4. Review accomplished presentation, make any manual edits needed, then download as PPTX with fonts embedded to keep up formatting

Pro Tip: Experiment with different prompts and presentation styles to find what suits your brand best.

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MICROSOFT

🌟 Microsoft establishes latest Superintelligence Team

The Rundown: Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman announced the MAI Superintelligence Team, a research division dedicated to constructing advanced systems that solve specific problems in areas like medicine and energy over open-ended AGI.

The main points:

• Suleyman emphasized constructing “Humanist Superintelligence”, prioritizing AI that “all the time works for, in service of, people and humanity more generally.”

• The team will give attention to narrow, high-impact societal challenges, highlighting AI learning companions, medical superintelligence, and clean energy advances.

• Suleyman’s Inflection co-founder Karen Simonyan is serving as chief scientist alongside poached researchers from DeepMind, OAI, and Anthropic.

• The announcement is available in the wake of Microsoft’s latest arrangement with OAI, allowing each to pursue superintelligence independently of one another.

Why it matters: We’ve seen all the main AI labs forge their very own unique vibe over the previous couple of years, and it seems like Suleyman has finally crafted one for Microsoft’s AGI efforts — forging a ‘humanist’ identity and unique direction that felt missing for much of the tech giant’s initial OAI arrangement.

QUICK HITS

🛠️ Trending AI Tools

• 🧠 Kimi K2 Considering – Moonshot AI’s latest open-source, SOTA considering agent

• 📚 Gemini Deep Research – Recent connectors for Gmail, Drive, Docs, and Chat

• 🗣️ Inworld TTS – SOTA voice AI with cloning, multilingual support, and emotion

• 🔎 Parallel Search – Web search tool built specifically for AI agents

📰 The whole lot else in AI today

The State of Code Roundtable NYC, Nov 13 – explore the AI productivity paradox and learn how one can boost code quality within the age of AI. Register without spending a dime.*

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said in an interview with the Financial Times that China is “nanoseconds behind America in AI” and that they’re “going to win the AI race”.

Google’s 4x faster Ironwood TPU AI chips are set to be available within the “coming weeks,” with Anthropic already committing to using 1M to coach and run Claude.

Perplexity launched an upgrade to its Comet AI assistant, featuring enhanced web interaction capabilities, multi-tab functionality, and performance improvements.

SoftBank Group and OpenAI introduced a brand new three way partnership called SB OAI Japan, which is able to launch “Crystal intelligence,” an enterprise AI solution for Japan, in 2026.

*Sponsored Listing

COMMUNITY

🤝 Community AI workflows

Every newsletter, we showcase how a reader is using AI to work smarter, save time, or make life easier.

Today’s workflow comes from reader Michael H. in Lubbock, TX:

“I’ve created a strategic executive assistant that’s trained on my business’s core values, mission statement, and leadership principles — that are nuggets of wisdom from over 30 business books, the Bible, and success metrics for my role, departments, and our business. I can run through conversations, situations, decisions, etc., and it’s shared amongst all of our 80+ leaders and used each day across the corporate.”

How do you utilize AI? Tell us here.

🎓 Highlights: News, Guides & Events

• Read our last AI newsletter: Apple taps Gemini for Siri overhaul

• Read our last Tech newsletter: This startup desires to edit embryos

• Read our last Robotics newsletter: Rivian spins off robotics startup

• Today’s AI tool guide: Create presentations fast with Kimi K2 Slides

• RSVP to next workshop @ 4PM EST Friday: AI foundations for marketers

See you soon,

Rowan, Joey, Zach, Shubham, and Jennifer — the humans behind The Rundown