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E-Business

NSL Partners GTECH on Online Services

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National Sports Lottery Plc (NSL) has signed an agreement with GTECH Global Services Corporation Limited (GTECH) to implement a National Online Lottery in Nigeria.
Under the agreement which was signed in Providence, Rhode Island in the United States of America, GTECH will replace NSL’s existing central systems for the operation of its lottery games with a new GTECH central system and will assist NSL in the transition from its existing systems to the new system. GTECH will also provide other related technical, marketing, and commercial support services for the duration of NSL’s license, which runs through December 18, 2016.
The NSL’s license, and GTECH’s agreement with the NSL, may both be extended for an additional 10-year term.  GTECH expects to receive revenues of approximately US$38 million over the base eight-year agreement, commencing in the third quarter of 2009.
Jaymin B. Patel, President, GTECH who spoke at the signing ceremony said the Nigerian market has, for quite a long time, been very attractive to GTECH. Being one of the most populous and fastest-developing economies in Africa and occupying a strategic position in the West African sub-region, Nigeria provides an opportunity to realize yet another shared vision of a positive linkage of our technology and services with sound local capacity, knowledge, and expertise.
He stressed that GTECH is particularly excited about the foray into Nigeria’s unique new market which will serve as a springboard into wider African markets. Petel applauded the achievements made so far by NSL and stated that his company is committed to complementing all the initiatives made which in the shortest possible time will make the Nigerian operation a model to be followed in the international lottery sector.
Mr. Odunlami Kola-Daisi, chief executive officer, NSL, said the company has worked relentlessly to get to this stage. And that they have always recognized and appreciated the value of GTECH’s leadership and success in the international lottery sector, which will enable them to provide Nigerians with, a world-class lottery operation that will meet the expectations of all stakeholders in the Nigerian National Lottery Project.
‘’We look forward to deriving full benefits of state-of-the-art technology and lottery best practices from GTECH. Their technology and talent transfer will immensely benefit Nigerians who are more or less a new entrant into the lottery world, making them experts in their own right. This is a partnership that will forever change the landscape of electronic transaction processing in Nigeria,” he said.
Under the terms of the agreement, NSL’s current 15,000 terminals will be connected to GTECH’s new central system. An additional 10,000 terminals are expected to be installed before the end of 2009. Moreover, GTECH Printing Corporation will be the exclusive provider of instant-ticket printing during the 12 months following the launch of the new system, which is expected to occur in July 2009. 
GTECH will maintain a data center in Lagos, and will provide additional services such as the design and marketing of Lotto and Instant games, as well as implementing a comprehensive marketing plan, including market research, advertising, and retail network optimization.
NSL, a company listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange holds a 15-year license, which commenced in 2001, to operate Nigeria’s National Lottery. The license may be renewed for an additional 10 years beyond 2016.  Currently deploying its 15,000 terminals nationwide, and with current staff strength of 200 employees, NSL hopes that with the newly-signed agreement with GTECH, it is able to provide world-class, full complement of lottery services and best practices to the West African country with an estimated population of 150 million.
GTECH is a leading gaming technology and services company. With 6,200 people in over 50 countries, GTECH provides innovative technology, creative content, and superior service delivery to effectively manage and grow today’s evolving gaming markets.  GTECH is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lottomatica, one of the world’s largest commercial lottery operators and a market leader in the Italian gaming industry. 


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E-Business

Schmidt, Ex Google Chief Says AI Risky in Terrorist Hands

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Eric Schmidt, former Google CEO
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Eric Schmidt, former Google CEO has expressed concerns about the extreme risks posed by artificial intelligence (AI) falling into the hands of terrorists or rogue states.

Schmidt, Ex Google Chief Says AI Risky in Terrorist Hands

Eric Schmidt, former Google CEO

He warned that nations such as North Korea, Iran, and Russia could adopt AI technologies to develop weapons capable of causing significant harm, including biological weapons.

Schmidt urged governments to oversee private tech companies, emphasising, “The real fears I have are not the ones most people discuss about AI, I talk about extreme risk.”

“I’m always worried about an ‘Osama Bin Laden’ scenario, where truly evil individuals take control of some aspect of modern life to harm innocent people,” he added.

With private companies driving AI advancements, he stressed the need for careful government monitoring and regulation. “It’s really important that governments understand what we’re doing and keep their eye on us,” he said.

His remarks followed a two-day AI summit in Paris, where the UK and the U.S. declined to sign a communiqué outlining the future direction of AI. The declaration on “inclusive and sustainable artificial intelligence for people and the planet” was endorsed by 57 countries, including India, China, the Vatican, the EU, and the African Union Commission.

The UK justified its decision, stating that the agreement lacked “practical clarity” on global AI governance and national security concerns.

Schmidt supports U.S. export controls restricting the sale of advanced AI microchips to certain countries, aiming to slow adversaries’ progress in AI research.

He also highlights the importance of international collaboration on AI safety, suggesting that cooperation with nations like China is essential to addressing global AI challenges.

 

 


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OpenAI CEO Rejects $97.4Bn Takeover Bid from Elon Musk

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Sam Altman, chief executive of ChatGPT-owner OpenAI
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Sam Altman, chief executive of ChatGPT-owner OpenAI, has firmly declared the company “not for sale” following a $97.4bn (£78.4bn) takeover bid from a consortium led by Elon Musk.

OpenAI CEO Rejects $97.4Bn Takeover Bid from Elon Musk

Elon Musk

Speaking at the AI Action Summit in Paris, Altman emphasised OpenAI’s mission to develop AGI (artificial general intelligence) for the benefit of humanity.

Marc Toberoff, attorney for Elon Musk, confirmed the bid submission on Monday.

In response, Altman humorously offered to buy Twitter for $9.74 billion on Musk’s platform.

Unlike many tech giants, OpenAI is not publicly traded but operates through a complex partnership between non-profit and for-profit entities.

Musk aims to return OpenAI to its non-profit roots, despite owning a rival firm, xAI.

Christie Pitts, a tech investor, expressed scepticism about Musk’s intentions, noting his competitive interests.

Altman echoed this sentiment, suggesting Musk’s move disregards OpenAI’s mission.

Altman, who holds no stock in OpenAI, advocates transforming the organisation into a fully for-profit company to raise more funds for AI research.

Although the board has the final say, the $97.4bn offer falls short of OpenAI’s previous $157bn valuation and rumoured $300bn in future funding talks.

Toberoff stated the consortium might increase their bid. Meanwhile, OpenAI is collaborating with Oracle, a Japanese investment firm, and an Emirati sovereign wealth fund on “The Stargate Project,” a $500 billion AI infrastructure initiative announced by President Donald Trump.

 

 

 

 


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Adobe Launches AI Video Tool to Compete with OpenAI

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Adobe yesterday released the first public version of an artificial intelligence tool that can generate video clips and revealed how much it will charge, but said it will not set pricing for major users such as studios until later this year.

The Firefly Video Model, as Adobe is calling the service, will compete against Sora, a model developed by ChatGPT creator OpenAI, and startup Runway, both of which currently offer video-generation services. Facebook owner Meta Platforms has also developed a video-generation AI model but has not given a timeline for when it will be released.

Adobe’s model differs from its rivals because it is geared toward generating clips that will fit into how film and television studios use Premiere Pro, its flagship video editing software.

To that end, many of the features that Adobe is emphasizing revolve around feeding existing shots into the video model and asking it to generate clips that fix or expand on shots that were taken on a real production set but that did not come out quite right.

Adobe said the service will generate five-second clips at 1080p resolution. While that is shorter than the clips of up to 20 seconds generated by OpenAI’s service, Adobe executives said the majority of individual clips in most productions are only three seconds.

Adobe said a user can generate 20 clips per month for $9.99 and 70 clips for $29.99. That compares with 50 videos for $20 per month with OpenAI’s plan at lower resolution and a $200 OpenAI plan that can handle longer, higher resolution videos.

Adobe is also working on a “Premium” pricing plan for studios and other high-volume video users and will release those pricing details later this year. Alexandru Costin, Adobe’s vice president of generative AI, said the company is working to generate 4K video and will remain focused on quality rather than longer clips.

“We actually think that great motion, great structure, great definition scheme, making the actual clip look like it was film, is more important than making a longer clip that’s unusable,” Costin told Reuters.

 


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