According to Fortune, Jeff Bezos is co-leading a new artificial intelligence startup called Project Prometheus with $6.2 billion in initial funding, focusing on “physical AI” for engineering and manufacturing. Warner Bros Discovery has multiple bidders including Netflix, Comcast, Paramount-Skydance, and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, with bids due Thursday. Amazon raised $15 billion in bond offerings to fund AI investments and acquisitions, increasing its capital expenditure forecast to $125 billion. The Supreme Court declined to hear a case about challenging expired patents, letting stand a ruling that patents remain government privileges even after expiration.
The Bezos AI Gambit
Here’s the thing about Bezos – he never does anything small. Project Prometheus isn’t just another AI startup; it’s a $6.2 billion declaration that the real AI money will be made in the physical world, not just chatbots. The focus on engineering and manufacturing is telling. Basically, while everyone’s fighting over language models, Bezos is betting that the next frontier is AI that can actually build things, control factories, and maybe even help launch rockets. With his background in aerospace through Blue Origin, this feels less like a diversification play and more like vertical integration on steroids.
Media Mega-Merger Madness
The Warner Bros Discovery bidding war is getting seriously interesting. Netflix bidding for a traditional media company? That’s a complete reversal from their “we’re not like them” stance for years. And the Saudi PIF jumping in after becoming majority shareholder of Electronic Arts? That suggests they’re building a global entertainment empire. But honestly, the regulatory hurdles here are massive. Can you imagine Netflix owning HBO? Or Comcast swallowing Warner after already having NBCUniversal? Some of these combinations would make the AT&T-Time Warner antitrust fights look simple by comparison.
Amazon’s AI Spending Spree
Amazon raising $15 billion when they’re sitting on $67 billion in cash seems crazy until you look at the AI arms race. They’re basically saying “we need war chest money that’s separate from operational cash.” The capex increase from $118 billion to $125 billion is staggering – that’s more than some countries’ GDPs. And they’re not alone. Alphabet, Meta, Oracle – everyone’s loading up on debt to fund this AI gold rush. The question is whether this is prudent investment or the kind of excess that leads to bubbles. When companies with tens of billions in cash still need to borrow more, you know the spending requirements are astronomical.
Patent Law Shift
The Supreme Court’s decision on expired patents is a bigger deal than it sounds. By refusing to hear the case, they’ve essentially said that patents aren’t property rights – they’re government privileges that can be challenged indefinitely. For inventors and small tech companies, this changes the risk calculation dramatically. Your patent protection doesn’t really end when the patent expires; you could still face challenges years later. This seems like it favors big companies with deep legal pockets over individual inventors. The timing is interesting too, coming amid all this AI innovation where patent battles are heating up.
