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Weekly news roundup: Musk vs. Altman, Google’s Pentagon AI deal, China and EU hit Meta

By Rosa Heaton

This week in tech saw Elon Musk and Sam Altman face off in court, Google deepen its ties with the Pentagon through expanded AI access, Meta ordered by China to unwind a $2 billion AI acquisition and European regulators find Meta falling short on protections for under-13s.

Here's what you need to know from the week starting April 27, plus the latest updates in IPOs and executive leadership.

Musk vs Altman: OpenAI court battle

This week saw the start of a high-profile trial between Elon Musk and Sam Altman. The case centers on Musk’s claim that Altman and OpenAI abandoned its original nonprofit mission, pivoting instead toward a commercially driven model closely aligned with Microsoft. Musk alleges he was misled when contributing tens of millions of dollars in the company’s early days, and is now seeking up to $134 billion in damages, alongside the removal of Altman and other senior leaders, including Greg Brockman.

Altman and OpenAI have denied the claims, arguing that Musk voluntarily stepped away from the organization following internal disagreements and is acting out of competitive rivalry. Beyond the personal dispute, the trial is rapidly becoming a landmark case for the AI industry, with OpenAI on the brink of their landmark IPO.

Google expands Pentagon access to its AI

Google has reportedly granted the U.S. Department of Defense access to its AI models under a classified agreement, allowing the Pentagon to deploy the technology for any lawful government purpose.

The agreement follows a breakdown in talks between the Department of Defense and rival AI firm Anthropic, which declined to provide unrestricted access to AI sought by the government.

In contrast, Google’s willingness to proceed has sparked internal backlash, with hundreds of employees reportedly protesting over concerns that the technology could be used for mass surveillance or other sensitive military applications. The development underscores a major shift. AI is now embedded in national security strategy, raising new ethical, regulatory and reputational questions around AI use at government level.

China orders Meta to unwind Manus AI acquisition

Chinese regulators ordered Meta to roll back on its $2 billion acquisition of AI startup Manus, despite the deal already being completed and the company having relocated to Singapore.

Beijing authorities cited national security concerns, arguing that the transaction could allow foreign access to Chinese-origin AI technology and talent, and that the acquisition was conspiratorial. The decision reflects Beijing’s increasingly aggressive stance on controlling technology flows.

For CIOs, the case highlights escalating geopolitical risk in AI supply chains.

EU finds Meta failing to protect under-13s

The European Commission claimed that Meta is not doing enough to protect under-13s from accessing social media sites including Facebook and Instagram.

On April 29^th, the European Commission found Meta to be in breach of the Digital Services Act (DSA). The ruling follows a nearly two-year investigation and concludes that Meta does not have effective systems in place to enforce its own minimum age policies. Breaching DSA guidelines can result in fines of up to 6% of annual global revenue.

Meta is yet to respond to the ruling.

Executive moves

• David Hull. On April 27, TSS, named David Hull as the company’s new CTO. Hull brings almost 30 years of experience at Dell Technologies, where he was recently the senior director and CTO of technology strategy.
• Jim Maza. Accounting and advisory practice BDO USA appointed Jim Maza as CIO. Maza’s previously served as CIO at Marsh McLennan Agency and Opportunity International.

IPO watch

The U.S. IPO market remains a key indicator of broader tech sentiment. Here's a look at the latest listings and activity from the past week, based on data from the Nasdaq IPO calendar:

Plutonian Acquisition Corp. II

·              A blank check company.

·              Opening/trading day: April 28. 

·              IPO price: $10/share.

Irenic Acquisition Corp.

·       A special purpose acquisition company, focusing on aerospace and defense.

·       Opening/trading day: April 28.

·       IPO price: $10/share.

Churchill Capital Corp XII

·       A blank check company.

·       Opening/trading day: April 28.

·       IPO price: $10/share.

Collective Acquisition Corp. II

·       Special purpose acquisition company, focusing on firms in national security, defense tech, AI or finance.

·       Opening/trading day: April 29.

·       IPO price: $10/share.

PERSHING SQUARE INC.

·       Asset management company

·       Opening/trading day: April 29.

·       IPO price: $50/share.

ARC Group Acquisition I Corp.

·       A blank check company.

·       Expected opening/trading day: April 30.

·       IPO price: $10/share.

SILVER BOW MINING CORP.

·       A minerals exploration company.

·       Expected opening/trading day: April 30.

·       IPO price: $11.50/share.

Forefront Tech Holdings Acquisition Corp.

·       A blank check company targeting blockchain-enabled AI.

·       Expected opening/trading day: April 30

·       IPO price: $10/share.

Mountain Crest Acquisition 6 Corp.

·       A blank check company.

·       Expected opening/trading day: April 30.

·       IPO price: $10/share.

RRE Ventures Acquisition Corp.

·       A special purpose acquisition company.

·       Expected opening/trading day: April 30.

·       IPO price: $11.50/share.

General Catalyst Global Resilience Merger Corp.

·       A blank check company.

·       Expected opening/trading day: April 30

·       IPO price: $10/share.

Avalyn Pharma Inc.

·       A clinical-stage biotechnology company, with a focus on rare respiratory diseases.

·       Expected opening/trading day: April 30.

·       IPO price: $16-18/share.

Rosa Heaton is a content manager and writer for the IT Strategy team at TechTarget.