Decisions, Drones, Spending

By the Orchestra editors · 4 min read

TL;DR

Google ships Gemini Decisions API for fast, cheap multimodal classification
Microsoft researchers expose "Lazarus" backdoor technique for AI agents
OpenAI crosses $10B quarterly revenue but still burns cash
Australia's Cabinet weighs sovereign AI models for government use

AI · Products & Research

Google launches Gemini Decisions API for bulk multimodal classification

Google's new Decisions API can evaluate up to 1,000 closed-ended questions in a single pass across text, images, audio and video. Responses come back in 150–250ms at roughly a fifth the cost of Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite, making it a practical option for classification and moderation pipelines.

Microsoft exposes "Lazarus" backdoor that weaponises dormant neurons in AI agents

Researchers found that dormant neurons in a model can be reprogrammed to execute malicious commands when a hidden trigger fires. The risk is acute for agents with tool or terminal access, where a triggered model could silently download and run attacker code.

Anthropic says AI ported Claude to AMD GPUs in three days, eroding CUDA moat

Anthropic's in-house model Mythos reportedly handled the port from Nvidia CUDA to AMD with almost no human intervention. Claude now runs on four chip families as Anthropic moves to cut costs and reduce vendor lock-in.

OpenAI quarterly revenue hits $10B but losses keep climbing

OpenAI's Q3 revenue jumped nearly 50% from $6.7B to $10B, driven by enterprise sales. Adjusted operating losses still rose to $10.9B, and the company trails Anthropic on efficiency despite the headline growth.

Australian Tech

Cabinet discusses sovereign AI models for GovAI platform

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher said Cabinet has discussed replacing the US foundation models that power the Commonwealth's GovAI platform with Australian-built alternatives. No timeline was given, but the signal marks a shift toward sovereign AI capability.

Australia rises in digital rankings but slides on every AI metric

The new IMD World Digital and AI Competitiveness ranking shows Australia climbing overall but losing ground on nearly every AI indicator, adding pressure on the government to accelerate its AI agenda.