Gemini Trust Co., the cryptocurrency exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins, is experiencing staffing challenges as its Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Pravjit Tiwana, is leaving the company. Tiwana, who also serves as the CEO of Gemini APAC, is departing this month, according to anonymous sources.
Before joining Gemini in January 2022, Tiwana had more than six years of experience at Amazon Web Services as a general manager. During his tenure at Gemini, Tiwana aimed to reshape the company's culture to resemble that of Amazon, which led to some employees leaving. His responsibilities at Gemini included managing products, engineering, and design, as well as expanding the company's operations in India.
Gemini has been facing regulatory scrutiny and legal challenges. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has accused the company of offering an unregistered securities program called Earn. Additionally, last month, the New York Attorney General sued Gemini and its parent company, Digital Currency Group, for alleged customer fraud amounting to $1.1 billion.
The departure of Gemini's CTO comes amidst a protracted battle with Genesis and Digital Currency Group and ongoing regulatory issues. The exchange has not yet commented on Tiwana's departure.
Pennsylvania Republican Senate candidate David McCormick has come under scrutiny for his investments in companies that outsourced American jobs. Candidate filing reports reveal that McCormick invested millions of dollars in companies such as General Electric, Hewlett Packard, and Wells Fargo, all of which outsourced jobs. Petitions filed with the Department of Labor indicate that over 15,000 American jobs, including 2,600 in Pennsylvania, were affected by the outsourcing actions of these companies.
One notable case was the outsourcing of jobs from a Wells Fargo call center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to the Philippines, which drew criticism and demands for investigation from Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey. McCormick's investments also included Chinese electric vehicle companies, despite blaming the struggles of auto workers on the Biden administration's policies.
McCormick is the frontrunner for Casey's seat in the 2024 general election. While his campaign manifesto proposes various policies, his investments in companies that outsourced jobs raise questions about his commitment to protecting American workers. McCormick will face a tough contest against Casey, who has already opposed outsourcing and proposed legislation to protect American call center jobs. It remains to be seen whether Pennsylvania voters will support a candidate with a history of investment in outsourced companies.
Germany-based AI startup Aleph Alpha has secured $500 million in a Series B funding round, with backing from investors including Bosch and SAP. The company, founded by former Apple AI researcher Jonas Andrulis, aims to be the leading provider of sovereign generative AI applications in Europe, competing against OpenAI and other major players. Aleph Alpha has already developed the "Luminous" series of large language models and plans to launch a 300 billion parameter "Luminous World" model later this year. The funding will be used to advance the company's proprietary AI research and accelerate the development and commercialization of generative AI for complex applications in data-sensitive industries like healthcare, finance, law, government, and security. The investment is in line with Europe's strategic national priority of boosting data sovereignty. Aleph Alpha's progress is seen as evidence of the growing momentum of AI companies in Europe. While the company aims to contribute to Europe's technological sovereignty, its ability to become a major player in the AI industry without US investment or resources remains to be seen.
