Microsoft is gearing up to host OpenAI’s GPT-4.5 as early as next week, with GPT-5 expected by late May, aligning with the Microsoft Build developer conference. GPT-4.5, codenamed Orion, is OpenAI’s last non-chain-of-thought model, while GPT-5 will introduce OpenAI’s o3 reasoning model and unify its AI offerings for a more seamless experience. Microsoft is also developing Copilot updates and exploring Operator AI, which allows automated web interactions. Additionally, Microsoft’s Xbox AI model, Muse, is advancing gameplay generation, while its quantum computing breakthrough, Majorana 1, could revolutionize computing with a topoconductor-based processor. Other updates include Outlook mobile’s new email recall feature, expanded Xbox external storage support, and Windows Recall progressing toward public release. Expect major AI announcements from Microsoft at Build in May, as it competes with Google I/O in the race for AI dominance. Click here to read more.

Mira Murati, former CTO of OpenAI, has launched a new public benefit corporation, Thinking Machines Lab, aimed at developing advanced AI while improving public understanding and accessibility. Murati sees a gap between AI’s rapid advancement and how well people grasp its capabilities, and her lab will address this by publishing technical notes, research papers, and code. The company plans to compete at the high end of AI models, similar to OpenAI and DeepSeek, but with a focus on human-AI collaboration rather than chatbot clones. Key hires from OpenAI, Google, and Mistral AI have joined, including John Schulman, a major ChatGPT inventor. While product details remain vague, Thinking Machines Lab is positioning itself as a serious new competitor in AI innovation. Click here to read more.