Breaking News Today – Monday 11 August 2025

Business & Tech News 

ChatGPT5 Launch a Flop

Despite OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s promise of a vastly enhanced AI model, the launch of ChatGPT-5, powered by OpenAI’s new GPT-5 model, faced significant challenges. Users reported dissatisfaction due to the removal of older, reliable models like GPT-4o, with many finding the new model inferior, describing it as “horrible.” The automatic model-switching “router” was unreliable, often defaulting to a less capable mode, causing confusion about which model was in use. Performance issues included errors in simple tasks, like basic math, and degraded tool functionality, such as web browsing and tool calling. Overhyped expectations from OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman, coupled with capacity crunches, fueled user frustration, prompting OpenAI to restore access to legacy models.

Tesla Shuts Down Dojo Super Computer Project

Tesla has disbanded its Dojo supercomputer project, designed for AI-driven self-driving technology, due to significant setbacks. The project had faced delays and a talent exodus, with key figures like Peter Bannon and and additional exit of 20 engineers leaving to join DensityAI, a startup founded by former Dojo lead Ganesh Venkataramanan. CEO Elon Musk ordered the shutdown, redirecting resource sourcing to external chipmakers like Nvidia, AMD, and Samsung, with a $16.5 billion Samsung deal announced recently for AI6 chips. Dojo’s high costs and technical challenges, coupled with Tesla’s shift to the Cortex AI supercluster, rendered the in-house chip effort redundant, prompting reassignment of the remaining staff.

Producer Price Deflation Continues in China

China’s producer prices saw a drop of -3.6% year-on-year in July 2025, matching June’s deflation rate, while exceeding market expectations for a -3.3% decline. This was the 34th consecutive month of producer deflation, and remains the sharpest drop since July 2023, amid persistently shaky domestic demand and a fragile trade truce with the U.S. Production material costs continued to slide (-4.3% vs -4.4% in June), with deeper contractions in mining (-14.0% vs -13.2%), raw materials (-5.4% vs -5.5%), and processing (-3.1% vs -3.2%). Simultaneously, consumer goods prices remained weak (-1.6% vs – 1.4% in June), weighed down by food (-1.8% vs -2.0%), clothing (-0.1% vs 0.1%), and durable goods (-3.5% vs -2.7%) while prices of daily-use goods rose more slowly (0.6% vs 0.8%).

In the first seven months of 2025, factory-gate prices have dropped by an overall -2.9%. Month-on-month, the PPI declined -0.2%, slowing from a -0.4% fall in the preceding four months and marking the softest pace in five months. source: National Bureau of Statistics of China

Private Equity Firms in Meta Investment Move:

Various major private lenders have completed a $29 billion financing package for Meta Platforms Inc.’s data center in Louisiana, led by Pacific Investment Management Co. and Blue Owl Capital Inc. this deal represents a significant opportunity for private credit firms to expand into investment-grade debt, with John Medina of Moody’s Ratings saying “private credit has been itching to get into this space”. Private credit firms have about $450 billion of unallocated capital to invest and are looking to become rivals to traditional Wall Street banks, with the potential to make private credit a $40 trillion market, according to an estimate from Apollo.

Business, Tech & Market News Shorts: 

• The US Tech heavy NASDAQ hit a new all-time-high on Friday with U.S. markets continuing to ride the artificial intelligence wave, with the Nasdaq Composite closing at 21,242.70 points on Friday, August 8, 2025, up 79.05 points or 0.37% for the day.
• Masayoshi Son, the founder of Softbank, is making his biggest bet yet: that the company will be the centre of a revolution driven by artificial intelligence. Son says artificial super-intelligence (ASI) — AI that is 10,000 times smarter than humans — will be here in 10 years and is positioning the company via acquisitions to take advantage of this. Softbank has holdings in Alibaba and OpenAI.
• Soybean futures jumped over 2% to above $9.80 per bushel after U.S. President Donald Trump said he hoped China would quadruple its soybean orders from the U.S. China, the world’s largest soybean importer, has increasingly favored South American supplies in recent years due to trade frictions.
• US President Trump announced a peace summit to be held in Alaska this coming weekend August 15 in Alaska to negotiate an end to the Ukraine-Russia war. Trump indicated a ceasefire deal is imminent, suggesting it would involve “some swapping of territories to the betterment of both” sides, potentially requiring Ukraine to cede significant land.

Markets by Numbers 

Currencies: 

Currency markets today indicate the US Dollar is currently trading stronger against the Euro at 1.16686 and against the Pound at 1.34675 The Yen is currently trading at 147.50 to the dollar. The rand (ZAR)is currently at R17.70 to the US dollar.

Commodities:

• Gold futures prices are currently trading -0.6% lower this morning, and currently at $3377.14 per ounce.  
• Copper prices are trading lower today, with prices currently at $4.4539
• Silver futures prices are trading 0ver -0.5% lower today, and currently at $38.149
• Platinum futures are trading almost -1% lower this morning, and are currently trading at $1315.00 While Palladium prices are marginally lower this morning and currently at $1118.50
• Brent crude oil prices are currently at $66.29, with WTI trading at $63.47 
• Cocoa futures are trading -1.37% lower today, and currently at $8526 per ton. 
• Coffee futures have gained more than 3.8% this morning, and are currently at $309.35

Crypto Currencies:

• Bitcoin prices have spiked by over 2% and currently at $121898
• Ether prices are trending around 1.1% higher this morning and currently at $4302
• $Trumpcoin is currently marginally higher today and trading around $9.36

(All prices quoted at approximately 07H45 Central African Time) 

Other Breaking News in Africa Today

South African Transport Ministry Appoints new Boards:

The South African minister of transport Barbara Creesy has had a busy week last week, announcing that she had appointed a new board after completely dissolved the previous Road Accident Fund (RAF) in July and replaced the disgraced previous CEO, Collins Letsoalo, as well as appointing a new board for the national airline carrier South African Airways (SAA). These actions were deemed necessary after various whistle blowers had provided evidence of misconduct and financial irregularities. Nonhlanhla Mabusela-Aikhuere is the new vice chairperson. The other interim board members are Ntswaki Kutumela, Innocentia Mmule Pule, Richard Dyantyi, Mpontshane Alfred Mkhipheni, Alfredina Themba, and Neeshan Balton. The New SAA board will be headed by chartered accountant and former SAA employee Sedzani Faith Mudau as the new chairperson and Fathima Gany, who has previously served on the SAA interim board that has just completed its term, has been appointed as deputy chairperson.