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OpenAI's new 'open' models and GPT-5, protests in Tel Aviv against escalation of Gaza plan, Bank of England cut rates to 4%, and more.

Hello!🐦‍⬛

A raven has landed with your weekly intelligence briefing. We've sifted through the global noise to bring you only what matters. Prepare for this week's essential developments—distilled, unbiased, and delivered in one swift flight.

OpenAI Unveils Dual AI Strategy: Two New 'Open' Models Alongside Flagship GPT-5 Launch 🤖

OpenAI's Open-Source Models: gpt-oss-120b and gpt-oss-20b

  • On August 5, 2025, OpenAI launched two open-weight AI reasoning models, gpt-oss-120b and gpt-oss-20b, marking its first 'open' language model release since GPT-2 more than five years ago.

  • These models are freely available for download from Hugging Face and are released under the highly permissive Apache 2.0 license.

  • The gpt-oss-120b model is designed to run on a single Nvidia GPU, while the lighter gpt-oss-20b can operate on a consumer laptop with 16GB of memory.

  • OpenAI considers these open models "state of the art" for their category, capable of advanced reasoning and sending complex queries to more powerful closed models in the cloud.

  • Despite their capabilities, these open models demonstrate significantly higher hallucination rates compared to OpenAI's latest AI reasoning models, o3 and o4-mini.

  • This strategic open-source release aims to gain favor with developers and the Trump administration, both of whom have encouraged the adoption of open AI technologies.

OpenAI's Flagship Model: GPT-5

  • On August 7, 2025, OpenAI officially launched GPT-5, its new flagship AI model set to power the next generation of ChatGPT.

  • GPT-5 is distinguished as OpenAI’s first "unified" AI model, combining the robust reasoning abilities of its o-series with the fast response times of its GPT series.

  • This advanced model enables ChatGPT to complete a wide variety of tasks on behalf of users, such as generating software applications or navigating calendars, signifying a shift toward more agent-like capabilities.

  • OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has declared GPT-5 to be "the best model in the world," representing a significant step towards achieving artificial general intelligence (AGI).

  • Beginning August 7, 2025, GPT-5 became the default model for all free ChatGPT users, providing broader access to advanced AI reasoning capabilities previously gated behind a paywall.

  • GPT-5 demonstrates improved performance in areas like coding and significantly reduces hallucinations, registering a 4.8% rate compared to previous models like o3 and GPT-4o.

  • The model also features enhanced safety measures, exhibiting a lower rate of deceptive behavior and improved ability to differentiate between misuse and harmless user requests.

  • For developers, GPT-5 is available through OpenAI’s API in three sizes—gpt-5, gpt-5-mini, and gpt-5-nano—offering customizable reasoning times and response verbosity.

Sources: ChatGPT-OSS and ChatGPT-5.

Armenia and Azerbaijan Sign U.S.-Brokered Peace Accord at White House 🇦🇲 🇦🇿 🇺🇸 🤝

  • United States President Donald Trump hosted Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan at the White House for the signing of a US-brokered peace treaty.

  • The agreement stipulates that Armenia and Azerbaijan will stop all fighting permanently, open up commerce, travel, and diplomatic relations, and respect each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

  • A new transportation corridor between the two countries, named the "Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity," will be created, with the U.S. gaining exclusive developmental rights.

  • The U.S. also entered bilateral agreements with both nations to boost cooperation in areas such as energy, trade, and technology, and lifted prior restrictions on security coordination with Azerbaijan.

  • This peace deal follows Azerbaijan's 2023 military campaign which resulted in the forcible expulsion of the ethnic Armenian population from Nagorno-Karabakh.

  • Although President Trump and Azerbaijan view the agreement as a diplomatic breakthrough, many Armenians perceive it with bitterness, arguing that it normalizes "ethnic cleansing".

Source: Al-Jazeera.

Raven Bites🐦‍⬛

News/Events/Politics

  • More than 100,000 people in Tel Aviv protested against Netanyahu’s plan to escalate Gaza war. (more)

  • European leaders stressed the importance of Ukrainian interests as they welcomed Trump’s plan to meet with Putin in Alaska on Friday. (more)

  • The destruction of contraceptives by the U.S. denies 1.4m African women and girls lifesaving care. (more)

Economics/Business/Crypto

  • Bank of England voted to cut down rates to 4% as balancing act continues. (more)

  • Trump’s tariffs took full effect, hitting dozens of U.S. trading partners. (more)

  • $ETH.X ( ▼ 0.04% ) Ethereum price breaks $4,200 as $110M shorts were liquidated within one hour, highest price since December 2021. (more)

  • $SUI.X ( ▼ 0.22% ) SUI jumps 4% as Swiss banks expand regulated access for institutional clients. (more)

Technology

  • Apple’s Tim Cook managed to convince Trump to drop ‘made-in-USA’ Apple products for now. (more)

  • xAI released Grok ‘Imagine’, a new image and video generator that also includes “spicy mode”. (more)

  • ElevenLabs launched an AI music generator that is claimed to be clear for commercial use. (more)

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