Welcome to AI Insider’s The Week Ahead in AI. See the key developments and events we’re watching Oct. 5–Oct. 11.
Weekend AI News Briefs
China is Starting to Talk About AI Superintelligence, and Some in the US are Taking Notice
Alibaba CEO Eddie Wu used Alibaba Cloud’s Hangzhou conference to unveil a “roadmap to artificial superintelligence,” positioning the company—and China’s tech sector—squarely in the AGI/ASI race while launching new multimodal Qwen models and boosting Alibaba’s stock. Analysts say the grand vision doubles as cloud strategy and narrative leverage in the U.S.–China AI rivalry, where hype, policy attention, and robotics strength collide with skepticism over timelines and real-world capabilities. (NBC News)
Latin America and the Caribbean Accelerate the Adoption of Artificial Intelligence
ILIA 2025—produced by ECLAC and CENIA—assesses AI readiness in 19 Latin American and Caribbean countries, finding adoption accelerating beyond the region’s digital weight (14% of global AI visits vs. 11% of internet users) with Chile, Brazil and Uruguay leading, while many others remain “explorers.” Despite momentum, the report flags widening talent drain, underinvestment (1.12% of global AI funding vs. 6.6% of global GDP), and weak implementation of national strategies, urging aligned productive and digital policies plus regional cooperation to turn interest into inclusive, sustainable gains. (ECLAC)
AI Could Erase 100 million US Jobs, Senate Dem Report Finds
Senate Democrats’ HELP Committee warns that AI and automation could replace nearly 100 million U.S. jobs within a decade—hitting fast food (89%), accounting (64%), and trucking (47%)—and accelerating a shift toward “artificial labor.” The report argues automation is concentrating wealth and power, cites corporate adoption and Trump-era deregulation, notes GOP concerns about over-regulation vs. China, and urges policies like a 32-hour workweek, profit-sharing, and a “robot tax.” (Axios)
Is China Winning the Race for Robotics?
The U.S. still leads in AI software, but China is sprinting ahead in robotics and factory automation, with IFR data showing ~4.28M robots operating in 2023 and ~4.66M in 2024, China installing ~276k (51%) in 2023 and ~295k (54%) in 2024 and surpassing 2M units and ~470 robots per 10k workers vs. the U.S.’s ~295. With U.S. installs at only ~34,200 in 2024 amid regulatory, labor, and supply-chain frictions, proposals are coalescing around a national robotics strategy, onshoring supply chains, “permissionless” testing, and tighter ally coordination. (AI Insider)
Upcoming Earnings
Penguin Solution (PENG)
Penguin Solutions is slated to report fiscal Q2 (ending Aug. 2025) results after the market closes on Oct. 7, with a consensus EPS estimate of $0.22, per Zacks. That would be a penny below the year-ago quarter’s $0.23, signaling a modest expected decline. (Nasdaq)
Applie Digital Corp. (APLD)
Applied Digital is scheduled to report fiscal Q2 (ending Aug. 2025) earnings after market close on Oct. 9, with a consensus EPS forecast of –$0.11, per Zacks. That compares with –$0.03 a year earlier, suggesting analysts expect wider quarterly losses. (Nasdaq)
AI Policy & Governance
Council of Europe at the Zürich AI Policy Summit
The AI Policy Summit 2025 in Zürich convened governments, industry, civil society, and academics under the Council of Europe’s auspices to tackle AI risks to human rights, democracy, and the rule of law. Speakers highlighted the Council of Europe’s 2024 AI Framework Convention and HUDERIA methodology, stressing lifecycle risk assessments, sector-specific safeguards, oversight and remedies, and transparent design, with the summit aiming to spur cross-sector, cross-regional collaboration. (COE)
How California Struck a Landmark Law to Rein in Rogue AI
The White House’s FY 2027 R&D memo puts AI at the center of federal priorities, directing agencies to advance both fundamental and applied work across defense, health, energy, and space while building the infrastructure, datasets, and evaluation methods needed for reliable, resilient systems and strengthening enablers like semiconductors, secure communications, advanced computing, and manufacturing. Crosscutting directives include implementing Gold Standard Science practices, expanding the STEM workforce, protecting sensitive U.S. research from foreign exploitation, and deepening collaboration among government, academia, and industry. (Politico)
AI Conferences and Events
AI Week New York
Oct. 6–12, New York, NY, AI Week New York by Pulse NYC is a citywide festival uniting technologists, business leaders, and researchers to explore how artificial intelligence is reshaping industries and daily life. The 2025 event will feature panels, workshops, and networking sessions across New York City, highlighting collaboration and responsible innovation in the rapidly evolving AI ecosystem. (Pulse NYC)
Women in Robotics – Autumn 2025
Oct. 7, 5–7 p.m. EDT at 145 Broadway, Cambridge, MA., Women in Robotics – Autumn 2025 (MassRobotics) is a two-hour, in-person networking and panel event. Hosted at the RAI Institute—led by Boston Dynamics founder Marc Raibert—the evening offers refreshments, mentorship chats, and insights from roboticists at different career stages on thriving in the robotics community. (MassRobotics)
AI World Summit
Oct. 8–9, Taets Art & Event Park, Amsterdam, World Summit AI 2025 adopts the theme “Back to the Future: It’s About Time,” urging reflection on AI’s past, engagement with its present, and deliberate shaping of its future. The event calls for harnessing technology to reclaim time for creativity and connection while mitigating its risks, bringing together global AI leaders to chart the technology’s long-term legacy. (AI World Summit)
Check out AI Insider every day for the latest in AI and Robotics developments.
