Hey, OpenAI announced it’s adding ads to the free version of ChatGPT in the coming weeks. It's a major shift for the world's most popular AI chatbot and a clear signal that the business models are maturing.
Topics of the day:
ChatGPT adds ads to its free tier
Claude's new desktop app for deeper workflows
Gemini connects to your personal data
How enterprise AI adoption is jumping
The Shortlist: OpenAI's $10B Cerebras deal, and Altman's brain-computer startup
ChatGPT's free tier to get ads
What’s happening: The free lunch is officially over. OpenAI announced it will start showing sponsored ads on the free version of ChatGPT to help fund its massive infrastructure costs and keep the tool widely accessible.
In practice:
For marketers, this opens a new advertising channel where you can reach users based on the explicit intent they show in their conversations.
The move ensures the free tier remains available, so your team can still use it for brainstorming or simple tasks without hitting a paywall.
This forces a strategic choice: stick with the free, ad-supported tier or upgrade to a paid plan for a focused, uninterrupted workflow for your team.
Bottom line: The AI business model is starting to look a lot like the web search model. This shift requires operators to get serious about their AI tool stack and decide where paying for focus is worth the investment.
Claude condenses months of research into minutes
What's happening: Anthropic showcased how Claude is helping researchers at Stanford and MIT slash research timelines, turning months-long genomic data analysis projects into 20-minute tasks.
In practice:
Stanford's Biomni platform gives Claude access to hundreds of biological tools and databases. In early trials, it completed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) in 20 minutes - a process that typically takes months of manual data cleaning and analysis.
MIT's Cheeseman Lab built MozzareLLM to interpret large-scale gene knockout
experiments. Claude consistently catches findings the lead researcher missed, turning hundreds of hours of interpretation work into automated discovery.The Lundberg Lab at Stanford is using Claude to flip the hypothesis generation process - instead of guessing which genes to study based on existing literature, Claude navigates molecular relationship maps to identify candidates based on biological properties.
Bottom line: AI in scientific research is moving past basic literature reviews and coding assistance. These labs are using Claude as a true research collaborator - one that can compress months of work into hours and surface patterns humans would overlook.
Claude Code moves onto your desktop
What's happening: Anthropic is moving Claude from your browser tab onto your computer with a new research preview of its Cowork desktop app for macOS. This signals a major shift for AI assistants, embedding them directly into your operating system.
In practice:
You can use this to analyze a local file and draft an email about it in another app, reducing context switching and eliminating copy-paste workflows.
It's built for complex project workflows where you need an AI assistant to have awareness of multiple documents or applications at once.
This move toward OS-level integration means AI assistants will soon have the context to help with almost any task you do on your computer.
Bottom line: AI is graduating from a simple chatbot to a true digital partner that works alongside you. Expect your computer to become a much more active collaborator in getting work done.
Gemini now taps into your personal Google apps
What’s happening: Google is rolling out Personal Intelligence for Gemini, securely connecting the AI to your personal data across Gmail, Drive, and Photos for highly contextual answers.
In practice:
Ask Gemini to find buried details from a project plan in your email instead of manually searching for the attachment yourself.
Have it summarize scattered information from multiple documents in your Drive to create a project brief in seconds.
Let it draft contextual emails to a client by pulling key dates and deliverables from your shared project folders.
Bottom line: This moves Gemini from a smart encyclopedia to a true personal assistant that understands your work context. It's a huge step toward making AI genuinely useful for your day-to-day tasks.
The Shortlist
OpenAI signed a multi-year, $10B deal with AI chipmaker Cerebras Systems to secure massive amounts of low-latency compute capacity, a move designed to make its models faster and more responsive.
OpenAI invested in CEO Sam Altman's new startup, Merge Labs, which aims to build noninvasive brain-computer interfaces that connect to neurons using molecules instead of electrodes.
Stanford demoed WonderZoom, an experimental tool that turns a single image into an interactive, infinitely zoomable 3D scene where you can generate new details at every layer.
This newsletter is where I (Kwadwo) share products, articles, and links that I find useful and interesting, mostly around AI. I focus on tools and solutions that bring real value to people in everyday jobs, not just tech insiders.
Please share any feedback you have either in an answer or through the poll below 🙏🏽
