OpenAI, the artificial intelligence research organization, is planning to launch specialized AI "agents" with a staggering price tag of up to $20,000 per month, according to a report from The Information. One of the rumored agents, aimed at supporting "PhD-level research," is expected to carry the hefty fee. This move is seen as a desperate attempt to generate revenue, as OpenAI lost roughly $5 billion last year due to operational costs and other expenses.

In other news, OpenAI is facing a lawsuit from Elon Musk, who accuses the company and its CEO Sam Altman of abandoning its original nonprofit mission. A federal judge has denied Musk's motion for an injunction to halt OpenAI's planned transition into a for-profit company, citing insufficient evidence. However, the court is prepared to hold an expedited trial based on the claim that OpenAI's conversion plan is unlawful.

Meanwhile, Scale AI is being investigated by the US Department of Labor for compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act, which regulates unpaid wages, misclassification of employees as contractors, and illegal retaliation against workers. The investigation has been active since at least August 2024 and is still ongoing, according to a source familiar with the matter.

In more positive news, Google has unveiled a new Gemini feature called "Screenshare" at Mobile World Congress 2025, which will allow users to share their phone's screen with the AI chatbot and ask questions about what it sees in real-time. Additionally, Deutsche Telekom has announced plans to launch an "AI Phone" in collaboration with Perplexity, a low-cost handset that will be available for less than $1,000 in 2026.

Other notable developments in the AI space include the revival of Digg, an early internet news aggregator, under the ownership of its original founder Kevin Rose and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. UCSD research org Hao AI Lab has also benchmarked AI models in a Super Mario Bros. emulator, with Anthropic's Claude 3.7 performing the best and OpenAI's GPT-4o struggling.

Furthermore, Volkswagen has revealed its ultra-cheap EV, the ID EVERY1, which will be the first to roll out with software and architecture from Rivian. Wildlife researchers are also benefiting from AI innovation, with Google open-sourcing SpeciesNet, an AI model that can identify animal species by analyzing photos from camera traps.

In other AI-related news, the newest version of the macOS ChatGPT app can directly edit code in supported developer tools, and YouTube has launched a new subscription tier, YouTube Lite, which allows users to watch most videos ad-free for $7.99 per month. Finally, Colossal Biosciences has made a breakthrough in genetically engineering mice to have mammoth-like fur, bringing us one step closer to resurrecting the woolly mammoth by 2028.

The developments in the AI space are a testament to the rapid innovation and progress being made in this field. As AI continues to transform industries and revolutionize the way we live and work, it will be interesting to see how companies like OpenAI, Google, and others navigate the challenges and opportunities that come with this technology.