OpenAI Targets Businesses, Jensen Huang’s Nvidia China Scandal, DeepMind Verifies Signal, NHS Deletes Palantir Claims

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Welcome to Digimasters Shorts.

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We are your hosts, Adam Nagus and Carly Wilson, delivering the latest scoop from the digital realm.

OpenAI has launched a beta program allowing businesses to claim profiles in ChatGPT, update customer-facing information and track referrals. Eligible US retailers and online service providers can also publish a branded business agent to answer questions about products, policies, returns and fit. The agent appears in a clearly labelled conversation separate from ChatGPT's general assistant. Businesses can provide product feeds, connect Shopify stores and test responses before publishing. Business Hub reports aggregate activity, including mentions, recurring topics and visits generated by ChatGPT without sharing individual user conversations. Local businesses can currently claim existing US listings, while business agents are limited to eligible US companies with online operations. Claiming a profile does not guarantee higher placement, recommendations or sales, and businesses must measure conversions through their own analytics. The features are free at launch, although OpenAI has left open the possibility of charging later.

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Allegations surrounding Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang are strengthening calls in Congress for tighter restrictions on China's access to advanced artificial intelligence chips. Huang had been a prominent opponent of stricter export controls, but the controversy has weakened Nvidia's influence over stalled legislation. Lawmakers are pushing measures including the AI Overwatch Act, the Chip Security Act and the Match Act as part of the annual defense policy bill. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and House China Committee Chairman John Moulinard have urged Congress to advance the proposals. The allegations involving Alice Huang, a Chinese citizen reportedly linked to intelligence gathering, have also intensified scrutiny of Nvidia chip shipments through offshore data centers. Reports claim she helped facilitate billions of dollars in shipments, while a short seller alleged that a significant share of Nvidia's China-related revenue came through diversion networks. The Commerce Department is reportedly preparing rules to prevent Chinese companies from remotely accessing restricted chips through overseas data centers.

Potential measures could include blacklisting entities and increasing compliance requirements for cloud and data center operators in Southeast Asia.

The renewed push comes shortly before President Donald Trump is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit. Analysts warn that new chip restrictions could provoke Chinese retaliation involving rare earths and magnets, despite efforts by both governments to preserve a broader trade truce.

Google DeepMind researchers used agentic AI to formally verify key cryptographic guarantees in the Signal Protocol. The four-week proof of concept offers independent validation of technology protecting communications across Signal, Google Messages and WhatsApp. The project also demonstrates the capabilities of DeepMind's Alpha Proof Code framework. Researchers say AI can reduce the time required to translate software requirements into mathematical proofs, a traditionally labor-intensive process. The analysis did not cover the entire Signal mobile application, and the researchers described it as an early milestone rather than a complete security assessment. No new vulnerabilities were found, but Alpha Proof Code identified known flaws in older versions of the protocol and showed they could not be formally verified. Signal's Chief Technology Officer said the approach could expand previous verification efforts and strengthen confidence in the protocol's privacy guarantees. The researchers released their specifications and proofs to support further work in formal verification. Questions remain about whether AI-assisted verification can scale across large code bases at a practical cost. DeepMind says the process will continue to rely on human oversight, with AI agents assisting in correcting their work, while people set goals and review key results.

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NHS England has removed a web page claiming 137 hospital trusts were benefiting from Palantir's controversial health data platform. The decision followed reports that 29 trusts were either not using the system or were using few of its applications. The original list described trusts as live with the federated data platform and benefiting from faster patient pathways and improved theatre efficiency. The Office for Statistics Regulation is examining NHS claims about the platform, including an unsupported assertion that it helped deliver more than 100,000 additional operations. Labour MP Ben Coleman said removing the list after its claims were challenged, threatened public trust and called for the 300-feeing Vertim contract to be scrapped. Campaigners and health unions have opposed a proposed extension to 2029, citing concerns over transparency, sovereignty and the handling of sensitive medical data.

Palantir has defended the agreement, arguing that ending it would put politics above patience. Opponents say the NHS should develop an open UK-based alternative and transition away from the company by 2027

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