Hard Numbers: Stolen art, mathletes, DeepMind defection, Antitrust tussle, Labor shortages

​Midjourney artificial intelligence on a computer screen.

Midjourney artificial intelligence on a computer screen.

IMAGO/Action Pictures via Reuters Connect
16,000: A list of 16,000 names of artists that Midjourney allegedly trained its image generation model on has spread on the internet after leaking from an online court filing. The list purports to show that Midjourney trained its model on the works of artists like Frida Kahlo and Damien Hirst. The list is an exhibit from an ongoing class-action lawsuit against the AI company and was accidentally posted online before being removed.

25: A math-focused AI system is almost at the level of our species’ most advanced teenage mathletes. The model called AlphaGeometry reportedly scored a 25 out of 30 on the International Mathematical Olympiad, the premier high school math competition. The average gold medalist in the competition has scored a 25.9.

220 million: A pair of Google DeepMind engineers are reportedly ready to leave the company, in talks to raise $220 million to build a new large language model. The company, which would be based in France, is tentatively called Holistic.

2: The US government's effort to investigate Microsoft’s $13 billion investment in OpenAI is on hold. The problem: Two different agencies can’t decide on who should take the lead. This is the problem that’s arisen between the country’s two antitrust authorities, the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission. Neither party seems ready to relinquish the job to the other.

11 million: Japan is estimated to face a labor shortage of 11 million people by 2040 as its aging population peaks and exits the workforce. While AI and robots may displace human labor in some economies, they might also help others — such as Japan — avert crises in industries such as construction and retail.

More from GZERO Media

US Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris speaks alongside President Joe Biden about lowering costs for Americans at an event at Prince George's Community College in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, on August 15, 2024.
Bryan Olin Dozier/NurPhoto

Today’s Democratic Party is devoid of leadership and strategy, with no clear plan for how to take on the president or win future elections. As a result, the Dems risk further fragmentation as they desperately try to regain their footing ahead of the 2026 midterms and beyond.

A man holding a cake sings Happy Birthday for Calin Georgescu during an event to celebrate Georgescu's birthday, in Bucharest, Romania, March 26, 2025.
Inquam Photos/Octav Ganea via REUTERS

Far-right nationalist George Simion won the first round of Romania’s presidential rerun election on Sunday, securing 41% of the vote.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks to supporters near Sydney on May 3, 2025, after his ruling Labor Party won majority seats in the general election and he secured a second consecutive three-year term.
Kyodo

Australian voters have handed incumbent Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s center-left Labor Party a decisive second term, securing at least 85 seats in the nation’s 150-member House of Representatives.

A fire rages in an apartment block damaged by a large-scale Russian drone attack in Zaporizhzhia Where: Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine When: 01 May 2025
Dmytro Smolienko/Ukrinform/Cover Images

Is US President Donald Trump turning the tables in Ukraine? On Sunday, the New York Times reported that Washington would be sending Kyiv a Patriot air defense system being refurbished in Israel, while Greece and Germany are in discussions to furnish another one.

Map of US car exports.
Paige Fusco

The American car industry is big business, both economically and politically. As with most US industries, globalization has heavily intertwined the automobile sector with the rest of the world, leading to a complex web of imports and exports that help cars reach their destinations.