Digital
Ikonz Studios ropes in Amitabh Bachchan as strategic partner
Mumbai: Ikonz Studios, a generative Al company, has roped in actor Amitabh Bachchan as a strategic partner and is looking to raise over $10 million in a Series A round of funding, a top company official has said.
Ikonz has raised seed funding from marquee investors like Village Global, Woodstock Fund, and Polygon Studios. Village Global is an early stage venture capital fund backed by entrepreneurs like Bill Gates (Microsoft), Jeff Bezos (Amazon), and Mark Zuckerberg (Meta), among others.
The company plans to deploy the funds raised in the Series A round to expand the team globally, aggregate entertainment IPs, and build AI tools for the entertainment industry.
Digital
OpenAI’s Stargate lead Peter Hoeschele exits with two senior leaders
Trio behind compute push set to join new startup amid leadership reshuffle
SAN FRANCISCO: Peter Hoeschele, a key figure behind OpenAI’s early Stargate data centre initiative, has exited the company, according to a report by The Information.
The departure is part of a broader leadership shift, with two other senior executives, Shamez Hemani and Anuj Saharan, also set to leave in the coming days. All three are expected to join the same new startup, although details about the venture remain under wraps.
The trio played a central role in OpenAI’s Stargate effort, an initiative aimed at building large-scale data centre capacity in-house to reduce reliance on external infrastructure providers. Their exits mark a notable moment for the company’s compute strategy as it continues to scale rapidly.
OpenAI spokesperson said in a statement to The Information, “We’re grateful for the contributions Peter, Shamez, and Anuj have made to OpenAI and wish them the very best in what comes next.” The company also pointed to the recent appointment of Sachin Katti to lead its industrial compute organisation, signalling continuity in its infrastructure roadmap.
OpenAI has indicated that it does not plan to directly replace Hoeschele’s role, suggesting a possible restructuring of responsibilities within the team.
As competition intensifies in the race to build next-generation AI systems, leadership changes in core infrastructure teams are likely to draw close attention. For now, the spotlight shifts to what this departing trio builds next, and how OpenAI adapts as it scales its ambitions.
