Natsuki Yamamoto / Nikkei Asia:
Sources: SoftBank, Sony, Honda, and six other Japanese companies launch a new AI company to develop a 1T-parameter foundation model for “physical AI” by 2030  —  TOKYO — SoftBank has established a company to develop artificial intelligence in Japan, with NEC and Honda Motor among eight peers …

Financial Times:
Sources: Meta is building photorealistic, AI-powered 3D characters; Mark Zuckerberg helped train and test an AI version of himself that offers feedback to staff  —  Meta is building an artificial intelligence version of Mark Zuckerberg that can engage with employees in his stead …

Ellen Thomas / Business Insider:
Analysis: US state lawmakers introduced 12 data center moratorium bills in 2026, 11 stalled or voted out, with a Maine bill set for a final vote on April 15  —  Follow Ellen Thomas … - Maine is set to pass a bill pausing new data centers until late 2027.

Wall Street Journal:
Ornn Compute Price Index: renting one Nvidia Blackwell GPU for an hour now costs $4.08, up 48% from $2.75 two months ago, driven by agentic AI demand  —  AI companies are rationing offerings and products, rankling users—a warning sign for a boom that depends on rapid adoption

Bloomberg:
Shenzhen-listed server PCB maker Victory Giant plans an April 21 Hong Kong listing, aiming to raise as much as $2.2B; the company was valued at $37B on April 10  —  Victory Giant Technology Huizhou Co. began taking investor orders for a listing in Hong Kong that may raise as much as HK$17.5 billion …