Wall Street closes slightly lower near the end of a banner year; gold rebounds - Reuters

Published: October 20, 2026 at 11:47a.m. EDTBNN Bloomberg is Canada’s definitive source for business news dedicated exclusively to helping Canadians invest and build their businesses. OpenAI is racing to secure investor commitments before rival Anthropic’s expected public market debut in mid-November, in an unusually fast fundraising that could value the ChatGPT maker at over US$1.4 trillion, according to two people familiar with the matter. The rapid timetable reflects, in part, a desire to get ahead of Anthropic as the two frontier labs are increasingly tapping in to a similar investor base, the people said, adding that OpenAI wants to capitalize on its recent revenue growth after launching new models. SoftBank Group, Abu Dhabi-based MGX and other existing backers of OpenAI are in talks to join the round of about US$30 billion, one of the people said. The acceleration underscores how closely the two AI developers are competing for capital as both pursue trillion-dollar price tags, amid growing concern about rising interest rates, significant volatility in technology stocks and rising scrutiny of AI valuations.

Published: October 20, 2026 at 11:23a.m. EDTBNN Bloomberg is Canada’s definitive source for business news dedicated exclusively to helping Canadians invest and build their businesses. HONG KONG — China hit back Tuesday at a U. S. ban on the use of Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek’s products by federal civilian agencies and warned of retaliatory measures as the two AI powers race to develop the technology. The Department of Homeland Security said the agencies should remove DeepSeek products as well as third-party products and services developed using DeepSeek from their IT systems, according to a notice made public on Monday. The latest warnings reflect “the depth of strategic distrust between Beijing and Washington” even as U. S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping work hard to keep their personal relationship “warm and constructive,” said George Chen, partner and chair of digital practice at Washington-based The Asia Group consultancy. Latest updates on international news hereThe Homeland Security order, dating back to late July, also blocks civilian agencies from procuring DeepSeek products and services.

Published: October 20, 2026 at 11:16a.m. EDTBNN Bloomberg is Canada’s definitive source for business news dedicated exclusively to helping Canadians invest and build their businesses. TORONTO — A new report says the focus of Canada’s telecommunications policy should shift from lowering consumer prices to creating better conditions for companies to invest in their networks at a time when traditional revenues are plateauing and capital costs are on the rise. The paper from U. K.-based Global System for Mobile Communications calls for a “policy reset” that prioritizes affordable and predictable spectrum pricing, support for 5G and AI infrastructure such as data centres, and improved regulatory certainty. It says mobile technologies and services generated 5.4 per cent of Canada’s GDP last year, or roughly $120 billion of economic value — a figure expected to rise to $170 billion by 2030, thanks to growing adoption of technologies such as 5G, Internet of Things and AI. Latest economic news on BNNBloomberg.caIn recent years, the CRTC has introduced various measures aimed at boosting cellphone and internet competition in Canada, empowering consumers, and lowering costs.