Siemens and Nvidia Collaborate to Expand Digital Services

A NVIDIA logo is shown at SIGGRAPH 2017 in Los Angeles, California, US, July 31, 2017. (Reuters)
A NVIDIA logo is shown at SIGGRAPH 2017 in Los Angeles, California, US, July 31, 2017. (Reuters)
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Siemens and Nvidia Collaborate to Expand Digital Services

A NVIDIA logo is shown at SIGGRAPH 2017 in Los Angeles, California, US, July 31, 2017. (Reuters)
A NVIDIA logo is shown at SIGGRAPH 2017 in Los Angeles, California, US, July 31, 2017. (Reuters)

Siemens has signed a partnership agreement with chip designer Nvidia Corp to create an industrial metaverse - an enhanced virtual reality for companies to reduce the costs of running their factories, buildings and speed up new product design.

The deal is a cornerstone of Siemens Xcelerator, a new open digital platform also launched by the German technology and engineering company on Wednesday.

The cloud-based platform, which will feature hardware, software and digital services, is part of Siemens' ambition to grow its digital business by 10% per year from the 5.6 billion euros ($5.89 billion) generated in 2021.

"Siemens Xcelerator will make it easier than ever before for companies to navigate digital transformation - faster and at scale," Siemens Chief Executive Roland Busch said in a statement.

Siemens, which bought Brightly Software for $1.58 billion on Monday, is moving further into the digital space because it offers faster growth rates and higher margins than its traditional business of trains and industrial drives and automation.

Siemens and Nvidia are just two of the companies which are working in the so-called metaverse, which refers broadly to the idea of a shared virtual platform that people can access through different devices and where they can move through digital environments.

Facebook-owner Meta Platforms and Microsoft and others are also looking at metaverse technology can be used in business and leisure.

Siemens's Xcelerator will be the umbrella term for services which will allow customers to visualize yachts or factories, for example, before construction starts.

"We can essentially replace having to build a thing in the real world first," Tony Hemmelgarn, CEO of Siemens Digital Industries Software, told reporters.

The platform would also ensure products "are going to work well, before we commit to building them in the real world when it becomes really expensive and difficult to change," he added.

The services will be offered to customers through Siemens's software as a service (SaaS) subscription model, to make it more affordable for small and medium-sized companies.

As part of the collaboration, Siemens will connect Xcelerator and its own software and digital twin products with Nvidia's Omniverse, a platform for 3D design.



Impostor Uses AI to impersonate Rubio and Contact Foreign and US Officials

Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends a signing ceremony for a peace agreement between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo at the State Department, June 27, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends a signing ceremony for a peace agreement between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo at the State Department, June 27, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
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Impostor Uses AI to impersonate Rubio and Contact Foreign and US Officials

Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends a signing ceremony for a peace agreement between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo at the State Department, June 27, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends a signing ceremony for a peace agreement between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo at the State Department, June 27, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

The State Department is warning US diplomats of attempts to impersonate Secretary of State Marco Rubio and possibly other officials using technology driven by artificial intelligence, according to two senior officials and a cable sent last week to all embassies and consulates.

The warning came after the department discovered that an impostor posing as Rubio had attempted to reach out to at least three foreign ministers, a US senator and a governor, according to the July 3 cable, which was first reported by The Washington Post.

The recipients of the scam messages, which were sent by text, Signal and voice mail, were not identified in the cable, a copy of which was shared with The Associated Press.

“The State Department is aware of this incident and is currently investigating the matter,” it said. “The department takes seriously its responsibility to safeguard its information and continuously takes steps to improve the department’s cybersecurity posture to prevent future incidents.”

It declined to comment further due to “security reasons” and the ongoing investigation.

One of the officials said the hoaxes had been unsuccessful and “not very sophisticated.” Nonetheless, the second official said the department deemed it “prudent” to advise all employees and foreign governments, particularly as efforts by foreign actors to compromise information security increase.

The officials were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“There is no direct cyber threat to the department from this campaign, but information shared with a third party could be exposed if targeted individuals are compromised,” the cable said.

The FBI warned in a public service announcement this past spring of a “malicious text and voice messaging campaign” in which unidentified “malicious actors” have been impersonating senior US government officials.

The scheme, according to the FBI, has relied on text messages and AI-generated voice messages that purport to come from a senior US official and that aim to dupe other government officials as well as the victim’s associates and contacts.

It is the second high-level Trump administration official to face such AI-driven impersonation.

The government was investigating after elected officials, business executives and other prominent figures received messages from someone impersonating President Donald Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles. Text messages and phone calls went out from someone who seemed to have gained access to the contacts in Wiles’ personal cellphone, The Wall Street Journal reported in May.

Some of those who received calls heard a voice that sounded like Wiles, which may have been generated by artificial intelligence, according to the newspaper. The messages and calls were not coming from Wiles’ number, the report said.