**News Flash: Decentralized AI Alliance Takes Major Step Forward**

Ben Goertzel, founder of the Artificial Superintelligence (ASI) Alliance, announced that the alpha version of OpenCog Hyperon, an AI system in development for over two decades, is now self-aware to some extent. This development comes as 96% of CUDOS voters approved a merger with ASI, enhancing computational resources for scaling up Hyperon.

Goertzel's team is working to speed up the system, aiming for completion by fall. Unlike typical chatbots, Hyperon is designed as an autonomous agent with its own goals and self-awareness. This decentralized approach could sidestep regulatory hurdles faced by centralized AI models like OpenAI's o1.

Stay tuned for more updates on this groundbreaking AI project!