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Moonshot AI released Kimi K3, a 2.8T-parameter model it says rivals Opus 4.8 and GPT-5.5. Google fell months behind on Gemini 3.5 Pro, MLB banned dugout iPads from accessing GenAI for in-game calls, and The Verge tested Siri AI. Moonshot AI releases Kimi K3, a 2.8T-parameter AI model that it says rivals Claude Opus 4.8 and GPT-5.5, and plans to release its full model weights by July 27 (VentureBeat) Sources: Google is months behind schedule on delivering Gemini 3.5 Pro as it tries to improve its capabilities, particularly in coding; GOOG closes down 4.43% (Bloomberg) Memo: MLB bans the use of league-provided dugout iPads to access GenAI for in-game strategy calls; sources say at least a third of teams used AI this way (The Athletic) Longreads The Verge spends a month testing Siri AI in the iOS 27 public beta, finding it's already reshaping how people use their iPhone, though it can't yet reach non-Apple apps (The Verge) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Uber agreed to acquire Delivery Hero for ~$14.8B, expanding into 99 markets. Thinking Machines released its first open-weight model, Inkling, SpaceXAI open-sourced Grok Build after a data-upload backlash, and sources detailed xAI's chaotic race to catch Claude under new leadership. Uber agrees to acquire Delivery Hero in a deal that values the German food delivery company at ~$14.8B, offering €41.50 per share and buying Prosus' 16.8% stake (Bloomberg) Thinking Machines Lab debuts Inkling, an open-weight MoE model with 975B total and 41B active parameters, trained to be broad rather than optimized for one area (Thinking Machines Lab) Thinking Machines Lab debuts Inkling, an open-weight MoE model with 975B total and 41B active parameters, trained to be broad rather than optimized for one area (WSJ) SpaceXAI open-sources Grok Build under an Apache 2.0 license, after the tool uploaded user repositories to SpaceXAI's Google Cloud bucket, causing a backlash (Simon Willison) SpaceXAI open-sources Grok Build under an Apache 2.0 license, after the tool uploaded user repositories to SpaceXAI's Google Cloud bucket, causing a backlash (The Decoder) Sources detail how xAI has been slowed down by internal chaos as Musk pushed for Grok to match Claude, amid signs it is turning a corner under Michael Nicolls (Bloomberg) Sources: Apple is preparing new iPads, including an iPad mini with an OLED screen by October and refreshed entry-level iPads and iPad Airs for 2027 (Bloomberg) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New York became the first state to pause new data center permits, worrying the AI industry. Stripe and Advent offered $53B+ for PayPal, OpenAI's first device leaked as a screen-free speaker, and PrismML shrank a model to run on iPhones. AI advocates fear New York's moratorium on new data centers could embolden Democrats to enact more state restrictions and seize on the issue in the midterms (Politico) Sources: Stripe and PE firm Advent have jointly offered $60.50/share to acquire PayPal, a 28% premium to Tuesday's close, valuing it at $53B+; PYPL jumps 15%+ (Reuters) Sources: OpenAI's first device will be a moveable, screen-free smart speaker with a camera and sensors, meant to serve as an AI companion that taps into ChatGPT (Bloomberg) OpenAI says Apple's claim that OpenAI never responded to its concerns is false; emails: an Apple lawyer mixed up two OpenAI staffers in Apple's initial outreach (NBC News) OpenAI says Apple's claim that OpenAI never responded to its concerns is false; emails: an Apple lawyer mixed up two OpenAI staffers in Apple's initial outreach (9to5Mac) PrismML launches Bonsai 27B, a model based on Qwen3.6 27B that it says runs natively on Apple devices via MLX; its CEO says Apple is evaluating the tech (CNBC) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Demis Hassabis proposed a US-based frontier AI standards body modeled on FINRA. IBM's stock cratered 20% on a Q2 miss from chip-spending shifts, Spotify launched a voice-control feature, Kalshi debuted an AI compute forward curve, and Anthropic studied Claude's values. Demis Hassabis proposes a US-based Standards Body for "Frontier-class" AI, modeled after FINRA; labs would share models for review up to 30 days before release (X) Demis Hassabis proposes a US-based Standards Body for "Frontier-class" AI, modeled after FINRA; labs would share models for review up to 30 days before release (The Verge) IBM reports preliminary Q2 revenue up 1% YoY to $17.2B, below $17.9B est., as CEO Arvind Krishna says customers are shifting spending to chips; IBM falls 20%+ (Bloomberg) Spotify launches a Talk to Spotify feature that lets users create playlists and more, rolling out in beta to Premium users 18+ in the US, Ireland, and Sweden (Engadget) Kalshi launches a forward curve tool for AI compute, using event contracts to track the future rental costs of GPUs, storage, and memory (Bloomberg) Simulating everything, sort of: The promise and limits of world models (Ars Technica) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple sued OpenAI, alleging ex-employees stole trade secrets for its hardware push. Twelve states sued to block the Paramount-WBD merger, Anthropic extended free Fable 5 access as rivals raced on price, and Meta killed its Instagram AI opt-out feature. Apple sues OpenAI, alleging that ex-Apple employees stole "Apple's trade secrets for the benefit of OpenAI", and says OpenAI never responded to its concerns (9to5Mac) A coalition of 12 states led by California files an antitrust lawsuit to block Paramount's WBD merger, alleging it lessens competition in three markets (Variety) Anthropic says it is extending Claude Fable 5 access on all paid plans, as well as keeping Claude Code's weekly rate limits 50% higher, through July 19 (Economic Times) OpenAI, Meta, and SpaceXAI are racing to offer more cost-efficient AI models as enterprise customers, stung by "tokenmaxxing" bills, scrutinize their AI spending (Bloomberg) Meta says it will discontinue a feature that allowed users to generate images in Meta AI using public Instagram accounts, following days of criticism (Variety) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI broadly released GPT-5.6 and launched ChatGPT Work, targeting Anthropic. Fidji Simo stepped down from OpenAI citing health, the EU found Meta's "addictive design" violates the DSA, Polymarket sought margin trading approval, and SK Hynix debuted on Nasdaq raising $26.5B. OpenAI broadly releases GPT-5.6, and launches ChatGPT Work, an AI agent that can gather context across apps and files to create documents, on macOS and Windows (Axios) OpenAI broadly releases GPT-5.6, and launches ChatGPT Work, an AI agent that can gather context across apps and files to create documents, on macOS and Windows (TechCrunch) Fidji Simo, OpenAI's CEO of AGI Deployment, says she will step down and become a part-time adviser after her medical condition worsened; Simo joined in August (WSJ) In preliminary findings, the EU Commission said Facebook's and Instagram's "addictive design" violates the DSA, telling Meta to make changes or risk hefty fines (NYT) Filing: Polymarket is seeking CFTC approval to offer margin trading in the US, a move that would let users bet on events with less capital upfront (Bloomberg) SK Hynix raises $26.5B in the largest ever US market debut by a foreign company, selling 177.9M ADRs for $149 each; the sale was more than 7x oversubscribed (Bloomberg) SK Hynix raises $26.5B in the largest ever US market debut by a foreign company, selling 177.9M ADRs for $149 each; the sale was more than 7x oversubscribed (CNBC) Xreal launches $299 A01 Plus AR glasses, weighing just 62 grams and featuring 1080p micro OLED panels with a 120Hz refresh rate and a 50-degree field of view (The Verge) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SpaceXAI debuted Grok 4.5 with Cursor, targeting Opus-level performance at lower cost. Meta launched Muse Spark 1.1 via API, OpenAI rolled out full-duplex GPT-Live voice models, PrismML ran the largest AI model on an iPhone, and Character.AI launched AI microdramas. SpaceXAI debuts Grok 4.5, its first model built in partnership with Cursor, designed to "handle difficult, long-running tasks" across finance, legal, and coding (Bloomberg) Meta releases Muse Spark 1.1, capable of more advanced coding and a "step-change" from the first generation, available to US developers via a public API preview (The Verge) OpenAI launches GPT-Live, new voice models powering ChatGPT Voice and built on a full-duplex architecture, meaning they can listen and speak at the same time (OpenAI) OpenAI launches GPT-Live, new voice models powering ChatGPT Voice and built on a full-duplex architecture, meaning they can listen and speak at the same time (VentureBeat) PrismML says it ran a 27B-parameter Qwen 3.6 model on an iPhone 17 Pro, bigger than any prior on-device model; sources: Apple held talks with PrismML about it (The Information) Character.AI launches three human-written, AI-generated microdramas, whose characters users can chat with, and aims to eventually let users make their own shows (TechCrunch) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chinese AI models grabbed over 30% of US token use as Beijing weighed curbing access. Anthropic expanded Cowork to mobile and web, Meta launched its first AI image generator on Instagram and WhatsApp, and Xbox's $80B Game Pass bet failed. OpenRouter: Chinese AI models have drawn 30%+ of token use by US companies each week since February 8, peaking at 46%, up from 11% over the previous 12 months (CNBC) Chinese authorities have held meetings with top tech firms about potentially restricting overseas access to China's most advanced AI models, sources say (Reuters) Anthropic is bringing Claude Cowork to mobile and web, letting tasks run in the cloud and continue working even when no device is online (9to5Mac) Anthropic is bringing Claude Cowork to mobile and web, letting tasks run in the cloud and continue working even when no device is online (ZDNet) Meta launches Muse Image in Meta AI, Instagram, and WhatsApp, and previews Muse Video, the first media generation models from its Superintelligence Labs (Meta) Meta's new Muse Image tool lets users generate AI photos similar to what they'd normally post, including vacation selfies and photo-booth style shots (NYT) Public Instagram profiles are automatically opted into being used as material for others' AI image generations via Meta AI, unless users adjust their settings (Wired) Xbox spent nearly $80B over a decade on content deals betting gamers would flock to Game Pass, but most gamers prefer sticking to a handful of favorite games (Bloomberg) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Microsoft laid off ~4,800 employees and gutted Xbox by 3,200 jobs while divesting five studios. Samsung's profit rocketed past Nvidia's, Meta faced a $1.4 trillion lawsuit demand, xAI rebranded to SpaceXAI, and Anthropic researchers found a hidden "J-space" inside Claude. Microsoft is laying off ~4,800 employees, or ~2.1% of its workforce; most are in sales or Xbox, where ~20% of jobs are set to be cut by the end of FY 2027 (The Verge) Microsoft's Xbox to Cut 3,200 Jobs, Divest Five Studios in Major Overhaul (Bloomberg) Samsung estimates Q2 operating profit of ~$58.44B, a 19-fold jump from a year earlier and above a ~$57.02B estimate, and revenue up 129% YoY to ~$111.7B (Reuters) Samsung estimates Q2 operating profit of ~$58.44B, a 19-fold jump from a year earlier and above a ~$57.02B estimate, and revenue up 129% YoY to ~$111.7B (WSJ) Court filing: Meta says four US states seek $1.4T over claims it designed Facebook and Instagram to addict youth and misled the public; its market cap is ~$1.5T (Reuters) xAI rebrands to SpaceXAI and unveils a new logo; Elon Musk said in May that xAI would be dissolved as a separate company and become the AI products from SpaceX (Business Insider) Anthropic researchers detail J-space, a small set of neural patterns in Claude that reveals internal thoughts that don't appear in the model's output (Anthropic) Anthropic researchers detail J-space, a small set of neural patterns in Claude that reveals internal thoughts that don't appear in the model's output (VentureBeat) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is the article we reference in the conversation: My yard is dying, so I made an app for that (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the fast-paced world of live sports broadcasting, the role of a vision mixer is crucial yet often overlooked. Today, we’re diving into the insights shared by David Steer, an experienced vision mixer currently working at the World Cup in Mexico, who used AI to change how he did his job. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI floated giving the US government a 5% stake to court the Trump administration. Nvidia promised to backstop cloud providers for a revenue cut, SpaceX showed investors an xAI phone prototype, Apple ramped foldable iPhone orders, and Z.ai launched ZCode. Sources: OpenAI has discussed giving a 5% stake to the US government, seeking to clear political obstacles by securing buy-in from the Trump administration (FT) Nvidia promises to financially backstop young cloud providers like Firmus that rent out its AI chips, in exchange for a revenue share through a new program (The Information) Sources: SpaceX showed investors a handset-like device prototype with AI tech from xAI, a proprietary OS, a Snapdragon chip, and a design slimmer than an iPhone (WSJ) Sources: Apple has told suppliers to prepare to produce ~10M foldable iPhones in 2026, up from 7M to 8M previously, and 80M iPhones in total across new models (Nikkei Asia) Apple reportedly orders 10M foldable iPhone Ultra models, which could sell for around $2500 (9to5Mac) Sources: Apple is in negotiations to buy chips from CXMT and YMTC, two Chinese semiconductor makers on a Pentagon blacklist, for use in devices sold in China (Bloomberg) Z.ai launches ZCode, an "Agentic Development Environment" optimized for its new GLM-5.2 model; Z.ai's GLM Coding Plan costs from $16.20 to $144 per month (VentureBeat) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anthropic said Commerce lifted export controls on Fable 5 and Mythos 5, restoring access Wednesday, and launched Sonnet 5. Sony is ending PlayStation game discs in 2028, a 140-company group unveiled Open USD, and Meta's building a cloud business. Anthropic says the Department of Commerce has lifted export controls on Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 and that it will begin restoring access Wednesday (X) Anthropic says the Department of Commerce has lifted export controls on Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 and that it will begin restoring access Wednesday (BleepingComputer) Anthropic launches Claude Sonnet 5, saying it nears Opus 4.8 performance at lower prices and is substantially better than Sonnet 4.6 for agentic work (Anthropic) Anthropic launches Claude Sonnet 5, saying it nears Opus 4.8 performance at lower prices and is substantially better than Sonnet 4.6 for agentic work (The New Stack) Sony says all new PlayStation games from both first- and third-party developers will be sold in digital formats from January 2028, ending physical game discs (Game File) Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, BlackRock, Coinbase, and 140+ companies join Open Standard to launch Open USD, a stablecoin that shares earnings from its reserves (The Block) Sources: Meta is developing plans for a cloud infrastructure business that will sell access to AI computing power and models, to compete with AWS and Azure (Bloomberg) SpaceX cuts monthly Starlink prices in half in the Memphis area, as it endures blowback and legal challenges from opponents of its Colossus data centers (Bloomberg) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Comcast moved to spin off NBCUniversal and Sky into a new public company. The Supreme Court limited geofence warrants, Australia sued Amazon over Prime Video ads, Chamath returned to lead his AI coding startup, and Gemini's image generation went free. Comcast plans to spin off its media and entertainment assets, including NBCUniversal and Sky, into a new publicly traded entity, set to close by mid-2027 (Variety) SCOTUS limits the law enforcement use of "geofence" warrants, saying people have "a reasonable expectation of privacy" in their cell-phone location data (TechCrunch) Australia's ACCC sues Amazon for allegedly introducing ads to Prime Video under unfair contract terms and forcing existing subscribers to pay more to avoid them (Bloomberg) AI coding startup 8090 raised a $135M Series A led by Salesforce Ventures; founder Chamath Palihapitiya announces that he will lead the company as CEO (TechCrunch) The DOD seeks to recruit engineers experienced in frontier AI, machine learning and automation, and data systems, to embed them "down to the unit level" (Bloomberg) Google says the Gemini app now offers personalized Nano Banana image generation, previously limited to Plus, Pro, and Ultra users, to eligible US users for free (TechCrunch) Hotels, tour operators, and travel agencies rush to launch proprietary online tools and loyalty schemes to fend off future competition from AI travel agents (FT) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The US lifted its block on Anthropic's Mythos 5, clearing it for 100+ institutions. Researchers said China's GLM-5.2 matches US models on security bugs. South Korea pledged ~$590B for chips, and the memory crunch turned existential for small makers. Letter: the US lifts its block on Mythos 5, allowing Anthropic to release it to more than 100 US institutions; sources: talks about Fable 5 are ongoing (Semafor) Researchers say Z.ai's GLM-5.2 matches latest US models at finding security bugs, as critics question the US' lax approach in restricting Chinese open models (WSJ) South Korea, Samsung, and SK Hynix say they plan to invest ~$590B to build a new chip complex, including four chipmaking plants and a chip packaging cluster (FT) Soaring memory costs are posing existential threats to small electronics makers, amid thin margins, low supply chain leverage, and little room for price hikes (CNBC) Sports clips' rise on platforms like YouTube has left broadcasters debating whether to use them to attract younger viewers or protect their subscription revenue (CNBC) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI leaned toward delaying its IPO to 2027 rather than budge from Altman's $1T valuation, rattling tech stocks. The government had OpenAI stagger GPT-5.6's release over security concerns. Microsoft hiked Xbox prices again, and SpaceX teased a Starlink mobile network. Sources: OpenAI leans toward holding off its IPO until 2027 after warnings that Sam Altman's desired $1T valuation may not be met in current market conditions (The New York Times) Sources: Sam Altman told staff the US government asked OpenAI to stagger the release of GPT-5.6 over security concerns, approving "access customer by customer" (The Information) Microsoft says the price of Xbox consoles will increase on August 1 by $100 for 512GB models and $150 for 1TB models, the third price increase since 2025 (Kotaku) Sources: SpaceX COO Gwynne Shotwell told investors during an IPO roadshow SpaceX may launch a Starlink mobile product and build its own terrestrial US network (FT) Longreads How Chicago is betting on quantum computing, including turning the site of its former US Steel mill into a campus, after largely missing the digital revolution (WSJ) As China's working-age population shrinks, consensus is growing that China must embed embodied AI robots into as many tasks as possible, as soon as possible (FT) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple hiked Mac and iPad prices 15-25% on the memory crunch; iPhones held steady. Anthropic accused Alibaba of distilling Claude 28.8 million times. IBM detailed a 0.7nm chip, Facebook revived its Creator Studio app, and Kalshi chased a $40B valuation. Apple raises Mac, iPad, and other product prices by 15%-25%, saying it has "never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly"; iPhone is unchanged (WSJ) Apple Raises Mac and iPad Prices to Counter Memory Shortages (Bloomberg) Sources: in a letter to US officials, Anthropic accused Alibaba of adversarial distillation, using Claude 28.8M times from April to June via almost 25K accounts (Bloomberg) IBM details a 0.7nm chip manufacturing process that utilizes a "nanostack" 3D transistor architecture, which it says could continue chip innovation for 10 years (The New York Times) Facebook brings back Facebook Creator Studio as a stand-alone app with a built-in AI chatbot to help creators grow their audiences through personalized guidance (TechCrunch) Meta looks to AI to review harmful content in cost-cutting drive (FT) Sources: Kalshi is in talks to raise funding at a ~$40B valuation in a round that may close as soon as Q3; Kalshi raised $1B at a $22B valuation in May 2026 (FT) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rockstar finally priced GTA VI at $79.99 and set a November 19 release, with preorders tonight. OpenAI and Broadcom unveiled their Jalapeño inference chip. Meta got caught building a prediction-markets app called Arena, and Superhuman snapped up AI-detector GPTZero. Rockstar sets the release date for GTA VI for November 19 and says it will cost $79.99, or $99.99 for the Ultimate Edition; preorders start at midnight tonight (The Verge) Grand Theft Auto 6 Physical Copies Won't Include a Disc, Will Just Be a Code in a Box (IGN) OpenAI and Broadcom unveil Jalapeño, an LLM-optimized inference chip developed from design to manufacturing tape-out in nine months, aided by OpenAI's models (OpenAI) OpenAI and Broadcom Unveil AI Chip to Run Models Faster, Cheaper (Bloomberg) Sources: Meta is building a standalone prediction markets app internally called Arena, which would probably use video game-like points instead of money wagers (The New York Times) Superhuman acquires AI detection startup GPTZero, which has 19M+ registered users and $30M in annual recurring revenue; PitchBook: GPTZero is valued at $88M+ (Business Insider) How AI Customers Are Lowering Their Anthropic and OpenAI Bills (The Information) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Meta launched $299 in-house Adventurer and Fury smart glasses plus a $399 Kylie Jenner Starfire. Trump signed two quantum-computing executive orders. South Korea's Kospi cratered 10% in a tech selloff, ByteDance debuted Seedance 2.5, and Meta paused its laptop-tracking program. Meta unveils Meta Adventurer and Fury glasses, each priced at $299, its first under its own brand, and a $399 Starfire model in collaboration with Kylie Jenner (Bloomberg) HEADLINE TBD — couldn't read it (The Verge) President Trump signs two executive orders aimed at speeding the development of advanced quantum computers and mitigating the security threats they present (WSJ) South Korea's tech-heavy Kospi index falls 10%, dragged down by SK Hynix and Samsung; STMicro and ASML fall ~7%, and US tech stocks fall in pre-market trading (CNBC) ByteDance unveils Seedance 2.5, saying the AI video model can generate up to 30-second clips from up to 50 reference materials, up from 12 for Seedance 2.0 (The Information) ByteDance's Seedance 2.5 breaks the 30-second barrier for AI video generation (The Decoder) Meta says it is pausing its employee-tracking program meant for training AI models after internal security issues exposed sensitive data from employees' laptops (Wired) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Meta poured $900M into India's Cred and tapped founder Kunal Shah to run WhatsApp. Google lost Nobel winner John Jumper to Anthropic. Getty soared on an OpenAI deal, JD.com warned robots would replace its couriers, and Toto pivoted toward chips. Meta invests $900M into Indian fintech Cred for a ~20% stake, and plans to appoint Cred founder Kunal Shah as the leader of WhatsApp, replacing Will Cathcart (Bloomberg) The departure of John Jumper, a key member of Google's AI coding development team, further strains Google's efforts to compete with Anthropic and OpenAI (Bloomberg) Getty signs a licensing deal with OpenAI, letting its image library appear in ChatGPT's search and discovery features; GETY jumps 150%+ pre-market (Bloomberg) JD.com founder Richard Liu says robots will replace the company's 700K delivery workers "sooner or later", and it will help retrain them in robot maintenance (FT) Toto, Japan's largest toilet maker, plans to invest $495M by 2030 to expand its semiconductor materials unit, targeting R&D for next-gen 1nm chip production (Nikkei Asia) Japanese toilet maker Toto plans $496M push into chip tech (Tech in Asia) A look at "humanizer" and "autotyper" apps that help students evade AI-detection software by slowly auto-typing essays and making AI text sound less robotic (The New York Times) A speculative scenario titled "Europe 2031" projects economic and political instability in the EU if it fails to keep pace with the US and China in the AI race (The Guardian) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Intel stock popped after Trump said Apple agreed to build chips with it in America. Waymo yanked its robotaxis off highways over construction-zone blunders. Rockstar dated GTA VI pre-orders to June 25, and GLM-5.2 grabbed the open-weights crown. Intel's stock jumps 10.64% after Trump said "Apple has agreed to work with Intel to design and build its Chips in America"; INTC is up 520%+ in the past year (CNBC) Filings: Waymo pulls its ~4K robotaxis from highways after finding 13+ instances of the cars driving into highway sections under construction (TechCrunch) Rockstar Games announces that pre-orders for Grand Theft Auto VI will go live on June 25; TTWO closed up 4.93% (Kotaku) GLM-5.2 is the leading open weights model on Artificial Analysis' Intelligence Index, scoring 51, only behind Fable 5's 60, Opus 4.8's 56, and GPT-5.5's 55 (Artificial Analysis) GLM-5.2 becomes the top open-weight model on Artificial Analysis (Implicator) Longreads Google Is Using Nvidia's Playbook to Build a Rival AI Chip Business (WSJ) AI Is Splitting the Job Market in Two, PwC Study Shows (Bloomberg) Apple’s weird anti-nausea dots cured my car sickness (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tim Cook warned Apple price hikes are unavoidable as AI gobbles up memory chips. Noam Shazeer bolted from Google to OpenAI. Midjourney unveiled a bizarre full-body ultrasound scanner, and businesses piled into Kalshi to hedge real-world risk. In an interview, Tim Cook says Apple price hikes are "unavoidable" to offset surging memory and storage chip costs, and "the situation has become unsustainable" (The Wall Street Journal) Star Google AI Researcher Shazeer Joins OpenAI (The Information) Midjourney unveils its first hardware product, the Midjourney Scanner, an ultrasound-based full-body scanner; it is unclear how AI fits into the medical effort (The Verge) Businesses have started using Kalshi to hedge business risks; Kalshi says institutional trading volume on its platform has grown 800% since November 2025 (The New York Times) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Snap unveiled its $2,195 standalone Specs AR glasses. Google rolled out Android 17 and Wear OS 7. Trump officials mulled equity stakes in AI firms, Apple's camera AirPods slipped to 2027, and TikTok was drowning in AI slop. Snap is finally about to ship AR glasses — and they cost a fortune (The Verge) Android 17 launches with new multitasking tools as Google expands Gemini features (TechCrunch) Trump advisers weigh structure of potential AI stakes (Semafor) Apple Plans Camera AirPods, iPhone Foldable 2, 20th Anniversary iPhone in 2027 (Bloomberg) Sixty percent of US consumers say 'AI' in brand messaging is a turnoff, survey finds (TechCrunch) TikTok Shows 3x More AI Slop Than YouTube, Report Finds (Search Engine Journal) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SpaceX is acquiring Cursor for $60B days after its blockbuster IPO, as its stock soared 20% on day one. Anthropic's standoff with the Trump administration churned on without resolution, OpenAI's 2025 spending hit $34B, and OpenRouter's Fusion claims to beat frontier models. SEC filing: SpaceX agrees to acquire Anysphere in a merger valuing the Cursor-developer at $60B, expected to close in Q3 2026 (Reuters) SpaceX has agreed to acquire AI coding startup Cursor in a $60B stock deal, less than two months after announcing a tie-up, to help its AI division catch up to the major labs (TechCrunch) SpaceX's stock closed up 19.6% on June 15, its first full day of trading; Musk said it "might be able to reach" ~$1T in revenue in 2030, up from $18.7B in 2025 (CNBC) Anthropic says its senior leaders met Trump admin officials on June 15, but no resolution was reached and both sides are working to resolve things quickly (The Information) A senior White House official says easing Friday's action on Anthropic will likely take more than a few days, but leaves the door open to a quick resolution (Politico) Ben Thompson argues Anthropic has near-perfect alignment between talent, mission, and business — a "safety superpower" he says he both respects and fears (Stratechery) Sources: audited financial figures show OpenAI spending hit $34B in 2025, including $19B on research and development and nearly $6B on sales and marketing (FT) OpenRouter debuts Fusion, a tool that prompts multiple AI models in parallel, claiming it can "reach and surpass Fable-level performance on deep research tasks" (OpenRouter) How OpenRouter Fusion works and how it beats frontier models — a "panel of models" approach that scored 69% on Perplexity's DRACO deep research benchmark (Digit) ResumeWriting.com On Product Hunt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anthropic sent staff to DC to resolve the Mythos 5 export crisis after Amazon's Jassy reportedly helped trigger the federal block. Fox is buying Roku for ~$22B, the UK bans social media for under-16s, and Chinese Tesla drivers fool monitoring with doll heads. Sources: senior Anthropic technical staff are in DC to meet WH officials and try to fix the Mythos 5 dispute; both sides say they are eager to resolve the issue (Axios) The US Commerce Dept blocked foreign persons from accessing Fable 5 and Mythos 5; Anthropic cut off all customers to comply, calling the disclosed jailbreaks minor (The Verge) Trump signed off on the restriction himself after Commerce Secretary Lutnick was asked to lead the response (NYT) Amazon researchers showed Fable's safeguards could be evaded; Jassy raised it with Treasury's Bessent, helping set the export controls in motion (WSJ) Fox says it is acquiring Roku in its largest deal yet, valued at ~$22B including debt, giving it access to 100M+ streaming households globally; FOX drops 10%+ (WSJ) Keir Starmer says the UK will ban social media for under-16s to "give kids their childhood back", using an Australia-like model, in effect by next spring (Reuters) UK's under-16 ban will cover Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and X but exempt WhatsApp and Signal; AI companion chatbots must be 18+ (TechCrunch) Chinese Tesla drivers are using tiny plastic heads to fool Tesla's distracted-driving controls, which appear unable to distinguish figurines from real people (Wired) Chinese Tesla owners use figurines, photos, lenticular images, and looping face videos to bypass cabin-camera monitoring, sold for $10–$40 online (Digital Trends) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SpaceX priced the biggest IPO ever at $135/share, raising $75B and debuting at $1.77T. ShinyHunters exploited an unpatched Oracle PeopleSoft flaw hitting 100+ organizations, Mistral seeks €3B at €20B, MrBeast hit 500M subscribers, and SBF lost his appeal. SpaceX raises $75B in the biggest-ever IPO, pricing 555.6M shares at $135 each, giving it a market value of $1.77T (Bloomberg) Founders Fund's ~3% SpaceX stake is worth $50B+, Sequoia's ~1.5% is worth $20B+, and a16z will see its biggest return ever at $10B+ (Bloomberg) Some investors question SpaceX's valuation, citing its $4.3B loss on $4.7B in revenue in Q1, as well as concerns over space data centers (NYT) Oracle warns customers of a critical PeopleSoft flaw after ShinyHunters claimed breaches of 100+ organizations using PeopleSoft; Oracle has not issued a patch (TechCrunch) Sources: French startup Mistral AI is in talks to raise ~€3B at a ~€20B valuation; it was last valued at €11.7B during a funding round in September 2025 (Bloomberg) MrBeast hits 500M subscribers on YouTube, a record for the platform (The Wrap) Sam Bankman-Fried loses his bid to overturn his fraud conviction and 25-year prison sentence over the collapse of FTX (Reuters) Longreads As companies are hit by rising AI costs, they are increasingly using tools that tap cheaper models, including some from China, putting price pressure on OpenAI and Anthropic (WSJ) Sixteen economists weigh in on what AI will mean for the US economy, workers, and workplaces; only two expect AI to actually create more jobs (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anthropic backtracked on secretly degrading Fable 5 for AI researchers after fierce backlash. OpenAI considers drastic token price cuts anticipating war with Anthropic. Dario Amodei calls for FAA-style AI regulation, the FBI seized fake Chinese consulting domains, and DoorDash launches AI ordering. Anthropic backtracks on its decision to quietly limit Fable 5's ability to develop LLMs, saying "requests will visibly fall back to Opus 4.8", after backlash (Wired) Sources: OpenAI is considering drastically lowering the prices it charges users for tokens in anticipation of similar cuts the startup expects Anthropic to make (WSJ) Dario Amodei outlines policy responses to AI's exponential progress across regulation and public safety, macroeconomics and taxes, science, geopolitics, more (Dario Amodei) The FBI seizes 13 domains allegedly tied to fake consulting firms that sought information from US government and military employees for suspected Chinese agents (Reuters) YouTube rolls out a new in-app messaging system for sharing videos and having 1:1 conversations; it discontinued its previous Messages feature in September 2019 (9to5Google) DoorDash launches an in-app AI chatbot to let users order food and groceries and make reservations with photos and prompts (CNBC) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The CFTC proposed prediction market rules banning bets on war and assassinations. SpaceX drew $250B+ in IPO demand far beyond its $75B target. Microsoft patched a record ~200 security flaws, Tesla has just 59 robotaxis, and Siri AI gets its first hands-on. Sources: the CFTC will propose new prediction market rules, banning bets it finds aren't in the public interest or that seem highly susceptible to manipulation (WSJ) Microsoft's June 2026 Patch Tuesday fixes a record nearly 200 security flaws, 33 rated Critical, as it and security researchers increasingly use AI to find bugs (Krebs on Security) Sources: SpaceX has drawn $250B+ of investor demand for what is poised to be the largest IPO to date, far beyond the $75B that SpaceX is aiming to raise (Reuters) Tesla has just 59 vehicles in its robotaxi fleet and is limited to three Texas cities after almost a year, nowhere close to Elon Musk's big promises (Bloomberg) Hands-on with Siri AI: successfully executed multistep prompts, understood context well, has strong guardrails, and seems a bit more dispassionate than Gemini (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anthropic released Claude Fable 5, a guardrailed Mythos-class model, to the public and Mythos 5 to trusted partners. OpenAI confidentially filed for an IPO. Hackers injected credential-stealing malware into 70+ Microsoft GitHub repos, and Apple details its new Gemini-based foundation models. Anthropic releases Claude Fable 5, a "safe" Mythos-class model it says can't be used for cyberattacks, to the public, and Claude Mythos 5 to trusted orgs (Wired) OpenAI confidentially files for an IPO, says it has "not decided on timing yet", as "there are things we want to do that are likely easier as a private company" (CNBC) Microsoft disabled 70+ of its repos on GitHub, including Azure-related tools like azure-functions-host, after hackers added credential-stealing malware to them (TechCrunch) MG Siegler: after being left for dead in AI, Apple is set to win at the consumer level — the power of the default, superior product instincts, and no real competition (Spyglass) Ben Thompson: the iPhone is the true core of Siri AI, and Apple is the only company positioned to work across apps with personal context — as long as it's not vaporware (Stratechery) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple unveiled Siri AI at WWDC, built on Google's Gemini, launching in beta with no firm date. Google signed a $920M/month SpaceX compute deal, Trump floats government equity stakes in AI labs, and OpenAI plans to turn ChatGPT into a superapp. Apple announces Siri AI, with on-screen awareness, personal context understanding, a Dynamic Island-based interface, and more, along with a new Siri app (9to5Mac) Filing: Google has agreed to pay SpaceX $920M per month for access to Nvidia chips as part of a cloud-services deal that runs through mid-2029 (Bloomberg) President Trump says he is weighing proposals for US government to hold equity stakes in leading AI labs, and will soon discuss the idea with their executives (Bloomberg) OpenAI plans to overhaul ChatGPT in the coming weeks, turning it into a superapp with coding tools and AI agents to serve as a gateway to higher-margin products (FT) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bots passed human web traffic for the first time, per Cloudflare's CEO. The S&P 500 rejected fast-entry for mega-cap IPOs like SpaceX. Anthropic embedded engineers at the NSA, Meta hid face-recognition code in its app, and Cambridge trialed the first AI-designed vaccine. Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince says agentic traffic is "growing so fast that bots have now passed human traffic online for the first time" (Tom's Hardware) S&P Dow Jones rejects proposals to expedite S&P 500 eligibility for mega-cap IPOs such as SpaceX's; companies remain ineligible until one year after their IPOs (Bloomberg) Sources: Anthropic has embedded around half a dozen forward-deployed engineers within the NSA to help the agency deploy Mythos for offensive cyber operations (FT) Analysis: Meta discreetly added code for an unreleased "NameTag" face-recognition system for its AI smart glasses over multiple Meta AI app updates in 2026 (Wired) University of Cambridge researchers say they have developed the first vaccine with a key component entirely designed by AI and subsequently trialed it in humans (BBC) Longreads A preview of what to expect from WWDC on Monday, including iOS 27, a revamped Siri, macOS 27 Liquid Glass refinements, and more (Bloomberg) Ted Chiang argues LLM conversations are cleverly disguised sentence continuation, not consciousness, and that no intrinsic property of neural networks suggests otherwise (The Atlantic) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Google released Gemma 4 12B, a multimodal model that runs locally on 16GB devices. TSMC's CEO warned chip supply won't meet demand for years. Ramp raised $750M at $44B, and Anthropic says 80%+ of its merged code is now Claude-authored. Google releases Gemma 4 12B, an 11.95B-parameter unified, encoder-free open multimodal model that can run locally on devices with 16GB of VRAM or unified memory (VentureBeat) Public First: 26% of Americans support increased data center construction, the lowest share among 15 large countries, such as Brazil, Japan, the UK, and Canada (FT) Sam Altman and Dario Amodei are among the signatories on a public letter urging improved tracking of synthetic DNA that could be used in AI-developed bioweapons (Wired) TSMC CEO C.C. Wei says the company won't be able to fulfill the demand led by US customers even as more capacity comes online in the US over the next few years (Bloomberg) Corporate spending management platform Ramp raised $750M at a $44B valuation led by Iconiq, Singapore's GIC, and the OTPP, taking its total funding to $3B (Bloomberg) Anthropic details its progress toward recursive self-improvement, and its implications, and says 80%+ of the code merged into its codebase is authored by Claude (Anthropic) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Microsoft dominated Build with Scout, an always-on Teams agent, the Surface RTX Spark Dev Box, its first reasoning model MAI-Thinking-1 aimed squarely at Anthropic, and Project Solara for agent-first devices. Trump signed a scaled-back AI executive order on cybersecurity. Microsoft announces Scout, an always-on enterprise AI agent built on OpenClaw that appears as a Microsoft Teams contact to automate tasks such as scheduling (Wired) Microsoft unveils a Surface RTX Spark Dev Box, featuring Nvidia's Arm-based RTX Spark, 128GB of unified memory, and a 100W thermal envelope, for local AI tasks (The Verge) Microsoft debuts MAI-Thinking-1, its first advanced reasoning AI model, trained "from the ground up on clean data, without distillation from third-party models" (The Verge) Microsoft unveils Project Solara, an Android-based platform for agent-first devices, with concept hardware and pilots planned at Best Buy, Target, and others (GeekWire) Microsoft unveils Microsoft Execution Containers, a Windows-level sandbox for AI agents, and says partners OpenAI, Nvidia, Manus, and Nous Research are using it (VentureBeat) President Trump signs a scaled-back AI EO that seeks to address AI's cybersecurity threats; sources say it imposes less scrutiny on AI than the scrapped version (Politico) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anthropic confidentially filed for an IPO that could come as soon as this fall, joining SpaceX and OpenAI in a $4T listing parade. Anthropic expands Mythos access to 15+ countries, Alphabet raises $80B for AI spending, and mathematicians publish a warning declaration on AI. Anthropic says it has confidentially filed for an IPO, which could happen as soon as this fall, joining OpenAI and SpaceX in preparing to go public in 2026 (NYT) Anthropic says it will extend Project Glasswing to organizations in 15+ countries, sources say giving Mythos access to Five Eyes, NATO, Samsung, SK, and others (FT) Alphabet is raising $80B through equity offerings, including a $10B investment deal with Berkshire, to fund AI spending, in one of the largest equity deals ever (Bloomberg) Sixteen mathematicians publish the Leiden Declaration on AI and Mathematics to warn of potential threats to the field, such as around accuracy and reliability (NYT) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nvidia unveiled the RTX Spark, an Arm-based consumer chip family built with MediaTek on TSMC 3, plus a DGX Station desktop that runs 1T-parameter models. Intel detailed its Crescent Island GPUs, MiniMax launched a coding model rivaling Opus 4.7 at 1/40th the price, and Anthropic bans AI in interviews. Nvidia announces the RTX Spark, an Arm-based consumer chip family it calls "the most efficient PC chip ever built", made on TSMC 3 in partnership with MediaTek (The Verge) Intel details its Crescent Island data center GPUs, built on its Xe3P architecture and using LPDDR5X memory instead of HBM, calling them "built for agentic AI" (Tom's Hardware) Nvidia unveils DGX Station for Windows, a desktop PC powered by a GB300 Grace Blackwell chip with up to 748 GB of memory, capable of running 1T-parameter models (SiliconAngle) Chinese AI developer MiniMax debuts M3, a new coding model that it says rivals Claude Opus 4.7, costing $0.12 per 1M input tokens, compared with $5 for Opus 4.7 (The Information) A look at Anthropic's hiring process, which prohibits AI use in interviews and features a culture interview that candidates describe as highly intense (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Anthropic dropped Opus 4.8 with dynamic workflows for Claude Code and raised $65B at a $965B valuation, overtaking OpenAI. Blue Origin's New Glenn exploded during testing, Amazon killed its AI usage leaderboard, and an AI startup offers free home cleaning for training data. Anthropic launches Opus 4.8, saying it's "more likely to flag uncertainties about its work and less likely to make unsupported claims", at the same price as 4.7 (TechCrunch) Anthropic raised a $65B Series H at a $965B post-money valuation, overtaking OpenAI's $852B valuation, and says its revenue run rate crossed $47B this month (NYT) Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket, which exploded during testing on Thursday, was set to ferry 48 Amazon Leo satellites on Monday; Amazon paid Blue Origin $2.7B (FT) Sources: Amazon has shut down an internal leaderboard that tracked employees' use of AI tools after workers tried to boost their scores with needless tasks (FT) AI startup Shift launches a free home cleaning service in NYC to record first-person video with a camera-equipped cap and use it to train robots (The Verge) Longreads Simon Willison on how coding agents gave Anthropic and OpenAI real product-market fit, burning $1,000+/month in tokens per power user and changing enterprise pricing (Simon Willison) Kirkland & Ellis, the world's highest-grossing law firm, is setting aside $500M to build its own AI platform rather than rely on tools available to its rivals (FT) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Valve hiked Steam Deck prices by up to $300 as RAMageddon hits consumer electronics. Bloomberg detailed Apple's Siri overhaul ahead of WWDC, Meta rolls out subscription plans for Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp, and Oura unveils a 40% smaller Ring 5. Valve hikes the Steam Deck OLED's prices due to "rising memory and storage costs": from $549 to $789 for the 512GB model and from $649 to $949 for the 1TB model (The Verge) Illustrations based on sources detail Apple's Siri overhaul, including a new UI, a chatbot-style app, and other major iOS 27 changes, ahead of WWDC on June 8 (Bloomberg) Meta rolls out Plus plans for Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp globally, and tests $7.99/month and $19.99/month Meta AI plans, and a $49.99/month creator plan (TechCrunch) Reactor, which says its AI platform can generate video in real-time with near-zero latency, emerges from stealth with a $59M Series A led by Lightspeed (Variety) Oura unveils the Oura Ring 5, with a 40% smaller form factor, improved sensing, and repositioned LEDs, on sale from June 4 for $399, up from the Ring 4's $349 (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Robinhood launched agentic stock trading, letting users link Claude or Cursor to dedicated accounts. Micron hit $1T market cap in record time on AI memory demand. YouTube now auto-labels AI content, a new coding benchmark crowns GPT-5.5 the clear leader, and Roku overhauls its homescreen. Robinhood launches a feature to let users link AI agents, such as Claude or Cursor, to separate, dedicated investment accounts for trading stocks autonomously (WSJ) Micron hit a $1T market value for the first time on May 26 after its stock closed up 19.29%, rising from $700B earlier in May, driven by high memory chip demand (CNBC) YouTube makes its AI content labels more prominent on desktop and mobile, and will apply them automatically if it detects "significant photorealistic AI use" (Variety) Roku launches its first major homescreen overhaul in over a decade, including a large "marquee" ad spot to tout apps or shows, in a bid to drive more engagement (Hollywood Reporter) Datacurve releases the DeepSWE coding benchmark, a 113-task test across 91 open-source repositories: GPT-5.5 leads at 70%, GPT-5.4 got 56%, and Opus 4.7 got 54% (VentureBeat) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pope Leo XIV released his AI encyclical alongside Anthropic co-founder Chris Olah. Huawei claims it can match 1.4nm chips by 2031, China imposed travel restrictions on AI talent, cybersecurity hiring surged amid the AI "bug-pocalypse," and American Airlines picked Starlink for in-flight Wi-Fi. Pope Leo XIV presents Magnifica humanitas, his encyclical on AI, calling for AI regulation, protection for children against hypersexualized AI images, and more (NYT) Huawei says it aims to make 1.4nm chips by 2031 using its "LogicFolding" tech, which is based on its new Tau Scaling Law intended to bypass Moore's Law limits (Nikkei) Sources: Chinese government agencies begin imposing overseas travel restrictions on individuals involved in advanced AI work, including at Alibaba and DeepSeek (Bloomberg) As AI tools like Mythos create a "bug-pocalypse", Glassdoor says Q1 cybersecurity job postings rose 11% YoY, and executive search firms are turning away clients (NYT) American Airlines picks SpaceX's Starlink for in-flight Wi-Fi on more than 500 planes; SpaceX already has contracts with United Airlines, Southwest, and others (CNBC) Google Fitbit Air review: slim, comfortable, and stylish, robust tracking, seven-day battery life, and cheaper than Whoop, but can only be worn on the wrist (The Shortcut) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chris is back! Hear about how he uses AI personally, and how I've been up at 3 am every day for the last month churning out my own vibecoding experiment. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Quantum computing stocks surged after the US announced $2B in grants with equity stakes. Spotify jumped 13% on 2030 guidance targeting $100B in revenue. Anthropic expects $10.9B in Q2 revenue and its first-ever operating profit, while Trump pulled back an AI executive order after calls with Musk and Zuckerberg. Shares of quantum computing companies surged Thursday after the US government announced grants with equity stakes: D-Wave closed up 33%, Rigetti 30%, IBM 12% (CNBC) Spotify closed up 13% on Thursday after announcing new features and 2030 guidance, forecasting a compound annual growth rate in the mid-teens (CNBC) Workday reports Q1 revenue up 13% YoY to $2.54B vs. $2.52B est., and lifts its full-year forecast, saying its AI strategy is working; WDAY jumps 9%+ after hours (CNBC) Sources: Trump delayed signing the AI EO because "he just hates regulation"; there were questions about the EO giving the Treasury Department a leading role (Axios) Investor disclosures: Anthropic says it expects to generate $10.9B in revenue in Q2, up 127% from $4.8B in Q1, and turn a $559M operating profit, its first ever (WSJ) Longreads In more than two-thirds of the world's countries, birthrates have fallen below replacement, and researchers increasingly point the finger at smartphones and social media (FT) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SpaceX filed publicly for its IPO on Nasdaq, revealing $18.7B in 2025 revenue, billions in losses, and Musk's 85.1% voting control. Anthropic pays SpaceX $1.25B per month for compute. Nvidia beat estimates again, Spotify launches Reserved ticketing, and Waymo suspends service over flooding. SpaceX files publicly for its IPO, choosing Nasdaq to make its debut under the symbol SPCX; Elon Musk's shares give him 85.1% of the voting power in the company (Bloomberg) SpaceX's S-1 reveals Anthropic is paying $1.25B per month through May 2029 under their Colossus compute deal, with a 90-day termination clause (The Verge) Spotify partners with Live Nation to launch Reserved, a new feature that sets aside tickets for the most dedicated fans, starting with Premium users in the US (Hollywood Reporter) Spotify debuts a desktop app for creating personal podcasts, competing with Google's NotebookLM, with support for daily briefings based on email and calendar (TechCrunch) Nvidia reports Q1 revenue up 85% YoY to $81.62B, above $78.86B est., Data Center revenue up 92% YoY to $75.2B, and announces an $80B share repurchase program (Nvidia) Waymo suspends operations in Atlanta and San Antonio as its robotaxis struggle with flooded roads and says it has yet to develop a "final remedy" for flooding (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Google dominated I/O with Gemini 3.5 Flash, its fastest agentic model yet, plus Gemini Spark as a 24/7 personal agent. It also launched Gemini Omni for video generation, overhauled its search box, shipped Antigravity 2.0, and added Street View to Project Genie. Google rolls out Gemini 3.5 Flash, its "strongest agentic and coding model yet", for tackling long-horizon agentic tasks, in the Gemini app and Search's AI Mode (Google) Google announces Gemini Spark, a "24/7 personal AI agent" that is powered by Gemini 3.5 and supports integrations with Google Workspace apps, including Gmail (Engadget) Google launches Gemini Omni, a multimodal model it says can "create anything from any input", starting with video generation, for Google AI Plus, Pro, and Ultra (VentureBeat) Google overhauls its search box, letting users input longer queries, including with photos and videos, and automate searches with Gemini 3.5 Flash-based agents (NYT) Google introduces Antigravity 2.0, featuring an updated desktop app that lets users orchestrate agents, an Antigravity CLI tool, and an SDK for custom workflows (TechCrunch) Google adds Street View integration to Project Genie, its interactive world builder, and expands Genie from the US to adult Google AI Ultra subscribers globally (Engadget) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Musk v. Altman jury unanimously rejected Musk's claims on statute of limitations grounds. Andrej Karpathy joined Anthropic's pre-training team. Polymarket partners with Nasdaq on private company markets, Blackstone and Google form a TPU venture, and KPMG embeds Claude into tax advisory. Musk v. Altman: the jury unanimously rejects Elon Musk's claims against OpenAI and Sam Altman, as he filed them outside of a three-year statute of limitations (CNBC) Andrej Karpathy joins Anthropic to help launch a team focused on using Claude to accelerate pre-training research; he helped found OpenAI and worked at Tesla (Axios) Polymarket partners with Nasdaq to launch markets tied to private company milestones, including IPO timing, valuations, earnings, and secondary market activity (The Block) Blackstone announces a joint venture with Google to create a US company that will offer customers Google TPU access, and makes a $5B initial equity commitment (WSJ) KPMG partners with Anthropic to embed Claude into its tax and advisory platforms; KPMG's tax and legal services unit saw revenue grow ~8% YoY to $9.3B in 2025 (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI debuted personal finance tools via Plaid for Pro users. AI startups generate ~$80B in annualized revenue, with Anthropic and OpenAI capturing 89%. ArXiv cracks down on AI slop, Apple's Siri relaunch may still be a beta, and SF vibes are frenetic. OpenAI debuts personal finance tools for US ChatGPT Pro users, partnering with Plaid to give access to 12K+ financial institutions to analyze spending and more (TechCrunch) Analysis: 34 leading AI startups are generating ~$80B in annualized revenue, up 112% from six months ago, with Anthropic and OpenAI capturing 89% of the revenue (The Information) ArXiv, the repository of preprint academic research, says it will ban authors for a year if their papers have "incontrovertible evidence" of AI-generated work (404 Media) Sources: Apple's revamped Siri may launch in beta, and will have an option to auto-delete chats; Apple plans to add Suggested Genmoji to iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 (Bloomberg) A college senior at Stanford describes how AI has changed classes: cheating using AI "has become omnipresent" with students "fudging just about everything" (NYT) SF vibes are frenetic over the huge divide in outcomes and career uncertainty for software engineers; over 5 years ~10K people in AI attained retirement wealth (X / @deedydas) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Musk v. Altman went to closing arguments, with Musk's lawyer hammering Altman's credibility while OpenAI says Musk has no evidence. Google tests cutting free Gmail storage to 5GB, Meta opens Ray-Ban Display to developers, OpenAI brings Codex to mobile, and xAI launches Grok Build. ⁠Musk v. Altman: in closing arguments, Musk's attorney doubled down on claims of Altman's untrustworthiness, while OpenAI's lawyer said Musk has no evidence⁠ (AP) ⁠Google confirms a new storage policy test, after some users reported that new Gmail accounts get 5GB, not 15GB, of free storage if they don't add a phone number⁠ (Android Authority) ⁠Meta rolls out new features for its Ray-Ban Display glasses, including neural handwriting support for all users, and opens the device to third-party developers⁠ (The Verge) ⁠OpenAI adds remote access to Codex in the ChatGPT mobile app, letting users control Codex sessions running on a computer directly via iOS, iPadOS, and Android⁠ (9to5Mac) ⁠xAI launches Grok Build, an agent and CLI for coding, building apps, and automating workflows, in early beta, available first for SuperGrok Heavy subscribers⁠ (Bloomberg) ⁠OpenEvidence, an AI clinical tool, is now used by ~65% of US doctors across 27M clinical encounters per month, becoming an AI-era equivalent of consulting a colleague⁠ (NBC News) ⁠Janitor AI, a romantic fantasy roleplay chatbot site run by three men, claims 2.5M DAUs and 15M total users, with 70–80% identifying as women⁠ (Forbes) Longreads ⁠OpenEvidence, an AI clinical tool, is now used by ~65% of US doctors across 27M clinical encounters per month, becoming an AI-era equivalent of consulting a colleague⁠ (NBC News) ⁠Janitor AI, a romantic fantasy roleplay chatbot site run by three men, claims 2.5M DAUs and 15M total users, with 70–80% identifying as women⁠ (Forbes) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI is weighing legal action against Apple over a Siri integration it says fell far short. Cerebras opened at $350 in the largest US tech IPO since Uber. Mythos helped researchers crack macOS security, Anthropic restores OpenClaw access with Agent SDK credits, and 71% of Americans oppose local data centers. Sources: OpenAI is weighing legal action against Apple after expectations that ChatGPT's Siri integration would generate billions in revenue fell short (Bloomberg) Security researchers used Anthropic's Mythos to discover a privilege escalation exploit in macOS, circumventing Apple's Memory Integrity Enforcement in five days (WSJ) Cerebras opens at $350, valuing the chipmaker at $100B+, after raising $5.5B by selling 30M shares at $185, the largest US tech IPO since Uber's debut in 2019 (CNBC) Anthropic unveils Claude Agent SDK credits for paid plans, which users can allocate for programmatic use of third-party agents like OpenClaw, starting June 15 (VentureBeat) AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon sign an "agreement in principle" to form a joint venture that aims to end wireless dead zones in the US, without giving many details (The Verge) Gallup: 71% of Americans oppose local AI data center construction, citing water and electricity issues, with opposition higher among Democrats than Republicans (Washington Post) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Google unveiled Googlebook, merging ChromeOS and Android into a unified laptop OS shipping this fall. WhatsApp launches Incognito Chat for private AI conversations. Anthropic's revenue run-rate is on track to hit $50B by end of June, and Anduril raised $5B at a $61B valuation. Google unveils Googlebook, its new laptop lineup featuring a unified OS merging ChromeOS and Android, with devices from Dell, HP, and others coming this fall (ZDNet) Google also unveiled Gemini Intelligence, bundling existing and new Gemini features, including task automation across apps and letting users vibe code Android widgets (The Verge) WhatsApp launches Incognito Chat, an AI chat mode built on Private Processing that Meta says lets users talk to AI without Meta being able to access the chats (Wired) Investor docs: Anthropic's revenue run-rate is on track to hit $50B by the end of June; Ramp says more of its customers now use Anthropic than OpenAI, a first (WSJ) Anduril raised a $5B Series H led by Thrive and a16z at a $61B valuation, up from $30.5B in June 2025, taking its total funding to $6.82B, and could IPO in 2027 (NYT) Richard Socher's Recursive Superintelligence raised $650M+ from GV, Greycroft, Nvidia, AMD, and others at a $4B valuation to pursue "recursive self-improvement" (NYT) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Instructure cut a deal with ShinyHunters to return stolen Canvas data, without disclosing the terms. eBay rejected GameStop's $56B bid as "neither credible nor attractive." OpenAI launches Daybreak for cybersecurity, Amazon employees game AI usage targets, and Mira Murati's first model drops. Instructure reaches a deal with hackers who breached its Canvas edtech platform to return stolen data and destroy copies, without saying what it gave in return (NYT) eBay rejects GameStop's $56B takeover offer, saying the unsolicited bid is "neither credible nor attractive", in a letter from eBay Chairman Paul Pressler (Bloomberg) OpenAI launches Daybreak, a cybersecurity initiative integrating AI models and Codex Security to help organizations patch vulnerabilities (TestingCatalog) Sources: some Amazon employees are using in-house OpenClaw-like tool MeshClaw for unnecessary tasks to inflate AI token use after Amazon set weekly AI targets (FT) AppMagic: Grok downloads fell to ~8.3M in April, from a high of 20M+ in January; Recon Analytics: Grok's paid adoption in the US remains nearly flat YoY in Q2 (WSJ) Thinking Machines Lab details interaction models, which can think and respond in real time, letting users and AI interact continuously for better collaboration (Thinking Machines Lab) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Google reported the first known case of hackers using AI to discover and weaponize a zero-day vulnerability. OpenAI launched a $4B+ deployment company and acquired Tomoro. Apple plans Liquid Glass refinements for macOS 27, TikTok rolls out an ad-free tier in the UK, and Ben Thompson argues agentic inference will reshape compute. Google's TIG reports the first known example of hackers using AI to discover and weaponize a zero-day; TIG's chief analyst says "this is the tip of the iceberg" (NYT) The 90-day vulnerability disclosure policy is dead, as LLMs compress bug finding and exploit development time, and critical issues must be patched immediately (Himanshu Anand) OpenAI launches the OpenAI Deployment Company with a $4B+ investment to help organizations build and deploy AI systems, and acquires AI consulting firm Tomoro (Reuters) Sources: Apple is working on a "slight redesign" for macOS 27 to address Liquid Glass issues and plans a feature to automatically group Safari tabs in "27" OSes (Bloomberg) TikTok is rolling out TikTok Ad-Free, a £3.99-per-month subscription for UK accounts aged 18 or older "over the coming months", after testing the option in 2023 (TechCrunch) Agentic inference is set to be different than today's inference, and will change compute infrastructure because speed won't matter when humans aren't involved (Stratechery) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nintendo raised the Switch 2 price to $500 amid a global memory shortage. ShinyHunters forced Canvas offline during finals season. Researchers found 5,000+ insecure vibe-coded apps, Mozilla credits Mythos for 423 Firefox bug fixes in April, and France escalates its Musk probe. Nintendo says it will increase the price of the Switch 2 globally on September 1, from $450 to $500 in the US, and the price of the original Switch in Japan (Bloomberg) Instructure disables its Canvas edtech platform, used by thousands of schools, universities, and companies, amid a data extortion attack claimed by ShinyHunters (Krebs on Security) Researchers: 5,000+ web apps built using AI coding tools like Lovable, Base44, and Replit have little to no authentication, and ~40% exposed sensitive data (Wired) Mozilla says Anthropic's Mythos Preview and other AI models helped it identify and ship 423 Firefox security bug fixes in April, compared to 31 a year earlier (TechCrunch) French prosecutors escalate an investigation into Elon Musk and X, focused on alleged algorithmic manipulation and sexual deepfakes, to a criminal probe (CNBC) Longreads Anthropic co-founder Jack Clark explains why there's a 60%+ chance of AI systems autonomously building their successors by 2029 and the consequences of automated AI R&D (Import AI) How Delta SkyMiles and airline loyalty programs turned carriers into fintech companies with wings, and why most airlines couldn't survive without them (NY Mag) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dario Amodei revealed Anthropic could grow 80x in 2026, and the company signed a deal with SpaceX for 300MW of compute from Colossus 1. Musk dissolved xAI into SpaceX. Google launches the $100 Fitbit Air, and HubSpot's founder coins "strategic illegibility." At Code with Claude, Dario Amodei said Anthropic had planned to grow ~10x in 2026 but could grow 80x, calling its growth rate "crazy" and "too hard to handle" (NYT) Anthropic signs a deal with SpaceX for 300MW+ of compute from Colossus 1 in Memphis, accessing 220,000+ Nvidia GPUs within the month (Bloomberg) Musk says xAI will be "dissolved as a separate company" and will become "SpaceXAI, the AI products from SpaceX" (Spyglass) Google launches the $100 Fitbit Air, a Whoop-like screenless wearable, with Gemini-powered features like Google Health Coach, available May 26 (Engadget) As founders race to make their companies "legible" to AI, they must keep the things that make them hard to copy "illegible", or risk commoditizing their moat (Brian Halligan) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Corning and Nvidia partnered to open three optical manufacturing plants in the US, with Nvidia investing up to $2.7B. Morgan Stanley launched crypto trading on ETrade, Google tests a personal agent called Remy, and Meta builds an OpenClaw-inspired agent called Hatch.* Corning and Nvidia partner to open three advanced manufacturing plants in North Carolina and Texas dedicated to optical tech for Nvidia, creating 3,000+ jobs (CNBC) Morgan Stanley rolls out a crypto trading pilot on E*Trade, charging less than Coinbase, Robinhood, and Charles Schwab, ahead of a wider launch later in 2026 (Bloomberg) Sources and a document: Google is testing a "personal agent" codenamed Remy in the Gemini app that integrates with Google services to take actions for users (Business Insider) Sources: Meta is building an OpenClaw-inspired agent, internally called Hatch and powered by its Muse Spark model, and an agentic shopping tool in Instagram (The Information) OpenAI partners with Microsoft, AMD, Broadcom, Nvidia, and Intel researchers to detail the Multipath Reliable Connection (MRC) protocol to help scale compute (The Deep View) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Trump administration discussed an EO to form an AI oversight working group, a stark reversal from its hands-off approach. Apple explored using Intel and Samsung to make chips in the US, Coinbase cut 14% of its workforce, and OpenAI fast-tracks an AI phone for 2027. Sources: the Trump administration is discussing an EO to form an AI working group that would examine AI oversight procedures, like vetting models before release (NYT) Sources: Apple held exploratory talks with Intel and Apple executives visited a Samsung plant in Texas to explore producing core chips for its devices in the US (Bloomberg) Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong announces the company is cutting ~700 jobs, or ~14% of its global workforce, to reduce costs, saying "AI is changing how we work" (Reuters) Meta is using AI on Facebook and Instagram to detect under-13 users by analyzing bone structure, height, and visual cues, but says it's "not facial recognition" (The Verge) Kuo: OpenAI appears to be fast-tracking its AI agent phone with two NPUs and a custom MediaTek Dimensity 9600 SoC, targeting mass production as early as H1 2027 (Ming-Chi Kuo) ElevenLabs raised $550M+ in its Series D, up from a previously announced $500M, adding BlackRock, Nvidia, and others as investors; its ARR passed $500M in Q1 (Tech.eu) Source: YC owns ~0.6% of OpenAI, which was seeded by a YC offshoot called YC Research in 2016; at OpenAI's current $852B valuation, the stake is worth $5B+ (Daring Fireball) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

GameStop made an unsolicited ~$56B bid for eBay as Ryan Cohen eyes a commerce empire. Anthropic finalizes a $1.5B JV with Blackstone and Goldman Sachs, Amazon opens its logistics network to outside companies, and a Harvard study finds AI outperforms ER doctors at triage. GameStop makes an unsolicited ~$56B offer to buy eBay after building a ~5% stake, offering $125/share in cash and stock, a ~20% premium on May 1's closing price (WSJ) Sources: Anthropic is finalizing a deal for a $1.5B JV with Blackstone, Goldman Sachs, Hellman & Friedman, and others to sell AI tools to PE-backed companies (WSJ) Amazon debuts Supply Chain Services, which lets companies use its logistics network to move, store, and deliver everything from raw materials to final products (Reuters) An analysis of 1.6M Polymarket accounts since November 2022: 0.1% of users get 67% of the profits, with the highest-frequency traders seeing the most success (WSJ) Study: OpenAI's o1 correctly diagnosed 67% of emergency room patients using electronic records and a few sentences from nurses, vs. 50-55% for triage doctors (The Guardian) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple beat Q2 estimates and forecast strong Q3 growth as the MacBook Neo and Mac Mini sell out. The Senate unanimously banned prediction market trading for senators, Intel closed its best month ever at +114%, and Musk admitted xAI "partly" distilled OpenAI models. Apple forecasts Q3 revenue above estimates, with sales expected to rise between 14% and 17%, and says memory expenses will climb "significantly higher" in Q3 (Bloomberg) Amazon debuts "Join the chat", an AI-powered feature that lets users ask questions about products and get conversational audio responses generated in real time (TechCrunch) The US Senate unanimously passed a rule barring senators from trading on prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket, amid rising concern over insider trading (CNBC) Musk v. Altman: when asked whether xAI has distilled OpenAI models, Elon Musk says the claim is "partly" true (Wired) Intel's stock jumped 114% in April, hitting a record on April 24 and lifting its market cap past $470B, closing out the chipmaker's best month on record (CNBC) Longreads Talkie-LM: what happens when you train a language model exclusively on text from before 1930? Can it predict the future or independently rediscover General Relativity? (Talkie-LM) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Big Tech earnings landed — Alphabet soared on cloud growth while Meta dropped 10% after hiking capex to $145B. SoftBank plans an AI/robotics IPO called Roze, Anthropic weighs a $900B+ round, and Musk called himself a "fool" for backing OpenAI. Microsoft says Q3 Intelligent Cloud revenue was $34.68B, vs. $34.27B est., with Azure and other cloud services up 40% YoY; Microsoft 365 Copilot has 20M+ seats (CNBC) Meta raises full-year capex outlook to $125B–$145B, up from $115B–$135B; shares drop ~10%, biggest intraday decline since October (Bloomberg) Alphabet stands out on Big Tech earnings day as Google Cloud revenue jumps 63% and backlog nearly doubles to $462B; capex guidance raised to $180B–$190B (MarketWatch) Big Four combined Q1 capex hit a record $130B, on pace for $725B in 2026, up 77% from $410B last year (FT) Sources: SoftBank plans to create an AI and robotics company called Roze in the US to build data centers and list it as early as 2026, seeking a $100B valuation (FT) Sources: Anthropic has begun weighing a new funding round at a $900B+ valuation, after previously resisting investor proposals at an $800B+ valuation (Bloomberg) Sony confirms that some digital PS4 and PS5 games require a one-time online license check "to confirm the game's license" (GameSpot) OpenAI explains Codex's "goblin problem": reinforcement training rewarded quirky creature metaphors via a discontinued "Nerdy" personality, and the behavior spread (The Verge) Musk v. Altman: Elon Musk says he was a "fool" for backing OpenAI, accusing Altman and Brockman of manipulating him into donating tens of millions of dollars (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The EU escalated its DSA probe against Meta over child safety failures on Instagram and Facebook. OpenAI has effectively abandoned its Stargate JV, China suspended new robotaxi licenses after a Baidu outage, and the Musk v. Altman trial kicked off with opening arguments. The European Commission issues preliminary DSA findings against Meta, saying Instagram and Facebook fail to prevent under-13 users from accessing the services (Bloomberg) YouTube rolls out Full Multiview Customization to YouTube TV, letting users pin up to four live streams in a window, after debuting a limited version in 2023 (The Verge) Sources: OpenAI has, in practice, abandoned its Stargate JV in favor of large bilateral deals; execs say its guiding principle remains to "build more compute" (FT) Sources: China suspends issuing Level 4 autonomous vehicle licenses, after 100+ of Baidu's Apollo Go robotaxis stalled and disrupted traffic in Wuhan in March (Bloomberg) OpenAI's Codex instruction set contains a line, repeated several times, that forbids Codex from randomly mentioning goblins, gremlins, and other creatures (Wired) Musk v. Altman: Musk testifies he's suing OpenAI because "it is not okay to steal a charity" and its pivot sets a concerning precedent for philanthropic efforts (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Musk v. Altman trial seated a jury in California, with opening arguments set for today. Microsoft and OpenAI amended their partnership, removing the AGI clause. OpenAI missed internal user and revenue targets, Google launches Ask YouTube, and March saw 45,800 tech layoffs. A US judge seated a nine-person jury in the Musk v. Altman trial at a federal courthouse in California; Sam Altman and Greg Brockman were in attendance (CNBC) Microsoft and OpenAI amend their deal to let OpenAI serve all its products across any cloud provider; Microsoft will no longer pay a revenue share to OpenAI (OpenAI) Sources: OpenAI missed an internal goal of reaching 1B weekly active ChatGPT users by 2025's end, and missed multiple monthly revenue targets earlier in 2026 (WSJ) Google launches Ask YouTube, a conversational AI search "experiment" that generates pages with videos and text summaries, for Premium users in the US aged 18+ (The Verge) Bloomberg CTO Shawn Edwards says the company is overhauling Terminal with a new chatbot-style interface called ASKB, currently open to ~125K users in beta (Wired) Layoffs.fyi: companies announced layoffs affecting 45,800 tech employees in March, making it the worst month for reported tech job cuts in at least two years (WSJ) An analysis of Internet Archive data: by mid-2025, ~35% of new websites published since ChatGPT's launch in November 2022 were AI-generated or AI-assisted (404 Media) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

China blocked Meta's $2B Manus acquisition and ordered both sides to unwind the deal, closing the "Singapore washing" loophole for Chinese AI startups. OpenAI is developing smartphone chips with Qualcomm and MediaTek, Google controls ~25% of global AI compute, and SaaS pricing shifts to usage-based. China blocks Meta's $2B Manus acquisition, after reviewing whether it violated investment rules, and tells both to cancel it; Manus moved to Singapore in 2025 (FT) Kuo: OpenAI is working with MediaTek and Qualcomm to develop smartphone chips, with Luxshare handling the system co-design; mass production is expected in 2028 (Ming-Chi Kuo) Epoch AI: Google controls ~25% of global AI compute, with ~3.8M TPUs and 1.3M GPUs; Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian says demand and revenue justify the spend (FT) Analysis: as of late 2025, 79 of 500 tracked software companies including HubSpot, Adobe, and Salesforce adopted usage-based AI fees, more than doubling on 2024 (The Information) Anthropic details Project Deal, a marketplace experiment where Claude models bought, sold, and negotiated personal belongings on behalf of Anthropic employees (Anthropic) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

DeepSeek dropped V4 Pro and V4 Flash, undercutting US labs on price by roughly 5x. OpenAI fired back with GPT-5.5, reclaiming benchmark crowns from Claude. Meta confirms 8,000 layoffs on May 20, and Google plans to invest up to $40B in Anthropic. DeepSeek releases its new flagship models V4 Pro and V4 Flash in preview, saying V4 Pro trails the performance of state-of-the-art models by about 3 to 6 months (Bloomberg) Simon Willison's comparison chart of DeepSeek V4 pricing vs. US frontier models (Simon Willison) OpenAI says "GPT-5.5 matches GPT-5.4 per-token latency in real-world serving", performs "at a much higher level of intelligence", and is more capable for Codex (OpenAI) Meta plans to cut 10% of its employees, or ~8,000 jobs, on May 20 and won't fill 6,000 open roles, trying to boost efficiency and offset its heavy AI spending (Bloomberg) Google plans to invest up to $40B in Anthropic: $10B now at a $350B valuation, with another $30B if Anthropic hits performance targets (Bloomberg) Weekend Longreads Suggestions A look at the AI nonprofit METR, maker of maybe the most important AI benchmark, whose time-horizon metrics are used by researchers and Wall Street to track AI development (NYT) The Infinite Machine Olto e-bike review: a more elegant solution for trips too long to walk but too short to drive (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Microsoft considered buying Cursor but didn't pull the trigger before SpaceX's deal. Microsoft launches its first-ever voluntary retirement program, Anthropic's secondary market valuation hits $1T on Forge Global, and SpaceX's S-1 reveals plans to manufacture its own GPUs. Sources: Microsoft considered buying Cursor in recent weeks but didn't make an offer; Microsoft has been working to boost GitHub Copilot's popularity (CNBC) Microsoft announces the first voluntary retirement program in its 50-year history, for US staffers whose combined years of service added to their age totals 70+ (The Verge) Kalshi suspends and fines congressional candidates Mark Moran of Virginia, Matt Klein of Minnesota, and Ezekiel Enriquez of Texas for political insider trading (CNBC) Anthropic's valuation has hit $1T on Forge Global, a leading private marketplace exchange, surpassing OpenAI's valuation on the platform of $880B (Business Insider) A poll of 4,000 workers in the US and the UK finds that the highest-earning and most experienced workers are adopting AI in their jobs far faster than others (FT) SpaceX's S-1 excerpts list "manufacturing our own GPUs" among the "substantial capital expenditures" it is undertaking, with the size of the expenditure TBD (Reuters) Spotify celebrates its 20th anniversary with a first-ever list of its 20 most streamed artists, albums, songs, podcasts, and audiobooks (Billboard) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SpaceX struck a deal giving it the option to acquire Cursor for $60B or pay $10B, as xAI scrambles to catch up in AI coding. Google unveiled new TPUs and an agent platform, OpenAI shipped ChatGPT Images 2.0, and Mythos got accessed by unauthorized users. SpaceX says it's working with Cursor to build "the world's most useful models" and it has the right to acquire Cursor for $60B or pay $10B for the partnership (NYT) Google unveils a new TPU lineup consisting of the TPU 8t for AI training and the TPU 8i for inference, with general availability scheduled for later in 2026 (Bloomberg) OpenAI releases ChatGPT Images 2.0 with new "thinking capabilities", allowing it to search the web to help it create multiple images from a single prompt (The Verge) Source: a handful of unauthorized users in a private Discord channel have been accessing Anthropic's Mythos model since the day the company announced it (Bloomberg) Meta is installing tracking software on US staffers' computers to capture mouse movements, clicks, and keystrokes in work-related apps for use in AI training (Reuters) Disclaimer: ● Initial 3 week subscription and 4 weeks of medication from $79 plus tax and $179 per month plus tax for 12 week subscription thereafter. Final pricing depends on program selection. ● Noom GLP-1Rx Program involves healthy diet, exercise and support. Individual results vary. Meds & personalization based on clinical need. Not reviewed by FDA for safety, efficacy, or quality. No affiliation with Novo Nordisk Inc., the only US source of FDA-approved semaglutide. Not available in all 50 US states ● Based on an analysis of self reported data from 1,254 engaged Noom users. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple named John Ternus as its next CEO, with Tim Cook stepping up to executive chairman on September 1. Amazon agrees to invest up to $25B more in Anthropic, Bezos' Project Prometheus nears a $10B raise, and SpaceX's IPO prospectus reveals Musk's power moves. John Ternus, senior VP of Hardware Engineering, will become Apple's next CEO on September 1; Tim Cook will become executive chairman of Apple's board (CNBC) Amazon agrees to invest up to $25B in Anthropic, on top of the $8B that it has already invested; Anthropic commits to spend $100B+ on AWS over the next 10 years (CNBC) Sources: Jeff Bezos' Project Prometheus is close to a $10B fundraising deal, which includes an initial $6.2B raise in November, at a $38B post-money valuation (FT) Draft of SpaceX's confidential IPO prospectus: Elon Musk increased his stake in SpaceX last year by purchasing $1.4B of stock from current and former employees (The Information) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vercel confirmed a breach traced to an AI platform's compromised OAuth app. The NSA is using Anthropic's Mythos despite the Pentagon blacklist. Mac Minis face 12-week wait times from AI agent demand, and humanoid robots crushed the Beijing half-marathon. Vercel says its internal systems were accessed after a Vercel employee's Google Workspace account was compromised via a breach at the AI platform Context.ai (BleepingComputer) Sources: the US NSA is using Mythos Preview; one source says Mythos is also being widely used within the DoD, despite Anthropic's supply chain risk designation (Axios) Adobe introduces CX Enterprise, an AI agent-based platform that aims to help corporate customers automate digital marketing and other functions (WSJ) Some Mac Mini and Mac Studio models are unavailable or facing up to 12-week wait times in the US, with analysts citing strong demand from AI agent power users (WSJ) Deezer says AI-generated tracks now account for 44% of daily uploads, totaling ~75K tracks per day and 2M+ per month, but account for just 1-3% of consumption (TechCrunch) Sources: Recursive Superintelligence, a four-month-old start-up developing self-teaching AI and founded by ex-DeepMind and OpenAI engineers, has raised $500M+ (FT) At the Beijing half-marathon, several humanoid robots beat human winners by 10+ minutes; a robot made by Honor beat the human world record held by Jacob Kiplimo (Reuters) Disclaimer: ● Initial 3 week subscription and 4 weeks of medication from $79 plus tax and $179 per month plus tax for 12 week subscription thereafter. Final pricing depends on program selection. ● Noom GLP-1Rx Program involves healthy diet, exercise and support. Individual results vary. Meds & personalization based on clinical need. Not reviewed by FDA for safety, efficacy, or quality. No affiliation with Novo Nordisk Inc., the only US source of FDA-approved semaglutide. Not available in all 50 US states ● Based on an analysis of self reported data from 1,254 engaged Noom users. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Netflix beat on revenue and income but dropped 10%+ on weak Q2 guidance as Reed Hastings exits the board. Anthropic launches Claude Design, OpenAI overhauls Codex Desktop with computer control, and DeepSeek seeks its first outside funding at $10B+. Netflix reports Q1 revenue up 16% YoY to $12.25B, vs. $12.2B est., net income up 83% YoY to $5.28B, and forecasts Q2 EPS and revenue below est.; NFLX drops 10%+ (Bloomberg) Anthropic launches Claude Design, a new experimental product that lets users create visuals like prototypes, slides, one-pagers, and more using Claude (TechCrunch) Sources: Dario Amodei is set to meet with WH Chief of Staff Susie Wiles on Friday, a breakthrough in Anthropic's effort to resolve its fight with the Pentagon (Axios) OpenAI updates its Codex desktop app with features like computer control, an in-app browser, image generation, automation memory, plugin support, and more (ZDNet) Sources: DeepSeek is in talks to raise outside capital for the first time, seeking at least $300M at a valuation of at least $10B (The Information) Longreads India produces 1.5M+ CS graduates annually, but AI coding tools are forcing its $315B IT outsourcing industry into an existential reckoning (Bloomberg) Doug Liman's $70M movie Bitcoin: Killing Satoshi uses AI for sets, lighting, and more in post-production, cutting costs from an estimated $300M (The Wrap) Defunct startups are being liquidated for their Slack archives, Jira tickets, and email threads—operational exhaust that AI labs now treat as premium training data (Forbes) Learn more at liquid.trade/techbrew. Disclaimer: ● Initial 3 week subscription and 4 weeks of medication from $79 plus tax and $179 per month plus tax for 12 week subscription thereafter. Final pricing depends on program selection. ● Noom GLP-1Rx Program involves healthy diet, exercise and support. Individual results vary. Meds & personalization based on clinical need. Not reviewed by FDA for safety, efficacy, or quality. No affiliation with Novo Nordisk Inc., the only US source of FDA-approved semaglutide. Not available in all 50 US states ● Based on an analysis of self reported data from 1,254 engaged Noom users. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anthropic drops Claude Opus 4.7 for coding and rolls out government ID verification for some users. TSMC beats earnings, raises forecasts on strong AI demand. X launches Cashtags, and Google's SpaceX stake could hit $100 billion at IPO. Anthropic releases Claude Opus 4.7, a "notable improvement" in advanced software engineering with a new "xhigh" effort level (Anthropic) TSMC CEO C.C. Wei says AI demand still strong amid Iran war, raises revenue forecasts (WSJ) Anthropic rolls out identity verification requiring government-issued photo ID and live selfie for "certain capabilities" (Decrypt) X launches Cashtags, showing real-time financial data on stocks and crypto, starting with iOS in the US and Canada (The Block) Google owns ~5% SpaceX stake; at a $2T IPO valuation, that's worth $100B (Bloomberg) Learn more at liquid.trade/techbrew. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Snap is cutting 16% of its workforce—about 1,000 people—as Spiegel blames AI for making everyone more efficient (read: expendable). Allbirds, the shoe company that sold for $39M, is pivoting its shell to become an AI compute provider called NewBird AI. OpenAI drops a cybersecurity-specific model, Google launches a desktop search app and Chrome AI Skills, and law firms say AI-generated client docs are actually creating MORE work, not less. Snap CEO Evan Spiegel says the company plans to lay off ~1,000 full-time employees, or 16% of its global workforce (Bloomberg) Allbirds, sold last week for $39M, says it aims to become an AI compute provider; BIRD jumps 350%+ (FT) OpenAI rolls out GPT-5.4-Cyber, a fine-tuned variant for defensive cybersecurity (Bloomberg) Google launches a Windows desktop app with a Spotlight-like search box (9to5Google) Google launches Skills, repeatable AI prompts that Chrome users can run with a keyboard shortcut (Wired) Law firms say lawyers are spending more time responding to AI-generated client documents (FT) Learn more at liquid.trade/techbrew. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amazon's dropping $10.8 billion on Globalstar to beef up its Leo satellite network and challenge Starlink — and Apple's along for the ride. Plus, federal charges for the Sam Altman attacker, OpenAI acqui-hires a fintech startup, Google declares war on back button hijacking, data labeling startups are printing money, and Missouri voters revolt over a data center. Amazon agrees to acquire satellite operator Globalstar for $10.8B to expand Leo satellite network; Amazon and Apple say Leo will power some iPhone and Watch services (Amazon) Amazon to Acquire Globalstar in Satellite Cellular-Connection Push (WSJ) US DOJ charges Daniel Moreno-Gama, accused of throwing a Molotov cocktail at Sam Altman's home, with attempted murder and arson (CNN) Man who attacked OpenAI CEO's home had list of other AI executives (NYT) OpenAI acquires personal finance startup Hiro Finance (TechCrunch) Google designates "back button hijacking" as malicious, sites could be demoted in Search from June 15 (9to5Google) Data labeling startup Handshake's gross annualized revenue hits ~$1B; Mercor also at $1B+ pace (The Information) Voters in Festus, Missouri oust all four incumbent council members days after council approved a $6B data center (Politico) Learn more at liquid.trade/techbrew. Disclaimer: ● Initial 3 week subscription and 4 weeks of medication from $79 plus tax and $179 per month plus tax for 12 week subscription thereafter. Final pricing depends on program selection.● Noom GLP-1Rx Program involves healthy diet, exercise and support. Individual results vary. Meds & personalization based on clinical need. Not reviewed by FDA for safety, efficacy, or quality. No affiliation with Novo Nordisk Inc., the only US source of FDA-approved semaglutide. Not available in all 50 US states● Based on an analysis of self reported data from 1,254 engaged Noom users. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sam Altman's home has been targeted twice in three days, first a Molotov cocktail, then a shooting from a passing car. Apple is testing four designs for AI smart glasses. OpenAI is touting its Amazon partnership while publicly distancing from Microsoft. GPU prices are surging as an agentic AI compute crunch threatens the whole industry. And Mark Zuckerberg is still keen on photorealistic Metaverse avatars. Sam Altman's home targeted in second attack; two suspects arrested (SF Standard) Apple AI Smart Glasses Features, Styles, Colors, Cameras; Giannandrea Leaving (Bloomberg) OpenAI touts Amazon alliance in memo, says Microsoft has 'limited our ability' to reach clients (CNBC) AI Is Using So Much Energy That Computing Firepower Is Running Out (WSJ) Meta builds AI version of Mark Zuckerberg to interact with staff (FT) Learn more at liquid.trade/techbrew. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The US government is taking the Anthropic warning seriously. Google is showing prediction markets alongside various search results. Europeans ARE beginning to decouple from US tech. Kicking the tires on SpaceX’s actual business. And, of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Anthropic Model Scare Sparks Urgent Bessent, Powell Warning to Bank CEOs (Bloomberg) Google rolls out Gmail end-to-end encryption on mobile devices (Bleeping Computer) Google News Now Prominently Featuring Polymarket Bets (Futurism) France to ditch Windows for Linux to reduce reliance on US tech (TechCrunch) YouTube Premium is getting pricier (The Verge) OpenAI Backs Bill That Would Limit Liability for AI-Enabled Mass Deaths or Financial Disasters (Wired) SpaceX Posted Nearly $5 Billion Loss Last Year from AI Spending (The Information) Weekend Longreads Suggestion: An Internet of Checkpoints (Longreads) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Meta releases its first model in the great AI horserace catchup race. OpenAI is expecting to make as much money from ads as the biggest social media companies. Meta doesn’t want you to see ads encouraging you to join lawsuits against them. And Amazon’s big Starlink competitor is coming as soon as this summer. Meta releases first AI model since Zuckerberg’s spending spree (FT) AI Horserace Thread (@emollick) Anthropic Completes Tender Offer, But Employees Hold Onto Shares (Bloomberg) OpenAI Forecasts Advertising to Hit $102 billion by 2030 (The Information) Scoop: Meta removes ads for social media addiction litigation (Axios) Amazon’s Starlink competitor Leo gets a new date (The Verge) Deere settles US right-to-repair lawsuit with $99 million fund, repair commitments (Reuters) Gen Z Is Using A.I., but Doesn’t Feel Great About It (NYTimes) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I’ve got another potential tipping point day for you. Anthropic is making yet more shockwaves across the industry by NOT releasing a model. Why? Because it could potentially break everything software related. Does that matter if the Chinese AI companies will just release everything open source? And Elon says he personally doesn’t want a dime from Sam Altman. Anthropic says its most powerful AI cyber model is too dangerous to release publicly — so it built Project Glasswing (VentureBeat) AI joins the 8-hour work day as GLM ships 5.1 open source LLM, beating Opus 4.6 and GPT-5.4 on SWE-Bench Pro (VentureBeat) Elon Musk Asks for OpenAI’s Nonprofit to Get Any Damages From His Lawsuit (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anthropic’s new deal with Google and Broadcom (and some newly released numbers) might be the tipping point in a couple of AI Horse Races. The gold rush/landgrab in the world model space. The dubious goldrush for SEO in the AI era. And an urgent wakeup call in the quantum computing will break cryptography space. Anthropic Tops $30 Billion Run Rate, Seals Deal With Broadcom (Bloomberg) Jeff Bezos’s new lab hires xAI co-founder from OpenAI (FT) How Accurate Are Google’s A.I. Overviews? (NYTimes) Can AI responses be influenced? The SEO industry is trying (The Verge) A Cryptography Engineer’s Perspective on Quantum Computing Timelines (Filippo Valsorda) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There might be... and I know this is going to shock you... some drama going on over at OpenAI. Why is Anthropic cutting off Claude access to OpenClaw? Why are VCs covering the rent for founders who drop out of college? And maybe that two person unicorn I shared with you in the longreads is not what it was cracked up to be. OpenAI CEO and CFO Diverge on IPO Timing (The Information) Anthropic essentially bans OpenClaw from Claude by making subscribers pay extra (The Verge) Samsung Messages will be discontinued in July as part of Google Messages upgrade (9to5Google) Software job openings surge this year, defying AI fears (Business Insider) These AI Whiz Kids Dropped Out of College and Got Investors to Pay Their Bills (WSJ) The back story behind the first “$1.8 Billion” dollar “AI Company” (Marcus on AI) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode explores the fascinating journey of Demis Hesabis and the development of AI through the lens of Sebastian Malaby's book, The Infinity Machine. We delve into the minds of AI pioneers, their motivations, and the race to achieve superintelligence, offering insights into the future of technology and humanity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SpaceX is officially kicking off the year of the biggest IPOs ever. More job cuts and more signs AI is the cause, in one way or another. Microsoft makes its first public moves to divorce itself from OpenAI when it comes to AI models. And a billion-dollar company with only two employees? You guessed it: AI is why. SpaceX Has Filed Confidentially for IPO Ahead of AI Rivals (Bloomberg) Larry Ellison’s Oracle cuts thousands of jobs after AI push (The Times of London) US Job-Cut Announcements in Tech Keep Rising With AI Adoption (Bloomberg) Cloudflare launches EmDash — the 'spiritual successor' that wants to take on WordPress (Tech Radar) Alibaba Unveils Third Closed-Source AI Model in Focus on Profit (Bloomberg) Microsoft launches 3 new AI models in direct shot at OpenAI and Google (VentureBeat) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: How A.I. Helped One Man (and His Brother) Build a $1.8 Billion Company (NYTimes) AI Perfected Chess. Humans Made It Unpredictable Again (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI closes a monster round, but does Anthropic continue to steal their thunder? Is that Anthropic code leak from yesterday a bigger deal for them than I thought it was? What can happen when all the self-driving cars shut down at once. And you are finally able to change that embarrassing Gmail account you’ve been living with. OpenAI closes record-breaking $122 billion funding round as anticipation builds for IPO (CNBC) OpenAI raises $3bn from retail investors as part of record funding haul (FT) OpenAI Is Falling Out of Favor With Secondary Buyers (Bloomberg) Anthropic Races to Contain Leak of Code Behind Claude AI Agent (WSJ) Claude Code Leak Reveals Always-On ‘Kairos’ Agent (The Information) Robotaxi Outage in China Leaves Passengers Stranded on Highways (Wired) You can finally replace your embarrassing Gmail username (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is the Iran war coming for US tech companies specifically? Meta unveils new smartglasses. A leak gives us a look at how Claude Code works. SpaceX is losing contact with satellites for reasons we don’t know yet. And Whoop is the big wearable player I guess we don’t talk about enough. Iran says it will target US tech companies in Middle East (The Hill) Iran’s hackers go to war (FT) The latest Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses are more customizable and expensive (Engadget) Claude Code's source code appears to have leaked: here's what we know (VentureBeat) Google commits to video generation, announces Veo 3.1 Lite (9to5Google) Another Starlink satellite has inexplicably exploded (The Verge) Whoop, a Wearable Health Device Maker, Raises $575 Million (NYTimes) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With everyone suddenly chasing Anthropic, are we getting strong signals AI is about to get more expensive? The dream of pairing AI models against each other and asking them to fight. We really are getting datacenters in space startups, aren’t we? And Project Hail Mary is Amazon’s biggest movie win ever. The Sudden Fall of OpenAI’s Most Hyped Product Since ChatGPT (WSJ) Andrew Curran X Post Claude is limiting usage more aggressively during peak hours — here’s what changed (TechRadar) Microsoft’s Researcher AI Agent Can Now Make GPT and Claude Models Work Together (Thurrott) Starcloud raises $170 million Series A to build data centers in space (TechCrunch) ‘Project Hail Mary’ becomes Amazon MGM’s biggest box office hit (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is Anthropic about to release an AI model that will be a true step change? Is Apple about to open Siri up to everyone, not just ChatGPT? Is OpenAI already making serious bank from Ads? Is Elon trying to open the SpaceX IPO to normies? And of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Anthropic wins preliminary injunction in DOD fight as judge cites ‘First Amendment retaliation’ (CNBC) Exclusive: Anthropic acknowledges testing new AI model representing ‘step change’ in capabilities, after accidental data leak reveals its existence (Fortune) Apple Plans to Open Up Siri to Rival AI Assistants in iOS 27 Update (Bloomberg) Sony is raising PS5 prices by $100 in April (The Verge) OpenAI Surpasses $100 Million Annualized Revenue From Ads Pilot (The Information) Exclusive: Musk rewrites IPO playbook with large slice of SpaceX stock for retail investors, source says (Reuters) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Gemini task automation is slow, clunky, and super impressive (The Verge) How Apple Became Apple: The Definitive Oral History Of The Company's Earliest Days (Fast Company) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The big ruling from that big social media trial is in and it could have big implications for big tech going forward. Wikipedia bans the use of AI for creating Wikipedia entries. GitHub is about to train AI on what you do on GitHub. And the idea of lossless compression might sound like a Silicon Valley joke, but it could be a big deal. Jury in Los Angeles finds Meta, YouTube negligent in social media addiction trial (CNBC) Do Back-to-Back Courtroom Losses Herald Meta’s ‘Big Tobacco’ Moment? (WSJ) Nintendo confirms its US Switch 2 games will soon cost more as physical versions (VGC) Wikipedia bans AI-generated articles (The Verge) GitHub’s Copilot will use you as AI training data, but you can opt out (How-To Geek) Google unveils TurboQuant, a new AI memory compression algorithm — and yes, the internet is calling it ‘Pied Piper’ (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI is abandoning Sora to do the big refocus they’ve been signaling. Meta is starting to rack up the losses in court. Is China going to block the Manus acquisition by Meta from going through? They’re not even letting the founders leave the country. And interesting raises from vertical AI startups. OpenAI Scraps Sora Video Platform Months After Launch (WSJ) Meta must pay $375 million for violating New Mexico law in child exploitation case, jury rules (CNBC) Supreme Court Sides With Internet Provider in Copyright Fight Over Pirated Music (NYTimes) China reviews $2bn Manus sale to Meta as founders barred from leaving country (Financial Times) AI Notetaker Granola Hits $1.5 Billion Value in $125 Million Funding (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Buying an internet router made outside the US is now verboten. Claude can now basically fully use your computer for you. More layoffs and surprising production cuts in the gaming industry. And the two big prediction markets try to close the barn door when it comes to insider trading. US regulator bans imports of new foreign-made routers, citing security concerns (Reuters) Anthropic's Claude Can Now Control Your Computer (CNET) Epic Games Cuts About 1,000 Jobs Across Company Amid ‘Fortnite’ Slump (Bloomberg) Nintendo Cuts Switch 2 Output by Over 30% on Weak US Sales (Bloomberg) Kalshi says it will block politicians and athletes from trading in markets they’re tied to (The Verge) Polymarket, Kalshi Take On Insider Trading as Scrutiny Grows (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark Zuckerberg has spun up his own AI bot to do his job for him. Or help him do his job quicker, I guess. OpenAI hires an ad guru from Meta. Elon loses a case. Maybe some managers actually want you to use as many tokens as possible. And how to get your LLM to recursively improve itself? Maybe? Mark Zuckerberg Is Building an AI Agent to Help Him Be CEO (WSJ) OpenAI Taps Former Meta Executive to Lead Ad Push (WSJ) Samsung's Galaxy S26 Phones Will Work With Apple's AirDrop, Much Like the Pixel 10 (CNET) Musk Misled Twitter Investors Before 2022 Buyout, Jury Says (Bloomberg) More! More! More! Tech Workers Max Out Their A.I. Use. (NYTimes) ‘The Karpathy Loop’: Former OpenAI researcher’s autonomous agents ran 700 experiments in 2 days—and gave a glimpse of where AI is heading (Fortune) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI is becoming a superapp. Does Amazon really want to try its hand at a smartphone again? Google is making further steps to obviate classic Google Search in that innovator’s dilemma way. And in the Longreads, why has AI gotten worse at writing. OpenAI Plans Launch of Desktop ‘Superapp’ to Refocus, Simplify User Experience (WSJ) White House releases AI policy blueprint for Congress (Politico) Exclusive: Amazon plans smartphone comeback more than a decade after Fire Phone flop (Reuters) Super Micro shares tank 25% after employees charged with smuggling Nvidia chips to China (CNBC) Google Search is now using AI to replace headlines (The Verge) Jeff Bezos in Talks to Raise $100 Billion for AI Manufacturing Fund (WSJ) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: ChatGPT did not cure a dog’s cancer (The Verge) The Human Skill That Eludes AI (The Atlantic) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In three parts I’ll make the case that in Q1 of this year, the AI race has become basically a land grab for design and development tasks. MLB fully embraces our new prediction market overlords. Even if they’re behind in AI Apple is still making big money from AI. And Uber is still placing bets in the self-driving race. Google introduces 'vibe design' with Stitch (The Deep View) OpenAI to Acquire Startup Astral, Expanding Push Into Coding (Bloomberg) Crypto.com cuts around 12% of staff as CEO pushes enterprise-wide AI integration (The Block) Major League Baseball Steps Into the Prediction Markets, Strikes Deal With Polymarket (WSJ) Apple Is Way Behind in AI—and Still Making a Fortune From It (WSJ) Uber to invest $1.25 billion in Rivian as part of new robotaxi deal (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At long last, the government has issued guidance to crypto on what is or is not allowed. The blowup from gamers has caused Jensen to push back. A tale of contrasting IPOs from wildly different industries. And is your boss about to ask you to submit expense reports for your token use? SEC, CFTC Move to Define Which Digital Assets Are Securities (Bloomberg) Jensen Huang says gamers are 'completely wrong' about DLSS 5 — Nvidia CEO responds to DLSS 5 backlash (TomsHardware) Meta to Discontinue Key Metaverse Product for VR Headsets (Bloomberg) AI Drone Software Stock Jumps 520% in Best IPO Since Newsmax (Bloomberg) Crypto exchange Kraken freezes multibillion-dollar IPO plan due to difficult market conditions (CoinDesk) Apple Cracks Down on ‘Vibe Coding’ Apps (The Information) You’ve Finally Figured Out AI at Work—Now Comes the Bill (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

All the headlines from Nvidia’s big event yesterday. Can Apple make fetch happen with foldable phones cause nobody else seems to be able to. One hour deliveries is the new, screw it, we’re doing five razorblades. And the robots are really coming to Disney theme parks, right now. NVIDIA claims DLSS 5 will deliver 'photoreal' image quality with AI this fall (Engadget) Nvidia Makes Trillion-Dollar Forecast at Annual Product Expo (Bloomberg) Samsung to Stop Selling $2,899 TriFold Phone After Three Months (Bloomberg) Amazon rolls out 1-hour, 3-hour delivery as ultrafast shipping trend grows in the U.S. (CNBC) OpenAI to Cut Back on Side Projects in Push to ‘Nail’ Core Business (WSJ) I met Olaf — the Frozen robot who might be the future of Disney Parks (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is Meta about to do the mother of all layoffs? New AirPods Max 2. Why OpenAI delayed its sexytime chat… the calls to do so were coming from inside the house. What does it mean if the San Francisco real estate market is ripping again? And what if it ends up Apple has played a blinder by sitting out AI CAPEX spending? Exclusive: Meta planning sweeping layoffs as AI costs mount (Reuters) Apple quietly launches AirPods Max 2 (TechCrunch) Encyclopedia Britannica sues OpenAI over AI training (Reuters) OpenAI’s Bid to Allow X-Rated Talk Is Freaking Out Its Own Advisers (WSJ) The AI Boom Has Exploded the San Francisco Housing Market (WSJ) The most brilliant move in corporate history? (ASYMCO) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Meta’s big new AI model is delayed because they still can’t get to state of the art. The social media addiction trial is winding down. All the video apps are going to end up looking exactly like one another eventually. And, of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Meta Delays Rollout of New A.I. Model After Performance Concerns (NYTimes) Lawyers in landmark social media addiction trial make final appeals to the jury (AP) Peacock expands into AI-driven video, mobile-first live sports, and gaming (TechCrunch) Disney+ is rolling out its TikTok-like ‘Verts’ short-form video feed (TechCrunch) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Why ATMs didn’t kill bank teller jobs, but the iPhone did (David Oks's Blog) James Mason in a cave with a cat (Joel Morris's Substack) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More AI inspired job cuts. I gotta say, adding AI to Google Maps makes it sound like it might work much, much better. A new entrant into the AI health space. An Iran-war-related hacking takes down a company. And Mark Gurman tells us what to expect from a foldable iPhone. Atlassian slashes 10% of workforce to ‘self-fund’ investments in AI and enterprise sales (CNBC) You can now ask Google Maps ‘complex, real-world questions’ — and Gemini will answer (The Verge) Anthropic’s Claude AI can respond with charts, diagrams, and other visuals now (The Verge) Microsoft’s New AI Health Tool Can Read Your Medical Records and Give Advice (WSJ) Iran Expands War With Major Cyberattack Against U.S. Company (WSJ) Apple’s Foldable iPhone to Feature iPad-Like Interface When Opened (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sources say the US government is investigating Binance around Iranian sanction evasion. Meta is helping authorities worldwide crack down on scammers. YouTube literally now is, officially, the biggest media entity in the world. And the legal way to listen to full songs right inside of TikTok. Justice Department Probes Iran’s Use of Binance to Evade Sanctions (WSJ) Meta, Thai police shut down 150,000 scam accounts (Axios) Anthropic is launching a new think tank amid Pentagon blacklist fight (The Verge) YouTube Lays Claim to Another Crown: The World’s Largest Media Company (THR) Nintendo Shares Soar 10% as Surprise Hit Pokémon Game Lifts Mood (Bloomberg) TikTok Teams With Apple Music to Allow Users to Stream Full Songs (Variety) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Meta moves for the social network for AI bots. Code Review for Claude Code seems to be like another revolution for the software development industry. Yan LeCun raises the biggest European seed round of all time. And the MacBook Neo… worth investing in or not? Exclusive: Meta hires duo behind Moltbook (Axios) OpenAI and Google employees rush to Anthropic’s defense in DOD lawsuit (TechCrunch) This new Claude Code Review tool uses AI agents to check your pull requests for bugs - here's how (ZDNet) Amazon holds engineering meeting following AI-related outages (FT) Yann LeCun’s AI start-up raises more than $1bn in Europe’s largest seed round (FT) MacBook Neo review: the Mac for the masses (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anthropic is fighting the government in court. Microsoft is turning to Anthropic to get agentic in all its productivity products. A big new hyperscaler startup has raised a monster round. And could the war with Iran be something that could pop the AI bubble? Anthropic is suing the Department of Defense (The Verge) Microsoft announces Copilot Cowork with help from Anthropic — a cloud-powered AI agent that works across M365 apps (VentureBeat) Nscale Raises $2 Billion and Adds Sandberg, Clegg to Board (Bloomberg) Iran War Imperils $300 Billion in Gulf AI Spending (The Information) When Using AI Leads to “Brain Fry” (HBR) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dario might need some message discipline as Anthropic is officially designated a risk by the US government. GPT-5.4 is here. Oracle is considering laying off a ton of people and Softbank is considering taking on a ton of debt, both for the same reason. An early warning system for AI job destruction. And, of course, The Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Anthropic says it will challenge Defense Department's supply chain risk designation in court (Engadget) Anthropic CEO apologizes for lashing out at Trump as he gears up for court battle with Pentagon (NYPost) OpenAI’s new GPT-5.4 model is a big step toward autonomous agents (The Verge) Oracle Plans Thousands of Job Cuts in Face of AI Cash Crunch (Bloomberg) SoftBank Seeks Record Loan of Up to $40 Billion for OpenAI Stake (Bloomberg) Anthropic launches AI job destruction detector (Axios) Labor market impacts of AI: A new measure and early evidence (Anthropic) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: SpaceX: the final frontier of IPOs (FT) Who needs data centers in space when they can float offshore? (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is the long war between Google and Epic Games finally over? OpenAI wants you to know its revenue numbers are also stellar. Maybe ChatGPT isn’t so great at medical advice. Maybe the chip shortage isn’t great for Nintendo specifically. And maybe the MacBook Nano isn’t great for the Windows ecosystem generally. Google Revamps Android App Stores to Resolve Antitrust Claims (Bloomberg) Tim Sweeney signed away his right to criticize Google until 2032 (The Verge) Google’s AI-powered workspace is now available to more users in Search (The Verge) OpenAI Tops $25 Billion in Annualized Revenue as Anthropic Narrows Gap (The Information) ChatGPT Health 'under-triaged' half of medical emergencies in a new study (NBC News) Nintendo Switch 2 Users Face Storage Woes as Memory Crisis Bites (Bloomberg) I can't believe it: Apple’s $599 MacBook Neo just lit a monstrous fire under the Windows laptop market — Microsoft better be panicking (Windows Central) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple unveils its Chromebook sort of competitor, the MacBook Neo. Anthropic might be the fastest growing startup in history. Polymarket will no longer let you bet on thermonuclear war. Sony will no longer plans to release its big single-player PlayStation 5 games on PC. Apple announces $599 MacBook Neo running A18 Pro chip — budget laptop features 16-hour battery and comes in fun colors (Tom's Hardware) MacBook Neo hands-on: Apple's $599 laptop feels shockingly great (Engadget) Anthropic’s Claude hits No. 1 on Apple’s top free apps list after Pentagon rejection (CNBC) Exclusive: Anthropic investors push to de-escalate Pentagon clash over AI safeguards, sources say (Reuters) Polymarket shelves nuclear detonation markets after outcry (CoinDesk) Sony Pulls Back From PlayStation Games on PC (Bloomberg) A Possible US Government iPhone-Hacking Toolkit Is Now in the Hands of Foreign Spies and Criminals (Wired) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple continues its week of product refreshes, now with MacBooks, now with new M5 Pro and M5 Max chips. People continue to get rich frontrunning news on the betting markets. And Sam Altman says, no, sorry, we rushed things. The government swears it won’t use our AI for mass surveillance after we asked them nicely not to. Apple announces M5 MacBook Air with 2x storage, $1099 starting price (9to5Mac) Apple Unveils MacBook Pro Featuring M5 Pro and M5 Max Chips With New Fusion Architecture (MacRumors) Apple unveils M5 Pro and M5 Max chips with new ‘Fusion Architecture’ (TechCrunch) Polymarket Iran Bets Hit $529 Million as New Wallets Win Big (Bloomberg) Google unveils cost-efficient AI model Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite (SeekingAlpha) Audible Launches Cheaper Plan to Appeal to Streaming Audiences (Bloomberg) OpenAI makes changes to ‘opportunistic and sloppy’ Pentagon deal (Financial Times) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apparently, it’s going to be a week of Apple updates and it kicks off with the iPhone 17e and an M4 iPad Air. AWS service is struggling in the Middle East. An important ruling in terms of AI copyright. Anthropic makes it easy to switch to Claude. And what exactly went on with that whole Pentagon/Anthropic dispute. ⁠Apple announces the iPhone 17E⁠ (The Verge) ⁠Apple speeds up the iPad Air with an M4 upgrade, starting at $599 ⁠(TechCrunch) ⁠Amazon's cloud unit reports fire after objects hit UAE data center ⁠(Reuters) ⁠US Supreme Court declines to hear dispute over copyrights for AI-generated material⁠ (Reuters) ⁠Anthropic's Claude can now absorb your past conversations with other AI chatbots⁠ (Engadget) ⁠Inside Anthropic’s Killer-Robot Dispute With the Pentagon⁠ (The Atlantic) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I’ve got everything for you today. OpenAI closed its round. Anthropic draws a line with the Pentagon and Sam Altman supports it. A huge AI inspired layoff round, maybe. Netflix walks away from the deal, and, of course, The Weekend Longreads Suggestions. OpenAI announces $110 billion funding round with backing from Amazon, Nvidia, SoftBank (CNBC) Sam Altman says OpenAI shares Anthropic's red lines in Pentagon fight (Axios) Employees at Google and OpenAI support Anthropic’s Pentagon stand in open letter (TechCrunch) Block shares soar as much as 24% as company slashes workforce by nearly half (CNBC) Netflix ditches deal for Warner Bros. Discovery after Paramount’s offer is deemed superior (CNBC) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: The Looming Taiwan Chip Disaster That Silicon Valley Has Long Ignored (NYTimes) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nano Banana 2 is here already. Nvidia tries to assure everybody there IS no bubble. Marc Benioff tries to assure everybody there IS not SaaS-pocalypse. Did Google just do exactly what Apple has been unable to do? And how do you put an old AI model out to pasture? You give it a Substack. Google’s Nano Banana 2 brings advanced AI image tools to free users (The Verge) Nvidia Shares Slide After Sales Forecast Underwhelms Investors (Bloomberg) Salesforce chief dismisses ‘SaaS-pocalypse’ fears of AI overtaking business software (FT) New York sues video game developer Valve, says its 'loot boxes' are gambling (Reuters) Google and Samsung just launched the AI features Apple couldn’t with Siri (The Verge) Cloudflare experiment ports most of Next.js API 'in one week' with AI (The Register) Anthropic gives its retired Claude AI a Substack (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The new Galaxy S26 lineup is here. Remote control for Claude is here. But is Anthropic about to wash its hands when it comes to working with the Pentagon? Could Stripe buy PayPal. Oh, and speaking of AI and war, you might not want to hear how often AI chose thermonuclear war when it was asked to play a wargame. I tried the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra and need the Privacy Display feature on my iPhone ASAP (ZDNet) Gemini is getting its first agentic capabilities (The Verge) Exclusive: Hegseth gives Anthropic until Friday to back down on AI safeguards (Axios) Anthropic digs in heels in dispute with Pentagon, source says (Axios) Anthropic just released a mobile version of Claude Code called Remote Control (VentureBeat) Payments Processor Stripe Expresses Interest in PayPal (Bloomberg) AI Models Deployed Nuclear Weapons in 95% of War Game Simulations, Study Finds (Implicator.ai) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

That AI essay I shared with you yesterday sure got Wall Street’s attention. Anthropic says Chinese models are training off of Claude. A significant new breakthrough in chip production technology. And as fun as that tri-fold phone might be, you probably want to wait for later iterations of the form factor. Software Stocks Are Having Another Ugly Day (WSJ) Anthropic Accuses Chinese Companies of Siphoning Data From Claude (WSJ) Meta and AMD Agree to AI Chips Deal Worth More Than $100 Billion (WSJ) Exclusive: ASML unveils EUV light source advance that could yield 50% more chips by 2030 (Reuters) Putting Samsung’s $2,899 TriFold To the Test as a Phone, Tablet and Laptop (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sam Altman has a lot of stuff to say about AI and let’s just say comms needs to have a quiet word with him. SaaS may or may not be dead, but is the replacement vertical AI? And a big thought experiment. If the AI bulls are right and AI transforms the economy, what might that look like? Sam Altman Says Companies Are ‘AI Washing’ Layoffs (Gizmodo) People Loved the Dot-Com Boom. The A.I. Boom, Not So Much. (NYTimes) Sam Altman would like to remind you that humans use a lot of energy, too (TechCrunch) Half the AI Agent Market Is One Category. The Rest Is Wide Open. (Garry's List) Google Restricts AI Ultra Subscribers Over OpenClaw OAuth, Days After Anthropic Ban (Implicator.ai) THE 2028 GLOBAL INTELLIGENCE CRISIS (Citrini Research) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When your AI bot breaks your operations, even when you’re AWS. More on OpenAI’s hardware plans. Hey, remember Perplexity? What’s up with them? Is Uber roadkill in the self-driving car horserace? And, of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Amazon service was taken down by AI coding bot (FT) Ex-Googlers Charged With Stealing Phone Processor Secrets (Bloomberg) OpenAI Plans to Price Smart Speaker at $200 to $300, as AI Device Team Takes Shape (The Information) Microsoft has a new plan to prove what’s real and what’s AI online (MIT Technology Review) Perplexity’s Retreat From Ads Signals a Bigger Strategic Shift (Wired) Uber, Latest Victim of Disruption Panic, Still Has Role in Robotaxis (WSJ) Weekend Longreads Suggestion: Who needs a laptop when you have a folding phone? (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gemini is getting with the increased cadence of AI releases. Honestly, can we even keep up at this point? A dispatch from the social media trial as Zuck takes the stand. At long last, Amazon dethrones Walmart. Apple seems poised to unleash a slew of AI wearables. And the new storage system to preserve data, Canticle for Leibowitz-style. Google announces Gemini 3.1 Pro for ‘complex problem-solving’ (9to5Google) Mark Zuckerberg said he reached out to Apple CEO Tim Cook to discuss ‘wellbeing of teens and kids’ (CNBC) Amazon Dethrones Walmart as World’s Biggest Company by Sales (Bloomberg) Apple Ramps Up Work on Glasses, Pendant, and Camera AirPods for AI Era (Bloomberg) Microsoft’s Glass Chip Holds Terabytes of Data for 10,000 Years (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New pixel phone. A bunch of new AI models including Gemini’s entry into the music AI space. Everybody is trying to make AI fetch happen in India. And Matthew Ball’s state of the gaming industry report doesn’t paint as gloomy a picture as our own headlines might have suggested this year. The Pixel 10A is a little too much like last year’s phone (The Verge) Anthropic releases Sonnet 4.6 (TechCrunch) Google’s AI music maker is coming to the Gemini app (The Verge) Adani bets $100 billion on data centres to power India’s AI ambitions (Reuters) Nvidia secures multibillion-dollar Meta deal as it battles chip rivals (FT) Global game content sales rose 5.3% to $195.6bn in 2025 (GamesIndustry.biz) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The big regulatory guns are out for Grok. Memory chip shortage now hit the Steam Deck. Manus is already coming to your favorite messaging app. Turns out Buy Now Pay Later really works for vacations. And another lengthy AI essay, this time detailing what it’s doing, and has the potential to do to SaaS companies. EU privacy watchdog opens probe into Elon Musk’s X over sexualised AI images (FT) Valve’s Steam Deck OLED will be ‘intermittently’ out of stock because of the RAM crisis (The Verge) Raspberry Pi soars 40% as CEO buys stock, AI chatter builds (Reuters) Meta-owned Manus launches AI agents on Telegram (SiliconRepublic) Airbnb expands its “Reserve Now, Pay Later” globally (TechCrunch) 10 Years Building Vertical Software: My Perspective on the Selloff (@nicbstme) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenClaw’s creator is joining OpenAI, but the OpenClaw project lives on. The AI-caused memory shortage might delay the next Playstation. Is the Pentagon about to cut ties with Anthropic? And Vitalik Buterin is growing concerned with the prediction markets. OpenClaw founder Peter Steinberger is joining OpenAI (The Verge) Peter Steinberger Chose OpenAI. The Code Was Never the Point. (Implicator.AI) Rampant AI Demand for Memory Is Fueling a Growing Chip Crisis (Bloomberg) ByteDance to curb AI video app after Disney legal threat (BBC) Exclusive: Pentagon threatens to cut off Anthropic in AI safeguards dispute (Axios) The hidden infrastructure crisis in mortgage and real estate finance that only tokenization can solve (Crypto.news) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Anthropic raises the second largest financing round of all time. Other AI players are beginning to show hockey stick revenue growth. Meta wants to add facial recognition to its glasses. Ring pulls back from some recognition partnerships for its camera. And, of course, your Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Anthropic closes $30 billion funding round as cash keeps flowing into top AI startups (CNBC) Enterprise AI startup Cohere tops revenue target as momentum builds to IPO: Investor memo (CNBC) Meta Plans to Add Facial Recognition Technology to Its Smart Glasses (NYTimes) Ring cancels its partnership with Flock Safety after surveillance backlash (The Verge) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: The AI Gold Rush Is Breaking a Silicon Valley Taboo: Cashing Out Before the IPO (WSJ) The New Fabio Is Claude (NYTimes) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aaannddd…. Right on time here come the Chinese AI models. Elon Musk kicks off a major reorg of xAI. Google is warning of AI distillation attacks. New Waymo cars hit the road. And another interesting AI essay to read to you. Chinese AI startup Zhipu releases new flagship model GLM-5 (Reuters) Musk announces xAI re-org following co-founder departures, SpaceX merger (CNBC) Elon Musk Wants to Build an A.I. Satellite Factory on the Moon (NYTimes) Google says attackers used 100,000+ prompts to try to clone AI chatbot Gemini (NBCNews) Waymo begins deploying next-gen Ojai robotaxis to extend its U.S. lead (CNBC) The AI Vampire (Steve Yegge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Forget the ChatGPT moment, is this the “Covid Moment” for AI, the moment when everything has changed its just that not everyone knows it yet? More weird musical chairs at the AI companies. TikTok but for around the block. And do we finally have a universal translator but for phone calls? ⁠Something Big Is Happening⁠ (Matt Shumer) ⁠OpenAI Executive Who Opposed ‘Adult Mode’ Fired for Sexual Discrimination⁠ (WSJ) ⁠TikTok launches an opt-in Local Feed in the US leveraging users’ precise location⁠ (TechCrunch) ⁠T-Mobile will live translate regular phone calls without an app⁠ (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So, have you hit the ads in ChatGPT yet, cause they’re there. Spotify comes out of nowhere with killer good earnings. The coming tidal wave of Chinese AI launches. The coming deluge of social media trials. And does AI usage reduce the amount of work you do, or actually compound it? OpenAI begins testing ads in ChatGPT (Mashable) Spotify Shares Surge After Adding Record Number of New Users (Bloomberg) Alibaba, Tencent, and ByteDance Offer AI Red Packets to Lure Users (Bloomberg) New Mexico lawsuit accuses Meta of failing to protect children from sexual exploitation online (AP) AI Doesn't Reduce Work, It Intensifies It (HBR) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sam Altman assures staff that OpenAI has a good week, but is Anthropic definitively growing faster at this point? Is the CapEx spend about to eat ALL of Silicon Valley’s free cashflow while Apple sits out the party? And the Crypto.com guy runs the same playbook but now with Ai.com. Sam Altman touts ChatGPT’s reaccelerating growth to employees as OpenAI closes in on $100 billion funding (CNBC) How Capex Ramp Up Will Squeeze Google, Amazon, Meta (The Information) Apple is the only Big Tech company whose capex declined last quarter (Sherwood) A New AI Video Model From ByteDance is Making Waves (PetaPixel) Claude Code is the Inflection Point (SemiAnalysis) Crypto.com CEO unveils new AI agents to millions during Super Bowl (CoinTelegraph) From Svedka to Anthropic, brands make bold plays with AI in Super Bowl ads (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Claude Opus 4.6 arrives to crown Anthropic’s very good week, at least, for them it was good. You thought tech was spending big to build out for AI, but this week we’ve seen how big. Crypto seems to have really hit a sharp bear market. And in the Weekend Longreads Suggestions, tv piracy is back, baby! Anthropic Releases New Model That’s Adept at Financial Research (Bloomberg) Anthropic debuts new model with hopes to corner the market beyond coding (The Verge) Big Tech to Spend $650 Billion This Year as AI Race Intensifies (Bloomberg) Europe Accuses TikTok of ‘Addictive Design’ and Pushes for Change (NYTimes) Bitcoin Falls Below $70,000 as Market Faces a ‘Crisis of Faith’ (Bloomberg) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Inside Elon Musk’s $1.25 Trillion AI and Space Megamerger (WSJ) Everyone is stealing TV (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alphabet earnings. Claude goes to the Superbowl. Why AI brand loyalty isn’t even remotely a thing yet. And is the whole Marc Andreessen theory of software eating the world in the process of being eaten by AI? Wall Street is worried about that very scenario. Google set to double AI spending to $185bn after strong earnings (FT) OpenAI Frontier is a single platform to control your AI agents (The Verge) Anthropic says ‘Claude will remain ad-free,’ unlike ChatGPT (The Verge) Microsoft’s Pivotal AI Product Is Running Into Big Problems (WSJ) New Data: OpenAI’s Lead Is Contracting as AI Competition Intensifies (Big Technology) Threat of New AI Tools Wipes $300 Billion Off Software and Data Stocks (WSJ) AI Won’t Kill the Software Business, Just Its Growth Story (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Check out Jaime's book: Ding Dong: How Ring Went From Shark Tank Reject To Everyone's Front Door Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As SpaceX acquires xAI, all of Elon’s companies under one umbrella is pretty much an inevitability isn’t it? What is with this weird game of chicken that Nvidia and OpenAI and now Oracle are all engaging in all of the sudden. And self-driving cars are about to be ubiquitous, indication number 37. Musk’s SpaceX Combines With xAI at $1.25 Trillion Valuation (Bloomberg) SpaceX acquires xAI, plans to launch a massive satellite constellation to power it (ArsTechnica) OpenAI's Codex just got its own Mac app - and anyone can try it for free now (ZDNet) Exclusive: OpenAI is unsatisfied with some Nvidia chips and looking for alternatives, sources say (Reuters) Waymo Raises $16 Billion From Alphabet and Others to Expand (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is Nvidia going through with their massive OpenAI investment or not? Does Apple have what it takes to win in the AI era or not? Is Elon the only one who can make datacenters in space happen or not? And a roundup of the continued fascination with Moltbook. The $100 Billion Megadeal Between OpenAI and Nvidia Is on Ice (WSJ) Nvidia CEO Says New OpenAI Investment May Be Largest Yet (Bloomberg) Apple’s Historic Quarter Doesn’t Change the Need for AI Reckoning (Bloomberg) SpaceX seeks FCC nod for solar-powered satellite data centers for AI (Reuters) How often do AI chatbots lead users down a harmful path? (ArsTechnica) Moltbook is the most interesting place on the internet right now (Simon Willison) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple does a big acquisition. OpenAI is racing to IPO. Elon might just merge all his companies into one. Google’s Project Genie is the latest thing that will make you say, gee, AI can do that?! And, of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Apple buys Israeli start-up Q.AI for close to $2bn in race to build AI devices (FT) OpenAI Plans Fourth-Quarter IPO in Race to Beat Anthropic to Market (WSJ) SpaceX in merger talks with other Musk companies ahead of IPO (Reuters) Elon Musk’s SpaceX Said to Consider Merger With Tesla or xAI (Bloomberg) Google’s AI helped me make bad Nintendo knockoffs (The Verge) Moltbot Gets Another New Name, OpenClaw, And Triggers Security Fears And Scams (Forbes) Weekend Longread: To avoid accusations of AI cheating, college students are turning to AI (NBCNews) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Meta earnings good. The street like the AI spending. Microsoft earnings bad. Why is growth in their cloud business not as robust all of the sudden? Elon is following through on taking Tesla all in on robots and AI. The AI inspired layoffs are NOT just for the tech industry. And are you actually technical enough to run that Clawdbot? Zuckerberg teases agentic commerce tools and major AI rollout in 2026 (TechCrunch) Microsoft stock drops 7% on slowing cloud growth, light margin guidance (CNBC) Tesla scraps models in pivot to AI as annual revenue falls for first time (FT) Dow to Cut 4,500 Employees in AI Overhaul (WSJ) Waymo robotaxi hits a child near an elementary school in Santa Monica (TechCrunch) Tiny startup Arcee AI built a 400B-parameter open source LLM from scratch to best Meta’s Llama (TechCrunch) Clawdbot sheds skin to become Moltbot, can't slough off security issues (The Register) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amazon layoffs showed up on schedule. Is Tether behind the rise in the price of gold? A new type of privacy screen tech from Samsung. Elon wants to IPO on his birthday. Anthropic raises more ahead of its IPO. And AI is finding weird stuff in Space. Amazon says it is laying off 16,000 employees (TechCrunch) Tether Is Shaking Up the Gold Market With Massive Metal Hoard (Bloomberg) Samsung confirms Galaxy S26's insane 'pixel level' privacy feature (SamMobile) SpaceX weighs June IPO timed to planetary alignment and Elon Musk’s birthday (FT) Anthropic doubles VC fundraising to $20bn on surging investor demand (FT) Anthropic Hikes 2026 Revenue Forecast 20% but Delays When It Will Go Cash Flow Positive (The Information) Astronomers used AI to find 1,400 ‘anomalous objects’ from Hubble archives (The Verge) RideHomeFund News: CrowdStrike buys identity security startup SGNL for $740 million in latest deal push Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I think we have to gird ourselves for a slew of Chinese AI releases in the coming weeks. Are AI inspired layoffs poised to sweep the tech industry? Meta goes with subscriptions. Uber wants to train AI for others. And Dario Amodei has a pretty stark warning about AI. China’s Moonshot Unveils AI Model Ahead of DeepSeek Release (Bloomberg) Pinterest laying off 15% of workforce in push toward AI roles and teams (CNBC) TikTok says a power outage caused a 'cascading systems failure' that messed up its algorithm (BusinessInsider) Meta to test premium subscriptions on Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp (TechCrunch) Uber launches an ‘AV Labs’ division to gather driving data for robotaxi partners (TechCrunch) Thread On The Amodei Essay @aakashgupta Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Did you even notice that new TikTok privacy policy over the weekend? AirTags finally have a second generation. Microsoft confirms it will give out your BitLocker recovery keys if you’re silly enough to store them with them. And let me introduce you to Clawdbot. Since you can’t see the spelling, you won’t understand how this is different until I explain. TikTok Is Now Collecting Even More Data About Its Users. Here Are the 3 Biggest Changes (Wired) Apple launches AirTag 2 with improved range, louder speaker, more (9to5Mac) EU opens formal probe into Musk’s xAI over Grok deepfakes (FT) Latest ChatGPT model uses Elon Musk’s Grokipedia as source, tests reveal (The Guardian) Microsoft Gave FBI Keys To Unlock Encrypted Data, Exposing Major Privacy Flaw (Forbes) Clawdbot Showed Me What the Future of Personal AI Assistants Looks Like (MacStories) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ok, ok, maybe the whole TikTok thing is a done deal at long last? Amazon is planning another major round of layoffs. Are Epic Games and Google doing an end-run around the judge? Capital One acquires Brex. And, of course, The Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Trump’s TikTok deal is a gift to China (FT) Exclusive: Amazon plans thousands more corporate job cuts next week, sources say (Reuters) Epic and Google have a secret $800 million Unreal Engine and services deal (The Verge) Apple Expands Hardware Chief's Role (Bloomberg) Capital One Strikes $5.15 Billion Deal for Fintech Brex (WSJ) Weekend Longreads Suggestion: Russia, Ukraine and the race for Chinese drone components (FT) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple is developing their own AI wearable, the size of an AirTag. Anthropic overhauls Claude’s constitution. South Korea is the latest place to ride the AI rocket ship. And I think I know why your boss thinks AI is the solution to everything: it’s the solution to all of the work THEY have to do. Apple Developing AI Wearable Pin (The Information) Anthropic rewrites Claude’s guiding principles—and entertains the idea that its AI might have ‘some kind of consciousness or moral status’ (Fortune) Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin launches satellite internet service to rival SpaceX, Amazon (CNBC) South Korean leader celebrates ‘Kospi 5,000’ moment as stock market soars (FT) CEOs Say AI Is Making Work More Efficient. Employees Tell a Different Story. (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anthropic continues to project strength in the AI race. How OpenAI is rolling out ads on ChatGPT. Netflix wants to become TikTok faster than TikTok can become them. YouTube wants to have it both ways when it comes to AI. And Elon wants SpaceX to win the great IPO race of 2026. Anthropic’s CEO stuns Davos with Nvidia criticism (TechCrunch) OpenAI rolls out age prediction on ChatGPT (Reuters) OpenAI Lines Up Advertisers, Reveals Key Details Ahead of Ads Launch (The Information) Netflix Is Testing Vertical Video Features For Mobile (THR) YouTubers will be able to make Shorts with their own AI likenesses (The Verge) YouTube CEO Neal Mohan’s Big Ideas for 2026: More Superstar Creators and Transparency, Less AI Slop (THR) Why Elon Musk Is Racing to Take SpaceX Public (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Netflix ups its bid with all cash. Sony is spinning off its legendary TV business with TCL. One of the biggest seed rounds I’ve ever heard of. Reels continues to win for Zuck. And let me introduce you to the “Assistant Axis” and what it might mean for AI. Netflix revises its offer for Warner Bros. Discovery. Now, it’s all cash (CNN) Sony’s TV business is being taken over by TCL (The Verge) An A.I. Start-Up Says It Wants to Empower Workers, Not Replace Them (NYTimes) Most of Instagram’s ads ran on Reels in 2025, data shows (CNBC) Anthropic Uncovers AI Personality Crisis as Models Secretly Switch Identities (eWeek) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ads are finally coming to ChatGPT. Why everyone online can’t stop talking about going on Claude benders. Elon’s case against OpenAI moves forward again. The Thinking Machines saga roils on again. And the big movie about AI every is apparently watching. OpenAI brings advertising to ChatGPT in push for new revenue (FT) OpenAI's Revenue Soars Past $20 Billion After 233% Jump—But Explosive Growth Comes With Massive Compute Costs And A $17 Billion Burn Rate (Benzinga) Claude Is Taking the AI World by Storm, and Even Non-Nerds Are Blown Away (WSJ) ‘No Reasons to Own’: Software Stocks Sink on Fear of New AI Tool (Bloomberg) Musk Seeks Up to $134 Billion Damages From OpenAI, Microsoft (Bloomberg) Thinking Machines Exodus Tests Investor Appetite for a $50 Billion Valuation (The Information) There’s a Hit Movie Set Deep Inside an AI Lab—and It Will Give You Goosebumps (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More fallout from the Thinking Machines stuff. I’m officially calling it: I think the Metaverse is over, at least at Meta. Cloudflare continues to make an effort to protect the web and creators from AI strip mining. And, of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apparently their ain’t no drama like AI industry drama, proven once again by some high-profile defections from Thinking Machine Labs. Grok says it’s cleaned up its act. TSMC is winning thanks to AI. More price rises from Spotify. And why is Ireland missing out on the AI datacenter boom? Two Thinking Machines Lab Cofounders Are Leaving to Rejoin OpenAI (Wired) Grok was finally updated to stop undressing women and children, X Safety says (ArsTechnica) TSMC delivers another record quarter as profit jumps 35% fueled by robust AI chip demand (CNBC) Ireland Is Trying to Get Back on the Data Center Bandwagon (Bloomberg) Spotify Raises Premium Subscription Prices in US to $13 a Month (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nvidia can officially sell its chips in China, but not if China doesn’t let anyone buy them. Tesla will stop selling FSD beginning next month. Matthew McConaughey says NOT alright alright alright to unauthorized AI use of his voice. And another story about how AI is disrupting the consultancy game. Exclusive: China's customs agents told Nvidia's H200 chips are not permitted, sources say (Reuters) Meta is closing down three VR studios as part of its metaverse cuts (The Verge) Tesla Driver-Assist System FSD Will Switch to Subscription-Only, Musk Says (Bloomberg) Matthew McConaughey Trademarks Himself to Fight AI Misuse (WSJ) Microsoft’s Spending on Anthropic AI Is on Pace to Hit $500 Million (The Information) Apple Struggling With Key Material Shortage as AI Chips Drain Supply (MacRumors) McKinsey challenges graduates to use AI chatbot in recruitment overhaul (FT) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Microsoft tries to calm data center buildout backlash. Layoffs come to the Metaverse. Apple has a new creator subscription package. More implications from that Apple/Google AI deal from yesterday. And is Cowork for Claude the personal AI agent we’ve been waiting for? Microsoft responds to AI data center revolt, vowing to cover full power costs and reject local tax breaks (GeekWire) Meta Begins Job Cuts as It Shifts From Metaverse to AI Devices (Bloomberg) Apple debuts ‘Apple Creator Studio’ subscription, here’s what you get (9to5Mac) Google Gemini Partnership With Apple Will Go Beyond Siri Revamp (MacRumors) Anthropic’s new Cowork tool offers Claude Code without the code (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple announces that its going with Google’s Gemini to power Siri later this year, and Google joins the $4T club on the news. Governments around the world are still mad at Grok. AI has essentially killed Stack Overflow but its making more money than it ever has. And how you get get AI to give you the full text of books. Apple picks Google’s Gemini to run AI-powered Siri coming this year (CNBC) UK’s Ofcom investigates X over Grok’s sexualised AI images of women and children (FT) Anthropic expands into healthcare a week after OpenAI launched a similar product (Business Insider) Stack Overflow’s forum is dead thanks to AI, but the company’s still kicking... thanks to AI (Sherwood News) AI’s Memorization Crisis (The Atlantic) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grok dials back the AI image generation thing. Kinda. xAI just raised all that money cause it kinda has to. Looks like the next Deep Seek model is incoming. Why a16z is officially the biggest VC firm in all the world. And, of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. No, Grok hasn’t paywalled its deepfake image feature (The Verge) Musk’s xAI Burns Almost $8 Billion, Reveals Optimus Plan (Bloomberg) Chinese Firms Dominated Global Humanoid Robot Shipments in 2025 (Bloomberg) DeepSeek To Release Next Flagship AI Model With Strong Coding Ability (The Information) Andreessen Horowitz raises $15 billion for new funds (Axios) A16z’s $15 Billion Fund Vacuumed Up A Fifth Of Venture Dollars Raised Last Year (Forbes) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: The Man Who Could Be Apple’s Next C.E.O. (NYTimes) The cost of America’s nuclear revival (FT) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grok and X have been letting people create some risqué and in some cases, probably illegal images, and governments around the world are getting pissed. Does Google think AI can obviate your email inbox? And would you upload your medical history to ChatGPT? Sam Altman is asking you to. Grok Is Generating Sexual Content Far More Graphic Than What's on X (Wired) Google is taking over your Gmail inbox with AI (The Verge) OpenAI launches ChatGPT Health, encouraging users to connect their medical records (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

xAI has raised another monster round. Polymarket has yet another controversy around whether a bet should pay out or not. Could the AI datacenter buildout actually disrupt politics in local America? And a sort of roundup of what’s been at CES so far. Elon Musk’s xAI Raises $20 Billion (NYTimes) Polymarket refuses to pay bets that US would ‘invade’ Venezuela (FT) Americans Hate AI. Which Party Will Benefit? (Politico) The data center rebellion is here, and it’s reshaping the political landscape (Washington Post) Three Reasons We Can’t Get Enough of LinkedIn (WSJ) What surprised us the most at CES 2026 (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nvidia launches its next chip platform. AMD says, hey, us too! Also, did you know Nvidia is building self-driving car platforms? Did you know Dell is bring the XPS brand back? And did you know that the most interesting product launch I’ve seen so far has come from Lego? Nvidia launches Vera Rubin AI computing platform at CES 2026 (The Verge) AMD shows off new higher performing AI chip at CES event (Reuters) I tested Nvidia’s Tesla Full Self-Driving competitor — Tesla should be worried (The Verge) Dell Admits It Made a Huge Mistake When It Abandoned XPS (Gizmodo) Robot Vacuum Maker Roborock Shows Off Stair-Climbing Model With Legs (Bloomberg) Lego announces Smart Brick, the ‘most significant evolution’ in 50 years (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Coming to you live from Las Vegas with the first of the CES madness. More signs that insider betting on prediction markets is going to become something we’re going to have to live with. Is Reddit bigger than TikTok now, at least by one measure? And how Reels became bigger than YouTube by maybe the most important measure. Exclusive: Samsung to double AI mobile devices to 800 million units this year (Reuters) Voice control opening and closing comes to Samsung’s Family Hub smart fridges (The Verge) Someone made a ton of money betting on Maduro’s capture (The Verge) SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic prepare to launch landmark IPOs (Financial Times) Reddit overtakes TikTok in UK thanks to search algorithms and gen Z (The Guardian) How Meta’s Reels Became a $50 Billion Business (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More on Manus, who they are, how they got positioned to sell, and more on what Meta wants to do with them. Open AI is paying employees more than anyone in history. The TriFold phone is a bit a dud. And, of course, the weekend longreads suggestion. How Meta’s Newest Acquisition Target Got Around Worries Over Its Ties to China (WSJ) Manus: The Hands of AI Fate (Spyglass) Musk’s xAI Buys Building to Expand ‘Colossus’ Data Center (Bloomberg) OpenAI Is Paying Employees More Than Any Major Tech Startup in History (WSJ) AI Trade’s Next Leg Is All About Tech’s ‘Pick-and-Shovel’ Stocks (Bloomberg) Samsung’s First Trifold Phone Is Expensive and Half-Baked (Bloomberg) Weekend Longreads Suggestion: 2025 letter (Zhengdong Wang) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This flurry of M&A deals at the end of the year (I have another one to tell you about) are people getting out while the getting is good, or is this just the start of what’s going to be a big deal in 2026? And are half of the big VC raises we’re seeing just folks trying to build up cash reserves to hedge either way? Meta to Buy Manus, an AI Startup With Chinese Roots (Bloomberg) After a Year of Blistering Growth, AI Chip Makers Get Ready for Bigger 2026 (WSJ) AI start-ups amass record $150bn funding cushion as bubble fears mount (WSJ) Microsoft’s Nadella overhauls leadership as he plots AI strategy beyond OpenAI (FT) Waymo and Other Driverless Taxis Move Into a New Era (Bloomberg) Listen to This: Some Audiobooks Are Outselling Hardcovers (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nvidia kindaquires Groq I’ll tell you what we think the strategy is here. A shot across my bow that CES is next week. Accountants shut down remote testing because of AI. And for all the recent bullishness, an honest look at the immediate limitations of today’s robotics. Nvidia Reaches Technology Licensing Deal With Startup Groq (Bloomberg) Why Nvidia Struck a $20 Billion Megadeal with Groq (The Information) Samsung brings Google Photos to the biggest screen in your home (AndroidPolice) Accounting body scraps remote exams to combat cheating (Financial Times) Even the Companies Making Humanoid Robots Think They’re Overhyped (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Well, turns out my spidey sense was right cause there definitely seems to be a new tech trade war brewing between the US and Europe. Seems like ads are definitely coming to ChatGPT. How bitcoin miners are pivoting to AI. And why Netflix wants to get into dayparting. US bars five Europeans it says pressured tech firms to censor American viewpoints online (AP) OpenAI’s Ads Push Starts Taking Shape (The Information) AST SpaceMobile Launches Biggest Satellite to Challenge SpaceX (Bloomberg) Bitcoin Miners Thrive Off a New Side Hustle: Retooling Their Data Centers for AI (WSJ) YouTube Has a Firm Grip on Daytime TV (NYTimes) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: The Hottest Toy of the Year Is Made by a Tech Startup You’ve Never Heard Of (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I hope you weren’t expecting Santa to leave a drone under the tree this week. Europe is forcing Apple to pair nicely with others. More signs of the AI fueled debt explosion. And in the year of the stablecoin, the rise of stablecoin-based banks. U.S. Bans New China-Made Drones, Sparking Outrage Among Pilots (WSJ) Pentagon Adds Grok-Derived Products to Something Called the ‘AI Arsenal’ (Gizmodo) iOS 26.3 Brings AirPods-Like Pairing to Third-Party Devices in EU Under DMA (MacRumors) AI debt boom pushes US corporate bond sales close to record (Financial Times) A $309 Billion Bet Fuels 24/7 Dollar Banking Without Borders (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Turns out when the lights go out, Waymo’s don’t handle that well. Larry Ellison actually puts his money on the line. Somebody is pirating music like it’s 1999. And two deep-dive looks at whether or not Google’s TPU’s really are a threat to Nvidia and OpenAI. Waymo resumes robotaxi service in San Francisco after blackout chaos — Musk says Tesla car service unaffected (CNBC) Paramount guarantees Larry Ellison backing in amended WBD bid (CNBC) Instacart Scraps All Price Tests After Customer Pushback (WSJ) Spotify Music Library Scraped by Pirate Activist Group (Billboard) ChatGPT will now let you pick how nice it is (The Verge) TPU Mania (The Chip Letter) Why Nvidia maintains its moat and Gemini won’t kill OpenAI (SiliconANGLE) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Has TikTok finally been sold, episode number 47… The Pennsylvania supreme court says police don’t need a warrant to read your search history. YouTube terminates some big accounts over AI usage. A new League of Legends is coming. And in the longreads, and in the show, a look at how Zuck’s big bet on AI is coming along. Scoop: TikTok signs deal for U.S. unit after yearslong saga (Axios) TikTok U.S. Deal to Close Next Month: Oracle and Silver Lake Confirmed in Buyer Consortium (The Hollywood Reporter) Pa. high court rules that police can access Google searches without a warrant (The Record) Meta Is Developing a New AI Image and Video Model Code-Named ‘Mango’ (WSJ) YouTube Shuts Down Channels Using AI To Create Fake Movie Trailers Watched By Millions (Deadline) Riot Has a Secret Plan to Remake Its ‘League of Legends’ Game (Bloomberg) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Inside Mark Zuckerberg’s turbulent bet on AI (FT) Economics of Orbital vs Terrestrial Data Centers (Andrew McCalip) Feeding the Machine (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Has China cracked a major puzzle for chip parity? Trump Media merges with a… Fusion Energy startup? Coinbase continues its efforts to let you trade everything. OpenAI is turning on the fundraising afterburners. And how to catch a North Korean IT infiltrator. China may have reverse engineered EUV lithography tool in covert lab, report claims — employees given fake IDs to avoid secret project being detected, prototypes expected in 2028 (Tom's Hardware) Trump media group agrees $6bn merger with Google-backed fusion energy company (FT) Coinbase adds prediction markets and stock trading in push to be one-stop trading app (CNBC) OpenAI Has Discussed Raising Tens of Billions at Valuation Around $750 Billion (The Information) Amazon Caught North Korean IT Worker By Tracing Keystroke Data (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ChatGPT ups its image generation game. Now it’s Amazon’s turn to invest in OpenAI. WBD says it still wants to go with the Netflix offer. Waymo’s raising money again. And the new AI sort of newsletter Google wants to put in your inbox every morning. OpenAI’s ChatGPT Updated to Make Images Better and Faster (Bloomberg) ChatGPT Images just got a major upgrade — and it could change how we all create (TechRadar) OpenAI in Talks to Raise At Least $10 Billion From Amazon and Use Its AI Chips (The Information) Coursera to buy Udemy, creating $2.5 billion firm to target AI training (Reuters) Warner Rejects Paramount’s Hostile Bid, Saying Netflix Deal Still Superior (WSJ) Waymo Seeking Over $15 Billion Near $100 Billion Valuation (Bloomberg) Waymo in talks to raise funds at $100bn valuation (FT) U.S. Threatens Penalties Against European Tech Firms Amid Regulatory Fight (NYTimes) Google wants its AI assistant CC to replace your morning scroll (The Verge) Betting on prediction markets has exploded over past two years (FT) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tech continues to be a major geopolitical stumbling block, this time with the UK. Are we currently in the midst of the second mini-tech recession of the year? If Ford can pivot from EV’s to servicing datacenters, maybe you can too. And the civil war lining up in Hollywood, over AI. U.S.-U.K. Trade Deal Hits Stumbling Block (NYTimes) AI infrastructure selloff continues on Wall Street as Broadcom, Oracle shares slide (CNBC) CoreWeave’s Staggering Fall From Market Grace Highlights AI Bubble Fears (WSJ) Ford is starting a battery storage business to power data centers and the grid (TechCrunch) AI has the entertainment industry torn between keeping up and keeping talent happy. (BloombergBusinessweek) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Your Roomba is circling the drain with iRobot filing for bankruptcy. Remember credit default swaps? Turns out they’re not just for hedging housing anymore. Nano Banana looks so realistic because it’s mimicking your sub-par smartphone camera output. And why can’t everybody participate in early stage startup investing? Roomba Maker iRobot Files for Bankruptcy and Will Go Private (Bloomberg) How iRobot lost its way home (TechCrunch) Investors seek protection from risk of AI debt bust (FT) Kindle’s New AI Feature Can Answer Questions About Your Books (Whether Authors Want It or Not) (PCMag) AI image generators are getting better by getting worse (The Verge) Inside the Invitation-Only Stock Market for the Wealthy (WSJ) 🎧 The Ride Home - 2025 Wrapped Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ok, fine, says Sam, here’s a new GPT model so you’ll hopefully stop saying we’re behind. Broadcom as another AI bellwether. Now that Disney is in bed with OpenAI, they’re ceasing and desisting Google. And, of course, The Weekend Longreads Suggestions. OpenAI Launches GPT-5.2 as It Navigates ‘Code Red’ (Wired) GPT-5.2 is OpenAI’s latest move in the agentic AI battle (The Verge) Trump threatens funding for states over AI regulations (Reuters) Broadcom beats on earnings and revenue, says AI chip sales will double in current quarter (CNBC) Disney Accuses Google of Using AI to Engage in Copyright Infringement on ‘Massive Scale’ (Variety) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Want This Hearing Aid? Well, Who Do You Know? (Wired) Tech bros head to etiquette camp as Silicon Valley levels up its style (The Washington Post) Why AGI Will Not Happen (Tim Dettmer) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Disney signs a blockbuster deal to license characters to OpenAI AND invest $1 billion dollars in the company. Oracle as the new bellwether for thinking about OpenAI’s prospects. More on the whole Data Centers In Space phenomenon. And let me introduce you to the Model Context Protocol to make the web safe for AI agents. Disney Inks Blockbuster OpenAI Deal to Bring More Than 200 Characters to Sora Video Platform, Will Invest $1 Billion in AI Company (Variety) Disney to Invest $1 Billion in OpenAI, License Suite of Characters for Sora in Landmark Deal (The Wrap) Oracle Can’t Escape OpenAI’s Shadow (WSJ) Spotify tests more personalized, AI-powered ‘Prompted Playlists’ (TechCrunch) Bezos and Musk Race to Bring Data Centers to Space (WSJ) MCP has already taken the industry by storm, and now Anthropic is giving it away. (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Instagram is giving you some control over your algorithm. Is Instacart using algorithmic pricing? SpaceX thinks it will be worth $1.5 trillion. Has DeepSeek been smuggling chips? And what if your startup’s side-hustle can plug into the AI CAPEX bonanza? Instagram Will Start Letting You Pick What Shows Up in Your Reels (Wired) Same Product, Same Store, but on Instacart, Prices Might Differ (NYTimes) SpaceX to Pursue 2026 IPO Raising Far Above $30 Billion (Bloomberg) DeepSeek is Using Banned Nvidia Chips in Race to Build Next Model (The Information) Boom Supersonic raises $300M to build natural gas turbines for Crusoe data centers (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump says Nvidia and others can ship chips to China, but the question is, will China take delivery. OpenAI is ending the code red in about a month, after getting a new model out the door. Meta wants a new Llama model, maybe in a month. And a new smart ring that is pretty intriguing… Trump greenlights Nvidia H200 AI chip sales to China if U.S. gets 25% cut, says Xi responded positively (CNBC) China set to limit access to Nvidia’s H200 chips despite Trump export approval (FT) Sam Altman’s Sprint to Correct OpenAI’s Direction and Fend Off Google (WSJ) From Llamas to Avocados: Meta’s shifting AI strategy is causing internal confusion (CNBC) Pebble Is Making a $75 Smart Ring (Wired) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Looks like that big Netflix bid for Warner Brothers isn’t gonna go smoothly as Paramount launching a hostile counter-bid. We’ve got a full-on executive suite crisis at Apple. SpaceX could IPO next year. And more data on how AI usage is evolving. Paramount Skydance launches hostile bid for WBD ‘to finish what we started,’ CEO Ellison tells CNBC (CNBC) Trump Warns Netflix-Warner Deal May Pose Antitrust ‘Problem’ (Bloomberg) Netflix and the Hollywood End Game (Stratechery) Apple Rocked by Executive Departures, With Chip Chief at Risk of Leaving Next (Bloomberg) Meta acquires AI-wearables startup Limitless (Reuters) SpaceX in Talks for $800 Billion Valuation Ahead of Potential 2026 IPO (WSJ) An Empirical 100 Trillion Token Study with OpenRouter (OpenRouter) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Turns out the Albanian army was triumphant as Netflix is buying HBO (and WBD’s studios). The NYT is suing Perplexity. Man, everybody is heading for the exits at Apple at the same time. And get ready for a slew of insider trading controversies in our prediction market world. Netflix agrees $83bn takeover of Warner Bros Discovery (FT) New York Times Sues A.I. Start-Up Perplexity Over Use of Copyrighted Work (NYTimes) X hit with $140 million EU fine for breaching content rules, TikTok settles (Reuters) Apple Departures Point to Challenges for iPhone’s Dominance (WSJ) Chatbots are now rivaling social networks as a core layer of internet infrastructure (The Decoder) Alleged Insider Nets $1 Million On Polymarket In 24 Hours (Forbes) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: 18,000 Reasons It’s So Hard to Build a Chip Factory in America (NYTimes) In Arizona Desert, Taiwanese Families Create Community and Build a Factor (NYTimes) A Growing U.S. Tech Hub Needs Workers. Colleges Try to Keep Up. (NYTimes) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the one hand, Meta poached Apple’s design head in a major coup to make hardware and software for AI, but there are signs Zuck is souring on the Metaverse could even abandon it entirely. Is Amazon about to abandon your mailman? And why Dario Amodei is playing a blinder right now. Apple Design Executive Alan Dye Poached by Meta in Major Coup (Bloomberg) Meta’s Zuckerberg Plans Deep Cuts for Metaverse Efforts (Bloomberg) Amazon explores building its own delivery network to replace USPS deal (Washington Post) Anthropic CEO Says Some Tech Firms Too Risky With AI Spending (Bloomberg) Harvey, a Maker of A.I. Legal Software, Raises New Funds (NYTimes) Reddit’s CEO says r/popular ‘sucks,’ and it’s going away (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We might soon have the first big IPO of the AI era, and it doesn’t look like it will be OpenAI. Amazon takes another few swings at Nvidia’s dominance. Proof positive that self driving cars really are significantly safer. And the disastrous 4k upscaling of Mad Men. Anthropic taps IPO lawyers as it races OpenAI to go public (FT) Amazon’s Custom Chips Pose Another Threat to Nvidia (WSJ) Amazon Has New Frontier AI Models—and a Way for Customers to Build Their Own (Wired) AWS puts Kiro and other AI agents to work on truly autonomous software development (SiliconANGLE) The Data on Self-Driving Cars Is Clear. We Have to Change Course. (NYTimes) Microsoft Lowers AI Software Growth Targets as Customers Resist Newer Products (The Information) The ‘Mad Men’ 4K Stream on HBO Max Had So Many Problems (Not All of Which Involved a Barf Machine) (THR) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sam Altman declares a “Code Red” for OpenAI. All hands on deck. Molly, you in danger, girl, to quote Oda Mae Brown from the movie Ghost. Long term, is Apple in trouble cause of Google’s ascendency in AI? Samsung announces but does not launch a tri-fold phone. And Ben Thompson weighs in on the obsession of the day. OpenAI CEO Declares ‘Code Red’ to Combat Threats to ChatGPT, Delays Ads Effort (The Information) Apple AI Chief John Giannandrea Retiring After Siri Delays (MacRumors) Samsung’s Z TriFold is official and it looks like a tablet with a phone attached (The Verge) Google, Nvidia, and OpenAI (Stratechery) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

While Runway releases a new video model, let me break down the big analysis piece that had everyone concern trolling about Nvidia over the weekend. Why doesn’t Netflix want you to cast to your tv anymore? And AI means less jobs in consulting, but more jobs in a specific type of construction. Runway rolls out new AI video model that beats Google, OpenAI in key benchmark (CNBC) TPUv7: Google Takes a Swing at the King (SemiAnalysis) Nvidia takes $2 billion stake in Synopsys with expanded computing power partnership (CNBC) OpenAI Takes Stake in Thrive Holdings, a Buyer of Services Firms (NYTimes) Netflix kills casting from phones (The Verge) Top consultancies freeze starting salaries as AI threatens ‘pyramid’ model (FT) Data Centers Are a ‘Gold Rush’ for Construction Workers (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're back again with Susan Lyne, to talk about running Martha Stewart's company when Martha went to prison, her startup career with Gilt Groupe, and her investing career with BBG Ventures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I’ve maybe never interviewed anyone in my entire time as a historian and podcaster who has had a career as broad and varied as Susan Lyne. Yes, I obviously wanted to talk to Susan about her role helping startup Gilt Group, and her current role as the managing partner of the VC firm BBG Ventures. But, holy how. Susan also launched and oversaw the golden era of Premiere Magazine. She was the CEO of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia when Martha had to step away to, you know, go to prison. And she was the President of ABC Entertainment. She oversaw the development of shows like Grey’s Anatomy and Lost. So, like, yeah. We needed to do two episodes. So this is part one, with the great, Susan Lyne. Chapters 00:00 From Boston to Berkeley: A Transformative Journey 08:00 The Rise of Alternative Media: Village Voice Era 16:06 Hollywood Calling: The IPC Films Experience 23:12 Launching Premier Magazine: Inside Hollywood 36:14 Navigating the ABC Landscape: A New Era 40:28 Developing Grey's Anatomy And Lost Takeaways Susan's upbringing in Boston shaped her perspective on expectations and identity. Her time at UC Berkeley was transformative, exposing her to diverse ideas. Freelancing in journalism helped her develop a passion for storytelling. Working at City Magazine under Francis Ford Coppola was a unique experience. The Village Voice was a golden era for alternative media in New York. Susan's transition to Hollywood was driven by her love for storytelling. Premier Magazine aimed to provide in-depth insights into the film industry. At ABC, she focused on creating shows that appealed to women. Susan learned the importance of having a supportive partner in leadership. Her experience at ABC taught her valuable lessons about resilience and change. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump has a plan to boost AI innovation. Polymarket is now street legal in the US. Google thinks it needs to double AI capacity every 6 months. Is Starlink about to face its first serious competition. And for reasons I’ll explain, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Trump aims to boost AI innovation, build platform to harness government data (Reuters) Polymarket Secures CFTC Approval for Regulated U.S. Return (CoinDesk) In Las Vegas, Kalshi Is King (The Information) Google must double AI serving capacity every 6 months to meet demand, AI infrastructure boss tells employees (CNBC) Amazon’s Starlink competitor is launching with ‘world’s fastest satellite internet antenna’ (The Verge) RAM prices are so out of control that stores are selling it like lobster (The Verge) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Kicking Robots (Harper's Magazine) The Pentagon Can’t Trust GPS Anymore. Is Quantum Physics the Answer? (WSJ) I’m officially done with YouTube Kids (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Now Anthropic says it’s leapfrogged OpenAI with its new model and is the AI horserace in play? OpenAI is still focusing on things like shopping. Nvidia answers a question people weren’t asking. And is Google soaring because they also might be able to go after Nvidia’s chip throne? Anthropic introduces cheaper, more powerful, more efficient Opus 4.5 model (Ars Technica) ChatGPT's new shopping research tool is fast, fun, and free - but can it out-shop me? (ZDNet) Nvidia’s ‘I’m Not Enron’ memo has people asking a lot of questions already answered by that memo (The Verge) Google Further Encroaches on Nvidia’s Turf With New AI Chip Push (The Information) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What sort of a world do we live in if you can’t be sure where an X account comes from? Google isn’t out of the woods yet when it comes to antitrust. Insurers still don’t want to touch AI. Let me tell you about “AI grooming.” And we might be running out of capacity for specific types of chips. X’s messy About This Account rollout has caused utter chaos (The Verge) What OpenAI Did When ChatGPT Users Lost Touch With Reality (NYTimes) The Fate of Google’s Ad Tech Monopoly Is Now in a Judge’s Hands (NYTimes) Insurers retreat from AI cover as risk of multibillion-dollar claims mounts (Financial Times) Hundreds of English-language websites link to pro-Kremlin propaganda (The Guardian) AI boom is fueling a memory chip shortage that could hit cars and phones (CNBC) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Google phone users can now work with Airdrop on the iPhone cause Google cleverly found a way. Google might have jumped ahead in the AI race and Sam Altman knows it. I’ve heard of quantum computing, but a quantum internet? The Weekend Longreads suggestions, and at the end, a long rant about my latest AI experiments. Google cracked Apple’s AirDrop and is adding it to Pixel phones (The Verge) Altman Memo Forecasts ‘Rough Vibes’ Due to Resurgent Google (The Information) Source: Kalshi’s valuation jumps to $11B after raising massive $1B round (TechCrunch) Americans' Social Media Use 2025 (Pew Research Center) IBM, Cisco outline plans for networks of quantum computers by early 2030s (Reuters) IBM, Cisco to collaborate on ‘internet’ of quantum computers (Silicon Republic) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Google’s new AI image creator took my shirt off (The Verge) Google’s Nano Banana Pro generates excellent conspiracy fuel (The Verge) The new silicon valley (literally) (The Verge) How America’s Hottest Chicken Chain Keeps Its Secret Sauce a Secret (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are we about to have a battle over who gets to regulate AI? Now there’s Nano Banana Pro. The creator ecosystem is exploding for advertisers. Battlefield did exactly what EA needed it to do. And I’m telling you, the consumer robots for your home… they’re actually starting to arrive. Here’s the Trump executive order that would ban state AI laws (The Verge) Google rolling out Gemini 3-powered ‘Nano Banana Pro’ image gen, editing (9to5Google) Ad Spend in the Creator Economy Expected to Hit $37 Billion in 2025 (The Wrap) Nintendo and ‘Battlefield 6’ Pushed US Game Sales Up in October (Bloomberg) This Home Robot Clears Tables and Loads the Dishwasher All by Itself (Wired) Bo Jackson AI Experiment Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tons of things today. Google’s new Gemini 3 model. Signs the “second tier” of AI startups is starting to get product market fit. The EU has announced that watering down of GDPR that was rumored. And will Meta’s big win against the government mean mergers and acquisitions are back on the tech menu? Google is launching Gemini 3, its ‘most intelligent’ AI model yet (The Verge) AI Music Platform Suno Valued at $2.45 Billion (WSJ) TikTok will let you choose how much AI-generated content you want to see (TechCrunch) Europe is scaling back its landmark privacy and AI laws (The Verge) Meta Did Not Violate Antitrust Law, Judge Rules (NYTimes) Meta’s Victory Opens the Way for Silicon Valley to Go Deal Shopping (NYTimes) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What happened with Cloudflare this morning. Grok’s new model wants to be creative. Catching you up on the bloodbath in crypto if you were unaware. Databricks is 12 years old but it seems to be one of the big AI winners. And debt continues to pile in to the AI buildout. A massive Cloudflare outage brought down X, ChatGPT, and even Downdetector (The Verge) Grok 4.1 has arrived — and it's bringing the fight to ChatGPT with these new features (Tom's Guide) Crypto market sheds $1.2tn as traders shun speculative assets (Financial Times) Google boss says trillion-dollar AI investment boom has 'elements of irrationality' (BBC) Amazon Raises $15 Billion in First US Bond Sale in Three Years (Bloomberg) Databricks in Talks to Raise Capital at a Valuation Above $130 Billion (The Information) Roblox will require age estimation to chat starting next year (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jeff Bezos is going to be a CEO once again. Could Tim Cook step down from Apple’s CEO position in a matter of months? Maybe don’t buy an AI teddy bear. What big AI startup would you short, if you could? And data-centers in spaaaaaaacceee… Jeff Bezos Creates A.I. Start-Up Where He Will Be Co-Chief Executive (NYTimes) Apple intensifies succession planning for CEO Tim Cook (FT) Apple’s iPhone Overhaul Will Reduce Its Reliance on Annual Fall Spectacle (Bloomberg) Happy holidays: AI-enabled toys teach kids how to play with fire, sharp objects (The Register) At a major AI conference, one startup got voted most likely to flop (Business Insider) Now Tech Moguls Want to Build Data Centers in Outer Space (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A portfolio profile episode of Hypercubic.ai, a seed-stage company that wants to not only preserve knowledge in legacy code, but legacy knowledge in enterprises. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI is testing out group chats as a sort of collaborative prompting experience. The hyperscalers are lining up against Nvidia in one specific arena. The Sam Altman Elon Musk feud isn’t over. Google knows who sent you that fake UPS shipment alert text. And, of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. ChatGPT launches pilot group chats across Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, and Taiwan (TechCrunch) Amazon and Microsoft Back Effort That Would Restrict Nvidia’s Exports to China (WSJ) OpenAI, Apple Lose Bid to Toss Musk xAI Suit Over Competition (Bloomberg) AI startup Cursor raises $2.3 billion funding round at $29.3 billion valuation (CNBC) You know those fake USPS texts? Google says it's found who's behind them (Fast Company) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Sundar Pichai Is Google’s AI ‘Wartime CEO’ After All (Bloomberg) CRYPTO: Realm of the Coin (Vanity Fair) I'm Going to Be a Dad. Here's Why I'm Not Posting About My Kid Online (CNET) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Valve is taking on gaming consoles and creating a new type of VR headset, all at the same time. GPT-5 gets “warmer.” Cursor’s new raise means it has 10x’d its valuation in the span of a year. And we’re one step closer to your phone completely replacing your wallet. Valve brings back Steam Machine and Steam Controller — hands-on with Valve's new AMD-based living room gaming hardware (Tom's Hardware) The Steam Frame is a surprising new twist on VR (The Verge) Microsoft to Use OpenAI’s Custom Chip Work to Help In-House Effort (Bloomberg) OpenAI says the brand-new GPT-5.1 is ‘warmer’ and has more ‘personality’ options (The Verge) The AI Coding Startup Favored by Tech CEOs Is Now Worth $29.3 Billion (WSJ) Apple launches Digital ID, a way to carry your passport on your phone for use at TSA checkpoints (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Forget text-to-video AI, we’re rapidly moving into the text-to-world-generating AI models. What if you showed up to your Airbnb and the fridge was already fully stocked? It seems like there is NO uncanney valley when it comes to AI generated music. And does the Big Short guy have a point when he concern trolls about the AI CAPEX buildout? Fei-Fei Li’s World Labs speeds up the world model race with Marble, its first commercial product (TechCrunch) Airbnb Will Test Adding Instacart Grocery Delivery to Its App in Services Push (Bloomberg) Are you listening to bots? Survey shows AI music is virtually undetectable (Reuters) 50,000 AI tracks flood Deezer daily – as study shows 97% of listeners can’t tell the difference between human-made vs. fully AI-generated music (MusicBusinessWorldwide) The AI Bubble Is Ignoring Michael Burry’s Fears (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The iPhone Air isn’t selling, and it isn’t selling to the degree that Apple is delaying the next version. Yan LeCun is gonna strike out on his own. The big illegal streaming site takedown you might not have hear about. And Facebook doesn’t like likes anymore, at least not external likes. Apple Delays Release of Next iPhone Air Amid Weak Sales (The Information) Meta chief AI scientist Yann LeCun plans to exit and launch own start-up (FT) SoftBank sells Nvidia stake for $5.8bn as it prepares for AI investments (FT) Anthropic Is on Track to Turn a Profit Much Faster Than OpenAI (WSJ) Streameast: How the authorities took down the world’s largest illegal sports streaming platform (The Athletic) Meta is killing off the external Facebook Like button (Engadget) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is the EU about to pull back on tech regulation because they are feeling FOMO about AI? Is the whole initial COIN offering craze about to come back? Is Apple Music falling behind because they don’t have a free tier? And it turns out AI might not be that good at trading crypto. Brussels knifes privacy to feed the AI boom (Politico) Coinbase Launches Platform for Digital Token Offerings (WSJ) TSMC Posts Slowest Growth in 18 Months Amid AI Bubble Debate (Bloomberg) Apple Music Risks Losing the Next Generation of Listeners (Bloomberg) AI models given $10K to compete in first-of-its-kind crypto-trading competition — and most crashed and burned (NYPost) Clem Delangue IHP Episode Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here is how Wikipedia happened. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Elon’s $1T payday… nice deal if you can get it. The lawsuits against OpenAI are exploding. The new Grand Theft Auto gets delayed (again). Now the Texas Attorney General is going after Roblox. And, of course, The Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Tesla Shareholders Approve Elon Musk’s $1 Trillion Pay Package (WSJ) Lawsuits Blame ChatGPT for Suicides and Harmful Delusions (NYTimes) ‘Grand Theft Auto VI’ Is Postponed Again — to November 2026 (Bloomberg) Alibaba-backed Moonshot releases its second AI update in four months as China’s AI race heats up (CNBC) Texas sues Roblox for 'putting paedophiles and profits' over safety (BBC) 'It's organized crime': TikTok Shop says it's fighting a new wave of AI scammers (Business Insider) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: How AGI became the most consequential conspiracy theory of our time (MIT Technology Review) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple is probably going to let Gemini power the new Siri, at least for a while. Does OpenAI want the government to backstop its AI buildout? And two new AI products. How about an AI smart-ring to remember your shower-thoughts, and what if Foursquare, but for the AI era? Apple Nears $1 Billion-a Year Deal to Use Google AI for Siri (Bloomberg) OpenAI Isn’t Yet Working Toward an IPO, CFO Says (WSJ) Microsoft Lays Out Ambitious AI Vision, Free From OpenAI (WSJ) Google’s rolling out its most powerful AI chip, taking aim at Nvidia with custom silicon (CNBC) Whisper Into This AI-Powered Smart Ring to Organize Your Thoughts (Wired) The Foursquare founder's new app is an AI-powered 'DJ' for neighborhood updates (Engadget) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Google and Epic Games settle their beef. Ripple wants to claim the stablecoin crown. Hyperscalers are about to claim the power generation equivalent to 40 million homes. And the wonkiest analysis I’ve seen in a while on whether or not AI can scale productivity in some sort of up and to the right way. Google proposes app store reforms in settlement with ‘Fortnite’ maker Epic Games (Reuters) Cloud streaming finally arrives on the PlayStation Portal (The Verge) Citadel Securities and Fortress take stakes in Ripple at $40bn valuation (FT) How many ‘bragawatts’ have the hyperscalers announced so far? (Financial Times) Amazon Sues to Stop Perplexity From Using AI Tool to Buy Stuff (Bloomberg) Thoughts by a non-economist on AI and economics (Windows On Theory) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple brings the App Store to the web. When the cyber white hats turn black hat. Jensen didn’t get what he really wants from Trump. Coca-Cola says nobody cares if the commercials are AI. Is Common Crawl the secret AI infrastructure? And why Google Cloud is the thing sending Google stock to new all-time highs. Apple brings its App Store to the web (The Verge) Prosecutors allege incident response pros used ALPHV/BlackCat to commit string of ransomware attacks (Cyberscoop) Waymo’s robotaxis are coming to three new cities (The Verge) Trump Officials Torpedoed Nvidia’s Push to Export AI Chips to China (WSJ) Coca-Cola Injects ‘Holidays Are Coming’ Ads With an Upgraded Dose of AI (WSJ) The Nonprofit Doing the AI Industry’s Dirty Work (The Atlantic) AI turned Google Cloud from also-ran into Alphabet’s growth driver (Reuters) Steven Bartlett's Steve Jobs Cartoon Video Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Well, another day, another OpenAI deal, but this is their big move to get in bed with AWS. More monitoring of the moment prediction markets are having. Is Big Tech’s dominance of the stock market getting even more extreme? And more speculation about AI and podcasting. OpenAI signs $38 billion compute deal with Amazon, partnering with cloud leader for first time (CNBC) How sports gambling took over prediction markets in the US (FT) Alphabet, Amazon Stakes in Anthropic Boost Profit by Billions (Bloomberg) Big Tech’s market dominance is becoming ever more extreme (FT) For Podcasters, a Voice Clone Is a Double-Edged Sword (NYTimes) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sanjay Poonen, CEO of Cohesity, discusses the strategic acquisition of Veritas' data protection business, emphasizing the benefits for customers and the company's growth trajectory. He highlights the importance of rapid recovery in cybersecurity, the integration of AI for enhanced data insights, and the company's aspirations for an IPO, positioning Cohesity as a leader in the data protection market. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amazon didn’t scare investors this Halloween. They’re quite pleased, actually. They’re not public but we now know how much money OpenAI lost this quarter. Nvidia’s generous investment strategy. And, of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Amazon cloud records 20% sales growth, topping estimates (CNBC) Microsoft seemingly just revealed that OpenAI lost $11.5B last quarter (The Register) Sora now lets you pay extra to make more AI videos (The Verge) Nvidia to Invest Up to $1 Billion in AI Startup Poolside (Bloomberg) Nvidia Is Accelerating Its Investing Spree in AI Startups (Bloomberg) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Nike says its first ‘powered footwear’ is like an e-bike for your feet (The Verge) Some People Can’t See Mental Images. The Consequences Are Profound (The New Yorker) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Three big tech earnings reports give a mixed message. Wall Street wants you to spend on the AI buildout, but not too much, and maybe not you, Meta. Sora already has some new features. More details on OpenAI’s IPO timeline. And maybe the AI agents are not yet ready for prime time. Big Tech tests investors’ patience with $80bn AI investment spree (FT) OpenAI adds reusable ‘characters’ and video stitching to Sora (The Verge) AI Coding Leader Cursor Says New Agent Fields Tougher Tasks (Bloomberg) Exclusive: OpenAI lays groundwork for juggernaut IPO at up to $1 trillion valuation (Reuters) AI Agents Are Terrible Freelance Workers (Wired) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nvidia announced a whole bunch of things yesterday and that sent their market cap above $5 trillion for the first time. Grammarly rebrands as Superhuman. Character.ai moves to banning kids outright. And is the first home robot actually here, or is this vaporware? Uber Eyes Fleet of 100,000 Nvidia-Based Robotaxis Beginning 2027 (Bloomberg) OpenAI’s Promise to Stay in California Helped Clear the Path for Its IPO (WSJ) Grammarly is changing its name to Superhuman (The Verge) AI start-up Character.ai bans teens from talking to chatbots (FT) Tens of Thousands of White-Collar Jobs Are Disappearing as AI Starts to Bite (WSJ) 1X Neo is a $20,000 home robot that will learn chores via teleoperation (Engadget) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI has officially done its whole reorg to for-profit thing. Amazon is cutting a metric ton of employees and its blaming AI. Elon launches Grokpedia to take on Wikipedia. And does Anthropic’s success in the enterprise give it a leg up on OpenAI in the one metric that counts? Making money? OpenAI completed its for-profit restructuring — and struck a new deal with Microsoft (The Verge) Amazon to Cut 14,000 Jobs as Jassy Looks to Reduce Bureaucracy (Bloomberg) Elon Musk launches a Wikipedia rival that extols his own ‘vision’ (The Washington Post) Photoshop and Premiere Pro’s new AI tools can instantly edit more of your work (The Verge) OpenAI’s Less-Flashy Rival Might Have a Better Business Model (WSJ) Jimmy Wales on IHP Margit Wennmachers on IHP Fred Wilson on IHP Blog post to post on Hacker News Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Did Microsoft use dark patterns to charge more for AI? The tech angle to that whole NBA gambling scandal. Forget the AI bubble, the Counter-Strike bubble definitely just burst. Halo is coming to PlayStation. And how AI is revolutionizing the old, faking your expense reports scam. Australia sues Microsoft over AI-linked subscription price hikes (Reuters) Using a Security Key on X? Re-Enroll Now or Your Account Will Be Locked (PC Mag) $10,000 Card Shufflers Hit the Spotlight After NBA Poker Scandal (Bloomberg) Market for ‘Counter-Strike’ Items Falls $3 Billion (Bloomberg) Xbox’s Prized Sci-Fi Franchise Is Heading to PlayStation (NYTimes) ‘Do not trust your eyes’: AI generates surge in expense fraud (FT) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Baratunde Thurston shares his journey from a tech-savvy upbringing to becoming a prominent voice in comedy and digital media. Baratunde reflects on his time at The Onion and The Daily Show, emphasizing the importance of community and the intersection of technology and humor. He also shares his thoughts on the role of AI in society, advocating for a future where technology enhances human connections. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Clem discusses his journey from early computing experiences to founding Hugging Face, emphasizing the importance of community, collaboration, and open-source technology in the AI landscape. He reflects on the evolution of technology, the significance of user feedback, and the need for a diverse range of AI models. Clem also shares insights on the startup ecosystem in Europe and the unique advantages of New York City for AI entrepreneurs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Just two stories. First, OpenAI launches a web browser, ChatGPT Atlas. What it does, and why are they doing it. Then, Samsung has made a cheaper Vision Pro. They call it the Galaxy XR headset. What IT does, and why are THEY doing it. OpenAI’s AI-powered browser, ChatGPT Atlas, is here (The Verge) Introducing ChatGPT Atlas (Simon Willison) Why OpenAI Needs Its Own ChatGPT-Enabled Browser, Atlas (Forbes) Samsung’s Galaxy XR Headset Debuts at Half the Price of Apple’s Vision Pro (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

HBO Max might be on the market and I want Apple to buy it! Coinbase is on an acquisition tear. Is the Amazon job apocalypse nigh? Is OpenAI plotting to take over Wall Street in a literal sense? And a brain implant startup has leapfrogged Neuralink in terms of helping blind people see again. Warner Bros. Discovery says it’s open to a sale; shares jump 10% (CNBC) Coinbase Strikes Deal for Crypto-Investing Platform Echo (WSJ) Anthropic brings Claude Code to the web (TechCrunch) Amazon Plans to Replace More Than Half a Million Jobs With Robots (NYTimes) OpenAI Looks to Replace the Drudgery of Junior Bankers’ Workload (Bloomberg) This retina implant lets people with vision loss do a crossword puzzle (MIT Technology Review) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Big AWS outage took down half the internet overnight. X wants you to be able to snap up dormant or desirable X handles. Blackwell chips look like they’ve hit volume production in the US. And you know who else is benefiting from the AI boom? Crypto miners and makers of plain old cables. Major AWS outage took down Fortnite, Alexa, Snapchat, and more (The Verge) OpenAI pauses Sora video generations of Martin Luther King Jr. (TechCrunch) X to launch marketplace for buying inactive handles (TechCrunch) Oura redesigns app with expanded stress tracking (The Verge) Exclusive: Nvidia and TSMC unveil first Blackwell chip wafer made in U.S. (Axios) $500 purple cables put this little-known company in the middle of the AI boom (CNBC) Crypto Miners Riding the AI Wave Are Leaving Bitcoin Behind (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do Skills for Claude represent a new sort of user paradigm for AI? Battlefield 6 seems to be doing what EA needs it to do. Nintendo seems to be killing it. Is Wikipedia in trouble because it’s losing human users? Now Uber drivers can earn new money thanks to AI. And, of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Anthropic turns to ‘skills’ to make Claude more useful at work (The Verge) Claude Skills are awesome, maybe a bigger deal than MCP (Simon Willison) Steam just broke its concurrent user record with 41.6 million gamers (TweakTown) Nintendo Aims to Make 25 Million Switch 2s to Set Gaming History (Bloomberg) Wikipedia Says AI Is Causing a Dangerous Decline in Human Visitors (404media) Uber Launches Data Tasks as Option for Some US Drivers to Earn Money (Bloomberg) Apple and F1 reach 5-year media deal, bringing all races to Apple TV streaming in the U.S. (CNBC) Weekend Longreads Suggestions AI Data Centers, Desperate for Electricity, Are Building Their Own Power Plants (WSJ) Joshua Kushner, Thrive Capital, and the American dream (Colossus) How Sam Altman Played Hollywood (The Hollywood Reporter) TiVo Has Sold Its Last DVR. These People Refuse to Let Go. (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So, a huge, huge, like bigger than the entire world’s GDP fat finger episode in the world of stablecoins. Zuck has poached another one from Apple. Potentially huge state sponsored hack of a key infrastructure company. The most interesting new phone concept I’ve seen in a while. And are we in an AI bubble episode 72. Printing Money: Paxos Mints, Then Burns $300 Trillion in PayPal Stablecoins (Decrypt) Apple’s Head of ChatGPT-Like AI Search Effort to Leave for Meta (Bloomberg) F5 says hackers stole undisclosed BIG-IP flaws, source code (BleepingComputer) Anthropic launches new version of scaled-down ‘Haiku’ model (TechCrunch) Honor’s Robot Phone concept features a fold-out camera arm (The Verge) ‘Of course it’s a bubble’: AI start-up valuations soar in investor frenzy (FT) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices