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Signal. External read.
What we're reading across AI and web3 — pulled straight from the source, no rewrite. Every card links out to the original outlet.
Meta’s new Glimmer AI model offers a hint at Zuckerberg’s personal intelligence vision
Meta’s new open-weight Muse Glimmer model offers a glimpse of Mark Zuckerberg’s personal superintelligence vision, as well as the emerging divide between AI users can own and access.
Four takeaways from Mark Zuckerberg’s massive AI manifesto
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has a lot to say about the idealized future he now envisions for humanity co-existing with artificial intelligence - his latest essay spans more than 6,500 words on the matter. The lengthy manifesto Zuckerberg published on Monday, titled "The Future is for Everyone," broadly lays out his beliefs about how the […]
Ford’s new AI assistant can check your fuel levels and tire pressure
Ford is rolling out a new AI-powered assistant that can answer questions about your Ford or Lincoln vehicle, such as how much fuel you'll need for your next road trip or whether your truck can tow that new motor boat. The app is rolling out first to the Ford and Lincoln mobile apps, where it […]
Historian Jill Lepore says Silicon Valley misreads science fiction and undermines democracy
On the latest episode of Equity, we spoke to Jill Lepore about "government by machines" and why Elon Musk is a bad science fiction reader.
The AI safety test is becoming a safety risk
AI agents are escaping cybersecurity testing environments and reaching real-world systems, raising questions about whether safety infrastructure, industry standards, and regulation can keep pace with increasingly powerful models.
AI detectors are creating a new era of distrust
This is The Stepback, a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more news about how AI is changing our daily lives, follow Emma Roth. The Stepback arrives in our subscribers' inboxes at 8AM ET. Opt in for The Stepback here. How it started Long before ChatGPT became a thing, […]
OpenAI acquires presentation startup NextSlide
Founder Ahmed Beshry describes the startup’s product as one “that could turn prompts, notes, documents, or research into a polished, editable presentation.”
An Amazon data center could have the worst polluting power plant in the country
To power its new West Texas data center, Amazon is investing in the construction of a new power plant that could be one of the largest single producers of greenhouse gases in the US, according to The New York Times. The new gas-burning plant in Pecos County, Texas, has received significant investment from Amazon and, […]
OpenAI says it slowed Astra model development over security concerns
OpenAI said this model, which is still in development, reached its "critical cybersecurity threshold," meaning it could independently identify and carry out cyberattacks against traditionally well-protected real-world systems.
After Rippling blew millions on AI in months, it built an employee ROI tool
After its own AI usage wake-up call, Rippling this week unveiled AI Spend Console, a product that tracks individual and team employee AI spending.
Cloudflare launches Kitesurf, a browser built for AI agents
Kitesurf is a cloud-hosted browser designed for AI agents instead of people. It uses less computing power than Chromium for common automation tasks, helping developers build browser-based AI agents more efficiently.
Watching Roku’s AI channel is like eating from a trough
The appeal of free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channels has always been the way they make it easier to (re)discover classic films and series. But Roku's latest experiment in the FAST space has less to do with traditionally produced entertainment and is entirely focused on giving viewers access to a constant source of AI-generated content. […]
OpenAI puts the brakes on a new model because it’s supposedly too powerful
OpenAI says it is pausing "internal activities" around an in-development AI model, Astra, because it doesn't yet meet new security standards the company is putting in place. The announcement follows its recent disclosure that OpenAI models accidentally hacked Hugging Face. Anthropic and Meta have also since admitted that they had AI models that went rogue […]
Jill Lepore on the ‘Artificial State’ and why Silicon Valley’s leaders are bad sci-fi readers
Historian Jill Lepore has a theory about why tech companies often use soaring language to describe their products — almost as if they’re forming a new government. And whether you’re thinking of Twitter’s old “town hall in your pocket” or Anthropic’s Claude constitution, it’s a theory that doesn’t paint Silicon Valley in a very flattering light.   In Lepore’s upcoming book, Th
What’s behind the Google AI shake-up
Some of the biggest names on Google's AI team got new jobs this week. In some cases, including for legendary Googler Jeff Dean, those jobs are no longer at Google. Given that Google's models seem to be behind the best of what's coming out of anthropic and OpenAI, is this a sign of Google in […]
New Mexico court orders Meta to pay additional $567M in child safety case
Meta's total fine has racked up to $942 million in this case.
OpenAI’s new AI smart speaker will reportedly sell for between $300 and $400
Additional details about OpenAI's mysterious new AI device make it sound like a pricey smart speaker.
ChatGPT brings unlimited text chats to free users
OpenAI said that ChatGPT free and Go users are also getting a new think button for complex queries.
Naïve raises $28.5M to automate the grunt work of setting up and running a company
Taking vibe-coding a step further, Naïve claims its infra can automate most of the work in setting up and running a business.
Jony Ive’s first OpenAI gadget is reportedly a hockey puck-sized smart speaker
The AI device OpenAI is developing with former Apple designer Jony Ive is "essentially a smart speaker without a display" that's battery-powered, doughnut-shaped and roughly the size of a hockey puck, according to Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman. The device, expected to launch in 2027 for a price over $300, reportedly "will have a unique look, […]
Gen Z dating apps like Ditto ditch swiping in favor of AI matchmaking
This generation of twentysomethings is so disillusioned with swipe-based dating apps that they'll try literally anything else — even an AI matchmaker.
Suno shares plans to combat spammy AI music
Suno announced plans to implement a new watermarking technology and download policy to limit the spread of spammy AI tracks and increase transparency. In a lengthy blog post, CEO and co-founder Mikey Shulman laid out the company's principles and the next steps for the company as it seeks legitimacy. The company is rolling out new […]
Amid legal battles, Suno says it will start watermarking songs
Suno's watermarking feature comes as the company is fighting legal battles on several fronts.
Exclusive: Mirendil inks $100M+ Google Cloud deal to scale self-improving AI
Mirendil has signed a $100 million-plus Google Cloud partnership to expand its compute infrastructure, powering research into self-improving AI systems designed to accelerate scientific discovery and AI development.