Amazon will remain a minority investor in Anthropic even as new funding brings its total investment to $8B; Amazon doesn't have a seat on Anthropic's board
Amazon on Friday announced it would invest an additional $4 billion in Anthropic, the artificial intelligence startup founded by ex-OpenAI research executives.
Sources: Apple is testing a more conversational Siri version, dubbed “LLM Siri”, with plans to release it as early as spring 2026 as part of iOS 19 and macOS 16
- Company is working on overhaul that employees call ‘LLM Siri’ — Unveiling planned for next year, with rollout coming in 2026
Anthropic raised another $4B from Amazon, will make AWS its primary training partner, and is working with Annapurna Labs to develop new Trainium accelerators
Anthropic, OpenAI's close rival, has raised an additional $4 billion from Amazon, and has agreed to make Amazon Web Services (AWS) …
Sources: OpenAI considered developing a browser, discussed deals to power AI features on Samsung devices and search on sites and apps from Condé Nast and others
OpenAI is preparing to launch a frontal assault on Google. — The ChatGPT owner recently considered developing …
A UK CMA report finds that Apple's policies hold back innovation in mobile browsers and recommends investigating Apple and Google's mobile ecosystem activities
Apple's restrictions on mobile browsers are limiting innovation and holding back new features that could benefit iPhone users …
Threads is testing AI-generated summaries of what users are discussing, in the app's Trending Now section in the US, and Search and Trending Now improvements
Meta is promising “long-overdue improvements” to its X competitor, Threads, including more precise search features and expanded trending topics.
SCOTUS dismisses Meta's appeal of a lower court order reviving a shareholder lawsuit for allegedly misleading investors on the 2015 Cambridge Analytica scandal
Washington — The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed Facebook's appeal of a lower court order reviving a shareholder lawsuit brought …
SEC chair Gary Gensler will step down on January 20; it has been traditional for SEC chairs to resign if the administration changes in the middle of their term
Brady Dale / Axios :
Microsoft President Brad Smith calls on Donald Trump to “push harder” against cyberattacks from Russia, China, and Iran amid a wave of state-sponsored hacks
Big Tech group's president calls on new US administration to take tougher approach on state-sponsored cyber attacks
Indian quick grocery delivery startup Zepto raised $350M at the same $5B valuation as its $340M raise in August 2024; Zepto has raised $1.35B since June 2024
Zepto has secured $350 million in new funding, its third round of financing in six months, as the Indian quick-commerce startup strengthens …
Texas' AG opens a probe into the World Federation of Advertisers to find if it conspired to boycott “certain social media platforms”; X sued the WFA in August
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced on Thursday he is opening an investigation into the World Federation of Advertisers …
Source: Google has canceled the development of a second-generation Pixel Tablet, planned for release in 2025, due to concerns that it wouldn't sell very well
again Alexander Maxham / Android Headlines : Exclusive: Google Cancels Pixel Tablet 3 Development Sandip Chakraborty / Moneycontrol : Google may launch one more Pixel Tablet before exiting the categor...
The EU closes a four-year investigation into Apple's rules for e-book and audiobook app developers after the complainant withdrew its complaint against Apple
Foo Yun Chee / Reuters :
Brave adds AI chat to Search that lets users ask follow-up questions to initial queries, bringing together the capabilities of chat-first and search-first tools
Brave announced on Thursday that it's introducing an AI chat mode for follow-up questions based on initial queries on Brave Search.
Three Nvidia customers spent a collective $12.6B in Q3, over a third of Nvidia's total $35.1B Q3 revenue; each of them spent $10B+ in the nine months to October
Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang doesn't have any real competition in the market for AI training chips. Bluesky: @emilprotalinski.bsky.social . X: @ajs Bluesky: Emil Protalinski / @emilprotalinski....
The UK plans to draft a regulatory framework to oversee stablecoins and staking services as part of a single overarching regime for cryptoassets in early 2025
Emily Nicolle / Bloomberg :
Meta is rolling out voice message transcripts on WhatsApp globally over the coming weeks in select languages, and says they are generated on users' devices
Aisha Malik / TechCrunch :
In its latest security report, Meta says it removed 2M+ accounts this year connected to pig butchering scams conducted from Southeast Asia and the UAE
Here's Why TechRadar : Meta reveals major crackdown on organized crime scams Cynthia B Brumfield / Metacurity : Meta Addresses Pig-Butchering, Claims Two-Year Collaboration with Law Enforcement Wired ...
Cambridge, MA-based Pickle Robot, which makes AI-powered robots that autonomously unload trucks, raised a $50M Series B
Robotic truck unloading fits the classic definition of dull, dirty, or dangerous jobs worth automating. Pickle Robot Co. yesterday announced that it has raised $50 million …
Spotify adds audiobook features for Premium subscribers: author and publisher video clips up to 30 seconds long, Author Pages, and visuals while users listen
Lauren Forristal / TechCrunch :
Filing: Japanese chipmaker Kioxia plans to make its Tokyo Stock Exchange debut on December 18 and sets its indicative IPO price at ~$9 per share to raise ~$180M
Yuki Furukawa / Bloomberg :
SafeRent, an AI screening tool used by landlords, agrees to pay ~$2.3M to settle a discrimination lawsuit and to not show certain tenant scores for five years
http://windowscopilot.news/... Ben Waber / @bwaber@hci.social : Seems like a weak settlement https://www.theverge.com/... X: Russ Bergeron / @bergeronruss : On Wednesday, US District Judge Angel Kelle...
The CFPB will supervise tech companies with digital wallets, like Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Venmo, with 50M+ annual transactions, treating them more like banks
the Biden/Warren crew just enacted this to stop @X from becoming a payments juggernaut. Wow, a whole new 259-page rule aimed at X...yet more lawfare against you.👊 (Congress can & probably will CRA thi...
Sources: a16z, Paradigm, Ripple, Kraken, and Circle are jostling for a seat on Trump's promised crypto advisory council, which could set up a bitcoin reserve
Hannah Lang / Reuters :
Four former Google executives say innovation by rivals is key to breaking Google Search's dominance, and ChatGPT-like tools will one day supplant Google Search
Will a breakup of Google shift perceptions of the company? — www.wired.com/story/doj-go... X: Paresh Dave / @peard33 : Despite shared concerns about Google's power, critics of the company and former...
Snap files to dismiss New Mexico's lawsuit over alleged teen account recommendations to child predators, saying the case misrepresents the state's investigation
Lauren Feiner / The Verge :
Q&A with Otter.ai CEO Sam Liang on plans for personalized AI avatars for online meetings, recording all day, and more; Otter.ai claims to have nearly 20M users
Otter.ai has helped hundreds of millions …
Sources: Amazon will likely face an EU investigation next year into whether it breaches the DMA by favoring its own brand products on its online marketplace
Foo Yun Chee / Reuters :
Klarna's planned H1 2025 US IPO could presage an uptick in IPOs by fintechs like Trustly, Chime, Zilch, Plaid, Revolut, Zopa, Brex, and Ramp after a slow period
Bloomberg : LinkedIn: Brennin Kroog LinkedIn: Brennin Kroog : Very insightful article from Anna Irrera at Bloomberg that I was able to contribute to regarding the state of the FinTech landscape again...
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