A $6.3B Grid Bill Changes Data Center Access
New York became the first state to pause permits for large data centers as the Trump administration sought developer-payment commitments. PJM’s latest auction could add $6.3B to customer bills through 2029.
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
OpenAI's much-anticipated push into consumer devices is slated to begin with a mobile, screen-free smart speaker designed to be a new type …
OpenAI says it is “not aware of any evidence” that Apple's lawsuit alleging trade-secret theft has merit, adding that it believes in fair competition
OpenAI said on Tuesday that it's “not aware of any evidence” that an Apple Inc. lawsuit alleging trade-secret theft has merit.
Cybersecurity stocks rallied on Tuesday after IBM CEO Arvind Krishna flagged cyber fears as a top priority for customers; CrowdStrike jumped 12%, Okta rose 11%
Cybersecurity stocks jumped on Tuesday after IBM CEO Arvind Krishna flagged cyber fears as a top priority for customers in the company's preliminary second-quarter results.
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%+
Payments company Stripe and private equity firm Advent International have made a joint offer to acquire PayPal Holdings Inc …
The UK government proposes a default overnight social media curfew for 16- and 17-year-olds and disabling features like autoplay and infinite scroll by default
Britain will introduce a default overnight curfew on social media apps for 16- and 17-year-olds, the government said …
A group of 26 current and former employees sues Meta for allegedly using AI in layoffs in May to unfairly target workers with disabilities or on protected leave
Lawsuit alleges social-media company relied on AI that disproportionately targeted workers with disabilities or who were on medical or parental leave
IBM's stock closed down 25.21% on Tuesday, sinking more than its previous worst day of October 19, 1987, after reporting preliminary Q2 results below estimates
International Business Machines shares plummeted 25% on Tuesday after the hardware, software and consulting provider released preliminary …
Anthropic announces a new Claude for Teachers initiative, as part of which it will provide K-12 teachers in the US free access to premium Claude features
Anthropic is providing free access to premium Claude AI features to K-12 teachers in the United States. The effort is part of a new Claude for Teachers initiative.
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
Apple is in talks with a small Silicon Valley company that says it can shrink powerful artificial intelligence models enough to run directly …
ASML reports Q2 net sales of €9.3B, above €8.8B est., a €2.9B net profit, above €2.6B est., and raises its 2026 net sales forecast from €36B-€40B to €43B-€45B
ASML on Wednesday raised its guidance for the second time this year and reported stronger …
Researcher: SpaceXAI's Grok Build CLI uploaded user repos to a Google Cloud Storage bucket; uploads have now stopped and Musk says prior uploads will be deleted
Researcher confirms the uploads have stopped, but says xAI's privacy command was not what fixed them
The Trump administration details its “Gold Eagle” federal clearinghouse for sharing AI cyber threat information between the government and the private sector
The White House said the clearinghouse has already started to receive intelligence on vulnerabilities and prioritize patches.
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
New York's moratorium on data centers could serve as an opening salvo for leaders in other states looking to rein in tech infrastructure …
Source: OnePlus will begin to cease operations in the US and Europe as early as this week and Realme will exit China as part of a restructuring by parent Oppo
OnePlus, a consumer electronics brand that gained a loyal following with its lineup of aggressively priced Android smartphones …
SpaceX shares fell for a fourth-straight session on Wednesday, briefly dropping below their $135 IPO price for the first time before closing at $135.27
SpaceX shares fell for a fourth-straight session on Wednesday, briefly dropping below their $135 initial public offering price …
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
Try on Tinker Model card Hugging Face — Our mission is to build AI that extends human will and judgment.
Samsung unveils a new Flex Titanium foldable display that is slimmer, more durable, and less prone to creasing, debuting in its upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 8 series
The Flex Titanium display tech is slim, strong, and reduces crease visibility.
Sources: DeepSeek has started planning for an IPO in China and may file as soon as this year, allowing it to debut in 2027
Chinese AI pioneer DeepSeek has begun preparations for an initial public offering and may file as soon as this year, setting the stage for what could be a landmark debut for the country's technology i...
Court filing: Google says it is ready to add third-party app stores within Google Play in the US on July 22, as Google and Epic withdraw their settlement motion
Get ready for rival app stores inside of Google Play. … Epic Games and Google have just jointly withdrawn their attempt …
A US judge dismisses a proposed class action accusing Apple of failing to stop the dissemination of CSAM through iCloud, saying Section 230 shields the company
A U.S. judge has dismissed a proposed class action accusing Apple (AAPL.O) of failing to stop the dissemination …
New York Governor Kathy Hochul signs a moratorium blocking new environmental permits for data centers over 50MW for up to one year, the first state to do so
The European Commission proposes exempting wearable tech from rules requiring removable batteries, clearing a hurdle for Meta's smart glasses, after US pressure
Commission exempts smart glasses like Meta's from batteries regulation, clearing a major hurdle to European expansion.
Coinbase's Jesse Pollak says Jordan Fish, aka “Cobie”, will now lead the Base app team after acknowledging some of Base's bets on social features fell short
Quick Take — Cobie will now lead the Base app team as Base creator and Coinbase executive Jesse Pollak focuses …
Anthropic faces ridicule and criticism for an ad titled “There's hope in hard questions” that unsettled viewers with weird graveyard imagery and doomer-ist tone
Anthropic is known for its creative marketing, but the AI company may have been a little bit too creative when it conjured up its most recent advertisement.
Monitoring Analytics: PJM's recent electricity auction is expected to add $6.3B to customers' bills in 13 states and DC through 2029 due to data center demands
A power auction conducted by a giant grid operator is expected to add $6.3 billion in additional charges to consumers and businesses …
China enacts rules forbidding companionship chatbots from encouraging emotional reliance, banning virtual relationships with minors, and more
Beijing sets emotional boundaries between humans and machines — SINGAPORE—Regulators in China have found unexpected common ground …
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 25%
What's Next?Makenzie Holland /CIO Dive:IBM stock tumbles after Q2 infrastructure revenue warningDaniel Howley /Yahoo Finance:IBM stock plummets more than 25% on Q2 earnings warningIan Salisbury /Barro...
Uber and Waymo are engaged in a DC lobbying battle over AV legislation, with Uber supporting a hybrid human-robotaxi model and Waymo pushing for pure robotaxis
The latest leading indicator of the robotaxi revolution is a tiff. Waymo LLC, a unit of Alphabet Inc., and Uber Technologies Inc. are nominally partners.
Study: social networks drove 5.7M+ visits to nudify sites between December 2025 and March 2026, with YouTube accounting for 1.82M visits and X for 1.3M visits
A new study found that social media platforms are referring people to sites where they can create nonconsensual, sexually explicit deepfakes for as little as $1 an image.
As China's rules for humanlike AI interaction take effect, many users are bemoaning the loss of the virtual companions they had created on Chinese AI platforms
For days, 19-year old student Yan Yongqi has been consumed by grief over the imminent loss of her virtual boyfriend of more than a year.
China says Apple Intelligence has been registered for use on iPhones in the country; the service will integrate Alibaba's Qwen and may add Baidu's AI features
China's cyberspace regulator said on Wednesday that Apple's on-device generative AI service “Apple Intelligence” has been registered for use on iPhones in the country.
Israel-based Hemispheric, whose AI model can analyze brain activity measured non-invasively and turn it into quantitative metrics for diagnoses, raised $52M
The Israeli company's AI model can analyze brain activity measured by non-invasive means and turn it into quantitative metrics designed …
A profile of PsiQuantum, which has raised $1B in 2025, is building a quantum computer with GlobalFoundries-made photonic chips, and is highly regarded by DARPA
The company has drawn governments, a major chipmaker, and the Pentagon into an effort to control fragile photons and build a useful quantum machine.
OpenAI details GPT-Red, an internal automated red-teaming model that scales prompt injection vulnerability discovery so it can fix bugs before wider deployment
Training strong automated safety red-teamers to improve robustness. — Summary — Problem — Red-teaming is essential …
Nokia plans to sell its AI-driven RAN platform, developed with Nvidia, to mobile operators by 2027, aiming for a 100% increase in spectrum efficiency by 2028
Nokia Oyj says it developed the first commercial artificial intelligence driven radio access network platform together with Nvidia Corp …
The UAE gained expanded US AI chip access after aiding the US in the Iran war, letting G42 buy freely for at least nine months; G42 plans to become a US company
Gulf state's main AI firm can freely buy the chips and has a plan to become a U.S. company — The United Arab Emirates …
Israel-based Oak, which is building an AI-native identity access management system, comes out of stealth with a $60M seed
Physical badges used to be all you needed for identity management at a company. But with humans now working alongside machines and AI agents in digital environments …
Indian AI coding startup Emergent raised a $130M Series C at a $1.5B post-money valuation, up from $300M in January, bringing its total funding raised to $230M
Indian AI coding startup Emergent has raised $130 million in a Series C funding round at a $1.5 billion post-money valuation, a five-fold jump in six months.
MA-based Walden Robotics, a Toyota robotics spin-off that has started selling humanoid robots, emerges from stealth with a ~$300M seed at a $1.1B valuation
Walden Robotics, a startup working on humanoids that was spun out of a Toyota robotics research lab, has secured approximately $300 million …
Hyundai's South Korea auto workers have gone on a partial strike over wages, AI, and the prospect of it deploying Boston Dynamics' humanoid robot in factories
Auto workers for Hyundai Motor in South Korea are on a partial strike worried about their future job prospects
NYC-based Hadrius, which provides AI-native compliance tools for financial services, raised a $22M Series A led by CRV with participation from Y Combinator
Hadrius, which makes compliance software for financial firms, raised a $22 million Series A, CEO Thomas Stewart tells Axios exclusively.
Google Images launches a Pinterest-like redesign with a browsable, dynamic gallery of images, and adds a way for users to create AI images in Search
OpenAI says Apple's claim that OpenAI “never responded” to its concerns is false; emails: OpenAI did respond, but an Apple lawyer mixed up two OpenAI employees
A lawyer for Apple apologized for mixing up two OpenAI employees with the names Wang and Chang.
Spotify launches Talk to Spotify, letting users create playlists and more via voice, rolling out in beta to Premium users age 18+ in the US, Ireland, and Sweden
Hinge adds Friend's Take, a feature that lets daters enlist up to 10 close contacts to share written feedback, photos, voice notes, or videos on their profiles
Hinge is introducing a new feature called Friend's Take that lets daters recruit people they know to leave testimonials on their profiles for other singles to see.
Lumin Digital, which provides cloud-based digital banking software to banks and credit unions, raised more than $115M at a $1.6B post-money valuation
Lumin Digital, which provides digital banking software to banks and credit unions, raised more than $115 million at a $1.6 billion post-money valuation …
Amsterdam-based Monumental, which develops autonomous robotics and software for the construction industry, raised a $32M Series B led by Khosla Ventures
Monumental develops autonomous construction robots and AI software to help builders address labour shortages and increase construction capacity.
OpenAI employees donated a combined $215K+ to Guardrails Alliance, a super PAC seeking stricter AI rules and opposing Greg Brockman-backed Leading the Future
OpenAI employees have donated more than $215,000 to a political effort opposing Leading the Future, a group backed by the company's president, Greg Brockman.
Sources: Microsoft security chief Hayete Gallot, who took over in February, has prioritized AI tools, cut several hundred roles, replaced senior execs, and more
Microsoft, the largest cybersecurity software seller in the world, is overhauling that business to cash in on corporate anxieties about AI-powered hacks.
Apple publishes a policy for upcoming Maps ads, says home services ads are banned, medical services ads will be “evaluated on a case-by-case basis”, and more
Apple has quietly published a rulebook for its new Maps ads, revealing a more curated approach than advertising giant Google.
Daniel Ek's Neko Health, which offers AI-based full-body scans, raised $700M co-led by Lightspeed and O.G. Venture Partners, sources say at a ~$7B valuation
Sources: OpenAI researcher Miles Wang is leaving to launch a startup developing AI models for drug discovery, and is in talks to raise ~$200M at a $2B valuation
Miles Wang, an OpenAI researcher whose work includes using AI to accelerate scientific and biological discovery, is leaving the ChatGPT maker …
Dave Brown, AWS SVP of Compute, AI, and Platform, is leaving the company after 19 years for a new job; he is a member of the S-team that advises CEO Andy Jassy
Amazon (AMZN.O) veteran Dave Brown, a senior vice president in Amazon Web Services and member of the elite internal group advising CEO Andy Jassy …
India pledges $13.3B to boost domestic chipmaking, building on a $10B incentive program from 2021 that attracted investments from companies like Micron and Tata
India pledged a further 1.28 trillion rupees ($13.3 billion) to boost domestic chipmaking, advancing its ambitious bid to become a global manufacturing hub.
Gavin Newsom is tempering his pro-tech instincts with economic populism ahead of a likely presidential bid, proposing giving Americans equity in AI companies
When Gavin Newsom recently proposed giving Americans equity shares in artificial intelligence companies, he was doing more than floating an economic policy.
Anthropic, Blackstone, and Hellman & Friedman's $1.5B AI implementation company, announced in May, launches with the name “Ode with Anthropic” and 100 engineers
AI models are becoming ever more capable, but exactly what enterprise adoption will look like remains a big question.
A Trump administration official says a “trivial” number of Nvidia's H200 chips were shipped to China after winning a US license, without offering specifics
Miami-based Cyclops, which sells an infrastructure platform that bundles crypto and stablecoin services to payments companies, raised a $20M Series A
The advent of stablecoins has made it possible to settle global transactions instantly, but many payment providers have yet to catch up …
TerraFirma, a construction tech company founded by two former SpaceX engineers to build remote-controlled construction equipment, raised $115M
OpenAI has struck a partnership with Kalshi to show FIFA World Cup prediction market data in ChatGPT search results, its first deal with a prediction market
How Anthropic is pursuing a state-by-state push for ever-tougher AI safety laws, in contrast with OpenAI's “reverse federalism” strategy for common state rules
SAN FRANCISCO — Artificial intelligence giant Anthropic is pursuing a strategy of one-upmanship that encourages states …
Rime, which helps companies field calls using AI voice models trained on conversational data it records in a studio, raised a $24M Series A led by M13
Voice AI startups' biggest unlock has been handling calls for enterprises in areas like sales, marketing and customer support.
Apple raises its AppleCare+ prices for Macs and iPads by $0.50 per month and $5 per year; the increases are exclusively for new sign-ups
Apple Inc. slightly raised the cost of individual AppleCare+ service subscriptions, marking its latest price increase in the face of a global memory shortage and other challenges.
American Growth Insurance, which aims to acquire struggling independent insurance firms and transform them using AI, raised almost $70M
A startup called American Growth Insurance said today it has raised almost $70 million in committed equity capital to transform the insurance industry.
How TikTok Shop sellers are using AI creators and AI twins to boost affiliate sales; eMarketer: US sales on TikTok Shop will grow 48% YoY to $23.41B in 2026
Brands issue warnings as more creators use avatars and duplicates of themselves to boost affiliate sales
Uber is in advanced talks to acquire Delivery Hero; sources: Uber is discussing a bid of ~€40/share, which would value the German food-delivery company at €12B+
A look at Founders Fund-backed State Affairs, which raised $70M and uses AI trained on reporting by its 76 staffers to power a Bloomberg Terminal-like product
Sources: the EU is set to fine Google hundreds of millions of euros over alleged self-preferencing of its services in Search and restrictions on app developers
Decisions will test whether the EU can police digital markets without reigniting tensions with Washington
InstaLILY, which develops AI agents to automate sales, operations, and service workflows, raised a $60M Series B led by Energize Capital
Venture funding of fintech startups grew 22.7% YoY in H1 2026 to $28.6B globally, but deal count fell 25.7% and funding fell 17.3% vs. H2 2025's $34.6B funding
Venture funding into fintech startups climbed nearly 23% year over year in H1 2026, even as deal count fell more than 25% …
Neo Security, a cybersecurity startup founded by ex-SentinelOne execs and currently in stealth, raised $50M+, after a $25M seed in 2025 led by a16z and Merlin
Neo Security has now raised more than $75 million as investors continue backing next-generation cybersecurity companies.
Sources: Apple is looking to acquire chip companies to boost its AI server efforts, as it struggles with AI server chip upgrades and M2 Ultra server performance
Apple is on the lookout for acquisitions of chip companies to boost its efforts to build server chips for running AI, said people familiar with the company's efforts.
ASML says Intel has decided to use ASML's next-gen High NA EUV machines to make some of its flagship Panther Lake laptop chips; a High NA machine costs ~$400M
Max A. Cherney /Reuters:
Sources: multiple GOP governors and large utilities are expected to join Trump's pledge for data center developers to cover their energy use and infrastructure
Sources: Oracle leads the race to sell “air-gapped” cloud services to Japan that the US says are key to secure intelligence sharing between Tokyo and its allies
Sources and telecom data: a coordinated campaign of SS7 pings was used to track the locations of US personnel during the US-led strikes on Iran in late February
Spectro Cloud, an AI infrastucture company helping manage token costs, raised a $100M Series D from AMD, LG, others at a $1B+ valuation, up from $750M in 2024
Spectro Cloud, an AI infrastucture company helping manage token costs, raised $100 million at an over $1 billion valuation, the company tells Axios exclusively.
Sources: ASML has discussed raising prices for its EUV systems with TSMC and plans to charge 10% more for its DUV systems; TSMC is resisting ASML's price plans
Chip toolmaker ASML, which makes equipment that plays a central role in chip production around the world, plans to raise prices …
Hachette, Elsevier, Cengage Learning, and author Scott Turow sue Google for allegedly using millions of copyrighted books and articles to build AI models
OpenAI launches Codex Micro, a $230 desktop keypad built in collaboration with keyboard maker Work Louder, with backlit keys, a rotary knob, and a tiny joystick
Megan Morrone /Axios:
Sources: DeepSeek's annualized revenue recently reached $400M to $500M as it seeks to raise ~$7.4B at a ~$74B valuation, up from ~$50B after raising ~$7B in May
The Information: