Mon. 05/20 – That GPT Voice Is NOT Scar-Jo

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

31 Des 202520min

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

30 Des 202524min

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

29 Des 202520min

Feel free to check out Rad History if you enjoyed this. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

26 Des 202538min

You can find out more about The Newsworthy here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

25 Des 202532min

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

24 Des 202522min

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

23 Des 202520min

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

22 Des 202522min