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January 14, 2025, 12:45 PM
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Bloomberg:
Sources: Chinese officials are evaluating an option involving Elon Musk acquiring TikTok US; X would take control of TikTok US and run the businesses together  —  - ByteDance's preferred strategy is to fight ban, people say  — Trump has said he would like to delay ban to seek resolution
More: The Daily Dot, Ars Technica, Financial Times, CNET, AppleInsider, Reuters, The Verge, CNBC, The Hill, Washington Examiner, Investor's Business Daily, PYMNTS.com, UPI, Forbes, Quartz, Barron's Online, Semafor, Reuters, Vanity Fair, masslive.com, Legit.ng, Pocket-lint, South China Morning Post, Courthouse News Service, Entrepreneur, Washington Times, Spyglass, RedState, Livemint, Sky News, The London Economic, Dazed, Music Business Worldwide, Sharecast, Toronto Star, Asia Financial, New York Times, NME, Investing.com, Fortune, Music Ally, The Mirror, NBC News, PhoneArena, Taipei Times, The Independent, Decrypt, Al Jazeera, Tech.co, Hypebeast, Hindustan Times, The Sun, Silicon Republic, indy100, Khaama Press, The Crypto Basic, Neowin, Interesting Engineering, The Indian Express, Tuko.co.ke, Android Authority, Lowyat.NET, Arabian Business, The Economic Times, International Business Times, Cryptopolitan, Android Police, Mark Carrigan, Bitcoin Insider, MEDIANAMA, Cointelegraph, MakeUseOf, PetaPixel, Euronews, en.ain.ua, TechCrunch, and The Verge
Bluesky: @amberbenge, @principalengineer.com, @pomurray, @guayjg, @wcooperbooks, @daveweigel, @lorak, @noupside, @alexheath, @davelee.me, @kevinroose.com, @mikeelgan, @steinekin, @doremusjessup, @evacide, @quinnypig.com, @shepardcdr, @larakate, @tk.gg, @mediaevan, @martinsfp, @caseynewton, @civicwhitaker, @carlbergstrom.com, @schooley, @ashtonpittman, @rincewind.run, @kurtwagner, @karissabe, and @peark.es.  Mastodon: @GossiTheDog@cyberplace.social.  Threads: @susyqli
X: @mgsiegler, @benmullin, @hzjoe03, @alexeheath, @mattyglesias, @kyliebytes, @austinahlman, @pushastee, @alexeheath, @matthewstoller, @loudmouthjulia, @turnernovak, @maxwelltani, @kyliebytes, @newley, @newley, @loudmouthjulia, @newley, @mrbeast, and @chamath.  LinkedIn: Isaac Stone Fish
Forums: r/TSLA, r/Economics, r/worldnews, r/TheAllinPodcasts, r/Destiny, r/China, r/politics, r/STEW_ScTecEngWorld, r/EnoughMuskSpam, r/neoliberal, and r/wallstreetbets
See also Mediagazer
Todd Spangler / Variety:
TikTok denies a report that China is looking at potentially facilitating a sale of the app to Elon Musk to keep it operating the US, calling it “pure fiction”  —  TikTok denied a report that China is looking at potentially facilitating a sale of the app to tech billionaire Elon Musk …
Justine Calma / The Verge:
Biden signs an EO that directs the DOD and DOE to lease land to companies building gigawatt-scale AI data centers and clean power facilities, and more  —  President Biden issued an executive order today aimed at speeding the development of AI data centers in the US.
Ryan Browne / CNBC:
The UK CMA opens an investigation into whether Google has “strategic market status” in search and how it impacts consumers, advertisers, publishers, and rivals  —  LONDON — Britain's competition watchdog on Tuesday said that it's opening a formal antitrust investigation into Google's search and search advertising services.
Financial Times:
Sources: the EU is reviewing its DMA probes into US tech giants from March 2024, as US groups urge Trump to intervene; the EU says “there is no such review”  —  Tech groups have urged Donald Trump to intervene against overzealous European regulation
Reece Rogers / Wired:
How Cleo AI and Bright, personalized AI chatbots offering financial advice, often function as a way to sell high-interest loans and cash advances to young users  —  AI finance apps are reaching Gen Z and millennial users with personalized chatbots that offer money advice—and upsell them big-time.
Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai / TechCrunch:
Sources and business records detail how Barcelona has emerged as an unlikely hub for spyware companies, raising concerns from digital rights groups  —  Toward the end of 2023, an Israeli security researcher from Tel Aviv said that he was approached on LinkedIn with an opportunity to work abroad with “good pay.”
Kashmir Hill / New York Times:
Texas sues Allstate and its subsidiary Arity, accusing the insurer of illegally collecting and selling data about people's driving behavior through mobile apps  —  The lawsuit accuses Arity, an Allstate subsidiary, of collecting data about people's driving behavior through mobile phone apps …
Riley Griffin / Bloomberg:
Meta plans to cut about 5% of its lowest performers with the intent of backfilling their roles this year, according to an internal memo sent to employees  —  Meta Platforms Inc. is planning to cut about 5% of its lowest performers with the intent of backfilling their roles this year, according to an internal memo sent to employees.
Cynthia Brumfield / CSO:
Draft of an EO called “Strengthening and Promoting Innovation in the Nation's Cybersecurity” that Biden may issue this week lists 52 actions agencies must take  —  The ambitious final executive order requires 52 agency actions to bolster cyber protections and counter adversaries …
Niket Nishant / Reuters:
Zurich- and Singapore-based Sygnum, a crypto-focused bank and trading platform for institutional users, raised $58M led by Fulgur Ventures at a $1B valuation  —  Crypto-focused bank Sygnum secured a valuation of $1 billion after raising $58 million in its latest funding round, it said on Tuesday.
Cheng Ting-Fang / Nikkei Asia:
Sources: Apple is in the final stage of verifying its first cutting-edge chips from TSMC's Arizona plant, with the first batch expected as early as this quarter  —  TAIPEI — Apple is in the final stage of verifying its first “made in America” cutting-edge processor chips from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.'s plant in Arizona.
Bloomberg:
A profile of Dubai property tycoon Hussain Sajwani, who, alongside Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, pledged a $20B investment in US data centers, drawing skepticism  —  - Hussain Sajwani has seen big wins from Dubai's property boom  — Sajwani has pledged to invest $20 billion in US data centers
Bluesky: @sararose007
Bloomberg:
Sources: Databricks secures $5B+ in its largest debt raise to date, from lenders including Blackstone and Apollo, after raising $10B in equity in December 2024  —  - Blackstone, Apollo, Blue Owl among lenders in private loan  — Financing also includes a $2.5 billion credit line from banks
Will Knight / Wired:
The US' new chip export rule enters a 120-day consultation period, requiring the Trump admin to listen to input, perhaps modify the rule, and then enforce it  —  The US government has announced a radical plan to control exports of cutting-edge AI technology to most nations.
Financial Times:
The Biden admin unveils a new chip export rule that gives 18 key allies full AI chips access while requiring licenses from most other countries, including China

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From Mediagazer

Katie Deighton / Wall Street Journal:
WME is selling sports marketing agency 160over90 to Publicis Groupe for, sources say, $500M+; WME bought the agency in 2018 for about $200M

Lucia Moses / Business Insider:
OpenAI partners with Smartly, an adtech company that helps clients optimize ads in real time, to design ad formats that match ChatGPT's conversational interface

Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
An interview with WSJ EIC Emma Tucker on increasing digital-only subscriptions by 30% to 4.29M since 2023, culture change, events, print, AI tools, and more

More News

Hannah Miller / Bloomberg:
DirecTV launches MySports, a sports streamer featuring games from NFL and other major leagues, and access to 40 channels, in 24 US metro areas for $70/month
Taylor Soper / GeekWire:
Bellevue, WA-based Truveta, which aggregates medical data from 30 partner institutions, raised $320M from Regeneron, Illumina, and others at a $1B+ valuation

Earlier Picks

Todd Bishop / GeekWire:
Microsoft is creating a new “CoreAI - Platform and Tools” unit led by Jay Parikh, the ex-Lacework CEO and Meta engineering executive who joined in October 2024
Dan Mangan / CNBC:
The US SEC says that two Robinhood broker-dealers agreed to pay $45M in combined penalties to settle charges that they violated 10+ securities law provisions
Washington Post:
An investigation finds 15 police departments across 12 US states have arrested suspects identified through facial recognition without having any other evidence
More: Newser.  Bluesky: @joffirphd, @drewharwell.com, and @hypervisible.  X: @glynco.  LinkedIn: Douglas MacMillan.  Forums: r/technology
Zeyi Yang / Wired:
Ahead of a likely US TikTok ban, users flee to Chinese apps Xiaohongshu, aka RedNote, and ByteDance's Lemon8, currently the top two apps in the US App Store
Richard Nieva / Forbes:
Free Our Feeds, backed by Jimmy Wales and others, aims to raise $30M by 2028 to billionaire-proof the AT Protocol by making it easier for Bluesky users to leave
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