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August 23, 2025, 5:00 PM

Top News

The Guardian:
Sources: in a meeting with UK Technology Secretary Peter Kyle, Sam Altman proposed giving ChatGPT Plus to everyone in the UK, a deal that would have cost £2B  —  Exclusive: Deal that could have cost £2bn was floated at meeting between technology secretary Peter Kyle and Sam Altman
New York Times:
Some lawyers and bankers say the Intel deal may face legal challenges as the CHIPS Act may not allow the US government to convert grants into equity  —  The deal is among the largest government interventions in a U.S. company since the rescue of the auto industry after the 2008 financial crisis.
Reuters:
Some experts say Trump's extraordinary intervention is unlikely to save Intel, which faces challenges with poor yields and competition from TSMC and Nvidia  —  U.S. President Donald Trump is injecting nearly $9 billion into Intel(INTC.O) in exchange for a 9.9% equity stake.
Wall Street Journal:
More: Washington Post, Wired, Ars Technica, Associated Press, The Verge, Reuters, CNBC, BBC, Bloomberg, NBC News, Washington Post, Mediaite, Yahoo Finance, Notebookcheck, Associated Press, The Guam Daily Post, The Last Refuge, UPI, XDA Developers, The Register, MarketWatch, DigiTimes, KMUW, Shacknews, Politico, Engadget, CBS News, Raw Story, Barron's Online, PCMag, Newser, WBHM 90.3, 9to5Mac, Oregonian, Just The News, ZeroHedge News, TechCrunch, Benzinga, Windows Central, and Financial Times
Threads: @carnage4life and @martinsfp
Mike Allen / Axios:
Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia, named by Trump as the first US chief design officer, says he wants to update federal websites to an “Apple Store-like experience”  —  Joe Gebbia — a co-founder of Airbnb who was named by President Trump this week to be the first U.S. chief design officer …
Anthony Ha / TechCrunch:
OpenAI warns investors against “unauthorized opportunities” to gain exposure to its equity, including through special purpose vehicles  —  In a new blog post, OpenAI warns against “unauthorized opportunities to gain exposure to OpenAI through a variety of means,” including special purpose vehicles, known as SPVs.
More: OpenAI
Business Insider:
A surge in AI company valuations is driving the popularity of special purpose vehicles, but some involve high fees, opaque structures, and layers of middlemen  —  - SPVs have been surging in popularity as retail investors scramble for stock in hot AI companies.
Cecilia D'Anastasio / Bloomberg:
How AI is increasingly being used to replace human content moderators, who say that the tech is not yet capable of reliably identifying harmful content  —  Kevin decided on a career in content moderation after his YouTube recommendations took a bewildering swerve.
Alex Heath / The Verge:
More: TechCrunchBluesky: @prietschkaMastodon: @jukkan@mstdn.socialThreads: @alexheathX: @rohitprasadaiLinkedIn: Junjie Tang
Andy Mukherjee / Bloomberg:
India's move to ban online real-money games over addiction and money laundering concerns appears valid, but it may push users toward offshore crypto casinos  —  Cricket wagers will move offshore, with crypto becoming the preferred currency.  —  India has stunned its online gaming industry …
The Hindu:
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Bluesky blocks access to its service in Mississippi, saying it doesn't have the resources to comply with the state's broad new law requiring age verification  —  Social networking startup Bluesky has made the decision to block access to its service in the state of Mississippi, rather than comply with a new age assurance law.
Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Nvidia has shown new versions of its Blackwell-based AI chips for Chinese customers to US officials, including one with ~80% of the peak performance  —  Chip designer hopes Trump will approve new design for sale in China, after Beijing tells its companies not to buy older product
Dean Seal / Wall Street Journal:
FanDuel partners with CME Group to offer event-based contracts, letting users wager “yes” or “no” on financial events and benchmarks, starting later this year  —  The sports-betting platform's deal with CME Group might ultimately lead it to making markets for sports-related events

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Featured Podcasts

Access:
Sam Altman on OpenAI's next model and the AI backlash
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Training Data:
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Sequoia Capital partners host conversations with leading AI builders and researchers to develop a deeper understanding of the evolving technologies and their implications.
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Sarah Guo - Funding the Frontier
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Lenny's Podcast:
AI's third era: the rise of persistent AI coworkers | Tara Seshan (Product Lead ChatGPT Work)
Interviews with world-class product leaders and growth experts to uncover actionable advice to help you build, launch, and grow your own product.
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Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith:
Connecting the Unconnected: Doreen Bogdan-Martin
Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith speaks with leaders in government, business, and culture to explore the most critical challenges at the intersection of technology and society.
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