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October 4, 2025, 1:20 AM
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Sam Altman:
Sam Altman says OpenAI is planning two Sora changes for rightsholders: granular controls over generation of their characters and a revenue sharing system  —  We have been learning quickly from how people are using Sora and taking feedback from users, rightsholders, and other interested groups.
Ashley Capoot / CNBC:
OpenAI's invite-only Sora app becomes the top free app in the US App Store three days after its launch, ahead of Gemini in second and ChatGPT in third  —  OpenAI now has two of the top three free apps in Apple's App Store, and its new video generation app Sora has snagged the coveted No. 1 spot.
Newcomer:
OpenAI VP of Media Partnerships Varun Shetty says OpenAI didn't put too many guardrails in Sora because it doesn't “want it to be at a competitive disadvantage”
New York Times:
Users express surprise, delight, and disgust with viral Sora clips, as some warn of IP theft and that Cameos could lead to new kinds of misinformation and scams
Joseph Cox / 404 Media:
Google and Apple removed Red Dot, an app for reporting ICE agent sightings, from their app stores; Google says the app shared the location of a vulnerable group  —  Both Google and Apple recently removed Red Dot, an app people can use to report sightings of ICE officials, from their respective app stores, 404 Media has found.
John Gruber / Daring Fireball:
Apple's removal of ICEBlock raises questions about the limits of what the company will resist under the Trump administration's increasingly outrageous demands  —  Ashley Oliver, reporting for Fox Business: … Fox, in its opening paragraph, describes Bondi as having “asked” …
Ashley Oliver / Fox Business:
Apple removes ICEBlock, an app for anonymously reporting ICE officer sightings, from the App Store; AG Pam Bondi directed the DOJ to ask Apple to remove the app
More: 404 Media, New York Times, CNBC, The Verge, Business Insider, Ars Technica, 9to5Mac, CNN, CBS News, TechCrunch, BBC, TheStreet, Daily Kos, Breitbart, HotAir, One America News Network, BonTech Labs, Reason, The Western Journal, NPR, Straight Arrow News, iPhone in Canada, Townhall, Daily Caller News Foundation, Techstrong IT, UPI, Dallas Express, Quartz, Gizmodo, Forbes, FOX 4 News Dallas-Fort Worth, iDrop News, The Information, ZeroHedge News, The Post Millennial, Cult of Mac, SFist, The Hill, The A.V. Club, Scripps News, New York Post, RedState, Mobile World Live, The Independent, thesun.my, International Business Times, PCMag, WinBuzzer, AppleInsider, Bloomberg, and Axios
X: @lsferguson, @desireeamerica4, @esjesjesj, @okla_oag, @senatorbabet, @presssec, @langmanvince, @ryanafournier, @restoreorderusa, @deray, @wendyrogersaz, @ericldaugh, @grummz, @pkafka, @pkafka, @libsoftiktok, @reprwilliams, @nicksortor, and @lauraloomer.  LinkedIn: Ted Hulick
Bluesky: @lorak, @lorak, @timobrien, @shiraovide, @blaqdocdown, @samuelwa.de, @paulbernal, @evangreer, @cmonmaque, @moomoof, @muellershewrote.com, @scottdagostino.ca, @golfwriterkiel, @iceblock.app, @charliemeyerson.com, @svenning.io, @anarchoterran, @calabamian, @duckrabbitpro, @duckrabbitpro, @rimaanabtawi, @maggiemcneill, @mariafarrell, @esqueer.net, @pattmlatimes, @samuelwa.de, @daviduzumeri, @anderslovlie, @hern, @chaotichuman, @knowshowitwillend, @madycast.com, @bindiatthebeach, @chrisinparis, @taniel, @pghdlo, @manuelsalgado, @virginiahall32, @digivudu, @robertscotthorton, @shitpost.expert, @gwensnyder, @marypcbuk, @thescot, @reckless, @dell, @nickfisherau, @esqueer.net, @mezentine, @pkafka, @utopianparallax, and @muellershewrote.com.  Threads: @documentingmeta
Mastodon: @dmoren@zeppelin.flights, @ErikJonker@mastodon.social, Freedom of the Press …, @Rusty@cubhub.social, @jenbanim@mastodo.neoliber.al, @colincornaby@mastodon.social, @marcoarment@mastodon.social, @gufo@mastodon.nu, @continuation@mas.to, @cooperq@masto.hackers.town, @anneroth@systemli.social, @bjoernsta@eimsbuettel.social, and @lauren@mastodon …
Forums: Hacker News, r/StallmanWasRight, r/DenverProtests, r/politics, r/inthenews, r/2600, r/politics, r/DeclineIntoCensorship, r/JoeRogan, r/MarchAgainstNazis, r/Fuckthealtright, r/AntifascistsofReddit, r/EyesOnIce, r/apple, r/technology, r/Fauxmoi, r/technology, r/NewDealAmerica, r/news, r/ICE_Raids, and r/politics
Olga Kharif / Bloomberg:
Coinbase applies for a national trust company charter, says it “has no intention of becoming a bank” and the charter will allow expansion in areas like payments  —  Coinbase Global Inc., the largest US crypto exchange, is seeking a national trust company charter from the Office …
Cecilia D'Anastasio / Bloomberg:
Sources: Microsoft putting some of its top titles on Xbox Game Pass is cutting into its higher-margin game sales, giving up $300M+ in Call of Duty sales in 2024  —  Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox division surprised many video game enthusiasts this week when the company announced a 50% price hike …
Dylan Loh / Nikkei Asia:
Singapore dollar-pegged XSGD stablecoin debuts on Coinbase, giving the city-state a head start over Hong Kong in launching a local currency-linked stablecoin  —  SINGAPORE — Singapore is racing past Hong Kong to debut a cryptocurrency pegged to the city-state's dollar as the rival financial hubs compete …
More: Cryptonews
Swetha Gopinath / Bloomberg:
KKR invests in Infobric, a Stirling Square-backed Swedish company that offers software to the construction industry, sources say at a ~€600M valuation  —  KKR & Co. is investing in Infobric, a software company focused on the construction industry that's backed by Stirling Square.
Associated Press:
Governor Gavin Newsom signs a bill that gives ride-hailing drivers in California the right to unionize while still being classified as independent contractors  —  More than 800,000 drivers for ride-hailing companies in California will soon be able to join a union and bargain collectively …
Rebecca Bellan / TechCrunch:
OpenAI acquires AI-powered personal finance app Roi; source: CEO and co-founder Sujith Vishwajith is the only member of Roi's four-person team joining OpenAI  —  OpenAI has acquired Roi, an AI-powered personal finance app.  In keeping with a recent trend in the AI industry, only the CEO is making the jump.
Marina Temkin / TechCrunch:
Sources: former Databricks VP of AI Naveen Rao is in talks to raise $1B led by a16z at a $5B valuation for his new AI hardware startup Unconventional  —  Naveen Rao, who was formerly the head of artificial intelligence at Databricks, is in talks to raise a $1 billion at a $5 billion valuation …
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Sources: Microsoft is testing ad-supported games streaming internally, allowing employees to play select titles for free without an Xbox Game Pass subscription  —  Microsoft employees can now access an ad-supported version of Xbox Cloud Gaming ahead of a public test.
Greg Bensinger / Reuters:
Rob Williams, Amazon's VP of Device Software and Services and a member of the S-team advising CEO Andy Jassy, steps down and plans to leave Amazon by 2025's end  —  - VP Rob Williams to retire from Amazon, remains advisor through 2025  — Panos Panay announces team consolidation, Tapas Roy promoted

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From Mediagazer

New York Times:
Sources: Paramount proposed to pause its merger with WBD because the company thought going to a trial was the fastest way to complete the deal

Dominic-Madori Davis / TechCrunch:
London-based European Technology Network, a TBPN-like show livestreaming 5x a week on YouTube and X, raised a $1.6M seed round from Axel Springer and others

Inside Radio:
Nielsen plans to discontinue its radio and TV audience-ratings measurement services for TV and radio in Puerto Rico at the end of 2026

More News

Rashi Shrivastava / Forbes:
Moonlake AI, which offers tools to help users “vibe code virtual worlds”, including for gaming, animation, and filmmaking, comes out of stealth with a $28M seed
TechCrunch:
Lapsus$ publishes a data leak site on the dark web that threatens to release ~1B records allegedly stolen from dozens of companies' Salesforce-hosted databases
Politico:
CISA 2015, the key law that helps the federal government guard against cyber threats to US critical systems, expired when the government shut down on October 1
Bloomberg:
Sources: BlackRock's GIP is in talks to acquire Aligned, which operates 78 data centers across North and South America; the deal could value Aligned at ~$40B

Earlier Picks

Allie Garfinkle / Fortune:
Supabase, an open-source rival to Google's Firebase, raised a $100M Series E led by Accel and Peak XV at a $5B valuation, bringing its total funding to $500M+
Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch:
Google expands its AI coding agent Jules with a command-line interface and a public API, allowing it to plug into terminals, CI/CD systems, and tools like Slack
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