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January 1, 2026, 7:15 PM
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| Stephanie Palazzolo / The Information: |
Sources: OpenAI is taking steps to improve its audio AI models, in preparation for its AI-powered personal device, which is expected to be largely audio-based — OpenAI is taking steps to improve its audio AI models, in preparation for its eventual release of an AI-powered personal device, said a person with knowledge of the effort.
More: SiliconANGLE, TechCrunch, The Decoder, and Digit
X: @keytryer, @gregkamradt, @mark_k, @kimmonismus, @andrewcurran_, @kylebrussell, @btibor91, and @steph_palazzolo. Bluesky: @carnage4life
Forums: r/OpenAI and r/singularity
| Simon Willison / Simon Willison's Weblog: |
Some LLM takeaways for 2025: reasoning as a signature feature, coding agents were useful, subscriptions hit $200/month, and Chinese open-weight models impressed — This is the third in my annual series reviewing everything that happened in the LLM space over the past 12 months.
More: Ben Werdmuller, Ars Technica, and Don't Worry About the Vase
Bluesky: @mikehadlow.com, @carnage4life, @daniloc.xyz, @jeremymorrell.dev, and @simonwillison.net
Forums: Hacker News and Lobsters
| Reuters: |
Elon Musk says that Neuralink plans to start “high-volume production” of its BCI devices and move to an “almost entirely automated surgical procedure in 2026” — Elon Musk's brain implant company Neuralink will start “high-volume production” of brain-computer interface devices …
More: The Hans India, Mashable, News9live, New York Sun, The American Bazaar, Business Insider, Livemint, Moneycontrol, Digit, and Eschaton
X: @brij, @elonmusk, @kskgroup2017, @cathiedwood, @mmjukic, @astrodanish, @teortaxestex, @checkcanopy, @andrewzywiecmd, @serobinsonjr, @quinnypig, @0xunihax0r, @moneyacademyke, @sovmichael, and @teslaradiox
Bluesky: @steveparks.me, @t0nyyates, @webrant, @shwshnkdufresne, @hellocullen, @malwarejake, @yermazaguddin, @segfaultvicta.aludel.xyz, @dburbach, @sharonk, @anamusingaddress, @whynotscott, @ktfalvey, @harrymckillen.com, @hushuo, @parismarx.com, @keithfitzgerald, @juniorhoncho, @bumblesnuff, @rowyourbot, @samwhyte, @rowyourbot, @fiddledidi, @lorak, @brienneofsnark, @niedermeyer.online, and @fagankara
Forums: r/RealTesla, r/behindthebastards, r/musked, and r/EnoughMuskSpam
| Financial Times: |
A look at the rise of AI companionship apps; a researcher found 206 such apps on the App Store and 253 on Google Play, with 220M+ total downloads as of July '25 — The technology is changing the way many people meet and form relationships but some experts believe it may do more harm than good| C.J. Chivers / New York Times: |
Ukraine has become a live-fire test range for AI drones like the Bumblebee, provided by a secretive Eric Schmidt-led venture, raising alarms in Kremlin circles — As the war grinds on, sophisticated Russian defenses have pushed Ukraine to develop a frightening new weapon: semiautonomous killing machines.
More: Fox News, Business Insider, and UPI
| Angel Au-Yeung / Wall Street Journal: |
Startups have started to offer free nicotine pouches as a perk, as some employees claim the products help them focus during the workday, despite health hazards — A nicotine replacement for smokers has started popping up in offices in the tech industry, despite health hazards
More: New York Post and Newser
| Michael Acton / Financial Times: |
IDC expected Apple to ship just 45,000 units of the Vision Pro in Q4 2025; Sensor Tower said Apple cut digital ad spend for the headset by 95% in 2025 — High prices, limited apps and comfort issues expose difficulty of turning futuristic hardware into a mass-market product
More: iDrop News, Philip Elmer‑DeWitt, iClarified, The Guardian, AppleInsider, Tom's Guide, Newsmax, HotHardware, COINOTAG, and iPhone in Canada
Bluesky: @parismarx.com and @jjaron
| Philosopher Count: |
How AI automation can fulfill Thomas Piketty's predictions on rising economic inequality, and why highly progressive taxes on capital can help slow the spiral — Piketty was wrong about the past. He's probably right about the future. — 1. Introduction
X: @elocinationn, @erikbryn, @saikatc, @pawtrammell, @tszzl, @garrytan, @besttrousers, @harryh, @dwarkesh_sp, @pawtrammell, @jankulveit, @yonashav, @stevehou, @jackwiseman_, @dwarkesh_sp, @deepdishenjoyer, @t_holden, @alltheyud, @garrytan, @daniel_271828, @krishnanrohit, @briancalbrecht, @briancalbrecht, @garrytan, @digeconlab, @jsevillamol, @daveg, @mylesudland, @drydenwtbrown, @ks_kulk, @dwarkesh_sp, @robinhanson, @mortenstostad, @alltheyud, and @dwarkesh_sp. LinkedIn: Viktor Shvets. Bluesky: @tachikoma.elsewhereunbound …. Mastodon: @carnage4life@mas.to
| Miles Kruppa / The Information: |
Brookfield is launching a cloud company called Radiant and a new $10B AI fund, and plans to acquire up to $100B in land, data centers, and power assets for AI — Private-equity firm Brookfield is starting its own cloud business, going up against tech giants like Amazon by arguing it can bring down the costs of developing AI.
More: SiliconANGLE, Reuters, and Yahoo Finance
| Karissa Bell / Engadget: |
Adam Mosseri details trends shaping Instagram and says it'll be more practical to authenticate real media than label AI, as AI gets better at imitating reality — Adam Mosseri says creators should prioritize “unflattering” images to prove they are real. — It's no secret that AI-generated …
More: The Verge, On my Om, Social Media Today, Ben Werdmuller, Business Insider, Moneycontrol, KnowTechie, Livemint, HotHardware, The Decoder, Implicator.ai, Mashable, NDTV Profit, Digit, and The Verge
X: @milkkarten. LinkedIn: Stuart McDonald. Bluesky: @thatoldbear, @ykomska, @mattschrader, @joeuchill, @karissabe, @iansociologo, @brocktoon, @blackamazon, @bwjones, @benmffowler, @sarkastiklover, @chronotope.aramzs.xyz, @mathewolson.com, @danhon.com, @voidfemme, @highway62, @violetsalazar, @thetrudz.photo, @hypervisible.blacksky.app, and @jrosenbaum.com.au
| Song Jung-a / Financial Times: |
Analysts and manufacturers expect smartphone, PC, and consumer electronics prices to rise by as much as 20% in 2026, as AI demand drives up memory chip costs — Manufacturers and analysts warn AI data centre build-out is crowding out market for semiconductors
More: The Irish Times, iPhone in Canada, and Fortune
| Vincent Chow / South China Morning Post: |
DeepSeek researchers detail a new mHC architecture they used to train 3B, 9B, and 27B models, finding it scaled without adding significant computational burden — DeepSeek has published a technical paper co-authored by founder Liang Wenfeng proposing a rethink of its core deep learning architecture
More: SiliconANGLE and Blockonomi
| George Hammond / Financial Times: |
Sources: SpaceX, OpenAI, and Anthropic could IPO in 2026; those three deals alone would exceed the total proceeds from roughly 200 US IPOs in 2025 — Three biggest US private tech groups plan listings as early as this year, raising hopes of windfall for banks, lawyers and investors| Rishabh Jaiswal / Reuters: |
Starlink plans to lower its satellites orbiting at ~550km to ~480km in 2026 to improve space safety and reduce the likelihood of debris collisions — Starlink will begin a reconfiguration of its satellite constellation by lowering all of its satellites orbiting at around 550 km (342 miles) …
X: @michaelnicollsx, @blaze_r935, @seattle_rt, @wagamemnonglenn, @marcushouse, @philipjohnston, @bassonbrain, @iniallanderson, @justin_je_mabie, @teslatino, and @yrouel86. Bluesky: @fack. Mastodon: @hannorein@mastodon.social. Forums: Hacker News
Sponsor Posts
Command Line:
Bringing local models and sandboxed tools to Windows and GitHub Copilot — GitHub Copilot will soon determine when a task is best handled by on-device AI and when it needs cloud-scale models.
Bringing local models and sandboxed tools to Windows and GitHub Copilot — GitHub Copilot will soon determine when a task is best handled by on-device AI and when it needs cloud-scale models.
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Protecting your Cloud Applications Data — Backing up Office 365, Google Workspace, Dropbox & Salesforce data is critical to preventing data loss or corruption, complying with laws and avoiding critical downtime in case of a disaster.Featured Podcasts
Sources:
Qualcomm's CEO on the coming AI phone supercycle
Candid conversations with the leaders shaping what's next in AI and the broader tech industry. Hosted by Alex Heath, who has covered Silicon Valley for more than a decade.
Subscribe to Sources.
The Upstarts Podcast:
Bringing Back Mammoths And Building Noah's Ark 2.0 | Colossal's Ben Lamm
Veteran tech reporter Alex Konrad sits down with breakout entrepreneurs taking on the status quo to shake up their fields in AI, design, nuclear energy, space, and more.
Subscribe to The Upstarts Podcast.
Great Chat:
The launch industrial complex
A podcast mostly about tech. Brought to you weekly by Angela Du, Sally Shin, Mac Bohannon, Helen Min, and Ashley Mayer.
Subscribe to Great Chat.
Big Technology Podcast:
Can AI Keep Growing Exponentially? Let's Ask SemiAnalysis — With Dylan Patel and Jordan Nanos
The Big Technology Podcast takes you behind the scenes in the tech world featuring interviews with plugged-in insiders and outside agitators.
Subscribe to Big Technology Podcast.
Channels with Peter Kafka:
Larry Ellison's Media Ambitions & Kevin Roose on AI's Biggest Gamble
Media and tech aren't just intersecting - they're fully intertwined. To understand how those worlds work, Peter Kafka talks to industry leaders, upstarts and observers.
Subscribe to Channels with Peter Kafka.
Training Data:
Google's AI Infrastructure Chief, Amin Vahdat, on the Physics & Economics of Frontier AI
Sequoia Capital partners host conversations with leading AI builders and researchers to develop a deeper understanding of the evolving technologies and their implications.
Subscribe to Training Data.
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