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Techmeme
January 9, 2026, 6:30 PM
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Top News

Helena Horton / The Guardian:
Grok says image generation and editing are now limited to paid subscribers, after outcry over its use to create sexually explicit and violent imagery  —  X to limit editing function to paying subscribers after platform threatened with fines and regulatory action
Robert Hart / The Verge:
X is restricting Grok's image capabilities via the @grok command for free users, but they can still create sexual deepfakes via X's “Edit image” or Grok's app  —  X's sexual deepfake machine is still running, despite Grok saying otherwise.
The Guardian:
The UK government says X restricting Grok's image creation to paid users is insulting as it just makes the ability to generate unlawful images a premium service
Jennifer Hiller / Wall Street Journal:
Meta signs deals with nuclear power providers Vistra, TerraPower, and Oklo to buy power and support new reactor projects, securing up to 6.6GW of power by 2035  —  Facebook parent will back nuclear projects with Oklo, Bill Gates-backed TerraPower and Vistra
Dan Primack / Axios:
a16z raises $15B+ across five new funds, including $6.75B for its fifth growth fund, the largest sum, and $3B for unspecified “other venture strategies”  —  Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, whose past investments included Airbnb and Coinbase, on Friday announced …
The Information:
Sources say DeepSeek will launch V4, its next-generation model, in the coming weeks and say it outperformed Anthropic's Claude and OpenAI's GPT series in coding  —  Chinese AI startup DeepSeek is expected to launch its next-generation AI model that features strong coding capabilities in the coming weeks …
Sarah Wynn / The Block:
The UK FCA grants Ripple approval for its Electronic Money Institution license and crypto asset registration, clearing the way for Ripple's UK expansion  —  Partner offers  —  Quick Take  — The Financial Conduct Authority granted Ripple approval for its Electronic Money Institution license …
Bloomberg:
OpenAI and SoftBank says they will each invest $500M in SB Energy to support the infrastructure company's growth as a data center developer and operator  —  OpenAI and SoftBank Group Corp. have jointly invested $1 billion in SB Energy, an infrastructure company that's working with the tech firms …
Andrew Dunn / Endpoints News:
Boltz, which is developing open frontier AI models for biomolecular research, raised a $28M seed led by Zetta, Amplify, and a16z at a valuation of $125M  —  While the newest AlphaFold model took a leap forward in 2024 by predicting structures of nearly all biomolecules instead of just proteins, it also took a step back in openness.
Pragyan Kalita / Reuters:
Rain, which helps businesses issue stablecoin-linked Visa cards, raised a $250M Series C led by ICONIQ at a $1.95B valuation, taking its total funding to $338M+  —  Stablecoin firm Rain said on Friday it has raised $250 million in a funding round led by ICONIQ, valuing the company at $1.95 billion …
Emily Mason / Bloomberg:
Source: OnePay, the fintech firm behind Walmart's “super app”, recently bought back shares from employees at a price that values the startup at more than $4B  —  OnePay, the Walmart Inc.-backed fintech firm behind the “super app” that the world's largest retailer is incorporating for customers …

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About This Page

This is a Techmeme archive page. It shows how the site appeared at 6:30 PM ET, January 9, 2026.

The most current version of the site as always is available at our home page. To view an earlier snapshot click here and then modify the date indicated.

From Mediagazer

Charlotte Hughes-Morgan / Bloomberg:
Universal Music Group reports Q2 subscription revenue of €1.37B vs. estimates of €1.33B, helped by price hikes, the purchase of Downtown Music, and new releases

The Scottish Beacon:
In an open letter, the Scottish Beacon calls on the Scottish government to create a local news fund, invest in public ads, and fund journalism placements

Todd Spangler / Variety:
Filing: Disney and ABC say the FCC is retaliating against ABC because Trump doesn't like its programming and urge the FCC to stop efforts to block ABC licenses

More News

Jordan Moreau / Variety:
The Golden Globes signs a deal with Polymarket, which will provide stats and predictions about the awards show at the official 2026 viewing party
Jennifer Swann / Wired:
How Craigslist has stayed relevant as a place to find jobs, housing, and personal connections without relying on algorithmic feeds, public profiles, or ratings
Suvashree Ghosh / Bloomberg:
Artemis Analytics: total stablecoin transaction volumes rose 72% YoY to a record $33T in 2025, led by Circle's USDC at $18.3T and Tether's USDT at $13.3T
Jeanny Yu / Bloomberg:
Chinese AI startup MiniMax's stock closed up 109% in its Hong Kong debut on January 9, after raising ~$619M in its IPO, which was priced at ~$21.17 per share

Earlier Picks

Patrick Coffee / Wall Street Journal:
Nvidia has hired Google Cloud VP of Marketing Alison Wagonfeld to be Nvidia's first CMO, starting in February; source: Wagonfeld will report to CEO Jensen Huang
Shirin Ghaffary / Bloomberg:
OpenAI launches a HIPAA-compliant version of ChatGPT for clinicians to help with medical reasoning and reduce administrative work, at Cedars-Sinai and elsewhere
Barry Schwartz / Search Engine Land:
Microsoft debuts Copilot Checkout in the US, enabling in-chat purchases via PayPal, Shopify, Stripe, and more; Shopify merchants will be automatically enrolled
Jay Peters / The Verge:
Google rolls out an AI Inbox view for Gmail that shows users to-dos and summaries of topics rather than a traditional email list, first for US “trusted testers”
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