Techmeme
January 29, 2026, 2:25 PM

Top News

Financial Times:
Apple acquires Q.ai, whose tech can analyze facial expressions and could enable non-verbal discussions with AI assistants; sources: the deal values Q.ai at ~$2B  —  iPhone-maker strikes deal for secretive group that creates technology that analyses facial expressions
Financial Times:
Tesla plans to scrap its premium S and X models and convert its California factory into an Optimus manufacturing hub, as Elon Musk refocuses on robotics and AI  —  Elon Musk's electric-car maker invests $2bn in the billionaire's xAI  —  Tesla plans to scrap two models and invest $2bn in Elon Musk's xAI …
Kara Carlson / Bloomberg:
Connor Jones / The Register:
Security researchers warn Moltbot, previously Clawdbot, requires a specialist skillset to use safely, as data exposure risks persist even when set up correctly  —  The massively hyped agentic personal assistant has security experts wondering why anyone would install it
Sean O'Kane / TechCrunch:
Waymo says a robotaxi struck a child at 6 mph near an elementary school in Santa Monica on January 23, resulting in minor injuries; the NHTSA opens a probe  —  A Waymo robotaxi struck a child near an elementary school in Santa Monica on January 23, according to the company.
Reuters:
Source: SpaceX and xAI are in talks to merge ahead of a planned IPO this year; under the proposed deal, shares of xAI would be exchanged for shares in SpaceX  —  Elon Musk's SpaceX and xAI are in discussions to merge ahead of a blockbuster public offering planned for later this year.
Jay Peters / The Verge:
Google launches Project Genie, which lets users create interactive worlds using Genie 3, Nano Banana Pro, and Gemini, for Google AI Ultra subscribers in the US  —  It's what I had the most fun using Google's Project Genie for, at least right now. … This week, a new generative AI tool …
Counterpoint Research:
Apple's iPhone 16 was the world's best-selling smartphone in 2025, followed by the 16 Pro Max and 16 Pro; Apple took 7 of the top 10 spots and Samsung took 3  —  - Apple and Samsung continued to capture the Top 10 spots. … - In terms of comparisons with predecessor models …
Dominic Preston / The Verge:
Nothing CEO Carl Pei says the company's flagship Phone 4 won't launch in 2026: “We're not just going to churn out a new flagship every year for the sake of it”  —  CEO Carl Pei says there's no new flaghip on the way, but teased improvements for the 4A series instead.
Sam Reynolds / CoinDesk:
The US SEC clarifies its tokenized stock rules, saying they are subject to securities and derivatives rules and issuer approval is required for true ownership  —  The agency says issuer approval is required for true tokenized ownership, warning that many stock tokens sold to retail investors provide only indirect or synthetic exposure.
New York Times:
Amazon's $35M marketing campaign for Melania is ~10x the budget for similar documentaries like CNN's RBG; some suggest Amazon is currying favor with Trump  —  The tech giant is spending $35 million to promote its film about the first lady, far more than is typical for documentaries.
Sri Muppidi / The Information:
Sources: OpenAI is in talks to raise up to $30B from Nvidia, less than $10B from Microsoft, and $10B-$20B from Amazon as part of a $100B funding round  —  OpenAI is lining up huge checks from some of its biggest tech partners, as it seeks to raise up to $100 billion to fund growing demand for its AI.
Robert McMillan / Wall Street Journal:
Google says it took legal action to take down dozens of domains and disrupt the residential proxy network of Chinese company Ipidea, widely used by bad actors  —  Company targets global network employed by hackers that often use devices running in homes of everyday Americans
Koh Ewe / BBC:
Chinese media: China executed 11 members of the Ming mafia family that ran online scam centres in Myanmar; five Bai family members are also sentenced to death  —  China has executed 11 members of a notorious mafia family that ran scam centres in Myanmar along its north-eastern border, state media report.
Meta:
Meta reports Q4 revenue up 24% YoY to $59.9B, vs. $58.35B est., net income up 9% to $22.8B, and family DAP up 7% to 3.58B for December; META is up 7%+  —  Meta Platforms, Inc. (Nasdaq: META) today reported financial results for the quarter and full year ended December 31, 2025.
Microsoft:
Ben Wilson / Windows Central:
Nvidia launches a native GeForce NOW app for Linux, starting with Debian-based Ubuntu, after releasing a Steam Deck app in 2025; in a hands-on, it works well  —  GeForce NOW cloud gaming expands to desktops and other Ubuntu devices, with Bazzite tested and the Steam Deck thriving.
Zoe Kleinman / BBC:
Waymo says it hopes to launch its London robotaxi service as soon as September, after an April pilot; the UK government plans to change regulations in H2 2026  —  Waymo, the US driverless car firm, said it hopes to be operating a robotaxi service in London as soon as September this year.
Isaiah Poritz / Bloomberg Law:
A San Francisco jury finds former Google engineer Linwei Ding guilty of stealing trade secrets related to AI chip technology to build a startup in China  —  A former Google engineer was convicted Thursday of economic espionage and trade secrets theft for taking hundreds of the company's confidential documents …
Kevin McLaughlin / The Information:
OpenAI has hired 7+ employees from AI coding startup Cline, including Nik Pash, who left Cline after posting “imagine the smell” on X regarding an xAI hackathon  —  OpenAI has recently hired more than a half dozen employees from Cline, a startup that develops an open-source …
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Appfigures: Sora's app downloads dropped 32% month-over-month in December and 45% in January to 1.2M; consumer spending on the app fell 32% MoM as of January  —  After rapidly hitting the top of the App Store in October, OpenAI's video-generation app Sora is now struggling.
Bluesky: @fry69.dev

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Julie Bort / TechCrunch:
Jonathan Stempel / Reuters:
Dylan Butts / CNBC:
Anna Tong / Forbes: