Open Links In New Tab
Mobile Archives Advertise Site News
Techmeme
February 19, 2026, 6:41 PM
Mediagazer memeorandum WeSmirch
Home River Leaderboards About Events Newsletter

Top News

Abner Li / 9to5Google:
Google rolls out Gemini 3.1 Pro, which it says is “a step forward in core reasoning”, for all users in the Gemini app; the .1 increment is a first for Google  —  In November, Google introduced Gemini 3 Pro in preview, with Gemini 3 Flash following a month later.
Makena Kelly / Wired:
Docs: DHS has signed a five-year, $1B blanket purchase agreement with Palantir, allowing agencies like ICE to skip the competitive bidding process  —  “If you are interested in helping shape and deliver the next chapter of Palantir's work across DHS, please reach out,” a Palantir executive wrote …
Cherylann Mollan / BBC:
The Gates Foundation says Bill Gates will not deliver his keynote at India's AI Summit after “careful consideration”, amid controversy over his Epstein ties  —  Bill Gates will not deliver his keynote address at the India AI Impact Summit in Delhi, his philanthropic organisation …
Saritha Rai / Bloomberg:
India's AI Summit: Modi orchestrated a photo op with tech and business leaders holding hands in a line, but Sam Altman and Dario Amodei refused to clasp hands
New York Times:
Inside India's AI Impact Summit: 300+ exhibitors, 500 sessions, 250K visitors, billions in investment, and entrepreneurs touting solutions to real-world issues
Kalley Huang / New York Times:
West Virginia's AG sues Apple for allegedly violating consumer protection law by not implementing tools like PhotoDNA to detect CSAM stored and shared on iCloud  —  The state's attorney general said in a lawsuit filed on Thursday that the company declined to use tools that recognize the material stored on iCloud.
Max A. Cherney / Reuters:
Toronto-based chip startup Taalas, which hardwires AI models into custom silicon to achieve faster inference, raised $169M, bringing its total funding to $219M  —  Toronto-based chip startup Taalas said on Thursday it had raised $169 million and has developed a chip capable …
Jason Schreier / Bloomberg:
Sony shuts down Bluepoint Games, the PlayStation subsidiary behind remakes of older games like Demon's Souls and Uncharted; ~70 employees will lose their jobs  —  The PlayStation subsidiary previously made remakes of games like 'Demon's Souls'  —  Sony Group Corp. is shutting down Bluepoint Games …
Zoë Bernard / Wired:
Inside the “gay tech mafia” that mixes social and professional lives, as investors, entrepreneurs, and executives detail gay influence in Silicon Valley  —  Gay men have long been rumored to run Silicon Valley.  WIRED investigates.  —  No one can say exactly when, or if, gay men started running Silicon Valley.
Jay Peters / The Verge:
Meta says it is “explicitly separating” Quest VR from its Worlds platform, making Worlds “almost exclusively mobile”, letting it better compete with Roblox  —  Horizon Worlds is now going to be a platform that's ‘almost exclusively mobile.’
Financial Times:
Sources: Accenture told executives that promotions would require “regular adoption” of AI and it is starting to track some senior staff's weekly AI tool logins  —  Consulting firms use ‘carrot and stick’ with some senior staff less willing to use technology than junior colleagues
Spencer Soper / Bloomberg:
Amazon dethrones Walmart as the world's largest company by revenue, reporting $717B in 2025 sales, compared to Walmart's $713.2B for the 12 months to January 31  —  Amazon.com Inc. has officially dethroned Walmart Inc. as the biggest global company by revenue, a milestone attesting …
Alan Neuhauser / Axios:
Sources: Emerald AI, which develops software to curb data center energy demand, is raising a $25M seed extension at a ~$250M post-money valuation  —  Emerald AI, which develops software to curb data-center energy demand, is raising $25 million in seed extension funding, two sources familiar with the offer tell Axios Pro.
Gayoung Lee / Gizmodo:
Microsoft's Project Silica team details its laser-modified glass storage tech, saying tests suggest that it can preserve large amounts of data for 10,000+ years  —  “This will change the way we think about keeping data and archival preservation.”  —  Our knowledge of the past comes from stone tablets and old parchment.
Katie Roof / The Information:
ZaiNar, a developer of a GPS alternative that uses Wi-Fi and 5G to provide location data, raised $10M at a $1B valuation, bringing its total funding to $100M  —  Over the last two years, investors and researchers have flocked to startups helping bring AI into the physical world …
More: PYMNTS.com
Bloomberg:
Atlassian's founders lost ~$7.2B in wealth in 2026, behind AppLovin's three founders, amid a SaaS rout; TEAM is down 45%+ YTD, the Nasdaq 100's worst performer  —  Michael Cannon-Brookes became a billionaire in his 30s and one of Australia's richest tech executives with the initial public offering …
Natalie Lung / Bloomberg:
New York pulls a proposal that would have allowed for robotaxi services outside NYC, a setback for Waymo, which wants to hit 1M paid weekly US rides by 2026 end  —  New York Governor Kathy Hochul has pulled a proposal that would have allowed for commercial robotaxi services outside New York City …
Tim Fernholz / TechCrunch:
FreeForm, which is building an AI native 3D printing system that uses 18 lasers to fuse metal powders into precision components, raised a $67M Series B  —  Tech investors haven't given up on the dream of making physical products with the same speed and ease as coding software.
More: SiliconANGLE

Sponsor Posts

Airtable:
Deep analysis for deep questions  —  Introducing Superagent.  A new research product from Airtable: Subagents deeply interrogate your topic and turn it into boardroom-ready reports, slides, docs, or websites.
Clay:
Turn any GTM idea into reality  —  Clay helps GTM teams combine AI agents, enrichment, and intent data to move faster and turn insights into action.
Zoho:
5 ways a custom email domain and SMTP improve your Zoho Sign experience  —  Every interaction your audience has with your brand tells a story, sometimes in ways that are subtle but incredibly meaningful.
IDrive:
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.
Sponsor Techmeme

Featured Podcasts

Access:
 Notion CEO Ivan Zhao on if AI is really killing software companies
A show about the tech industry's inside conversation, hosted by tech reporter Alex Heath and founder whisperer Ellis Hamburger.
Subscribe to Access.
Lenny's Podcast:
 Head of Claude Code: What happens after coding is solved | Boris Cherny
Interviews with world-class product leaders and growth experts to uncover actionable advice to help you build, launch, and grow your own product.
Subscribe to Lenny's Podcast.
The Nick, Dick and Paul Show:
 Davos: Burning Man for the Rich?
Nick Bilton, Dick Costolo, and Paul Kedrosky pull back the curtain on AI, startups, and the future rushing toward us, all with healthy dose of irreverence.
Subscribe to The Nick, Dick and Paul Show.
Uncapped with Jack Altman:
 Bret Taylor from Sierra
Conversations with people I admire about things I'm genuinely interested in.
Subscribe to Uncapped with Jack Altman.
Great Chat:
 Venture is in its growthmaxxing era
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.
Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith:
 His Excellency Khaldoon Al Mubarak: Investing in an AI-Driven World
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.
Subscribe to Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith.
Add your podcast here
 

About This Page

This is a Techmeme archive page. It shows how the site appeared at 6:41 PM ET, February 19, 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

James Hibberd / The Hollywood Reporter:
After a backlash, AMC opts out of screening an AI short film during its pre-show, programmed by ad company Screenvision, before feature films

Selome Hailu / Variety:
Matthew McConaughey and Timothée Chalamet discuss AI's potential to replace actors and win awards; McConaughey said AI actors will “infiltrate” the Oscars

Hanaa' Tameez / Nieman Lab:
Substack announces new tools to help writers use Polymarket data and adds Polymarket to its sponsorship pilot, prompting questions from some journalists

More News

Jordyn Holman / New York Times:
Ring founder Jamie Siminoff is on an apology tour to quell an outcry over privacy concerns after Ring's Super Bowl Search Party ad, calling it a “perfect storm”

Earlier Picks

CEPR:
A study of 12K+ EU companies finds AI adoption increases labor productivity by 4% on average in the EU, with no evidence of reduced employment in the short run
Ece Yildirim / Gizmodo:
Study: X's feed algorithm favors conservative content, and switching to For You for seven weeks shifted users' views toward more conservative political opinions
Bloomberg:
Sources: OpenAI is close to finalizing the first phase of its record $100B+ round; its overall valuation, including the eventual funding, could exceed $850B
Mediagazer memeorandum WeSmirch
Home River Leaderboards About Events Newsletter