Techmeme
May 21, 2025, 10:35 PM

Top News

Bloomberg:
OpenAI is buying io, Jony Ive's secretive AI startup, for ~$6.5B in stock; Ive and LoveFrom will remain independent but take over design for all of OpenAI  —  OpenAI will acquire the AI device startup co-founded by Apple Inc. veteran Jony Ive in a nearly $6.5 billion all-stock deal …
OpenAI:
Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Sam Altman and LoveFrom have been working for two years on a new device to move consumers beyond screens, including headphones and devices with cameras  —  OpenAI to buy Ive's startup in $6.5 billion deal, as Ive and CEO Sam Altman work on new generation of devices and other AI products
New York Times:
Sources: OpenAI owned a 23% stake in io from a 2024 deal so is now paying ~$5B to fully acquire it; separately, OpenAI's Start-up Fund invested in io last year  —  Jony Ive, a former top executive at Apple, said that the goal with OpenAI was to create “amazing products that elevate humanity.”
Sharon Goldman / Fortune:
Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch:
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Epic v. Apple: Spotify says its recent update supporting web payments has resulted in “a significant increase in iOS users upgrading to a Premium subscription”  —  Spotify says its ability to direct its customers to external payment links in its iOS app has already had a positive impact on sales.
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Dan Goodin / Ars Technica:
Signal says it will block by default screenshots of its Windows 11 desktop app due to the privacy risks of Microsoft's Recall; users can enable them in settings  —  Signal Messenger is warning the users of its Windows Desktop version that the privacy of their messages is under threat by Recall …
Sergiu Gatlan / BleepingComputer:
Microsoft seizes about 2,300 domains globally to disrupt Lumma's malware-as-a-service operation, after finding over 394K Windows computers infected by Lumma  —  Earlier this month, a coordinated disruption action targeting the Lumma malware-as-a-service (MaaS) information stealer operation seized thousands …
Eleanor Olcott / Financial Times:
Milana Vinn / Reuters:
AT&T agrees to acquire Lumen's consumer fiber business for $5.75B, in an all-cash deal expected to close in H1 2026; LUMN jumps 13%+ after hours  —  AT&T (T.N) has clinched a deal to acquire Lumen Technologies' (LUMN.N) consumer fiber operations for $5.75 billion in cash …
Tanaya Macheel / CNBC:
Bitcoin reached a new all-time high, surpassing $110,000 and breaking its January record, after slumping to $74,000 in April  —  WATCH NOW  —  Bitcoin rose to a new all-time high on Wednesday, breaking its January record.  —  The price of the flagship cryptocurrency was last higher by 2% at $108,955.10, according to Coin Metrics.
Reuters:
Distributed Denial of Secrets: the TeleMessage hacker stole messages from 60+ US government users spanning about one day ending on May 4, including travel plans  —  A hacker who breached the communications service used by former Trump national security adviser Mike Waltz earlier …
Carl Franzen / VentureBeat:
OpenAI updates its Responses API for building agentic applications to include remote MCP server support, image generation and Code Interpreter tools, and more  —  OpenAI is rolling out a set of significant updates to its newish Responses API, aiming to make it easier for developers and enterprises …
Lauren Forristal / TechCrunch:
Shopify launches new AI tools, including one for setting up storefronts and another for creating elements like banners, and upgrades its AI assistant Sidekick  —  Shopify is giving its merchants a slew of new AI-powered tools designed to help them enhance the online shopping experience for their customers.
Eric Geller / Cybersecurity Dive:
In a joint statement, the US, France, Germany, and eight other countries say Russia has stepped up cyber attacks on firms aiding Ukraine, often via Fancy Bear  —  One of Moscow's most infamous hacker teams is targeting logistics and technology companies supporting Kyiv's war effort.  —  Listen to the article
Alfred Ng / Politico:
Sen. Wyden says AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile failed to create systems for notifying about surveillance on Senate-issued devices, despite a requirement to do so  —  Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) revealed in a new letter to Senate colleagues Wednesday that AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile failed …
More: TechCrunch and The Register
Bluesky: @dell, @kimzetter, and @keithchu.  Mastodon: @GossiTheDog@cyberplace.social.  Threads: @senatorwarner.  Forums: r/technology
Sergiu Gatlan / BleepingComputer:
Maine AG filing: Coinbase says its recent data breach impacted 69,461 individuals; stolen data included government IDs, account info, and personal identifiers  —  Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange with over 100 million customers, revealed that a recent data breach in which cybercriminals stole customer …
Bloomberg:
AI model ranking project LMArena spins off from UC Berkeley and raises a $100M seed led by a16z and UC Investments, sources say at a $600M valuation  —  An effort that began at UC Berkeley as a way to rank AI models has raised $100 million from investors including Andreessen Horowitz.
Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch:

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