Techmeme
December 16, 2025, 1:50 PM

Top News

Rachel Metz / Bloomberg:
OpenAI updates ChatGPT Images to generate images up to 4x faster and edit more precisely, and adds a new section in ChatGPT's app and website for images  —  OpenAI is rolling out an update to ChatGPT that's intended to generate images better and faster, the latest move by the artificial intelligence developer …
OpenAI:
OpenAI launches FrontierScience, a benchmark to measure models' expert-level scientific reasoning with 700+ questions, finding GPT-5.2 is its strongest model  —  We introduce FrontierScience, a new benchmark that evaluates AI capabilities for expert-level scientific reasoning across physics, chemistry, and biology.
Robbie Whelan / Wall Street Journal:
CoreWeave lost $33B in market value in six weeks amid construction delays at its Denton, Texas AI data center, criticism from short seller Jim Chanos, and more  —  The data-center provider's terrible six-week slide picked up speed when a famous short seller piled concerns on top of delays
David Pierce / The Verge:
Mozilla appoints Anthony Enzor-DeMeo as its CEO, after years of its for-profit arm juggling layoffs, restructuring, its Google dependence, and the AI landscape  —  Anthony Enzor-DeMeo says he thinks there's room for another browser, even an AI browser — as long as you can trust it.
Counterpoint Research:
The Information:
A look at Apple's iPhone roadmap; sources say the iPhone 18 Pro lineup will get under-screen Face ID, and the front camera will move to the top-left corner  —  The iPhone family is growing again.  Over the next two years, Apple is planning a major expansion of its smartphone product line …
New York Times:
Sources: the US has paused its Tech Prosperity Deal with the UK, signed in September, over frustrations about UK online safety rules and digital services taxes  —  The U.S. government has paused a tech-focused trade pledge with Britain over broader disagreements about Britain's digital regulations and food safety rules.
Kurt Wagner / Bloomberg:
Instagram unveils its first TV app, initially available on Amazon's Fire TV as a test with plans to expand to other TV platforms  —  Meta Platforms Inc.'s Instagram unveiled its first dedicated TV app, which lets users watch the short-form video feature Reels on a larger screen.
Natalie Lung / Bloomberg:
DoorDash launches Zesty, a standalone AI-powered social app for users to find nearby restaurants, in public testing in San Francisco and New York  —  DoorDash Inc. is experimenting with a standalone artificial intelligence-powered app for users to find new restaurants, expanding its reach beyond its flagship food-delivery service.
Belle Lin / Wall Street Journal:
Databricks is raising a $4B Series L at a $134B valuation, up from $100B in September and $62B in December 2024, and had a $4.8B annual revenue rate in October  —  The data-analytics and AI software company is raising over $4 billion and crossed $4.8 billion in annual revenue rate
Emily Mason / Bloomberg:
Visa says it will allow US banks to settle transactions using Circle's USDC stablecoin over Solana, the US' first full deployment of a stablecoin settlement  —  Visa Inc. is opening its US network to stablecoin settlement, expanding crypto-linked products and services enabled …
Andrew McCalip:
Orbital solar data centers' cost-per-watt of compute is $51.10/W, far above $15.85/W for terrestrial sites; SpaceX is uniquely positioned to try orbital  —  It might not be rational But It might be physically possibleBefore we get nerd sniped by the shiny engineering details, ask the only question that matters.
Marina Temkin / TechCrunch:
Leona Health, maker of an AI-copilot that integrates with doctors' WhatsApp accounts in LATAM to manage patient communications, raised a $14M seed led by a16z  —  Caroline Merin, who spent nearly a decade developing on-demand speed as the first Latin American General Manager for Uber Eats …
Benoit Berthelot / Bloomberg:
Sources and a memo: Amazon plans to cut 370 jobs, or ~8.5% of its 4,370 employees, at its European HQ in Luxembourg, the country's biggest layoffs in 20 years  —  Amazon.com Inc.'s decision earlier this year to ax 14,000 employees around the globe is reverberating at the company's European headquarters in Luxembourg.
More: Benzinga and Engadget

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