Techmeme
May 19, 2026, 6:00 PM

Top News

The Keyword:
Google rolls out Gemini 3.5 Flash, its “strongest agentic and coding model yet”, for tackling long-horizon agentic tasks, in the Gemini app and Search's AI Mode  —  Gemini 3.5 is built to help you execute complex, agentic workflows.  —  Today, we're introducing Gemini 3.5 …
Carl Franzen / VentureBeat:
Google launches the Gemini Omni multimodal model, saying it can “create anything from any input”, starting with video generation, for Google AI subscribers  —  Although it was already discovered by intrepid AI power users weeks ahead of the official unveiling today at Google's annual …
Mariella Moon / Engadget:
Google announces Gemini Spark, a “24/7 personal AI agent” that is powered by Gemini 3.5 and supports integrations with Google Workspace apps, including Gmail  —  The AI agent is rolling out to testers this week.  —  Google has announced a “24/7 personal AI agent” …
Lance Whitney / ZDNET:
Google restructures its AI plans, introducing a $100/month AI Ultra plan for developers and cutting the top-tier Ultra subscription from $250 to $200/month  —  ZDNET's key takeaways  — Google has introduced a cheaper AI Ultra plan at $100 a month.  — The full Ultra Plan is now $50 cheaper at $200 a month.
Ina Fried / Axios:
Jess Weatherbed / The Verge:
Madison Mills / Axios:
Andrej Karpathy joins Anthropic to help launch a team focused on using Claude to accelerate pre-training research; he helped found OpenAI and worked at Tesla  —  Andrej Karpathy, one of the best-known AI researchers in the world and a founding member of OpenAI, announced Tuesday that he's joining rival AI lab Anthropic.
Josh Woodward / The Keyword:
Google says the Gemini app has 900M+ MAUs across 230 countries, up from 400M at I/O 2025, and launches Neural Expressive, a new design language for Gemini  —  Gemini is becoming a more helpful AI assistant, with an intuitive new UI, proactive daily briefs and Gemini Spark, an agent to help you get things done around the clock.
Aisha Malik / TechCrunch:
Google on YouTube:
Daniel Cooper / Engadget:
New York Times:
Google overhauls its search box, letting users ask longer queries, upload photos and videos, and use Gemini 3.5 Flash-powered agents to automate searches  —  Powered by a new Gemini A.I. model, the tech giant is overhauling its search box to answer longer queries, introducing a video-generation …
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Google's web-based AI Studio now lets users build native Android apps; Google says the apps are for personal use only for now and publishing is on the roadmap  —  The AI coding boom is now coming directly for Android app development.  On Tuesday, Google announced new native Android app creation capabilities …
Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch:
Wired:
Hands-on with Google and Samsung's Android XR smart glasses from Warby Parker and Gentle Monster, and with XReal's Project Aura, all set to arrive this fall  —  Here's your first look at smart glasses coming from Warby Parker and Gentle Monster, powered by Google and Samsung's XR platform.
John Voorhees / MacStories:
Apple unveils Apple Intelligence-powered accessibility features, subtitles generated on device, a Vision Pro feature for controlling power wheelchairs, and more  —  In what I expect will be an overarching theme at WWDC 2026, Apple's Accessibility group took the wraps off an impressive collection of features coming later this year.
Chance Miller / 9to5Mac:
Plex says the price for the Lifetime tier of its Plex Pass plan will increase from $249.99 to $749.99 in July  —  Plex has announced a massive price increase for the Lifetime tier of its Plex Pass plan.  Starting in July, Plex says that the Lifetime Plex Pass price will increase from $249.99 to a whopping $749.99.
Zaheer Kachwala / Reuters:
Epic says Fortnite has returned to Apple's App Store globally, after its US relaunch in 2025, signaling confidence in a favorable outcome in an ongoing lawsuit  —  Epic Games said on Tuesday its popular shooter title “Fortnite” has returned to global App Stores, as the videogame maker signaled confidence …
Microsoft Devices Blog:
Microsoft unveils Intel-based business laptops: a 13" Surface Pro for $1,950+, a 13.8" or 15" Surface Laptop for $1,950+, and a 13" Surface Laptop for $1,300+  —  Every IT leader and partner we work with is navigating the same challenges: AI is changing the demands of how teams work …
Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
Sources: Apple Chief Hardware Officer Johny Srouji is reorganizing hardware development to integrate silicon teams with product creation and speed up their work  —  Apple Inc. Chief Hardware Officer Johny Srouji is reorganizing hardware development and shifting oversight of key functions …
Bobby Allyn / NPR:
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has signed the nation's first law banning prediction market sites from operating in the state; the CFTC has sued Minnesota in response  —  Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has signed the nation's first law banning prediction market sites from operating in the state …
Kyle Baird / The Block:
Polymarket partners with Nasdaq to launch markets tied to private company milestones, including IPO timing, valuations, earnings, and secondary market activity  —  Quick Take  — Early offerings focus on AI, fintech, and crypto unicorns, including OpenAI, Anthropic, Stripe, and Kraken.
Mat Smith / Engadget:
Google unveils Pics, an AI image editor in Workspace that lets users edit specific elements and modify text, rolling out this summer to AI Pro and Ultra users  —  It's not Photoshop, but it could be better than what's in Google Photos.  —  Alongside an array of updates across its Workspace apps …
Damien Wilde / 9to5Google:
Google teases Android Halo, which makes an AI agent's status visible via “subtle communication” at the top of the phone screen, coming later this year  —  At Google IO, we were given a tease of an upcoming “Android Halo” feature that, at least on first glance, isn't clear how or what it will do.

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