Google announced on Monday that its Chrome browser can now fill in your passport, driver’s license, vehicle registration, and more as part of its auto-fill feature. The addition expands Chrome’s existing ability to automatically fill in your addresses, passwords, and payment information. Desktop users who have enhanced autofill enabled will …
Read More »Microsoft’s $15.2B UAE investment turns Gulf State into test case for US AI diplomacy
Microsoft will invest $15.2 billion in the United Arab Emirates over the next four years, the company announced Monday at the first annual Abu Dhabi Global AI Summit. The investment will include the first-ever shipments of the most advanced Nvidia GPUs to the UAE. As part of the deal, the U.S. …
Read More »China is rolling back rare earth mineral restrictions, White House says
The White House released more details Saturday about a trade deal reached between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in a meeting earlier this week. Among other things, the White House said China will suspend the restrictions on exporting rare earth minerals that it announced in October, …
Read More »Google pulls Gemma from AI Studio after Senator Blackburn accuses model of defamation
Google says it has removed Gemma from its AI Studio after a U.S. senator accused the AI model of fabricating accusations of sexual misconduct against her. In a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Senator Marsha Blackburn — a Republican from Tennessee — said that when Gemma was asked, “Has …
Read More »Alphabet is increasingly launching “moonshot” projects as independent companies — here’s why
Alphabet’s X moonshot factory is shifting how it brings ambitious technology projects to market, increasingly spinning them out as independent companies rather than keeping them within the Alphabet corporate structure, X’s head honcho, Astro Teller, revealed at TechCrunch Disrupt this past week. The strategy hinges on a dedicated venture fund …
Read More »Kevin Rose’s simple test for AI hardware — would you want to punch someone in the face who’s wearing it?
Kevin Rose has a visceral rule for evaluating AI hardware investments: “If you feel like you should punch someone in the face for wearing it, you probably shouldn’t invest in it.” It’s a typically candid assessment from the veteran investor, and one born from watching the current wave of AI …
Read More »Sequoia’s Roelof Botha warns founders about chasing sky-high valuations as the firm doubles down on its selective approach
The Trump administration has begun taking direct equity stakes in American companies, not as temporary crisis measures, as in 2008, but as permanent fixtures of industrial policy. The moves raise interesting questions, including what happens when the White House appears on your cap table. At TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco …
Read More »TechCrunch Mobility: Everything said on, and off, the stage at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025
Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility — your central hub for news and insights on the future of transportation. To get this in your inbox, sign up here for free — just click TechCrunch Mobility! We’re mixing things up a bit this week to focus on what was said on, and …
Read More »Sam Altman says ‘enough’ to questions about OpenAI’s revenue
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently said that the company is doing “well more” than $13 billion in annual revenue — and he sounded a little testy when pressed on how it will pay for its massive spending commitments. His comments came up during a joint interview on the Bg2 podcast …
Read More »Luminar is cutting jobs, losing its CFO, and warning of a cash shortage
Lidar-maker Luminar is warning shareholders that it will run out of cash in early 2026 and has announced a 25% cut to its workforce to help staunch the bleeding — its second layoff of the year — according to a Friday regulatory filing. It’s not immediately clear how many workers …
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