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Hi there, this is your daily ☕️ Techpresso.
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In today's Techpresso:
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🚀 SpaceX may merge with Tesla or xAI 📱 The iPhone just had its best quarter ever 💰 Apple acquires secretive Q․ai startup for $2 billion 🎮 Google Project Genie creates playable worlds from single images 🏛️ Pentagon and Anthropic clash over military AI use 📉 OpenAI Sora app struggles after stellar launch 🎁 + 15 other news & articles you might like 🧰 + 6 trending tools 📚 + 1 trending papers & reports
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🚀 SpaceX may merge with Tesla or xAI
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- SpaceX is looking at a possible merger with Tesla or a combination with Elon Musk's AI company xAI, as the billionaire explores ways to bring together different parts of his business empire.
- A deal could draw interest from infrastructure funds and Middle Eastern sovereign investors, though no final decisions have been made and the companies might still choose to stay separate from each other.
- The merger talks could affect SpaceX's planned June IPO, which aims to raise up to $50 billion and would be the largest initial public offering ever if it moves forward as expected.
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📱 The iPhone just had its best quarter ever
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- Apple reported a record $143.8 billion quarter, with iPhone sales reaching an all-time high of $85 billion, up from $69 billion in the same period last year.
- China saw the best iPhone quarter in history for the region, with Greater China sales jumping from $18.5 billion to $25.5 billion, driven by strong demand for the iPhone 17.
- India also set quarterly revenue records for iPhone, Mac, iPad, and services, with Tim Cook calling it a terrific quarter in the world's second largest smartphone market.
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💰 Apple acquires secretive Q․ai startup for $2 billion
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- Apple has purchased Q.ai, a secretive Israeli startup focused on imaging and machine learning, for nearly $2 billion as the company competes with Meta and Google in AI hardware.
- Q.ai specializes in technologies that help devices interpret whispered speech and improve audio in noisy environments, which could boost Apple's AirPods and their live translation features.
- This marks the second time CEO Aviad Maizels has sold a company to Apple, after selling PrimeSense in 2013, which helped iPhones shift from fingerprint sensors to facial recognition.
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🎮 Google Project Genie creates playable worlds from single images
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- Google DeepMind is now letting Google AI Ultra subscribers in the U.S. try Project Genie, an AI tool that turns text prompts or images into playable game worlds you can explore.
- The tool combines Genie 3, Nano Banana Pro, and Gemini to create interactive environments, but sessions are limited to 60 seconds because each user requires a dedicated chip running the auto-regressive model.
- Project Genie worked well with artistic styles like claymation and anime, but struggled with photorealistic worlds, and characters sometimes walked through walls or moved in wrong directions during navigation.
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🏛️ Pentagon and Anthropic clash over military AI use
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- The Pentagon and AI company Anthropic are fighting over rules that would stop the government from using Anthropic's technology for autonomous weapons targeting and spying on Americans without proper human oversight.
- Under a contract worth up to $200 million, talks between the Defense Department and Anthropic have stalled, with the company insisting on safeguards while Pentagon officials want to deploy commercial AI freely.
- The dispute puts Anthropic in a tough spot as it prepares for a public offering and has invested heavily in winning national security contracts, but Pentagon officials likely still need the company's help.
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📉 OpenAI Sora app struggles after stellar launch
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- OpenAI's video-generation app Sora, which topped the App Store charts after its October launch, is now seeing sharp declines in both downloads and consumer spending as initial excitement fades.
- Downloads dropped 32% in December and fell another 45% in January 2026, while monthly consumer spending slid from a peak of $540,000 in December to $367,000 this month.
- The decline likely stems from competition with Google's Gemini and Meta AI, plus new copyright restrictions that limit users from creating videos with popular characters like SpongeBob and Pikachu.
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Other
news & articles you might like
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Microsoft lost $357 billion in market cap as stock plunged most since 2020
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Amazon is reportedly in talks to invest $50 billion in OpenAI
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DeepSeek reportedly gets China's approval to buy NVIDIA's H200 AI chips
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OpenAI Plans Fourth-Quarter IPO in Race to Beat Anthropic to Market
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OpenAI will retire several models, including GPT-4o, from ChatGPT next month
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Former Google engineer found guilty of stealing AI trade secrets for Chinese firms
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Music publishers sue Anthropic for $3B over ‘flagrant piracy’ of 20,000 works
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Nvidia, Mercedes-Benz Move Forward With Planned Robotaxis
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Amazon discovered a 'high volume' of CSAM in its AI training data but isn't saying where it came from
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Social media platform UpScrolled hits one million users
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Custom machine kept man alive without lungs for 48 hours
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China’s humanoid robot sales are expected to double in 2026
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Former Meta contractors claim WhatsApp chats aren’t private, prompting US investigation: Report
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🧰 Trending tools
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Leapility: a playbook builder that automates repetitive workflows by letting you define your process once, then execute it with AI assistance on demand.
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Kalendar.work: a self-hosted scheduling tool that eliminates per-seat fees and vendor lock-in while offering unlimited customizable booking links and event types for teams.
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OpenRouter: Discover and use the latest LLMs with your own APIs
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NMTV: a browser-based music video player that streams curated 80s-2000s content across themed channels with retro MTV-style interface and continuous playback.
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Sheetsbase: AI formulas generator and shortcuts for Google Sheets
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Archimyst: an AI-powered platform that generates backend architecture diagrams, simulates performance and cost scenarios, and validates designs before you deploy to production.
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You can check the previous tools here, or add your tool here
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📚 Trending papers & reports
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Bringing AI to Finance: Your free guide to understanding how intelligent automation is transforming finance teams, improving accuracy, and accelerating day-to-day operations. Get the free AI guide.
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How AI Impacts Skill Formation: beginners get immediate feedback that accelerates early learning, while experienced workers lose opportunities to build mastery.
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