The White House Just Pumped the Brakes on AI

The White House Just Pumped the Brakes on AI

Federal oversight is crashing the AI party. We unpack what it means when Washington starts vetting who gets the next GPT model. • Trump Mobile will take your $499 right now Trump Mobile's T1 Phone is now available for direct purchase at $499 with no deposit required, but shipping remains a mystery — even The Verge still hasn't received the two units it already paid for. • Android 17’s new foldable gaming mode could make flippy phones more fun Android 17 is adding a dedicated foldable gaming mode that turns half your screen into a virtual gamepad, making it easier to play controller-compatible games without carrying extra hardware. • The White House is asking OpenAI to slow roll the release of its new model over safety concerns The Trump administration is pressuring OpenAI to limit the release of its new GPT-5.6 model to select partners only, with government agencies approving access customer by customer before any broader public rollout. • YouTube Shorts are getting even shorter with an update that lets you double the playback speed YouTube is updating Shorts with a 2x playback speed option, a removed dislike button, a heart emoji replacing the like button, and a new 'Clear Screen' mode for distraction-free viewing. • Patronus AI lands $50M to build ‘digital worlds’ that stress-test AI agents Patronus AI has raised a $50 million Series B to build simulated 'digital worlds' that stress-test AI agents before they're deployed in real-world tasks like financial analysis or software engineering. • Microsoft adds another year to Windows 10 extended update program Microsoft quietly extended its free Windows 10 security update program by an extra year, pushing the new end date to October 12, 2027, as hundreds of millions of users still haven't upgraded to Windows 11. • FCC may kill $2B program that connects schools and libraries to Internet The FCC, led by Chairman Brendan Carr, voted 2-1 to propose scaling back or completely eliminating E-Rate, a $2 billion annual program that subsidizes internet access for schools and libraries, citing student screen time concerns. • Notion killing Skiff-influenced email app since most users use AI agents instead Notion is shutting down Notion Mail on September 22, 2025, citing that over half of its users already let AI agents handle their email without ever opening the inbox. • Texas judge vacates 3 Biden-era Davis-Bacon provisions A federal judge in Texas has struck down three Biden administration updates to Davis-Bacon prevailing wage rules, delivering a significant blow to labor standards on federally funded construction projects. • DOE offers $17.5B in loans to help build 10 large nuclear reactors The U.S. Department of Energy is putting $17.5 billion in loan guarantees on the table to finance the construction of 10 large-scale nuclear reactors, signaling a major federal push to expand domestic nuclear capacity. • Streaming Ratings: ‘The Boroughs’ Hits No. 1, ‘Spider-Noir’ Star

OpenAI and Broadcom's Jalapeño Chip Is a Direct Shot at Nvidia

OpenAI and Broadcom just unveiled a custom AI inference chip — and it could reshape who controls the future of compute. • Facebook’s Creator Studio has been revived as an AI companion app Meta is reviving Facebook's Creator Studio as a standalone AI companion app, centered on an AI Creator Assistant that offers performance insights, engagement tips, and AI-drafted comment replies. • The top tech Prime Day deals to shop on day two Amazon Prime Day 2026 is in its second of four days, with many top deals from day one still active and new discounts added across tech, smart home, and audio categories. • This year’s Prime Day deals on Apple products are the best I’ve seen Amazon Prime Day 2026 is delivering the deepest Apple discounts in recent memory, with price cuts across AirPods, Apple Watch, iPad, and Beats products — all while Apple's Tim Cook has warned that price hikes are on the horizon. • Europe is pushing back on Washington’s chip war The Netherlands is taking the rare step of lobbying Washington directly against the MATCH Act, a proposed U.S. bill that would cut off Chinese access to ASML's older chip-making equipment and potentially cost Europe's most valuable company a significant chunk of its revenue. • Former Infosys chief has a new startup that wants to challenge the IT services world Former Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka has launched Hang Ten Systems, a startup betting AI can replace traditional IT services work, and has already secured $32 million in seed funding and early enterprise customers just one month in. • Elon suffers another day short of trillionaire status Elon Musk briefly became the world's first trillionaire when SpaceX went public earlier this month, but stock price fluctuations have since dropped him back below the trillion-dollar mark. • Hotly anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI will cost more than other AAA games Grand Theft Auto VI will launch at $80 for the standard edition and $99 for the Ultimate Edition, making it the priciest mainstream AAA game release to date when preorders open this week. • OpenAI and Broadcom announce chip designed for LLM inference at scale OpenAI and Broadcom have unveiled a custom AI chip called Jalapeño, built specifically for large language model inference in data centers, with deployment targeted for the end of 2025. • 13 years and $500 million for a stage adapter? Report justifies NASA cancellations. A NASA Inspector General report reveals that four canceled Artemis Program components had ballooned from $2.8 billion to nearly $6 billion in combined contract value, vindicating NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman's decision to scrap them during the agency's 'Ignition' restructuring in March. • 'Complete success': Why 2029 WR Austin Miller made early pledge to Ohio State 2029 wide receiver prospect Austin Miller has committed early to Ohio State football, with his recruitment described as a 'complete success' for the Buckeyes' program. • Your guide to 2026 movie rele

The Quantum Deadline Just Got Moved Up—Is Your Data Ready?

The White House slashed the quantum encryption deadline by years. Plus: AI agents invade marketing, Prime Day's best deals, and India's commerce wars heat up. • The best robot vacuum deals available during Prime Day Amazon Prime Day 2026 is live with significant discounts on top-rated robot vacuums from Roborock, Dreame, Narwal, and Eufy, with savings ranging from 15% to over 44% off. • This year’s Prime Day deals on Apple products are the best I’ve seen Amazon Prime Day 2026 is live with the best Apple discounts in recent memory, including record or near-record lows on AirPods Pro 3, Apple Watch Series 11, and multiple Beats products. • The Nex Playground is down to its pre-RAMageddon price during Prime Day The Nex Playground motion-sensing family game console is on sale for $239 during Amazon Prime Day 2026, matching its best post-'RAMageddon' price but still above its original $199-$250 launch pricing. • How to invest when everything is moving too fast At TechCrunch's StrictlyVC event in LA, investors Carter Reum of M13 and Chang Xu of Basis Set Ventures broke down how they're navigating AI investment in a market moving faster than any previous tech cycle — and why even getting it right is harder than ever. • Walmart-backed Flipkart expands quick-commerce push as Amazon ramps up in India Walmart-backed Flipkart has hit 1,000 micro-fulfillment centers for its Minutes quick-commerce service and is racing to 1,500 by end of 2026, as Amazon aggressively expands its own Amazon Now fast-delivery network across India. • India’s MoEngage bets that the future of marketing is millions of AI agents Indian marketing tech firm MoEngage has acquired San Francisco-based AI startup Aampe in an all-cash deal worth tens of millions of dollars, betting that deploying individual AI agents for each customer is the next evolution of personalized marketing. • White House drastically shortens deadline for dropping quantum-vulnerable crypto The White House has signed an executive order slashing the deadline for federal agencies to adopt quantum-resistant encryption by 4-5 years, now requiring high-value systems to transition by 2030-2031 instead of 2035. • US's climate.gov site, taken down by Trump, relaunched by nonprofit After the Trump administration took down climate.gov, former site administrators and volunteers relaunched the content as climate.us, a new nonprofit that fully restored the site's 15 years of climate resources. • Odd police video shows drone removing knife from motionless suspect The Sacramento County Sheriff's Office made headlines with what it calls a nationwide first: a magnet-equipped drone that plucked a knife from an armed suspect's hand inside a garage — though critics noted the suspect appeared to be unconscious, possibly from an overdose. • Five college football programs under the most pressure in 2026 Five college football programs are entering 2026 under significant pressure, facing make-or-break seasons tha

Oracle Erased 21,000 Jobs and Put It in Writing

AI isn't a future threat — it's already in regulatory filings. Oracle, GM, and a pattern you can't unsee. • Amflow’s TL e-bike is ready for baby’s first mountain adventure Amflow, the e-bike brand spun out of DJI, has unveiled the TL Carbon — a full-suspension 'eSUV' e-bike designed to handle both mountain trails and family utility duty, launching globally later this year. • Nvidia says its AI data center design runs hotter to use a lot less water Nvidia claims its Rubin-generation liquid-cooled data center reference design can cut water consumption to near zero by running AI servers at higher temperatures up to 113°F, eliminating the need for traditional water-intensive cooling towers. • Valve describes just how brutal RAM negotiations are in 2026 Valve's newly revealed Steam Machine carries a steep $1,049–$1,349 price tag, and the company is blaming a brutal RAM market where suppliers like Samsung, Micron, and SK Hynix dictate take-it-or-leave-it monthly pricing with zero negotiation. • The running list: major tech layoffs in 2026 where employers cited AI Oracle revealed it quietly cut 21,000 jobs in the past year — a 13% workforce reduction — joining a growing list of profitable tech giants slashing headcount in 2026 while explicitly blaming AI-driven efficiency gains. • OpenAI launches new initiative to help find and patch open source bugs OpenAI has launched 'Patch the Planet,' a new initiative partnering with security firm Trail of Bits to help open source maintainers find and fix vulnerabilities using AI-powered tools. • Tesla pushes back on Autopilot narrative after fatal Texas crash A Tesla Model 3 crashed into a Texas home killing a 76-year-old woman, with the driver claiming Autopilot was active — but Tesla fired back with vehicle data showing the driver had floored the accelerator to 100% and reached 73 mph before impact. • With Starfall, SpaceX eyes an edge in global cargo delivery from orbit SpaceX is launching its secretive saucer-shaped reentry pod 'Starfall' on a Falcon 9 Tuesday morning, marking the first demonstration of a vehicle designed to deliver cargo anywhere on Earth from low-Earth orbit. • GM installs robots at flagship EV factory after laying off 1,300 workers GM installed 50 FANUC robot arms at its Factory Zero EV plant in Detroit while 1,300 laid-off UAW workers remain without recall, igniting a fierce labor-versus-automation battle at the heart of American manufacturing. • Report: Kennedy Space Center not ready for era of super heavy rockets A NASA Inspector General report warns that Kennedy Space Center's aging infrastructure is dangerously unprepared for the coming surge of super heavy-lift rocket launches from SpaceX and Blue Origin, even as NASA's maintenance budget shrinks. • Five college football programs under the most pressure in 2026 Five college football programs are facing heightened scrutiny and pressure heading into the 2026 season, with expectations, recruiting

Meta's Master Plan: Your Wallet, Your Screen, Your World

WhatsApp gets a new boss with a fintech agenda, Instagram eyes Netflix — and Anthropic may have accidentally banned itself. Big moves, bigger consequences. • WhatsApp head Will Cathcart is stepping down after seven years WhatsApp CEO Will Cathcart is stepping down after seven years, with Meta tapping Kunal Shah — founder of Indian fintech app Cred — to lead the world's biggest messaging platform. • Patreon CEO Jack Conte on supporting artists in the AI slop era Patreon CEO Jack Conte joined Decoder to argue that AI-generated slop and platform algorithmic shifts are destroying the creator economy, and that Patreon is repositioning itself as a direct competitor to Instagram and TikTok to fill the gap. • Apple’s AirPods Max 2 are $150 off for the first time Apple's AirPods Max 2 are hitting their lowest-ever price of $399.99 — $150 off the normal $549 — at both Walmart and Amazon ahead of Prime Day 2026. • Instagram looks to take on streaming services with longer-form, episodic and live formats for its TV app Instagram is expanding its TV app with longer-form videos, episodic series, and live content, making a direct play against Netflix and Amazon Prime Video for living room screen time. • The founder conference built for growth: TechCrunch Founder Summit pass rates increase June 26 TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026 is offering Early Bird pass discounts of up to $190 through June 26, ahead of its November 4 event in Boston bringing together 1,000+ founders and investors. • Lucid Motors’ new CEO cuts 18% of staff to ‘simplify the company’ Lucid Motors is cutting 18% of its workforce — roughly 1,500 employees — as new CEO Silvio Napoli moves to streamline operations and slash costs amid a cooling U.S. EV market. • This former hacker saw the light—and now wants to collect all of it Dan Roelker, a former hacker-turned-DARPA-cyberwarfare-chief-turned-SpaceX-software-head, has cofounded Observable Space in 2025 to build advanced telescopes and optical systems for what he calls the real new space race — happening on the ground. • How Anthropic may have talked itself into an AI export ban The US has banned foreign nationals from accessing Anthropic's latest AI models Mythos and Fable, with critics arguing Anthropic's own aggressive risk-warning language helped trigger the export restrictions. • Trump admin’s coal investments assist plants with repeated violations The Trump administration is funneling millions in federal grants to keep aging coal plants running — including at least three with repeated Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act violations — reversing planned closures and drawing sharp criticism from health and environmental experts. • Chicago to buy, renovate Greyhound bus terminal Chicago is moving to acquire and renovate its iconic Greyhound bus terminal, signaling a major public investment in intercity transit infrastructure. • ‘Toy Story 5’ blasts off with $160 million — the biggest box-office debut of the year Toy S