Friday, June 19, 2026

Billionaire Ambani wants AI in every call, app, and home

Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries is advancing its AI strategy by introducing new services aimed at enhancing user experience across phone calls, mobile apps, and smart homes. At its annual shareholder meeting, the company revealed the Jio Call Agent, an AI assistant that will transcribe conversations and assist with tasks like booking cabs for Jio's 500 million users, set to launch later this year. Additionally, Reliance introduced an AI-enhanced MyJio app and the TeleFrame home display, both designed to streamline user interactions and provide proactive information. This initiative is part of a broader effort to position Reliance as a leader in India's AI landscape, amid increasing competition from global tech giants.

More people get news from AI chatbots, but trust remains low

The Reuters Institute's Digital News Report 2026 reveals that global weekly usage of AI chatbots for news has increased from 7% to 10%, with young users leading this trend—17% of 18- to 24-year-olds now utilize chatbots for news. Despite this growth, trust in AI-generated news remains low, with only 20% of the general population expressing confidence, although trust rises to 44% among active users. Notably, just 4% of users frequently click through to original sources, indicating a reliance on chatbots for information without further verification.

The CEO of Allbirds’ new AI biz has a plan, but no employees

Allbirds has rebranded as Smartbird after selling its shoe business for $43 million and raising $100 million from the stock market to pivot into AI infrastructure. Nadia Carlsten, a former AWS executive, has taken the helm as CEO and is tasked with building a new team and office in Amsterdam. Smartbird aims to cater to clients requiring data sovereignty and control over their AI deployments, differentiating itself from larger cloud service providers. Carlsten's strategy involves targeting industries like pharmaceuticals and finance, where bespoke AI models are increasingly in demand.

New benchmark exposes how badly AI struggles with real knowledge work

The newly introduced AA-Briefcase benchmark from Artificial Analysis reveals that even the most advanced AI models, such as Claude Fable 5, only fully solve 3% of realistic knowledge work tasks. This benchmark assesses AI performance through multi-week projects that utilize thousands of fragmented source files, including Slack threads, emails, and meeting transcripts. Notably, 31 out of 91 tasks saw no model surpass a 50% completion rate, highlighting significant shortcomings in AI's ability to handle complex knowledge work effectively.

Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon on the new world of AI agents

Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon announced a transformative vision for consumer technology, stating that AI agents will replace traditional apps as the primary interface for users. During an interview on The Tech Download podcast, Amon highlighted that Qualcomm is actively developing over 40 designs for AI-powered gadgets, including smart glasses, jewelry, and earbuds with cameras. He emphasized that these agents will manage tasks across various applications, enhancing the user experience significantly. Amon believes that smart glasses could become as ubiquitous as smartphones, which saw over 1.2 billion units shipped last year.

A startup claims it broke through a bottleneck that’s holding back LLMs

Subquadratic, a Miami-based AI startup, has emerged from stealth mode with claims of solving a critical mathematical bottleneck that has hindered large language models (LLMs) for nearly a decade. Its new model, SubQ, reportedly processes up to 12 times more text simultaneously than current models while being faster, cheaper, and more energy-efficient. Independent evaluations by Appen suggest that SubQ matches the performance of leading models from Google DeepMind, OpenAI, and Anthropic on key tasks, although initial skepticism arose due to a lack of evidence at launch.

Apple just said the thing about Siri that we’ve long wanted to hear

Apple's Siri AI has undergone a major overhaul in the iOS 27 beta, addressing long-standing user complaints about inconsistent features across devices. The new Siri is designed to work uniformly across all Apple products, including iPhones, Apple Watches, HomePods, and Macs. David Clark, senior director of watchOS software engineering, highlighted the intentional goal of creating a singular Siri experience that personalizes data consistently, enhancing the overall user experience. This update aims to strengthen Apple's ecosystem, which has previously struggled with Siri's fragmented capabilities.

Bob Iger reflects on 10 years of Shanghai Disneyland as it defies the Chinese pullback

Shanghai Disneyland celebrated its 10th anniversary with former CEO Bob Iger attending the festivities, marking a significant milestone as the park reached 100 million cumulative visitors in 2025. Iger expressed pride in the park's success and its importance to both Disney and the Chinese people. Despite broader economic challenges in China, where retail sales have declined, the park attracted 14.7 million visitors in 2024, reflecting a 5% year-on-year increase. Disney's experiences division reported nearly $9.5 billion in revenue last quarter, underscoring the park's role in the company's global expansion strategy.

Musk's SpaceX stake is worth over $1 trillion. Here are the other billionaire shareholders

Elon Musk's stake in SpaceX has surpassed $1 trillion after the company's historic IPO, which saw shares debut at $135. The IPO not only enriched Musk but also created thousands of new millionaires, with several shareholders now holding stakes worth over a billion dollars. Despite a recent dip in market sentiment, SpaceX's shares remain up 37% since the IPO. The company's market cap reached $2.43 trillion, briefly outpacing giants like Amazon and Microsoft before a recent decline.

Joanna Stern spent one week with new Siri AI, and it’s very good

Joanna Stern, a tech journalist, spent a week testing the new Siri AI in the iOS 27 beta, declaring it 'good-good' after years of underperformance. In her video review, she showcased Siri's enhanced capabilities, particularly its 'Personal context' features, which allow it to provide tailored suggestions based on user data from apps like Messages and calendar. For example, while at the beach, Stern asked for souvenir recommendations for her kids, and Siri delivered precise suggestions, demonstrating its ability to leverage on-device data effectively. Despite these advancements, Stern noted that Siri still makes mistakes and has limitations in certain areas, such as medical advice.

OpenAI researchers show small doses of "beneficial trait" training make AI models broadly safer and harder to manipulate

OpenAI researchers have demonstrated that incorporating small doses of 'beneficial trait' training significantly enhances AI model safety and resilience against manipulation. By utilizing reinforcement learning on realistic scenarios, the team focused on traits such as truthfulness, transparency, and concern for human well-being. This training led to improvements in 44 out of 53 independent benchmarks, including areas like healthcare and law. Notably, the model exhibited 'selective persistence,' maintaining its helpfulness despite exposure to adversarial prompts, marking a distinct advancement over traditional training methods.

Rocket Report: Rebuild begins at Blue Origin launch pad; Relativity targets Mars

Blue Origin is initiating a rebuild of its launch pad following the explosion of its New Glenn rocket during a preflight test last month at Launch Complex 36. Meanwhile, Isar Aerospace continues to face setbacks with its Spectrum rocket, which has only flown once and was recently scrubbed again due to fluid system anomalies. In another development, Katalyst Space Technologies is preparing to launch its Link satellite on a Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket to assist NASA's Swift mission, scheduled for no earlier than June 27. Additionally, Relativity Space announced plans for a Mars orbiter mission set for 2028, utilizing its Terran R rocket.

watchOS 27 drops support for five Apple Watch models, here’s why

Apple's recent announcement of watchOS 27 revealed that the update will drop support for several older Apple Watch models, including the Series 6, 7, 8, the second-generation SE, and the first-generation Ultra. Cait Dooley, Apple Watch and Health Product Marketing Manager, explained that this decision aims to enhance user experience by ensuring compatibility with the latest features, which require the processing power found in newer models like the Series 9 and Ultra 2. Despite the lack of support, older models can still connect to iPhones with the latest iOS versions and receive security updates.

Presentation: AI Agents to Make Sense of Data at OpenAI

OpenAI has developed Kepler, an internal AI data analyst designed to efficiently query over 600 petabytes of data across 70,000 datasets. Bonnie Xu, the tech lead, explained that Kepler addresses the challenges of data analysis by leveraging context management through MCP and employing automated code crawling and retrieval-augmented generation (RAG). This tool significantly reduces the time taken to answer complex business questions, which previously required extensive collaboration among data scientists and engineers. With 80% of OpenAI's workforce using the data platform, Kepler's implementation marks a pivotal advancement in data accessibility and analysis within the organization.

CircleCI Introduces Chunk Sidecars to Bring CI Validation Directly Into AI Coding Workflows

CircleCI has introduced Chunk Sidecars, a feature designed to integrate CI-style validation directly into the development loop of AI coding agents. This capability allows for fast, pre-configured cloud environments where AI agents can run tests and validations before code is committed to a CI pipeline. By addressing the challenge of validating AI-generated code at high speeds, Chunk Sidecars enable a more efficient feedback loop, allowing agents to self-correct issues immediately rather than waiting for traditional CI processes, which can lead to context loss and additional iterations.

The US says ASML’s top chip tool may be in China. ASML says it isn’t

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has raised concerns with ASML executives that one of the company's extreme ultraviolet lithography machines may have been shipped to China, potentially violating export controls. Senior officials allege evidence exists of ASML sending EUV-related components to China, though they have not shared this evidence with ASML or the public. ASML maintains that no EUV machine has ever been in China, emphasizing its rigorous tracking of shipments and internal safeguards to prevent such breaches. This situation is critical as ASML holds a monopoly on EUV technology, essential for advanced semiconductor manufacturing, and any breach could have significant implications for U.S. export policies and global tech competition.

Barret Zoph is out at OpenAI again after just five months

Barret Zoph has departed OpenAI after only five months, where he served as the head of enterprise AI sales. Zoph rejoined the company in January 2026 after a stint as co-founder and CTO of Thinking Machines Lab, a competitor founded by former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati. His role was significant as OpenAI aimed to prioritize enterprise solutions ahead of its planned IPO. OpenAI confirmed Zoph's departure, which he announced in a farewell message on the company's Slack channels.

Windows Platform Security and the Race to Secure AI Agents

Microsoft has unveiled the Microsoft Execution Containers (MXC) SDK, positioning Windows as a secure platform for deploying AI agents. The SDK introduces a policy-driven execution layer that utilizes various isolation mechanisms, including process isolation and planned micro-virtual machines for high-risk operations. It aims to enhance containment, identity, and manageability for agents, allowing IT teams to centrally manage policies via Entra ID and Intune. Additionally, MXC will support Linux containers for toolchains reliant on Linux, with integration into Windows 365 for cloud-based workloads.

The film about Sam Altman has been dropped by Amazon MGM

Amazon MGM has dropped the film Artificial, directed by Luca Guadagnino, which chronicles the tumultuous week in 2023 when OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was fired and subsequently reinstated. The film stars Andrew Garfield as Altman and includes Monica Barbaro as OpenAI CTO Mira Murati, alongside other notable actors. In a statement, Amazon MGM indicated that the film would be better served under a different studio and is collaborating with the filmmakers to secure a new distributor.

Our long national sunscreen nightmare is almost over

The FDA has approved bemotrizinol, also known as Tinosorb S, marking the first new sunscreen filter approval in the US since 1999. This new filter provides broad-spectrum protection against both UVA and UVB rays, is more photostable, and is less likely to be absorbed into the bloodstream due to its larger molecular size. For over two decades, American sunscreens have lagged behind international products, leading to a significant public health issue as skin cancer remains the most common cancer in the US. The approval process for BEMT took 26 years and cost over $20 million, highlighting the challenges of regulatory hurdles in the US market.

SAP and Google Cloud deploy agentic commerce architecture

SAP and Google Cloud have introduced an agentic commerce architecture designed to automate multi-agent marketing and retail operations at an enterprise scale. This initiative responds to SAP research indicating that 78% of businesses view AI as crucial for customer retention in 2026, while less than 40% share customer data across platforms. By implementing the Universal Commerce Protocol, the architecture standardizes data exchange, enabling seamless interactions between intelligent agents and commerce platforms, thus addressing systemic failures in inventory management and customer experience.

Nothing CMF Phone is a RAMageddon casualty, memory now the most expensive component

Nothing's CMF Phone series, known for its budget-friendly smartphones, has been effectively discontinued for this year due to soaring RAM prices. Co-founder Akis Evangelidis confirmed on Twitter that the anticipated successor could not be produced at a competitive price point, with costs rising to about 50% more than the last model. This situation has left the CMF Phone 2 Pro out of stock for an extended period, reflecting the broader impact of rising component costs on budget devices. CEO Carl Pei emphasized that RAM has now become the most expensive part of a smartphone, surpassing even the processor and display.

As global warming threatens corals, scientists search for reefs that can take the heat

Amidst record marine heat waves since 2023, which have affected over 80% of the world's reefs, scientists like Anne Cohen are searching for resilient coral ecosystems, termed 'super reefs.' These reefs exhibit remarkable survival capabilities despite extreme temperatures. Cohen's Super Reefs initiative, launched in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy and Stanford University, aims to identify and protect these coral strongholds in regions like Belize, Hawaii, and the Marshall Islands, where marine-protected areas are being established. The urgency of this research is underscored by predictions that more than 90% of tropical reefs could disappear within the next 25 years without significant intervention.