Sunday, July 12, 2026

Elon Musk and Sam Altman spar on X after Apple files OpenAI lawsuit

Elon Musk and Sam Altman reignited their long-standing feud on X following Apple's lawsuit against OpenAI for alleged trade secret theft. Musk accused Altman of scamming investors, using the term 'Scam Altman' in multiple posts. This public spat comes as both companies recently launched new AI models: SpaceX unveiled Grok 4.5, while OpenAI released GPT-5.6 Sol. The conflict has deep roots, with Musk previously leaving OpenAI's board in 2018 and later suing Altman over the organization's shift to a for-profit structure, a case he lost but plans to appeal.

Claude Code now has a built-in browser that lets the AI read, click, and type on external websites

Anthropic has integrated a browser into Claude Code, allowing the AI to read, click, and type on external websites directly within the app. This feature supports interaction with documentation sites and issue trackers, functioning like a tab-based browser. Enhanced safety measures ensure that Claude cannot perform actions such as purchasing items or creating accounts without user consent. Organizations have the option to restrict access to external sites through an allowlist or disable the browser entirely, while users requiring access to their own logged-in sessions are advised to utilize the Chrome extension.

Majority of U.S. workers support an AI wealth fund as tech layoffs surge, survey finds

A recent survey by Verasight reveals that 69% of U.S. workers advocate for AI companies to transfer 50% of their stock to a public sovereign wealth fund, reflecting growing frustration over tech layoffs despite rising corporate profits. This sentiment is echoed by Senator Bernie Sanders, who has proposed the American AI Sovereign Wealth Fund Act, aiming to ensure that the economic benefits of AI are distributed more equitably. As tech firms increase investments in AI, concerns mount over job security, with Goldman Sachs projecting that up to 15 million workers could lose their jobs during a decade-long transition period.

The fight against AI data centers is just beginning

Community opposition to AI data centers is intensifying, as residents across the US voice concerns over rising energy costs, environmental impacts, and local infrastructure strain. In 2026, the demand for energy from AI data centers is projected to surpass residential demand for the first time, prompting protests that have blocked or delayed at least 75 projects valued at $130 billion. Notably, QTS abandoned a $12 billion campus in Wisconsin following local protests, while other proposed facilities face similar resistance, indicating a growing trend of community activism against the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure.

S&P Global sees OpenAI as a "key credit risk" for Oracle and cuts its credit rating

S&P Global has downgraded Oracle's credit rating from 'BBB' to 'BBB-', citing OpenAI as a significant credit risk. The agency highlighted that Oracle's AI division is consuming more cash than anticipated, with capital expenditures now expected to reach $95 billion by 2027, a substantial increase from the previous estimate of $60 billion. OpenAI constitutes roughly 50% of Oracle's $638 billion in contractual obligations, and if OpenAI were to collapse, Oracle would be left with excess data center capacity. This situation places Oracle at a disadvantage compared to competitors like AWS, Google, and Microsoft, which have more robust internal workloads and financial reserves.

Meta kills Muse Image feature that let anyone generate AI photos of Instagram users without consent

Meta has discontinued its Muse Image feature, which allowed users to generate AI images of Instagram users simply by mentioning their public accounts without consent. This feature, which was enabled by default, faced significant backlash for its lack of user privacy controls, prompting Meta to admit that it 'missed the mark' just days after its announcement. Users who wanted to prevent their images from being used had to manually opt out through Instagram's settings. The feature's potential non-compliance with European data protection laws further complicated its viability, leading to its swift removal.

Apple developing new Apple Pencil models for release next year, possibly with replaceable batteries

Apple is working on a new lineup of Apple Pencil models, expected to be unveiled in spring 2027 alongside new iPad Pro versions. These models may include a USB-C Apple Pencil and a wireless-charging Apple Pencil Pro, both featuring user-replaceable batteries. This change is in response to the EU Batteries Regulation, which mandates that batteries in portable devices must be easily removable by users, effective February 2027. Currently, Apple Pencils are not designed for battery replacement, as they are held together with adhesive, making repairs impractical.

The real mystery behind Moana: After 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east?

Polynesian voyagers, after a 1,700-year hiatus, began a significant eastward migration between 900 and 1100 AD, reaching islands such as Hawaii, New Zealand, and Easter Island. Recent climate research indicates that this period coincided with a severe drought in the southwest Pacific, which likely pushed growing populations to seek new lands. Analysis of ancient mud samples revealed that between 850 and 1200 AD, the region experienced its driest climate in 2,000 years, suggesting environmental stress may have catalyzed these remarkable maritime explorations.

‘Almost unlimited’: Execs says AI demand remains strong even as enterprises move to ‘valuemaxxing’

AI executives have asserted that demand for artificial intelligence technology remains 'almost unlimited', despite recent volatility in AI-related chip stocks. Pat Gelsinger, a general partner at Playground Global, emphasized that the only real constraint on AI growth is energy availability. While companies are becoming more cautious about AI costs and focusing on return on investment, executives from firms like Nebius and Cerebras reported that demand for compute resources continues to outstrip supply, with Nebius noting extraordinary demand that remains unfulfilled. This trend indicates a strong ongoing investment in AI infrastructure, even as enterprises shift towards more rational spending strategies.

TechCrunch Mobility: A robotaxi ultimatum

Uber has terminated its partnership with Waymo for robotaxi services in Phoenix, leaving only collaborations in Atlanta and Austin. This development signals increasing tensions, as Uber executives have begun to openly criticize Waymo. Concurrently, NHTSA administrator Jonathan Morrison has issued a directive demanding that autonomous vehicle developers address their vehicles' failure to respond appropriately to emergency situations, a significant concern given Waymo's history of incidents with first responders. The agency has requested solutions from AV companies by the end of the month.

How Philips Hue got the smart home right

Philips Hue has emerged as a standout product in the smart home market, effectively addressing user desires for seamless control and adaptability in home lighting. The podcast episode of Version History explores Hue's origins, highlighting its launch during the smartphone boom and its strategic embrace of various smart home platforms. With a starter kit priced at $199, Philips Hue offers customizable LED bulbs capable of producing 16 million colors, setting a high standard for functionality and design in smart home technology.

Less is more with the Oura Ring 5

The Oura Ring 5, retailing at $399, is primarily an aesthetic update over the Oura Ring 4, which launched less than two years ago. While it boasts a thinner and lighter design, it shares the same sensors and battery life as its predecessor, making it less compelling for current users to upgrade. New features in the Oura app, such as GLP-1 Insights and improved live activity tracking, add functionality but also contribute to a more cluttered user experience, potentially leading to data fatigue among users who preferred the simpler interface of earlier models.

Top Wall Street analysts are confident about these 3 stocks for the long haul

Despite geopolitical tensions and concerns over AI-driven demand, top Wall Street analysts are optimistic about three stocks: Amazon, Marvell Technology, and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). Amazon's TD Cowen analyst John Blackledge reiterated a buy rating, lowering the price target to $340 while forecasting Q2 revenue of $200.1 billion, driven by a 35.5% year-over-year growth in AWS. Marvell's RBC analyst Srini Pajjuri also maintained a buy rating, projecting over 40% growth for the next three years, bolstered by strong AI demand. Meanwhile, Wells Fargo's Aaron Rakers raised AMD's price target to $615, anticipating significant growth in server CPU revenue due to rising AI workloads.

M7 Ultra to potentially feature up to 1.5TB of RAM, finally matching 2019 Mac Pro: report

Apple is reportedly gearing up to include up to 1.5TB of RAM in its upcoming M7 Ultra chip, finally matching the highest RAM configuration available on the 2019 Intel Mac Pro. This development addresses a long-standing limitation of Apple Silicon Macs, where RAM is soldered onto the processor die, allowing for high transfer speeds but limiting capacity. The M7 Ultra will support this increased memory, although its availability may be affected by ongoing memory shortages. Earlier this year, Apple also discontinued lower RAM configurations for the M3 Ultra Mac Studio, leaving 96GB as the sole high-end option.

Cloudflare Identifies Race Condition in hyper’s HTTP/1 Implementation

Cloudflare has resolved a race condition in the hyper library, which could silently truncate large HTTP responses while still returning a successful 200 OK status. The issue was first detected during a redesign of Cloudflare Images, where some requests for large image transformations intermittently returned incomplete data. After six weeks of investigation, the team traced the problem to hyper's HTTP/1 dispatch loop, which was prematurely closing connections before fully transmitting buffered response data. The fix has been merged into the hyper project and will be included in an upcoming release.