Sources: Adam Mosseri met with state AG representatives roughly a month ago, saying Meta would appeal any adverse verdict but was willing to make changes (Reuters)
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/metas-social-media-settlement-leaves-its-money-machine-unscathed-2026-08-27/
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/metas-social-media-settlement-leaves-its-money-machine-unscathed-2026-08-27/
Hugging Face unveils Microduck, a $400, 1.7lb, 10-inch-tall bipedal robot developed in part by Pollen Robotics and manufactured by Shenzhen-based Seeed Studio (Bloomberg)
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-27/hugging-face-unveils-400-singing-skating-duck-like-robot
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-27/hugging-face-unveils-400-singing-skating-duck-like-robot
Bloomberg.com
Hugging Face Unveils $400 Singing, Skating Duck-Like Robot
Artificial intelligence platform Hugging Face Inc. unveiled a singing $400 bipedal robot that can be taught tricks, the latest in the company’s ongoing effort to make AI and robotics more approachable to the general public.The cute robot — aptly named Microduck…
Australian Federal Police arrest two Western Australia men, aged 21 and 23, believed to be members of TeamPCP, a prolific cybercrime and data extortion group (Brian Krebs/Krebs on Security)
https://krebsonsecurity.com/2026/08/two-alleged-teampcp-hackers-arrested-in-australia/
https://krebsonsecurity.com/2026/08/two-alleged-teampcp-hackers-arrested-in-australia/
Krebs on Security
Two Alleged ‘TeamPCP’ Hackers Arrested in Australia – Krebs on Security
Authorities in Australia have arrested two men believed to be members of TeamPCP, a prolific cybercrime and data extortion group blamed for perpetrating the longest running spree of software supply chain attacks ever.
Gambit Security: Russian-speaking ransomware gang Aur0ra used SpaceX's Cursor AI coding assistant to breach at least seven companies between April 8 and May 21 (Raphael Satter/Reuters)
https://www.reuters.com/world/russian-speaking-cybercriminals-used-spacexs-cursor-ai-tool-hack-seven-companies-2026-08-27/
https://www.reuters.com/world/russian-speaking-cybercriminals-used-spacexs-cursor-ai-tool-hack-seven-companies-2026-08-27/
Samsung unveils the Galaxy S26 FE, offering a MediaTek, not Qualcomm, chipset, 12GB of RAM, a dialed-back camera system from the S26, for $700+, a $50 jump (Chris Welch/Bloomberg)
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-27/samsung-s-700-galaxy-26-fe-gets-a-price-hike-even-with-many-tradeoffs
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-27/samsung-s-700-galaxy-26-fe-gets-a-price-hike-even-with-many-tradeoffs
Bloomberg.com
Samsung’s $700 Galaxy 26 FE Gets a Price Hike Even With Many Tradeoffs
Samsung Electronics Co. introduced the Galaxy S26 FE, its latest smartphone aimed at consumers who want a device that’s priced well below high-end models but still offers at least a few premium features.
OpenAI launches ads on its ChatGPT Free and Go subscription tiers in India, where it has 100M+ weekly active users, and plans to launch an ad manager next month (Ivan Mehta/TechCrunch)
https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/27/openai-to-start-showing-ads-on-chatgpts-free-and-go-tiers-in-india/
https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/27/openai-to-start-showing-ads-on-chatgpts-free-and-go-tiers-in-india/
TechCrunch
OpenAI to start showing ads on ChatGPT's free and Go tiers in India | TechCrunch
OpenAI has more than 100 million weekly active ChatGPT users in India, a huge chunk of whom are on the free or the lower-priced Go tiers.
Kalshi partners with Weather Co. to verify climate and weather prediction market settlements; Kalshi says weather vertical trading volume will hit $1.1B in 2026 (Clara Hudson/Wall Street Journal)
https://www.wsj.com/finance/kalshi-and-the-weather-co-join-forces-on-climate-trades-76b7e307?st=fnaXoh&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
https://www.wsj.com/finance/kalshi-and-the-weather-co-join-forces-on-climate-trades-76b7e307?st=fnaXoh&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
The Wall Street Journal
Exclusive | Kalshi and the Weather Co. Join Forces on Climate Trades
The trading platform is now getting input from experts that operate a leading weather app to verify popular climate-prediction markets.
Japan's Kioxia and Sandisk plan to spend $31B+ in Japan through 2032 to drive chip tech and expand production capacity, including an $11.3B Kitakami plant (Reuters)
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/kioxia-sandisk-invest-over-31-billion-japan-amid-ai-boom-2026-08-27/
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/kioxia-sandisk-invest-over-31-billion-japan-amid-ai-boom-2026-08-27/
Plaud unveils Plaud One, a $250 pair of 4G, eSIM-enabled AI earbuds with coverage in 80+ countries and $200 in AI feature credits; Plaud is making 2,000 units (Natalie Lung/Bloomberg)
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-27/plaud-unveils-earbuds-with-4g-connectivity-in-ai-gadgets-push
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-27/plaud-unveils-earbuds-with-4g-connectivity-in-ai-gadgets-push
Bloomberg.com
Plaud Unveils Earbuds With 4G Connectivity in AI Gadgets Push
Plaud Inc., a startup that makes note-taking devices, announced a pair of wireless, 4G-connected earbuds that lets users record conversations and complete tasks with artificial-intelligence assistants on the go, adding to a nascent category of gadgets built…
Sources: the Trump administration is weighing sweeping new tariffs on chips and other products like laptops and consoles, despite warnings from tech companies (Politico)
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/08/27/data-centers-chips-tariffs-threat-01050957
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/08/27/data-centers-chips-tariffs-threat-01050957
POLITICO
Another potential headache for US data centers — Trump tariffs
The possibility of new duties is rattling the tech industry, which is already grappling with a shortage of high-end semiconductors.
Nevada-based identity verification and fraud prevention startup Socure raised $156M at a $5.2B valuation and acquires Austin-based agentic AI startup Fravity (Mary Ann Azevedo/Crunchbase News)
https://news.crunchbase.com/venture/socure-raises-acquires-agentic-ai-startup-fravity/
https://news.crunchbase.com/venture/socure-raises-acquires-agentic-ai-startup-fravity/
Crunchbase News
Socure Secures $156M at $5.2B Valuation, Acquires AI Fraud Investigation Startup Fravity
Identity verification and fraud prevention company Socure announced Thursday that it raised $156 million in a strategic growth investment valuing it at $5.2 billion. The Incline Village, Nevada-based company also says it is acquiring agentic AI startup Fravity…
Sources: Meta internally projected that it could spend as much as $10B annually on Anthropic's AI models, even as Zuckerberg publicly criticized Anthropic (New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/27/technology/meta-anthropic-frenemies.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/27/technology/meta-anthropic-frenemies.html
Nytimes
Meta Projected It Could Spend $10 Billion on Anthropic’s A.I.
The social networking giant projected it could spend $10 billion annually on Anthropic’s tools, illustrating the friend-foe relationships underlying the A.I. race.
Cybersecurity stocks surge, with Okta up 20%+ and CrowdStrike up 15%+, after earnings showed that AI adoption is driving attacks and spending on security tools (Samantha Subin/CNBC)
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/27/okta-skyrockets-20percent-and-crowdstrike-surges-15percent-leading-cyber-rally.html
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/27/okta-skyrockets-20percent-and-crowdstrike-surges-15percent-leading-cyber-rally.html
CNBC
CrowdStrike posts best day ever, Okta's stock pops nearly 29% as rising AI threat lifts earnings
AI adoption is pushing customers to spend more on cybersecurity tools from companies such as CrowdStrike and Okta
Google announces new performance thresholds for Android apps including memory-use limits, citing the AI-induced memory crunch (Sarah Perez/TechCrunch)
https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/27/ais-memory-crunch-is-coming-for-android-apps/
https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/27/ais-memory-crunch-is-coming-for-android-apps/
TechCrunch
AI's memory crunch is coming for Android apps | TechCrunch
Google is setting new memory-use limits for Android apps as AI data centers contribute to hardware shortages that could leave lower-cost phones with less memory.
CivilGrid, which collects data about utility assets, property ownership, and more to build a "Google Maps for the underground", raised a $26M Series A (Sean O'Kane/TechCrunch)
https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/27/this-former-pge-engineer-is-building-a-google-maps-for-the-underground/
https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/27/this-former-pge-engineer-is-building-a-google-maps-for-the-underground/
TechCrunch
This former PG&E engineer is building a 'Google Maps for the underground' | TechCrunch
The startup just raised a $26 million Series A to grow its customer base and help reduce red tape for utility and construction work.
Meta's AG settlement says its age verification framework will use "reliable age signals" shared with it by "OS and app stores operated by Apple and Google" (Lauren Feiner/The Verge)
https://www.theverge.com/policy/985556/meta-settlement-youtube-tiktok-snap?view_token=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpZCI6IjRHRE9Ha20zN0EiLCJwIjoiL3BvbGljeS85ODU1NTYvbWV0YS1zZXR0bGVtZW50LXlvdXR1YmUtdGlrdG9rLXNuYXAiLCJleHAiOjE3ODgyNzM0NjUsImlhdCI6MTc4Nzg0MTQ2NX0.9ICFpCxFT25fmjqhioj3j3OoPBXFUDkqfkmF9HptIKU&utm_medium=gift-link
https://www.theverge.com/policy/985556/meta-settlement-youtube-tiktok-snap?view_token=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpZCI6IjRHRE9Ha20zN0EiLCJwIjoiL3BvbGljeS85ODU1NTYvbWV0YS1zZXR0bGVtZW50LXlvdXR1YmUtdGlrdG9rLXNuYXAiLCJleHAiOjE3ODgyNzM0NjUsImlhdCI6MTc4Nzg0MTQ2NX0.9ICFpCxFT25fmjqhioj3j3OoPBXFUDkqfkmF9HptIKU&utm_medium=gift-link
The Verge
If Meta’s going down, it’s taking TikTok and YouTube with it
Snap, TikTok, and YouTube are caught in the crossfire of Meta’s settlement with state AGs.
Nvidia says its commitments to component suppliers for its AI chips and systems hit $279B in Q2, up from $119B in Q1, $95.2B in Q4 2025, and $50.3B in Q3 2025 (Asa Fitch/Wall Street Journal)
https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/nvidias-279-billion-supply-chain-gamble-cbe316d2?st=wipAbc&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/nvidias-279-billion-supply-chain-gamble-cbe316d2?st=wipAbc&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
The Wall Street Journal
Nvidia’s $279 Billion Supply-Chain Gamble
The AI chip leader is using its financial muscle to win the supply battle, but it comes with downsides.
Google launches Gemini Omni 1.1 Flash, which it says delivers studio-quality video production, including the ability to extend a scene, 4K upscaling, and more (Google)
https://deepmind.google/blog/gemini-omni-1-1-flash-lets-you-build-with-more-control/
https://deepmind.google/blog/gemini-omni-1-1-flash-lets-you-build-with-more-control/
Google
Gemini Omni 1.1 Flash lets you build with more control
Gemini Omni 1.1 Flash brings a new suite of creative controls and generative video capabilities to developers.
Sources: some Trump administration officials circulated a draft EO to create a self-regulatory organization for AI, but it needs buy-in from Trump and others (Leo Schwartz/The Information)
https://www.theinformation.com/articles/trump-administration-executive-order-new-ai-regulator-stalls
https://www.theinformation.com/articles/trump-administration-executive-order-new-ai-regulator-stalls
The Information
Trump Administration Executive Order for New AI Regulator Stalls
The Trump administration has internally circulated a draft executive order in recent weeks, calling for the creation of a self-regulatory organization for AI companies that produce state-of-the-art models, according to two people who have viewed a draft.…
OpenAI is testing a "Persistent mode" in Codex, designed to let AI agents "continue working until put to sleep" and proactively generate follow-up tasks (Maxwell Zeff/Wired)
https://www.wired.com/story/openai-is-developing-a-persistent-ai-agent/
https://www.wired.com/story/openai-is-developing-a-persistent-ai-agent/
WIRED
OpenAI Is Developing a ‘Persistent’ AI Agent
Code reviewed by WIRED reveals the company is developing a feature that enables Codex to continue working proactively until it is “put to sleep.”
OpenAI, Anthropic, AWS, Microsoft, and 100+ companies warn there is "a limited window" to prepare for AI-enabled cyberattacks and call for "collective action" (Sam Sabin/Axios)
https://www.axios.com/2026/08/27/openai-anthropic-issue-dire-cyber-threat-warning
https://www.axios.com/2026/08/27/openai-anthropic-issue-dire-cyber-threat-warning
Axios
Tech giants warn time is running out to prepare for AI threats
A new open letter calls on governments, tech companies to act now.