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Tech

AI Summary

  • Superorganism, a new venture capital firm focused on biodiversity, has successfully raised $25.9 million to invest in nature-friendly startups, reflecting growing interest in environmental technology.
  • In Brazil, Meta has been ordered to suspend its policy banning third-party AI chatbots from WhatsApp amid allegations of anti-competitive practices, as regulators investigate the company's business strategies.
  • OpenAI made headline news with its acquisition of health records startup Torch for approximately $100 million, aiming to enhance their AI-powered health services.
  • CES 2026 showcased a range of new technologies, but also highlighted a concerning lack of sustainability innovations, suggesting a growing divide between tech advancements and environmental considerations.
  • Meta announced a significant shift in its business focus by laying off about 10% of its Reality Labs staff, primarily from the metaverse division, redirecting resources to AI development as the tech giant adapts to changing market priorities.

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TechCrunch

  • Superorganism raises $25M to back biodiversity startups 27 minutes ago by Rebecca Szkutak
    TC, Climate, Venture, Fundraising, fundraising, VC, venture fund, biodiversity, Superorganism, firm fundraising

    Superorganism launched in 2023 as what it claims is the first venture capital firm focused on biodiversity, aiming to serve as the conservationist on the cap table for nature-friendly startups. Now, the firm has closed its first fund, securing $25.9 million in capital commitments from Cisco Foundation, AMB Holdings, and Builders Vision, among others, along […]

  • Brazil orders Meta to suspend policy banning third-party AI chatbots from WhatsApp 36 minutes ago by Ivan Mehta
    AI, Apps, Brazil, meta ai, WhatsApp, whatsapp business

    Brazil's competition watchdog has ordered WhatsApp to put on hold its policy that bars third-party AI companies from using its business API to offer chatbots on the app. The agency has also started an investigation against the company to determine if the policy is anti-competitive.

  • Converge Bio raises $25M, backed by Bessemer and execs from Meta, OpenAI, Wiz an hour ago by Kate Park
    Startups, Biotech & Health, AI, Artificial Intelligence (AI), AI drug discovery, converge bio

    AI drug discovery startup Converge Bio raised $25 million in a Series A led by Bessemer Venture Partners, with additional backing from executives at Meta, OpenAI, and Wiz.

  • Meta-backed Hupo finds growth after pivot to AI sales coaching from mental wellness 9 hours ago by Kate Park
    Startups, AI, Singapore, startup, Hupo

    Hupo, backed by Meta, pivoted from mental wellness to AI sales coaching for banks and insurers, and secured a $10M Series A led by DST Global

  • More than 100 new tech unicorns were minted in 2025 — here they are 12 hours ago by Dominic-Madori Davis
    Startups, evergreens, fundraising, unicorns

    Using data from Crunchbase and PitchBook, TechCrunch tracked down the VC-backed startups that became unicorns so far this year.


Hacker News


Engadget

  • The Morning After: Apple will use Gemini to power Siri AI 42 minutes ago by Mat Smith
    Robots, Celebrities, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Mat Smith

    Apple and Google have confirmed that Gemini’s models power the new version of Siri and other generative AI features. CNBC broke the news, but Apple and Google soon followed up with a lengthy joint statement. Here’s part of it: “Apple determined that Google’s Al technology provides the most capable foundation for Apple Foundation Models… Apple Intelligence will continue to run on Apple devices and Private Cloud Compute, while maintaining Apple’s industry-leading privacy standards.” In June, it was reported that Apple was considering partnerships with OpenAI and Anthropic for Siri (the voice assistant can currently tap ChatGPT for certain queries as part

  • Proton's Lumo AI chatbot now has an encrypted space for your projects 2 hours ago by Mariella Moon
    Technology & Electronics, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Mariella Moon

    Proton’s latest update for Lumo, its privacy-focused chatbot, introduces a feature called Projects. It’s a dedicated and encrypted space for tasks that you know you’ll access again and again over an extended period of time, such as papers you’ll have to work on the whole semester or plans for a big trip you’re taking later this year. Lumo will remember and keep all the information and all the files you upload for every project you create. Any document you upload or resources you add to the chat will sync across devices, so you don’t have to repeat yourself every time you

  • The best streaming devices for 2026 3 hours ago by Amy Skorheim,Nicole Lee
    Technology & Electronics, Personal Finance - Lifestyle, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Amy Skorheim

    With the dominance of smart TVs, streaming sticks and boxes may seem redundant — but if your smart set is slow or has a frustrating user interface, a streaming device will let you bypass your TV’s built-in OS and use Google TV, Fire TV, Apple TV or something else instead. There are a lot of streaming gadgets out there, all with different operating systems, memory capacities, video resolutions and bonus features, such as headphone connections and ambient modes that fill your screen with stills when you’re not watching. We tested options from the major brands and broke down exactly what

  • Framework increases Desktop prices by up to $460 due to RAM crisis 13 hours ago by Anna Washenko
    Internet & Networking Technology, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Anna Washenko

    Computer brand Framework has hiked the prices on RAM for its Desktop systems and Mainframes in response to rising costs with its suppliers. Compared with when the Desktops were announced, the 32GB and 64GB options each cost $40 more, but its 128GB variation now costs an extra $460. The current pricing for machines is $1,139 for 32GB, $1,639 for 64GB or $2,459 for 128GB.  Since the company began altering its pricing structure last month, it committed to remaining transparent with customers about the changes happening to RAM prices. Framework also said it would reduce prices again once the market calms down.

  • Our favorite UGreen 3-in-1 wireless charger is 32 percent off right now 15 hours ago by Anna Washenko
    Handheld & Connected Devices, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Anna Washenko

    Now that the winter holidays are well and truly past, now's the perfect time to take stock of your tech setup. If you were gifted (or gifted yourself) some new gear in December, make sure that you've got the proper accessories to keep that gear performing at its best. If a new way to power all those batteries would be a benefit, Amazon's currently running a discount on an excellent wireless charging pad. The UGREEN MagFlow Qi2 3-in-1 Charger Station 25W is on sale for $95. That's only a little bit above the lowest price we've ever seen for the


The Verge

  • PC shipments just grew unexpectedly amid RAM shortages 27 minutes ago by Tom Warren
    Gaming, Microsoft, News, PC Gaming, Tech

    Lenovo is the top PC manufacturer worldwide. The PC market is bracing for a turbulent year ahead, but shipments managed to exceed expectations in the recent holiday quarter. IDC reports that shipments grew nearly 10 percent year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2025, reaching 76.4 million in total. Microsoft's end of Windows 10 support undoubtedly helped push PC shipments up, but IDC notes that PC makers have also been aggressively pulling forward inventory to combat potential tariffs and the global memory shortage. "While the holiday season typically drives stronger demand, the surge in late 2025 was further amplified by emerging memory shortages that

  • Microsoft is retiring its Office Lens app on iOS and Android 3 hours ago by Tom Warren
    Microsoft, News, Tech

    The Office Lens app launched in 2015. Microsoft is removing its Lens scanner app from iOS and Android in the coming months. Microsoft Lens, or Office Lens as it's known to most, will no longer be supported on February 9th, and the app won't be functional after March 9th. The portable scanner features of Lens are available in OneDrive instead, making a dedicated app redundant for Microsoft. You'll still be able to capture pictures of whiteboards, documents, and receipts and save and edit them digitally in OneDrive. Pictures can then be converted into Word or PDF documents and properly cropped and rotated. Microsoft

  • The best robot vacuums we’ve tested for 2026 13 hours ago by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
    Buying Guides, Gadgets, Reviews, Smart Home, Smart Home Reviews, Tech, Verge Shopping

    Robot vacuums are impressive devices that will clean your floors well and — thanks to bigger batteries and better robot brains — rarely get tired of doing their job. Over the last few years, these floor-sweeping bots have gone from utilitarian devices to full-fledged home robots that vacuum and mop your home, clean themselves, and trundle off to prepare themselves for the next run. I’ve been testing robot vacuums for over 7 years and have run more than 80 of them throughout my house. This guide features my top picks if you’re looking for the best: a robot vacuum that can

  • Fired Rockstar employees’ plea for interim pay denied 15 hours ago by Jay Peters
    Entertainment, Gaming, News

    A UK employment tribunal rejected a request from fired Rockstar Games employees to receive interim pay while waiting for a full hearing about their dismissal, according to Bloomberg and IGN. After Rockstar fired 34 employees last year - 31 from the UK and three from Canada - the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain (IWGB) accused the company of "union busting." Rockstar claims that the fired employees were leaking company information in a Discord channel. The hearing took place over two days last week. "Despite being refused interim relief today, we've come out of last week's hearing more confident than ever

  • Framework hikes desktop PC prices as RAM shortage drags on 15 hours ago by Emma Roth
    News, Tech

    Just weeks after raising the price of its RAM modules, Framework has announced that it's also increasing the price of its desktop PC in response to the global memory shortage. The Framework Desktop with 32GB of RAM and an AMD Ryzen AI Max 385 chip now starts at $1,139, instead of $1,099. "We held off on it for as long as we could, but we had to update our Framework Desktop pricing today to account for the massive increase in LPDDR5x pricing from our suppliers," Framework says in a post on X. "As before, we're only adjusting prices enough to cover


Wired

  • Board Review: Tabletop Video Games With Physical Pieces an hour ago by Simon Hill
    Gear, Gear / Reviews, Gear / Products / Gaming, Board, in, the, House

    I loved Board’s unique blend of tabletop gaming, but my family gave it mixed reviews.

  • Reid Hoffman Wants Silicon Valley to ‘Stand Up’ Against the Trump Administration an hour ago by Katie Drummond
    Business, Business / Artificial Intelligence, The, Big, Interview

    The LinkedIn cofounder and frequent Trump target has a simple message for his peers: “Just speak up about the things that you think are true.”

  • Atonemo Streamplayer Review: Make Old Speakers New Again an hour ago by Chris Haslam
    Gear, Gear / Products, Gear / Reviews, Gear / Products / Audio, Gear / Products / Speakers, Gear / Products / Streaming, Product, Review

    Can this discrete audio puck really drag any old speakers into the streaming age?

  • Trump Declared a Space Race With China. The US Is Losing 2 hours ago by Noah Shachtman
    The Big Story, Science, Science / Space, Eclipsed

    If you want to put people back on the moon, don’t gut the agency in charge of getting them there.

  • What to Do If ICE Invades Your Neighborhood 2 hours ago by Lily Hay Newman, Maddy Varner, Matt Burgess
    Security, Security / National Security, Security / Privacy, Security / Security News, Politics / Policy, Plan, Ahead

    With federal agents storming the streets of American communities, there’s no single right way to approach this dangerous moment. But there are steps you can take to stay safe—and have an impact.


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