OpenAI adds new shopping features

👋 Good morning/evening (wherever you are). It’s Monday.

OpenAI is rolling out faster, more visual product searches with direct links to buy (no ads). More details on LinkedIn and X:

OK let’s keep going ↓

Here’s what you should know:

• Duolingo will replace contract workers with AI

  Official announcement on their LinkedIn.

• Apple shakes up AI unit

  Shake, shake, shake... shake your App-ooty.

• New AI entertainment company called Cheehoo

  Veteran leaders from Hollywood and Silicon Valley.

• China's Huawei develops new AI chip

  Threat to Nvidia?

• Alibaba unveils Qwen 3, a family of ‘hybrid’ AI reasoning models

  Hybrid approach to problem-solving, thinking and non-thinking mode.

• MTA wants AI to flag 'problematic behavior' in NYC subways

  “AI is the future.” — MTA Chief Security Officer Michael Kemper

• Oracle deploys thousands of NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs

  For Agentic AI and reasoning models.

UPS and Figure AI are reportedly considering a partnership.

The numbers:

• London-based Nscale is raising $2.7 billion to build Nvidia-powered AI data centers worldwide as demand for AI infrastructure soars.

• ​Palo Alto Networks is acquiring AI security startup Protect AI in a deal valued between $650 million and $700 million, though the exact amount hasn't been officially disclosed. ​

• Developer observability startup Lightrun raised $70 million in Series B funding to fuel enterprise growth and GenAI-driven debugging.

• Goodfire raised $50 million to build tools that decode AI models’ “internal thoughts,” with backing from Anthropic.

• Splice acquired Spitfire Audio for around $50 million to boost its AI-driven music creation plans.

• Japan’s Craif raised $22 million to expand its AI-powered, urine-based early cancer detection platform into the U.S. market.

Thought starters:

• Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis on AGI and AI in the Military

• Anthropic Economic Index: AI’s Impact on Software Development

• AI and the Global Economy: Unlocking Growth and Reshaping Work

Meme of the day:

Thanks for reading,

Eddie

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