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- OpenAI pulls “io” branding after ruling
OpenAI pulls “io” branding after ruling
Trademark suit halts OpenAI hardware push
👋 Good morning/evening (wherever you are). It’s Monday.
A federal judge has ordered OpenAI and Jony Ive to stop marketing their new $6.5B AI hardware venture after a trademark complaint from Google-backed startup IYO.
The court said IYO’s case was strong enough to move forward, citing name confusion between “io” and “iyO,” both developing AI-native hardware.
OpenAI has since pulled its May 21 announcement and removed all branding tied to the project.
The case is now set for a hearing in October.
Switching gears:
AI videos are blowing up like never before.
Why?
Because AI is flooding your feed with 100 times more of the content you already love like ASMR, POV & vlog-style clips, gaming demos, and fan parodies.
Admit it, you’ve seen at least one and couldn’t stop watching.
Seriously, I never thought I’d binge an AI-animated show. But here we are…and I’m glad I’m not the only one, haha.
I’ve talked about Mean Orange Cat before (twice) because I’m genuinely a big fan.
I love this because we’re literally watching a multimillion-dollar brand being built with AI.
OK let’s keep going ↓
Here’s what you should know:
Meta tried to acquire Runway before Scale AI deal
Meta held early talks with AI video startup Runway before investing $14.3B in Scale AI, part of Zuckerberg’s broader push to secure top AI infrastructure and talent.
11ai: a voice-first AI assistant that takes action
ElevenLabs debuts 11ai, an alpha voice assistant that combines conversational AI with MCP to execute real-world tasks across tools like Linear, Slack, and Notion.
Salesforce launches Agentforce 3
The latest upgrade adds observability tools, native interoperability via MCP, and 100+ prebuilt actions to help companies deploy and manage AI agents at scale.
Goldman Sachs rolls out AI assistant across the firm
After internal testing with 10,000 employees, Goldman Sachs is making its in-house AI assistant available firmwide to support productivity and research.
Nvidia to use humanoid robots in server plant
Humanoid robots may join Foxconn’s Houston factory floor by early 2026, supporting Nvidia’s AI server production for the first time.
Microsoft cuts sales jobs as AI investments grow
Microsoft will lay off thousands in sales as it reallocates resources toward AI, automation, and $80B in infrastructure upgrades.
10-year freeze on state AI laws clears Senate hurdle
The Senate Parliamentarian ruled that the proposed moratorium on state AI regulation can pass with a simple majority, marking a pivotal step in the Trump administration’s deregulatory AI agenda.
AI brain-mapping software gets FDA approval
WashU spinoff Sora Neuroscience received FDA clearance to market Cirrus, an AI tool that maps key brain functions in just 12 minutes — a major advance for neurosurgical planning.
The numbers:
Harvey AI raised $300M at a $5B valuation just four months after hitting $3B, signaling rapid adoption of legal AI tools.
PhysicsX secured $135M Series B led by Atomico (with backing from Siemens, Temasek, Applied Materials, etc.), now totaling nearly $170M in funding.
Zuckerberg is leading a major AI hiring push with offers reaching $100M+ total comp to lure top talent.
Andy Konwinski, co-founder of Databricks and Perplexity, launched the Laude Institute with a $100M pledge to fund independent AI research.
Conquest Planning raised $80M Series B to expand its AI-powered financial advice platform, led by Goldman Sachs Alternatives.
Wiley nearly doubled its AI licensing revenue to $40M in fiscal 2025, driven by an $18M deal with a major tech company.
Botpress raised $25M in Series B to expand its platform for building and deploying AI agents.
Snowcap Compute raised $23M to build superconducting AI chips, with ex-Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger joining the board.
Sanmai Technologies raised $12M led by Reid Hoffman to build an AI-powered ultrasound headset for brain health and mental wellness.
Thought starters:
Meme of the day:

Thanks for reading,
Eddie
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