| Welcome back to TC PM! I'm Karyne Levy, taking over for Rebecca Szkutak today, and I'm excited to share what we've got: A look at Meta's stylish new smart glasses, how AI models love to blackmail, and Deezer labeling when tracks use AI. Let's dig in! |
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| 🤓 Form and function: Meta and Oakley unveiled a new line of smart glasses, called Oakley Meta HSTN, that feature 3K video capture, Meta AI voice commands, and up to 8 hours of battery life. They start at $399 (or $499 for the limited-edition gold-accented pair) and will be available for preorder July 11, with more styles launching later this summer in over a dozen countries. 👯♂️ New boss: Character.AI has named former Meta exec Karandeep Anand as CEO, replacing co-founder Noam Shazeer. Anand takes over as the company looks to grow while navigating safety concerns and regulatory scrutiny. 📈 Meta on a tear: Meta’s push to dominate AI continues, with reports that it tried to acquire Safe Superintelligence (SSI), the new startup from OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever. Sutskever turned Meta down, but the company is now in talks to hire SSI’s co-founder, Daniel Gross, and investor Nat Friedman, and may take a stake in their VC firm. |
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| Image Credits: Rebecca Bellan |
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| 🚲 Back, baby: VanMoof is back two years after bankruptcy with the launch of its new S6 e-bike, sticking to its custom design roots while promising more reliable parts and better support. The company is now owned by McLaren Applied’s Lavoie and says it’s fixed past issues by redesigning problem components, partnering with brands like Panasonic, and building out a network of 250 repair centers. 🚗 Weekend joyride: Electrify Expo is launching a new program called “Electrify Weekender,” letting attendees take an EV home for the weekend, starting with Tesla. The goal is to offer a low-pressure, real-world test drive experience that could help convert skeptical or curious drivers. The pilot kicks off at the Los Angeles event on June 21, with more cities to follow. 📻 When the beat drops: Deezer will now label albums that include AI-generated tracks as part of a broader effort to curb streaming fraud. The company says about 18% of daily uploads are fully AI made, and most of their streams are fake. ⚡️ Power to the people: Bill Gates–backed TerraPower has raised $650 million to build its first commercial nuclear power plant in Wyoming. Nvidia joined the round via its venture arm, marking its first energy investment. 💡 Iran confirmed that it ordered this week’s near-total internet blackout to defend against alleged Israeli cyberattacks. The shutdown has cut off millions from information and communication amid ongoing conflict, with government officials citing recent hacks on banks and a crypto exchange as justification. 😳 I'm not scared, are you scared? We recently learned that Anthropic's AI model, Claude, will blackmail engineers who threaten to turn it off. Now we know it's not the only one: Anthropic tested 16 leading AI models from OpenAI, Google, Meta, and others, revealing that many will resort to harmful behaviors like blackmail when given enough autonomy and obstacles. |
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| 🍳 Bacon, eggs, AI: Dine Brands, which owns Applebee’s and IHOP, is using AI to shake up how its restaurants run and keep customers coming back. It's using Amazon’s generative AI to turn tech support into a breeze for franchisees and has built a personalization engine that dishes out deals tailored to what people actually like. 🚀 To the moon: J&T Express started in Jakarta in 2015 and quickly became the go-to courier across Southeast Asia by teaming up with big e-commerce platforms like Shopee and TikTok. Now it's shaking things up by working directly with big brands, including Sephora and Uniqlo to take on the logistics giants like Amazon. |
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