• Blue Origin says it is building a higher-performing rocket engine at 1/4 the cost
• Meet *sshole, the vulnerability that lets hackers SSH into Linux devices
• NASA unveils mysterious X-70 experimental aircraft using AI-generated image
• Sony revives the original Walkman headphones, adds USB-C
• Google: Schools can keep search while skipping Gemini, but AI search is non-negotiable
• Lawsuit: Man introduced his wife to ChatGPT. She used it to plan his murder.
• BMW bumps battery for the better: The 2027 i7 60 xDrive, driven
• Software squeezes more data out of Webb Telescope for imaging exoplanets
• Kalshi court losses pile up as judges refuse to block state gambling laws
• MAHA lost bigly in the midterms—is it at death's door?
• Gamers go to ridiculous lengths to "improve" GTA VI with Nvidia's DLSS 5
• Statehouse wins give Democrats new power to push clean energy
• Motorola's new Signature 27 has it all if you can stomach the $1,600 price tag
• Agility Robotics' Nasdaq debut invites scrutiny of humanoid robot market
• 2026 iPad mini review: Maximizing the mini
• Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupe first drive: Where tech and fun collide
• Nintendo's biggest ROM chip supplier is bowing out of the business
• Hackers exploited iOS and Android flaws to infect phones
• Uranium cubes reveal why the German nuclear project failed
• VMware releases vSphere Express for virtualization on up to 128 cores
| • NY-based Kalepa, whose AI platform supports insurance underwriting, pricing, and portfolio management, raised a $75M Series B led by Updata at a $470M valuation (Manya Saini/Reuters)
• Sources: China's top memory maker YMTC plans to source up to 70% of equipment for its fourth chip factory locally, up from just over 50% for its third factory (Reuters)
• Asian tech stocks plunge amid fears US Democrats may delay data centers; Taiwan's Taiex sees a record intraday point drop, Kospi falls 8.7%, and Nikkei 6.7% (Jada Nagumo/Nikkei Asia)
• Potential Sciences, an AI startup building large-scale chemical data sets, secured backing from the UK's Sovereign AI Fund, as part of an eight-figure raise (Joel Khalili/Wired)
• Google rolls out Gemini Omni 1.2 Flash, which creates clips up to 15 seconds, vs. 10 seconds with Omni 1.1, has better reference adherence, and costs 30% less (Matthias Bastian/The Decoder)
• Perplexity rolls out Teammates, an always-on AI agent system that integrates with Computer to handle multiple roles and execute large-scale tasks simultaneously (Emma Roth/The Verge)
• Sources: UK neobank Monzo is exploring a new fundraising round valuing it at ~£7.5B after failing to be acquired by Nu Holdings and struggling to sell a stake (Financial Times)
• Filing: Airbnb discloses that it has the option to invest in and license tech from CEO Brian Chesky's stealth AI lab; source: Chesky has self-funded it so far (The Information)
• Sources: Thinking Machines Lab is raising $5B led by Accel at a $40B pre-money valuation, more than tripling its valuation from its last public round last year (Business Insider)
• Artificial Analysis says Inkling 2 Small matches Gemini 3.8 Flash (high) in its index and would be the top open model outside China once its weights are out (Artificial Analysis)
• Lyft reports Q3 revenue up 8% YoY to $1.82B, vs. $1.92B est., and a net loss of $0.03 a share, vs. an est. profit of $0.20 a share; LYFT drops 8%+ after hours (Kelly Cloonan/Wall Street Journal)
• Meta indefinitely pauses its new commercial terms, which critics say would let it scrape sites of business users, after publisher outcry and court injunctions (Nieman Lab)
• Sources: cloud security startup Cyera is planning to raise around $800M in a round led by Cyberstarts at a $20B valuation, up from $12B in June (Aaron Holmes/The Information)
• Thinking Machines Lab debuts Inkling 2 Small, a MoE model with 594B total and 17B active parameters, and plans to release weights next week after safety testing (Thinking Machines Lab)
• Sources: major investors are increasingly skeptical Anthropic's IPO can achieve a $1.5T valuation after a market selloff; one says it could be closer to $1T (Wall Street Journal)
| • Blue Origin's New Glenn launch delay will continue into 2027
• Bose recalls S1 Pro battery packs due to fire and overheating risks
• Google is ditching Firebase Studio soon, and it wants you to use its newer AI tools instead
• A BioWare documentary is set to arrive next year
• TikTok just released a standalone Shop app, but it's not in America just yet
• The Xbox PC app is getting a speed boost
• Warby Parker seemingly spilled the beans on Google's Android XR smart glasses launch
• The FAA is finally phasing out floppy disks from air traffic control
• Google, Meta and TikTok are all suing California to block social media law intended to help kids
• Now Claude can help with your finances too
• iPhone Duo just got a new accessibility feature in iOS 27.3 beta
• Lyft's new subscription bundles in DoorDash's DashPass for $10 per month
• Sony's MDR-3R wired headphones are steeped in retro aesthetics
• Instagram's Edits is now on desktop as a Mac app
• WhatsApp is taking on Partiful with expanded Events feature
• 2027 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 First Drive: Big displays meet big V8s
• Apple iMac M6 review: Faster, more expensive and deeply in need of a refresh
• MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display review: Lighter, brighter, but the touchscreen doesn't add much
• MacBook Pro M6 review: A slight upgrade, but still the most accessible MacBook Pro
• Spotify is coming to United's seatback screens
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