Surveillance tools exported by China, based on US tech and obtained by Chinese companies, to countries like Nepal are being used to stifle Tibetan refugees (Associated Press)
AP News
US tech enabled China’s surveillance empire. Now Tibetan refugees in Nepal are paying the price
Nepal is just one of at least 150 countries to which Chinese companies are supplying surveillance technology, from cameras in Vietnam to censorship...
Techmeme
Surveillance tools exported by China, based on US tech and obtained by Chinese companies, to countries like Nepal are being used to stifle Tibetan refugees
From Associated Press. View the full context on Techmeme.
A profile of Josh Woodward, the head of Google Labs who is credited with turning around the Gemini app, growing its MAUs from 350M in March to 650M by October (Jennifer Elias/CNBC)
CNBC
Google was at risk of losing its dominance β€” until it promoted this AI executive
Josh Woodward, a 16-year Google veteran, is tasked with running the Gemini app and going head-to-head with OpenAI in the booming generative AI market.
Techmeme
A profile of Josh Woodward, the head of Google Labs who is credited with turning around the Gemini app, growing its MAUs from 350M in March to 650M by October
By Jennifer Elias / CNBC. View the full context on Techmeme.
S&P Global: data center deals hit $61B globally in 2025; debt issuance nearly doubled YoY to $182B, with Meta raising $62B debt since 2022, ~50% of that in 2025 (April Roach/CNBC)
CNBC
Data center deals hit record $61 billion in 2025 amid construction frenzy
Hyperscalers are increasingly turning to outside capital in the form of debt to fund the energy-intensive infrastructure.
Techmeme
S&P Global: data center deals hit $61B globally in 2025; debt issuance nearly doubled YoY to $182B, with Meta raising $62B debt since 2022, ~50% of that in 2025
By April Roach / CNBC. View the full context on Techmeme.
Google advises some employees on visas, including H-1B visas, not to travel outside the US due to processing delays, following new social media screening rules (Business Insider)
Business Insider
Google and Apple are warning some visa employees not to leave the US due to 'significant' return delays of up to a year
The US State Department said it was "prioritizing thoroughly vetting" each visa case, which could cause delays.
Techmeme
Google and Apple advise employees on H-1B and other visas not to travel outside the US due to processing delays, following new social media screening rules
From Business Insider. View the full context on Techmeme.
The RAISE Act requires AI companies with $500M+ in revenue to publish safety protocols and disclose safety incidents within 72 hours, with fines up to $3M (Isabelle Bousquette/Wall Street Journal) https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-york-signs-ai-safety-bill-into-law-ignoring-trump-executive-order-f1ece21d
Techmeme
The RAISE Act requires AI companies with $500M+ in revenue to publish safety protocols and disclose safety incidents within 72 hours, with fines up to $3M
By Isabelle Bousquette / Wall Street Journal. View the full context on Techmeme.
Morgan Stanley: ad tiers account for 30% of Netflix subscribers and 50% of Disney+ subscribers; ad tiers accounted for all net subscriber additions in 2025 (Max Knoblauch/Sherwood News)
Sherwood News
Netflix and Disney+ probably only added ad-tier subscribers this year, says Morgan Stanley
As streaming prices climb, ad-free subscribers are becoming a rarity....
Techmeme
Morgan Stanley: ad tiers account for 30% of Netflix subscribers and 50% of Disney+ subscribers; ad tiers accounted for all US net subscriber additions in 2025
By Max Knoblauch / Sherwood News. View the full context on Techmeme.
Google says it needs more time to upgrade Assistant to Gemini on most Android devices; Google previously planned to complete the transition by the end of 2025 (Mariella Moon/Engadget)
Engadget
Google Assistant will stick around a bit longer than expected for some Android users
Google has announced that it needs a bit more time to make Gemini the new default digital helper for most of its users.
Techmeme
Google says it needs more time to upgrade Assistant to Gemini on most Android devices; Google previously planned to complete the transition by the end of 2025
By Mariella Moon / Engadget. View the full context on Techmeme.
Inside NeurIPS 2025, and how it has transformed from a small academic conference into a massive industry event with 24,000+ attendees, yacht parties, and more (Wall Street Journal) https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/ai-conference-neurips-ff6398df?st=CPQ9Zc
Techmeme
Inside NeurIPS 2025, and how it has transformed from a small academic conference into a massive industry event with 24,000+ attendees, yacht parties, and more
From Wall Street Journal. View the full context on Techmeme.
Security company Koi finds browser extensions with 8M+ total installs that collected users' conversations with AI chatbots and sold them for marketing use (Dan Goodin/Ars Technica)
Ars Technica
Browser extensions with 8 million users collect extended AI conversations
The extensions, available for Chromium browsers, harvest full AI conversations over months.
Techmeme
Security company Koi finds browser extensions with 8M+ total installs that collected users
By Dan Goodin / Ars Technica. View the full context on Techmeme.
Micron projects FY Q2 sales to grow over 2x YoY to $18.7B and adjusted operating income to rise over 5x to $11.3B, signaling higher memory chip prices in 2026 (Dan Gallagher/Wall Street Journal) https://www.wsj.com/tech/microns-blowout-results-are-bad-news-for-anyone-buying-a-new-phone-or-pc-next-year-1b303c09?st=YWTeKY&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
Techmeme
Micron projects FY Q2 sales to grow over 2x YoY to $18.7B and adjusted operating income to rise over 5x to $11.3B, signaling higher memory chip prices in 2026
By Dan Gallagher / Wall Street Journal. View the full context on Techmeme.