• Medium gives employees Friday off to participate in national strike protesting ICE

    January 30, 2026

    Hustle culture may be the norm at tech companies in the AI era, but the work will stop tomorrow at publishing platform Medium. Medium CEO Tony Stubblebine is giving the company’s employees permission to take the day off to participate in tomorrow’s nationwide general strike protesting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE. Activists behind the general strike are calling for “no work, no school, and no shopping” amid a push to defund ICE, which has escalated raids in U.S. cities, killing several people, including two U.S. citizens earlier this month in Minneapolis. In a Slack message shared today with…

  • Google’s Project Genie lets you generate your own interactive worlds

    January 30, 2026

    This past summer, Google DeepMind debuted Genie 3. It’s what’s known as a world world, an AI system capable of generating images and reacting as the user moves through the environment the software is simulating. At the time, DeepMind positioned Genie 3 as a tool for training AI agents. Now, it’s making the model available to people outside of Google to try with Project Genie. To start, you’ll need Google’s $250 per month AI Ultra plan to check out Project Genie. You’ll also need to live in the US and be 18 years or older. At launch, Project Genie offers…

  • Guys, I don’t think Tim Cook knows how to monetize AI

    January 30, 2026

    Apple exceeded expectations when it reported its quarterly earnings on Thursday, revealing that it made $143.8 billion in revenue for a 16% year-over-year increase. As analysts peppered CEO Tim Cook with softball questions during Apple’s earnings call, one analyst dared to ask the question that seemingly no one in Silicon Valley is willing to ask. “When I think about your AI initiatives, you know, it’s clear there are added costs associated with that… Many of your competitors have already integrated AI into their devices, and it’s just not clear yet what incremental monetization they’re seeing because of AI…,” started Morgan…

  • China cracking down on half-baked cars with tougher durability requirements – report

    January 30, 2026

    Regulators in China are clamping down on manufacturers launching new cars before they’re ready, citing long-term safety and quality concerns. According to business news outlet Caixin, the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) has updated standards for the certification of brand-new models, with fears consumers were unknowingly being used as guinea pigs. It’s alleged automakers rushed cars to market before they were ready, dramatically reducing the research and development (R&D) period in order to gain an upper hand over competitors. Coming into effect in January 2027, the new regulations will require all petrol- and diesel-powered vehicles to pass…

  • Apple acquires Q.ai for a reported $2 billion

    January 30, 2026

    Apple has acquired Israel-based startup Q.ai, a move that could provide a much-needed boost to the tech giant’s capabilities in artificial intelligence. Although Apple has not disclosed terms of the deal, sources told Financial Times that the arrangement is reportedly valued at nearly $2 billion. If that figure is accurate, the Q.ai acquisition marks Apple’s second largest acquisition to date, followed by its purchase of Beats for $3 billion back in 2014. Johny Srouji, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware technologies, said in a statement that Q.ai “is a remarkable company that is pioneering new and creative ways to use…

  • How Sequoia-backed Ethos reached the public market while rivals fell short

    January 30, 2026

    Ethos Technologies, a San Francisco-based provider of software for selling life insurance, debuted on the Nasdaq on Thursday. As one of the year’s first major tech IPOs, the insurtech platform is being closely watched as a bellwether for the 2026 listing cycle. The company and its selling shareholders raised approximately $200 million in the offering, selling 10.5 million shares at $19 each under the ticker symbol “LIFE” — one of the more on-the-nose choices in recent memory. The name fits. Ethos runs a three-sided platform where consumers buy policies online in 10 minutes without medical exams. It says over 10,000…

  • 2026 Polestar 2 price and specs

    January 30, 2026

    The Polestar 2 electric liftback has received a light refresh for 2026, bringing minor tech upgrades, a new battery, and slightly more driving range at the bottom of the lineup. The base Polestar 2 ‘Standard range Single motor’ now features a slightly larger nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) lithium-ion battery sourced from Chinese manufacturer CATL, replacing an NMC unit from LG Chem. While driving range has increased by only 8km, fast charging speed has been increased from 135kW to 180kW. All variants now feature a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, which is said to reduce loading times and improve input response times from…

  • Apple just reported its best-ever quarter for iPhone sales

    January 30, 2026

    Apple shared its latest quarterly financial results today and the news is once again very, very good for the Cupertino company. The quarter ending December 27, 2025 marked “the best-ever quarter” for iPhones, which generated a record high revenue of nearly $85.27 billion for the business. Apple doesn’t disclose the number of devices sold any more, but even with the prices for many of its latest generation of smartphones surpassing $1,000 a pop, that’s still got to be a heck of a lot of iPhones. “The demand for iPhone was simply staggering,” CEO Tim Cook said on the conference call…

  • The iPhone just had its best quarter ever

    January 30, 2026

    Apple had a great Q1, though iPhone sales were the real standout. The company reports that its signature device had its best quarter ever, thanks partially to a surge of sales in regions like China and India. “iPhone had its best-ever quarter driven by unprecedented demand, with all-time records across every geographic segment,” said CEO Tim Cook during the company’s earnings call Thursday. Apple’s earnings report shows the company sold $85 billion worth of iPhones during its first quarter, up from $69 billion in the same period last year. During the call’s Q&A portion, Cook revealed that China had seen…

  • Jaecoo J7 recalled | CarExpert

    January 29, 2026

    Omoda Jaecoo Australia is recalling its debut model in Australia, the Jaecoo J7, as it could lose power suddenly. The recall affects only Jaecoo J7 crossover SUVs equipped with the turbocharged 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine, with the plug-in hybrid SHS unaffected. “Due to a manufacturing defect, the Electronic Control Unit (ECU) wiring harness may chafe against the engine mounting bracket and become damaged,” the company says in its recall notice. “As a result, this could lead to a sudden loss of motive power and/or engine shutdown without warning. “A sudden loss of motive power and/or engine shut down whilst driving…