Ahead of its Worldwide Developer Conference on June 9, Apple on Thursday offered a new update on its global App Store business, sharing that developers generated $1.3 trillion in billings and sales in 2024. The company stressed that 90% of those billings and sales did not involve paying Apple a commission.The study also noted that developer billings and sales for digital goods and services in 2024 totaled $131 billion, driven by mobile games, photo and video editing apps, and other enterprise tools. Physica ...

Core Insights - Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai addressed concerns regarding AI potentially making half of the company's 180,000 workforce redundant, emphasizing the company's commitment to growth through at least next year [1][2] - Pichai described AI as an "accelerator" that enhances engineer productivity by automating tedious tasks, allowing them to focus on more impactful work, thus creating demand for more employees rather than replacing them [2] Workforce and Layoffs - Alphabet has undergone several layoffs in recent years, with targeted cuts in 2025 being less severe than previous years; less than 100 employees were laid off in the cloud division earlier this year, and hundreds more in the platforms and devices unit [3] - In contrast, the company laid off 12,000 employees in 2023 and at least 1,000 in the previous year, indicating a trend of more significant cuts in earlier years [3] Innovation and Future Ventures - Pichai highlighted Alphabet's expanding ventures, including Waymo autonomous vehicles, quantum computing initiatives, and the growth of YouTube, which has 100 million channels and 15,000 channels with over one million subscribers in India alone, as evidence of ongoing innovation opportunities [4] AI Development and Concerns - While acknowledging fears about job displacement, Pichai respected concerns raised by industry leaders regarding AI's potential to erode half of entry-level white-collar jobs within five years [5] - Pichai expressed optimism about future progress in AI development but noted that predicting a clear path to artificial general intelligence (AGI) is uncertain, as technology often experiences temporary plateaus [6]

Core Points - Reddit is suing Anthropic for allegedly using its data to train AI models without a proper licensing agreement, claiming this use was unlawful and violated Reddit's user agreement [1][2] - This lawsuit marks Reddit as the first major tech company to legally challenge an AI model provider regarding its training data practices, joining other publishers in similar legal actions [2][3] Company Actions - Reddit has previously established agreements with AI model providers like OpenAI and Google, allowing them to train AI models on Reddit's data under specific terms that protect user interests and privacy [5] - Reddit's legal complaint states that Anthropic's scraper bots ignored the site's robots.txt files, which are intended to prevent automated systems from crawling websites [8] Legal Claims - Reddit is seeking compensatory damages and restitution for the enrichment Anthropic gained from scraping its content, along with an injunction to stop Anthropic from using Reddit's content [9] - Reddit's chief legal officer emphasized the company's stance against profit-seeking entities exploiting Reddit content without compensation or respect for user privacy [4][6]

AMD’s latest acquisition could help reduce Nvidia’s market dominance when it comes to AI hardware.Semiconductor giant AMD on Wednesday announced it acquired AI software optimization startup Brium. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Brium is a startup that appears to be in stealth mode. The startup builds machine learning applications to enable AI inference, the process a trained AI model uses to draw conclusions from new data, across a variety of different hardware options, according to a blog post on B ...

Core Insights - Qualcomm has released patches addressing multiple vulnerabilities in its chips, including three zero-day vulnerabilities that may be exploited in targeted hacking campaigns [1][4] - Google's Threat Analysis Group reported these zero-days to Qualcomm in February, highlighting their potential for exploitation by cybercriminals and government hackers [1][5] - The open-source nature of Android means that device manufacturers are responsible for applying these patches, which may leave some devices vulnerable for an extended period [2][4] Vulnerability Details - The three zero-day vulnerabilities identified are CVE-2025-21479, CVE-2025-21480, and CVE-2025-27038 [1] - Qualcomm's bulletin indicates that patches were made available to device manufacturers in May, with a strong recommendation for prompt deployment [4] - Google confirmed that its Pixel devices are not affected by these vulnerabilities [4] Exploitation Context - Qualcomm chipsets are frequently targeted by hackers due to their extensive access to the operating system, allowing potential access to sensitive data [5] - There have been recent documented cases of exploitation against Qualcomm chipsets, including a zero-day identified by Amnesty International that was reportedly used by Serbian authorities [6]

Meta announced Tuesday morning that it was paying billions of dollars to keep an Illinois nuclear power plant running through 2047. The social media company will buy all the “clean energy attributes” of Constellation Energy’s Clinton Clean Energy Center, a 1.1 gigawatt nuclear power plant in central Illinois, starting in June 2027.Electricity will still flow to the local grid, so Meta’s purchase won’t directly power one of its data centers, though the company does have one about two hours north of Clinton i ...

Joby Aviation has reached a tentative deal with investor and Saudi Arabian conglomerate Abdul Latif Jameel (ALJ) to distribute up to 200 electric aircraft valued at about $1 billion over the coming years. If finalized, the partnership could provide Joby with a fast path to monetizing its electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles in Saudi Arabia.  “A question that folks have asked is, how are you going to monetize, and how quickly is that going to happen?” Paul Sciarra, the executive chairman of Joby’s ...

Group 1: Acquisition Details - Salesforce has acquired Moonhub, a startup focused on AI-driven talent vetting and hiring, although the financial terms of the deal were not disclosed [1] - Moonhub's entire team based in Menlo Park, California, will be joining Salesforce, which was an early investor in the startup [1] Group 2: Strategic Importance - Moonhub's CEO, Nanxy Xu, emphasized the shared core values between Moonhub and Salesforce, particularly regarding customer trust and the potential of AI in driving global innovation [2] - The acquisition aligns with Salesforce's broader strategy, as the company recently completed an $8 billion acquisition of Informatica and previously acquired Convergence.ai to enhance its AI product offerings [2] Group 3: Moonhub's Background - Founded in 2022 by ex-Meta engineer Nanxy Xu, Moonhub provides tools for recruiting, evaluating, and hiring candidates, utilizing AI to streamline processes such as onboarding and payroll management [3] - Moonhub has raised $14.4 million from various investors, including Khosla Ventures and GV, and serves hundreds of customers, including Fortune 500 companies [4] Group 4: Industry Trends - The acquisition reflects a growing trend in the HR industry, where 93% of Fortune 500 chief human resource officers are integrating AI tools to enhance hiring and HR processes, despite mixed reactions from job seekers [7]

IBM on Monday said that it has acquired Seek AI, an AI platform that allows users to ask questions about enterprise data using natural language, for an undisclosed sum.Seek CEO and founder Sarah Nagy said that the startup’s technology will be a key part of Watsonx AI Labs, IBM’s new NYC-based AI accelerator, which IBM also announced today. “[W]e’ll scale our platform, deploy mission-critical solutions for IBM clients, empower the next generation of AI developers, and grow our team significantly,” wrote Nag ...

Core Viewpoint - Tesla is actively pursuing trademark applications for "Tesla Robotaxi" to support its planned autonomous ride-hailing service, following previous challenges in securing trademarks for similar terms [1][2]. Group 1: Trademark Applications - The company initially applied for the trademarks "Robotaxi" and "Cybercab" in October 2024, but faced obstacles from the USPTO requiring more details for "Robotaxi" and outright halting the "Cybercab" application due to competing claims [2][3]. - Tesla has submitted three new applications for the specific term "Tesla Robotaxi" as it prepares to begin testing its autonomous ride-hailing service in Austin, Texas later this month [2]. Group 2: Related Trademark Efforts - In addition to "Tesla Robotaxi," Tesla has pending applications for trademarks on "Robobus," "Robus," and "Cyberbus," which are presumably linked to a van-like concept vehicle introduced last October [3]. - The term "Robovan," used by CEO Elon Musk during the Cybercab prototype reveal, is already trademarked by Estonian robotic delivery company Starship, indicating potential challenges for Tesla in branding [3].