The US is exploring an OpenAI stake through a "sovereign wealth fund," OpenAI and Anthropic are gearing up for a price war ahead of their IPOs, and Oracle dropped 11% — markets got their first real case of AI bill anxiety. Plus new Google models and a Bezos startup.
🤖 AI
Google launched Gemini 3.5 Live Translate
Google showed off a real-time speech translation model — voice-to-voice, 70+ languages. Already rolling out in Meet (preview) and in Google Translate on Android and iOS.
Google released DiffusionGemma — text generation via diffusion
Open-weights DiffusionGemma at 26B parameters generates text in blocks rather than token by token — up to 4× faster on GPU.
OpenAI is preparing steep price cuts
In response to expected discounts from Anthropic, OpenAI is considering slashing token prices — an early stress test of both labs' business models before they go public. For context: how fast LLM prices have been falling.
💻 Software
OpenAI acquired Ona — cloud for Codex agents
OpenAI bought Ona to give Codex secure cloud execution: persistent, customer-controlled environments where an agent can work across long sessions.
Anthropic rolled back its hidden Claude "muzzle"
After a wave of criticism, Anthropic admitted it had been quietly rerouting some requests — competitive model training and AI code debugging — to a weaker model, and will now make these restrictions visible.
⚙️ Robots and hardware
Startup Antares fired up a nuclear reactor
Antares brought a small modular reactor to criticality — a self-sustaining reaction — in a test. A full power-generating system is promised within a year; these reactors are targeting AI data center power.
Bezos is building a "universal engineer"
Jeff Bezos's new startup Prometheus is building an "artificial general engineer" — AI that accelerates the design and production of physical things: computers, cars, spacecraft.
💰 Business
The US is discussing an OpenAI stake
The Trump administration is exploring entering OpenAI's cap table through "gifted" shares — as part of a "sovereign wealth fund" so citizens get a cut of the AI economy's upside.
Oracle dropped 11% over AI capex
Oracle shares fell 11%: the company warned of a new $20B raise and posted negative free cash flow — AI capital expenditures surged 162% to $55.7B.
Google backstopped Anthropic's $35B chip deal
A hidden alliance surfaced: Google is guaranteeing Anthropic's chip lease payments on $35B across five data centers — covering any shortfall in the event of default.
🎭 Behind the scenes
Apple's secret meeting without Cook
Bloomberg revealed: at a closed-door gathering in early 2025 — without Tim Cook — Apple decided it needed a new AI team and handed Siri to Vision Pro creator Mike Rockwell. Related: Apple later chose Gemini for the new Siri.