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Jess Weatherbed
Jess Weatherbed
“You can choose to howl at the wind, but AI is not going away.”

That’s according to Amazon’s President and CEO Andy Jassy — a cold, yet unsuprising take from the man who’s planning to replace 600,000 employees with robots by 2033. In this Bloomberg article, you can read more about how he’s overhauling Amazon to go all-in on AI.

Jess Weatherbed
Jess Weatherbed
Jack Antonoff is sick of AI slop.

The musician, producer, and long-time Taylor Swift collaborator described people who use generative AI tools as “Godless whores” in a rant on Instagram:

“To everyone who is gassed up about the new ways you can fake making art, by all means drive right off that cliff. We’re genuinely happy to see you go.”

Dominic Preston
Dominic Preston
The Robot Phone is coming soon.

Honor says it’ll launch in Q3, meaning July-September, though we’re still expecting it to be a China exclusive. The news was announced at the Cannes Film Festival, where Honor celebrated its partnership with professional cinema camera manufacturer Arri. The Robot Phone will be the first to include “core elements of Arri image science.”

Jay Peters
Jay Peters
OpenClaw now works better with OpenAI models and Codex.

As part of a new release, “your ChatGPT subscription can now power an OpenClaw agent that feels much closer to the model it is built on,” OpenAI’s Nik Pash says in a blog post.

The OpenClaw team has also been working “really hard on performance, reliability, security, and stability,” according to OpenClaw founder (and OpenAI employee) Peter Steinberger.

Jay Peters
Jay Peters
This is a wild story about an AI-driven local news site.

This investigation by the Florida Trib and the podcast Question Everything is a sobering read about the state of local news right now and how AI is being used to fill the void with sketchy junk.

Musk v. Altman accomplished nothing but airing dirty laundry

The trial felt less like the fate of OpenAI and more like a window into petty grievances.

Elizabeth Lopatto
Jay Peters
Jay Peters
Valve will “probably” use a reservation system for future hardware launches.

So says Valve designer Lawrence Yang in an interview with NerdNest. After the Steam Controller quickly sold out, Valve introduced a reservation system so people wait for their turn to buy. The launches of the Steam Machine and Steam Frame, whenever they happen, could be even more competitive — maybe a reservation system would ease a little bit of the chaos.

Hayden Field
Hayden Field
“I feel like I’m going to miss you all,” Savitt tells the jury.

He may be laying it on thick, but he did get a big laugh.

Hayden Field
Hayden Field
Savitt calls out the fact that Musk is abroad with President Trump today.

He reminded the jury that Musk isn’t in the courtroom while Altman and Brockman are. (Musk posted yesterday that he was en route to Beijing on Air Force One.) “They are here because they care a lot about this,” Savitt said. “Mr. Musk isn’t here. Mr. Musk came to this court for exactly one witness — Elon Musk — and he hasn’t been seen since. Now he’s in parts unknown.”

Hayden Field
Hayden Field
Savitt says Musk has “selective amnesia.”

“He claims to have heard things high atop a windy hill where no one else can hear,” Savitt told the jury. (Strange phrasing, but after the bridge metaphor from Molo, I wouldn’t expect anything less.) He also says Musk has “unclean hands” due to his “unconscionable conduct” related to the claims he’s bringing. “Only after OpenAI succeeded, against Musk’s prediction, only then did he start threatening litigation,” Savitt said.

Hayden Field
Hayden Field
Savitt is talking about the statute of limitations.

He said that by his calculations, people said things like “I don’t remember” and “I don’t recall” between 150 and 200 times during this trial so far — using this to bolster his argument that Musk had waited too long to bring his claims.

Elizabeth Lopatto
Elizabeth Lopatto
Here’s the jackass trophy that the jury didn’t get to see.

You may remember that yesterday I was completely tickled by the possibility that the jury might get to see this. Even YGR seemed tickled by it. Unfortunately, she ruled that discussing it was fine but unless the Musk team gave them reason to introduce it, the jurors wouldn’t see so much as a photo. But this is the trophy Josh Achiam got for getting yelled at by Elon Musk.

An image of what looks like a little league trophy but is in fact half a jackass (the animal) with the inscription “Never stop being a jackass for safety.”
Jay Peters
Jay Peters
The Library of Congress plays Doom.

Bobby Prince’s 1993 soundtrack for Doom is one of 25 recordings being inducted into the Library of Congress this year, a lineup that also includes Taylor Swift’s “1989” album and Beyoncé‘s “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It).”

”Despite the limitations of the 1993-era sound card drivers, Prince composed the perfect riff-shredding accompaniment for the game’s demon-slaying journey to hell and back,” the Library of Congress says. Hell yeah.

Jay Peters
Jay Peters
xAI launches an “early beta” of Grok Build.

As xAI aims to compete with rivals like Anthropic and OpenAI, which have focused heavily on AI-assisted coding, the company is launching a new agentic coding CLI tool for Grok. It’s available initially for subscribers to xAI’s SuperGrok Heavy plan.

Linux devs are fighting the new age-gated internet

The open-source community is looking for a way out of the wave of new laws requiring operating systems to collect users’ ages.

Stevie Bonifield
Andrew Liszewski
Andrew Liszewski
DJI’s Osmo Pocket 4P is the first dual camera version of its handheld baby steadicam.

Following the Osmo Pocket 4’s debut nearly a month ago, DJI announced a long-rumored dual camera alternative called the Osmo Pocket 4P during the Cannes film festival today. While it can capture footage in the high-dynamic range 10-bit D-Log2 format, details on the 4P’s zoom capabilities, pricing, and US availability weren’t revealed.

The DJI Osmo Pocket 4P camera displaying a desert on screen.
Image: DJI
Andrew Liszewski
Andrew Liszewski
Twelve South’s PowerClip is a tiny dual-cable power bank that won’t weigh you down.

A power bank can only revive a dying phone if you actually have it with you. The 2,000mAh battery in Twelve South’s new $39.99 PowerClip can’t fully replenish a dead phone, but it can give you a few more hours of use. And at just 45 grams and about the size of an AirPods case, it’s easy to carry every day.

If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

<em>The PowerClip features two short but built-in USB-C cables that can both be used simultaneously to charge two different devices.</em>
<em>The power bank is available in five colors including mint, fuchsia, slate, teal, and dune.</em>
1/2
The PowerClip features two short but built-in USB-C cables that can both be used simultaneously to charge two different devices.
Image: Twelve South
Jay Peters
Jay Peters
OpenAI’s deal with Apple isn’t working out as planned.

OpenAI thought it would get more subscribers from how ChatGPT was baked into Apple’s operating systems and that there would be deeper integration, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.

The company is considering taking legal action against Apple, which could include “sending the iPhone maker a notice alleging breach of contract without necessarily filing a full lawsuit at the outset,” Gurman reports.

TC Sottek
TC Sottek
RAM prices are so high that I’m keeping a six-year-old PC alive.

The AIO water cooling unit for my homebuilt PC just failed, and so I briefly considered building a new system. Then I looked at current RAM/SSD prices. They’re so outrageous that I’ll indefinitely stay out of my usual five-year cycle of a rebuild. I’d love to hear from my fellow PC builders in the comments whether they’re also feeling stuck with their hardware.

The only silver lining? Maybe there’ll be less e-waste from the consumer market.

Elizabeth Lopatto
Elizabeth Lopatto
Molo is suggesting that Greg Brockman’s conduct makes him untrustworthy.

“17 times during his testimony I had to ask him to answer the question,” Molo says. Dude, you don’t want this. If they’re considering conduct, they’re considering your client’s conduct, which was remarkably bad.

Live updates from Musk v. AltmanLive updates from Musk v. Altman
Elizabeth Lopatto and Hayden Field
Antonio G. Di Benedetto
Antonio G. Di Benedetto
And another one. Another chip maker for Googlebooks.

MediaTek shared in a blog post that it will have chips in Google’s upcoming Googlebooks, joining Intel and Qualcomm. Interestingly, it mentions bringing Dimensity smartphone chips, not the Kompanio chips it already had in Chromebooks (and were quite good).

I don’t know why Google didn’t announce chip partners like it did laptop partners in its weird Googlebook tease.

Nilay Patel
Nilay Patel
Sony... these photos look terrible.

Sony’s trying to show off the AI Camera Assistant on the new Xperia 1 VIII, but I’m not sure a bunch of blown-out photos with weird ideas about highlights and shadows will convince anyone this is worth it. Our own Dominic Preston says he saw better results in his briefing, but this is looking pretty grim. (h/t Manideep!)

Elizabeth Lopatto
Elizabeth Lopatto
Apropos of nothing in particular...

I enjoyed reading this story about Bill Gates’ malevolent influence on the current crop of Silicon Valley megalomaniacs. If you remember his pre-Gates Foundation reputation, you will particularly appreciate it.

Whither the Nerd-Bully?

[The New York Review of Books]

Andrew Liszewski
Andrew Liszewski
Pac-Man shreds.

Bandai Namco and Fender have collaborated on a limited edition version of the Player II Telecaster guitar. Its alder wood body is finished in black with a blue maze design and a dot-gobbling Pac-Man being pursued by Blinky, Inky, Pinky and Clyde. It’s available now for $1,099.99.

If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

1/3Image: Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc.