Congress might block state AI laws for a decade. Here's what it means.
A federal proposal that would ban states and local governments from regulating AI for 10 years could soon be signed into law, as Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and other lawmakers work to secure its inclusion into a GOP megabill ahead of a key July 4 deadline.
Those in favor – including OpenAI's
Facebook is asking to use Meta AI on photos in your camera roll you haven’t yet shared
Facebook is asking users for access to their phone’s camera roll to automatically suggest AI-edited versions of their photos — including ones that haven’t been uploaded to Facebook yet.
The feature is being suggested to Facebook users when they’re creating a new Story on t
SpaceX’s Starbase city officials silent on crane collapse
A crane collapsed at SpaceX’s South Texas rocket facility this week, and the company’s newly-formed city won’t say if anyone was hurt.
On June 23, a crane being used to clean up debris from the most recent SpaceX rocket explosion collapsed at the company’s launch complex. F
Startups Weekly: Tech and the law
Welcome to Startups Weekly — your weekly recap of everything you can't miss from the world of startups. Want it in your inbox every Friday? Sign up here.
Before this newsletter takes a break for the Fourth of July next week, here are the startup stories and funding rounds that caught our eye
PetLibro's new smart camera uses AI to describe your pet's movements, and it’s adorable
PetLibro, the pet tech startup known for its automatic feeders and filtered water fountains, has just launched its latest product, the AI-powered Scout Smart Camera, designed to provide pet owners with real-time insights into their furbabies’ activities and behaviors.
Scout is similar to oth
Meta buys over 1 GW of renewables to power its data centers
Meta bolstered its already considerable renewable power portfolio this week with a string of deals that added over 1 gigawatt of generating capacity.
The social media company announced Thursday it will buy 791 megawatts of solar and wind power in Ohio, Arkansas, and Texas from project developer In
SCOTUS porn ruling opens door to sweeping internet age verification
The United States Supreme Court ruled Friday to uphold a Texas law requiring websites with “sexual material harmful to minors” to verify the ages of all visitors. The Free Speech Coalition (FSC), a trade association for the adult industry, had brought the lawsuit against Texas Attorney General
OpenAI hires team behind AI recommendation startup Crossing Minds
Crossing Minds, a startup that provides AI recommendation systems to e-commerce businesses, said on Thursday that its team is joining OpenAI.
The startup was backed by Index Ventures, Shopify, Plug and Play, and Radical Ventures, and had raised more than $13.5 million across multiple rounds, accor
Redwood Materials launches energy storage business and its first target is AI data centers
Tucked between two massive buildings in the hills of the Nevada desert, 805 retired EV batteries lie in neat formation, each one wrapped in nondescript white tarps — and hiding in plain sight.
A passerby might not realize this unassuming array is the largest microgrid in North America, tha
This AI-powered startup studio plans to launch 100,000 companies a year — really
Henrik Werdelin has spent the last 15 years helping entrepreneurs build big brands like Barkbox through his startup studio Prehype. Now, with his new, New York-based venture Audos, he’s betting that AI can help him scale that process from “tens” of startups a year to “hundre
Google launches Doppl, a new app that lets you visualize how an outfit might look on you
Google is launching a new experimental app called Doppl that uses AI to visualize how different outfits might look on you, the company announced on Thursday. The app is available on iOS and Android in the U.S.
Doppl is designed to let you virtually try on outfits on a digital version of yourself.
Why a16z VC believes that Cluely, the 'cheat on everything' startup, is the new blueprint for AI startups
When Cluely, a startup claiming to be building a product that helps people “cheat” on everything, announced that it raised a $15 million Series A financing from Andreessen Horowitz, some people on X criticized the VC firm for backing the controversial company.
After all, Cluely isnR
Apple updates the rules for its EU App Store by adding more complicated fees
Apple on Thursday announced a series of updates to its developer policies to comply with the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA). The news, which was expected, arrived just in time to meet the deadline of June 26, after which the iPhone maker would risk new fines. The changes involve both how app
Travis Kalanick is trying to buy Pony AI ? and Uber might help
Uber founder Travis Kalanick is looking for ways to buy the U.S. arm of Chinese autonomous vehicle company Pony AI, according to The New York Times. Kalanick is reportedly working with investors to finance an acquisition, and Uber may even help make the transaction happen, the Times reports.
Pony