Google just declared itself a contender in AI design at IO 2026
Google says it’s designed the app to be accessible to everyone, from teachers to small business owners.
The Download: failed social media bans, and extending pets’ lives
This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. Kids are outsmarting social media bans. That’s not a problem we need to solve. —Michal Luria, Aliya Bhatia, and Danah Boyd Social media bans are stacking up. In July, France joined…
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You can now talk to your Gmail inbox, as seen at Google IO 2026
Google expands Gmail’s AI Inbox with conversational voice search, letting users ask Gemini to find buried email details.
How to use Google’s new AI agents to go beyond your standard searches
Google is launching AI-powered “information agents” that can monitor topics in the background and proactively alert users to updates and changes.
Discord enables end-to-end encrypted voice and video calling for every user
Good news! Discord’s hundreds of millions of users now have their communications scrambled, so not even Discord can see them.
Mach Industries just spent $50M to solve a major defense tech problem
Mach says the acquisition meaningfully improves unit economics across its five vehicle programs at exactly the moment the company is starting to scale.
From teen hacker to Iron Dome researcher, this founder raised $28M to fight AI phishing
Ocean, an agentic email security platform, raised funding from Lightspeed Venture Partners.
Roundtables: Inside the Musk v. Altman Trial
Listen to the session or watch below Elon Musk lost his suit against OpenAI, in which he alleged CEO Sam Altman and President Greg Brockman had deceived him over the company’s non-profit status. Watch as AI reporter and attorney Michelle Kim, who covered the trial for MIT Technology Review, joins in conversation with editor in…
Elon Musk said Sam Altman “stole” a non-profit — but the trial showed he had similar aims
“By the end of this week, you and Sam will be the most hated men in America.”
Google takes a page out of Meta’s book, announces new audio-powered smart glasses
Google is back in the glasses game with “audio glasses” out this fall.
Google’s Genie world model can now simulate real streets with Street View
Google DeepMind is integrating Street View with Project Genie to create immersive, interactive world simulations for robotics, gaming, and travel, allowing users to explore environments, weather changes, and rare scenarios.