xAI's losses are mounting as it spends to build data centers, recruit
talent, and develop software that will eventually power humanoid robots
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TLDR
TLDR 2026-01-09
📱
BIG TECH & STARTUPS
MUSK'S XAI BURNS ALMOST $8 BILLION IN CASH, REVEALS OPTIMUS PLAN (6
MINUTE READ) [4]
xAI's losses are mounting as it spends to build data centers, recruit
talent, and develop software that will eventually power humanoid
robots. The company reported that it spent $7.8 billion in cash in the
first nine months of last year. Its revenue nearly doubled
quarter-over-quarter to $107 million for the three-month period ending
in September. xAI expects to do more deals soon to continue building
out its Colossus data center site in Memphis, Tennessee.
THE MAN WHO COULD BE APPLE'S NEXT CEO (11 MINUTE READ) [5]
John Ternus, Apple's head of hardware engineering, could be next in
line to replace Tim Cook as CEO if he steps aside. Ternus, who joined
Apple in 2001, is known for his attention to detail and knowledge of
Apple's vast supply network. Apple began accelerating planning for
Cook's succession last year after Cook told senior leaders he would
like to reduce his workload. Cook will likely become the chairman of
Apple's board should he step down as CEO.
🚀
SCIENCE & FUTURISTIC TECHNOLOGY
FORMER GOOGLE CEO PLANS TO SINGLEHANDEDLY FUND A HUBBLE TELESCOPE
REPLACEMENT (6 MINUTE READ) [6]
Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and his wife, Wendy, have announced
major investments in four telescope projects. Each of the telescopes
brings a new novel capability online. The most intriguing instrument
is a space-based telescope named Lazuli that is designed to be a more
capable and modern version of the Hubble Space Telescope. The
Schmidts' investment, estimated to be worth half a billion dollars,
has enormous potential to advance the study of astronomy and
astrophysics.
HOW DID TVS GET SO CHEAP? (12 MINUTE READ) [7]
TVs today are vastly cheaper than they were 25 years ago, even before adjusting for inflation. The price per area-pixel has fallen by more
than 90%. It's not surprising that the cost of the technology
declined. Virtually all of the major mechanisms that can drive
efficiency improvements have occurred.
💻
PROGRAMMING, DESIGN & DATA SCIENCE
LLM PREDICTIONS FOR 2026, SHARED WITH OXIDE AND FRIENDS (9 MINUTE
READ) [8]
This post shares predictions Simon Willison made on a recent podcast.
The predictions cover what he thinks will happen in the next 1, 3, and
6 years in the tech industry. There has never been so much uncertainty
about what's coming in the next year. The significant advances in
coding agents in just the last two months indicate that things will
change significantly, but it is unclear what those changes will be.
EARLY LOOK AT GROK BUILD, UPCOMING VIBE CODING AGENT FROM XAI (2
MINUTE READ) [9]
Grok Build is a coding agent from xAI that can be accessed both on
the web and through a CLI. It currently supports local agents, with
remote environment support marked as coming soon. There are options
for users to configure agents and custom environments. A video
previewing the feature is available in the article.
🎁
MISCELLANEOUS
CHINA WARNS AI STARTUPS SEEKING TO EMULATE META DEAL: NOT SO FAST (6
MINUTE READ) [10]
China is reviewing Meta's recent acquisition of AI startup Manus, a
warning to Chinese entrepreneurs interested in Silicon Valley riches.
The review is part of broader consideration by China on how it can
build fences around its AI know-how. The government is identifying
standout companies and technologies with the aim of adding those of
strategic importance to an export-control list. Manus' parent company
was set up by Chinese co-founders in China, but it moved its
headquarters to Singapore last year to expand its global user base.
AWS IN 2026: THE YEAR OF PROVING THEY STILL KNOW HOW TO OPERATE (11
MINUTE READ) [11]
AWS isn't dying - it isn't even struggling in any conventional sense.
However, its era of unchallenged dominance is over. The company is
navigating a transition that would challenge any organization. It has
made the right strategic moves, but its success will depend on whether
it can retain the people who know how to deliver.
⚡
QUICK LINKS
LOVE WHAT YOU DO (1 MINUTE READ) [12]
The key to longevity is learning to love the work and the life around
it.
MUSK, OPENAI LAWYERS TRADE BARBS AS LAWSUIT HEADS TO TRIAL (5 MINUTE
READ) [13]
Elon Musk's lawsuit alleges that OpenAI's leadership made knowingly
false assurances to Elon Musk about its charitable mission that they
never honored in favor of their personal self-enrichment.
GOOGLE ANNOUNCES AI OVERVIEWS IN GMAIL SEARCH, EXPERIMENTAL
AI-ORGANIZED INBOX (3 MINUTE READ) [14]
Google is rolling out a new AI feature that will let AI Pro and Ultra subscribers ask natural language questions about their email inboxes.
THE 1,000 COMMITS PROBLEM (4 MINUTE READ) [15]
Anthropic recently shipped code that broke the entire CLI.
WHY AI IS PUSHING DEVELOPERS TOWARD TYPED LANGUAGES (5 MINUTE READ)
[16]
Type systems have become a common safety feature for developers
working with AI because static types ensure that code is more
trustworthy and more maintainable.
CREATORS SAY SPOTIFY PAYS UP TO TWICE AS MUCH AS YOUTUBE FOR VIDEO
PODCASTS (10 MINUTE READ) [17]
Spotify's dynamic ads will let hosts resell ad slots forever to
maximize their inventory.
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