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Labor & Employment

California Grants Union Rights to Uber and Lyft Drivers

California has passed a bill granting Uber and Lyft drivers the right to unionize as independent contractors. This legislation is part of a broader agreement between lawmakers, unions, and ride-hailing companies. More than 800,000 drivers in California will now have the ability to collectively bargain for improved pay and benefits. Uber's head of public policy in California views the bill as a compromise that reduces costs for riders while empowering drivers.

Venture Capital & Artificial Intelligence

AI Dominates Venture Capital: A Bifurcated Market Emerges

New PitchBook data reveals a significant shift in startup investment, with AI projected to account for over half of all VC funding in 2025. VCs have invested $192.7 billion in AI this year out of a total of $366.8 billion. In the latest quarter, AI received 62.7% of U.S. VC investments and 53.2% of global investments.

Much of the funding is directed towards major players like Anthropic, which secured a $13 billion Series F. The number of successful startups and venture funds raising capital is at its lowest in years, with only 823 funds raised globally in 2025 compared to 4,430 in 2022.

PitchBook's Kyle Sanford describes the market as "bifurcated," emphasizing the growing divide between AI-focused entities and others, as well as the dominance of large firms.

Data Privacy

Eufy Pays Users for Theft Videos: AI Training or Privacy Risk?

Anker's Eufy offered users $2 per video of staged or real thefts to train its AI, aiming for 20,000 videos each of package and car thefts. Users uploaded videos via Google Forms, providing their PayPal details for payment. Eufy has launched similar programs offering rewards like badges, cameras, or gift cards for video donations. In the Eufy app, an 'Honor Wall' ranks users by video contributions, with the top donor exceeding 200,000 videos. Despite Eufy's claims of using videos solely for AI training and not sharing them with third parties, concerns arise due to past privacy issues, including a 2023 incident where The Verge revealed unencrypted camera streams advertised as end-to-end encrypted.

Artificial Intelligence

OpenAI's Sora to Introduce Opt-In Copyright Controls for AI-Generated Videos

OpenAI's Sora video app is shifting its approach to copyright, potentially requiring rights holders to opt-in to allow their IP to be used in AI-generated videos. This change comes after concerns about users creating videos with copyrighted characters. OpenAI is also exploring video monetization options and potential revenue sharing with rights holders. The company hopes the new interactive fan fiction engagement will be valuable, alongside revenue opportunities.

Space Exploration

Bezos Foresees Millions Living in Space Within Decades

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos predicts that millions will inhabit space within the next few decades. He believes people will choose to live in space, with robots handling labor and AI data centers floating above. Bezos defended the AI investment boom as a 'good' bubble, expressing optimism about the future during his appearance at Italian Tech Week in Turin.

Insurance

Tesla's Insurance Under Scrutiny for Claims Handling Issues

California's Department of Insurance (CDI) has taken enforcement action against Tesla's insurance arm for alleged unfair claims settlement practices, including significant delays and unreasonable denials. The CDI reports a substantial increase in consumer complaints and violations since 2022, despite warnings and promises of improvement from Tesla. The company faces potential penalties for each unlawful act. A class action lawsuit has already been filed against Tesla for similar issues. CDI first engaged with Tesla in 2022 but says the problems have worsened.

Space Exploration

Bezos Foresees Millions in Space Within Decades

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, speaking at Italian Tech Week, predicted that millions of people will inhabit space in the coming decades. He envisions robots handling labor and vast AI data centers in orbit. This prediction echoes Elon Musk's Mars colonization ambitions. Bezos also defended the AI investment boom, labeling it a 'good' industrial bubble.

Artificial Intelligence

OpenAI Acquires AI Finance App Roi to Enhance Personalization

OpenAI has acquired Roi, an AI-powered personal finance app, in a move to strengthen its focus on personalized AI consumer products. Only Roi's CEO and co-founder, Sujith Vishwajith, will join OpenAI. Roi will cease operations on October 15.

This acquisition follows a series of acqui-hires by OpenAI, including Context.ai, Crossing Minds, and Alex. Roi, founded in 2022 and backed by investors like Balaji Srinivasan, aimed to provide personalized financial experiences by aggregating a user's financial footprint into one app.

Roi's AI companion adapted to user preferences, reflecting OpenAI's vision of adaptive, personalized AI. This aligns with OpenAI's existing consumer efforts, such as Pulse, Sora, and Instant Checkout. The acquisition underscores OpenAI's commitment to building end-user apps and leveraging talent like Vishwajith, who has a track record of optimizing user behavior to drive revenue.

Artificial Intelligence

Naveen Rao Aims to Revolutionize Computing with New AI Hardware Startup, Unconventional Inc.

Naveen Rao, former AI head at Databricks, is reportedly raising $1 billion at a $5 billion valuation for his new startup, Unconventional Inc., focused on developing a novel computer architecture for AI. Andreessen Horowitz is expected to lead the investment, with participation from Lightspeed and Lux Capital. The company aims to create a computer that mirrors the efficiency of the human brain. Rao's previous venture, MosaicML, was acquired by Databricks for $1.3 billion. Unconventional Inc. will compete with Nvidia by designing custom silicon chips and server infrastructure.

Artificial Intelligence

Gemini's Visual Transformation: A Scrollable, Engaging AI Experience

Google is experimenting with a visually focused revamp of the Gemini AI app, shifting from a chatbot-style interface to a scrollable feed with suggested prompts and images. The new interface includes shortcut buttons for tasks like 'Create Image' and 'Deep Research.' The goal is to inspire users with specific suggestions and make the app more visually appealing, potentially challenging OpenAI's ChatGPT. The revamp could also capitalize on the demand for Google's AI image model, Nano Banana.