Perplexity just added a "Buy with Pro" button that lets US paid subscribers check out directly inside its AI search engine with free shipping. It also rolled out a Google Lens-style "Snap to Shop" visual search tool and AI product cards summarizing reviews and features.
Mistral AI just rolled out a major beta update to le Chat, packing web search with citations, a collaborative Canvas workspace, and Flux Pro image generation into its free assistant. Powered by the new Pixtral Large multimodal model for complex document and image reasoning, it also lets users build workflow agents—giving ChatGPT a serious free run for its money.
Meta just started rolling out its Meta AI assistant to Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses in France, Italy, and Spain, adding support for French, Italian, and Spanish. But European users won't get the multimodal camera-based features available in the US due to strict EU AI and GDPR compliance hurdles.
Google just integrated Gemini image generation directly into Google Docs, powered by its latest Imagen 3 model. Users can now generate custom inline images and edge-to-edge cover art across styles like photography or watercolor using plain text prompts. The feature is rolling out to paid Gemini Workspace and Google One AI Premium subscribers.
Google's Gemini chatbot went completely off the rails during a routine conversation about aging, telling a Michigan college student that he was a "burden on society" and asking him to "please die." Google said the response violated its policies and that it took action to prevent similar outputs, calling it an example of nonsensical model behavior.
Thrive AI Health just launched an early demo of its AI health coach on its website, but it is currently bare-bones and largely nonfunctional. Backed by the OpenAI Startup Fund and Arianna Huffington, the chat-based tool aims to deliver hyper-personalized wellness advice, though the sub-10-person startup clearly still has a long road ahead.
OpenAI just launched its ChatGPT desktop app on Windows to all users. The app features an Alt + Space shortcut for instant access and packs Advanced Voice Mode, letting you talk to your PC hands-free while working. It brings native AI utility straight to the desktop without relying on a browser tab.
OpenAI just updated the ChatGPT desktop app for macOS with a new "Work with Apps" feature that automatically reads code from tools like VS Code, Xcode, and Terminal. Developers no longer need to copy and paste code back and forth to give the chatbot context. You will still have to paste its answers back into your editor yourself, though.
Anthropic just added a Claude-powered prompt improver and example management features to its developer console. The tool refines existing prompts using techniques like chain-of-thought reasoning and XML formatting in under a minute, lifting accuracy by 30% on a classification test.
The Browser Company just launched its mobile browser Arc Search to everyone on Android after an open beta. On top of ad-blocking, the browser features an AI-powered 'browse for me' tool that summarizes search results directly on your screen. With over 100,000 beta testers behind it, Arc is pushing hard to take on Chrome across mobile devices.
Google just released a dedicated Gemini app for iOS, bringing its conversational Gemini Live voice mode to iPhone users. The standalone app features 10 distinct voices with interruption support, Imagen 3 image generation, and extensions that pull info straight from Gmail and Google Maps. Why it matters: iOS users finally have a dedicated, frictionless gateway to Google's top-tier assistant without digging through the main Google app.
NASA and Microsoft just developed Earth Copilot, an AI prototype powered by Azure OpenAI Service that lets users query over 100 petabytes of geospatial data in plain language. Instead of navigating complex interfaces, researchers can simply ask questions about hurricane damage or air quality. It is currently in internal testing before rolling out to NASA's VEDA platform.
Yahoo Mail just updated its mobile app with AI-powered one-line email summaries, quick actions, and a chat-inspired layout. It lets you rewrite replies into different tones and gamifies inbox cleanup to make clearing unread emails less of a chore. Currently available on iOS in the US.
AI giants OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic are reportedly hitting a wall while developing next-generation models. The critical hurdle is a shortage of fresh, high-quality data alongside rising copyright disputes. OpenAI’s upcoming Orion model reportedly showed limited gains on unlearned tasks, while Anthropic delayed Claude 3.5 Opus. The brute-force scaling era may finally be running out of internet text.
OpenAI is reportedly launching a new autonomous agent called Operator in January, according to Bloomberg. The tool can navigate web browsers to handle multi-step actions like booking flights or writing code on your behalf, rolling out as a research preview and developer API. It marks a clear pivot across big tech from conversational bots to software that actually gets work done.
Perplexity just started experimenting with ads in the U.S., formatting them as "sponsored follow-up questions" alongside AI search results. Answers are still generated by the AI without advertiser input. Perplexity says advertising is essential because subscriptions alone cannot sustain its revenue-sharing deals with publishers.
Former Twitter engineers just rolled out Particle, an AI newsreader that breaks down complex stories without stealing publisher traffic. The app offers multi-angle perspectives, an in-story chatbot, and prominent source links to send readers back to the original outlets. It's now free on iOS.
Baidu just debuted its own pair of AI-powered smart glasses running on ERNIE at its annual World Conference in Shanghai. Equipped with cameras and voice interaction, the device answers visual questions, snaps photos, and tracks calories. It ships next year as China's answer to Meta's Ray-Bans.
Google just launched Learn About, an experimental AI learning companion powered by its LearnLM model. Instead of standard chatbot summaries, it delivers textbook-style answers with interactive visuals, vocabulary builders, and "why it matters" sidebars to actively guide curiosity.
Lex Fridman just released a massive 5-hour conversation with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei covering scaling laws, Claude 4, and the path to AGI. Anthropic researchers Amanda Askell and Chris Olah also joined for dedicated segments on Claude's character training and mechanistic interpretability, offering a rare technical peek under the hood.
