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Hi there, this is your daily ☕️ Techpresso.

In today's Techpresso:

🎬 OpenAI’s viral Studio Ghibli moment highlights AI copyright concerns

📱 Google makes Android development private

👀 SpaceX reportedly has a secret backdoor for Chinese investment

📈 Signal downloads spike amid US government scandal

💰 OpenAI expects revenue will triple this year

🎁 + 13 other news you might like

🔮 + 4 handpicked research papers and tools

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In a secret deal to keep Google as the primary search engine on iPhones, Apple continues to fuel Google’s ad revenue engine which made an eye-popping +$250B in 2024.

Mode Mobile wants smartphone users to get their piece of that money.

They’re splitting the data profits with their users by turning smartphones into an income-generating asset. With over $325M earned by over 45M users they were ranked #1 fastest-growing software company by Deloitte in 2023.

And they’re gearing up for a potential IPO on the Nasdaq (ticker: $MODE).

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🎬 OpenAI’s viral Studio Ghibli moment highlights AI copyright concerns LINK
  • ChatGPT's new AI image generator has sparked a viral trend of Studio Ghibli-style pictures across social media, with users creating AI representations of popular characters and even OpenAI CEO Sam Altman adopting one as his profile picture.
  • While OpenAI's tool operates in a legal gray area since style itself isn't protected by copyright, intellectual property lawyers question whether training AI models on copyrighted works like Ghibli films constitutes fair use or infringement.
  • Tests revealed that OpenAI's image generator creates the most accurate replicas of Studio Ghibli's distinctive animation style compared to competitors, though the company permits replication of "broader studio styles" while refusing to copy individual living artists.
📱 Google makes Android development private LINK
  • Google is shifting Android development to private repositories, only releasing source code after official launches, marking a significant departure from the real-time collaboration previously available through the Android Open Source Project.
  • The company claims this change will streamline engineering processes and deliver updates more efficiently, but it creates delays for developers and manufacturers who previously had early access to upcoming features.
  • While Android technically remains open-source with code published under the AOSP license after each release, this move follows Google's broader trend of exerting tighter control over its projects like Chromium and Fuchsia OS.
👀 SpaceX reportedly has a secret backdoor for Chinese investment LINK
  • SpaceX reportedly allows Chinese investors to purchase stakes in the company through offshore vehicles like the Cayman Islands, raising national security concerns given its role as a Pentagon defense contractor.
  • Details of this investment approach emerged during testimony in a Delaware corporate dispute, revealing that a $50 million deal with a Chinese firm was canceled when it became public knowledge.
  • Experts find this practice troubling as it potentially conceals foreign ownership interests, which is particularly concerning as SpaceX handles sensitive military technology that could be accessed by foreign adversaries.
📈 Signal downloads spike amid US government scandal LINK
  • High-ranking Trump administration officials inadvertently added Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg to a Signal group chat where they discussed sensitive military plans against Yemeni Houthis, leading to publication of these communications.
  • Following the scandal, Signal downloads surged worldwide by 28% compared to the monthly average, with increases of 45% in the U.S. and 42% in Yemen, where the app climbed from rank #50 to #9 among social media applications.
  • Despite Signal's end-to-end encryption capabilities that prevent even the company from accessing messages, the security breach occurred due to user error rather than app malfunction, highlighting concerns about government adherence to security protocols.
💰 OpenAI expects revenue will triple this year LINK
  • OpenAI projects its revenue to surge to $12.7 billion by the end of 2025, more than tripling from the $3.7 billion it generated last year, according to a Bloomberg report citing an undisclosed source.
  • The artificial intelligence company anticipates further growth with revenue expected to reach $29.4 billion in 2026 and potentially exceed $125 billion by 2029, when it finally expects to become cash-flow positive.
  • Despite impressive sales growth, primarily driven by paid consumer subscriptions which comprise about 75% of its income, OpenAI faces substantial development costs related to chips, data centers, and talent acquisition.

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Other news & articles you might like

  • Trump floats reducing tariffs on China to secure TikTok deal LINK
  • Nintendo’s new system for sharing digital Switch games, explained LINK
  • OpenAI adopts rival Anthropic’s standard for connecting AI models to data LINK
  • Broadcom is suing Siemens for allegedly using thousands of unlicensed VMware products LINK
  • Gene-edited pig liver functions 10 days in human, marking a medical breakthrough LINK
  • Leaked data exposes a Chinese AI censorship machine LINK
  • NYT lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft goes ahead with caveats LINK
  • Microsoft abandons data centre projects in US and Europe, sparking oversupply fears LINK
  • TSMC’s $100 billion pledge won’t resurrect US chipmaking, says Intel’s ex-CEO LINK
  • Garmin adds AI and a subscription tier to its app LINK
  • Mozilla Firefox will soon reduce the need for dangerous DLL injection for enterprise users LINK
  • Exclusive: CoreWeave plans to scale back ambitious IPO plans LINK
  • Instacart will pay shoppers to take videos of store shelves LINK

Latest research and tools

Playwright Tools for MCP: a server that enables large language models to interact with websites through accessibility snapshots instead of screenshots, providing fast browser automation capabilities. LINK
Rost: a programming tool that allows writing Rust code using German keywords, function names, and idioms, while maintaining compatibility with standard English Rust. LINK
Rivulet: a visual programming language using flowing strands of semigraphic characters that form compact glyphs, with four strand types following distinct grammatical rules to manipulate list-based data. LINK
First C Compiler: a historical software from 1972 that translated programs written in the C programming language into machine code that computers could execute. LINK
Disclaimers:

1 Mode Mobile recently received their ticker reservation with Nasdaq ($MODE), indicating an intent to IPO in the next 24 months. An intent to IPO is no guarantee that an actual IPO will occur.

2 The rankings are based on submitted applications and public company database research, with winners selected based on their fiscal-year revenue growth percentage over a three-year period.

3 A minimum investment of $1,950 is required to receive bonus shares. 100% bonus shares are offered on investments of $9,950+.

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