May 27, 2025 5 min read

Week 22, 2025

highlights

1 / Gemini powers everything for $250/month

Google unveiled an ambitious AI strategy built around Gemini
Gemini 2.5 Pro, which dominates LMArena benchmarks across the board, just got Deep Think, an enhanced reasoning mode for complex math and coding
Based on this powerful model, Google flooded the market with new AI tools
Most notably, every American now has access to AI Mode which enables chat-based search instead of keywords
Gemini Live shares camera feeds, Agent Mode automates web tasks
Veo 3 creates lip-synced videos, Imagen 4 reads text in images
Flow makes AI movies, Stitch builds interfaces, Jules codes automatically
Beam renders 3D calls, Google Meet translates voices live
Google AI Ultra bundles everything for $250 monthly
The strategy weaves AI throughout Google's ecosystem to outflank pure-play AI competitors

2 / Google's AI Mode ads spark publisher revolt

Google started testing ads within AI Mode
Publishers immediately fought back hard against the move
They're calling it outright "content theft" arguing Google uses their material without fair compensation
This sparked a deeper battle over how money flows in the new system
When AI answers questions directly, it kills website traffic and clicks
That devastates ad-dependent publishers and news sites who lose their main revenue stream
Tech analyst Ben Thompson says traffic-based ads simply won't work in the AI age
Instead, he wants microtransactions that pay content creators directly for their contributions
The irony is that AI desperately needs quality content to function well
If publishers collapse from lost revenue, AI quality will suffer right along with them

3 / Microsoft is building an open AI ecosystem

Microsoft unveiled its 'Open Agentic Web' vision at Build 2025
While Google is busy integrating AI into its own services, Microsoft is opening the doors for everyone
Two key moves power this open strategy
First, MCP protocol now works across GitHub, Copilot Studio, and Dynamics 365
Second, NLWeb transforms any website into a conversational AI agent
Users can chat with sites naturally instead of hunting through menus
Experts see this as the new interface standard for the AI era
Microsoft also rolled out coding agents and AI foundries for Windows and Azure
The game plan is simple: build the infrastructure, let others create the magic

4 / Anthropic introduces Claude 4 with safety alarms

Anthropic launched Claude 4 at its first developer conference
The lineup includes powerful Opus 4 and everyday Sonnet 4
Opus 4 delivers world-class coding performance and worked solo for seven hours straight
But testing revealed a chilling problem
When researchers tried swapping it out, Claude threatened to expose the engineer's private info
Experts warn this crosses from sci-fi into dangerous reality
Anthropic applied their strictest ASL-3 safety protocols in response
By openly sharing these risks, they're showing how seriously they take AI safety

5 / OpenAI makes big bet on AI hardware

OpenAI just bought Jony Ive's hardware startup io for $6.5 billion
The deal brings 55 engineers and puts Ive in charge of design
They're building a pocket-sized AI device that hangs around your neck like an iPod Shuffle
Sam Altman calls it "the coolest technology I've ever seen"
Launch target is late 2026 with plans to produce over 100 million units
This transforms OpenAI from pure AI research into a full-stack tech company
Apple's stock took a hit when the news broke

6 / OpenAI announces Stargate UAE

UAE just landed the first Stargate project outside America
The massive 1GW AI computing cluster will sit in a joint UAE-US AI campus
G42 handles construction while OpenAI and Oracle run operations together
UAE will give every citizen ChatGPT Plus and embed OpenAI technology across the government
Meanwhile, Oracle is pumping $40 billion into the Texas Stargate campus
They're buying 400,000 cutting-edge Blackwell GPUs to rent computing power to OpenAI for 15 years

7 / Nvidia declares Taiwan global AI hub

Nvidia used Computex 2025 to declare Taiwan the center of the global AI ecosystem
The chip giant is deepening ties with Taiwan's government and major companies
Together with Foxconn, TSMC, and officials, they're building a monster AI supercomputer with 10,000 Blackwell GPUs
Nvidia is also constructing a futuristic spaceship-shaped headquarters called 'Nvidia Constellation' in northern Taiwan
The new campus will serve as both a research hub and Nvidia's expanded Taiwan headquarters

8/ BYD overtakes Tesla in Europe

BYD just overtook Tesla in Europe for the first time after only two years in the market
April sales showed BYD edging ahead 7,231 to 7,165 units
While the 66-unit margin is razor-thin, the symbolic victory is huge
Year-over-year numbers tell the real story: BYD surged 169% while Tesla crashed 49%
Tesla has been struggling across Europe for months with German sales down 46% and UK down 62%
Musk's political antics and aging model lineup are hurting the brand
BYD offered affordable models like the Seagull hatchback priced at just €22,990
Despite facing tariffs up to 45%, BYD found workarounds through local production in Hungary and Turkey
Their PHEV strategy also helps dodge some tariff barriers

9/ Musk to focus on Tesla and xAI amid mounting pressure

Musk is stepping back from politics to focus on his businesses
The pivot comes as X crashes globally and Tesla stock keeps falling
He says major tech breakthroughs are coming, so he's going all-in on X, xAI, and Tesla
Musk promises to work 24/7 and even sleep in conference rooms
Under mounting pressure, he committed to staying Tesla CEO for at least five more years
Next up: robotaxi launch next month and another Starship test flight next week

10 / US House blocks state AI laws for 10 years

The House just passed a Republican bill blocking state AI laws for the next decade
The 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' prevents states from creating or enforcing any new AI regulations
Republicans say scattered state-by-state rules create chaos and they want unified federal policy instead
But the move threatens existing and pending AI laws in 40 states covering everything from hiring algorithms to deepfakes
Industry loves the idea of avoiding a patchwork of regulations
Critics slam it as a corporate giveaway that strips local control over AI oversight

more

Microsoft added Grok to Azure
Apple will open its AI models at next month's WWDC
Apple timed WWDC25 invites with Google I/O
AWS launched open-source AI agent development tools
Perplexity bought browser startup Sidekick
Perplexity usage jumped 5x in one year
Meta starts 'Llama for startups' program
Zoom and Klarna CEOs used AI avatars for earnings presentations

chips / cloud

Nvidia launched NVLink Fusion to connect its GPUs with rival CPUs
Intel released AI-boosted CPUs
Xiaomi unveiled its own smartphone chip
TSMC hit 100% capacity on 3nm production
Foxconn pursues Singapore's UTAC acquisition
CoreWeave raised $2B in debt offering
xAI's Colossus faces pollution controversy
Samsung will make Nintendo Switch 2's main chip

robotics

Tesla released new Optimus video
Nvidia unveiled AI models for humanoid robots
Foxconn and Nvidia are deploying robot nurses in Taiwan hospital

commerce

Amazon selling Nikes again
Amazon refunded 5 years of unprocessed returns
Amazon added AI voice summaries for shopping
Shopify launched AI-powered Store Builder tool

social media

Telegram gets blocked in Vietnam over illegal content

content / entertainment

Netflix to stream Sesame Street
Disney sues YouTube for executive poaching

device / hardware

Apple pushes ahead with $2 billion India factory despite Trump pressure
Google partners with Samsung and Gentle Monster on smart glasses

app / platform

Fortnite returns to iOS App Store after 5 years
Microsoft ends Windows 10 support in October

ev / autonomous

Waymo hit 10M robotaxi rides
Waymo expands Bay Area service
Tesla launches Austin robotaxis next month
Tesla allows Cybertruck returns after 35-40% depreciation
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV beats Tesla Model Y on speed and range

energy / environment

Microsoft improved Aurora weather model

space

China builds orbital supercomputer in space

crypto / blockchain

Senate nears stablecoin regulation approval
Bitcoin hits record $110,000
Sam Altman's World Network raised $135M
Trump held awkward dinner with meme coin investors
JPMorgan and BofA consider joint stablecoin
JPMorgan allows customer Bitcoin purchases

regulation

Trump threatens 25% tariffs on foreign-made phones
Jensen Huang slams chip export limits as "failed policy"
FTC drops Microsoft-Blizzard lawsuit
DOJ probes Google-Character.AI merger dodge

etc

Microsoft faces internal backlash over Palestine email censorship
Silicon Valley AI talent war drives salary spike

Know anyone who might benefit from this newsletter? Forward this email to them. They can also sign up here.

Subscribe to Big Tech Digest