Memorandum
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Apple Raises Bug Bounty To $2 Million

Apple Raises Bug Bounty To $2 Million

White House criticizes Nobel Prize decision, Meta tells its team to move five times faster, and NSO Group to be acquired by U.S. investors.

Memorandum
October 11, 2025

Welcome back to your daily memorandum talking tech, business, AI, markets, and more. 🗞️

In today’s edition we are tackling the following:

🕊️ Israel withdraws troops as Gaza ceasefire begins under Trump-brokered deal.
🍏 Apple raises bug bounty to $2M for spyware-level exploits.
🤖 Meta’s metaverse division ordered to speed up with AI integration.
💰 NSO Group’s U.S. acquisition ends Israeli control of Pegasus maker.
🧠 OpenAI says GPT-5 cuts political bias by 30%.

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TECHNOLOGY

Apple Announces $2 Million Bug Bounty Reward (Wired)
_^More:_^MacRumors_^,_^Axios_^,_{^SecurityWeek}
- Apple doubled top bug bounty reward to two million dollars for spyware-level exploit chains.
- With bonuses for Lockdown Mode bypasses total payouts could exceed five million dollars maximum.
- Program paid over thirty-five million dollars to more than eight hundred researchers since 2020.
Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold's thickness and weight revealed (The Verge)
_^More:_^Engadget_^,_{^{Tom's Guide}}_^,_{^{Android Central}}
- Pixel 10 Pro Fold measures five point two millimeters thick when open and ten point eight closed.
- Device weighs two hundred fifty-eight grams making it heavier than Galaxy Z Fold 7 competitor.
- First foldable with IP68 rating for complete dust and water resistance protection unlike competitors.
Microsoft's Windows XP Crocs sweepstakes (The Verge)
_^More:_{^{Windows Central}}_^,_^Hypebeast_^,_{^{The Verge}}
- Microsoft released Windows XP-themed Crocs featuring iconic Bliss wallpaper for fifty dollar anniversary celebration.
- Limited-edition bundle includes Jibbitz charms with Clippy, Internet Explorer, MSN butterfly and mouse pointer.
- Priced at eighty dollars available through sweepstakes not direct purchase initially for employees only.

BUSINESS

NSO to be acquired by U.S. investors, ending Israeli control of Pegasus maker (Calcalist)
_^More:_^TechCrunch_^,_^Reuters_^,_^9to5Mac
- Hollywood producer Robert Simonds leads acquisition of Israeli spyware firm NSO Group for tens of millions.
- Deal requires approval from Israeli defense authorities and SEC, ending founder Omri Lavie's involvement completely.
- NSO recovered from U.S. blacklist losses to near profitability, making it more attractive to investors.
China blacklists major chip research firm TechInsights following report on Huawei (CNBC)
_^More:_^Bloomberg_^,_{^{South China Morning Post}}_^,_{^{Tom's Hardware}}
- China designated Canadian semiconductor researcher TechInsights as unreliable entity, banning business with Chinese organizations nationwide.
- Move follows TechInsights report revealing Huawei's Ascend AI chips contain TSMC, Samsung, and SK Hynix components.
- Blacklist increases opacity in China's chip industry, potentially limiting independent verification of semiconductor development claims.
Google told to loosen control over search by UK competition regulator (Irish Times)
_^More:_^CNBC_^,_^Engadget_^,_{^{Yahoo Finance}}
- UK Competition and Markets Authority designated Google with strategic market status, citing ninety percent search dominance.
- New status enables CMA to impose conduct requirements like choice screens and publisher content controls.
- Google warns regulations could delay product launches and inhibit innovation during transformative AI development period.

MARKETS

S&P	6,552.51	−2.70%
NASDAQ	22,204.43	−3.60%
Dow	45,479.60	−1.90%
10-Year	4.05%	↓ 0.10 pp
Bitcoin	116,906.00	−4.0%
Gold	~ 4,000.00	+1.5%

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WORLD

White House blasts Nobel Committee for not awarding Peace Prize to Trump (LADbible)
_^More:_^Newsweek_^,_^CNBC_^,_^Euronews
- White House criticized Nobel Committee for awarding Peace Prize to Venezuelan leader María Corina Machado instead of Trump.
- Communications Director Steven Cheung claimed the committee prioritized politics over peace, despite Trump's ceasefire brokering.
- Trump has publicly sought the prize since first term, claiming he ended seven wars while criticizing Obama's award.
Five arrested after alleged assassination attempt on Ecuador President Noboa (CNN)
_^More:_{^{Al Jazeera}}_^,_{^{TRT World}}_^,_^Reuters
- President Daniel Noboa's convoy attacked by roughly five hundred protesters throwing rocks in Cañar province, bullet damage found.
- Five arrested face terrorism and attempted murder charges amid nationwide protests against diesel subsidy elimination.
- Second attack on presidential motorcade in two months as indigenous-led demonstrations block roads and clash with authorities.
Trump administration begins federal layoffs amid government shutdown (Washington Post)
_^More:_{^{NBC News}}_^,_^CNN_^,_^CNBC
- Budget Director Russ Vought announced substantial reductions in force have begun on tenth day of government shutdown.
- Layoffs target agencies including Cybersecurity and Health and Human Services across multiple divisions.
- Federal employee unions filed lawsuits calling layoffs illegal, arguing shutdowns don't grant additional workforce reduction powers.
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FUTURISM

Meta's Struggling Metaverse Team Told to Work 5 Times Faster With AI (Gizmodo)
_^More:_{^{404 Media}}_^,_{^{PC Gamer}}_^,_{^{XR Today}}
- Meta's metaverse VP instructed employees to achieve fivefold productivity gains using AI integration by year end.
- Company pivoted from metaverse focus after burning nearly fifty billion dollars on VR division toward AI investments.
- Zuckerberg expects AI agents to write most Meta code within twelve to eighteen months while reviving metaverse.
Kalshi raises $300M at $5B valuation, expands to 140+ countries (New York Times)
_^More:_^CoinDesk_^,_^Covers_^,_^Fortune
- Prediction market Kalshi secured three hundred million dollars from Sequoia and Andreessen Horowitz, reaching five billion valuation.
- Platform expanded internationally to over one hundred forty countries with fifty billion dollars annualized trading volume.
- Growth driven by sports betting integration with Robinhood and Webull despite facing state regulatory lawsuits.
OpenAI Claims GPT-5 Cuts Political Bias by 30% (OpenAI Research)
_^More:_^Axios_^,_{^{Fox News}}_^,_^Decrypt
- OpenAI's GPT-5 instant and thinking models reduced political bias thirty percent compared to GPT-4o in evaluations.
- Research tested five hundred prompts across one hundred topics with varying political slants from neutral to charged.
- Less than point zero one percent of real-world ChatGPT responses show political bias according to production analysis.

CONTENT

Trump Brokers Gaza Peace Deal, National Guard in Chicago, OpenAI/AMD
- The Besties unpack Trump’s Gaza ceasefire deal, the National Guard’s deployment to Chicago, and shifting U.S. policy.
- They debate OpenAI’s AMD partnership, the rise of circular AI investments, and whether the “AI bubble” is inflating.
- The episode closes with insights on gold’s rally and Polymarket’s $2B investment from NYSE owner ICE.
Investors Called This Entrepreneur’s Idea ‘Ridiculous.’ Now They’ve Raised $100 Million
- TwelveLabs cofounder Soyoung Lee recounts betting their final $50K and proving skeptics wrong by beating Microsoft.
- She discusses raising $100M and how TwelveLabs’ AI video technology is redefining how we understand visual data.
- The conversation highlights perseverance, conviction, and scaling vision-led AI companies against industry giants.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Goes One-on-One with Jim Cramer
- Jensen Huang discusses AI’s economic impact, Nvidia’s competition, and supply chain resilience amid global demand.
- He reflects on partnerships, future chip innovations, and the company’s evolving role in powering the AI revolution.
- The interview offers rare insight into Nvidia’s leadership mindset as it cements dominance in the semiconductor era.

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