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

In today’s edition, we are tackling the following:

📱 Apple weighs raising iPhone prices amid new ultrathin model plans.
💰 Perplexity hits $14B valuation, with fresh funding and a new browser.
📦 Amazon signs FedEx deal to improve delivery of oversized packages.
🕊️ Hamas releases U.S. soldier Edan Alexander after 583 days in captivity.
🇬🇧 UK plans stricter visa rules to reduce net migration by 100,000 annually.

TECHNOLOGY

• Apple considers raising iPhone prices, WSJ reports

  • Apple is contemplating price increases for its upcoming iPhone 17 lineup, introducing new features like an ultrathin model.

  • Despite ongoing U.S.–China trade tensions and existing tariffs, Apple aims to avoid attributing price hikes to these factors.

  • The company is shifting more production to India to mitigate tariff impacts, though high-end models remain China-dependent.

  Improvements in 'reasoning' AI models may slow down soon

  • An analysis by Epoch AI suggests that advancements in reasoning AI models could decelerate within a year.

  • The report indicates that while reinforcement learning has driven recent gains, its scalability may be reaching limits.

  • High overhead costs and diminishing returns on computing power are potential factors contributing to the slowdown.

  iOS 18.5 is out now

  • Apple has released iOS 18.5, enabling iPhone 13 users on T-Mobile to access satellite messaging via Starlink.

  • The update includes a new Pride Harmony wallpaper and enhanced parental controls through Screen Time notifications.

  • Additional features involve ‘Buy with iPhone’ support in the Apple TV app and fixes for the Apple Vision Pro app.

BUSINESS

• AI startup Perplexity's valuation surges to $14 billion in fresh funding round

  • Perplexity is raising $500 million, pushing its valuation to $14 billion just months after hitting $9 billion.

  • The company plans to launch a web browser called Comet and expand its AI search platform further.

  • Perplexity is also in talks with Apple to integrate its AI search directly into the Safari browser.

• Google’s Gemma AI models surpass 150M downloads

  • Gemma has passed 150 million downloads, with 70,000 forks built by developers across open-source platforms.

  • The model supports over 100 languages and enables multimodal inputs, accelerating global developer adoption.

  • Gemma still lags Meta’s Llama, which recently surpassed 1.2 billion downloads across all hosted model hubs.

• Amazon signs new delivery deal with FedEx

  • Amazon signed a long-term delivery deal with FedEx after UPS reduced service for bulky residential items.

  • This partnership renews a relationship that ended in 2019 and improves Amazon’s logistics efficiency for large shipments.

  • FedEx shares climbed after the news, showing strong investor confidence in the new logistics collaboration.

MARKETS

WORLD

• Hamas releases Israeli-American soldier Edan Alexander

  • Edan Alexander, a 19-year-old Israeli-American soldier, was released by Hamas after 583 days of captivity in Gaza.

  • His release is seen as a goodwill move that could influence further negotiations between Israel and Hamas.

  • Alexander's family had remained in close contact with U.S. officials and received updates through other freed hostages.

• PM promises migration drop as he unveils plans for 'tightened' visa rules

  • UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged reforms to reduce net migration by 100,000 people annually by the year 2029.

  • New rules will ban care worker recruitment from overseas and increase salary thresholds and employer visa charges.

  • Migrants will also need to wait ten years to settle and meet stricter English language proficiency requirements.

• China and the US agree to slash tariffs

  • China and the U.S. reached a deal to reduce tariffs on each other's goods for a 90-day period.

  • U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports will fall to 30%, while China’s tariffs on American goods drop to 10%.

  • The agreement is intended to ease trade tensions and help stabilize global markets during economic uncertainty.

CONTENT

• The Golden Age of AI is happening right now (Here's Why)

  • AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude help small teams match the output of companies with hundreds of employees.

  • Founders are urged to master AI tools themselves before delegating, enabling better implementation and innovation.

  • The current cost-value gap in AI tools presents a rare window for major operational and creative leverage.

• "I Made a $10M Mistake at Microsoft" (Here’s What Happened)

  • Rich Barton shares the story behind a costly strategic error from his early career at Microsoft.

  • He discusses lessons in risk, timing, and execution that shaped his approach at Expedia and Zillow.

  • The episode offers key insights into learning from failure while building iconic companies over time.

• 20VC Exclusive: Mercury Founder Launches First $26M Fund with Immad Akhund

  • Mercury’s CEO unveils a $26M fund to back early-stage startups with capital and hands-on support.

  • Akhund reflects on angel investing lessons and why now was the time to formalize as a VC.

  • The discussion explores the future of venture capital and how AI is shifting founder-investor dynamics.

FUTURISM

• Meet Amazon's robot Vulcan, the first with a sense of touch

  • Amazon's Vulcan robot uses vision and tactile sensors to navigate cluttered warehouses and pick products with higher precision.

  • CEO Andy Jassy says Vulcan is the first robot to combine sight and touch for real-time object recognition and grip.

  • Vulcan represents a major leap in warehouse automation, improving productivity and reducing physical strain for human workers.

• Murderbot season 1 review: Apple TV Plus

  • Murderbot follows a rogue security robot navigating free will, anxiety, and binge-watching, voiced by Alexander Skarsgård.

  • The series balances dry humor with existential reflection, offering a thoughtful twist on the robot genre.

  • It joins Apple’s expanding sci-fi lineup with strong visuals, emotional depth, and surprisingly relatable AI storytelling.

• Amazon offers a peek at new human jobs in an AI bot world

  • Amazon is retraining employees for future-proof roles like robot techs and systems operators as automation expands.

  • The company highlights Vulcan’s efficiency in handling repetitive tasks while humans focus on oversight and problem-solving.

  • These transitions reflect Amazon’s strategy to balance AI integration with evolving human-centric job opportunities.

EXTRAS

• Google just changed its 'G' logo

  • Google updated its ‘G’ logo with a subtle gradient redesign, its first visual tweak to the logo in years.

  • The change reflects the visual identity of Gemini, bringing a more modern and polished look to Google's ecosystem.

  • The updated design is now live on iOS and Pixel devices but hasn’t yet rolled out universally across platforms.

• McDonald's plans to hire 375,000 U.S. workers this summer

  • McDonald’s announced it will hire 375,000 U.S. workers this summer as it expands locations and service capacity.

  • The hiring effort includes both corporate-owned and franchise restaurants, focusing on long-term employment, not just seasonal work.

  • Officials say the move helps address labor shortages and economic recovery in tandem with the Trump administration's support.

• Trump is visiting 3 countries on his Middle East trip

  • Trump is touring Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, marking his first diplomatic trip since starting his second term.

  • The visits coincide with new Trump Organization deals in each country, prompting renewed conflict-of-interest concerns.

  • Critics question the overlap of U.S. foreign policy and family business interests during high-level government engagements.

AND MORE

• Glass Imaging raises $20M, advancing AI-powered camera tech for phones and beyond.

• Skoda unveils the Slavia B, a futuristic concept motorcycle inspired by its early innovations.

• Playbookz turns your LinkedIn presence into a revenue machine—guaranteed.*

• Trump signs order to cut drug prices, aligning U.S. costs with global standards.

• Get smart about trends in just 5 minutes a day. Sign up for TheFutureParty—it’s free!*

• Canada’s Liberals win election without majority, setting up likely coalition talks.

• Modi warns Pakistan of strikes if terrorism resumes.

• Feds investigate Tesla’s robotaxi plans, focusing on safety and FSD reliability.