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

In today’s edition we are tackling the following:

🖥️ AMD challenges NVIDIA with new Helios AI rack-scale system.
🗣️ Anthropic upgrades Claude's voice mode with more capable AI models.
🚘 Mobileye founder Amnon Shashua to step down as CEO amid weak forecast.
✂️ Patreon cuts 20% of workforce as it adjusts cost structure.
💸 Trump imposes new tariffs on dozens of countries as old ones expire.

TECHNOLOGY

• AMD challenges NVIDIA with new Helios AI rack-scale system (TechCrunch)
  ^{_{More: Tom's Hardware, Yahoo!, AMD}}

  • AMD unveiled its Helios AI rack system at its Advancing AI conference in San Francisco.

  • Helios reportedly outperforms NVIDIA's Vera Rubin system on several key performance metrics.

  • Customers including Microsoft, Meta, OpenAI, and Anthropic have committed to deploying the new system.

• Anthropic upgrades Claude's voice mode with more capable AI models (Engadget)
  ^{_{More: CNET, The Verge, TechCrunch}}

  • Claude's voice mode now lets users choose between Opus, Sonnet, and Haiku models.

  • The update enables longer conversations, including feedback on communication style and brainstorming support.

  • Voice mode can now tap into apps like Gmail, Calendar, Slack, Canva, and Notion.

• OpenAI expands ChatGPT Health, urging users to share medical records (The Verge)
  ^{_{More: Engadget, TechCrunch, MacRumors}}

  • ChatGPT Health now grounds responses in personal data like doctors' notes and blood tests.

  • Users can connect Apple Health and providers like Kaiser Permanente to link their records.

  • OpenAI frames responses as summaries, not diagnoses, though direct medical advice remains possible.

BUSINESS

• Mobileye founder Amnon Shashua to step down as CEO amid weak forecast (Reuters)
  ^{_{More: AOL, CNA, TechCrunch}}

  • Amnon Shashua, Mobileye's founder and CEO since 1999, will step down from the role.

  • Mobileye forecast a 5% to 6% revenue drop for the third quarter, missing expectations.

  • Shares fell about 15% in early trading, the steepest single-day drop since August 2024.

• Patreon cuts 20% of workforce as it adjusts cost structure (Firstpost)
  ^{_{More: The Verge, Business Insider, TechCrunch}}

  • Patreon is laying off 93 employees, or 20% of its workforce, CEO Jack Conte announced.

  • Conte said the cuts stem from cost adjustments, not from AI replacing human employees.

  • He said AI has transformed how the tech industry operates, communicates, and builds products.

• Tesla's door handles may prompt new U.S. vehicle safety rules (Bloomberg)
  ^{_{More: Yahoo!, Investing.com, TechCrunch}}

  • NHTSA will explore new rules after incidents involving Tesla's flush, electronic door handles.

  • The agency granted a petition seeking a defect probe into 2022 Model 3 door releases.

  • Granting the petition starts a rule-making process, not a guarantee new standards will follow.

MARKETS

WORLD

• Trump imposes new tariffs on dozens of countries as old ones expire (AP)
  ^{_{More: PBS, France 24, Korea Times}}

  • New tariffs of 10% to 12.5% will hit imports from 60 trading partners on Friday.

  • Officials cited inadequate enforcement of forced labor import bans as the reason for the tariffs.

  • Trump is using Section 301 authority after the Supreme Court struck down his earlier tariffs.

• JPMorgan relocates over 30 China quant staff to Singapore & Hong Kong (Business Times)
  ^{_{More: Bloomberg, Straits Times, Binance}}

  • JPMorgan moved more than 30 quant staff from mainland China to Singapore and Hong Kong.

  • About 25 to 30 staff relocated from Beijing and Shanghai to Singapore, sources said.

  • The bank formed its quantitative trading and research group in 2026 to boost electronic trading.

• Spain declares national emergency as wildfires rage near Madrid & Avila (Bloomberg)
  ^{_{More: Reuters, The Guardian}}

  • Spain declared a national emergency after wildfires forced over 10k people to evacuate.

  • Officials cited simultaneous fires, adverse weather, and complex firefighting logistics as reasons for the emergency.

  • Experts link the fires to climate change, as heavy spring rainfall dried into summer fuel.

FUTURISM

• Google adds selfie video sign-in option to verify user identity (The Verge)
  ^{_{More: Bloomberg, CNET, WIRED}}

  • Google now lets users log in to accounts using a selfie video for verification.

  • Users complete guided head movements during setup, creating a reference video for future logins.

  • Google uses multiple security layers to detect deepfakes and confirm a live human is signing in.

• Meta's new AI ad pairs optimism with a song about extinction (TechCrunch)
  ^{_{More: WIRED, Axios, Yahoo!}}

  • Meta's new ad promotes an optimistic vision of AI, showing people connecting and celebrating.

  • A voiceover insists AI will not isolate people, calling the company "optimists" and "dreamers."

  • The ad's soundtrack is David Bowie's "Five Years," a song about humanity's final years.

• Ford partners with Apple Maps for its next-generation electric vehicles (Business Insider)
  ^{_{More: NY Times, TechCrunch}}

  • Apple's new MapKit for Automotive will debut in Ford's upcoming electric vehicle lineup.

  • Ford's $30k midsize truck, launching in 2027, will be the first to feature it.

  • The truck uses Ford's new universal EV platform and single-piece aluminum unicastings for assembly.

• Explore the essential startup reading database*

  • Learning from the best is how you become the best. We've curated a list of top-notch articles, blogs, and readings that are pivotal for startup founders.

  • And here's the kicker: we've organized it all in a user-friendly Notion database for easy access and tracking. Double win!

  • As aspiring leaders and innovators, this list serves as a bridge to absorbing the knowledge that has propelled others to success.

CONTENT

• Photoroom founders explain how Y Combinator grew their ambition & vision (Y Combinator)

  • Photoroom's founders discuss how Y Combinator turned vague ambitions into a concrete billion-dollar plan.

  • They explore why European founders often hesitate to pursue big, ambitious business ideas.

  • The founders share tactical tricks for aiming higher, including adding a zero to targets.

• Longevity startup Ekei Labs explains why it raised funds in Japan (This Week in Startups)

  • Ekei Labs is building its longevity startup from Okinawa, one of the world's blue zones.

  • The founders argue biological AI's real moat is proprietary data, not the model itself.

  • Japan's fast-track regenerative medicine law makes it an attractive hub for longevity startups.

• Derek Thompson discusses growing isolation & the 'antisocial century' era (The Prof G Pod)

  • Scott Galloway and Derek Thompson discuss rising isolation and its effects on happiness and politics.

  • They explore young men's retreat into digital life and the risks of an AI economic bubble.

  • Thompson offers three simple rules for dating and navigating relationships in an isolated era.

EXTRAS

• Man dressed as Spider-Man rescues wheelchair user from heavy traffic (AP)
  ^{_{More: Washington Post, ABC10, WRAL}}

  • Christopher Hellenthal, dressed as Spider-Man, helped a wheelchair user cross six lanes of traffic.

  • Security footage captured the rescue in Jonesboro, Arkansas, moments before the light changed.

  • The video went viral on Facebook, earning tens of thousands of likes from viewers.

• SK Hynix chair ordered to pay $643M in landmark divorce settlement (NY Post)
  ^{_{More: Bloomberg, Nikkei, Financial Times}}

  • A Seoul court ordered SK Hynix chair Chey Tae-won to pay $643M to his ex-wife.

  • The court cited SK Hynix's sharp share price rise in determining the settlement amount.

  • SK Hynix has become NVIDIA's leading supplier of high-bandwidth memory chips for AI processors.

• Amazon integrates Luna cloud gaming into Prime Video streaming platform (CNBC)
  ^{_{More: The Verge, TechCrunch, PCMag}}

  • Amazon is bringing its Luna cloud gaming service directly into the Prime Video app.

  • Titles like "Hogwarts Legacy" and "EA Sports FC 26" launch today on U.S. and U.K. Fire TVs.

  • The library includes Amazon's own games, such as "Masters of the Universe: Legends Unite."

AND MORE

• Macquarie CEO steps down as one of world's highest-paid female bankers.

• AI guardrails are impeding offensive cybersecurity researchers' work, experts say.

• Explore all the tools and more here to outperform the competition.*

• Meta exits clean energy pact as natural gas buildout accelerates.

• Chinese pastor recounts sudden release from prison after Trump's intervention.

• Insurance startup Corgi reportedly raises $4B in its third round in 8 weeks.

• ICC chief prosecutor's fate heads to unprecedented vote amid U.S. sanctions.