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  • 🍏 Apple to Debut AI-Powered Siri in 2026

🍏 Apple to Debut AI-Powered Siri in 2026

PLUS: SoftBank Fully Funds $40B Investment in OpenAI 💼

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Happy New Year Friends 🎉🥳

Today’s Highlights:

  • 🍏 Apple to Debut AI-Powered Siri in 2026

  • 💼 SoftBank Fully Funds $40B Investment in OpenAI

  • 🎬 TikTok Unveils AI Tools & Creator Rewards

  • 🧠 Nvidia Goes Bigger on Open Source AI

  • 🤝 Google and Meta Team Up to Break Nvidia’s Grip

  • 💻 Google Launches Code-Based Toolkit for AI Agents

  • 🎮 Roblox Tests AI Game Builders with Real Benchmarks

  • 🔁 Amazon Shakes Up AGI Leadership and AI Strategy

  • 🛑 Bernie Sanders Calls for National AI Data Center Freeze

Read Time: 4 mintue

The Future of Shopping? AI + Actual Humans.

AI has changed how consumers shop by speeding up research. But one thing hasn’t changed: shoppers still trust people more than AI.

Levanta’s new Affiliate 3.0 Consumer Report reveals a major shift in how shoppers blend AI tools with human influence. Consumers use AI to explore options, but when it comes time to buy, they still turn to creators, communities, and real experiences to validate their decisions.

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  • 87% discover products through creators, blogs, or communities they trust

  • Human sources like reviews and creators rank higher in trust than AI recommendations

The most effective brands are combining AI discovery with authentic human influence to drive measurable conversions.

Affiliate marketing isn’t being replaced by AI, it’s being amplified by it.

LATEST AI NEWS

APPLE

Apple is preparing a major overhaul of Siri, with an AI-powered version expected to debut in 2026 as part of its broader push into generative AI.

The Details:

  • The new Siri is expected to use advanced AI models for deeper context and better follow-up handling

  • Apple plans tighter integration across iPhone, iPad, Mac, and its broader ecosystem

  • The upgrade should enable more natural conversations and improved multi-step task execution

  • A strong focus remains on privacy, with parts of the AI running on-device

Why it matters:

Apple has lagged competitors in conversational AI. Bringing in a fully AI-powered Siri could make everyday tasks smoother and put Apple back in the race for the next era of personal assistants. It also highlights how generative AI is now a core platform priority for major tech players.

SOFTBANK & OPENAI

SoftBank has completed funding for its $40B investment in OpenAI, marking one of the largest private capital commitments in tech history and a clear signal of how high the stakes have become in the AI race.

The Details:

  • The $40B commitment ranks among the biggest private investments ever made in an AI company

  • SoftBank reportedly funded the entire amount itself, without outside co-investors

  • The capital gives OpenAI a massive runway to scale models, compute, and infrastructure

  • The move reflects SoftBank’s renewed high-conviction bet on AI as a foundational technology shift

  • It further cements OpenAI’s position as one of the most heavily capitalized AI labs globally

Why it matters:

Frontier AI is now a capital arms race. With $40B fully locked in, OpenAI gains enormous strategic firepower, while SoftBank is making a bold bet that control over advanced AI capabilities will define the next decade of technology leadership.

OPENAI

Image Source: Shutterstock

OpenAI has laid out a roadmap to build AI systems capable of independently conducting scientific research, aiming to develop a fully autonomous AI researcher within the next three years.

The Details:

  • OpenAI plans to build an “intern-level” AI research assistant by 2026, with a full “AI researcher” by 2028

  • The system will be able to design experiments, test hypotheses, and generate original insights

  • CEO Sam Altman says this is a step toward AGI, not a sudden breakthrough moment

  • Chief scientist Jakub Pachocki described the goal as delivering complete research projects without human guidance

  • Technical focus areas include extending thinking time and scaling compute for long-horizon tasks

Why it matters:

If successful, OpenAI’s 2028 milestone could mark a turning point for science itself. Autonomous AI researchers would not just assist — they’d create, accelerating discovery in ways that could reshape entire industries.

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  5. Test the agent in different languages and review conversation summaries in the dashboard.  

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MORE AI & TECH NEWS

  • China is building a secret chip lab to recreate advanced photolithography machines using ex-ASML engineers. They’ve built a prototype, but it’s not yet capable of mass-producing AI-grade chips..

  • Google launched a toolkit to build autonomous AI agents using TypeScript instead of just prompts. This “code-first” approach offers more control, reliability, and testability for developers.

  • Roblox is testing AI tools with a new benchmark called OpenGameEval to measure real-world game-building tasks. It goes beyond simple code generation to evaluate multi-step creation workflows.

  • A hacker exposed a startup using a “phone farm” of 1,000+ devices to fake popularity for AI-generated influencers. The phones posted undisclosed ads across TikTok to trick viewers and algorithms.

  • Google and Meta launched TorchTPU to make AI chips more compatible with PyTorch, challenging Nvidia’s CUDA lock-in. This could shift developers and cloud buyers toward TPU-based systems.

  • Sen. Bernie Sanders is calling for a nationwide pause on new AI data centers, citing job risks and democratic lag. He wants lawmakers to reassess AI’s benefits and impact before further expansion.

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