Meta says it won’t release ‘high risk’ AI systems

Also: Grubhub hacked

View this email online in your browser By Rebecca Bellan Tuesday, February 4, 2025 Welcome to TechCrunch AM! This morning, we've got the yo-yo effect of Trump's Canadian tariffs, Meta's new policy to not release AI that will enact biowarfare, and a fresh hack at Grubhub. We've also got an Indian AI startup throwing its hat in the ring, OpenAI's South Korean deal, sustainable fast fashion, moves in autonomous trucking, Elon Musk's government overreach, a profile of The Sims creator, Opera's mindful browser, and more. Let's jump in. — Rebecca TechCrunch Top 3 Image Credits: Scott Olson / Getty Images Whiplash: After Trump announced a 25% tariff on Canadian goods, Doug Ford, Ontario's premier, said the government would "rip up" its $68 million contract with Elon Musk's Starlink. The plans were halted after Trump chose to delay imposing tariffs on Canada, following some diplomatic maneuvering between the countries' two leaders. Read More I feel better already: Meta wants to make AGI openly available one day, but in a new policy document, the company says it won't release highly capable systems if it deems them to be "high risk" or "critical risk" — like if they figure out how to proliferate high-impact biological weapons, for example. Read More Would you like data with those fries? Hackers have breached Grubhub's internal systems, accessing the personal details of customers, merchants, and drivers who interacted with its customer care service. Certain Campus Diners were also affected. Read More   A Message from Thomas Bravo's Behind the Deal Thoma Bravo's Behind the Deal Podcast is Back for Season 3 Thoma Bravo's award-winning Behind the Deal podcast takes listeners behind the scenes of one of the world's largest software-focused investors. Hear first-hand from CEOs at leading tech companies – think Dynatrace, Adenza, Coupa. Season 3 promises even more exclusive insights into these companies' innovative strategies. New episodes every Thursday on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get podcasts. Listen Here   Morning must-reads Image Credits: Waabi 🇮🇳 India's entry into AI: TechCrunch got the scoop that Ola founder Bhavish Aggarwal is investing $230 million into Krutrim, an AI startup he founded. To help India become competitive in the world of AI, he hopes to raise $1.15 billion by 2026. Read More 🚚 The year of autonomous trucking: Waabi has teamed up with Volvo Autonomous Solutions to build its self-driving trucks, with all the sensors and software built in on the assembly line. It's an important step on the road to a driverless launch on public roads later this year. Read More 🇰🇷 Hitting DeepSeek where it hurts: OpenAI has unveiled a strategic collaboration with South Korean tech giant Kakao, right in DeepSeek's backyard. The two will develop a Korean-language assistant to be integrated into Kakao's popular messaging app, KakaoTalk. Read More 👠 Reduce, reuse, resale: Archive wants to address fast fashion pollution with software that helps global brands and merchants resell used clothes. The startup's customers already include big names like New Balance and Oscar de la Renta. Read More  🇨🇦 Oh Canada: Canadian programmatic advertising startup StackAdept has raised $235 million, a round that's significant both for its size and its source. The funding was led by homegrown VC, including Teachers' Venture Growth, and Intrepid Growth Partners, and it's a sign that while deals are down in Canada overall, anything related to AI can still pull dollars. Read More  Around the web 👪 The sandbox for the American Dream: The New York Times profiled Will Wright, the game designer behind the popular game The Sims, which just turned 25. He talks about the nostalgia and satire of American consumerism, the applied psychology of role-playing, and the phenomenon of digital community. Read More 🥊 Trade war, continued: China has retaliated against Trump's opening trade war tariffs by targeting a handful of American companies and levying some U.S. goods, Bloomberg reports. Among those actions is a new antitrust investigation into Google, even though Google Search hasn't been available in China since 2010. Read More ⛔ Treating government like a tech company: Elon Musk has created major upheaval as his team sweeps through federal agencies, shuttering programs and even an entire agency that has come into Musk's crosshairs. The NYT reports that Musk, a private citizen, is waging "a largely unchecked war against the federal bureaucracy." Read More Before you go 🧘 Take a breather: Opera's new web browser, "Opera Air," centers on mental well-being and mindfulness. In the floating sidebar, the company has placed a break reminder tool that also includes features like soothing soundscapes, breathing exercises, and binaural beats to help you stay focused. Read More Featured jobs from CrunchBoard BizOps Lead, Elayne (New York, NY) Staff Software Engineer, Murmuration (Remote) Founding Sales Development Representative, Clerkie (Remote) Business Analyst, Air Line Pilots Association (Tysons, VA) CAD Technician, Sinacola (Dallas, TX) See more jobs on CrunchBoard Post your tech jobs and reach millions of TechCrunch readers for only $349 per month.   Check out some of our other newsletters: Startups Weekly TechCrunch AI TechCrunch Mobility Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Update your preferences here at any time Copyright © 2024 TechCrunch, All rights reserved.Yahoo Inc. 110 5th St,San Francisco,CA Privacy Policy

iOS gets a dedicated porn app

… But only in the EU

View this email online in your browser By Rebecca Szkutak Monday, February 3, 2025 Welcome to TC PM! Today we have the details on a new porn app on iOS; we have the latest on TikTok and DeepSeek; and we check out an actually interesting trademark application by OpenAI. Onward! TechCrunch Top 3 Image Credits: cerro_photography / Getty Images 🫢 Porn for Europe: Hot Tub, a native pornography app for iOS, is coming to the European Union through its approved alternative app store, AltStore PAL. Hot Tub allows users to privately search for content on a variety of adult websites. Read more 👀 OpenAI's next moves: OpenAI filed for a new application to trademark products associated with the OpenAI brand. But before you fall asleep, this application included interesting details of potential future OpenAI products, including smart jewelry, VR and AR headsets, and smartwatches, among others. Read more 🧾 Contract cancellation: Canada isn't going to accept the tariffs Donald Trump slapped on many of its products without a fight. Doug Ford, the premier of Ontario, announced that the province would be "ripping up" its $68 million contract with Elon Musk's Starlink. Read more Afternoon must-reads Image Credits: Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto / Getty Images 🤨 A new angle on TikTok: Donald Trump signed an executive order this morning announcing the creation of a sovereign wealth fund in the U.S. He suggested that the fund could be used to buy an ownership stake in TikTok. Read more 🎤 An AI Grammy: The Beatles won a Grammy last night for an AI-assisted song. The band used AI to clean up a decades-old piano demo from John Lennon that they'd tried to clean up in the past but couldn't. Read more 😬 Journalist targeted: Francesco Cancellato, an Italian journalist, recently received a WhatsApp message that said his account may have been compromised by spyware. WhatsApp says the spyware targeted about 90 people. Read more 🚌 Security school: It's only February, but the PowerSchool hack has the potential to be one of the biggest breaches this year. Despite the hack's size, there is still a lot of information we don't know yet, including basic things like how many schools or students were affected. Read more 🚫 You get a ban, you get a ban: DeepSeek gained a lot of popularity very quickly. Naturally, government orgs and corporations are concerned about the new AI tech. We've got a list of the countries and U.S. government entities that have already banned the tech. Read more   A Message from HSBC Innovation Banking Empowering innovation Unlock new growth opportunities with HSBC Innovation Banking. Our deep sector expertise and international reach provide the stability and agility needed for seamless onboarding. Learn More   Around the web 🤖 No AI for AI: Anthropic, the maker of Claude, is having its job applicants agree that they didn't use AI to write their job application. This is funny! I actually think using AI for cover letters and résumés is a really smart use for the tech. Read more 💰 I'll take "Distribution rights" for $1,000: Sony and CBS have been fighting for quite a while over the distribution rights from "Jeopardy!" and "Wheel of Fortune." Sony sent CBS a letter saying that it will start distributing the show next week. CBS plans to block the move. The drama! Read more Featured jobs from CrunchBoard BizOps Lead, Elayne (New York, NY) Staff Software Engineer, Murmuration (Remote) Founding Sales Development Representative, Clerkie (Remote) Business Analyst, Air Line Pilots Association (Tysons, VA) CAD Technician, Sinacola (Dallas, TX) See more jobs on CrunchBoard Post your tech jobs and reach millions of TechCrunch readers for only $349 per month.   Check out some of our other newsletters: Startups Weekly TechCrunch AI TechCrunch Mobility Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Update your preferences here at any time Copyright © 2024 TechCrunch, All rights reserved.Yahoo Inc. 110 5th St,San Francisco,CA Privacy Policy