Technology

• Microsoft showcases a new fullscreen Xbox experience optimized for handhelds, coming first to the Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X and to other handhelds in 2026 (Tom Warren/The Verge) June 8, 2025
  Tom Warren / The Verge: Microsoft showcases a new fullscreen Xbox experience optimized for handhelds, coming first to the Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X and to other handhelds in 2026  —  Two new Xbox Ally devices introduce Microsoft's much-needed improvements to handheld gaming PCs.
• Microsoft and Asus unveil the ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X, two gaming handhelds that will run Windows games from multiple storefronts, including Steam (Stephen Totilo/Game File) June 8, 2025
  Stephen Totilo / Game File: Microsoft and Asus unveil the ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X, two gaming handhelds that will run Windows games from multiple storefronts, including Steam  —  The images shown during a secret theater presentation I recently attended for the long-rumored Xbox handheld showed an icon …
• At a clandestine math conclave in Berkeley in May, a chatbot powered by o4-mini answered some of the hardest solvable problems much faster than a mathematician (Lyndie Chiou/Scientific American) June 8, 2025
  Lyndie Chiou / Scientific American: At a clandestine math conclave in Berkeley in May, a chatbot powered by o4-mini answered some of the hardest solvable problems much faster than a mathematician  —  The world's leading mathematicians were stunned by how adept artificial intelligence is at doing their jobs  —  BY LYNDIE CHIOU EDITED BY CLARA […]
• Thoughts on the major design overhaul of Apple's OSes with "Liquid Glass" UI elements, which will launch at WWDC and set the stage for fresh hardware products (Mark Gurman/Bloomberg) June 8, 2025
  Mark Gurman / Bloomberg: Thoughts on the major design overhaul of Apple's OSes with “Liquid Glass” UI elements, which will launch at WWDC and set the stage for fresh hardware products  —  A new software design style will be at the center of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference — and set the stage for an upcoming […]
• Treefera, which uses satellite imagery, drone imagery, and AI to provide real-time insights into supply chains, raised a $30M Series B led by Notion Capital (Cate Lawrence/Tech.eu) June 8, 2025
  Cate Lawrence / Tech.eu: Treefera, which uses satellite imagery, drone imagery, and AI to provide real-time insights into supply chains, raised a $30M Series B led by Notion Capital  —  Treefera delivers real-time, first-mile traceability using adaptive AI, satellite imagery and financial-grade risk modelling.
• A look at the intensifying race for super apps in the Gulf, as Careem, Talabat, Amazon, Botim, and Noon consolidate various services into single platforms (Divsha Bhat/Rest of World) June 8, 2025
  Divsha Bhat / Rest of World: A look at the intensifying race for super apps in the Gulf, as Careem, Talabat, Amazon, Botim, and Noon consolidate various services into single platforms  —  From Dubai to Riyadh, apps are consolidating ride-hailing, payments, and delivery into single platforms.  —  The race for super-apps is intensifying in the […]
• Skyral, a London-based modeling and simulation startup developing AI-based digital twin tech for defense, healthcare, and other sectors, raised a $20M Series A (Lucy Adams/Tech.eu) June 8, 2025
  Lucy Adams / Tech.eu: Skyral, a London-based modeling and simulation startup developing AI-based digital twin tech for defense, healthcare, and other sectors, raised a $20M Series A  —  Global demand for predictive simulation and digital twin technology has accelerated in recent years, driven by geopolitical instability and climate risk.
• Sources: Meta is in talks for a potential multibillion-dollar investment in Scale AI, Meta's largest external AI investment; Scale AI was last valued at ~$14B (Bloomberg) June 8, 2025
  Bloomberg: Sources: Meta is in talks for a potential multibillion-dollar investment in Scale AI, Meta's largest external AI investment; Scale AI was last valued at ~$14B  —  The financing could exceed $10 billion in value, some of the people said, making it one of the largest private company funding events of all time.
• An in-depth look at the US SEC's EDGAR system breach that was disclosed in 2017, as one of the key hackers, Olga Kuprina, says EDGAR remains a soft target (Liam Vaughan/Bloomberg) June 8, 2025
  Liam Vaughan / Bloomberg: An in-depth look at the US SEC's EDGAR system breach that was disclosed in 2017, as one of the key hackers, Olga Kuprina, says EDGAR remains a soft target  —  When a notorious gang of Ukrainian cybercriminals hit a crucial database, the regulator quickly downplayed the breach.
• Voxel, whose AI-powered logistics safety software integrates into existing security cameras to detect and predict workplace hazards, raised a $44M Series B (Colin Campbell/Axios) June 8, 2025
  Colin Campbell / Axios: Voxel, whose AI-powered logistics safety software integrates into existing security cameras to detect and predict workplace hazards, raised a $44M Series B  —  Logistics safety startup Voxel closed a $44 million Series B led by NewRoad Capital Partners, CEO Vernon O'Donnell tells Axios Pro exclusively.
• Sources: Mistral AI has closed or is closing a handful of commercial contracts, each worth $100M+ over three to five years, as it expands its own infrastructure (Financial Times) June 8, 2025
  Financial Times: Sources: Mistral AI has closed or is closing a handful of commercial contracts, each worth $100M+ over three to five years, as it expands its own infrastructure  —  Start-up has embarked on expansion of its own infrastructure and secured significant contracts
• Obvio, which uses AI-powered stop sign cameras to detect infractions, raised a $22M Series A led by Bain to expand beyond its first five cities in Maryland (Sean O'Kane/TechCrunch) June 8, 2025
  Sean O'Kane / TechCrunch: Obvio, which uses AI-powered stop sign cameras to detect infractions, raised a $22M Series A led by Bain to expand beyond its first five cities in Maryland  —  American streets are incredibly dangerous for pedestrians.  A San Carlos, California-based startup called Obvio thinks it can change …
• Former Apple employees say integrating LLMs with Siri has led to bugs, an issue not faced by companies that have built GenAI-based voice assistants from scratch (Michael Acton/Financial Times) June 8, 2025
  Michael Acton / Financial Times: Former Apple employees say integrating LLMs with Siri has led to bugs, an issue not faced by companies that have built GenAI-based voice assistants from scratch  —  iPhone-maker hit by technological challenges that have led to delays to the full rollout of its ‘Apple Intelligence’ features
• Singapore-based investment app Syfe raised a $53M Series C extension, taking the round to $80M and total funding to $132M, and plans to expand into Hong Kong (Sam Phillips/South China Morning Post) June 8, 2025
  Sam Phillips / South China Morning Post: Singapore-based investment app Syfe raised a $53M Series C extension, taking the round to $80M and total funding to $132M, and plans to expand into Hong Kong  —  Singapore-based Syfe's expansion plans reflect the city's position as the largest hedge fund and cross-border wealth management hub in Asia
• Filipino workers in Taiwan's chip industry report struggling with overwork and discrimination, citing overnight shifts of up to 16 hours and abusive treatment (Rest of World) June 8, 2025
  Rest of World: Filipino workers in Taiwan's chip industry report struggling with overwork and discrimination, citing overnight shifts of up to 16 hours and abusive treatment  —  A record number of people are leaving the Philippines to work in Taiwanese factories, where they face long shifts, low pay, and unequal treatment.