MILITARY UNITTrump announces AI Force and AI czar
US plans for an unchecked AI growth push include a new military-style unit and a top official, amid warnings from AI leaders.
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Industry briefs.
Browse Crunchy Tech’s latest industry briefs, grouped by date.
128 briefs · Page 3 of 6
PUBLISHED
Sunday, 20 September 2026
PUBLISHED
Saturday, 19 September 2026
LEGAL BATTLEElon Musk's Terafab Faces Trademark Fight
Tesla and SpaceX sue Illinois firm over the name of their AI chip factory project.
SAFETY PROTOCOLAI chiefs propose three-step plan to slow development
Industry leaders including Sam Altman and Dario Amodei outline a strategy for AI safety that includes third-party evaluators and international agreements.
FINANCIAL STABILIZATIONAutomattic appoints interim CFO after executive departures
Automattic has named Jeremy Klaperman as interim CFO following the departure of senior executives, the company confirmed.
PUBLISHED
Friday, 18 September 2026
WEALTH SHIFTRobot tax debate heats up as automation displaces workers
A professor argues taxing automation could fund safety nets better than retraining alone, though critics question the policy's design.
DATA CENTER CONTROLVirginia governor creates AI task force and restrains data centers
Virginia's governor orders a review of data centre approvals and bans NDAs, while an AI task force assesses risks to residents.
EX CEODisney hires ex-Character.AI CEO as CTO
Disney has appointed the former head of Character.AI as its first chief technology officer, a move that follows a previous dispute over intellectual property.
PAYMENT SHIFTUS House passes bill to make AI data centres pay for grid upgrades
The Ratepayer Protection Act would require large data centres to cover the cost of new transmission infrastructure, aiming to protect residential users from price hikes.
LABOR THEFTMicrosoft exec brands AI scraping ‘theft of labour’ in court filings
Unsealed documents show Microsoft and OpenAI privately warned that scraping news content would devastate publishers, even as they defended the practice publicly.
ENGINEERS SHORTAGEUS chip firms face 157,000 worker gap
US semiconductor manufacturers are racing to build fabs and facilities, but experts warn that a massive shortage of engineers and technicians could stall progress by 2030.
SYSTEM UPGRADEFAA to spend $875m on AI air traffic software
The US aviation regulator is rolling out an AI tool to help controllers manage the skies, a project that will cost $875 million.
INFRASTRUCTURECrusoe raises $3.9B to build AI factories
The data centre operator secures a massive funding round to expand its modular AI infrastructure build-out.
PUBLISHED
Thursday, 17 September 2026
COMPETITIVE PRICINGValor Mortis is $40 amid a 'stacked' autumn
The indie horror game is priced lower than usual as it competes with a crowded release schedule.
JOB THREATAI job fears rise in 34 of 37 countries
A global survey finds most people believe artificial intelligence will lead to job losses over the next two decades.
WATER CRISISSouth Africa resists US data centre expansion
Civil rights groups in Cape Town are challenging American data centre projects over water and energy use, joining a global pushback against AI infrastructure.
AUTOMATIONComp AI raises $34M for autonomous security compliance
A startup aims to automate the tedious parts of cybersecurity rules with a continuously active AI agent.
MUNICIPAL BENCHMARKNew York sets $1M per megawatt community investment benchmark for AI datacentr
New York State has released a Community Investment Framework advising towns to demand $1 million per megawatt from AI data centre developers, alongside plans for long-term maintenance and site abandonment.
EVADING SANCTIONSHow Nvidia chips reach China despite export bans
A new report details how Chinese firms bypass US restrictions on advanced AI accelerators.
REALISTIC SPEECHIceland startup Treble raises $18m for voice simulation
Iceland-based Treble has secured $18 million to support its voice simulation platform, which is used by developers of AI models, wearables and robotics.
RESTORES ACCESSSony restores Steam games after UK delisting
Sony says it is fixing an issue that removed some PC titles from the Steam store in the UK.
HIRING BACKLASHWardogs boss apologises for anti-crunch hiring stance
Bulkhead's CEO Joe Brammer has walked back comments about screening job applicants for their social media activity, following a backlash over the studio's work culture.
READS TEXTScientists crack method for reading charred scrolls
Researchers create fake scrolls to test a new way of spotting lead-based ink, helping the race to read the Herculaneum library.
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