Welcome back to Week in Review. This week, we look at OpenAI canceling o3’s release; TikTok returning in U.S. App Stores nearly a month after being removed; more complications with Elon Musk’s attempt to buy OpenAI for $97.3 billion; and much more! Let’s do it. OpenAI has canceled o3, the company’s next major AI product, in favor a “simplified”new product offering. In a In a post on X (19459028), CEO Sam Altman stated that OpenAI planned to release GPT-5. This model will integrate o3 into ChatGPT and its own API. OpenAI will not launch o3 separately. The company plans to release GPT-4.5 before GPT-5 rolls out, according to Altman, who says this will be the company’s last “non-chain-of-thought model.”
Apple and Google restored TikTok to their respective app stores in the U.S., nearly a month after they removed the app due to a national security law that banned it. The companies have also re-instated video editor CapCut, and social media app Lemon8, that were removed in order to comply with the new law. Bloomberg reports that the apps were restored when U.S. Attorney Pam Bondi wrote to Apple saying that the ban would not be immediately enforced. Apple CEO Tim Cook
teased the “newest member of family,” which is set to arrive on Wednesday. This is likely a 4th-generation iPhone SE. Apple hasn’t released a new iPhone SE in three years. This is a mistake for a product which is so important to the company, especially in markets such as China and India. Apple is expected to abandon the Touch ID home key and use the same chip as the iPhone 16 this time around. This is TechCrunch Week in Review. We recap the biggest news of the week. Want this delivered to your inbox each Saturday? Sign up.
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Musk adds condition to his bid for OpenAI. Musk’s lawyers said the billionaire would withdraw his $97.4-billion bid for OpenAI, if the board committed to keeping it a nonprofit. The filing claims Musk’s offer is “serious.” Learn more
You can quit if you don’t like it: Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth says employees who are unhappy with the company’s new policies have the right to do so. Business Insider cites a chat in which an employee criticizes Meta for cutting DEI. Read More
Tesla wins defamation lawsuit: Zhang Yazhou filed Tesla after a Tesla Model 3 was allegedly damaged by faulty brakes. This occurred in 2021. Zhang Yazhou was ordered by a Chinese court to pay $23,000 in damages after Tesla sued her for defamation. Read More
A open Instagram: Pinksky launched a version of its photo-centric, social networking app for Android built on Bluesky. It’s just one of many apps that are trying to attract former Instagram users with a similar experience built on open-source technology. Read More
FIFA, comply: Google DeepMind researchers published a demonstration showing miniature humanoid robotics playing a game of one-on-one soccer. Researchers found that they could learn movement skills such as walking, kicking and recovering from a fall. Read More
Google Expands NotebookLM Plus: Google expanded NotebookLM Plus, its AI-based research assistant, with higher usage limitations and premium features to users who subscribe to the Google One AI plan. Click here to read more
Zeta gets a big valuation: Zeta, a provider of banking software for banks and fintech startups, raised $50 million at a valuation of $2 billion from a strategic shareholder. The new investment represents a 70% increase to the Bengaluru-based company’s valuation by 2021. Read More
Google Maps updates for the Gulf of America: Users from Mexico will only be able to see the Gulf of Mexico. International users will still see both names. Read More
Perplexity’s Super Bowl growth hack Rather than spending money on an expensive Super Bowl ad the AI search engine chose to use X to encourage users to download their app and enter a competition to win $1,000,000. According to Appfigures, the strategy increased mobile app installations by approximately 50%. Read More
Tumblr Joins the Fediverse: Tumblr will soon join the open social web, thanks to a planned migration to the WordPress infrastructure. After the migration, Tumblr users can federate their blogs via ActivityPub just like every WordPress.com user. Read More
Cody Corrall, Audience Development Producer for TechCrunch. Cody Corrall is a Chicago-based social media manager who previously worked for BuzzFeed News, WTTW, and Chicago Tonight, a daily flagship show on PBS.
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