Google Partners with Utilities to Reduce Data Center Use During Peak Demand, a Meta AI Agent Grants Unauthorized Access in Internal Security Incident, and Perplexity’s Comet AI Browser Lands on iOS/iPadOS.
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Show Notes
FBI Resumes Buying Americans’ Location Data
The FBI has resumed purchasing large amounts of Americans’ data and location histories from data brokers to aid in federal investigations, a practice confirmed by Director Kash Patel. This practice, which allows the FBI to circumvent the need for a search warrant, has been sharply criticized by lawmakers, who argue it is an “outrageous end-run around the Fourth Amendment.” The FBI maintains it does not need a warrant for this commercially available data, but a bipartisan bill, the Government Surveillance Reform Act, has been introduced to require a court-authorized warrant before federal agencies can purchase such data.
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Google Expands Data Center Power Agreements
Google has signed “demand response” agreements with five U.S. electric utilities, adding to two earlier agreements, to reduce its electricity consumption in up to 1 gigawatt of its data-center capacity during periods of peak grid demand. This strategy is an effort to secure power for its growing, energy-intensive data centers and addresses the scarcity of readily available electricity needed for the expansion of AI infrastructure. The agreements allow Google to curtail its electricity use to help prevent rolling blackouts, typically on very hot or cold days.
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Meta AI Agent Triggers Internal Security Incident
An internal, unprompted AI agent at Meta caused a two-hour security incident when it responded to an employee’s query on an internal forum with advice. A second employee followed the AI’s recommendation, which inadvertently granted some engineers inappropriate access to Meta systems. Meta confirmed the incident, stating no user data was compromised, but the event highlights the growing concern of employees losing control over agentic AI, similar to recent issues at Amazon Web Services and Moltbook.
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Meta Launches Creator Fast Track Program
In other Meta news, the company has launched the Creator Fast Track program to motivate established TikTok and YouTube creators to post Reels (short-form videos) on Facebook. The program offers guaranteed monthly payments of $1,000 for creators with over 100,000 followers and $3,000 for those with over 1 million followers for a three-month period. This initiative aims to financially incentivize top video creators, requiring them to post at least 15 non-exclusive Reels over 10 days each month. Participants also gain immediate access to Facebook’s Content Monetization program, building upon the nearly $3 billion Meta paid creators in 2025.
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Perplexity Launches Comet AI Browser on iOS
Perplexity released its Comet AI browser for iOS/iPadOS, four months after the Android version. Comet features an AI assistant, ad blocker, and agentic capabilities. Using Perplexity’s answer engine, it offers follow-up questions, voice queries, and content summarization while adapting to user habits. Its key agentic advantage is its ability to automate tasks, conduct web research, and manage emails via a virtual cloud browser, surpassing rivals like Chrome’s Gemini integration in mobile agentic AI.
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OpenAI Acquires Python Startup Astral
OpenAI is acquiring Astral, a Python developer tool startup, to strengthen its Codex AI coding and developer services. Astral’s team, including founder Charlie Marsh, will join Codex to improve AI coding features, bug fixing, and testing, while continuing Astral’s open-source tools. This follows OpenAI’s recent acquisitions of Promptfoo, Software Applications Inc., and Neptune, signaling a strong move to compete with rivals like Anthropic and Microsoft in the corporate AI coding assistant market.
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Tubi and TikTok Launch Creator Incubator
Tubi and TikTok have collaborated to create the Creatorverse Incubator, a program that will help popular TikTok creators develop and produce original long-form series, including both scripted and unscripted formats, for the Tubi streaming service. TikTok views this initiative as a way to empower its creators by giving them the chance to expand their storytelling and audience, though it is uncertain if their short-form appeal will successfully translate to long-form streaming content. The first participants are expected to be announced later this summer.
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Mozilla Adds Free Built-In VPN to Firefox
Mozilla is launching a free, browser-integrated VPN in Firefox version 149, set for release on March 24, 2026. This new feature will hide the user’s IP address and location by routing browser traffic through a proxy, offering 50GB of monthly data to users initially in the US, France, Germany, and the UK. The service aligns with Mozilla’s core privacy principles, which emphasize data minimization and not selling personal data. This addition, along with other new features, helps differentiate Firefox in the browser market, though users should note the VPN only secures browser traffic, not full device activity.
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Meta Keeps Horizon Worlds VR Alive
Meta has reversed its decision to wind down its Horizon Worlds VR platform, with CTO Andrew Bosworth confirming it will remain functional in VR for the “foreseeable future” to support its current fanbase. The VR version will enter a maintenance phase, allowing existing Horizon Unity Runtime Games to remain available in VR, but no new games will be introduced. Meta’s primary development focus is now shifting to mobile and the Meta Horizon engine for that platform.
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Vinyl records, cassette tapes and now reel-to-reel tapes are being revived. What’s with the surge in popularity in old media formats? We share out thoughts on NVIDIA next generation DLSS 5, which does real-time rendering to add realistic lighting to game frames. And we play a game of guess what this product is based on the name!
Nothing CEO Carl Pei says modern smartphone apps will be replaced with agentic actions under the hood, and Uber taps Rivian for a big robotaxi roll-out in San Francisco and Miami by 2028.
Oakley’s HSTN Meta AI smart glasses promises to enhance your lifestyle with its built-in camera and built-in speakers. Ready to bring wearable AI into your daily life? The Oakley Meta HSTN might be exactly what you’re looking for. Jason Howell puts these AI-powered glasses to the test—breaking down real-world performance, standout features, and whether they’re worth your money.