⛵ Under Fire

Good Morning, Tech Enthusiasts!

The world’s still the same mix of chaos and surprise, isn’t it — as if disorder were the rhythm, and wonder its unexpected beat.

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QUICK HITS

• All Apple Intelligence update Apple announced at WWDC 25.
• Former OpenAI co-founder Sutskever argues AI will inevitably reshape everyone's lives as superintelligence era approaches.
• Trump says the White House will continue using Starlink service despite breaking ties with Musk.
• YouTube flooded with AI-generated music, forcing creators to label content "No AI" to distinguish human work.
• Coinbase CEO Armstrong announces plans to invest in embryo gene-editing technology, potentially the first major commercial investment in this controversial field.

ROBOTAXI

Waymo Halts Los Angeles Service Following Vehicle Arson Attacks

Massive riots erupted in downtown Los Angeles as protesters vandalized and set fire to multiple Waymo autonomous vehicles during demonstrations against nationwide deportations of undocumented immigrants, forcing the company to suspend local service.

• Severe On-Site Damage - Multiple Waymo vehicles were completely burned, with shattered windshields, doors ripped off, and anti-immigration enforcement graffiti spray-painted on bodies, while masked rioters posed on top of damaged vehicles
• Political Escalation - President Trump condemned the "radical left protests" and unilaterally deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles, while California Governor Newsom called the move illegal and threatened to file a lawsuit
• Surveillance Controversy - Analysts suggest protesters targeted Waymo vehicles as extensions of government surveillance, since the Los Angeles Police Department has previously used footage from these vehicles to assist in criminal investigations

This incident highlights the vulnerability of autonomous driving technology during periods of social unrest and public concerns about tech companies' collaboration with law enforcement agencies. As Waymo plans to expand its service coverage, similar security and public relations challenges may persist.

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BUSINESS

OpenAI Hits $10 B in Annual Revenue, Powered by Explosive AI Adoption

OpenAI has reached a major financial milestone—$10 billion in annual recurring revenue—driven by mass consumer use and enterprise uptake of its ChatGPT and API services.

• Revenue has nearly doubled from ~$5.5 billion at the end of 2024 to $10 billion as of June 2025, fueled by consumer products, business ChatGPT suites, and API offerings.
• User engagement is massive, with over 500 million weekly active users and 3 million paying business customers currently using OpenAI’s services.
• Despite previous losses (~$5 billion in 2024), OpenAI now targets $125 billion revenue by 2029 and plans to introduce new monetization features in 2026 to enhance profitability.

OpenAI’s rapid acceleration highlights the massive appetite for generative AI. The challenge ahead will be converting momentum into sustainable profits and managing growth as competition intensifies.

SPACE

Axiom Space Launches “Victory Lap” ISS Mission for Emerging Space Nations

Axiom Space is set to launch its fourth mission to the International Space Station on June 10, marking a financial and symbolic milestone as the company helps three nations re-enter human spaceflight.

• Ax-4 will carry astronauts from India, Poland, and Hungary, each sending only their second astronaut in history, reflecting rising demand for international access to orbit.
• This is Axiom’s first break-even mission, after three previous launches operated at a loss. The company emphasizes that ISS missions are not its core model, but a stepping stone toward building its own Axiom Station.
• CEO Tejpaul Bhatia describes Axiom as a “marketplace integrator”, coordinating services with partners like SpaceX. He believes commercial players—not governments—will drive the next phase of space exploration.

Axiom declined to comment on recent tensions between Elon Musk and the Trump administration, but reaffirmed its long-term vision: a commercially driven, globally connected space economy. Bhatia, just weeks into his new CEO role, also expressed personal hopes to one day travel to space, saying, “I have no doubt we will all go.”

TECH

Sam Altman’s Eyeball-Scanning ID Tech Expands to the UK

Worldcoin’s signature biometric device—the Orb—is launching in London this week, with further expansion planned across Manchester, Birmingham, Cardiff, Belfast, and Glasgow.

• The Orb scans a user’s iris to create a “World ID,” a digital identity meant to verify humanness in the age of AI. It also allows users to claim Worldcoin tokens as part of a broader crypto ecosystem.
• The technology is positioned as a solution to AI-driven identity fraud and misinformation, with proponents warning that up to 90% of online content could be AI-generated in the near future.
• Despite regulatory challenges in Germany and bans in Spain, Tools for Humanity (co-founded by Sam Altman) says biometric data is stored locally on devices, not on centralized servers—emphasizing privacy and legal compliance.

So far, around 13 million people in countries like Mexico, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Portugal, and Thailand have signed up. The UK rollout will include both staffed and self-service Orb stations to accelerate adoption.

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