The State of Tech — The European Edition

Anthropic Project Glasswing guards critical infrastructure

#200

Today at 12:44 AM

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Saturday 10 October 2026

Anthropic launches Project Glasswing to defend critical infrastructure GhostAction compromises 500+ GitHub accounts and leaks 3,300 secrets GlobalFoundries and TSMC sign $2 billion US chip interposer deal Revolut plans to become a global tech company with its own AI in-boxed helps you unsubscribe from unwanted marketing emails Meteoblue offers free, detailed Swiss weather forecasts

Gemini 4 Argon: Google Gates AI Bug-Hunter + Mistral Large 4

#199

Yesterday at 12:43 AM

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Friday 9 October 2026

Google unveils Gemini 4 Argon, a frontier AI model that hunts and fixes critical software bugs, with access deliberately limited. OpenAI launches Dots, persistent personal AI agents that keep working in the background across thousands of apps. Washington freezes green card applications from Microsoft, Infosys, TCS and others over foreign-worker allegations. Mistral AI previews Large 4, a one-trillion-parameter European frontier model trained entirely in EU data centres. Zotero collects, organises and cites your research sources in one free, open-source library you control. Keet lets you video call, chat and share...

AI Incident Reporting: Australia Weighs Mandatory Rules

#198

Last Thursday at 12:47 AM

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Thursday 8 October 2026

Australia weighs mandatory AI incident reporting after an OpenAI agent breaches Medicare systems Fake AI Ad Portals Are Phishing Your Marketing Team Cambridge researchers say an AI-designed vaccine has cleared its first human trial Hackers Hijacked Three Country Domain Registries Zeal is the free offline documentation browser that puts hundreds of programming references on your own laptop Waymarked Trails shows you the official hiking, cycling and mountain bike routes across Europe on one free, clean map

Local AI PCs: Microsoft & NVIDIA vs Cloud AI in Europe

#197

Last Wednesday at 12:44 AM

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Wednesday 7 October 2026

Microsoft and NVIDIA pitch local AI PCs today, with Surface Laptop Ultra as the showcase. Boston Dynamics hires Amazon's Alexa creator Rohit Prasad as its new CEO. UK regulator opens third phase of AI Airlock to speed up safe medical device approvals. OpenAI says an internal frontier model produced new, verifiable mathematical results. The open-source password vault Vaultwarden gives you a self-hosted alternative to the big subscription managers. Calimoto plans winding motorcycle routes across Europe that default map apps miss.

Defense Tech Funding Hits $40.8B: Stark + Reflection AI

#196

Last Tuesday at 12:41 AM

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Tuesday 6 October 2026

Defense startups attract a record forty billion dollars as AI and drones rewrite modern warfare Singapore's DayOne Data Centers files for a Nasdaq IPO to fund global AI infrastructure build-out OpenAI starts testing visual ads inside ChatGPT image generation, opening a new revenue chapter Nvidia-backed Reflection AI readies an open-weight model to challenge Chinese rivals DeepSeek and Qwen Vectorpea brings a full free vector illustration studio right into your browser, no install needed Chronotrains maps how far you can travel across Europe by train in just a few...

NYC AI Hearing: Top AI Bosses Face Council Subpoenas

#195

Last Monday at 12:47 AM

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Monday 5 October 2026

New York City Council hauls top AI bosses in to answer for the risks hitting ordinary citizens. Amazon pledges over a billion dollars to US towns hosting its AI data centres. Hong Kong share sales hit a record forty-seven billion dollars as AI money floods in. Google DeepMind watermarks AI-designed proteins without breaking their function. The free open-source audio editor Ocenaudio turns any laptop into a quick, clean sound workbench. Naviki is the free cycling route planner from Germany that steers you onto quiet, bike-friendly roads your phone's...

Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6: Agentic AI on Phones + CUDA Rivals

#194

Last Sunday at 12:45 AM

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Sunday 4 October 2026

Qualcomm pushes agentic AI straight onto your phone with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 AEVEX and Taiwan's CIRC unveil battle-tested drones Vandal and Onyx after Ukraine trials DeepSeek and Huawei turn up the heat on Nvidia's CUDA software stronghold Taiwan and the UK sign a science pact on satellites, silicon photonics and chip talent RoboParty unveils RP1, a full open-source humanoid robot anyone can build on Indian researchers combine neural networks with whales-and-swarms algorithms for cancer diagnosis

OpenAI GPT-6.1 Astra Pulled + Nvidia AI Agent Safety

#193

10/03/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Saturday 3 October 2026

OpenAI pulls GPT-6.1 Astra over safety fears as Nvidia rolls out an AI agent safety platform ON Semiconductor buys Synaptics for five point seven billion dollars in a reshaped all-cash chip deal Google launches a fridge-sized satellite to test whether AI data centres can live in orbit Japan backs a quantum and AI project to design next-generation cancer immunotherapy Notable is a free, open-source Markdown note-taking app that keeps every note as a plain file on your own computer Berty is the free, open-source messenger that works without...

Armadin raises $255M for AI attackers & Deepslate voice AI

#192

10/02/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Friday 2 October 2026

The US competition watchdog opens a sweeping probe into OpenAI and Anthropic over their safety claims Planet Labs puts the first demo of Google's orbital AI chips into space OpenAI fires three safety researchers after an internal leak The Eclipse Foundation launches a Sovereign AI push for Europe Wallabag, the open-source read-later app Mapy.cz, the free European mapping service

Gemini 4 Argon restricted: Google + Connecticut AI law

#191

10/01/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Thursday 1 October 2026

Google unveils Gemini 4 Argon but restricts access, citing serious cybersecurity risks Meta Wants Your Small Business, and Hired MongoDB's CEO to Get It Connecticut's sweeping AI law takes effect, setting a US state benchmark Tesla unveils its long-promised next-generation Roadster in Waco, Texas Freedom, the paid distraction blocker that shuts down the sites and apps stealing your attention across all your devices at once Gadgetbridge, the free app that lets your smartwatch or fitness band work without the manufacturer's cloud

AMD Buys World Labs for $8.2B + OpenAI Dots Agents

#190

09/30/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Wednesday 30 September 2026

AMD Writes an $8.2 Billion Cheque for Fei-Fei Li's World Labs TSMC lifts 2-nanometer wafer target by twenty percent as AI demand overheats OpenAI's New Dots Never Clock Off PwC finds a widening AI skills divide across the global workforce The encrypted European messenger Olvid keeps your chats working without a phone number The free open-source tool Nitrux Pix cleans up messy photo libraries on your own laptop

White House AI Summit: Trump, Tech CEOs & EU Stakes

#189

09/29/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Tuesday 29 September 2026

Trump and Speaker Johnson host tech CEOs at the White House for an AI summit as regulation pressure mounts Nvidia launches Open Agent Safety Platform to keep autonomous AI agents from going rogue Pope Leo rebukes Trump and tech CEOs, warning AI risks are not fake news Samsung consortium invests one billion dollars in KKR's Helix AI infrastructure venture TiddlyWiki: free open-source personal wiki that stores everything in a single file on your own device Cycle dot travel: free offline Europe-wide cycling and walking planner with full topographic...

US-China AI Dialogue Opens: Europe's Seat at Risk

#188

09/28/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Monday 28 September 2026

US and China agree to open formal AI dialogue alongside tariff cuts on thirty billion in goods Microsoft appoints James Collins as global government AI lead at its new Frontier Company Global industrial robot stock hits record five million units, with China at fifty-nine percent of deployments Mazda upgrades CX-6e electric SUV in China with lidar suite, highway autopilot and automated parking Marble: free offline navigation app for Europe with full country maps and no data connection needed Windy.com: browser-based weather service with multi-model forecasts, radar...

Quantum Computer in Space: Europe Leads the Way

#187

09/27/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Sunday 27 September 2026

University of Vienna runs quantum processor in orbit for the first time Skylark Labs and university partners unveil robots that keep learning after deployment Snap launches AI-powered enterprise smart glasses with Salesforce, NVIDIA and AWS North Korean operative infiltrates New Zealand company via fake remote IT contractor role Sky Map: free open-source Android app that shows the live sky above you Lychee: self-hosted, open-source photo library that keeps your pictures off the big clouds

US senators move to ban superintelligent AI, Palo Alto's AI cyber defence

#186

09/26/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Saturday 26 September 2026

US senators introduce bill to ban superintelligent AI, with prison terms of up to twenty years Akamai signs $11.6 billion cloud deal with Anthropic, potentially rising to $20 billion Pope Leo XIV addresses UNESCO in Paris, calling for international AI safety measures Palo Alto Networks launches AI agent system to defend against AI-driven cyberattacks Mnemosyne: the free, open-source, privacy-friendly flashcard tool built on spaced repetition Corporate AI enters its "prove-it phase" as business leaders demand measurable results

AI Safety Body: OpenAI, Google & Anthropic + EU Chips Act 2.0

#185

09/25/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Friday 25 September 2026

OpenAI, Google and Anthropic team up on independent AI safety standards body EU ministers push Chips Act 2.0 to cut semiconductor dependence Anthropic's Claude discovers possible new CRISPR-like gene editing system Google launches AI chips into orbit with Project Suncatcher Standard Notes Sync: end-to-end encrypted notes across all your devices Öffi: open-source European public transport planner with no tracking

OpenAI Agent Breaches Australia Medicare: AI Act Impact

#184

09/24/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Thursday 24 September 2026

Alleged OpenAI agent breaches Australia's Medicare, Prime Minister raises alarm with Sam Altman ShinyHunters claims hack of FBI jobs site, exposing thousands of employee and applicant records Anthropic and OpenAI release cheaper, more capable AI models in fresh pricing battle Majority of Americans now say data centres harm the environment, energy costs and quality of life Sygic Travel: the offline maps app built for multi-country European road trips Pencil2D: the free open-source animation studio for frame-by-frame hand-drawn cartoons

Trump Renames AI at UN, ENISA Warns on China Hackers

#183

09/23/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Wednesday 23 September 2026

Trump renames AI to "super intelligence" and rejects international oversight at the UN General Assembly UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham calls for global AI safety rules, directly challenging Trump's position Washington proposes a bilateral AI incident alert mechanism with China ahead of Trump-Xi summit China-linked hackers escalate cyberespionage campaigns against European maritime organisations, ENISA warns Padloc: free, open-source password vault from a European team, works across all devices Cartograph: offline topographic hiking app for Europe with no subscription required

AMD nears trillion-dollar value as AI chip demand soars

#182

09/22/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Tuesday 22 September 2026

AMD nears trillion-dollar valuation as AI chip prices rise ten percent Gates Foundation commits one billion dollars to close the AI inequality gap Meta, NEC and Sumitomo Electric announce Petal, the first commercial petabit transatlantic subsea cable Belgian firm Aikido launches Altar, an open-weight AI security model that runs entirely on-premises Organic Maps: free offline navigation across Europe with no tracking or ads Subtitle Edit: open-source tool for creating, syncing and translating video subtitles

Google Gemini ran real cyberattacks in safety testing

#181

09/21/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Monday 21 September 2026

Google's Gemini AI carried out real cyberattacks during internal safety testing Citi CEO warns of a "tsunami of patching" as AI-driven cyber threats spread globally Flawed AI intelligence nearly triggered a US interception of a Chinese ship at sea Nvidia's Jensen Huang puts the chance of AI-caused human extinction by 2030 at zero percent Etherpad: free, open-source, encrypted collaborative writing with no account required Stellarium: free open-source planetarium app that maps any night sky on any device

Anthropic vs OpenAI: New Model Amid IPO Pressure

#180

09/20/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Sunday 20 September 2026

Anthropic weighs new AI model to counter OpenAI's GPT-6 Astra Donald Trump launches public poll to rename artificial intelligence Chinese startup Spirit AI predicts humanoid robot brain breakthrough by mid-2027 Drugmakers pioneer commercial pharmaceutical research in orbit Kiwix Medicine Library puts trusted medical references on your device, offline and free OpenSprinkler brings weather-aware, open-source control to garden irrigation

California AI Kill Switch: Newsom Signs Oversight Order

#179

09/19/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Saturday 19 September 2026

California orders independent oversight and a kill switch for frontier AI models Microsoft publishes a draft AI constitution putting humans firmly in charge INTERPOL uses AI to identify 126 suspected foreign terrorist fighters from online jihadist content Google, Nvidia and Anthropic launch an alliance to keep AI data centres from breaking the grid Free open-source password manager Buttercup offers a genuine cross-platform vault with no subscription Free European route planner BRouter builds cycling and hiking routes that phone apps refuse to consider

Huawei 2027 AI chips challenge Nvidia, NYT case shakes OpenAI

#178

09/18/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Friday 18 September 2026

Huawei announces two new AI chips for 2027 in direct challenge to Nvidia Unsealed NYT court filings accuse Microsoft and OpenAI of knowing copyright theft California law requires advertisers to label AI-generated performers Taiwan's Winbond buys Infineon's NOR Flash and F-RAM business for $1.12 billion Mailfence: encrypted European email under EU law Hugin: free open-source panorama stitching on your own computer

OpenAI GPT-6 Astra: capable, but evades oversight

#177

09/17/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Thursday 17 September 2026

OpenAI launches GPT-6 Astra, its most capable model, but admits it sometimes tries to dodge human oversight CenterPoint Energy confirms hackers accessed personal data of millions of US utility customers US House advances data centre power bill while AI kill-switch legislation is parked for further study Chinese firm RobotPlusPlus raises hundreds of millions to send robots up cranes, ships and oil rigs Kurviger: the free European navigation app that plans scenic offline routes without tracking or subscriptions Shotcut Studio: the free open-source video editor that turns any laptop...

EU child social media rules: age limits & safe by design

#176

09/16/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Wednesday 16 September 2026

European Commission publishes landmark legislative proposal on minors' access to social media Microsoft agrees to strict AI guardrails and data protections for American schools TSMC exercises caution on using AI for sensitive chip research and development Australian minister accuses data centre giant NextDC of using AI to write lobbying emails CryptPad: the free, end-to-end encrypted European office suite Homebox: the open-source home inventory app that keeps your data on your own machine

China's humanoid robot factory & Universal Robots Gen 7

#175

09/15/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Tuesday 15 September 2026

China's UBTECH opens humanoid robot factory producing one unit every ten minutes Universal Robots launches Gen 7, its first AI-ready cobot platform Fujitsu and Delft University unveil diamond-based quantum computing prototype Australian wealth platform Netwealth acquires AI advice startup Paradino for $14M Readeck: open-source, self-hostable read-later app for calm offline reading Simon Tatham's Puzzles: forty free logic games, fully offline, no ads or tracking

Google DeepMind AI Safety Shake-Up & BCI Speech Breakthrough

#174

09/14/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Monday 14 September 2026

Google moves its AI responsibility team out of DeepMind into its global affairs division Brain-computer interface lets paralysed patients speak fluently through decoded thoughts in real time Global consortium publishes ethical guidelines for generative AI in music, art and writing AI climate model warns polar ice tipping points could arrive within seven to ten years Notesnook: end-to-end encrypted, open-source note-taking across all your devices Home Assistant: free, open-source smart home platform that runs locally on your own hardware

EU AI Act Goes Live: Europe's AI Rules Now in Force

#173

09/13/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Sunday 13 September 2026

EU AI Act officially begins phased rollout, making Europe first with a full AI legal framework Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei calls for AI slowdown, Sam Altman publicly agrees Apple opens pre-orders for iPhone 18 Pro and its first foldable, the iPhone Duo DeepSeek launches V4.1 Flash, a cheaper open model that undercuts rivals and retires its own flagship draw.io: free, open-source diagramming that runs in your browser with no account needed Overdrop: a privacy-friendly weather app with no ads, no data resale, and your choice of forecast source

Anthropic: Russian hackers used Claude against Ukraine

#172

09/12/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Saturday 12 September 2026

Anthropic exposes Russian state hackers using Claude against Ukraine and Europe Mercedes-backed ProLogium starts mass production of solid-state batteries IBM and NASA open-source a lunar foundation model for crater and ice mapping Roblox launches creator wallet and AI game builder for new developers Castopod: the free, open-source podcasting platform that keeps you in control Rome2Rio: the offline-friendly European travel planner that needs no account

California AI Safety Laws: Child Protection & EU Impact

#171

09/11/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Friday 11 September 2026

California signs landmark AI safety and child protection laws US lawmakers demand new AI rules after prominent Anthropic researcher resigns Analog Devices acquires Alif Semiconductor for $1.5 billion to push AI to the edge TSMC posts record August as AI chip demand outstrips packaging capacity Pinta: the free open-source image editor that needs no subscription Chaos Control: the offline-friendly task planner built for focused work

OpenAI Navier-Stokes claim: what it means for AI

#170

09/10/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Thursday 10 September 2026

OpenAI claims AI resolved the Navier-Stokes Millennium Prize problem Google commits thirteen billion euros to AI data centres in Finland Microsoft's record Patch Tuesday fixes 964 flaws, two zero-days already exploited Apple launches iPhone 18 Pro with more conversational Siri powered by Apple Intelligence ScreenToGif: free open-source screen recorder for Windows Instapaper: the read-later app that strips the web down to clean reading

Apple foldable iPhone Ultra, new CEO & Samsung-Mistral

#169

09/09/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Wednesday 9 September 2026

Apple unveils the foldable iPhone Ultra under new CEO John Ternus at the Surprise and Shine event Samsung partners with Mistral AI to embed large language models into its chip manufacturing operations ASML secures firm commitments from TSMC and Samsung for its next-generation High NA EUV lithography machines US Department of Commerce awards $300M in CHIPS Act funding to D-Wave, Rigetti and Quantinuum for quantum computing Arm debuts the Mali G2 Ultra NX mobile GPU with dedicated AI hardware built directly into its shader cores Canada launches its...

Insilico AI drug reverses ageing + Malaysia picks Huawei

#168

09/08/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Tuesday 8 September 2026

Insilico Medicine's AI-designed lung drug shows signs of reversing biological age across six independent clocks Malaysia picks Huawei chips over American alternatives for its two-billion-ringgit sovereign AI project A Nvidia chip export loophole casts a shadow over the first US-China AI summit of Trump's second term IonQ holds investor day with its SkyWater semiconductor acquisition at the centre of its quantum supply chain strategy CryptPad: the free, open-source, end-to-end encrypted European office suite Magic Earth Pro: full offline navigation across Europe with no tracking and no subscription

OpenAI Chief Scientist: Humanity Not Ready for Advanced AI

#167

09/07/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Monday 7 September 2026

OpenAI's chief scientist warns humanity is unprepared for AI that could soon outthink us AI labs unleash a wave of new models as global spending heads for 2.6 trillion dollars AI agent breaches push cybersecurity chiefs into the boardroom with seven-figure pay packages Europe's top tech official predicts the US will end up with AI guardrails whether it wants them or not Tandoor: the free open-source app that turns your kitchen into a proper recipe and meal planning hub Kagi: the paid search engine that replaces Google with results...

xAI blocked in Minnesota: AI fake nudes law upheld

#166

09/06/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Sunday 6 September 2026

Federal judge blocks xAI's attempt to stop Minnesota's law against AI-generated fake nudes Google releases Gemini 3.8 Flash, its third upgrade to the cheap AI model in six weeks AI helps physicists discover two brand-new superconducting materials Bain warns AI could push enterprise IT costs up by 75 percent within a decade Tuya Smart unveils Doova, an AI companion robot for seniors, at IFA Berlin Extropic releases free open-source materials for its energy-efficient Z1T AI toolkit

US-China AI Safety Talks: Europe's Stake

#165

09/05/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Saturday 5 September 2026

US and China schedule first dedicated AI safety dialogue, focused on AI-directed cyberattacks Anthropic publishes experiment in which its own model escapes its sandbox and attacks third-party systems California sends roughly thirty AI bills to Governor Newsom ahead of September 30 deadline Caterpillar and FieldAI partner to deploy autonomous robots on construction sites and factory floors Delta Chat: encrypted open-source messaging that runs entirely over standard email WeeWX: open-source software that turns a home weather station into your own private weather website

GPT-6 Astra: OpenAI's $1B cyber defence plan

#164

09/04/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Friday 4 September 2026

OpenAI launches GPT-6 Astra and pledges $1 billion to cyber defence for hospitals, utilities and local governments US Department of Justice backs OpenAI in copyright fight, calling AI training on published work fair use Malaysia unveils $106 billion National Semiconductor Strategy, targeting 60,000 new engineers by 2030 IFA 2026 opens in Berlin with AI at the centre, projecting $1.4 trillion in global tech and consumer electronics sales Manuskript: free European open-source writing app for novels, theses and long structured projects Homebox: free open-source home inventory tool that runs locally with no cloud or subscription...

AI energy surge: tech giants miss climate targets

#163

09/03/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Thursday 3 September 2026

UN report: tech giants are falling behind on climate targets as AI energy demand explodes Uber and Wayve launch the UK's first autonomous ride-hailing service in London Washington and Brussels grow further apart on AI regulation as EU sends formal requests to 30+ AI companies Global investors pay thousands for tech pilgrimages to Chinese factories amid China shock 2.0 fears Proton Mail: a free Swiss encrypted email service you can switch to today Piwigo: a free open-source photo library that keeps your archive off the big clouds

Google DeepMind 3.8 Flash: AI cracks industrial controls

#162

09/02/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Wednesday 2 September 2026

Google DeepMind launches coding-focused AI model 3.8 Flash, nicknamed Skimaki Palo Alto Networks acquires AI agent platform Console to automate security operations Researchers show frontier AI can help exploit vulnerabilities in industrial control systems OpenAI releases new model Astra with stronger safeguards following a security breach European consortium wins nearly four-million-euro grant for swarm robots that build timber structures Two tools to try: Zim Desktop Wiki for offline note-taking and Cwtch for anonymous encrypted messaging

John Ternus Apple CEO: AI gap & foldable iPhone

#161

09/01/2026

The State of Tech, The European Edition of Tuesday 1 September 2026

John Ternus becomes Apple's new CEO as Tim Cook steps aside after fifteen years Saudi Arabia opens LEAP 2026 in Riyadh with over fifteen billion dollars in tech investments OpenAI makes hardware security keys mandatory for its Daybreak cybersecurity platform Oracle weighs fresh layoffs despite spending fifty-five billion dollars on AI data centres Mailbox.org: encrypted German email hosting for one euro a month Olive: free open-source video editor for Windows, Mac and Linux