August 20, 2026

Grok keeps sending gibberish responses to users: Affected users told TechCrunch they were using Grok Lite, and noticed the issues as early as Wednesday morning. Read More

Mark buys a castle: Mark Zuckerberg just bought a cozy abode somewhat close to Meta’s international headquarters in Ireland. Read More

A third of web pages published since ChatGPT's launch show signs of AI authorship, study finds: ChatGPT and other AI models are now authoring and editing much of the new web. Read More

Early Cerebras investor Adit Singh joins Mayfield as infrastructure partner: At Mayfield, Singh will focus on semiconductor, cybersecurity, and physical AI investments. Read More

Someone targeted security researchers using a fake crypto conference as a lure: A hacker pretending to work for a leading cryptocurrency news website targeted several cybersecurity professionals using Google Docs as a way to deliver malware. Read More

Google gives publishers a new way to fight AI-driven traffic losses: Google is giving publishers a new button that lets readers make them a preferred source across Search, Discover, and Google News, potentially boosting their traffic as AI search sends fewer clicks to the web. Read More

The Enhanced Games — tech's steroid extravaganza — didn't pay off, as company posts $60 million loss: An effort to transform the world of sports through steroid use doesn't exactly seem to be bearing financial fruit. Read More

OK, can we actually cool data centers with our pee?: Jason Kelce joked that people should cool data centers with their pee, rather than potable water -- but his suggestion is not completely ludicrous. Read More

Ramp launches its own AI model router, called Router: Ramp has launched its own AI model routing service, dubbed Router, that lets users and companies use and switch between various large language models via an API. Read More

Want to adjust your daily newsletter schedule? You can do it right here

August 20, 2026

Waymo's cheaper, next-gen robotaxi is now open to all riders in these three cities: The next-generation robotaxi, called the Waymo Ojai, is central to the company's push towards mass scale, and eventually, profitability. Read More

Stripe didn't really buy OpenRouter because of the 'singularity': What does a payments giant want with a startup that routes prompts between different AI models? Stripe says it's because of "the singularity" but it's really for a far more real and powerful reason. Read More

Rillet raises $100M Series C at $1B valuation — 2 years after emerging from stealth: AI-native account startup Rillet became a unicorn, led by Iconiq, after it doubled its ARR in the past three months, it said. Read More

AI has made it faster than ever to bring an idea from concept to launch.  

But it hasn't made it easier to build something durable.  
 
Disrupt 2026's programming is built around that challenge, delivering practical sessions on what actually holds up and how to build it. Ticket prices increase at midnight PT Friday, so grab yours before then! 

AI data giant Alation confirms cyberattack: The data search and AI giant confirmed unauthorized access to its systems during an incident on Tuesday, and said it was investigating the breach. Read More

US says hackers are targeting vulnerable water systems with the help of AI: Hackers are targeting internet-connected Siemens controllers used in water facilities around the United States. Read More

Gwyneth Paltrow allegedly set to throw dinner in honor of Sam Altman: The actress' firm Kinship Ventures is an investor in the company. Read More

Apollo Atomics wants to make nuclear power cheaper by shrinking an overlooked part: Y Combinator alumnus Apollo Atomics is shrinking a key nuclear reactor part, which promises to slash the cost of electricity below natural gas. Read More

Gambling on the Little League World Series? Sports bettors have gone too far: Have we tried turning off society and turning it back on again? Read More

Not everyone needs a keynote slot to make noise at Disrupt 2026. Sometimes the best way to meet investors, customers, and partners is by exhibiting directly in the Expo Hall.

And by exhibiting, you get 10 passes to Disrupt to share with your team!

Travis Kalanick kicks off another round of VC bashing: '1% are helpful': After raising $1.7 billion for his new robotics company Atoms, Travis Kalanick is introspective about the role VCs have played in his career. Read More

Want to adjust your daily newsletter schedule? You can do it right here