The new ChatGPT Images is here

Key Takeaway: OpenAI is rolling out “GPT Image 1.5” inside ChatGPT (and via API) to deliver faster generation, tighter instruction-following, and more consistent, granular image editing as it ramps up competition with Google.

More Insights:

• Promises up to 4× faster image generation, plus better precision in edits and prompts.

• Targets the biggest pain point in image tools: iteration without “rerolling” the whole image when you ask for small changes.

• Adds post-production style controls to preserve likeness, lighting, composition, and color tone across edits.

• ChatGPT Images is getting a dedicated sidebar “creative studio” entry point with viewing/editing screens, trending prompts, and preset filters.

• OpenAI is also pushing more visual-first UI in ChatGPT (e.g., richer search results with clearer sources for quick tasks).

Why it matters: This isn’t just “better pictures”—it’s a move toward making AI creation feel like real design software, where you can refine an idea step-by-step instead of gambling on rerolls; whoever nails reliable iteration turns generative AI from a novelty into a production tool people actually build with.

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Google wants its AI assistant CC to replace your morning scroll

Key Takeaway: Google is launching an experimental Gemini-powered agent called CC that scans your Gmail, Calendar, and Drive to send a personalized “Your Day Ahead” morning briefing—and even help you act on it fast.

More Insights:

• CC emails you a daily briefing summarizing your schedule plus key tasks/updates (like bills or appointments).

• It can prep email drafts and calendar links so you can respond or schedule things quickly.

• Launching as early access for paid subscribers (18+) in the US and Canada, with a waitlist open now.

• It “learns you” by connecting to Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Drive, and also pulling from the internet.

• It closely mirrors OpenAI’s ChatGPT Pulse, signaling a growing race to own your daily routine.

Why it matters: Google isn’t just building a smarter assistant—it’s trying to become the interface between you and your life. If your day starts with an AI-generated summary, the company that writes that summary quietly gains influence over what you notice, what you prioritize, and what you ignore.

China’s Secret EUV “Manhattan Project” Could Break the West’s Chip Monopoly

Key Takeaway: Reuters reports China has secretly built and is testing a prototype EUV lithography machine—largely reverse-engineered with help from former ASML engineers—in a bid to achieve advanced-chip self-sufficiency, though working chips may still be years away.

More Insights:

• A high-security lab in Shenzhen reportedly finished an EUV prototype in early 2025; it can generate EUV light but hasn’t produced working chips yet.

• The effort is described as a state-directed, six-year push for semiconductor independence, with Huawei coordinating a nationwide network of firms and institutes.

• Recruitment allegedly targeted recently retired, Chinese-born ex-ASML staff, using aliases and strict compartmentalization to protect secrecy.

• China is said to be sourcing parts via secondhand markets and intermediaries, including components from older ASML machines and restricted Japanese equipment.

• Official goal is working chips by 2028, but sources close to the project suggest 2030 is more realistic due to major optical-precision hurdles.

Why it matters: If China cracks EUV—even later than hoped—it reshapes the real power center of the AI era: not models, but the ability to manufacture the chips that run them. Export controls can slow access to hardware, but they can also harden national resolve, accelerate domestic ecosystems, and push innovation into darker, less transparent channels—making the next phase of the tech rivalry less about “who has the best ideas” and more about “who can build the hardest machines under pressure.”

Other stuff

• Meta’s AI glasses can now help you hear conversations better

• Merriam-Webster names ‘slop’ the word of the year

• Developers can now submit apps to ChatGPT

• Linus Torvalds is 'a huge believer' in using AI to maintain code - just don't call it a revolution

• Inside Mark Zuckerberg’s turbulent bet on AI

• Amazon reportedly in talks to invest $10B in OpenAI as circular deals stay popular

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