Creator Peter Steinberger and his team released OpenClaw 2.0, a major overhaul of the open-source AI agent harness that lets users direct autonomous AI workers through messaging apps. The update, officially v2026.8.1, adds a rebuilt browser workspace, shared cloud sessions for multiple users, and expanded security features like sandboxing, role-based permissions and audit controls. Steinberger said the team built the new version largely by using OpenClaw itself to develop it.
A hobbyist project called RotaryCell adds internal electronics to an unmodified rotary telephone, letting it place calls over LTE using an ESP32-S3-based LilyGO board, a battery, and the AG1171 ringer chip, while keeping the original handset, dial, and hook intact. The current release is a documented, hand-wired working prototype on firmware v0.10.4, with new integrated PCBs already ordered from JLCPCB but not yet assembled or validated.
A federal lawsuit filed by the FTC alleges that Amazon secretly raised minimum price thresholds in some advertising auctions after bids were already submitted, effectively changing the rules mid-game. The suit claims this practice forced advertisers to pay more than they should have, generating billions in extra revenue for Amazon.
A scientist who has logged 10,000 papers in a reference manager over 13 years describes moving from trying to read every paper closely to a selective, task-driven approach to the literature. The piece also warns that AI tools like ChatGPT, despite improved search and summarization, still risk producing uncritical or fabricated citations if used without careful reading.
India's government has introduced the Prime Minister Research Chair Scheme, offering 120 overseas Indian-origin researchers up to 50 million rupees (about $520,000) in grants plus stipends and allowances over five years to work at Indian institutions. The initiative targets strategic fields like AI, quantum computing, biotechnology and advanced materials, joining similar brain-drain reversal efforts by China, France, Germany and Denmark.
Apple reportedly pushed up the release of its new Mac mini and Mac Studio models this week, months earlier than its usual autumn schedule, after enterprise demand for AI-capable desktop Macs exceeded expectations. The Information reports Apple emphasized the ability to cluster multiple Mac Studios together to run large AI models, a feature targeted at business and developer customers rather than consumers.
9to5Mac's report details four months of using OpenAI's Codex agent on the Mac, highlighting its April addition of a Computer Use plugin that lets the AI see, click, and type within apps using its own cursor. The feature traces back to Sky, an AI assistant previewed by former Apple Shortcuts creator Ari Weinstein's startup, which OpenAI acquired before folding its tech into Codex.
An operator behind more than 22 companies at DRC Ventures argues that small, undocumented decisions—not major pivots or funding rounds—are what most often slow organizational growth. He points to Asana research showing knowledge workers lose about 209 hours annually to duplicated work caused by unclear ownership and unresolved processes.
OpenAI reported elevated errors and latency on ChatGPT Work, its enterprise AI agent, for about three hours on Monday, while Microsoft separately confirmed degraded functionality across Exchange Online. Downdetector logged over 1,100 reports for OpenAI products and nearly 4,600 for Microsoft Outlook around 2:24 p.m. ET, though the companies gave no indication the two incidents were related.
Director Adam Wingard has confirmed that his long-discussed live-action or hybrid 'ThunderCats' movie has not been shelved, despite the lack of recent updates. He explained the delay is due to his commitments to other projects rather than any cancellation of the film.
Clinicians at Kaiser Permanente report that staffing cuts paired with growing use of algorithmic and AI-driven triage systems have made it harder for psychiatric patients to reach the right care quickly. Workers in California and Wisconsin describe rising patient frustration, missed diagnoses, and treatment delays tied to automation replacing human judgment in intake decisions. Unions are now pushing for limits on AI in triage as part of contract negotiations, while California lawmakers consider legislation to regulate the technology's use in medical settings.
Businesses across sectors are recognizing that AI is not a one-time technology upgrade but an ongoing force reshaping roles, skills and team structures continuously. Executives are being urged to treat their workforce as a dynamic, ever-changing portfolio of capabilities rather than fixed headcount, using AI tools to track how work is shifting in real time.
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