TL;DR
- Meta hires key OpenAI researcher Trapit Bansal to boost its AI superintelligence team.
- Travis Kalanick may return to autonomous vehicles via a Pony.ai acquisition.
- CoreWeave’s CEO is now worth $10B after its AI cloud IPO success.
- A federal ruling favors AI firms training on copyrighted content under “fair use.”
- Google, Apple, and Tesla face scrutiny and backlash over product decisions and promotions.
- AI moderation bugs are causing mass Facebook bans, with Meta confirming fixes are underway.
Meta Accelerates AI Talent Acquisition With OpenAI Veteran
Meta continues its aggressive strategy to dominate AI by hiring Trapit Bansal, a pivotal researcher behind OpenAI’s reasoning model work. Bansal previously collaborated with Ilya Sutskever, positioning him as a core architect in OpenAI’s early breakthroughs.
The move underscores Meta’s shift toward AI superintelligence—a signal that Mark Zuckerberg’s ambitions are now aligned with recruiting elite talent and moving beyond foundational models into general intelligence territory.
This follows Meta’s broader efforts to lure researchers from rival labs, including Anthropic, DeepMind, and Mistral AI, offering hefty compensation packages and research freedom.
Kalanick Eyes Autonomous Comeback via Pony.ai
In a surprise development, Travis Kalanick may be re-entering the self-driving vehicle industry. The former Uber CEO, who was ousted in 2017 and later founded CloudKitchens, is reportedly in talks to acquire Pony.ai’s U.S. division, potentially with Uber’s backing.
If successful, the move would signal a full-circle moment in Kalanick’s career—returning to a sector where he was once a central figure before regulatory scandals forced his exit.
According to The New York Times, the bid would involve leveraging Pony.ai’s existing U.S. infrastructure and AI stack to accelerate commercial deployment of autonomous ride-hailing.
Key Headlines From June 22–28, 2025
| Topic | Key Development | Source |
| Meta AI | Meta hires OpenAI’s Trapit Bansal | TechCrunch |
| Travis Kalanick | Plans possible Pony.ai U.S. acquisition | NYT |
| CoreWeave | CEO Michael Intrator’s net worth hits $10B | Bloomberg |
| Copyright ruling | AI training on books ruled “fair use” | Reuters |
| Facebook Groups | Meta confirms mass bans tied to moderation bug | TechCrunch |
| Google Doppl App | New AI fashion try-on tool launched | TechCrunch |
| Tesla Robotaxi | NHTSA probes robotaxi safety after viral videos | CNN |
| Apple Wallet Promo | Users push back against F1 movie ad in core apps | The Verge |
Google Pushes Further Into AI Fashion With Doppl
In an experimental rollout, Google launched Doppl, an AI-powered fashion app that lets users try on clothes using AI-generated avatars. Built from a single photo, the app allows virtual outfit mixing from social media, thrifted collections, or personal uploads.
Users can preview how an outfit would move in real life, generate videos, and save styles—potentially positioning Doppl as a competitor to Amazon’s AI shopping tools and Daydream’s fashion assistant.
Though still experimental, the tool shows Google’s intent to merge generative AI with commerce, offering highly personalized and visual-first e-commerce experiences.
CoreWeave CEO Now Worth $10 Billion
Michael Intrator, CEO of GPU-focused cloud infrastructure provider CoreWeave, has seen his net worth surge to $10 billion, just months after the company’s volatile IPO.
Once a crypto mining operation, CoreWeave now powers workloads for OpenAI and Microsoft, positioning itself as a mission-critical AI cloud provider. The company’s rapid rise comes despite holding $8.8 billion in debt and facing steep capital costs.
“We’re at the beginning of the AI compute arms race,” Intrator told Forbes, “and our infrastructure is what makes the magic happen.”
Legal Win for AI Firms: Fair Use Applies to Book Training
A federal judge ruled that training AI models on copyrighted books can be considered fair use, delivering a blow to authors but a win for AI developers.
The case, which focuses on Anthropic’s alleged use of pirated content, will still go to trial, but the ruling sets precedent for how AI training data may be interpreted legally going forward.
Content creators are concerned the decision opens the door to mass unauthorized data scraping, while developers argue it’s essential to building accurate and nuanced AI systems.
Facebook Faces Group Admin Uproar Over AI Bans
Meta’s AI moderation tools may have gone too far again. Thousands of Facebook Groups have been hit by suspension notices, with infractions ranging from nudity to terrorism—even in groups dedicated to cat photos, Pokémon, and parenting tips.
Meta confirmed a “technical error” and is working to restore impacted groups, but users continue to report that entire moderation teams have been banned without cause.
Affected admins are sharing recovery strategies on Reddit, while some are considering legal options to challenge Meta’s algorithmic oversight failures.
Tesla Robotaxi Under Scrutiny After Viral Videos
Just 24 hours after Tesla’s robotaxi pilot launched in Austin, the NHTSA is investigating over viral clips showing cars swerving into oncoming lanes and speeding near schools.
The test rides, conducted with Full Self-Driving (FSD) and a human monitor, raised alarms about the safety of Tesla’s unsupervised systems, especially since FSD remains in beta.
Critics warn the company may be testing on public roads without sufficient guardrails, echoing past regulatory concerns about Tesla’s autonomous promises.
Apple Faces Pushback Over F1 Movie Promo in Wallet
Apple users expressed outrage after a promo for its new Formula 1 film appeared in the Wallet app uninvited, reigniting complaints that Apple uses core iOS apps for self-promotion.
Some likened the incident to the infamous U2 album push in 2014, where users were unable to delete unwanted content from their devices. Although Apple has not commented, backlash is growing across social media and Reddit.
The event is part of a larger conversation about platform neutrality and whether tech giants use privileged OS access to market inappropriately to their user bases.
Microsoft’s Error Legacy Evolves: Goodbye Blue Screen
One final note: Microsoft has officially replaced the Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) with a Black Screen of Death, ending nearly 40 years of tech meme history. The new interface will roll out with Windows 12 later this year.
