Week 4-2026 AI roundup: OpenAI’s first device, Gemini staying ad-free, Apple’s chatbot Siri, $15B ClickHouse valuation, and 20 new AI launches shaping the industry.
Need-to-Know
- ClickHouse hit a $15B valuation in its latest round as AI adoption accelerates demand for real-time analytics databases.
- Google expanded its Flow AI video tool to Workspace users, enabling short video creation from text prompts or images.
- Reuters reports AI-generated “slop” is misleading fans, disrupting sports media revenue, and putting teams’ brands and safety at risk.
- Google says Gemini will remain ad-free, aiming to preserve trust, stand apart from AI search, and avoid early ad-model pitfalls.
- Fannie Mae released an ad featuring an AI-generated voice of Donald Trump, used with permission to promote housing reform messaging.
- e& and IBM launched enterprise-grade agentic AI to embed governed, action-driven intelligence into compliance and governance systems.
- Moonshot AI is preparing a new private funding round, targeting a valuation of roughly $4.8B.
- Razer’s CEO says gamers reject AI slop, not AI itself, and that AI can empower developers and enhance gaming hardware.
- OpenAI says its first AI device is on track for a potential debut in H2 2026, though form factor and launch plans remain open.
- Microsoft is rolling out Copilot Real Talk and testing generative video tools to better compete with Gemini and ChatGPT.
- OpenAI is deploying a new age-prediction system in ChatGPT to separate teen and adult experiences and strengthen youth safeguards.
- Indian startup Emergent raised $70M Series B, tripling its valuation to around $300M as its vibe-coding platform scales.
- At Davos, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei opposed easing U.S. AI chip exports to China despite Nvidia ties.
- XBuild raised $19M to launch an AI-powered estimation and proposal platform for residential roofing contractors.
- Netflix says AI is improving subtitle localization, content discovery, and expanding AI-driven advertising tied to its IP.
- Adobe is adding AI prompt editing, presentation creation, and podcast summaries to Acrobat.
- OpenEvidence reached a $12B valuation in a Thrive- and DST-led Series D as doctors rapidly adopt its AI medical platform.
- Apple is reportedly planning to transform Siri into a chatbot integrated into iOS 27, potentially a WWDC centerpiece.
- Anthropic released a new Claude AI constitution, adding explanations behind its rules to improve safety generalization.
- Meta says its Superintelligence Labs delivered their first internal models, calling 2026–2027 pivotal for consumer AI.
- Nvidia reports AI is moving from pilots to real retail operations, with open models and lower inference costs driving scale.
- DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis questioned OpenAI’s early ad tests in ChatGPT, doubting ads fit the assistant model.
- Google launched free Gemini-powered SAT practice exams, offering AI-based testing, analysis, and explanations.
- Microsoft plans to build 15 data centers in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin, advancing approvals with minimal local resistance.
- ElevenLabs released an AI-generated album to showcase AI music tools while preserving creator ownership and revenue.
Weekly AI Launches
- caricature.life launched a free, privacy-first caricature generator with no logins, tracking, or watermarks.
- Purifai released an offline tool that removes unwanted writing styles while preserving structure and formatting.
- Cloudchipr launched AI agents for cloud cost optimization and anomaly detection.
- OMEGA launched a 3.6MB secure macOS browser with ad-blocking, RAM-only sessions, and instant data wiping.
- Noodle Seed launched a no-code builder for branded ChatGPT apps with lead capture and HubSpot sync.
- OS Ninja launched an AI platform that turns open-source codebases into interactive learning journeys.
- Updatest released a unified Mac dashboard to bulk-update apps from Homebrew, App Store, and GitHub.
- FlowGenie launched a node-based visual workflow builder for transparent, logic-first automation.
- Fimo launched an AI platform to create, collaborate on, and evolve websites in seconds.
- Blink Agent Builder launched a vibe-coding platform for building AI agents via natural language.
- Mastra (from the Gatsby team) launched a framework for AI agents with workflows, memory, and a visual Studio.
- FastMCP released v3.0, a production-ready framework for advanced AI context apps.
- daily.dev launched a hiring tool for recruiting passive engineers from its developer community.
- Interactpitch launched AI avatars and analytics for pitch decks to gauge investor interest.
- Typeless launched its AI voice-to-text app on Android.
- Evernote v11 added AI assistants, multi-speaker transcription, and semantic search.
- ChartGen AI launched instant AI-powered ad data visualization for marketers.
- Crustdata released a high-speed Web Search API for AI agents.
- Callum launched an AI assistant for Google Calendar with CRM-aware scheduling.
- LocateStore launched a no-code tool turning Google Sheets into auto-syncing store locator maps.