Tech News — 2026-05-28#

Story of the Day#

Anthropic has just eclipsed OpenAI in valuation, closing a staggering $65 billion Series H funding round that values the AI startup at $965 billion. The massive influx of capital arrives precisely as the company releases Claude Opus 4.8, a new flagship model boasting improved coding capabilities and a novel “Dynamic Workflows” tool for coordinating swarms of AI subagents.

Top Stories#

[Anthropic Eclipses OpenAI With $65B Raise and Opus 4.8 Launch] · TechCrunch Anthropic has secured $65 billion in Series H funding, pushing its post-money valuation to $965 billion and formally overtaking its primary rival, OpenAI. Alongside the massive capital raise, the company launched Claude Opus 4.8, which introduces enhanced computer programming skills and a lower likelihood of hallucinating unsupported claims. The update also ships with a “Dynamic Workflows” research preview designed to help orchestrate complex, codebase-scale tasks across hundreds of parallel AI subagents.

[Illinois Lawmakers Just Passed America’s Strongest AI Safety Bill] · Wired In the face of stalled federal regulation, Illinois has passed SB 315, a landmark piece of legislation requiring major AI developers to submit annual third-party safety testing reports. Assuming the governor signs the bill, the law will compel tech giants to report critical safety incidents within 72 hours and mandate robust protections for corporate whistleblowers. This decisive move positions Illinois as a major testing ground for state-level AI governance.

[Apple working to cram massive Gemini model into iPhone to power new Siri] · Ars Technica Leaked renders of iOS 27 reveal Apple’s long-awaited Siri overhaul, which will feature a redesigned interface and deep integration with Google’s Gemini models. Despite Apple’s historical emphasis on on-device privacy, the massive memory footprint of modern AI models means Siri’s new architecture will lean heavily on cloud infrastructure from Google and Nvidia. The sweeping AI integration is expected to be officially unveiled at the upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference in June.

[Google engineer charged with insider trading after making $1.2M on Polymarket] · TechCrunch Federal prosecutors have charged a Google information security engineer with fraud and money laundering after he allegedly weaponized confidential internal data to place highly lucrative bets on Polymarket. By accessing Google’s unreleased 2025 “Year in Search” data, the engineer correctly wagered on outcomes like the most-searched person, netting approximately $1.2 million in illicit profits.

[Oura’s New Ring 5 Is Smaller and Lighter—and Adds an AI Health Coach] · Wired Oura has debuted the Ring 5, shedding 40 percent of the physical bulk from its predecessor while managing to extend battery life up to nine days. Beyond a slimmer profile, the $399 wearable expands its platform ecosystem with a live activity mode, new GLP-1 response tracking tools, and a “Health Radar” feature to monitor nighttime breathing and blood pressure. The health tracking platform is also partnering with Counsel Health to provide AI-assisted medical guidance directly within its companion app.

[How a new extraction process could unlock the world’s lithium] · MIT Technology Review A team of MIT researchers has commercialized a highly efficient method for extracting lithium from rocks using ammonium fluoride, a weak acid commonly found in glass etching cream. Unlike traditional hard-rock mining that requires roasting ore at extreme temperatures, this process occurs in simple plastic tanks below the boiling point of water, dramatically reducing energy costs and emissions. At scale, the startup behind the technology, Rock Zero, estimates it will be able to extract battery-grade lithium for less than $6,000 per metric ton.

[Waymo to begin passenger rides in its new Ojai robotaxi] · The Verge Alphabet’s Waymo is officially deploying its newest custom-built robotaxi, an electric minivan manufactured by Zeekr that has been rebranded as “Ojai”. The purpose-built, driverless vehicles will begin offering free rides to select passengers in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Phoenix to collect operational data before transitioning to paid trips.

Also Worth Knowing#

• [Valve’s Steam Deck Sells Out Again, Even After 40% Price Increase] (Slashdot): Despite citing rising component costs to justify pushing the 1TB OLED model to $949, Valve’s popular gaming handheld sold out in North America in less than 24 hours.
• [EU fines Temu $232 million for selling illegal products] (Engadget): The European Commission slapped the Chinese e-commerce giant with a €200 million penalty for violating the Digital Services Act by failing to stop the sale of unsafe items like baby toys and chargers.
• [Snowflake CEO Weighs In on Sales Outlook, Signing $6 Billion Deal With Amazon] (Bloomberg): Snowflake shares surged after the data software company raised its annual outlook and inked a massive $6 billion, multiyear cloud infrastructure agreement with AWS.
• [The DOJ is reportedly asking Reddit and X for the identities of anti-ICE posters] (Engadget): The Trump administration’s Justice Department has sent grand jury subpoenas to multiple social platforms to uncover the identities of anonymous users criticizing the tactics of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
• [Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 is out in October, and it’s coming to the Switch 2] (The Verge): Activision announced the next entry in its blockbuster shooter franchise will drop PS4 and Xbox One support entirely, but will officially be available on Nintendo’s upcoming Switch 2.