Artificial Intelligence
Researchers are tracking a Chinese AI ‘agent fleet’
Independent researchers discovered an agent swarm that seems to be running on Tencent’s infrastructure and targeting Alibaba’s map service, Amap.
TechCrunch
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Startups
Meet the Startup Battlefield 200 judges who’ll decide the winner at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026
Meet the final five Startup Battlefield judges who’ll decide who wins the pitch competition at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026. Get your pass now to save up to $100, and get a second at 50% off.
Startups
The final Disrupt Stage lineup: Three days of conversations you won’t hear anywhere outside of TechCrunch Disrupt 2026
The full TechCrunch Disrupt Stage lineup revealed, featuring Max Hodak, Mark Wahlberg, Benchmark partners, and more. Register now to save up to $100 on your pass and get a second at 50% off.
Hardware
Can Safeworld convince people that GenAI robots won’t hurt them?
Safeworld is building digital humans to make sure robots don’t hurt the real ones.
Artificial Intelligence
Google froze its open source bug bounty program due to a ‘significant rise’ in AI submissions
AI slop seems to be overwhelming bug bounty programs.
Artificial Intelligence
Can ‘super intelligence’ and a non-binding safety pact solve AI’s image problem?
On Equity, we discussed the Trump administration’s attempts to rebrand AI.
General Tech
TechCrunch Mobility: Reining in robotaxis
Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility, your hub for the future of transportation and now, more than ever, the role AI is playing in it.
General Tech
Trump unveils his new Super Intelligence Force
This new task force is Trump’s latest response to the debate over AI safety.
Cybersecurity
Federal judge calls Flock ‘indiscriminate mass surveillance’
A federal judge ruled that a sheriff’s deputy violated a woman’s Fourth Amendment rights when using Flock to search for her license plate without a warrant.
Hardware
Amazon responds to data center backlash, says it no longer uses NDAs
The CEO of Amazon Web Services tried to push back against widespread suspicion of data centers.
Artificial Intelligence
OpenAI safety employee resigns, claiming the company’s ‘culture is broken’
By his own admission, David Robinson is “something of a cliché”: an employee at a leading AI company who issues a dire warning while resigning from their job.
Mobile
Jack Dorsey’s Bitchat disappears from app stores in India after government order
Bitchat has become largely unavailable in India as a result of the restrictions.
General Tech
Vessev built an electric ferry that almost flies
Vessev hopes its electric hydrofoil ferry will change the way people and cities think about boats.
Startups
Spotify billionaire’s body scan startup has come to America
Farooq Abbasi, an investor in Neko Health, talked to Equity about the hot health tech company and what’s next for it.
Artificial Intelligence
All the AI agents that can live in your text messages
We created a list of the most notable AI agents that can live in your text messages, from general assistants to agents designed for families, travel, and work.
Software
Meta wants your next gadget to be Muse-infused
Meta wants Muse in your TV and your toaster, so it’s giving the code away for free.
General Tech
Sanders introduces bill to ban the federal government from using Flock
The proposed legislation would extend to all automotica license plate readers.
Artificial Intelligence
Sean Parker is rebuilding Stability AI around music
Sean Parker, who once taught the music industry what asking for forgiveness looks like, is now back with the labels’ blessing and money.
Startups
Affected by layoffs? Don’t miss this $75 deal for your TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 Expo+ Pass
Your next opportunity could be one conversation away. Get your Expo+ Pass for just $75. Limited to the first 100 qualifying people.
Artificial Intelligence
Apple says it’s tightening macOS ‘Full Disk Access’ controls due to new risks from AI agents
Apple says it will add new controls around macOS’s Full Disk Access permission, warning that increasingly capable AI agents make broad access to users’ files, messages, mail, and browsing history riskier.
Artificial Intelligence
It’s not AI anymore, it’s ‘super intelligence’ (according to the White House)
This week, the White House got nearly every major tech CEO in one room — Zuckerberg, Bezos, Musk, and Anthropic’s Dario Amodei among them — to sign an AI safety pledge that President Donald Trump called “morally binding.”
Startups
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026: Blackstone’s Jas Khaira on building the next generation of AI giants
Blackstone’s Jas Khaira will take the Builders Stage at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 on building next-gen AI. Register for your pass and get 50% off a second.
Artificial Intelligence
Circuit Breaker Labs hopes to make AI safer for your kids (and you)
With all the talk about how AI might one day kill us all, it’s easy to forget that AI has already harmed some people psychologically. Circuit Breaker Labs has created “crash-test dummies” to solve that.
Startups
Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery to become Skydance
The roughly $110 billion deal is expected to close October 6.
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