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xAI founding member describes 'grind' to get first Grok model out: 'No drugs, not even caffeine, just pure adrenaline'

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XAI founding member Toby Pohlen wrote that the company taught him to "grind with purpose." Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto via Getty Images Elon Musk's xAI is known for its intense work culture. Founding member Toby Pohlen shared a peek inside. Pohlen described "a day and a half of straight coding and shipping" before Grok's 2023 release. After leaving xAI in February, Pohlen wrote that he was excited to get more than 8 hours of sleep. Elon Musk's companies are "hardcore." It's even in his text messages. When xAI founding member Toby Pohlen left the company in February, he shared a list of things he was excited for. He said he wanted to write down everything he learned, figure out what's next — and sleep over 8 hours. On Wednesday, Pohlen offered another peek into the company's internal grind on X . He framed it as a "lesson" about learning how to work at an "extreme pace" and why it matters. Pohlen went back...
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Epic and Google propose a settlement that would have Google share its Play Store app catalog with rivals and offer a registered app store program for Android (Leah Nylen/Bloomberg)

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Leah Nylen / Bloomberg : Epic and Google propose a settlement that would have Google share its Play Store app catalog with rivals and offer a registered app store program for Android   —  Alphabet Inc.'s Google and Epic Games Inc. proposed a new settlement Wednesday to resolve a long-running antitrust case between the two companies. from Techmeme https://ift.tt/U7O1qMz
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I spent 53 hours in a bedroom on an Amtrak train for $2,200 and made 5 mistakes

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The author made some mistakes on board the California Zephyr. Joey Hadden/Business Insider I recently traveled on the California Zephyr, an overnight Amtrak train, from Chicago to California. I booked a $2,200 bedroom accommodation for the 53-hour ride. I regretted packing toiletries that Amtrak already provided and choosing to sleep in the lower bunk. If you travel a lot like me, I highly recommend logging your mistakes so you're less likely to repeat them. For example, I'd spent 75 hours on overnight Amtrak trains before my most recent adventure aboard the California Zephyr , a double-decker train that runs from Chicago to Emeryville, California, in about 53 hours, making it the longest train ride in the US. I booked a 50-square-foot Amtrak bedroom with a full private bathroom for $2,200 for the two-night journey. I managed to avoid the mistakes I'd made on sleeper trains in the past, but I also made a few new ones that I don't want to repeat. And maybe ...
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Sources: Anduril is seeking to raise about $4B in a round co-led by Thrive Capital and a16z, which could nearly double the startup's valuation to ~$60B (Edward Ludlow/Bloomberg)

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Edward Ludlow / Bloomberg : Sources: Anduril is seeking to raise about $4B in a round co-led by Thrive Capital and a16z, which could nearly double the startup's valuation to ~$60B   —  Josh Kushner's Thrive Capital and venture firm Andreessen Horowitz are co-leading a fundraising round for Anduril Industries Inc … from Techmeme https://ift.tt/flNCTto
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A profile of Palmer Luckey and his startup Anduril, which has more than $6B in global contracts, had roughly $2B in revenue last year, and is valued at ~$31B (New York Times)

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New York Times : A profile of Palmer Luckey and his startup Anduril, which has more than $6B in global contracts, had roughly $2B in revenue last year, and is valued at ~$31B   —  Within minutes of arriving at a security conference with U.S. defense and intelligence officials in December … from Techmeme https://ift.tt/0s2EHO4
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Anthropic's $60B+ in funding, half of which came just last month, from over 200 investors is now at risk due to the company's contract dispute with the Pentagon (Dan Primack/Axios)

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Dan Primack / Axios : Anthropic's $60B+ in funding, half of which came just last month, from over 200 investors is now at risk due to the company's contract dispute with the Pentagon   —  Anthropic has raised more than $60 billion from over 200 “venture capital” investors, half of which came just last month. from Techmeme https://ift.tt/WCBFpbz
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Satellite images show the aftermath of airstrikes at Iran's drone bases, naval facilities, and radar systems

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Smoke rises from the Konarak naval facility in Iran. Satellite image ©2026 Vantor. New satellite imagery shows the aftermath of US and Israeli strikes across Iran. The images from Sunday show damage at drone bases, naval facilities, and radar systems. The US and Israel said they hit a range of targets from military sites to high-ranking officials. Newly captured satellite imagery shows destruction and damage to infrastructure at military installations across Iran after waves of US and Israeli airstrikes . The images, collected on Sunday by the US spatial intelligence firm Vantor and obtained by Business Insider, show that a wide range of targets have been struck since Saturday, including a drone base, a naval facility, and a radar system. The US involvement is more widespread than the brief round of American strikes in June 2025, which primarily targeted Iran's nuclear sites . In the southern coastal city of Konarak along the Gulf of Oman, the images reveal destroyed a...
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