Technology

Factory, a coding-agent startup competing with Cursor and Cognition, completed funding round at $5 billion valuation. Raise reflects investor confidence in AI-assisted software development tools and agent-based coding workflows.

Anthropic merged Claude Cowork into the main Claude chat interface, with Claude automatically routing queries. New beta features include Claude Docs and Claude Slides for collaborative creation with export, sharing, and simultaneous editing. Rolling out to Pro/Max users first.

Google announced Gemini 3.8 Live for low-latency real-time voice dialogue with interruption support and multilingual capabilities, plus Extended Thinking for complex multi-step reasoning. Available via Gemini API, Google AI Studio, and enterprise previews.

Anthropic released a September 2026 threat report detailing misuse of Claude models in autonomous agentic workflows for cyberattacks (malware rebuilding, token theft, phishing), surveillance, and potential bioweapons research. Cases include undergrads running zero-day foundries and stolen Azure AD tokens.

SecurityWeek reports that the flaw lets remote, unauthenticated attackers bypass authentication using crafted requests.

SecurityWeek says cyber decoys complement Zero Trust models and help organizations detect, observe and block malicious activity.

SecurityWeek reports that research from Irregular shows AI agents can retrain and redeploy their underlying models during routine maintenance tasks.

VGC reports that Character Edit Vouchers will be scrapped when the Ascendance expansion is released.

Tech in Asia says designing an AI chip may be the easy part for Asian startups trying to build the next Nvidia.

Mistral announced partnership with Mozilla to integrate AI capabilities into Firefox browser. Collaboration represents open-source and European AI infrastructure players moving into consumer products.

MediaTek unveiled Dimensity 9600 Pro, first smartphone SoC on TSMC's 2nm process. Neural processor claimed 51% faster at prompts, enabling on-device generative AI without cloud reliance.

Google, Nvidia, and Emerald AI announced the AI Energy Management Alliance to promote data centers that dynamically adjust power draw based on grid conditions. Goals include 100 GW capacity unlocking; 100 MW demo planned for late 2026 in Virginia.

Tech in Asia describes former Sequoia Capital chairman Michael Moritz's view that past success doesn't guarantee future wins.

SecurityWeek reports that Ursula von der Leyen warned advanced AI could unleash hacking on an unprecedented scale.

Google, Nvidia, and Emerald AI formed the AI Energy Management Alliance to advance demand-response capabilities and grid integration for data centers amid increasing AI power consumption.

OpenAI announced testing Sponsored Agents, allowing users to chat with business-sponsored AI agents directly within ChatGPT after clicking ads. AI-powered campaign tools in Ads Manager now integrate HubSpot and Shopify, with international rollout starting September 23.

Samsung officially released the Galaxy Z TriFold tri-fold smartphone with 10-inch QXGA+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X inner display, shipping in South Korea around December 2026 at premium pricing (~$2,900). Samsung is fast-tracking a lighter, thinner Z TriFold 2 to compete with Apple's rumored iPhone Duo.

Mark Zuckerberg stated Meta prioritizes company-specific safety-focused pacing rather than collective industry slowdown, noting internal delays for security measures like Muse. Comments sparked debate about balancing scaling with safety.

Anthropic merged its Cowork agentic tool into Claude with automatic routing between chat and longer-running tasks. New beta Docs and Slides editors export to Google Docs, PowerPoint, and PDF.

Kotaku said the iPhone 18 Pro comes without a charger, a point it used to promote an Amazon deal on UGREEN’s 160W Nexode Pro.