Latest AI News
AI researchers continue to leave Google for its rivals
Top AI researchers Jonas Adler and Alexander Pritzel are leaving Google for Anthropic, according toBloomberg. Per the report, Adler and Pritzel played key roles in the development of Google’s Gemini model. TechCrunch reached out to Google for comment. These departures are part of a concerning trend for Google. Last week, legendary AI researcherNoam Shazeerannouncedthat he wasleaving Googlefor OpenAI. Shazeer had been at Google since 2000, save for the three years he spent building hiscontroversialchatbot startup, Character.AI (which Google effectively acqui-hired for $2.7 billion, in part to bring Shazeer back to work on Gemini). Just days after Shazeer made his announcement, Google DeepMind directorJohn Jumpersaid he was leaving Google for Anthropic. Alongside DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis, Jumper won the 2024Nobel Prize in Chemistryfor his work on AlphaFold, which can predict 3D protein structures from animo acid sequences. As OpenAI and Anthropicprepare to go public, this trend could continue — it’s a great time for the companies to recruit top AI talent with a promise of equity.
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AI was supposed to kill engineering jobs, but new data suggests they’re the most resilient
Whether AI is already replacing jobs is the subject of fierce debate. Tech layoffs hit theirhighest single monthtotal in years in May, and AI was the most-cited reason, according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Software engineering, in theory, is the professional field most vulnerable to automation, given the rapid adoption of AI-powered coding tools. However, researchers at venture firm SignalFire say the hiring data tells a different story. “The rationale given for lots of layoffs is consistently AI, and specifically they’ll say AI with respect to code; they’ll say one engineer could do the job of however many engineers in the past,” said Asher Bantock, SignalFire’s head of research. “What we’re seeing on the ground is a little inconsistent with that.” SignalFire’s analysis, which tracked the careers of millions of employees across more than 80 million companies, suggests that engineering was the most resilient job function in 2025. Instead of focusing on layoffs, which are difficult to track because people often delay updating their employment status after job cuts, SignalFire examined hiring data as a more accurate indicator of real-time workforce trends. While total hiring across large tech companies dropped 25% compared to 2019 levels, engineering roles saw a much smaller decline of just 11%, according to SignalFire’s latest “State of Talent Report.” In fact, engineers comprised 55% of all new hires in 2025 across the 12 companies SignalFire classifies as “Tech Majors” — Alphabet, Meta, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Netflix, Nvidia, Tesla, Uber, Airbnb, Block, and Stripe. This is a significant jump from 2019, when engineers represented only 46% of new recruits, according to the report. The continued need for engineers was even more evident at early-stage startups, which collectively brought on 7% more engineers in 2025 than they did in 2019, SignalFire’s data shows. If AI were truly substituting for engineering talent, Bantock argued, engineering hiring would be the first to fall amid the current tech hiring contraction. Instead, SignalFire’s data shows that engineering headcount is growing faster than most other job functions in tech. While Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei warned last year that AI couldwipe out halfof all entry-level white-collar jobs and push unemployment as high as 20% within five years, the company’s own head of economics, Peter McCrory,told TechCrunchin March that he had not yet seen any significant AI-driven effects on the workforce. Said McCrory at the time: “There’s at least no larger material difference in unemployment rates” between workers who use Claude for the “most central task of their job in automated ways” — like technical writers, data entry clerks, and software engineers — and workers in jobs less exposed to AI that require “physical interaction and dexterity with the real world.” Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang went further still, outright rejecting the theory that AI will replace engineers. “Somebody said that AI is going to destroy all of the software engineering jobs,” Huang said in aninterviewat the Stanford Graduate School of Business in April. He then argued the opposite is true. Now that all engineers at Nvidia are using agentic AI, “software engineers are busier than ever,” he said. Huang added that while agents are writing code near instantaneously, they are constantly pushing engineers to generate “the next idea.” For now at least, it seems that armed with AI, engineering has become a classic example of the Jevons paradox — the idea that greater efficiency doesn’t reduce demand for a resource; it increases it, because the work expands to fill the new capacity. As Bantock said of engineering talent in this moment: “They’re suddenly a lot more productive, and there’s endless work for them to do.”
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OpenAI unveils its first custom chip, built by Broadcom
On Wednesday, OpenAIunveiledits first custom-built inference processor, designed and manufactured in collaboration with Broadcom. Named Jalapeño, the new processor was designed specifically for the unique needs of OpenAI’s inference systems. OpenAI’s own AI models assisted in the development of the chip, the company said. While the chip is still being tested, OpenAI says early results show significantly better performance-per-watt than current state-of-the-art alternatives. The partnership wasofficially announced in October, but OpenAI’s chip plans havelong been rumoredas a way to reduce the company’s dependence on Nvidia’s GPUs.GoogleandAmazonhave both built custom chips to serve a similar purpose, often called “AI accelerators” — silicon designed specifically to speed up machine learning workloads. OpenAI president Greg Brockman explained the company’s approach to chip developmenton its in-house podcast, shortly after the Broadcom partnership was announced. “We have a deep understanding of the workload,” Brockman said in the episode. “We’ve really been looking for specific workloads that are underserved, [and asking] how can we build something that will be able to accelerate what’s possible?” Jalapeño is specifically designed for inference, the process of running pre-built AI models in response to user commands. In the announcement, OpenAI emphasized the chip’s low operating cost when running real-time coding models. It’s likely that more performance-intensive tasks like pre-training will still rely on Nvidia hardware, but even small reductions in inference costs could do a lot to improve the company’s bottom line. Optimizing that inference system may prove to be a crucial factor in the economics of AI going forward — and it’s likely to take place at every level of the stack. OpenAI is already building agentic products like Codex and the models that power them, as well as data centers to run those models. Moving into purpose-built chips lets the company go even further in that process, as the company explained in its announcement. “OpenAI is not only developing frontier models or building products on top of them; it is designing the infrastructure underneath them: chip architecture, kernels, memory systems, networking, scheduling, deployment systems, and product experience,” the company wrote. “Because OpenAI operates across the stack, each layer can be optimized around the same goal: making its models faster, more reliable, and more affordable for users.”
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Figma adds code layers, support for animations, more AI features in new update
Figma on Wednesday showed off an update that adds a new code layer, support for motion and shaders, and the ability to create custom plug-ins for various tasks using AI. The design platform has been working on bringing code integration into its tool for a while. Last year, it unveiled an AI prompt-based prototyping tool, Figma Make, and has since launched integrations withClaude Code and Codexto improve the hand-off between coding and design. The company is now adding code layers directly to the collaborative canvas, helping teams clone repositories and extract flows from code to design layers for testing. Figma’s chief product officer, Yuhki Yamashita, said code layers make it easier for designers, product managers, and programmers to iterate on ideas rather than focus on creating pristine code that goes into production. “We think the multiplayer canvas is really powerful because this is an environment where you don’t really care about the quality of the code. If you’re rapidly exploring or need to kind of explore a bunch of new directions, you can do that in this spatial way. We hope that this feature produces different behavior not just with designers, but also with engineers and PMs,” he said over a call. Figma now also supports animations, transitions, and 3D transforms. Previously, designers had to create animations in other software and convert it to code that the app could understand. Now designers can integrate animations and transitions directly into Figma. You can now use AI to create some of these assets, and the update is adding support for adding shader effects and fills using AI, too. Last year, Figmaacquired node-based tool Weavy, which helped designers run workflows through different models to compare outputs, and is now working to integrate the two apps better. In an update rolling out later in the year, users will be able to generate Weavy workflows directly within Figma. The company’s also adding new skills to makeits AI assistantmore useful with its collaborative canvas. Users can now write text prompts to create repeatable skills that AI agents can use. You can also connect tools like Notion, Granola, Excel, and GitHub, or attach files to give the AI bot more context about what you want it to do. The company is also adding a feature to help users create custom plug-ins, like layout generators or vector path tracers, with prompts.
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Agility Robotics plans to go public via SPAC in a $2.5B deal
Agility Robotics, the humanoid robotics startup that spun out of Oregon State University in 2015, plans to go public through a merger with special purpose acquisition company Churchill Capital Corp XI in a deal that values the company at roughly $2.5 billion. The transaction is expected to generate more than $620 million in proceeds, including about $200 million from a group of new and existing institutional investors,the company said. Agility is best known for Digit, a bipedal robot that is being used across nine customer sites, including with Schaeffler, GXO,Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada, and Mercado Libre. The company has enjoyed backing from high-profile tech companies and funds like Amazon, Nvidia, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, DCVC. Now it plans to use the capital raised in the SPAC merger to increase production capacity of its next-generation Digit v5, fulfill existing orders, and expand to new and existing customers. The company said it has secured more than $300 million in multi-year orders for the new model and a pipeline of more than 30 potential customers evaluating large-scale deployments. “Humanoid robots are poised to become a critical driver of productivity, supply chain resilience, and American technology leadership,” Agility CEO Peggy Johnson said in a statement. “With commercially deployed humanoids already operating in customer environments today, Agility is helping enterprises address labor shortages, improve efficiency, and safely integrate AI-powered automation into their operations.” The combined company is expected to trade under the ticker symbol AGLT on a North American stock exchange that has not yet been announced.
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Facebook rolls out an AI companion app for creators
Facebookannouncedon Wednesday that it’s reimagining its Creator Studio tool as a stand-alone AI companion app designed to help creators grow their audiences on the social network. By giving creators access to this AI companion app, Meta is looking to keep creators active on Facebook as it competes for their attention against rivals like TikTok and YouTube. The company also likely hopes that the app will eliminate the need for creators to turn to third-party tools like ChatGPT when brainstorming content ideas and analyzing performance. Thenew app, which is currently being tested with select creators, will have Facebook’s recently launchedAI creator assistantbuilt into it. The assistant provides creators with personalized recommendations based on their content style, performance, audience engagement, and goals. Creators often have to sift through charts and dashboards to understand their performance, but with the AI assistant, they can get quick answers to questions like “When should I post?” and “What are people saying in my comments?” Since the AI assistant is conversational, they can also ask follow-up questions, like how their audience has shifted over time. Beyond the built-in AI assistant, the Creator Studio app will include a set of several new features, such as an AI-powered comment tool that will help surface the most important comments and draft replies in the creator’s own tone. Creators can edit and approve the drafted replies before posting them, Facebook says. When creators open the app each day, they will see a feed of daily priorities: reviewing their newest post’s performance, tracking progress toward goals, and flagging comments in need of a reply. Wednesday’s announcement adds to Meta’s recent wave of app launches. Last month, the company rolled out a stand-alone app for Facebook Groups calledForumthat functions similarly to Reddit. In April, Meta launched anew app called Instantsthat lets users share disappearing photos with Instagram friends. The pipeline keeps growing.The New York Timesreported on Tuesday that Meta isbuilding its own Polymarket-like app, internally called “Arena,” though it has yet to launch. The cadence is deliberate.The Wall Street Journalreported in April that CEO Mark Zuckerberg told employees that AI-driven efficiencies would enable the company to build more apps than it has historically.
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Figma Unveils AI Agents and Code-Native Design Tools at Config 2026
Figma is repositioning its design canvas as a collaborative workspace for humans, code, and AI agents.
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OpenAI, Broadcom Unveil Custom Inference Chip Jalapeño for LLM Workloads
OpenAI claims Jalapeño went from design to manufacturing tape-out in nine months.
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Vishal Sikka Launches AI Startup Hang Ten Systems, Raises $32 Mn in Seed Funding
The startup is working with companies such as Siemens Gamesa and Fresenius to help enterprises build and run software using AI.
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Firefox Now Lets You Shake Your Android Phone to Summarise Websites
Mozilla introduced a new Shake to Summarize feature on Firefox for iOS last year, allowing users to get a summary of a webpage with a simple shake or tap gesture. Now, the browser maker is bringing a similar feature to users with Android devices. The latest Firefox version for Android includes a Page Summaries feature that can generate an overview of a webpage. This is useful for users dealing with lengthy articles to get key points without having to read the entire content. Users can manually enable or disable the feature through the browser's settings menu.
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3 days left to save up to $190 on your TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026 pass
You have just 3 days left to save up to $190 on your pass toTechCrunch Founder Summit 2026before Early Bird rates end on June 26 at 11:59 p.m. PT. Founders don’t scale alone. The fastest-growing startups learn from peers facing similar challenges, gain insights from operators who have done it before, and build relationships with investors who can help fuel their next stage of growth. On November 4 in Boston, more than 1,000 founders and investors will come together for a full day of tactical learning, candid conversations, and meaningful networking designed to help startups grow faster. Whether you’re raising capital, scaling revenue, hiring key talent, or planning your next major milestone, Founder Summit connects you with the people and strategies that can help move your company forward.Register for your pass here before prices increase. AtTechCrunch Founder Summit, connect with: Previous sessions have explored topics such as: Previous speakers have included leaders from Tesla, Sapphire Ventures, Index Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Greylock, NFX, Wing Venture Capital, and more. Additional 2026 speakers will be announced on theevent pagesoon. Interested in leading the conversation?Submit a topicfor a breakout or roundtable session for a chance to be voted onto the agenda by the TechCrunch audience. Join 1,000+ founders and investors in Boston on November 4for a day of actionable insights, valuable connections, and conversations that can help shape your company’s future.Register by June 26 at 11:59 p.m. PTto save up to $190 on your pass. Groups of four or more can save up to 30%. Interested in exhibiting at TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026?Reserve your exhibit tableand connect directly with founders, investors, and startup decision-makers.
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Akaike Technologies Certified as a Best Firm for AI Professionals
The company has positioned itself as a provider of multi-modal AI solutions, plug-and-play products and custom services designed to make AI accessible, effective, and scalable for enterprises.
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