City of the Santa Clara Valley, California’s largest in state
Figure AI has been livestreaming humanoid robots performing long-shift package sorting at its San Jose HQ. A groundbreaking 10-hour contest has ended with human intern Aimé Gérard sorting more packages than a robot rival, 12,924 to 12,732, highlighting both progress and remaining gaps in autonomous labor.
Anthropic has faced export-control action that blocks access to its Mythos 5 and Fable 5 models for foreign nationals. Governments cite national security; industry weighs safety, regulation, and global impact as the dispute unfolds with talks between Anthropic and the White House.
NFL star Aldon Smith has died after delivering pizzas for a homeless charity in the San Francisco Bay Area. Attorneys say his brain will be examined for CTE as part of ongoing family-initiated investigations into the death.
China has placed 10 US companies, including rare‑earth producers MP Materials and USA Rare Earth, on its export control list and has barred Chinese government procurement from 46 US firms. Beijing has said the moves respond to a recent Pentagon blacklist of Chinese companies and has ordered immediate suspension of Chinese-origin dual‑use exports to the named firms.
The Supreme Court has ruled that American courts are not the proper venue for Falun Gong plaintiffs' lawsuits regarding Cisco’s alleged China-linked activities, under ATS and TVPA. The decision narrows the reach of U.S. courts over foreign-government conduct and could shield companies from certain international-law claims.
Alibaba has filed a federal lawsuit arguing that the DoD’s 1260H designation labeling it a Chinese military-society link is baseless. The suit seeks removal from the list and challenges the process as unfair. Several other Chinese firms face similar actions as the government moves to tighten tech controls amid U.S.-China tensions.
Federal regulators have issued a directive to autonomous vehicle developers demanding solutions after documenting multiple driverless cars entering or blocking emergency scenes. Separately, Waymo has alerted San Mateo police after a robotaxi reported two 15‑year‑olds drinking and firing Orbeez; officers have removed the teens and requested cabin video. California agencies are also pausing approval for Waymos new Ojai paid service while they review safety and underage‑riding controls.
Apple has filed a federal lawsuit in California accusing OpenAI, its hardware arm io Products and two former Apple engineers of misappropriating confidential designs, supplier data and manufacturing techniques to speed OpenAI’s hardware push. Apple is asking the court to block OpenAI from using the materials, to preserve and return evidence, and to award damages.