American computer scientist and tech billionaire, co-founder of Google and Alphabet
Two large budgets face significant cuts: Long Beach plans layoffs and service reductions, while New York City’s school district avoids broad cuts by offsetting deficits with state funds and debt management measures.
Google has reorganised its AI leadership: Demis Hassabis has stepped back from day-to-day running of DeepMind to become its chair and Alphabet chief scientist, and Koray Kavukcuoglu has been promoted to senior vice-president to run Google DeepMind. Several senior engineers, including Jeff Dean and Sanjay Ghemawat, have left to launch a new startup; Alphabet shares have fallen.
Vogue World will host its next edition in San Francisco, signaling a shift in the fashion world’s geographic focus toward the tech hub on the West Coast. Anna Wintour has praised the city’s creative communities and resilience, while city leaders emphasize the event’s potential to boost cultural and economic vitality.
Anthropic is aiming for a public listing this fall after surging run-rate revenue and multi-billion-dollar computing partnerships. Investors are weighing regulatory and safety concerns as competition with OpenAI and Chinese peers intensifies, with Anthropic signaling gains in Claude Code and Mythos while market sentiment remains volatile.
Berkshire Hathaway has expanded its Alphabet stake and outlines how it plans to use energy assets to support hyperscale computing, while facing renewed community resistance to data-centre projects. Abel says Berkshire will sell energy to AI customers only if it wouldn’t raise costs for other customers, and Buffett’s Alphabet investment continues to loom large as AI reshapes the portfolio.
Meta is rolling out an audio-focused variant of its Ray-Ban smart glasses, aiming to calm privacy concerns while preserving AI features. The move follows backlash to camera-equipped models and signals a broader shift toward user consent and non-visual interfaces.
Three deaths at Burning Man this year have intensified scrutiny of the festival’s aging attendee base and safety measures as the event, drawing roughly 70,000 participants, continues to evolve from its countercultural roots.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has placed President Trump on speaker during a tech conference conversation with All-In podcast hosts and defended continued data centre and AI development. Trump has warned against what he called efforts to block data-centre construction and has pledged support for the industry, while polling shows strong local opposition to new data centres over environmental and cost concerns.
The upcoming US-China talks are focusing on artificial intelligence safety and governance as leaders consider dialogue mechanisms and potential safety standards, with a chorus of tech executives weighing in on how to pace AI development.
States are debating and enacting taxes on high earners amid a broader shift in tax policy. Massachusetts has already seen revenue from a millionaire tax, while California and other states consider or challenge wealth taxes. Ballot measures in November could reshape where high earners live and how much they pay.
Presidents has awarded the National Medal of Science and Technology to Elon Musk, Jensen Huang, Sergey Brin, Lisa Su, Michael Dell, and Satya Nadella, in a ceremony linked to the Science: A New Golden Age Summit. The White House frames the award as a boost to America’s leadership in science and tech amid ongoing AI policy discussions.
The administration has stepped up its stance on immigration in response to AI-fueled growth, with officials targeting PERM abuses while highlighting the need for U.S. talent. Microsoft faces scrutiny over H-1B use as industry leaders are lauded at a White House event.
The administration has suspended Microsoft, Adobe and other firms from the Perm visa program, citing abuses as it presses for American job protection. Officials say the move will push sponsors to hire Americans and strengthen domestic workforces while risking talent shortages in tech.
The United Airlines chief executive has publicly backed a nationwide wealth tax and higher inheritance taxes, saying they are necessary to address wealth inequality. He has defended airline pricing practices, arguing fares reflect service value, and notes prices remain below 2019 levels after inflation. The remarks come as California contemplates a billionaire tax and as other tech leaders weigh in on tax policy.
Meta has created a new class of non‑voting Class C shares and agreed a deal with Mark Zuckerberg that will let him sell a portion of those shares to cover a potential California one‑time billionaire tax (Proposition 40) without losing voting control. The company has said the move will also raise capital for AI investment and keep Zuckerberg working near Meta's headquarters.
The president has floated renaming major bodies of water and asked Google Maps to handle the changes; Google reportedly rejects the plan, citing governance across many countries. Earlier talks touched Gulf and Lake Ontario renamings, with mixed uptake and ongoing mapping tensions.
Voters are weighing Proposition 3 and Proposition 40 in California’s November ballot. Prop 3 would permanently lock in top-earner tax rates, while Prop 40 seeks a one-time 5% wealth tax on billionaires to fund healthcare. Polls show narrowing margins and sharp partisan divides as campaigns mobilize around education funding and fiscal priorities.
Prop. 40 would tax net worth over $1 billion to fund healthcare, but opposition argues it would trigger a billionaire exodus and threaten retirement accounts; Prop. 41/42 and a rival measure challenge the plan as polls show narrowing support.