Also known as: Google-owner Alphabet · Google parent
Alphabet — parent company of Google; faced EU antitrust fines and negative free cash flow from AI infrastructure spending in 2026.
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Joy Online
Barret Zoph, a co-founder of artificial intelligence startup Thinking Machines Lab, will join Alphabet-owned unit Google DeepMind, Zoph said on Wednesday. …
Thinking Machines Lab co-founder Barret Zoph joins GoogleJoy Online
… A MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS Meta, Snapchat and its parent Snap Inc, YouTube and its parent Alphabet, and TikTok and its parent ByteDance still face thousands of lawsuits in federal and state courts over claims they knowingly designed their platforms to have features that are addicti …
Meta settles with US states over social media harmsJoy Online
… Jurors in that case found Meta and Alphabet’s Google negligent in designing their platforms, and ordered them to pay $6 million to a 20-year-old woman who said she became addicted to Instagram and YouTube as a child. …
Instagram head Mosseri, at children’s addiction trial, says few teenagers knew of safety featureJoy Online
Alphabet’s Google launched Gemini 3.7 Flash on Thursday, its latest AI model designed for software coding and automated business tasks, but offered no details on when its flagship Pro model will be released. …
Google unveils Gemini 3.7 Flash AI model for coding, agent workflowsJoy Online
… By contrast, the leading models from U.S. developers OpenAI, Anthropic and Alphabet’s Google are closed-weight. …
Meta launches new AI model as Zuckerberg champions open-weight pushJoy Online
A U.S. appeals court on Monday allowed thousands of lawsuits to move forward against Meta Platforms, Alphabet’s, Google, ByteDance’s TikTok and Snap Inc’s, Snapchat over claims they designed their products to be addictive to young users. …
US court rules Meta, other tech firms must face thousands of lawsuits over social media addictionJoy Online
… to thwart the “radical left’s agenda” and remains committed to preserving Republican majorities in Congress. A White House official said the administration is “prepared to respond to oversight requests, no matter who is in the House or Senate.” Three sources said Apple Alphabet …
Democrats plan Trump investigations over impeachment if they win House, sources sayJoy Online
… Having already absorbed billions of dollars in EU fines since 2017, Alphabet’s search giant is now facing lawsuits from smaller rivals across Europe, according to half a dozen lawyers and litigation financiers, and a tally of cases filed in half a dozen countries. …
Google rivals line up seeking damages after record $1 billion EU fineJoy Online
… Apple’s stock has gained about 25% so far this year, outperforming other so-called “Magnificent 7” technology companies including Nvidia, Meta, Alphabet and Microsoft. …
Apple briefly tops $5 trillion market value for first timeJoy Online
Google parent Alphabet saw its business continue to grow in recent months, yet rising spending on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure pushed its free cash flow into negative territory. …
Google burning through cash with spiralling AI costsBarret Zoph, co-founder of artificial intelligence startup Thinking Machines Lab, is joining Google DeepMind as Vice President of Research, following prior roles at OpenAI and Google Brain. The move is part of ongoing organisational changes at DeepMind, including CEO Dennis Hassabis stepping aside and teams shifting between DeepMind and corporate Google.
27 August 2026 · Joy Online →
Barret Zoph, co-founder of artificial intelligence startup Thinking Machines Lab, is joining Google DeepMind as Vice President of Research, following prior roles at OpenAI and Google Brain. The move is part of ongoing organisational changes at DeepMind, including CEO Dennis Hassabis stepping aside and teams shifting between DeepMind and corporate Google.
27 August 2026 · Joy Online →
Meta Platforms has settled claims brought by 29 states that the company designed Instagram and Facebook to addict children, misled consumers about safety, and improperly collected personal data from child users without parental consent. The settlement was reached during a federal court trial in California, averting what would have been a major test of allegations that social media companies harmed young users.
26 August 2026 · Joy Online →
Adam Mosseri, Instagram's head since 2018, testified in a trial brought by 29 U.S. states over alleged addictive design that few teenagers — in the low-single digits — used the "Take a Break" feature before Instagram made it the default setting in September 2024, nearly three years after its launch. Mosseri acknowledged the feature was available to users but said most teens didn't want it before being made mandatory.
26 August 2026 · Joy Online →
Alphabet's Google launched Gemini 3.7 Flash, an AI model designed for software coding and automated business workflows, at introductory pricing of 75 cents per million input tokens through the end of the year. The model shows improved performance on coding tasks and is available to Gemini Pro and Ultra customers in over 160 countries.
14 August 2026 · Joy Online →
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg released a new open-weight AI model called Muse Glimmer designed to run on personal computers with a single graphics card, and announced larger models are coming soon. Zuckerberg argued for lower U.S. barriers to open-source AI to compete with Chinese rivals, championing AI distribution over concentrated corporate control.
11 August 2026 · Joy Online →
A U.S. appeals court rejected appeals by Meta and TikTok seeking to overturn a lower court ruling requiring them to face more than 3,000 lawsuits alleging the companies designed their products to be addictive to young users. The court ruled that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act provides a defense to liability rather than immunity from lawsuits, making the appeal premature.
11 August 2026 · Joy Online →
U.S. House Democrats are developing an investigative strategy targeting companies and financial firms surrounding President Trump, using hearings, subpoenas, and document requests rather than pursuing immediate impeachment. Democrats say this approach, informed by lessons from Trump's first term, aims to build evidence of whether Trump used his power to benefit himself, allies, or donors.
8 August 2026 · Joy Online →
Following a record €1 billion EU fine under the Digital Markets Act for favouring its own services and blocking cheaper alternatives, Google is facing lawsuits from smaller rivals across Europe seeking up to $10 billion in damages. A Berlin court awarded the price comparison platform Idealo €465 million in damages, and lawyers expect the ruling will trigger further litigation.
29 July 2026 · Joy Online →
Apple's market capitalisation briefly surpassed $5 trillion for the first time on Tuesday, becoming only the second company ever to achieve that milestone after Nvidia. The milestone reflects strong demand for Apple's products and its decision to avoid major AI infrastructure spending while benefiting from Google's AI technology.
29 July 2026 · Joy Online →
Alphabet recorded negative free cash flow of $5.9bn in recent months for the first time in at least a decade, driven by spiralling capital expenditures on artificial intelligence infrastructure expected to hit $205bn this year. Despite combined quarterly revenue rising 23% to $119.8bn, the company's stock fell 4% as spending on AI servers and data centres continues to accelerate.
23 July 2026 · Joy Online →
Alphabet faces investor scrutiny over a delayed launch of its Gemini 3.5 Pro model and concerns about returns on massive data-centre spending, though the company posted blockbuster cloud sales growth. The company has increased 2026 capital expenditure guidance to between $180 billion and $190 billion and announced plans to raise about $85 billion in equity offerings.
22 July 2026 · Joy Online →
A federal judge in San Francisco approved Anthropic's $1.5 billion settlement of a class action copyright lawsuit brought by authors who accused the AI company of misusing their books to train Claude. The settlement is the largest known settlement of a U.S. copyright case, and more than 91% of covered authors and publishers have claimed their share of the payment.
21 July 2026 · Joy Online →
A reconciliation committee of France's Parliament approved a bill to ban social media access for those under 15, with French President Macron seeking implementation by early September. The measure follows Australia's ban for under-16s and comes as European Commission President Von der Leyen has supported similar limits across the EU.
21 July 2026 · Joy Online →
Europe's top court has dismissed Google's appeal and upheld a €4.1bn fine imposed by the European Commission for using Android to block rivals through practices including requiring pre-installation of Google Search and Chrome, making exclusive payments to manufacturers, and preventing sales of alternative Android versions.
2 July 2026 · Joy Online →
A U.S. appeals court in Cincinnati ruled that Ohio can enforce a law requiring social media platforms including Instagram to obtain parental consent before allowing children under 16 to use their services, overturning a lower-court block and finding the law does not violate First Amendment protections.
18 June 2026 · Joy Online →
SpaceX has agreed to buy AI coding start-up Cursor (Anysphere) for $60 billion days after its own record IPO on Nasdaq, which valued the rocket company at over $2 trillion. The acquisition follows a partnership agreement from April that gave SpaceX the option to either buy Cursor for $60 billion or pay $10 billion for work completed together.
16 June 2026 · Joy Online →
Florida's attorney general filed a lawsuit claiming TikTok violated the state's law barring social media platforms from allowing children under age 14 to create accounts, alleging the platform allows underage users access and misrepresents exposure to violent or sexual content. TikTok says it is complying with the law and suspending accounts of users under 14 in Florida.
16 June 2026 · Joy Online →
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced plans to ban social media sites such as TikTok, Snapchat, and Instagram for under-16s, with restrictions on gaming and livestreaming platforms where children can contact strangers. The government expects regulation by year-end and enforcement around spring.
15 June 2026 · The Chronicle →
SpaceX, owned by Elon Musk and private investors, has launched an initial public offering with shares trading on the stock market as of Friday, raising at least $75bn at $135 per share. The company, which operates in space exploration, satellite communication, and AI ventures, plans to use the capital to expand current activities and fund new ventures including asteroid mining, Mars colonisation, and space-based AI data centres.
12 June 2026 · Joy Online →
SpaceX raised a record $75 billion in its initial public offering on Thursday. Following the share sale, Elon Musk's net worth surpassed $1 trillion, making him the world's first trillionaire.
12 June 2026 · Joy Online →
Elon Musk's SpaceX has announced a suggested share price of $135 in advance of its planned initial public offering, valuing the company at approximately $1.75tn and aiming to raise $75bn—which would be a record for an IPO if achieved.
4 June 2026 · Joy Online →
Elon Musk's SpaceX said its shares should go for $135 each in an SEC filing, setting its valuation at roughly $1.75tn as it approaches an initial public offering set for next week. The move is unusual, as companies typically only share an estimated share price the day before trading begins.
3 June 2026 · Joy Online →
Google has appealed a federal judge's 2024 ruling that found the company held illegal monopolies in online search and related advertising, arguing the judge made legal errors and that its market dominance resulted from developing a superior search engine rather than anticompetitive conduct. The ruling had ordered Google to share some search data with competitors to restore competition.
25 May 2026 · Joy Online →
SpaceX's xAI startup, which promises to capture a portion of a multi-trillion-dollar AI market, has seen its Grok chatbot flop with U.S. government customers. Federal inventory records show only three instances of xAI or Grok use among over 400 publicly identified government AI deployments, compared to 234 involving OpenAI's models, 33 involving Alphabet products, and 26 involving Anthropic's Claude.
25 May 2026 · Joy Online →
Meta's stock dropped 7% after the company announced plans to spend billions more on AI projects than initially planned, while investors express anxiety about whether massive AI investments by big tech firms will deliver returns. The four largest US tech companies are spending more than $650bn on AI this year, though Google, Microsoft, and Amazon showed better investor reception by demonstrating early payoffs from their AI spending.
30 April 2026 · Joy Online →