× + newsletter-2026-07-13
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// Tech news at terminal velocity

cat 2026-07-13.md

The Apple Car's Ghost & The $1T AI Bluff

$ cat TLDR.md

• Apple's dead $10B car project secretly birthed the chips powering Apple Intelligence.

• The creator of Zig calls out Anthropic's 'end of coding' narrative as a trillion-dollar bluff.

• Oura drops the Ring 5, proving that sometimes the best upgrade is just making things thinner.

Headlines & Launches

🚗 Apple's $10B Car Project Birthed Apple Intelligence

Apple's decade-long, $10 billion autonomous vehicle boondoggle wasn't a total waste. It turns out the intense need for on-device processing for the car laid the architectural groundwork for the chips now powering Apple Intelligence.

Source: Digital Trends

💍 Oura Ring 5: Thinner, Lighter, Same Vibe

The Oura Ring 5 is officially here, boasting a slimmer profile and redesigned optical sensors. It's a fantastic entry point for newcomers, but if you're rocking a Ring 4, you can probably keep your wallet in your pocket.

Source: The Verge

🗺️ Waze Gets a Gemini AI Makeover

Google is injecting Gemini into Waze, because apparently, we need conversational AI while navigating traffic. The update promises more personalized trips and natural voice commands so you can finally argue with your GPS in plain English.

Source: The Verge

🇪🇺 EU Weighs Sweeping Social Media Bans for Teens

The European Union is considering strict new rules that could include age limits or outright bans on social media for teenagers. Platforms might soon have to prove they aren't harmful before letting the youth doomscroll.

Source: The Verge

Deep Dives

♠️ Anthropic's $1 Trillion Bluff

The creator of Zig isn't buying Anthropic's narrative that AI will end software engineering. In a scathing critique, they argue that Anthropic is actively campaigning against coding simply to justify their massive $132B funding and hypothetical $1T IPO valuation. It's a classic case of selling a sci-fi future to appease the C-suite.

Source: Ray Myers

Engineering & Research

Quadrupling Performance with a 'Useless' If Statement

A developer optimizing a domain-specific compressor discovered that adding a seemingly pointless `if` statement actually quadrupled performance. By formalizing a hidden branch, it allowed the CPU's branch prediction to parallelize operations that were previously bottlenecked.

Source: purplesyringa.moe

🔌 WhatCable: The Mac App for USB-C Mysteries

Tired of guessing why your external drive is transferring at a snail's pace? WhatCable is a free Mac utility that analyzes your USB-C and Thunderbolt connections, revealing the actual speeds and power delivery your cables are capable of.

Source: The Verge

Odds & Ends

🕶️ Lorde is Not Impressed by Meta's Smart Glasses

During a festival set in Madrid, Lorde took a moment to publicly declare that AI glasses are 'not sexy.' Mark Zuckerberg's fashion pivot might need a little more work.

Source: The Verge

💰 Berkshire's $397B Bet Against the Market

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway is sitting on a massive $397 billion cash pile, effectively betting against an overheated market. When the Oracle of Omaha hoards cash, it might be time to check your portfolio.

Source: Disruption Banking

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