Damian Pickett · No. 28
Thursday 1 October 2026
Google is marketing the new model as a workhorse for coding and cybersecurity work, its latest move in the AI race.
A federal judge approved the antitrust settlement clearing Paramount’s merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, now expected to close as early as 6 October.
Daring Fireball’s John Gruber floated 13 October as the date Apple may hand iPhone Duo review units to press, and other reports now back it up. It is a report, not a confirmed date.
Read · Lenny's Newsletter
Runway, Higgsfield, Waking Up, Brain.fm, Customer.io, Resend, Pangram, Mercury Personal, Supercut, Readwise, and Jam are joining Product Pass today, all included with Annual and Insider memberships
A look at how Lenny turned free products into a growth lever, timely on a day full of product launches and funding rounds.
Listen · Founders
Agassi’s obsession with reinvention pairs well with Tatum’s leadership leap at Celtics camp this week.
Listen · David Senra
New this week: Taubman on deploying AI inside real-world service businesses, a useful counterpoint to today’s AI funding news.
Listen · Acquired
A look back at the quant pioneers who treated markets as a data problem, long before today’s AI boom.
A $300 million employee tender, co-led by Wellington and T. Rowe Price, values the voice AI company at $22bn, twice its previous mark.
The startup brings AI agents to hardware design and has added Sequoia’s Roelof Botha as an angel investor and board member.
DeepMind’s proof of concept watermarks AI-generated proteins while preserving their biological function, aimed at tracking synthetic biology safely.
The agent lets US customers order food by text message, as DoorDash looks to gain an edge over Uber Eats and Grubhub.
The partnership expands hands-on AI training and local support for small business owners, alongside a new report on how small teams use the technology.
The new BMW 3 Series shows how quickly EV prices have caught up with, and now undercut, the petrol version.
It is Harbinger’s biggest order yet, as the electric truck startup reportedly considers an IPO.
The small digital camera pairs software filters with tactile controls, making it easy to pull images onto a phone.
The machine automates the pour-over process start to finish, though you still need to buy your own beans.
DoorDash unveiled the six-propeller aircraft for its new drone delivery business at its annual Dash Forward event.
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports the hub will feature a square six-inch display and a design echoing the old iMac G4, as part of Apple’s smart home push.
The next iPad mini is expected to bring Apple’s A20 Pro chip, a landscape front camera and a redesigned speaker system, among other changes.
Apple’s M6 chip debuted last week in the Mac mini, and more M6 upgrades, including an M6 iPad Pro, are expected to follow on a rolling schedule.
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman says Apple remains committed to eventually updating its larger HomePod, though no timeline was given.
The director of Fight Club, The Social Network and Gone Girl is not renewing his pact at Netflix when it expires next year.
Neon’s anthology, built from the community-driven horror forum, will let emerging filmmakers contribute and release under a Creative Commons licence, countering A24’s own SCP Foundation project.
The actor-director did not specify how AI was used in the film.
A decade after becoming a Grammy-nominated musician, Halsey talks about moving behind the camera with one of the year’s more provocative independent films.
Tatum organised workouts in Los Angeles last month that many teammates attended, getting a head start on chemistry with a new-look roster.
The pair dribble up the court together at the start of practice, with Conley guiding Pritchard toward the basket as camp gets under way.
The author discusses previously unheard recordings that inspired his new book about Sir Alex Ferguson’s time at Manchester United.
New England, 1-2 after a 35-6 defeat to Jacksonville, face a pivotal divisional game against an unbeaten Buffalo side.
Both Christian Gonzalez and Christian Barmore sat out Wednesday’s session in Foxborough as New England prepares to face an unbeaten Buffalo team.
Esteban Ocon is fighting to save his Formula 1 career after Haas announced the split, effective at the end of the season.
Honda Racing Corporation’s Koji Watanabe revealed the second ADUO upgrade was actually introduced as early as the Spanish Grand Prix.
George Russell cut Kimi Antonelli’s championship lead from 81 points to 66 at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, prompting Mercedes boss Toto Wolff to acknowledge tougher strategy calls ahead.
New York outscored Boston 18-2 across the Wild Card series, sweeping the Red Sox out of the playoffs for the second year running.
The site maps years of long walks with GPS tracks and links to the essays and books that resulted from them.