OpenAI just built its own storage layer.

The Frontier

Science & tech breakthroughs in AI models, hardware, and computing that define what's possible

OpenAI scales storage for more than 1 billion ChatGPT users. OpenAI says its Habitat online storage platform now handles more than 70 million requests per second across nearly 40 geographic regions. The Python-based system supports OpenAI products used by more than 1 billion people weekly and has expanded significantly since its initial GPTs deployment at DevDay 2023.

OpenAI’s 70 million-rps, 40-region Habitat is foundational product infrastructure, making scale a competitive capability—not a back-office upgrade. Watch within 12 months for Habitat’s use beyond its initial GPTs deployment in additional OpenAI products.

Openai

The Department of Energy backs open AI models for science. The U.S. Department of Energy is supporting open AI models for scientific work through a Genesis Mission partnership involving national laboratories and an AI startup. The effort aims to develop a model that can automate parts of large-scale scientific research.

Department of Energy’s Genesis Mission is a real test of open science AI only if its national-laboratory partnership publicly demonstrates a model automating a defined part of large-scale research; the test is whether that evidence emerges.

Science.org

Cohere launches North Small Translate. Cohere released North Small Translate, a 218-billion-parameter mixture-of-experts translation model with 25 billion active parameters. It supports 50 languages, scored 83.6 on WMT26, and is available through Cohere’s API or for noncommercial self-hosting.

Cohere turns top-tier translation from cloud lock-in to downloadable infrastructure by open-weighting a 218B-parameter MoE. Only 25B parameters run per token yet it posts 83.6 WMT26, overtaking Google and DeepL across 50 languages. Watch enterprise RFPs slash paid API spend in 2027 as on-prem installs mature.

Marktechpost

Model Developments

Latest AI model releases, capabilities, and technical breakthroughs shaping the competitive landscape

Cognition uses GPT-6 Astra to help Devin test its work. Cognition says it is using OpenAI’s GPT-6 Astra across Devin to improve the autonomous software engineer’s ability to test code and show that completed work functions as intended. The capability is designed to reduce code-review burden as engineering teams produce more software.

Cognition is tying Devin’s value to GPT-6 Astra-backed testing, not just code generation: it says completed work can be shown to function across Devin. The test is whether that evidence reduces code-review burden.

Openai

Hackers used Claude to extract secrets from 1.8 million Android apps. Anthropic says financially motivated groups and state-linked espionage groups associated with Russia and China attempted to misuse Claude for malicious activity. In one large-scale operation, attackers used the model to extract secrets from 1.8 million Android applications.

Anthropic’s safeguards failed to prevent industrial-scale misuse: Claude enabled secrets extraction from 1.8 million Android apps. Watch for a year-end disclosure on whether it blocked a comparable repeat campaign by financially motivated or Russia- and China-linked groups.

Bleepingcomputer

Capital & Control

Tracking the flow of capital and influence that shapes the tech landscape

CIBC commits $2 billion to smaller defence and dual-use businesses. CIBC has committed $2 billion over five years to finance Canadian small and medium-sized businesses operating in defence and dual-use markets. The program targets companies developing infrastructure, energy, cybersecurity, digital capabilities and other advanced technologies.

CIBC has created a $2B, five-year financing program for Canadian defence and dual-use SMEs. Its credibility now turns on whether CIBC identifies financed businesses or transactions during that period.

Betakit

Canada tracks capital commitments ahead of Carney’s investment summit. Canada’s Investment Summit will bring 100 major institutional investors to Toronto as the government seeks to catalyze $1 trillion in investment over five years. Canadian banks, pension funds and asset managers have already announced more than $100 billion in prospective domestic commitments over the next decade, including RBC’s US$1 billion growth fund for scaling Canadian technology companies.

RBC’s $1B tech fund and CIBC’s $2B defence pledge are pre-emptive home-field plays before Carney courts the $1T of foreign dry powder. At <1% of that target, the banks trade capital for policy sway and first dibs on AI-energy buildouts. Next tell: if CPP or OTPP write $10B+ checks by Q1, control stays domestic.

Betakit

Infrastructure & Power

The physical backbone of AI: compute, data centers, supply chains, and the geopolitics of energy

Judge rejects Trump’s forced coal-plant extension. A federal judge ruled that the Trump administration’s use of emergency authority to require a coal-fired power plant to remain open was contrary to the governing statute. It is the first court ruling on the Department of Energy’s effort to use emergency powers to delay scheduled coal-plant retirements.

600MW—12% of the ~5GW of U.S. grid spare capacity through 2026—cannot be treated as firm AI-site headroom after a judge rejected DOE’s emergency coal-plant extension. Watch whether transmission delays force competition for the remaining capacity by 2026.

Ars Technica

Digital Defense

Threats and defenses shaping the global security landscape

Artifactory flaws are being chained to deploy backdoor malware. Threat actors are exploiting critical and high-severity vulnerabilities in self-hosted JFrog Artifactory servers. The attacks chain authentication-bypass and privilege-escalation flaws to gain administrative access and deploy a Rust-based backdoor.

JFrog Artifactory compromises are likely to move from server control to package tampering: actors already have admin access and a Rust backdoor. The test is whether reviews in the coming days uncover altered trusted packages.

Bleepingcomputer

The Performance Edge

Peak performance science for sustained execution in high-stakes environments

Common blood thinners cut major risks by 69% in atrial fibrillation trial. The randomized SINGLE-AF trial found that direct oral anticoagulants reduced the two-year composite risk of stroke, systemic embolism, major bleeding or cardiovascular death by 69% versus no anticoagulation in atrial-fibrillation patients at intermediate stroke risk. The trial adds randomized evidence for a group that has often fallen below standard thresholds for anticoagulant treatment.

69% reduction versus no anticoagulation in the two-year composite of stroke, systemic embolism, major bleeding or cardiovascular death makes a strong case to revisit thresholds for intermediate-risk AF. The test over the next two years is whether this evidence changes practice.

Scitechdaily

Crypto & Digital Assets

Bitcoin, Ethereum, DeFi protocols, and digital asset market dynamics

Minnesota becomes a front line in the prediction-market fight. Minnesota became the first U.S. state to enact a law banning prediction-market platforms Kalshi and Polymarket. A lawsuit brought by a federal agency could set an important precedent over whether federal commodities regulation preempts state restrictions on event-contract trading.

Kalshi and Polymarket’s Minnesota fight could establish that federal commodities rules override state bans on event-contract trading. Watch for the federal agency’s next ruling—or no ruling—by the end of 2026.

New York Times

Market Pulse

Daily market data: indices, sectors, top movers, and volatility

Markets are closed for the weekend. U.S. equity markets are closed for the weekend. The next market update arrives Monday at 6:30 a.m. Pacific, when the NYSE opening bell rings.

NYSE’s Monday 6:30 a.m. Pacific opening sets the next point at which U.S. equity conditions can be assessed after the weekend closure.

Muninn