Washington is opening a new front in its technology contest with China, moving beyond chips and artificial intelligence models to target humanoid robots and other autonomous systems over national security and data privacy concerns.
Stripe is in talks to acquire AI model-routing startup OpenRouter in a deal that could value the company at around US$10 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal, which cited people familiar with the matter. The report said an agreement could be announced soon, although negotiations could still collapse or another bidder could emerge. The acquisition would significantly expand Stripe's ambitions beyond payments into AI infrastructure.
For the past three years, large language model (LLM) development has moved along the same track: models have gotten bigger, parameter counts have climbed, reasoning has improved, AI agents have matured, and long-context windows have kept breaking records. The industry's debate has also centered on model capability, computing scale, and how far the field is from artificial general intelligence (AGI).
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's whirlwind visit to Japan in mid-July extended well beyond product announcements and public appearances. Alongside a joint event with gaming giant Sega Corporation, Huang used the trip to promote what he has repeatedly described as Nvidia's next major AI frontier—physical AI—sparking renewed discussion across Japan's industrial sector about the country's role in the emerging technology.
Volkswagen, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz are reshaping their growth strategies as the global auto market enters a low-growth era, with profitability under pressure and EV demand slowing. Instead of chasing volume, the three German automakers are focusing on multi-powertrain platforms, deeper AI integration, and cross-border partnerships.
Samsung Electronics has created a robotics business unit reporting directly to its chief executive, bringing strategy, technology development, data collection and factory deployment into a more integrated structure as the company moves humanoid robots closer to commercialization.
