Thursday, 12 March 2026
Welcome to today's roundup of the most interesting developments in AI and technology.
Top Stories
AI 'actor' Tilly Norwood put out the worst song I've ever heard
This song is an AI actor's rallying cry to other AI actors, urging them to keep going despite the naysayers who doubt their humanity. Literally no one can relate to this.
Read moreFord's new AI assistant will help fleet owners know if seatbelts are being used
Ford Pro AI debuted at Work Truck Week in Indianapolis and is now available to all of its U.S.-based Pro telematics subscribers.
Read moreZendesk acquires agentic customer service startup Forethought
Forethought was years ahead of its time and the 2018 winner of TechCrunch Battlefield.
Read moreNetflix may have paid $600 million for Ben Affleck's AI startup
This deal could rank as among the streaming giant's largest acquisitions ever.
Read moreLovable says it added $100M in revenue last month alone, with just 146 employees
Swedish vibe-coding unicorn Lovable crossed $400 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR) in February.
Read moreReplit snags $9B valuation 6 months after hitting $3B
Replit raised a new $400 million round and said it hopes to have $1B in ARR by year's end.
Read moreAi2: Building physical AI with virtual simulation data
Virtual simulation data is driving the development of physical AI across corporate environments, led by initiatives like Ai2’s MolmoBot. Instructing hardware to interact with the real world has historically relied on highly expensive and manually-collected demonstrations. Technology providers buildi
Read moreRivian spin-out Mind Robotics raises $500M for industrial AI-powered robots
The startup, which was created by Rivian founder RJ Scaringe, is looking to train on data from, and deploy in, Rivian's factory.
Read moreIndustry
Amazon expands a program that lets customers shop from other retailers' sites
The changes allow more merchants to participate in Amazon's Shop Direct program, which sends Amazon customers to other retailers' websites.
Read moreCanopii looks to succeed where past indoor farms have not
Canopii's robotic farms can autonomously grow 40,000 pounds of herbs and leafy greens a year while being the size of a basketball court.
Read moreNew partnership to offer smart robots for dangerous environments
ADLINK Technology has signed a strategic alliance and joint development agreement with Under Control Robotics, the company behind the robotics startup Noble Machines. The two firms will combine ADLINK’s edge AI platforms with Noble Machines’ autonomy software to create a new generation of general-pu
Read moreHow physical AI integration accelerates vehicle innovation
The integration of physical AI into vehicles remains a primary objective for automakers looking to accelerate innovation. A technical collaboration between Qualcomm and Wayve offers a framework for how hardware and software providers can consolidate their efforts to supply production-ready advanced
Read moreGoogle brings Gemini in Chrome to India
The rollout will let users access Gemini in Chrome through a sidebar on desktop, enabling them to ask Google's AI chatbot questions about the content on the screen; get information from their Gmail, Keep, Drive, and YouTube; and compare tab contents.
Read moreAI-powered apps struggle with long-term retention, new report shows
AI can drive stronger early monetization for apps, but sustaining value remains the challenge, RevenueCat's latest report finds.
Read moreChatGPT can now create interactive visuals to help you understand math and science concepts
Instead of just reading an explanation or looking at a static diagram, users can now engage directly with interactive visuals.
Read moreABB: Physical AI simulation boosts ROI for factory automation
A new ABB and NVIDIA partnership shows physical AI simulation is driving real ROI in factory automation and solving production hurdles. Manufacturers have often found it difficult to make intelligent robotics work reliably outside testing environments. The core issue is the gap between digital train
Read moreThinking Machines Lab inks massive compute deal with Nvidia
The multi-year deal involves at least a gigawatt of compute power and also includes a strategic investment from Nvidia.
Read moreMeta acquired Moltbook, the AI agent social network that went viral because of fake posts
Meta says that Moltbook's approach to "connecting agents through an always-on-directory" is novel.
Read moreAgentic AI in finance speeds up operational automation
In finance, achieving operational automation by integrating agentic AI requires a data-centric foundation to drive real value. Financial infrastructure provider SEI has engaged IBM to modernise its internal operations via AI and automation. The joint initiative focuses on process redesign and target
Read moreMastercard brings agentic payments to life in Singapore with DBS and UOB
Mastercard has completed its first live, authenticated agent-based payment transaction in Singapore, a milestone that advances autonomous AI commerce from proof of concept to everyday use. Announced on March 4, 2026, the transaction was carried out in partnership with DBS and UOB, two of Southeast A
Read moreResearch & Products
WordPress debuts a private workspace that runs in your browser via a new service, my.WordPress.net
WordPress’s new browser-based service lets users create private sites without hosting or signing up, turning the platform into a personal workspace for writing, research, and AI tools.
Read moreMeta’s Moltbook deal points to a future built around AI agents
Meta’s Moltbook acquisition may look odd at first, but the deal could signal how Meta sees AI agents shaping future advertising and commerce on an agentic web.
Read moreManulife moves AI agents into core financial workflows
Large financial firms have spent years testing artificial intelligence in small projects, often limited to data analysis or customer support tools. The next phase appears to involve something more operational: systems that can take action in business workflows. Canadian insurer Manulife is moving in
Read moreAmazon launches its healthcare AI assistant on its website and app
Health AI can answer questions, explain health records, manage prescription renewals, book appointments, and more.
Read moreAgentMail raises $6M to build an email service for AI agents
AgentMail provides an API platform that lets you give AI agents their own email inboxes, with support for two-way conversations, parsing, threading, labeling, searching, and replying.
Read moreGoogle gives in to users' complaints over AI-powered 'Ask Photos' search feature
The option appears on the Google Photos Search screen and lets users pick which experience they want.
Read moreUK sovereign AI fund to build up domestic computing infrastructure
The UK sovereign AI fund intends to secure advantages by providing a domestic alternative to external computing infrastructure. Backed by a £500 million budget from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the unit formally launches on April 16th at 6pm GMT. James Wise, Partner at Bald
Read morePolicy & Ethics
Legora reaches $5.55 billion valuation as AI legal tech boom endures
Legora, an AI platform for lawyers, is now valued at $5.55 billion following a $550 million Series D led by Accel to fuel its growth in the U.S.
Read moreAI insurance underwriting is past the pitch deck—Gradient AI just got the capital to prove it
AI insurance underwriting has been called the next frontier of insurtech for years. The difference now is that the money backing it has moved from venture bets into institutional conviction. On March 3, Boston-based Gradient AI securedgrowth capital financing from CIBC Innovation Banking, a lender w
Read moreCity Union Bank launches AI centre to support banking operations
Banks have spent years buying analytics tools and automation software. Now some are taking a different step: building internal spaces where AI can be tested directly on real banking problems. One example emerged in India this month. City Union Bank recently entered a four-party agreement to create a
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