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  • 🚨 French Court Probes TikTok Algorithms | āš”ļø Amazon Takes Legal Aim at AI Shopping Rival | šŸ Apple Plans Budget Mac Laptop Launch

🚨 French Court Probes TikTok Algorithms | āš”ļø Amazon Takes Legal Aim at AI Shopping Rival | šŸ Apple Plans Budget Mac Laptop Launch

From Paris to Palo Alto, tech titans face legal and market shakeups that could reshape how you scroll, shop, and click your way through 2026.

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šŸ–‹ Today’s Angle

  • French courts dig into TikTok’s content algorithms—when scrolling gets dangerously dark

  • Amazon throws shade (and legal letters) at Perplexity's AI shopping assistant

  • Apple’s budget Mac: the laptop you didn’t think Apple would build, but now you might want

  • Bitcoin mining meets AI: CleanSpark’s power move in Texas

  • Coinbase takes on banking’s old guard with its trust charter push

––Sascha Thiele

šŸš€ Tech & Business

What Happened: French authorities launched a criminal probe into TikTok’s algorithm after concerns that the platform pushed vulnerable youths toward suicide through loops of harmful content. The Paris cybercrime brigade will investigate whether TikTok promoted suicide methods or failed to moderate content effectively. It’s part of a growing global reckoning with AI-driven content recommendation risks.

Why It Matters: This isn’t just TikTok’s problem — it’s a litmus test for all social platforms using AI to curate what you see, balancing engagement and ethics. Think of it as the internet’s awkward moment, realizing your phone might be nudging you into a digital abyss.

What Happened: Amazon has formally threatened Perplexity with legal action, demanding it stop its AI-powered browser Comet from accessing Amazon’s site to offer shopping assistance. Perplexity argues Amazon’s move stifles innovation and prioritizes ads over user convenience, marking a premier legal battle in the AI shopping assistant space.

Why It Matters: This clash could define how AI assistants interact with giant e-commerce platforms—whether you get to shop with clever AI help or just get served more ads. The stakes? Your future shopping cart might be negotiated in court.

What Happened: Apple plans to release its first low-cost Mac laptop, reportedly priced under $1,000, targeting students and budget-conscious buyers. The model will swap in a cheaper LCD screen and use an A-series processor, marking Apple’s entry into the budget laptop arena long dominated by Chromebooks and Windows.

Why It Matters: Apple’s mainstream eye signals a fresh battlefield for affordable computing, which might finally tip folks off the fence and into the Mac ecosystem. A budget Mac? It sounds darkly like a dad joke: ā€œWhy don’t Macs get cold? Because they have so many fans.ā€.

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šŸ’° The Finance Overview

The Order Money GIF

Giphy

Tech stocks tread cautiously this morning with FAANG slightly mixed: Apple hints at market expansion with its budget Mac, which analysts view as a smart growth pivot. Meanwhile, cloud infrastructure holds steady, quietly powering everything from AI training to your latest binge-watching binge.

The startup scene is buzzing around AI shopping assistants after Amazon's litigious move against Perplexity, signaling potential shake-ups in e-commerce innovation. Keep an eye on semiconductor supply chains as geopolitical tensions simmer, potentially tightening chip availability just as AI hardware demand spikes.

The wild card: crypto miners like CleanSpark doubling down on diversified data infrastructure, signaling an evolving tech sector beyond pure software.

Red Pill Bitcoin GIF by Forallcrypto

Gif by darkbean on Giphy

What Happened: Bitcoin miner CleanSpark boosted its power capacity by 28% in October and locked down 271 acres in Texas with a contract for 285 MW of power dedicated to a new AI data center. This move reflects a strategic pivot blending heavy crypto mining with AI infrastructure ambitions.

Why It Matters: Crypto mining operations are evolving into hybrid AI data hubs, blending digital currencies with next-gen tech economies. It’s a power play, literally and figuratively—staking turf in both blockchain and AI landscapes.

What Happened: Coinbase is facing pushback from major US banking groups, including ICBA and the Bank Policy Institute, which warn that Coinbase's quest for a federal trust charter could jeopardize profitability and crypto custody safety. Coinbase disputes these claims, accusing banks of protecting legacy interests.

Why It Matters: The fight over trust charters is about who gets to play bank in the crypto realm—traditional bankers resist while crypto firms push for legit status. This battle could reshape how crypto interacts with mainstream finance altogether.

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šŸ Tomorrow’s Forecast

AI + regulation = a high-stakes dance šŸ’ƒ

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