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DEEP RESEARCH COMES TO GEMINI ANDROID APP

Deep Research, Gemini's first agentic feature, is now available for Android, enabling multi-step web research with customizable plans.

DEEPSEEK GETS AN 'F' IN SAFETY FROM RESEARCHERS

Cisco tested DeepSeek's open-source model, DeepSeek R1, which failed to fend off all 50 harmful behavior prompts from the HarmBench dataset.

COINBASE IN TALKS WITH INDIA'S FIU FOR POTENTIAL RE-ENTRY

Coinbase is reportedly in talks with India's Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) to re-enter the Indian market after halting UPI payment support in 2022. The discussions come as India reviews its crypto stance, following regulatory shifts and recent FIU registrations by exchanges like Bybit and Binance.

OPENSEA RELEASES OS2 NFT PLATFORM IN BETA, TEASES SEA TOKEN AIRDROP

OpenSea successfully launched OS2, its revamped NFT platform in beta, and announced plans for a SEA token airdrop, which will reward OpenSea users, including those in the U.S. The update introduces lower fees, integrates with 14 new blockchains, and represents Opensea's hope to reclaim market dominance amid competition from Blur and a recovering NFT market.

OZEAN ANNOUNCES PORT: THE FIRST RWA EXCHANGE-TRADED POOL

Ozean has announced Port, the first RWA Exchange-Traded Pool (ETP) designed to improve liquidity, accessibility, and diversification for yield-bearing RWAs by pooling illiquid assets with liquid instruments like U.S. T-bills. By integrating decentralized governance, institutional-grade security, and transparent risk monitoring, Port looks to solve key challenges in the RWA space while enabling permissionless access and flexible portfolio management for both institutional and retail investors.

STORY PROTOCOL MAINNET LIVE

Story has launched its public mainnet – an L1 designed to create a programmable market for intellectual property in the AI era. They claim that IP is a $61 trillion asset class including training data, creative works, and scientific discoveries. The platform enables instant IP licensing, tokenization, and monetization through the $IP token, and allows creators to control how their work trains AI models and ensures fair revenue distribution through automated royalties.

WHAT'S NEXT FOR CRYPTO AGENTS?

While current agents primarily function as social media bots, future crypto agents will evolve across multiple domains including DeFi automation, workflow optimization, cross-chain functionality, and advanced reasoning. There are emerging opportunities in gaming NPCs, multimodal interactions, and customer service chatbots. Crypto's unique advantages lie in data availability and financial rails, which when combined with LLMs could become an integral part of all blockchain software and applications.

NAVIGATING HYPEREVM DEFI: A GUIDE FOR WHAT IS TO COME

As HyperEVM nears its mainnet launch, this guide explores key DeFi opportunities across lending, liquid staking, and AMMs, tailored to different user strategies—from high-risk leverage seekers to passive yield earners. With no official endorsements from Hyperliquid, the article highlights the ecosystem's protocols, their potential risks, and how users can optimize capital deployment.

DEFI APP - DEFI'S IPHONE MOMENT

DeFi App is a new application aiming to make the onchain interaction experience as easy as possible. It allows users to onboard crypto with no KYC required and seamlessly swap between chains and tokens without gas fees. It incorporates an AI agent to handle transactions using natural language. Its goal is to dethrone centralized exchanges and use a to-be-released token to decentralize governance.

RAILGUN'S PRIVACY POOLS MECHANISM

Railgun's privacy pools demonstrate a novel way to maintain financial privacy while filtering out illicit funds (without relying on surveillance or backdoors). This system uses a one-hour deposit screening period, allowing compliant users to withdraw privately while restricting flagged funds to their original addresses, ensuring both privacy and regulatory safeguards.

JPMORGAN SAYS TETHER MAY NEED TO SELL BITCOIN TO COMPLY WITH PROPOSED US STABLECOIN REGULATIONS

JPMorgan analysts warn that Tether may need to sell its BTC holdings and other "non-compliant" assets to meet proposed U.S.

ETHEREUM FOUNDATION DISTRIBUTES ETH ACROSS DEFI

The Ethereum Foundation treasury has deployed 45K ETH across Spark (10K), Aave Prime (10K), Aave Core (20.8K), and Compound (4.2K), highlighting its support for the Ethereum DeFi community.

INTRODUCING $DOOD, THE OFFICIAL TOKEN OF DOODLES

INTRODUCING THE AZTEC FOUNDATION

The Aztec Foundation is a new nonprofit organization that aims to advance open-source programmable privacy and support the development of the Aztec L2.

FRAMER AWARDS 2024 WINNERS

Ten creators were recognized at the 2024 Framer Awards for excellence in design and community contributions, each earning $10K and exclusive trophies. Award-winning sites impressed with storytelling, interactive design, and creativity. Notable mentions included Wildy Riftian for visual design, Ivan Garcia for animation, and Paul Lapkin for best designer.

ADOBE'S SORA-RIVALING AI VIDEO GENERATOR IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR EVERYONE

Generate Video AI by Adobe is now in public beta, offering 1080p text-to-video and image-to-video features. Integrated into Firefly, it supports Creative Cloud apps and commercial use. New subscription plans provide AI credits. Competition from OpenAI, Google, and ByteDance has pushed Adobe to enhance quality and features.

PHASE RAISES $13M, LAUNCHES ITS NO-CODE PLATFORM OUT OF BETA TO CHALLENGE FIGMA

Phase, a no-code design platform, has secured $13 million in funding as it moves out of beta, positioning itself as a competitor to Figma. The tool differentiates itself by offering real-time collaboration and dynamic layout capabilities aimed at designers who want to create high-fidelity prototypes without coding. With this funding, Phase plans to expand its feature set and attract more users in the competitive UI/UX design space.

THE FUTURE OF UX IS HERE, AND IT'S FULL OF GENERALISTS

The future of UX is shifting from specialization to resourceful generalists, driven by shared human-centered culture, accessible playbooks, AI-powered tools, and role consolidation. UX teams can lead this transformation by fostering a learning, teaching, action, and adaptation culture.

EIGHT DESIGN BREAKTHROUGHS DEFINING AI'S FUTURE

Key AI design breakthroughs include conversational interfaces (ChatGPT), source transparency (Perplexity), creative workflows (Claude Artifacts), voice input, deep workflow integration, ambient assistance (Grok Button), and process transparency (Deepseek). These innovations redefine human-AI interaction, shaping more intuitive, efficient, and trustworthy digital experiences for the future.

DO YOU TRUST DESIGN ADVICE FROM CHATGPT?

ChatGPT confidently provides design advice but lacks context, nuance, and rationale. Its suggestions prioritize aesthetics over usability, making it unreliable for interface design. Instead, designers should develop critical thinking, follow research-backed principles, and recognize bad advice. Trusting informed sources and personal research leads to better design decisions than AI-generated recommendations.

HANDOFF WORKFLOW TOOLS (FIGMA PLUGIN)

Handoff is a set of open-source, end-to-end workflow tools for design and development teams looking to streamline their use of Figma design systems.

FLEXBOX LABS

This visual tool helps you create layouts using CSS Flexbox. It offers an intuitive interface that shows changes in real time.

HYPERLEGIBLE FONTS

Designed to improve legibility and readability for individuals with low vision, these carefully crafted fonts feature clear, highly distinctive letters and numbers, making reading easier and more accessible.

IF YOU BELIEVE, CLAP YOUR HANDS – CRUSH REBRANDS NEVERLAND

Crush rebranded Neverland for Great Ormond Street Hospital and The Blair Partnership to expand commercial opportunities through events, merchandise, and partnerships. With a focus on "nature and adventure," the new identity features a unique typeface and visual style to grow the franchise and its revenue.

THE SUBTLE ART OF DESIGNING PHYSICAL CONTROLS FOR CARS

Frustrated by the overuse of car touch screens, the author developed a rotary dial with haptic feedback for climate control, allowing intuitive adjustments while minimizing interactions. Through experimentation, they refined design principles for haptic interfaces and concluded that a two-function rotary dial, paired with automation, offered the best balance of usability and control.

THE SECRET TO INNOVATIVE UX: LOOK BEYOND THE DIGITAL WORLD

AI is reshaping design by shifting focus from creation to curation, enabling designers to prioritize strategy and user experience. Understanding when research is essential, facilitating co-creation sessions, and leveraging AI tools are key to adapting to this evolving landscape.

PENTAGRAM BRINGS THE MAGIC AND MISCHIEF OF ROALD DAHL'S STORIES TO RDSC BRAND IDENTITY

Pentagram created a new brand identity for The Roald Dahl Story Company, including a custom typeface to unify its publishing, film, and TV projects under Netflix while reflecting the balance of joy and darkness in Dahl's stories.

WHEN AI TAKES THE DRIVER'S SEAT

AI agents like OpenAI's Operator shift software interaction from human-centric to AI-first.

HOW BAUHAUS AND IMMIGRANT ARCHITECTS INSPIRED ‘THE BRUTALIST'

Brady Corbet's The Brutalist follows a fictional Bauhaus-inspired architect, reflecting real émigré architects like Gropius and Mies van der Rohe, who shaped modern architecture after fleeing Nazi Germany.

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THE NEXT PLATFORM SHIFT IN FINTECH

This piece argues that stablecoins will become an underlying layer for a new era of financial products, allowing developers to plug into global liquidity and create open banking systems. It predicts that distributing dollar-backed tokens on public blockchains will help businesses achieve internet-scale reach and bring sophisticated financial instruments to a much larger audience.

THE EU AI ACT IS COMING TO AMERICA

Although federal leadership seems wary of heavy AI regulations, many US states are implementing legislation modeled on Europe's AI Act. This article outlines how “algorithmic discrimination” laws, inspired by EU rules, could create detailed impact assessments, require compliance paperwork, and impose liability on AI deployments—raising the real prospect of higher operating costs for teams building AI systems.

THE VENTURE CAPITAL APOCALYPSE

Here, we see how sky-high funding rounds and an exit freeze have left many VC-backed companies stuck. The article points to inflated valuations, a sudden drop in IPOs and M&A, and the resulting down rounds that are forcing investors and founders to accept painful resets. Despite the gloom, it suggests that the reshuffle can make survivors more disciplined and potentially pave the way for more sustainable venture strategies.

NAVIGATING THE RISKS: WHY STARTUPS FAIL

Startups often fail due to a lack of market demand, poor management, insufficient capital, competition, operational, and regulatory challenges. Investors can face a total loss of investment when a startup fails, though asset liquidation may offer partial recovery. Risk mitigation for investors includes diversification, diligent research, and setting investment limits according to risk tolerance.

5 INTERESTING LEARNINGS FROM CLOUDFLARE AT $1.7 BILLION IN ARR

Cloudflare has shown strong performance with a $1.7B+ ARR, 28% growth, and a $39B market cap. It relies on 3,200 large customers for 65% of its revenue, while successfully maintaining self-service options for all customer sizes. The company achieves $400,000 in revenue per employee and continues to expand globally, despite a slight decline in NRR to 110%.

STRATEGICALLY ADDRESSING SPECIAL BOARD SITUATIONS

Growth-stage boards should prepare for strategic situations like fundraising, mergers & acquisitions, and insolvency by forming specialized sub-committees. These committees provide focused oversight, ensure fair processes, and help navigate complex scenarios. Effective planning and protocol establishment are crucial for meeting fiduciary duties and protecting the company's interests.

CREATOR FUND (RESOURCE)

Slow Venture's new creator fund to seed creator entrepreneurs.

GETWEBSITE.REPORT 2.0 (PRODUCT)

GetWebsite.Report 2.0 is an AI agent that audits your webpage across 100+ SEO and Conversion Rate Optimization metrics.

/EXTRACT BY FIRECRAWL (PRODUCT)

Firecrawl's /extract endpoint allows you to get structured web data with just a prompt—perfect for lead enrichment, KYB automation, or no-code workflows.

BEAM RAISES $11M SERIES A TO TRANSFORM CONSTRUCTION SALES & FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

Beam raised a $11M Series A, led by Zigg Capital, after growing revenue 15x YoY. Beam offers a comprehensive sales & financial management platform to small and midsize construction businesses, helping builders control spend, reduce risk, and win more business.

THE SUPERHUMAN PARADOX: WHEN GROWING SLOWER MEANS GROWING BIGGER

This piece uses Superhuman's measured onboarding approach—turning down easy revenue to focus on quality—to illustrate that chasing hypergrowth can backfire when it outpaces product readiness and operational capacity. Drawing from examples like WeWork and Hopin, it warns that scaling too fast can amplify existing flaws, strain teams, and undermine customer trust. Instead, a “Minimum Viable Growth” method seeks to sync customer acquisition, revenue targets, operations, and resource burn so the business remains stable as it expands.

HOW WE LOST THE FLOW

This reflection compares the powerful, organic “flow state”—often achieved through live music, sports, or deep creativity—to the formulaic loops engineered by social media and online gambling platforms. Where spontaneous flow can foster genuine liberation and skill development, digital “dopamine slot machines” hijack attention purely for profit. The argument is that tasks like singing and dancing could nurture flow just as easily as endless feeds, yet today's Appistocracy is monetizing what once was playful immersion. By choosing real-life pursuits over hyper-addictive digital tools, we stand a better chance of sustaining the deep, purposeful engagement that helps us grow.

STOKE SPACE LOOKS TO BLAST OFF WITH $260M SERIES C

Stoke Space secured $260 million in Series C funding to advance its reusable rocket technology and complete the construction of the Nova launch vehicle.

10 WAYS SALES IS DIFFERENT IN VERTICAL SAAS WITH MANGOMINT'S VP OF SALES

Vertical SaaS companies like Mangomint thrive by emphasizing domain expertise, achieving $20M ARR with 110% NRR in the spa and salon market.

DESPITE VCS INVESTING $75B IN Q4, IT'S STILL HARD FOR STARTUPS TO RAISE MONEY

Q4 saw a surge in VC funding to U.S. startups, reaching $74.6 billion, largely due to significant investments in a few companies like Databricks, OpenAI, and Waymo.

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SCAMMERS CLONE ITALIAN DEFENCE MINISTER'S VOICE WITH AI IN RANSOM SCHEME

A group of Italian entrepreneurs reported that they were the victims of a wire fraud scheme. The entrepreneurs report that they received a call allegedly from the Italian Defense Minister Guido Corsetto requesting 1 million Euros so that they could free kidnapped journalists. Upon hearing of this scam, Corsetto posted on X about it to warn other potential victims.

HACKER LEAKS ACCOUNT DATA OF 12 MILLION ZACKS INVESTMENT USERS

In what could be the third major data breach in four years, Zacks Investment has been breached again. Have I Been Pwned (HIBP) verified 12 million unique email accounts in the leak. However, HIBP also notes that roughly 93% of the leaked email addresses were already in its database from past breaches of the same platform or other services.