Private space pilots are flying orbital missions for the US Space Force

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories to start your morning

View this email online in your browser  July 03, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Private space pilots are flying orbital missions for the US Space Force: True Anomaly and Rocket Lab are performing Top Gun-style satellite fly-bys for the U.S. military. Read More Mark Zuckerberg tells staff that AI agents haven't progressed as quickly as he'd hoped: At an internal meeting, the Meta CEO reportedly said that AI development efforts were not moving as quickly as anticipated. Read More Jersey Mike's IPO illustrates how bad the AI hype has become: Just for kicks, I took a look at Jersey Mike's IPO documents. Surely a sandwich shop would have no need to mention AI. But lo and behold. Read More A message from Ai4 Ai4 2026: America’s Largest AI Conference Returns to Las Vegas Join 12000+ founders, execs, & builders at Ai4 2026, America’s largest AI conference. Discover the strategic insights and use cases driving real business impact. Hear from industry pioneers like Geoffrey Hinton, Fei-Fei Li, and Andrew Ng, explore 400+ exhibits, & network with peers in Las Vegas, Aug 4-6. Register now to save $900+ before July 2nd. Register Now Morning Must-Reads Thiel Capital’s Jack Selby nabs stakes in hot startups like Etched through Arizona connections: Selby's VC firm, Copper Sky Capital, is currently raising a $300 million second fund, according to a regulatory filing. Read More IQM, Europe's first public quantum company, admits the future of the tech is uncertain: IQM, a full-stack quantum company out of Finland, went public on the Nasdaq today at a valuation of about $1.9 billion. Read More A warning sign about AI’s real cost, courtesy of Google and Amazon: AI has made it a lot harder for tech companies like Amazon and Google to deliver on their net-zero pledges. Read More Anthropic is discussing a new custom chip with Samsung: The news comes about a week after OpenAI announced its own custom AI chip in a partnership with Broadcom. Read More Meta quietly launches vibe-coded gaming app Pocket: Meta has quietly launched Pocket, an experimental AI app that lets users generate and share interactive mini games using text prompts. Read More Last but Not Least OpenAI proposed donating 5% of its equity to a US sovereign wealth fund: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has reportedly proposed giving 5% of the company’s equity to a U.S. sovereign wealth fund, reviving discussions about letting the public share in the financial gains from the AI boom. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Want to adjust your daily newsletter schedule? You can do it right here Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107

Meta quietly launches vibe-coded gaming app Pocket

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories this afternoon

View this email online in your browser  July 02, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Meta quietly launches vibe-coded gaming app Pocket: Meta has quietly launched Pocket, an experimental AI app that lets users generate and share interactive mini games using text prompts. Read More A warning sign about AI’s real cost, courtesy of Google and Amazon: AI has made it a lot harder for tech companies like Amazon and Google to deliver on their net-zero pledges. Read More Jersey Mike's IPO illustrates how bad the AI hype has become: Just for kicks, I took a look at Jersey Mike's IPO documents. Surely a sandwich shop would have no need to mention AI. But low and behold. Read More A message from Schneider Electric Where data meets drive Energy tech is foundational to motorsport. It's behind every decision, from software-defined design to precision manufacturing and race-day telemetry. That's why McLaren Racing partners with Schneider Electric for solutions that help drive a competitive advantage. Learn More Afternoon Must-Reads US government says it got hacked — again: A top Democrat on the Senate's Intelligence Committee warned that the information accessed on a Homeland Security intelligence-sharing network may risk national security. Read More Microsoft launches its own AI deployment company with $2.5 billion commitment: Microsoft follows Amazon, OpenAI, and Anthropic with its new AI deployment group. Read More IQM, Europe's first public quantum company, admits the future of the tech is uncertain: IQM, a full-stack quantum company out of Finland, went public on the Nasdaq today at a valuation of about $1.9 billion. Read More OpenAI proposed donating 5% of its equity to a US sovereign wealth fund: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has reportedly proposed giving 5% of the company’s equity to a U.S. sovereign wealth fund, reviving discussions about letting the public share in the financial gains from the AI boom. Read More Lucid Motors' CFO is out as its new CEO continues leadership shakeup: The company announced a new slate of executive hires meant to help turn things around, as Gravity SUV sales are not taking off as expected. Read More Last but Not Least Anthropic is discussing a new custom chip with Samsung: The news comes about a week after OpenAI announced its own custom AI chip in a partnership with Broadcom. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Want to adjust your daily newsletter schedule? You can do it right here Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107