February 02, 2026

TechCrunch Top 3

Notepad++ says Chinese government hackers hijacked its software updates for months: The developer of the popular text editor Notepad++ said hackers associated with the Chinese government hijacked its software update mechanism to deliver tainted software to users for months. Read More

OpenAI launches new macOS app for agentic coding: OpenAI has released a new macOS app for Codex, integrating many of the agentic coding practices that have become popular since Codex launched last year. Read More

Two Stanford students launch $2M startup accelerator for students nationwide: "Breakthrough's purpose is to fill in the funding and opportunity gap that exists in many of these ecosystems because students have historically lacked access to capital and the networks required to launch their entrepreneurial pursuits," co-founder Roman Scott said. Read More

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Afternoon Must-Reads

Elon Musk's SpaceX officially acquires Elon Musk's xAI, with plan to build data centers in space: The merger creates the world's most valuable private company, and paves the way for Musk to try and prove out the usefulness of space-based data centers. Read More

China is leading the fight against hidden car door handles: The Chinese government issued a new rule that goes into effect January 1, 2027. Read More

Adobe Animate is shutting down as company focuses on AI: Adobe Animate will be discontinued on March 1, 2026, as Adobe shifts its focus to AI. Read More

What Snowflake's deal with OpenAI tells us about the enterprise AI race: Snowflake is the latest enterprise to sign multi-year deals with multiple AI companies in what could be a sign to come of a future trend. Read More

Firefox will soon let you block all of its generative AI features: Starting with Firefox 148 arriving later this month, users will find a new AI controls section within the desktop browser settings. Read More

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You missed these chats from Disrupt:

Kindred talks home-swapping platform for travelers, Chef Robotics introduces AI into commercial kitchens, and Character.AI addresses chatbot safety with teens.

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Last but Not Least

Carbon Robotics built an AI model that detects and identifies plants : Carbon Robotics' Large Plant Model will allow farmers to kill new types of weeds without having to retrain the machines. Read More