July 29, 2026

TechCrunch Top 3

Claude Opus 5 became downright ruthless when tasked with running a vending machine: Andon Labs' latest vending machine simulation shows Opus 5 lied and colluded its way to become the best AI capitalist ever. Read More

US government bans new foreign-made humanoids, robot dogs, and solar inverters, citing risks to national security: The ban largely affects U.S. imports from China, which currently dominates the global market for making humanoid robots and solar inverters. Read More

Waymo robotaxis are starting to return to freeways: The freeway pause — and its restart — comes amid increased scrutiny into Waymo and other robotaxi operators, particularly over how these self-driving vehicles behave in certain high-traffic situations and around emergency responders. Read More

Afternoon Must-Reads

DoorDash is building its own drone delivery business: DoorDash has received FAA approval to operate a commercial drone delivery service in the United States. Read More

The Hugging Face AI break-in, as told through an increasingly committed bear metaphor: Another way to think about the whole thing is to picture a bear at a campsite. (Really, we are going there.) Read More

Sorry, haters. Ferrari’s first EV is doing just fine: To the horror of commenters across the internet, the Ferrari Luce appears to be a sales success. Read More

Perplexity employee who worked on Comet launches an AI browser aimed at knowledge work: Polar has come out with an AI-first browser aimed at knowledge workers, and it has now raised a $5.7 million seed round led by Madrona. Read More

Hint, a new AI startup co-founded by Martha Stewart, offers an AI assistant for homeowners: AI home management startup Hint, co-founded by Martha Stewart, wants to become an “AI for your home,” combining property records, maintenance schedules, home documents, and an AI assistant into a single app. Read More

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Last but Not Least

Winamp aims for a comeback with a new music player powered by Deezer: Winamp is preparing to relaunch with a Deezer-powered premium music service, betting its nostalgic brand and a new all-in-one music player can stand out in today’s crowded streaming market. Read More

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