Anthropic’s value could jump to nearly $1T within weeks
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/news/story/anthropics-value-could-jump-to-nearly-1t-within-weeks-8086801/), 10 May 2026
Takeaways
• The AI startup Anthropic was valued at $380b just three months ago.
• As it prepares for an initial public offering (IPO), Anthropic is drawing interest from investors including Dragoneer and General Catalyst.
Hindsight / Insight / Foresight
• Anthropic is the maker of Claude AI
• Dragoneer Investment Group is a growth-oriented investment firm with a mandate to invest in high-quality businesses in both the public and private markets. For over a decade, Dragoneer has partnered with management teams growing exceptional companies, characterized by sustainable differentiation and superior economic models.
• General Catalyst partners with the world’s most ambitious entrepreneurs to drive resilience and applied AI. They support founders with a long-term view who challenge the status quo, partnering with them from seed to growth stage and beyond.
ByteDance boosts its AI infrastructure spending by 25%
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/news/story/bytedance-boosts-its-ai-infrastructure-spending-by-25-7258332/), 10 May 2026
Takeaways
• The boost is driven by rising memory chip costs and a focus on domestic chip production.
• This move aligns with Beijing’s push for self-sufficiency and homegrown AI infrastructure.
• The Chinese tech giant’s AI chatbot app, Doubao, has gained traction and was the country’s most installed AI chatbot for most of 2025.
Hindsight / Insight / Foresight
• ByteDance is TikTok’s Chinese parent.
• Doubao is an AI assistant developed by ByteDance. The chatbot was launched in August 2023, and by November 2024 had become China’s most popular AI chatbot with approximately 60 million monthly active users.
Understanding Google Chrome’s “new” local AI features
Ars Technical (https://arstechnica.com/google/2026/05/no-google-hasnt-changed-chromes-local-ai-features-its-just-as-confusing-as-ever/), 8 May 2026
Takeaways
• Google Chrome now offers split-screen Gemini chatbot support and the ability to automate web browsing.
• The browser wants more storage space for AI; it downloads a 4GB AI model for on-device processing.
• You can turn off local AI features in the Chrome settings with a toggle under the System tab. Flip that off, and Chrome will remove the model and not redownload it.
• Running AI models locally is generally a good thing—that data stays on your machine rather than feeding a cloud-based model. It’s a positive for privacy and security, and users should have that choice. But “choice” is the operative word, and Google isn’t actually giving you one because AI is Google’s new default.
• “The data that is passed to the model is processed solely on device.” (A Google spokesperson)
• Chrome’s local AI has an API that allows site might use, for example, to do summarization or edit your writing. In these instances, the website would naturally see the input and output. If it’s a Google website, that data ends up on Google’s servers. If it’s a non-Google site, Google doesn’t see any of that data.
Hindsight / Insight / Foresight
• Google announced in 2024 that it would begin adding local AI capabilities to Chrome, powering features like Help Me Write, tab organization, and scam detection.
• If you’re uncertain about using AI tools on a site, you should always try to parse its privacy policy, which will tell you how your data (AI-generated or not) will be used. As long as Google is deploying AI as an opt-out service, you’ll have to be extra vigilant.
Go back to pen and paper and blue books?
Luiza Jarovsky, PhD Substack newsletter, ~ 6 May 2026
Takeaways
• We need to go back to pen and paper, blue books, and oral examinations.
• University professors are saying AI is completely destroying learning and that we’ll soon have an AI-powered, sei-illiterate workforce.
• Some teachers have no faith in AI detectors, and some of them are instructed not to fail individual papers even when they’ve clearly been AI-smoothed.
• “I was told to grade based on what the essay would’ve gotten if it were a ‘true attempt at a paper.’ So I was grading people on their ability to use ChatGPT.” (A university instructor)
Hindsight / Insight / Foresight
• I graduated from Washington State University before AI was available for mainstream use. Just confessing my bias and experience.
• Apparently, part of why oral exams were largely abandoned is due to challenges related to time, scalability, and reliability; making it difficult to asses large groups of students consistently and fairly. Additionally, there were concerns about subjectivity and bias in grading these assessments. So. In an AI agentic era, where’s the compromise?
Proton launches Proton Meet
Proton (https://proton.me/business/blog/introducing-proton-meet), 5 May 2026
Takeaways
• Proton has announced the official launch of Proton Meet, bringing their industry-leading security to video calls.
• Every Proton Meet call is protected by end-to-end encryption for full confidentiality.
• Unlike other companies that can spy on your meetings to monetize your data or use it to train AI models, Proton Meet prevents anyone else from listening in—even Proton.
• Host meetings up to an hour long for up to 49 guests with a free account, even if participants don’t have a Proton account.
Hindsight / Insight / Foresight
• If you’re a solopreneur, the pricing for Proton Unlimited + Lumo ≈ Proton Workspace Premium. Just sayin’.