Amazon launches an AI shopping assistant for the search bar, powered by Alexa+

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

View this email online in your browser  May 13, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Amazon launches an AI shopping assistant for the search bar, powered by Alexa+ : Alexa for Shopping is a new personalized AI shopping assistant in the Amazon search bar that replaces its Rufus assistant. Read More Potholes cost cities millions: This company is using AI and trucks to fix them: Fleet management company Samsara has developed an AI model to detect different kinds of potholes and gauge how fast they're deteriorating. Read More US lawmakers demand answers from Instructure after Canvas data breaches: U.S. House lawmakers want to know how hackers broke into education tech giant Instructure twice, and stole reams of data from students who use the company's flagship student data software Canvas. Read More Disrupt 2026: Where deals and ideas ignite Oct 13–15 at San Francisco's Moscone West, 10,000 founders, investors, and operators gather for high-signal insights, curated connections, and real momentum. Register Now! A message from Deck AI agents that use software the way you do Deck operates your existing tools like an employee would — logging in, navigating, getting the job done. No rebuild required. If a human can use it, Deck can too. Try It Free Morning Must-Reads Former Tesla exec and Heron Power CEO Drew Baglino has founded a heat pump startup: Sadi Thermal Machines is Drew Baglino's second startup since leaving Tesla in 2024. Read More Anthropic warns investors against secondary platforms offering access to its shares: "Any sale or transfer of Anthropic stock, or any interest in Anthropic stock, offered by these firms is void and will not be recognized on our books and records," the company's support page reads. Read More r/WallStreetBets really hates the SEC's proposal to weaken quarterly reporting: The retail trading subreddit submitted the sharpest criticism yet in response to the financial regulator's idea of letting companies report twice per year. Read More Anthropic now has more business customers than OpenAI, according to Ramp data: For the first time, Anthropic has more verified business customers than OpenAI, according to this month’s AI Index from the fintech firm Ramp.  Read More Medicare's new payment model is built for AI, and most of the tech world has no idea: There is no governmental mechanism to pay for an AI agent that monitors a patient between visits, calls to check in, coordinates a housing referral, or makes sure someone picks up their medication. ACCESS creates that mechanism for the first time. Read More A message from Fidelity Your Pitch Isn’t the Only Thing Investors Are Evaluating.   Investors don’t just listen to what you say - they look at how your company operates. Is ownership clear? Do your numbers match your story? Can you answer follow-up questions without digging through spreadsheets? The Fundraise-Ready Startup Kit equips founders with the materials investors expect to see, before pressure is on. Because confidence in the room doesn’t come from slides. It comes from preparation.  Learn More Last but Not Least Anduril raises $5B, doubles valuation to $61B: After achieving $2.2 billion in revenue in 2025, the defense tech startup has raised another massive round, led by Thrive and a16z, it says. 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

Anthropic warns investors against secondary platforms offering access to its shares

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories this afternoon

View this email online in your browser  May 12, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Anthropic warns investors against secondary platforms offering access to its shares: "Any sale or transfer of Anthropic stock, or any interest in Anthropic stock, offered by these firms is void and will not be recognized on our books and records," the company's support page reads. Read More Musk mulled handing OpenAI to his children, Altman testifies: Altman said that Musk's focus on controlling the initial for-profit gave him pause because OpenAI was dedicated to keeping advanced AI out of the hands of a single person, and Altman, with his experience running the prominent startup accelerator Y Combinator, knew "founders who had control usually did not give it up." Read More Report: Google and SpaceX in talks to put data centers into orbit: Google and SpaceX are in talks to build data centers in orbit, pitching space as the future home for AI compute, even as costs today remain far higher than on the ground. Read More Disrupt 2026: Where deals and ideas ignite Oct 13–15 at San Francisco's Moscone West, 10,000 founders, investors, and operators gather for high-signal insights, curated connections, and real momentum. Register Now! A message from Alumni Ventures Invest in High-Potential Startups Like Quince, Bluesky, and Daydream Alumni Ventures (AV) is offering readers early access to high-growth startup opportunities, including some of today’s most exciting Next Gen Consumer startups like Quince, Bluesky, and Daydream. AV co-invests alongside top VC firms including Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Forerunner, & Khosla. No cost to see deals. No obligation to invest. Don’t miss your chance before access closes. Join Alumni Ventures Next Gen Consumer Syndicate Today! Register Free Here Afternoon Must-Reads Amazon launches 30-minute delivery across the US: This ultra-fast delivery option will allow customers to shop across "thousands" of items, Amazon says, including fresh groceries, household essentials, and other locally relevant items. Read More AI voice startup Vapi hits $500M valuation after winning Amazon Ring over 40 rivals: Vapi says its enterprise business has grown tenfold since early 2025 as companies shift customer support and sales calls to AI agents. Read More Dessn raises $6M for its production-focused design tool: A new startup called Dessn has raised $6 million to build AI-powered design tools that work directly with production codebases. Read More Everything Google announced at its Android Show, from Googlebooks to vibe-coded widgets: Google unveiled its new AI-first Googlebooks laptops, more agentic Gemini features, vibe-coded Android widgets, Gemini in Chrome, refreshed Android Auto, and more ahead of I/O. Read More Google unveils Googlebook, a new line of AI-native laptops: The company says Googlebooks, which are launching this fall, are the first laptops designed from the ground up for Gemini Intelligence to offer personal and proactive help. Read More Last but Not Least Instructure strikes deal with hackers who breached it twice: The maker of the Canvas school software said it "reached an agreement" with the hackers, but provided no guarantees that the hackers would not release the data or keep their word. 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