Google says hackers are calling financial firm employees to hack and extort victims

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories this afternoon

View this email online in your browser  August 06, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Google says hackers are calling financial firm employees to hack and extort victims: Groups of hackers are breaking into large U.S. financial firms to steal sensitive data and extort victims, Google’s security researchers report. Read More Defense tech Hadrian raises $1.37B at $8B valuation: Hadrian is building automated factories to mass-produce parts for defense vehicles like submarines. It's backed by a long list of well-known investors. Read More China-linked LightSpy spyware caught targeting victims in 13 countries, including the US: Researchers linked the latest malicious activity to a Chinese company, after one of the spyware's operators placed an order with KFC using their real name and office address. Read More A message from AWS Come curious: stay for the vibes. Level up your skills. Access hands-on workshops from AWS Builder Center. Get Started Afternoon Must-Reads Ford's new electric truck, 'Fathom,' starts at $28,350: Due in "fall 2027," Ford said Thursday that it won't reveal what Fathom looks like until early next year. Read More Tesla and SpaceX will invest $16.8B to start building 'Terafab' chip factory in Texas: After months of speculation, the companies formally announced the massive project will happen just north of Houston. Read More Amid legal battles, Suno says it will start watermarking songs: Suno's watermarking feature comes as the company is fighting legal battles on several fronts. Read More ChatGPT brings unlimited text chats to free users: OpenAI said that ChatGPT free and Go users are also getting a new think button for complex queries. Read More Ford needs another Taurus, and the $30K Fathom EV pickup isn’t it: Ford's CEO has described the new Ford Fathom as a "Model T moment" for the company. But the EV pickup is unlikely to live up to lofty expectations, and maybe it doesn't have to. Read More Last but Not Least Ex-Spotify employees raise $10M to bring the AI behind its recommendations to e-commerce: The startup's platform predicts which product a shopper wants next, learns their general taste, and fine-tunes continuously based on what they do in real time.  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

Ford's new electric truck, 'Fathom', starts at $28,350

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

View this email online in your browser  August 06, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Ford's new electric truck, 'Fathom', starts at $28,350: Due in "fall 2027," Ford said Thursday that it won't reveal what Fathom looks like until early next year. Read More Amid legal battles, Suno says it will start watermarking songs: Suno's watermarking feature comes as the company is fighting legal battles on several fronts. Read More Ex-Spotify employees raise $10M to bring the AI behind its recommendations to e-commerce: The startup's platform predicts what product a shopper wants next, learn their general taste, and fine-tune continuously based on what they do in real time.  Read More A message from AWS Come curious: stay for the vibes. Stop spinning and start learning. AWS Builder Center helps you build real projects that make you look legit. Get Started Morning Must-Reads Google Maps adds agentic features, including food ordering and hotel bookings: The launch of these new features reflects Google’s ambitions to transform Google Maps from a navigation tool into an assistant that's capable of helping users complete real-world tasks. Read More Exclusive: Mirendil inks $100M+ Google Cloud deal to scale self-improving AI: Mirendil has signed a $100 million-plus Google Cloud partnership to expand its compute infrastructure, powering research into self-improving AI systems designed to accelerate scientific discovery and AI development. Read More Travis Kalanick's robotics startup Atoms taps former Uber finance chief as CFO: Kalanick continues to get the band back together, after acquiring Anthony Levandowski's autonomy startup, and even soliciting investment from Uber. Read More Meta launches Muse Code, an AI agent for large code bases: Meta expanded its AI coding offerings with a new agent that, it promises, can handle complex tasks with complex software. Read More Trump's DOJ gains oversight of OpenAI’s green-card employee sponsorships: The DOJ alleged that OpenAI did not meaningful attempt to hire U.S. citizens before seeking permanent residence for Visa-holding employees. Read More Last but Not Least Nikita Bier steps down as X's head of product: The serial entrepreneur is stepping down a little over a year after taking the "24/7 job" of overseeing X. 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