IJR News

Manus Raises $500M After China Blocks Meta Deal — 13hManus raised more than $500 million in its first funding round since Chinese regulators blocked Meta’s planned $2 billion acquisition, with Boyu Capital and IDG Capital leading the investment and existing backers also participating. The company did not disclose its valuation, though reports put it near $4 billion, as it resumes operating independently and develops AI-agent products.

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Florida Seeks Court Order Limiting Meta Teen Use — 1dFlorida AG Uthmeier on Oct. 7, 2026, asked a Pasco court to lock Meta under-14 users out in 30 days and cap teens at two hours after rejecting an up-to-$18B deal; filing cites chats calling IG 'a drug.'

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After Amazon Slammed The Door, Meta Rallies Partners To Welcome AI Shoppers — 23hA group of tech and retail heavyweights is drafting the rules of the road for artificial intelligence bots that shop on people's behalf.

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EU Considers Broader Levy to Tax Big TechTech — 1dFT: Brussels weighs broadening CORE so firms with over €100m EU revenue pay an annual levy, seeking more from Apple, Google and Meta without a pure digital tax.

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Nscale Names Meta Veteran COO Ahead of IPO — 6dNscale has appointed former Meta executive Justin Osofsky as COO to oversee global operations as the AI infrastructure company scales its data-center business. The hire comes as Nscale prepares for a New York IPO, reportedly seeking to raise up to $3 billion.

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Most Influential Women in World HistoryYourlist — RankingFrom ancient queens who ruled empires to modern activists who changed laws, these women left indelible marks on politics, science, and culture. Vote for who you think shaped history most profoundly.

OpenAI launches always-on Dots agents to rival Meta's Muse — Sep 29, 2026OpenAI launched Dots at DevDay 2026 on September 29: always-on GPT-6 Astra agents with their own cloud computers, rolling out to paid users opposite Meta's Muse.

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Elena Vasquez OpenAI's always-on Dots with dedicated cloud machines could be useful for heavy users, but I worry about the extra subscription fees piling up.

Firmus Meta Southeast Asia Deal May Add $750 Million to Annual EBIT — Sep 28, 2026Two people told Capital Brief Firmus's new Meta Southeast Asia deal could add about $750 million to annual EBIT, lifting the IPO pitch figure to about $5.75 billion.

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Dana Whitfield Nice revenue add but it still leaves Firmus dependent on one big client for growth.

Hans Anders suspends smart-glasses sales in Netherlands, Belgium — Oct 1, 2026Hans Anders has suspended sales of Meta’s camera-equipped Ray-Ban glasses in the Netherlands and Belgium amid mounting privacy concerns and public and political scrutiny; another Dutch retailer has also paused sales. Meta says a visible recording light and anti-tampering safeguards protect bystanders, while Dutch authorities and advocacy groups are considering further action over covert filming risks.

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New Mexico jury finds Meta misled residents on data sharing and moderation — Sep 25, 2026A New Mexico jury found Meta committed more than 43 million Unfair Practices Act violations over data-sharing and moderation claims; Judge Mathew will set penalties.

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Maya Lindstrom Meta needs to pay big fines for misleading millions of users on data sharing like that.

Meta Unveils $1,299 High-End VR Glasses — Sep 24, 2026Meta set VR Glasses at $1,299 for spring 2027; at ~100g they are five times lighter than Quest 3 via a pocket puck. Zuckerberg also revealed a Muse Charm AI keychain.

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Marcus Bell bucks is steep but that 100 gram weight with a pocket puck could finally make VR wearable all day.

Skyharbour Begins 3,600-Metre Uranium DrillingEnvironment — 3dSkyharbour has begun a Denison-funded uranium exploration program at Getty East in Saskatchewan, while Meta Critical Minerals received federal approval for a 3,200-metre heavy-mineral drilling program in Wyoming, with initial assay results expected in the fourth quarter of 2026. In Tulsa, crews are drilling soil samples along South Yale Avenue to inform future road and retaining-wall rehabilitation plans, causing temporary lane closures.

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New York Pizza vs Chicago Deep DishYourlist — VS BattleThe foldable slice versus the fork-and-knife casserole — America's longest-running food fight.

Meta Strengthens Muse Warnings After Security Flaw — Sep 25, 2026Meta is strengthening safety warnings in its Muse AI agent after a researcher found a flaw that could have exposed users’ cloud-based emails and files. The vulnerability highlighted risks from AI tools that access accounts and act on users’ behalf; exploiting it would have required a user to approve a prompt linked to a compromised webpage.

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Meta’s Muse Gains Users Amid AI Expansion Concerns — Sep 21, 2026

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MongoDB Names Interim CEO After Shares Drop on Departure — Sep 28, 2026MongoDB CEO CJ Desai quit effective immediately for Meta's chief enterprise platform officer role under Zuckerberg; shares fell 14%-25% as Dev Ittycheria returned interim.

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Derek Foss Bringing back Ittycheria as interim CEO seems like the right call since he already knows the company and can limit further damage.

German Court Rules Meta Liable for Fake Investment Ads on Facebook — Sep 17, 2026A German court held Meta liable for fake investment ads on Facebook and Instagram after nearly 260 reports in August 2024; some ads stayed up 62 days.

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Elena Vasquez This ruling should push platforms to act faster on clear fraud instead of dragging their feet.

Can you actually read a map?Quizie — QuizFifteen world-geography questions. Most people miss at least three — the AI grades you and names your traveler rank.

Zuckerberg Expected at Trump-Xi Tech Leaders Dinner — Sep 22, 2026Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected at a September 24 White House dinner for Xi Jinping with Trump and other U.S. tech leaders, Bloomberg reported.

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Tom Gallagher Zuckerberg showing up could help push for better US-China tech talks, especially on AI rules that affect everyone.

Meta Unveils VR Headset, Camera-Free Smart Glasses — Sep 21, 2026Meta is gearing up for a major Connect event with new smart glasses that omit built-in cameras to address privacy concerns, along with AI features and a lightweight mixed-reality headset codenamed Phoenix, plus ongoing Ray-Ban collaborations and privacy indicators. Separately, the INVEST Digital Health conference underscores wearables’ expanding role in healthcare, from vital-sign monitoring to integrating wearable data into care delivery and clinical trials.

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Meta launches AI agent that can access other apps to send emails, make payments — Sep 8, 2026

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Chris Dalton This AI agent sounds handy for daily tasks, but letting it handle payments and emails raises serious privacy risks with Meta involved.

Amazon Expands Seller Assistant Into AI Agents That Automate Pricing and Listings — Sep 23, 2026Days after blocking Meta's Muse, Amazon on Sept. 23, 2026 launched always-on Seller Assistant workflows and a Claude plugin; 90% of partners already use third-party AI.

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Nicole Hardy Sellers should still review the automated changes closely since pricing mistakes can hurt profits quickly.

Meta Tests Community Notes in 16 Latin American Countries With Possible Shift From Pros — Sep 9, 2026Meta is expanding its crowdsourced Community Notes to 16 Latin American Spanish-speaking countries, testing how context notes on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads might eventually replace its traditional fact-checking program. The rollout has drawn concern from fact-checking networks and watchdogs who warn that notes alone may not curb disinformation, while Meta emphasizes a cautious testing phase with notes not yet public during evaluation.

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Paris prosecutors investigate smart glasses used to film women without consent — Sep 18, 2026Paris opened a criminal probe into smart glasses over suspected sexual harassment; Meta holds 76% of the market. Legendre: a light "doesn't mean that you consent."

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Sam Okafor Meta sold millions of these without enough safeguards, so stricter rules on recording in public are overdue.

Samsung India Policy Chief Rajiv Aggarwal Resigns After Four Years — Sep 15, 2026Samsung India's head of public affairs and ESG, Rajiv Aggarwal, is stepping down after nearly four years, serving his last week, with the reason for his resignation not disclosed. He oversaw Samsung’s government relations and policy/ESG matters amid regulatory pushes on pre-installed state-run apps and e-waste rules, and previously worked at Uber and Meta.

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Marcus Bell After roles at Uber and Meta, Aggarwal brought solid experience to Samsung's government ties. They will need someone just as capable to handle ongoing policy challenges.

AI Leaders Clash Over Safety and Regulation — Sep 15, 2026Elon Musk urged the world’s leading AI labs, including OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta and major Chinese firms, to establish a shared test harness that would let rivals evaluate each other’s models before public release to bolster safety amid a push for slower frontier AI development. The coverage also notes investor caution around AI hype and risk, with some seeing buying opportunities in tech and bonds despite ongoing calls for stricter regulation and safety reviews.

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Nothing launches $399 Headphone (1) Pro to rival Apple and Sony — Sep 28, 2026Nothing launched its $399 Headphone (1) Pro, a premium over-ear model with a distinctive metal-and-glass design, triple-driver audio, adaptive noise cancellation and up to 68 hours of battery life. Reviews describe it as a competitive alternative to pricier Apple, Sony and Bose headphones, while the launch marks Nothing’s push into the high-end audio market.

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