Consumer Tech News (Jan 26-30): Meta Faces Lawsuits Over Youth Addiction Claims, IMF Warns AI Could Eliminate Millions Of Jobs & More

Government Regulations & Announcements

President Donald Trump has slammed Canada’s trade agreement with China, terming it a deal that would be detrimental to the country.

President Trump escalated trade pressure on South Korea by raising tariffs to 25%, a move that risks tightening one of the most fragile corners of global supply chains: memory chips.

France’s lower house approved legislation to block children under 15 from social media, signaling a tougher stance on Big Tech as President Emmanuel Macron presses for swift action ahead of the next school year.

The Indian government has reportedly reached an agreement with the EU to lower tariffs on cars imported into India from the bloc from 110% to 40%.

Earnings Snapshot

Semiconductors & Software

Smartphones, Broadline Retail & Interactive Media

Meta is doubling down on AI with its most ambitious capital spending plan to date, outlining record infrastructure investments for fiscal 2026.

Google said it has disrupted a massive residential proxy operation used to hide cybercrime activity, cutting off millions of compromised consumer devices worldwide.

Alibaba is looking to streamline its logistics and autonomous-driving footprint while its cloud and AI momentum continues to support investor optimism.

Automobiles

Tesla will invest approximately $2 billion into CEO Elon Musk‘s artificial intelligence startup, xAI.

Tesla has shared updated terms for availing free Full Self-Driving (FSD) transfers on new purchases, which are slated to end on March 31 this year.

An Alphabet autonomous cab service, Waymo‘s “Ojai” Robotaxi, built in collaboration with Chinese automaker Zeekr, crashed into multiple vehicles in Los Angeles’ Echo Park area.

Artificial Intelligence

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is putting builder trust to the test as he invites questions in a new town hall format amid rapid model changes and skyrocketing costs.

OpenAI is reportedly working on a new social network that will require biometric verification to tackle the bot problem plaguing existing platforms.

Artificial intelligence company Anthropic has closed its latest funding round at a $350 billion valuation, exceeding its $10 billion target.

Anthropic has raised its 2026 revenue forecast by 20 percent, predicting sales will grow to $18 billion this year and hit $55 billion in 2027.

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