Wednesday 19 August 2026

Top stories today:
OpenAI holds major frontier RL training, tightens safety practices
Apple unveils new EU App Store terms with 5% tech commission
Crypto offerings up to $75M could get SEC registration exemptions
ChatGPT for Teens debuts with added safeguards
Anthropic to give co-founders extra voting power
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Listen to our AI-generated podcast summarizing todayās newsletter (beware of hallucinations):
1. OpenAI holds major frontier RL training, tightens safety practices after Hugging Face breach
OpenAI is rewriting its security document, the Preparedness Framework.
It is adding stronger monitoring across its development process and introducing alignment and security safeguards earlier.
Some Astra workloads remain paused until they are migrated and upgraded to meet the new security standards.
OpenAIās decision to slow AI development followed research observations showing āvarious degrees of misalignment,ā Sam Altman said.
The new safeguards will add a 20% computer overhead to monitored inference workloads, but the costs will not be passed on to customers, OpenAI said.
Separately, OpenAIās Q2 revenue was reportedly +18% QoQ to $6.7B, vs. Anthropicās $11.6B, ~2.5x Q1

OpenAIās operating loss had widened to $12.3B, including stock-based compensation.
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3. Apple unveils new EU App Store terms with 5% technology commission, effective Oct. 1
Developers can now offer alternative payment options alongside Apple In-App Purchase:
A reduced 10% rate will apply to developers in the App Store Small Business, Mini Apps Partner, or Video Partner programs.
The initial acquisition fee and store services fee will be eliminated under the new terms.
Apple In-App Purchase will carry a 26% commission, or 15% for eligible programs and subscriptions after year one.
A 15% commission will apply to apps linking outside the app to complete purchases.
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5. Crypto offerings up to $75M could get SEC registration exemptions under new proposal
Offerings up to $5M would be exempted for 4 years, while those up to $75M would be exempted for 12 months.
Financial statements and ongoing reporting requirements would still need to be met by issuers raising up to $75M.
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7. ChatGPT for Teens debuts with added safeguards, study tools amid rising safety concerns
Aimed at teens aged 13 to 17, the new ChatGPT version encourages safer use and deeper learning, OpenAI said.
Increased parental controls and built-in safety protections are included to promote healthy AI use.
Study Mode, quiet hours, and break reminders are among the features in the new version.













