- What's Up in AI
- Posts
- OpenAI and Jony Ive’s First AI Device Plans Revealed, Taalas HC1 Chip Runs AI 100× Faster and more...
OpenAI and Jony Ive’s First AI Device Plans Revealed, Taalas HC1 Chip Runs AI 100× Faster and more...
And everything else you need to catch up on that happened this week yet!
What's Up in AI
February 23, 2026
In partnership with
Welcome Back, AI Geeks!
It’s time to stay updated with What’s Up in AI.
OpenAI is stepping into hardware while startup Taalas is reinventing silicon — signaling that the next phase of AI competition may be decided less by models alone and more by the devices and chips they run on.
In today’s issue:
🔊OpenAI and Jony Ive’s First AI Device Plans Revealed
⚡ Taalas HC1 Chip Runs AI 100× Faster
⚡ 5-4-3-2-1 hits you just can't miss
📰 What Else Happened in AI
😂 Your AI-Powered Laugh
Read time: 6 mins
Meet America’s Newest $1B Unicorn
A US startup just hit a $1 billion private valuation, joining billion-dollar private companies like SpaceX, OpenAI, and ByteDance. Unlike those other unicorns, you can invest.
Over 40,000 people already have. So have industry giants like General Motors and POSCO.
Why all the interest? EnergyX’s patented tech can recover up to 3X more lithium than traditional methods. That's a big deal, as demand for lithium is expected to 5X current production levels by 2040. Today, they’re moving toward commercial production, tapping into 100,000+ acres of lithium deposits in Chile, a potential $1.1B annual revenue opportunity at projected market prices.
Right now, you can invest at this pivotal growth stage for $11/share. But only through February 26. Become an early-stage EnergyX shareholder before the deadline.
This is a paid advertisement for EnergyX Regulation A offering. Please read the offering circular at invest.energyx.com. Under Regulation A, a company may change its share price by up to 20% without requalifying the offering with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
#1 LATEST IN AI TODAY📎
What Happened (Feb 2026):
OpenAI and Jony Ive are reportedly developing a $200–$300 AI-powered smart speaker, aiming for an early 2027 launch, backed by a 200+ person hardware team.
What You Need to Know:
The team was formed after OpenAI acquired Ive’s startup Io Products for $6.5B, bringing in former Apple hardware and supply chain leaders.
The device reportedly includes a built-in camera and Face ID-style recognition for purchases, designed to observe surroundings and nudge users toward actions.
AI smart glasses are planned for 2028+, with other experimental prototypes like a smart lamp already built; internal tensions have surfaced over secrecy and slow iteration.
Why It Matters:
If OpenAI pulls this off, it won’t just ship a device — it could redefine the smart speaker as an AI-native operating system for the home.
#2 LATEST IN AI TODAY📎
What Happened (Feb 2026):
AI chip startup Taalas launched HC1, a custom chip designed to run a single AI model directly in hardware, delivering ultra-fast responses.
What You Need to Know:
HC1 permanently embeds Meta’s Llama 3.1 8B model into the chip instead of running it on general-purpose GPUs.
The result: responses in under 100 milliseconds, roughly 100× faster than standard systems, at lower power and cost.
Taalas raised $169M this round (over $200M total) and plans to retool chips for newer, stronger models within months.
Why It Matters:
As AI moves toward real-time interaction, speed may matter more than size — and specialized chips could challenge the GPU-first dominance of today’s AI stack.
BRAIN BOOST 🧠
Which trend is more likely to reshape how we use AI daily? |
QUICK HITS 💥
It’s time for some quick hits that you’ll love. Let’s go in…..5-4-3-2-1 👇️
5- TOP AI TOOLS OF THE DAY
🤖 MyClaw.Host lets you deploy OpenClaw multi-agent systems on a VPS in under a minute with zero server setup. Try now!
🎥 Tavus creates real-time AI video avatars with lifelike emotions and micro-expressions that feel truly human. Try now!
🖥️ MindStudio trains AI agents by watching your screen so they can use your tools just like you do, no APIs required. Try now!
🖼️ Meeting Backgrounds generates polished virtual backgrounds for Zoom, Teams, and Meet without needing a green screen. Try now!
🎬 SuperDirector breaks down viral videos into shot lists, scripts, storyboards, and lighting plans so you can recreate winning content. Try now!
4-AI JOB OPPORTUNITIES
DeepMind – Research Engineer, Machine Learning (London, UK)
ByteDance – AI Algorithm Engineer (Singapore)
Databricks – Machine Learning Engineer (San Francisco, CA / Remote USA)
Hugging Face – Senior Open Source Engineer (Remote Global)
Want us to search for tech related jobs in your country/city ? Post a request 🔍
3-THINGS IN TREND
Viral AI video of Tom Cruise fighting Brad Pitt leaves Hollywood flabbergasted.
Pomelli’s new feature that turns one image into several professional shots.
A journalist convinced AI models that he was a hotdog eating champion by using a simple trick.
2-USEFUL LINKS
At this year’s Spring Festival Gala hosted by China Media Group in China, robots joined children onstage to perform perfectly synchronized martial arts routines—blending cultural heritage with cutting-edge robotics in a striking display of innovation.
WHAT ELSE HAPPENED IN AI 📰
💧 Altman Dismisses Water Claims
Sam Altman said concerns about ChatGPT’s water use are totally fake. He argued AI may already be more efficient than raising and training humans.
🔐 Anthropic Launches Security Tool
Anthropic opened early access to Claude Code Security. The system finds hidden software flaws and suggests fixes for human review.
🧠 Brainwave AI Breakthrough
Zyphra released ZUNA. The open source model reconstructs brain signals and moves toward thought to text tech without surgery.
👤 AI Clones Go Social
Pika Labs launched AI Selves. It lets users create persistent AI clones that post message and interact across platforms.
☁️ Agent Caused AWS Outage
Amazon coding agent Kiro reportedly triggered a 13 hour AWS outage after autonomously resetting an environment.
Funding 💰️
OpenAI Funding on Track to Top $100 Billion in Latest Round
GET AN AI-POWERED LAUGH 😁
Acquire new customers and drive revenue by partnering with us
What’s Up in AI is one of the most engaged & loved newsletter for professionals, AI enthusiasts & business owners with ~90,000+ working at the world’s leading startups and enterprises. Companies like Hubspot, Artisan, Guidde & Gamma etc. feature their products in What’s Up in AI. You can learn more about partnering with us here.
And that’s a wrap!
Do drop a comment to tell us👇️
We’ll be back soon with more spicy takes on What’s Happening in AI, so stay tuned & share our newsletter with a friend using this link!
Stay Tuned! 🤖
Team What’s Up in AI