The business of tech stories our desk judged worth your time, written so anyone can follow them.
The SBA has launched iCAP, a new system for small business loans, and all lenders are due to switch by January 1, 2027. Here is what it could mean for borrowers.
Read more: SBA rolls out new online system to speed up small business loansVercel's COO says an AI agent now does the work of a 10-person lead team for under $5,000 a year. Here is what that means for other businesses.
Read more: Vercel cut a 10-person sales team to one person using an AI agentThe UK Home Office is piloting cameras that scan faces in public places and check them against an immigration watchlist, with ports and transport hubs in view.
Read more: UK plans face-scanning cameras to find visa overstayersEurope's top bank supervisor is weighing a check on data center loans, to see how banks would cope if AI excitement and company values swing.
Read more: Europe's top bank watchdog eyes loans tied to AI data centersPhysicl raised $10 million to build realistic digital worlds where robots can practice. Better practice could mean robots that handle everyday objects sooner.
Read more: Startup raises $10 million to build virtual worlds that train robotsSaaStr says one AI agent took over most of its four-person marketing team's work. The costs and limits it shared are worth reading before you try the same.
Read more: One AI agent now does most of a four-person marketing team's workInvestors are using AI chatbots to size up founders before meetings, so what those tools say about you now matters. PR teams are paying attention.
Read more: Investors now ask AI chatbots about you before the first meetingBlotato, a social media scheduling service, is now an official ChatGPT plugin. It can schedule posts and run Instagram and Facebook DM automations, but it needs a paid plan.
Read more: Blotato Lets ChatGPT Users Schedule Social Posts and Send DMs by ChatA company that builds no-code tools for AI-powered shopping raised $15 million, a sign that AI agents buying for customers is becoming a real business.
Read more: A no-code shopping platform raises $15M to help stores use AI agentsA TLDR Tech roundup flags doubts about an Anthropic stock debut and new datacenter bans. Both could shape the cost and availability of AI tools you use.
Read more: Doubts about an Anthropic stock debut and new datacenter bansAirbnb's CEO says AI agents like Meta's Muse and Instinct bring almost no bookings so far, which suggests people still prefer to plan trips themselves.
Read more: Airbnb says AI helpers are booking almost no stays so farSardine launched a tool that shows stores the real person behind an AI shopping agent's order, so fewer legitimate purchases get blocked as bot activity.
Read more: Sardine's new tool helps stores tell AI shopping agents from botsGoogle will switch off AI tools for students by default next year, but Search itself runs on AI, so schools that want no AI face a hard choice.
Read more: Google says schools that reject AI will lose Search next yearAmazon's cloud arm now sells a tool that proves a software flaw can be exploited before suggesting a fix. The price rises with every flaw it handles.
Read more: Amazon launches a tool that tests software flaws before fixing themNew York startup Kalepa raised $75 million to bring AI to insurance decisions, a shift that could shape what business coverage costs and who gets it.
Read more: Insurance AI startup Kalepa raises $75 million at $470 million valueVeteran tech investor Dan Niles says free AI models are cutting prices and slowing revenue at top AI firms, which could mean a bumpier ride for AI stocks.
Read more: Investor Dan Niles says AI company revenue growth is slowingAffirm's CEO expects AI shopping agents to pick interest-free installment plans more often, which could change how you pay and what you agree to.
Read more: Affirm's CEO says AI shopping assistants may steer you to 0% loansMark Cuban says Facebook knowingly runs AI deepfake scam ads. Documents cited in the story reportedly show $16 billion in fraud-linked revenue.
Read more: Mark Cuban says Facebook knowingly profits from deepfake scam adsQuestionPro, known for online surveys, bought Contlo, a messaging tool for online stores, to let AI use customer feedback to decide how to follow up with shoppers.
Read more: Survey company QuestionPro buys Contlo to build shopping AI agentsThe IRS has put 15 online seminars in front of tax professionals. Here is what they cover and what to ask the person who does your taxes.
Read more: IRS opens online tax classes for the pros who prepare your taxesBILL says AI helpers cut the time to handle a customer underwriting case from three hours to about 12 minutes, which could mean faster answers for small businesses.
Read more: BILL's AI helpers cut a 3-hour review to 12 minutesThinking Machines Lab, started by OpenAI's former tech chief, is reportedly raising $5 billion, a sign investors still back AI labs heavily.
Read more: AI startup from OpenAI's ex-tech chief nears a $5 billion funding dealVoters backed limits on data centers in at least 38 places and gave Democrats both houses of Congress. Whether lawmakers can turn that into AI rules is now the test.
Read more: Voters backed limits on AI and data centers. Now Congress must actA&O Shearman, a large international law firm, plans a $1.1 billion AI push, and clients may soon see changes in how routine legal work is done and billed.
Read more: Big law firm A&O Shearman plans $1.1 billion push into AI
