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- 🚀ChatGPT Images Get Major Upgrade
🚀ChatGPT Images Get Major Upgrade
PLUS: Google's Daily Briefing Bot | New Mozilla CEO's AI Play
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🗞️In this edition
OpenAI launches GPT image 1.5 with 4x faster generation
Sponsored: MyKin
Google takes on ChatGPT pulse
Firefox adding AI mode in 2026
In other AI news –
Amazon explores major investment in OpenAI and use of its chips
Adobe firefly adds prompt based video editing and new models
Meta smart glasses get better hearing and Spotify features
4 must-try AI tools
Hey there,
OpenAI is speeding up and tightening its creative tools to claw back momentum, Google is pushing AI agents straight into your morning routine, and Mozilla is betting that trust,not raw power,will be the deciding factor.
We're committed to keeping this the sharpest AI newsletter in your inbox. No fluff, no hype. Just the moves that'll matter when you look back six months from now.
Let's get into it.
What's happening:
OpenAI released GPT Image 1.5 Tuesday, promising better instruction-following, more precise editing, and up to 4x faster image generation speeds. The model is available to all ChatGPT users and via API.
The release follows CEO Sam Altman's leaked "code red" memo last month detailing plans to regain AI leadership after Google took market share with Gemini 3 and Nano Banana Pro, both topping LMArena leaderboard. OpenAI had planned to release a new image generator in early January but accelerated to this week.
GPT Image 1.5 offers post-production features providing granular edit controls to maintain visual consistency like facial likeness, lighting, composition, and color tone across edits. "Most GenAI image tools are bad at iteration," addressing the problem where models reinterpret entire images when asked for specific changes like "adjust facial expression" or "make lighting colder."
ChatGPT images are now accessible via a dedicated entry point in the sidebar that works "more like a creative studio," wrote Fidji Simo, OpenAI's CEO of applications. New image viewing and editing screens make it easier to create images matching your vision or get inspiration from trending prompts and preset filters.
OpenAI is also introducing more visual elements in search queries with clear sources for tasks like converting measurements or checking sports scores.
Why this is important:
4x faster generation directly competes with Nano Banana Pro's speed advantages. Speed matters for iteration-heavy workflows where users generate dozens of variations.
Post-production controls maintaining facial likeness, lighting, and composition across edits address the biggest complaint about current image generators: inconsistent iteration. If GPT Image 1.5 actually preserves consistency, that's a major usability improvement.
Our personal take on it at OpenTools:
This is a reactive product launch responding to Google's momentum.
Altman's "code red" memo leaked in November. GPT-5.2 launched last week. Now GPT Image 1.5 this week. That's accelerated release cadence driven by competitive pressure, not a planned product roadmap.
"Up to 4x faster" is marketing language. "Up to" means best case, not typical performance. Actual speed improvement depends on image complexity, resolution, and server load. Without median latency numbers, it is hard to assess real impact.
The iteration consistency claim is the most important feature if it works. Current image generators failing at "adjusting facial expression" by regenerating the entire image is a major pain point. Maintaining visual consistency across edits is table stakes for professional creative tools. If GPT Image 1.5 actually does this reliably, that's a competitive advantage.
The timing relative to GPT-5.2 launch (last week) and Image 1.5 (this week) is drumbeat strategy. Multiple consecutive releases create perception of momentum even if individual releases are incremental. That's messaging strategy as much as product strategy.
Google maintaining lead "even after OpenAI responded with GPT-5.2" is buried but important detail. OpenAI's countermoves aren't working yet. Launching another model (Image 1.5) won't change that unless quality genuinely surpasses Nano Banana Pro.
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What's happening:
Google's launching CC, an AI agent that scans your Gmail, Calendar, and Drive to deliver a personalized "Your Day Ahead" briefing every morning.
The agent surfaces your schedule, key tasks, bills to pay, and appointments to prepare for. It can draft emails and create calendar links so you can act immediately.
CC uses Gemini AI and learns about you by connecting to Google services plus the web. You customize it by replying to briefings or emailing it directly with preferences.
Early access launches today for paid subscribers 18+ in the US and Canada via waitlist. Google didn't say when it'll expand broadly.
This directly competes with ChatGPT Pulse, OpenAI's personalized briefing tool that Sam Altman called his "favorite feature we've launched in a long time" when it launched in September.
Why this is important:
Google's racing to embed AI agents into daily workflows before OpenAI owns the category. Pulse already has momentum Google's playing catch-up.
The Gmail/Calendar/Drive integration is Google's competitive moat. OpenAI can't access that data without user permission and complex integrations. Google already has it.
Daily briefings create habit formation. If CC becomes part of your morning routine, Google locks you into their AI ecosystem. Switching costs increase.
Our personal take on it at OpenTools:
This is Google leveraging data access advantages against OpenAI.
Pulse requires you to grant permissions and connect services. CC just works if you're already in Google's ecosystem. That's a massive friction advantage for acquisition.
But "teach it about yourself by replying" reveals a limitation: these agents still don't understand context without explicit training. True personalization would infer preferences from behavior, not require manual instruction.
The paid-only launch signals Google's monetization strategy. Free tier gets basic Gemini; agents like CC become premium features. That's smart positioning if execution matches promise.
If CC matches Pulse quality and leverages Google's data moat, it wins on convenience. If it lags on intelligence or relevance, being embedded won't save it.
What's happening:
Anthony Enzor-DeMeo just became Mozilla's CEO after leading Firefox development for a year. His pitch: Mozilla can win by being the AI company people trust while Big Tech erodes confidence.
Firefox is adding "AI Mode" in 2026 users choose their model (open-source, Mozilla-hosted private options, or big providers like Claude/Gemini/ChatGPT). Mozilla won't push one over another.
Firefox has 200 million monthly users and is growing on mobile. That's 5% of Chrome's 4 billion users, but enough scale to matter.
Revenue diversification is priority one. Google pays most of Mozilla's bills through search placement deals. Enzor-DeMeo wants subscriptions (VPN, Monitor privacy service) and ads to reduce Google dependency without abandoning the browser business.
He estimates blocking ad blockers would generate $150M but calls it "off-mission." Mozilla VPN launches in Firefox next year.
Why this is important:
Mozilla's trapped between nonprofit mission and for-profit survival. Google funding creates tension. How do you fight for an open web when your competitor pays 80%+ of revenue?
"AI Mode" positioning Mozilla as a neutral aggregator competes with OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic building walled gardens. If users want choice over lock-in, Mozilla has an opening.
Revenue diversification from Google is existentially necessary but operationally hard. Search deals are high-margin. Subscriptions and ads require execution Mozilla hasn't proven at scale.
Our personal take on it at OpenTools:
Trust is Mozilla's only differentiated asset left.
Firefox lost browser wars to Chrome a decade ago. Market share collapsed from 30% to ~3%. Clawing back meaningful share requires either Chrome screwing up badly or a platform shift creating willingness to switch.
AI might be that shift. Enzor-DeMeo's betting people will try new browsers if AI integration is the hook. Problem: Chrome, Edge, and Arc are all integrating AI too, with more resources.
The "neutral AI aggregator" angle is smart positioning but questionable monetization. If Mozilla doesn't push one model, where's placement revenue? Subscriptions for VPN/Monitor appeal to privacy-conscious users, but that's a niche audience.
200 million users is real scale, but growth on mobile means competing with Safari (iOS) and Chrome (Android). Platform owners have distribution advantages Mozilla can't match.
If trust becomes the scarce resource in AI, Mozilla wins. If convenience and integration matter more, they're roadkill.
OpenAI is in talks with Amazon about investment that could exceed $10 billion – The agreement would also include use of Amazon’s chips.
Adobe Firefly now supports prompt-based video editing, adds more third-party models – With the new editor, you can use text prompts to edit video elements, colors, and camera angles, and we also get a new timeline view that lets you adjust frames, sounds, and other characteristics easily.
Meta’s AI glasses can now help you hear conversations better – The feature will initially become available on Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta HSTN smart glasses in the U.S. and Canada, the company says. In addition, the glasses are getting another update that lets you use Spotify to play a song that matches what’s in your current view.
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