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🗞️In this edition
•Musk claims Apple unfairly favors rival AI apps
•Workflow Wednesday #32 ‘The AI-Powered Workplace’
•Altman plans Neuralink challenger merge labs
• In other AI news –
•OpenAI adds ChatGPT connectors for Dropbox and MS Teams
•Claude can now process full software projects in one go
•Pony AI eyes Europe after hitting robotaxi milestones
•Anthropic offers Claude to all US government branches for $1
• 4 must-try AI tools
Musk threatens Apple with lawsuit over alleged favoring of rival AI apps
♨️News – Elon Musk says Apple is tilting the App Store in favor of rival AI apps and plans to take “immediate legal action” against the company. He claims Apple’s recommendations ignore both X and xAI’s Grok chatbot, despite their high rankings, calling the move an antitrust violation. Apple denies the accusation, saying its ranking system is fair and unbiased.
👨💻Fast facts –
Musk says Apple’s “Must Have” section excludes X and Grok.
ChatGPT currently tops Apple’s free iPhone app list in the US, Grok is sixth.
Musk has not shared evidence and it is unclear if a lawsuit is filed.
Apple says its charts and curated lists follow objective criteria.
Musk has clashed with both Apple and OpenAI in the past.
🤓OpenTools POV – Musk’s threat adds fuel to his long-running tensions with Apple and OpenAI. If he follows through, it could reopen broader questions about how app store rankings are determined and whether they give every developer a fair shot.
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This Week in Workflow Wednesday #32: The AI-Powered Workplace
The Autonomous Notetaker: AI Meeting Intelligence with Fireflies.ai
Many of our readers have been asking about how to implement AI automation using Google Workspace apps as a base. In this workflow, we'll discuss how to create an AI note-taker that's integrated into your calendar and docs to help meetings not only run smoother, but to make sure you're on top of your work always.
Step 1: Connect Your Calendar
Inside Fireflies.ai, connect your Google or Outlook calendar so it can automatically detect upcoming meetings and join them without manual invites.
Step 2: Configure Meeting Behaviour
Under Settings → Meeting Settings, decide how Fireflies handles your schedule. For maximum coverage, turn on Auto-…...We break it down fully in this week’s issue, along with 2 other AI workflows
Altman eyes brain-computer startup merge labs in bid to challenge Musk's Neuralink
☕News – Sam Altman is working on a new brain-computer interface startup called Merge Labs, which could go head-to-head with Elon Musk’s Neuralink. The company is expected to be valued at about $850 million, but funding talks are still at an early stage and OpenAI has not confirmed if it will invest.
👨💻Fast facts –
Funding could come from OpenAI’s ventures team.
Alex Blania, CEO of Tools for Humanity, is also involved.
Neuralink recently raised $600 million at a $9 billion valuation.
Neuralink’s trials aim to help people with severe paralysis control devices with their thoughts.
Altman has written about “The Merge,” the idea of humans integrating with technology.
🤓OpenTools POV – If Merge Labs takes shape, it could intensify the competition between Altman and Musk in shaping the future of human–machine integration. The race toward a potential “singularity” may be entering a new phase.
🙆🏻♀️What else is happening?
OpenAI adds new ChatGPT third-party tool connectors to Dropbox, MS Teams as Altman clarifies GPT-5 prioritization // Altman said the company’s first priority is ensuring that current paying ChatGPT users receive more total usage than they had before GPT-5’s release, though he did not provide specific figures for the increase
Claude can now process entire software projects in single request, Anthropic says // With the new capacity, developers can load codebases containing more than 75,000 lines of code, enabling Claude to understand complete project architecture and suggest improvements across entire systems rather than individual files
Pony AI, nearing full-year robotaxi goal, eyes European markets // Pony AI is also trialling its technology in South Korea, where it has obtained nationwide permits for robotaxi operations
Anthropic takes aim at OpenAI, offers Claude to ‘all three branches of government’ for $1 // Anthropic is targeting “all three branches” of the U.S. government, including the legislative and judiciary branches
👩🏼🚒Discover mind-blowing AI tools
Learn How to Use AI - Starting January 8, 2025, we’re launching Workflow Wednesday, a series where we teach you how to use AI effectively. Lock in early bird pricing now and secure your spot. Check it out here
Hocoos AI - A website builder that uses artificial intelligence to create customized websites for businesses
Taskade - A collaborative productivity tool for teams to plan, organize, and execute projects
AdCreative.ai - A platform that helps users generate conversion-focused ad creatives in seconds
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