Amazon's new Fire TV Stick 4K comes with an actually good remote

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories to start your morning

View this email online in your browser  September 30, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Amazon's new Fire TV Stick 4K comes with an actually good remote: Amazon’s new Fire TV Stick 4K is slimmer and faster, but its biggest upgrade may be the thing you’ll actually hold in your hand: a redesigned remote that’s easier to use, especially in the dark. Read More Apple Pay finally launches in India after years on the sidelines: Some of India's largest banks are holding off on supporting Apple Pay initially. Read More Pledge signed by President Trump and top AI leaders misspells the United States: Pledge signed by President Trump and top AI leaders misspells the United States. Read More A message from Spin Analytics RISKROBOT. One platform. An international growth opportunity. SPIN Analytics is advancing its expansion across international markets and the US. The focus: bringing AI-driven regulatory credit risk modelling to more financial institutions. Discover how regional presence and partner distribution support the next phase of growth. This company is part of Santander X 100, global community of Santander X. Explore our expansion Morning Must-Reads Cerebras Systems’ Andrew Feldman on whether AI can keep scaling at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026: At TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, Cerebras Systems CEO and co-founder Andrew Feldman will explore the growing demand for compute, energy, and infrastructure, how Cerebras is approaching those constraints differently, and what comes next if today’s AI hardware reaches its limits. Read More Restate lands $20M as the need for durable infrastructure increases with AI agents: Founded by Apache Flink veterans, the startup is taking on workflow heavyweight Temporal. Read More Tinder adapts to a social, IRL dating future with ‘Group Hangouts’ feature: As younger users grow increasingly tired of the endless scroll, dating apps are scrambling to adapt to a generation that increasingly wants dating to feel more social and rooted in real-world experiences. The latest example comes from Tinder, which on Wednesday announced the launch of “Group Hangouts,” a new feature that lets groups of friends discover, match, and make plans with other groups around shared activities. With Group Hangouts, users start by choosing an activity and inviting at least two friends to join. Once the group has at least three members, its profile can appear in Tinder's main card stack, where it can be discovered by other groups. There can be a maximum of 15 people in a group. Users can then browse other groups and 'like' one that catches their interest. If at least one person from each group likes the other, the groups are connected in a shared chat, giving everyone a chance to make plans together.  Notably, Tinder is giving users some control over how the experience plays out. Members can leave a conversation without leaving the friend group, and they can block or report another participant if they become uncomfortable. The feature is available at the top of Tinder's main home screen and is rolling out in phases in the U.S. and select markets, with additional markets expected to follow.  Group Hangouts builds on Tinder’s earlier push into group-oriented dating. Last year, the company launched “Double Date,” which lets users pair up with a friend and Read More The internet is convinced Elon Musk's xAI trolled OpenAI's 'Dots' launch: Before OpenAI launched its new AI agent, Dots, on Tuesday, Elon Musk's xAI had already acquired the domain name "dot.com," which now redirects to the Grok chatbot download page. Read More Google launches Fitbit Air in India, though its high price might deter the masses: Fitbit Air costs around $146 in India, roughly $47 more than its U.S. pricing. Read More A message from RoMADE Inside the federation powering Romania's creative tech The Romanian Creative Industries Business Federation (FEPIC) connects studios, developers and founders across the country. Its Romanian Creative Week, 12 days in Iasi each May and now a Bucharest edition each October, runs a dedicated tech and innovation track that helps turn early ideas into companies. See how it feeds Romania's startup pipeline. Meet FEPIC Last but Not Least Two Google alumni raise $11.3M to back AI startups that enterprises will actually pay for: BAG Ventures announces close of a $11.3M Fund I to invest in all things AI. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Want to adjust your daily newsletter schedule? You can do it right here Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107

OpenAI takes on Microsoft with the launch of what feels a whole lot like ChatGPT's own office suite

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories this afternoon

View this email online in your browser  September 29, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 OpenAI takes on Microsoft with the launch of what feels a whole lot like ChatGPT's own office suite: OpenAI's newly announced suite of office features puts it into more direct competition with more traditional software companies. Read More Apple Pay set to launch in India with Axis Bank today, sources say: Some of India's largest banks are holding off on supporting Apple Pay initially. Read More Tesla secures $30B in new credit lines as it looks to scale Cybercab, Optimus: The company says it won't draw on the new debt facilities this year, as it has already planned at least $25 billion in capital expenditures. Read More A message from TechCrunch Events Get your Disrupt pass and get 50% off a second The Disrupt experience is better shared. Get one pass at regular price and a second at 50% off for a co-founder, partner, colleague, or peer. Make more connections, gain fresh insights, and discover the next wave of tech together. This offer ends when Disrupt begins Oct. 13 at 8 a.m. PT. Register now Afternoon Must-Reads OpenAI launches Dots, its bubbly agentic avatar: Dots are meant to operate independent of any specific hardware or interface, pursuing user-defined goals continuously in the background with minimal oversight. Read More Still running iOS 26? Update your iPhones, iPads, and Macs for this urgent security fix: Apple says the bug was used to attack "specific targeted individuals" running iOS 26, which the majority of Apple customers are still using. Read More OpenAI gives Codex reusable cloud environments that work across devices: OpenAI is expanding Codex with reusable cloud development environments, a revamped CLI with voice controls, new code review tools and a security-focused product for scanning repositories and preparing fixes. Read More OpenAI launches GPT-6.1 Sol, says it nearly matches GPT-6 Astra and costs less: OpenAI says GPT-6.1 Sol delivers significant improvements over GPT-6 Sol across complex professional tasks, including code writing and debugging, document understanding, and executing multi-step business workflows. Read More OpenAI's latest features take direct aim at the app store model: OpenAI is building out the pieces of an alternative to the traditional app store model, turning ChatGPT into a place where software can be discovered and used by people and AI agents alike. Read More A message from TechCrunch Events 4 days left to exhibit: Book before your competitor does Put your startup at the heart of the global startup ecosystem. Secure your exhibit table to showcase your breakthrough to 10,000+ founders, investors, and decisionmakers across three days at Disrupt. Generate valuable leads, connect with VCs, and put your startup in front of your next opportunity. Book by Oct. 2 at 11:59 p.m. PT. Book now Last but Not Least OpenAI repotedly in talks to raise $30B round at $1.4T valuation: The new round is anticipated to be the company's last before its delayed 2027 public debut. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Want to adjust your daily newsletter schedule? You can do it right here Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107