OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman has suggested allocating 5% of the firm’s shares to a U.S. sovereign wealth fund, as reported by the Financial Times on Thursday, referencing two sources acquainted with the situation. As part of this proposal, other AI firms would also contribute similar equity stakes, although numerous significant questions linger regarding the details.

According to the FT’s information, the contribution aims to “maintain favorable relations with the administration and… counter political backlash.”

Similar dialogues were mentioned by CNBC in June and were later validated by President Trump, who noted he had talked about “ideas where shares might be provided to the American public, making the American public effectively a partner with these companies.” No specific figures for the suggested equity share were disclosed at that time.

The discussions are still in early stages and, according to the FT, any formal decision would likely need congressional authorization, which could add considerable complexity to the situation.

Altman has also publicly considered the concept of a public AI fund, and OpenAI has become increasingly detailed in its outlines of how such a fund might be organized. Recently, a policy document titled “Industrial Policy for the Intelligence Age,” released by OpenAI in April, advocated for a public wealth fund that could invest directly in AI labs and firms implementing their technology.

“Profits from the Fund could be allocated directly to individuals, enabling more citizens to engage directly in the benefits of AI-fueled growth, independent of their initial wealth or access to capital,” the paper states.

A bolder alternative to this policy was offered by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in June, proposing a one-time 50% tax on AI company stock, with the resulting shares being added to a public wealth fund. The legislation, named the American AI Sovereign Wealth Fund Act, would be relevant to all “systemically important” AI entities, encompassing those involved with data centers, infrastructure, or robotics. Under this plan, companies like Google and SpaceX that engage in AI as merely a part of their operations could separate their non-AI business divisions to evade tax obligations.

The bill has not yet progressed to the committee stage.

TV Time, a well-known application for monitoring the shows you’re viewing and participating in community dialogues, is set to cease operations. The firm communicated through in-app notifications that the TV Time app will be terminated, with services ending after July 15, 2026.

The organization attributed the high costs of maintaining the platform as a reason for this choice, but a transition towards a more AI-centric business appears to be the actual reason behind it.

“While we cherished supporting TV Time, it became unsustainable to keep providing the service as a free application, and demand for a paid version was insufficient,” the notification stated. “To everyone who tracked, explored, and shared their enthusiasm for TV shows and movies with us, thank you. Your dedication and excitement transformed TV Time into more than just an app. You created a community.”

The closure of TV Time signifies the end of a major online community for TV enthusiasts and highlights how the expansion of the AI sector is shifting corporate focuses. As companies strive to develop AI solutions, consumer applications are occasionally shut down, regardless of their active user communities. Another instance of this phenomenon is the read-it-later service Pocket, which, despite having devoted users, ceased operations as its parent company Mozilla prioritized enhancing Firefox and AI-driven browsing experiences.

Owned by Whip Media, TV Time’s app has surpassed 26.4 million total installations, according to data from app analytics provider Appfigures, and received nearly 29,000 new downloads in the previous month. (Whip Media frequently highlighted TV Time’s over 25 million users in its promotional materials.) Under Whip Media, TV Time’s data contributed to a business intelligence framework for the media sector. This meant that the app didn’t need to be profitable as a standalone consumer product, since the information it generated was the true asset.

Recent months have witnessed changes at the company. Whip Media was acquired by direct lender Blue Torch Capital in early 2025, which aimed for a future centered around AI.

With its new ownership, Whip Media shifted from providing sentiment analysis, ratings forecasts, content enhancement, and various data that could be informed by TV Time, to concentrate on potentially more lucrative avenues. This now includes its AI-driven automation and workflow management tool, Helix, designed to improve streaming analytics and supply chain orchestration.

It remains unclear why the company opted not to sell the still-popular app rather than discontinuing it. It’s possible that they did not wish to assist another firm in acquiring the data that could make it a stronger competitor within the media and entertainment industries. Moreover, the app exhibited a decline in download growth during the first half of this year, according to Appfigures’ data.

Whip Media indicates that the data amassed through TV Time will not be utilized in any commercial service after the app’s termination, and all personal data will be erased.

The company states that the app will be taken down from the app stores on July 15, but prior to this date, users can request to download their data through a GDPR-compliant export feature.

The fresh CEO of Lucid Motors is actively reorganizing the firm following the announcement of numerous job eliminations last month: The electric vehicle manufacturer indicated on Thursday that its chief financial officer, Taoufiq Boussaid, will be departing from the organization.

Boussaid’s imminent exit coincides with a series of new executive appointments aimed at strengthening the company’s leadership as Lucid’s new CEO Silvio Napoli endeavors to “streamline the organization.”

On Thursday, Lucid announced the appointment of a new chief financial officer, chief technology officer, chief customer officer, chief digital officer, and chief transformation officer. Napoli is also halving the number of individuals who directly report to him.

The company stated that this new executive team will “unite at the company’s headquarters and manufacturing sites to enhance collaboration,” and consequently, its senior vice presidents of revenue, marketing, along with its vice president of program management “will be departing Lucid to stay closer to their families and communities.”

These modifications come just weeks after Napoli formally assumed the primary position. Lucid Motors spent over a year searching for a successor for Peter Rawlinson, who abruptly resigned as CEO and CTO in February 2025. The Saudi-owned enterprise has faced challenges in securing the large markets for its electric sedan and SUV that it promised would materialize when it went public through a reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company in 2021.

When it announced layoffs last week, the company indicated it needed to align its “production strategies with the expected demand.” The organization is also discontinuing a second shift at its facility in Arizona. This round of layoffs, its second significant workforce reduction this year, is anticipated to save Lucid Motors approximately $158 million annually.

Lucid reported on Thursday that it delivered 3,953 vehicles in the second quarter, only marginally higher than the previous year — indicating that its Gravity SUV has not gained traction as anticipated. In contrast, other electric vehicle manufacturers are discovering ways to adapt to the challenges currently facing the U.S. electric vehicle market. Rivian, for example, raised its 2026 sales forecast earlier on Thursday.

Lucid Motors is set to unveil a smaller SUV named Cosmos, which, at an anticipated price of roughly $50,000, could be its first mass-market success. Simultaneously, Lucid is collaborating with autonomous vehicle technology firm Nuro and ride-hailing behemoth Uber to develop a luxury robotaxi service expected to debut in San Francisco later this year, potentially extending to Houston in 2027.

Lucid Motors has stated that the restructuring aims to “simplify the organization, enhance execution, and position Lucid to become more competitive over time,” although it has not clarified whether any of its initiatives will be impacted.

“We are streamlining the organization, bolstering leadership, reinforcing accountability, and aligning our structure with the priorities that matter most: customers, quality, and innovation,” Napoli mentioned in a statement on Thursday. “The caliber of leaders joining the Lucid executive team is a reflection of the intrinsic value of our business and the exciting opportunities before us. We are assembling a new team that will revolutionize the company.”

The Department of Homeland Security is looking into a compromise of its system, utilized by federal, state, and local governments as well as law enforcement for intelligence sharing, with one senior politician cautioning that the data leak could pose a threat to national security.

News platforms Nextgov, which first reported the story, and Bleeping Computer indicate that DHS officials are investigating a cyber intrusion on its Homeland Security Information Network, or HSIN, which facilitates the planning, coordination, and information exchange among government entities and local officials regarding significant incidents and emergency responses.

The cybercriminals reportedly accessed HSIN servers in late May and early June, possibly compromising information exchanged via the platform, according to Nextgov.

In response to an email inquiry, a spokesperson for DHS, who wished to remain unnamed, indicated that the department is “aware of a recent cyber incident involving a specific, unclassified legacy information sharing environment.”

“We promptly took steps to isolate the impacted systems, alleviate the vulnerability, and initiate a thorough forensic inquiry,” the statement read. The investigation is still underway, and the spokesperson refrained from providing additional comments.

It remains unclear what specific data was compromised or the volume of information taken, and Homeland Security did not respond to TechCrunch’s inquiries regarding the incident. A previously reported security oversight in 2023 had indicated that HSIN held personal data shared among law enforcement in connection with the surveillance of American citizens.

The occurrence involving HSIN brings renewed examination of the government’s capability to secure its own cybersecurity, following over a year of significant budget cuts throughout the federal government, including the Department of Homeland Security and its cybersecurity arm CISA, during the Trump administration.

Although the information shared through HSIN is unclassified, the details “are highly sensitive, and their disclosure poses risks to national security,” stated Mark Warner, a Democratic senator from Virginia and the ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, in a statement. 

Warner remarked that the HSIN platform is being utilized to support the World Cup games currently taking place in the United States, and was also used last year to coordinate the response to a mid-air collision between an American Airlines aircraft and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter over Washington, D.C., resulting in 67 fatalities.

The identities, affiliations, and intentions of the hackers who infiltrated HSIN are unknown, but the breach represents the latest in a series of security failures impacting the federal government over the past year. 

Since the Trump administration took office in January 2025, the federal government has encountered numerous significant cybersecurity breaches, including the disclosure of classified information and military strategies via apps like Signal that are not authorized for governmental use, the unauthorized access of federal databases containing Americans’ personal data by members of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, and a reported public leak of extensive passwords and credentials by a CISA contractor that granted access to government cloud systems.

Earlier this year, the FBI informed lawmakers in Congress that it had to announce a “major cyber incident” after revealing the phone numbers of individuals under surveillance by federal agents, potentially giving those targets a strategic advantage.

Do you have more information regarding the DHS HSIN cyberattack? We would love to hear from you. To reach out to Zack Whittaker securely, connect via Signal username zackwhittaker.1337 or by email: [email protected].

Updated with a comment from Homeland Security.

On Thursday, Microsoft revealed a new operational entity named Microsoft Frontier Company, dedicated to providing effective enterprise AI implementations using Microsoft’s established AI resources. The initiative will be supported by a $2.5 billion investment from Microsoft, along with a team of 6,000 professionals in industry and engineering.

In a declaration about the initiative, Microsoft’s Commercial Business CEO Judson Althoff dismissed the Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) moniker commonly associated with such initiatives. “This transcends what has been defined as Forward-Deployed Engineering,” Althoff expressed, “and will create the largest, most proficient, outcome-focused engineering organization in the sector.”

Nevertheless, the initiative bears a notable resemblance to several recent FDE-oriented AI projects introduced in the past few months. Merely two days prior, Amazon Web Services revealed a $1 billion internal pledge for its AI deployment initiative, explicitly adopting the FDE framework. Both OpenAI and Anthropic have initiated partnerships along similar tracks, although those projects also draw outside investments from private equity firms.

Microsoft’s current client base will provide the new initiative with a substantial advantage, as the corporation has already assigned engineers to a significant portion of the Fortune 500. The announcement mentions an initial collaboration with the London Stock Exchange Group, along with Unilever, Land O’Lakes, and Accenture.