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Google's vice president of devices and services confirmed in an interview that the next Pixel generation will carry a higher price tag. The culprit is a global RAM supply crunch driven by AI data centres consuming memory chips at unprecedented rates. The base Pixel 11 is expected to start at $899, up from $799, though it may include 256GB of storage as standard. The Pro model may lose RAM from 16GB to 12GB as a cost-control measure. For buyers, the Android value proposition is shifting: flagship phones will cost more, and the era of steady annual spec upgrades is tightening for the mid-range too.

General Motors is backing Peak Energy, a sodium-ion battery startup, for utility-scale grid storage. The chemistry uses abundant materials rather than lithium and promises 20-year operational life with safer high-temperature performance. The batteries are passively cooled, eliminating the fire risk and noise of active cooling systems needed for lithium-ion. GM says the first systems will target US data centres and renewable energy farms. It is a bet that the next wave of grid storage will not use lithium at all. Sodium-ion is cheaper, safer, and built from materials not subject to the same supply chain pressures that have driven lithium prices up.

The lawsuit alleges Amazon engaged in a systematic campaign to poach Warner Bros Discovery employees under contract, specifically targeting Pia Barlow, HBO Max's former senior vice president for originals marketing, who joined Amazon MGM Studios. Warner claims Amazon induced Barlow and other employees to breach their employment agreements. The case will test whether term employment agreements are enforceable under California law, which generally favours employee mobility. For the tech and entertainment industries, the outcome could reshape how talent moves between Hollywood and the Silicon Valley streaming giants.

The Boring Company is negotiating a $4 billion funding round that could value the tunnelling startup at $20 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal. That would more than triple its 2022 valuation of $5.7 billion. The company operates a handful of small tunnels under Las Vegas but has yet to deliver on Elon Musk's vision of city-wide underground transit networks. The gap between delivery and valuation reflects continued investor appetite for Musk-linked infrastructure bets. If the round closes, the company will have raised well over $1 billion in total debt and equity across its history.

Hyundai Motor workers in Ulsan, South Korea, staged a partial strike over the company's plan to deploy Boston Dynamics Atlas humanoid robots across manufacturing plants. The union wants profit-sharing guarantees and job protections before the robots arrive. Hyundai, which now fully owns Boston Dynamics after buying out SoftBank's remaining stake, plans to deploy roughly 25,000 Atlas units across Hyundai and Kia factories. Each Atlas costs about $130,000 and can lift 45kg. The strike is the first in the automotive industry triggered specifically by humanoid automation, and it sets a precedent for how manufacturers worldwide will negotiate the transition to robotic labour.