Google parent earnings beat projections, creepy robot has warm skin! – Tech Digest

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Google’s parent company, Alphabet, beat Wall Street expectations on Wednesday, and is planning a sharp increase in capital spending in 2026 as it continues to invest deeply in AI infrastructure. Alphabet on Wednesday reported profit of $34.5bn in the recently ended quarter, as revenue from cloud computing soared 48%. The company also forecast spending between $175bn and $185bn this year, a figure much higher than analysts’ expectations of roughly $115bn. Guardian 

The US has launched an effort to form a trade zone for critical minerals that are key to making everything from smartphones to weapons as it tries to break China’s dominance of the industry. On Wednesday, the State Department hosted the first Critical Minerals Ministerial event – which was attended by countries and organisations including the UK, European Union, Japan, India, South Korea, Australia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Delegates discussed the availability of and access to minerals crucial to the manufacture of things like computer chips and electric vehicle batteries. BBC 

Setting up a new AirTag is just as effortless as its predecessor. Pull out the plastic tag, connecting the battery, and a notification will pop up on your nearby iPhone. You can then name it, assign it to an item and it’ll join your list of findable Apple hardware. I’ve been testing the range of the new AirTag, and if anything, the 50 percent increase in Precision Finding range is a conservative estimate. Naturally, tracking can be affected by building structure, walls and a lack of nearby Find My network devices, but the next-generation AirTag’s “getting closer” screen consistently appeared on my phone when I was around 80 feet away. Engadget

Disturbingly lifelike humanoid robots are becoming a big theme of 2026 – and a Shanghai startup has just revealed what might be the closest thing to an extra from Westworld. Fortunately, it’s still easy to tell that Moya is indeed a robot – the plasticky skin, dead eyes, and slightly jerky movements give that away. But a few interesting, or perhaps creepy, details mean it’s also a cut above your average cold-blooded companion. Firstly, Moya’s skin is actually warm. “A robot that truly serves human life should be warm… almost like a living being that people can people can connect with,” claimed Li Qingdu, founder of Moya’s maker Droidup, in an interview with Shanghai Eye. TechRadar