Hi friends, welcome to TechPP Daily Brief, where we bring you the top tech news from the last 24 hours. Today, we have news about OpenAI launching its GPT live voice model, SpaceXAI announcing its new Grok 4.5, claiming to beat Claude Opus 4.8, Meta rolling out a Super Sensing feature for Meta Glasses which plans to record audio continuously and take photos every few seconds, Apple reportedly testing DRAM memory chips from Chinese chipmaker CXMT, Google launching a new Remix feature in Photos, reports of worldwide PC shipments falling for the first time in nine quarters and much more.

TechPP Daily Brief

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The Daily Brief: July 9, 2026

AI News

We Have Two Big Announcements from OpenAI Today

First, OpenAI has officially revealed its new ChatGPT voice model called GPT Live. The new voice model is now more advanced, more conversational, and more natural. I might be exaggerating, but you should listen to yourself to find out how natural it sounds.

The model is now rolling out for everyone; it is also live for us. The best thing about GPT-Live is that it can now listen and speak at the same time, which means fewer awkward interruptions.

OpenAI says the new voice model is different from older voice models and different from the advanced voice model. Plus, since the model uses the latest GPT 5.5, it is not only natural but also more intelligent compared to older voice models in the past, which used older GPT 4o. It can also search the web and complete work, and can also delete tasks from front models on your Mac.

It comes with two versions, GPT-Live-1 and GPT-Live-1 mini. GPT-Live-1 is the default voice model for Go, Plus, and Pro users, while GPT-Live-1 mini will be the default for Free users. You can also choose intelligence levels similar to standard models, currently supported as Instant, Medium, and High under Voice settings. Currently, GPT-Live is rolling out globally on iOS, Android, and ChatGPT.com.

Next, OpenAI has officially announced that it will roll out its recently announced flagship GPT-5.6, Sol, Terra, and Luna models to everyone this Thursday. OpenAI slightly delayed the launch from what we expected.

This is probably the first time an AI company has officially announced a launch date or availability of a model, since most of them have kept it a secret before the official release, except for information coming from leaks.

This comes at a time when Claude Fable 5 will be available to all paid plans till July 12. However, from the initial testing that many reviewers had access to, claims suggest this model is more capable and even better than Claude Fable 5 in some tasks. We will test it ourselves, and we will let you know once we get hands-on with these new models.

Grok 4.5 Is Here, and It Claims to Beat Claude Opus 4.8

SpaceXAI has officially launched Grok 4.5, as the company calls it, the smartest model so far, built mainly for coding, agentic tasks, and knowledge work. Yesterday, Elon tweeted saying that Grok has reached the point where it can beat other top frontier models, including Claude 4.5, and they have developed it based on user feedback. And now today, Grok 4.5 is rolling out for all eligible users. The biggest USP of Grok 4.5 is its pricing.

The model is available in Grok Build, Cursor, and the xAI and SpaceXAI API consoles, and it is available on all plans. However, Grok 4.5 costs $2 per million input tokens and $6 per million output tokens, and the model has a 500,000-token context window. Also, xAI claims that Grok is token-efficient. It says it serves Grok 4.5 at around 80 tokens per second, and claims it uses fewer output tokens on some software engineering tasks.

It also posted a comparison with the Claude Opus and Grok, where Grok 4.5 used 15,915 output tokens on average on SW Benchmark Pro tasks, whereas Claude used 67,000 for Opus 4.8 Max.

Grok 4.5 rankings

And also, as per the benchmark shared by Grok, it even beats Claude Opus 4.8 Max. But I don’t believe that’s the case, considering Claude has the best-in-class models for coding. We haven’t tested the capabilities of Grok 4.5 yet. However, it is good to see the competitiveness in the pricing and the efficiency, not just the speed and its capabilities.

Smart Glasses and Privacy

Meta Is Reportedly Working on “Super Sensing” Smart Glasses That Could Record Audio Continuously and Take Photos Every Few Seconds

Meta Super Sensing

Yesterday, we reported that Meta is working on a feature that prevents tampering with the capture light on Meta AI glasses, which turns off the camera if the capture light is not working as intended. We appreciated Meta’s approach to privacy because of the ongoing concerns.

The Big Picture:
However, in less than 24 hours today, we have a new report from the Financial Times saying that Meta is working on super-sensing smart glasses that will record audio continuously and take photos every few seconds. And what’s even more concerning is that Meta is reportedly considering keeping the LED capture light off during the super-sensing mode, which Meta said it will block the camera if users tamper with it. That means the glasses, with “super-sense” mode, can record everything, including voice, and take photos every few moments. However, you will not be able to know whether the glasses are listening to you or capturing your photo.

This works slightly differently, though. Instead of sharing the images and voice directly, Meta says it will extract metadata and use that only for processing your answers. Basically, the goal is to let the Glasses see and listen to everything around you, ready to answer whenever the user asks a question using the metadata captured. The report also claims that Meta is considering whether it wants to use the captured data to train AI models.

They may also be able to roll out this “super sensing” update to existing Meta glasses through a software update. This once again proves that we cannot trust Meta, and Meta will never be a privacy-first company.  We really wish that this could be optional, and users should be able to opt out of recording everything around them.

Meta isn’t the only company that’s doing this; all the AI super-intelligence gadgets with visual intelligence will do the same in the future. We really wish companies would provide an option, and also let others know that they are being recorded, or that their data is being recorded and used to train the AI models or answer user questions. We should see how this will all pan out in the future.

Just a Quick Update on Meta Muse

Yesterday, we reported that Meta announced its new image and video generation models, which allowed any user to use their Instagram public photos to create and generate images using their data. Now, Meta allows you to turn this off. You can go to your profile on Instagram, scroll down, and tap on the option that says Sharing and reuse under comments. Then, turn off “Allow people to create Reels” and “Allow people to create remixes”. The feature is still not live for us yet.

PC News

Worldwide PC Shipments Fell 4.9% Year Over Year in Q2 2026

Worldwide PC Shipments

Now we finally have the latest PC shipment data for Q2 2026 by IDC. As we expected, PC shipments fell 4.9% year over year, reaching 68.2 million units.

PC Market Share: 2Q25 vs 2Q26

The Big Picture:
For the first time after continuous growth in nine quarters, PC shipments have fallen. If you have been following our TechPP Daily, we have been reporting that memory shortage is hurting consumer products, especially smartphones and PCs. And now we have the shipment data that clearly states the same with numbers. IDC also says memory shortage is the primary reason, and it pushed the market down.

However, while shipments are affected, IDC says there is no effect on revenues for the brands as they have increased the prices of the devices. Revenues are still on a positive note for them, even though shipments are lower. I

DC says the second half of 2027 could be worse because many smartphone and PC brands have started increasing prices. Especially recently, Apple has significantly increased Mac prices. Although many have bought Macs because of the fear, PC shipments are expected to fall due to the high prices and memory shortages. IDC also predicted that the shortage may not end soon; they say it is expected to ease by early 2028.

Now, coming to the data shared by IDC, Lenovo is still the number one PC brand globally. The company has shipped 16.6 million PCs in Q2 2026, with 24% market share, but its shipments fell 2.1% year over year. On the other hand, HP and Dell also saw a fall, where HP shipped 13 million units, down 9% year over year, and is currently in the number two position, and Dell shipped 9.3 million units, down 5% year over year, and stayed at the number three position.

While PC makers continue to suffer, Apple is growing its market share. Apple gained 10% year over year, with an overall market share of 9.9%. IDC reports that Apple shipped 6.7 million Macs. One of the reasons IDC mentions is the popularity of the MacBook Air, but this is going to be affected since Apple has also increased the price of the MacBook Neo.

Shipment change in million units

Shipment change in million units

Apple News

Apple Is Reportedly Testing DRAM Memory Chips from ChangXin Memory Technologies, Also Called CXMT

Apple logo

As per the Financial Times, Apple has reportedly tested DRAM memory chips from the Chinese manufacturer CXMT Technologies. Previously, in our TechPP Daily Brief, we reported that Apple is considering using Chinese CXMT DRAMs on upcoming Apple products due to the memory shortage.

Now, it seems like Apple has moved a step forward. Reports say Apple is evaluating whether the CXMT chip can meet its technical standards for future products.

It is interesting, considering CXMT is blocked by the U.S. Pentagon itself. We should see how Apple plans deal with US goverment. On the other hand, the U.S. is proposing to block companies like ASML from selling chip-making tools to China. You can see the full Reuters report from here.

Apple Has Reportedly Stopped Work on a display project meant for a Lighter Apple Vision Pro-style headset

Apple Vision Pro

The Apple Vision Pro is out of reach for many people, especially considering its high price. While Apple was expected to announce a new, cheaper, and lighter version of the headset, it seems like that is not going to happen anytime soon.

According to the latest report by The Elec, Apple has reportedly stopped the project, which is being developed with Samsung to develop a lower-end display for the Apple Vision Pro variant. The Elec says Samsung is formally expected to end the project around September 2026. The display is one of the key factors in the Apple Vision Pro. The original Apple Vision Pro uses a silicon-based OLED-on-Silicon (OLEDoS) display that has around 3,386 PPI.

However, Apple had considered using a glass-substrate micro-OLED panel, which is lower cost compared to silicon-based OLEDoS and can support up to 1,600 to 1,700 PPI.

Now, Apple has reportedly scrapped the project entirely. The report also claims that Apple might be planning AI smart glasses instead of bringing a lighter version of the Vision Pro to market. The Vision Pro is an extraordinary product, but it doesn’t have the same success as other Apple products, primarily because of its price. If you are someone waiting for a lighter and more affordable version of the Apple Vision Pro, this could be bad news for you.

Google News

Google Launches a New Remix Feature in Photos That Lets You Create and Turn Your Videos into AI-Generated Videos

Slowly, Google Photos is becoming the platform for AI-generated slop. Google is adding plenty of AI-generated features to the Photos app. Previously, it rolled out the ability to transform your images, and now it’s coming for your videos.

Google has announced a new feature called Remix, where you can remix your videos and transform your videos in Google Photos with AI effects like changing backgrounds and using different styles.

Google Photos used to be my personal memories app, but with all these AI features, it can become a place for AI-generated slop and modified photos. At least using them is currently an option for users, but whenever we visit the app, Google is constantly prompting me to use those AI features. Remember that if you are using the feature, Google will also use your photo data to train its AI models if you haven’t opted out.

After Brave, DuckDuckGo Can Now Block YouTube Ads

DuckDuckGo browser settings to block YouTube ads

After Brave, DuckDuckGo can now block YouTube ads. You can enable it from the settings under Ad Block settings. And it says it will enable the feature by default for Windows, Mac, and iOS devices, while Android users need to manually turn it on. Check out their announcement here.

Social Media News

Now, X Will Let You Know if a Post You Interacted with Gets Corrected by Community Notes

Community Notes on Twitter is one of the most useful additions to combat misinformation, allowing users to add notes if a tweet needs correction.

Now, it is getting a useful upgrade: if you have interacted with a post, for instance, if you liked, reposted, or replied to it, and it later gets a helpful community note, X will directly notify you about the change. Elon Musk says they are rolling out, but they haven’t provided any detailed info on when the feature will roll out and what platforms it will be available on.

Gaming News

Quick Update for Nintendo Fans

Nintendo

Quick update for the Nintendo fans: the company says that it will continue to sell the original Switch outside Europe. Many thought that Nintendo would stop selling the original Nintendo Switch, Switch Lite, and Switch OLED hardware.

However, Nintendo clarifies that this is only for the European market, since from February 2027, all portable gadgets, including handheld consoles sold in Europe, require replaceable batteries. Nintendo plans to stop selling the original Nintendo in Europe. However, it announced that it will continue to sell the Nintendo Switch outside of Europe. Nintendo also says that in Europe, the Switch model will be available throughout 2026.

From mid-February 2027, Nintendo will stop selling the original Switch, and will also stop selling Nintendo Switch hardware in the Nintendo Store in Europe. And in the same announcement, Nintendo mentions that it is also updating the latest lineup, including Switch 2, Joy-Con 2, and the Switch 2 Pro controller with replaceable batteries for Europe.

Launch Monitor

Now, coming to the launch monitor: 

  • Motorola has launched the new Moto G77 Power. It comes with a 7,000mAh battery, MediaTek Dimensity 6400, 50MP + 8MP rear cameras, 32MP selfie camera, 6.72-inch display, and Android 16. It is priced at Rs 25,999 for the 8GB + 128GB model.
  • Noise has launched its first screenless wearable in India called the REP Band. It is focused on 24/7 health monitoring. It is priced at Rs 9,999, and it is available for pre-booking in four colors.
  • Skullcandy launched its new Method 360 ANC earbuds in India. They come with Sound by Bose, active noise cancellation, and up to 40 hours of battery life with ANC off. Earbuds are priced at Rs 12,499.

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