Hottest toy for Christmas? Nvidia CEO plays with adorable Microduck robots, 20,000 sell

techcrunch.com Oct 24, 2026

Hottest toy for Christmas? Nvidia CEO plays with adorable Microduck robots, 20,000 sell

Curated by Shubham · TechCapsules · Oct 24, 2026

AI-summarised brief · reviewed before publication

A video of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang playing with Microduck robots during his GTC Berlin keynote went viral, prompting a surge in pre‑orders that topped 20,000 units by the following day, according to Hugging Face co‑founder Clem Delangue. The open‑source Microducks, produced by Pollen Robotics—acquired by Hugging Face in 2025 and now part of Nvidia after its September purchase—respond to voice commands, walk, sit, fall asleep, and perform somersaults. They were trained in Nvidia’s RTX Spark AI stack, with simulations teaching the basic tricks shipped with each unit. Owners can program new behaviors and share them via the community platform. Delivery is slated for the holiday season, positioning the toys as a potential top‑selling robot for Christmas.

💡 Why It Matters

· The viral demo showcases Nvidia’s AI ecosystem delivering consumer‑ready robotics, turning a developer‑focused platform into a mainstream holiday product.

AI Capsules Nvidia Robotics

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Gemini Notebook now available as Connected App for deeper integration

Google has expanded Gemini Notebook’s functionality by adding a Connected App integration that lets users manage and query notebooks directly within Google Chat using natural language. The new feature automatically triggers when relevant prompts appear, enabling users to retrieve data, create new notebooks, add sources, and save notes without leaving the chat interface. The integration is enabled by default for all users worldwide, except in the European Economic Area, and is available to Workspace customers, Workspace Individual subscribers, and personal Google account holders.

💡 The seamless in‑chat access to Gemini Notebooks streamlines workflow, reducing context switching and boosting productivity for users who rely on real‑time information retrieval.

thehackernews.com · Oct 24

Google Says Gmail and Photos Data Shared With AI Search Could Be…

Google updated its privacy policy on October 16, 2026 to clarify that enabling personalized AI features in Search or Gemini can allow the company to serve targeted ads based on data from other Google services such as Gmail, Drive, and Photos. The policy states that ads are not personalized by default, but if users opt to share content through the Personal Intelligence feature, that data may inform ad targeting. Users can opt out by disconnecting apps or disabling personalized recommendations in Search settings.

💡 The change signals a shift toward monetizing personal data through AI-driven advertising, raising new privacy concerns for users who previously believed their email and photo content were excluded from ad targeting.

gamesradar.com · Oct 24

Still mad at Valve for Steam’s AI disclosures, Epic Games boss criticizes…

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney publicly denounced Valve’s mandatory AI disclosure policy for Steam games, calling it “abhorrent.” Sweeney argues that requiring developers to label AI usage forces them into political statements that could attract harassment. He has previously criticized Valve’s approach, comparing it to a “Scarlet Letter,” and highlighted the growing prevalence of generative AI in game development. Valve’s policy mandates developers disclose AI involvement, citing examples like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4. Sweeney’s comments come amid Epic’s own AI‑focused initiatives and a surge of AI‑generated titles on Steam.

💡 The clash underscores a broader industry debate over transparency versus creative freedom in AI‑enhanced game production. It also signals potential friction between major platform holders and developers over how AI tools are regulated and presented to consumers.

therobotreport.com · Oct 24

Generative Bionics to launch Physical AI Data Factory in Italy

Generative Bionics announced plans to build a 5,000‑sq‑m Physical AI Data Factory in Genoa, Italy, slated to open by Q4 2027. The hub will generate high‑fidelity physical data from humanoid robot GENE.01 operating in realistic industrial settings, linking real‑world operations, simulation, and AI training in a continuous real‑to‑sim‑to‑real loop. The facility will use AMD Helios compute, support digital‑twin scenarios, and aim to advance European humanoid sovereignty by keeping data, models, and know‑how on the continent.

💡 By creating a dedicated data ecosystem for humanoid robots, the factory could accelerate the transition from laboratory prototypes to reliable industrial deployment, reducing dependence on foreign data pipelines and strengthening Europe’s competitive edge in robotics.

windowscentral.com · Oct 24

Microsoft pulls the plug on Outlook’s AI inbox assistant

Microsoft has discontinued the AI‑powered inbox assistant in Outlook after a brief rollout, removing the feature from both desktop and web versions for all users. The tool, which used large‑language‑model prompts to suggest replies, prioritize messages and draft summaries, was introduced earlier this year as part of Microsoft 365’s broader AI push. Internal testing reportedly revealed inconsistent performance and user confusion, prompting the company to halt deployment and issue a statement that the assistant would be “temporarily unavailable while we refine the experience.” The removal affects Outlook for Windows, macOS, iOS, Android and Outlook on the web, and Microsoft has pledged to reintroduce an improved version later this year. Customers can expect clearer guidance and tighter integration with Teams soon.

💡 The pullback underscores the difficulty of delivering reliable AI assistance in core email workflows, forcing Microsoft to rethink usability before scaling.

microsoft.ai · Oct 24

Can AI diagnose like a team of doctors? New research puts it…

A new study published in Science demonstrates that MAI‑DxO, an AI diagnostic system, outperforms physicians on both complex New England Journal of Medicine cases and common emergency‑department presentations. Using the Sequential Diagnosis Benchmark, MAI‑DxO achieved 83 % accuracy on NEJM cases versus 22 % for physicians without references, and 80 % accuracy on MIMIC‑IV‑ED cases versus 47 % for doctors. The system also reduced diagnostic costs, delivering correct diagnoses at half or a third of the expense of traditional workups.

💡 The findings show that AI can match or exceed human diagnostic skill while cutting costs, suggesting a scalable model for improving clinical decision‑making in real‑world settings.