US holds off blacklisting China's DeepSeek, more than 100 firms deemed security risks, sources say

thestandard.com.hk Jun 17, 2026

US holds off blacklisting China’s DeepSeek, more than 100 firms deemed security risks, sources say

Curated by Shubham · TechCapsules · Jun 17, 2026

AI-summarised brief · reviewed before publication

The US has held off adding China's AI startup DeepSeek and over 100 other companies to a trade blacklist, despite being flagged as national security risks. DeepSeek, which has supported China's military and intelligence operations, and memory chipmaker CXMT, were approved for addition to the Entity List last year. The list, which restricts US companies from shipping goods to listed companies without a license, has not been updated since October. The delay is seen as an effort to avoid escalating tensions with Beijing, amidst a tense rivalry over technology, trade, and national security. The Entity List is a key tool in combating bad actors.

💡 Why It Matters

· Delaying the addition of these companies to the Entity List may allow American technology to reach adversaries, potentially undermining national security.
· The lack of updates to the list also undermines the effectiveness of trade policy tools.

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I barely use Gemini’s default chatbot after trying the new Gemini Live…

Google has released a major update for its Gemini app, introducing a new Neural Expressive user interface for Gemini Live. The revamped interface focuses on AI-generated content, displaying spoken words, images, and more on the screen as users interact with the chatbot. This upgrade enables new use cases, such as generating images and viewing the output immediately, and provides users with more control over the conversation, including the ability to copy, share, and export responses.

💡 The Gemini Live update showcases Google's commitment to refining its AI tools, making them more intuitive and user-friendly. By prioritizing visual content, the new interface opens up new possibilities for everyday use, such as improving productivity and creativity.

techtimes.com · Jun 18

Satellite AI Inference Clears Orbit: Gemma 3 Ran Aboard YAM-9 in April

Loft Orbital's YAM-9 spacecraft successfully demonstrated the first publicly disclosed execution of a vision-language model in orbit. Aboard the spacecraft, Google DeepMind's Gemma 3 performed natural language queries, classified Earth imagery, and produced plain-English summaries without transmitting raw pixels to the ground. This achievement marks a significant shift in the value layer of Earth observation, moving from ground-based processing to onboard inference capabilities. The model, running on an Nvidia Jetson Orin AGX graphics processing unit, utilized a software harness developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory to fit within the spacecraft's memory budget and processing constraints.

💡 This breakthrough enables Earth observation satellites to operate more autonomously, reducing reliance on ground-based processing and potentially leading to faster and more efficient analysis of satellite imagery.

interestingengineering.com · Jun 18

China’s Alibaba unveils AI brains designed to power the next generation of…

Chinese firm Alibaba has unveiled its first embodied AI model family, the Qwen-Robot suite, which links large language models with real-world robotic actions. The suite comprises three models focused on navigation, manipulation, and world modeling for robots operating in physical environments. Developed by Alibaba's Tongyi Lab, the Qwen-Robot suite enables machines to perceive, reason, and interact with the real world, joining a growing global push to advance embodied AI beyond traditional chatbot applications. The models are currently undergoing pilot testing with selected Alibaba Cloud enterprise clients.

💡 The Qwen-Robot suite's success could accelerate the development of robots capable of performing complex tasks in real-world environments, potentially transforming industries such as manufacturing, logistics, and healthcare.

peoplesworld.org · Jun 18

AI: If you build it, they will come—and take your job

The Big 6 AI companies are spending heavily on AI development, outpacing the potential bubble, with Amazon spending more on AI than its total earnings this year. The combined market value loss of $900 billion by Amazon, Google, and Microsoft is being erased by a 60% rise in spending, totaling $410 billion from last year. AI investment is keeping the US economy out of recession, but also leading to job losses, with companies like Amazon cutting jobs while investing in AI. The scale of these investments is driving mergers and increasing monopolization in the energy sector. AI hallucinations and false data are also concerns.

💡 AI investments are propping up the US economy, but at the cost of significant job losses. Ruthless job cuts by AI behemoths are setting a precedent for other companies to follow.

joplinglobe.com · Jun 18

Insight Health Joins AdvancedMD Marketplace to Bring Clinical AI Agents to Thousands…

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💡 By automating routine tasks, healthcare providers can focus on high-value tasks that improve patient outcomes. This integration also sets a precedent for wider adoption of AI-powered solutions in healthcare, driving innovation and efficiency in the sector.

9to5google.com · Jun 18

Gemini for Android using Bubbles to let you multitask & continue chats

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💡 By integrating Bubbles, Gemini enhances its usability and convenience, allowing for seamless conversation continuity. This streamlined experience strengthens Gemini's assistive capabilities.