Apple HomeView Hub, Amazon Decart Talks, Ledger Implant: Today's Tech News

Apple's Smart Home Push Centers on HomeView Hub

Apple is preparing a broad smart home offensive built around a new display hub called HomeView, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The countertop model with a speaker base will come in space gray, silver, starlight, and pink, while a wall-mounted version will come in space gray and silver. The hub will run a limited set of Apple apps with no App Store, centering the experience on Siri and connected accessories rather than third-party apps.

HomeView is not expected to ship until around mid-November. The new Apple TV 4K and refreshed HomePod mini are on track to arrive October 30, with preorders opening later this week. The Apple TV moves from the A15 chip to a standard A19 with 8GB of RAM, and the HomePod mini upgrades from the S5 to the S10 chip.

Apple has also tested two features for the new Apple TV: built-in microphones in the set-top box for hands-free Siri without the remote, and a refreshed remote with a speaker for Find My. Gurman reports that the unveiling expected October 13 is about protecting the iPhone as much as outfitting the home, with second-party accessories from LG and Schneider expected alongside the new hardware.

Amazon in Talks to Buy AI Startup Decart

Amazon is in talks to acquire Decart, a San Francisco company whose software makes it easier for developers to switch between different AI chips, in a deal that could value it at around $7 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal. Anthropic had decided against acquiring Decart for about $6 billion in September.

Ledger Confirms Hardware Implant in Wallet Theft

Hardware wallet maker Ledger confirmed that one impacted user's device contained an unauthorized hardware implant, linked to a theft of more than $86 million from hundreds of wallets. The compromised devices were sold by reseller CryptoBilis. Ledger says it is reaching out to affected users as part of the ongoing investigation and has urged anyone with information to contact its bounty program.

Silicon Valley Follows "Super Intelligence" Rebrand

Elon Musk, Marc Benioff, Satya Nadella, and Nvidia have all adopted "super intelligence" terminology after Trump pushed to rebrand AI. Benioff announced that AIForce is officially renamed SIForce, declaring "the era of Super Intelligence is here." Separately, NVIDIA committed $1 billion to advance US science over the next five years.

Sources: Techmeme