News — 2026-07-12

OpenAI announced on Thursday that its Atlas browser will be deprecated on Aug. 9, ending the standalone product that launched just months ago. The move coincides with the rollout of ChatGPT Work and a redesigned desktop app that embeds browsing, coding and productivity tools under a single interface. While headlines called the browser "dead," the company says the functionality lives on as a feature of the new app and an upgraded Chrome extension. Executives cite lessons from Atlas users and a strategic shift toward a unified super‑app rather than a separate web browser.Read more

OpenAI said its head of safety systems, Johannes Heidecke, will leave the company as it reshuffles its safety and research leadership. Heidecke, who joined in 2021, announced his exit in an internal memo. Saachi Jain will step in as interim head, while safety teams will now report to newly appointed vice president of research and safety, Mia Glaese. The changes come on the heels of the GPT-5.6 rollout and a U.S. government approval, and underscore OpenAI’s push to tightly integrate safety with frontier‑model development.Read more

OpenAI announced a new senior product‑manager role in San Francisco focused on building AI experiences for families, caregivers and older adults. The move follows data showing a growing share of ChatGPT users over 35 and a surge in parental adoption in the United States. Industry analysts see the hire as a signal that consumer AI is moving from individual productivity tools to household‑wide services, raising fresh safety and trust challenges.Read more

Meta removed its Muse Image AI feature from Instagram and the Meta AI app just three days after launch, citing privacy concerns. The tool let users generate images using any public Instagram profile, defaulting to opt‑out for creators. Hollywood unions and talent agencies, including SAG‑AFTRA and CAA, condemned the feature as a threat to actors' likenesses, prompting a swift reversal. Meta said the feature “missed the mark” on user privacy and is no longer available, while its companion video generator, Muse Video, remains live.Read more

Apple filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleging that OpenAI and former Apple employees stole confidential hardware designs and other trade secrets. The complaint targets OpenAI’s senior leadership, including former Apple VP Tang Tan, and former Apple engineer Chang Liu, accusing them of extracting proprietary information during recruitment and after leaving Apple. Apple seeks an injunction to stop OpenAI from using the stolen data, the return of any Apple materials, and preservation of evidence. OpenAI responded with a brief statement denying interest in any competitor’s secrets.Read more