Apple Caps Employee AI Spend, Google Weighs Space Data Centers, and Big Tech Sues California

Apple Caps Employee AI Spend, Google Weighs Space Data Centers, and Big Tech Sues California

David Shipley guest hosts Hashtag Trending for Nov. 9, 2026, covering major tech headlines: Apple is reportedly cutting daily AI spending limits for some employees (from $300 to $200, with possible lower caps) as other companies also rein in AI budgets, emphasizing cheaper models and on-device AI.

Google is testing AI computing in orbit with a small TPU-equipped satellite but says space data centers could cost up to 100x more than Earth-based facilities, with major hurdles like heat, radiation, orbital crowding, and launch constraints.

Police still have made no arrests in an $11.4 million NVIDIA hardware highway theft as similar heists surge.

OpenAI sought $30B but has raised $11B so far amid heavy losses and massive compute spending.

Google, Meta, and TikTok are suing California to block AB 1709, a law limiting addictive social media features for kids under 16.

00:00 Today's Tech Headlines 00:31 Meet the Host 00:47 Apple Caps AI Spending 01:48 How Token Billing Works 02:29 AI Budget Cuts Spread 03:45 Is the AI Party Over 04:11 Data Centers in Space 04:30 Google's Orbital TPU Test 05:07 Why Space Data Centers Fail 07:01 Nvidia Highway Heist Update 08:14 Why AI Hardware Theft Pays 09:12 OpenAI Funding Falls Short 09:53 OpenAI Burn Rate Reality 11:26 Big Tech Sues California 13:21 Host Take on Addictive Apps 14:23 Wrap Up and Where to Listen