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Feb 22, 2026 8:40 AM

Consumer Tech News (Feb 16-20): Big Techs To Boost AI in India, EV Policy Shifts & More

New York Governor Kathy Hochul (D) has reportedly pulled a proposal to allow robotaxis to operate in other areas within the state outside of New York City.

The U.S. State Department is reportedly developing an online portal to provide access to content banned by European and other governments.

President Donald Trump‘s Department of Energy (DOE) has rescinded a rule that incentivized automakers to produce more EVs to comply with Fuel Economy norms.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is reportedly contemplating ending the Department of War's association with AI firm Anthropic.

Broadline Retail, Smartphones & Entertainment

Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) has reportedly discontinued its recently introduced warehouse robot, Blue Jay, and reassigned its staff to other robotics projects.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) launched its latest AI model, Qwen-3.5, intensifying the rivalry between China and the U.S. in the artificial intelligence arena.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has announced its plans to launch a new integrated video podcast experience on its Apple Podcasts app this spring.

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:WBD) board is reportedly weighing a revised $30-a-share proposal from Paramount Skydance (NASDAQ:PSKY) to see if it could top its existing agreement with Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX).

Softwares & Semiconductors

Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) reportedly plans to invest $65 million in 2026 to back state politicians who are supportive of the artificial intelligence (AI) industry.

Meta’s top AI executive pushed back against concerns about screen addiction, arguing that the company’s long-term AI vision is centered on empowering users, not trapping them online.

Meta AI scientist Yann LeCun said that while large language models are “incredibly useful,” artificial intelligence still ...