📧 Gmail enters the Gemini era with AI-powered inbox 📧
Google makes AI features free for all personal users

Google launched major AI upgrades to Gmail, including an AI Inbox that surfaces your most important tasks and updates, plus AI Overviews that let you search through emails using natural language. The company is making two previously paid features—Help Me Write and Suggested Replies—free for all personal users. Google stressed that all AI features are optional and that it doesn't use personal email content to train its models.

🤝 OpenAI acquires executive coaching AI startup team 🤝
Convogo team joins to boost cloud infrastructure efforts

OpenAI is acquiring the team behind Convogo, a business software platform that automated leadership assessments and feedback reporting. The startup's product will be wound down, but its team will join OpenAI to work on AI cloud efforts. OpenAI will not acquire Convogo's IP or technology in this acqui-hire deal. The move signals OpenAI's continued expansion of its technical capabilities and infrastructure.

🛒 Microsoft adds Buy buttons to Copilot chat 🛒
New feature lets users complete purchases directly in-app

Microsoft announced Copilot Checkout, enabling users to shop and make purchases directly within the chatbot. With this update, Copilot joins OpenAI, Perplexity, Gemini, and Amazon's Rufus as chatbots offering shopping capabilities. AI drove 20% of all global orders last holiday season, generating $262 billion in revenue, while AI-referred shoppers converted 9x more often than social media referrals.

INTERESTING TO KNOW

📊 How Google overtook OpenAI in AI race 📊

A deep Wall Street Journal analysis examines Google's AI comeback: by September, the Gemini app became the most downloaded on Apple's App Store after trailing competitors in August. In November, Google released its most powerful Gemini model, briefly surpassing OpenAI in benchmarks. Years of investment in custom TPU chips and internal leadership changes accelerated this pricing and distribution advantage, now translating into real revenue through search ads and paid subscriptions.

💼 China's Zhipu AI debuts on Hong Kong exchange at $6-8B valuation 💼

Zhipu AI became the first major Chinese AI company to go public, listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange after raising $558M. The company's shares valued it between $6-8B on day one—a fraction of Western competitors like Anthropic or xAI. Zhipu's AI assistant runs at just $3/month, with leadership stating this price gap will force US competitors into the same price war playing out in China.