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- Genetics, UBI, and the Coming AI Revolution
Genetics, UBI, and the Coming AI Revolution
PLUS: China Directs Tech Firms to Stop Ordering Nvidia H200 Chips, Google Classroom Adds Feature to Turn Text Lessons into Audio Podcasts and more.
Wes Roth
January 08, 2026
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Good morning! ☕
I hope you’re having a great week so far. We’ve got everything from massive breakthroughs in how we handle our health to some truly eye-watering amounts of money changing hands—and, sadly, the tough reality of what this AI boom costs on the human side.
Let’s dive in
Today:
Farzad on Genetics, UBI, and the Coming AI Revolution
OpenAI Enters Medicine with Privacy-Focused 'ChatGPT Health'
Anthropic Seeks $10 Billion Raise at $350 Billion Valuation
Microsoft Eyes Major January Layoffs as AI Costs Soar
China Directs Tech Firms to Stop Ordering Nvidia H200 Chips
Google Classroom Adds Feature to Turn Text Lessons into Audio Podcasts
the "GOD" company is coming…
Former Tesla data lead-turned-YouTuber Farzad describes living through today’s AI boom as a modern industrial revolution. Experimenting with Anthropic’s Claude Code, he fed in his DNA, blood work and Apple Health logs; the model flagged issues such as faulty B-vitamin processing and caffeine sensitivity that had triggered crippling panic attacks after pre-workout drinks.
The experience convinces him AI must be as widely owned as guns once were—“the right to bear AI.” He argues free-market competition, not heavy regulation, will spread benefits, while universal basic income (guaranteed cash floor) may soften job shocks. Listeners are urged to explore, build and share.
OpenAI introduced ChatGPT Health, a dedicated health-and-wellness “space” inside ChatGPT that lets you securely connect medical records + wellness apps so answers are grounded in your context, not generic advice.
A few details that stood out:
It’s a separate Health area with extra privacy protections, and OpenAI says Health conversations aren’t used to train their foundation models.
They’re positioning it as “support, not replace” care — not intended for diagnosis or treatment.
OpenAI claims the demand is already massive: 230M+ people ask health/wellness questions on ChatGPT every week (based on de-identified analysis).
It’s built with a serious clinician feedback loop: 260+ physicians across 60 countries, 600,000+ feedback instances, plus their evaluation framework HealthBench.
Rollout is gated: waitlist, starting with a small group; eligible users include Free/Go/Plus/Pro outside the EEA, Switzerland, and the UK.
Why I think this matters: it’s OpenAI “productizing” a vertical with stronger privacy walls. That’s the pattern to watch in 2026: general chat → specialized zones (health, finance, legal, etc.) where data handling becomes part of the product promise, not fine print.
If you try it (or plan to), my practical take is: the best use isn’t “tell me what I have,” it’s prep + interpretation + trend-spotting — “summarize my labs in plain language,” “what should I ask my doctor,” “what changed since last month,” “make me a questions list for my appointment.” That’s exactly the kind of “help me be prepared” use case OpenAI is pushing.
The Wall Street Journal reported Anthropic is preparing a new round to raise $10B at around a $350B valuation — and Reuters echoed the report, saying terms could still change and the round could wrap within weeks.
A few points from the reporting worth keeping in mind:
The story frames $350B as nearly double a valuation from about four months earlier (per sources cited).
Reuters notes the round is expected to be led by Singapore’s GIC and Coatue (again, “sources say”).
It also mentions Anthropic is prepping for a possible IPO as early as 2026 (not a decision, but signals of readiness).
My read: whether the exact valuation lands at $350B or not, the direction is clear — capital is still sprinting toward the labs that can scale compute + enterprise adoption fastest. And the quiet subtext is: these valuations are as much a bet on future infrastructure dominance as they are on “chatbots.”
If you’re tracking the industry like I am, this is the “AI arms race” in spreadsheet form: the costs are brutal, the upside is enormous, and investors are basically saying, “we think there will be 2–4 mega-winners.”
Finally, on a heavier note, we’re seeing the other side of this massive AI spending. Microsoft is reportedly eyeing major layoffs this month—potentially cutting between 11,000 and 22,000 jobs.
The reasoning is pretty stark: AI is expensive. Like, $80 billion a year expensive. As Microsoft pours money into data centers and chips to keep up with the AI boom, they are looking to cut costs elsewhere to balance the books. The rumors suggest that teams in Azure, Xbox, and sales might be hit the hardest.
It’s a sobering reminder that while the tech is exciting, the transition is having a very real impact on people's livelihoods. If you have friends in the industry, it might be a good time to check in on them.
🧠RESEARCH
Researchers created "NitroGen," an AI trained on 40,000 hours of video games to play like a human. Instead of learning one game at a time, it watched thousands of different games to understand general movement and strategy. This "generalist" approach helps it play new, unseen games better than AI built for single tasks.
"InfiniDepth" is a new tool that helps computers see 3D depth in flat images with extreme detail. Unlike older methods that guess depth in blocky chunks, this uses a continuous mathematical field to predict distance at any specific point. This creates sharper, more realistic 3D models from simple 2D photos.
"MOSS" is a new AI tool that transcribes long recordings while perfectly tracking who is speaking and when. It processes up to 90 minutes of audio at once, identifying different speakers in a single step. This "all-in-one" approach is more accurate than current commercial tools that separate transcription and speaker identification.
🛠️TOP TOOLS
Each listing includes a hands-on tutorial so you can get started right away, whether you’re a beginner or a pro.
BookAI – Chat With Your Book - lets you “chat” with any book by entering only its title and author.
Boomy AI – Make Generative Music With AI - eb-based generative music tool that lets anyone create original songs in seconds, customize them, and download tracks with commercial rights on paid tiers.
Boords – Online Storyboarding Software - web‑based storyboarding and animatic platform that helps studios, agencies, and in‑house teams plan shots, collaborate with stakeholders, and export deliverables for production.
📲SOCIAL MEDIA
🗞️MORE NEWS
China Pauses Nvidia Chip Orders Chinese regulators have reportedly told major local tech companies to stop buying Nvidia's H200 chips, which are powerful processors used to build artificial intelligence. This directive comes shortly after the U.S. government placed tighter restrictions on selling advanced technology to China, aiming to limit the country's AI progress. While not a total ban, the move signals that China wants its companies to rely less on American hardware and more on domestic alternatives.
Google Classroom Adds AI Podcasts Google is updating its Classroom app with a new feature that uses its Gemini artificial intelligence to turn written lesson plans into engaging audio discussions. Teachers can upload class material, and the tool generates a conversation between two AI voices that explains the topic in a podcast format. This update aims to make learning more accessible for students who prefer listening over reading, though it is currently only available in English for certain paid education accounts.
SwitchBot’s AI Recorder SwitchBot announced a new smart voice recorder at CES that clips onto your clothes to record and summarize conversations. The device uses AI to turn messy meetings into clean notes without needing you to pull out your phone. It joins a wave of new gadgets trying to make AI a helpful part of daily life.
US Army AI Officers The US Army is creating a new job specifically for officers who are experts in artificial intelligence. Starting next year, these soldiers will be trained to build and manage smart systems directly on the battlefield. The goal is to create a military force that understands modern technology better than its enemies.
Greg Brockman Donates to Trump OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman donated $25 million to a political group supporting Donald Trump. This massive contribution aligns him with other tech leaders who hope the new administration will reduce rules on AI development. It signals that AI companies are aggressively using their wealth to influence government policy.
ByteDance Fixes Video Glitches ByteDance created a new tool that stops characters from shape-shifting in AI-generated videos. By giving the AI a "memory" of what a person looks like, it keeps their face and clothes the same from scene to scene. This fixes a major glitch that has made AI movies look weird and inconsistent until now.
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