Google Escapes Breakup, Salesforce AI Layoffs, ‘Asteroid’ Debuts On AndroidXR

Google dodges consequences for being a search monopolist. A federal judge who found Google guilty, spared it from the government’s harshest remedies, allowing it to keep Chrome and Android while curbing some search practices. Judge Amit Mehta barred exclusive distribution contracts but left intact Google’s $20 billion deal with Apple to remain the iPhone’s default search engine. Alphabet shares jumped more than 8 percent, Apple’s 4 percent. Google must share parts of its search index and interaction data with rivals on commercial terms. Mehta cited generative AI competitors such as OpenAI and Perplexity as reshaping the landscape, signaling that courts will let innovation rather than structural remedies drive the next search era.

On September 2, 2025, Fortune reported that Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff said AI agents have enabled job reductions, particularly in customer support. He noted that AI efficiencies mean Salesforce needs fewer human agents. While emphasizing AI’s benefits, Benioff also made clear that human oversight remains essential, and that AI complements rather than replaces employees. When human oversight isn’t essential, they cut jobs. 4,000 of them.

Doug Liman premiered Asteroid at the Venice Film Festival, a twelve-minute immersive thriller built for Google’s new AndroidXR platform and Samsung’s forthcoming MR headset. Produced by 30 Ninjas with Juliana Tatlock and Jed Weintraub, the short adapts Liman’s feature screenplay, blending Unreal Engine with Google’s human-scanning tech. Hailee Steinfeld leads a cast that includes Freida Pinto, Ron Perlman, and NFL star DK Metcalf. After the credits, viewers can interact with an AI-driven extension using Google Gemini. Google sees Asteroid as a showcase for cinematic storytelling in XR, positioning AndroidXR alongside productivity tools at launch.

Xpanceo and Intra-ker unveiled a prototype implant that restores vision by bypassing damaged corneas. Using an external camera and microdisplay, the device projects images directly onto the retina. Early tests in fluid environments and a donor eye showed clear, stable performance. With 12 million people awaiting corneal transplants and only 185,000 surgeries performed annually, the implant could offer a scalable alternative that doesn’t rely on donor tissue. Clinical trials are planned within two years, with an initial market estimated at $50–200 million annually, and the potential to transform treatment for corneal blindness.

Rokid, the China-and-US AR startup, launched its Rokid Glasses Kickstarter campaign and quickly surpassed HK$8.7 million (~US $1.2 million) in under a week. The smart glasses feature dual green micro-LED waveguide displays (up to 1500 nits), powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon AR1 and NXP’s RT600 chips, all in an impressively lightweight 49g form factor.They aim to offer more than audio-only experiences like Meta’s Ray-Ban and Oakley Meta HSTN by integrating “true visual overlays.” The campaign runs through October 10.

China has launched a sweeping national strategy to become a world leader in brain-computer interface (BCI) technology. Released in August 2025 and backed by multiple government departments, the policy outlines 17 development steps, including improved signal-decoding chips, technology standards, and mass production. The roadmap targets major breakthroughs by 2027 and a competitive BCI industry by 2030. Several Chinese firms, such as NeuroXess and NeuCyber NeuroTech, have already implanted patients with devices that allow thought-based control of digital interfaces and speech decoding. The plan also anticipates uses beyond healthcare—including consumer wearables for driver alertness and workplace safety.

Supersonik, a San Francisco and Barcelona startup, has raised $5 million in seed funding led by Andreessen Horowitz to build an AI sales agent that delivers instant, multilingual software demos. Founded by serial entrepreneur Daniel Carmona Serrat, ex-Typeform CEO Joaquim Lechà, and Pol Ruiz, the company’s AI can share its screen, adapt demos in real time, and pull context from CRMs and knowledge bases. Supersonik is already working with early customers and plans to double its nine-person team by year’s end. Andreessen’s Gabriel Vasquez said the startup addresses a costly bottleneck by turning demos into immediate, interactive product experiences.

This column has a companion, The AI/XR Podcast, hosted by its author, Charlie Fink, and Ted Schilowitz, former studio executive and futurist recently at Paramount and Fox, and Rony Abovitz, founder of Magic Leap. This week’s guests are Jason Zada and Studio head Monica Monique, of AI-first production company and brand agency. We can be found on Spotify, iTunes, and YouTube.