This is today’s edition of The Download , our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. I watched a humanoid robot clean my apartment. It felt like a taste of the future. —Grace Huckins
When I saw an X post about a new humanoid-robot cleaning service in San Francisco, I immediately signed up for the waitlist. I wanted my apartment to feel like The Jetsons , even if just for an hour. The device that arrived at my building belongs to Tau Robotics, a local startup. Its long-term goal is to make autonomous cleaning robots a reality, but the technology isn’t quite there yet. For now, humans pilot the robots remotely, watching them work through onboard cameras. There were some unexpected challenges along the way, but also moments that felt like a glimpse of the future. Find out how well the machine cleaned my home—and how close we are to truly autonomous domestic robots . A visit to Samsung’s massive new semiconductor hub
Generative AI models depend on stacks of specialized memory chips. To meet soaring demand, Samsung is building a vast new semiconductor manufacturing campus in Pyeongtaek, South Korea. I visited the sprawling campus south of Seoul, where three fabs already operate around the clock, a fourth is coming online, and thousands of workers are racing to build a fifth. Step inside the vast chipmaking complex powering the AI boom . —Michelle Kim
This story is from the Impossible edition of our print magazine. Subscribe now to get every issue as soon as it lands. The must-reads
I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 Almost $2. 5 trillion has been wiped off tech stocks
The Nasdaq suffered its worst day since April 2025 amid fears of an AI slowdown. ( CNN )
+ The Magnificent Seven lost over $1 trillion. ( WSJ $)
+ Tesla and SpaceX lost over $420 billion combined. ( CNBC )
+ Wall Street’s AI sell-off has spread to Asia and Europe. ( WP $)
+ The AI stock bubble may finally be bursting. ( FT $)
+ What even is the AI bubble? ( MIT Technology Review )
2 Emboldened Democrats are lining up to rein in Big Tech
They’re preparing to haul tech CEOs before Congress. ( Verge )
+ Bernie Sanders wants a national data center moratorium. ( Quartz )
+ Yassamin Ansari plans to pause advanced AI development. ( CNBC )
+ The backlash could delay Anthropic’s IPO. ( Reuters $)
+ No one wants a data center in their backyard…
