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Happy Friday! It’s the last Friday before Christmas. The Product Hunt team will be at a reduced capacity over the holidays but don’t worry. The digest will still hit your inbox. 

Here’s some news: 

🚆 One of the most promising Hyperloop startups is shutting down. 

💬 Beeper may give up on its Android iMessage dream if the latest fix doesn’t work.

🍎 Apple has officially halted Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 online sales.

Happy Thursday and happy first day of winter, technically. Today is officially the shortest day of the year and the Winter Solstice. 

🐦 In not-so-good news, X suffered a major outage that lasted an hour. 

🎞️ Warner Bros, Paramount, and Discovery might be merging.

⌚ Apple lost an appeal to avoid a ban on selling its Apple Watch Series 9 models.

🍎 Apple is reportedly ramping up Vision Pro production with consumer models aiming for a February launch.

Happy Hump Day! I spent my morning drinking hot cocoa and surfing the web for news. 

Here it is:

🚀 Blue Origin launched a rocket yesterday for the first time since 2022.

🧠 An AI made from human brain cells now exists. 

🚲 VanMoof is back with a new leadership team and new plans. 

📸 GoPro released a montage of some of the best clips shot in 2023. 

✍️ Bill Gates published his annual “Year Ahead” letter. AI makes an appearance.

That’s it. I officially declare it the “will circle back in the new year” time of year. 

Here’s some news: 

🍎 Apple is halting sales of its series 9 smartwatch over a patent dispute. 

🤖 OpenAI is beefing up its security team and giving the board veto power. 

📹 TikTok has updated its app to serve tablets and foldables better.

🚫 Some of you will see this as good news: Adobe won’t be acquiring Figma.

📈 MrBeast beta launched a YouTube analytics platform.

🍪 RIP cookies. Chrome will start blocking cookies on January 4.

🚀 Failure to launch: Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos's space company, was going to launch a rocket today for the first time in 15 months, but nevermind.

Happy Friday! Did you know there are only two more Fridays left until 2024?

Here’s the news:

🍟 McDonalds is using AI to make sure your fries are fresh.

📸 Instagram has a new AI backdrop feature – here’s how to use it.

🧸 Grimes has launched a line of AI-powered plush toys.

🎥 Spotify is testing prompt-based playlist creation.

Do you own a Tesla? I have some potentially bad news. The company is recalling two million cars in the US in order to fix some Autopilot features.

Anyway, here’s some better news:

🧵 EU users, here we go! Threads has landed for you.

📷 Instagram has released a new generative AI tool.

🎨 Figma launched a new keyboard for all your design shortcuts.

🖼️ Google dropped a new text-to-image modal to rival DALL-E.

Happy Hump Day! Here’s a joke for you: What did the Java Code say to the C code? You’ve got no class.

Anyway, here’s the news: 

🎧 Meta launched a demo for its AI audio modal. 

🎞️ Netflix released its first-ever “What We Watched” report.

🍎 Apple has released a new tool to protect stolen devices from being used.

Good morning! Come and say hello at our drinks and demos event tonight in NYC. Meet the Product Hunt team, network with other makers, and have some fun. 

Anyway, here’s some news: 

🕹️ Epic Games has won its antitrust fight against Google.

🍎 Apple has dropped a new app dedicated to journalling.

🐁 VR for mice is here, and it’s because of science. 

🦷 SmileDirectClub has shut down, months after filing for bankruptcy.

Gm! The Product Hunt team woke up in NYC this morning.

Come and say hello if you’re here too. We’re meeting up on Tuesday evening. If you’re a maker, it’ll be a great chance to get feedback on your launch and product.

Onto the news:

• The color of the 2024 is “Peach Fuzz.” 🍑
• The FDA has approved the first CRISPR therapy to treat sickle cell anemia.
• TikTok's year in review is a quick hit of 2023’s top videos, songs, and people.
• Beeper Mini is back. Yes, the one that JUST launched. Apple shut it down over the weekend, but your text bubbles will be blue once again.