November 11, 2025, 3:06 PM EST. Xanadu Quantum Technologies plans to go public by merging with Crane Harbor Acquisition Corp., valuing the company at about $3.0-3.6 billion and aiming to list on both the Nasdaq and the Toronto Stock Exchange. If approved, Xanadu would become the first publicly traded, pure-play photonic quantum computing firm. The deal uses a SPAC structure, tapping about $225 million from Crane Harbor's trust and roughly $275 million from a private placement to investors, with a pre-money equity value around US$3 billion. The SPAC route offers faster access to capital for scaling hardware and software, but also brings market volatility and heightened investor scrutiny typical of early-stage quantum ventures.
November 11, 2025, 3:04 PM EST. Google announces its latest commitments in AI and learning, including a $30 million fund for education projects, partnerships like the Estonia AI Leap initiative, and Gemini for Education rollout in schools and universities. YouTube is launching a UK conversational AI tool to help learners engage with videos. The company pursues a rigorous, science-based approach to understand AI's impact on outcomes, publishing an exploratory RCT with 165 UK students (ages 13-15) testing LearnLM within Gemini 2.5. Results show LearnLM was reliable (0.1% factual errors) and students tutored with AI were 5.5 percentage points more likely to independently solve novel problems later. Partnerships and research aim to assess benefits and risks of AI in classrooms.
November 11, 2025, 3:02 PM EST. Russian lawmakers propose amendments to Articles 44 and 46 of the Law On Communications that would require telecom operators to terminate services upon a direct FSB request to protect citizens and the state from security threats. The Ministry of Digital Affairs says the changes, approved by a government commission, would be set by presidential and government regulatory acts. Operators would not be liable for non-fulfillment if compliance stems from special services requirements. The proposal, coordinated with the MVD, FSB, Ministry of Economic Development, and Rospotrebnadzor, aims to streamline and standardize disconnections for terrorist threats and cyberattacks, yielding a unified response system not requiring a court decision. Supporters argue it improves control and rapid action; critics warn of reduced judicial oversight and potential overreach.
November 11, 2025, 3:00 PM EST. Crane Harbor Acquisition Corp. announced a business combination with Xanadu Quantum Technologies, potentially making Xanadu the first public, pure-play photonic quantum computing company. Once closed, Xanadu will join investors' watchlists as it nears a Nasdaq debut. Xanadu claims quantum supremacy in 2022 with Borealis (216 qubits) and projects up to 100,000 physical qubits and 1,000 logical qubits by 2029. The company backs PennyLane, an open-source software platform touted as the most-used quantum programming framework, positioning it as a key monetization lever for a public listing. Financials remain private, but Xanadu argues PennyLane alone could justify a public listing.
November 11, 2025, 2:56 PM EST. AI is reshaping the software development workforce rather than replacing it. In Forrester's dual-track study, predictive, generative, and agentic AI shift artifacts creation (code, tests, docs) toward higher-leverage work like workflow orchestration, architecture validation, governance, and value realization. Teams see role convergence, blurred front-/back-end boundaries, and growing demand for T- and E-shaped skills blending coding, product sense, data literacy, and governance. A new focus-vibe engineering or context engineering-emerges for 2026. Training juniors becomes harder as routine tasks automate, while trust in AI systems requires governance and transparency. The quantitative track shows AI changing work volume and mix across requirements, design, build, test, release, and run, emphasizing transformation over headcount reduction. Leaders should redesign jobs and teams to harness AI responsibly.