Hey there, Tech Insiders!

Today’s updates are all about trust: AI is filling our shopping carts, hackers are looting crypto platforms, and regulators are refusing Huawei’s chips.

Trust in tech? Questionable.

Trust in our tech news? Rock solid.

Let’s dive in!

Here’s what you need to know today:

Paypal: Online Shopping Within AI Chatbots Coming Soon

Hey AI, can you order me that USB cable you recommended? 

Perplexity is partnering with PayPal to let U.S. Perplexity Pro users shop and pay directly within the AI chatbot—using PayPal or Venmo—without ever leaving the app. 

Shoppers can ask Perplexity to find and recommend products, book travel, or buy tickets, all in a single chat.

The partnership would mean that PayPal's account linking would handle the entire e-commerce process in Perplexity Pro, including payment, shipping, tracking, and invoicing. 

According to Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas, “trust in AI” is a key reason they teamed up with PayPal. 

"Perplexity wants to have accurate, trustworthy answers wherever people are making decisions. PayPal is a natural partner because we share a vision for how important trust is in the age of AI,” he said in a press release.

Why it matters: With 430 million users, PayPal and Perplexity's partnership could signal a major shift toward AI-driven e-commerce. In a fiercely competitive AI race, don’t be surprised if rivals like ChatGPT and Gemini rush to launch their own all-in-one shopping experiences next.

Share this newsletter!

Signal Check

Convenience or Concern? How much trust are you giving AI with your online shopping?

Beta Tested

Insider Intel

Report: Sales Teams Struggling to ‘ROI’ AI at Work

Sales teams are struggling to find meaningful ways to use generative AI at work, saying it lacks the “human element”essential to building sales relationships.

A report from sales messaging firm Breakthrough confirms this, finding that the industry is still figuring out which tasks are fit for AI, and which require a human touch.

“You would think that it’s the best application for AI because sales is about communication, language models are also about communication, but the difference is that when I sell, when I’m trying to communicate something to you, I have an opinion,” said Breakthrough CEO Adit Abhyankar.

The report adds fuel to a growing debate on AI’s actual value in the workplace, with some experts describing the current productivity gains as negligible at best.

AI may be smart, but it still can’t fake a laugh at the boss’s bad jokes.

Flash Bytes

Security Alerts

Coinbase Confirms Data Breach From Extortion Attempt

Crypto exchange Coinbase was hit with a cyber attack in which a threat actor demanded $20 million in exchange for sensitive data. Coinbase refused to pay the ransom and has since notified and reimbursed affected users.

The breach exposed customer names, addresses, emails, masked bank account numbers, and the last four digits of their Social Security numbers.Government IDs, driver’s licenses, and passportswere also compromised.

In an SEC filing, Coinbase said an attacker allegedly bribed overseas support contractors to hand over sensitive info. With this data, the attacker masqueraded as a Coinbase representative and duped customers into making unauthorized fund transfers.

While less than 1% of its monthly transacting users were affected, Coinbase warns users of potential follow-up phishing attempts.

Coinbase says it's all handled. Meanwhile, your Social Security number just bought a jet ski in Florida.

Server Breach Causes US Steelmaker to Halt Operations

I guess even steel needs solid cybersecurity shielding.

Nucor, a North Carolina-based steel manufacturing company, has paused operations after uncovering a server breach.

Per the company, a threat actor gained unauthorized access to its IT systems. While the specific nature of the attack was not disclosed, Nucor triggered its incident response plan, shut down potentially affected systems, and notified federal law enforcement.

According to Dark Reading, Nucor reported net sales of $7.83 billion in Q1 2025 and employs around 25,000 people.

The company is currently recovering and restarting the affected parts of its operations.

Industry Shakeups

US Warns Companies Not to Use Huawei AI chips, Says it Violates Export Laws

The U.S/ Department of Commerce has warned companies that using Huawei Ascend AI chips “anywhere in the world” would violate U.S. export controls.

In new guidelines, the U.S. Commerce Department said that the Ascend chips were developed in violation of U.S. export controls—in that they were produced with American technology without proper authorization. As such, companies that use Huawei’s AI chips could be penalized for violating the same rules.

In response, China’s Commerce Ministry criticized the measure, saying it was “not conducive to long-term, mutually beneficial, and sustainable cooperation and development between the two countries.”

Who knew AI could get you grounded faster than sneaking snacks through customs?

Daily Tech Insider is a TechnologyAdvice business

© 2025 TechnologyAdvice, LLC. All rights reserved.

TechnologyAdvice, 3343 Perimeter Hill Dr., Suite 100, Nashville, TN 37211, USA.

Want to change how you receive these emails? Update your preferences or unsubscribe here.