Hey there, PoI readers! 💫

It's your favorite crypto connoisseur, Mochi, back with another serving of tantalizing tech and web3 news. From Perplexity's audacious Chrome bid and North Korean hackers getting counter-hacked to Russia's WhatsApp drama and Instagram's latest feature nobody asked for, we've got a lot to unpack. So, buckle up and get ready for a wild ride through the wonderland of digital chaos!

INTEL BRIEF

🟧 Perplexity AI just threw down a whopping $34.5 billion cash offer for Google's Chrome browser, despite being valued at less than half that amount themselves.

🟧 A counter-hacker exposed a six-person North Korean IT team using 31 fake identities to infiltrate crypto companies, revealing their $680K hack of Favrr and surprisingly mundane use of Google Workspace for evil.

🟧 WhatsApp is calling out Russia for attempting to block its services, claiming Moscow can't handle people having actual privacy in their digital conversations.

🟧 Instagram is cooking up a "Picks" feature that'll help you discover which friends share your questionable taste in reality TV shows and guilty pleasure music.

Perplexity AI Thinks It Can Buy Chrome With Monopoly Money

Perplexity AI just walked into the tech equivalent of a Ferrari dealership with monopoly money! The three-year-old startup made headlines this week by casually dropping a $34.5 billion all-cash offer for Google's Chrome browser.

Perplexity was last valued at just $14 billion, making this bid worth more than double their entire company's worth. But hey, when you're run by Aravind Srinivas and backed by heavy hitters like Nvidia and SoftBank.

This isn't Perplexity's first rodeo with headline-grabbing acquisition attempts - they previously tried to merge with TikTok US back in January.

The timing is particularly interesting given that Google is currently fighting an antitrust case where the Justice Department is actually pushing for Chrome to be sold off.

Chrome commands over 3 billion users - that's nearly half the planet! For an AI company trying to compete with the likes of OpenAI's ChatGPT.

Perplexity claims multiple funds are ready to finance the full deal, and they've promised to keep Chrome's Chromium code open source while investing $3 billion over two years. They're also pledging to keep Chrome's default search engine unchanged.

Google hasn't even put Chrome up for sale! They're planning to appeal that pesky monopoly ruling, and analysts are speculating this whole thing could drag on for years through various courts. As one legal expert colorfully put it, this process could "run out for a couple of years."

Perplexity AI offered $34.5B for Chrome - more than double their own valuation

Google hasn't agreed to sell and plans to fight the antitrust ruling requiring divestiture

Competition for AI browser dominance is heating up as chatbots reshape how we search

North Korean Hackers Got Exposed After Someone Hacked Them Back

Someone managed to counter-hack a North Korean IT worker, and honestly, the findings are both terrifying and hilariously mundane at the same time.

ZachXBT dropped this bombshell on X Wednesday, sharing screenshots that basically amount to North Korea's least secure IT department getting their digital pants pulled down in public.

This six-person North Korean squad has been playing dress-up with 31 fake identities - complete with government IDs, phone numbers, and even purchased LinkedIn accounts. They're basically the world's most dangerous cosplay group, except instead of attending conventions, they're infiltrating crypto companies and stealing millions.

The level of organization is honestly impressive in the worst possible way. These folks were using Google Drive like it's their corporate headquarters, managing schedules and budgets with spreadsheets that would make any project manager weep with envy. One document showed they spent $1,489.8 in May alone just on operational expenses. They're literally expensing their cybercrime!

They were using Google's Korean-to-English translation tool while pretending to be native English speakers in interviews. Imagine getting hired at a major crypto firm and your biggest secret is that you're secretly using Google Translate to sound professional!

The evidence shows they successfully infiltrated major platforms like Polygon Labs, with one worker even interviewing for a full-stack engineer position. They had scripted responses claiming experience at OpenSea and Chainlink.

These digital con artists used remote access software like AnyDesk and VPNs to do the actual work, which means somewhere out there, a crypto company was unknowingly paying North Korean hackers to build their platform.

One of their wallet addresses is directly tied to the $680K Favrr hack from June, where the supposed CTO "Alex Hong" turned out to be about as real as a three-dollar bill.

Six North Korean hackers used 31 fake identities to infiltrate crypto companies via freelance platforms

Counter-hacker exposed their Google Drive operation showing budgets, schedules, and translation tools

Team linked to $680K Favrr hack and potentially the massive $1.4B Bitbit exchange exploit

WhatsApp Says Russia Is Trying to Block Them Over Encrypted Messages

Russia is reportedly trying to block WhatsApp because apparently, the idea of people having secure conversations makes the Kremlin more nervous than a cat in a dog park.

WhatsApp came out swinging with a statement that's basically the digital equivalent of "we're not trapped in here with you, you're trapped in here with us!" The Meta-owned messaging giant boldly declared that Russia is targeting them specifically because they offer end-to-end encryption - you know, that pesky little feature that prevents governments from reading your embarrassing group chat messages about your coworkers.

The official reasoning from Russia sounds like something straight out of a bureaucratic fever dream: they're allegedly restricting WhatsApp and Telegram calls because these platforms won't play nice and share user information for "fraud and terrorism cases.

"We will keep doing all we can to make end-to-end encrypted communication available to people everywhere, including in Russia." That's essentially the digital equivalent of "come at us, bro!" but with more corporate polish and fewer lawsuits.

Meanwhile, Telegram jumped in with their own defense, claiming their AI moderators are working overtime to remove "millions of malicious messages every day." They're basically saying, "Look, we're trying to be the good guys here!" while juggling the impossible task of moderating billions of messages without completely destroying user privacy.

This whole drama is part of a much larger digital cold war that's been brewing since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Critics are speculating that this is less about fighting fraud and more about Russia trying to expand control over their internet space.

We're talking about potentially cutting off over 100 million Russian users from secure communication tools. That's not just inconvenient - it's potentially life-altering for people who rely on these platforms for everything from family conversations to organizing legitimate protests.

Russia attempting to block WhatsApp over encryption and refusal to share user data with authorities

WhatsApp vows to keep fighting for encrypted communication rights for 100+ million Russian users

Part of broader digital control battle intensifying since Ukraine invasion in 2022

Instagram Is Making Another Feature Nobody Actually Asked For

The Meta-owned social media giant is reportedly developing something called "Picks" - and no, it's not about choosing your nose (though honestly, that might be more useful).

Reverse engineer Alessandro Paluzzi - basically the Sherlock Holmes of unreleased features - spotted this gem while digging through Instagram's code like a digital archaeologist. Screenshots showing users selecting their favorite movies, books, TV shows, games, and music so Instagram can play matchmaker with your interests.

You curate your cultural favorites, and Instagram finds overlaps with your friends who made similar choices.

Instagram head Adam Mosseri previously declared that 2025 would be all about "creativity and connection," promising to "double down on messaging" and make content consumption more interactive.

Not everyone is thrilled about Instagram's feature-adding spree. The platform is currently facing serious backlash over Instagram Map, with users basically saying, "We never wanted this in the first place!"

Instagram is already bursting at the seams with features. Stories, Reels, Shopping, Direct Messages, Live streaming - at this point, the app is becoming the Swiss Army knife of social media, except some of the tools are just there to cut your fingers.

Instagram confirmed to TechCrunch that Picks is just an "internal prototype" not being tested externally yet, which basically means they're still deciding whether this idea is genius or completely bonkers.

The real question is whether we actually need another way to connect with friends, or if this is just going to become another digital way to feel judged when your bestie realizes your music taste peaked in 2015.

Instagram developing "Picks" feature to match users based on shared interests in movies, books, TV shows, and music

Currently an internal prototype with no confirmed release date or external testing

Part of 2025 focus on connection but facing user backlash over feature overload like Instagram Map

And that's a wrap, my lovely PoI readers! I hope this edition left you feeling informed, entertained, and maybe even a little bit richer (in knowledge, of course). Remember to stay curious, stay informed, and keep spreading the love. Until next time, this is Mochi, signing off with a virtual high-five!

P.S. Don't forget to share your thoughts, questions, and favorite crypto puns with us. very voice matters in the PoI community! 📣❤️ Share the newsletter

🍨📰 Catch you in the next issue! 📰🍨