Weekly Tech Recap: Apple iOS 26 Beta, GPT-5 Leak, Starlink Outage & More
Apple iOS 26 beta debuts with Liquid Glass UI, GPT-5 launch leak stirs excitement, GitHub’s Spark AI launches, and Starlink suffers global outage.
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This week in tech saw major updates — from Apple’s iOS 26 public beta release and GitHub’s AI-powered app creator to Sam Altman’s privacy warning, GPT-5 launch leaks, and a massive Starlink outage that disrupted global connectivity.
1) Apple Rolls Out iOS 26 Public Beta
After four rounds of developer betas, Apple has released the first public beta of iOS 26, introducing its new Liquid Glass UI and a host of features for iPhone and iPad users. Public betas, typically launched after July, offer a more stable experience for general users compared to developer versions.
Developer betas allow app developers and advanced users to test compatibility and provide early feedback before the official release. Apple also rolled out the fourth developer beta this week.
2) GitHub Launches Spark AI for Natural Language App Creation
Microsoft-owned GitHub has unveiled GitHub Spark, an experimental tool that enables users to create apps by simply giving natural language prompts.
Currently available under GitHub Next Labs, Spark lets users choose between OpenAI GPT models and Claude Sonnet models, both known for advanced reasoning and debugging. Unlike typical code generators, Spark not only creates the app but also runs it, offering an interactive preview that can be refined with further prompts.
3) Sam Altman’s AI Privacy Warning
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman cautioned against oversharing personal information with AI chatbots like ChatGPT, noting the absence of legal frameworks similar to doctor-patient confidentiality.
Speaking on Theo Von’s podcast, Altman highlighted the growing trend of users seeking therapy or life advice from AI systems, warning that these interactions currently lack privacy safeguards.
4) GPT-5 Launch Expected Next Month
According to The Verge, OpenAI’s highly anticipated GPT-5 model could launch in early August 2025. The new model is expected to feature unified reasoning capabilities, a major leap for ChatGPT.
Altman teased GPT-5’s capabilities, revealing that it assisted him with complex tasks, but noted that the model will take months to achieve its peak performance levels.
5) Starlink Faces Major Global Outage
Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet service experienced one of its longest outages this week, leaving users in the US, UK, Germany, Zimbabwe, Romania, and other countries offline for over 2 hours on Thursday.
The outage occurred just a day after the company announced its T-Satellite rollout in partnership with T-Mobile, aimed at expanding connectivity to remote regions.
