Daily Tech & GNSS News Digest - January 27, 2026

The EU fires its biggest regulatory salvo yet at Google’s AI dominance, while Samsung inches closer to cracking Nvidia’s HBM4 supply chain. Markets surge to fresh records as investors brace for the most consequential Big Tech earnings week since the AI boom began. In positioning technology, TrustPoint demonstrates the first GPS-independent LEO navigation system as the assured PNT market accelerates past $1.7 billion.

Tech News

EU Forces Google to Open Up Gemini AI and Search Data

The European Commission launched two sets of specification proceedings today under the Digital Markets Act, targeting Google’s gatekeeping over AI services and search data. The first proceeding requires Google to grant third-party AI developers the same access to Android hardware and software features that its own Gemini AI enjoys. The second demands Google share anonymized search ranking, query, click, and view data with rival search engines and AI chatbot providers on fair terms.

EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen said the proceedings will ensure “third-party online search engines and AI providers enjoy the same access to search data and Android operating system as Google’s own services.” The proceedings carry a six-month deadline for resolution, with preliminary findings due within three months. Google, whose Android powers over 70% of global smartphones, pushed back through senior competition counsel Clare Kelly, warning that broad data mandates could expose user patterns and stifle innovation.

This marks the most significant DMA enforcement action targeting AI services to date, setting a precedent for how Europe intends to regulate the intersection of search monopolies and generative AI.

Samsung Nears Nvidia HBM4 Certification

Samsung Electronics has cleared final qualification tests for its next-generation HBM4 memory chips with both Nvidia and AMD, according to Bloomberg and multiple supply-chain sources. The Korean chipmaker is preparing to begin mass production in February, with full-scale supply expected by June—just in time for Nvidia’s next-generation Vera Rubin AI platform.

HBM4 delivers up to 50% higher bandwidth and 30% better power efficiency than its predecessor HBM3E. Samsung’s breakthrough narrows a gap with rival SK Hynix, which has been Nvidia’s primary advanced memory supplier. Samsung shares gained as much as 3.2% in Seoul on the news, while SK Hynix and Micron both declined.

The timing is critical: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang confirmed earlier this month that the Vera Rubin platform is in “full production,” and the AI industry’s insatiable demand for high-bandwidth memory shows no signs of slowing. Looking ahead, Nvidia has reportedly asked memory manufacturers to deliver denser 16-Hi HBM4 chips by Q4 2026.

S&P 500 Hits Record as Big Tech Earnings Loom

The S&P 500 surged to a fresh all-time high of 6,980.75 on Monday, tantalizingly close to the 7,000 milestone, as technology stocks led the rally ahead of the most anticipated earnings week of the quarter. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.91% to 23,817, while the Dow fell 409 points dragged down by a healthcare selloff after UnitedHealth lost more than 19% on weak guidance.

This week’s earnings calendar is stacked: Microsoft, Meta, and Tesla report Wednesday, followed by Apple on Thursday. The four hyperscalers—Microsoft, Meta, Alphabet, and Amazon—are expected to boost combined capital expenditures to over $470 billion in 2026, up from $350 billion last year. Investors will scrutinize whether the massive AI spending is translating into measurable revenue growth, with analysts calling 2026 “a prove-it year” for AI monetization.

The Fed’s first policy meeting of 2026 also kicks off this week, with markets widely expecting a hold at 3.5%–3.75%. Meanwhile, gold topped $5,000 an ounce for the first time.

Additional Headlines

Nvidia launches Earth-2 open AI weather models: The family of models delivers forecasts 1,000 times faster than traditional physics-based simulations, with early adopters including the US National Weather Service and Israel Meteorological Service reporting 90% compute time reduction.
Intel stock plunges on manufacturing snags: Intel’s foundry comeback hit a speed bump as supply chain issues pressured shares, with Q4 earnings disappointing analysts amid reports of 18A yield challenges.
TikTok suffers major global outage: Service disruptions affected creators and businesses relying on the platform for distribution and commerce worldwide.
Microsoft Office zero-day actively exploited: Security researchers reported active exploitation of an Office vulnerability, pressuring enterprises to accelerate patch deployment.

GNSS News

TrustPoint announced the first successful demonstration of its Low Earth Orbit Navigation System (LEONS), transmitting time-transfer and tracking signals from a compact ground node to an orbiting spacecraft. The milestone, achieved as part of the SpaceWERX AltPNT Challenge, marks a significant step toward providing commercial, GPS-independent positioning, navigation, and timing capabilities.

The demonstration validates a fundamentally different approach to satellite navigation. Unlike traditional GNSS constellations operating in medium Earth orbit, LEONS leverages LEO satellites that deliver stronger signals with greater resistance to jamming and spoofing—a growing concern after 123,000 commercial flights in Europe were disrupted by GNSS jamming in the first four months of 2025 alone. TrustPoint aims to deploy approximately 300 spacecraft to provide global, GPS-equivalent services with improved security and lower latency.

The timing aligns with surging market demand: a new report projects the assured PNT market will grow from $1.35 billion in 2025 to $1.74 billion in 2026, a 28.9% CAGR, driven by autonomous vehicles, drone operations, and military requirements for resilient navigation in GPS-denied environments. The UK government also unveiled a £155 million investment package this month to harden its PNT infrastructure.

Israeli manufacturer Arazim Navigation Systems secured a new defense order valued at nearly $1 million for its HPLS-2G GPS/GNSS compass units. The order includes 100 units designed to provide heading and attitude information for static land-based defense systems using dual-antenna GPS technology.

The contract underscores continued military demand for hardened GNSS equipment even as the industry pursues GPS alternatives. Arazim’s dual-antenna approach provides precise heading without requiring motion—a capability critical for fixed defense installations, border monitoring systems, and communication equipment alignment.

Key Takeaways

Europe draws the line on AI gatekeeping: The EU’s DMA proceedings against Google set the template for regulating how tech giants leverage search monopolies to dominate generative AI markets.
AI infrastructure spending faces its reckoning: With $470 billion in combined hyperscaler capex expected this year, this week’s earnings will reveal whether AI investments are generating returns or just burning capital.
GPS alternatives gain momentum: TrustPoint’s LEO navigation demo, the UK’s £155M PNT investment, and a market growing at nearly 29% signal that the era of GPS-only positioning is ending.