Morning Scan

Apple had a busy week: a sold-out phone, an alleged leak from a rival's device lab, and a litigator hired from Meta. In AI, Disney is paying for talent, the bond market is wary of the buildout, and the bills are arriving.

~$180M — What Disney would pay roughly 60 Character.AI staffers over three years, before $30M in retention awards. (Bloomberg)

Connected World

Apple Hires Former Meta Lawyer to Oversee Global Litigation

Scott Tucker moves over to run Apple's litigation team. (MacRumors)

iPhone Duo Pre-Orders Launched, and Three Hours Later It's Sold Out Through the End of January

Sold out. Anyone planning on Christmas gifts is out of luck. (Daring Fireball / MacRumors)

Apple Retail Staff Told to Warn Against iPhone Duo Walk-In Purchases

Stores are reportedly telling would-be buyers not to show up without a pre-order. (MacRumors)

Whatever You Say Bounces Off Me and Sticks to You

OpenAI alleges an employee who left for Apple took files about its unreleased device, adding a court case to the hardware race. (Daring Fireball / Reuters)

AI nudify apps targeted in App Review Guidelines update

Apple is cracking down on apps that make non-consensual adult imagery and market themselves with bait-and-switch tactics. (AppleInsider)

Machines & Minds

Filing: Disney agreed to hire 60+ staff from Character.AI and pay them ~$180M over three years (paywall)

With $30M in retention awards and a bankruptcy judge's sign-off, a troubled startup's team gets a very expensive soft landing. (Bloomberg)

Datacenters 2027: The Year of Acceleration, +50GW in a Single Year

SemiAnalysis pushes back on datacenter FUD with a forecast of 50 gigawatts added in a single year. (SemiAnalysis)

Connected World

GTCR and Elliott agree to take private CCC for $4.6B (paywall)

Including debt, the car-insurance software provider is valued at $6.1B. (Bloomberg)

States Are Stepping Up as the New Antitrust Enforcers (paywall)

With Washington taking a relaxed approach, state attorneys general are scrutinizing mergers, so deal lawyers now have 50 audiences to please. (NYT)

United's C.E.O. Says It Should Cost More Not to Sit in the Middle Seat (paywall)

Scott Kirby also warns fares may have further to rise, because "it's expensive to fly airplanes." (NYT)

Connected World

Tesla turns to 50-year-old stunt technology as it tries to Roadster again

Nine years after the first resurrection attempt, the Roadster is back on the whiteboard, this time with some vintage stunt-tech flair. (Ars Technica)