Apple is said to be developing its own generative pre-trained transformer (GPT) artificial intelligence (AI) model called "Ajax", which is similar to OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Bard. However, there is no indication that the company plans to release it to the public.

Oasis Network has launched two innovative technologies, the Sapphire runtime and the Oasis Privacy Layer middleware, which will redefine privacy for Web3 decentralized applications. These technologies offer major milestones in a modern dApp toolkit for developers, enabling them to integrate privacy, authentication, cross-chain messaging, and other crucial features.

Worldcoin's World ID project, which aims to provide a global digital passport using zero-knowledge proofs to protect privacy, has surpassed two million users in less than half the time it took to reach the first million.

A blockchain developer claims to have reverse-engineered the source code of Brazil's pilot central bank digital currency and discovered functions that would allow a central authority to freeze funds or reduce balances. However, the developer argues that such functions could be beneficial in certain situations.

Guy Turner, the host of Coin Bureau, has identified two upcoming milestones that could potentially trigger a bullish run for Ethereum (ETH). The first milestone is the proto-danksharding upgrade, which will address Ethereum's main bottleneck to scalability by making transaction data more readily available. The second milestone is an effort to enhance privacy, which has become a sudden focus due to institutional investors' interest in privacy. Turner believes that these two catalysts could send ETH's price higher.

Central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) are facing challenges related to privacy, programmability, and politics. Privacy is a major concern for CBDCs designed for retail payments in developed economies, such as the proposed digital euro.

July 4 (Cointime) - The UK's financial services minister, Andrew Griffith, has urged caution over the potential issuance of a digital version of the pound due to concerns around privacy and other issues.

July 4 (Cointime) - Verge (XVG), a cryptocurrency that prioritizes privacy and anonymity, has surged by almost 300% in the past week, according to CoinGecko. With a 24-hour trading volume of $489 million and a market cap of $96 million, the altcoin has caught the attention of crypto enthusiasts worldwide.

July 4 (Cointime) - Privacy-focused web3 startup Ola has secured $3 million in seed funding from Web3.com Ventures, Foresight Ventures, Token Metrics Ventures, LD Capital, Catcher VC, and others.

June 30 (Cointime) - The European Commission's proposed regulations for a future central bank digital currency (CBDC) claim to prioritize privacy, but the required record-keeping provisions for payment service providers suggest otherwise. These provisions require providers to record data on transactions, which is not required for cash transactions. However, CBDCs could bring economic value if done right, and initiatives like Project Hamilton are developing privacy-preserving templates for digital currencies. It is important to acknowledge that governments systematically demand information from the people they govern and work towards a compromise that protects privacy. A middle-ground solution for CBDCs could erect cryptographic and legal barriers to protect privacy.