This digest compiles the latest from The Verge.
Today’s The Verge Roundup
Google brings buy buttons to Gemini and AI search
12 Jan 2026, 12:44 pm by Robert Hart
Google turned up the heat in the AI shopping wars this weekend, announcing plans to turn Gemini into a merchant and launching an open-source standard built together with major retailers including Shopify, Walmart, and Target. The move comes as companies like OpenAI, Amazon, and Perplexity jostle for power and influence at the heart of a growing AI-powered shopping ecosystem, with consumers increasingly turning to the technology to streamline purchasing.
At the National Retail Federation’s annual conference this weekend, Google said it had partnered with Shopify, Target, Walmart, Wayfair, and Etsy to develop a protocol it hopes will become …
Trump’s fundraisers asked Microsoft for its White House ballroom donation
12 Jan 2026, 10:00 am by Emma Roth
The Trump administration approached Microsoft for its donation to fund the White House’s $300 million ballroom, documents released by Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s (D-MA) office reveal.
In response to a Democrat-led letter questioning Big Tech’s involvement in the ballroom’s construction, Microsoft counsel Karen Christian writes that the company “was contacted by a fundraiser for the effort regarding a possible donation” around two months after President Donald Trump announced plans to replace the White House’s East Wing with a privately funded ballroom.
“At that time, Microsoft was provided information concerning the Trust for the National Mal …
End of today’s The Verge roundup.
