This humble post was assigned with Monday, composed in Google Docs, copy-pasted into a CMS, and routed to your inbox via yet another platform.

Each of those apps plays a necessary role, but the fact remains that modern workplaces use a lot of external programs to perform myriad different tasks, and they can sometimes end up replicating the same function outside of the purview of centralized IT departments. The situation could get more tangled as more companies try to mold generative AI into new office tools.

A recent report from Canva and Harris Poll found that 72% of chief information officers are concerned about app sprawl, or the surge of different platforms used in the workplace, especially in terms of the potential security risks and added complexity. That could be a particularly big issue, since, according to the report, 94% of these execs said they plan to up their investments in AI this year, and 84% said there is a glut of AI services available.

“There’s too many AI tools in the market—it’s confusing the people inside their organization. It’s making it hard for the IT teams to figure out which one to use, which one integrates the best for their needs,” Canva’s co-founder and chief product officer, Cameron Adams, told Tech Brew. “And that all contributes to app sprawl as well.”

Keep reading here.—PK

In this age of AI breakthroughs, today’s tech advances will begin shaping our future starting—checks watch—oh, right now.

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Electoral politics are colliding with the US clean-energy transition.

The Biden administration is poised to slow its roll on EVs, the New York Times reported Saturday, citing sources familiar with plans to pare back forthcoming tailpipe-emissions standards. The report suggests the move is in response to pushback from interest groups across the political spectrum—automakers, car dealers, and unions—as a likely rematch this fall between Biden and Trump looms.

At issue is a proposal the Environmental Protection Agency detailed last spring for model year 2027–2032 vehicles. The standards—the toughest ever proposed—essentially would have required EVs to make up 60% of new light-duty vehicle sales by 2030 and 67% by 2032, up from just 7.6% in 2023.

Now, the Biden administration is reportedly preparing to finalize a rule this spring that would allow a slower transition through 2030.

“It seems like election politics, pure and simple,” Marick Masters, a management professor at the Mike Ilitch School of Business at Wayne State University, told Tech Brew. “They are delaying it because they know there is resistance on the part of the autoworkers and the companies…The autoworkers are concerned about the rapid transition and the negative effects it might have on employment. And I think that they have just asked for some time to catch up.”

Keep reading here.—JG

With almost every tech giant relying on its chips to power their AI offerings, Nvidia’s earnings have come to be seen as a bellwether for the health of the generative revolution.

By that measure, AI hype is still very much alive and well: The chipmaker delivered another earnings report that rocketed past expectations this week, with quarterly revenue of $22.1 billion, up 265% from the previous year and 22% from the previous quarter.

Last week, Nvidia grabbed the title of third-most-valuable public company in the US, and it solidified that lead this week with a stock rally that boosted its market cap to $1.9 trillion as of Thursday morning.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has framed his company’s meteoric rise in lofty talk of a new computing era and even the next “industrial revolution.” He once again signaled big ambitions on this week’s call, predicting a “doubling of the world’s data center infrastructure installed base in the next five years.”

Keep reading here.—PK

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The AR bandwagon: Alex Vuocolo over at Retail Brew detailed the brands eager to put their products in front of the eyeballs of goggled consumers. We feel pretty about shopping for end tables and wide-leg linen pants utilizing augmented reality, but it seems we’re in the minority: Vuocolo cited Deloitte data showing 71% of customers “would shop more if AR options were available.”

Speaking of shopping: Marketing Brew’s Katie Hicks covered the social media–aided uptick in sales of L.L.Bean’s Boat and Tote, a sturdy canvas bag that routinely pops up as an “organic online trend.” The tote, which will mark its 80th anniversary this year and retails for under $50, is a classic for a reason, Hicks reported, noting it’s “been tested to hold up to 500 pounds, is customizable, and has personal touches, like a card that comes with each bag telling buyers who hand-sewed it in Maine,” all, apparently, influencer catnip.