DeepSeek V4 Coming Mid February

Claude Crackdown Hits xAI

Author

Altiam Kabir
January 11, 2026

In partnership with

AI PlanetX

Welcome to another edition of AI PlanetX.

DeepSeek V4 targets OpenAI and Claude with next-gen coding, Anthropic moves to block unauthorized Claude usage, and Midjourney releases Niji V7 with improved anime coherence and prompt accuracy.

Inside This Edition: 💎

  • Hottest AI News

  • Top AI & SaaS Tools

  • AI Tutorial: Prepare for Any Job Interview

  • Top AI & Tech News

  • AI Art Spotlight

  • Prompt of the Day: Personal Prompt for Cognitive Training

  • AI Video Tutorial

  • Join SaaS Lifetime Deal Community – Ditch Recurring Fees

Hottest AI News

High-Flyer

DeepSeek V4 Set to Challenge OpenAI and Claude with Advanced Coding

DeepSeek is set to shake Silicon Valley and Wall Street again with its upcoming V4 model, following the major disruption caused by R1 and V3, and aiming to challenge U.S. tech dominance.

Details:

  • Internal tests suggest the model could beat major rivals like Anthropic’s Claude and OpenAI’s GPT series. It reportedly improves handling of extremely long coding prompts for complex software projects

  • A mid-February launch is planned around Lunar Year. The company seems to be repeating the same playbook used for the viral R1 debut, while closing the architecture gap left after V3.2 update

  • Backed by High-Flyer Quant, the startup aims to be a high-performance, low-cost alternative to closed-source US models. If true, it could rattle chipmakers and investors again

As the "AI arms race" heats up, the industry is closely watching to see if this coding-centric model can once again leapfrog established leaders.

Better prompts. Better AI output.

AI gets smarter when your input is complete. Wispr Flow helps you think out loud and capture full context by voice, then turns that speech into a clean, structured prompt you can paste into ChatGPT, Claude, or any assistant. No more chopping up thoughts into typed paragraphs. Preserve constraints, examples, edge cases, and tone by speaking them once. The result is faster iteration, more precise outputs, and less time re-prompting. Try Wispr Flow for AI or see a 30-second demo.

Anthropic

Anthropic Cracks Down on Unauthorized Claude Usage as AI Arms Race Heats Up

Anthropic has initiated a major crackdown on the unauthorized use of its Claude models, targeting both cost-evading software wrappers and rival AI laboratories to consolidate control over its ecosystem.

Details:

  • Safeguards stop third-party harnesses like OpenCode from impersonating the official Claude Code client. This closes the “all-you-can-eat buffet” loophole where developers ran costly, high-volume agents on cheap plans

  • Separately, the company enforced its commercial terms by blocking Elon Musk’s xAI from using models through Cursor. The goal was to stop competitors from training rival systems, like the 2025 OpenAI cutoffs

  • The move disrupted users relying on the viral “Ralph Wiggum” brute-force coding method. But the community is adapting: OpenCode launched a paid enterprise gateway and plans to integrate OpenAI’s Codex

Unrestricted flat‑rate use of top‑tier reasoning is ending as Anthropic moves heavy automation into approved commercial channels.

Top AI & SaaS Tools

  • Deftform (Life-time Deal): AI form builder that creates professional, drag-and-drop forms, supports workflow automation, and allows unlimited responses [75+ five-star reviews]

  • TaskHuddle: Project management platform that converts field photos, voice notes, and site updates into tasks, schedules, risk logs, and client reports [F-R-E-E]

  • Scribe v2: ElevenLabs released a transcription model for large‑scale subtitles and captions, with very low error rates and 90+ language support [F-R-E-E]

  • Warbl: AI-powered Chrome extension launched this week to help users craft replies on X (Twitter) quickly and in their own voice

  • Pane: AI spreadsheet platform that combines traditional spreadsheet features with conversational AI [F-R-E-E]

What 100K+ Engineers Read to Stay Ahead

Your GitHub stars won't save you if you're behind on tech trends.

That's why over 100K engineers read The Code to spot what's coming next.

  • Get curated tech news, tools, and insights twice a week

  • Learn about emerging trends you can leverage at work in just 10 mins

  • Become the engineer who always knows what's next

AI Tutorial

How to Use NotebookLM to Prepare for Any Job Interview

Tired of spending hours googling company info and guessing what interview questions you’ll face? NotebookLM can handle everything — research, organize, and even coach you through mock interviews automatically.

  1. Create Interview Notebook

    Go to NotebookLM and press Create New. Name it something specific, like “Tesla Product Manager Interview Prep.” Then tap on Discover Sources and enter a prompt such as:

    “I’m preparing for a Product Manager interview at Tesla. Find sources with company details, recent projects, and interview insights.”

  2. Configure Coaching Style

    Press Settings → select Custom Style.

    Set up your preferences:

    • Style/Voice: “Act as a professional interview coach who challenges and motivates.”

    • Goal: “Help me ace the Product Manager interview at Tesla by giving realistic feedback.”

  3. Research Role and Company

    Ask NotebookLM:

    “What are the latest updates about Tesla’s product strategy?”

    Follow up with:

    “What key skills does Tesla value in Product Managers?”

    Tap Save to Note to keep the best summaries for later review.

  4. Generate Practice Questions

    Ask: “Give me 10 behavioral and 10 technical questions for a Product Manager role.”

    Then press Save to Note → three dots → Convert to Source.

    These questions will become part of your training material for mock interviews.

  5. Break Down Model Answers

    For each saved question, ask NotebookLM:

    “Give a structured sample answer using the STAR method.”

    Then review how it breaks down:

    • Situation: What was the context?

    • Task: What needed to be achieved?

    • Action: What steps were taken?

    • Result: What was the measurable outcome?

    Save the best ones and rephrase in your own tone.

  6. Create Personalized Interview Video Guide

    Tap on the pencil icon on Video Overview.

    Change the focus to something like:

    “How to handle product sense and behavioral questions for Tesla interviews.”

    Then press Generate to receive a personalized training video script.

    You can even regenerate with a different style (e.g., “Friendly mentor” vs “Tough coach”) to compare tone.

  7. Build Practice Routine

    Use your saved questions and STAR answers to simulate interviews:

    • Read each question aloud, record your response.

    • Compare your delivery with NotebookLM’s feedback or generated answers.

    • Note down improvement areas in your notebook.

    • Repeat twice a week until you feel confident.

  8. Review and Refine

    Before your real interview:

    • Ask: “Summarize my progress and weak areas.”

    Generate a final checklist with:

    • Topics I’ve mastered

    • Areas I should revisit

    • Mock sessions completed

    Print this for your final review.

Note: Record your mock answers and ask NotebookLM to summarize tone, clarity, and confidence levels. This mimics real coaching sessions.

Top AI & Tech News

  • Midjourney's Niji V7 is live, offering improved anime coherence, better prompt understanding, enhanced text rendering, and boosted sref performance

  • GPT‑5.2 successfully solves yet another Erdős problem — Problem #729, marking another milestone in mathematical problem‑solving

  • Google co-founder Sergey Brin pointed out a less discussed AI trend where models sometimes perform better when given aggressive or threatening prompts

  • Malwarebytes says a 2024-linked Instagram API exposure leaked personal data of 17.5 million users, currently for sale on the dark web

AI Art Spotlight

Create Your Own Photo Like This Using the Prompt Below:

Prompt: Create a collection of icons representing [a theme], they belong together as a single theme. Put them in a 3x3 grid. The background is white. Make the icons in a colorful and tactile 3D style. No text.

Theme examples:

- dogs with different emotions
- bananas
- January
- the same cat in different emotions

Model: Nano Banana Pro

Prompt of the Day

Personal Prompt for Cognitive Training

This prompt builds a personalized 30–45 minute daily mental training routine by asking 15 sequential questions to map your thinking, surface strengths and weaknesses, and reveal habits that slow you down. Using your answers, it applies evidence based cognitive methods to produce targeted daily exercises, progress tracking, and clear goals for long term improvement.

Top AI Video Tutorial

Make a Full 3D Cartoon Animation with F-R-E-E AI (Consistent Characters and Lip Sync)

Say Goodbye to Monthly SaaS Fees!

Join our SaaS Lifetime Deal Community — Completely F-R-E-E

Did you know there's an entire industry dedicated to SaaS Lifetime Deals? We've created a private community just for SaaS founders and users like you!

What you'll receive:

  • Discover incredible SaaS tools available for a one-time fee

  • Stay updated with the latest SaaS news, reviews, and updates

  • Participate in our weekly giveaways 🎁

  • Connect with like-minded SaaS enthusiasts

  • Explore alternatives to every SaaS tool in the LTD market