# Microsoft 365 is still down, Nvidia's fall hits Canadian pensions, and a deepfake network > Day two of the Microsoft outage, what Huang's exit means for Canadian investors and Cohere, a McGill study on stolen faces, and HomeView launches. - Published: 2026-11-13T12:59:00.000Z - By: The Circuit Staff - Type: Daily Briefing - Topics: Daily Briefing, Security, AI, Devices, Gaming - URL: https://thecircuit.ca/posts/2026-11-13-briefing/ Good morning. Here's what happened in tech since yesterday's briefing. ## 1. Microsoft's outage drags into a second day, hitting Canadian hospitals and schools Outlook, Teams, Copilot and other Microsoft 365 services that depend on Exchange Online were still unreliable Friday morning, almost a day after problems began around 1:30 p.m. ET Thursday. Microsoft says it's "seeing early stabilization and capacity improvements," but that capacity "has not yet fully returned to baseline," and that it has no sign of malicious activity, [the Associated Press reports](https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/company-news/2026/11/13/microsoft-struggles-to-restore-email-and-other-services-in-a-global-outage/). In Canada, Unity Health Toronto declared a Code Grey, Montreal's CHUM said appointment requests were affected, the University of Toronto, Seneca and George Brown reported email problems, and Via Rail told passengers to use its train tracker or text alerts instead of email, [CTV News reports via BNN Bloomberg](https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/technology/2026/11/12/widespread-issues-reported-with-microsoft-products-downdetector/). **Why it matters:** Microsoft has extended its email timeout to 48 hours, so messages sent during the outage may still arrive late, [iPhone in Canada notes](https://www.iphoneincanada.ca/2026/11/13/microsoft-outlook-outage-enters-second-day-as-fixes-show-progress/). If your workplace depends on Outlook, check Microsoft's [status page](https://status.cloud.microsoft/) before resetting anything. [Read the full story](https://thecircuit.ca/posts/2026-11-12-microsoft-outlook-outage/) ## 2. Huang's exit rattles Canadian pension funds and puts a spotlight on Cohere Seven of Canada's biggest pension funds held a combined US$20.7 billion (about $29 billion CAD) of Nvidia stock as of June 30, led by CPP Investments at US$10.3 billion, [The Logic reports](https://thelogic.co/news/jensen-huang-nvidia-resignation-impact-canada-cohere/). Nvidia's shares were down about 20% at their low on Thursday after [Jensen Huang resigned](https://nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-announces-ceo-transition). Nvidia is also a returning investor in Toronto-based Cohere's planned Series E, which hasn't closed. In Washington, the top Democrats on the House and Senate tax committees have asked the Commerce Department to preserve records on Nvidia's chip sales to China, [TechCrunch reports](https://techcrunch.com/2026/11/12/democrats-launch-nvidia-investigation-write-scathing-letter-on-huangs-scheme-with-trump/). **Why it matters:** If you pay into the CPP or a big public pension, you own a piece of Nvidia. Nvidia reports its quarterly results on Tuesday, its first big test without Huang. [Read the full story](https://thecircuit.ca/posts/2026-11-12-jensen-huang-resigns-nvidia/) ## 3. A deepfake network stole Canadian creators' faces to spread false political claims McGill University's Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy found 293 Instagram and TikTok accounts that posted more than 3,000 videos in three months, drawing over 20 million views, [The Globe and Mail reports](https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-ai-deepfake-campaign-stole-influencers-faces-trade-war-alberta/). The videos used the faces of Canadian creators, including Kallmekris and Ron Butler, to push false claims about the Alberta referendum, provincial elections and U.S.-Canada trade. The most-watched invented a Trump tariff ultimatum that never happened. TikTok's AI label caught just 4% of the videos. The researchers couldn't identify who's behind it; TikTok says it banned the accounts. **Why it matters:** Only about 6% of commenters suspected the videos were fake. If a familiar creator suddenly posts a political "breaking news" clip, check their own verified accounts before believing it, or sharing it. ## 4. Amazon's AI shopping assistant arrives in Canada Amazon is rolling out Alexa for Shopping to Canadian customers over the coming week on Amazon.ca and in the Amazon Shopping app, [iPhone in Canada reports](https://www.iphoneincanada.ca/2026/11/12/alexa-for-shopping-canada/). It's free, and you don't need an Echo or Prime. It answers questions in search, builds buying guides, searches your past orders and shows price history over 30, 60 or 365 days. Price alerts are coming later, [MobileSyrup adds](https://mobilesyrup.com/2026/11/12/amazon-brings-agentic-shopping-to-canada/). **Why it matters:** The price-history chart is the useful part ahead of Black Friday: it shows whether a "deal" is actually lower than usual. The assistant also remembers your preferences, which you can view and delete. ## 5. Apple's HomeView and new Apple TV 4K go on sale in Canada today Both launch today at $429 CAD each, [iPhone in Canada reports](https://www.iphoneincanada.ca/2026/11/13/apple-homeview-apple-tv-4k-launch/). The [HomeView](https://www.apple.com/ca/apple-homeview/) is Apple's first smart display, recognizing up to six household members by face; a wall mount costs extra. The [Apple TV 4K](https://www.apple.com/ca/apple-tv-4k/) gets an A19 chip, 128 GB of storage and a Siri Remote that works with Find My. **Why it matters:** The HomeView is Apple's answer to Google's and Amazon's smart displays, and it's priced the same as the Apple TV. If you already own a recent Apple TV, the new one is an upgrade, not a necessity. ## 6. Sony is shutting down the PlayStation Plus PC app on December 10 Sony says fewer than 0.4% of eligible PlayStation Plus Premium members use the PC app, which streams games from the Premium catalogue, [iPhone in Canada reports](https://www.iphoneincanada.ca/2026/11/12/sony-playstation-plus-pc-app-shutdown-december/). Memberships and benefits on PS5 and PS4 aren't affected, and Sony hasn't announced a refund. **Why it matters:** If you pay for Premium mainly to stream on a PC, this is the time to step down a tier or cancel; access continues until the end of your paid period. --- That's the briefing, a little later than usual. Have a good weekend.