Technology

Axios reports: A handful of social media influencers and Tesla investors were the first to ride without a driver in Tesla’s taxi service, paying a flat $4.20 fee. A Tesla employee rode along in the front passenger seat as a precaution, although it was unclear whether the safety monitor could control the car from there. The service only operates between …

Reuters reports: Tesla is expected to tiptoe into its long-awaited robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, as soon as Sunday with about 10 of its Model Y SUVs that will operate within strict limits. CEO Elon Musk has said the company is being “super paranoid” about safety and that humans will remotely monitor the fleet. Remote access and control – known …

Gothamist reports: A decade after Uber upended New York’s yellow taxi industry, another Silicon Valley giant is threatening to push the city’s cabbies to the brink of extinction. Waymo, a robot-driven car service owned by Google’s parent company Alphabet, applied for a permit Wednesday with the city transportation department to test out a small fleet of autonomous vehicles in an …

Ars Technica reports: In a move that further intensifies the reflection of the cable business it’s slowly killing, Netflix will start showing broadcast channels next summer. The world’s largest streaming provider announced today that starting next year, all Netflix subscribers in France will be able to watch broadcast channels from TF1 Group, France’s biggest commercial broadcaster, which also owns streaming …

The Associated Press reports: More than 1.15 million power banks are under recall across the U.S. after some fires and explosions were reported by consumers. Electronics maker Anker Innovations is recalling certain “PowerCore 10000” power banks because the lithium-ion battery inside can overheat. An overheating battery can lead to “melting of plastic components, smoke, and fire hazards,” Anker wrote. The …

Ars Technica reports: Amid all the Gemini hype at Google I/O last month, the company also turned one of its experiments into a (kind of) real product. Project Starline was reborn as Google Beam, a 3D video conferencing system that makes it look like you’re in the same room with the other party. Google said HP would reveal the first …

Straight Arrow News reports: A recent study has raised new questions about how artificial intelligence responds to human control. According to findings from Palisade Research, a version of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, known as model o3, altered its behavior to avoid being shut down, even after it was instructed to do so. Researchers said the model appeared to change its scripted responses …

Mediaite reports: Democratic congressional candidate Esther Kim Varet’s AI-generated actors accused Rep. Young Kim (R-CA) of parroting policy “prompts” dictated by President Donald Trump and corporate interests in a mocking, tech-savvy ad. The ad features AI avatars that appear to be powered by Google DeepMind’s latest video model, Veo 3, that troll Kim for being “as fake” as they are …

The Global Times reports: The China Media Group (CMG) World Robot Competition – Mecha Fighting Series, the first-ever humanoid robot fighting tournament, kicked off in Hangzhou, East China’s Zhejiang Province on Sunday, as contestants, including robots developed by Unitree Robotics armed with a wide range of combat skills, gathered for a livestreamed showdown, while putting on display Chinese robotics firms’ …

The Washington Post reports: Engagement with digital technology was associated with a 58 percent reduced risk of cognitive impairment in people middle-aged and older, according to a study in the journal Nature Human Behavior. Researchers conducted a systematic review of 57 studies to see whether exposure to technology has helped or harmed cognition among the first generation of adults with …

USA Today reports: Southwest Airlines is introducing a new battery policy in its cabins starting next week, which will require passengers to keep portable chargers visible when they’re in use onboard. “Using portable charging devices while stored in a bag or overhead bin will no longer be permitted,” Laura Swift, a Southwest spokesperson, told USA TODAY in a statement. “Nothing …

Axios reports: Google’s newest AI video generator, Veo 3, generates clips that most users online can’t seem to distinguish from those made by human filmmakers and actors. Veo 3 videos shared online are amazing viewers with their realism — and also terrifying them with a sense that real and fake have become hopelessly blurred. Unlike OpenAI’s video generator Sora, released …

The Hill reports: A Republican tax bill released late Sunday seeks to block states from regulating artificial intelligence (AI) models for the next 10 years. The bill text from the House Energy and Commerce Committee would bar states from enforcing laws or regulations governing AI models, AI systems or automated decision systems. The bill, which comes as Republicans gear up …

Reuters reports: Google has agreed to pay $1.375 billion in a settlement in principle reached with the state of Texas over allegations the company violated users’ data privacy, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said on Friday. The agreement settles two lawsuits that covered three products for allegedly violating Texas consumer protection laws. “In Texas, Big Tech is not above the …

404 Media reports: An AI avatar made to look and sound like the likeness of a man who was killed in a road rage incident addressed the court and the man who killed him: “To Gabriel Horcasitas, the man who shot me, it is a shame we encountered each other that day in those circumstances,” the AI avatar of Christopher …

The Washington Post reports: Skype users bade farewell to the online communication service Monday, reminiscing about late-night calls with friends, long-distance dates and free catch-ups with far-flung family — along with pixelated faces and “Can you hear me?” moments. Microsoft, its owner, has shuttered the service to focus on its alternative calling service, Teams. The decision to scrap Skype, announced …

Ars Technica reports: In a Black Mirror-esque turn, some cash-strapped actors who didn’t fully understand the consequences are regretting selling their likenesses to be used in AI videos that they consider embarrassing, damaging, or harmful. Among them is a 29-year-old New York-based actor, Adam Coy, who licensed rights to his face and voice to a company called MCM for one …

Wired reports: On Saturday, about 12,000 human athletes ran in a half marathon race in Beijing, but most of the attention was on a group of other, unconventional participants: 21 humanoid robots. The event’s organizers, which included several branches of Beijing’s municipal government, claim it’s the first time humans and bipedal robots have run in the same race, though they …

404 Media reports: The Los Angeles Police Department obtained video footage from a Waymo driverless car as part of its investigation into a hit-and-run in which a separate, human-driven car hit a pedestrian. The LAPD published the footage, which has a note on it that reads “Waymo Confidential Commercial Information,” on its YouTube page to ask the public for help …

The New York Times reports: Google acted illegally to maintain a monopoly in some online advertising technology, a federal judge ruled on Thursday, adding to legal troubles that could reshape the $1.88 trillion company and alter its power over the internet. Judge Leonie Brinkema of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia said in a ruling that …