Technology

Futurism reports: In a pitch deck to prospective customers, one of Facebook’s alleged marketing partners explained how it listens to users’ smartphone microphones and advertises to them accordingly. As 404 Media reports based on documents leaked to its reporters, the TV and radio news giant Cox Media Group (CMG) claims that its so-called “Active Listening” software uses artificial intelligence (AI) …

The Hill reports: Tom Hanks is warning his fans to “not be fooled” or “swindled” by what he describes as fake, artificial intelligence (AI)-generated ads featuring his likeness. “There are multiple ads over the internet falsely using my name, likeness, and voice promoting miracle cures and wonder drugs,” Hanks wrote to his more than 9 million followers in an Instagram …

CNN reports: The war of words over Delta’s massive service meltdown, set off by CrowdStrike’s disastrous software update, has grown ugly. In a letter sent Thursday to CrowdStrike’s attorneys written by Delta’s high-powered lawyer, David Boies, the airline lashed out at the cybersecurity company, which has apologized for introducing a bug that led to a global tech outage. Boies, hired …

Tulsa’s ABC affiliate reports: The Tulsa Fire Department has shared a video showing a dog getting a hold of and chewing on a lithium-ion battery that appeared to be in some type of charger. The dog chewed on it until the battery exploded, causing a dog bed to catch fire. Two dogs in the home got away from the fire …

Mashable reports: The explosion of nonconsensual deepfake imagery online in the past year, particularly of female celebrities, has presented a difficult challenge for search engines. Even if someone isn’t looking for that material, searching for certain names can yield a shocking number of links to fake explicit photos and videos of that individual. Google is trying to tackle that problem …

CNBC reports: Meta agreed to pay a record $1.4 billion to settle a lawsuit by the state of Texas over the Facebook owner’s unauthorized use of biometric data by users, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Tuesday. The suit, filed by Paxton in February 2022, accused Meta of capturing and using the biometric data of millions of Texas residents — …

NBC News reports: Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian apologized and offered frequent flyer miles to travelers for thousands of flight cancellations as the carrier struggled to recover from Friday’s globe-spanning IT outage, disruptions that sparked criticism from Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. The Atlanta-based airline canceled more than 4,600 flights from Friday through Sunday, more than any other airline, according …

Reuters reports: Security experts said CrowdStrike’s routine update of its widely used cybersecurity software, which caused clients’ computer systems to crash globally on Friday, apparently did not undergo adequate quality checks before it was deployed. The latest version of its Falcon Sensor software was meant make CrowdStrike clients’ systems more secure against hacking by updating the threats it defends against. …

USA Today reports: There were over 1,300 flights canceled and more than 3,200 delays as of 9:40 a.m. ET, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware. Most airlines were able to resume operations as the morning progressed, but many said they expected disruptions to continue throughout the day. Around the world, airports and airlines advised customers to arrive earlier than normal for …

The New York Times reports: Airports across the United States slowly descended into chaos early Friday after a worldwide tech outage disrupted flights and stranded passengers. At least five airlines — Allegiant Air, American, Delta, Spirit and United — issued ground stops, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. “The F.A.A. is closely monitoring a technical issue impacting IT systems at …

CBS News reports: SpaceX launched another batch of Starlink internet satellites from California Thursday, but the engine powering the rocket’s second stage suffered a catastrophic failure, if not an explosion, during an attempt to carry out a final “burn” to raise the low point of the orbit, company founder Elon Musk posted early Friday on X. Musk referred to the …

Today in extremely creepy robotics: A group of Japanese researchers say they have figured out a way to bind “engineered skin tissue,” grown in a lab, to moveable solid objects, including the bodies and even faces of humanoid robots. The team was led by Professor Shoji Takeuchi of the University of Tokyo, a pioneer in a field that sounds like …

USA Today reports: Boeing and NASA are once again “adjusting” the return home of two astronauts from the International Space Station on the Starliner spacecraft. Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore were scheduled to stay at the ISS for just a week after docking there June 6. Now they aren’t expected to make the trip back to Earth until at least …

Via press release from NASA: Although there are no known significant asteroid impact threats for the foreseeable future, hypothetical exercises provide valuable insights by exploring the risks, response options, and opportunities for collaboration posed by varying scenarios, from minor regional damage with little warning to potential global catastrophes predicted years or even decades in the future. During the exercise, participants …

Reuters reports: Amazon is working to replace what it refers to internally as “Classic Alexa,” the current free version, with an AI-powered one and yet another tier that uses more powerful AI software for more complicated queries and prompts that people would have to pay at least $5 per month to access, some of the people said. Amazon has also …

Ars Technica reports: Victor Miller is running for mayor of Cheyenne, Wyoming, with an unusual campaign promise: If elected, he will not be calling the shots—an AI bot will. VIC, the Virtual Integrated Citizen, is a ChatGPT-based chatbot that Miller created. And Miller says the bot has better ideas—and a better grasp of the law—than many people currently serving in …

Gothamist reports: New Yorkers who tend to forget their wallets at home or lose their purses now have another way to officially prove their identities: a digital version of their state-issued IDs. The New York DMV is rolling out a secure mobile ID that residents can download and use on their phones, whether at airports or bars that accept it. …

Reuters reports: Boeing’s new Starliner capsule and its inaugural two-member NASA crew safely docked with the International Space Station on Thursday, meeting a key test in proving the vessel’s flight-worthiness and sharpening Boeing’s competition with Elon Musk’s SpaceX. The rendezvous was achieved despite an earlier loss of several guidance-control jet thrusters, some of them due to a helium propulsion leak, …

The New York Times reports: Starship, the gargantuan rocket under development by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, launched on Thursday morning to make a fourth attempt to get to space and back. The previous three flights of the vehicle all ended in explosions, but each got farther than the last. Such progress is regarded as success in SpaceX’s break-it-then-fix-it approach to engineering …

CNN Business reports: A nationwide AT&T outage is once again leaving some customers in the dark on Tuesday. In a statement sent to CNN, the company said a problem is preventing many AT&T customers from completing calls between carriers. That also means customers from a rival service can not place calls to an AT&T customer. Calls between AT&T customers are …