Tag Archives: technology

Reuters reports: The parents of a motorcyclist who was killed in a 2022 crash involving a Tesla Model 3 on Autopilot in Utah sued the electric carmaker and the vehicle’s driver, claiming that the driver assistant software and other safety features are “defective and inadequate.” Landon Embry, 34, died on the scene after the Model 3 put on Autopilot at …

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 …

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 …

TechCrunch reports: U.S. phone giant AT&T confirmed Friday it will begin notifying millions of consumers about a fresh data breach that allowed cybercriminals to steal the phone records of “nearly all” of its customers, a company spokesperson told TechCrunch. In a statement, AT&T said that the stolen data contains phone numbers of both cellular and landline customers, as well as …

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 …

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 …

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 …

Reuters reports: TikTok is working on a clone of its recommendation algorithm for its 170 million U.S. users that may result in a version that operates independently of its Chinese parent and be more palatable to American lawmakers who want to ban it, according to sources with direct knowledge of the efforts. The work on splitting the source code ordered …

Axios reports: The Federal Aviation Administration has authorized Amazon’s delivery drones to fly longer distances without visual spotters, a key hurdle that will allow the retailer to expand its fledgling Prime Air service. Amazon’s goal is to deliver 500 million packages a year by drone by 2029. But first, it had to satisfy government regulators that it could fly safely …

NBC News reports: Amazon is upgrading its decade-old Alexa voice assistant with generative artificial intelligence and plans to charge a monthly subscription fee to offset the cost of the technology, according to people with knowledge of Amazon’s plans. The Seattle-based tech and retail giant will launch a more conversational version of Alexa later this year, potentially positioning it to better …

The New York Daily News reports: Drones will soon be accompanying cops on 911 calls throughout the city, NYPD officials said. A new Drone as First Responder pilot program will be in effect in coming months, beginning with four NYPD police precincts and the Central Park precinct, NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Operations Kaz Daughtry announced at a hearing before the …

Reuters reports: Apple has apologized after an advertisement for its latest iPad Pro model sparked criticism by showing an animation of musical instruments and other symbols of creativity being crushed, Ad Age magazine reported. “Our goal is to always celebrate the myriad of ways users express themselves and bring their ideas to life through iPad. We missed the mark with …

Bloomberg News reports: Surely someone in that Cupertino spaceship in California could comprehend the grim imagery of its new iPad ad — titled simply “Crush!”— in which a giant crushing machine slowly squeezes a pile of beloved creative tools. First, a trumpet, buckling. Then paint splattering everywhere. A bust, squashed. An upright piano, crushed, strings and hammers flying out with …

The Washington Post reports: Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-Va.) stepped to the microphone on the House floor Monday to speak about one of her latest pieces of legislation, as she has done many times before during her five years in Congress. But the voice that gave the speech wasn’t hers — it was from a text-to-voice application, an assistive device she …

Reuters reports: The U.S. Federal Communications Commission voted 3-2 on Thursday to reinstate landmark net neutrality rules and reassume regulatory oversight of broadband internet rescinded under former President Donald Trump. The commission voted along party lines to finalize a proposal first advanced in October to reinstate open internet rules adopted in 2015 and re-establish the commission’s broadband authority. Reinstating the …

Ars Technica reports: SpaceX is reportedly working with at least one major US defense contractor, Northrop Grumman, on a constellation of spy satellites for the National Reconnaissance Office. According to Reuters, development of the network of hundreds of spy satellites by SpaceX is being coordinated with multiple contractors to avoid putting too much control of a highly sensitive intelligence program …