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Two pioneers of artificial intelligence — John Hopfield and Geoffrey Hinton — won the Nobel Prize in physics this week for helping create the building blocks of machine learning that is revolutionizing the way we work and live but also creates new threats for humanity. Hinton, who is known as the godfather of artificial intelligence, is a citizen of Canada and Britain who works at the University of Toronto, and Hopfield is an American working at Princeton. “These two gentlemen were really the pioneers,” said Nobel physics committee member Mark Pearce. The artificial neural networks — interconnected computer nodes inspired by neurons in the human brain — the researchers pioneered are used throughout science and medicine and “have also become part of our daily lives,” said Ellen Moons of the…

More than a dozen states and the District of Columbia have filed lawsuits against TikTok this week, alleging the popular short-form video app is harming youth mental health by designing its platform to be addictive to kids. The lawsuits stem from a national investigation into TikTok, which was launched in March 2022 by a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general from many states, including New York, California, Kentucky and New Jersey. All of the complaints were filed in state courts. At the heart of each lawsuit is the TikTok algorithm, which powers what users see on the platform by populating the app’s main “For You” feed with content tailored to people’s interests. The lawsuits also emphasize design features that they say make children addicted to the platform, such as the ability…

Social media users in the European Union will soon have a new forum to challenge decisions by platforms to remove posts and videos for breaking their rules or leave up others that may violate them. An “out of court dispute settlement body” named the Appeals Center Europe said this week it has been certified by Irish regulators to act as a referee on content moderation disputes across the 27-nation EU, starting with cases involving Facebook, YouTube and TikTok. The center is similar to Meta’s Oversight Board, a quasi-independent body set up in 2020 that acts like a supreme court for thorny decisions about content moderation issues on Facebook, Instagram and Threads submitted by users around the world. Under the EU’s digital rulebook known as the Digital Services Act, or DSA,…

The future was once dazzling for IronNet. Founded by a former director of the National Security Agency and stacked with elite members of the U.S. intelligence establishment, IronNet promised it was going to revolutionize the way governments and corporations combat cyberattacks. Its pitch — combining the prowess of ex-government hackers with cutting-edge software – was initially a hit. Shortly after going public in 2021, the company’s value shot past $3 billion. Yet, as blazing as IronNet started, it burned out. Last September the never-profitable company announced it was shutting down and firing its employees after running out of money, providing yet another example of a tech firm that faltered after failing to deliver on overhyped promises. The firm’s crash has left behind a trail of bitter investors and former employees…

AirPods have transformed how we experience audio. With the introduction of the fourth generation, Apple is pushing the boundaries of innovation further, delivering immersive sound and connectivity. Building upon its legacy of seamless integration within the Apple ecosystem, the fourth generation of AirPods offers theatre-like audio, cutting-edge Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), and more. A REFINED EARPHONE Apple has once again redefined the wireless earphone category with the AirPods 4. Sporting a sleek, open-ear design, these earphones are designed for comfort and immersive audio experiences. Whether you’re a casual listener, a daily commuter, or a fitness enthusiast, AirPods 4 offers an adaptable fit with impressive sound quality. The AirPods 4 features a cutting-edge acoustic architecture that delivers clearer, richer sound, enhancing every listening experience. With advancements in hardware and software, these…

Hyundai has begun producing electric SUVs in Georgia less than two years after breaking ground on its sprawling, $7.6 billion manufacturing plant west of Savannah. Hyundai’s factory in Georgia held an “employee-focused celebration” as its first EV for commercial sale rolled off the assembly line, Bianca Johnson, spokesperson for Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America, said in a statement provided this week. “After validating its production processes to ensure its vehicles meet Hyundai Motor Group’s high quality standards, HMGMA has started initial production of customer vehicles ahead of schedule,” Johnson said. She said a grand opening celebration at the Georgia plant is expected in the first quarter of 2025. The South Korean automaker and battery partner LG Energy Solution plan to employ 8,500 total workers at the Bryan County site, about…

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Google said it will stop linking to New Zealand news content and will reverse its support of local media outlets if the government passes a law forcing tech companies to pay for articles displayed on their platforms. The vow to sever Google traffic to New Zealand news sites — made in a blog post by the search giant — echoes strategies the firm deployed as Australia and Canada prepared to enact similar laws in recent years. It followed a surprise announcement by New Zealand’s government in July that lawmakers would advance a bill forcing tech platforms to strike deals for sharing revenue generated from news content with the media outlets producing it. The government, led by center-right National, had opposed the law in 2023 when introduced by the previous administration.…

At a time of growing concern about the safety of self-driving vehicles, a leading expert is calling on the federal government to develop a national driver’s test that such vehicles would have to pass before they could travel on public roads. Such a regulation would set minimum standards to ensure that the vehicles display basic skills and competence in traffic situations where their manufacturers want to use them, said Henry Liu, who leads the University of Michigan’s autonomous vehicle testing center. “Ensuring safety is important for consumers, for autonomous vehicle developers, for the federal government as well,” Liu said in an interview. “The federal government has the responsibility to help set the minimum standard, to help provide guidance in terms of safety testing.” In recent years, autonomous vehicles have been…

A federal judge this week ordered Google to tear down the digital walls shielding its Android app store from competition as punishment for maintaining an illegal monopoly that helped expand the company’s internet empire. The injunction issued by U.S. District Judge James Donato will require Google to make several changes that the Mountain View, California, company had been resisting. Those include a provision that will require its Play Store for Android apps to distribute rival third-party app stores so consumers can download them to their phones, if they so desire. The judge’s order will also make the millions of Android apps in the Play Store library accessible to rivals, allowing them to offer up a competitive selection. Donato is giving Google until November to make the revisions dictated in his…

A federal judge said the Federal Trade Commission can proceed with its landmark antitrust lawsuit against Amazon. But, he also gave the company a small victory by tossing out a few claims made by states involved in the legal fight. The order, issued last week by Judge John H. Chun and unsealed on Monday, is a major defeat for Amazon, which has tried for months to get the case tossed out in court. A trial in the case is slated to be held in October 2026. “We are pleased with the court’s decision and look forward to moving this case forward,” FTC spokesperson Doug Farrar said in a prepared statement. “The ways Amazon illegally maintains its monopolies and the harm they cause—including suppressed competition and higher prices for shoppers and…

“Joker: Folie à Deux” is the No. 1 movie at the box office, but it might not be destined for a happy ending. In a turn of events that only Arthur Fleck would find funny, the follow-up to Todd Phillips’ 2019 origin story about the Batman villain opened in theaters nationwide this weekend to a muted $40 million, according to studio estimates Sunday, less than half that of its predecessor. The collapse was swift and has many in the industry wondering: How did the highly anticipated sequel to an Oscar-winning, billion-dollar film with the same creative team go wrong? Just three weeks ago, tracking services pegged the movie for a $70 million debut, which would still have been down a fair amount from “Joker’s” record-breaking $96.2 million launch in Oct.…

China’s economic planning agency outlined details of measures aimed at boosting the economy this week but refrained from major spending initiatives. The piecemeal nature of the plans announced appeared to disappoint investors who were hoping for bolder moves, and Shanghai’s benchmark gave up a 10% initial gain as markets reopened after a weeklong holiday to trade just 3% higher. The head of the National Development and Reform Commission said the government will frontload 100 billion yuan ($14.1 billion) in spending from the government’s budget for 2025 in addition to another 100 billion yuan for construction projects. The scale of spending overall was well below the multi-trillion yuan levels that analysts said might be expected. The NDRC’s chairman, Zheng Shanjie, said China was still on track to attain its full-year economic…