Google blocking links to California news outlets from search results
Google has temporarily blocked local news links in California due to the CJPA advancement, urging lawmakers to reconsider to prevent a negative impact on the news industry. [ more ]
Chat control: Tech companies warn ministers over EU encryption plans | Computer Weekly
EU tech companies are urging ministers across the EU not to support a proposed regulation on child sexual abuse that could undermine the security of internet services that rely on end-to-end encryption.
The companies warn that the proposals by the European Commission (EC) would negatively impact children's privacy and security and could have dramatic unforeseen consequences for cyber security. [ more ]
What to Know About Tech Companies Using A.I. to Teach Their Own A.I.
Tech companies are exploring the use of synthetic data to train chatbots and A.I. models due to potential copyright lawsuits and data exhaustion from the internet.
Synthetic data is generated by A.I. models and is seen as a solution to copyright issues while increasing the availability of training data for artificial intelligence. [ more ]
5-ish Things on AI: Fake James Bond Trailer Goes Viral, an Inside Look at Secretive Training Data
AI companies rely on vast amounts of training data from online sources like books, Wikipedia, and news to power large language models for chatbots. [ more ]
How Tech Giants Cut Corners to Harvest Data for A.I.
OpenAI faced a supply problem and used a speech recognition tool called Whisper to transcribe YouTube videos for training its A.I. system.
Tech companies like OpenAI, Google, and Meta have pushed boundaries and debated ethical dilemmas in obtaining digital data for advancing AI technology. [ more ]
Nvidia, Amazon, and others funding Japanese-US AI research
US and Japanese governments announce academic AI partnerships with $110 million funding from tech companies like Nvidia and Microsoft.
Universities like University of Washington, University of Tsukuba, Carnegie Mellon, and Keio University partnering for AI research in various focus areas. [ more ]
Inside Big Tech's underground race to buy AI training data
Photobucket, once a dominant image-hosting site, has seen a drastic decline in users but may revive through licensing photos/videos for generative AI training.
The company is in talks with tech firms to charge between 5 cents to $1 per photo and more than $1 per video for training AI models. [ more ]
EU begins investigating Meta, Apple and Google under new tech law - SiliconANGLE
The European Commission has launched investigations into Apple Inc., Alphabet Inc., and Meta Platforms Inc. for potential violations of the Digital Markets Act.
The Digital Markets Act affects various aspects of big tech companies' business practices, including competition, privacy, and app payment guidelines. [ more ]
Qatar reportedly has a $100M fund for startups | TechCrunch
Qatar unveiled a startup investment program at Web Summit managed by Qatar Development Bank with a $100 million fund.
The 'Startup Qatar Investment Program' offers funding up to $500,000 for startups establishing in the country and up to $5 million for expansions. [ more ]
Microsoft, OpenAI, Google and others agree to combat election-related deepfakes
A coalition of 20 tech companies including OpenAI, Google, Meta, Amazon, Adobe, and X have signed an agreement to prevent AI deepfakes in the 2024 elections.
The agreement aims to develop and implement technology to mitigate risks related to deceptive AI election content and detect and address such content on their platforms. [ more ]
Tech companies slash more than 3,900 Bay Area jobs in 2024 as layoffs widen
Tech companies in the Bay Area have announced plans to cut over 3,900 jobs in 2024, indicating a challenging year ahead for the industry.
Companies such as Salesforce, Snap, Maxar Space, and Activision Blizzard have disclosed their plans for job cuts through official filings with the state Employment Development Department. [ more ]
Focused Cuts and Fewer Layers: Tech Layoffs Enter a New Phase
Tech companies, including Meta, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft, have entered a new phase of cost cutting by making smaller, targeted job trims and focusing on key products like AI.
Some tech start-ups have made deeper job cuts to survive potential extinction, while larger companies are looking for more growth and profit. [ more ]
Grand Theft Auto Voice Actor Furious at AI That Copied His Voice
Voice actor Ned Luke calls out tech company WAME for using his voice in an AI chatbot without permission.
SAG-AFTRA's recent deal with AI voice over studio Replica Studios has caused concern among voice actors who fear their jobs may be replaced by AI. [ more ]