The Guardian

Creator of Politidex hopes free online app will help humanise politics and act as a way of ‘flipping the narrative’ The year is 2016 and Pokémon Go has taken over the world. People are wandering for miles on end, disrupting concerts , and even slamming into poles in their attempts to capture fantastical cartoon creatures. Ten years later, a new generation are flocking to another Pokémon-inspired …

Case attracts widespread attention as example of China balancing enthusiastic adoption of AI with job security A court in China has ruled in favour of a worker whose company replaced him with artificial intelligence (AI), awarding him more than £28,000 in compensation. The worker, whose surname is Zhou, joined a tech company in the eastern city of Hangzhou in 2022 as a quality assurance superviso…

The US-based site, whose operators were fined £950,000 by Ofcom, appears in Google’s search results and can be accessed in UK Google has denied breaching the Online Safety Act by promoting a “nihilistic” suicide forum associated with 164 deaths in the UK where it is supposed to be banned. The UK’s internet regulator fined the forum’s US-based operator £950,000 because the site, which “presents a …

Facility would require more power than entire state uses and suck up vast amount of water in drought-stricken area A plan to create one of the world’s largest datacenters, a gargantuan project spanning an area more than twice the size of Manhattan, has provoked a furious public backlash in Utah amid concerns over its vast energy use and impact upon the state’s stressed water supplies. The Stratos…

From supermarkets to corner shops, live facial recognition could be coming to retailers near you. Jessica Murray on the AI systems increasingly used by the police and stores Live facial recognition is being hailed as a powerful new frontier in the fight against crime, not only by police but by private companies too. Retailers from supermarkets to corner shops hope it will help them fight back aga…

The OpenAI chief rejects claims he deceived Elon Musk as high-stakes AI trial nears its end Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email The OpenAI CEO, Sam Altman , took the stand on Tuesday to defend himself and his company against a lawsuit by Elon Musk . Altman is set to be one of the final witnesses in the trial, which has pitted two of the tech industry’s most powerful men against each…

Defying criticisms of ‘slop’ and ‘theft’, the growing culture of AI-powered creativity is attracting interest from Hollywood In a former hemstitching workshop where artisans sewed pleats for Stockholm’s 19th-century bourgeoisie, a distinctly 21st-century craft is taking root: AI film-making. One day last week, an actor, director and composer squeezed into a tiny studio booth to record a voiceover…

Industry body says energy consumption driven by AI up 15% globally in two years as it warns of societal backlash Datacentres are consuming 6% of electricity in the UK and US, with the growing strain of AI on energy supplies prompting community resistance, according to research. The proportion of electricity used by vast warehouses stacked with microchips to power AI and the internet has risen 15%…

Exclusive: Doctors say ‘highly concerning’ poll highlights risk to patients of turning to AI for medical advice One in seven people are using AI chatbots for health advice instead of seeing their GP, a UK study has found. The poll of more than 2,000 people found that – of the 15% turning to chatbots – one in four had done so because of long NHS waiting lists. Continue reading...

Santa Clara county claims Meta Platforms violated the state’s false advertising and unfair business practices laws California’s Santa Clara county has sued Meta Platforms, alleging it has profited from Facebook and Instagram ads promoting scams in violation of California’s false advertising and unfair business practices laws. The lawsuit – filed on Monday in Santa Clara county superior court on b…

Why are Nintendo releasing a straight-up remake of the space-flight shooter – with many of its original limitations – rather than a fresh new take? The Nintendo 64 was not my first video game console, but it was my formative one. Getting to grips with 3D movement in Super Mario 64 with that weird three-pronged controller is one of my most visceral childhood memories; the long, long wait for The L…

Ofcom attempts to block UK access to site cited in multiple coroners’ reports as it levies fine under Online Safety Act A nihilistic internet suicide forum implicated in over 160 UK deaths has been fined £950,000 by the online regulator in its latest attempt to shut it down. Ofcom said the US-based website remained accessible in the UK despite over a year of warnings. Online safety campaigners ha…

Horticulturalists express alarm after award-winning Matt Keightley launches app that can automate designs With glasses of champagne sipped among the peonies, Chelsea flower show is generally a friendly and genteel occasion. But this year, the secateurs have been drawn as gardeners clash over the use of AI in designing the exhibits. Matt Keightley, an award-winning designer who has created gardens…

Employees are now whispering to AI voice dictation tools rather than clacking the keys. Will ‘voicepilling’ make everyone more productive – or just more annoying? Name: Voicepilled. Age: Reid Hoffman first declared himself “voicepilled” in the autumn of last year. Continue reading...

Carly Schwartz wanted a solution for her mental health struggles. She found one, but not where she expected On a threadbare carpet in the living room of a Bernal Heights bungalow, I lay blindfolded on my back. Two middle-aged rescue terriers, one missing an eye, sniffed my feet and climbed up and down my legs. F**kin’ Perfect by Pink blared in the background, but the music sounded muffled and dis…