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NSO Group's Pegasus Spyware Fails to Stay Hidden: Journalists Expose Flaws

2025-03-28

A new report details attempted hacks against Serbian journalists using NSO Group's Pegasus spyware. Amnesty International researchers traced phishing links directly to NSO Group's infrastructure, exposing serious flaws in the company's and its clients' attempts at stealth. Pegasus has been used to target at least 130 individuals globally, including journalists and activists, over the years. Apple has also helped expose attacks by notifying victims. NSO Group's sale of its software to countries that misuse it is contributing to its exposure. The incident highlights NSO Group's operational security failures and the threat its spyware poses to human rights.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech

ChatGPT's AI Image Generator Sparks Copyright Debate

2025-03-27

ChatGPT's AI Image Generator Sparks Copyright Debate

ChatGPT's new AI image generator has gone viral, with users creating Studio Ghibli-style images and sparking a copyright debate. The tool can mimic the styles of specific studios, like Studio Ghibli, even transforming uploaded images into the chosen style. This functionality, similar to Google Gemini's AI image feature, raises concerns about copyright infringement, as it easily recreates the styles of copyrighted works. While legal experts argue that style itself isn't copyrighted, the datasets used to train the model may be problematic, leaving the issue in a legal gray area. OpenAI stated it allows mimicking broad styles, not individual artists', but this doesn't fully resolve the controversy.

(techcrunch.com)

AI copyright debate

TechCrunch Acquired by Private Equity Firm Regent

2025-03-25

TechCrunch Acquired by Private Equity Firm Regent

TechCrunch, after years under Yahoo's ownership, has been acquired by Regent, a private equity firm. The acquisition ensures minimal disruption to TechCrunch's operations, with the same team continuing its focus on original reporting and analysis. Regent's support will allow TechCrunch to maintain its position as a leading voice in tech news, covering Silicon Valley and beyond, while upholding its commitment to unbiased, reader-first reporting.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech

Citizen Lab Exposes Israeli Spyware Maker Paragon's Global Reach

2025-03-22

Citizen Lab Exposes Israeli Spyware Maker Paragon's Global Reach

A new Citizen Lab report reveals that Israeli spyware maker Paragon Solutions, despite claiming to sell only to democracies, has likely sold its Graphite spyware to the governments of Australia, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Israel, and Singapore. The report, based on analysis of server infrastructure and digital certificates, links Paragon to these governments. Paragon's spyware uniquely targets specific apps, making forensic detection harder. Meta confirmed an indicator linked to Paragon mentioned in the report. The findings raise serious concerns about the misuse of commercial spyware and the need for greater government oversight.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech spyware

Meta's AI-Powered Comment Generator: A Step Too Far?

2025-03-21

Meta's AI-Powered Comment Generator: A Step Too Far?

Meta is testing a new feature that uses AI to suggest comments on Instagram posts. The AI analyzes photos and generates three comment options. While Meta claims this enhances user experience, many users express concern, fearing inauthenticity and a decline in genuine interaction. The feature is currently in testing, with no confirmed release date. This follows previous, less successful AI experiments by Meta, highlighting the ongoing challenges of integrating AI into social media.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech

ChatGPT's Hallucinations Spark Another GDPR Complaint Against OpenAI

2025-03-20

ChatGPT's Hallucinations Spark Another GDPR Complaint Against OpenAI

OpenAI faces another European privacy complaint over ChatGPT's tendency to hallucinate false information. Noyb is supporting a Norwegian user falsely accused by ChatGPT of murdering two children and attempting to kill a third. This highlights the risks of LLMs' 'hallucinations' and GDPR's accuracy requirements. While OpenAI offers remedies like blocking prompts, this is insufficient under GDPR's right to rectification. The case could result in fines up to 4% of annual turnover and force OpenAI to modify its AI products, impacting the entire industry.

(techcrunch.com)

AI

EU Forces Apple to Open iOS: A Battle Over Interoperability and Innovation

2025-03-20

EU Forces Apple to Open iOS: A Battle Over Interoperability and Innovation

The EU, citing the Digital Markets Act (DMA), is forcing Apple to open nine iOS connectivity features to boost interoperability and break Apple's closed ecosystem. Apple counters that this is anti-innovative, harms user privacy and security, and restricts its innovation in Europe. Smaller companies support the EU's decision, arguing that Apple's actions stifle competition, leading to higher prices and reduced innovation. The core of this debate is how to balance the innovative drive of large tech companies with the need to foster market competition.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech

OpenAI's pricey o1-pro: Powerful Reasoning AI, but Does It Justify the Cost?

2025-03-20

OpenAI's pricey o1-pro: Powerful Reasoning AI, but Does It Justify the Cost?

OpenAI has launched o1-pro, a more powerful reasoning AI model, via its developer API. While boasting superior performance and more reliable responses thanks to increased computational power, o1-pro comes with a hefty price tag: $150 per million input tokens and $600 per million output tokens – twice the input cost of GPT-4.5 and ten times that of o1. Early tests, however, revealed mixed results, with struggles on tasks like Sudoku puzzles and optical illusions. Internal benchmarks showed only slightly better performance than o1 on coding and math, though with improved reliability. OpenAI's gamble is whether the enhanced reliability justifies the exorbitant cost for developers.

(techcrunch.com)

AI

VW's Budget EV, ID. EVERY1, to Launch with Rivian Software

2025-03-18

VW's Budget EV, ID. EVERY1, to Launch with Rivian Software

Volkswagen unveiled the ID. EVERY1, an ultra-cheap electric vehicle set to launch in 2027 with a starting price of €20,000. Significantly, the ID. EVERY1 will be the first VW vehicle to utilize Rivian's software and architecture, a result of a $5.8 billion joint venture between the two companies. This collaboration aims to reduce development costs and enhance VW's competitiveness in the EV market, while providing Rivian with crucial funding and business diversification. The ID. EVERY1 represents VW's push into a wider market segment, with a goal of becoming the world's leading high-volume electric vehicle manufacturer by 2030.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech

Meta's Llama Hits 1 Billion Downloads, Aiming for Open-Source AI Domination

2025-03-18

Meta's Llama Hits 1 Billion Downloads, Aiming for Open-Source AI Domination

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that the company's open-source AI model, Llama, has surpassed 1 billion downloads, a 53% increase since early December 2024. While powering Meta's AI assistant and used by companies like Spotify and AT&T, Llama faces copyright lawsuits and data privacy concerns. Undeterred, Meta plans to release more Llama models, including reasoning and multimodal models, and is investing $80 billion in AI this year, aiming to lead the AI field.

(techcrunch.com)

AI

Google's Gemini 2.0 Flash: A Powerful AI Image Editor That Raises Copyright Concerns

2025-03-17

Google's Gemini 2.0 Flash: A Powerful AI Image Editor That Raises Copyright Concerns

Google's new Gemini 2.0 Flash AI model boasts powerful image editing capabilities, including the ability to effortlessly remove watermarks from images, even those from well-known stock photo agencies like Getty Images. This functionality has sparked copyright concerns, as removing watermarks without permission is generally illegal under US copyright law. While Google labels the feature as experimental and available only to developers, its powerful watermark removal capabilities and lack of usage restrictions make it a potential tool for copyright infringement. Other AI models, such as Anthropic's Claude 3.7 Sonnet and OpenAI's GPT-4o, explicitly refuse to remove watermarks, considering it unethical and potentially illegal.

(techcrunch.com)

AI AI Image Editing Copyright Concerns

Europe's Tech Industry Calls for 'Radical Action' to Build a 'Euro Stack'

2025-03-17

Europe's Tech Industry Calls for 'Radical Action' to Build a 'Euro Stack'

Amidst rising geopolitical tensions, over 80 European tech organizations penned a letter to the EU, urging "radical action" to lessen reliance on foreign-owned digital infrastructure and services. They advocate for a "Euro Stack," prioritizing homegrown alternatives with strong commercial potential, ranging from apps and AI models to chips and connectivity. The letter stresses reducing dependence on US tech giants, proposing "Buy European" public procurement mandates and subsidies for local providers to boost demand and foster European tech growth and innovation. This follows concerns over US executive orders potentially disrupting services and highlights the need for digital sovereignty.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech Euro Stack Digital Sovereignty Tech Autonomy

Bluesky's Controversial AI Data Scraping Proposal

2025-03-17

Bluesky's Controversial AI Data Scraping Proposal

Bluesky, a social network, proposed a new system allowing users to opt in or out of having their data used for generative AI training and public archiving. This sparked controversy, with some users accusing Bluesky of breaking its promise not to sell user data to advertisers or use user posts for AI training. CEO Jay Graber responded that generative AI companies already scrape public data, including from Bluesky, and that the platform is trying to create a new standard similar to robots.txt, but without legal enforceability. Users can choose to allow or disallow their data for generative AI, protocol bridging, bulk datasets, and web archiving. While some consider it a good proposal, others worry that scrapers might disregard user preferences.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech user privacy

FBI Freezes Green Fund Accounts Amidst Controversy

2025-03-14

FBI Freezes Green Fund Accounts Amidst Controversy

The FBI has frozen accounts held by several nonprofits and state government agencies containing funds from the $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, established by the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act to finance clean energy projects. This action has sparked controversy, with the EPA administrator alleging fraud but providing no evidence. A court has demanded evidence from the Department of Justice or the accounts will be unfrozen.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech Green Fund FBI Investigation Legal Dispute

Bluesky CEO's Subtle Dig at Zuckerberg Sells Out in Minutes

2025-03-14

Bluesky CEO's Subtle Dig at Zuckerberg Sells Out in Minutes

Bluesky CEO Jay Graber's SXSW appearance featured a T-shirt reading "Mundus sine Caesaribus" ("A world without Caesars"), a subtle jab at Mark Zuckerberg, who previously wore a "Zuck or nothing" shirt. The shirt, sold to fund Bluesky's developer ecosystem, sold out in 30 minutes. This highlights Bluesky's decentralized, open-source model, contrasting with Meta's centralized structure. The shirt isn't just a playful rivalry; it embodies Bluesky's commitment to user agency and developer contribution.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech

AI Agents: Hype or the Future of Work?

2025-03-14

AI Agents: Hype or the Future of Work?

Silicon Valley is betting big on AI agents, but there's a significant lack of consensus on what exactly constitutes an AI agent. Companies like OpenAI, Microsoft, and Salesforce envision them as the future of work, yet their functionalities and implementations vary wildly. Definitions range from fully autonomous systems to tools following predefined workflows, causing confusion even among industry experts. This ambiguity stems from rapid technological advancements and marketing hype, creating both opportunities for innovation and potential for misaligned expectations and uncertain ROI. Ultimately, whether AI agents truly revolutionize the world may depend on the industry's ability to establish a unified definition.

(techcrunch.com)

AI technical definitions

YC Backs EU's Digital Markets Act, Challenging Big Tech

2025-03-14

YC Backs EU's Digital Markets Act, Challenging Big Tech

Y Combinator, a prominent startup accelerator, surprisingly publicly endorsed the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA), a law aimed at curbing Big Tech's monopolistic practices. YC argues the DMA, unlike other criticized EU tech regulations, aligns with values promoting American innovation. They cite examples like Apple's delayed AI voice assistant as evidence of a lack of competitive pressure. While less influential in Washington than a16z, YC's public support, alongside other startups and trade associations, puts pressure on the Trump administration. This advocacy aims to unlock opportunities for smaller American firms in AI, search, and consumer apps.

(techcrunch.com)

Startup

EU's DMA Opens the Floodgates for Alternative iOS App Stores

2025-03-14

EU's DMA Opens the Floodgates for Alternative iOS App Stores

The European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA) has unleashed a wave of alternative app stores for iOS users in the EU. Developers are seizing the opportunity, launching options like AltStore PAL, Setapp Mobile, Epic Games Store, Aptoide, and Mobivention, offering users choices beyond Apple's App Store. These stores cater to diverse needs: AltStore PAL emphasizes open source and developer self-hosting; Setapp Mobile offers curated subscription apps; Epic Games Store and Aptoide focus on games; and Mobivention targets enterprise internal apps. While Apple charges fees, the DMA's impact has broken Apple's App Store monopoly, creating opportunities for users and developers alike.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech Alternative App Stores

Anthropic CEO Warns of Chinese Espionage Targeting US AI Secrets

2025-03-13

Anthropic CEO Warns of Chinese Espionage Targeting US AI Secrets

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has warned that Chinese spies are likely stealing valuable "algorithmic secrets" from top US AI companies, urging government intervention. He highlighted China's history of industrial espionage and the high value – potentially hundreds of millions of dollars – of seemingly simple code snippets. Amodei advocates for increased collaboration between the US government and AI companies to bolster security at leading AI labs, potentially involving US intelligence agencies and allies. This concern aligns with Amodei's previously expressed worries about China's use of AI for authoritarian and military purposes and his calls for stricter export controls on AI chips to China. His stance has drawn criticism from some who believe US-China collaboration on AI is necessary to prevent an uncontrollable AI arms race.

(techcrunch.com)

AI Chinese espionage algorithm theft

IBM CEO: Global Trade Isn't Dead, AI Is a Tool, Not a Panacea

2025-03-12

IBM CEO: Global Trade Isn't Dead, AI Is a Tool, Not a Panacea

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna, speaking at SXSW, asserted that despite the Trump administration's attacks on globalism, global trade remains vital for US growth. He emphasized the importance of attracting global talent, arguing that the US should be a hub for international expertise. While acknowledging AI's potential, Krishna cautioned against overhype, predicting AI will write only 20-30% of code, boosting programmer productivity rather than replacing them. He compared AI to calculators and Photoshop, highlighting its role in improving quality and predicting significant energy efficiency improvements. However, Krishna expressed greater optimism for quantum computing's role in scientific discovery, believing AI is limited to learning from existing knowledge and incapable of generating truly novel insights. His views contrast with those of OpenAI's Sam Altman, who anticipates a more transformative impact from AI.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech Global Trade

Geothermal Energy: A Potential Solution to the Data Center Power Crunch

2025-03-12

Geothermal Energy: A Potential Solution to the Data Center Power Crunch

A looming power crunch threatens AI and cloud providers as data center construction explodes. However, a new report suggests a solution lies beneath our feet. Advanced geothermal power could supply almost two-thirds of new data center demand by 2030, quadrupling US geothermal capacity. Startups are leveraging advancements in drilling technology, including horizontal drilling and microwave drilling, to access deeper, hotter rock formations and significantly reduce costs. This clean energy source offers competitive pricing, even potentially undercutting current energy costs for data centers, especially when siting decisions incorporate geothermal potential. This innovative approach addresses the growing energy needs of the digital age sustainably.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech

Bluesky CEO's Anti-Zuckerberg Statement: The Rise of Decentralized Social Networks

2025-03-11

Bluesky CEO's Anti-Zuckerberg Statement: The Rise of Decentralized Social Networks

At SXSW 2025, Bluesky CEO Jay Graber wore a t-shirt reading “Mundus sine caesaribus” (A world without Caesars), a subtle jab at Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. This was a direct response to Zuckerberg's previous “Aut Zuck aut nihil” (Either Zuckerberg or nothing) statement. Bluesky, as a decentralized and open-source social network, empowers users with direct participation in platform development and greater autonomy. In contrast to Meta's controversial policies, Bluesky's openness has attracted a significant user base. While still significantly smaller than Meta, its unique philosophy and cultural impact secure its place in the social media landscape.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech

Agentic AI: Convenience at the Cost of Privacy?

2025-03-08

Agentic AI: Convenience at the Cost of Privacy?

Signal President Meredith Whittaker warned at SXSW that the burgeoning field of agentic AI, while offering convenience, poses significant privacy risks. AI agents, designed to handle tasks like booking tickets and sending messages, require access to a user's browser, credit card information, calendar, and messaging apps—essentially granting them root-level permissions. This exposes user data to cloud servers, blurring the lines between application and OS layers. Whittaker argued this "putting your brain in a jar" approach undermines security and privacy, even threatening privacy-focused apps like Signal. She urged the industry to address the potential dangers of agentic AI, cautioning against sacrificing privacy for convenience.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech agentic AI

Uber and Waymo Team Up: Austin Gets RoboTaxi Choice

2025-03-08

Uber and Waymo Team Up: Austin Gets RoboTaxi Choice

Uber and Waymo have officially launched "Waymo on Uber" in Austin, offering users a choice between a Waymo robotaxi and a human-driven vehicle at the same price. This collaboration marks a shift in the relationship between the two former rivals, with Waymo handling vehicle technology and Uber managing fleet operations. The service hints at future partnerships in the autonomous vehicle industry and underscores Uber's strategic moves in the robotaxi market. The partnership builds on a previous collaboration in Phoenix and anticipates expansion to Atlanta.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech robotaxi Uber-Waymo partnership

ChatGPT for macOS Now Directly Edits Code

2025-03-06

ChatGPT for macOS Now Directly Edits Code

OpenAI announced that its ChatGPT macOS app now features direct code editing capabilities, supporting developer tools like Xcode, VS Code, and JetBrains. The feature is available to paying users now, with a rollout to free users planned for next week. This builds on the "work with apps" functionality launched in November 2024, minimizing the need for copy-pasting code. This puts ChatGPT in more direct competition with AI coding tools like Cursor and GitHub Copilot, and OpenAI reportedly plans a dedicated software engineering product. While AI coding tools are gaining popularity, concerns remain about security, copyright, and reliability risks, including increased debugging time for AI-generated code.

(techcrunch.com)

Development Code Editing AI Coding

UK Government Quietly Removes Encryption Advice Amidst iCloud Backdoor Demand

2025-03-06

UK Government Quietly Removes Encryption Advice Amidst iCloud Backdoor Demand

Weeks after demanding backdoor access to encrypted iCloud data, the UK government has silently removed encryption advice from its websites. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) no longer recommends encryption for high-risk individuals, a stark contrast to previous guidance advocating Apple's Advanced Data Protection (ADP). This move has raised concerns about the government's approach to citizen privacy and the delicate balance between national security and individual rights. Apple is currently challenging the UK's data access order.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech

YC Startups: 95% AI-Generated Code – Trend or Fad?

2025-03-06

YC Startups: 95% AI-Generated Code – Trend or Fad?

A quarter of the startups in Y Combinator's latest batch have 95% of their codebases generated by AI. While AI-assisted coding significantly boosts efficiency, YC partners caution that developers still need code review and debugging skills. AI-generated code isn't perfect and can contain security flaws and errors. This sparks debate about whether AI coding is a future trend or a fleeting fad, and fuels the funding boom for related AI coding tools.

(techcrunch.com)

Development

AGI Arms Race: Avoiding Mutual Assured AI Malfunction (MAIM)

2025-03-06

AGI Arms Race: Avoiding Mutual Assured AI Malfunction (MAIM)

A policy paper by Eric Schmidt, Alexandr Wang, and Dan Hendrycks warns against a "Manhattan Project" style push for Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), arguing that a US-led race for superintelligent AI could provoke fierce retaliation from China, potentially destabilizing international relations. They introduce the concept of Mutual Assured AI Malfunction (MAIM) and suggest a defensive strategy prioritizing deterring other countries from creating threatening AI. This involves expanding cyberattack capabilities, limiting adversaries' access to advanced AI chips and open-source models, rather than focusing on "winning the race to superintelligence." This contrasts with recent proposals for government-backed AGI development and marks a shift in Schmidt's previously expressed views.

(techcrunch.com)

AI

Digg's AI-Powered Comeback: A New Vision for Social News

2025-03-05

Digg's AI-Powered Comeback: A New Vision for Social News

Digg, a once prominent social news aggregator, is back, spearheaded by its founder Kevin Rose and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. This isn't just a relaunch; it's a revival powered by AI, aiming to address the toxicity and misinformation plaguing current social media. Rose envisions AI as a co-pilot for users and moderators, streamlining content moderation and fostering a healthier, more engaging community. Led by CEO Justin Mezzell, the new Digg will launch a revamped platform soon.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech

WordPress Co-founder Mullenweg: Staying Put, Seeking a Steward, Not a Committee

2025-03-04

WordPress Co-founder Mullenweg: Staying Put, Seeking a Steward, Not a Committee

Amidst calls for his resignation following a contentious legal battle with WP Engine, WordPress co-founder and Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg affirmed his intention to remain. He's actively planning succession, aiming to find a successor CEO, not a committee, to continue stewarding the WordPress community. The conflict with WP Engine, a company built on WordPress, centers around Mullenweg's belief they haven't adequately contributed back to the open-source project. He also discussed Automattic's future and the success of its model, highlighting WordPress.com's role in introducing over 100 million people to WordPress. Mullenweg envisions a future where the successor acts more as a 'mayor' than a CEO, accountable to the community.

(techcrunch.com)

Development Succession Planning

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