Category: Government & Policy

Indonesia’s antitrust agency KPPU fined Google 202.5 billion Rupiahs, equivalent to $12.6 million, on Wednesday for antitrust violation related to its payment system services for the Google Play Store. The KPPU ordered the search giant to cease the mandatory use of Google Play Billing in the Google Play Store. It also asked Google to let…

UK appoints ex-Amazon executive Doug Gurr as interim chair of antitrust body

January 22, 2025

The U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has a new interim chairman: former Amazon executive Doug Gurr (pictured above). The announcement comes as the U.K. seeks to position itself as a pro-growth, pro-tech nation by cutting red-tape and bureaucracy, with artificial intelligence (AI) taking center stage. The country is also nearing the end of a…

Trump pardons Silk Road creator Ross Ulbricht

January 21, 2025

President Trump on Tuesday pardoned Ross Ulbricht, the creator of the infamous dark web exchange Silk Road, which was best known as a once-thriving online marketplace for illegal drugs. Trump announced the news in a Truth Social post, saying the pardon was in honor of Ulbricht’s mother and the Libertarian movement. In 2015, a federal…

Trump moves to sink offshore wind

January 21, 2025

UK plans ‘digital wallet’ for driver’s licenses and other ID, plus a chatbot powered by OpenAI

January 21, 2025

Alongside its big public push for AI investments, the U.K. government is also playing a virtual card to catapult itself into the 21st century. Today it announced plans to launch a secure digital wallet to manage government-issued credentials, alongside a chatbot — built in collaboration with OpenAI — to interact with the main GOV.UK portal.…

President Trump signs exec order to make Musk’s DOGE commission more official

January 20, 2025

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an advisory commission spearheaded by billionaire Elon Musk recommending deep cuts to federal agencies, could soon become more official, should an executive order signed by President Donald Trump pass legal muster. On Monday evening, Trump signed an order that renames the U.S. Digital Service, which was created in 2014…

President Trump repeals Biden’s AI executive order

January 20, 2025

During his first day in office, President Donald Trump revoked a 2023 executive order signed by former President Joe Biden that sought to reduce the potential risks AI poses to consumers, workers, and national security. Biden’s executive order directed the Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to author guidance that helps companies…

UK to unveil ‘Humphrey’ assistant for civil servants with other AI plans to cut bureaucracy

January 20, 2025

A week after the U.K. government announced a sweeping plan to make big investments into AI, it’s laying out more details around how this will take shape in the public sector. On the agenda: AI assistants to speed up public services; data sharing deals across siloed departments; and a new set of AI tools —…

How to stream Donald Trump’s Inauguration Day 2025

January 19, 2025

Donald Trump will take the presidential oath of office on Monday in front of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., once again. The event takes place at noon ET and is expected to attract considerable attention from both supporters and opponents. How to stream Trump’s inauguration You can watch the inauguration live with cable or…

The Pentagon says AI is speeding up its ‘kill chain’

January 19, 2025

Leading AI developers, such as OpenAI and Anthropic, are threading a delicate needle to sell software to the United States military: make the Pentagon more efficient, without letting their AI kill people. Today, their tools are not being used as weapons, but AI is giving the Department of Defense a “significant advantage” in identifying, tracking,…

TikTok is restoring service in the US

January 19, 2025

Barely more than 12 hours after TikTok went dark in the United States, the video-sharing app is coming back online. “In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service,” the company said in a statement. “We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers…

TikTok is restoring service in the US

January 19, 2025

TikTok goes dark in the US

January 19, 2025

TikTok has gone dark in the U.S., the result of a federal law that bans the popular short-form video app for millions of Americans — at least for now. TikTok users began receiving a message about the ban around 10:30 p.m. Eastern on Saturday evening, and the app also disappeared from the Apple and Google…

Trump says he will delay TikTok ban, suggests a joint venture with US ownership

January 19, 2025

TikTok went dark for users in the US on Saturday night, but it may not be gone for long. President-elect Donald Trump posted on Truth Social this morning that he will issuing an executive order Monday that will “extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a…

FTC says partnerships like Microsoft-OpenAI raise antitrust concerns

January 18, 2025

The Federal Trade Commission said in a staff report issued Friday that there are potential competitive issues in partnerships between big tech companies and generative AI developers — specifically, Microsoft’s backing of OpenAI and Amazon and Alphabet/Google’s partnerships with Anthropic. “The FTC’s report sheds light on how partnerships by big tech firms can create lock-in,…

DOJ confirms arrested US Army soldier is linked to AT&T and Verizon hacks

January 18, 2025

TikTok says it will go dark Sunday unless Biden offers ‘definitive statement’

January 18, 2025

It remains unclear whether TikTok will still be available in US app stores Sunday, with the company claiming that President Joe Biden’s outgoing administration needs to offer “definitive” assurances that it won’t enforce the ban. On Friday, the Supreme Court upheld a law that would effectively ban TikTok in the United States if the app’s…

ChatGPT’s head of product will testify in the US government’s case against Google

January 17, 2025

TikTok CEO responds to Trump, thanks him for trying to solve US ban

January 17, 2025

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew responded to comments made by Donald Trump regarding Friday’s Supreme Court ruling to ban the app in the U.S. In a video posted on TikTok, Chew said, “On behalf of everyone at TikTok and all our users across the country, I want to thank President Trump for his commitment to…

As TikTok faces a US shutdown, here are some alternative apps to check out

January 17, 2025

TikTok has warned of a looming shutdown in just six days, as the Supreme Court is currently weighing the law that would ban the app. So we thought it’s time to take a look at other platforms that may be able to fill the TikTok-shaped hole in our lives. The law gives TikTok parent company…

Trump spoke to China’s President Xi about TikTok just ahead of Supreme Court ruling

January 17, 2025

Just ahead of today’s Supreme Court ruling — which saw the nation’s highest court uphold the law banning TikTok in the U.S. as of January 19 — Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that he had a “very good” phone call with China’s President Xi Jinping, which included discussion of TikTok. Though the U.S. president-elect…

Trump comments on TikTok ban

January 17, 2025

Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban

January 17, 2025

The Supreme Court has upheld the law that will effectively ban TikTok on Sunday, January 19. The decision marks the end of TikTok’s months-long legal fight against a law that essentially forces the ByteDance-owned app to shut down unless it divests its U.S. operations. As of Sunday, it will be illegal for app stores and…

Ken Howery: the tech mogul at the center of Trump’s Greenland ambition

January 17, 2025

Surprise! Donald Trump’s big, audacious ambition to buy Greenland from Denmark has a tech angle. Ken Howery, named by U.S. President-elect Trump’s pick to be the next ambassador to the country (and thus chief broker of any deal), is one more part of the rich seam of tech people running through Trump’s upcoming administration. Part…

Europe orders Elon Musk’s X to submit documents on its recommendation algorithms

January 17, 2025

The European Commission (EC) says it has requested information from Elon Musk’s X related to the algorithms that determine the content it recommends to users. The EC wants to determine how those algorithms may or may not be compliant with the Digital Services Act (DSA), which imposes key obligations on online platforms operating across the…

GM banned from sharing driving and location data with insurance companies

January 17, 2025

Trump administration might give a boost to deep-sea mining for critical minerals

January 16, 2025

A string of nominees all previously said that they support the practice A string of nominees all previously said that they support the controversial practice. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.

TikTok CEO plans to attend Trump inauguration

January 16, 2025

As TikTok’s fate hangs in the balance, TikTok CEO, Shou Chew, is planning to attend President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday, The New York Times reports. The executive will join Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk on the dais, which is where former presidents and important guests are traditionally seated. Although Trump initiated calls…

As TikTok faces a US shutdown, here are some alternative apps to check out

January 15, 2025

Biden administration adds 14 additional Chinese firms to trade blacklist

January 15, 2025

Days after pushing for sweeping AI chip export restriction, the Biden administration has added an additional 14 Chinese companies to its restricted trade list. This brings the full list up to 25 names, according to reporting from The Associate Press. Sophgo is, perhaps, the highest profile addition. An entity of Bitmain, the firm sparked international…

How to stream Donald Trump’s Inauguration Day 2025

January 15, 2025

Donald Trump will take the presidential oath of office on Friday in front of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., once again. The event takes place at noon ET and is expected to attract considerable attention from both supporters and opponents. How to stream Trump’s inauguration You can watch the inauguration live with cable or…

Trump’s DOT pick wants EV owners to pay to use roads

January 15, 2025

Sean Duffy, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to head the U.S. Department of Transportation, thinks owners of electric vehicles should pay to use roads. “How to do that, I think, is a little more challenging,” Duffy said at his confirmation hearing Wednesday before the Senate Commerce Committee. The former Republican lawmaker is correct that it would…

SEC sues Elon Musk for allegedly failing to disclose Twitter acquisition on time

January 14, 2025

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk on Tuesday over an alleged securities violation relating to his acquisition of Twitter, now called X. The SEC claims Musk failed to disclose his 5% ownership stake of Twitter in a timely manner, violating federal securities law, according to a complaint filed in federal…

Biden admin’s final rule banning Chinese connected cars also bars robotaxi testing on U.S. roads

January 14, 2025

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced a final rule Tuesday that would ban the sale or import of connected vehicles from China and Russia due to national security concerns. The rule would also bar Chinese car companies, such as WeRide and Pony AI, from testing self-driving cars on U.S. roads. “China is trying to dominate…

Biden administration opens up federal land to AI data centers

January 14, 2025

With less than a week left in office, President Joe Biden is not done leaving his mark on the AI industry. President Biden issued an executive order on Tuesday that will allow private sector AI companies to lease federal sites owned by the Department of Defense and Department of Energy in order to build AI…

OpenAI quietly revises policy doc to remove reference to ‘politically unbiased’ AI

January 14, 2025

OpenAI has quietly removed language endorsing “politically unbiased” AI from one of its recently published policy documents. In the original draft of its “economic blueprint” for the AI industry in the U.S., OpenAI said that AI models “should aim to be politically unbiased by default.” A new draft, made available Monday, deletes that phrasing. When…

UK’s CMA slaps Google Search and its 90%+ market share with an antitrust investigation

January 14, 2025

The Competition and Markets Authority — the U.K.’s antitrust watchdog — is wasting no time in lodging its first official investigation of 2025 under its new rules that came into effect this month. It’s looking into the market dominance of Google in Search, including the new work it’s doing in AI search as well as…

China is reportedly open to Elon Musk acquiring TikTok US

January 13, 2025

Chinese government officials have reportedly discussed a scenario where ByteDance sells TikTok’s United States arm to Elon Musk, should the Supreme Court uphold the law banning the app on January 19. Bloomberg reports that China would strongly prefer for TikTok to stay under ByteDance’s ownership, but says government officials have considered a sale to Musk…

As TikTok faces a US shutdown, here are some alternative apps to check out

January 13, 2025

The CIA’s first CTO, Nand Mulchandani, prepares for the Trump administration

January 13, 2025

In April 2022, the CIA decided to swipe right on Nand Mulchandani, appointing him as its first-ever Chief Technology Officer. It was a good look for the CIA. Mulchandani, who previously served as the CTO and acting director of the Defense Department’s Joint Artificial Intelligence Center, is something of a rare breed in Washington. Before…

OpenAI presents its preferred version of AI regulation in a new ‘blueprint’

January 13, 2025

OpenAI on Monday published what it’s calling an “economic blueprint” for AI: a living document that lays out policies the company thinks it can build on with the U.S. government and its allies. The blueprint, which includes a forward from Chris Lehane, OpenAI’s VP of global affairs, asserts that the U.S. must act to attract…

Biden administration proposes sweeping new restrictions on exporting AI chips

January 13, 2025

With a week left in office, President Joe Biden introduced a new set of guidelines and restrictions for exporting U.S.-made AI chips. On Monday the administration announced its Interim Final Rule on AI diffusion. This ruling is meant to “provide clarity to allied and partner nations about how they can benefit from AI” and streamline…

UK throws its hat into the AI fire

January 13, 2025

In 2023, the U.K. made a big song and dance about the need to consider the harms of AI, giving itself a leading role in the wider conversation around AI safety. Now, it’s whistling a very different tune: today, the government announced a sweeping plan and a big bet on AI investments to develop what…

Apple board opposes proposal to abolish DEI programs

January 11, 2025

Apple’s board of directors has come out in opposition to a proposal seeking to end the company’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs. In a proxy filing, the company said the National Center for Public Policy Research (a conservative think tank) is submitting a proposal for Apple to “consider abolishing its Inclusion & Diversity program,…

Mark Zuckerberg defends Meta’s latest pivot in three-hour Joe Rogan interview

January 10, 2025

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg defended his decision to scale back Meta’s content moderation policies in a Friday appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast. Zuckerberg faced widespread criticism for the decision, including from employees inside his own company. “Probably depends on who you ask,” said Zuckerberg when asked how Meta’s updates have been received. The key updates…

Amazon curbs some DEI programs

January 10, 2025

Amazon is now the latest company to curb some of its DEI programs, Bloomberg reports, after Meta announced that it, too, is ending its diversity efforts earlier on Friday. An internal memo that was sent to staffers said that the company was looking to wind down outdated programs and materials as part of a review…

TikTok ban: How both sides made their case to the Supreme Court and what the justices asked

January 10, 2025

On Friday, the nation’s highest court heard arguments on whether to uphold or block a law that could effectively ban TikTok in the U.S. The bill, signed into law by President Biden in April 2024, gives TikTok’s parent company ByteDance until January 19 to divest its U.S. operations or face a ban in the country.…

EU approves $35B Synopsys and Ansys merger, subject to divestment conditions

January 10, 2025

The European Commission (EC) has given the greenlight for Synopsys to acquire Ansys, though the companies must divest some half-a-dozen products as part of the proposed remedies. Chip design software maker Synopsys revealed last January its plans to acquire Ansys, a simulation software developer that helps engineers model and analyze the physical behavior of products, such as chips,…

TikTok pleads its case against sell-or-ban law before Supreme Court

January 10, 2025

A lawyer for TikTok argued before the Supreme Court on Friday that a ban on the social network would violate TikTok’s and Americans’ First Amendment rights. The Supreme Court this morning heard arguments on whether to overturn or delay a law that could effectively ban TikTok in the U.S. The bill, officially titled the Protecting…

India’s payment push is cutting out Visa and Mastercard

January 10, 2025

As global regulators increase their scrutiny on Visa and Mastercard over merchant fees, India has chosen a different path: creating rival payment networks that are increasingly sidelining international card networks. The strategy builds on India’s Unified Payments Interface, known as UPI, a nine-year-old system that now processes more than 13 billion real-time transactions monthly, or…

Facebook Marketplace to display eBay listings to appease EU regulators

January 8, 2025

Meta is set to start displaying eBay listings in its own Facebook Marketplace classifieds platform, in an effort to appease European regulators. Back in November, Meta was hit with a €798 million fine by the European Commission (EC) in Europe for breaching antitrust rules. The EC contended that Meta created “unfair trading conditions” by connecting…

FTC accuses gig work app Handy of misleading ads and opaque fees for workers

January 7, 2025

The FTC and New York’s attorney general have accused Handy, the gig app customers can use to book cleaners, handymen, and more, of making deceptive claims about how much workers could earn through its platform. In a complaint filed on Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the FTC…

Trump announces $20B plan to build new data centers in the US

January 7, 2025

UK confirms plans to criminalize the creation of sexually explicit deepfake content

January 7, 2025

The U.K. is forging ahead with plans to make the act of creating sexually explicit “deepfake” images a specific criminal offence. A deepfake refers to manipulated media, often video or audio, created using AI to make someone appear to say or do something they didn’t. The U.K. had already made sharing — and the threat…

Consumer tech spending will break records in 2025 if Trump’s tariffs don’t squash it, CTA predicts

January 6, 2025

AI is leading US consumers towards a tech spending bonanza this year if tariffs don’t materialize, new research from the Consumer Technology Association finds. © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.

UK uses AI to tackle ‘bid-rigging’ collusion in public procurement contracts

January 6, 2025

The U.K’s competition authority already has a lot on its plate in terms of tackling Big Tech’s growing reach across the technological spectrum, but closer to home it’s dealing with a different kind of anti-competitive threat — one it reckons AI is well-equipped to address. As per a Financial Times’ report this week, the Competition…

YouTuber LegalEagle sues PayPal over ‘sleeping leech’ Honey extension

January 5, 2025

A new lawsuit alleges that the PayPal-owned browser extension Honey is cheating creators out of money. Honey, which PayPal acquired for $4 billion in 2019, works by automatically presenting users with relevant coupon codes as they shop. However, in a video posted last month, YouTuber MegaLag described Honey as a “scam” that’s “stealing money from…

Lyft will credit NYC riders for congestion fee throughout January

January 4, 2025

New York City’s congestion pricing is scheduled to take effect Sunday — but for the first month, Lyft said it will be crediting riders who pay the fee. New York’s program, which is supposed to reduce traffic in lower Manhattan while also raising funding for mass transit, was paused by Governor Kathy Hochul in June,…

FTC orders AI accessibility startup accessiBe to pay $1M for misleading advertising

January 3, 2025

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has fined accessiBe, a startup that claims to make websites more compatible with the screen readers blind people rely on to access the internet, for false advertising and compensating reviewers without disclosing that it sponsored the reviews. In a proposed order, the FTC would require accessiBe to pay $1 million…

Hydrogen tax credit rules give startups clarity while boosting nuclear and carbon capture

January 3, 2025

Hydrogen startups are widely seen as a promising way to eliminate fossil fuels from heavy industry and long-haul transportation. But they have been stuck in limbo for the last couple years, waiting for official guidance from the U.S. Treasury on lucrative tax credits. The wait ended today, with the Treasury announcing final rules for hydrogen…

Meta policy chief Nick Clegg steps down

January 2, 2025

The President of Meta’s Global Affairs team, Nick Clegg, is stepping down from his position at the company, the executive announced in a tweet on Thursday. Clegg, Meta’s politically centrist policy chief since 2018, will be replaced by one of the company’s most prominent Republican executives, Joel Kaplan. Clegg noted on X that Kaplan is…

Silicon Valley stifled the AI doom movement in 2024

January 1, 2025

For several years now, technologists have rung alarm bells about the potential for advanced AI systems to cause catastrophic damage to the human race. But in 2024, those warning calls were drowned out by a practical and prosperous vision of generative AI promoted by the tech industry – a vision that also benefited their wallets.…

Elon Musk’s pro-Trump critics claim they’re being censored on X

December 31, 2024

Nonprofit group joins Elon Musk’s effort to block OpenAI’s for-profit transition

December 30, 2024

Encode, the nonprofit organization that co-sponsored California’s ill-fated SB 1047 AI safety legislation, has requested permission to file an amicus brief in support of Elon Musk’s injunction to halt OpenAI’s transition to a for-profit company. In a proposed brief submitted to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California Friday afternoon, counsel for…

India’s mobile payments dilemma

December 29, 2024

India’s payments regulator is set to decide as early as Monday whether to curb the dominance of Walmart’s PhonePe and Google in the nation’s fast-growing mobile payments market, a move that could reshape how its billion-plus population moves money. The decision centers on UPI, or Unified Payments Interface, a network backed by more than 50…

Trump asks Supreme Court to pause imminent TikTok ban

December 28, 2024

Attorneys representing President-elect Donald Trump have asked the Supreme Court to pause a law that would force TikTok-owner ByteDance to sell the short-form video app or see it banned from the United States. If the app isn’t sold, the ban is set to take effect in just a few weeks, on January 19. ByteDance is…

Nonprofit group joins Elon Musk’s effort to block OpenAI’s for-profit transition

December 27, 2024

Encode, the nonprofit org that co-sponsored California’s ill-fated SB 1047 AI safety legislation, has requested permission to file an amicus brief in support of Elon Musk’s injunction to halt OpenAI’s transition to a for-profit. In a proposed brief submitted to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California Friday afternoon, counsel for Encode…

Elon Musk’s jets made 355 trips in 2024, including 31 to or from the Mar-a-Lago area

December 26, 2024

Sriram Krishnan named Trump’s senior policy advisor for AI

December 22, 2024

Incoming president Donald Trump has confirmed reports that Sriram Krishnan, until recently a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), will serve as senior policy advisor for AI at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Trump said in a statement that Krishnan will “help shape and coordinate AI policy across government, working with…

Palantir and Anduril reportedly building a tech consortium to bid on defense contracts

December 22, 2024

Two big defense tech players, Palantir and Anduril, are talking to tech companies including SpaceX, OpenAI, Saronic, and Scale AI about forming a consortium to bid on Pentagon contracts, according to a report in the Financial Times. The goal, the FT says, is to challenge the dominance of “prime” defense contractors like Lockheed Martin, Raytheon,…

Google pushes back against DOJ’s ‘interventionist’ remedies in antitrust case

December 21, 2024

Google has offered up its own proposal in a recent antitrust case that saw the US Department of Justice argue that Google must sell its Chrome browser. US District Court Judge Amit Mehta ruled in August that Google had acted illegally to maintain a monopoly in online search, with the DOJ then proposing a number…

Sam Altman disputes Marc Andreessen’s description of AI meetings with Biden administration

December 20, 2024

EU asks for views on plan to force Apple to open up iOS

December 19, 2024

The European Commission has published draft proposals for how Apple must meet interoperability requirements flowing from the bloc’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) — inviting feedback on proposed measures targeted at areas like iOS notifications, data transfer, and device set-up by January 9, 2025. European Union regulators then have until around mid March to adopt final…

Apple and Meta go to war over interoperability vs. privacy

December 19, 2024

Apple and Meta are warring in Europe over the balance between interoperability and privacy, Reuters reports. The fight focuses on the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), a competition regulation that requires designated gatekeepers (including Apple and Meta) not to restrict rivals’ access to so-called core platform services. In Apple’s case, this means: iOS, iPadOS,…

Supreme Court to hear arguments over TikTok sell-or-ban law

December 18, 2024

The Supreme Court said on Wednesday that it will hear ByteDance and TikTok’s challenge to a law would ban the social network in the U.S. unless the social network divests from Chinese ownership by January 19. On January 10, the Supreme Court justices will hear argue about whether the sell-or-ban law violates the First Amendment.…

Grubhub to pay $25M for ‘deceptive’ practices against customers, drivers

December 17, 2024

Grubhub will pay $25 million to settle a lawsuit from the Federal Trade Commission and Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul over unlawful practices, including misleading customers about delivery costs, deceiving drivers about potential earnings, and listing restaurants on its platform without their permission. The agencies claim that Grubhub hid the true cost of its delivery…

Google says customers can use its AI in ‘high-risk’ domains, so long as there’s human supervision

December 17, 2024

Google has changed its terms to clarify that customers can deploy its generative AI tools to make “automated decisions” in “high-risk” domains, like healthcare, so long as there’s a human in the loop. According to the company’s updated Generative AI Prohibited Use Policy, published on Tuesday, customers may use Google’s generative AI to make “automated…

UK consults on opt-out model for training AIs on copyrighted content

December 17, 2024

The U.K. government is consulting on an opt-out copyright regime for AI training that would require rights holders to take active steps if they don’t want their intellectual property to become free AI training fodder. The rise of generative AI models that are trained on vast quantities of data has brought intellectual property concerns to…

FTC bans hidden junk fees in short-term lodging, live-event ticket prices

December 17, 2024

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission passed a rule on Tuesday banning hidden “junk fees” for live events, hotels, and vacation rentals. The agency says the new rule prohibits “bait-and-switch pricing,” and other practices that hide total prices and bury junk fees in the live-event ticketing and short-term lodging industries, noting that these “unfair and deceptive”…

Shein must cede Indians’ data, control of local ops to re-enter India

December 17, 2024

Shein must surrender all data of Indian customers and control of its local operations to its partner, Reliance Retail, and keep operations fully local to re-enter the Indian market, according to new government disclosures that reveal how the apparel and accessories retailer secured a rare exception to India’s ban on Chinese-linked apps. In a parliamentary…

Meta to set up $50M privacy payment scheme to settle Australian proceeding

December 17, 2024

Meta has agreed to a $50 million payment program to settle a long-running proceeding in Australia related to misuse of information for political ad targeting, the country’s information watchdog OAIC announced Tuesday. The settlement concerns the 2018 Cambridge Analytica scandal, when data on millions of Facebook users was exfiltrated without their knowledge or consent by…

Kakao Mobility hit with $10.5M antitrust fine for limiting rivals’ access

December 17, 2024

South Korea’s antitrust watchdog has fined Kakao Mobility, the ride-hailing unit of Korean tech firm Kakao, $10.5 million (KRW 15.1 billion) for limiting competitors’ access to its taxi app — lowering the penalty from an initial fine of $50.3 million (KRW 72.4 billion) as the earlier sanction was based on an overestimated calculation of the…

TikTok asks Supreme Court for a lifeline as sell-or-ban deadline approaches

December 16, 2024

TikTok and ByteDance asked the United States Supreme Court to block the law that forces TikTok to be sold off or banned in the United States, according to an emergency filing with America’s top court on Monday. The social media company requested that the Supreme Court consider blocking the sell-or-ban law passed earlier this year…

Softbank CEO announces a $100 billion investment into the US

December 16, 2024

EU signs $11B deal for sovereign satellite constellation to rival Musk’s Starlink

December 16, 2024

The European Union is forging ahead with plans for a constellation of internet satellites to rival Elon Musk-owned Starlink, after signing a €10.6 billion ($11.1B) deal to launch nearly 300 satellites into low- and medium-Earth orbits by 2030. The bloc wants the space tech to boost its digital sovereignty by providing secure comms to governments.…

Trump’s Silicon Valley advisers have AI ‘censorship’ in their crosshairs

December 15, 2024

President-elect Donald Trump has surrounded himself with Silicon Valley entrepreneurs — including Elon Musk, Marc Andreessen, and David Sacks — who are now advising him on technology and other issues. When it comes to AI, this crew of technologists is fairly aligned on the need for rapid development and adoption of AI throughout the U.S.…

Meta asks California AG to block OpenAI’s conversion to for-profit

December 14, 2024

Facebook’s parent company Meta is supporting Elon Musk’s effort to block OpenAI’s conversion from a non-profit company into a for-profit one. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, Meta sent a letter to California Attorney General Rob Bonta arguing that allowing the shift would have “seismic implications for Silicon Valley.” And while the company asked…

Biden administration races to approve clean energy loans before Trump takes over — here’s who is benefiting

December 13, 2024

The Department of Energy (DOE) is on a loan-approval spree in the lead-up to President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, and the winners are all companies manufacturing clean energy solutions on U.S. soil. Companies like Stellantis and Samsung, Rivian, and most recently, EVgo. Trump has promised to cancel any unspent federal dollars under President Joe Biden’s Inflation…

EVgo secures $1.25 billion loan amid Biden’s rush to approve clean energy loans

December 13, 2024

Electric vehicle charging startup EVgo is the latest company to secure funds from the U.S. Department of Energy as the Biden administration races to approve clean energy loans before Donald Trump takes over. Trump has promised to cancel any unspent funds from Biden’s bipartisan Inflation Reduction Act, including the $7,500 tax credit for new EV…

Sam Altman and Jeff Bezos are the latest billionaires to donate $1M to Trump fund

December 13, 2024

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Jeff Bezos’ Amazon plan to donate $1 million each to President-elect Donald Trump’s inaugural fund, according to reports from Fox and the Wall Street Journal. TechCrunch has confirmed Altman’s plans to personally commit the money, which is not coming directly from OpenAI. The donations from the billionaires follow plans by…

Controversial EU ad campaign on X broke bloc’s own privacy rules

December 13, 2024

The European Union’s executive body is facing an embarrassing privacy scandal after it was confirmed on Friday that a Commission ad campaign on X (formerly Twitter) breached the EU’s own data protection rules. The finding, by the EU’s oversight body the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS), relates to a microtargeted ad campaign that the Commission…

Texas AG is investigating Character.AI, other platforms over child safety concerns

December 13, 2024

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Thursday launched an investigation into Character.AI and 14 other technology platforms over child privacy and safety concerns. The investigation will assess whether Character.AI — and other platforms that are popular with young people, including Reddit, Instagram and Discord — conform to Texas’ child privacy and safety laws. The investigation…

Enterprise, Global IT News, Global Security News, Google, Government & Policy, Indonesia

Amazon, CMA, Doug Gurr, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy

Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, In Brief, silk road, TC, Trump

Climate, data centers, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Trump Administration, Wind power

AI, chatbot, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, government services, openai

Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy

AI, AI executive order, AI policy, Biden, Donald Trump, former president joe biden, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government, Government & Policy, In Brief, Policy, president trump

AI, DSIT, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Peter Kyle, public health, social services

Donald Trump, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, inauguration, live tv, Media & Entertainment, streaming

AI, ai safety, Anthropic, defense tech, Global Security News, Government & Policy, military, North America, openai, pentagon, TC

bytedance, Donald Trump, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Media & Entertainment, North America, Social, TikTok, TikTok Ban

bytedance, Donald Trump, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Media & Entertainment, North America, Social, TikTok, TikTok Ban

App, Apps, ban, bytedance, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Social, social media, TikTok, TikTok Ban

bytedance, Donald Trump, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Media & Entertainment, Social, Startups, TikTok, TikTok Ban

Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Perplexity AI, Social, Startups, TikTok

AI, Alphabet, Amazon, Anthropic, Enterprise, FTC, Global IT News, Global Security News, Google, Government & Policy, Microsoft, openai

AT&T, cyberattacks, Cybersecurity, data breach, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Security, Snowflake, us government, Verizon

Donald Trump, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Joe Biden, North America, Social, TikTok, TikTok Ban

antitrust, ChatGPT, Exclusive, Global IT News, Global Security News, Google, Government & Policy, openai, sam altman

Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Social, TikTok, TikTok Ban, Trump

Apps, Evergreen, evergreens, fanbase, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Instagram Reels, lemon8, rednote, Snapchat, Social, TikTok, TikTok Ban, YouTube Shorts, zigazoo

Asia Pacific, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Social, TC, TikTok, TikTok Ban, Trump

Asia Pacific, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Social, TC, TikTok, TikTok Ban, Trump

Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Social, supreme court, TikTok, TikTok Ban

Climate, Denmark, Donald Trump, Founders Fund, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, greenland, Ken Howery, PayPal Mafia, Real estate, Venture

Europe, Germany, Global Security News, Government & Policy, In Brief, Social, Twitter, X

Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Transportation

Climate, critical minerals, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, mining, oceans, Policy

Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Social

Apps, Donald Trump, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, shou chew, Social, TikTok, TikTok Ban

Apps, Evergreen, evergreens, fanbase, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Instagram Reels, lemon8, rednote, Snapchat, Social, TikTok, TikTok Ban, YouTube Shorts, zigazoo

china, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Hardware, Huawei, Trump, TSMC

Donald Trump, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, inauguration, live tv, Media & Entertainment, streaming

department of transportation, EVs, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Sean duffy, Transportation

Elon Musk, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, SEC, TC, Twitter, twitter/x

Asia Pacific, autonomous vehicles, Chinese EVs, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Transportation

AI, AI companies, Artificial Intelligence, Biden administration, data centers, Enterprise, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Trump Administration

AI, ai bias, ai censorship, bias, economic blueprint, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, openai, Policy, policy document, Politics

Apps, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Social, TikTok, TikTok Ban

AI, antitrust, CMA, competition, generative ai, Global IT News, Global Security News, Google, Government & Policy, regulation, Search

Elon Musk, Global Security News, Government & Policy, In Brief, musk, North America, Social, TikTok, TikTok Ban

Apps, evergreens, fanbase, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Instagram Reels, lemon8, rednote, Snapchat, Social, TikTok, TikTok Ban, YouTube Shorts, zigazoo

Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy

AI, BluePrint, Global Security News, Government, Government & Policy, lobbying, openai, Policy

AI, chips, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Hardware, nvidia

AI, AI policy, ai safety, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, matt clifford, starmer

Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy

content moderation, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Instagram, Meta, Social, TC, Threads, Zuckerberg

Amazon, DEI, Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, jeff bezos

Global IT News, Global Security News, Government & Policy, Social, social media, social networking, supreme court, TC, TikTok, TikTok Ban, TikTok Hearing, Trump