NetBSD Bans AI-Generated Code
Seven Spirals writes: NetBSD committers are now banned from using any AI-generated code from ChatGPT, CoPilot, or other AI tools. Time will tell how this plays out with both their users and core team. “If you commit code that was not written by yourself, double check that the license on that code permits import into the NetBSD source repository, and permits free distribution,” reads NetBSD’s updated commit guideline … ⌘ Read more

In a Milestone, the US Exceeds 5 Million Solar Installations
According to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), the U.S. has officially surpassed 5 million solar installations. “The 5 million milestone comes just eight years after the U.S. achieved its first million in 2016 – a stark contrast to the four decades it took to reach that initial milestone since the first grid-connected solar project in 19 … ⌘ Read more

Winamp Is ‘Opening Up’ Its Source Code
In a press release today, the best music player of the 1990s announced that it’ll open up its source code to developers worldwide. “Winamp will open up its code for the player used on Windows, enabling the entire community to participate in its development,” said the company. “This is an invitation to global collaboration, where developers worldwide can contribute their expertise, ideas, and passion … ⌘ Read more

Sony Lays Down the Gauntlet on AI
Sony Music Group, one of the world’s biggest record labels, warned AI companies and music streaming platforms not to use the company’s content without explicit permission. From a report: Sony Music, whose artists include Lil Nas X and Celine Dion, sent letters to more than 700 companies in an effort to protect its intellectual property, which includes album cover art, metadata, musical compositions and lyri … ⌘ Read more

Reddit Reintroduces Its Awards System
After shutting down its awards system last July, Reddit announced that it is bringing it back, with much of the same and some new features. There’ll be “a new design for awards, a new award button under eligible posts and a leaderboard showing top awards earned for a comment or a post,” reports TechCrunch. From the report: The company sunset its awards program last year along with the ability for us … ⌘ Read more

GTA 6 Release Date Narrowed To Fall 2025 Amid Questions about Delays
Take-Two Interactive is doubling down Grand Theft Auto VI’s release date, saying the long-awaited sequel will be out fall 2025 despite rumors of a possible delay into 2026. From a report: Take-Two announced GTA 6’s updated release window in its latest earnings report, saying that its current outlook is based on the new date. “We do feel … ⌘ Read more

Another Billionaire Pushes a Bid For TikTok, But To Decentralize It
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Techdirt, written by Mike Masnick: If you’re a fan of chaos, well, the TikTok ban situation is providing plenty of chaos to follow. Ever since the US government made it clear it was seriously going to move forward with the obviously unconstitutional and counterproductive plan to force ByteDance to div … ⌘ Read more

Hugging Face Is Sharing $10 Million Worth of Compute To Help Beat the Big AI Companies
Kylie Robison reports via The Verge: Hugging Face, one of the biggest names in machine learning, is committing $10 million in free shared GPUs to help developers create new AI technologies. The goal is to help small developers, academics, and startups counter the centralization of AI advancements. [. … ⌘ Read more

Palo Alto Networks Is Buying Security Assets From IBM
Palo Alto Networks is acquiring IBM’s QRadar cloud software and migrating customers to its Cortex Xsiam platform as part of a broader partnership aimed at expanding its consulting capabilities and customer base. The sum of the deal was not disclosed. CNBC reports: The move normally takes one to three months, Nikesh Arora, Palo Alto’s CEO, told CNBC. Also, IBM will train … ⌘ Read more

EU Opens Child Safety Probes of Facebook and Instagram, Citing Addictive Design Concerns
An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: Facebook and Instagram are under formal investigation in the European Union over child protection concerns, the Commission announced Thursday. The proceedings follow a raft of requests for information to parent entity Meta since the bloc’s online go … ⌘ Read more

Russia Directing Hackers To Attack UK and West, Says Director of GCHQ
Russia is increasingly seeking to encourage and direct hackers to attack British and other western targets, the director of GCHQ has said in her first keynote speech as head of the British intelligence agency. From a report: Anne Keast-Butler said her agency was “increasingly concerned about growing links” between the Russian intelligenc … ⌘ Read more

Samsung Mocks Apple’s Controversial ‘Crush’ Ad With ‘UnCrush’ Pitch
Samsung has released a response to Apple’s recently criticized “Crush” ad, which featured the destruction of instruments, arcade games, and sculptures to promote the new iPad Pro. Apple subsequently apologized, with an executive admitting they “missed the mark.”

In a video titled “UnCrush,” created by BBH USA and directed by Zen Pace, Samsung … ⌘ Read more

Revolutionary New Google Feature Hidden Under ‘More’ Tab Shows Links To Web Pages
An anonymous reader shares a report: After launching a feature that adds more AI junk than ever to search results, Google is experimenting with a radical new feature that lets users see only the results they were looking for, in the form of normal text links. As in, what most people actually use Google for. “We’ve … ⌘ Read more

Smartphones Can Now Last 7 Years
Google and Samsung used to update smartphone software for only three years. That has changed. From a report: Every smartphone has an expiration date. That day arrives when the software updates stop coming and you start missing out on new apps and security protections. With most phones, this used to happen after about only three years. But things are finally starting to change. The new number is seven. I firs … ⌘ Read more

US House of Representatives Passes TICKET Act To Create Transparency in Pricing
After bipartisan constituents introduced the Transparency in Charges for Key Events Ticketing (TICKET) Act in June 2023, the United States House of Representatives passed the legislation this week in the ongoing efforts to reform the ticketing industry. From a report: The bill received a substantial amount of biparti … ⌘ Read more

Toshiba To Cut 4,000 Jobs in Restructuring Drive
Japan’s Toshiba said on Thursday it will cut up to 4,000 jobs domestically as the industrial conglomerate accelerates restructuring under new ownership. From a report: Toshiba delisted in December due to a $13 billion takeover by a consortium led by private equity firm Japan Industrial Partners, capping a decade of scandal and upheaval. The consortium’s efforts to engineer a turna … ⌘ Read more

Visa Adds New Way To Share Customer Shopping Data With Retailers
Visa is rolling out new technology that will allow the payments giant to share more information about customers’ preferences [non-paywalled source] based on their shopping history with retailers as it seeks to remain a top player in the competitive e-commerce space. From a report: The data will be shared via the payments giant’s proprietary “token … ⌘ Read more

‘Microsoft’s Quest For Short-Term $$$ is Doing Long-Term Damage To Windows, Surface, Xbox, and Beyond’
In an op-ed on Windows Central, the site’s co-managing editor Jez Corden laments Microsoft’s “short-sighted” decision-making and “inconsistent” investment in its products and services, which he argues has led to a loss of trust among customers and missed opportunities in the tech … ⌘ Read more

Microsoft Asks Hundreds of China-Based AI Staff To Consider Relocating Amid US-China Tensions
Microsoft is asking hundreds of employees in its China-based cloud-computing and AI operations to consider transferring outside the country, as tensions between Washington and Beijing mount around the critical technology. WSJ: Such staff, mostly engineers with Chinese nationality, were recently … ⌘ Read more

Airbus Unveils Half-Plane, Half-Copter In Quest For Speed
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Verge: Airbus Helicopters showcased an experimental half-plane, half-helicopter on Wednesday in a quest for speed as competition heats up to define the rotorcraft of the future. The $217 million Racer is a one-off demonstrator model combining traditional overhead rotors with two forward-facing propellors in a bid to … ⌘ Read more

AT&T Goes Up Against T-Mobile, Starlink With AST SpaceMobile Satellite Deal
Michael Kan reports via PCMag: AT&T has struck a deal to bring satellite internet connectivity to phones through AST SpaceMobile, a potential rival to SpaceX’s Starlink. AT&T says the commercial agreement will last until 2030. The goal is “to provide a space-based broadband network to everyday cell phones,” a spokesperson … ⌘ Read more

Microsoft’s AI Push Imperils Climate Goal As Carbon Emissions Jump 30%
Microsoft’s ambitious goal to be carbon negative by 2030 is threatened by its expanding AI operations, which have increased its carbon footprint by 30% since 2020. To meet its targets, Microsoft must quickly adopt green technologies and improve efficiency in its data centers, which are critical for AI but heavily reliant on carbon-intensive … ⌘ Read more

Wallet Recovery Firms Buzz as Locked-out Crypto Investors Panic in Bitcoin Boom
The recent surge in bitcoin prices has the phones at crypto wallet recovery firms ringing off the hook, as retail investors locked out of their digital vaults make frantic calls to regain access to their accounts. From a report: Cryptocurrencies exist on a decentralized digital ledger known as blockchain and investors m … ⌘ Read more

MIT Students Stole $25 Million In Seconds By Exploiting ETH Blockchain Bug, DOJ Says
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Within approximately 12 seconds, two highly educated brothers allegedly stole $25 million by tampering with the ethereum blockchain in a never-before-seen cryptocurrency scheme, according to an indictment that the US Department of Justice unsealed Wednesday. In … ⌘ Read more

MIT Students Stole $25 Million In Seconds By Exploiting ETH Blockchain Bug, DOJ Says
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Within approximately 12 seconds, two highly educated brothers allegedly stole $25 million by tampering with the ethereum blockchain in a never-before-seen cryptocurrency scheme, according to an indictment that the US Department of Justice unsealed Wednesday. In … ⌘ Read more