James Farrell
Latest from James Farrell
Meta faces backlash in Europe over training AI with Facebook and Instagram data
Noyb, the European Center for Digital Rights, today filed complaints in 11 European countries to prevent Meta Platforms Inc. from going ahead with its plan to train its artificial intelligence products on personal posts and images taken from the Facebook and Instagram accounts of its European user base. Meta will use public and nonpublic posts, ...
Major cyberattack causes chaos at London’s NHS hospitals
The former head of British cybersecurity said today that Russian hackers are believed to be behind a major ransomware attack that disrupted work at London hospitals and led to the cancellation of operations. The incident, labeled “critical,” affected seven hospitals run by the National Health Service Trust after Synnovis, a provider of lab services, was ...
X updates policies to allow some sexually explicit content and AI-generated porn
Elon Musk’s X Corp. may have rattled a few people today when it updated its policies to formally allow various kinds of sexually explicit content on the platform, including AI-generated prurience. X, which was formerly Twitter Inc., has always been home to NSFW, or “not safe for work” content, although the company has never been ...
OpenAI tightens its grip on news media with Vox Media and Atlantic partnerships
If you can’t beat them, join them: That might be the right sentiment in light of today’s news that OpenAI has just signed licensing deals with two of the U.S.’s biggest media companies, Vox Media Inc. and The Atlantic. Vox is the parent company of a number of popular media outlets, including the tech website ...
Elon Musk and Meta’s AI maestro Yann LeCun almost come to blows online
Meta Platforms Inc. AI Chief Scientist Yann LeCun spent some time on the X platform over Memorial Day weekend dueling with its owner, the billionaire and devoted contrarian Elon Musk. The spat was centered around Musk’s (pictured) $24 billion venture, xAI, his generative artificial intelligence startup that he hopes will get ahead of the likes ...
TikTok reports disruption of influence campaigns to limit state propaganda
The embattled Chinese social media app TikTok may have assuaged the concerns of some of its detractors with a new report today detailing how it’s limiting the reach of state-affiliated media accounts and how it’s dealing with influence campaigns. As we reach the halfway point of 2024, a year that will see global elections on ...
Amid growing deepfake fears, FCC chair wants more transparency around AI-generated political ads
Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel today proposed disclosure rules for AI-generated content used in political ads. Rosenworcel is concerned about how AI-generated ads can mislead the public. If adopted, her proposal would not ban such ads but ensure that advertisers are transparent about them if they appear on TV or radio. Her proposal does ...
Microsoft’s AI screenshot function is being called a privacy nightmare
After Microsoft Corp. announced its Copilot+ Monday, potential consumers heard that personal computers running it could have a “photographic memory” of everything a person does on their machine, which has not surprisingly raised concern among some privacy experts. Copilot+ PCs will be shipped with a slew of artificial intelligence features, including “Recall,” or should it be ...
Sony warning to AI firms: Hands off our music!
The largest music publisher in the world, Sony Music Group, has sent out a letter to around 700 artificial intelligence developers and music streaming services stating that the music in its catalog is not free for use in training generative AI. The letter, which went to OpenAI, Microsoft Corp. and Google LLC, comes at a ...
Billionaire Frank McCourt is organizing a people’s bid to buy TikTok
Frank McCourt, the real estate mogul, former owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and a longtime critic of how tech companies use data, is reportedly assembling a consortium to buy TikTok’s U.S. business. In March, the House of Representatives passed a bill that could ban TikTok in the U.S. if it doesn’t split from its Beijing-based ...