The CDC Has a Leadership Crisis
A 2023 law championed by Republicans requires the CDC have a director confirmed by the Senate. For months, though, it's had only acting directors--and the White House won't say when that will change. As the agency rotates through a cast of leaders, it's unclear when--or if--the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will get a permanent director under Donald Trump's second term as president. Following Jim O'Neill's departure as acting CDC director last week, National Institutes of Health director Jay Bhattacharya will now lead both agencies temporarily. It's the latest in a series of shakeups at Trump's CDC, which has lost about a quarter of its staff to mass layoffs carried out by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. last year.
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Metadata Exposes Authors of ICE's 'Mega' Detention Center Plans
Comments and other data left on a PDF detailing Homeland Security's proposal to build "mega" detention and processing centers reveal the personnel involved in its creation. A PDF that Department of Homeland Security officials provided to New Hampshire governor Kelly Ayotte's office about a new effort to build "mega" detention and processing centers across the United States contains embedded comments and metadata identifying the people who worked on it. The seemingly accidental exposure of the identities of DHS personnel who crafted Immigration and Customs Enforcement's mega detention center plan lands amid widespread public pushback against the expansion of ICE detention centers and the department's brutal immigration enforcement tactics. Metadata in the document, which concerns ICE's "Detention Reengineering Initiative" (DRI), lists as its author Jonathan Florentino, the director of ICE's Newark, New Jersey, Field Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations. In a note embedded on top of an FAQ question, "What is the average length of stay for the aliens?"
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UK agrees drone defence plan with four EU allies
Britain is to develop new air defence weapons alongside the EU's four biggest military powers, deepening ties with the European defence sector. The project will invite manufacturers in the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Poland to submit plans to build low-cost missiles and autonomous drones. The allies are pledging a speedy process to build the weapons together, inspired by Ukraine's development of cheap drones to counter attacks from Russia. The UK's Ministry of Defence (MoD) says the programme will prioritise a lightweight, affordable surface-to-air weapon, with the first project to be delivered by next year. The plan, announced at a meeting of the five countries' defence ministers in the Polish city of Krakow, marks a boost to UK-Europe ties after the failure of talks last year over UK participation in the EU's new €150bn (£130bn) defence fund.
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OpenAI will reportedly release an AI-powered smart speaker in 2027
Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2026 is Feb. 25 The company is also said to be working on smart glasses and a smart lamp. OpenAI is reportedly hard at work developing a series of AI-powered devices, including smart glasses, a smart speaker and a smart lamp. According to reporting by, the AI company has a team of over 200 employees dedicated to the project. The first product scheduled to be released is reported to be a smart speaker that would include a camera, allowing it to better absorb information about its users and surroundings. According to a person familiar with the project, this would extend to identifying objects on a nearby table, as well as conversations being held in the vicinity of the speaker.
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AI hit: India hungry to harness US tech giants' technology at Delhi summit
From left: India's prime minister, Narendra Modi, with the chief executives of OpenAI, Sam Altman, and Anthropic, Dario Amodei, at the AI Impact summit in Delhi. From left: India's prime minister, Narendra Modi, with the chief executives of OpenAI, Sam Altman, and Anthropic, Dario Amodei, at the AI Impact summit in Delhi. AI hit: India hungry to harness US tech giants' technology at Delhi summit Narendra Modi's thirst to supercharge economic growth is matched by US desire to inject AI into world's biggest democracy I ndia celebrates 80 years of independence from the UK in August 2027. At about that same moment, "early versions of true super intelligence" could emerge, Sam Altman, the co-founder of OpenAI, said this week. It's a looming coincidence that raised a charged question at the AI Impact summit in Delhi, hosted by India's prime minister, Narendra Modi: can India avoid returning to the status of a vassal state when it imports AI to raise the prospects of its 1.4 billion people? Modi's hunger to harness AI's capability is great.
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AI Safety Meets the War Machine
Anthropic doesn't want its AI used in autonomous weapons or government surveillance. Those carve-outs could cost it a major military contract. When Anthropic last year became the first major AI company cleared by the US government for classified use--including military applications--the news didn't make a major splash. But this week a second development hit like a cannonball: The Pentagon is reconsidering its relationship with the company, including a $200 million contract, ostensibly because the safety-conscious AI firm objects to participating in certain deadly operations. The so-called Department of War might even designate Anthropic as a "supply chain risk," a scarlet letter usually reserved for companies that do business with countries scrutinized by federal agencies, like China, which means the Pentagon would not do business with firms using Anthropic's AI in their defense work.
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'It's survival of the fittest': the UK kebab chain seeking an edge with robot slicers
'People are being more discerning about spending money,' he says. 'People are being more discerning about spending money,' he says. T hey are already packing our groceries and delivering shopping. Now robots are coming to the kebab shop, alongside self-service screens and loyalty apps, as takeaways look for ways to tackle rising costs. German Doner Kebab (GDK), a perhaps surprisingly British-owned chain that has been springing up across the country, has turned to technology to keep its fast food business buzzing in the face of rising costs and tough times on the high street.
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Amazon's cloud 'hit by two outages caused by AI tools last year'
A technician works at an Amazon Web Services AI datacentre in New Carlisle, Indiana. A technician works at an Amazon Web Services AI datacentre in New Carlisle, Indiana. Amazon's cloud'hit by two outages caused by AI tools last year' Reported issues at Amazon Web Services raise questions about firm's use of artificial intelligence as it cuts staff Amazon's huge cloud computing arm reportedly experienced at least two outages caused by its own artificial intelligence tools, raising questions about the company's embrace of AI as it lays off human employees. A 13-hour interruption to Amazon Web Services' (AWS) operations in December was caused by an AI agent autonomously choosing to "delete and then recreate" a part of its environment, the Financial Times reported. AWS, which provides vital infrastructure for much of the internet, suffered several outages last year.
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iPhone users are amazed to discover a secret design element hidden in the clock app
Bed-bound Lindsey Vonn reveals pain is'hard to manage' as she speaks out for the first time after FIFTH surgery on her broken leg'Fergie might end up having to tell her story to the police': 'Toxic' Sarah Ferguson is'broke and in a bad way' after Andrew's arrest...and looking to UAE for cash because'everyone is out to get her' The tide of sleaze rolling over Beatrice, Eugenie and Fergie is going to capsize them all. Moment Kate and William revealed their'true feelings' towards Andrew and Fergie: Princess'ignoring' Sarah and Prince'secretly scolding' his uncle... how Duchess of Kent's funeral said it all Kurt Cobain's uncle insists Nirvana legend was murdered and calls on cops to investigate clues that haunt him Kristi Noem's secret escape plan to ditch DHS revealed amid ICE raid fallout and'culture of fear' rumors Winter Olympics chiefs reach verdict on Jutta Leerdam's '$1m underwear-flashing gesture' after Jake Paul's fiancée faced covert marketing claims Country singer Conner Smith's charges DROPPED after he hit and killed a woman, 77, with his truck I ditched weight-loss shots for the new Wegovy pill and am astonished by the difference. The pounds are falling off, I have no side effects and it's cheaper The subtle early warning sign that revealed Eric Dane's illness - as Grey's Anatomy star dies of motor neurone disease Johnny Depp let Eric Dane live'rent-free in one of his LA homes' as he tried to ease Grey's Anatomy star's financial worries in the months before his death from ALS aged 53 Uproar as NYC's'communist' mayor announces crippling tax for ALL homeowners after promising to only go after billionaires Wall Street panics as America's growth stalls while everyday prices refuse to fall I stumbled across my wife's Pornhub search history and it's broken me. She told me it's'just a fantasy lots of women have' but now I fear I'll never be enough Non-binary activist wins compensation after taking year-and-a-half off work with stress because hair salon's online booking form only offered male or female cuts Courtney Love caught on camera fleeing shocking car collision... days after bombshell Kurt Cobain'homicide investigation' Trump-bashing Winter Olympics star Hunter Hess whines about'hardest weeks of his life' after being called a'real loser' by the president In a viral post on X, user @ShishirShelke1 shared their strange discovery about the clock app icon. Normally, the icon on the home screen shows the second hand smoothly gliding around the clock face.
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Nascent tech, real fear: how AI anxiety is upending career ambitions
Anxiety over AI replacing entire industries has already pushed people to change course in their classes and career. Anxiety over AI replacing entire industries has already pushed people to change course in their classes and career. Matthew Ramirez started at Western Governors University as a computer science major in 2025, drawn by the promise of a high-paying, flexible career as a programmer. But as headlines mounted about tech layoffs and AI's potential to replace entry-level coders, he began to question whether that path would actually lead to a job. When the 20-year-old interviewed for a datacenter technician role that June and never heard back, his doubts deepened.
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