Oceania
Lamar wants to have children with his girlfriend. The problem? She's entirely AI
Lamar wants to have children with his girlfriend. L amar remembered the moment of betrayal like it was yesterday. He'd gone to the party with his girlfriend but hadn't seen her for over an hour, and it wasn't like her to disappear. He slipped down the hallway to check his phone. At that point, he heard murmurs coming from one of the bedrooms and thought he recognised his best friend Jason's low voice. As he pushed the door ajar, they were both still scrambling to throw their clothes on; her shirt was unbuttoned, while Jason struggled to cover himself. The image of his girlfriend and best friend together hit Lamar like a blow to the chest. He left without saying a word. Two years on, when he spoke to me, the memory remained raw. He was still seething with anger, as if telling the story for the first time.
'Add blood, forced smile': how Grok's nudification tool went viral
By 8 January as many as 6,000 bikini demands were being made to the chatbot every hour, according to analysis conducted for the Guardian. By 8 January as many as 6,000 bikini demands were being made to the chatbot every hour, according to analysis conducted for the Guardian. 'Add blood, forced smile': how Grok's nudification tool went viral The'put her in a bikini' trend rapidly evolved into hundreds of thousands of requests to strip clothes from photos of women, horrifying those targeted Like thousands of women across the world, Evie, a 22-year-old photographer from Lincolnshire, woke up on New Year's Day, looked at her phone and was alarmed to see that fully clothed photographs of her had been digitally manipulated by Elon Musk's AI tool, Grok, to show her in just a bikini. The "put her in a bikini" trend began quietly at the end of last year before exploding at the start of 2026. Within days, hundreds of thousands of requests were being made to the Grok chatbot, asking it to strip the clothes from photographs of women.
Winners and Sinners: What to expect from the Golden Globes
Sinners, Marty Supreme and One Battle After Another are among the films set to compete at the Golden Globe Awards on Sunday night. Frankenstein, Sentimental Value, Hamnet and Wicked: For Good are some of the other films going for gold at the ceremony in Los Angeles. A new category, best podcast, has been introduced this year, while Adolescence, The Pitt and The Studio are nominated in the TV categories. The Golden Globes are a major milestone of the film awards season, and take place with less than a fortnight to go until the announcement of the Oscar nominations (22 January). The Globes hand out more trophies than many other ceremonies, as they split their film categories by drama and musical or comedy.
Google employee made redundant after reporting sexual harassment, court hears
A senior Google employee has claimed she was made redundant after reporting a manager who told clients stories about his swinger lifestyle and showed a nude of his wife. Victoria Woodall told an employment tribunal she was subjected to a campaign of retaliation by the company after whistleblowing on the man who was later sacked. Google UK's internal investigation found the manager had touched two female colleagues without their consent, and his behaviour amounted to sexual harassment, documents seen by the BBC in court show. The tech giant denies retaliating against Woodall and argues she became paranoid after whistleblowing and began to view normal business activities as sinister. In her claim, Woodall says her own boss subjected her to a relentless campaign of retaliation after her complaint also implicated his close friends who were later disciplined for witnessing the manager's behaviour and failing to challenge it.
David Lammy: JD Vance agrees that sexualised AI images on X are 'unacceptable'
Lammy said Vance, usually known as an AI enthusiast, expressed concern about how technology was fuelling'hyper-pornographied slop' online. Lammy said Vance, usually known as an AI enthusiast, expressed concern about how technology was fuelling'hyper-pornographied slop' online. David Lammy: JD Vance agrees that sexualised AI images on X are'unacceptable' Exclusive: US vice-president'sympathetic' to concerns over Grok-generated pornography, says deputy PM JD Vance, the US vice-president, has agreed that it is "entirely unacceptable" for platforms such as X to allow the proliferation of AI-generated sexualised images of women and children, David Lammy has told the Guardian. The deputy prime minister said Vance, usually known as an AI enthusiast, expressed concern about how the technology was being used to fuel "hyper-pornographied slop" online when they met in Washington on Thursday. The comments come amid a growing transatlantic row over the use of X's artificial intelligence chatbot, Grok, to manipulate thousands of images of women and sometimes children to remove their clothing or put them in sexual positions.
Elon Musk says UK wants to suppress free speech as X faces possible ban
Elon Musk claimed Grok was the most downloaded app on the UK App Store on Friday. Elon Musk claimed Grok was the most downloaded app on the UK App Store on Friday. Elon Musk has accused the UK government of wanting to suppress free speech after ministers threatened fines and a possible ban for his social media site X after its AI tool, Grok, was used to make sexual images of women and children without their consent. The billionaire claimed Grok was the most downloaded app on the UK App Store on Friday night after ministers threatened to take action unless the function to create sexually harassing images was removed. Responding to threats of a ban from the government, Musk wrote: "They just want to suppress free speech".
The 15 best games to play on the Nintendo Switch in 2026
Timeless treats there is still much to enjoy on the original Nintendo Switch console. Timeless treats there is still much to enjoy on the original Nintendo Switch console. From the greatest cartoon racing game in history to a remastered version of an Alien-inspired sci-fi shooter, here are the Switch's must-play games A lthough the Nintendo Switch 2 has been out for several months, not everyone has made the leap to the new machine and there is still much to enjoy on the original console in 2026 (and beyond). From timeless Mario adventures to cutesy shooters to chasm-deep role-playing quests, here are 15 games no Switch owner should be without. The cosy life sim returned with new characters, chill activities, and endless knick-knacks with which to decorate your own virtual paradise.
Indonesia blocks Musk's Grok chatbot due to risk of pornographic content
A phone screen displaying the Grok app and logo is seen on 7 January 2026. A phone screen displaying the Grok app and logo is seen on 7 January 2026. Indonesia blocks Musk's Grok chatbot due to risk of pornographic content Indonesia temporarily blocked Elon Musk's Grok chatbot on Saturday due to the risk of AI-generated pornographic content, becoming the first country to deny access to the AI tool. The move comes after governments, researchers and regulators from Europe to Asia have condemned and some have opened inquiries into sexualised content on the app. Grok AI: is it legal to produce or post undressed images of people without their consent?
AI bubble: five things you need to know to shield your finances from a crash
Some commentators say investors are paying too much for technology stocks because of misplaced expectations about AI developments. Some commentators say investors are paying too much for technology stocks because of misplaced expectations about AI developments. Some experts have voiced fears a tech meltdown could hit our savings and pensions - here's how to protect yourself T he new year has started as 2025 ended - with share prices booming amid warnings from some that the growth is being driven by overvalued technology stocks. Fears of an "AI bubble" have been voiced by people from the governor of the Bank of England to the head of Google's parent company, Alphabet . Even if you have not actively invested in technology shares, the chances are you have some exposure to companies operating in the sphere.
Musk says X outcry is 'excuse for censorship'
Musk says X outcry is'excuse for censorship' Elon Musk has said that critics of his social media site X are looking for any excuse for censorship, amid reports that X's artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot Grok was creating non-consensual sexualised images of people, including children. Ofcom says it is conducting an urgent assessment of X in response, which has been backed by Technology Secretary Liz Kendall. She described the sexual manipulation of images of women and children as despicable and abhorrent, adding that she would expect to see an update from Ofcom in days. X has now limited the use of AI image function to those who pay a monthly fee, a change dubbed by Downing Street as insulting to victims of sexual violence. The BBC has seen several examples of the free AI tool undressing women and putting them in sexual situations without their consent.