Foreign-owned apps secretly collect personal data from users and sell it to overseas data brokers, with retirees being particularly vulnerable to targeted scams.

AgiBot is using AI-powered robots to do new manufacturing tasks. Smarter machines may transform physical labor in China. AgiBot, a humanoid robotics company based in Shanghai, has engineered a way for two-armed robots to learn manufacturing tasks through human training and real-world practice on a factory production line. The company says its system, which combines teleoperation and reinforcement learning, is being tested on a production line belonging to Longcheer Technology, a Chinese company that manufactures smartphones, VR headsets, and other electronic gadgets. AgiBot's project shows how more advanced AI is starting to change the abilities of industrial machines--an innovation that may creep into new areas of manufacturing in China and elsewhere.

How doctor's husband died the day he was due to go to prison for killing daughter, 2, in hot car - as eldest daughter, 17, vows to continue lawsuit against widow Rising Republican's future now in tatters as he's blamed for electoral bloodbath I keep hearing the same mortifying whisper about Meghan and Harry... their American dream is about to come crumbling down: MEGYN KELLY Baby girl with horrifying side effects, mom couldn't breathe and dad seriously sick... after simple error turned dream home into a death trap I was an undercover seductress ensnaring the world's most powerful men. Famous American writer's son, 19, arrested over alleged plot to bomb Detroit gay bars in ISIS terror attack Trump's Ice Maiden steps in to save knifed billionaire's NASA nomination: 'Knock it off' Why screaming female migrant who shouted'Help me, I have papers!' was arrested by ICE at Salt Lake City airport Inside Kate and William's forever home: Princess is kitting out Forest Lodge in her preferred'classic contemporary style' to create a'lovely but absolutely inoffensive' look Somali-American who said protecting illegal migrants from Trump was top priority LOSES bid to become America's wokest mayor Emotional Christina Applegate reflects on boyfriend's shock death from drug overdose in rare interview My girlfriend's new body modification is repulsive. She says she did it for me... This Leftist election landslide was caused by the same vile disease that's triggered a GOP civil war. The murder that haunts the Kennedys: Martha Moxley's loved ones reveal their truth in the FREE The Crime Desk newsletter... as accused cousin cleared in killing breaks cover Taylor Momsen admits Gossip Girl role was'killing' her during'long battle' to quit hit series Inside Zohran Mamdani's woke, celebrity filled victory party after socialist won NYC mayoral election Warning to tourists as world's first ban on smoking cigarettes is enforced The Maldives has become the first nation in the world to impose a generational ban on smoking.

A planet is about to be destroyed by the collapse of a binary star system in Slow Gods, Claire North's first venture into classic science fiction. It's bad luck for those living on Adjumir, which is set to be obliterated Claire North is a successful and prolific novelist, writing under three separate names, but this is their first shift into classic science fiction, i.e. a novel with spaceships in it. I loved the title of this book, Slow Gods, and I loved the cover art. All of which is to say that I went in with high hopes. It begins: "My name is Mawukana na-Vdnaze, and I am a very poor copy of myself."

In addition to affordability, New York City's mayor-elect will be forced to reckon with the NYPD's sweeping mass surveillance operations. New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani may have an ambitious policy agenda, but overhauling the self-governing and deeply dysfunctional behemoth that is the New York City Police Department is not on the list. Mamdani surprised supporters by asking current Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch to stay on after his inauguration early next year. Tisch, a technocrat heir to a vast real estate fortune, clashes with Mamdani on several fronts, including policy (she believes New York State's bail reforms caused rising crime) and the geopolitics that inevitably make their way into New York City's streets. One area where Mamdani is guaranteed to clash with Tisch is on the NYPD's massive technical surveillance apparatus and intelligence-gathering methods, which have metastasized since 9/11 to levels that rival the capabilities of a midsize country.

MP wants Elon Musk's chatbot shut down over claim he enabled grooming gangs An MP has called for Elon Musk's artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot to be shut down after it called him a rape enabler. The Grok chatbot made the post on X about SNP MP Pete Wishart, after a user asked it to comment on the member's opinion on whether there should be an inquiry into grooming gangs in Scotland. Mr Wishart said he was seeking legal advice over the deeply distressing accusation and called for Musk to recalibrate the bot to shut it down. The BBC has approached XAI, the parent company of X, for comment. I was genuinely shocked to be described in such an appalling and defamatory way, Mr Wishart said in a statement.

Perplexity AI logo is seen in this illustration taken on 4 January 2024. Perplexity AI logo is seen in this illustration taken on 4 January 2024. Amazon sues AI startup over browser's automated shopping and buying feature Amazon sued a prominent artificial intelligence startup on Tuesday over a shopping feature in the company's browser, which can automate placing orders for users. Amazon accused Perplexity AI of covertly accessing customer accounts and disguising AI activity as human browsing. "Perplexity's misconduct must end," Amazon's lawyers wrote.

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Last week, an American-Israeli company that claims it's developed proprietary technology to cool the planet announced it had raised $60 million, by far the largest known venture capital round to date for a solar geoengineering startup. The company, Stardust, says the funding will enable it to develop a system that could be deployed by the start of the next decade, according to Heatmap, which broke the story. As scientists who have worked on the science of solar geoengineering for decades, we have grown increasingly concerned about emerging efforts to start and fund private companies to deploy technologies that could alter the climate of the planet. We also strongly dispute some of the technical claims that certain companies have made about their offerings. This story is part of Heat Exchange, MIT Technology Review's guest opinion series offering expert commentary on legal, political and regulatory issues related to climate change and clean energy. Can "The Simpsons" really predict the future?