Brandon Stirrup deleted his comments from X a day after saying that AI usage is widespread in the gaming industry. Generative AI is one of the most controversial topics in game development right now, and whether it's the future of the medium or a temporary blight on it depends on who you ask. Brandon Stirrup, a strategy manager at Xbox, recently waded into the debate, claiming that Xbox is currently using AI to develop games and those who say they aren't are merely pretending. Stirrup deactivated his social media account shortly after (though his posts have been archived elsewhere), igniting conversations about what role generative AI actually has or should have in game development. In some ways, it would be unsurprising to learn that Xbox is using AI to the extent that Stirrup implies.

Why AI could threaten much of the world's digital infrastructure Share Why AI could threaten much of the world's digital infrastructure on social media Earlier this month, authorities worldwide urged website administrators to execute emergency updates after a nonprofit programming foundation flagged critical security flaws that could allow hackers to breach systems. Government and corporate websites briefly went offline to patch the vulnerabilities, nicknamed PHP2Shell, which were discovered by independent cybersecurity experts using artificial intelligence (AI). They had gone unnoticed, however, because it would have been too complicated for humans to exploit them without the use of advanced AI. But cybersecurity experts, as well as those maintaining important software, say PHP2Shell could be the first in a deluge of security flaws exposed by emerging AI. They say much of the world's most critical digital infrastructure is maintained by volunteers, who often lack the resources and time to respond to newly discovered threats.

Lawyers say clients who use chatbots are adding to their workload, forcing them to correct errors made by AI. Lawyers say clients who use chatbots are adding to their workload, forcing them to correct errors made by AI. Research finds 55% of lawyers are using AI in legal practices, up from 37% last year, though efficiency gains aren't as high as expected More than half of Victoria's lawyers have reported using AI in their work, according to a new study, but just over a quarter say they have reduced fees as a result of efficiency gains. They also say clients seeking advice from chatbots have added to their workload, forcing them to correct errors made by AI. The 2026 census of 2,221 of the state's lawyers, conducted by the Victorian Legal Services Board and Commissioner's legal services research centre, found a big increase in lawyers using AI in their practices, rising from 37% to 55% in the last year.

Experts using AI overwhelmingly defer to the technology when making decisions, research by Claude creator Anthropic suggests. In a research paper published on Tuesday, Anthropic said it asked 50 professional analysts to advise a fictional farming cooperative to determine whether experts make decisions themselves when using AI. Participants were asked to make four choices between two defensible options before making a final policy recommendation. Unbeknownst to the analysts, Anthropic directed each participant's AI assistant to lean towards to a particular decision to measure whether the analyst's decision-making was being influenced. Analysts chose options that matched the AI assistant's preference 86 percent of the time, compared with a 50/50 outcome that would be expected if they were not influenced, according to the study.

In his award-winning essay, young British science writer Adrian Dredge wrote about the potential pitfalls of AI and policing. The essay won the 2026 Young Science Writer Award, external, chosen each year by the Association of British Science Writers. Here is an edited version of the entry. The growing use of AI in policing risks increasing discrimination against minority groups, researchers have warned. Studies suggest that predictions of future crime hotspots may be based on biased data, which can magnify existing prejudice and create a dangerous feedback loop.

Security researchers used AI tools to help uncover years-old vulnerabilities in the PHP web scripting language. Then the AI-assisted attacks began. As security teams and web admins scrambled this week to patch newly public PHP bugs, criminal hackers quickly attempted to exploit the flaws in the wild. Millions of exploitation attempts hit within hours of the vulnerabilities being published, according to analysis from Cloudflare--unsurprising given broad access to AI tools that can make it easier for attackers to quickly exploit flaws. So far, the nightmare scenario of mass victim takeovers and breaches hasn't come to pass.

Author withdrawn from France's Prix Goncourt last month has repeatedly denied using artificial intelligence to write novel The publisher of top-selling Haitian Canadian writer Thélyson Orélien, who was removed from France's most prestigious literary prize list last month, has confirmed the author used artificial intelligence to help write his novel C'était ça ou mourir (It Was Either That or Die). Orélien has denied allegations that he used AI on his breakthrough novel and, last week, Canadian publisher Les Éditions du Boréal said it was standing by the 38-year-old writer. But on Wednesday, Boréal said it had conducted a further investigation into the allegations. "New information, confirmed over the past few days, indicates that artificial intelligence was used in the writing process" of the novel, a statement from Boréal said. The publisher announced it was "ending its professional relationship" with Orélien.

The publisher of best-selling Haitian-Canadian writer Thelyson Orelien says it has severed its professional relationship with the author after confirming he used artificial intelligence to help write his novel, "It Was Either That or Die". Boreal said on Wednesday that it conducted a further investigation after allegations surfaced in September to determine whether AI was used to write the novel. Orelien had previously denied allegations surrounding his breakthrough novel, and last week, the Canadian publisher said it was standing by the 38-year-old writer. Boreal said it did not know the extent of AI's use in the writing process "and we will likely never have a definitive answer". It said it gathered all the working versions of the novel and hired an outside party to analyse the various drafts.

SoftBank is said to weigh buying top U.S. security firm allied SoftBank head Masayoshi Son is exploring the use of AI-powered robots across various industries. SoftBank Group is considering an acquisition of Allied Universal, the largest security services company in the U.S., people familiar with the matter said, as founder Masayoshi Son explores ways to deploy AI-powered robots across industries. The potential transaction may give closely held Allied an equity value of as much as $18 billion, said some of the people, who asked not to be identified because the deliberations are private. The security company, whose backers include private equity firm Warburg Pincus and Canadian pension fund La Caisse, also has about $12 billion of publicly traded debt, across loans and bonds, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That could bring a total deal value close to $30 billion.

Sir Ken McCallum, the director general of MI5, raised concerns over the use of AI by hostile groups. Sir Ken McCallum, the director general of MI5, raised concerns over the use of AI by hostile groups. In his annual speech on threats to the nation, Sir Ken McCallum, the head of the UK's intelligence service, MI5, warned that AI had the potential to "change the stakes" on existing and even new bioweapons. Here we look at how AI might help in the development of bioweapons and the hurdles that remain. How could AI help people make bioweapons?