X has placed more restrictions on Grok's ability to generate explicit AI images, but tests show that the updates have created a patchwork of limitations that fail to fully address the issue. Elon Musk's X has introduced new restrictions stopping people from editing and generating images of real people in bikinis or other "revealing clothing." The change in policy on Wednesday night follows global outrage at Grok being used to generate thousands of harmful non-consensual "undressing" photos of women and sexualized images of apparent minors on X. However, while it appears that some safety measures have finally been introduced to Grok's image generation on X, the standalone Grok app and website seem to still be able to generate "undress" style images and pornographic content, according to multiple tests by researchers, WIRED, and other journalists. Other users, meanwhile, say they're no longer to create images and videos as they once were.

Merge Labs has emerged from stealth with $252 million in funding from OpenAI and others. It aims to use ultrasound to read from and write to the brain. On Thursday, OpenAI announced its investment in neurotech startup Merge Labs, cofounded by its CEO, billionaire Sam Altman . OpenAI will collaborate with the new venture to develop technology to link people's brains to computers. Merge Labs has raised $252 million in funding from OpenAI, private investment firm Bain Capital, video game developer Gabe Newell, and others to use ultrasound to read and modulate the brain.

Anthropic's Claude Cowork Is an AI Agent That Actually Works Cowork is a user-friendly version of Anthropic's Claude Code AI-powered tool that's built for file management and basic computing tasks. Here's what it's like to use it. As a software reporter at WIRED, I've tested a lot of shitty agents over the past couple of years. These experiences expose a consistent pattern of generative AI startups overpromising and underdelivering when it comes to these "agentic" helpers--programs designed to take control of your computer, performing chores and digital errands to free up your time for more important things. But the bots I installed on my laptop would struggle to complete even basic tasks.

Can ChatGPT really help you change your life - or just flatter you? Can ChatGPT really help you change your life - or just flatter you? AI as a life coach: experts share what works, what doesn't and what to look out for It's becoming more common for people to use AI chatbots for personal guidance - but this doesn't come without risks Setting goals is hard; keeping them is harder - and failure can bring about icky feelings about yourself. This year, in an effort to game the system and tilt the scales toward success, some people used AI for their 2026 resolutions. It's the latest step in an ongoing trend: in September 2025, OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, released findings showing that using the AI chatbot for personal guidance is very common.

PCWorld reports on a Chrome extension called "Microsoft to Microslop" that renames Microsoft references in browsers as a protest against the company's aggressive AI integration. The extension reflects widespread user frustration with Microsoft's Copilot AI, which faces extremely low adoption rates and growing privacy concerns among Windows users. Many users actively seek ways to remove AI features from Windows, highlighting significant backlash against Microsoft's AI strategy despite CEO dismissals of complaints. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says we shouldn't think of LLM output as "slop." You know, AI-generated content, the thing that's making the internet worse in every measurable way, and causing consumer electronics prices to skyrocket? So it would be a real shame if you installed an extension in your browser that changed "Microsoft" to "Microslop" all over the web. Yes, installing " Microsoft to Microslop " would be a naughty and entirely cynical response. Especially if you, say, used Edge's Chromium base to install it in Microsoft's own default web browser, Edge. That would just be twisting the AI-generated knife, wouldn't it?

Apple's Siri AI will be powered by Gemini OpenAI claims Translate can rewrite the output to take context and tone into account. OpenAI has debuted a dedicated ChatGPT-powered translation tool. While folks have been using the main chatbot for translation for some time, you can now find ChatGPT Translate on its own webpage, as spotted. The tool can translate text, voice inputs and images into more than 50 languages in seconds, OpenAI says. Most interestingly, ChatGPT Translate can rewrite the output to take various contexts and tones into account, much in the same way that more general text-generating AI tools can do .

Researchers risk fire, explosion or poisoning by allowing AI to design experiments, warn scientists. The use of AI models in scientific laboratories risks enabling dangerous experiments that could cause fires or explosions, researchers have warned. Such models offer a convincing illusion of understanding but are susceptible to missing basic and vital safety precautions. In tests of 19 cutting-edge AI models, every single one made potentially deadly mistakes. Serious accidents in university labs are rare but certainly not unheard of.

The news is a blow for Thinking Machines Lab. Two narratives are already emerging about what happened. Thinking Machines cofounders Barret Zoph and Luke Metz are leaving the fledgling AI lab and rejoining OpenAI, the ChatGPT-maker announced on Thursday. OpenAI's CEO of applications, Fidji Simo, shared the news in a memo to staff Thursday afternoon. The news was first reported on X by technology reporter Kylie Robison, who wrote that Zoph was fired for "unethical conduct."

You are about to hear a lot more about Claude Code. Over the holidays, Alex Lieberman had an idea: What if he could create Spotify "Wrapped" for his text messages? Without writing a single line of code, Lieberman, a co-founder of the media outlet, created "iMessage Wrapped"--a web app that analyzed statistical trends across nearly 1 million of his texts. One chart that he showed me compared his use of,,, and --he's an guy. Another listed people he had ghosted.

Google launches Personal Intelligence for Gemini, allowing the AI to access data from Photos, YouTube, and Gmail to provide personalized recommendations and answers. PCWorld reports the feature initially requires Google AI Pro or Ultra subscriptions in the US, with broader availability planned for later. While offering enhanced convenience through data synthesis, Google warns users about potential inaccuracies and privacy considerations when enabling this opt-in feature. If you use Google apps like Gmail or Photos, Google already knows certain aspects of your life. The company is offering to make that knowledge more accessible via what it calls Personal Intelligence, which will synthesize that knowledge into Gemini.