PCWorld tested ChatGPT's new "computer use" functionality in the recently released super-app, which allows the AI to control desktop applications on macOS. The GPT-5.6 Sol model successfully played chess and wrote in Journal apps, demonstrating advanced understanding of game strategy and graphical interface navigation. This desktop control capability positions ChatGPT alongside Claude's similar features, with OpenAI suggesting uses for testing and automating repetitive tasks. Just a few months ago, I could barely get an AI agent to open the Chess app on my Mac, much less actually play a game of it. But after testing the all-new ChatGPT super-app, I can report that the days of clunky AI "computer use" functionality are pretty much over. Released last Thursday, the ChatGPT super-app boasts a variety of features, including the built-in Codex coding harness and ChatGPT Work, an AI agent that can tap into your local files and create detailed reports in seconds. The revamped ChatGPT also supports "computer use," allowing it to take control your PC's mouse and desktop apps. Computer use functionality isn't new--the Claude desktop app has supported it for months--but it new for ChatGPT, so I decided to give it a go. I fired up ChatGPT on my Mac mini, switched the app to "Work" mode, set the model to GPT-5.6 Sol ( the latest and greatest OpenAI model), and gave it a simple prompt: "Can you play chess on my Mac?" ChatGPT asked me to approve some new permissions, including the ability to record my screen so it could see what it was doing.

YouTube and X Have Become'Gateways' to Nudify Apps A new study found that social media platforms are referring people to sites where they can create nonconsensual, sexually explicit deepfakes for as little as $1 an image. Most mainstream social media platforms have strict guidelines preventing the dissemination of nonconsensual intimate images (NCII), or sexually explicit photos and videos. But a new report finds that many social media platforms directly refer users to such content. The report from the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD), an anti-extremism and anti-disinformation organization, analyzes the online ecosystem that enables the proliferation of so-called "nudify" apps and websites, which allow users to digitally undress people without their consent. The study, which was published on Monday, looked at the top 10 apps and websites used to make nonconsensual explicit deepfakes, as well as how people are finding them.

As they scramble to keep their systems online, AI companies are making things expensive for the rest of us. Large language models such as ChatGPT and Claude are so resource-hungry that tech companies may be purchasing 70 percent of the world's supply of high-end computer memory, causing a shortage. As a result, the prices of computer memory and storage are skyrocketing: Hard drives that I bought for my reporting two years ago for $350 each were $800 when I checked two weeks ago, and are now out of stock. The prices of some laptops have gone up as much as 50 percent, and low-cost computers are being hit the hardest. Affordable entry-level computers may "disappear by 2028" according to one forecast .

UK fears a'triple whammy': oversized investment in AI stocks, slower adoption of AI than predicted and the breakneck pace of AI's development The UK wants a piece of the mammoth global investment in AI but fears it as well. In the coming weeks, the Bank of England is planning to ease capital rules to help encourage more lending. But the central bank simultaneously expressed concerns that there are too many loans going to investors like hedge funds, who are using that money to buy up AI stocks. The central bank's moves reflect the country's global position: hoping to catch up to the US and China in the AI race, struggling to mobilize its resources to do so, and too wary of the risks to go full bore. UK banking regulators have recently been under enormous pressure to do more to stimulate growth, my colleague Kalyeena Makortoff this week reports.

Check your subscription status, update your details and more. Powerful artificial intelligence models built by Chinese companies have gone from inducing widespread panic to being met with a shrug of the shoulders - what changed? When Chinese company DeepSeek released its open-source R1 model in January 2025, it made headlines around the world. The large language model (LLM) was reported to rival some of the most powerful AIs from US companies, but it was completely free for anyone to download. A trillion dollars was wiped off the value of US tech companies and US lawmakers immediately proposed banning it on government devices.

You'll start seeing the'Ask Gemini' button in your browser. Google has just rolled out Gemini for Chrome in the UK. The integration doesn't sit well with everybody -- and Gemini isn't the most popular AI assistant out there -- but you will start seeing an Ask Gemini button with a sparkle icon soon if you're in the United Kingdom and use Google's browser. Gemini's Chrome integration used to be exclusively available to AI Pro or AI Ultra subscribers, but Google made it more widely available in the US on desktop in late 2025. The company then rolled out the feature to Latin America and the Middle East, and then to Canada, India and New Zealand, until it made its way to over 50 countries around the world.

Who will win the World Cup? Who will win the 2026 FIFA World Cup? Here's what AI predicts As the 2026 FIFA Men's World Cup enters its final stages, AJLabs asked nine leading AI models to predict the tournament's final podium based on all available data for each team, including: France emerged as the favourite to lift the trophy, receiving five (Gemini, Grock, DeepSeek, Le Chat and Qwen) of the nine champion votes. Argentina, the defending world champions, received the remaining four votes (ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot and Meta AI). Predictions for the runner-up were more divided: France and Argentina each received three votes, followed by England with two and Spain with one. Spain was the clear favourite to finish third, receiving six of the nine third-place predictions, while England and France each received fewer votes. The predictions reflect a broad AI consensus around the four remaining contenders, France, Argentina, Spain and England, but also highlight differences in how leading language models weigh recent performances, squad depth and tournament momentum.

Labor MP says'a fair day's pay for a fair day's work' was a founding principle of the ALP as media union calls for tougher new rules on AI use of creative work Husic also urged his colleagues to place stricter rules on the big tech firms or be "doomed to failure". Husic, who has long advocated for a more interventionist approach on AI policy, said big firms like OpenAI and Anthropic should not be left to self-regulate, and that the federal government should be setting strong rules. "If we were to wait for social licence with industry, we wouldn't get emissions reduction. Governments sometimes have to step in," Husic told Sky News on Tuesday. Going down the path of social licence with tech is a path that's sadly doomed to failure, because we tried self-regulation for a couple of decades and found out that it didn't work." The prime minister will deliver a highly anticipated speech in Sydney on Wednesday to address growing concerns around social licence and the necessary policy guardrails for AI, datacentres and Australian intellectual property. We've grown up with the notion of a fair day's pay for a fair day's work - that people should be remunerated fairly for the labour, the effort that they provide. Asked whether he thought his colleagues were doing that, Husic replied: "Obviously, there's a debate that's going on behind the scenes.

Damage caused by the use of generative AI is becoming a serious concern, including from AI covers, in which people have AI tools learn the voices of singers and voice actors, and sing songs using the professionals' voices. The Justice Ministry has come up with a draft report calling for the protection of the voices and images of famous individuals as the use of generative artificial intelligence grows. The draft report on civil responsibility over the unauthorized use of portraits and voices of famous people was submitted to an expert committee Monday. The ministry will release a final report as early as August after receiving expert feedback. Many things remain unclear regarding what constitutes the illegal use of voices, as no Japanese court ruling has been issued on related rights. The ministry said that it hopes the final report will be used as a reference in lawsuits and AI development.

Hundreds of experts warn the world must prepare now for AI's impact Hundreds of experts have signed an open letter demanding that policymakers and technology leaders "must act now" to prepare for the economic impact of artificial intelligence. The brief letter, released on Monday and organised by Stanford University's digital economy lab, carries the signature of more than 200 economists and AI researchers, including 16 Nobel laureates. "It could bring risks, including large-scale job displacement, as well as opportunities such as major gains in living standards," the statement added. To address this impending disruption, the letter calls for governments and industry to create "incentives, guardrails, and institutions" that ensure AI is complementary to humans and beneficial to society. Anton Korinek, a University of Virginia professor who organised the initiative, stressed that the window for action is narrowing.