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Is Washington Up to the Challenge of A.I.?

The New Yorker

Is Washington Up to the Challenge of A.I.? How anger over artificial intelligence might drive the next wave of populist politics. The Washington Roundtable discusses the growing political backlash to artificial intelligence, especially among young Americans, and asks whether Washington is capable of regulating A.I. companies. They're joined by Nate Soares, the executive director of the Machine Intelligence Research Institute and co-author of the book " If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies ." The group explores what was behind the White House's sudden reversal on an A.I.-safety executive order this week, the outsized influence of venture capitalists in the A.I. industry, and how A.I. may turbocharge the next populist movement in American politics. "My impression is that a lot of the people protesting data centers can sort of tell that this A.I. stuff is taking the world somewhere they don't want," Soares says.


Google is currently struggling to define words like disregard, stop and ignore

Engadget

The search engine's definitions have been replaced with AI Overviews. Google appears to be running into some hiccups after the company began rolling out its updated, and even more AI-focused search experience at I/O 2026. Currently, searching for the words disregard, stop or ignore on Google no longer displays a snippet with a definition, and instead offers an AI Overview and a lot of blank space. Because users have complained about the issue on social media, and publications like and have reported on it, even if you don't get a definition, you might still get a collection of links to articles documenting the issue before the traditional list of links. Multiple members of Engadget's staff were able to recreate the strange AI Overview responses with their own personal Google searches.


12 new features Apple quietly added in iPhone updates

Popular Science

More information Adding us as a Preferred Source in Google by using this link indicates that you would like to see more of our content in Google News results. Installing the latest software unlocks new iPhone features. Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent six days a week. The major refreshes that Apple gives its software each year get a lot of attention-- you can read our round-up of new iOS 26 and macOS 26 features --but there are also plenty of minor updates that appear during the rest of the year as well. These minor updates don't often include big changes that will significantly affect how you use your devices, but they regularly feature small improvements and tweaks that are well worth knowing about.


Finally, a Great Free Radio App for Windows

WIRED

Tune into live broadcasts from your Windows desktop with Trdo, a free and open-source application. I may be old-fashioned, but I prefer actual radio stations to Spotify's algorithms. The best human DJs find music I'd never seek out, and that even the best recommendation system would never point out to me. Even better: If you're good at finding community and public radio stations that appeal to your tastes, there are no commercials. I've found several of my favorite bands in the past few years listening to radio stations like KEXP, Indie XFM, and the various stations offered by SomaFM . It's simple to listen to such stations in your browser, but leaving a tab open just for the radio annoys me.


Trump postpones AI oversight executive order

Engadget

The delay reportedly came after pressure from big tech leaders. President Trump has postponed the signing an executive order around government AI oversight, CNN reported, saying he didn't like certain aspects of it. Originally, the order would have compelled AI companies to share advanced models with the government ahead of launch to ensure their safety, but it was later watered down to make tech company participation voluntary. The delay reportedly came about due to last-minute pressure from AI industry leaders, including Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg, along with former US AI and crypto czar David Sacks. They told Trump that the new system could slow development of AI tech that has become integral to the US economy, anonymous insiders told .


Anker debuts Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro earbuds with its Thus AI chip

Engadget

The Pro Max model offers a touchscreen smart case with an AI note taker. Following the initial tease of its Thus AI chip, Anker announced the first earbuds with the component during its Anker Day event. The Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro and Liberty 5 Pro Max both utilize the chip for what the company calls Whisper Clear voice performance. Of course, the usual earbud features are here -- active noise cancellation (ANC), voice controls and personalized sound -- but there are some unique tools available on these models as well. Those include an AI Note-Taker on the Liberty 5 Pro Max and touchscreen charging cases for both.


'Creepy' Listening Tool for Targeted Ads Didn't Actually Work, FTC Says

WIRED

'Creepy' Listening Tool for Targeted Ads Didn't Actually Work, FTC Says Three firms will pay nearly $1 million for selling "Active Listening" technology that they claimed tapped people's phones for advertising. The FTC alleges the "tech" was just pricey email lists. The Federal Trade Commission announced on Thursday that Cox Media Group and two other marketing companies, MindSift LLC and 1010 Digital Works, have agreed to collectively pay nearly $1 million to settle allegations that they deceived their customers--other businesses--by claiming that they could help target ads based on audio recordings collected from consumers' smart devices via a marketing service called Active Listening. In a statement to WIRED, a spokesperson for CMG says, "We are pleased to have this matter resolved. Our local marketing team relied on marketing materials provided to us by a third-party vendor about their product. We withdrew the materials expeditiously and stopped further use of the product."


Meta Is in Crisis, Google Search's Makeover, and AI Gets Booed by Graduates

WIRED

Meta Is in Crisis, Google Search's Makeover, and AI Gets Booed by Graduates This week on, the team discusses Meta's recent layoffs and what they've been hearing from employees about the increasingly grim vibes at the company. They also talk about Elon Musk losing his lawsuit against OpenAI and share highlights from Google's annual conference--including an ambitious AI vision to change how people search the web. Finally, what do recent college graduates and women whose spouses work in AI have in common? Google Search Goes Agentic--and Doesn't Need You Anymore Write to us at [email protected] . You can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how: If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link . We spoke to more than a dozen employees and it turns out the job cuts are far from the only reason why Meta employees are really going through it. He lost his lawsuit against Sam Altman and OpenAI in really as full a way as you can, as dramatically as possible. I know, Zoë, you're looking forward to talking about that. We're going to get into why young adults might be using AI, but they have very complicated feelings about it. And later in the show, we're going to hear about why women married to AI bros have had enough . This week, the company is letting go of roughly 10 percent of its workforce, which is about 8,000 employees total. It's the latest round of job cuts, adding to the roughly 25,000 jobs that have been cut in the past few years as part of Mark Zuckerberg's Year of Efficiency that started in 2023 and now the latest AI-forward workplace, which he is trying to develop and impose. And while these latest cuts are not as big as some of the rounds of layoffs that have already happened, they're getting a ton of attention because Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO, has said that the reason they're happening, in part at least, in large part, is because the company is spending so much money on AI and data centers.


Ugreen's Find My trackers are 5 each. Get 4 for less than one AirTag

PCWorld

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. Ugreen's Find My trackers are $5 each. This 4-pack of Ugreen FineTrack Air tags is just $20 on Amazon. They're Apple Find My certified, compatible with iPhones and iPads. Admit it: there have been so many times when you wondered where your keys were, or where your luggage ended up, or where you accidentally left your bag.


Spotify and Universal are building an AI tool for covers and remixes

Engadget

This will be a paid add-on for Premium subscribers. Spotify just announced a partnership with Universal Music Group (UMG) to create a tool that lets fans make covers and remixes . It'll be a paid add-on for Premium subscribers, with some of that money going to the original artists whose work is being repurposed. Spotify says that artists have to opt in to the program. It's being marketed as a new way for artists and creators to make money, as the platform states the tool will open up additional revenue streams and new ways to drive discovery. Spotify co-CEO Alex Norström says the platform will evolve the music ecosystem into a richer, more beneficial experience for fans and a more rewarding outcome for artists and songwriters.