Tech executives are moving swiftly to embrace AI agents, according to the latest Technology Pulse Poll from accounting firm Ernst & Young (EY). The poll, which surveyed more than 500 tech leaders in April, found about half (48%) of respondents have at least begun deploying agentic AI within their organizations. Slightly more (around 50%) said most of their companies' internal AI operations will be fully autonomous within the next two years, further indicating a movement toward agentic systems. Also: 100 leading AI scientists map route to more'trustworthy, reliable, secure' AI Most tech leaders surveyed (58%) also said their organizations were ahead of the competition on AI adoption. This result should be taken with a hearty grain of salt, however, as there's an obvious incentive to espouse such claims publicly, even in the absence of hard evidence: "this is more perception than reality," EY Americas Technology Sector Growth Leader Ken Englund said in a statement, "since these companies tend to have a higher opinion of their progress than is statistically possible."

The Cybertruck answers a question no one in the auto industry even thought to ask: what if there was a truck that a Chechen warlord couldn't possibly pass up – a bulletproof, bioweapons-resistant, road rage-inducing street tank that's illegal to drive in most of the world? Few had seen anything quite like the Cybertruck when it was unveiled in 2019. Wrapped in an "ultra-hard, 30X, cold-rolled stainless steel exoskeleton", the Cybertruck was touted as the ultimate doomsday chariot – a virtually indestructible, obtuse-angled, electrically powered behemoth that can repel handgun fire and outrun a Porsche while towing a Porsche, with enough juice leftover to power your house in the event of a blackout. At the launch, Tesla's CEO, Elon Musk, said the truck could tackle any terrain on Earth and possibly also on Mars – and all for the low, low base price of 40,000. "Sometimes you get these late-civilization vibes [that the] apocalypse could come along at any moment," Musk said.

Elon Musk's plan to show off his dancing robot has left the Tesla CEO red-faced after his own AI made an embarrassing admission. On X, which Musk owns, the billionaire shared an impressive'real real-time' video of Tesla's humanoid robot, Optimus, demonstrating some flashy dance moves. However, when a curious commenter asked the billionaire's AI, Grok, to rate the robot, the chatbot declared Optimus' usefulness is'limited'. Adding to the humiliation, the AI then ranked Optimus at the bottom of its list of the best humanoid robots. In response to the user's question, Grok wrote: 'Tesla's Optimus robot shows advanced mobility with its dancing, highlighting strong balance and coordination. 'However, its real-world use is limited, mainly in Tesla's factories for simple tasks, with broader deployment planned for 2026.' Putting Optimus at the bottom of its top-five ranking, the AI added that the robot has'impressive mobility but early in practical application.'

In the year ahead, nine out of 10 organizations are expected to hire talent with generative AI expertise, with a quarter of organizations forecasting that at least half of their new hires will need this skill. In addition, six in 10 companies now have a chief AI officer (CAIO) to guide the process. Also: Most CEOs find their C-suite lacks much-needed'AI-savvy' These are the findings from a new survey of 3,739 executives and professionals, released by AWS. Almost all respondents (92%) indicated their organizations intend to recruit for new roles that require generative AI expertise. For a quarter (26%) of those respondents surveyed, at least half of the new positions in their organization will demand generative AI skills.

Mirokaï is designed to be helpful, engaging and enchanting. Have you ever wished robots could do more than just follow instructions? Born from the creative minds at Paris-based startup Enchanted Tools, Mirokaï isn't just another humanoid robot. It's designed to be helpful, engaging and, honestly, a bit enchanting. With its blend of advanced artificial intelligence, storytelling and a dash of charm, Mirokaï turns ordinary moments into something a little more memorable.

When survivors from January's wildfires in Los Angeles County apply to rebuild their homes, their first interaction might be with a robot. Artificial intelligence will aid city and county building officials in reviewing permit requests, an effort to speed up a process already being criticized as too slow. "The current pace of issuing permits locally is not meeting the magnitude of the challenge we face," Gov. Gavin Newsom said when announcing the AI deal in late April. Some 13,000 homes were lost or severely damaged in the Eaton and Palisades fires, and many families are eager to return as fast as they can. Just eight days after the fire began and while it was still burning, the city received its first home rebuilding application in Pacific Palisades.

Sign up for the Slatest to get the most insightful analysis, criticism, and advice out there, delivered to your inbox daily. I once witnessed a friend going through a severe midlife crisis. Basically overnight, this formerly serious and well-adjusted middle-aged man dumped his wife for a much younger girlfriend, got a face tattoo, and built a full-sized halfpipe in his house. Soon, we were barraged with music recommendations (all stuff he'd listened to in high school and college) and life updates laden with "hip" "slang" ("Despite the age gap, my situationship with Triniteigh is lowkey lit"). It was a transparent--and, from a certain perspective, even sympathetic--response to a universal anxiety: He'd seen that the good times were over, and that only decline lay ahead. But, like all nostalgists, he didn't realize that you can't ever truly go back; you can only go backward. The United States, under President Donald Trump, seems to be undergoing a similar midlife crisis, as this reactionary administration attempts to brute-force the country back to a golden age that many people are realizing either didn't exist in the first place or has been permanently lost to the mists of time and modernization.

Video games have been simulating football since the 1970s, but they have rarely ever thought about simulating fandom. You can play a whole international tournament in the Fifa titles, but what they never show is the way the competition seeps into the everyday lives of supporters, how whole towns are overtaken, how a World Cup can become a national obsession. The way most of us experience the really big matches is through stolen moments of vicarious glory on televisions and giant pub screens, surrounded by friends and family and the sounds and images of real life. This is the territory of Despelote, a beautiful, utterly transportive game about childhood and memory, set during Ecuador's historic 2002 World Cup qualifying campaign. Football-mad eight-year-old Julián – a semi-autobiographical version of the game's co-designer Julián Cordero – has just watched the team beat Peru, but now four more matches stand between Ecuador and the World Cup finals in Japan and Korea.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group and mobile carrier SoftBank will collaborate in the field of digital payment services, it was learned Wednesday. Under the partnership, the PayPay smartphone payment service operated by a SoftBank affiliate will be made available via the Olive general financial app, provided by Sumitomo Mitsui Banking, the core unit of the financial group. Sumitomo Mitsui, through its Sumitomo Mitsui Card unit, will form a comprehensive partnership with SoftBank and PayPay that will be announced soon. The two sides will allow points in their respective reward programs to be exchanged. They will also collaborate on the use of data and generative artificial intelligence.

Each year, the market research firm Forrester publishes a report highlighting 10 emerging technologies poised to transform the business landscape. Unsurprisingly, agentic AI stood out in this year's list. Also: Executives need better tech skills. The recent Top 10 Technologies for 2025 report from Forrester highlighted AI agents as a major tech trend that will sweep across the private sector. New agent architectures enable AI tools to autonomously perform tasks for individuals and organizations, marking a major business opportunity.