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Senators tell ByteDance to shut down Seedance 2.0 AI video app 'immediately'

Engadget

They said the company'has shown it is willing to... steal the intellectual property ofAmerican creators.' After ByteDance suspended the global rollout of its new Seedance 2.0 AI video generator on the weekend, US senators have now told the company to immediately shut down the app. Seedance 2.0 poses a direct threat to the American intellectual property system and, more broadly, to the constitutional rights and economic livelihoods of our creative community, Senators Marsha Blackburn and Peter Welch wrote in a letter to the company . Responsible global companies follow the law and respect core economic rights, including intellectual property and personal likeness protections, the senators wrote. They cited Seedance AI examples including an AI generated Thanos and Superman battle, a rewritten ending and that famous (fake) Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt battle .


Google's AI Searches Love to Refer You Back to Google

WIRED

The app reads your email inbox and your meeting calendar, then gives you a short audio summary. It can help you spend less time scrolling, but of course, there are privacy drawbacks to consider.


China's OpenClaw Boom Is a Gold Rush for AI Companies

WIRED

China's OpenClaw Boom Is a Gold Rush for AI Companies Hype around the open source agent is driving people to rent cloud servers and buy AI subscriptions just to try it, creating a windfall for tech companies. George Zhang thought OpenClaw could make him rich, even though he didn't really understand how the viral AI agent software worked. But he saw a video of a Chinese social media influencer demonstrating how it could be deployed to manage stock portfolios and make investment decisions autonomously. Zhang, who works in cross-border ecommerce in the Chinese city of Xiamen, was intrigued enough that he decided to try installing OpenClaw in late February. Zhang is one of the many people in China who got swept up in the craze over OpenClaw recently.


The Chinese AI app sending Hollywood into a panic

BBC News

A new artificial intelligence (AI) model developed by the Chinese company behind TikTok rocked Hollywood this week - not just because of what it can do, but what it could mean for creative industries. Created by tech giant ByteDance, Seedance 2.0 can generate cinema-quality video, complete with sound effects and dialogue, from just a few written prompts. Many of the clips said to have been made using Seedance, and featuring popular characters like Spider-Man and Deadpool, went viral. What is Seedance - and why the stir? Seedance was launched to little fanfare in June 2025 but it is the second version that came eight months later that has caused a major stir.


The tech bros might show more humility in Delhi – but will they make AI any safer?

BBC News

The tech bros might show more humility in Delhi - but will they make AI any safer? Those who shout the loudest about artificial intelligence tend to be in the West, notably the US and Europe. So it's significant that a gathering of powerful leaders is being held in the Global South, a region of the world that runs the risk of being left behind in the AI race. Tech bosses, politicians, scientists, academics and campaigners are meeting at the AI Impact Summit in India this week for top-level discussions about what the world should be doing to try to marshal the AI revolution in the right direction. At last year's AI Action Summit, as it was then known, an ugly power struggle broke out between some Western countries over who should be in charge.


TikTok creator ByteDance vows to curb AI video tool after Disney threat

The Guardian

ByteDance's new AI video tool Seedance 2.0 can generate videos based on just a few lines of text. ByteDance's new AI video tool Seedance 2.0 can generate videos based on just a few lines of text. Videos created by new Seedance 2.0 generator go viral, including one of Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt fighting Mon 16 Feb 2026 03.25 ESTLast modified on Mon 16 Feb 2026 03.29 EST ByteDance, the Chinese technology company behind TikTok, has said it will restrain its AI video-making tool, after threats of legal action from Disney and a backlash from other media businesses, according to reports. The AI video generator Seedance 2.0, released last week, has spooked Hollywood as users create realistic clips of movie stars and superheroes with just a short text prompt. On Friday, Walt Disney reportedly sent a cease-and-desist letter to ByteDance which accused it of supplying Seedance with a "pirated library" of the studio's characters, including those from Marvel and Star Wars, according to the US news outlet Axios. Disney's lawyers claimed that ByteDance committed a "virtual smash-and-grab" of their intellectual property, according to a report from the BBC.


ByteDance to curb AI video app after Disney legal threat

BBC News

Chinese technology giant ByteDance has pledged to curb a controversial artificial intelligence (AI) video-making tool, following threats of legal action from Disney and complaints from other entertainment giants. In the last few days, videos made using the latest version of the app Seedance have proliferated online. Many have been lauded for their realism. Disney's lawyers accused ByteDance of committing a virtual smash-and-grab of their intellectual property, including superheroes from Marvel, Star Wars and various cartoons. On Monday ByteDance told the BBC that the company respects intellectual property rights and we have heard the concerns regarding Seedance 2.0.


All-in on AI: what TikTok creator ByteDance did next

The Japan Times

Advertising promoting ByteDance's cloud and AI service platform Volcano Engine and chatbot Doubao hangs at the Beijing Capital International Airport in Beijing on Feb. 5. | AFP-JIJI Beijing - After soaring to global attention with its hugely popular TikTok app, Chinese tech giant ByteDance is now positioning itself as a major player in the fast-evolving AI arena. While the Beijing-based company has been embroiled in a range of legal and privacy rows linked to the social media app for years, its team has been busy branching out developing new cutting-edge products. Among them is China's most popular artificial intelligence chatbot, Doubao, which has built up more than 100 million daily users since its inception in 2023. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.


Hollywood studios take aim at 'ultra-realistic' AI video tool

BBC News

Hollywood studios take aim at'ultra-realistic' AI video tool The MPA represents the major US studios - Netflix, Paramount Pictures, Prime Video & Amazon MGM Studios, Sony Pictures, Universal Studios, The Walt Disney Studios and Warner Bros Discovery. The content referenced was created as part of a limited pre-launch testing phase, it said. The AI tool can quickly make highly realistic clips from a short, simple text prompt, such as a fist fight between Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt, Will Smith battling a red-eyed spaghetti monster or even Friends characters reimagined as otters. ByteDance should immediately cease its infringing activity. According to ByteDance, steps are being taken to further address risks, and it will implement robust policies, monitoring mechanisms and processes to ensure compliance with local regulations.