Consumer advocate Lindsay Owen's new book,, traces how corporations use software--from ever-changing prices to opaque algorithms--to squeeze every penny from you. I always feel like I'm overpaying whenever I buy something these days. I never seem to have access to the best coupons, and apps with algorithmically adjusted prices don't exactly the cost of what's in my cart. It feels like prices are constantly creeping up and my budget is being stretched thin. These core frustrations were what drew me to .

Follow this author to personalize your feed and get instant alerts. Follow Go to your personalized feed WHY FOLLOW? Smart Alerts: Get notified about major news as it happens. Wayfair sells between 30 million and 40 million products across furniture, appliances, home goods, and more. The problem chief technology officer Fiona Tan aims to solve is preventing consumers from having to weed through them.

MSPs asked to pause Scotland's AI data centre boom Scotland has a new boom industry, at least if planning applications are taken at face value. The term "hyperscale data centre", rarely heard a few years ago, is now dividing opinion across the country as a rush of applications are made to build them. A debate at Holyrood later, led by the Scottish Greens, will call for planning applications to be put on hold until promised new national guidelines are in force, with an emphasis on energy demand and the environment. Ahead of the debate, ministers announced that all new applications for AI data centres will have to undergo an environmental impact assessment. The growth of AI is happening at lightning pace, so what are the advantages and disadvantages of Scotland being at the forefront?

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has championed the "Buy Canadian" movement, saying the power lies in "decisions taken at the kitchen table, not the boardroom table." Canadians are responding en masse, embracing patriotic shopping, even with the challenges it can present.

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When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. Nvidia's RTX Spark could be the future of laptops. That's exactly why I'd wait Nvidia's new Arm chips powering premium laptops are the biggest hardware news of the year...but I've got good reasons to be wary of both the tech and the company behind it. Nvidia is making CPUs now. Specifically, it's making Arm-based processors with RTX branding, destined for at least some consumer-focused, high-performance laptops and mini PCs .

Restaurant menus with AI-generated food images are going viral for their off-putting aesthetic. But AI's impact on modern menus runs even deeper. I can't stop staring at the AI-slop images of Mexican food I see during my morning walk to work. On the menu posted outside, the taco truck displays lunch options that appear uncanny and unappetizing, as if an alien who's never eaten human food before drew a taco from memory. This food truck is not alone in putting AI-generated images on its menu.

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Things to Do in L.A. AI is watching your spending and setting your prices accordingly. This is read by an automated voice. Please report any issues or inconsistencies here . See more from the L.A. Times in Google Search. Companies are increasingly using AI tools to sift through shoppers' personal data and tailor prices in real time, raising alarms over hidden algorithms that can exploit desperation, income and location.

I Asked 100 Companies for My Data. California residents have a legal right to access the data that companies collect about them. Actually exercising that right is a burdensome nightmare. I filed a request with McDonald's earlier this month to access all of the personal data the fast food company collected about me, and I received a stunning 515-page report a few days later that detailed my app interactions in granular detail and predicted I would never stop eating there. Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, I have the legal right to request access to information from large companies that collect personal data.