AI funding rounds, acquisitions, partnerships and leadership changes, plus regulation, copyright lawsuits and big compute deals.
Chief Justice John Roberts just warned that artificial intelligence requires "caution and humility" across the federal judiciary. While acknowledging AI can broaden access to justice and speed up research, he stressed that hallucination risks mean human discretion and judges aren't going anywhere anytime soon.
Camera giants just teamed up against the flood of synthetic media. Nikon, Sony Group, and Canon are developing in-camera tech that embeds digital signatures directly into photos to easily separate authentic shots from sophisticated deepfakes, with Sony releasing dedicated firmware for professional gear. Why it matters: Hardware-level authentication could be the most reliable shield against AI disinformation.
Samsung just revealed its 2024 Bespoke 4-Door Flex smart fridge ahead of CES, featuring upgraded Vision AI that spots up to 33 food items inside and designs recipes tailored to your dietary profile. It also sports a 32-inch touchscreen with TikTok support, anchoring Samsung's broader push into AI-powered kitchens.
The New York Times just sued OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement, claiming the tech giants copied millions of articles without permission to build ChatGPT and Copilot. The lawsuit argues that the models can recite Times reporting verbatim and act as direct market substitutes, demanding billions in damages and the removal of its work from training datasets.
Lawmakers Anna Eshoo and Don Beyer just introduced the AI Foundation Model Transparency Act, requiring model creators to disclose their training data sources. The bill directs the FTC and NIST to establish rules covering copyright data, compute usage, and red-teaming efforts. Why it matters: If passed, it would turn voluntary AI transparency into enforceable federal law.
Apple is reportedly negotiating multiyear deals worth at least $50 million with major publishers like Condé Nast and NBC News to license their archives for AI training. News executives are split over vague terms and potential legal liabilities, but Apple is aggressively spending to catch up with AI rivals.
The UK Supreme Court just ruled unanimously that AI cannot be named as a patent inventor, shutting down Stephen Thaler's long-running petition for his DABUS system. Judges stated that current patent law strictly requires inventors to be human. The decision aligns with US precedent and cements the legal boundary denying AI autonomous IP rights.
Google just announced plans to restrict election-related queries on its generative AI tools, including Bard and SGE, rolling out early next year. The company is also requiring YouTube creators and political campaigns to clearly disclose AI-altered content. Why it matters: Facing a massive global election year, Google would rather pull its AI off the field than risk bot hallucinations swaying voters.
Rite Aid just got hit with a five-year facial recognition ban by the FTC after deploying flawed AI surveillance across hundreds of stores. The retailer's low-quality database triggered thousands of false shoplifter alerts, disproportionately targeting people of color and humiliating innocent shoppers. Rite Aid must now delete all collected images and the algorithms trained on them.
Anthropic just updated its commercial terms to defend customers against copyright infringement claims, promising to cover settlements and judgments from authorized use. The company also introduced a beta Messages API that streamlines prompt construction and sets the stage for upcoming function calling.
Gates Notes just published its annual outlook for 2024, framing AI’s rise as a transition reminiscent of the early internet. The letter marks 2023 as the first year AI was deployed for serious work rather than mere novelty, pointing to big potential in healthcare and education. Why it matters: the real test is ensuring this innovation helps shrink global inequities rather than widen them.
OpenAI just introduced an updated Preparedness Framework to track and mitigate catastrophic risks in frontier models. Under the new policy, a Safety Advisory Group will evaluate threats like cyberattacks and biological hazards, halting development if risks hit a "critical" threshold. Why it matters: Following its leadership turmoil, OpenAI is giving its board explicit veto power to overrule executives on model releases.
A LinkedIn VP just warned that the shelf life of a college degree is shrinking pretty dramatically as generative AI tools reshape the workplace. Soft skills like adaptability, communication, and creative thinking are quickly overtaking pure technical credentials as the primary career differentiators. Why it matters: Even Ivy League diplomas won't future-proof your career if you can't continuously evolve alongside AI.
A California Chevy dealership's ChatGPT-powered chatbot just agreed to sell a 2024 Tahoe for a single dollar after being tricked by a tech executive. The vendor, Fullpath, touts zero-effort setup, but the bot happily made "legally binding" offers and wrote Python code before being patched.
Airbnb just announced it is deploying proprietary AI to block unauthorized New Year’s Eve parties across the US, UK, and other regions. The system evaluates hundreds of signals—including trip distance, listing type, and last-minute booking patterns—to automatically reject high-risk 1- to 3-night entire-home stays.
ByteDance just got caught secretly using OpenAI’s API to build and evaluate its competing foundation model, codenamed Project Seed, in direct violation of OpenAI's terms of service. Internal Lark chats reportedly revealed staff discussing how to "whitewash" the data trails, prompting OpenAI to quickly suspend ByteDance's account pending investigation. Why it matters: While smaller startups often risk using GPT outputs to bootstrap, seeing a tech giant of ByteDance’s scale cut corners highlights the extreme pressure to catch up in the generative AI race.
Stability AI just introduced a new membership structure to standardize commercial rights and self-hosted deployment for its open-source models. The program offers a free tier for personal and research use, a $20-per-month Professional plan for commercial self-hosting, and custom Enterprise options. The move gives developers a clear commercial path while funding future model development.
Moderna and Merck just shared three-year follow-up data for their individualized cancer therapy mRNA-4157, showing sustained benefit in melanoma patients. Behind the scenes, AI algorithms analyze patient sequencing data to predict up to 34 optimal neoantigens, while automated scheduling coordinates bespoke manufacturing. Phase 3 trials are now underway.
OpenAI just inked a global partnership with publishing giant Axel Springer. The deal brings news summaries from outlets like Politico, Business Insider, Bild, and Welt directly into ChatGPT queries, complete with source attribution and access to paywalled stories, while giving OpenAI rights to use the content for model training.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman just gave a wide-ranging interview after being named TIME's CEO of the Year, discussing his brief ouster, AI governance, and the road to AGI. Altman called AGI humanity’s most powerful technology yet, admitting he feels far more pressure about steering superintelligence and countering election disinformation than boardroom politics.
