Category Archives: Artificial intelligence (AI)

Labor rejects standalone AI legislation with plan that offers to help ‘unlock’ public and private data

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Roadmap focuses on technology’s ‘economic benefits’ and says existing laws will cover the fast-growing new technology

The Albanese government has decided against legislation to manage artificial intelligence, with a new national roadmap emphasising Labor’s focus on the technology’s economic benefits and plans to “unlock” vast datasets held by private companies and the public service to help train AI models.

Supporting and reskilling workers affected by AI in their jobs, boosting investment in datacentres, and sharing the productivity benefits across the economy are key components of the Labor government’s National AI Plan, launched on Tuesday.

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How big tech is creating its own friendly media bubble to ‘win the narrative battle online’

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At a time when distrust of big tech is high, Silicon Valley is embracing an alternative ecosystem where every CEO is a star

A montage of Palantir’s CEO, Alex Karp, and waving US flags set to a remix of AC/DC’s Thunderstruck blasts out as the intro for the tech billionaire’s interview with Sourcery, a YouTube show presented by the digital finance platform Brex. Over the course of a friendly walk through the company offices, Karp fields no questions about Palantir’s controversial ties to ICE but instead extolls the company’s virtues, brandishes a sword and discusses how he exhumed the remains of his childhood dog Rosita to rebury them near his current home.

“That’s really sweet,” host Molly O’Shea tells Karp.

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Greek secondary school teachers to be trained in using AI in classroom

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Some teachers and pupils voice concerns about pilot programme after government’s agreement with OpenAI

Secondary school teachers in Greece are set to go through an intensive course in using artificial intelligence tools as the country assumes a frontline role in incorporating AI into its education system.

This week, staff in 20 schools will be trained in a specialised version of ChatGPT, custom-made for academic institutions, under a new agreement between the centre-right government and OpenAI.

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Authors dumped from New Zealand’s top book prize after AI used in cover designs

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Ockham Book Awards dropped two titles from contention after new guidelines introduced on artificial intelligence use

The books of two award-winning New Zealand authors have been disqualified from consideration for the country’s top literature prize because artificial intelligence was used in the creation of their cover designs.

Stephanie Johnson’s collection of short stories Obligate Carnivore and Elizabeth Smither’s collection of novellas Angel Train were submitted to the 2026 Ockham book awards’ NZ$65,000 fiction prize in October, but were ruled out of the competition the following month in light of new guidelines around AI use.

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Matthew McConaughey and Michael Caine sign voice deal with AI company

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The voices of the Oscar-winning actors can now be used to create AI-generated versions in a new deal with ElevenLabs

Oscar-winning actors Matthew McConaughey and Michael Caine have both signed a deal with the AI audio company ElevenLabs.

The New York-based company can now create AI-generated versions of their voices as part of a bid to solve a “key ethical challenge” in the artificial intelligence industry’s alliance with Hollywood.

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Data centers meet resistance over environmental concerns as AI boom spreads in Latin America

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An expert describes how communities in some of the world’s driest areas are demanding transparency as secretive governments court billions in foreign investment

This Q&A originally appeared as part of The Guardian’s TechScape newsletter. Sign up for this weekly newsletter here.

The data centers that power the artificial intelligence boom are beyond enormous. Their financials, their physical scale, and the amount of information contained within are so massive that the idea of stopping their construction can seem like opposing an avalanche in progress.

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EU could water down AI Act amid pressure from Trump and big tech

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European Commission confirms reports it is looking at postponing parts of landmark legislation

The European Commission is considering plans to delay parts of the EU’s Artificial Intelligence Act, after intense pressure from businesses and Donald Trump’s administration.

The commission confirmed that “a reflection” was “still ongoing” on delaying aspects of the regulation, after media reports that Brussels was weighing up changes with the aim of easing demands on big tech companies.

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Global stock markets fall sharply over AI bubble fears

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Drop in US, Asia and Europe follows warning from bank bosses that market correction could lie ahead

Global stock markets have fallen sharply amid concerns that a boom in valuations of artificial intelligence (AI) companies could be rapidly cooling.

Markets in the US, Asia and Europe have fallen after bank bosses warned a serious stock market correction could lie ahead, after a run of record stock market highs led some companies to appear overvalued.

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Microsoft reports strong earnings as Azure hit by major outage

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Tech giant reports earnings of $3.72 per share day after deal with OpenAI pushed value of company to more than $4tn

Microsoft blew off concerns of overspending on AI on Wednesday, reporting elevated earnings even as it faced an outage of its cloud computing service, Azure, and its office software suite, 365. The strong earnings report comes a day after a deal with OpenAI pushed the value of tech giant to more than $4tn.

After its Xbox and investor relations pages went down, the company issued a statement that said: “We are working to address an issue affecting Azure Front Door that is impacting the availability of some services.”

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Google parent Alphabet beats forecasts with first $100bn quarter

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Strong demand for ads and cloud services powered tech giant’s growth as it makes multibillion-dollar AI investment

Google’s parent company, Alphabet, displayed steady growth in its core advertising business and cloud computing division as it reported third-quarter earnings on Wednesday, beating Wall Street estimates as it reported its first quarter of $100bn in revenue.

The company thrilled Wall Street – shares rose in after-hours trading – even as it announced that it would spend billions more than previously predicted. Alphabet raised its capital expenditure guidance in financial filings, declaring it would spend between $91bn and $93bn in the upcoming year, nearly all of it on infrastructure like datacenters to support artificial intelligence products, which are becoming an integral part of the company’s business. That estimate is up from an original declaration of $75bn in February and a revised figure of $85bn announced in July.

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AFP developing AI tool to decode gen Z slang amid warning about ‘crimefluencers’ hunting girls

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AFP commissioner Krissy Barrett says online crime networks of young boys and men are targeting vulnerable teen and preteen girls

Australian federal police will develop an AI tool to decode gen Z and Alpha slang and emojis in an effort to crackdown on sadistic online exploitation and “crimefluencers”.

The AFP commissioner, Krissy Barrett, will use a speech at the National Press Club on Wednesday to warn of the rise of online crime networks of young boys and men who are targeting vulnerable teen and preteen girls.

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Tory MP reports ‘AI-generated deepfake’ video announcing his defection to Reform UK

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Mid Norfolk MP George Freeman calls spread of AI-generated misinformation a ‘dangerous development’

A Conservative MP has reported an “AI-generated deepfake” video of him announcing that he has joined Reform UK to the police, according to reports.

George Freeman, the MP for Mid Norfolk, denounced the video and, in a Facebook post, called the deliberate spread of misinformation through AI-generated content a “concerning and dangerous development”.

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AI chatbots are hurting children, Australian education minister warns as anti-bullying plan announced

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Jason Clare says artificial intelligence is ‘supercharging bullying’ to a ‘terrifying’ extent

A disturbing new trend of AI chatbots bullying children and even encouraging them to take their own lives has the Australian government very concerned.

Speaking to media on Saturday, the federal education minister, Jason Clare, said artificial intelligence was “supercharging” bullying.

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Queensland anti-renewables group cited nonexistent papers in inquiry submissions using AI, publisher says

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Exclusive: Rainforest Reserves Australia has published submissions naming nonexistent government authorities and a nonexistent windfarm

A conservation charity known for its anti-renewables stance has made submissions to federal and state inquiries that name non-existent government authorities and a nonexistent windfarm, and cite scientific articles that the supposed publisher says don’t exist, a Guardian Australia investigation has found.

Two US-based academics and experts said Rainforest Reserves Australia’s (RRA) claims in submissions about their work were “100% misleading” and “absurd”.

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‘We want our stories to be told’: NSW Labor pledges $3.2m to support writing and literature amid AI onslaught

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Stories Matter strategy responds to urgent pressures such as declining reading rates and growing impact of digital media on publishing, minister says

It is a sector that delivers $1.3bn annually to the New South Wales economy and supports up to 22,000 jobs, yet the average writer earns just $18,200 a year from their creative practice.

To counter this stark disparity, the NSW government is launching the state’s first ever writing and literature strategy, and has committed $3.2m to support and expand the sector.

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Canadian man fined for submitting AI hallucinations as part of legal defense

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Jean Laprade ordered to pay $3,500 in legal saga of ‘hijacked planes’, Interpol red alerts and ‘inappropriate use’ of AI

A Quebec man has been ordered to pay C$5,000 (US$3,562) for submitting artificial intelligence hallucinations as part of his legal defense, a move the judge warned was “highly reprehensible” and threatened to undermine integrity in the legal system.

Justice Luc Morin of Quebec superior court levied the fine on Jean Laprade in a decision released on 1 October, capping a legal saga the judge said “contains several elements worthy of a successful movie script”, including a “hijacked plane passing through several complacent airports”, Interpol red alerts and the “inappropriate use of artificial intelligence” by Laprade.

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Pupils fear AI is eroding their ability to study, research finds

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One in four students say AI ‘makes it too easy’ for them to find answers

Pupils fear that using artificial intelligence is eroding their ability to study, with many complaining it makes schoolwork “too easy” and others saying it limits their creativity and stops them learning new skills, according to new research.

The report on the use of AI in UK schools, commissioned by Oxford University Press (OUP), found that just 2% of students aged between 13 and 18 said they did not use AI for their schoolwork, while 80% said they regularly used it.

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Chip giant Nvidia to take $5bn stake in Intel and collaborate on products

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Deal gives Intel a lifeline as firms team up on AI data centers and PC chips after Trump stake sparks market surge

Nvidia, the world’s leading chipmaker, announced plans to invest $5bn in Intel and collaborate with the struggling semiconductor company on products.

One month after the Trump administration confirmed it had taken a 10% stake in Intel – the latest extraordinary intervention by the White House in corporate America – Nvidia said it would team up with the firm to work on custom data centers that form the backbone of artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, as well as personal computer products.

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Italy first in EU to pass comprehensive law regulating use of AI

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Legislation limits child access and imposes prison terms for damaging use of artificial intelligence

Italy has become the first country in the EU to approve a comprehensive law regulating the use of artificial intelligence, including imposing prison terms on those who use the technology to cause harm, such as generating deepfakes, and limiting child access.

Giorgia Meloni’s rightwing government said the legislation, which aligns with the EU’s landmark AI Act, is a decisive move in influencing how AI is used across Italy.

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Billion-dollar coffins? New technology could make oceans transparent and Aukus submarines vulnerable

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Quantum sensing, satellite tracking and AI are part of an accelerating arms race in detection that should prompt a re-evaluation of Australia’s defence strategy

Military history is littered with the corpses of apex predators.

The Gatling gun, the battleship, the tank. All once possessed unassailable power – then were undermined, in some cases wiped out, by the march of new technology.

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