Category Archives: Computing

Financial firms must boost protections against AI scams, UK regulator to warn

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Financial Conduct Authority chief to highlight risks of ‘deepfake’ fraud as well as benefits of Artificial Intelligence

The head of the UK’s financial regulator is to warn that banks, investors and insurers will have to ramp up their spending to combat scammers using artificial intelligence to commit fraud.

Nikhil Rathi, the chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), will say that there are risks of “cyber fraud, cyber-attacks and identity fraud increasing in scale and sophistication and effectiveness” as artificial intelligence (AI) becomes more widespread, in a speech in London on Wednesday.

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Phil Spencer, Xbox chief, on AI: ‘I’m protective of the creative process’

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Spencer played down concerns about AI being used to streamline the video game production process and said it had a role in moderation

Artificial Intelligence is very much on the news agenda right now. The unstoppable rise of ChatGPT and the seemingly imminent prospect of generalised AI able to re-create broad human thinking processes has seen concerns raised by everyone from major business CEOs to Geoffrey Hinton, one of the godfathers of AI research. AI has been an element of video game design and production for at least two decades, but now with AI art programs and the rise of procedurally generated game dialogue, there are growing questions over how AI is going to effect not just the content of games, but the teams that make them.

Talking at the Xbox games showcase in Los Angeles recently, Xbox chief Phil Spencer played down concerns that AI could be used to streamline the game production process and therefore lead to smaller teams.

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Discrimination is a bigger AI risk than human extinction – EU commissioner

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Commissioner says existential threat unlikely, but ‘guardrails’ needed for decisions affecting livelihoods

Discrimination is a bigger threat posed by artificial intelligence than possible extinction of the human race, according to the EU’s competition commissioner.

Margrethe Vestager said although the existential risk from advances in AI may be a concern, it was unlikely, whereas discrimination from the technology was a real problem.

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UK government to invest in film and TV AI special-effects research

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Almost £150m to be spent on research labs to help future-proof industry and lift creative economy

Ministers are seeking to future-proof the UK’s multibillion-pound film and TV production industry by investing almost £150m in a network of research labs across the country tasked with developing the next generation of special effects using tech such as artificial intelligence.

The scheme aims to build on Britain’s reputation for producing hi-tech hits from Star Wars to Harry Potter, and is part of wide-ranging plans to drive the UK creative economy. The government has earmarked millions to support grassroots music venues hammered by the Covid pandemic, and is tripling a fund designed to find and support the next generation of homegrown superstars like Adele and Ed Sheeran.

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AI should be licensed like medicines or nuclear power, Labour suggests

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Exclusive: party calls for developers without a licence to be barred from working on advanced AI tools

The UK should bar technology developers from working on advanced artificial intelligence tools unless they have a licence to do so, Labour has said.

Ministers should introduce much stricter rules around companies training their AI products on vast datasets of the kind used by OpenAI to build ChatGPT, Lucy Powell, Labour’s digital spokesperson, told the Guardian.

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Australia politics live: ‘absolutely shocking’ for education department to give PwC contracts after tax leak scandal, Faruqi says; Ben Roberts-Smith verdict due today

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Department taken to task for its nine contracts with PwC, two of which were entered into in the past two months. Follow latest updates

Sally McManus responds to RBA governor’s commentary on housing market

Sally McManus spoke to ABC News Breakfast this morning and gave her thoughts on some of RBA governor Phil Lowe’s commentary around the housing market and what he thinks needs to happen.

I think we’re living in two worlds. We’ve got people living in very big houses that have multiple dwellings and they’re landlords. And what they’re doing is when the Reserve Bank governor puts up interest rates, they’re passing on that cost to renters and that’s part of the reason why we’re seeing rents increase.

And I think that that is just basically saying to everyone, look, ordinary people, move in with your parents and grandparents whilst we’re going to say nothing about those CEOs I talked about at companies that actually are the ones that could ease cost of living tomorrow on people but they’re choosing not to because in the end they want to see their bonuses.

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Nvidia: chipmaker’s strategic AI moves result in a tech position of power

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The company is now the fifth most valuable in the US after investing in artificial intelligence early on

Nvidia saw its valuation soar to $1tn on Tuesday, making it the fifth most valuable American company and one of the first major corporate beneficiaries of the hype around AI.

The chipmaker has been a major and in some cases dominant player in several industries for years. But no development has raised its profile – and its potential windfall – as much as the current excitement around generative AI.

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Nvidia gains $185bn in value after predicting AI-driven boom in chip demand

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Shares in US tech firm jump by 25% in early trading as quarterly revenue forecast excites investors

The value of the US tech company Nvidia has soared by a quarter after it predicted a boom in demand for its computer chips to meet the needs of artificial intelligence products such as ChatGPT.

Nvidia’s share price rose by 25% in early trading on the back of the announcement, and gave it a market valuation of more than $940bn (£760bn) after stock markets opened on Wall Street on Thursday, up from $755bn on Wednesday evening.

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UK will lead on ‘guard rails’ to limit dangers of AI, says Rishi Sunak

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PM sounds a more cautious note after calls from tech experts and business leaders for moratorium

The UK will lead on limiting the dangers of artificial intelligence, Rishi Sunak has said, after calls from some tech experts and business leaders for a moratorium.

Sunak said AI could bring benefits and prove transformative for society, but it had to be introduced “safely and securely with guard rails in place”.

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OpenAI CEO calls for laws to mitigate ‘risks of increasingly powerful’ AI

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Sam Altman says before Senate judiciary committee that he supports guardrails for technology to minimize harms

The CEO of OpenAI, the company responsible for creating artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT and image generator Dall-E 2, said “regulation of AI is essential” on Tuesday as he testified in front of a Senate judiciary committee panel.

In his first appearance in front of Congress, Sam Altman said he supported regulatory guardrails for the technology that would enable the benefits of artificial intelligence while minimizing the harms.

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EU urged to protect grassroots AI research or risk losing out to US

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Experts warn Brussels it cannot afford to leave artificial intelligence in the hands of foreign firms such as Google

The EU has been warned that it risks handing control of artificial intelligence to US tech firms if it does not act to protect grassroots research in its forthcoming AI bill.

In an open letter coordinated by the German research group Laion, or Large-scale AI Open Network, the European parliament was told that “one-size-fits-all” rules risked eliminating open research and development.

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UK competition watchdog launches review of AI market

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CMA to look at underlying systems of artificial intelligence tools amid concerns over false information

The UK competition watchdog has fired a shot across the bows of companies racing to commercialise artificial intelligence technology, announcing a review of the sector as fears grow over the spread of misinformation and major disruption in the jobs market.

As pressure builds on global regulators to increase their scrutiny of the technology, the Competition and Markets Authority said it would look at the underlying systems, or foundation models, behind AI tools such as ChatGPT. The initial review, described by one legal expert as a “pre-warning” to the sector, will publish its findings in September.

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AI has better ‘bedside manner’ than some doctors, study finds

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ChatGPT rated higher in quality and empathy of written advice, raising possibility of medical assistance role

ChatGPT appears to have a better ‘bedside manner’ than some doctors – at least when their written advice is rated for quality and empathy, a study has shown.

The findings highlight the potential for AI assistants to play a role in medicine, according to the authors of the work, who suggest such agents could help draft doctors’ communications with patients. “The opportunities for improving healthcare with AI are massive,” said Dr John Ayers, of the University of California San Diego.

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No 10 says UK ‘extremely attractive’ for business after Microsoft broadside

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Downing Street responds to stinging attack from US firm’s president over blocking of $69bn Activision deal

Downing Street has defended the UK as an “extremely attractive” place for tech startups after Microsoft’s president said Brexit Britain was worse for business than the EU, in a stinging attack on the UK’s decision to block a $69bn (£55bn) deal to take over Activision Blizzard.

Microsoft rounded on the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on Thursday after a surprise decision to block its planned takeover of the Call of Duty games developer, with its president, Brad Smith, describing it as the “darkest day in our four decades in Britain”.

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Microsoft shares up 8.3% as AI features give a boost to sales

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Redmond-based company exceeded analysts’ estimates, driven by its cloud computing and Office software businesses

Microsoft Corp beat Wall Street’s quarterly revenue and profit estimates on Tuesday, driven by growth in its cloud computing and Office productivity software businesses, and the company said artificial intelligence products were stimulating sales.

The company forecast that revenue in its main segments for the current quarter would match or top Wall Street targets.

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Major tech firms face hefty fines under new digital consumer bill

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Global companies like Google, Apple and Amazon could have to pay penalties of up to 10% of their global turnover as government gives competition watchdog more power

Major tech firms face the threat of multibillion-pound fines for breaching consumer protection rules under new legislation that will tackle issues including fake online reviews and subscriptions that are difficult to cancel.

The digital markets, competition and consumers bill will empower the UK’s competition watchdog to tackle the “excessive dominance” that a small number of tech firms hold over consumers and businesses.

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Calls for stricter UK oversight of workplace AI amid fears for staff rights

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Campaigners, unions and MPs raise concerns about surveillance and use of ‘management by algorithm’

Campaigners, trade unions and MPs are calling for stricter oversight of the use of artificial intelligence in the workplace, amid growing concerns about its effect on staff rights.

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is holding a half-day conference on Tuesday to highlight the challenges of ensuring workers are treated fairly, as what it calls “management by algorithm” becomes increasingly prevalent.

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‘We have to move fast’: US looks to establish rules for artificial intelligence

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The commerce department has requested public comment on AI accountability measures to ensure privacy and transparency

The US government is taking its first tentative steps toward establishing rules for artificial intelligence tools, as the frenzy over generative AI and chatbots reach a fever pitch.

The US commerce department on Tuesday announced it is officially requesting public comment on how to create accountability measures for AI, seeking help on how to advise US policymakers to approach the technology.

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Profits at Apple’s subsidiary in Ireland rise to $69bn

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Main non-US division pays $7.7bn in corporation tax but $20.7bn in dividends to California parent

Apple’s main Irish subsidiary paid €7.7bn (£6.8bn ) in corporation tax last year, but paid out nearly triple that amount in dividends to its California parent company, after reporting more than $69bn (£56bn) in profits.

The latest financial filings for the subsidiary, which is facing legal challenges over its tax arrangements in Ireland, show the Irish division made the equivalent of nearly $190m a day over the year to September.

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Italy’s privacy watchdog bans ChatGPT over data breach concerns

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Measure is in place ‘until ChatGPT respects privacy’, says Italian Data Protection Authority

Italy’s privacy watchdog has banned ChatGPT, after raising concerns about a recent data breach and the legal basis for using personal data to train the popular chatbot.

The Italian Data Protection Authority described the move as atemporary measure “until ChatGPT respects privacy”. The watchdog said it was imposing an “immediate temporary limitation on the processing of Italian users’ data” by ChatGPT’s owner, the San Francisco-based OpenAI.

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