OpenAI has disbanded a team that focused on — as the company itself described — ensuring that its AI systems are “safe, trustworthy, and consistently aligned with human values.” At the same time, the team’s former leader has been given a new role as the company’s “chief futurist.” OpenAI confirmed to TechCrunch that the team’s … Read more
Inertia Enterprises has raised $450 million to build one of the world’s most powerful lasers, which it hopes will serve as the foundation of a grid-scale power plant the fusion startup intends to start construction on in 2030. Inertia Enterprises is building on technology developed at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s National Ignition Facility. The … Read more
Samsung sent out invites Tuesday to its next Galaxy Unpacked event, scheduled for February 25 in San Francisco, where the company is expected to launch its Galaxy 26 series of smartphones. AI features will be at the forefront again, as the company said the upcoming phones are “built to simplify everyday interactions, inspire confidence and … Read more
Ryan Beiermeister, who served as OpenAI’s vice president of product policy, was fired in January after a male colleague accused her of sex discrimination, the Wall Street Journal has reported. “The allegation that I discriminated against anyone is absolutely false,” Beiermeister told the Journal. TechCrunch reached out to OpenAI for comment and also contacted an … Read more
Czech ice dancers Kateřina Mrázková and Daniel Mrázek made their Olympic debut on Monday, an unfathomable feat that takes a lifetime of dedication and practice. But the sibling duo used AI music in their rhythm dance program, which doesn’t break any official rules, but serves as a depressing symbol of how absolutely cooked we are. … Read more
Singapore’s government has blamed a known Chinese cyber-espionage group for targeting four of its top telecommunication companies as part of a months-long attack. In a statement Monday, Singapore confirmed for the first time that the hackers, known as UNC3886, targeted the country’s telecoms infrastructure, including its largest companies: Singtel, StarHub, M1, and Simba Telecom. The … Read more
The most seductive narrative in American work culture right now isn’t that AI will take your job. It’s that AI will save you from it. That’s the version the industry has spent the last three years selling to millions of nervous people who are eager to buy it. Yes, some white-collar jobs will disappear. But … Read more
As AI data centers drive up electricity prices, London-based startup Tem thinks AI might be able to help solve it, too. Tem has built an energy transaction engine that relies on AI to cut prices relative to other energy traders. The company has signed up more than 2,600 business customers throughout the U.K. on the … Read more
YouTube megastar MrBeast announced on Monday that his company, Beast Industries, is buying Step, a teen-focused banking app. Step, which raised half a billion in funding and has grown to over 7 million users, offers financial services geared toward Gen Z to help them build credit, save money, and invest. The company has attracted celebrity … Read more
A hacktivist has scraped more than half-a-million payment records from a provider of consumer-grade “stalkerware” phone surveillance apps, exposing the email addresses and partial payment information of customers who paid to spy on others. The transactions contain records of payments for phone tracking services like Geofinder and uMobix, as well as services like Peekviewer (formerly … Read more
