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Consumer & Gadgets

How the cost of living crisis and games industry turmoil could hurt Sony's PlayStation 5 Pro release

In late November 2020, I was one of those people standing in line—or rather, refreshing my browser—hoping to snag a PlayStation 5 during a restock. The pandemic was in full swing, and with most of the world locked indoors, ...

Business

UK govt buys semiconductor facility key to defense

The UK government announced on Friday that it had acquired a key semiconductor factory after fears its imminent closure would hamper a crucial supply chain to Britain's armed forces.

Business

Amazon's $4 billion partnership with AI startup Anthropic gets UK competition clearance

Britain's competition watchdog said Friday that it's clearing Amazon's partnership with artificial intelligence company Anthropic because the $4 billion deal didn't qualify for further scrutiny.

Business

Meta hit with $102 million privacy fine from European Union over 2019 password security lapse

Meta was punished Friday with a fine worth more than $100 million from the social media giant's European Union privacy regulator over a security lapse involving passwords for Facebook users.

Business

OpenAI discusses giving Altman 7% stake in for-profit shift

OpenAI is discussing giving Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman a 7% equity stake in the company and restructuring to become a for-profit business, people familiar with the matter said, a major shift that would mark the first ...

Business

'Broken' news industry faces uncertain future

From disinformation campaigns to soaring skepticism, plummeting trust and economic slumps, the global media landscape has been hit with blow after blow.

Business

EasyJet founder makes life hard for 'brand thieves'

Daring to prefix a company or even a pop group's name with "easy" could land you with legal action, as the founder of British airline easyJet relentlessly tackles alleged trademark breaches.

Business

Regulating artificial intelligence: From BRICS to beyond

Researchers from the Advancing Systems Analysis (ASA) program recently participated in a seminar inviting expert dialogue on the role of BRICS competition authorities in the fast-maturing era of artificial intelligence (AI) ...

Business

Google CEO says antitrust trials could drag on for years

Alphabet Inc. Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai said it will take many years to resolve Google's antitrust battles, downplaying the idea that they pose an immediate threat to the company's business.

Business

Microsoft to invest $2.9 bn in Japan AI push

Microsoft on Tuesday announced a $2.9 billion investment over the next two years in Japan to bolster the country's push into artificial intelligence and strengthen its cyber defenses in the face of threats from China and ...

Business

Cash-strapped Argentines queue for eyeball scans

Argentines eyeing a financial boost are lining up by the thousands to have their irises scanned in exchange for a few crypto tokens as part of an online biometrics project under scrutiny in several countries.

Business

EU probes Chinese wind turbine suppliers over subsidies

The European Union on Tuesday announced a probe into Chinese wind turbine suppliers, the latest move by Brussels targeting Beijing over green tech subsidies suspected of undermining fair competition.

Business

Malaysia orders Meta, TikTok to forge plans on harmful content

Malaysia has ordered tech giants Meta and TikTok to present plans to combat harmful content online, authorities said Tuesday, after the Muslim-majority country reported an uptick in offensive material on social media platforms.

Business

Biden lands another big Taiwan chip investment

The Taiwan chip giant TSMC has agreed to build a third semiconductor factory in Arizona, raising its total investment in the United States to $65 billion, US officials said Monday.

Business

Brazil judge orders probe of Musk over censorship charge

A Supreme Court judge in Brazil ordered an investigation Sunday of Elon Musk after the mogul criticized the magistrate and accused him of censorship for blocking social media accounts suspected of spreading disinformation.

Business

Meta asks US judge to toss blockbuster antitrust case

Facebook giant Meta on Friday asked a federal judge to dismiss a case from a powerful US antitrust authority that could see the social media juggernaut forced to sell Instagram and WhatsApp.