Technology

Accept ‘bad things’ in return for benefits of AI, says Sam Altman
Posted on Monday October 05, 2026

Boss of OpenAI calls for a regulatory light touch because of the ‘good stuff’ the technology can deliver

Sam Altman says he believes the world should accept “bad things” happening with AI in exchange for the benefits of the technology.

The chief executive of OpenAI cited hacks, scams and “other bad things that will happen” in an interview that sparked an instant backlash from critics of the big AI companies. His comments came after one of his company’s safety experts resigned, saying at the weekend that its “culture is broken”.

Apple iPhone 18 Pro review: big changes for small differences
Posted on Monday October 05, 2026

Longer battery life, better screen, upgraded Siri and new variable aperture camera in refreshed design from last year’s model

Apple’s smaller Pro iPhone gets the best kind of spec bump for 2026: longer battery life, faster chips and a fancy new variable aperture for the main camera.

The iPhone 18 Pro is one of a pair of slab phones launched alongside Apple’s first folding phone, the iPhone Duo, and is the cheapest of the new phones, with a regular iPhone 18 yet to be announced.

Screen: 6.3in Super Retina XDR (120Hz OLED) (460ppi)

Processor: Apple A20 Pro

RAM: 12GB

Storage: 256GB, 512GB or 1TB

Operating system: iOS 27

Camera: 48MP + 48MP UW + 48MP 4x, 18MP front-facing

Connectivity: 5G, wifi 7, NFC, Bluetooth 6, Thread, USB-C, Satellite, UWB and GNSS

Water resistance: IP68 (6 metres for 30 mins)

Dimensions: 150 x 71.9 x 8.75mm

Weight: 211g

Internet Watch Foundation reports huge rise in AI child sexual abuse material
Posted on Monday October 05, 2026

Abuse material monitor says number of AI images assessed this year is already 40% higher than last year’s total

AI-generated child sexual abuse material is proliferating online, with the amount of illegal material investigated this year already exceeding the total for 2025.

Analysts at the Internet Watch Foundation have found more photorealistic child sexual abuse material in the first half of 2026 than for the whole of the prior year. The UK-based IWF, which monitors abuse material globally, said it had assessed 6,310 AI images that met the legal definition of child sexual abuse, 40% higher than last year’s total of more than 4,500.

Own a smartphone? Then you’re paying the ‘app tax’. It’s a racket and it’s time the UK faced Apple and Google down | Chi Onwurah
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

A deep-seated duopoly allows the tech giants to exploit the public and developers. But the regulator has powers to stop this abuse – it should use them

Chi Onwurah is the Labour MP for Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West and chair of the parliamentary science, innovation and technology committee

Debates around big tech and digital regulation can sometimes feel distant from the everyday concerns of voters. But the power that a small number of global tech companies hold over our lives goes far beyond what most people realise.

As chair of the parliamentary science, innovation and technology committee, I have spent years raising concerns about this: from the data they harvest and the digital “twins” they build of us, to the algorithms that decide what our children see.

Trump names intelligence chief Jay Clayton as new White House AI czar
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

Clayton had said AI was a ‘gamechanger’ but also posed ‘a threat’ during his confirmation hearing

Donald Trump on Sunday named Jay Clayton, the director of national intelligence, to also serve as the new White House AI czar.

Clayton, who leads the US’s 18 intelligence agencies, previously served as the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan and led the Securities and Exchange Commission during Trump’s first term.

‘We are in a kind of war’: row over viral Amsterdam chip shop lands in court
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

Neighbours say crowds drawn by TikTok to Fabel Friet are clogging the picturesque canal street and attracting litter, gulls and rats

People living in one of Amsterdam’s most exclusive neighbourhoods have taken the city to court for licensing a chip shop that has gone viral on TikTok.

On busy days, the queue for Fabel Friet on Runstraat stretches across a bridge on the Keizersgracht – one of Amsterdam’s most famous canals – a court was told last week. The narrow street itself is crowded by tourists waiting for their orders seven days a week. And loitering with intent – on parked cars, on the street itself, and on steps and porches – gulls wait to swoop.

OpenAI safety leader quits, warning AI company’s culture is ‘broken’
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

David Robinson joins other insiders in urging industry to take more care over rapidly developing technology

A safety leader at OpenAI has quit the company, warning that its culture was broken and that AI firms were not “being nearly careful enough” about developing the technology.

David Robinson, who led the writing of safety reports that accompanied the ChatGPT developer’s product releases, explained his resignation in an essay headlined: “I quit OpenAI because its culture is broken.”