Technology

AI firms must be clear on risks or repeat tobacco’s mistakes, says Anthropic chief
Posted on Monday November 17, 2025

Artificial intelligence will become smarter than ‘most or all humans in most or all ways’, says Dario AmodeiBusiness live – latest updatesArtificial intelligence companies must be transparent about the risks posed by their products or be in danger of repeating the mistakes of tobacco and opioid firms, according to the chief executive of the AI startup Anthropic.Dario Amodei, who runs the US company behind the Claude chatbot, said he believed AI would become smarter than “most or all humans in most or all ways” and urged his peers to “call it as you see it”. Continue reading...

How Google’s DeepMind tool is ‘more quickly’ forecasting hurricane behavior
Posted on Sunday November 16, 2025

‘Less expensive and time consuming’ model helps with fast and accurate predictions, possibly saving lives and propertyWhen then Tropical Storm Melissa was churning south of Haiti, Philippe Papin, a National Hurricane Center (NHC) meteorologist, had confidence it was about to grow into a monster hurricane.As the lead forecaster on duty, he predicted that in just 24 hours the storm would become a category 4 hurricane and begin a turn towards the coast of Jamaica. No NHC forecaster had ever issued such a bold forecast for rapid strengthening. Continue reading...

White nationalist talking points and racial pseudoscience: welcome to Elon Musk’s Grokipedia
Posted on Monday November 17, 2025

World’s richest person wanted to ‘purge’ propaganda from Wikipedia, so he created a compendium of racist disinformationEntries in Elon Musk’s new online encyclopedia variously promote white nationalist talking points, praise neo-Nazis and other far-right figures, promote racist ideologies and white supremacist regimes, and attempt to revive concepts and approaches historically associated with scientific racism, a Guardian analysis has found.The tech billionaire and Donald Trump ally recently launched xAI’s AI-generated Grokipedia with a promise that it would “purge out the propaganda” he claims infests Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia that Musk has often attacked but that has long been a key feature of the internet. Continue reading...

Paul McCartney joins music industry protest against AI with silent track
Posted on Monday November 17, 2025

Former Beatle and artists including Sam Fender, Kate Bush and Hans Zimmer record silent LP Is This What We WantAt two minutes 45 seconds it’s about the same length as With a Little Help From My Friends. But Paul McCartney’s first new recording in five years lacks the sing-along tune and jaunty guitar chops because there’s barely anything there.The former Beatle, arguably Britain’s greatest living songwriter, is releasing a track of an almost completely silent recording studio as part of a music industry protest against copyright theft by artificial intelligence companies. Continue reading...

Jeff Bezos reportedly launches new AI startup with himself as CEO
Posted on Monday November 17, 2025

Former Amazon CEO to co-head Project Prometheus with tech executive Vik Bajaj, according to the New York TimesAfter stepping down as Amazon’s CEO four years ago, Jeff Bezos, the billionaire founder and former chief executive of the online shopping company, is going to be a CEO again. This time, Bezos has appointed himself co-CEO of an AI startup called Project Prometheus, the New York Times reported, citing anonymous sources.The startup, which will focus on developing AI for engineering and manufacturing in various fields, has already received $6.2bn in funding – more than many companies are able to raise in their lifetimes. Leading the company alongside Bezos is his co-founder and co-CEO Vik Bajaj, a celebrity tech executive in his own right. Bajaj is a physicist and chemist best known for his work at Google’s moonshot factory, X, where he founded the health startup Verily. Continue reading...

Father of teen whose death was linked to social media has ‘lost faith’ in Ofcom
Posted on Saturday November 15, 2025

Ian Russell says watchdog lacks ‘urgency’ and is not willing to use its powers ‘to the extent required’ The father of Molly Russell, a British teenager who killed herself after viewing harmful online content, has called for a change in leadership at the UK’s communications watchdog after losing faith in its ability to make the internet safer for children.Ian Russell, whose 14 year-old daughter took her own life in 2017, said Ofcom had “repeatedly” demonstrated that it does not grasp the urgency of keeping under-18s safe online and was failing to implement new digital laws forcefully. Continue reading...

E-waste not want not: how to recycle old phones and computers
Posted on Saturday November 15, 2025

The average Australian generates about 22kg of e-waste yearly. Here’s how to responsibly recycle your unwanted devices Change by degrees offers life hacks and sustainable living tips each Saturday to help reduce your household’s carbon footprintGot a question or tip for reducing household emissions? Email us at changebydegrees@theguardian.comIt takes time, money and fossil fuels to make the electronics that underpin modern life. From the mining of rare earths and metals to processing, manufacture and shipping, the engineering and logistical innovations that make it possible to buy a new phone every year produce incredible amounts of waste.According to the latest Global E-Waste Monitor, the world is generating 62m tonnes of e-waste annually and is on track to reach 82m tonnes by 2030. Australia alone produces 580,000 tonnes yearly. Between planned obsolescence, advancing technology and genuine malfunctions, this figure is expected to rise. Continue reading...

AI is guzzling energy for slop content – could it be reimagined to help the climate?
Posted on Monday November 17, 2025

Some experts think AI could be used to lower, rather than raise, planet-heating emissions – others aren’t so convinced Cop30: click here for full Guardian coverage of the climate talks in BrazilArtificial intelligence is often associated with ludicrous amounts of electricity, and therefore planet-heating emissions, expended to create nonsensical or misleading slop that is of meagre value to humanity.Some AI advocates at a major UN climate summit are posing an alternative view, though – what if AI could help us solve, rather than worsen, the climate crisis? Continue reading...