Policy – SiliconANGLE

US slams China’s ban on buying Micron chips as ‘economic coercion’

Mike Wheatley — Mon, 29 May 2023 00:25:53 +0000

U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said late Saturday that her country “won’t tolerate” China’s recent ban on the purchase of memory chips from Micron Technology Inc. and added that the U.S. government is working closely with its allies to counter what she termed “economic coercion.” Raimondo (pictured) was speaking at a news conference after a meeting of trade […]

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US Surgeon General warns social media is driving a mental health crisis in the young

James Farrell — Wed, 24 May 2023 02:15:48 +0000

Echoing countless studies on the subject, the U.S. Surgeon General said in a report released today that social media could be playing a significant role in a mental health crisis affecting the youth of America today. In a 19-page report, Dr. Vivek Murthy said it’s too early to understand fully just how harmful social media […]

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Meta fined €1.2B in the EU for moving users’ data to the US

Maria Deutscher — Mon, 22 May 2023 17:25:10 +0000

Meta Platforms Inc. has been fined €1.2 billion in the European Union for transferring local users’ information to its U.S. data centers. The penalty was issued today by the Irish Data Protection Authority, which oversees Meta’s privacy practices in the EU. The company’s regional headquarters are based in Ireland. In addition to fining Meta, regulators […]

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As ‘code pollution’ grows, licensing becomes crucial, Grafana expert says

Brian Njuguna — Fri, 19 May 2023 20:30:59 +0000

Every time there is an infection point in technological innovations, the licensing dynamic comes up. With things becoming more open with data, licensing code should be simplified using a specific method, such as a reference file, according to Richard Hartmann (pictured), director of community at Raintank Inc. (dba Grafana Labs). “I like the concept of […]

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Supreme Court declines to address Section 230 in new rulings

Maria Deutscher — Thu, 18 May 2023 19:55:11 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court didn’t discuss the question of whether Section 230 should be reinterpreted in two closely anticipated rulings it issued this morning. Section 230 is part of the Communications Decency Act, a law that Congress enacted in 1996. It protects tech firms from being sued over many forms of user-generated content uploaded to […]

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DOJ charges former Apple engineer with stealing self-driving car technology for China

James Farrell — Wed, 17 May 2023 00:51:48 +0000

The Department of Justice today charged a former Apple Inc. engineer with stealing autonomous technology and giving it to a Chinese self-driving car company. The indictment, filed at federal court in the Northern District of California, alleges that Weibao Wang, who started working on Apple’s hardware and software for autonomous systems in 2016, had “broad […]

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The IRS is building a government-run system for tax preparation

James Farrell — Tue, 16 May 2023 01:58:27 +0000

The Internal Revenue Service has been working on a system for Americans to file their taxes in one place, for free, according to an article in The Washington Post today. The Biden administration wants Americans to have an alternative to tax preparation software such as Intuit Inc.’s TurboTax and H&R Block. For a long time […]

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EU approves Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition as Azure reportedly faces scrutiny

Maria Deutscher — Mon, 15 May 2023 17:33:16 +0000

The European Commission, the European Union’s executive branch, has approved Microsoft Corp.’s plan to acquire Activision Blizzard Inc. for $68.7 billion. The decision was made public this morning. The development coincided with a report from Bloomberg that revealed the EU is conducting an informal probe into Azure, Microsoft’s public cloud platform. It’s believed the probe […]

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Italy’s antitrust watchdog begins probe into Apple’s app market dominance

James Farrell — Fri, 12 May 2023 01:03:05 +0000

Italy’s antitrust watchdog announced today that it has launched an investigation into Apple Inc. for what it believes could be the iPhone maker’s abuse of its dominant position in the app market, a probe that follows similar European antitrust probes into American big tech. The watchdog, Italy’s Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato, or […]

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European legislators vote to impose tighter controls on AI

Kyt Dotson — Thu, 11 May 2023 17:30:45 +0000

European lawmakers today voted on amendments to the European Union’s “AI Act” draft legislation aimed at tightening regulations over generative artificial intelligence, including bans on biometric surveillance, predictive policing and expanded definitions of “high-risk AI.” Two legislative bodies joined to negotiate amended text for the AI Act, the International Market Committee and the Civil Liberties […]

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Report: EU expected to approve Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition

Maria Deutscher — Wed, 10 May 2023 19:27:39 +0000

The European Union could greenlight Microsoft Corp.’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc. as early as next week, according to a new report. Reuters today cited sources as saying that the EU will likely approve the $68.7 billion deal on Monday. The deadline for the decision is May 22. Activision Blizzard is one of the world’s […]

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White House launches new AI initiatives as UK begins review of foundation models

Maria Deutscher — Thu, 04 May 2023 17:31:10 +0000

The White House today announced a series of initiatives designed to encourage the creation of safe artificial intelligence software, as well as mitigate the risks posed by the technology. The development comes as generative AI is increasingly emerging as a focus for policymakers. On Wednesday, Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan called for AI to […]

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FTC wants to stop Meta from monetizing young people’s data

James Farrell — Thu, 04 May 2023 01:50:30 +0000

The Federal Trade Commission today shared some stern words with Meta Platforms Inc., accusing the company of breaching a child privacy protection order, adding that it’s time there was a “blanket prohibition” on Meta collecting the data of kids. The FTC, which has been something of a bête noire for Meta over the years, said […]

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Tesla defense lawyers say Elon Musk’s past statements about autopilot safety could be deepfakes

James Farrell — Fri, 28 Apr 2023 00:56:07 +0000

A California judge today said that Tesla Motors Inc. Chief Executive Elon Musk should be questioned under oath over his claims about the company’s autopilot safety, after Musk’s lawyers argued that those comments could be deepfakes. After crashes in Tesla vehicles where it’s believed the drivers were using autopilot — some of whom died in […]

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Bipartisan bill aims to ban kids under 13 from using social media

James Farrell — Thu, 27 Apr 2023 01:35:52 +0000

A bipartisan bill introduced today would stop anyone in the U.S. under 13 years of age from using social media as well as put limits on all young people from getting onto such platforms. The “Protecting Kids on Social Media Act,” is the brainchild of Senators Tom Cotton (R-Arizona), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut), […]

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UK regulators block Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition, citing cloud gaming concerns

Kyt Dotson — Wed, 26 Apr 2023 16:45:30 +0000

The United Kingdom’s antitrust regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority, has stifled Microsoft Corp.’s deal to acquire Activision Blizzard Inc. in a dramatic move after a monthlong investigation, stating that the deal would “alter the future of the fast-growing cloud gaming market.” Microsoft announced its plans to acquire Activision Blizzard, in January last year for […]

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UK bill aims to tackle big tech’s dominance in digital markets

James Farrell — Wed, 26 Apr 2023 01:29:31 +0000

The U.K. announced today that its Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill will crack down on the dominance of some of the world’s leading tech companies. Despite mammoth efforts by big tech to stop the bill from going through, their lobbying has not produced any significant changes. The U.K.’s watchdogs, including the all-new Digital Markets Unit, […]

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Supreme Court to hear cases involving disputes over public officials blocking people on social media

James Farrell — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 01:30:23 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear two First Amendment rights cases in which public officials blocked people on their social media accounts. The cases both related to a case involving former president Donald Trump, in which he argued that he should have the right to block people on his Twitter account. Trump argued that since […]

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The purge of Twitter’s blue checkmarks has begun

James Farrell — Fri, 21 Apr 2023 02:10:47 +0000

Today was the end of an era for many people when they discovered that Twitter Inc. owner Elon Musk had finally made good on his promise to remove the platform’s blue checkmarks. It has been known for a while this was coming, although Musk’s plan to take away people’s precious verification badges of honor has […]

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Twitter will start labeling tweets that have been restricted for hateful speech

James Farrell — Tue, 18 Apr 2023 01:35:44 +0000

Twitter Inc. announced today that it will now effectively let people know their tweet has been “shadowbanned” when it has violated the company’s Hateful Conduct policy. In a blog post, Twitter said that under Twitter 2.0, it wants the platform to remain safe but not to be a hive of censorship. The company said it […]

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European lawmakers call for tighter controls on powerful general-purpose AI

Mike Wheatley — Mon, 17 Apr 2023 23:45:27 +0000

A group of 12 European Parliament members has called on the European Union to create a new set of rules aimed at regulating a wider range of artificial intelligence tools. The proposed “AI Act” would cover AI tools beyond those identified as being explicitly high risk. In an open letter published today, the MEPs further called […]

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Additional states join Justice Department-led Google antitrust lawsuit

Duncan Riley — Mon, 17 Apr 2023 23:41:04 +0000

Nine additional states have joined the U.S. Department of Justice and eight previous states in a lawsuit against Google LLC alleging that the search giant’s advertising business breaks antitrust law. The lawsuit, first announced in January, charges that Google uses its position as a major provider of sell-side and buy-side advertising tools to harm market competition. […]

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European parliament looks to build strong regulations on use of AI

Kyt Dotson — Fri, 14 Apr 2023 18:20:17 +0000

The European Parliament is working through key legislation to regulate the use of artificial intelligence to regulate its use based on its ability to do harm to society and business, including measures that would force chatbots to declare they’re not human. Members of the European Parliament are meeting currently in Brussels over a set of […]

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In surprise interview with BBC, Elon Musk says owning Twitter at times has been ‘painful’

James Farrell — Thu, 13 Apr 2023 01:36:56 +0000

Twitter Inc. owner Elon Musk sat with the BBC on Tuesday night at the company’s offices in San Francisco in what turned out to be a fairly candid interview. In the 90 minutes that the BBC spoke to Musk, just about all of the hot topics were covered. He talked about the massive layoffs at […]

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EU raises competition concerns over Broadcom’s $61B VMware acquisition

Maria Deutscher — Wed, 12 Apr 2023 20:45:16 +0000

The European Commission, the European Union’s executive branch, has determined that Broadcom Inc.’s proposed acquisition of VMware Inc. may harm market competition. The decision, which was released today, represents a preliminary view. A final decision is expected later this year. The development comes in connection with an antitrust investigation that the EU opened into the […]

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Google poll: Companies implementing fewer sustainability programs, but interest is strong

Maria Deutscher — Wed, 12 Apr 2023 17:17:03 +0000

Fewer corporate sustainability programs are moving into the implementation stage than a year ago but interest among executives continues to be strong, according to a new Google LLC survey. The 2023 Google Cloud Sustainability Survey polled 1,476 senior executives in 16 countries. The study, which the search giant published today, was carried out on its […]

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Cisco’s new Atlanta offices aimed at addressing the workforce of the future

Zeus Kerravala — Tue, 11 Apr 2023 21:14:59 +0000

I recently had the opportunity to visit Cisco Systems Inc.’s newly opened Atlanta office, and the space, similar to what the company did with its New York Penn1 location, has been designed for the needs of hybrid work, a huge topic of conversation at the recent Enterprise Connect 2023 event. The term “hybrid work” is […]

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Regulators in US and China request public comment on AI rules

Maria Deutscher — Tue, 11 Apr 2023 20:58:52 +0000

Two regulatory agencies, one in the U.S. and the other in China, today asked members of the public to submit feedback about future artificial intelligence rules. The parallel developments come as tech firms in both countries rush to incorporate advanced AI models into their products. At the same time, those models are drawing scrutiny in […]

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UK regulator tentatively proposes investigation into cloud market

Maria Deutscher — Wed, 05 Apr 2023 17:22:48 +0000

Ofcom, the regulator that oversees the U.K.’s telecommunications sector, is proposing to launch an investigation into the local public cloud market. The proposal was released today. It calls for the probe to be conducted by the Competition and Markets Authority, or CMA, the U.K.’s antitrust regulator. But Ofcom’s suggestion is only tentative: It will make […]

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TikTok fined in UK for misusing data of minors

James Farrell — Wed, 05 Apr 2023 01:37:45 +0000

Britain’s data protection authority today hit the beleaguered Chinese social media company TikTok with a $15.9 million (£12.7m) fine, accusing the app of breaching data protection rules. The Information Commissioner’s Office, or ICO, said TikTok had allowed about 1.4 million children under the age of 13 to use the app. The firm was said to […]

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