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21 articles in world news

US authorities reportedly investigate claims that Meta can read encrypted WhatsApp messages

US authorities reportedly investigate claims that Meta can read encrypted WhatsApp messages

A lawsuit filed last week alleges tech firm ‘can access virtually all’ private communications, a claim the company has denied US authorities have reportedly investigated claims that Meta can read users’ encrypted chats on the WhatsApp messaging platform, which it owns. The reports follow a lawsuit filed last week, which claimed Meta “can access virtually all of WhatsApp users’ purportedly ‘private’ communications”. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Jan 31
WhatsAppMetaTechnology
Google AI Overviews cite YouTube more than any medical site for health queries, study suggests

Google AI Overviews cite YouTube more than any medical site for health queries, study suggests

Exclusive: German research into responses to health queries raises fresh questions about summaries seen by 2bn people a month • How the ‘confident authority’ of AI Overviews is putting public health at risk Google’s search feature AI Overviews cites YouTube more than any medical website when answering queries about health conditions, according to research that raises fresh questions about a tool seen by 2 billion people each month. The company has said its AI summaries, which appear at the top of search results and use generative AI to answer questions from users, are “reliable” and cite reputable medical sources such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Mayo Clinic. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Jan 24
GoogleAI (artificial intelligence)YouTube
TikTok announces it has finalized deal to establish US entity, sidestepping ban

TikTok announces it has finalized deal to establish US entity, sidestepping ban

Majority US-owned venture includes Larry Ellison’s Oracle, private-equity group Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi’s MGX TikTok announced on Thursday it had closed a deal to establish a new US entity, allowing it to sidestep a ban and ending a long legal battle. The deal finalized by ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese owner, sets up a majority American-owned venture, with investors including Larry Ellison’s Oracle, the private-equity group Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi’s MGX owning 80.1% of the new entity, while ByteDance will own 19.9%. This article was amended on 23 January 2026 to clarify that the new board includes a senior advisor to TPG, not a current TPG executive. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Jan 23
TikTokUS newsOracle
Grok AI generated about 3m sexualised images in 11 days, study finds

Grok AI generated about 3m sexualised images in 11 days, study finds

Estimate made by Center for Countering Digital Hate after Elon Musk’s AI image generation tool sparked outrage Grok AI generated about 3m sexualised images in less than two weeks, including 23,000 that appear to depict children, according to researchers who said it “became an industrial-scale machine for the production of sexual abuse material”. The estimate has been made by the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) after Elon Musk’s AI image generation tool sparked international outrage when it allowed users to upload photographs of strangers and celebrities, digitally strip them to their underwear or into bikinis, put them in provocative poses and post the images on X. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Jan 22
Grok AIXAI (artificial intelligence)
Musk’s X to block Grok AI tool from creating sexualised images of real people

Musk’s X to block Grok AI tool from creating sexualised images of real people

UK government claims vindication after Keir Starmer criticised earlier decision to keep functionality as ‘horrific’ The UK government has claimed “vindication” after Elon Musk’s X announced it had stopped its AI-powered Grok feature from editing pictures of real people to show them in revealing clothes such as bikinis, including for premium subscribers. After a fortnight of public outcry at the tool embedded into X being used to create sexualised images of women and children , the company said it would “geoblock” the ability of users “to generate images of real people in bikinis, underwear, and similar attire via the Grok account and in Grok in X”, in countries where it was illegal. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Jan 15
XElon MuskGrok AI
UK threatens action against X over sexualised AI images of women and children

UK threatens action against X over sexualised AI images of women and children

Government signals support for possible Ofcom intervention on Grok as scrutiny of X’s AI tool intensifies Business live – latest updates Elon Musk’s X “is not doing enough to keep its customers safe online”, a minister has said, as the UK government prepares to outline possible action against the platform over the mass production of sexualised images of woman and children. Peter Kyle, the business secretary, said the government would fully support any action taken by Ofcom, the media regulator, against X – including the possibility that the platform could be blocked in the UK. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Jan 12
Internet safetyGrok AIAI (artificial intelligence)
Elon Musk’s 2025 recap: how the world’s richest person became its most chaotic

Elon Musk’s 2025 recap: how the world’s richest person became its most chaotic

How the tech CEO and ‘Dogefather’ made a mess of the year – from an apparent Nazi salute during his White House tenure to Tesla sales slumps and Starship explosions The year of 2025 was dizzying for Elon Musk . The tech titan began the year holding court with Donald Trump in Washington DC. As the months ticked by, one public appearance after another baffled the US and the world. Musk appeared to give a Nazi salute at Trump’s inauguration, staunchly championed a 19-year-old staffer nicknamed “Big Balls,” denied reports of being a drug addict while advising the president, and showed up at a White House press conference with a black eye – all in the first half of the year alone. “Elon’s attitude is you have to get it done fast. If you’re an incrementalist, you just won’t get your rocket to the moon,” Susie Wiles, Trump’s chief of staff, told Vanity Fair in an expansive interview earlier this month. “And so with that attitude, you’re going to break some china.” Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Dec 31, 2025
Elon MuskTeslaSpaceX
Facebook slow to act on posts celebrating Bondi beach massacre, anti-hate group says

Facebook slow to act on posts celebrating Bondi beach massacre, anti-hate group says

Exclusive: CST highlights volume of IS-supporting accounts and says social media firms ‘putting all of us in danger’ Facebook hosted terrorist propaganda that celebrated the murder of Jews and praised Islamic State, a leading anti-hate group has alleged. The posts included celebrations of the Bondi beach massacre that the Community Security Trust says Facebook has been too slow to take down. The posts were still on Facebook on 16 December, two days after the attack, and received shares and likes. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Dec 30, 2025
FacebookAntisemitismHate crime
UK campaigner targeted by Trump accuses tech giants of ‘sociopathic greed’

UK campaigner targeted by Trump accuses tech giants of ‘sociopathic greed’

Exclusive: Imran Ahmed says US companies are ‘corrupting the system’ of politics by seeking to avoid accountability A British anti-disinformation campaigner told by the Trump administration that he faces possible removal from the US has said he is being targeted by arrogant and “sociopathic” tech companies for trying to hold them to account. Imran Ahmed, the chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), is among five European nationals barred from the US by the state department after being accused of seeking to push tech firms to censor or suppress American viewpoints. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Dec 26, 2025
UK newsTrump administrationUS politics
‘Undermines free speech’: Labour MP hits back at US government over visa ban on UK campaigners

‘Undermines free speech’: Labour MP hits back at US government over visa ban on UK campaigners

Chi Onwurah speaks out after Marco Rubio accused five Europeans, including two Britons, of ‘seeking to suppress American viewpoints they oppose’ A senior Labour MP has accused the Trump administration of undermining free speech after Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, announced sanctions against two British anti-disinformation campaigners. Chi Onwurah, the chair of parliament’s technology select committee, criticised the US government hours after it announced “visa-related” sanctions against five Europeans, including Imran Ahmed and Clare Melford. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Dec 24, 2025
Elon MuskDonald TrumpTechnology
‘A gamechanger’: 200,000 UK small businesses sign up to TikTok Shop

‘A gamechanger’: 200,000 UK small businesses sign up to TikTok Shop

Big brands such as Sainsbury’s and M&S also selling directly in app through links in videos and livestreams It is better known for its viral dances and for making hits out of forgotten songs , but the social media site TikTok is becoming a force to be reckoned with as a shopping platform. Major retailers such as Marks & Spencer, Samsung, QVC, Clarks, and Sainsbury’s are now selling their wares on the site’s e-commerce service, TikTok Shop, alongside more than 200,000 UK small and medium businesses. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Dec 24, 2025
TikTokRetail industryBusiness
Activist group says it has scraped 86m music files from Spotify

Activist group says it has scraped 86m music files from Spotify

Platform with 700m users says it is investigating after Anna’s Archive claims to have scraped tracks and metadata An activist group has claimed to have scraped millions of tracks from Spotify and is preparing to release them online. Observers said the apparent leak could boost AI companies looking for material to develop their technology. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Dec 22, 2025
SpotifyArtificial intelligence (AI)Computing
MPs question UK Palantir contracts after investigation reveals security concerns

MPs question UK Palantir contracts after investigation reveals security concerns

Journalists find Swiss government rejected company over fears US intelligence might gain access to sensitive data UK MPs have raised concerns about the government’s contracts with Palantir after an investigation published in Switzerland highlighted allegations about the suitability and security of its products. The investigation by the Zurich-based research collective WAV and the Swiss online magazine Republik details Palantir’s efforts , over the course of seven years, to sell its products to Swiss federal agencies. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Dec 22, 2025
PalantirUK newsMinistry of Defence
Hackers access Pornhub’s premium users’ viewing habits and search history

Hackers access Pornhub’s premium users’ viewing habits and search history

ShinyHunters group reportedly behind the hack affecting data of 200m users thought to be from before 2021 Hackers have accessed the search history and viewing habits of premium users of Pornhub, one of the world’s most popular pornography websites . A gang has reportedly accessed more than 200m data records, including premium members’ email addresses, search and viewing activities and locations. Pornhub is a heavily used site and says it has more than 100m daily visits globally. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Dec 17, 2025
HackingPornographyInternet
US puts £31bn tech ‘prosperity deal’ with Britain on ice

US puts £31bn tech ‘prosperity deal’ with Britain on ice

Pledge to invest billions in UK paused, with Washington citing lack of progress on trade barriers across pond The US has paused its promised multi-billion-pound investment into British tech over trade disagreements, marking a serious setback in US-UK relations. The £31bn “tech prosperity deal” , hailed by Keir Starmer as “a generational stepchange in our relationship with the US” when it was announced during Donald Trump’s state visit, has been put on ice by Washington. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Dec 15, 2025
Trade policyUS newsUK news
Elon Musk teams with El Salvador to bring Grok chatbot to public schools

Elon Musk teams with El Salvador to bring Grok chatbot to public schools

President Nayib Bukele entrusting chatbot known for calling itself ‘MechaHitler’ to create ‘AI-powered’ curricula Elon Musk is partnering with the government of El Salvador to bring his artificial intelligence company’s chatbot, Grok, to more than 1 million students across the country, according to a Thursday announcement by xAI. Over the next two years, the plan is to “deploy” the chatbot to more than 5,000 public schools in an “AI-powered education program”. xAI’s Grok is more known for referring to itself as “MechaHitler” and espousing far-right conspiracy theories than it is for public education. Over the past year, the chatbot has spewed various antisemitic content , decried “white genocide” and claimed Donald Trump won the 2020 election . Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Dec 11, 2025
TechnologyElon MuskArtificial intelligence (AI)
More than 200 environmental groups demand halt to new US datacenters

More than 200 environmental groups demand halt to new US datacenters

Exclusive: Congress urged to act against energy-hungry facilities blamed for increasing bills and worsening climate crisis A coalition of more than 230 environmental groups has demanded a national moratorium on new datacenters in the US, the latest salvo in a growing backlash to a booming artificial intelligence industry that has been blamed for escalating electricity bills and worsening the climate crisis. The green groups, including Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, Food & Water Watch and dozens of local organizations, have urged members of Congress to halt the proliferation of energy-hungry datacenters, accusing them of causing planet-heating emissions, sucking up vast amounts of water and exacerbating electricity bill increases that have hit Americans this year . Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Dec 8, 2025
US newsEnvironmentWorld news
‘A step-change’: tech firms battle for undersea dominance with submarine drones

‘A step-change’: tech firms battle for undersea dominance with submarine drones

As navies seek to counter submarines and protect cables, startups and big defence companies fight to lead market Flying drones used during the Ukraine war have changed land battle tactics for ever. Now the same thing appears to be happening under the sea. Navies around the world are racing to add autonomous submarines. The UK’s Royal Navy is planning a fleet of underwater uncrewed vehicles (UUVs) which will, for the first time, take a leading role in tracking submarines and protecting undersea cables and pipelines. Australia has committed to spending $1.7bn (£1.3bn) on “Ghost Shark” submarines to counter Chinese submarines. The huge US Navy is spending billions on several UUV projects, including one already in use that can be launched from nuclear submarines. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Nov 28, 2025
Technology sectorBusinessDefence policy
Small changes to ‘for you’ feed on X can rapidly increase political polarisation

Small changes to ‘for you’ feed on X can rapidly increase political polarisation

Study finds that a week of political content can bring about a shift in views that previously would have taken three years Small changes to the tone of posts fed to users of X can increase feelings of political polarisation as much in a week as would have historically taken at least three years, research has found. A groundbreaking experiment to gauge the potency of Elon Musk’s social platform to increase political division found that when posts expressing anti-democratic attitudes and partisan animosity were boosted, even barely perceptibly, in the feeds of Democrat and Republican supporters there was a large change in their unfavourable feelings towards the other side. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Nov 27, 2025
XUS politicsInternet
How Amazon turned our capitalist era of free markets into the age of technofeudalism | Yanis Varoufakis

How Amazon turned our capitalist era of free markets into the age of technofeudalism | Yanis Varoufakis

Amazon Web Services owns the basic infrastructure for other businesses to operate online, turning even governments into its serfs. But now some people are fighting back For the past six years, every Black Friday – that made-up carnival of consumption – Amazon workers and their allies have mobilised across the world in coordinated strikes and protests . At first glance, these disputes look like the standard struggle between a giant capitalist employer and the people who keep it running. But Amazon is no ordinary corporation. It is the clearest expression of what I call technofeudalism: a new economic order in which platforms behave like lords owning the fiefs that have replaced markets. To appreciate Amazon’s extraordinary power, we must recall the system it is helping to bury. Capitalism relied on markets and profit. Firms invested in productive capital, hired workers, produced commodities and lived or died by profit and loss. But the emerging order is one in which the most powerful capitalist firms have exited that market altogether. They own the digital infrastructure that everyone else must use to trade, work, communicate and live. Yanis Varoufakis is the leader of MeRA25 and the author of Technofeudalism: What Killed Capitalism Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Nov 27, 2025
AmazonSurveillanceWorkers' rights
‘Musk is Tesla and Tesla is Musk’ – why investors are happy to pay him $1tn

‘Musk is Tesla and Tesla is Musk’ – why investors are happy to pay him $1tn

Making Elon Musk the world’s first trillionaire appears to fit a US investment culture of backing high-flying innovators For all the headlines about an on-off relationship with Donald Trump, baiting liberals and erratic behaviour, Tesla shareholders are loath to part with Elon Musk. Investors in the electric vehicle maker voted on Thursday to put the world’s richest person on the path to become the world’s first trillionaire , despite the controversy that is now seemingly intrinsic to his public profile. Continue reading...

theguardian.com
Nov 7, 2025
Elon MuskTeslaTechnology