The federal government made some interesting moves by making private jets owned by celebrities such as Elon Musk and Taylor Swift harder to track, but at the same time, advancing legislation to make agencies share more info about UFOs. Back on the ground, AI is coming for your voice if you’re Scarlet Johansson, you’re wallet if you use Alexa, and everything you do on your computer if it runs Windows. Check out the rest of the big stories for the week.
Celebrities and billionaires have long complained that it’s just way too easy for random people on the internet to monitor how much fuel exhaust they waste as they flit through the skies via their private jets. Well, it appears that our government’s legislators have heard these complaints and, unlike when the rest of us whine about stuff, actually done something. - Lucas Ropek Read More
This is a free country, or so I’m told. While that doesn’t mean you’re entitled to lifesaving healthcare without going bankrupt, it does mean that if you own a hot dog bar in Las Vegas, Nevada, you can host an unofficial meet-and-greet with world famous cartoon pup Bluey and piss off hundreds of children and their parents in the process. - Ethan Gach, Kotaku Read More
It’s very possible we’ll know more about UFOs soon. Due to a stipulation inside the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act, the federal government is now required to share any and all internal reports on the subject of unidentified flying objects with the National Archives, which will then (eventually) share those reports with the public. - Lucas Ropek Read More
Amazon is reportedly releasing a generative AI version of Alexa later this year and plans to charge a monthly subscription fee separate from Amazon Prime for the technology, according to CNBC on Wednesday. It’s part of Amazon’s effort to compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4 Omni and Google’s Gemini 1.5, which threaten digital assistants like Alexa. - Maxwell Zeff Read More
When OpenAI’s board fired Sam Altman in late 2023, the board members said he “was not consistently candid in his communications.” The statement raised more questions than answers, indirectly calling Sam Altman a liar, but about what exactly? Six months later, creatives and former employees are once again asking the public to question OpenAI’s trustworthiness. - Maxwell Zeff Read More
Former President Donald Trump shared a video on Truth Social Monday afternoon referencing “the creation of a unified Reich” among possible headlines that would read if he wins re-election in November. Trump deleted the video sometime around 8:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday after receiving stark criticism. - Maxwell Zeff Read More
Carlo Acutis, a 15-year-old programmer who died of leukemia in 2006, is set to be the first millennial saint, according to a new report from the Catholic News Agency Thursday. Acutis created websites documenting purported miracles and has been dubbed “God’s influencer” since his death. - Matt Novak Read More
OpenAI asked Scarlett Johansson to provide voice acting that would be used in the company’s new AI voice assistant, but the actress declined, according to a statement obtained by NPR on Monday. And after last week’s demo, Johansson says she was shocked to hear a voice that was identical to her own. Especially since OpenAI was asking for Johansson’s help as recently as two days before the event. - Matt Novak Read More
Microsoft’s full-throttle push into artificial intelligence technology is getting more scrutiny by regulators worried that the conglomerate is invading consumers’ privacy. - William Gavin, Quartz Read More