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  • Bank of England handed powers to regulate key tech firms including Amazon and Google

    Direct oversight of ‘critical third parties’ such as Oracle and Microsoft given to ensure resilient cyber-defences and help safeguard UK economy The Bank of England has been handed powers to regulate important tech firms including Amazon and Google from next week, amid fears that system failures could threaten financial stability and harm consumers. From Monday,…

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  • UK watchdog plans to break Apple and Google’s ‘effective duopoly’ on mobile app stores

    CMA says developers should be able to steer users away from app stores for payments to increase competition Business live – latest updates The UK’s competition watchdog is challenging Apple and Google’s “effective duopoly” over mobile platforms by allowing developers to steer users away from their app stores to make purchases. The Competition and Markets…

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  • UK media websites given power to block Google using their articles in AI search

    Watchdog makes ruling on search summaries after publishers complain about drop in click-through traffic and revenue Business live – latest updates Online publishers and news organisations are now able to block their content from appearing in Google’s AI summaries in UK search results, the British competition watchdog has announced. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)…

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  • As the tech mega-IPO race heats up, has OpenAI missed its moment?

    With rivals racing to market to raise ‘eye-popping sums’, the spotlight is now on the AI sector’s one-time ‘poster child’ A year is a long time in AI. Just 12 months ago, Sam Altman was predicting his company OpenAI would build a super intelligence and fundamentally remake society. Now the boss of the ChatGPT developer…

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  • Google owner Alphabet to sell $80bn in stock to fund AI spending spree

    One of largest equity fundraisings ever includes $10bn share sale to US investment group Berkshire Hathaway Business live – latest updates Google’s parent company, Alphabet, has said it plans to raise up to $80bn (£59bn) in equity to fund its vast artificial intelligence infrastructure investments, raising further questions over the economics of the AI boom.…

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  • Google DeepMind workers in UK vote to unionize amid deal with US military

    Exclusive: Worker pointed to Iran war and Pentagon’s Anthropic feud as indications the department is ‘not a responsible partner’ Workers developing Google’s artificial intelligence products in the UK have voted to unionize, in part out of concerns about a deal between the company and the US military that was announced last week. In a letter…

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  • Starmer adviser held 16 undisclosed meetings with top US tech bosses

    Exclusive: Varun Chandra’s talks with Google, Meta, Apple and others raise fears of ‘lobbying behind closed doors’ An influential government adviser close to Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves held 16 undisclosed meetings with top US tech executives, the Guardian can reveal. The No 10 business aide Varun Chandra discussed regulatory changes, AI and Donald Trump’s…

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  • ‘The era of invincibility is over’: the week big tech was brought to heel

    Ruling that Meta and YouTube deliberately designed addictive products marks possible watershed moment for social media The young woman at the heart of what has been called the tech industry’s “big tobacco” moment was on YouTube at six and Instagram by nine. More than a decade later, she says, she still can’t live without the…

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  • Former Google executive Matt Brittin selected to be next BBC director general

    Former Olympic rower to lead corporation as it hammers out future funding model with government The BBC has turned to a former tech executive to steer it through a critical period in its history, as it attempts to navigate government talks over its future and huge changes in media consumption. Matt Brittin, who stepped down…

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  • Google scraps AI search feature that crowdsourced amateur medical advice

    Exclusive: Revelation comes as company faces mounting scrutiny over use of AI to provide health tips Google has dropped a new artificial intelligence search feature that gave users crowdsourced health advice from amateurs around the world. The company had said its launch of “What People Suggest”, which provided tips from strangers, showed “the potential of…

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