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Universal basic income could be used to soften hit from AI job losses in UK, minister says
January 29, 2026
Lord Stockwood says people in government ‘definitely’ talking about idea as technology disrupts industries • Business live – latest updates The UK could introduce a universal basic income (UBI) to protect workers in industries that are being disrupted by AI, the investment minister Jason Stockwood has said. “Bumpy” changes to society caused by the introduction…
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What technology takes from us – and how to take it back | Rebecca Solnit
January 29, 2026
Decisions outsourced, chatbots for friends, the natural world an afterthought: Silicon Valley is giving us life void of connection. There is a way out – but it’s going to take collective effort Summer after summer, I used to descend into a creek that had carved a deep bed shaded by trees and lined with blackberry…
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‘This can’t be left to individual families’: how social media ban could affect under-16s
January 29, 2026
Parents, teachers and young people share their views on whether social media restrictions would work in the UK Pressure is mounting on the UK government to introduce a ban on social media for under-16s, after a decisive vote in House of Lords in favour of Australian-style restrictions. Peers backed a Tory-led amendment to the children’s…
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Millions creating deepfake nudes on Telegram as AI tools drive global wave of digital abuse
January 29, 2026
Analysis finds at least 150 channels on messaging app that are distributing AI-generated images and video Millions of people around the world are creating and sharing deepfake nudes on the secure messaging app Telegram, a Guardian analysis has shown, as the spread of advanced AI tools industrialises the online abuse of women. The Guardian has…
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Google DeepMind launches AI tool to help identify genetic drivers of disease
January 29, 2026
AlphaGenome can analyse up to 1m letters of DNA code at once and could pave way for new treatments Researchers at Google DeepMind have unveiled their latest artificial intelligence tool and claimed it will help scientists identify the genetic drivers of disease and ultimately pave the way for new treatments. AlphaGenome predicts how mutations interfere…
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Pornhub to stop new UK users accessing site from next week
January 28, 2026
Company cites impact of mandatory age checks introduced in summer 2025 under the Online Safety Act Pornhub is to stop new users accessing its site in the UK from next week, citing the impact of mandatory age checks that were introduced last summer under the Online Safety Act. The pornography website, which is one of…
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Amazon tells workers it will cut 16,000 jobs worldwide in second big wave of layoffs
January 28, 2026
Workers informed after message erroneously said affected employees in US, Canada and Costa Rica had already been told Business live – latest updates Amazon has told workers it is cutting 16,000 jobs around the world to streamline its operations, hours after sending out a message to staff about the layoffs apparently in error. It is…
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Meta allowed minors access to sex-talking chatbots despite staff concerns, lawsuit alleges
January 28, 2026
Filing by New Mexico’s attorney general includes Meta staff emails objecting to AI companion policy Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s chief executive, approved allowing minors to access artificial intelligence chatbot companions that safety staffers warned were capable of sexual interactions, according to internal Meta documents filed in a New Mexico state court case and made public on…
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‘Wake up to the risks of AI, they are almost here,’ Anthropic boss warns
January 28, 2026
Dario Amodei questions if human systems are ready to handle the ‘almost unimaginable power’ that is ‘potentially imminent’ Quarter of Britons fear losing jobs to AI in next five years Humanity is entering a phase of artificial intelligence development that will “test who we are as a species”, the boss of the AI startup Anthropic…
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Life after Molly: Ian Russell on big tech, his daughter’s death – and why a social media ban won’t work
January 26, 2026
Molly Russell was just 14 when she took her own life in 2017, and an inquest later found negative online content was a significant factor. With many people now pushing for teenagers to be kept off tech platforms, her father explains why he backs a different approach Ian Russell describes his life as being split…
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