News of the Cyber World

[kyonides]

Fortnite Developer Epic Games Defeats Google in Landmark Antitrust Case

The Wall Street Journal reports that the legal battle between Google and Epic Games, which began in 2020, has culminated in a San Francisco jury finding Google guilty of maintaining monopoly power through anticompetitive conduct. This verdict represents a major blow to Google, amidst its ongoing legal challenges regarding its search dominance and ad tech business.

Epic Games, known for its popular game Fortnite, accused Google of using its dominant position in smartphones to extract excessive profits from app developers. The jury’s unanimous verdict came after less than four hours of deliberation. Epic Games hailed the verdict as a victory for app developers and consumers worldwide.
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Wilson White, a Google vice president for government affairs and public policy, commented: “Android and Google Play provide more choice and openness than any other major mobile platform. We will continue to defend the Android business model and remain deeply committed to our users, partners and the broader Android ecosystem.”

The Epic Games lawsuit aimed at Google’s control over app distribution on Android devices and the fees charged on its Play Store.

AI News

Microsoft’s AI Chatbot ‘Hallucinates’ Election Misinformation

Wired reports that the integrity of information disseminated by AI chatbots has come under scrutiny following a concerning study. Microsoft’s AI chatbot, Copilot, originally known as Bing Chat, has been reportedly responding to political inquiries with a number of conspiracy theories, misinformation, and outdated or incorrect data, particularly regarding elections.

An exclusive report shared with Wired highlights these issues, demonstrating the chatbot’s tendency to link queries about elections to conspiracy theories and false information. For instance, when Wired inquired about 2024 U.S. election polling locations, Copilot referenced unrelated political events, such as Russian elections. Additionally, when prompted for information on electoral candidates, it listed GOP candidates no longer in the race.

The problem isn’t confined to the U.S. The chatbot also shared inaccurate information about elections in Switzerland and Germany, including wrong polling numbers, election dates, and fabricated controversies about candidates. This misinformation isn’t just a random occurrence but appears to be a systemic issue with the chatbot’s programming or data sources.

Perhaps most concerning is the AI’s tendency to hallucinate misinformation about elections. Hallucinations in AI terms are when chatbots create false information in an attempt to answer human queries. In one famous case of hallucinations, a lawyer faced fines and penalties after using ChatGPT to draft a legal brief which was filled with references to nonexistent case law.

Elon Musk Section

Elon Musk’s ‘Grok’ AI Is Just as Woke as Other Chatbots

Forbes reports that Elon Musk’s latest AI creation, Grok, originally marketed as a brash and honest AI with the ability to swear, has recently been launched on X/Twitter as part of the X Premium Plus subscription. The AI, initially perceived as a politically neutral or even conservative-leaning tool, has exhibited unexpectedly progressive social and political views.

In several online interactions, Grok has expressed opinions aligning with progressivism, including supporting Biden over Trump, advocating for social justice, climate change action, and healthcare reforms.
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This shift in Grok’s persona has not only amused the online community but also caught the attention of Musk himself. After a comparison chart suggested Grok was more left-leaning than ChatGPT, Musk acknowledged the need to recalibrate Grok to a more politically neutral stance. However, this effort raises questions about the feasibility and implications of imposing political neutrality on AI.

Elon Musk’s X/Twitter Welshed on Promise to Pay Employee Retention Bonuses

Courthouse News Services reports that the responsibility of companies to pay bonuses they promise to employees is being tested in a recent class action lawsuit against Twitter, now known as X. The lawsuit arose following Elon Musk’s acquisition of the company in October 2022. Central to the controversy are the oral promises made to employees about bonuses for staying with the company during the transition period.

Initially, these promises were made by executives, including the former chief financial officer, who assured employees of receiving bonuses at “fifty percent of target.” These assurances, according to the lawsuit filed by Mark Schobinger, a former senior director of compensation at Twitter, played a significant role in employees’ decisions to remain at the company. Corporate employees, especially in the competitive Silicon Valley economy, are more likely to stay through a transition period when they know they will receive a bonus for not jumping ship.

However, Twitter’s legal stance, as presented by attorney Eric Meckley, is that these oral commitments do not hold legal weight. During a hearing at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Meckley emphasized that there was no written or signed agreement regarding these bonuses. Twitter’s argument hinges on the principle that verbal promises cannot legally modify the terms of their existing employment contracts.

FCC Denies Elon Musk’s Starlink $886 Million in Rural Broadband Subsidies

The Verge reports that the FCC recently announced its decision not to award Elon Musk’s satellite internet service, Starlink, an $886 million subsidy. This funding, from the Universal Service Fund, was part of the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) program aimed at expanding broadband service in rural America. The FCC’s decision stemmed from doubts about Starlink’s ability to “deliver the promised service” of rural broadband, raising concerns about the optimal use of the fund’s limited resources.

Previously, SpaceX had won the bid to provide 100Mbps download and 20Mbps upload low-latency internet to over 640,000 locations in 35 states, funded by RDOF. However, the FCC, led by Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, expressed concerns about the company’s failure to meet the required standards to justify such a substantial investment of nearly $900 million in universal service funds.
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This decision follows a previous rejection of Starlink’s bid last year, leading to an appeal by SpaceX. FCC commissioner Brendan Carr dissented, noting the unprecedented requirement for Starlink to demonstrate its service obligations years in advance, a stipulation not imposed on other awardees.

Tesla Recalls Nearly All Vehicles Sold in U.S. to Fix System that Monitors Drivers Using Autopilot

AP reports documents posted Wednesday by U.S. safety regulators say the company will send out a software update to fix the monitoring problems.

The recall comes after a two-year investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) into a series of crashes that happened while the Autopilot partially automated driving system was in use.

While Tesla’s Autopilot system is meant to keep the vehicle in its lane, drivers are nonetheless instructed to keep their hands on the steering wheel at all times while observing road conditions and traffic.

But research shows drivers using Autopilot look away from the road more often, and that many of them believe their cars drive themselves which can lead to road accidents.
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The recall covers models Y, S, 3 and X produced between Oct. 5, 2012, and Dec. 7 of this year.

The software update includes additional controls and alerts “to further encourage the driver to adhere to their continuous driving responsibility,” the documents said.