Quote:Federal agents seized the phone and electronic devices of Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan in an early morning raid on his Manhattan apartment, just a week after the crypto betting platform correctly predicted Donald Trump’s stunning 2024 presidential election win.
The New York Post reports that the FBI conducted an early morning raid on the Soho apartment of 26-year-old Shayne Coplan, the founder and CEO of the prediction market platform Polymarket. According to a source close to the matter, Coplan was not provided with a reason for the seizure of his phone and other electronics, but the raid is suspected to be politically motivated.
The source believes that the government’s actions are a form of “grand political theater” and retribution against Polymarket for accurately predicting a landslide victory for Donald Trump over Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. Traditional polls had indicated a different outcome, making Polymarket’s successful prediction stand out.
Speculation also suggests that the FBI may be acting on recent leftist media reports accusing Polymarket of market manipulation and rigging its polls in favor of Trump. However, a Polymarket spokesperson stated that the platform is “fully transparent” and allows observers from around the world to analyze all market data as a public good.
Despite the raid, Coplan was not arrested or charged. He later posted on X/Twitter, “New phone, who dis?” indicating his reaction to the situation. He added another tweet shortly after the raid in which he criticized the Biden administration:
It’s discouraging that the current administration would seek a last-ditch effort to go after companies they deem to be associated with political opponents. We are deeply committed to being non-partisan, and today is no different, but the incumbents should do some self-reflecting…
Quote:German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck said that Europe must enact strict speech regulations on Elon Musk’s X platform to fight so-called “disinformation”.
Habeck, the likely candidate for chancellor for the leftist Green party in the upcoming elections, laid out his vision for Germany and Europe in a speech to the Neuhardenberg Castle Foundation on Saturday, including more internet censorship in the wake of Donald Trump’s victory.
“We cannot put democratic discourse in the hands of Elon Musk and Chinese software,” Habeck said, per Welt. Therefore, he argued, strict EU regulations must be applied to platforms such as TikTok and X.
The vice chancellor also called for Berlin to take an aggressive stance towards the Trump administration regarding trade and defence, arguing that the U.S. “needs us too… if Trump threatens, then we don’t have to hide.”
However, years of green policies advocated by Habeck’s party, including shutting down nuclear power entirely in the country, left Germany vulnerable to outside forces, notably the invasion of Ukraine and the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines.
The sorry state of the German economy resulted in the leftist coalition government collapsing this week, in part due to concerns about Trump’s return to the White House.
Habeck’s desire to further censor X was echoed in Paris, with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot telling Le Parisien on Saturday: “We will never accept that public debate is outsourced to deregulated social networks in the hands of special interests, whether American or Chinese.”
“Let us hope that he does not inflict on American democracy the treatment he has given to Twitter. Democracy is a fragile treasure,” Barrot added.
Quote:Cybersecurity experts have issued an urgent warning, urging computer users not to type the phrase “Are Bengal Cats legal in Australia?” into search engines due to the risk of falling victim to a bizarre cyber attack.
The New York Post reports that in an alarming discovery, cybersecurity experts at SOPHOS have identified a new threat targeting unsuspecting internet users. The company has warned that searching for the seemingly innocuous phrase “Are Bengal Cats legal in Australia?” could lead to personal information being stolen by hackers.
According to SOPHOS, cyber criminals have employed a tactic known as “SEO poisoning” to manipulate search engine results, pushing malicious websites to the top of the page. When users click on these fraudulent links, which appear to be legitimate, they unknowingly expose their personal information, such as bank details, to a malicious program called Gootloader.
The Gootloader program not only steals sensitive data but can also lock users out of their own computers, leaving them vulnerable to further attacks. What makes this threat particularly concerning is that it targets users who are not necessarily searching for anything nefarious, but rather for information about the legality of owning a specific breed of cat in Australia.
At present, the dangerous links only appear in search results when the word “Australia” is included, putting those in the country at the highest risk of falling victim to this attack. However, experts warn that this tactic could easily be adapted to target users in other regions or those searching for different topics.
SOPHOS emphasizes the importance of being vigilant when clicking on links in search results, even if the search term seems harmless. The company urges those who believe they may have been a victim of SEO poisoning to change their passwords immediately and take steps to secure their personal information.
Quote:Billionaire leftist and former Shark Tank star Mark Cuban has deleted his pro-Kamala Harris tweets in the aftermath of her epic election defeat by Donald Trump. The billionaire, who infamously slurred conservative women as weak just days before the election, claims “I’ve always gone back and deleted tweets.”
The Wrap reports that popular X/Twitter account Libs of TikTok has revealed billionaire Kamala Harris supporter Mark Cuban has deleted his numerous pro-Harris tweets following her massive failure on Election Day. However, Cuban has swiftly denied these allegations, claiming that he routinely deletes old tweets as a longstanding practice.
In response to the initial accusation made by Libs of TikTok, Cuban stated, “I’ve always gone back and deleted tweets. For years. Same with 2020 election. 2016 election. Same with other stuff. You can use the wayback machine if you really want to see them.” Despite his explanation, social media users remain skeptical of Cuban’s motives for removing the tweets.
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Throughout the campaign, Cuban’s support for the Democratic candidate was unrelenting. The co-founder of Costplusdrugs.com, former Shark Tank star, and minority owner of the Dallas Mavericks expressed his belief that Harris represented the chance for an “opportunity economy” through her approach to regulation and small businesses.
Cuban’s political stance has evolved over the years. While he initially thought that Donald Trump, as a businessman, would be good for the economy before Trump’s official entry into the 2016 presidential race, Cuban’s opinion shifted in the following years. In a USA Today interview in October, he explained his reservations about Trump, stating, “Stability is the key for larger businesses. They don’t want to wake up to a tweet or a new tariff that impacts their business, because Donald got mad at someone.”
Quote:Google has been accused by multiple federal judges of engaging in tactics to conceal and destroy internal communications that could be used against the company in ongoing antitrust lawsuits. One judge called Google’s suppression of evidence “the most serious and disturbing” he had seen in his career as a judge.
Mercury News reports that in a series of ongoing anti-monopoly cases against Google, federal court judges have criticized the tech giant for lying, cheating, and deliberately destroying evidence that could be used against the company. The incidents, filed as evidence in the lawsuits, highlight what authorities say are Google’s long-running efforts to hide and eliminate internal communications that could be damaging in legal actions.
In one instance, a high-ranking Google director realized that a communication program’s chat history function was turning on while discussing digital-ads prices with two executives, meaning the conversation would not be automatically deleted and could be discovered by adversaries in lawsuits. The director texted, “History is on, jesus. Sigh.”
Judges in three separate cases have taken issue with Google’s handling of evidence. In San Francisco federal court, Judge James Donato described Google’s suppression of evidence as “the most serious and disturbing” he had seen as a judge. He stated that Google “intended to subvert” the process of providing materials to its lawsuit opponents and that evidence was “lost with the intent to prevent its use in litigation.”
In Virginia federal court, Judge Leonie Brinkema said Google employees added lawyers into discussions as a “smokescreen” to invoke attorney-client privilege, calling the maneuver a “clear abuse.” She concluded that an “awful lot of evidence has likely been destroyed.”
In the District of Columbia federal court, Judge Amit Mehta expressed his astonishment at “the lengths to which Google goes to avoid creating a paper trail” for regulators and legal foes. He cited the auto-deletion of chats and noted that Google instructed employees to include a lawyer in sensitive email discussions, mark the message “attorney/client privileged,” and “ask the lawyer a question.”
Quote:Shailesh Prakash, a key Google executive in charge of the company’s News efforts and central to the tech giant’s relationships with publishers, has resigned after two years in the role.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Shailesh Prakash, vice president and general manager of Google News, has departed the company amid ongoing tensions between the tech giant and news publishers. Prakash’s resignation comes at a time when Google’s relationships with news outlets remain strained over issues such as traffic declines and compensation for the use of their content.
Prakash joined Google two years ago from the Washington Post, where he spent over a decade as Chief Information Officer, overseeing data and technology. During his tenure at the Post, he played a crucial role in transforming the news outlet’s digital operation and worked closely with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos following his acquisition of the publication in 2013.
At Google, Prakash brought an understanding of publishers’ frustrations as they grappled with declining traffic and sought compensation for Google’s use of their content. In addition to overseeing product and engineering for the News group, he communicated with leaders at news publishers regarding changes related to search and generative AI.
When Prakash joined the company, Google was working to secure deals with publishers in the U.S. for its Showcase product, which pays publishers in exchange for featuring their content on some Google platforms. However, publishers have argued that their content is worth more than what Google has been willing to pay.
Currently, publishers are concerned about Google’s use of their content to produce generative AI overviews, which provide complete answers to search queries along with a link icon to the publishers’ sites that source the information. This practice has further strained the relationship between Google and news outlets.
Quote:Sam Trabucco, the former Alameda Research co-CEO, will forfeit a 53-foot yacht and forgo $70 million worth of claims in a proposed settlement with the FTX bankruptcy estate.
The turnover will also include two San Francisco, California, apartments worth $8.7 million.
“Following constructive, arm’s length negotiations, the Debtors, FTX DM and Trabucco have reached an agreement that delivers significant value for the Debtors’ and FTX DM’s stakeholders without the delay and cost of litigation,” the settlement document states.
Jurors convicted disgraced former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried of seven counts of fraud and conspiracy last November. Outside of the courthouse in Manhattan, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said the government has “no patience” for fraud and corruption.
Bankman-Fried founded digital currency exchange FTX and Alameda Research, which is the crypto trading sister company of FTX. Caroline Ellison led Alameda Research with Trabucco.
Trabucco resigned in August 2022, right before the collapse of FTX and Alameda.
The settlement stated, “Trabucco will transfer to the Debtors all rights and interests represented in and asserted through his claims filed against the Debtors, including with respect to his customer claims totaling approximately $70 million, and all of his claims against the Debtors will be disallowed and expunged.”
A bankruptcy judge approved FTX’s reorganization plan in October, which would allow 98 percent of its creditors to receive roughly 118 percent of their claim value in cash.
A report detailed how Ellison may not face jail time for her role in the collapse of FTX, as she played a pivotal role in the criminal case against Bankman-Fried, her former boyfriend.
“Because of the closeness of her relationship to Sam, she was able to provide a personal portrait of Bankman-Fried, an elusive character to be sure, that was probably unique in the government’s case,” former Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin J. O’Brien, who specializes in white-collar criminal defense in New York, said.
Quote:DNA testing company 23andMe is laying off 40 percent of its staff and implementing a major restructuring plan in a bid to avoid bankruptcy and ensure long-term viability. This is just the latest misfortune for a company once considered a darling of the Silicon Valley economy.
TechSpot reports that home DNA testing pioneer 23andMe announced this week that it will lay off 40 percent of its total workforce as part of a comprehensive restructuring effort aimed at reducing expenses and focusing on the company’s core consumer business. The move comes amid declining demand for casual genetic testing and a series of recent setbacks for the company, including a data breach and accusations of running an auto-renewal scam.
CEO Anne Wojcicki stated that the company is “taking these difficult but necessary actions” to ensure 23andMe’s long-term success. The layoffs are expected to save the company more than $35 million annually, with a one-time operating expense of $12 million for severance packages and related costs. Breitbart News previously reported that the company’s entire board of directors resigned, with the exception of Wojcicki herself.
As part of the restructuring plan, 23andMe will be discontinuing its therapeutics division, which focused on research into cancer treatments and monoclonal therapies. While the company plans to wind down in-house testing and research, Wojcicki indicated that 23andMe intends to continue its work in these areas through strategic partnerships.
Adding to the company’s woes, 23andMe suffered a data breach last year that exposed the information of customers. Rather than taking responsibility for the incident, the company initially blamed its customers, citing “recycled credentials” obtained by hackers in an unrelated breach. It was later revealed that 23andMe had failed to detect the data breach for over five months.
More recently, the company faced scrutiny from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) after customers complained about its subscription service, alleging that 23andMe auto-renewed memberships without consent and refused to issue refunds. Some users claimed that they had physically canceled their subscriptions before the end of the term but were still charged as if the cancellation had not occurred.
Quote:Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Brendan Carr on Friday called on big tech platforms to dismantle the “censorship cartel,” charging that American democracy depends on it. Carr states that the tech Masters of the Universe, in conjunction with “the orwellian-named NewsGuard,” fact checking groups, and ad agencies, have enforced “one-sided narratives.”
“Facebook, Google, Apple, Microsoft & others have played central roles in the censorship cartel. The Orwellian named NewsGuard along with “fact checking” groups & ad agencies helped enforce one-sided narratives. The censorship cartel must be dismantled,” Carr wrote on X/Twitter.
Carr wrote to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and Apple CEO Tim Cook about how their platforms have “worked — often in concert with so-called ‘media monitors’ and others — to defund, demonetize, and otherwise put out of business news outlets and organizations that dared to deviate from an approved narrative.”
The FCC Commissioner said that these big tech platforms participated in a “censorship cartel” that also included in advertising, marketing, and “so-called ‘fact-checking organizations'” and the Biden-Harris administration.
Carr’s reference to advertising agencies is related to GARM, which organized a marketing blackout against X/Twitter for daring to embrace free speech. It was shut down after Elon Musk filed a lawsuit against it.
“The censorship cartel is an affront to Americans’ constitutional freedoms and must be completely dismantled. Americans must be able to reclaim their right to free speech. Indeed, our democracy depends on freedom of expression.”
Quote:Four young friends tragically lost their lives when they were trapped inside a burning Tesla Model Y in Canada. Now, additional details of the crash are emerging, including that the car’s electronic door handles were disabled when the electric vehicle lost power.
The Daily Mail reports that a horrific crash in Toronto last month resulted in the deaths of four friends who were unable to escape their burning Tesla Model Y due to the fire disabling the car’s electronic door handles. The sole survivor was only able to escape after a heroic man employee smashed a window with a metal pole and helped her from the burning EV.
The four victims have been identified as Neelraj Gohil, his sister Ketaba Gohil, Jay Sisodiya, and Digvijay Patel.
Rick Harper, the postal worker who rescued the surviving woman, told the Toronto Star that she frantically told him she “couldn’t open the doors” from inside the wrecked vehicle. Tesla cars use electronic buttons to open the doors rather than traditional handles. If power is lost in a crash, the doors can become inoperable.
“I would assume the young lady would have tried to open the door from the inside, because she was pretty desperate to get out,” Harper said. “I don’t know if that was the battery or what. But she couldn’t get out.”
According to Harper, the smoke from the fire was so thick that he was unaware there were other occupants still trapped inside as the woman scrambled out head-first after he broke the window. It remains unknown if the other victims were also attempting to escape the burning vehicle.
Quote:A report of a cracked pipeline caused the evacuation of a Tesla factory in Austin, Texas, this morning amid concerns of a hazardous gas leak.
The Daily Mail reports that the Austin Fire Department responded to a call about a potential gas leak at the Texas Tesla factory around 10:00 a.m. CT this morning. Crews received reports of a “hazardous materials incident” which prompted an immediate evacuation of the area surrounding the plant as a precautionary measure.
In a statement, the Austin Fire Department said they set up an isolation zone to ensure the safety of everyone working in the vicinity of the factory. Atmos Energy, the local natural gas utility, is working to completely shut off the valves to stop any further leakage. Commuters have been warned to expect heavy traffic and delays in the area as emergency crews work to secure the scene.
The Tesla Gigafactory in Austin is a primary manufacturing plant for Tesla vehicles, including the Cybertruck, and also serves as the company’s headquarters. Approximately 20,000 people work at the massive facility. As of now, there have been no reports of any injuries related to the gas leak incident.
This is a developing story and more details are expected to emerge as local authorities and Tesla representatives provide further updates. The cause of the pipeline crack is still under investigation. Gas leaks pose serious safety hazards and it is crucial that the source is identified and repaired as quickly as possible to avoid any potential explosions or fires.
The evacuation of such a large facility like the Tesla plant will undoubtedly cause significant disruptions to the company’s operations today. However, the safety of the workers is the top priority and it is important for everyone to follow the instructions of emergency personnel until the situation is fully resolved. Stay tuned for more information as this story unfolds.
"For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ," 1 Thessalonians 5:9
Maranatha!
The Internet might be either your friend or enemy. It just depends on whether or not she has a bad hair day.
Quote:In leftist strongholds like Seattle, Washington, driving a Tesla has become a politically charged act following CEO Elon Musk’s conservative statements and support for Republican Donald Trump. Fanatical Democrats who once thought they were saving the world by driving a Tesla EV now feel betrayed by Musk.
The Seattle Times reports that Seattle, a city renowned for its leftist politics and environmental consciousness, has long had a complex relationship with Tesla, the pioneering electric vehicle manufacturer. However, the recent political shift of Tesla CEO Elon Musk to support Donald Trump has further intensified the love-hate dynamic, leading to increased backlash against the brand and its owners.
Musk’s public support for Donald Trump coupled with his social media posts on issues such as immigration and transgender rights, has left many Seattle-area Tesla owners feeling conflicted. Some have reported instances of their vehicles being vandalized or receiving hostile gestures from other drivers, a marked change from the generally positive reception Tesla EVs once enjoyed in the region.
Despite the growing animosity, there are still those who remain loyal to the brand, citing Tesla’s innovative technology and potential to disrupt the traditional automotive industry. Matt Moreno, a Microsoft engineer from Everett, acknowledged the unfortunate nature of Musk’s political views but maintained that it does not affect his opinion of Tesla’s products.
However, others have reached a breaking point, choosing to abandon the brand altogether. John Wyss, a 60-year-old Seattle resident, grew increasingly uncomfortable with the perception that owning a Tesla was tantamount to endorsing Musk’s right-wing politics. He ultimately decided to trade in his leased Model 3 for an electric Hyundai.
The “Elon Effect” appears to be reflected in recent sales data, with Tesla deliveries in Washington state falling by 11 percent through September 30, even as overall electric vehicle registrations rose. This decline marks a significant shift for a region that once boasted the highest per capita Tesla ownership in the country.
Quote:Tesla CEO Elon Musk has lost his bid to have his record-breaking $56 billion 2018 pay package reinstated after a Delaware judge upheld her previous ruling that the compensation plan was improperly granted.
CNBC reports that in a significant setback for Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick of the Delaware Court of Chancery upheld her January ruling that voided Musk’s $56 billion pay package, the largest compensation plan in U.S. history for a public company executive. The judge reaffirmed that the process leading to the approval of the pay plan was “deeply flawed,” with Musk individually controlling Tesla and dictating the terms of his compensation to a board that failed to fairly negotiate.
Breitbart News previously reported on the ruling, in which the judge criticized Tesla’s “self-driving process.”
In her decision, McCormick asked: “Was the richest person in the world overpaid? The stockholder plaintiff in this derivative lawsuit says so. He claims that Tesla, Inc.’s directors breached their fiduciary duties by awarding Elon Musk a performance-based equity-compensation plan.”
McCormick continued: “In the final analysis, Musk launched a self-driving process, recalibrating the speed and direction along the way as he saw fit. The process arrived at an unfair price. And through this litigation, the plaintiff requests a recall.”
Following the initial ruling in January, Tesla conducted a shareholder vote in June at its annual meeting in Austin, Texas, asking investors to “ratify” Musk’s 2018 CEO pay plan. Musk’s attorneys attempted to persuade the judge to reverse her opinion after the trial, relying on the results of that vote. However, Chancellor McCormick rejected this argument, stating, “Even if a stockholder vote could have a ratifying effect, it could not do so here. Were the court to condone the practice of allowing defeated parties to create new facts for the purpose of revising judgments, lawsuits would become interminable.”
As part of Monday’s opinion, McCormick approved a $345 million attorney fee award for the lawyers who successfully sued on behalf of Tesla shareholders to void Musk’s pay plan. The attorneys from Bernstein, Litowitz, Berger & Grossmann, representing the plaintiff, expressed their satisfaction with the ruling, thanking the Chancellor and her staff for their hard work in overseeing the complex case.
Despite the legal setback, Musk has seen his net worth increase substantially in recent weeks. Since Donald Trump’s election victory in November, Musk’s wealth has grown by more than $43 billion, excluding the options tied to the pay package. Tesla shares have surged 42 percent in the four weeks following the election, driven by optimism that Musk’s close relationship with the incoming president will lead to favorable policies for his companies.
Quote:Elon Musk has filed for a preliminary injunction in federal court to prevent OpenAI from transitioning into a fully for-profit business.
CNBC reports that in a recent development in the ongoing legal battle between Elon Musk and OpenAI, attorneys representing Musk, his AI startup xAI, and former OpenAI board member Shivon Zilis have filed for a preliminary injunction against the AI powerhouse. The injunction aims to block OpenAI from converting into a fully for-profit business and allegedly requiring its investors to refrain from funding competitors, including Musk’s xAI.
The legal feud between Musk and OpenAI, along with its CEO Sam Altman and other long-involved parties such as tech investor Reid Hoffman and Microsoft, has escalated with this latest court filing. Musk had initially sued OpenAI in March 2024 in a San Francisco state court before withdrawing the complaint and refiling it in federal court several months later. The federal suit, led by attorney Marc Toberoff in Los Angeles, argues that OpenAI has violated federal racketeering (RICO) laws.
In mid-November, the complaint was expanded to include allegations that Microsoft and OpenAI had violated antitrust laws when OpenAI allegedly asked investors to agree not to invest in rival companies, including Musk’s xAI. The motion for preliminary injunction asserts that OpenAI should be prohibited from “benefitting from wrongfully obtained competitively sensitive information or coordination via the Microsoft-OpenAI board interlocks.”
OpenAI has emerged as one of the most prominent startups in recent years, with its AI chatbot ChatGPT becoming a major success and driving significant corporate enthusiasm for AI and related large language models. Meanwhile, Musk’s xAI, which debuted in July 2023, has released its Grok chatbot and is raising up to $6 billion at a $50 billion valuation to purchase 100,000 Nvidia chips.
Musk’s attorneys argue that the terms OpenAI asked investors to agree to amounted to a “group boycott” that “blocks xAI’s access to essential investment capital.” They further state that OpenAI “cannot lumber about the marketplace as a Frankenstein, stitched together from whichever corporate forms serve the pecuniary interests of Microsoft.”
Quote:Elon Musk’s SpaceX successfully launched a Falcon 9 rocket today from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, setting a new record for rocket reusability.
Space.com reports that SpaceX continues to push the boundaries of rocket reusability and dominates the private space industry, as evidenced by the successful launch of a Falcon 9 rocket on its record-breaking 24th flight. The mission will deliver 24 Starlink internet satellites to low Earth orbit (LEO). The company’s recent success has caused its potential valuation to reach $350 billion, making it one of the most valuable startups in the world.
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This particular Falcon 9 first stage booster had previously flown 23 times, a record it shared with two other boosters. With this 24th successful launch, it now stands alone as the most reused rocket in SpaceX’s fleet. The accomplishment highlights the company’s ongoing efforts to reduce the cost of spaceflight through the development of reusable rocket technology.
Approximately eight minutes after liftoff, the Falcon 9’s first stage successfully landed on the drone ship “A Shortfall of Gravitas” stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. This marked the booster’s 24th successful landing, further demonstrating the reliability and durability of SpaceX’s rocket technology.
Meanwhile, the rocket’s upper stage continued its journey to deploy the 24 Starlink satellites into their intended orbit. Starlink, a massive satellite constellation project by SpaceX, aims to provide high-speed internet access to users worldwide, particularly in remote and underserved areas. With this launch, the number of operational Starlink satellites in orbit now exceeds 6,750, making it the largest satellite constellation ever assembled.
Quote:Whether sabotage or innocent accident, suspicion immediately fell on the much-discussed wave of Russian-backed acts of sabotage against European infrastructure when an internet backbone cable linking Sweden and Finland was cut twice overnight.
Thousands of Finnish homes were left without data connectivity on Tuesday morning after a submarine fibre optic cable linking Sweden and Finland was cut in two places on land overnight. The damage took place in two separate suburbs near the Finnish capital Helsinki, in Espoo and Vihti, and the infrastructure’s owner has dispatched teams for repairs they said.
Sweden’s Minister for Civil Defence Carl-Oskar Bohlin told broadcaster SVT “sabotage is suspected” but the facts are not yet clear, nevertheless “we are taking this seriously”, he said, remarking Finnish Police are leading the investigation.
Finnish Police are investigating but say they have not launched a criminal probe yet. One of the breaks has been attributed to a man digging up the ground with a backhoe (‘JCB’ type digger) and may have been accidental, the telecom company said.
Niklas Ekström of cable owner Global Connect told Helsingin Sanomat that accident or not, it is odd to have two breaks in different places at the same time: “Cables break for many different reasons. It is certainly unusual for two cables to be damaged at the same time.”
Among the agencies notified in the response to the damage were the Swedish government’s postal and communications ministry, the Swedish armed forces, and the Norwegian Agency for ‘Social Security and Preparedness’.
While these incidents may yet turn out to be pure coincidental damage, European governments remain on high alert for acts of sabotage, given several similar events have taken place recently. Two submarine data cables connecting connecting Finland, Germany, Lithuania, and Sweden were cut last month by a Chinese-flagged ship, with Russia eyed as the motivating force behind what is thought to have been a ‘hybrid war’ attack.
While cutting cables in incidents that could be plausibly denied is less spectacular than other attack vectors open to malign actors, Western nations are ever-more reliant on high speed internet traffic for their economies, and to manage their infrastructure.
Quote:Intel’s board of directors has forced out CEO Pat Gelsinger due to frustrations over the slow pace of the company’s turnaround efforts.
Bloomberg reports that Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger has been ousted from his position after the board lost confidence in his plans to revitalize the iconic chipmaker. The decision came to light following a meeting last week between Gelsinger and the board, where they discussed the company’s progress in regaining market share and closing the gap with rival Nvidia.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Gelsinger was presented with two options: retire or be removed. He ultimately chose to announce the end of his tenure at Intel. The company has appointed Chief Financial Officer David Zinsner and Executive Vice President Michelle Johnston Holthaus as interim co-CEOs while the board searches for Gelsinger’s permanent replacement.
Gelsinger, 63, had been hailed as a potential savior when he returned to Intel in 2021, nearly 12 years after leaving the company. He pledged to restore Intel to its former glory as a leader in the semiconductor industry, particularly in manufacturing – an area where it had fallen behind competitors like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC).
As part of his turnaround strategy, Gelsinger launched an ambitious plan to expand Intel’s factory network, including the construction of a massive new complex in Ohio. This project received federal aid from the Chips and Science Act. However, despite these efforts, the board grew increasingly concerned about the lack of products capable of winning in the market, feeling that this crucial aspect had been neglected in the push to transform Intel into a made-to-order chip manufacturer.
The shake-up at Intel comes amid a rapidly evolving industry landscape, with the rise of AI computing posing significant challenges. Nvidia, once a niche rival struggling in Intel’s shadow, has now become the world’s most valuable publicly traded company, dominating the AI chip market and capturing tens of billions of dollars that would have previously gone to Intel.
Quote:Meta head of global affairs Nick Clegg revealed in a press briefing that CEO Mark Zuckerberg is eager to play an “active role” in shaping tech policy for President-elect Donald Trump’s administration. In March Trump described Facebook as “the enemy of the people” and labeled its CEO “Zuckerschmuck.”
The New York Post reports that Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is making moves to establish a closer relationship with the incoming Trump administration. Nick Clegg, Meta’s head of global affairs, recently stated that CEO Mark Zuckerberg is keen on having “an active role in the debates that any administration needs to have about maintaining America’s leadership in the technological sphere … and particularly the pivotal role that AI will play.”
This revelation comes on the heels of Zuckerberg’s recent dinner with President-elect Trump at Mar-a-Lago, where the billionaire reportedly requested a meeting to discuss “the incoming administration.” Meta later said that Zuckerberg was “grateful for the invitation.”
Clegg also acknowledged that Meta has been overzealous in its content moderation efforts, particularly regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. “We’re acutely aware — because users quite rightly raised their voice and complained about this — that we sometimes overenforce, we make mistakes and we remove or restrict innocuous or innocent content,” he admitted.
Meta’s efforts to improve the precision and accuracy of its content moderation will be “an area of ongoing focus” for the company, according to Clegg. This admission comes after Zuckerberg shocked the tech industry in August by revealing that the Biden administration had pressured Facebook to censor COVID-19 content in 2021, including lighthearted memes and satirical posts.
Quote:Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Commissioner Andrew Ferguson on Monday urged the antitrust commission to investigate “unlawful collusion” between big tech platforms and stop advertiser boycotts, which he believes threaten competition.
Ferguson noted that Commissioner Melissa Holyoak proposed reviving President Trump’s Executive Order 13925 to promote transparency regarding big tech’s content moderation and censorship practices.
“When Americans’ ability to engage in robust public debate on issues of national importance is at stake, no stone should be left unturned. The Commission should undertake these investigations,” he charged.
Ferguson, who is a top contender to replace FTC Chair Lina Khan, said that the government should use antitrust laws against any platforms limiting free speech:
We should address not just censorious conduct specifically, but also investigate the structural issues that may have given these platforms their power over Americans’ lives and speech in the first place. In particular, we must vigorously enforce the antitrust laws against any platforms found to be unlawfully limiting Americans’ ability to exchange ideas freely and openly. We must prosecute any unlawful collusion between online platforms, and confront advertiser boycotts which threaten competition among those platforms.
Ferguson noted that the major online platforms all censored in “lockstep,” which raise questions of antitrust violations if they made an agreement to censor:
For years, the major speech platforms seemed to censor in lockstep. They banned dissent on the origins of COVID-19, mask mandates, the efficacy and safety of COVID-19 vaccines, transgenderism, and the integrity of the 2020 election. Every major speech platform— Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube—banned President Trump roughly contemporaneously in early 2021.2 And this phenomenon was never more obvious than in 2020, when major Big Tech platforms simultaneously banned reporting on, and discussion of, the Hunter Biden laptop story.
The antitrust laws generally do not forbid competitors from engaging in unilateral, parallel conduct—that is, identical or substantially similar conduct that occurs at about the same time but coincidentally.4 They do, however, prohibit agreements among competitors not to compete. If the platforms colluded amongst each other to set shared censorship policies, such an agreement would be tantamount to an agreement not to compete on contract terms or product quality. “[A]s far as the Sherman Act … is concerned, concerted agreements on contract terms are as unlawful as boycotts.
Quote:Bitcoin (BTC) sold for over $100,000 in Wednesday evening trading, hitting another all-time high benchmark value in its nascent bull run.
The digital asset peaked around its previous 2022 record of $73,000 in March 2024, weeks after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved several exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for investors seeking to acquire it, according to data from CoinMarketCap.com. At the end of October, Bitcoin came close to that $73,000 record before retreating in the 60,000s range, then rocketing to a new all-time high of $75,000 before the end of the first week of November. Since then, BTC has sailed past new price benchmarks, first selling for $90,000 on November 13.
In the course of an hour, BTC surged from roughly $98,500 to $103,000 Wednesday evening, smashing a six-figure price barrier that felt unthinkable a decade ago, when the asset spent an entire year under $1,000.
Several factors may have contributed to the past month’s price action; investors may have been energized by President-elect Donald Trump’s victory over Kamala Harris (Trump vowed to create a BTC “strategic reserve” and appealed directly to Bitcoiners on the campaign trail) and the announcement that Gary Gensler — a villain in the eyes of many cryptocurrency fans — would step down from the SEC once Trump takes office.
But one of the key elements in Bitcoin’s perennial rise is its “halving” — a 50% reduction in its issuance of new “coin” units — that occurs every four years, making the “mining” that secures the network that records the ledger of BTC transactions more competitive and costly. The latest Bitcoin halving occurred in April 2024. Just as it did in 2012, 2016, and 2020, BTC appears to be entering price discovery roughly five months after the latest halving.
Historically, Bitcoin has grown in cycles of parabolic ascent and “crashes” down to prices far above the previous cycle’s highs.
"For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ," 1 Thessalonians 5:9
Maranatha!
The Internet might be either your friend or enemy. It just depends on whether or not she has a bad hair day.
Quote:ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE, Jan 25 (Reuters) - (This Jan. 25 story has been refiled to add the missing words 'some of' in paragraph 9)
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday he was in talks with multiple people over buying TikTok and would likely have a decision on the popular app's future in the next 30 days.
"I have spoken to many people about TikTok and there is great interest in TikTok," Trump told reporters on Air Force One during a flight to Florida.
Earlier in the day, Reuters reported two people with knowledge of the discussions said Trump's administration is working on a plan to save TikTok that involves tapping software company Oracle (ORCL.N), opens new tab and a group of outside investors to effectively take control of the app's operations.
Under the deal being negotiated by the White House, TikTok's China-based owner, ByteDance, would retain a stake in the company, but data collection and software updates would be overseen by Oracle, which already provides the foundation of TikTok's Web infrastructure, one of the sources told Reuters.
However, in his comments to reporters on the flight, Trump said he had not spoken to Oracle's Larry Ellison about buying the app.
Asked if he was putting together a deal with Oracle and other investors to save TikTok, Trump said: "No, not with Oracle. Numerous people are talking to me, very substantial people, about buying it and I will make that decision probably over the next 30 days. Congress has given 90 days. If we can save TikTok, I think it would be a good thing."
The sources did say the terms of any potential deal with Oracle were fluid and likely to change. One source said the full scope of the discussions was not yet set and could include the U.S. operations as well as other regions.
National Public Radio on Saturday reported the deal talks for TikTok's global operations, citing two people with knowledge of the negotiations. Oracle had no immediate comment.
The deal being negotiated anticipates participation from some of ByteDance's current U.S. investors, according to the sources. Jeff Yass's Susquehanna International Group, General Atlantic, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) and Sequoia Capital are among ByteDance's U.S. backers.
Representatives for TikTok, ByteDance investors General Atlantic, KKR, Sequoia and Susquehanna could not immediately be reached for comment.
Others vying to acquire TikTok, including the investor group led by billionaire Frank McCourt and another involving Jimmy Donaldson, better known as the YouTube star Mr. Beast, are not part of the Oracle negotiation, one of the sources said.
ORACLE RESPONSIBLE
Under the terms of the deal, Oracle would be responsible for addressing national security issues. TikTok initially struck a deal with Oracle in 2022 to store U.S. users' information to alleviate Washington's worries about Chinese government interference.
TikTok's management would remain in place, to operate the short video app, according to one of the sources.
The app, which is used by 170 million Americans, was taken offline temporarily for users shortly before a law that said it must be sold by ByteDance on national security grounds, or be banned, took effect on Jan. 19.
Trump, after taking office a day later, signed an executive order seeking to delay by 75 days the enforcement of the law that was put in place after U.S. officials warned that under ByteDance, there was a risk of Americans' data being misused.
Quote:U.S. TikTok users who once saw the app as a haven for free speech say they see signs of censorship after the platform, which is owned by China's ByteDance, was revived by an executive order from President Donald Trump.
TikTok users are noting a difference in the short-video app following its revival after going dark on Saturday under a new law -- enacted over national security concerns during the Biden administration with bipartisan support -- that requires it to be sold to a U.S. buyer. Trump has vowed to find a solution to the ban, with several bidders in the mix, including people with close relationships to the new Republican president.
Users say they are seeing fewer livestreams, and some activity is being removed or flagged at higher rates for violating community guidelines, including for behavior that was previously permitted.
"Our policies and algorithms did not change over the weekend," TikTok said in a statement to Reuters. "We are working hard to restore our U.S. operations back to normal and expect some temporary instability as we restore our services, which could impact TikTok features or users' access to the app."
But some users said they now see more content moderation, like limited search results, as well as warnings about misinformation and prompts for users to check their sources.
Some claimed TikTok was striking comments that used phrases like "Free Palestine" and "Free Luigi," a reference to Luigi Mangione, who is accused of killing a UnitedHealth executive, which had been previously allowed.
TikTok said it does not allow content that promotes violent or hateful individuals on the platform.
On Monday, Trump signed an executive order that he said aims to restore freedom of speech and end censorship, referring specifically to social media platforms.
Content creator, comedian and veteran Pat Loller, 36, said a satirical video he created in response to billionaire Elon Musk's hand gesture at an inauguration event that appeared to some as a Nazi salute was first tagged as misinformation. Loller was then limited in how widely he could share the video, which garnered over a million views.
"I've never seen this before, and it is still there. It says 'sharing is limited to one chat at a time,'" said Loller, who has 1.3 million followers.
Trump on Tuesday said that he was open to Musk, who is a close ally of the president and helping oversee his new initiative on government efficiency, buying TikTok, if he wanted to do so.
TikTok user Lisa Cline said on Meta's (META.O), opens new tab Threads that she was having issues posting a video to TikTok criticizing Trump.
Quote:Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O), opens new tab Google, already facing an unprecedented regulatory onslaught, is looking to shape public perception and policies on artificial intelligence ahead of a global wave of AI regulation.
A key priority, one executive told Reuters, comes in building out educational programs to train the workforce on AI.
“Getting more people and organizations, including governments, familiar with AI and using AI tools, makes for better AI policy and opens up new opportunities – it's a virtuous cycle,” said Kent Walker, Alphabet's president of global affairs.
As Google races to best Big Tech rivals including Microsoft-backed (MSFT.O), opens new tab OpenAI and Meta (META.O), opens new tab in the AI arena, it is mindful of the heavy regulatory scrutiny it faces in its existing businesses in advertising and search.
In the European Union, Google has offered to sell a part of its ad tech business to appease regulators, Reuters reported. In the U.S., the Justice Department is attempting to force a breakup of its Chrome Web browser — though it may shift course under the administration of President Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, governments globally are drafting new regulations on issues that could be exacerbated by AI, such as copyright and privacy. The EU AI Act, which seeks to assess risk and require disclosures from general-purpose AI systems, has received pushback from tech giants that could find themselves in the crosshairs of multibillion-dollar fines.
The DOJ has also sought to curtail Google’s advances in AI as a remedy in a federal case that found its search business to be an illegal monopoly.
Google executives see an opportunity to shape the narrative around a technology that has stoked emerging fears of mass job loss.
CEO Sundar Pichai announced in September a $120 million investment fund to build AI education programs. Deputies including Walker and Ruth Porat, president and chief investment officer, are increasingly traveling globally to discuss policy recommendations with governments.
“There’s a lot of upside in terms of helping people who may be displaced by this. We do want to focus on that,” Walker said.
Efforts include expanding Grow with Google, a combination online and in-person program that provides training tools for businesses and teaches workers skills like data analysis or IT support that are meant to expand their career prospects in technical fields.
In December, the company said 1 million people had obtained a certificate for the program. It is adding specialized courses related to AI, such as one geared toward teachers, said program head Lisa Gevelber.
Quote:About a year ago, security researcher Sam Curry bought his mother a Subaru, on the condition that, at some point in the near future, she let him hack it.
It took Curry until last November, when he was home for Thanksgiving, to begin examining the 2023 Impreza's internet-connected features and start looking for ways to exploit them. Sure enough, he and a researcher working with him online, Shubham Shah, soon discovered vulnerabilities in a Subaru web portal that let them hijack the ability to unlock the car, honk its horn, and start its ignition, reassigning control of those features to any phone or computer they chose.
Most disturbing for Curry, though, was that they found they could also track the Subaru's location—not merely where it was at the moment but also where it had been for the entire year that his mother had owned it. The map of the car’s whereabouts was so accurate and detailed, Curry says, that he was able to see her doctor visits, the homes of the friends she visited, even which exact parking space his mother parked in every time she went to church.
“You can retrieve at least a year's worth of location history for the car, where it's pinged precisely, sometimes multiple times a day,” Curry says. “Whether somebody's cheating on their wife or getting an abortion or part of some political group, there are a million scenarios where you could weaponize this against someone.”
Curry and Shah today revealed in a blog post their method for hacking and tracking millions of Subarus, which they believe would have allowed hackers to target any of the company's vehicles equipped with its digital features known as Starlink in the US, Canada, or Japan. Vulnerabilities they found in a Subaru website intended for the company's staff allowed them to hijack an employee's account to both reassign control of cars’ Starlink features and also access all the vehicle location data available to employees, including the car’s location every time its engine started, as shown in their video below.
Curry and Shah reported their findings to Subaru in late November, and Subaru quickly patched its Starlink security flaws. But the researchers warn that the Subaru web vulnerabilities are just the latest in a long series of similar web-based flaws they and other security researchers working with them have found that have affected well over a dozen carmakers, including Acura, Genesis, Honda, Hyundai, Infiniti, Kia, Toyota, and many others. There’s little doubt, they say, that similarly serious hackable bugs exist in other auto companies' web tools that have yet to be discovered.
In Subaru's case, in particular, they also point out that their discovery hints at how pervasively those with access to Subaru's portal can track its customers' movements, a privacy issue that will last far longer than the web vulnerabilities that exposed it. “The thing is, even though this is patched, this functionality is still going to exist for Subaru employees,” Curry says. “It's just normal functionality that an employee can pull up a year's worth of your location history.”
When WIRED reached out to Subaru for comment on Curry and Shah's findings, a spokesperson responded in a statement that “after being notified by independent security researchers, [Subaru] discovered a vulnerability in its Starlink service that could potentially allow a third party to access Starlink accounts. The vulnerability was immediately closed and no customer information was ever accessed without authorization.”
"For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ," 1 Thessalonians 5:9
Maranatha!
The Internet might be either your friend or enemy. It just depends on whether or not she has a bad hair day.
Quote:Shares of chipmaker Nvidia plunged Monday, for its worst day since the global market sell-off in March 2020 triggered by the coronavirus pandemic.
The plunge came amid a global tech stock sell-off over fears about America's leadership in the AI sector. Those fears were largely sparked by advances claimed by a Chinese artificial intelligence startup.
Shares of the chipmaker, one of the primary beneficiaries of the artificial intelligence boom in tech stocks, plummeted as much as 18%. That pushed Nvidia's market value below $3 trillion. Still, shares of the firm are up more than 480% over the last two years.
The drop accounted for nearly $600 billion in lost market value though. It is the biggest market value drop in U.S. stock market history, according to Bloomberg. And nearly double the second worst drop in history, also seen by Nvidia shareholders in September 2024, when the company shed $279 billion in value.
For some perspective, the amount of market value lost by Nvidia on Monday is more than the entire market value of Exxon Mobil, Costco, Home Depot or Bank of America.
Nvidia said in a statement Monday that advances by DeepSeek, a Chinese AI company whose latest large language model has taken Silicon Valley by storm, were an example of what is possible, “leveraging widely available models and compute that is fully export control compliant.”
The company added that the surge in interest in DeepSeek, which topped the Apple app store on Monday, could create more demand for its graphics processing units, or GPUs.
“Inference requires significant numbers of NVIDIA GPUs and high-performance networking,” it said.
Due to the AI-fueled surge in mega-cap tech stocks, Nvidia catapulted into the top five most valuable companies in the world in 2023. The surge didn't stop there, with the company soaring past Alphabet, Microsoft and the most valuable company in the world: Apple. At its most recent peak, Nvidia reached a towering $3.7 trillion.
With Monday's losses, Apple has retaken the title of world's most valuable company and Nvidia's value sank to around $2.9 trillion.
Nvidia's drop was also a drag on the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which finished the day higher but began the day in the red. Nvidia joined the prestigious 30-stock index in November, replacing rival chipmaker Intel. The Nasdaq Composite, which more closely tracks publicly traded tech companies, slid around 3%.
The global sell-off in tech stocks also meant the S&P Technology sector fell into the red for the year so far, the only sector lower over that time.
Quote:Chinese artificial intelligence company DeepSeek disrupted Silicon Valley with the release of cheaply developed AI models that compete with flagship offerings from OpenAI — but the ChatGPT maker suspects they were built upon OpenAI data.
OpenAI and Microsoft are investigating whether the Chinese rival used OpenAI’s API to integrate OpenAI’s AI models into DeepSeek’s own models, according to Bloomberg. The outlet’s sources said Microsoft security researchers detected that large amounts of data were being exfiltrated through OpenAI developer accounts in late 2024, which the company believes are affiliated with DeepSeek.
OpenAI told the Financial Times that it found evidence linking DeepSeek to the use of distillation — a common technique developers use to train AI models by extracting data from larger, more capable ones. It’s an efficient way to train smaller models at a fraction of the more than $100 million that OpenAI spent to train GPT-4. While developers can use OpenAI’s API to integrate its AI with their own applications, distilling the outputs to build rival models is a violation of OpenAI’s terms of service. OpenAI has not provided details of the evidence it found.
The situation is rich with irony. After all, it was OpenAI that made huge leaps with its GPT model by sucking down the entirety of the written web without consent.
President Donald Trump’s artificial intelligence czar David Sacks said “it is possible” that IP theft had occurred. “There’s substantial evidence that what DeepSeek did here is they distilled knowledge out of OpenAI models and I don’t think OpenAI is very happy about this,” Sacks told Fox News on Tuesday.
“We know PRC (China) based companies — and others — are constantly trying to distill the models of leading US AI companies,” OpenAI said in a statement to Bloomberg. “As the leading builder of AI, we engage in countermeasures to protect our IP, including a careful process for which frontier capabilities to include in released models, and believe as we go forward that it is critically important that we are working closely with the US government to best protect the most capable models from efforts by adversaries and competitors to take US technology.”
Quote:Microsoft’s cloud and AI businesses are doing pretty well — and their impact is being felt across the company. In its Q2 2025 earnings, Microsoft announced revenue of $69.6 billion for the quarter, up 12 percent year-over-year, and net income of $24.1 billion, which is up 10 percent year-over-year.
As for the AI business, CEO Satya Nadella says in a statement that it has “surpassed an annual revenue run rate of $13 billion, up 175 percent year-over-year.” The company’s Azure and other cloud services business grew 31 percent year-over-year, a slight decrease from 33 percent YoY growth the previous quarter.
The company’s gaming revenues didn’t fare so well. Gaming revenue declined 7 percent, and Xbox hardware revenue declined 29 percent. Microsoft has been moving away from a focus on its own hardware with messaging like its “This is an Xbox” ad campaign and bringing Xbox Game Studios games to other platforms, and those changes could be contributing to the decline.
That means the focus is instead on games and services, and that’s where the business is seeing some improvements. Xbox content and services revenue were up 2 percent, “driven by growth in Xbox Game Pass,” Microsoft says. (Last quarter, Microsoft’s software gaming revenues were way up even as Xbox hardware revenue declined.)
During Wednesday’s earnings call, Nadella said that Game Pass “set a new quarterly revenue record” and noted that Xbox Cloud Gaming saw a “record 140 million hours streamed” during the quarter. Nadella also revealed that Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has “already been played by more than 4 million people.”
In its press release, Microsoft said that it saw Windows OEM and Devices revenue growth of 4 percent year-over-year, a slight bump from 2 percent in Q1.
On the earnings call, Microsoft CFO Amy Hood said that Windows OEM and devices should decline low to mid single digits in Q3 2025. Overall gaming revenue is expected to grow in single digits, with Xbox content and services expected to grow low to mid single digits. Xbox hardware revenue “will decline year over year.”
During the call, Nadella also reiterated that the company remains “very happy with the partnership with OpenAI” (the two companies announced last week that they are adjusting their partnership) and acknowledged that DeepSeek had some “real innovations.”
Quote:Microsoft is bringing Chinese AI company DeepSeek’s R1 model to its Azure AI Foundry platform and GitHub today. The R1 model, which has rocked US financial markets this week because it can be trained at a fraction of the cost of leading models from OpenAI, is now part of a model catalog on Azure AI Foundry and GitHub — allowing Microsoft’s customers to integrate it into their AI applications.
“One of the key advantages of using DeepSeek R1 or any other model on Azure AI Foundry is the speed at which developers can experiment, iterate, and integrate AI into their workflows,” says By Asha Sharma, Microsoft’s corporate vice president of AI platform. “DeepSeek R1 has undergone rigorous red teaming and safety evaluations, including automated assessments of model behavior and extensive security reviews to mitigate potential risks.”
R1 was initially released as an open source model earlier this month, and Microsoft has moved at surprising pace to integrate this into Azure AI Foundry. The software maker will also make a distilled, smaller version of R1 available to run locally on Copilot Plus PCs soon, and it’s possible we may even see R1 show up in other AI-powered services from Microsoft.
DeepSeek’s R1 model has surprised Wall Street this week because it doesn’t need to use as many chips from providers like Nvidia, and it’s far cheaper to train. That’s put a huge dent in Nvidia’s market valuation, which dipped by nearly $600 billion at one point after investors were spooked by DeepSeek’s progress and the popularity of its mobile app.
OpenAI and Microsoft are now reportedly investigating whether the Chinese rival used OpenAI’s API to train DeepSeek’s models. Bloomberg reported earlier this week that Microsoft’s security researchers detected large amounts of data being used through OpenAI developer accounts late last year, which may have been connected to DeepSeek.
Quote:Nearly everyone seems to be suddenly freaking out about the rise of DeepSeek. Meta isn’t worried, though.
That was CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s message to investors during his company’s fourth-quarter earnings call on Wednesday. During the Q&A portion of the call with Wall Street analysts, Zuckerberg fielded multiple questions about DeepSeek’s impressive AI models and what the implications are for Meta’s AI strategy. He said that what DeepSeek was able to accomplish with relatively little money has “only strengthened our conviction that this is the right thing to be focused on.”
Zuckerberg noted that “there’s a number of novel things they did we’re still digesting” and that Meta plans to implement DeepSeek’s “advancements” into Llama. DeepSeek caused a massive sell-off in AI stocks due to fears that models will no longer need as much computing power. Zuckerberg tried to dispel concerns that the billions of dollars he’s spending on GPUs will go to waste: “I continue to think that investing very heavily in CapEx and infra is going to be a strategic advantage over time.”
His argument is in line with the growing consensus that computing resources will move from the training phase of AI development towards helping models better “reason.” In Zuckerberg’s own words, this “doesn’t mean you need less compute” because you can “apply more compute at inference time in order to generate a higher level of intelligence and a higher quality of service.” Meta is gearing up to release Llama 4 with multimodal and “agentic” capabilities in the coming months, according to Zuckerberg. He expects Meta’s AI assistant to reach one billion users this year.
He also took a thinly veiled jab at OpenAI, Anthropic, and other unprofitable startups by noting that Meta has a “strong business model” to support the roughly $60 billion it will spend on AI this year versus “others who don’t necessarily have business models to support it on a sustainable basis.”
Zuckerberg also made sure to praise President Donald Trump. “We now have a US administration that is proud of our leading companies, prioritizes American technology winning,” and “will defend our values and interests abroad,” he said. Moments before the earnings call started, news broke that Meta is paying Trump $25 million to settle a lawsuit he brought against the company for banning his account after the January 6th insurrection. (The vast majority of the money is going to pay for Trump’s presidential library.)
Meanwhile, Meta is a cash-printing machine. Revenue for the fourth quarter of 2024 was $48.39 billion — a 22-percent increase from the year-ago period — while net profit was a staggering $20.8 billion (up 43-percent from a year before). During the earnings call, CFO Susan Li said that Meta hasn’t “seen any noticeable impact” from its content policy changes on ad spending. 3.35 billion people used at least one of Meta’s apps daily in the fourth quarter — a 5-percent increase from the year-ago period.
Quote:Meta agreed to a $25 million settlement over a 2021 lawsuit President Donald Trump brought against Meta for suspending his accounts after the January 6th insurrection at the US Capitol. The Wall Street Journal was the first to report the news, and Meta spokesperson Andy Stone confirmed the settlement to The Verge.
It’s a step that Trump discussed with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg during his recent visit to Mar-a-Lago, The Verge has independently confirmed. One unnamed source told The Journal that Trump indicated the lawsuit would need to be resolved before Zuckerberg would have a chance of being “brought into the tent.”
The White House and an advisor to Trump did not immediately provide comment.
The settlement, which would contribute $22 million toward Trump’s presidential library funds as well as legal fees, is the latest signal of Trump’s powerful influence over corporate America. Trump’s odds of success in the case did not look particularly promising, given that a judge dismissed a similar suit filed against Twitter (now X) and another against Google was administratively closed. The docket has been stagnant since 2023. But now back in the White House, Zuckerberg and many of his tech and business peers have recognized the immense influence Trump could wield over their companies and have taken a much more proactive role in engaging with his administration compared to last time.
Trump filed a class action lawsuit against Meta in 2021, seeking damages for himself and other users whose accounts were allegedly “wrongly restricted or curtailed.” Facebook had announced an indefinite suspension on Trump’s accounts after his posts during the January 6th insurrection at the US Capitol that year. At the time, Zuckerberg said, “The shocking events of the last 24 hours clearly demonstrate that President Donald Trump intends to use his remaining time in office to undermine the peaceful and lawful transition of power to his elected successor, Joe Biden.” Eventually, the company dropped restrictions on his accounts.
ABC News similarly settled a defamation lawsuit Trump brought over anchor George Stephanopoulos’ mischaracterization of the charge Trump was found liable for in the case brought by writer E. Jean Carroll. And CBS owner Paramount has also discussed settling a Trump lawsuit over the news outlet’s interview with his then-opponent Kamala Harris, understanding that his administration could make it difficult to close a merger with Skydance Media, according to the Journal.
Quote:Atari has released a collection of new watches with a unique design that celebrates the 45th anniversary of Asteroids. In the original version of the game that debuted in 1979, spotting and shooting a passing UFO would earn you extra points. On the Asteroids watch, a pair of orbiting UFOs are less of a threat and are instead used to represent the hour and minute hands — no numbers needed.
Created in collaboration with watchmaker Nubeo (which previously released a collection of Space Invaders-themed timepieces) the new Asteroids collection features five styles, each with a differently colored band — nebula blue, plasma pumpkin, supernova red, nova nightfall, and celestial citrine — and varying colors for the watchface elements. They’re available through Nubeo’s website, which lists each watch’s price as being discounted to $499 from $1,650. You can also order them through Atari’s website, which just lists the price as $499 each, although some have already sold out. Each style is limited to just 125 pieces.
The watch uses a Japanese automatic movement that powers three spinning discs. The smallest features a recreation of the game’s simple triangular spaceship in the center that serves as the watch’s second hand, while two larger discs, rotating at different speeds, portray asteroids drifting through space and the UFOs that function as the hour and minute hands.
All of the graphical elements on the Asteroids watch’s face are printed with glow-in-the-dark “Swiss Super-LumiNova” pigments and are protected beneath a durable sapphire lens and a stainless steel case. The watch is water resistant with a 21 ATM (atmosphere) rating and a screw-down crown, making it durable enough for recreational diving. It comes in a protective case with an interior that borrows design elements from the Atari Video Computer System (VCS) that launched in 1977.
Quote:If you use Comcast Xfinity internet, your FaceTime calls might be about to get better. Instead of bumping up the amount of data that your internet connection can send or receive at one time (usually called bandwidth or throughput), a new upgrade is coming to reduce the amount of time it takes for each packet of information to make the trip.
Comcast is officially starting to roll out the “pioneering new, ultra-low lag connectivity experience” to cities including Atlanta, Chicago, Colorado Springs, Philadelphia, Rockville (in Maryland), and San Francisco. (Disclosure: Comcast is an investor in Vox Media, The Verge’s parent company.)
The technology powering this upgrade is based on a standard called L4S, which stands for “Low Latency, Low Loss, Scalable Throughput.” My former colleague Mitchell Clark has a thorough explainer of what L4S is supposed to do, but the intention is that the tech can significantly reduce latency so that things like video games are smoother and video calls feel more like talking in real life without awkward delays and pauses.
L4S pulls this off by giving internet packets an indicator that lets them know if they’ve run into congestion or queueing along any of the hops in their trip between a user and whatever they’re connecting to. If there is a delay, then the devices can start to adjust to stop making the congestion worse — and possibly eliminate it entirely.
Quote:Bungie and LucasFilms are bringing Star Wars armor sets and other items into the Destiny universe, so you can dress your Guardian like a stormtrooper. As part of Destiny 2: Heresy, Act I, which launches next week, you’ll be able to access outfits, accessories, and emotes that come straight out of the Star Wars universe into the Eververse. The news came as a “one more thing” surprise during the Destiny 2: Heresy Act I developer livestream on Twitch yesterday.
The Star Wars armor sets will include a death trooper-inspired Covert Rangers set for Hunters, a Royal Protector set for Warlocks, inspired by the red-cloaked Imperial Guards, and a classic stormtrooper Shock Enforcer set for Titans. There’s also a new Ghost shell that looks like the second Death Star. Sadly, there isn’t any mention of lightsabers in this announcement. However, Bungie does promise a new Sparrow, ship, and a finisher.
Star Wars items will launch day one with Heresy on February 2nd. Destiny has had other collaborations in the past, including ones with Fortnite, Mass Effect, Assassins Creed, The Witcher, and others. Heresy is the third episode in Destiny 2 and is the final epilogue of the Light and Darkness saga.
Quote:Sony announced Wednesday that you won’t need to log in to a PlayStation Network account to play four of its single-player games on PC: Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (which comes out tomorrow), The Last of Us Part II Remastered (which launches on April 3rd), God of War Ragnarök, and Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered.
However, to incentivize you to still sign in with a PSN account while playing those games, Sony says that it will “soon” be adding “in-game content unlocks” like outfits and resources. You can see the full list of bonuses in Sony’s blog post about the news. Sony also says that using a PSN account gives you benefits like “trophies and friend management.”
Sony’s PSN account requirement for some of its PC games hasn’t been a popular one. Backlash to the requirement for Helldivers 2 led Sony to reverse the decision after the game was review bombed on Steam.
"For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ," 1 Thessalonians 5:9
Maranatha!
The Internet might be either your friend or enemy. It just depends on whether or not she has a bad hair day.
News of the Cyber World
![[Image: SP1-Scripter.png]](https://www.save-point.org/images/userbars/SP1-Scripter.png)
![[Image: SP1-Writer.png]](https://www.save-point.org/images/userbars/SP1-Writer.png)
![[Image: SP1-Poet.png]](https://www.save-point.org/images/userbars/SP1-Poet.png)
![[Image: SP1-PixelArtist.png]](https://www.save-point.org/images/userbars/SP1-PixelArtist.png)
![[Image: SP1-Reporter.png]](https://i.postimg.cc/GmxWbHyL/SP1-Reporter.png)
