AI

Character.AI will offer interactive ‘Stories’ to kids instead of open-ended chat

AI /

Character.AI announced on Tuesday that it’s launching “Stories,” a new format that allows users to create interactive fiction that features their favorite characters. The feature comes as an alternative to the company’s chatbots, which are no longer accessible to users under 18 as of this week. The change follows growing concerns about the mental health […]

Character.AI will offer interactive ‘Stories’ to kids instead of open-ended chat Read More »

Google teams up with Accel to hunt for India’s next AI breakouts

AI /

Google has partnered with Accel to find and fund India’s earliest-stage AI startups in a first-of-its-kind collaboration for the Google AI Futures Fund, launched earlier this year. On Tuesday, Accel and Google announced a partnership to jointly invest up to $2 million in each startup through Accel’s Atoms program, with both firms contributing up to

Google teams up with Accel to hunt for India’s next AI breakouts Read More »

Altman describes OpenAI’s forthcoming AI device as more peaceful and calm than the iPhone

AI /

“When people see it, they say, ‘that’s it?… It’s so simple.” That’s how OpenAI CEO Sam Altman describes how he thinks people will respond to seeing the company’s forthcoming AI hardware device for the first time. The device is the result of the collaboration between OpenAI and Apple’s former chief designer Jony Ive. Not much

Altman describes OpenAI’s forthcoming AI device as more peaceful and calm than the iPhone Read More »

OpenAI learned the hard way that Cameo trademarked the word ‘cameo’

AI /

OpenAI’s social app Sora launched with a controversial feature called Cameo, allowing users to deepfake themselves or others (with permission). The feature had a tenuous rollout — Martin Luther King Jr.’s estate had to get involved, to give you an idea of what went on — but now it faces a new challenge. Apparently, Cameo

OpenAI learned the hard way that Cameo trademarked the word ‘cameo’ Read More »

AWS is spending $50B build AI infrastructure for the US government

AI /

Amazon Web Services is making a sizable new investment in infrastructure designed to boost AI capabilities for U.S. government organizations. AWS announced Monday it is investing $50 billion to build AI “high-performance computing infrastructure” purposefully built for the U.S. government. The buildout is meant to expand federal government agencies’ access to AWS AI services. The

AWS is spending $50B build AI infrastructure for the US government Read More »

Anthropic releases Opus 4.5 with new Chrome and Excel integrations

AI /

On Monday, Anthropic announced Opus 4.5, the latest version of its flagship model. It’s the last of Anthropic’s 4.5 series of models to be released, following the launch of Sonnet 4.5 in September and Haiku 4.5 in October. As expected, the new version of Opus has state-of-the-art performance on a range of benchmarks, including coding

Anthropic releases Opus 4.5 with new Chrome and Excel integrations Read More »

A new AI benchmark tests whether chatbots protect human wellbeing

AI /

AI chatbots have been linked to serious mental health harms in heavy users, but there have been few standards for measuring whether they safeguard human wellbeing or just maximize for engagement. A new benchmark dubbed HumaneBench seeks to fill that gap by evaluating whether chatbots prioritize user wellbeing and how easily those protections fail under pressure.

A new AI benchmark tests whether chatbots protect human wellbeing Read More »

AI is too risky to insure, say people whose job is insuring risk

AI /

What happens when the software that everyone’s racing to adopt becomes too risky for anyone to insure? According to reporting from the Financial Times, we’re about to find out. Major insurers including AIG, Great American, and WR Berkley are asking U.S. regulators for permission to exclude AI-related liabilities from corporate policies. One underwriter describes the

AI is too risky to insure, say people whose job is insuring risk Read More »

ChatGPT told them they were special — their families say it led to tragedy

AI /

Zane Shamblin never told ChatGPT anything to indicate a negative relationship with his family. But in the weeks leading up to his death by suicide in July, the chatbot encouraged the 23-year-old to keep his distance – even as his mental health was deteriorating.  “you don’t owe anyone your presence just because a ‘calendar’ said

ChatGPT told them they were special — their families say it led to tragedy Read More »