Author: Techman

Meta Platforms is set to roll out the web version on its new text-first social media platform Threads, hoping to gain an edge over X, formerly Twitter, as the initial surge in users waned. The widely anticipated web version will make Threads more useful for…

The Biden administration on Monday continued its push toward internet-for-all by 2030, announcing about $667 million in new grants and loans to build more broadband infrastructure in the rural U.S. “With this investment, we’re getting funding to communities in every corner of the country because…

Russia’s Luna-25 spacecraft has crashed into the moon. “The apparatus moved into an unpredictable orbit and ceased to exist as a result of a collision with the surface of the moon,” Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, said Sunday. On Saturday, the agency said it had…

A Russian court on Thursday imposed a $32,000 fine on Google for failing to delete allegedly false information about the conflict in Ukraine. The move by a magistrate's court follows similar actions in early August against Apple and the Wikimedia Foundation that hosts Wikipedia. According…

Texas on Wednesday approved its plan to require companies to include Tesla's technology in electric vehicle charging stations to be eligible for federal funds, despite calls for more time to re-engineer and test the connectors. The decision by Texas, the biggest recipient of a $5…

Social media company X, formerly known as Twitter, delayed access to links to content on the Reuters and New York Times websites as well as rivals like Bluesky, Facebook and Instagram, according to a Washington Post report on Tuesday. Clicking a link on X to…

Google plans to train 20,000 Nigerian women and youth in digital skills and provide a grant of $1.6 million to help the government create 1 million digital jobs in the country, its Africa executives said on Tuesday.  Nigeria plans to create digital jobs for its…

IPVM, a U.S.-based security and surveillance industry research group, says the Chinese surveillance equipment maker Dahua is selling cameras with what it calls a "skin color analytics" feature in Europe, raising human rights concerns.  In a report released on July 31, IPVM said "the company…

Virgin Galactic rocketed to the edge of space with its first tourists Thursday, including a former British Olympian who bought his ticket 18 years ago and a mother-daughter duo from the Caribbean. The space plane glided back to a runway landing at Spaceport America in…

China will require all mobile app providers in the country to file business details with the government, its information ministry said, marking Beijing's latest effort to keep the industry on a tight leash.  The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said late on Tuesday…

The White House on Wednesday said it had launched a multimillion-dollar cyber contest to spur use of artificial intelligence to find and fix security flaws in U.S. government infrastructure, in the face of growing use of the technology by hackers for malicious purposes.   "Cybersecurity…

U.S. President Joe Biden is planning Wednesday to impose restrictions on U.S. investments in some high-tech industries in China. Biden’s expected executive order could again heighten tensions between the U.S., the world’s biggest economy, and No. 2 China after a period in which leaders of…

The company whose name became synonymous with remote work is joining the growing return-to-office trend. Zoom, the video conferencing pioneer, is asking employees who live within a 50-mile radius of its offices to work onsite two days a week, a company spokesperson confirmed in an…

U.S. police reform advocates have long argued that police-worn body cameras will help reduce officers' excessive use of force and work to build public trust. But the millions of hours of footage that so-called "body cams" generate are difficult for police supervisors to monitor. As…

Pope Francis on Tuesday called for a global reflection on the potential dangers of artificial intelligence (AI), noting the new technology's "disruptive possibilities and ambivalent effects."   Francis, who is 86 and said in the past he does not know how to use a computer,…

Two to tech groups on Monday backed TikTok Inc in its lawsuit seeking block enforcement of a Montana state ban on use of the short video sharing app before it takes effect on January 1. NetChoice, a national trade association that includes major tech platforms,…

The use of sophisticated spyware to hack into the devices of journalists and human rights defenders during a period of conflict in Armenia has alarmed analysts. A joint investigation by digital rights organizations, including Amnesty International, found evidence of the surveillance software on devices belonging…

A mother is suing the city of Detroit, saying unreliable facial recognition technology led to her being falsely arrested for carjacking while she was eight months pregnant.  Porcha Woodruff was getting her two children ready for school the morning of February 16 when a half-dozen…

Elon Musk said in a social media post that his proposed cage fight with Meta (META.O) CEO Mark Zuckerberg would be live-streamed on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.  The social media moguls have been egging each other into a mixed martial arts…

The tidal wave of artificial intelligence (AI) barrelling toward many professions has generated deep anxiety among workers fearful that their jobs will be swept away -- and the mental health impact is rising. The launch in November 2022 of ChatGPT, the generative AI platform capable…

NASA has succeeded in reestablishing full contact with Voyager 2 by using its highest-power transmitter to send an "interstellar shout" that righted the distant probe's antenna orientation, the space agency said Friday. Launched in 1977 to explore the outer planets and serve as a beacon…

A parliamentary committee investigating foreign interference in Australia has found that Chinese apps TikTok and WeChat could present major security risks. In April, Australia said it would ban TikTok on government devices because of security fears.  Lawmakers in Australia have sounded the alarm about the…

Amazon is adding video telemedicine visits in all 50 states to a virtual clinic it launched last fall, as the e-commerce giant pushes deeper into care delivery. Amazon said Tuesday that customers can visit its virtual clinic around the clock through Amazon’s website or app.…

Social media giant Meta on Tuesday said it intends to ask European Union-based users to give their consent before allowing targeted advertising on its networks including Facebook, bowing to pressure from European regulators. It said the changes were to address "evolving and emerging regulatory requirements"…

The commission that enforces U.S. election rules will not be regulating AI-generated deepfakes in political advertising ahead of the 2024 presidential election. Deana Mitchell has our story. ...

A brightly flashing "X" sign has been removed from the San Francisco headquarters of the company formerly known as Twitter just days after it was installed.  The San Francisco Department of Building Inspection said Monday it received 24 complaints about the unpermitted structure over the…

China imposed restrictions Monday on exports of long-range civilian drones, citing Russia's war in Ukraine and concern that drones might be converted to military use.  Chinese leader Xi Jinping's government is friendly with Moscow but says it is neutral in the 18-month-old war. It has…

There has been a steady decline in the number of AM radio stations in the United States. Over the decades, urban and mainstream broadcasters have moved to the FM band, which has better audio fidelity, although more limited range. Now, there is a new threat…