OpenAI bets on families as ChatGPT goes deeper into households ↗
OpenAI is hiring a product manager focused on experiences for families, caregivers and older adults. It marks a clear shift from ChatGPT as a personal productivity tool toward something threaded through the wider household.
Usage among parents and older people is already rising. But family AI is a trickier creature - children need different safeguards, and research suggests parents may seriously underestimate how often their kids use generative AI.
Meta reins in new AI tool after criticism ↗
Meta removed a Muse Image feature that allowed photos from public Instagram accounts to be referenced automatically when generating new images. Privacy complaints arrived almost at once... predictably enough.
The company said the feature had missed the mark, despite offering an opt-out. The backlash shows how badly automatic consent can land when personal photos become ingredients in the AI soup.
As gas plants rise to power AI, renewable energy allies are fighting for cleaner alternatives ↗
AI data centres are demanding electricity faster than wind and solar projects can be built. The scramble is driving new natural-gas plants and even keeping ageing coal facilities alive.
Several US states are responding with clean-energy requirements for large data centres. The awkward part? Tech companies want enormous capacity right now, while grids and renewable projects move at something closer to geological speed.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai on the one AI race Google is ‘losing’ to Anthropic and OpenAI, says: We maybe didn't quite have the... ↗
Sundar Pichai acknowledged that Google is behind Anthropic and OpenAI in agentic coding - particularly on long-running tasks involving tools, instructions and autonomous execution.
Google is countering with Antigravity and faster Gemini models, but Pichai suggested the deeper gap was product distribution. Anthropic had Claude Code where developers worked, gathering valuable feedback while Google, somewhat inexplicably, lacked the right surface.
S.F. protesters march on OpenAI, Anthropic and Google DeepMind to demand: ‘Stop the AI race’ ↗
Roughly 200 protesters marched between the offices of OpenAI, Anthropic and Google DeepMind, calling on the companies to pause the training of increasingly powerful AI models.
Participants linked the AI race to job losses, housing costs, environmental damage and existential risk. Some worked in AI themselves, which makes the demonstration harder to dismiss as simple anti-tech panic... or so it appears.
Goldman Sachs warns the US will bear the brunt of a global AI-induced inflation surge ↗
Goldman Sachs estimates AI is already adding around 20 basis points to core US inflation, with that figure potentially rising to 50 basis points. Memory chips, software bundles and electricity are the main pressure points.
The bank still expects AI productivity to reduce prices eventually. For now, though, the technology is consuming scarce hardware and power while companies charge extra for AI-packed software - efficiency later, bigger bill today.
AI 'actor' Tilly Norwood has a movie coming out. Spare us this future ↗
Digital character Tilly Norwood is set to appear in a feature film, pushing the idea of an AI-generated actor beyond social-media clips and promotional experiments.
The project has revived arguments over whether synthetic performers can deliver genuine emotional depth, or whether the whole enterprise is little more than marketing in an actor-shaped coat. Hollywood’s uncanny valley just got a postcode.
FAQ
Why is OpenAI focusing on families, caregivers and older adults?
OpenAI appears to be exploring how ChatGPT might support entire households, rather than only individual users. Family-focused AI calls for different product decisions because children, caregivers and older adults may each have distinct needs and risks. Strong safeguards, age-appropriate experiences and clearer parental awareness will be central to that shift.
Why did Meta remove the Muse Image feature?
Meta removed the feature after criticism that public Instagram photos could be referenced automatically when users generated new images. Although an opt-out was available, many people objected to personal photos being treated as AI material without explicit permission. The episode underscores the difference between content being technically accessible and its use being meaningfully consented to.
Why are AI data centres increasing demand for natural gas and coal power?
AI data centres require vast amounts of electricity, while new wind, solar and grid projects can take years to complete. To meet immediate demand, utilities may build gas plants or extend the operating life of older coal facilities. Some US states are responding by considering clean-energy requirements for large data-centre developments.
Why is Google behind OpenAI and Anthropic in agentic coding?
Sundar Pichai suggested that Google’s challenge lies not only in model performance, but also in product distribution. Anthropic placed Claude Code directly into developers’ workflows, allowing it to gather practical feedback on long-running coding tasks. Google is responding with Antigravity and faster Gemini models, but it still needs stronger developer-facing tools and surfaces.
How could artificial intelligence affect prices, jobs and entertainment?
Artificial intelligence may raise short-term costs by increasing demand for electricity, memory chips and premium software features. It is also intensifying concerns about job displacement and environmental damage, which helped spur recent protests. In entertainment, synthetic performers such as Tilly Norwood are reopening debates about creativity, authenticity and emotional depth.