🚗 TechCrunch Mobility: The AI skills arms race is coming for automotive ↗
AI is turning the car industry into a rather uneasy hiring-and-firing sandwich. General Motors has cut more than 10% of its IT department, while saying it is making room for AI-focused talent. Not exactly a cosy transition.
The skills in demand are much more build-the-machine than use-the-tool: AI-native development, data engineering, cloud engineering, agent/model development, prompt engineering, and workflow redesign. Meanwhile, Ford, GM, and Stellantis have together cut more than 20,000 US salaried roles from recent peaks.
Samsara gets the more practical bit: using truck camera data to train models that detect potholes and track how fast they are deteriorating. Pleasingly grounded - AI as a city maintenance ferret. (TechCrunch)
🎓 If you’re giving a commencement speech in 2026, maybe don’t mention AI ↗
Graduates are not exactly cheering the AI future. One University of Central Florida commencement speaker got booed after calling AI the next industrial revolution, which is blunt feedback, if nothing else.
Eric Schmidt reportedly hit similar turbulence at the University of Arizona after telling students they would help shape AI. The article frames it as a mood shift: young people are hearing “opportunity,” but also “your job ladder may be fog now.”
And yep, not every AI mention gets roasted - Jensen Huang did not seem to get the same pushback. Still, the mood is jagged: optimism on stage, anxiety in the chairs. (TechCrunch)
🍎 Apple’s Siri revamp could include auto-deleting chats ↗
Apple’s next Siri push may lean hard into privacy, with a standalone Siri app reportedly powered by Google Gemini. A little awkward, a little interesting, very Apple-ish in the branding gymnastics.
The key twist: Siri could let users auto-delete chats after 30 days or one year, or keep them indefinitely. That gives Apple a clean privacy talking point while it tries to catch up in chatbot land.
But there’s a contradiction sitting in the teacup: Apple may use privacy to soften comparisons with stronger rivals, while Google is still involved in the plumbing. Neat, but not friction-free. (TechCrunch)
⚖️ Why trust is a big question at the Elon Musk-OpenAI trial ↗
The Musk-OpenAI trial reached closing arguments, with the jury left to decide whether OpenAI crossed lines as it became more commercial. The real word hanging over the room: trust.
Sam Altman’s credibility became a focus, especially around past statements that he had no equity in OpenAI, despite a stake through Y Combinator. Slippery semantics, or something bigger? That’s the argument.
The sharper point is that this is not only about Altman or Musk. It’s about private AI labs asking the public to trust them while much of the machinery stays hidden behind the curtain. Slightly theatrical, except the stage is the economy. (TechCrunch)
⛪ Vatican sets up commission on artificial intelligence ↗
Pope Leo XIV approved a new Vatican commission on AI, aimed at coordinating the Holy See’s response to the technology’s effects on human dignity, development, and even internal Church use.
The commission will involve multiple Vatican bodies, including offices focused on doctrine, culture, communication, life, sciences, and social sciences. That’s a big table - possibly too big, but that’s Vatican governance for you.
The move also sets up AI as a moral and social question, not just a gadget question. Labour, truth, human dignity - all the heavy furniture is being dragged into the room. (EWTN Great Britain)
☎️ The AI boom hasn’t stopped U.S. companies from hiring cheap offshore labor, and overseas call center employment is still skyrocketing ↗
AI was supposed to flatten call-center work, but the numbers remain stubborn. Fortune reports that offshore customer service jobs, especially in the Philippines, have kept rising despite heavy automation risk.
Apollo chief economist Torsten Slok pointed to Philippine call-center employment nearly doubling to 2 million across a 10-year span, while unemployment there fell from 9% to about 4%. That is not the clean “robots replace workers” chart people expected.
The explanation offered is Jevons paradox: when AI makes call-center work cheaper and faster, companies may buy more of it, not less. Funny old economics, still biting ankles. (Fortune)
🧾 AI boom not enough: California plans digital tax for cloud software ↗
California is looking at a tax shift that would hit cloud software - and, by extension, many AI app providers. The proposal would apply a base 7.25% sales tax to software delivered over the internet.
Big software names such as Microsoft, Salesforce, and Oracle are in the blast zone, but the growing AI-app layer is also part of the story because so much of it is cloud-delivered.
The state expects the levy to bring in about $1.1 billion in state and local revenue in the next fiscal year, stabilising near $2 billion annually later. AI boom, meet taxman - the driest boss fight. (Heise.de)
FAQ
How is the AI skills arms race affecting automotive jobs?
The article describes a shift in automotive hiring toward more technical, AI-focused roles. Skills such as AI-native development, data engineering, cloud engineering, model development, prompt engineering, and workflow redesign are becoming increasingly important. At the same time, major automakers have cut many salaried positions, creating an uneasy transition between older workforce needs and emerging AI priorities.
Why are some graduates reacting negatively to AI in commencement speeches?
Some graduates appear anxious about what AI means for entry-level jobs and career ladders. The article notes that even speakers who framed AI as an opportunity faced resistance from audiences worried about disruption. This does not mean every mention of AI is rejected, but it does suggest that the mood around AI is mixed, particularly among people just entering the workforce.
What privacy features could Apple add to its Siri revamp?
Apple’s reported Siri revamp could include options to automatically delete chats after 30 days or one year, or to keep them indefinitely. The article presents this as a privacy-focused move that may help Apple position Siri differently from rival chatbot products. However, the reported involvement of Google Gemini could make that privacy message more complicated.
Why is trust such a big issue in the Elon Musk and OpenAI trial?
The article says the trial is partly about whether OpenAI crossed important lines as it became more commercial. Trust is central because private AI labs ask the public to believe in their intentions while much of their decision-making remains hidden. Sam Altman’s credibility also became part of the discussion, especially regarding past statements about equity.
What is the Vatican’s new artificial intelligence commission for?
The Vatican commission is intended to coordinate the Holy See’s response to artificial intelligence. The article says it will examine AI’s effects on human dignity, development, and even the Church’s internal use of the technology. By involving multiple Vatican bodies, the move treats AI as a moral and social issue, not merely a technical tool.
Why has the AI boom not ended offshore call center hiring?
The article points to Jevons paradox as one possible explanation. When AI makes call-center work cheaper or faster, companies may demand more of it rather than less. Under that view, automation does not simply replace workers; it can also expand the amount of service companies choose to buy, especially in lower-cost offshore markets.
How could California’s digital tax affect AI app providers?
California’s proposed tax would apply to software delivered over the internet, which could include many cloud-based AI apps. The article says large software companies would be affected, but the growing AI application layer is also relevant because so much of it depends on cloud delivery. For AI businesses, this could add a new tax consideration to operating costs.
What do these AI stories say about the future of work?
Together, the stories show that AI is changing work unevenly. In some areas, it is pushing companies to seek new technical skills and cut older roles. In others, such as call centers, demand for human labour may continue or even grow. The article’s broader message is that AI disruption is complicated, practical, and deeply human.