📰 ‘Existential crisis’: Google’s AI pivot rattles news outlets
Google’s push into AI-first search is gutting publishers. Traffic’s plunging, ad dollars slipping away, and more than a few journalists are calling it existential. The system now lifts info straight into AI answers instead of passing readers through to sites - handy for users, brutal for media. Almost too efficient, in a way.
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💰 Anthropic coughs up $1.5B in landmark author settlement
A giant check just got written. Anthropic will shell out $1.5 billion to resolve claims that Claude was trained on books without permission. Reportedly the largest copyright payout ever, which is wild. The deal also forces deletion of files, though there’s chatter more disputes could follow. Painful precedent - loud one too.
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⚖️ EU sketches out tough new AI safety body
Brussels is drafting an AI Safety Agency that wouldn’t just advise but actually fine companies and even yank products if audits fail. Big Tech’s nervous (to put it mildly). Skeptics, meanwhile, think regulators are already chasing shadows - AI’s miles ahead of the rulebook.
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📉 AI hiring surge slows, layoffs creep in
The gold rush vibe is cooling. Reports are trickling in of mid-size AI startups cutting staff, citing heavy cloud costs and nervous VCs. Even data-labeling outfits - normally winners during hype cycles - are trimming back. Odd reversal, since just months ago salaries were skyrocketing.
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