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I asked AI for help with DIY. It told me to build a subfloor on rotting stumps, but also taught me valuable lessons | Myke Bartlett

4 June 2026 at 16:00

Nothing does more for your ego than realising you can make a better decision than a bot with all of human knowledge at its digital fingertips

I am not, by nature, an early adopter. There comes a point in our lives where change becomes more irritating than exciting and, I suspect, I reached it sooner than most. But when a workplace recently tasked me with exploring practical applications for AI, I spotted an opportunity to cast off my luddite inclinations.

It turned out AI was very good at mimicking most of the things I could already do. Irrespective of quality, it could churn out articles, reports, presentations, fiction, even podcasts with stammering hosts. That was no use to me. What I wanted help with was all the stuff I was useless at. There was an obvious target: DIY.

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© Photograph: Neustockimages/Getty Images

© Photograph: Neustockimages/Getty Images

© Photograph: Neustockimages/Getty Images

‘Happiness is not just about GDP’: ambitious plan or utopia?

4 June 2026 at 07:28

Some will question its credibility – but the alternative future to the one imagined in the Global Justice Report is far more bleak

In our increasingly dystopian world, who wouldn’t want to at least be open to a utopian antidote? The Global Justice Report, published on Thursday, outlines how to build a prosperous, equitable world within safe planetary boundaries. It’s a push from the modern eco-socialist left in a global battle for ideas that will shape the future.

Based on past social achievements and future energy transformation, it indicates that the overwhelming majority of people on the planet could, by the end of the century, work less and earn more – while keeping temperatures down and avoiding much of the current destruction of nature. It is an ambitious, comprehensive and upbeat plan, and a stronger argument around which to build a political campaign than abstract goals of net zero or decarbonisation.

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© Photograph: Emmanuel Croset/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Emmanuel Croset/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Emmanuel Croset/AFP/Getty Images

In first, California city overwhelmingly votes to permanently ban datacenters

3 June 2026 at 20:40

While many US city councils have passed moratoriums, Monterey Park is first where residents have voted on a ban

Residents in Monterey Park, California, became the first in the US to vote on a permanent ban on datacenters on Tuesday, and early results indicate a resounding victory for the prohibition.

While many cities and counties have already passed temporary or indefinite moratoriums via their local governments, Monterey Park would be the first to do so through a ballot initiative.

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© Photograph: Steven Kung

© Photograph: Steven Kung

© Photograph: Steven Kung

‘Hidden datacentre tax’ costing Irish households millions, report says

Datacentres used 22% of country’s electricity last year, pushing up household bills, study suggests

Energy demand by datacentres in Ireland has added hundreds of euros to household electricity bills in a pattern that could be replicated across Europe, according to a report.

Ireland’s growing number of datacentres last year used 22% of the country’s electricity, more than all urban homes combined, according to the Central Statistics Office. The equivalent figure in the US and UK is 6%.

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© Photograph: Sergio Azenha/Alamy

© Photograph: Sergio Azenha/Alamy

© Photograph: Sergio Azenha/Alamy

A Louisiana state senator helped secure Meta’s largest datacenter. Then he sold the land beside it

25 May 2026 at 13:00

Jay Morris denies experts’ claims that he violated ethics rules over land deals near the site of Meta’s Hyperion datacenter

This story is from Floodlight, a non-profit newsroom that investigates the powers stalling climate action

For more than two years, John “Jay” Morris, a Louisiana state senator, helped pave the way for Meta to build one of the world’s largest datacenters, called Hyperion, in Richland Parish.

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© Photograph: Jay Marcano/Gulf States Newsroom

© Photograph: Jay Marcano/Gulf States Newsroom

© Photograph: Jay Marcano/Gulf States Newsroom

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