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Keir Starmer’s Doomed Social Media β€˜Ban’

16 June 2026 at 19:00

The evidence from Australia is clear, says Dr Reuben Kirkham, Director of the Free Speech Union of Australia: Sir Keir Starmer's social media 'ban' is doomed to fail. And it targets the wrong things anyway.

The post Keir Starmer’s Doomed Social Media β€˜Ban’ appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

Elon Musk’s β€˜Trillionaire Moment’ Raises a Bigger AI Question

15 June 2026 at 23:12
Elon Musk’s trillionaire milestone raises a bigger AI question: Will the future belong to the best models or the companies that own the infrastructure behind them?

Facebook’s new AI Mode search gets its info from public posts

15 June 2026 at 22:15
A screenshot of AI-generated search results in Meta’s AI Mode on Facebook

Your public Facebook posts could help inform AI-generated results in Meta's new AI Mode. When you search on Facebook, the "AI Mode" option will appear alongside the usual search modes like "People" and "Marketplace." It's one of several new AI features Meta is rolling out starting today, including photo presets that swap sports jerseys onto fans and suggestions for collage templates.

A screenshot of AI-generated search results in Meta's AI Mode on Facebook

Instead of "just links," it gives users AI-generated results that pull from publicly-posted content across Meta's platforms, like the AI search feature in its new Reddit-like Forum app. Users can also ask Meta's AI follow-up questions in response to the search …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Big Tech’s desperate last push at AI regulation

15 June 2026 at 18:44
U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) arrive for a news conference with bipartisan senators on passage of the Online Privacy Protection Act at the Capitol on July 30, 2024 in Washington, DC. | Kent Nishimura/Getty Images.

For months, Big Tech's Washington lobbyists have chased after the holy grail of pro-AI legislation: preemption. This would be a comprehensive federal law, passed in Congress and signed by the president, applying one set of AI rules across the entire country and overriding the legally messy state-by-state approach to regulation. For months, lobbyists have run into roadblocks and incurred nationwide political blowback, and they now face the possibility that after the midterms, Congress will flip to hostile Democrats unwilling to work with them.

But their final, most desperate attempt at preemption is coming with new baggage, related to an ent …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Under-16 social media ban announced by UK government

15 June 2026 at 09:19
A robot verifying the age of a human man.

The UK is the latest country to follow Australia in implementing a total social media ban for children under 16, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced. The ban, which could take effect from early next year, will be joined by wider measures that will also prevent children from talking to strangers in online games, livestreaming, or using sexual or romantic chatbots.

"Do we truly believe that social media creates a happy environment for our children? Do we truly believe that it's a place where they can feel safe?" Starmer asked during a press conference announcing the policy. "I don't think I even need to answer those questions, do I?"

" …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Gazan Exiles Stoke β€œRevolution” Against Hamas

13 June 2026 at 15:00

Gazans are preparing for public protests againstΒ Hamas on June 26thΒ in what is being touted as a grassroots "revolution" against the terror group.

The post Gazan Exiles Stoke β€œRevolution” Against Hamas appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

A better way to manage all your screenshots

13 June 2026 at 13:00

Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 132, your guide to the best and Verge-iest stuff in the world. (If you're new here, welcome, happy soccer, and also you can read all the old editions at the Installer homepage.)

This week, I've been preparing for a month of getting absolutely nothing done during the World Cup. I've also been reading about Steven Spielberg and wearables and the Boeing 747, overloading on computer nostalgia thanks to The Virtual OS Museum, watching that Knicks game winner over and over and over, listening to the fabulous new This Was SportsCenter podcast and the fabulous old The Renner Files podcast, and trying to tame my …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Grok Is Still Hosting Sexualized Deepfakes of Famous Women

11 June 2026 at 20:41
A WIRED investigation found dozens of β€œnudified” deepfake images and videos on Grok's website, including nonconsensual depictions of celebrities and at least one prominent US politician.

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