TECHNOLOGY

Tech giant Google has paid 326 million euros to Italy following an investigation into alleged unpaid taxes, Milan prosecutors said Wednesday, as they recommended criminal proceedings be dropped.

In a TikTok video, Bec Hardgrave explained that she came across a trick suggesting that dipping pizza in water before reheating it in an air fryer or microwave could make it taste as fresh as when it was first bought.

Released late on Monday, Grok 3 marks a major step forward for xAI, which was founded by Elon Musk in 2023. Along with the launch, new features for the Grok iOS and web apps were also unveiled.

Elon Musk said his startup xAI will release its Grok 3 chatbot on Monday and billed it as the "smartest AI on Earth" in a fiercely competitive market.

From sizing advice via selfies to robot stock-takers, online shopping behemoths have increasingly turned to artificial intelligence in a bid to stem the flow of bad-for-business clothes returns.

A run of new-release flops and the delay of the latest "Assassin's Creed" instalment sent revenue at French games giant Ubisoft plunging in its third quarter, the company reported Thursday as it continues to weigh its future.

Mexico on Thursday threatened to sue Google over its changing the Gulf of Mexico's name to "Gulf of America" for Maps users in the United States to comply with President Donald Trump's executive order.

Google on Monday changed the name of the Gulf of Mexico to "Gulf of America" for those using its Maps platform inside the United States, complying with an executive order by President Donald Trump.

Artificial intelligence (AI) risks reinforcing gender disparities rather than immediate widespread job destruction, the International Labour Organization chief said Monday as a summit of national leaders and tech bosses opened in Paris.

ChatGPT developer OpenAI said Thursday that it would allow some European customers to store and process data from conversations with its chatbots within the European Union, rather than on its infrastructure in the United States or elsewhere.

E-commerce giant Amazon reported strong earnings Thursday but, like its big tech peers Microsoft and Google, saw its stock price fall on concerns over high AI investment costs.

However, Communications Minister Michelle Rowland does not see Starlink as a major competitor to the government-owned NBN, but several others are concerned about its growing influence.

Google parent company Alphabet has stopped making diversity and inclusion a workplace priority, according to a filing Wednesday with US regulators.

In November, the Australian Parliament passed the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024, prohibiting individuals under 16 from accessing social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat.

Google on Tuesday updated its principles when it comes to artificial intelligence, removing vows not to use the technology for weapons or surveillance.

Australia has banned DeepSeek from all government devices on the advice of security agencies, a top official said Wednesday, citing privacy and malware risks posed by China's breakout AI program.

OpenAI chief Sam Altman signed a deal with tech giant Kakao in South Korea on Tuesday as the US firm seeks new alliances after Chinese rival DeepSeek shook the global AI industry.

China on Tuesday said it would probe US tech giant Google over violations of anti-monopoly laws after Washington slapped 10 percent levies on Chinese goods.

US tech giant OpenAI on Monday unveiled a ChatGPT tool called "deep research" that can produce detailed reports, as China's DeepSeek chatbot heats up competition in the artificial intelligence field.

Intel reported a fourth-quarter loss on Tuesday, but better than expected revenue as the US chip giant continues to struggle to stake its place in the artificial intelligence revolution.

Social media giant Meta on Wednesday reported surging profits and revenue for 2024, announcing ambitious plans to expand its artificial intelligence infrastructure in the year ahead.

OpenAI on Tuesday launched a bespoke version of its ChatGPT artificial intelligence tool for use by the United States government.

The rapid success of DeepSeek has particularly piqued interest due to two main factors: cost-effectiveness and the ability to operate on lower-capability chips, which contrasts with the high resource demands of many leading AI systems.

Europe should take greater risks and plough more money into artificial intelligence, Meta's chief AI scientist Yann LeCun told AFP at the World Economic Forum.

Meta-owned Instagram has been wooing creators from TikTok as the China-based video-snippet sharing app's future remains uncertain in the United States.

Britain's competition watchdog Tuesday launched an investigation into Google's dominant position in the search engine market and its impacts on consumers and businesses.

Apple was accused Monday of abusing the dominant position of its app store at the start of a court trial in the UK, with plaintiffs seeking GBP1.5 billion pounds ($1.8 billion) in damages.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday laid out his vision to harness the power of artificial intelligence to boost Britain's flagging economy, promising "pro-growth" regulations amid concerns about the technology's unchecked use.

From laptops to EVs, lithium-ion batteries have fueled phenomenal growth in the 21st century, but businesses struggle with a significant downside: increased fire risk.