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The AI Industry Is Still Light-Years From Making a Profit, Experts Warn

Were you to glance at the trajectory of top AI stocks — OpenAI, Microsoft, Nvidia, and the like — you'd be convinced the industry is making money hand over fist. Look a bit deeper, however, and cracks start to show in that facade, betraying one massively inconvenient truth: that the AI industry has not yet figured out how to be profitable, and possibly never will. In interviews with the New York Times, even the most enthusiastic AI proponents were unable to spin the technology (and the industr

How randomness improves algorithms (2023)

Since the very first days of computer science — a field known for its methodical approach to problem-solving — randomness has played an important role. The first program to run on the world’s first general-purpose electronic computer used randomness to simulate nuclear processes. Similar approaches have since been used in astrophysics, climate science and economics. In all these cases, plugging in random numbers at certain steps in the algorithm helps researchers account for uncertainty about th

Microsoft Probing Whether Israel Used Its Cloud to Build Palestinian Surveillance System

For the past two years, Microsoft has been dogged by accusations—both within and outside the company—that its technology is aiding the Israeli war effort. Microsoft’s own employees have protested the firm’s contracts with Israel, and protesters have disrupted the company’s various talks and conferences. Even the company’s 50th anniversary was ruined by shouts from one of its own employees, who reportedly yelled “Shame on you” while calling the company’s head of AI a “war profiteer” who was “usin

I Tried Perplexity's Comet AI Web Browser and It Might Be the Future

It takes deep, below-the-navel brazen audacity to take on Google in online search. Just ask Microsoft, DuckDuckGo, Brave and the slew of other search engines that have tried to scrape away at Google's near 90% global market share. It takes a kick in the head to think Google would sell Chrome, its wildly popular web browser. It seems that AI search company Perplexity has a pair of grit and gall, along with a multitude of head fractures, as it not only aims to usurp Google in online search, it of

Gear News of the Week: A New Privacy Phone Arrives, and Samsung Has a $30K 115-Inch Micro RGB TV

There's a new smartphone promising to protect your privacy: the Up Phone, from a company called Unplugged. Except it's not new. Unplugged has been around for a few years—the company was cofounded by Erik Prince, the founder of private military company Blackwater—and it originally announced the Up Phone in 2023. But this week, the company claims it's “relaunching” the phone, under new leadership. Like the original, the Up Phone's UnpluggedOS (formerly LibertOS) is built on the Android Open Sourc

Winklevoss twins’ crypto company Gemini files for IPO

Another crypto company is headed for the public markets. This time, it’s Gemini Space Station Inc., the New York-based crypto exchange and custodian bank founded by billionaire twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss. The outfit, which plans to list on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol GEMI, was founded in 2014 and operates as an exchange and custodian that offers a number of products and services, including a U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin and a credit card that offers rewards in cryp

As People Ridicule GPT-5, Sam Altman Says OpenAI Will Need ‘Trillions’ in Infrastructure

People have ridiculed GPT-5, the newest large language model release from OpenAI, since the second it launched, with many users complaining that it’s dumb, boring, and not as good as the last LLM that the company released. Sam Altman, the company’s CEO, has some comforting words for those who may be concerned about the direction his company is headed: AI is a bubble, and oh, also btw, my company is about to spend the GDP of France to build out our AI infrastructure. That seems to be the gist of

Applied Materials sinks 14% on weak guidance due to China demand

Applied Materials shares plunged14% after the semiconductor equipment maker issued weak guidance as it faces demand pressures in China. The company forecast adjusted earnings per share of $2.11, falling short of the $2.39 per share expected by LSEG. The company projected $6.7 billion in revenue, versus the $7.34 billion estimate. During an earnings call with analysts, CEO Gary Dickerson said that the current macroeconomic backdrop and trade issues have fueled "increasing uncertainty and lower

Opendoor CEO resigns following investor pressure campaign

Opendoor CEO Carrie Wheeler said Friday that she's resigning from the online real estate company, which has seen a surge in recent interest from retail investors. The stock popped early in the day before closing up 4.3%. Pressure began building on Wheeler, who took over the top job in 2022, after the company's quarterly earnings report earlier this month failed to reassure investors that a turnaround is underway. The stock is up more than sixfold since bottoming out at 51 cents in June, a price

Tech IPOs are roaring after 'years of Prohibition' — it may be too good

Brendan Blumer, Chairman of of Bullish and Tom Farley, CEO of Bullish, Bullish a cryptocurrency exchange operator, pose with staffs during the company's IPO at the New York Stock Exchange in New York City, U.S., August 13, 2025. The Bullish IPO this week took on added significance, perhaps because of the company name. When shares of the Peter Thiel-backed cryptocurrency exchange more than doubled out of the gate on Wednesday before finishing the day up 84%, it was the latest sign that the tech

How your solar rooftop became a national security issue

James Showalter describes a pretty specific if not entirely implausible nightmare scenario. Someone drives up to your house, cracks your Wi-Fi password, and then starts messing with the solar inverter mounted beside your garage. This unassuming gray box converts the direct current from your rooftop panels into the alternating current that powers your home. “You’ve got to have a solar stalker” for this scenario to play out, says Showalter, describing the kind of person who would need to physical

Applied Materials sinks nearly 14% on weak guidance due to China demand

Applied Materials shares plunged14% after the semiconductor equipment maker issued weak guidance as it faces demand pressures in China. The company forecast adjusted earnings per share of $2.11, falling short of the $2.39 per share expected by LSEG. The company projected $6.7 billion in revenue, versus the $7.34 billion estimate. During an earnings call with analysts, CEO Gary Dickerson said that the current macroeconomic backdrop and trade issues have fueled "increasing uncertainty and lower

Sen. Hawley to probe Meta AI bot policies for children following damning report

Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg departs after attending a Federal Trade Commission trial that could force the company to unwind its acquisitions of messaging platform WhatsApp and image-sharing app Instagram, at U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 15, 2025. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said Friday that he will investigate Meta following a report that the company approved rules allowing artificial intelligence chatbots to have certain "romantic" and "sensual" conversations with c

Trump Admin Has Dropped a Third of All Investigations Into Big Tech, Advocates Say

Trump talked a big game during the election about taking the fight to Silicon Valley. But, since taking office, the former reality star seems to have done little to make good on that promise. In fact, a recent survey of his actions claims that Trump, whose political victory was partially propelled by gargantuan gobs of cash from tech firms and their executives, has dropped a third of all investigations and enforcement actions against tech companies since taking power. The report, published by t

DARPA Is Taking Its AI Fighter Jet Program to the Next Level

Imagine Top Gun without pilots. Not exactly summer blockbuster material. But that is what the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has in mind for the future of the military. According to an announcement spotted by The Register, the agency recently handed out a multi-million dollar contract that will push forward its autonomous pilot program that will eventually deploy planes into warfare without a human being behind the control stick. The contract, announced earlier this week, was

Decoding Palantir, the Most Mysterious Company in Silicon Valley

And this is something that appeals to, I mean, if you are a high up person at the company and you know that you need to get some sort of product, let's say you're not super technical, this is exactly the kind of rhetoric, visuals, et cetera, that might appeal to someone. Lauren Goode: It seems like secrecy is also embedded in the origins of the company. One of its early investors was in QTEL, which is the CIA's venture capital arm. And two of Palantir's cofounders are pretty well-known. Peter T

Kyte, which billed itself as the ‘best competitor to Hertz,’ shuts down

Rental car startup Kyte has shut down nearly one year after slashing staff and exiting most of its cities in the United States. The company sold its customer list to Turo in July, and then turned right around and entered into a form of receivership in California, according to a notice that went out to Kyte creditors. Kyte fell behind on some of its loans earlier this year, according to the notice. That caused the company’s top lender to repossess and liquidate Kyte’s vehicle fleet. Kyte’s boar

Brands might be cooling on satellite features, and that’s bad news for cheaper Androids

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority TL;DR Chinese brands are scaling back satellite communication and keeping it for top-end models only. A reliable tipster says past high-end sat-com flagships sold poorly and were dropped. This could make global brands less likely to bring the feature to affordable phones. Satellite communication has been one of the most talked-about phone features in the past couple of years, and it’s no longer just for emergencies. Just this week, our APK teardown showed h

Your ESR power bank could be a fire hazard - check it now

Anna Efetova/Moment via Getty ZDNET's key takeaways ESR is recalling the HaloLock power bank over fire concerns. Affected power banks were sold on Amazon and other retailers. You can email ESR a photo of your device for a refund. Get more in-depth ZDNET tech coverage: Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome and Chromium browsers. If you have an ESR HaloLock wireless power bank, you should stop using it immediately and contact the company for a refund. In a post Thursday, the United

EasyPost (YC S13) Is Hiring

We want to ensure your safety and protect you from potential scams. Recently, there have been fraudulent recruitment initiatives online that impersonate our company. These scams aim to deceive unsuspecting applicants by offering nonexistent positions and requesting personal information or upfront fees. Remember that our company does not endorse any job postings outside our official channels. If you encounter a suspicious offer, report it through the job platform on which you found it or report

Opendoor stock pops 10% as CEO resigns following investor pressure campaign

Opendoor shares popped about 10% on Friday after CEO Carrie Wheeler said she's resigning from the online real estate company, which has seen a surge in recent interest from retail investors. Pressure began building on Wheeler, who took over the top job in 2022, after the company's quarterly earnings report earlier this month failed to reassure investors that a turnaround is underway. The stock is up more than sixfold since bottoming out at 51 cents in June, a price that put the company at risk

The White House Keeps a ‘Loyalty’ Scorecard for Companies: Report

The White House has created a spreadsheet that rates hundreds of companies for their loyalty, according to a new report from Axios. And while that may not be entirely shocking news, given Donald Trump’s way of doing business, it’s worth stepping back and asking how news of a loyalty scorecard by a sitting president would’ve been received in the pre-Trump era. The rankings on the loyalty spreadsheet are currently determined by a given company’s perceived support of the so-called Big Beautiful Bi

Ultrahuman acquires viO HealthTech to launch enhanced cycle and ovulation tracking

Smart ring maker Ultrahuman is acquiring women’s health technology company viO HealthTech to launch advanced cycle and ovulation tracking, the company announced on Friday. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Thanks to the acquisition, the company is launching a new plug-in for the Ultrahuman Ring AIR called “Cycle and Ovulation Pro.” The plug-in will allow users to accurately track their cycles, get fertility planning support with ovulation confirmation, and detect patterns like

Applied Materials sinks 13% on weak guidance due to China demand

Applied Materials shares plunged more than 13% after the semiconductor equipment maker issued weak guidance as it faces demand pressures in China. The company forecasted adjusted earnings of $2.11 per this quarter, falling short of the $2.39 per share expected by LSEG. The company projected $6.7 billion in revenue, versus the $7.34 billion estimate. During an earnings call with analysts, CEO Gary Dickerson said that the current macroeconomic backdrop and trade issues have fueled "increasing un

Wild Video Shows Humanoid Robot Effortlessly Folding Laundry

Earlier this month, AI robotics firm Figure released a video showing Figure 02, the company's autonomous humanoid robot powered by a visual language system called Helix, loading clothes into a laundry machine to be washed. Now, the company says that the robot has a new skill: folding laundry. Figure announced the capability in a blog post yesterday, celebrating the news as a landmark event for the company and autonomous laundry frontiers writ large. The robot's folding prowess, the company de

Colt Telecom attack claimed by WarLock ransomware, data up for sale

UK-based telecommunications company Colt Technology Services is dealing with a cyberattack that has caused a multi-day outage of some of the company's operations, including hosting and porting services, Colt Online, and Voice API platforms. The British telecommunications and network services provider disclosed that the attack started on August 12 and the disruption continues as its IT staff works around the clock to mitigate its effects. Founded in 1992 as City of London Telecommunications (CO

ADHD drug treatment and risk of negative events and outcomes

Conclusions Drug treatment for ADHD was associated with beneficial effects in reducing the risks of suicidal behaviours, substance misuse, transport accidents, and criminality but not accidental injuries when considering first event rate. The risk reductions were more pronounced for recurrent events, with reduced rates for all five outcomes. This target trial emulation study using national register data provides evidence that is representative of patients in routine clinical settings. Results O

Teenage Engineering Has a New PC Case. As Usual, You Won’t Believe the Price

Teenage Engineering, makers of fine and fun devices like the popular OP-1 field synthesizer and Pocket Operator music mixers, dropped a new PC case yesterday, and it immediately sold out. But unlike gear like the OP-1 field or TP-7 audio recorder that sell for eye-watering prices of $2,000 and $1,500, respectively, the translucent and plastic Computer-2 desktop PC case was given away for free. Well, sort of—you just have to pay for shipping. “The computer case you can’t buy,” reads the Computer-

BlackBerry Classic is being revived with Android, and it can be yours for $400

Zinwa Technologies TL;DR A Chinese company is reviving old BlackBerry Classic phones with Android. The main board has been replaced, and so are the cameras, battery, and USB port. The revived BlackBerry is up for pre-ordering, and the company plans to start mass production by September. BlackBerry was more than a phone brand. It was a long-running phenomenon that would instantly shape your impression of the person using it as someone important. And so, it isn’t surprising to see so many peop

How much RAM do you really need in 2025?

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET Get more in-depth ZDNET tech coverage: Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome and Chromium browsers. I used to struggle when shopping for a new computer. Over time, I learned to narrow things down to what I call the "performance trifecta" -- three main components you should be mindful of when buying a laptop or desktop: processor, storage drive, and RAM. The first two are pretty easy to figure out. A good processor ensures that a computer performs well, and a lots o