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ChatGPT ‘adult mode’ launch delayed as OpenAI focuses on core improvements

OpenAI has postponed the launch of ChatGPT’s ‘adult mode’, a feature designed to let verified adult users access erotica and other mature content.

Teams are focusing on improving intelligence, personality and proactive behaviour instead of releasing the feature immediately.

A feature that was first announced by Sam Altman in October, with an initial December rollout, aiming to allow adults more freedom while maintaining safety for younger users.

The project faced an earlier delay as internal teams prioritised the core ChatGPT experience.

OpenAI stated it still supports the principle of treating adults like adults but warned that achieving the right experience will require more time. No new release date has been provided.

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Pentagon AI dispute raises concerns for startups

A dispute between Anthropic and the Pentagon in the US has raised questions about whether startups will hesitate to pursue defence contracts. Negotiations over the use of Anthropic’s Claude AI technology collapsed, prompting the US administration to label the company a supply chain risk.

The situation in the US escalated as OpenAI secured its own agreement with the Pentagon. The development sparked backlash online, with reports of a surge in ChatGPT uninstalls after the defence partnership announcement.

Technology analysts in the US say the controversy highlights the unusual scrutiny facing high-profile AI firms. Companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic attract intense public attention because widely used AI products place their defence partnerships in the spotlight.

Startup founders in the US are now debating the risks of government contracts, particularly with the Pentagon. Industry observers in the US warn that defence authorities’ contract changes could make government collaboration more uncertain.

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AI copyright warning as 5 major risks outlined in UK Lords report

Concerns about AI copyright are rising after a House of Lords committee report. The report warns that unlicensed use of creative works for AI training threatens the UK’s creative industries.

Large AI systems rely on vast amounts of human-created content, often used without clear consent or compensation. Such developments have intensified debates around AI copyright protections.

The committee argues that the key issues are not the copyright framework itself, but the widespread unlicensed use of protected works and AI developers’ lack of transparency.

The lack of clarity prevents rightsholders from knowing whether their works are being used or from enforcing their rights, raising critical questions about the practical application of AI copyright rules.

The report urges the government to reject the proposed commercial text and data mining exception, introduce stronger protections against unauthorised digital replicas, and safeguard against AI outputs that imitate a creator’s style, voice, or identity.

The committee also calls for legal transparency in AI training data, backing the development of a licensing market, and standards for rights-reservation, data provenance, labelling AI-generated content, and support for UK-governed AI models within a robust AI copyright framework.

Baroness Keeley, committee chair, warned: ‘Our creative industries face a clear and present danger from uncredited and unremunerated use of copyrighted material to train AI models.

Photographers, musicians, authors, and publishers are seeing their work fed into AI models, which then produce imitations that take employment and earning opportunities from original creators.’

Keeley added: ‘AI may contribute to our future economic growth, but the UK creative industries create jobs and economic value now.

In 2023, the creative industries delivered £124 billion of economic value to the UK, and this is set to grow to £141 billion by 2030. Watering down the protections in our existing copyright regime to lure the biggest US tech companies is a race to the bottom that does not serve UK interests. We should not sacrifice our creative industries for the AI jam tomorrow.’

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EU and Canada begin negotiations on a digital trade agreement

The European Commission and Canada have launched negotiations on a new Digital Trade Agreement to strengthen the rules governing cross-border digital commerce.

The initiative was announced in Toronto by the EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič and Canadian International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu.

An agreement that will expand the digital dimension of the existing Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, which has already increased trade in goods and services between the two partners.

Officials say the new negotiations aim to create clearer rules for businesses and consumers engaging in cross-border digital transactions.

Proposals under discussion include promoting paperless trade systems, recognising electronic signatures and digital contracts, and prohibiting customs duties on electronic transmissions.

The agreement between the EU and Canada will also seek to prevent protectionist practices such as unjustified data localisation requirements or forced transfers of software source code.

European officials argue that the negotiations reflect a broader effort to develop international standards for digital trade governance while preserving governments’ ability to regulate emerging challenges in the digital economy.

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Data breach hits fintech lender Figure exposing nearly 1 million accounts

Fintech lender Figure Technology Solutions has disclosed a data breach after hackers exposed personal information from nearly one million accounts. Details from 967,200 accounts, including names, email addresses, phone numbers, home addresses, and dates of birth, were compromised.

Figure Technology Solutions, founded in 2018, operates a blockchain-based lending platform built on the Provenance blockchain. The company says it has facilitated more than $22 billion in home equity transactions through partnerships with banks, credit unions, and fintech firms. Despite blockchain security claims, attackers reportedly gained access by manipulating a staff member rather than breaking the underlying technology.

‘We recently identified that an employee was socially engineered, and that allowed an actor to download a limited number of files through their account,’ a company spokesperson said. ‘We acted quickly to block the activity and retained a forensic firm to investigate what files were affected. We understand the importance of these matters and are communicating with partners and those impacted as appropriate.’

Security researchers say the data breach follows a pattern used by groups such as ShinyHunters, who impersonate IT support staff and pressure employees into revealing login credentials through convincing phishing portals.

Once access to corporate single sign-on systems, which allow users to log in to multiple internal applications with a single set of credentials, is obtained, attackers can move across multiple internal platforms, often including services linked to major providers such as Microsoft and Google.

Experts warn that the data breach highlights a wider cybersecurity problem: even advanced technologies such as blockchain cannot prevent attacks that target human behaviour. Criminals can use exposed personal information to launch convincing phishing campaigns or financial scams, reinforcing the need for stronger employee training and security awareness.

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Job losses study by Anthropic reveals 0 evidence of AI driven unemployment

A new Anthropic report finds AI has not yet caused significant job losses, introducing ‘observed exposure’ to measure actual workplace AI use.

Researchers combined language model capabilities with workplace data to identify occupations at risk of disruption. Although AI can perform many tasks, its actual adoption remains much lower across most industries, which is a main finding of the study.

Even in highly digital professions, only a fraction of potential automation results from AI use. For instance, computer and mathematics occupations rank among the most AI-exposed groups. Despite AI’s capability to assist with many tasks, it currently covers only about 33% of them in these fields.

Across the broader economy, many roles experience little or no impact from AI, which represents a key finding. About 30% of workers are in jobs such as cooking, bartending, mechanics, and lifeguarding, where physical tasks dominate, and measured AI exposure is almost zero.

The report also finds no clear evidence that AI adoption has increased unemployment or caused a spike in job losses since generative AI tools began spreading widely in 2022. Rather than triggering sudden job losses, researchers suggest labour-market effects emerge gradually, through slower hiring, shifting skill requirements, and changes in job composition.

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AI chips exports face tighter US oversight under new proposal

Washington is considering rules that would require US government approval for overseas purchases of AI chips, tightening control over the global semiconductor supply chain. Draft proposals would make foreign buyers seek Department of Commerce authorisation before acquiring AI chips from US suppliers.

Furthermore, scrutiny will vary by order size, giving US authorities more oversight of international demand for advanced processors. The proposed rules could significantly expand oversight of leading semiconductor manufacturers such as NVIDIA and AMD, whose AI chips underpin many advanced AI systems.

The new approach to regulating exports of AI chips marks a shift toward a more interventionist strategy. Previously, during the Biden administration, an AI diffusion regulation was finalised to control the global spread of AI technology. Yet, before this rule could take effect, the current administration scrapped it. Building on these developments, the current proposed rules represent a new chapter in US AI export policy.

A US Department of Commerce spokesperson said the agency remains committed to ‘promoting secure exports of the American tech stack,’ but rejected claims that the government is reviving the earlier diffusion framework, calling it ‘burdensome, overreaching, and disastrous.’

Meanwhile, critics warn that tighter controls could have unintended effects. Restrictions on AI chip exports may drive international buyers to non-US suppliers, potentially weakening US leadership in advanced semiconductor technology as global AI hardware competition intensifies.

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Privacy lawsuit targets Meta AI glasses after reports of footage review

Meta is facing a new lawsuit in the US over privacy concerns tied to its AI smart glasses.

The legal complaint follows investigative reporting indicating that contractors working for a Kenya-based subcontractor reviewed footage captured by users’ devices, including sensitive personal scenes.

The lawsuit alleges that some of the reviewed material included nudity and other intimate activities recorded by the glasses’ cameras.

According to the complaint, the footage formed part of a data review process designed to improve the AI system integrated into the wearable device.

Plaintiffs claim Meta marketed the product as prioritising user privacy, citing advertisements suggesting that the glasses were ‘designed for privacy’ and that users remained in control of their personal data.

The complaint argues that such messaging could mislead consumers if the footage were subject to human review without clear disclosure.

A legal action that also names eyewear manufacturer Luxottica, which partnered with Meta to produce the glasses.

Meanwhile, the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office has begun examining the issue after reports that face-blurring safeguards may not have consistently protected individuals captured in the recordings.

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EU competition scrutiny pushes Meta to reopen WhatsApp AI access

Meta has announced that third-party AI chatbots will again be allowed to operate through WhatsApp in Europe, reversing restrictions introduced earlier this year.

The decision follows pressure from the European Commission, which had warned it could impose interim competition measures.

Earlier in 2026, Meta limited access to rival chatbot services on the messaging platform, prompting regulators to examine whether the move unfairly restricted competition in the rapidly expanding AI market.

WhatsApp remains one of the most widely used messaging applications across European countries, making platform access critical for emerging AI services.

Under the new arrangement, companies will be able to distribute general-purpose AI chatbots via the WhatsApp Business API for 12 months.

The change is intended to give European regulators time to complete their investigation while allowing competing AI services to operate within the platform ecosystem.

Meta has also indicated that businesses offering chatbots through WhatsApp will be required to pay fees to access the system.

The European Commission is now assessing whether these adjustments sufficiently address competition concerns surrounding the integration of AI services inside major digital platforms.

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Calls grow to strengthen New Zealand privacy law

Pressure is growing in New Zealand to strengthen the Privacy Act following several high-profile data breaches. Debate in New Zealand intensified after a cyberattack exposed medical records from the Manage My Health patient portal.

The breach in New Zealand affected about 120,000 patients and involved threats to release documents on the dark web. Another incident forced the MediMap medication platform offline after unauthorised changes were detected in patient records.

Privacy specialists argue that current enforcement powers are too weak to deter serious failures. The Privacy Act allows only limited financial penalties, with fines generally capped at NZD10,000.

Officials are now considering reforms, including stronger penalties for privacy violations. Policymakers also warn that failure to strengthen the law could threaten the country’s EU data adequacy status.

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