Content Policy

EU decision regulates researcher access to data under the DSA

A document released by the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee revived claims that the EU digital rules amount to censorship. The document concerns a €120 million fine against X under the Digital Services Act and was framed as a ‘secret censorship ruling’, despite publication requirements.

The document provides insight into how the European Commission interprets Article 40 of the DSA, which governs researcher access to platform data. The rule requires huge online platforms to grant qualified researchers access to publicly accessible data needed to study systemic risks in the EU.

Investigators found that X failed to comply with Article 40.12, in force since 2023 and covering public data access. The Commission said X applied restrictive eligibility rules, delayed reviews, imposed tight quotas, and blocked independent researcher access, including scraping.

The decision confirms platforms cannot price access to restrict research, deny access based on affiliation or location, or ban scraping by contract. The European Commission also rejected X’s narrow reading of ‘systemic risk’, allowing broader research contexts.

The ruling also highlights weak internal processes and limited staffing for handling access requests. X must submit an action plan by mid-April 2026, with the decision expected to shape future enforcement of researcher access across major platforms.

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Government AI investment grows while public trust falters

Rising investment in AI is reshaping public services worldwide, yet citizen satisfaction remains uneven. Research across 14 countries shows that nearly 45% of residents believe digital government services still require improvement.

Employee confidence is also weakening, with empowerment falling from 87% three years ago to 73% today. Only 35% of public bodies provide structured upskilling for AI-enabled roles, limiting workforce readiness.

Trust remains a growing concern for public authorities adopting AI. Only 47% of residents say they believe their government will use AI responsibly, exposing a persistent credibility gap.

The study highlights an ‘experience paradox’, in which the automation of legacy systems outpaces meaningful service redesign. Leading nations such as the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Singapore rank highly for proactive AI strategies, but researchers argue that leadership vision and structural reform, not funding alone, determine long-term credibility.

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Half of xAI’s founding team has now left the company

Departures from Elon Musk’s AI startup xAI have reached a symbolic milestone, with two more co-founders announcing exits within days of each other. Yuhuai Tony Wu and Jimmy Ba both confirmed their decisions publicly, marking a turning point for the company’s leadership.

Losses now total six out of the original 12 founding members, signalling significant turnover in less than three years. Several prominent researchers had already moved on to competitors, launched new ventures, or stepped away for personal reasons.

Timing coincides with major developments, including SpaceX’s acquisition of xAI and preparations for a potential public listing. Financial opportunities and intense demand for AI expertise are encouraging senior talent to pursue independent projects or new roles.

Challenges surrounding the Grok chatbot, including technical issues and controversy over its harmful content, have added internal pressure. Growing competition from OpenAI and Anthropic means retaining skilled researchers will be vital to sustaining investor confidence and future growth.

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Russia signals no immediate Google ban as Android dependence remains critical

Officials in Russia have confirmed that no plans are underway to restrict access to Google, despite recent public debate about the possibility of a technical block. Anton Gorelkin, a senior lawmaker, said regulators clarified that such a step is not being considered.

Concerns centre on the impact a ban would have on devices running Android, which are used by a significant share of smartphone owners in the country.

A block on Google would disrupt essential digital services instead of encouraging the company to resolve ongoing legal disputes involving unpaid fines.

Gorelkin noted that court proceedings abroad are still in progress, meaning enforcement options remain open. He added that any future move to reduce reliance on Google services should follow a gradual pathway supported by domestic technological development rather than abrupt restrictions.

The comments follow earlier statements from another lawmaker, Andrey Svintsov, who acknowledged that blocking Google in Russia is technically feasible but unnecessary.

Officials now appear focused on creating conditions that would allow local digital platforms to grow without destabilising existing infrastructure.

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EU faces tension over potential ban on AI ‘pornification’

Lawmakers in the European Parliament remain divided over whether a direct ban on AI-driven ‘pornification’ should be added to the emerging digital omnibus.

Left-wing members push for an explicit prohibition, arguing that synthetic sexual imagery generated without consent has created a rapidly escalating form of online abuse. They say a strong legal measure is required instead of fragmented national responses.

Centre and liberal groups take a different position by promoting lighter requirements for industrial AI and seeking clarity on how any restrictions would interact with the AI Act.

They warn that an unrefined ban could spill over into general-purpose models and complicate enforcement across the European market. Their priority is a more predictable regulatory environment for companies developing high-volume AI systems.

Key figures across the political spectrum, including lawmakers such as Assita Kanko, Axel Voss and Brando Benifei, continue to debate how far the omnibus should go.

Some argue that safeguarding individuals from non-consensual sexual deepfakes must outweigh concerns about administrative burdens, while others insist that proportionality and technical feasibility need stronger assessment.

The lack of consensus leaves the proposal in a delicate phase as negotiations intensify. Lawmakers now face growing public scrutiny over how Europe will respond to the misuse of generative AI.

A clear stance from the Parliament is still pending, rather than an assured path toward agreement.

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Latam-GPT signals new AI ambition in Latin America

Chile has introduced Latam-GPT to strengthen Latin America’s presence in global AI.

The project, developed by the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence with support across South America, aims to correct long-standing biases by training systems on the region’s own data instead of material drawn mainly from the US or Europe.

President Gabriel Boric said the model will help maintain cultural identity and allow the region to take a more active role in technological development.

Latam-GPT is not designed as a conversational tool but rather as a vast dataset that serves as the foundation for future applications. More than eight terabytes of information have been collected, mainly in Spanish and Portuguese, with plans to add indigenous languages as the project expands.

The first version has been trained on Amazon Web Services. At the same time, future work will run on a new supercomputer at the University of Tarapacá, supported by millions of dollars in regional funding.

The model reflects growing interest among countries outside the major AI hubs of the US, China and Europe in developing their own technology instead of relying on foreign systems.

Researchers in Chile argue that global models often include Latin American data in tiny proportions, which can limit accurate representation. Despite questions about resources and scale, supporters believe Latam-GPT can deliver practical benefits tailored to local needs.

Early adoption is already underway, with the Chilean firm Digevo preparing customer service tools based on the model.

These systems will operate in regional languages and recognise local expressions, offering a more natural experience than products trained on data from other parts of the world.

Developers say the approach could reduce bias and promote more inclusive AI across the continent.

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ChatGPT starts limited advertising rollout in the US

OpenAI has begun rolling out advertising inside ChatGPT, marking a shift for a service that has largely operated without traditional ads since its launch in 2022.

OpenAI said it is testing ads for logged-in Free and Go users in the United States, while paid tiers remain ad-free. The company said the test aims to fund broader access to advanced AI tools.

Ads appear outside ChatGPT responses and are clearly labelled as sponsored content, with no influence on answers. Placement is based on broad topics, with restrictions around sensitive areas such as health or politics.

Free users can opt out of ads by upgrading to a paid plan or by accepting fewer daily free messages in exchange for an ad-free experience. Users who allow ads can also opt out of ad personalisation, prevent past chats from being used for ad selection, and delete all ad-related history and data.

The rollout follows months of speculation after screenshots suggested that ads appeared in ChatGPT responses, which OpenAI described as suggestions. Rivals, including Anthropic, have contrasted their approach, promoting Claude as free from in-chat advertising.

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X given deadline by Brazil to curb Grok sexualised outputs

Brazil has ordered X to immediately stop its chatbot Grok from generating sexually explicit images, escalating international pressure on the platform over the misuse of generative AI tools.

The order, issued on 11 February by Brazil’s National Data Protection Agency and National Consumer Rights Bureau, requires X to prevent the creation of sexualised content involving children, adolescents, or non-consenting adults. Authorities gave the company five days to comply or face legal action and fines.

Officials in Brazil said X claimed to have removed thousands of posts and suspended hundreds of accounts after a January warning. However, follow-up checks found Grok users were still able to generate sexualised deepfakes. Regulators criticised the platform for a lack of transparency in its response.

The move follows growing scrutiny after Indonesia blocked Grok in January, while the UK and France signalled continued pressure. Concerns increased after Grok’s ‘spicy mode’ enabled users to generate explicit images using simple prompts.

According to the Centre for Countering Digital Hate, Grok generated millions of sexualised images within days. X and its parent company, xAI, announced measures in mid-January to restrict such outputs in certain jurisdictions, but regulators said it remains unclear where those safeguards apply.

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Threads users can now personalise algorithms with Dear Algo feature

Meta has launched an AI feature called Dear Algo that allows Threads users to personalise their content-recommendation algorithms by communicating their preferences directly to the platform.

Users craft public posts beginning with ‘Dear Algo’ to explain desired content, similar to interactions with chatbots like OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Once shared, the request adjusts the user’s feed for three days, allowing them to stay connected to current conversations.

Users can also repost others’ Dear Algo requests to apply those content preferences to their own feeds.

The feature represents Meta’s continued integration of AI across its platforms. The company on Tuesday also released AI features for Facebook that let users animate profile photos and alter images with the Meta AI digital assistant.

Meta told investors last month it plans to spend between $115 billion and $135 billion in 2026 on AI-related capital expenditures, nearly double last year’s spending.

Meta is testing Dear Algo with users in the US, UK, Australia, and New Zealand before expanding to additional countries. Threads, Meta’s micro-blogging platform launched in July 2023, has 400 million monthly active users and began rolling out advertisements globally last month.

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AWS chief sees AI shifting from content creation to autonomous task completion

AI is shifting from answering questions to autonomously accomplishing tasks, a transformation AWS CEO Matt Garman believes will unlock far greater enterprise value.

Speaking at AWS re:Invent 2025, Garman explained that AI inference- the computing capability that allows models to generate content, make predictions, and take actions against real-world data-represents a fundamental new building block in computing.

He described it as developers gaining access to a ‘new Lego’ that enables applications to make decisions and complete work independently. The distinction between content generation and task accomplishment carries significant implications for enterprise value.

First-wave generative AI focused on writing emails and summarising documents. Task-accomplishing agents can review insurance claims, cross-reference medical records, and process approved claims without human intervention.

Garman predicts widespread enterprise value creation from agents in 2026. AWS announced Amazon Bedrock AgentCore and three frontier agents at re:Invent 2025, providing organisations with infrastructure to deploy autonomous AI agents at scale.

For business leaders, investments in agents that automate end-to-end workflows will deliver exponentially more return on investment than tools that help employees work faster.

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