Apple is increasing its domestic investment by an additional $100 billion, bringing its total commitment to US manufacturing to $600 billion over the next four years.
The announcement was made by CEO Tim Cook during a joint appearance with President Donald Trump at the White House, as the administration signals plans to impose steep tariffs on foreign-made semiconductors.
The investment includes a new American Manufacturing Program aimed at expanding US production of key Apple components, such as AI servers and rare earth magnets. Facilities are already under development in states including Texas, Kentucky, and Arizona.
Apple says the initiative will support 450,000 jobs across all 50 states and reduce reliance on overseas supply chains.
Apple’s expanded spending arrives amid criticism of its slow progress in AI. With its ‘Apple Intelligence’ software struggling for traction, and the recent departure of foundation model head Rouming Pang to Meta, the company is now shifting focus.
Cook confirmed that investment in AI infrastructure is accelerating, with data centres expanding in five states.
While Apple’s move has drawn praise for supporting American jobs, it has also stirred controversy. Some users expressed discontent with Cook’s public alignment with Trump, despite the strategic importance of avoiding tariffs.
Trump stated that companies investing in the US would not face the proposed import charges.
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Australia’s eSafety commissioner report showed that tech giants, including Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft, have failed to act against online child sexual abuse. Namely, it was found that Apple and YouTube do not track the number of abuse reports they receive or how quickly they respond, raising serious concerns. Additionally, both companies failed to disclose the number of trust and safety staff they employ, highlighting ongoing transparency and accountability issues in protecting children online.
In July 2024, the eSafety Commissioner of Australia took action by issuing legally enforceable notices to major tech companies, pressuring them to improve their response to child sexual abuse online.
These notices legally require recipients to comply within a set timeframe. Under the order, each companies were required to report eSafety every six months over a two-year period, detailing their efforts to combat child sexual abuse material, livestreamed abuse, online grooming, sexual extortion, and AI-generated content.
While these notices were issued in 2022 and 2023, there has been minimal effort by the companies to take action to prevent such crimes, according to Australia’s eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant.
Apple did not use hash-matching tools to detect known CSEA images on iCloud (which was opt-in, end-to-end encrypted) and did not use hash-matching tools to detect known CSEA videos on iCloud or iCloud email. For iMessage and FaceTime (which were end-to-end encrypted), Apple only used Communication Safety, Apple’s safety intervention to identify images or videos that likely contain nudity, as a means of ‘detecting’ CSEA.
Discord did not use hash-matching tools for known CSEA videos on any part of the service (despite using hash-matching tools for known images and tools to detect new CSEA material).
Google did not use hash-matching tools to detect known CSEA images on Google Messages (end-to-end encrypted), nor did it detect known CSEA videos on Google Chat, Google Messages, or Gmail.
Microsoft did not use hash-matching tools for known CSEA images stored on OneDrive18, nor did it use hash-matching tools to detect known videos within content stored on OneDrive or Outlook.
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China’s top security agency has raised concerns over crypto-related projects collecting biometric data, warning they may threaten national security. A recent MSS bulletin warned that crypto firms trading tokens for iris scans could misuse personal data.
While the agency didn’t explicitly mention Worldcoin, the description aligns with its practice of exchanging tokens for biometric scans in over 160 countries.
Officials described iris recognition as a sensitive form of identification that, once leaked, cannot be changed. The bulletin warned that fake facial data may be used by foreign agencies for espionage and infiltration.
In response to privacy concerns, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently proposed a pluralistic identity system. The concept combines multiple sources of verification rather than relying on a single, centralised ID.
He argued that current models risk eliminating anonymity and may favour wealthy participants in verification systems.
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An unexpected technical issue led United Airlines to temporarily ground all its mainline flights across key US airports. The disruption affected hundreds of departures, notably at hubs like Newark, San Francisco and Denver.
United Express flights remained unaffected, and in‑air services continued as planned. The airline reassured customers that safety was the top priority while staff worked to restore systems.
So far around 827 flights have been delayed and 23 cancelled. United confirmed that a cyberattack was not to blame for the outage.
Passengers reported delayed departures due to missing system data needed for take‑off. The airline noted delays may persist into the evening as technical fixes are completed
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A sweeping cyberattack has compromised the federal court filing system across multiple US states, exposing sensitive case data and informant identities. The breach affects core systems used by legal professionals and the public.
Sources say the Administrative Office of the US Courts first realised the scale of the hack in early July, with authorities still assessing the damage. Nation-state-linked actors or organised crime are suspected.
Critical systems like CM/ECF and PACER were impacted, raising fears over sealed indictments, search warrants and cooperation records now exposed. A dozen dockets were reportedly tampered with in at least one district.
Calls to modernise the ageing court infrastructure have intensified, with officials warning of rising cyber threats and the urgent need for system replacements.
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South Korea’s Trade Minister said Samsung and SK Hynix will avoid the 100% US tariffs on semiconductor imports. The exemption follows both companies’ significant investments in US chip manufacturing facilities.
Trump had warned that countries failing to produce semiconductors domestically would incur steep tariffs but offered relief for those building factories in the US.
Samsung operates two chip fabrication plants in Texas, supported by the CHIPS and Science Act. Meanwhile, SK Hynix is building a packaging plant in Indiana with government grants and loans.
Samsung’s partnership with Apple will see chips manufactured at its Texas facility supply the iPhone line, particularly image sensors for next-generation models. Analysts expect this collaboration to boost Samsung’s semiconductor sales.
Apple also announced plans to invest an additional $100 billion in US operations over the next four years, highlighting the growing importance of domestic chip production.
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AWS CEO Matt Garman celebrated the partnership as a ‘powerhouse combination’, noting that the models outperform comparable options, claiming they are three times more price-efficient than Gemini and five times more than DeepSeek‑R1, when deployed via Bedrock.
Rich functionality comes with these models: wide context capacity, chain-of-thought transparency, adjustable reasoning levels, and compatibility with agentic workflows. Bedrock offers secure deployment with Guardrails support, while SageMaker enables experimentation across AWS regions.
Financial markets took notice. AWS stock rose after the announcement, as analysts viewed the pairing with OpenAI’s open models as a meaningful step toward boosting its AI offerings amid fierce cloud rivalry.
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The US government has finalised a deal with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT Enterprise across all federal agencies. Each agency will access ChatGPT for $1 to support AI adoption and modernise operations.
According to the General Services Administration, the move aligns with the White House’s AI Action Plan, which aims to make the US a global leader in AI development. The plan promotes AI integration, innovation, and regulation across public institutions.
However, privacy advocates and cybersecurity experts have raised concerns over the risks of centralised AI in government. Critics cite the potential for mass surveillance, narrative control, and sensitive data exposure.
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has cautioned users that AI conversations are not protected under privacy laws and could be used in legal proceedings. Storing data on centralised servers via large language models raises concerns over civil liberties and government overreach.
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China’s Ministry of State Security has warned of foreign attempts to collect sensitive biometric data via crypto schemes. The ministry warned that foreign agents are illegally harvesting iris scans and facial data, risking personal privacy and national security.
The advisory noted recent cases in which foreign intelligence services exploited biometric technologies to spy on individuals within China. Cryptocurrencies incentivised people worldwide to submit iris scans, which were sent overseas.
Although no specific companies were named, the description resembled the approach of the crypto firm World, formerly known as Worldcoin.
Biometric identification methods have proliferated across many sectors due to their accuracy and convenience. However, the ministry stressed the vulnerability of such systems to data breaches and misuse.
Iris patterns, unique and challenging to replicate, are prized by malicious actors.
Citizens are urged to remain cautious, carefully review privacy policies, and question how their biometric information is handled.
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The European Union’s ‘Chat Control’ proposal is gaining traction, with 19 member states now supporting a plan to scan all private messages on encrypted apps. From October, apps like WhatsApp, Signal, and Telegram must scan all messages, photos, and videos on users’ devices before encryption.
France, Denmark, Belgium, Hungary, Sweden, Italy, and Spain back the measure, while Germany has yet to decide. The proposal could pass by mid-October under the EU’s qualified majority voting system if Germany joins.
The initiative aims to prevent child sexual abuse material (CSAM) but has sparked concerns over mass surveillance and the erosion of digital privacy.
In addition to scanning, the proposal would introduce mandatory age verification, which could remove anonymity on messaging platforms. Critics argue the plan amounts to real-time surveillance of private conversations and threatens fundamental freedoms.
Telegram founder Pavel Durov recently warned of societal collapse in France due to censorship and regulatory pressure. He disclosed attempts by French officials to censor political content on his platform, which he refused to comply with.
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