Wikipedia halts AI summaries test after backlash

Wikipedia has paused a controversial trial of AI-generated article summaries following intense backlash from its community of volunteer editors.

The Wikimedia Foundation had planned a two-week opt-in test for mobile users using summaries produced by Aya, an open-weight AI model developed by Cohere.

However, the reaction from editors was swift and overwhelmingly negative. The discussion page became flooded with objections, with contributors arguing that such summaries risked undermining the site’s reputation for neutrality and accuracy.

Some expressed concerns that inserting AI content would override Wikipedia’s long-standing collaborative approach by effectively installing a single, unverifiable voice atop articles.

Editors warned that AI-generated summaries lacked proper sourcing and could compromise the site’s credibility. Recent AI blunders by other tech giants, including Google’s glue-on-pizza mishap and Apple’s false death alert, were cited as cautionary examples of reputational risk.

For many, the possibility of similar errors appearing on Wikipedia was unacceptable.

Marshall Miller of the Wikimedia Foundation acknowledged the misstep in communication and confirmed the project’s suspension.

While the Foundation remains interested in exploring AI to improve accessibility, it has committed to ensuring any future implementation involves direct participation from the Wikipedia community.

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Bank of America prepares for dollar stablecoin

According to CEO Brian Moynihan, Bank of America is developing a dollar-pegged stablecoin. The bank collaborates with industry players but will only move forward once federal regulations are finalised.

Moynihan told investors that readiness is key, even though current demand for such an asset remains unclear.

The timing aligns with progress on the GENIUS Act, which aims to standardise stablecoin rules. The Senate voted to end debate on the bill, setting the stage for a final vote.

Proposed amendments would ensure stablecoins are backed one-to-one by secure assets and clarify the role of non-bank issuers.

Meanwhile, France’s Societe Generale-FORGE has launched a US dollar stablecoin called USD CoinVertible. The Ethereum and Solana-based token follows its earlier euro-backed version and meets the EU crypto rules.

The bank has partnered with BNY Mellon as the reserve custodian and will begin round-the-clock trading in early July.

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French police detain suspects in crypto ransom case

French police have arrested several suspects in connection with a series of violent kidnappings aimed at cryptocurrency executives and their families. The latest arrests, made on Tuesday, are part of a broader crackdown on what authorities describe as a highly organised extortion ring.

The group is believed to be behind the 1 May abduction of a crypto entrepreneur’s father, who was kidnapped in broad daylight in Paris by men disguised as delivery workers. The kidnappers reportedly cut off a finger to demand cryptocurrency before police rescued the victim days later.

Investigators suspect Badiss Mohamed Amide Bajjou, a 24-year-old dual French-Moroccan national, of orchestrating the attacks. Moroccan police arrested him in Tangier last week, seizing weapons, electronics, and illicit funds.

He is also linked to the January kidnapping of Ledger co-founder David Balland, with French authorities now seeking his extradition.

By the end of May, prosecutors had charged 25 people, mostly under 24, who were recruited online and promised financial rewards. Many were used as operatives in kidnapping attempts, including a failed effort to abduct the family of Paymium CEO Pierre Noizat.

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Nvidia announces new AI lab in UK and supercomputing wins in Europe

What began as a company powering 3D games in the 1990s has evolved into the backbone of the global AI revolution. Nvidia, once best known for its Riva TNT2 chips in consumer graphics cards like the Elsa Erazor III, now sits at the centre of scientific computing, defence, and national-scale innovation.

While gaming remains part of its identity—with record revenue of $3.8 billion in Q1 FY2026—it now accounts for less than 9% of Nvidia’s $44.1 billion total revenue. The company’s trajectory reflects its founder Jensen Huang’s ambition to lead beyond the gaming space, targeting AI, supercomputing, and global infrastructure.

Recent announcements reinforce this shift. Huang joined UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to open London Tech Week, affirming Nvidia’s commitment to launch an AI lab in the UK, as the government commits £1 billion to AI compute by 2030.

Nvidia also revealed its Rubin-Vera superchip will power Germany’s ‘Blue Lion’ supercomputer, and its Grace Hopper platform is at the heart of Jupiter—Europe’s first exascale AI system, located at the Jülich Supercomputing Centre.

Nvidia’s presence now spans continents and disciplines, from powering national research to driving breakthroughs in climate modelling, quantum computing, and structural biology.

‘AI will supercharge scientific discovery and industrial innovation,’ said Huang. And with systems like Jupiter poised to run a quintillion operations per second, the company’s growth story is far from over.

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TechNext launches forecasting system to guide R&D strategy

Global R&D spending now exceeds $2 trillion a year, yet many companies still rely on intuition rather than evidence to shape innovation strategies—often at great cost.

TechNext, co-founded by Anuraag Singh and MIT’s Prof. Christopher L. Magee, aims to change that with a newly patented system that delivers data-driven forecasts for technology performance.

Built on large-scale empirical datasets and proprietary algorithms, the system enables organisations to anticipate which technologies are likely to improve most rapidly.

‘R&D has become one of the fastest-growing expenses for companies, yet most decisions still rely on intuition rather than data,’ said Singh. ‘We have been flying blind’

The tool has already drawn attention from major stakeholders, including the United States Air Force, multinational firms, VCs, and think tanks.

By quantifying the future of technologies—from autonomous vehicle perception systems to clean energy infrastructure—TechNext promises to help decision-makers avoid expensive dead ends and focus on long-term winners.

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Guardz doubles down on SMB protection with $56M funding boost

Cybersecurity startup Guardz has secured $56 million in Series B funding to expand its AI-native platform designed for managed service providers (MSPs).

The round was led by ClearSky, with backing from Phoenix Financial, Glilot Capital Partners, SentinelOne, Hanaco Ventures, and others, bringing the company’s total funding to $84 million in just over two years.

Since emerging from stealth in early 2023, Guardz has built a global presence, partnering with hundreds of MSPs to secure thousands of small and mid-sized businesses.

With the new capital, the company aims to accelerate go-to-market efforts and enhance its platform with more automation, compliance tools, and cyber insurance capabilities.

The Guardz platform integrates threat protection across identities, email, endpoints, cloud, and data into a single engine. Combining AI-driven automation with human-led Managed Detection and Response (MDR), it provides 24/7 monitoring and rapid response to threats.

Seamless integrations with Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace allow MSPs to pre-emptively detect suspicious activity and respond in real time.

‘Our goal is to empower MSPs with enterprise-grade security tools to protect the global economy’s most vulnerable targets — small and mid-sized businesses,’ said Guardz CEO and co-founder Dor Eisner. ‘This funding allows us to further that mission and help businesses thrive in a secure environment.’

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Bitcoin may surge as Bank of Japan faces key policy decision

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) is set to hold a key monetary policy meeting on 16–17 June 2025. Market watchers expect the meeting could spark a rally in risk assets such as stocks and cryptocurrencies.

The BOJ’s approach to bond purchases will be closely scrutinised for signs of a shift in monetary strategy.

Industry experts, including Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX, have highlighted the possibility of renewed quantitative easing (QE). If the BOJ eases bond cuts and injects money, investments like Bitcoin could surge.

Japan’s bond market is under strain, with the 30-year government bond yield recently reaching 3.185%. Meanwhile, Bitcoin hit a record $112,000 shortly after.

Analysts suggest that growing concerns over government debt could push Bitcoin even higher, with some predicting it may reach $200,000 if fears intensify.

All eyes remain on the BOJ’s upcoming decision, as it may set the tone for global markets and cryptocurrencies. A move towards more monetary easing could boost risk assets and reshape investor sentiment.

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OpenAI launches powerful o3-Pro model with steep price cuts

OpenAI has rolled out its most advanced AI model yet, o3-Pro, delivering significant improvements in reasoning and task complexity while introducing steep price reductions.

The model is now available to ChatGPT Pro and Team users, with Enterprise and Education access coming next week. Developers can also access it via OpenAI’s API.

O3-Pro is designed for high-performance use across technology, education, and science sectors. It supports advanced capabilities such as web browsing, code execution, file analysis, and memory retention during conversations.

Despite these upgrades, pricing has been reduced drastically—87% lower than o1-Pro—costing just $20 per million input tokens and $80 per million output tokens. The base o3 model has also seen an 80% price cut.

Evaluators consistently rated o3-Pro higher than previous models for clarity, instruction-following, and accuracy, with standout results in benchmarks like AIME 2024 and GPQA Diamond, where it beat Google’s Gemini 2.5 Pro and Claude 4 Opus, respectively.

Although the model lacks image generation and Canvas support, its reasoning capabilities mark a major step forward in OpenAI’s AI offerings.

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IBM sets 2029 target for quantum breakthrough

IBM has set out a detailed roadmap to deliver a practical quantum computer by 2029, marking a major milestone in its long-term strategy.

The company plans to build its ‘Starling’ quantum system at a new data centre in Poughkeepsie, New York, targeting around 200 logical qubits—enough to begin outperforming classical computers in specific tasks instead of lagging due to error correction limitations.

Quantum computers rely on qubits to perform complex calculations, but high error rates have held back their potential. IBM shifted its approach in 2019, designing error-correction algorithms based on real, manufacturable chips instead of theoretical models.

The change, as the company says, will significantly reduce the qubits needed to fix errors.

With confidence in its new method, IBM will build a series of quantum systems until 2027, each advancing toward a larger, more capable machine.

Vice President Jay Gambetta stated the key scientific questions have already been resolved, meaning what remains is primarily an engineering challenge instead of a scientific one.

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Russia to crack down on illegal crypto mining

Russian authorities are preparing harsh new penalties for illegal cryptocurrency mining, including fines and coin confiscation. The Ministry of Digital Development has drafted legislation to let courts seize digital assets and punish those breaking mining rules.

Fines under the proposal range from 100,000 to 2 million rubles ($1,272–$25,456), with harsher penalties for solo entrepreneurs, officials, and corporations. Repeat or industrial offenders could see their mined crypto taken by the state.

The proposal would also allow punishment for unauthorised participation in mining pools and failure to report operations to the financial intelligence unit, Rosfinmonitoring.

Authorities are also targeting crypto payments made outside the Central Bank’s sandbox. Individuals and firms using digital assets for settlements could face fines of up to 1 million rubles ($12,728).

Officials suggest confiscating illegally used crypto will be a strong deterrent, reinforcing the Central Bank’s strict stance on digital currency use.

Despite the crackdown, no new regional mining bans have been enacted. A government commission recently rejected proposals to expand mining restrictions in regions such as Khakassia, Buryatia, and Zabaikalsky Krai following the imposition of a year-round ban in part of Irkutsk.

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