The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved new generic listing standards for exchange-traded products that hold spot commodities, including digital assets. Exchanges can now list and trade Commodity-Based Trust Shares without submitting a separate SEC rule change.
SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins said the move aims to maintain America’s capital markets as a leading hub for digital asset innovation. The decision is expected to increase investor choice and streamline access to digital asset products.
Jamie Selway, Director of the Division of Trading and Markets, highlighted that the approval offers clear regulatory guidance and ensures investor protections while making it easier for products to reach the market.
Alongside the generic standards, the SEC approved the Grayscale Digital Large Cap Fund listing, which tracks the CoinDesk 5 Index of spot digital assets.
The regulator also authorised p.m.-settled options on the Cboe Bitcoin US ETF Index and the Mini-Cboe Bitcoin US ETF Index with multiple expiration formats.
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Zuckerberg’s Meta has unveiled a new generation of smart glasses powered by AI at its annual Meta Connect conference in California. Working with Ray-Ban and Oakley, the company introduced devices including the Meta Ray-Ban Display and the Oakley Meta Vanguard.
These glasses are designed to bring the Meta AI assistant into daily use instead of being confined to phones or computers.
The Ray-Ban Display comes with a colour lens screen for video calls and messaging and a 12-megapixel camera, and will sell for $799. It can be paired with a neural wristband that enables tasks through hand gestures.
Meta also presented $499 Oakley Vanguard glasses aimed at sports fans and launched a second generation of its Ray-Ban Meta glasses at $379. Around two million smart glasses have been sold since Meta entered the market in 2023.
Analysts see the glasses as a more practical way of introducing AI to everyday life than the firm’s costly Metaverse project. Yet many caution that Meta must prove the benefits outweigh the price.
Chief executive Mark Zuckerberg described the technology as a scientific breakthrough. He said it forms part of Meta’s vast AI investment programme, which includes massive data centres and research into artificial superintelligence.
The launch came as activists protested outside Meta’s New York headquarters, accusing the company of neglecting children’s safety. Former safety researchers also told the US Senate that Meta ignored evidence of harm caused by its VR products, claims the company has strongly denied.
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Japanese regulators are reviewing whether the social media platform X fails to comply with new content removal rules.
The law, which took effect in April, requires designated platforms to allow victims of harmful online posts to request deletion without facing unnecessary obstacles.
X currently obliges non-users to register an account before they can file such requests. Officials say that it could represent an excessive burden for victims who violate the law.
The company has also been criticised for not providing clear public guidance on submitting removal requests, prompting questions over its commitment to combating online harassment and defamation.
Other platforms, including YouTube and messaging service Line, have already introduced mechanisms that meet the requirements.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications has urged all operators to treat non-users like registered users when responding to deletion demands. Still, X and the bulletin board site bakusai.com have yet to comply.
As said, it will continue to assess whether X’s practices breach the law. Experts on a government panel have called for more public information on the process, arguing that awareness could help deter online abuse.
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Hammersmith and Fulham Council has approved a £3m upgrade to its CCTV system to see facial recognition and AI integrated across the west London borough.
With over 2,000 cameras, the council intends to install live facial recognition technology at crime hotspots and link it with police databases for real-time identification.
Alongside the new cameras, 500 units will be equipped with AI tools to speed up video analysis, track vehicles, and provide retrospective searches. The plans also include the possible use of drones, pending approval from the Civil Aviation Authority.
Council leader Stephen Cowan said the technology will provide more substantial evidence in a criminal justice system he described as broken, arguing it will help secure convictions instead of leaving cases unresolved.
Civil liberties group Big Brother Watch condemned the project as mass surveillance without safeguards, warning of constant identity checks and retrospective monitoring of residents’ movements.
Some locals also voiced concern, saying the cameras address crime after it happens instead of preventing it. Others welcomed the move, believing it would deter offenders and reassure those who feel unsafe on the streets.
The Metropolitan Police currently operates one pilot site in Croydon, with findings expected later in the year, and the council says its rollout depends on continued police cooperation.
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The US tech giant, Google, has introduced a new experimental app for Windows that combines web search, file discovery and Google Lens in a single interface.
The tool, known as the Google app for Windows, is part of Search Labs and is designed to allow users to find information faster instead of interrupting their workflow.
An app that can be launched instantly using the Alt+Space shortcut, opening a Spotlight-like bar similar to Apple’s macOS. Users can search local files, installed applications, Google Drive content and web results. It supports multiple modes, including AI-generated answers, images, videos, shopping and news.
A dark mode is available for those who prefer night-time use, and the search bar can be resized or repositioned on the desktop instead of staying fixed.
Google has also built its Lens technology, allowing users to select and search images directly on screen, translate text or solve mathematical problems. An AI Mode offers detailed replies, though it can be disabled or customised through the settings menu.
The experimental app is currently limited to English-speaking users in the US and requires Windows 10 or Windows 11. Google has not yet confirmed when it will expand availability to more regions.
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Scaling law estimation helps organisations make better decisions about architecture, optimisers and dataset sizes before devoting extensive compute budgets.
The team assembled over 485 pre-trained models across 40 families (including Pythia, OPT, Bloom, LLaMA and others) and tracked almost 1.9 million performance metrics. Using that dataset, they fit more than 1,000 scaling laws and assessed variables such as the number of parameters, the token count, intermediate training checkpoints, and seed effects.
Practical recommendations include discarding training data from very early stages (before about 10 billion tokens), using several small models across sizes rather than only large ones, and using intermediate checkpoints rather than waiting for final model loss.
The guide also notes that a 4 percent absolute relative error (ARE) is near best-case for prediction quality, though up to 20 percent ARE remains useful depending on budget.
Because training large models can cost millions, these scaling laws also help those without huge resources to approximate outcomes more safely. AI model inference scaling laws are still under development and are flagged as important future work.
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Hong Kong will establish a new team to advance the use of AI across government departments, Chief Executive John Lee confirmed during his 2025 Policy Address.
The AI Efficacy Enhancement Team, led by Deputy Chief Secretary Warner Cheuk, will coordinate reforms to modernise outdated processes and promote efficiency.
Lee said his administration would focus on safe ‘AI+ development’, applying the technology in public services and encouraging adoption across different sectors instead of relying on traditional methods.
He added that Hong Kong had the potential to grow into a global hub for AI and would treat the field as a core industry for the city’s economic future.
Examples of AI adoption are already visible.
The government’s 1823 enquiry hotline uses voice recognition to cut response times by 30 per cent, while the Census and Statistics Department applies AI models to trade data and company reports, reducing manual checks by 40 per cent and improving accuracy.
Authorities expect upcoming censuses in 2026 and 2031 to save about $680 million through AI and data science technologies instead of conventional manpower-heavy methods.
The announcement comes shortly after China unveiled its national AI policy blueprint, which seeks widespread integration of the technology in research, governance and industry, with a target of 90 per cent prevalence by 2030.
Hong Kong’s approach is being positioned as part of a wider push for technological leadership in the region.
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Microsoft has disrupted RaccoonO365, a fast-growing phishing service used by cybercriminals to steal Microsoft 365 login details.
Using a court order from the Southern District of New York, in the US, its Digital Crimes Unit seized 338 websites linked to the operation. The takedown cut off infrastructure that enabled criminals to mimic Microsoft branding and trick victims into sharing their credentials.
Since mid-2024, RaccoonO365 has been used in at least 94 countries and has stolen more than 5,000 credentials. The kits were marketed on Telegram to hundreds of paying subscribers, including campaigns that targeted healthcare providers in the US.
Microsoft identified the group’s alleged leader as Joshua Ogundipe, based in Nigeria, who is accused of creating and promoting the service. The company has referred the case to international law enforcement while continuing efforts to dismantle any rebuilt networks.
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The World Economic Forum (WEF) has published an article on using trade policy to build a fairer digital economy. Digital services now make up over half of global exports, with AI investment projected at $252 billion in 2024. Countries from Kenya to the UAE are positioning as digital hubs, but job quality still lags.
Millions of platform workers face volatile pay, lack of contracts, and no access to social protections. In Kenya alone, 1.9 million people rely on digital work yet face algorithm-driven pay systems and sudden account deactivations. India and the Philippines show similar patterns.
AI threatens to automate lower-skilled tasks such as data annotation and moderation, deepening insecurity in sectors where many developing countries have found a competitive edge. Ethical standards exist but have little impact without enforcement or supportive regulation.
Countries are experimenting with reforms: Singapore now mandates injury compensation and retirement savings for platform workers, while the Rider Law in Spain reclassifies food couriers as employees. Yet overly strict regulation risks eroding the flexibility that attracts youth and caregivers to gig work.
Trade agreements, such as the AfCFTA and the Kenya–EU pact, could embed labour protections in digital markets. Coordinated policies and tripartite dialogue are essential to ensure the digital economy delivers growth, fairness, and dignity for workers.
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Google has unveiled the Agent Payments Protocol (AP2), a new system enabling AI applications to send and receive payments, including stablecoins pegged to traditional currencies.
Developed with Coinbase, the Ethereum Foundation, and over 60 other finance and technology firms, AP2 aims to standardise transactions between AI agents and merchants.
The protocol builds on Google’s earlier Agent2Agent framework, extending it to financial interactions. AP2 supports credit and debit cards, bank transfers, and stablecoins, providing a secure and compliant foundation for automated payments.
By introducing a shared language for AI-led transactions, the system addresses risks linked to authorisation, authenticity, and accountability without human intervention.
The project reflects growing interest in stablecoins, whose circulation recently rose to $289 billion from $205 billion at the start of the year. Integrating stablecoins into AI could change how automated systems manage payments, from daily purchases to complex financial tasks.
Google and its collaborators emphasise AP2’s goal of interoperability across industries, offering flexibility, compliance, and scalability. The initiative makes digital money central to AI, signalling a shift in automated financial transactions.
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