Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton warned AI could increase unemployment and profits as companies replace workers with machines. Hinton told the Financial Times the effects stem from capitalism, with few becoming richer while many are left behind.
Evidence is already emerging that AI is reducing opportunities at the entry level, particularly for recent college graduates. A New York Fed survey shows companies using AI tend to retrain staff rather than lay them off, though layoffs may rise soon.
Hinton highlighted that jobs performing mundane tasks are most at risk, while skilled professions like healthcare are likely to be safer.
Hinton also dismissed universal basic income proposals, arguing they fail to address human dignity or the value derived from work. He warned AI could be misused, including for bioweapons, and noted some governments take the risks more seriously than others.
Despite the potential threats, Hinton acknowledged the enormous possibilities of AI. He uses OpenAI’s ChatGPT for research and humorously recalls personal anecdotes demonstrating its versatility.
Hinton retired from Google in 2023, citing age and personal priorities rather than concerns over speaking freely about AI’s dangers.
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The US tech giant has expanded the capability of its Gemini app by allowing users to upload audio files for AI analysis across Android, iOS, and the web. The upgrade enables transcription of interviews, voice memos and lecture recordings instead of relying solely on typed or spoken prompts.
Free-tier users can upload clips of up to ten minutes with five prompts daily, while paid subscribers have access to three hours of uploads across multiple files. According to Gemini vice president Josh Woodward, the feature is designed to make the platform more versatile and practical for everyday tasks.
Google has also enhanced its Search AI mode with five new languages, including Hindi, Japanese and Korean, extending its multilingual reach.
NotebookLM, the company’s research assistant powered by Gemini, can now generate structured reports such as quizzes, study guides and blog posts from uploaded content, available in more than 80 languages.
These improvements underline Google’s ambition to integrate AI more deeply into everyday applications instead of leaving the technology confined to experimental tools. They also highlight growing competition in the AI market, with Google using Gemini 2.5 to expand its services for global users.
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Uber and Chinese startup Momenta will begin robotaxi testing in Munich in 2026, marking their first public deployment in continental Europe. The trials will start with human safety operators, with plans to expand across additional European cities.
Founded in 2016, Momenta is one of China’s leading autonomous vehicle companies, having tested self-driving cars since 2018. The company is already collaborating with automakers such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW to integrate advanced driver assistance systems.
Uber is broadening its global AV network, which already spans 20 partners across mobility, delivery, and freight. In the US, Waymo robotaxis operate via Uber’s app, while international partnerships include WeRide in the Gulf and Wayve in London.
Competition in Europe is intensifying. Baidu from China and Lyft plan to roll out robotaxis in Germany and the UK next year, while Uber has chosen Munich, Germany, as its engineering base and a strong automotive ecosystem.
German regulators must still certify Momenta’s technology and approve geo-fenced operating areas. If successful, Munich will become Momenta’s first European launchpad, building on its Shanghai robotaxi service and global ADAS deployment.
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Google has announced an expansion of AI Mode in Search to five new languages, including Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean and Brazilian Portuguese. The feature was first introduced in English in March and aims to compete with AI-powered search platforms such as ChatGPT Search and Perplexity AI.
The company highlighted that building a global search experience requires more than translation. Google’s custom version of Gemini 2.5 uses advanced reasoning and multimodal capabilities to provide locally relevant and useful search results instead of offering generic answers.
AI Mode now also supports agentic tasks such as booking restaurant reservations, with plans to include local service appointments and event ticketing.
Currently, these advanced functions are available to Google AI Ultra subscribers in the US, while India received the rollout of the language expansion in July.
These developments reinforce Google’s strategy to integrate AI deeply into its search ecosystem, enhancing user experience across diverse regions instead of limiting sophisticated AI tools to English-language users.
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Despite the hype surrounding AI, new data suggests corporate adoption of AI is slowing.
A biweekly survey by the US Census Bureau found AI use among firms with over 250 employees dropped from nearly 14 percent in mid-June to under 12 percent in August, marking the largest decline since the survey began in November 2023.
Smaller companies with fewer than four workers saw a slight increase, but mid-sized businesses largely reported flat or falling AI adoption. The findings are worrying for tech investors and CEOs, who have invested heavily in enterprise AI in the hope of boosting productivity and revenue across industries.
So far, up to 95 per cent of companies using AI have not generated new income from the technology.
The decline comes amid underwhelming performance from high-profile AI releases. OpenAI’s GPT-5, expected to revolutionise enterprise AI, underperformed in benchmark tests, while some companies are rehiring human staff after previously reducing headcount based on AI promises.
Analysts warn that AI innovations may have plateaued, leaving enterprise adoption struggling to justify prior investments.
Unless enterprise AI starts delivering measurable results, corporate usage could continue to decline, signalling a potential slowdown in the broader AI-driven growth many had anticipated.
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A federal judge has rejected the $1.5 billion settlement Anthropic agreed to in a piracy lawsuit filed by authors.
Judge William Alsup expressed concerns that the deal was ‘nowhere close to complete’ and could be forced on writers without proper input.
The lawsuit involves around 500,000 authors whose works were allegedly used without permission to train Anthropic’s large language models. The proposed settlement would have granted $3,000 per work, a sum far exceeding previous copyright recoveries.
However, the judge criticised the lack of clarity regarding the list of works, authors, notification process, and claim forms.
Alsup instructed the lawyers to provide clear notice to class members and allow them to opt in or out. He also emphasised that Anthropic must be shielded from future claims on the same issue. The court set deadlines for a final list of works by September 15 and approval of all related documents by October 10.
The ruling highlights ongoing legal challenges for AI companies using copyrighted material for training large language models instead of relying solely on licensed or public-domain data.
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OpenAI researchers say large language models continue to hallucinate because current evaluation methods encourage them to guess rather than admit uncertainty.
Hallucinations, defined as confident but false statements, persist despite advances in models such as GPT-5. Low-frequency facts, like specific dates or names, are particularly vulnerable.
The study argues that while pretraining predicts the next word without true or false labels, the real problem lies in accuracy-based testing. Evaluations that reward lucky guesses discourage models from saying ‘I don’t know’.
Researchers suggest penalising confident errors more heavily than uncertainty, and awarding partial credit when AI models acknowledge limits in knowledge. They argue that only by reforming evaluation methods can hallucinations be meaningfully reduced.
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The rise of AI puts traditional entry-level roles under pressure, raising concerns that career ladders may no longer function as they once did. Industry leaders, including Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, warn that AI could replace half of all entry-level jobs as machines operate nonstop.
A venture capital firm, SignalFire, found that hiring for graduates with under one year of experience at major tech firms fell by 50% between 2019 and 2024. The decline has been consistent across business functions, from sales and marketing to engineering and operations.
Analysts argue that while career pathways are being reshaped, the ladder’s bottom rung is disappearing, forcing graduates to acquire skills independently before entering the workforce.
Experts stress that the shift does not mean careers are over for new graduates, but it does signal a more challenging transition. Universities are already adapting by striking partnerships with AI companies, while some economists point out that past technological revolutions took decades to reshape employment.
Yet others warn that unchecked AI could eventually threaten entry-level roles and all levels of work, raising questions about the future stability of corporate structures.
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Founded in 2023 by ex-Google DeepMind and Meta researchers, Mistral has quickly gained global attention with its open-source models and consumer app, which hit one million downloads within two weeks of launch.
Mistral AI is now seeking fresh funding at a reported $14 billion valuation, more than double its worth just a year ago. Its investors include Microsoft, Nvidia, Cisco, and Bpifrance, and it has signed partnerships with AFP, Stellantis, Orange, and France’s army.
Its growing suite of models spans large language, audio, coding, and reasoning systems, while its enterprise tools integrate with services such as Asana and Google Drive. French president Emmanuel Macron has openly endorsed the firm, framing it as a strategic alternative to US dominance in AI.
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OpenAI is supporting the production of Critterz, an AI-assisted animated film set for a global theatrical release in 2026. The project aims to show that AI can streamline filmmaking, cutting costs and production time.
Partnering with Vertigo Films and Native Foreign, the film is being produced in nine months, far faster than the usual three years for animated features.
The film, budgeted under $30 million, combines OpenAI’s GPT-5 and DALL·E with traditional voice acting and hand-drawn elements. Building on the acclaimed 2023 short, Critterz will debut at the Cannes Film Festival and expand on a story where humans and AI creatures share the same world.
Writers James Lamont and Jon Foster, known for Paddington in Peru, have been brought in to shape the screenplay.
While producers highlight AI’s creative potential, concerns remain about authenticity and job security in the industry. Some fear AI films could feel impersonal, while major studios continue to defend intellectual property.
Warner Bros., Disney, and Universal are in court with Midjourney over alleged copyright violations.
Despite the debate, OpenAI remains committed to its role in pushing generative storytelling. The company is also expanding its infrastructure, forecasting spending of $115 billion by 2029, with $8 billion planned for this year alone.
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