Policy · Page 5
regulation, copyright fights, safety rules and the politics of AI

Meta Employees Sue, Claiming AI Flagged Workers on Leave for Layoffs
A federal lawsuit alleges Meta used automated performance tools and activity monitoring to target staff for redundancy after they took maternity or disability leave.

Bank of England Governor Warns AI Threats Need Global Teamwork, Not Just US Action
Andrew Bailey says no single country can handle the risks of powerful AI models alone, days after the Trump administration blocked foreigners from accessing one of the most advanced AI tools on the market.

Meta used AI tools to pick 8,000 workers for layoffs, lawsuit claims
Twenty-six former employees say an algorithm scored and ranked them for termination, and that the system penalised workers who took medical leave or had disabilities.

Major publishers sue Google over Gemini AI training, claiming it used their books without permission
Hachette, Elsevier, and others say Google fed their copyrighted books into its Gemini AI system, and that the company knew it was on shaky legal ground.

Publishers sue Google over Gemini AI training, calling it one of history's biggest copyright violations
Hachette, Cengage, and Elsevier claim Google used millions of copyrighted books without permission to build its Gemini AI. A federal lawsuit filed in New York could reshape how AI companies gather training data.

Google DeepMind's CEO Wants a FINRA-Style Watchdog for the Most Powerful AI Models
Demis Hassabis has proposed an independent standards body that would review frontier AI models before they reach the public. Here is what he is calling for, and why it matters.

26 Former Meta Workers Sue, Saying AI Ranked Them Out of a Job While They Were on Leave
A lawsuit filed this month claims Meta's internal AI tools scored employees on performance metrics that never accounted for parental or medical leave, making those workers more likely to be cut.

New York halts all large data centre construction for one year
Governor Kathy Hochul has put a 12-month freeze on any new data centre bigger than 50 megawatts, making New York the first US state to take such a step. The pause will last until the state sets formal environmental and energy standards for the industry.

New York Hits Pause on New AI Data Centres for a Year
Governor Kathy Hochul signed an executive order on Tuesday making New York the first US state to block new large-scale data centres, the vast warehouse-like buildings packed with computers that power AI tools.

Australia Plans a Single Office to Oversee All of AI's Risks and Rewards
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Australia will be the first country to bring economic, security, social and environmental AI concerns under one national roof, while fast-tracking approvals for data centres.

Google DeepMind's Boss Wants a Global AI Watchdog Before the Technology Gets Away From Us
Demis Hassabis is quietly lobbying governments and rival labs to create an independent body that could pause AI development if things go wrong. He thinks it needs to exist before the end of 2025.

Meet Gowanus, the Garbage-Born Puppet Fronting America's New Luddite Movement
A puppet made from Brooklyn dumpster scraps just gave a podcast interview with a handwritten contract. The people behind it want you to slow down, look up, and ask who tech actually serves.

A documentary about training AI on real people raises questions it refuses to answer
Marc Isaacs' new film 'Synthetic Sincerity' blurs fact and fiction to explore how AI learns from human faces and stories. Critics say it skips the hard questions it promises to ask.

DOGE Used AI to Shape Housing Policy. Now HUD Is Blocking Requests to Learn How.
Federal housing officials are withholding more than 100 documents about AI tools used in policymaking, citing legal exemptions that experts say do not exist.

New York Freezes Big Data Centre Permits for Up to a Year Over Energy and Cost Fears
Governor Kathy Hochul has signed the first statewide moratorium on large data centre construction in the US, pausing projects that would draw more than 50 megawatts of power while regulators write new rules.