ICT news

• Lawsuit Claims Meta's Layoff Decisions Were Made By AI, Not Humans

  14-07-2026 23:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  A lawsuit from 26 Meta employees alleges the company used AI-driven scoring and monitoring systems to select workers for layoffs, disproportionately targeting employees with disabilities or those who had taken protected medical, family, pregnancy, or parental leave. "Meta did not assemble the termination list through the considered judgment of managers who knew the work. Instead, Meta used a constellation of internal artificial-intelligence systems -- including a system referred to internally as
  
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• Google DeepMind Calls For US To Spearhead AI Standards Body

  14-07-2026 22:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis is calling for a U.S.-led AI standards body to review frontier models for national security risks such as cybersecurity and biological threats. His proposal would create a federally overseen public-private organization, initially voluntary and eventually mandatory for U.S. deployment. CNBC reports: Google DeepMind boss Demis Hassabis, a Nobel laureate, said in an article posted on X on Tuesday that "urgent action" was needed to address risks associated with a
  
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• Linux Foundation's Latest Foray Is To Standardize Internet-Native Payments For AI Agents

  14-07-2026 21:00 via linux.slashdot.org
  Today, the Linux Foundation launched the x402 Foundation to standardize internet-native payments for AI agents, APIs, and applications, based on Coinbase's contributed x402 protocol. Backed by companies including AWS, American Express, Cloudflare, Google, Mastercard, Stripe, and Visa, the effort aims to make payments work directly over HTTP (assuming users are comfortable letting AI agents handle financial transactions)."The whole idea is to give agents access to money and, through that financia
  
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• OnePlus Is Reportedly Shutting Down In the US, Europe

  14-07-2026 20:00 via mobile.slashdot.org
  OnePlus will reportedly announce this week that it is shutting down its brand in the U.S. and Europe, following months of signs that parent company Oppo was winding down the brand's global presence. India and China are reportedly unaffected, but it's unclear whether Oppo will replace the brand directly in those markets. The move also raises questions about future support for existing OnePlus users. 9to5Google reports: WinFuture reports that OnePlus is gearing up for an official withdrawal from t
  
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• IBM Stock Collapses After a Grave Warning About AI

  14-07-2026 19:00 via hardware.slashdot.org
  IBM shares plunged after the company warned that Q2 revenue and earnings would miss expectations, blaming customers' sudden shift in spending toward AI hardware instead of software services. However, CEO Arvind Krishna did not place all the blame on IBM's customers. The CEO also said it "faltered" by failing to "anticipate the magnitude of the capex reprioritization.""These conditions require our teams to execute perfectly, and this quarter we faltered. We did not adapt and move quickly enough,
  
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• New York Becomes First State To Impose Data Center Moratorium

  14-07-2026 18:00 via news.slashdot.org
  New York has become the first U.S. state to impose a moratorium on large new data centers, pausing construction for one year over concerns that AI-driven data center growth is raising utility bills, straining water supplies, and burdening communities. "As data center development threatens to hike up utility bills, deplete our natural resources, and create uncertainty for New Yorkers, it's my responsibility to take action and lead," said New York Governor Kathy Hochul. She will also pursue legisl
  
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• StubHub, CEO Hit With 'Deceptive Practices' Class Action Over Mass Scalping

  14-07-2026 17:00 via yro.slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the BBC: StubHub and its CEO, Eric Baker, have been hit with a proposed $5-million class-action lawsuit in the United States over the company's ties to large-scale scalpers -- connections reported by CBC News last week. The suit, filed Monday by New York ticket buyer Louis Sanquini, alleges deceptive practices and fraudulent misrepresentation over StubHub's promoting itself as a "marketplace for fans to buy and sell tickets." The online ticket resale gian
  
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• Indian Scientists Produce Most Detailed 3D Atlas of the Human Brainstem

  14-07-2026 13:00 via science.slashdot.org
  Scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M) have created what they describe as the world's most detailed 3D cellular atlas of the human brainstem, linking whole-brain MRI views to individual neurons across more than 500 tissue sections. The free online atlas, called Anchor, could help researchers better understand diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, stroke, and SIDS by showing how healthy and diseased brain tissue differs cell by cell. The BBC reports: Built from high
  
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• Scientists Find Sugar Deep In Our Galaxy

  14-07-2026 09:05 via science.slashdot.org
  Astronomers have detected erythrulose, a sugar found in raspberries and self-tanners, in a gas cloud near the center of the Milky Way. While not essential for life itself, the molecule can convert into a form thought to be important for life's origins, adding evidence that key prebiotic ingredients may be widespread across the galaxy. The Associated Press reports: Using two dish-shaped radio telescopes in Spain, researchers collected data from a large gas cloud near the center of the Milky Way.
  
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• Over 200 Economists Say 'We Must Act Now' On AI's Economic Impact

  14-07-2026 05:30 via slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Associated Press: Hundreds of economists say in an open letter that institutions "must act now" to address how artificial intelligence could transform the economy and could put many people out of work. The statement released Monday was signed by top economists, along with computer scientists and some executives at tech companies including Anthropic, Google and OpenAI."AI may become radically more powerful over the next 10 years," says the letter organ
  
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• Microsoft Promises To Fix Search With Major Windows 11 Overhaul

  14-07-2026 01:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  Microsoft is overhauling Windows 11 search to prioritize local apps, files, and settings over web results while removing ads, promotions, MSN/Bing clutter, and other distractions. "You've have been asking for search that is faster, more relevant, and easier to use -- whether you're opening an app, finding a file, or changing a setting," Microsoft says in a new blog post. "Because the Windows Search Box is where many people start, we focused first on making results more dependable, easier to scan
  
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• US Government Warns That Russia State Hackers Are Coming After Your Router

  14-07-2026 00:00 via it.slashdot.org
  CISA and allied governments are warning users to secure their routers as Russian state-backed hackers continue compromising the devices and turning them into proxy nodes to disguise attacks against critical infrastructure. The advisory urges users to disable outdated SNMP versions, use strong passwords, update firmware, and turn off unnecessary router services to reduce the risk of being swept into these botnets. Ars Technica reports: "Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) Center 16 cyber actor
  
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