Author: Frank Salvato

A new class-action lawsuit filed in federal court is testing California’s recently strengthened antitrust law by alleging that numerous gas station operators used a common algorithmic pricing platform to coordinate retail gasoline prices rather than compete independently. The case centers on the state’s revised Cartwright Act, which lawmakers amended to explicitly prohibit the use of shared pricing algorithms as part of unlawful price-fixing arrangements. Plaintiffs contend that participating retailers effectively outsourced pricing decisions to software designed to maximize profits, resulting in Californians paying artificially inflated fuel prices that cannot be fully explained by crude oil costs, taxes, environmental regulations, or…

A newly reported investigation has pulled back the curtain on an illicit marketplace operating alongside Amazon’s vast third-party seller ecosystem, where brokers allegedly offer access to current or former insiders capable of influencing seller account actions, restoring suspended accounts, obtaining confidential information, or otherwise circumventing company procedures in exchange for substantial payments. The report centers on one entrepreneur whose Amazon business unraveled after a suspension and who claims he was approached through encrypted messaging platforms by intermediaries offering to bribe Amazon personnel to recover frozen funds. While Amazon maintains that employee corruption is rare and says it invests heavily in…

For all the noise surrounding artificial intelligence over the past decade, the most consequential shift is only now coming into focus: the rise of agentic AI. These are not merely tools that respond to prompts or generate text on command. They are systems designed to plan, execute, and adapt—capable of carrying out multi-step objectives with minimal human intervention. If the first wave of AI was about assistance, the next is about autonomy. And that shift raises questions that policymakers, executives, and everyday professionals are only beginning to grapple with. The most pressing question is straightforward: can AI complete entire projects…

Campaigns across the political spectrum are aggressively integrating artificial intelligence to overhaul voter outreach, data analysis, and messaging strategies, marking a significant shift in how elections are contested as both parties leverage the technology for efficiency gains while raising concerns over authenticity and manipulation. Sources Key Takeaways In-Depth Artificial intelligence is no longer a futuristic novelty in American politics but a core weapon reshaping how candidates connect with voters and dominate the information battlefield. As the 2026 midterms loom, campaigns on both sides are embedding AI into every facet of operations, from synthesizing voter feedback gathered by canvassers into actionable…

A Swedish court has ordered Google to pay nearly $2 billion in damages to PriceRunner, the price-comparison platform owned by Klarna, concluding that the technology giant’s longstanding practice of giving preferential placement to its own shopping service in search results caused significant competitive harm. The ruling stems from years of European antitrust enforcement against Google’s shopping business following an earlier European Union determination that the company abused its dominant position in online search. Although the award is substantially less than the amount originally sought, it represents one of the largest competition-related damages judgments in Swedish history. Google has indicated it…

Amazon abandoned a $40 million film dramatizing the turbulent leadership saga at OpenAI starring Andrew Garfield as Sam Altman, only for independent studio Neon to acquire worldwide rights and plan a 2026 release positioning it for Oscar contention. The project, directed by Luca Guadagnino and featuring Ike Barinholtz as Elon Musk, had advanced through test screenings and festival plans before the tech giant cited better placement elsewhere following its $50 billion commitment to OpenAI, exposing the conflicts inherent when Big Tech wields influence over creative narratives about its own power players. Sources Key Takeaways In-Depth In a telling display of…

Even high-earning tech professionals in San Francisco are finding that six-figure salaries no longer provide the comfortable lifestyle once promised by Silicon Valley, as an influx of AI-generated wealth from companies like OpenAI and Anthropic drives up housing and living expenses to unsustainable levels. Young workers earning around $180,000 annually, such as recruiters and engineers, report failing to secure one-bedroom apartments under $5,000 per month after extensive searches, forcing many to question their future in the city amid skyrocketing rents, groceries, and overall expenses fueled by the new AI elite poised to create numerous billionaires through upcoming public offerings. Sources…

New research suggests that while artificial intelligence has made fake human faces alarmingly convincing, people are not powerless against the technology. Researchers found that targeted training can dramatically improve a person’s ability to distinguish authentic human faces from AI-generated ones by teaching participants to recognize broader visual patterns rather than relying on obvious image flaws. The findings arrive as deepfake technology is increasingly being weaponized in financial fraud, identity theft, impersonation scams, and political misinformation campaigns, underscoring the need for citizens to become more skeptical consumers of digital media. Rather than depending exclusively on technology companies or government regulators to…

After aggressively embracing artificial intelligence to reduce payrolls over the past year, a growing number of businesses are reportedly rethinking those decisions as expected productivity gains fail to materialize. Surveys cited in the reporting indicate that while many employers eliminated positions believing AI would seamlessly replace human workers, only a small percentage say the technology has delivered on its promised return on investment. Companies are now slowing AI deployments, restoring greater emphasis on human expertise, and recognizing that judgment, creativity, customer relationships, and institutional knowledge remain difficult to automate. The emerging lesson is that AI appears most effective as a…

For decades, the United States and its allies have operated under a dangerous illusion—that economic engagement with communist China would inevitably lead to political liberalization and responsible global behavior. Instead, the opposite has occurred. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has leveraged access to Western markets, technology, and capital to build a surveillance state at home and extend its reach abroad. Nowhere is this more evident—or more dangerous—than in the infiltration of technology systems that underpin the free world. Technology is no longer just a sector of the economy; it is the backbone of national security, commerce, communication, and daily life.…