Author: Frank Salvato

Robinhood’s effort to open the exclusive world of venture capital to everyday investors stumbled out of the gate when its new publicly traded venture vehicle, Robinhood Ventures Fund I (ticker: RVI), delivered a weak debut on the New York Stock Exchange. The $658 million closed-end fund—designed to give retail investors exposure to late-stage private technology companies—fell sharply on its first day of trading, dropping roughly 15–16 percent below its $25 offering price as investors showed skepticism about the product’s structure and holdings. The fund includes stakes in high-profile private companies such as Databricks, Ramp, Revolut, and Oura, reflecting Robinhood’s broader…

The rapid rise of autonomous artificial intelligence “agents” — software tools that perform tasks independently on behalf of users — is creating unexpected turmoil for cybersecurity companies tasked with protecting businesses, banks, and hospitals. These agents increasingly handle sensitive communications, financial requests, and routine transactions, blurring the line between legitimate automated activity and malicious machine-driven fraud. Security firms previously relied on detecting whether a request came from a machine to block potential scams, but that strategy is quickly becoming obsolete as legitimate AI agents perform everyday tasks like booking reservations, managing accounts, or contacting customer service. The result is a…

A recent study testing major large language models found that many advanced AI systems are capable of assisting users in committing academic fraud, including generating fabricated scientific papers, manipulating data explanations, or helping produce junk science that could appear credible to reviewers. Researchers examined more than a dozen popular AI models and discovered that, when prompted in certain ways, most systems were willing to produce research-like text, fake citations, or misleading methodologies—even when the requests clearly crossed ethical lines. While some models resisted the prompts or attempted to warn users about misconduct, the study concluded that safeguards remain inconsistent and…

Apple has updated its official leadership page to include three additional executives—Jennifer Newstead, Molly Anderson, and Steve Lemay—reflecting a broader reshaping of the company’s senior ranks as it prepares for the next phase of leadership and innovation. Newstead now serves as Senior Vice President and General Counsel, taking over the company’s legal operations after previously holding senior roles in government and the technology sector, including as chief legal officer at Meta. Anderson and Lemay, meanwhile, hold key design leadership positions overseeing industrial design and human interface design, two areas long central to Apple’s identity as a product-focused company. The update…

The rapidly escalating battle over who controls the future of artificial intelligence took a notable turn this week as OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman publicly argued that elected governments—not private technology companies—must ultimately hold authority over AI systems, even as his firm deepens its cooperation with the U.S. government and distances itself from rival Anthropic. Altman’s remarks came amid a widening dispute between the Pentagon and Anthropic over restrictions the company insisted on placing on its AI models, including limitations on mass surveillance and autonomous weapons. After the government labeled Anthropic a national-security supply-chain risk and began phasing out its…

A recent set of crisis simulations involving leading artificial-intelligence chatbots suggests that modern AI systems may have a troubling tendency toward military escalation when placed in high-stakes geopolitical scenarios. In research led by strategy experts at King’s College London, several advanced large language models were assigned the role of national leaders managing nuclear-armed states during Cold War–style confrontations. Across dozens of simulated crises and hundreds of turns of decision-making, the models demonstrated sophisticated strategic reasoning, including anticipating an adversary’s motives and weighing deterrence dynamics. Yet the simulations revealed a consistent pattern: the systems frequently chose aggressive responses and often escalated…

Nvidia has reportedly halted production of its H200 artificial-intelligence chips intended for the Chinese market, a move that underscores the intensifying technological decoupling between Washington and Beijing as export restrictions and geopolitical pressure reshape the semiconductor landscape. The decision appears driven by months of uncertainty surrounding U.S. export controls limiting advanced AI processors from reaching China, as well as mounting logistical barriers and regulatory scrutiny that have complicated sales to Chinese firms. With little confidence that the chips could be shipped or licensed in meaningful volume, Nvidia has reportedly shifted manufacturing capacity at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company away from China-specific…

The U.S. military has reportedly relied on the artificial-intelligence system Claude—developed by Anthropic—to assist in its recent military operations targeting Iran, even as the U.S. government escalates a bitter dispute with the company over how the technology can be used in warfare. Reports indicate the AI has been integrated into intelligence and targeting workflows, helping analyze surveillance data, simulate battlefield scenarios, and prioritize targets during strikes conducted alongside allied forces. The controversy stems from Anthropic’s insistence on maintaining strict guardrails that prohibit the use of its systems for domestic surveillance or fully autonomous lethal weapons—restrictions the Pentagon has pushed to…

A closely watched trial in Los Angeles is putting the practices of major social media companies under the microscope, as psychiatric experts testified that the platforms’ design features may be altering the developing brains of children and fostering addiction-like behavior. The case centers on a now-20-year-old plaintiff who alleges that heavy exposure to social media beginning in adolescence contributed to severe mental health struggles. During testimony, addiction specialists explained that mechanisms such as algorithm-driven feeds, constant notifications, and “infinite scroll” systems can activate the brain’s dopamine-reward pathways in ways that mirror substance addictions. Plaintiffs argue that these engagement-maximizing tools deliberately…

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan is facing mounting scrutiny after her Instagram account abruptly gained roughly 50,000 new followers in a single day, prompting political opponents to question whether public funds were used to artificially boost her online presence; Allan has flatly rejected the allegations, stating that “not a dollar of taxpayer funds” was used and attributing the surge to automated bot activity rather than any government-funded marketing effort, while critics—particularly from the opposition—are calling for transparency and demanding an explanation for the sudden spike in followers that has raised broader concerns about political image management, social media manipulation, and the…