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Google Search Ads Beat Targets Despite Global 'Uncertainty'

Google search ads lifted parent Alphabet Inc close to Wall Street sales expectations on Tuesday, sending shares up on relief that the world’s biggest seller of online advertising may withstand a global recession better than smaller rivals. A trio of Alphabet executives sounded caution on a call with investment analysts, using “uncertain” or “uncertainty” at […]

Tech Giants to Self-regulate in Reducing Harmful Content in New Zealand

Big tech companies agreed on Monday to reduce harmful online content in New Zealand, making a move that critics said dodged the alternative of government regulation. Meta Platforms Inc, Alphabet-owned Google, TikTok, Amazon.com Inc and Twitter had signed a code of practice, said Netsafe, a government-funded internet-safety group. The companies would follow the code as […]

Google Faces $1 Billion UK Trial Over App Store Pricing

Google faces a London trial over an estimated 920-milion-pound ($1.1 billion) damages claim after a court authorised a lawsuit that alleges the Alphabet-owned tech giant overcharged 19.5 million customers for app store purchases. The class action, which was certified by the Competition Appeal Tribunal on Monday, alleges Google abused its dominant position by charging up […]

Vodafone, Google Look to Extend Wear OS Smartwatch Battery Life

Vodafone is working with Google to extend the battery life of a smartwatch by reducing the “chatter” between the device and the network, a bigger drain of energy than screen brightness and other settings targeted by low power modes. The mobile operator has developed an API (application programming interface) that enables apps and operating systems, […]

Google Targeted in Fresh EU Consumer Groups' Privacy Complaints

Alphabet unit Google has been targeted by a French consumer group and its peers in complaints to privacy watchdogs over its vast trove of users’ personal data harvested via their Google accounts, European consumer organisation BEUC said on Thursday. In addition to the French consumer group, others in Greece, the Czech Republic, Norway and Slovenia […]

U.S. Tech Industry Frets About Handing Data to States Prosecuting Abortion

The technology industry is bracing for the uncomfortable possibility of having to hand over pregnancy-related data to law enforcement, in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on Friday to overturn the Roe v. Wade precedent that for decades guaranteed a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion. As state laws limiting abortion kick in […]

Tech Giants’ Fight Against Russia

The world’s Big Tech giants, Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Apple, and Microsoft have played a vital role in tailoring the public’s opinion that the crisis between Russia and Ukraine was ignited. When the world was comprehending the sudden Russian invasion of Ukraine, the American tech industry’s leading tech companies were preparing to fight with Russia on […]

Big Tech Bill Advocates and Critics Keep Pressure on U.S. Lawmakers

Supporters of a U.S. bill aimed at reining in Big Tech platforms like Amazon.com and Alphabet’s Google have flooded lawmakers with nearly 4,000 phone calls, while critics of the legislation sent a letter telling senators it would “harm consumers.” Versions of the bill have progressed further than any previous Big Tech antitrust legislation, with strong […]

Google Engineer Suspended over Reporting Company's LaMDA AI Chatbot to be Sentient

According to The Washington Post, Blake Lemoine, a member of Google’s Responsible AI organization, started speaking with LaMDA, Language Model for Dialogue Applications, as part of his job. He had agreed to participate in the experiment to see if the AI used hateful or discriminating language but came to a disturbing conclusion after sharing his conversation […]

UK Plans to Probe Apple, Google's Mobile Browser Dominance

Britain’s competition watchdog said it was planning to investigate the market dominance of Apple Inc and Google’s mobile browsers, as well as the iPhone maker’s restrictions on cloud gaming through its app store. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Friday it was also taking enforcement action against Alphabet Inc’s Google over its app […]