BBC Threatens Legal Action Against Perplexity AI Over Content Scraping Ancient Slashdot reader Alain Williams shares a report from The Guardian: The BBC is threatening legal action against Perplexity AI, in the corporation's first move to protect its content from being scraped without permission to build artificial intelligence technology. The corporation has sent a letter to Aravind Srinivas, the chief executive of the San Francisco-based startup, saying it has gathered evidence that Perplexity's model was "trained using BBC content." The letter, first reported by the Financial Times, threatens an injunction against Perplexity unless it stops scraping all BBC content to train its AI models, and deletes any copies of the broadcaster's material it holds unless it provides "a proposal for financial compensation." The legal threat comes weeks after Tim Davie, the director general of the BBC, and the boss of Sky both criticised proposals being considered by the government that could let tech companies use copyright-protected work without permission. "If we currently drift in the way we are doing now we will be in crisis," Davie said, speaking at the Enders conference. "We need to make quick decisions now around areas like ... protection of IP. We need to protect our national intellectual property, that is where the value is. What do I need? IP protection; come on, let's get on with it." "Perplexity's tool [which allows users to choose between different AI models] directly competes with the BBC's own services, circumventing the need for users to access those services," the corporation said. Perplexity told the FT that the BBC's claims were "manipulative and opportunistic" and that it had a "fundamental misunderstanding of technology, the internet and intellectual property law." <a href="http://twitter.com/home?status=BBC+Threatens+Legal+Action+Against+Perplexity+AI+Over+Content+Scraping%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fnews.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F2022200%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/twitter_icon_large.png"></a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fnews.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F2022200%2Fbbc-threatens-legal-action-against-perplexity-ai-over-content-scraping%3Futm_source%3Dslashdot%26utm_medium%3Dfacebook" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png"></a>
BBC Threatens Legal Action Against Perplexity AI Over Content Scraping - Slashdot
Ancient Slashdot reader Alain Williams shares a report from The Guardian: The BBC is threatening legal action against Perplexity AI, in the corpora...
 at Slashdot.
BBC Threatens Legal Action Against Perplexity AI Over Content Scraping - Slashdot
Ancient Slashdot reader Alain Williams shares a report from The Guardian: The BBC is threatening legal action against Perplexity AI, in the corpora...
Meta Discussed Buying Perplexity Before Investing In Scale AI According to Bloomberg (paywalled), Meta reportedly explored acquiring Perplexity AI but the deal fell through, with conflicting accounts on whether it was mutual or Perplexity backed out. Instead, Meta invested $14.3 billion in Scale AI, taking a 49% stake as part of its broader push to catch up with OpenAI and Google in the AI race. "Meta's attempt to purchase Perplexity serves as the latest example of Mark Zuckerberg's aggressive push to bolster his company's AI efforts amid fierce competition from OpenAI and Google parent Alphabet," reports CNBC. "Zuckerberg has grown agitated that rivals like OpenAI appear to be ahead in both underlying AI models and consumer-facing apps, and he is going to extreme lengths to hire top AI talent." <a href="http://twitter.com/home?status=Meta+Discussed+Buying+Perplexity+Before+Investing+In+Scale+AI%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fmeta.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F2015248%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/twitter_icon_large.png"></a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fmeta.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F2015248%2Fmeta-discussed-buying-perplexity-before-investing-in-scale-ai%3Futm_source%3Dslashdot%26utm_medium%3Dfacebook" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png"></a>
Meta Discussed Buying Perplexity Before Investing In Scale AI - Slashdot
According to Bloomberg (paywalled), Meta reportedly explored acquiring Perplexity AI but the deal fell through, with conflicting accounts on whethe...
 at Slashdot.
Meta Discussed Buying Perplexity Before Investing In Scale AI - Slashdot
According to Bloomberg (paywalled), Meta reportedly explored acquiring Perplexity AI but the deal fell through, with conflicting accounts on whethe...
Record DDoS Pummels Site With Once-Unimaginable 7.3Tbps of Junk Traffic An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Large-scale attacks designed to bring down Internet services by sending them more traffic than they can process keep getting bigger, with the largest one yet, measured at 7.3 terabits per second, being reported Friday by Internet security and performance provider Cloudflare. The 7.3Tbps attack amounted to 37.4 terabytes of junk traffic that hit the target in just 45 seconds. That's an almost incomprehensible amount of data, equivalent to more than 9,300 full-length HD movies or 7,500 hours of HD streaming content in well under a minute. Cloudflare said the attackers "carpet bombed" an average of nearly 22,000 destination ports of a single IP address belonging to the target, identified only as a Cloudflare customer. A total of 34,500 ports were targeted, indicating the thoroughness and well-engineered nature of the attack. [...] Cloudflare said the record DDoS exploited various reflection or amplification vectors, including the previously mentioned Network Time Protocol; the Quote of the Day Protocol, which listens on UDP port 17 and responds with a short quote or message; the Echo Protocol, which responds with the same data it receives; and Portmapper services used identify resources available to applications connecting through the Remote Procedure Call. Cloudflare said the attack was also delivered through one or more Mirai-based botnets. Such botnets are typically made up of home and small office routers, web cameras, and other Internet of Things devices that have been compromised. <a href="http://twitter.com/home?status=Record+DDoS+Pummels+Site+With+Once-Unimaginable+7.3Tbps+of+Junk+Traffic%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fyro.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F2010218%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/twitter_icon_large.png"></a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fyro.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F2010218%2Frecord-ddos-pummels-site-with-once-unimaginable-73tbps-of-junk-traffic%3Futm_source%3Dslashdot%26utm_medium%3Dfacebook" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png"></a>
Record DDoS Pummels Site With Once-Unimaginable 7.3Tbps of Junk Traffic - Slashdot
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Large-scale attacks designed to bring down Internet services by sending them more traffic th...
 at Slashdot.
Record DDoS Pummels Site With Once-Unimaginable 7.3Tbps of Junk Traffic - Slashdot
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Large-scale attacks designed to bring down Internet services by sending them more traffic th...
Congestion Pricing in Manhattan is a Predictable Success Manhattan's congestion pricing program has reduced traffic by 10% and cut car-noise complaints by 70% in its first six months of operation, according to city data. The $9 daily toll for vehicles entering Manhattan below 60th Street began January 5, generating approximately $50 million monthly for subway and public transit improvements. Buses now travel fast enough that drivers must stop and wait to maintain schedules, while subway ridership has increased sharply since the program launched. Broadway theater attendance has risen rather than declined as some critics predicted. Polling shows more New Yorkers now support the toll than oppose it, a reversal from widespread opposition before implementation. The policy took nearly 50 years to enact despite originating from Columbia University economist William Vickrey's work in the 1960s. Congress blocked a similar proposal in the 1970s, and the current program faced a six-year implementation delay after Governor Andrew Cuomo signed it into law in 2019. Governor Kathy Hochul postponed the launch in 2024 before allowing it to proceed after Donald Trump's presidential election victory. <a href="http://twitter.com/home?status=Congestion+Pricing+in+Manhattan+is+a+Predictable+Success%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fnews.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F205237%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/twitter_icon_large.png"></a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fnews.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F205237%2Fcongestion-pricing-in-manhattan-is-a-predictable-success%3Futm_source%3Dslashdot%26utm_medium%3Dfacebook" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png"></a>
Congestion Pricing in Manhattan is a Predictable Success - Slashdot
Manhattan
 at Slashdot.
Congestion Pricing in Manhattan is a Predictable Success - Slashdot
Manhattan
Apple Sued By Shareholders For Allegedly Overstating AI Progress Apple is facing a proposed class-action lawsuit from shareholders who allege the company misled investors about the readiness of its AI-powered Siri upgrades, contributing to a $900 billion drop in market value. Reuters reports: Shareholders led by Eric Tucker said that at its June 2024 Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple led them to believe AI would be a key driver of iPhone 16 devices, when it launched Apple Intelligence to make Siri more powerful and user-friendly. But they said the Cupertino, California-based company lacked a functional prototype of AI-based Siri features, and could not reasonably believe the features would ever be ready for iPhone 16s. Shareholders said the truth began to emerge on March 7 when Apple delayed some Siri upgrades to 2026, and continued through this year's Worldwide Developers Conference on June 9 when Apple's assessment of its AI progress disappointed analysts. Apple shares have lost nearly one-fourth of their value since their December 26, 2024 record high, wiping out approximately $900 billion of market value. <a href="http://twitter.com/home?status=Apple+Sued+By+Shareholders+For+Allegedly+Overstating+AI+Progress%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fyro.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F2147258%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/twitter_icon_large.png"></a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fyro.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F2147258%2Fapple-sued-by-shareholders-for-allegedly-overstating-ai-progress%3Futm_source%3Dslashdot%26utm_medium%3Dfacebook" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png"></a>
Apple Sued By Shareholders For Allegedly Overstating AI Progress - Slashdot
Apple is facing a proposed class-action lawsuit from shareholders who allege the company misled investors about the readiness of its AI-powered Sir...
 at Slashdot.
Apple Sued By Shareholders For Allegedly Overstating AI Progress - Slashdot
Apple is facing a proposed class-action lawsuit from shareholders who allege the company misled investors about the readiness of its AI-powered Sir...
Windows Parental Controls Are Blocking Chrome david.emery writes: Microsoft is making it harder to use Chrome on Windows. The culprit? This time, it's Windows' Family Safety feature. Since early this month, the parental control measure has prevented users from opening Chrome. Strangely, no other apps or browsers appear to be affected. Redditors first reported the issue on June 3. u/Witty-Discount-2906 posted that Chrome crashed on Windows 11. "Just flashes quickly, unable to open with no error message," they wrote. Another user chimed in with a correct guess. "This may be related to Parental Controls," u/duk242 surmised. "I've had nine students come see the IT Desk in the last hour saying Chrome won't open." <a href="http://twitter.com/home?status=Windows+Parental+Controls+Are+Blocking+Chrome%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fit.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F1751200%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/twitter_icon_large.png"></a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fit.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F1751200%2Fwindows-parental-controls-are-blocking-chrome%3Futm_source%3Dslashdot%26utm_medium%3Dfacebook" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png"></a>
Windows Parental Controls Are Blocking Chrome - Slashdot
david.emery writes: Microsoft is making it harder to use Chrome on Windows. The culprit? This time, it
 at Slashdot.
Windows Parental Controls Are Blocking Chrome - Slashdot
david.emery writes: Microsoft is making it harder to use Chrome on Windows. The culprit? This time, it
Trust in AI Strongest in China, Low-Income Nations, UN Study Shows A United Nations study has found a sharp global divide on attitudes toward AI, with trust strongest in low-income countries and skepticism high in wealthier ones. From a report: More than 6 out of 10 people in developing nations said they have faith that AI systems serve the best interests of society, according to a UN Development Programme survey of 21 countries seen by Bloomberg News. In two-thirds of the countries surveyed, over half of respondents expressed some level of confidence that AI is being designed for good. In China, where steady advances in AI are posing a challenge to US dominance, 83% of those surveyed said they trust the technology. Like China, most developing countries that reported confidence in AI have "high" levels of development based on the UNDP's Human Development Index, including Kyrgyzstan and Egypt. But the list also includes those with "medium" and "low" HDI scores like India, Nigeria and Pakistan. <a href="http://twitter.com/home?status=Trust+in+AI+Strongest+in+China%2C+Low-Income+Nations%2C+UN+Study+Shows%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fslashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F1646251%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/twitter_icon_large.png"></a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fslashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F1646251%2Ftrust-in-ai-strongest-in-china-low-income-nations-un-study-shows%3Futm_source%3Dslashdot%26utm_medium%3Dfacebook" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png"></a>
Trust in AI Strongest in China, Low-Income Nations, UN Study Shows - Slashdot
A United Nations study has found a sharp global divide on attitudes toward AI, with trust strongest in low-income countries and skepticism high in ...
 at Slashdot.
Trust in AI Strongest in China, Low-Income Nations, UN Study Shows - Slashdot
A United Nations study has found a sharp global divide on attitudes toward AI, with trust strongest in low-income countries and skepticism high in ...
Semicolon Usage in British Literature Drops Nearly 50% Since 2000 Semicolon usage in British literature has declined from once every 205 words in 2000 to once every 390 words today, representing a nearly 50% drop, according to analysis commissioned by language learning company Babbel. The punctuation mark appeared once every 90 words in British literature from 1781, making the current frequency the lowest on record. A survey of young learners in the London Student Network found that more than half of respondents could not correctly use semicolons, with only 11% describing themselves as frequent users. The average score on a semicolon knowledge quiz was 49%. <a href="http://twitter.com/home?status=Semicolon+Usage+in+British+Literature+Drops+Nearly+50%25+Since+2000%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fnews.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F159208%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/twitter_icon_large.png"></a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fnews.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F159208%2Fsemicolon-usage-in-british-literature-drops-nearly-50-since-2000%3Futm_source%3Dslashdot%26utm_medium%3Dfacebook" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png"></a>
Semicolon Usage in British Literature Drops Nearly 50% Since 2000 - Slashdot
Semicolon usage in British literature has declined from once every 205 words in 2000 to once every 390 words today, representing a nearly 50% drop,...
 at Slashdot.
Semicolon Usage in British Literature Drops Nearly 50% Since 2000 - Slashdot
Semicolon usage in British literature has declined from once every 205 words in 2000 to once every 390 words today, representing a nearly 50% drop,...
Broadcom's Answer To VMware Pricing Outrage: You're Using It Wrong A senior Broadcom executive has defended VMware's controversial licensing changes by arguing that customers complaining about costs simply weren't using the software bundles properly. VMware shifted away from selling perpetual licenses for individual products to subscription bundles after Broadcom's acquisition. Some smaller and mid-sized customers claim their costs increased eight to 15 times under the new pricing structure, prompting migration plans to alternative platforms. Joe Baguley, Broadcom's chief technology officer for EMEA, countered that 87% of VMware's top 10,000 customers have signed up for VMware Cloud Foundation, and that cost complaints "don't play out" when Broadcom sits down with customers directly. <a href="http://twitter.com/home?status=Broadcom's+Answer+To+VMware+Pricing+Outrage%3A+You're+Using+It+Wrong%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fit.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F1331257%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/twitter_icon_large.png"></a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fit.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F20%2F1331257%2Fbroadcoms-answer-to-vmware-pricing-outrage-youre-using-it-wrong%3Futm_source%3Dslashdot%26utm_medium%3Dfacebook" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png"></a>
Broadcom
A senior Broadcom executive has defended VMware
 at Slashdot.
Broadcom
A senior Broadcom executive has defended VMware
Three Years Left To Limit Warming To 1.5C, Leading Scientists Warn An anonymous reader quotes a report from the BBC: The Earth could be doomed to breach the symbolic 1.5C warming limit in as little as three years at current levels of carbon dioxide emissions. That's the stark warning from more than 60 of the world's leading climate scientists in the most up-to-date assessment of the state of global warming. [...] At the beginning of 2020, scientists estimated that humanity could only emit 500 billion more tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) -- the most important planet-warming gas -- for a 50% chance of keeping warming to 1.5C. But by the start of 2025 this so-called "carbon budget" had shrunk to 130 billion tonnes, according to the new study. That reduction is largely due to continued record emissions of CO2 and other planet-warming greenhouse gases like methane, but also improvements in the scientific estimates. If global CO2 emissions stay at their current highs of about 40 billion tonnes a year, 130 billion tonnes gives the world roughly three years until that carbon budget is exhausted. This could commit the world to breaching the target set by the Paris agreement, the researchers say, though the planet would probably not pass 1.5C of human-caused warming until a few years later. Last year was the first on record when global average air temperatures were more than 1.5C above those of the late 1800s. A single 12-month period isn't considered a breach of the Paris agreement, however, with the record heat of 2024 given an extra boost by natural weather patterns. But human-caused warming was by far the main reason for last year's high temperatures, reaching 1.36C above pre-industrial levels, the researchers estimate. This current rate of warming is about 0.27C per decade -- much faster than anything in the geological record. And if emissions stay high, the planet is on track to reach 1.5C of warming on that metric around the year 2030. After this point, long-term warming could, in theory, be brought back down by sucking large quantities of CO2 back out of the atmosphere. But the authors urge caution on relying on these ambitious technologies serving as a get-out-of-jail card. "For larger exceedance [of 1.5C], it becomes less likely that removals [of CO2] will perfectly reverse the warming caused by today's emissions," warned Joeri Rogelj, professor of climate science and policy at Imperial College London. "Reductions in emissions over the next decade can critically change the rate of warming," he added. "Every fraction of warming that we can avoid will result in less harm and less suffering of particularly poor and vulnerable populations and less challenges for our societies to live the lives that we desire." <a href="http://twitter.com/home?status=Three+Years+Left+To+Limit+Warming+To+1.5C%2C+Leading+Scientists+Warn%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fnews.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F19%2F2122207%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/twitter_icon_large.png"></a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fnews.slashdot.org%2Fstory%2F25%2F06%2F19%2F2122207%2Fthree-years-left-to-limit-warming-to-15c-leading-scientists-warn%3Futm_source%3Dslashdot%26utm_medium%3Dfacebook" rel="nofollow"><img src="https://a.fsdn.com/sd/facebook_icon_large.png"></a>
Three Years Left To Limit Warming To 1.5C, Leading Scientists Warn - Slashdot
An anonymous reader quotes a report from the BBC: The Earth could be doomed to breach the symbolic 1.5C warming limit in as little as three years a...
 at Slashdot.
Three Years Left To Limit Warming To 1.5C, Leading Scientists Warn - Slashdot
An anonymous reader quotes a report from the BBC: The Earth could be doomed to breach the symbolic 1.5C warming limit in as little as three years a...