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Meta starts testing its AI shopping assistant Mar 04, 2026

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It's currently available for select users in the US on desktop.

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AI data centers could reduce power draw on demand, Meta signed an AI licensing deal with News Corp, and no end-to-end encryption for TikTok DMs Mar 04, 2026

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-Over five days in December 2025, more than 200 simulated "grid events" tested a London data center’s ability to adjust its energy use on the fly. In each simulated grid event, the data center successfully adjusted its energy use to the requested level, reducing power draw by up to 40%

-Meta has signed an AI licensing deal with News Corp that will allow the Meta AI maker to use content from The Wall Street Journal and other brands in its chatbot responses and for training of its AI models.

-TikTok said that implementing the technology would prevent its safety teams or law enforcement from being able to read messages if needed. The ByteDance-owned app framed it as a deliberate decision, made in an effort to keep users, especially younger ones, safe on its platform.

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The Samsung Wallet can now hold your house keys Mar 03, 2026

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The Digital Home Key can unlock smart doors through your phone.

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OpenAI will amend its deal with the DoD to prevent mass surveillance in the US, the Supreme Court doesn't care if you want to copyright your AI-generated art, and Starlink's next-gen satellite network could broadband speed Mar 03, 2026

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-OpenAI’s Sam Altman said the company will amend its deal with the Defense Department to explicitly prohibit the use of its AI system on mass surveillance against Americans.

-On Monday, the US Supreme Court declined to hear a case about whether an artwork generated with the help of AI can be copyrighted. The refusal means that a lower court's decision to reject the copyright request will stand.

-Starlink is getting ready to launch its second generation of satellites, and it's expected to match the speeds of a traditional terrestrial network. During a keynote at Mobile World Congress,

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A closer look at Honor’s Robot Phone Mar 02, 2026

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Look, but don’t touch.

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Anthropic's Claude tops in App Store after Trump's ban, the US reportedly used Anthropic's AI for its attack on Iran, and Lenovo's robot concept can help you digitally sign documents (and maybe annoy coworkers)' Mar 02, 2026

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-Anthropic may have lost out on doing business with the US government, but it's gained enough popularity to earn the number one spot on the App Store's Top Free Apps leaderboard.

-A few hours after Trump ordered all federal agencies to "immediately cease all use of Anthropic's technology", the US conducted a major air attack on Iran with the help of Anthropic's AI tools, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal.

-Lenovo can make a robot, too. Alongside proof-of-concept foldable gaming PCs and modular laptops, it introduced the AI Workmate Concept at MWC 2026. With its own Intel Core Ultra processor, 64GB of memory and its own Pico projector, it’s an AI-laced “workmate” meant to streamline office tasks and collaboration.

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Canadian government demands safety changes from OpenAI Feb 27, 2026

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A “big week" that starts on Monday includes a March 4 event for press and creators.

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Anthropic refuses to bow to the Pentagon despite threats, Block is laying off nearly half its workforce, and Burger King will use AI to monitor employee 'friendliness' Feb 27, 2026

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-Despite an ultimatum from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Anthropic’s Dario Amodei said that it can't "in good conscience" comply with a Pentagon edict to remove guardrails on its AI.

-Block, helmed by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, is slashing its current staff of 10,000 to "just under 6,000."

-Burger King, the chain that leans into creepy, is at it again. The Verge reported on Thursday that the company is rolling out a new voice-controlled AI chatbot for its workers.

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Amazon introduces three personality styles for Alexa+ Feb 26, 2026

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The AI assistant can be Brief, Chill or Sweet in its communications.

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Anthropic weakened its safety pledge, Kalshi fined a MrBeast, and Instagram will alert parents if teens repeatedly search for suicide or self-harm content Feb 26, 2026

Show notes

-Will Shanklin reports that with two stories about the Claude maker Anthropic breaking on Tuesday paint a chilling picture.

-Ian Carlos Campbell writes about Kalshi suspending a MrBeast video editor for insider trading.

-Anna Washenko writes about Instagram adding a new alert for the parents of teen users of its social media platform. The network will alert the adult if their child repeatedly searches for terms about suicide or self-harm in a short time frame.

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