Facebook Launches AI Mode That Generates Search Answers From Public Posts
INSIDE 硬塞 AI42 days agoEthicsMeta has activated an AI answering feature on Facebook that pulls from users' public posts to generate search results without explicit consent. The rollout offers no opt-out mechanism, leaving users with no recourse if they object to their content being used this way. Critics argue the change unilaterally redefines what 'public' means on the platform, raising serious privacy concerns for anyone who has ever posted publicly on Facebook.
WWDC26 Decoded: Siri Has No Persistent Memory — Is Apple's AI Still Useful?
INSIDE 硬塞 AI42 days agoCommentaryAt WWDC26, Apple confirmed that Siri does not retain any memory of past conversations, a deliberate consequence of its privacy-first Private Cloud Compute architecture, which erases all data immediately after processing. While this approach strongly upholds Apple's privacy commitments, it means Siri cannot learn from prior interactions or carry context across sessions. The limitation invites serious scrutiny of whether Apple's AI assistant can remain competitive against rivals that offer rich, persistent memory features.
pCloud Dragon Boat Festival Sale: Lifetime Plans from $199, Includes Free pCloud Pass
INSIDE 硬塞 AI43 days agoBusinessEuropean cloud storage provider pCloud is running a Dragon Boat Festival limited-time promotion on its lifetime storage plans, starting at a one-time fee of $199. The campaign targets users frustrated by rising subscription costs and shrinking cross-region benefits across the cloud storage industry. Every qualifying plan includes pCloud Pass, the company's password manager, as a bonus, appealing to individuals and small businesses seeking long-term cost control.
Trace – Offline Mac Meeting Transcripts You Can Flag Mid-Call
Hacker News (AI keywords)44 days agoNew ToolTrace is a new Mac application that generates meeting transcripts entirely offline, preserving user privacy by keeping audio and text on-device. A standout feature allows users to flag moments of interest in real time during a call. The tool targets professionals who want accurate, private meeting records without relying on cloud services.
OpenAI Faces State Attorneys General Investigation★ 72
TechCrunch AI44 days agoRegulationOpenAI is facing an investigation from state attorneys general, according to TechCrunch. The article says it is not yet clear which states are involved. Reported areas of inquiry include OpenAI's advertising policies and how the company handles health-related data, suggesting regulators are examining both consumer-facing business practices and sensitive information governance.
Google will save your Lens photos, Search Live recordings, and Translate audio for AI training
The Verge AI47 days agoEthicsGoogle has notified users via email that it will begin saving multimedia inputs—images from Google Lens, real-time recordings from Search Live, and audio from Translate—under a new 'Search Services History' setting. This data will be retained and potentially used to train and improve Google's AI models. Users concerned about privacy should review their account settings to manage or disable this data collection.
Company Will Add Phone, AirPod, and Smartwatch Trackers to License Plate Readers
Hacker News (AI keywords)48 days agoEthicsAutomatic License Plate Readers (ALPRs) are already widely deployed for vehicle tracking, but one company now plans to add Bluetooth and Wi-Fi probes capable of detecting nearby personal devices including smartphones, AirPods, and smartwatches. This would allow simultaneous correlation of a vehicle's license plate with the device identifiers of its occupants. Privacy advocates warn this creates a dual-layer public surveillance network with no consent mechanism, raising serious civil liberties concerns.
Apple's AI Can Now Change Your Passwords. What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Hacker News (AI keywords)48 days agoCommentaryApple's AI assistant has gained the ability to change account passwords on behalf of users, raising eyebrows in the security community. The author uses pointed sarcasm to question whether delegating password management to an AI system is wise. This development reflects a broader trend of AI agents gaining deeper OS-level permissions, blurring the line between helpful automation and dangerous over-trust.
FCC Wants to Kill Burner Phones by Forcing Telecoms to Verify All Customers' IDs
Hacker News (AI keywords)48 days agoRegulationThe FCC is proposing rules that would require telecom carriers to verify the identity of every customer before activating service. This move would eliminate anonymous prepaid 'burner phones,' long used by journalists, domestic abuse survivors, and privacy-conscious individuals. Critics warn the policy could undermine digital privacy and disproportionately harm vulnerable populations, while proponents argue it would curb fraud and criminal activity.
Warning: OpenCode Go/Zen Has No Account or Data Deletion Feature
r/LocalLLaMA top day48 days agoIncidentA Reddit user warns that OpenCode Go/Zen provides no mechanism for users to delete their account or personal data. Several GitHub issues have been filed but mostly ignored; one official response only said deletion would 'probably' be added eventually. For privacy-conscious developers, this is a significant red flag before signing up to the platform.
Apple’s AI promises are finally, almost, sort of, here★ 72
The Verge AI48 days agoCommentaryApple kicked off its annual developer conference with bold AI promises centered around a revamped "Siri AI" and Apple Intelligence. While CEO Tim Cook touted these as boundary-pushing innovations, the announcements largely represent Apple playing catch-up in the generative AI race. The slow, phased rollout suggests Apple is still struggling to match the rapid pace of competitors like Microsoft and Google.
Apple Says Its AI is Still Private Even When Running on Google's Servers★ 75
Ars Technica AI49 days agoEthicsApple clarified that running some of its AI models on Google's cloud infrastructure does not compromise user privacy. Through its Private Cloud Compute (PCC) architecture, Apple ensures that all data is processed in secure enclaves with end-to-end encryption. Consequently, Google has zero access to user data, addressing privacy concerns over Apple's cloud partnerships.
Apple’s AI pitch will live or die by its privacy promise
The Verge AI49 days agoCommentaryThe Verge argues Apple’s WWDC 2026 AI strategy centers on privacy rather than raw capability. Apple says Siri AI and Apple Intelligence will run on-device when possible and use Private Cloud Compute only when needed. But reliance on Google Gemini, Google Cloud, Nvidia, Intel, and Google Titan hardware complicates Apple’s original privacy story, even if its default data collection remains more limited than rivals.
Apple’s Image Playground doesn’t suck anymore
TechCrunch AI49 days agoReleaseApple announced improvements to Image Playground at WWDC 2026, positioning the iPhone’s built-in AI image generator as a more capable tool. The update emphasizes natural-language photo transformations, multi-person image use, flexible output dimensions, and integrations across lock screens, iMessage backgrounds, and contact posters. TechCrunch has not tested it yet, but the presentation suggests Apple Intelligence apps may become more practical.
The Smart TV in Your Living Room Is a Node in the AI Scraping Economy★ 74
Hacker News (AI keywords)52 days agoEthicsInclude Security examines how Bright Data’s SDK supplies residential proxy capacity through partner apps on phones and connected TVs. The post argues smart TVs are especially attractive because they are always powered, often on fast Wi-Fi, and rarely monitored. It details public configuration endpoints, peer tunnel behavior, telemetry, VPN visibility bypasses, bandwidth limits, and practical DNS or network-blocking defenses.
South Korean forums may need AI scans for uploaded images and videos
Hacker News (AI keywords)53 days agoRegulationA Privacy Guides community post says South Korean forums and online communities may be required to scan user-uploaded images and videos with AI under telecom-related rules. The post claims operators must provide their own hardware, including costly Nvidia GPUs. The debate centers on illegal sexual imagery and CSAM prevention, but also raises concerns about prior censorship, false positives, free expression, and burdens on small domestic communities.
Elon Musk tries again to escape FTC audits of X data handling
Ars Technica AI53 days agoRegulationArs Technica reports that Elon Musk is again seeking to escape FTC audits over how X handles user data. Public commenters warned the FTC that Musk cannot be trusted to protect X users’ privacy. The story centers on platform governance, privacy oversight, and whether external audits should remain in place for X’s data practices.
Uruky, EU-Based Kagi Alternative, Adds Image Search and URL Rewrites
Hacker News (AI keywords)54 days agoReleaseUruky, a European-based independent search engine positioned as an alternative to Kagi, has shipped two notable feature additions: image search and URL Rewrites. The URL Rewrite capability allows users to customize or sanitize URLs before visiting them, a privacy and power-user staple popularized by Kagi. The update, shared on Hacker News as a Show HN post, signals continued momentum for smaller, privacy-respecting search engines outside US jurisdiction.
Google’s Dreambeans will turn your life into a cartoon
TechCrunch AI54 days agoNew ToolTechCrunch reports that Google’s Dreambeans is a new AI tool with an unusually quirky name. Its core idea is to turn a user’s life into cartoon-like, AI-illustrated stories. Based on the provided article text, Dreambeans builds those curated stories from personal data in the user’s Google account, raising both consumer-content possibilities and privacy questions.
Amazon faces class action lawsuit over Ring facial recognition feature
TechCrunch AI55 days agoEthicsAmazon faces a class action lawsuit over Ring's Familiar Faces feature. Filed in Seattle by Virginia resident Charles Sigwalt, the complaint claims the feature stores images of passersby without consent. The available excerpt does not state whether a court has certified the class, which laws are cited, or how Amazon has responded.
Gemini's new AI agent is about as good as Google's demo
The Verge AI56 days agoNew ToolGoogle's new 24/7 AI agent, Gemini Spark, can take on tasks for users and continue working on them. After receiving access last week, The Verge's reviewer found that Spark can perform surprisingly well, roughly matching Google's demo. The remaining question is whether that capability justifies the financial cost and potential privacy tradeoffs.
DeFlock Hits 100k ALPRs Mapped in USA
Hacker News (AI keywords)57 days agoEthicsA Hacker News post highlights DeFlock reaching 100,000 mapped automated license plate readers in the United States. The original article text was not provided, so the confirmed facts are limited mainly to the title and public context around DeFlock. The item is most relevant to privacy, computer-vision surveillance, civic mapping, and governance rather than new AI models or developer tooling.
As browser wars heat up, top Chrome and Safari alternatives in 2026
TechCrunch AI59 days agoCommentaryTechCrunch frames 2026’s browser competition around alternatives to Chrome and Safari. The roundup covers AI-centric browsers like Perplexity Comet, Dia, Opera Neon, OpenAI Atlas, and Aside, alongside privacy-focused options such as Brave, DuckDuckGo, Ladybird, and Vivaldi. It also highlights niche products including Opera Air, SigmaOS, and Zen Browser, showing how browsers are becoming AI assistants, productivity hubs, privacy layers, and wellness-oriented tools.
Tech companies desperately want to film you doing chores
The Verge AI59 days agoEthicsThe Verge reports that AI training startup Shift is offering to clean New Yorkers’ homes for free, with plans to expand to cities including London. The catch is that Shift wants footage of people doing chores and cleaning at home. The story highlights how tech companies are seeking real-world household data for AI and robotics training, raising questions about privacy and consent in domestic spaces.
Startup offers free home cleaning if it can record it all for robot training
Ars Technica AI59 days agoBusinessAI training startup Shift is offering free home cleanings while workers wear head-mounted cameras that record household chores. The footage is intended to become training data for domestic robots and related AI systems. The model highlights rising demand for real-world robotics data, while raising privacy questions about recording inside homes.
This AI startup will clean your home for free to train future robots
The Verge AI60 days agoBusinessAI training startup Shift is offering to clean homes for free, with a significant condition: it records cleaners at work. The footage captures tasks like scrubbing, vacuuming, dusting, tidying, and washing. Shift says the material will be used to train future robots, raising clear questions about data collection inside private homes.
Is Your Data in Taiwan? Cross-Border Transfer Risks in Asia-Pacific Data Deployment
INSIDE 硬塞 AI60 days agoCommentaryUsing the Grab acquisition debate as context, the article says offshore data storage is now normal for digital services. The real issue is not whether data stays in Taiwan, but whether the storage jurisdiction has strong legal protections, oversight, and remedies. Singapore is presented as a case worth examining for Asia-Pacific data deployment and cross-border transfer risk assessment.
Reachy Mini goes fully local
Hugging Face Blog62 days agoHardwareHugging Face published a tutorial for running Reachy Mini conversations without cloud audio processing or API keys. The setup uses its speech-to-speech library as a cascaded VAD, STT, LLM, and TTS pipeline exposed through a Realtime API-compatible WebSocket. Recommended defaults include llama.cpp with Gemma 4, Silero VAD, Parakeet-TDT, and Qwen3-TTS, while allowing swaps to vLLM, MLX, Transformers, or hosted Responses API providers.
FBI agent explains how easy it is to ID people posting AI porn without consent
Ars Technica AI62 days agoIncidentArs Technica reports that early Take It Down Act arrests show how easily investigators can identify alleged nonconsensual AI porn posters. One suspect was linked through Instagram saves, PayPal, IP, and iCloud records; another allegedly used his own photo as a porn-site profile image. The FTC is also warning nudify services and major platforms to offer 48-hour removal processes or face penalties.
I Tried Amazon’s Bee Wearable and Am Both Intrigued and Slightly Creeped Out
TechCrunch AI64 days agoHardwareTechCrunch reviewed Amazon's new "Bee" AI wearable, highlighting its potential for seamless ambient computing. While the device offers impressive convenience by constantly listening and assisting, it also triggers significant privacy concerns. Like previous AI pins and pendants, Bee forces users to balance the benefits of an always-on assistant against the anxiety of constant surveillance.