Elon Musk’s X gives up fight in Brazil, starts complying with judge’s demands

X announces reversal but must prove compliance before it can be reinstated.

Photo illustration shows the X logo displayed on a smartphone screen with a flag of Brazil in the background.

Enlarge (credit: Getty Images | SOPA Images)

Elon Musk is apparently conceding defeat in his fight with Brazil Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes, as the X social platform has started complying with the judge's demands in an attempt to get the service un-blocked in the country.

X previously refused to suspend dozens of accounts accused of spreading disinformation. Internet service providers have been blocking X under orders from the government since early September, and De Moraes seized $2 million from a Starlink bank account and $1.3 million from an X account to collect on fines issued to X.

X has claimed the orders violate Brazil's own laws. "Unlike other social media and technology platforms, we will not comply in secret with illegal orders. To our users in Brazil and around the world, X remains committed to protecting your freedom of speech," the company said in late August.

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Elon Musk’s X gives up fight in Brazil, starts complying with judge’s demands

X announces reversal but must prove compliance before it can be reinstated.

Photo illustration shows the X logo displayed on a smartphone screen with a flag of Brazil in the background.

Enlarge (credit: Getty Images | SOPA Images)

Elon Musk is apparently conceding defeat in his fight with Brazil Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes, as the X social platform has started complying with the judge's demands in an attempt to get the service un-blocked in the country.

X previously refused to suspend dozens of accounts accused of spreading disinformation. Internet service providers have been blocking X under orders from the government since early September, and De Moraes seized $2 million from a Starlink bank account and $1.3 million from an X account to collect on fines issued to X.

X has claimed the orders violate Brazil's own laws. "Unlike other social media and technology platforms, we will not comply in secret with illegal orders. To our users in Brazil and around the world, X remains committed to protecting your freedom of speech," the company said in late August.

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Zotac ZBOX MI6x3 mini PCs stuff 65 watt processors into compact designs

The Zotac ZBOX MI673 is a desktop computer that packs a lot of processing power into a compact design. It squeezes 65-watt Intel Core i7-14700 20-core, 28-thread processor based on Intel’s Raptor Lake Refresh architecture into a chassis that meas…

The Zotac ZBOX MI673 is a desktop computer that packs a lot of processing power into a compact design. It squeezes 65-watt Intel Core i7-14700 20-core, 28-thread processor based on Intel’s Raptor Lake Refresh architecture into a chassis that measures 204 x 129 x 68mm (8.03″ x 5.08″ x 2.68″) and has a volume of […]

The post Zotac ZBOX MI6x3 mini PCs stuff 65 watt processors into compact designs appeared first on Liliputing.

Fake AI “podcasters” are reviewing my book and it’s freaking me out

NotebookLM’s “Audio Summaries” show a more personable future for AI-generated content.

Hey, welcome back to "Talkin'<em>Minesweeper</em>," the podcast where AI hosts discuss a book about <em>Minesweeper</em>!

Enlarge / Hey, welcome back to "Talkin'Minesweeper," the podcast where AI hosts discuss a book about Minesweeper! (credit: Aurich Lawson | Boss Fight Books)

As someone who has been following the growth of generative AI for a while now, I know that the technology can be pretty good (if not quite human-level) at quickly summarizing complex documents into a more digestible form. But I still wasn't prepared for how disarmingly compelling it would be to listen to Google's NotebookLM condense my recent book about Minesweeper into a tight, 12.5-minute, podcast-style conversation between two people that don't exist.

There are still enough notable issues with NotebookLM's audio output to prevent it from fully replacing professional podcasters any time soon. Even so, the podcast-like format is an incredibly engaging and endearing way to take in complex information and points to a much more personable future for generative AI than the dry back-and-forth of a text-based chatbot.

Hey! Listen!

Listen to NotebookLM's 12.5-minute summary of my Minesweeper book using the player above.

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Fake AI “podcasters” are reviewing my book and it’s freaking me out

NotebookLM’s “Audio Summaries” show a more personable future for AI-generated content.

Hey, welcome back to "Talkin'<em>Minesweeper</em>," the podcast where AI hosts discuss a book about <em>Minesweeper</em>!

Enlarge / Hey, welcome back to "Talkin'Minesweeper," the podcast where AI hosts discuss a book about Minesweeper! (credit: Aurich Lawson | Boss Fight Books)

As someone who has been following the growth of generative AI for a while now, I know that the technology can be pretty good (if not quite human-level) at quickly summarizing complex documents into a more digestible form. But I still wasn't prepared for how disarmingly compelling it would be to listen to Google's NotebookLM condense my recent book about Minesweeper into a tight, 12.5-minute, podcast-style conversation between two people that don't exist.

There are still enough notable issues with NotebookLM's audio output to prevent it from fully replacing professional podcasters any time soon. Even so, the podcast-like format is an incredibly engaging and endearing way to take in complex information and points to a much more personable future for generative AI than the dry back-and-forth of a text-based chatbot.

Hey! Listen!

Listen to NotebookLM's 12.5-minute summary of my Minesweeper book using the player above.

Read 17 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Can our stockpiles of Tamiflu protect against a bird flu pandemic?

Governments are banking on this old drug in the event of an H5N1 outbreak.

A box and a tablet of Roche Pharmaceuticals' Tamiflu pills for influenza.

Enlarge / A box and a tablet of Roche Pharmaceuticals' Tamiflu pills for influenza. (credit: Nikos Pekiaridis/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Since reports emerged earlier this year that dairy cows across the country had been infected with H5N1 bird flu, the prospect that the virus could evolve to spark another pandemic has stoked serious concern.

But unlike Covid-19, the flu is an old, well-known foe. And health authorities have reassured the public that the U.S. has squirreled away millions of doses of the flu medication oseltamivir, known under the brand name Tamiflu. As health policy expert Leana S. Wen wrote in a Washington Post opinion piece, the drug “works against seasonal flu and is expected to work well against H5N1.”

While oseltamivir may help in cases of severe flu, some experts are concerned that the U.S. is banking far too much on a so-so drug while failing to prioritize research on new treatments.

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Apple: iPhone 16 Pro hat Touchscreen-Problem

Beim iPhone 16 Pro und Pro Max werden Toucheingaben nicht mehr erkannt, wenn die Geräte ungünstig gehalten werden. Eine Hülle kann helfen. (iPhone 16, Smartphone)

Beim iPhone 16 Pro und Pro Max werden Toucheingaben nicht mehr erkannt, wenn die Geräte ungünstig gehalten werden. Eine Hülle kann helfen. (iPhone 16, Smartphone)

US to ban Chinese connected car software and hardware, citing security risks

The ban would start in model-year 2027 for software and MY2030 for hardware.

Close up view of a car on charge with the Chinese flag as background. Concept of electric cars in China or Chinese car industry.

Enlarge (credit: Getty Images)

The US government is readying its latest measure to defend local automotive manufacturing. In May, US President Joe Biden levied new 100 percent tariffs targeted at specific Chinese automakers. Now, the US Commerce Department is set to enact a de facto ban on most Chinese vehicles, by prohibiting Chinese connected car software and hardware from operating on US roads, according to Reuters.

The rationale? National security concerns. "When foreign adversaries build software to make a vehicle [connected], that means it can be used for surveillance, can be remotely controlled, which threatens the privacy and safety of Americans on the road," said Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.

"In an extreme situation, a foreign adversary could shut down or take control of all their vehicles operating in the United States all at the same time, causing crashes, blocking roads," said Secretary Raimondo, a scenario we saw depicted in Fate of the Furious (where it caused me a headache), as well as more recently (and to better effect) in Leave the World Behind.

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