Nintendo

Nintendo to unveil upgrade to best-selling Switch console

BY KILIAN FICHOU WITH CAROLINE GARDIN IN TOKYO

"There is huge demand for a better version of the original Switch," he added.

Japanese video game giant Nintendo is set to unveil the new version of its hugely popular Switch console on Wednesday, with the update eagerly awaited by both gamers and investors.
"There is huge demand for a better version of the original Switch," he added.

Japanese video game giant Nintendo is set to unveil the new version of its hugely popular Switch console on Wednesday, with the update eagerly awaited by both gamers and investors.

Everything from the release date to the price of the Switch 2 is set to be announced at 1300 GMT during a one-hour video broadcast online following a brief first glimpse in mid-January.

Very similar visually to its best-selling predecessor, which was launched in 2017, the Switch 2 features a larger screen, a wider stand, and retains its detachable "Joy-Con" controllers.

It will also be more powerful than the original model while keeping its hybrid console concept, allowing players to use it both on-the-go and connected to a TV -- a key factor in the success of the first Switch which has sold 150 million units worldwide.

Experts says no major gaming revolution is expected with the Switch 2 to rival the 2006 appearance of motion controls on the Wii, or to a lesser extent, the Wii U's screen-controller in 2012.

"When you ask gamers, they mention performance and game software, but in reality, they seem to want the same experience as the original Switch," said Hideki Yasuda, an analyst at Japanese brokerage Toyo Securities.

"I think what they truly want is simply higher performance."

June release?

Piers Harding-Rolls, an expert at Ampere Analysis, a London-based consultancy, said a successful launch was "fundamental" for Nintendo's future.

"There is huge demand for a better version of the original Switch," he added.

Despite recent diversification efforts into movies and theme parks, Nintendo's core business still relies heavily on video games.

The company cut its profit forecasts in February due to slowing sales of its star console.

Industry rumours suggest a possible June release, with Yasuda estimating six million units would be initially made available.

In the long run, Nintendo could sell 19 million units in 2025 and 21 million the following year, according to Toyo Securities estimates.

Another key factor is pricing, which experts estimate will range from $430 to $540.

Uncertainty over US import tariffs also remain a concern, although Nintendo has recently switched an increasing amount of production from China to Vietnam, which faces lower customs duties.

New Mario Kart?

As the video game industry faces a global slowdown, marked by waves of layoffs, the arrival of the Switch 2 could revitalise console sales which have been declining worldwide.

Sales fell by 35 percent in 2024 year-on-year in the United States, according to data from US market research firm Circana.

The key to the success of the Switch 2 is likely to be its games line-up.

"They are hugely important, especially for early adopters," said Harding-Rolls, as fans eagerly wait to know the exclusive titles for the new console.

During its January preview, Nintendo revealed a few seconds of a new Mario Kart game, suggesting that it was bringing back one of its most popular franchises.

With over 75 million copies sold on the Wii U and Switch, Mario Kart 8 is the second best-selling game in Nintendo's history, close to Wii Sports' record of 82 million copies.

Nintendo's recent announcement that players can loan digital versions of Switch games to friends via "virtual game cards" could also encourage players to invest in a second console, making game sharing easier.

Starting Friday, select players chosen by lottery will get to test the new console at events in New York, Tokyo, Paris and other cities.

kf-cg/adp/phz/rjm

Nintendo

Nintendo's megahit Switch console: what to know

BY MATHIAS CENA

But plans for the console were unveiled in 2015 to overwhelming indifference after the successor to Nintendo's popular Wii device, the Wii U, flopped commercially.

Gaming giant Nintendo is set to unveil the successor to its phenomenally popular Switch console on Wednesday.
But plans for the console were unveiled in 2015 to overwhelming indifference after the successor to Nintendo's popular Wii device, the Wii U, flopped commercially.

Gaming giant Nintendo is set to unveil the successor to its phenomenally popular Switch console on Wednesday.

Here are some facts about its success:

150 million sold

Nintendo has sold around 150 million Switch machines since the gadget's launch in March 2017.

That makes it the third best-selling console in video game history, behind Sony's PlayStation 2 and the Nintendo DS.

Nintendo estimates it has sold a colossal 1.3 billion games that run on the console.

The biggest hit by far was "Mario Kart 8 Deluxe" (67 million copies sold), followed by "Animal Crossing: New Horizons" which became a must-play during Covid (47 million sold).

Initial indifference

The arrival of the Switch -- a hybrid console that can be played on-the-go or at home connected to a television -- revolutionised the video game world.

But plans for the console were unveiled in 2015 to overwhelming indifference after the successor to Nintendo's popular Wii device, the Wii U, flopped commercially.

The Switch was at first seen as pricey, lacking games and with little to no chance of competing for consumers' wallets with Sony's more powerful PlayStation 4.

"Console games had lost ground to mobile games, and were seen by investors, media and the general public as no longer having any utility," said analyst Hideki Yasuda of Toyo Securities.

"Expectations for the Switch were very low," he told AFP.

"But once it started selling well, opinion quickly changed."

'Lateral thinking'

The Switch was a high point in Nintendo's creativity over the past 40 years, according to Florent Gorges, a French author of books on the Kyoto-based company's history.

On a technical level, the console was anything but cutting-edge, however.

But Nintendo's knack for creating appealing games, combined with the console's portability, made it a winner.

"The Switch perfectly respects Nintendo's DNA, which is 'lateral thinking with withered technology'," said Gorges.

"This means to succeed in making something new out of something old," he explained.

It was the philosophy of Gunpei Yokoi, the father of Nintendo's Game & Watch series of electronic games, which sold tens of millions of units in the 1980s.

Reorganisation

The success of the Switch prompted Nintendo to combine its home and portable consoles divisions into one unit.

"Nintendo had two activities, with totally different prices, totally different software development," said Serkan Toto from Tokyo firm Kantan Games.

But since 2017, thanks to the Switch, "there has been a constant and very reliable flow of games developed directly by Nintendo, and that has helped them enormously," he told AFP.

mac/stu/adp/rmb/jfx

Trump

Meme politics: White House embraces aggressive alt-right online culture

BY MAGGY DONALDSON

Responding to online outrage over the Ghibli portrayal of a deportation arrest, White House communications official Kaelan Dorr re-posted the image, vowing that "the arrests will continue.

Posting for provocation's sake has long been the province of internet antagonists and the alt-right, but these days, even the official White House X account is embracing the communications strategy that often celebrates others' suffering.
Responding to online outrage over the Ghibli portrayal of a deportation arrest, White House communications official Kaelan Dorr re-posted the image, vowing that "the arrests will continue.

Posting for provocation's sake has long been the province of internet antagonists and the alt-right, but these days, even the official White House X account is embracing the communications strategy that often celebrates others' suffering.

Recently, the account posted about the arrest of a weeping, handcuffed alleged felon before her deportation by depicting her likeness in the AI-generated Ghibli style that has flooded the internet, giving the image of her sobbing an animated aesthetic.

Not long prior, the account posted a video of shackled deportees set to the tune of "Closing Time," the 90's-era Semisonic hit.

"I think it sums up our immigration policy pretty well: 'You don't have to go home but you can't stay here,'" said Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, quoting the lyrics with a smile as she defended the message, which Semisonic immediately denounced.

And then there was the Valentine's Day post: "Roses are Red / Violets are Blue / Come Here Illegally / And We'll Deport You" read a card featuring the floating heads of President Donald Trump and his border czar, Tom Homan.

For Marcus Maloney, a sociology professor at Coventry University, it is a social media strategy that speaks to "the 4Chanification of American politics."

An image-based online forum that has become a hub of disinformation, 4Chan was an early home of "shitposting," a brand of internet communication intended to shock, offend or muddle discourse with absurdity.

And if Trump 1.0 embraced the 2016-era alt-right "shitposters" who bolstered his candidacy, Trump 2.0 is incorporating their methods into official communication channels.

It is a new tactic on an account that not long ago, even in the Republican president's first term, featured a stream of press releases and relatively innocuous statements.

Responding to online outrage over the Ghibli portrayal of a deportation arrest, White House communications official Kaelan Dorr re-posted the image, vowing that "the arrests will continue. The memes will continue."

"They're leaning pretty heavily into meme culture and to chronically online individuals," said Jacob Neiheisel, a political science professor at the University of Buffalo.

"That's where a lot of the energy in the MAGA movement is."

Offensive 'outsider'

Trump presented himself as the iconoclastic opposite of the more polished Democrats when he won his first term.

By the time he won his second, "the gloves were really off in terms of his communication style -- and people really responded to that," Maloney said, adding that the offensiveness can actually come off as more "authentic."

"That offensiveness signals a kind of outsider status," he continued, "even though we're talking about a guy who's a billionaire."

The trolling now adopted by the White House is meant to simultaneously shock and be brushed off as a joke, the genre of "locker room talk" that has been a through-line of Trump's non-consecutive presidencies.

The former reality TV star has brought that genre's energy to governing, firing off frenetic statements that often denigrate his opponents and apply crass labels to them.

This style appeals to people already fluent in trolling, particularly younger males, Neiheisel said: "It's funny for them. It's entertainment."

Demeaning and trivializing

Another of the White House's infamous posts likened images and sounds of shackled people boarding a deportation plane to ASMR, the auditory-sensory phenomenon that sees people find relaxation or pleasure in certain sounds.

The flippant language "hurts, ultimately, the gravitas of the presidency -- the world's most powerful office -- and it hurts the perception of it not only domestically but internationally," said Mark Hass, a digital marketing expert and strategic communication professor at Arizona State University.

"It trivializes" important issues like immigration and demeans people, Hass said.

And it can represent an insidious reflection of the Trump administration's political aims, Maloney said. That callousness can open the door to policies that dehumanize or render vulnerable minority groups, he added.

"It's a nihilism in respect specifically to how things are communicated," he said.

"In terms of what they're actually doing," he said, it's "a mainstreaming of far-right dream policies."

mdo/aha

film

Digging for box office gold, 'A Minecraft Movie' hits cinemas

BY FRANCOIS BECKER AND ADAM PLOWRIGHT

For every Super Mario Bros success story -- the 2023 adaptation of the Nintendo racers grossed an estimated $1.3 billion in 2023 -- there are other games-turned-films that have turned into epic box office turkeys.

With an A-list cast and a big budget, "A Minecraft Movie" releasing this week is hoping to follow in the slipstream of Super Mario Bros by turning a gaming phenomenon into a global cinema blockbuster.
For every Super Mario Bros success story -- the 2023 adaptation of the Nintendo racers grossed an estimated $1.3 billion in 2023 -- there are other games-turned-films that have turned into epic box office turkeys.

With an A-list cast and a big budget, "A Minecraft Movie" releasing this week is hoping to follow in the slipstream of Super Mario Bros by turning a gaming phenomenon into a global cinema blockbuster.

Critics have been given limited access to the film ahead of the start of its theatrical release on Wednesday, with those present at Sunday's world premiere in London asked to hold back their write-ups.

Made by "Napoleon Dynamite" director Jared Hess, the film stars Jack Black -- who also appeared in Super Mario -- alongside Jason Momoa, Emma Myers, Jennifer Coolidge, Jemaine Clement and Matt Berry.

At the London premiere, Black cast the film as escapism for families in an increasingly worrying world.

"There's so much violence and war and hatred," Black told The Hollywood Reporter. "And that's what I love about this movie -- there's a lot of love in it and there's a lot of creativity."

A trailer released late last year drew largely negative comments while a handful of online reviews have been varied.

One described it as "easily the worst movie I have seen in years", yet another tipped it to become a "cult classic".

Part of the challenge for backers Warner Studios is that adapting the world's most successful game -- around 300 million sales and counting -- is set to provoke strong feelings from fans who grew up exploring the Minecraft universe.

For every Super Mario Bros success story -- the 2023 adaptation of the Nintendo racers grossed an estimated $1.3 billion in 2023 -- there are other games-turned-films that have turned into epic box office turkeys.

Games to big screens

Minecraft was first released 16 years ago, developed by Swedish designer Markus Persson, who sold it for $2.5 billion to Microsoft several years later.

Players explore and build while fending off creepers and zombies, all in a world of simple cubic lo-fi graphics.

The film's plot sees four humans sucked into the game through a mysterious portal who must then try to find their way home with the help of the Minecraft character Steve, played by Black.

Warner spent an estimated $150 million on the film and experts say cinemas need a box office hit after a slow start to 2025.

Disney's big-budget Snow White adaptation, released last month, has been widely panned and there are still more than six weeks to go until the release of the next instalment of the bankable "Mission: Impossible" franchise.

"We hope it's going to be big thing for cinemas because the market is a bit quiet at the moment," Eric Marti, director at box office consultancy Comscore, told AFP.

He stressed that Minecraft, unlike Super Mario, had not crossed generations in the same way as the Nintendo characters which first emerged in the 1980s.

"Minecraft doesn't necessarily have the same ability to become universal," he explained.

Transferring gaming success to the big screen is a tricky balancing act, involving careful plotting.

"Some adaptations of video games to the cinema have been total failures like 'Street Fighter' or 'Mortal Kombat'," explained Julien Pillot, a French expert on digital culture. "Others have had commercial success despite not being particularly appreciated by gamers."

A first live-action take on Super Mario Bros in 1993 appears on some "worst of all time" film lists, while the 2005 movie version of "Doom" -- a franchise which revolutionised the shoot-'em-up genre in the 1990s -- remains another memorable flop.

Studios are keen on adaptations because games are like classic comic books, which have long been plundered: rich in characters, with an established following and a widely recognised visual universe.

There have been recent successes on the small screen, including Netflix hits "The Witcher" in 2019 and "Arcane" in 2021.

HBO's "The Last of Us", a thriller set in post-apocalyptic America, was a breakout success in 2023 and a new season is set to be released in April.

A sequel in the Mortal Kombat franchise is set to be released in cinemas in October, while "Five Nights at Freddy's 2", based on a popular horror game, will hit screens in December.

fbe-adp/sbk

cryptocurrency

Political support leading to increasing fallout for crypto

BY LUCIE LEQUIER

Having reportedly made Trump at least $350 million, according to the Financial Times, about 810,000 buyers went on to lose more than $2 billion combined, stated crypto data group Chainalysis.

Support for cryptocurrencies from US President Donald Trump or Argentine leader Javier Milei has seen investors lose billions of dollars and is damaging a sector struggling for credibility, researchers told AFP. "The entire crypto industry is being tarnished," said Claire Balva, strategy director for fintech company Deblock.
Having reportedly made Trump at least $350 million, according to the Financial Times, about 810,000 buyers went on to lose more than $2 billion combined, stated crypto data group Chainalysis.

Support for cryptocurrencies from US President Donald Trump or Argentine leader Javier Milei has seen investors lose billions of dollars and is damaging a sector struggling for credibility, researchers told AFP.

"The entire crypto industry is being tarnished," said Claire Balva, strategy director for fintech company Deblock.

Argentine prosecutors are reportedly examining whether Milei engaged in fraud or criminal association, or was in breach of his duties, when he praised the $LIBRA cryptocurrency on social media in February.

The token's value soared from just a few cents to almost $5 and then crashed. Milei deleted his blessing hours later.

He denies all allegations made against him.

"I did not promote it," Milei told broadcaster TN in February, adding it "is a problem between private parties because the State does not play a role here".

"I acted in good faith," he said.

The price collapsed after a handful of early investors decided to sell at a huge profit, causing colossal losses for the majority of those who purchased $LIBRA.

It also dragged down prices of other cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin.

Hayden Davis, who helped launch $LIBRA, said he had been inspired by the initial success of Trump's memecoin, $TRUMP, that marked the president's inauguration.

Having reportedly made Trump at least $350 million, according to the Financial Times, about 810,000 buyers went on to lose more than $2 billion combined, stated crypto data group Chainalysis.

A memecoin is a cryptocurrency that rides on the popularity of a viral personality or phenomenon on the internet and is often seen as a purely speculative asset.

Relying on trust

Once a fierce critic of cryptocurrencies, Trump has become a fervent defender.

He is offering multiple products linked to digital currencies, notably through his World Liberty Financial exchange, increasing accusations of a conflict of interest.

On paper, his support for crypto projects could boost the sector's legitimacy.

"But at the same time, it can backfire," said Larisa Yarovaya, director of the Centre for Digital Finance at Southampton Business School.

"Any conflicts that will emerge from it... any hackers, speculative attacks, any problems in relation to these specific coins or these specific projects" can prove counterproductive, she told AFP.

There is scepticism also over the launch in February of the memecoin $CAR by the Central African Republic.

"The domain name had been reserved only a few days before" launch, noted Balva, which "shows that there was too little preparation".

The Central African Republic was the second country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, after El Salvador in 2021, which has since reversed course owing to a lack of local popularity.

A precursor to other cryptocurrencies, bitcoin was launched in 2008 as a way to free transactions from traditional financial institutions, notably banks.

Cryptocurrencies are based on blockchain technology, which publicly records transactions between people holding and exchanging them.

In the absence of a centralised authority, the system relies on "trust" in the people "who are endorsing these products", said Maximilian Brichta, a doctoral student of communication at the University of Southern California.

Rigged game

Many traders will use automated programmes to buy a new token as early as possible in the hope of reselling it for maximum profit.

Milei defended himself by likening losses endured by buyers of $LIBRA to someone entering a casino and knowing they may not win.

However with crypto, it is argued by some that the "game" is rigged from the outset.

To avoid price manipulation, "when launching a cryptocurrency, best practice dictates that the first investors... hold a very small share of the offering" and are prevented from selling for "several years", said Balva.

Except that at the launch of $LIBRA, "more than 80 percent" of the available tokens were in the hands of "a handful of large holders (who) controlled all the liquidity and could liquidate it all at any time", she added.

According to Balva, this was "either monumental recklessness or outright fraud".

lul-bcp/jkb/phz/jfx

politics

Undocumented migrants turn to Whatsapp to stay ahead of US raids

BY ANUJ CHOPRA

Amid a lack of reliable information and fears of stepped-up raids, many undocumented immigrants have gone underground, with some even withdrawing their children from school, advocacy groups say.

Fearing a US immigration raid will separate her from her children, an undocumented Honduran immigrant hunkers down in her Washington home, anxiously scouring a WhatsApp group for real-time updates on nearby sweeps.
Amid a lack of reliable information and fears of stepped-up raids, many undocumented immigrants have gone underground, with some even withdrawing their children from school, advocacy groups say.

Fearing a US immigration raid will separate her from her children, an undocumented Honduran immigrant hunkers down in her Washington home, anxiously scouring a WhatsApp group for real-time updates on nearby sweeps.

Rosario, a 35-year-old mother of two, practically lives in hiding in the face of US President Donald Trump's sweeping campaign to arrest and deport millions of undocumented immigrants since his return to the White House in January.

Her only lifeline is a community group on the messaging app that provides news about immigration raids in Washington neighborhoods -- often mixed with unverified or false information.

"You stay informed and stay a little more alert thanks to the group," Rosario told AFP in her studio apartment, festooned with birthday balloons, stuffed toys, and a wall hanging made from corn husk.

"That way, you get rid of fear a little bit -- but fear always persists," said the part-time dishwasher, who crossed into the United States in 2021 after an arduous journey from her home country.

Rosario, who refused to disclose her real name, peered through her window blinds for any lurking agents from ICE -- the Immigration and Customs Enforcement department, which has been deployed to carry out the Trump administration's promise to target undocumented immigrants.

"Alert: ICE activity was reported at a business center on (Mount) Pleasant around noon," a message flashed in the group, adding that six masked agents were spotted in the Washington neighborhood and one person was detained.

It was not possible for Rosario to ascertain whether the tip was real or fake.

Still, she remained confident the community group, fed by other immigrants and advocates, provided reliable information -- crucial for determining her limited movements to work and to purchase groceries.

'Scary climate'

Rosario also puzzled over another morsel of unverified information in the group that had not appeared in the mainstream media: that an undocumented female immigrant was detained by ICE at a school in the Bethesda neighborhood.

Immigration sweeps on educational institutions are rare, but the Trump administration has said it no longer considers sensitive locations such as schools, churches, and hospitals off-limits to agents. The policy has been legally challenged by religious organizations.

Such uncertainty and fear have spawned a flurry of rumors about suspected immigration raids and movements of ICE agents that ricochet across messaging apps and online platforms, leaving immigrant communities on edge.

In February, AFP's fact-checkers debunked a viral online video that claimed to show an undocumented Colombian woman being expelled from the United States. In reality, it was a fictionalized clip posted in 2023 by an American YouTuber.

Last month, another online video purportedly showed undocumented immigrants being arrested from a US barbershop. AFP found the video staged, with the uniforms worn by the supposed immigration officials appearing inauthentic.

"In the current scary climate, it is hard to know what's true, what's inaccurate," the director of an immigration advocacy group in Washington told AFP, requesting anonymity.

The heightened fears among immigrant communities, he added, have made it harder to "decipher fact from fiction."

- 'Fear grabs you' –

Despite an uptick in immigration arrests, authorities appear to be struggling to meet Trump's mass deportation goals.

The number of deportation flights since Trump took office on January 20 has been roughly the same as those in the final months of President Joe Biden's administration, US media reported, citing data collected by an immigration rights advocate.

That has done little to allay fears among the country's estimated 14 million undocumented immigrants.

Those concerns are aggravated by the government's shock-and-awe tactics of publicizing raids in major cities and footage of shackled migrants being loaded onto deportation flights.

Amid a lack of reliable information and fears of stepped-up raids, many undocumented immigrants have gone underground, with some even withdrawing their children from school, advocacy groups say.

Many also remain vulnerable to exploitation by their employers.

Elizabeth, an undocumented immigrant and mother of five, avoids the messaging groups filled with unverified information, choosing instead to stay vigilant and aware of her surroundings.

"If you don't know what is happening, fear grabs you," she told AFP, declining to share her real name and country of origin.

"Fear is a product of misinformation."

ac/aha

AI

OpenAI says it raised $40 bn at valuation of $300 bn

BY GLENN CHAPMAN

SoftBank is to pump $10 billion into OpenAI to start, and $30 billion more by the end of this year pending certain conditions.

OpenAI on Monday said it raised $40 billion in a new funding round that valued the ChatGPT maker at $300 billion, the biggest capital-raising session ever for a startup.
SoftBank is to pump $10 billion into OpenAI to start, and $30 billion more by the end of this year pending certain conditions.

OpenAI on Monday said it raised $40 billion in a new funding round that valued the ChatGPT maker at $300 billion, the biggest capital-raising session ever for a startup.

The infusion of cash comes in a partnership with Japanese investment giant SoftBank Group and "enables us to push the frontiers of AI research even further," the San Francisco-based company said in a post on its website.

"Their support will help us continue building AI systems that drive scientific discovery, enable personalized education, enhance human creativity, and pave the way toward AGI (artificial general intelligence) that benefits all of humanity," the company said.

AGI refers to a computing platform with human-level intelligence.

SoftBank said in a release that it is on a mission to realize Artificial Super Intelligence (ASI) that surpasses human intelligence, and that OpenAI is the partner closest to achieving that goal.

"The advancement of OpenAI's AI models is key to achieving AGI and ASI, and massive computing power is essential," SoftBank stated in its rationale for the latest investment in the company.

SoftBank is to pump $10 billion into OpenAI to start, and $30 billion more by the end of this year pending certain conditions.

OpenAI plans to scale its infrastructure and "deliver increasingly powerful tools for the 500 million people who use ChatGPT every week."

Opening up?

The funding news came the same day OpenAI announced it was building a more open generative AI model as it faces growing competition in the open-source space from Chinese rival DeepSeek, and Meta.

The move would mark a strategic shift by OpenAI, which until now has been a fierce defender of closed, proprietary models that do not allow developers to modify the basic technology to make AI more adapted to their goals.

OpenAI and defenders of closed models -- which include Google -- have often decried open models as riskier and more vulnerable to nefarious uses by malicious actors or non-US governments.

OpenAI's embrace of closed models has also been a bone of contention in its battles with former investor Elon Musk, the world's wealthiest person, who has called on OpenAI to honor the spirit of the company's name and "return to the open-source, safety-focused force for good it once was."

Putting pressure on OpenAI, many large companies and governments have proved reluctant to build their AI products or services on models they have no control over, especially when data security is a concern.

The core selling point of Meta's family of Llama models or DeepSeek's models is addressing these worries by letting companies download their models, and have far greater control to modify the technology for their own purposes and keep control of their data.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said earlier this month that Llama hit one billion downloads, while the release of DeepSeek's lower-cost R1 model in January rocked the world of artificial intelligence.

"We've been thinking about this for a long time, but other priorities took precedence. Now it feels important to do," OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said on X of the decision to build a more open model.

OpenAI has been riding on the success of its latest image-generation features in ChatGPT, the world-leading AI app and chatbot.

Altman posted on Monday that the tool helped add "one million users" in one hour.

That claim came days after Altman said the new image features were so popular that they were melting the OpenAI graphics processing units that power the AI due to heavy use.

gc-arp/st

justice

US robbers who touted crime on Instagram jailed

"Two days after the heist, Tharpe posted images of large amounts of cash on his Instagram with the text 'Robbery Gang,'" federal prosecutors said.

Bumbling robbers who left behind a cell phone during a $2.6 million heist and later boasted on Instagram about being part of a criminal gang have been jailed in California, authorities said Monday.
"Two days after the heist, Tharpe posted images of large amounts of cash on his Instagram with the text 'Robbery Gang,'" federal prosecutors said.

Bumbling robbers who left behind a cell phone during a $2.6 million heist and later boasted on Instagram about being part of a criminal gang have been jailed in California, authorities said Monday.

The three men used sledgehammers and crowbars to target an upscale jewelery store in Beverly Hills, making off with a huge haul of necklaces, bracelets and watches in the 2022 raid.

The daylight robbery -- which happened in full view of staff and customers -- began when Ladell Tharpe, 39, and his two accomplices careered up to the store in a convoy of vehicles, one of which had been stolen days earlier.

The US Department of Justice said during the terrifying attack, a cell phone fell out of a sweatpants pocket worn by one of the robbers -- identified as 33-year-old Jimmy Lee Vernon -- handing investigators a ready clue.

But the probe was also given a boost by Tharpe's brazenness.

"Two days after the heist, Tharpe posted images of large amounts of cash on his Instagram with the text 'Robbery Gang,'" federal prosecutors said.

Vernon and Deshon Bell, 22, admitted one count of robbery in relation to the heist when they appeared in court in February last year.

Bell was jailed for a year, while Vernon was sent to prison for six years and eight months.

Tharpe was sentenced Monday to serve seven years in federal prison, after earlier admitting robbery.

"Brazen criminal action that directly targets our small businesses in Los Angeles County will not be tolerated," said Acting United States Attorney Joseph McNally.

"The consequences for such action are severe and penalized accordingly."

hg/jgc

bankruptcy

US regulators tell 23andMe to protect genetic data

"Any bankruptcy-related sale or transfer involving 23andMe users' personal information and biological samples will be subject to the representations the company has made to users about both privacy and data security," FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson said in a letter to the company's bankruptcy trustees.

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Monday warned genetic testing firm 23andMe to honor its promise to protect people's personal information as it navigates bankruptcy.
"Any bankruptcy-related sale or transfer involving 23andMe users' personal information and biological samples will be subject to the representations the company has made to users about both privacy and data security," FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson said in a letter to the company's bankruptcy trustees.

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Monday warned genetic testing firm 23andMe to honor its promise to protect people's personal information as it navigates bankruptcy.

The pioneering US company, which sells a mail-back saliva test to determine ancestry or certain health-related genetic traits for less than $200, filed for bankruptcy this month and is looking for a buyer two years after hackers gained access to millions of profiles.

"Any bankruptcy-related sale or transfer involving 23andMe users' personal information and biological samples will be subject to the representations the company has made to users about both privacy and data security," FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson said in a letter to the company's bankruptcy trustees.

Ferguson noted that 23andMe assures users that the company does not share their personal information with third parties, including police, without user permission or valid court orders.

The FTC has powers to protect consumers from unfair, deceptive, or fraudulent business practices and investigate suspected violations.

The bankruptcy announcement on March 23 prompted warnings for 23andMe customers to ask the company to delete their data to safeguard privacy.

At its height a few years ago, the DNA testing craze saw millions of consumers rushing to discover their ancestry and health information, with tests from 23andMe becoming popular holiday gifts.

The Silicon Valley-based company, which went public in 2021, claims 15 million customers and has seen its sales decline in recent months as the testing craze faded and the company suffered a data breach.

Faced with the difficulties, 23andMe announced the dismissal of 40 percent of its staff in November, about 200 people. It also suspended its research programs.

23andMe has agreed to pay approximately $37.5 million to settle claims related to the 2023 data breach.

The hacking incident saw 6.9 million accounts affected, of which 5.5 million contained information on genetic matches.

Using customers' old passwords, the hackers compromised data that included names, sex, birth year, location, photos, health information, and genetic ancestry results.

gc/arp

politics

Trump confident in finding TikTok buyer before deadline

BY ALEX PIGMAN

When the last deadline passed, in January, TikTok temporarily shut down in the United States, to the dismay of millions of users. bur-arp/mlm

President Donald Trump again downplayed risks that TikTok is in danger of being banned in the United States, saying he remains confident of finding a buyer for the app's US business by a Friday deadline.
When the last deadline passed, in January, TikTok temporarily shut down in the United States, to the dismay of millions of users. bur-arp/mlm

President Donald Trump again downplayed risks that TikTok is in danger of being banned in the United States, saying he remains confident of finding a buyer for the app's US business by a Friday deadline.

The hugely popular video-sharing app, which has over 170 million American users, is under threat from a law that passed overwhelmingly last year and orders TikTok to split from its Chinese owner ByteDance or face a ban in the United States.

Motivated by widespread belief in Washington that TikTok is ultimately controlled by the Chinese government, the law took effect on January 19, one day before Trump's inauguration.

But the Republican president quickly announced a delay that has allowed it to continue to operate; that delay is set to expire on April 5.

"We have a lot of potential buyers. There's tremendous interest in TikTok," Trump told reporters onboard Air Force One late Sunday.

"We have a lot of people that want to buy TikTok. We're dealing with China also on it, because they may have something to do with it," he said, adding "I'd like to see TikTok remain alive."

Any deal to divest TikTok from ByteDance will require the approval of Beijing, and Trump has said he may offer to reduce tariffs on China as a way to get Beijing's approval for the sale.

Trump, though he supported a ban in his first term, has lately become the app's greatest defender, seeing it as a reason more young voters supported him in November's election.

One of his major political donors, billionaire Jeff Yass, is also a major stakeholder in parent company ByteDance.

ByteDance on board?

Several proposals for TikTok's US business have emerged since the law began to make its way through Congress last year.

But according to The New York Times, citing people involved in coming up with a solution, the most likely fix would see existing US investors in ByteDance roll over their stakes into a new independent global TikTok company.

Additional US investors would be brought on to reduce the proportion of Chinese investors. Trump at one point said the US government could also take a stake through a newly announced national sovereign fund.

Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities told AFP that he believed cloud company Oracle would "play a major role" in such a deal and that "ByteDance will still control and own the algorithm" and have board seats.

Much of TikTok's US activity is already housed on Oracle servers, and the company's executive chairman, Larry Ellison, is a longtime Trump ally who was also floated as a buyer of TikTok's US activity in Trump's first term.

The arrangement would go against the spirit of the law, which is in part based on the premise that TikTok's algorithm can be weaponized by the Chinese against US interests.

But University of Richmond School of Law professor Carl Tobias said he did not expect opposition in the Republican-led Congress, or if Trump ordered another extension to the sale deadline.

"Lawmakers have expressed little opposition to Trump's actions (including ones) which federal judges have ruled violate the Constitution or congressionally-passed statutes," he said.

Other proposals include an initiative called "The People's Bid for TikTok," launched by real estate and sports tycoon Frank McCourt's Project Liberty initiative.

Artificial intelligence startup Perplexity recently expressed interest in buying TikTok as did a joint venture involving YouTube mega-celebrity MrBeast.

When the last deadline passed, in January, TikTok temporarily shut down in the United States, to the dismay of millions of users.

bur-arp/mlm

fine

France fines Apple 150 million euros over privacy feature

BY KILIAN FICHOU

The head of France's Competition Authority, Benoit Coeure, said the 150-million-euro fine seemed "reasonable" and "appropriate to us".

French antitrust authorities handed Apple a 150-million-euro ($162-million) fine on Monday over its app tracking privacy feature, which is also under scrutiny in several other European countries.
The head of France's Competition Authority, Benoit Coeure, said the 150-million-euro fine seemed "reasonable" and "appropriate to us".

French antitrust authorities handed Apple a 150-million-euro ($162-million) fine on Monday over its app tracking privacy feature, which is also under scrutiny in several other European countries.

The watchdog said the way Apple implemented its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) software was "neither necessary nor proportionate to the company's stated goal to protect user data" and also penalised third-party publishers.

In addition to the fine, Apple will have to publish the decision on its website for seven days.

Authorities in Germany, Italy, Romania and Poland have opened similar probes over ATT, which Apple promotes as a privacy safeguard.

The fine is the latest by a European regulator against a US tech giant, even as President Donald Trump has threatened to impose tariffs in response to such penalties.

"While we are disappointed with today's decision, the French Competition Authority has not required any specific changes to ATT," Apple said in a statement.

The authority said it was up to the US company to ensure compliance.

The feature, introduced by Apple in 2021, requires apps to obtain user consent through a pop-up window before tracking their activity across other apps and websites.

If they decline, the app loses access to information on that user which enables ad targeting.

Critics have accused Apple of using the system to promote its own advertising services while restricting competitors.

'More control over privacy'

In its decision, France's Competition Authority said the ATT feature leads to an excessive number of consent windows for third-party apps on iPhones and iPads, making the experience more cumbersome.

It also found that Apple's system required users to opt out of ad tracking twice rather than once, "undermining the neutrality of the feature" and causing economic harm to app publishers and ad service providers.

The authority added that Apple's approach disproportionately affects smaller publishers, who rely heavily on third-party data collection to fund their businesses.

Following complaints from advertising industry players who claimed ATT hindered their ability to target users, France's competition watchdog initially declined to impose emergency measures in 2021 but continued its investigation.

"This decision marks an important victory for the 9,000 companies in the online media and advertising ecosystem," said several industry stakeholders, including Alliance Digitale, the Internet Advertising Syndicate, and the Union of Media Consulting and Buying Companies, in a joint statement.

The head of France's Competition Authority, Benoit Coeure, said the 150-million-euro fine seemed "reasonable" and "appropriate to us".

It is a "rather modest sum when you take Apple's revenue into account", he said. Apple's revenue reached close to $400 billion last year.

Apple said on Monday that ATT "gives users more control of their privacy through a required, clear, and easy-to-understand prompt about one thing: tracking.

"That prompt is consistent for all developers, including Apple, and we have received strong support for this feature from consumers, privacy advocates, and data protection authorities around the world," it said.

kf/may/lth/fg

Microsoft

Computer pioneer Microsoft turns 50 in the age of AI

BY JULIE JAMMOT

- 'Achilles heel' - Microsoft remains in the shadow of other US tech giants when it comes to offerings such as social networks, smartphones and the AI-infused digital assistants that have become woven into people's lives, but it is not for lack of effort.

Microsoft has been at the heart of computing for half a century, becoming a tech stalwart almost taken for granted as lifestyles embraced the internet.
- 'Achilles heel' - Microsoft remains in the shadow of other US tech giants when it comes to offerings such as social networks, smartphones and the AI-infused digital assistants that have become woven into people's lives, but it is not for lack of effort.

Microsoft has been at the heart of computing for half a century, becoming a tech stalwart almost taken for granted as lifestyles embraced the internet.

As the company, founded with a vision of putting computers in every home and office, celebrates its 50th anniversary on Friday, it is looking to boost its fortunes by being a leader in the fast-developing field of artificial intelligence (AI).

"From a storytelling standpoint, they've been a boring company and a boring stock," eMarketer analyst Jeremy Goldman said of the Richmond, Washington-based behemoth.

"It's funny because they have a $2.9 trillion market cap, and that is huge," he continued, referring to Microsoft's value based on its share price.

The only company with a higher market cap is iPhone maker Apple.

Cloud computing is fueling Microsoft's revenue with the help of its ubiquitous Office software, now hosted online and no longer released in boxes of floppy disks or CDs.

"It's not a very sexy infrastructure, but it's a very valuable one," Goldman said of Microsoft's data centers and software at the foundation of its cloud-computing platform.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Google are Microsoft's cloud-computing rivals.

'Micro-Soft'

Clouds were the stuff of weather forecasts rather than computing when Bill Gates and childhood friend Paul Allen founded what was first called "Micro-Soft" in 1975.

They launched the MS-DOS operating system that became known as "Windows" and went on to run most of the world's computers.

Microsoft Office programs including Word, Excel and PowerPoint became standard business tools, even fending off free Google Docs software.

"Microsoft had a lot of businesses that were weaker and challenged -- the perfect example is Office," Goldman said.

"That Office is still such a meaningful business for them says something about the way they were able to innovate."

Current chief executive Satya Nadella championed a Microsoft shift to making its software available on just about any device as subscription services hosted in the cloud.

The move likely saved Microsoft from seeing free services like Google Docs reduce their market share to zero, the analyst said.

'Achilles heel'

Microsoft remains in the shadow of other US tech giants when it comes to offerings such as social networks, smartphones and the AI-infused digital assistants that have become woven into people's lives, but it is not for lack of effort.

Microsoft introduced Xbox video game consoles in 2001, steadily building up its stable of studios, making the blockbuster buy of Activision Blizzard two years ago and adding an online subscription service for players.

And despite its launch of the Bing search engine in 2009, Google still dominates that market.

Microsoft in 2016 bought career-focused social network LinkedIn, which has seen steady growth. But it still lacks the reach of Meta's Facebook or Instagram, or the influence of Elon Musk's X (formerly Twitter).

Microsoft is among those in the running to buy TikTok, which faces a ban in the United States if not sold by China-based ByteDance.

While Apple and Google have excelled at making it easy or even fun for users to engage with products, that has been an "Achilles heel" for Microsoft, according to Goldman.

"It's never been a strong suit of theirs," the analyst said.

Mobile miss

Known for a focus on sales rather than innovation, Steve Ballmer, who followed Gates as chief of Microsoft from 2000 to 2013, has been faulted for missing the shift to smartphones and other mobile computing devices.

His successor, Nadella, took over with a vow to make Microsoft a "mobile-first, cloud-first" company and Microsoft has since invested heavily in AI, taking a stake in ChatGPT-maker OpenAI and building the technology into offerings including Bing, though to little avail.

Behind in AI?

Independent analyst Jack Gold believes that despite those investments and efforts, Microsoft lags in AI because it lacks its own chips or foundation model.

"They are not as advanced in that as AWS and Google, so they're still playing a little bit of catchup in that space," Gold said of Microsoft.

Google Cloud's revenue growth is on pace to overtake Microsoft's Azure for second place in the market in two years, the analyst said.

juj-gc/arp/bbk/mlm

Microsoft

Four men loom large in Microsoft history

BY GLENN CHAPMAN

Ballmer joined Microsoft in 1980 and was best man at the 1994 wedding of Bill and Melinda Gates.

Microsoft was shaped by Bill Gates, Paul Allen, Steve Ballmer and Satya Nadella over the course of the last half-century in the male-dominated tech world.
Ballmer joined Microsoft in 1980 and was best man at the 1994 wedding of Bill and Melinda Gates.

Microsoft was shaped by Bill Gates, Paul Allen, Steve Ballmer and Satya Nadella over the course of the last half-century in the male-dominated tech world.

Friends since childhood in Seattle, Gates and Allen founded Microsoft in 1975 with a stated goal of putting a computer in every office and home.

Gates

Born William Henry Gates III in 1955 in Seattle, he began writing software programs while a 13-year-old schoolboy.

Gates dropped out of Harvard in his junior year to start Microsoft with Allen.

The childhood friends created MS-DOS operating system, since renamed Windows, which went on to dominate office work.

Gates built a reputation as a formidable and sometimes ruthless leader.

Critics argue he unfairly wielded Microsoft's clout in the market, and the US pressed a winning antitrust case against the company in the late 1990s.

In 2000, Gates ceded the CEO job to Ballmer, whom he befriended while the two were students at Harvard.

Gates chose to devote himself to a charitable foundation he established with his then-wife, Melinda.

He resigned from Microsoft's board of directors in 2020 -- shortly after the firm acknowledged the existence of an "intimate" relationship with an employee in the past.

The following year, the couple divorced. Melinda Gates faulted him for his relationship with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, who was found guilty of sexually exploiting under-age girls.

His support of Covid-19 vaccine campaigns and agriculture programs that focus on climate change and women made Gates a favorite target of conspiracy theorists.

Baseless accusations aimed at Gates include him putting tracking chips in vaccines.

Allen

Paul Allen, born in 1953 in Seattle, was a schoolmate of Gates.

Allen was 10 when he started a science club at home, and would later bond with young Gates over computers.

"Microsoft would never have happened without Paul," Gates wrote in tribute to Allen, who died of cancer complications in 2018.

Gates told of Allen showing him a magazine featuring a computer running on a new chip, and warning that a tech revolution was happening without them.

Allen is credited with combining "microcomputer" and "software" to come up with "Micro-Soft".

He left Microsoft in 1983, but remained a board member until 2000. He went on to accuse Gates and Ballmer of scheming to "rip him off" by getting hold of his shares while he battled cancer.

Ballmer

Ballmer was seen as a devoted salesman who ramped up Microsoft revenue while neglecting innovation.

A Michigan native with a talent for mathematics, he graduated from Harvard.

Ballmer joined Microsoft in 1980 and was best man at the 1994 wedding of Bill and Melinda Gates.

Ballmer, now 69, succeeded Gates as chief executive in 2000.

His enthusiastic gestures, awkward dance moves, and voice-straining shouts made him the stuff of internet memes and company lore.

Ballmer oversaw the launch of Xbox video game consoles, Surface tablets, and Bing online search engine. Microsoft bought Skype and Nokia's mobile phone division on Ballmer's watch.

During his tenure, Microsoft was seen as clinging to PCs while lifestyles raced toward mobile devices and cloud-based software.

His product failures include Zune digital music players, Kin mobile phones, and a Vista version of Windows.

Nadella

Nadella took over as chief executive in early 2014 and says he learned leadership skills playing cricket as a boy growing up in India.

Nadella, who will turn 58 in August, was hired in 1992 while studying at the University of Chicago.

Early in his academic career, a drive to build things led him to pursue computer science, a focus not available during his engineering studies at Mangalore University.

Nadella's Microsoft bio shows stints in research, business, server and online services units.

For relaxation, he turns to poetry, which he likened to complex data compressed to express rich ideas in few words.

Nadella held firm that for Microsoft to succeed, it needed to adapt to a "cloud-first, mobile-first world".

Soon after becoming chief, he ordered the biggest reorganization in Microsoft's history.

He is credited with guiding Microsoft from a fading packaged software business to the booming market for cloud services.

Microsoft has been pumping billions of dollars into AI, investing in ChatGPT-maker OpenAI and infusing the technology across its products.

In a rare stumble, Nadella triggered an uproar his first year as chief by suggesting during an on-stage discussion that working women should trust "karma" when it comes to securing pay raises.

Microsoft's acquisitions under Nadella include Sweden-based Mojang, maker of the popular video game Minecraft; social network LinkedIn, and the GitHub online platform catering to software developers.

gc/arp/st/mlm

Apple

'Something is rotten': Apple's AI strategy faces doubts

BY THOMAS URBAIN WITH ALEX PIGMAN IN WASHINGTON

The respected analyst and Apple enthusiast said he was furious for not being more skeptical when the company announced last June that its Siri chatbot would be getting a major generative AI (genAI) upgrade.

Has Apple, the biggest company in the world, bungled its generative artificial intelligence strategy?
The respected analyst and Apple enthusiast said he was furious for not being more skeptical when the company announced last June that its Siri chatbot would be getting a major generative AI (genAI) upgrade.

Has Apple, the biggest company in the world, bungled its generative artificial intelligence strategy?

Doubts blew out into the open when one of the company's closest observers, tech analyst John Gruber, earlier this month gave a blistering critique in a blog post titled "Something Is Rotten in the State of Cupertino," which is home to Apple's headquarters.

The respected analyst and Apple enthusiast said he was furious for not being more skeptical when the company announced last June that its Siri chatbot would be getting a major generative AI (genAI) upgrade.

The technology, to be released as part of the Apple Intelligence suite of iPhone software, was to catapult the much-derided voice assistant's capabilities beyond just giving the weather or setting a timer.

Investors hoped the upgrade would launch the iPhone on a much-needed super-cycle, in which a new feature on the smartphone proves so tantalizing that users rush to snap up the latest and most expensive models.

Apple Intelligence and its promised Siri upgrade was very much supposed to fuel that demand, starting as soon as the release of the iPhone 16, which came out in September.

Instead Apple quietly announced on March 7 that the highly personalized Siri would not be coming as early as hoped.

Adding to the pressure, Amazon in February announced a new version of its Alexa voice assistant that is powered by genAI.

"It's going to take us longer than we thought to deliver on these features and we anticipate rolling them out in the coming year," Apple said.

Data privacy vs AI

Theories vary on why Apple is having trouble seizing the AI moment.

For Marcus Collins, marketing professor at the University of Michigan, Apple's struggles with genAI and Siri in particular may be more due to the importance the company gives to data privacy than any problem with innovating.

For AI to be personalized, it needs to consume massive amounts of personal data.

And "Apple hasn't let up on the gas when it comes to privacy," Collins told AFP.

But at some point, "people's information, creations, language... are all being exploited to help grow better AI," and squaring that circle might be harder than bargained for by Apple.

For tech analyst Avi Greengart, "The fact that Apple has advertised Apple Intelligence so heavily with the iPhone 16 is a bit of a black eye, because most of what was promised in Apple Intelligence is not in the iPhone 16."

But he cautions that even if Google's Gemini AI features in its Android line of phones are way ahead of anything Apple has delivered, customers may not have noticed much.

"Even the best implementation of AI on phones today doesn't fundamentally change the way you use your phone yet," he said.

"No one has delivered on the full vision and that gives Apple time to catch up -- but it certainly needs to catch up."

Still, Apple's harshest critics complain that Apple rests too much on its laurels and the uber-popularity of its iPhone.

Moreover, the stumbles on AI came swiftly after lackluster reception of Vision Pro, Apple's expensive virtual reality headset that has failed to gain traction since its release in 2024.

Despite the recent negative headlines for Apple and the fact that its share price is down 8 percent since the start of the year, it remains the world's most valuable company and its stock is still up almost 30 percent from a year ago.

And Apple reported a whopping $124.3 billion in revenue in the year-end holiday quarter, even if sales growth fell shy of market expectations.

tu-arp/bfm

demonstration

Protesters denounce Musk at Tesla dealerships in US, Europe, Canada

BY SHAHZAD ABDUL

Hundreds rallied Saturday outside the Tesla dealership in New York's Manhattan.

Demonstrators descended on Tesla dealerships across the United States and in Europe and Canada on Saturday to protest company chief Elon Musk, who has amassed extraordinary power as a top advisor to US President Donald Trump.
Hundreds rallied Saturday outside the Tesla dealership in New York's Manhattan.

Demonstrators descended on Tesla dealerships across the United States and in Europe and Canada on Saturday to protest company chief Elon Musk, who has amassed extraordinary power as a top advisor to US President Donald Trump.

Waving signs with messages like "Musk is stealing our money" and "Reclaim our country," the protests largely took place peacefully following fiery episodes of vandalism on Teslas in recent weeks that US officials have denounced as "terrorism."

Hundreds rallied Saturday outside the Tesla dealership in New York's Manhattan.

Some blasted Musk, the world's richest man, while others demanded the shuttering of his so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which is dramatically slashing the federal government.

Amy Neifeld, a 70-year-old psychologist who had not joined a protest since marching against the Vietnam War in the 1970s, accused Musk of leading the country toward fascism.

"I'm Jewish, so I grew up with a great awareness of fascism," she told AFP. "And it has just gotten uglier and uglier" since Trump returned to the White House.

"He acts like he's the vice president," said New York protester Eva Mueller of musk. "He's dismantling, actively, our government, he's dismantling our democracy."

The protest was organized by the environmental activist group Planet Over Profit, which argues "stopping Musk will help save lives and protect our democracy."

In Washington's posh Georgetown neighborhood, some 150 people gathered in a festive mood on an unseasonably warm day, dancing and cheering as passing cars honked.

Protests also took place in Florida, Massachusetts and California, as well as in in European cities such as London, Berlin and Paris.

In Canada's Vancouver, where around one hundred people protested at a Tesla dealership, one person in a dinosaur costume held a placard that said, "You thought the Nazis were extinct? Don't buy a Swasticar."

A small group of Americans held signs outside a Tesla dealership in the French capital, including one that read "Send Musk to Mars now."

Musk and Trump "are destroying our democracy, not obeying the basic rules of our country, and firing people at agencies that do very important work," said Raf, 59, a Paris protester who did not wish to give his last name.

Asked for reaction to the protests, Tesla did not immediately respond.

Acts of vandalism against Tesla vehicles, dealerships and other facilities have spread for weeks, in protest both against Musk's ruthless job-cutting work, and what has been seen as his unwelcome interference in politics.

US Attorney General Pam Bondi has denounced the attacks on Tesla as "domestic terrorism."

bur-st/dc

AI

Elon Musk says xAI startup buying X platform

BY GLENN CHAPMAN

The companies are being combined in an all-stock deal that values xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion, factoring in the social network's $12 billion debt.

Elon Musk on Friday said his artificial intelligence startup xAI is buying his social networking platform X in a deal valuing the company once known as Twitter at $33 billion.
The companies are being combined in an all-stock deal that values xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion, factoring in the social network's $12 billion debt.

Elon Musk on Friday said his artificial intelligence startup xAI is buying his social networking platform X in a deal valuing the company once known as Twitter at $33 billion.

"This combination will unlock immense potential by blending xAI's advanced AI capability and expertise with X's massive reach," Musk said in a post on his social network.

X has more than 600 million users, and its future is "intertwined" with that of xAI, launched two years ago, according to Musk.

"Today, we officially take the step to combine the data, models, compute, distribution and talent," Musk said of combining the two companies.

"This will allow us to build a platform that doesn't just reflect the world but actively accelerates human progress."

The companies are being combined in an all-stock deal that values xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion, factoring in the social network's $12 billion debt.

Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion in late 2022 in a transaction that included debt and launched xAI the following year, spending billions of dollars on high-end Nvidia chips for the venture.

xAI in February released the latest version of its chatbot, Grok 3, which the billionaire hopes will find traction in a highly competitive sector contested by the likes of ChatGPT and China's DeepSeek.

Musk has promoted Grok 3 as "scary smart," with 10 times the computational resources of its predecessor that was released in August last year.

Grok 3 is also going up against OpenAI's chatbot, ChatGPT – pitting Musk against collaborator-turned-arch rival Sam Altman.

Musk and Altman were among the 11-person team that founded OpenAI in 2015.

Created as a counterweight to Google's dominance in artificial intelligence, the project got initial funding from Musk.

Musk left three years later, and then in 2022 OpenAI's release of ChatGPT created a global technology sensation -- which made Altman a tech world star.

Their relationship has become increasingly toxic and litigious ever since.

X's billionaire owner, the world's richest person, is a major financial backer of US President Donald Trump and heads a Department of Government Efficiency that has been slashing the ranks of government employees.

Industry analysts at Emarketer this week forecast that ad revenue at X will grow this year as brands fear retaliation by politically connected Musk if they don't spend on the platform.

"Many advertisers may view spending on X as a cost of doing business in order to mitigate potential legal or financial repercussions," said Emarketer principal analyst Jasmine Enberg.

gc/arp

gaming

South Korea's life game 'InZOI' challenges 'The Sims'

BY HIEUN SHIN

So, despite Krafton having "limited understanding" of the life simulation genre, the company backed the idea, he said, adding that thankfully early release responses were "more enthusiastic " than they had expected.

South Korean game publisher Krafton released early access to its life simulation game "InZOI" Friday, hoping its powerful lifelike graphics will unseat the decades-long dominance of "The Sims" hit franchise.
So, despite Krafton having "limited understanding" of the life simulation genre, the company backed the idea, he said, adding that thankfully early release responses were "more enthusiastic " than they had expected.

South Korean game publisher Krafton released early access to its life simulation game "InZOI" Friday, hoping its powerful lifelike graphics will unseat the decades-long dominance of "The Sims" hit franchise.

Krafton, the developer of battle royale "PUBG: Battlegrounds", says it offers a fresh take on the concept using striking visuals -- with "InZOI" shooting to the top of wishlists on the online Steam platform.

"What stood out the most when I played "InZOI" was just how visually stunning it is," said Kim Rail, a YouTuber known for playing "The Sims", a game whose last instalment debuted nearly a decade ago.

"The game's character is rendered with such precision that she looks almost like a real person," Kim said. "After decorating interiors, taking a screenshot makes it look like a magazine photo due to the high visual quality".

"The Sims", a spin-off from the popular "SimCity" franchise, takes players inside individual homes, allowing them to customize everything from furniture to relationships.

Over 25 years, "The Sims" and its three sequels have sold more than 200 million copies, and Electronic Arts is now planning a multi-player version.

But "InZOI" producer and director Kim Hyung-jun said they offered something new.

"I believe "InZOI" offers something that "The Sims" does not, and that users will find a different kind of enjoyment in that," he said.

"Inzoi" topped the best-selling games chart by revenue on Steam just 40 minutes after the launch Friday morning, while Krafton stocks in Seoul rose six percent.

K-pop career

"InZOI" producer Kim, an avid player of "The Sims", said it was an "honour" to be compared to the game.

"'The Sims' is a philosophical work that offers diverse interpretations of life," he said. "At times, it felt like a miniature version of real life, and I was often amazed by how thoughtfully the developers portrayed various aspects".

But Kim told AFP he wanted to focus more on how the "relationships" are portrayed in his game.

"For instance, if a player gets into a fight somewhere, the news spreads, and they may receive criticism or support through social media. We've built a system where one event leads to another," he said.

It also has a unique twist from its home nation, drawing on maps including one from South Korea -- and a possible career path that allows players to become a K-pop idol.

"Tapping into the global interest in K-culture, the game features detailed recreations of Korean streetscapes, convenience stores, karaoke rooms, and traditional restaurants, allowing players to explore and engage with uniquely Korean settings," said Kim Jung-tae, a gaming professor at Dongyang University.

It "lets players experience a wide range of everyday Korean life", he added.

"InZOI" uses "Unreal Engine 5" developed by Epic Games, the first for a life simulation title, which supports detailed customization options for characters, including features such as eye bags and iris size.

The impressive graphics come at a cost.

The recommended systems for "InZOI" include an Intel i7 processor and an Nvidia RTX 3070 -- a significant leap from "The Sims 4", which runs on the more modest requirements of an Intel i5 and a GTX 650.

Content creators suggest the challenge will be to woo the huge numbers of players of "The Sims", who are used to more moderate graphics but also lower computer specs.

"The game's success is expected to hinge on the stability of its live service and the developers' ability to consistently deliver new content," said Kim, the professor.

'Separate lives'

Krafton said the ambition to challenge a leader like "The Sims" came from the global success of "PUBG", a combat survival game whose mobile version surpassed one billion downloads and recorded 50 million daily active users.

"Even within the company, no one truly expected that success," "InZOI" producer Kim Hyung-jun said. "Back then, the idea of creating something like that in Korea was an unusual challenge".

So, despite Krafton having "limited understanding" of the life simulation genre, the company backed the idea, he said, adding that thankfully early release responses were "more enthusiastic " than they had expected.

But, compared to "The Sims", Kim accepts his game still has "a long way to go".

"'The Sims' 4 has been in service for 10 years, while "InZOI" has only been in development for two. I'd say it's about 20 percent complete in comparison," said Kim.

"I don't view the comparison negatively. Just as everyone lives a unique life, "The Sims" and "InZOI" are separate 'lives', each with their value and appeal".

hs/pjm/fox

OpenAI

Copyright questions loom as ChatGPT's Ghibli-style images go viral

BY THOMAS URBAIN

Since the release on Wednesday, AI-generated images depicting Studio Ghibli versions of Elon Musk with US President Donald Trump, "The Lord of the Rings," and even a recreation of the September 11 attacks have gone viral across online platforms.

The release of the latest image generator on OpenAI's ChatGPT has triggered a flood of online memes featuring images done in the style of Studio Ghibli, the Japanese studio behind classic animated films like "My Neighbor Totoro" and "Princess Mononoke."
Since the release on Wednesday, AI-generated images depicting Studio Ghibli versions of Elon Musk with US President Donald Trump, "The Lord of the Rings," and even a recreation of the September 11 attacks have gone viral across online platforms.

The release of the latest image generator on OpenAI's ChatGPT has triggered a flood of online memes featuring images done in the style of Studio Ghibli, the Japanese studio behind classic animated films like "My Neighbor Totoro" and "Princess Mononoke."

The virality of these images, with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman even changing his profile picture on X to match the style, immediately raised questions about copyright infringement by the ChatGPT maker, which already faces lawsuits regarding the use of source material without permission.

Since the release on Wednesday, AI-generated images depicting Studio Ghibli versions of Elon Musk with US President Donald Trump, "The Lord of the Rings," and even a recreation of the September 11 attacks have gone viral across online platforms.

On Thursday, the White House took part by posting on X a Ghibli-style image of a weeping alleged felon being handcuffed by a US immigration officer before her deportation.

Originally intended to be available on the platform for free, Altman said the huge success of the new generator was unexpected and meant the tool would remain limited to paid users for now.

It was already possible to generate images with ChatGPT, but the latest version is powered by GPT-4o, the company's highest-performing model, and allows sophisticated results to be obtained through very succinct requests, which was not the case before.

After the viral trend, a video from 2016 resurfaced in which Studio Ghibli's legendary director Hayao Miyazaki is seen lashing out during an AI demonstration by staff.

"I would never wish to incorporate this technology into my work at all. I strongly feel that this is an insult to life itself," an English translation of his remarks said in the video.

The trend "is especially insidious and malicious because of how outspokenly scathing Miyazaki has been toward the tech," wrote artist and illustrator Jayd "Chira" Ait-Kaci on Bluesky.

"It's always about contempt for artists, every time," Ait-Kaci added.

OpenAI is facing a barrage of lawsuits over copyright infringements, including one major case with the New York Times and others from artists, musicians and publishers.

Asked by AFP about the latest viral trend, and whether it threatened Studio Ghibli's intellectual property, OpenAI said the company is still fine-tuning its model.

"Our goal is to give users as much creative freedom as possible," a company spokesperson told AFP.

"We continue to prevent generations in the style of individual living artists, but we do permit broader studio styles, which people have used to generate and share some truly delightful and inspired original fan creations," she added.

"We're always learning from real-world use and feedback, and we'll keep refining our policies as we go."

The company is aggressively lobbying the White House and Congress to make the use of copyrighted content by AI companies part of the fair use doctrine.

Fair use allowances already apply to search engines or in the case of satire and memes online, and allow companies to freely use copyrighted material without permission.

Bloomberg reported on Wednesday that OpenAI is close to finalizing a $40 billion funding round led by Japan's SoftBank Group that would be the biggest funding round ever for a startup.

OpenAI has projected its annual revenue could exceed $12.7 billion in 2025, up from $3.7 billion generated in 2024.

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OpenAI

Copyright questions loom as ChatGPT's Ghibli-style images go viral

Since the release on Wednesday, AI-generated images depicting Studio Ghibli versions of Elon Musk with US President Donald Trump, "The Lord of the Rings," and even a recreation of the September 11 attacks have gone viral across online platforms.

The release of the latest image generator on OpenAI's ChatGPT has triggered an online flood of memes featuring images done in the style of Studio Ghibli, the Japanese studio behind classic animated films like "My Neighbor Totoro" and "Princess Mononoke."
Since the release on Wednesday, AI-generated images depicting Studio Ghibli versions of Elon Musk with US President Donald Trump, "The Lord of the Rings," and even a recreation of the September 11 attacks have gone viral across online platforms.

The release of the latest image generator on OpenAI's ChatGPT has triggered an online flood of memes featuring images done in the style of Studio Ghibli, the Japanese studio behind classic animated films like "My Neighbor Totoro" and "Princess Mononoke."