Senators try to 'get to the bottom of' AI-powered surveillance networks amid Flock concerns

A Senate panel held the first Congressional hearing Wednesday on AI-powered surveillance cameras manufacturers, such as Flock Safety, in an attempt to "get to the bottom" of whether the technology infringes on the public's privacy. The hearing — titled "Always Watching: Flock's Nationwide AI Surveillance Network" — was spearheaded by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo), the...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday warned that artificial intelligence (AI) could be used in war to "decide what happens on the battlefield." "As early as next year, there is already a real possibility that AI –– not only people –– will begin to decide what happens on the battlefield," Zelensky said in his address...

Top Senate Democrats are pushing for Congress to pass a trio of bills cracking down on AI chip sales to China as President Trump prepares to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.) and Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) argued Wednesday that the U.S....

A Senate Judiciary Committee panel will put Flock Safety’s sprawling network of AI-powered license plate cameras under the microscope Wednesday amid concerns over privacy and potential misuse. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who chairs the Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism, recently opened an investigation into Flock and how data collected by its more than 120,000 cameras...

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson proposed a data center expansion moratorium ordinance, saying that the city is “open for business” but “not for sale.” The ordinance acts as a 12-month temporary pause to give city officials time to develop long-term policies concerning energy and pollution risks for Chicagoans. It will be referred to a Chicago City...

The U.S. on Tuesday warned that Australia's social media algorithm reform proposals to notify users and provide content recommended via a default algorithm could be "facilitating censorship." The U.S. Embassy in Canberra, Australia's capital, stated in a formal submission that it had "serious concerns" about the Australian government's goal with proposals "that dictate how platforms...

Artificial intelligence is playing a growing role in how voters get information about politics and elections, raising fresh questions about how the technology could influence the way voters stay informed. From chatbots to standard internet searches, voters this election cycle are interacting with AI-generated content, even when they may not realize it. Recent research on...

A bipartisan pair of senators are pressing the head of Department of Justice to provide guidance to state and local law enforcement agencies to prevent the misuse of automated license plate readers (ALPRs) as backlash against the technology grows across the country. In a letter sent Monday, Sens. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) and Katie Britt (R-Ala.)...

Melania Trump says the country is experiencing "an extraordinary moment in human history" at the "threshold of a technological revolution," as she touted new events and partnerships as part of her Fostering the Future Together initiative. "Fostering the Future Together is a global coalition with a unified mission: to empower children through technology and education,"...

President Trump used the United Nations podium to issue an ultimatum to Iran on Tuesday: Pursue a deal to settle the war, or risk annihilation. The president used a large portion of his 40-minute speech to defend the war, which is deeply unpopular at home and abroad, contributing to economic chaos globally by disrupting major...

A group of Senate Democrats on Tuesday said President Trump is failing to block China from accessing sensitive American technology to accelerate its development of artificial intelligence, ahead of the Chinese leader's state visit to Washington this week. Trump must close loopholes that China has used to subvert U.S. export bans on sensitive American technology,...