Trump Signs ‘Genesis Mission’ Order to Boost Innovation with AI (Bloomberg) "President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday establishing the 'Genesis Mission,' a federal effort to boost innovation using artificial intelligence — the latest step by the administration to promote AI technology and its adoption. The effort aims to better coordinate research done by agencies across the government and more effectively integrate AI tools to achieve more scientific breakthroughs, according to Michael Kratsios, the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, who spoke to reporters on the order ahead of Trump’s signature.

AI Liability Risks Mute Impact of Trump’s State-Law Targeting (Bloomberg) "The Trump administration's aim to sue over state AI regulations it deems unconstitutional will likely have minimal corporate impact. That’s because companies are expected to adhere to stricter AI standards in place—some tied to related issues like cybersecurity and privacy—as they secure customer trust amid AI’s rapid evolution, attorneys say. The bigger the company, the more likely it gives little weight to a potential executive order from President Donald Trump as they are already pressed to comply with ingrained international AI rules."  

Atty Had 6 AI Tools Check Each Other, Yet Fakes Still Cited (Law360) "A California federal judge has sanctioned a solo practitioner representing the plaintiffs in a proposed wage and hour class action against clothing brand Vuori Inc. after he admitted to using about a half-dozen artificial intelligence tools to prepare a motion. Despite James Dal Bon using the different tools to check each other's work, his filing late last month for preliminary approval of a settlement included a memorandum containing eight hallucinated quotes and one non-existent case, according to court documents."  

'More Rules and Hurdles': US Chief Judges Adopt Cybersecurity Sealed Document Safeguards (National Law Journal) "U.S. chief district judges in multiple jurisdictions, including the Southern District of New York and Eastern District of Virginia, now require parties to serve opposing counsel with sealed documents outside of the federal judiciary’s electronic filing system following recent cyberattacks on the judiciary’s virtual assets. Federal trial courts are increasingly governed by standing orders restricting online access to sealed documents, effectively requiring high-stakes litigators to serve opposing parties with sealed documents through consensual private arrangements or nonelectronic means."  

Internet Archive’s Legal Fights Are Over, But Its Founder Mourns What Was Lost (ArsTechnica) "The Internet Archive might sound like a thriving organization, but it only recently emerged from years of bruising copyright battles that threatened to bankrupt the beloved library project. In the end, the fight led to more than 500,000 books being removed from the Archive’s 'Open Library.' 'We survived,' Internet Archive founder Brewster Kahle told Ars. 'But it wiped out the Library.'"  

'Manipulation Machine'? OpenAI Hit with Spate of Product Liability Suits, 4 Involving Suicide, in Calif. State Courts (The Recorder) "OpenAI was slammed on Thursday with seven lawsuits in Los Angeles and San Francisco state courts for allegedly designing its flagship chatbot product, ChatGPT, to foster emotional dependency and addictive behavior among its users—and even, in some cases, to act as their personal 'suicide coach.' The cases allege claims including wrongful death, involuntary manslaughter, product liability, consumer protection and negligence. OpenAI's founder and CEO, Sam Altman, is named as a co-defendant."

What You Should Know from a Trove of ChatGPT Conversations We Analyzed (Washington Post) (Gift Link) "More than 800 million people use ChatGPT each week, according to OpenAI, the company behind the popular chatbot. Since its public launch in late 2022, the company promoted the artificial intelligence chatbot as a 'revolutionary' productivity tool transforming the future of work. But, in an analysis of 47,000 ChatGPT conversations, The Washington Post found that users are overwhelmingly turning to the chatbot for advice and companionship, not productivity tasks."  

Meta Settles Claim of User Privacy Lapses for $190 Million (Bloomberg) "Mark Zuckerberg and other Meta Platforms Inc. directors agreed to a $190 million settlement of claims they failed to rectify repeated violations of Facebook users’ privacy and improperly engineered an accord to shield the billionaire chief executive officer from personal liability, court filings show. The amount of the settlement, disclosed in a filing Thursday in Delaware Chancery Court , had been sealed since a trial was halted in July. A lawsuit by Meta investors claimed board members mishandled the Cambridge Analytica data privacy scandal and improperly agreed to a $5 billion US Federal Trade Commission settlement to personally protect Zuckerberg."  

ChatGPT Just Came Out with Its Own Web Browser. Use It with Caution. (Washington Post) (Gift Link) "The maker of the world’s most popular chatbot, ChatGPT, launched a web browser this week that promises to make surfing the internet smarter. In exchange, ChatGPT Atlas wants permission to watch — and remember — everything you do online. The browser from OpenAI out-surveils even Google Chrome, and that’s saying something. It doesn’t just log which websites you visit; it also stores 'memories' of what you look at and do on those sites. It can even grab control of your mouse and browse for you."  

DHS Proposes Biometrics Expansion for Immigrants, Dropping Age Restrictions and Requiring Biometrics from Some US Citizens (Nextgov/FCW) "The Department of Homeland Security is looking to ratchet up its collection of biometrics in the immigration system. Under a rule proposed Monday, the department would set up a biometric identity system to track people throughout the immigration lifecycle. The new regulation would expand who DHS can require biometrics from — including U.S. citizens as well as children — and what types of biometrics it can collect."  

6 Useful Android Widgets You Should Start Using Right Now (Make Use Of) "If your Android home screen is becoming a mess of app icons, there's a better way to both organize it and make it look better. Widgets are the unsung heroes of phone customization. They sit right there on your home screen, giving you quick access to information and features without having to fish through your app drawer. I use quite a few underrated Android widgets that improved my phone. If you're confused about where to start, here are some useful Android widgets you should start using right away."  

I Have ChatGPT Plus and Perplexity Pro Subscriptions: Here’s Why I Use Both (Make Use Of) "Although many people choose ChatGPT Plus or Perplexity Pro as their preferred option, I actually think it's worth using both. The two tools have their own unique strengths, making them the perfect companion for one another."