Technology News Articles on Fox Business

Apple implements price hikes for its TV streaming service and 'One' subscription bundle

Fri, 28 Aug 2026 22:09:16 -0400

Apple raised its streaming price for Apple TV Friday from $12.99 to $14.99 per month or $119 a year when it used to cost $99.

Apple also raised the price of its Apple One service, which combines Apple TV and other services such as iCloud storage, Apple Music and Apple Arcade.

Apple One is now $21.95 for an individual plan, up from $19.95.

DISNEY SETTLEMENT COULD PAY YOUTUBE TV AND DIRECTV USERS

The tech giant last raised its streaming prices a year ago from $9.99 to $12.99.

Apple TV isn’t the only streaming service to go up. Peacock, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Disney+, Paramount+, Max and YouTube Premium have all raised their prices in some form in the last few years with some putting hikes on ad-free streaming.

Apple TV cost just $4.99 per month when it launched in 2019.

The streaming service includes favorites like "Ted Lasso," "Your Friends and Neighbors," "The Morning Show," "Severance," "Silo," "Mark Matter," plus it has the exclusive rights to the Charlie Brown specials and Formula 1 racing.

FIRST PREVIEW DROPS FOR 'BROTHERS' AS 'TRUE DETECTIVE' STARS REUNITE ON APPLE TV THIS SEPTEMBER

The price for Apple Music also went up in July from $10.99 to $11.99 per month.

Apple reported a record June quarter with $109.4 billion in revenue, which beat analysts' estimates of $108.65 billion in the company's final earnings report before CEO Tim Cook steps down.

WASHINGTON POST FACES CLASS-ACTION LAWSUIT ALLEGING 'SURVEILLANCE PRICING' OF SUBSCRIBERS

A 22% jump in iPhone sales, combined with record spring quarter Mac revenue, helped drive the results.

Tariff refunds also boosted Apple's bottom line, adding roughly 5% to profit during the period.

FOX Business has reached out to Apple for comment.

FOX Business' Susan Li contributed to this report.

Laser-wielding mosquito killer hits market promising to track and zap backyard pests midair

Thu, 27 Aug 2026 21:53:57 -0400

A Chinese startup is giving the humble bug zapper a sci-fi glow-up, betting Americans will shell out nearly $1,000 for a laser-equipped machine that hunts mosquitoes in midair.

Photon Matrix is selling an indoor version of its laser mosquito air defense system for $988, while its outdoor blue laser model starts at $1,088. The company says the device uses lidar, radar and AI vision to detect and confirm mosquitoes before aiming a precision laser at the insects.

The outdoor version is designed for patios, campsites and outdoor dinners. Company videos show the machine firing bright blue flashes at flying targets.

15 BUG-REPELLING PRODUCTS THAT ACTUALLY WORK ALL SPRING AND SUMMER

Photon Matrix says its outdoor unit scans a 20-foot, 90-degree field in front of the device and can detect insects as small as 2 millimeters traveling up to 3.3 feet per second. A rotating base is designed to give the system 360-degree coverage, while the unit can run for roughly four to five hours from a power bank, according to the company.

The system scans an area and measures the distance to the background, Photon Matrix says. When an insect enters the detection field, the device evaluates its size and fires only if it matches the characteristics of a mosquito.

PEST CONTROL EXPERTS SWEAR BY THESE PRODUCTS TO KEEP BUGS AND MICE AWAY

The startup says its laser is designed to disable a mosquito’s wings and distinguish mosquitoes from other flying insects, including butterflies. The company also says the laser automatically shuts off if the device cannot identify a solid background within range.

The indoor model uses infrared detection and a laser invisible to the human eye. It is pitched for bedrooms, hotels and other indoor spaces, while the outdoor model’s blue flash provides a visible sign when the device fires.

2 AIRPORT WORKERS ARE DEAD AFTER MALARIA CASES SHOCK OFFICIALS AT MAJOR TRAVEL HUB

Photon Matrix also touts a chemical-free operation, app controls, a 12-month warranty and what it describes as a system safe for pets and children. The device’s performance and safety assertions are the company’s own claims.

Online, the device is already drawing comparisons to sci-fi weaponry. One X commentator dubbed the system an "Iron Dome for mosquitoes," while another called it a personal mosquito air-defense system that "locks onto a mosquito in 3 milliseconds" before firing a laser.

VACATION HOT SPOT FACES NEW CDC TRAVEL WARNING AS OUTBREAK CASES CONTINUE CLIMBING

The post claimed the device can eliminate up to 30 mosquitoes per second and work in pitch dark, likening the technology to Reagan-era Star Wars missile defense research shrunk down for backyard bug control.

The flashy bug blaster is entering the market as California’s West Nile virus activity reaches a five-year high. The state’s official West Nile virus dashboard, last updated Aug. 21, lists 46 human cases across 14 counties in 2026.

DEADLIEST ANIMAL IN EVERY US STATE REVEALED, FROM MOOSE AND BEARS TO DOGS

California’s latest weekly update says four West Nile virus-related fatalities have been reported this year. The state has also logged 437 positive dead birds, 2,644 positive mosquito samples, 64 sentinel chickens and six horses.

West Nile virus is the leading mosquito-borne disease in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most people infected with the virus do not develop symptoms, but about one in five experience fever, headaches, body aches, vomiting, diarrhea or a rash.

Fewer than 1% of infected people develop a serious neurological illness affecting the brain or spinal cord. Older adults and people with weakened immune systems face the greatest risk, the CDC says.

Public health officials trap and test mosquitoes throughout the summer to monitor West Nile virus activity. A positive mosquito sample does not necessarily mean people in that area will become infected, but officials say it can serve as an early warning that the virus is circulating locally.

RARE TICK-BORNE VIRUS TURNS DEADLY FAST AS US CASES REACH RECORD HIGH, EXPERTS WARN

Health officials recommend eliminating standing water from bird baths, flowerpots, buckets, old tires, children’s toys and other outdoor containers where mosquitoes lay eggs. Trimming overgrown vegetation can also help reduce mosquito activity around homes.

Fox News Digital's Brittany Miller contributed to this report.

OpenAI, 100+ companies warn of coming surge in AI-powered cyberattacks, call for global defense push

Thu, 27 Aug 2026 15:36:24 -0400

OpenAI released a letter Thursday warning that within months, artifical intelligence (AI) models could become powerful enough to allow bad actors to launch increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks on hospitals, water treatment plants and other critical infrastructure.

More than 100 other companies across banking, tech and cybersecurity signed the letter, including Accenture, Anthropic, Capital One, Google, Microsoft and Visa.

Hugging Face, an open-source AI model repository whose systems were hacked into by an OpenAI agent in July, also signed the letter.

"Today’s AI advances are already giving defenders new ways to fix weaknesses that have accumulated for years. If we act decisively, we can use the defenders’ window to make our digital world much more secure," according to an excerpt of the letter.

DEM SENATOR PRESSES OPENAI, ANTHROPIC FOR ANSWERS IN AI HACKING PROBE

To fix the problem, OpenAI called on all organizations to make cybercrime defense "an immediate leadership priority."

Cybersecurity organizations need to "lead the response to defend against sustained AI-enabled attacks, including testing defenses continuously against frontier cyber capabilities, strengthening existing tools with AI, and working with technology partners to close gaps now," according to the letter.

Governments around the world were also given a call to action, with OpenAI saying that they should strengthen cyber defenses at the local, national and international levels.

"Give hospitals, water utilities, and local governments access to capable defensive AI, authorized testing, and hands-on support through trusted security providers and partners. Impose costs on attackers," OpenAI told governmental bodies in the letter.

OPENAI LAUNCHES NEW CHATGPT EXPERIENCE WITH PARENTAL CONTROLS FOR TEENS

In a portion of the letter addressed to "frontier AI companies," OpenAI said it should give critical-infrastructure operators access to powerful models, funding, training and technical help.

Operators should also build tools to track how AI agents are being used, test systems for vulnerabilities, fix problems responsibly, and share useful security information with governments and other defenders, OpenAI said.

There have already been a number of AI-enabled cyberattacks, perhaps most notably when Anthropic accused a Chinese state-sponsored group last September of manipulating its Claude Code tool in an attempt to hack into 30 global targets, allegedly breaching several.

"This marks the first documented case of agentic AI successfully obtaining access to confirmed high-value targets for intelligence collection," according to an incident report from Anthropic.

Anthropic did not identify the victims of the cyberattack, but said major tech companies, financial institutions, chemical manufacturing companies and governments were among those targeted.

Anthropic has also been an industry leader in warning about how rapidly-advancing AI must be contained to avoid disastrous attacks on civilian infrastructure.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

In April, the company announced Project Glasswing, an initiative to secure the world's most critical software.

In the announcement, Anthropic said that one of its frontier models, Claude Mythos, had reached "a level of coding capability where they can surpass all but the most skilled humans at finding and exploiting software vulnerabilities."

OpenAI and Anthropic did not immediately respond to FOX Business' request for comment.

Bill Gates outlines the stakes of the AI era: 'Greatest equalizer... or worst source of injustice'

Wed, 26 Aug 2026 16:27:59 -0400

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates warned that the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) will present major challenges as it reshapes industries and work, suggesting that it could be helpful to explore ways to reserve work in certain areas for humans to ease the transition.

Gates on Tuesday published an essay on his GatesNotes website that calls for public debate and a plan to manage the technological evolution of AI and its impact on the workforce and society at large, which he said should be a priority given its transformative potential.

"In terms of equity, AI will either be the greatest equalizer ever invented, or the worst source of injustice. The challenge is monumental. Even under the best circumstances, the transition to this new AI era will be one of the most turbulent times in human history," he wrote.

Gates said there are significant questions about how AI can be deployed in a way that doesn't widen the divide between the rich and poor, as well as how to best protect those vulnerable to losing their jobs due to AI.

CHINA NARROWS AMERICA'S AI LEAD AS HUAWEI EXPANDS ITS GLOBAL TECH FOOTPRINT, FORMER US OFFICIAL WARNS

"I believe that answering these questions and acting on the answers should be the world's top priority. If the world takes the right steps, AI will be a force for good and leave everyone better off," Gates wrote.

"Unfortunately, right now we are not preparing for it. I don't see evidence that leaders, experts and communities are confronting the challenges adequately," he said. "There is no plan to ease the entry into the AI era."

Gates said he thinks many commentators are underestimating the scope of the impact AI will have, in part because of current reliability issues, as well as misleading analogies to the impact of past technological innovations because of how much more transformative AI can be.

The billionaire co-founder of Microsoft acknowledged his potential bias toward tech in general and AI given how he made his fortune, along with his ongoing work as chairman of the Gates Foundation that involves AI deployment.

WARREN BUFFETT EXCLUDES GATES FOUNDATION FROM HIS ANNUAL DONATIONS OF BERKSHIRE STOCK

However, he added that his "views on AI are not motivated by the potential to make more money for myself," adding that profits generated from his investments will go to the Gates Foundation to tackle inequity.

"For as long as I can remember, I've wished innovation could happen faster. With AI, my feelings are more complicated. I wish the world could get the benefits rapidly and delay the problems it will cause as long as possible, but the benefits and problems are arriving at the same time," Gates wrote.

"I believe we need time to prepare for the period of social, political and economic upheaval we are about to enter," he added. "The people who need the most time are the ones who have the least – the accounting worker who's replaced by a bot or the $20-an-hour worker who loses their job to a $10-an-hour robot."

Gates said AI is likely to impact workers in industries such as law, customer service, medicine, software and manufacturing over the course of a decade, adding, "There will be some new jobs, but without the right policies there will be far fewer than exist today."

"If someone had a credible plan for slowing down AI advances globally, I would likely support it. However, I don't think that's going to happen. The geopolitical and economic incentives are pushing too hard to go full speed ahead," he wrote.

BILL GATES APOLOGIZES TO FOUNDATION STAFF OVER EPSTEIN TIES

Gates said he believes that as AI and robotics improve, "we'll set aside certain things for only people to do," with some roles classified as "Human Reserved" for varying reasons.

"We might set something aside as Human Reserved for economic reasons. For example, we may do it because allowing machines to take over a certain role will displace a large number of people who can't easily change jobs," he said.

"Sometimes the decision to make something Human Reserved will be driven by other factors. In health, for example, imagine a robot giving you the awful news that you have an incurable disease. There's no technical reason why it couldn't. Yet it shouldn't," Gates said.

He added that he believes the Human Reserved domain "will evolve over time," as AI could be phased-in over years or decades in certain fields, or a persistent mixture of humans and AI in areas like education and healthcare.

"The lines will vary from place to place. Some countries might insist on having humans take care of the elderly. But a country like Japan, which has a shrinking workforce and not enough young people to care for the old, may welcome a caregiving robot," Gates wrote.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

He added that he doesn't have answers to a host of questions over matters like who would determine what roles could be reserved for humans, the criteria used to make those decisions, preventing companies from skirting those rules or how those dynamics would affect international trade.

Gates said those questions "will need to be worked out in public as part of the transition plan."

Meta settles federal trial over claims Facebook, Instagram addict children

Wed, 26 Aug 2026 09:38:05 -0400

Meta has agreed to pay as much as $17.1 billion and implement restrictions on teen accounts to settle claims that the tech giant designed Facebook and Instagram to addict children and misled the public about the platforms’ safety.

The deal, disclosed in court papers on Wednesday, resolves claims brought by 29 states and averts one of the highest-profile tests yet of allegations that social media companies have harmed young users. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg could have been called to testify before the settlement happened.

The states accused Meta of violating consumer-protection laws and improperly collecting children’s personal data without parental consent. Meta has denied the allegations and said it has worked to protect children on its platforms.

STATE SUES SNAPCHAT OVER ALLEGED ADDICTIVE FEATURES AND ADULT CONTENT FOR KIDS

Meta will pay at least $12.1 billion over 10 years under the agreement, according to the D.C. attorney general’s office. The company could be required to pay another $5 billion, bringing the settlement to $17.1 billion, if other major social media companies agree to adopt comparable child-safety measures.

Meta said Wednesday that the agreement builds on its existing efforts to protect teens and give parents more control over their children’s use of its platforms.

META, OTHER COMPANIES MUST FACE THOUSANDS OF LAWSUITS OVER CHILD SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION, APPEALS COURT RULES

"Ensuring teens have a safe and productive experience on our platforms is an absolute imperative for Meta," the company said. "We want to get this right for parents and teens, and that’s why we partnered with state attorneys general to set a new industry standard."

Under the settlement, Meta agreed to impose strict daily time limits for young users, block access to its apps during certain nighttime hours, mute notifications during school hours and introduce additional parental controls.

Meta, however, noted that some changes, like nighttime hours, are still conditional and would only be implemented once its competitors like YouTube and TikTok get on board with similar limits on their platforms.

Meta said that it is expected to take about six months to roll out any changes.

Meta also called on TikTok and YouTube to adopt similar restrictions, arguing that protections on individual platforms will have limited impact because teens frequently move between apps.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

"For meaningful progress to happen, we urge TikTok and YouTube to join us and state attorneys general in adopting this new standard, to ensure teens use social media in a healthy and responsible way," Meta said in an open letter to the two social media companies.

This is a developing news story; check back for updates.

State sues Snapchat over alleged addictive features and adult content for kids

Tue, 25 Aug 2026 21:27:16 -0400

Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday sued Snap Inc., the parent company of Snapchat, on Tuesday, accusing the company of designing the social media app to keep young users compulsively engaged while misleading parents about its safety and age-appropriate content.

The lawsuit, filed in Philadelphia County Court, takes aim at features including Snapstreaks, infinite scrolling, push notifications, autoplay and disappearing messages. Pennsylvania alleges the features encourage young people to spend more time on Snapchat, helping the company generate advertising revenue while exposing minors to potential harms.

The state alleges Snapchat has millions of users in Pennsylvania, including tens of thousands under 16, while Snap generates millions of dollars in annual revenue from users in the state. Snap's North American operations generated more than $5.3 billion in revenue in 2024, according to the complaint.

The lawsuit also targets how Snapchat monetizes engagement. Users can pay to restore an expired Snapstreak, which tracks the number of consecutive days two people have exchanged Snaps. Pennsylvania alleges younger users can feel pressure to maintain streaks because they associate them with the strength of their real-life friendships.

GOOGLE'S YOUTUBE REACHES SETTLEMENT IN LAWSUIT ALLEGING CHILD SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION

"Snapchat has designed its platform to lure children into constant, compulsive use that is detrimental to healthy adolescent development," Sunday said in a statement. "This lawsuit demands that Snapchat finally admit publicly that its platform is highly addictive and that it takes real action to keep kids safe."

Pennsylvania separately accuses Snap of misleading consumers about the content available to minors.

According to the complaint, information provided by Snap results in Snapchat receiving a 13+ rating in Apple's App Store and a "T for Teen" rating in the Google Play and Microsoft stores. The state alleges those ratings do not accurately reflect the mature content available through the platform.

The complaint says an investigator with the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office created a Snapchat account using a 13-year-old's birthday and found the account could access content containing profanity, drug and alcohol references and sexual material.

Snap disputed the allegations in a statement provided to FOX Business.

STATES ACCUSE META OF TARGETING CHILDREN FOR FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM ADDICTION: 'THE YOUNG ONES ARE THE BEST ONES'

"The allegations against Snap fundamentally misrepresent our platform and our approach to teen safety," the statement read. "Snapchat was designed differently from the beginning: it opens to a camera, not a feed of content, and was built to encourage self-expression and authentic connection with friends," the statement read.

A representative for the company added: "We share the Attorney General’s commitment to protecting young people online and are disappointed they have chosen litigation rather than working with us toward that shared goal," the statement continued. "We remain focused on strengthening and enhancing the safeguards, tools and educational resources that support the safety, privacy and well-being of all Snapchatters."

Pennsylvania is asking the court to declare Snap's practices unlawful under the state's Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law, impose civil penalties and issue injunctions aimed at preventing future violations.

CLICK HERE TO GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO

The lawsuit follows a similar consumer protection case Sunday filed against TikTok earlier this month over alleged addictive features and content safety ratings.

TikTok agrees to pay $400 million to settle Justice Department children's privacy case

Fri, 21 Aug 2026 17:53:45 -0400

The U.S. Department of Justice has secured a $400 million settlement with TikTok and parent company ByteDance in a case related to children’s privacy legislation, the DOJ announced Friday.

"This settlement is a major victory for American children and parents," Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr. said in a statement.

"The department's priority is ensuring that children are protected online and that companies entrusted with their personal information meet their legal obligations. This resolution secures a substantial recovery while reinforcing the protections that families expect and deserve."

The lawsuit, related to compliance with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, was filed by the Biden administration’s DOJ in 2024.

UK TO BAN TIKTOK, YOUTUBE, OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA APPS FOR CHILDREN UNDER 16, STARMER SAYS

The Justice Department said the settlement is one of the largest ever reached in a case involving the privacy act.

Under the terms of the settlement, TikTok and ByteDance will pay $300 million immediately and then $100 million "upon entry of an order vacating a prior consent decree entered against TikTok’s predecessor, Musical.ly."

FEDERAL EMPLOYEES CAN DOWNLOAD TIKTOK ON GOVERNMENT DEVICES AFTER BYTEDANCE'S DIVESTITURE, DOJ SAYS

The Justice Department said, since the lawsuit was first filed, "TikTok has undergone significant changes to its ownership, management, compliance functions and privacy practices.

"The company has implemented extensive measures designed to strengthen safeguards for younger users, improve age-related controls and enhance parental oversight," the DOJ added, saying that those developments have "strengthened protections for millions of American families."

NEW MEXICO SEEKS MASSIVE PENALTY FROM META AFTER JURY FOUND TECH GIANT LIABLE FOR ENDANGERING CHILDREN

The DOJ said the settlement shows its commitment to protecting the public while also acknowledging the progress TikTok has made.

"The most important result is that children and parents are better protected today than they were when this case began," Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division said in a statement.

"This settlement reflects substantial progress, secures a significant monetary recovery and brings this matter to a successful conclusion."

TikTok did not immediately respond to FOX Business' request for comment.

Trump crypto meeting signals US 'not going to slow down' in bid for digital asset dominance, expert says

Thu, 20 Aug 2026 16:39:26 -0400

President Donald Trump and top financial regulators hosted key figures in the cryptocurrency and digital assets industries at the White House Wednesday, with a major legislative priority for the administration and those industries nearing the finish line.

Cody Carbone, CEO of The Digital Chamber, attended the meeting and said in an interview with FOX Business the "main takeaway was that the U.S. is not going to slow down in its objective of becoming the crypto capital of the world."

"There was a lot of talk about the CLARITY Act, this legislation that's in front of us, and that there was a desire and need to get this done," Carbone said, noting there is bipartisan support for the bill and that President Trump indicated he hopes to sign it into law in September.

"It was very clear from the president's comments and from the discussion that the U.S. government and the Trump administration are not going to wait, necessarily, for legislation," he said. "The SEC and the CFTC have been given the authority from this White House and the mandate to move very quickly."

COINBASE CEO SAYS CRYPTO BILL COULD TRANSFORM US FINANCIAL SYSTEM AS SENATE VOTE APPROACHES

The CLARITY Act would establish legal definitions for digital assets, network tokens, digital commodities and more, while also creating mandates for regulatory agencies, including the SEC and CFTC, to regulate the sector without creating overlapping or contradictory rules.

"The biggest thing that the bill will do is durability. People need to understand that the regulatory framework that is going to be created by the CLARITY Act is not just going to be here for decades and decades to come," Carbone said, noting it will help builders, issuers and platforms certainty about regulatory compliance.

"It'll give retail investors, institutional investors more consumer protections, more disclosures," he said. "When you pass clear rules of the road, like we saw with the GENIUS Act, the market responds immediately. The stablecoin market in the post-GENIUS Act world in the first year almost doubled overnight in the U.S. CLARITY will do that for the rest of the market."

TRUMP-LINKED WORLD LIBERTY CRYPTO VENTURE GETS PRELIMINARY APPROVAL FROM CURRENCY COMPTROLLER

The Senate is expected to begin the procedural process of considering the CLARITY Act in mid-September, when the upper chamber is scheduled to be in a three-week session before a lengthy recess in October ahead of the midterm elections in November.

"There is a ton of motivation, not just from the administration as we saw [Wednesday], but from Republicans and Democrats in Congress to get this done — especially before the election. It just becomes too hard to legislate after September. Then you're in the October recess, then it's the election and then it's the lame duck," Carbone said.

"We don't want to leave this up for chance. This is the time. We've never been closer to enacting a market structure bill."

ANDREW CUOMO WARNS CONGRESS IS RUNNING OUT OF TIME ON BLOCKCHAIN REGULATION, SAYS FAMILIES COULD SAVE ON FEES

Carbone said if the CLARITY Act stalls in September with no path forward, the focus is likely to shift to agencies like the SEC and CFTC. He noted that SEC Chairman Paul Atkins and CFTC Chairman Michael Selig indicated they would look to implement many of the bill's provisions through the regulatory process.

"They all want to see CLARITY done, just like we do. But if the ultimate fate of CLARITY over the next six weeks is that it will not pass — and we're hoping that's not the case — then I would imagine the SEC and the CFTC will get even more active very, very quickly, shortly thereafter," he said.

The meeting was also attended by representatives from more traditional corners of the finance sector, including exchanges, and included an overarching theme of American innovation and technological leadership spanning not just digital assets and blockchain but also artificial intelligence (AI).

"This was pretty remarkable to hear the president double and triple down that it's not just about the U.S. being the crypto capital of the world, but we need to be the envy of the entire world on all innovation," Carbone said. "That's pretty amazing to hear.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

"It was a breath of fresh air and almost a sigh of relief," Carbone said, explaining that while there "may be some disappointment about where the legislation stands right now, that this administration is not going to let up.

"They're going to do everything that they can to make sure that U.S. entrepreneurs feel very, very comfortable, U.S. investors feel very, very comfortable, that they can continue to build wealth and to invest in new products right here in the U.S."

US warns of active cyber threat targeting critical infrastructure

Thu, 20 Aug 2026 12:02:07 -0400

Federal agencies are warning that hackers are actively targeting industrial control systems used across U.S. water plants, factories, energy facilities and other critical infrastructure.

The NSA, FBI, Department of Energy, EPA and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said Wednesday there is an "active threat" targeting Siemens S7 Series programmable logic controllers.

Siemens said Thursday that it had not detected an increased level of attacks or any previously unknown vulnerabilities affecting its industrial control systems products.

The devices are used to monitor and control industrial equipment across sectors including manufacturing, energy, water and wastewater, chemicals, food and agriculture.

A successful attack could disrupt critical operations, force facilities offline, damage equipment and create safety hazards, according to the advisory. Officials also warned that breaches could trigger cascading disruptions across interconnected systems.

THOUSANDS OF NORTH KOREAN IT WORKERS ARE INFILTRATING CORPORATE AMERICA

The government said hackers are increasingly using artificial intelligence to make such attacks easier, dramatically reducing the expertise and time needed to develop tools capable of exploiting industrial systems.

According to the advisory, attackers are scanning the internet for exposed or poorly protected Siemens controllers and using AI-generated tools to help gain access to them.

Federal agencies said the activity appears aimed in part at studying targeted systems and developing the ability to disrupt operations in the future.

Such attacks could affect production, public services and supply chains, while also causing equipment damage or prolonged downtime.

Officials also warned that some operators may not realize their systems are exposed, particularly when outside vendors have remote access to industrial equipment.

The warning comes amid a recent wave of cyberattacks against local water systems that cybersecurity experts suspect may have links to Iran, though federal officials have not formally attributed those incidents to Tehran.

CISA warned July 30 of a significant increase in attacks targeting programmable logic controllers. Days earlier, the agency said Iranian-affiliated hackers had been exploiting industrial equipment made by Siemens, Rockwell Automation and Schneider Electric.

RUSSIAN HACKERS EXPLOITING VULNERABLE INTERNET ROUTERS, NSA WARNS

Concerns intensified after Minnesota became the first state to report a wave of at least 30 cyber incidents involving local water systems on July 26 and July 27.

Federal officials have stopped short of blaming Iran for those attacks. President Donald Trump said July 31 that he did not believe Tehran was responsible and instead criticized Minnesota over the incidents.

The latest warning underscores the vulnerability of operational technology — systems that control physical equipment rather than simply store corporate data.

HACKERS ARE GOING AFTER WHATEVER THEY CAN ATTACK TO MAKE NEWS, RUBRIK CEO SAYS

Unlike conventional cyberattacks focused on stealing information, attacks on industrial control systems can have direct physical and economic consequences, potentially interrupting utilities, shutting down production or damaging costly equipment.

Siemens told FOX Business that it is aware of the alert and is coordinating with CISA.

"Siemens will provide updates around this issue to potentially affected customers through our ProductCERT team," a company spokesperson said. "At this point in time, we have not identified increased attack levels or unknown vulnerabilities in Siemens ICS products."

CLICK HERE TO GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO

The potential fallout can extend beyond an individual facility, affecting businesses and services that rely on interconnected industrial systems.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Supreme Court rejects Verizon effort to get $46.9M FCC fine refund in location data case

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 08:32:20 -0400

The Supreme Court has denied Verizon’s request for rehearing in its fight over a $46.9 million Federal Communications Commission penalty tied to the telecom giant’s former customer location data program.

The justices denied the petition Monday without explanation, leaving the court’s earlier judgment against Verizon in place, according to the court’s Aug. 17 order list.

The denial closes off Verizon’s effort to alter the disposition of a June Supreme Court ruling that upheld the FCC’s forfeiture process against a Seventh Amendment challenge.

The court found that an FCC penalty order does not automatically force a company to pay. If a company refuses, the government must go to federal court to collect, where the company can fully challenge the case before a judge or jury.

META HEADS TO TRIAL OVER ALLEGED SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION, RISKS TO CHILDREN

In that June 4 ruling, the Supreme Court left the lower court’s decision against Verizon in place but sent AT&T’s separate case back to the Fifth Circuit for further review. That difference in how the two cases were resolved became central to Verizon’s rehearing request.

The FCC imposed the nearly $47 million forfeiture in 2024 after finding that Verizon failed to adequately protect customer location information made available through a program involving third-party location service providers.

WAYMO GETS REGULATORY APPROVAL TO SCALE UP ROBOTAXI SERVICE ACROSS CALIFORNIA, ENTER 2 NEW MARKETS

Verizon paid the penalty under protest and challenged the FCC’s order in federal court. The Second Circuit rejected the company’s challenge last year, including its argument that the device-location information at issue fell outside the customer-information protections of Section 222 of the Communications Act.

In its rehearing petition, Verizon argued that the FCC’s forfeiture order appeared to impose an immediate obligation to pay within 30 days, while the government later maintained before the Supreme Court that carriers could decline to pay and instead await enforcement action.

The Supreme Court’s June opinion did not decide whether the carriers had been misled into paying or whether a refund could be appropriate. The justices said they expressed no view on the merits of that argument, what relief might be available or in what proceeding.

Verizon then asked the Supreme Court to send the case back to the Second Circuit so the appeals court could consider whether the company had been misled into paying the penalty and whether it should receive a refund.

The Supreme Court’s denial Monday leaves the Second Circuit judgment affirmed and Verizon’s requested remand off the table.

FOX Business reached out to Verizon and the FCC for comment.

The broader dispute over the FCC’s authority remains active. T-Mobile and Sprint have separately asked the Supreme Court to review their own location data penalties, challenging, among other issues, whether the location information at issue falls within the Communications Act’s definition of protected customer proprietary network information.

Their petition was filed June 22 and remains pending.

CLICK HERE TO GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO

The continuing litigation could have implications for how the FCC applies federal customer data protections and structures large civil forfeitures against telecommunications companies.

Meta heads to trial over alleged social media addiction, risks to children

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 14:06:48 -0400

Social media giant Meta is heading to court in a case brought by a group of state attorneys general who claim the company designed its social media platforms to be addictive and misled the public about potential risks.

The trial is expected to begin with opening statements on Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in Oakland after the two sides went through the jury selection process last week and Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers turned down Meta's request for the case to be dismissed. The trial is expected to last four to six weeks, with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg expected to testify.

Attorneys general from California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey first filed the lawsuit in 2023 after a multistate investigation into the impact of Facebook and Instagram on young users. They argue that the platforms were designed to be addictive and that the company downplayed the potential impact on young people, while also alleging Meta violated federal law when it collected personal information from children.

Meta, which is the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has denied wrongdoing and disputes claims that its social media platforms caused the harm alleged by states. It also argues that "social media addiction" isn't an officially recognized psychiatric diagnosis, which will be a significant point of contention at trial.

FOUR STATES SEEKING $1.4 TRILLION IN PENALTIES IN CHILD SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION TRIAL, META SAYS

California Attorney General Rob Bonta issued a statement last week after the court allowed the case to proceed, saying, "Meta designed a dangerous product for young users, knew it to be dangerous, and then lied to children, families, and the community about how dangerous it was."

A Meta spokesperson pushed back on the states' case against the company and said in a statement to FOX Business that the "limited claims are unsubstantiated and their financial demands are vastly disproportionate."

"The AGs offer no proof anyone in their states was misled, claim benign features like having an additional Instagram account somehow harmed their residents, and attempt to penalize Meta for industry-wide challenges like age verification. Rather than sticking to the facts or the law, the states have instead decided to chase an outlandish payout," the company spokesperson said, adding that the company stands by its "record of creating strong protections for teens, and look forward to making our case in court."

Meta has argued that the damages sought by the state attorneys general could reach as high as $1.4 trillion, which is nearly the size of the company's market capitalization, though the AGs told the judge this month that $200 billion was a more realistic target — which still would make it one of the largest consumer-protection judgments in U.S. history.

NEW MEXICO COURT ORDERS META TO PAY $567M, OVERHAUL TEEN PROTECTIONS

Monte Mann, a partner at Armstrong Teasdale, told FOX Business in an interview that this will be a "bellwether case" for the theory that social media platforms were designed to be addictive and have harmful effects on young users.

Mann said that as someone who has tried cases like this one, he will be paying close attention to what internal Meta documents indicate about the company's knowledge of the allegedly compulsive nature of its products and their mental health impact, saying those documents "may be the star witness in the case."

"I will be very interested to see what the internal Meta, Facebook, Instagram documents say about what they knew of the compulsive nature of these products and services; when they knew it; whether they tried to enhance their design elements to take advantage of those things, what they disclosed to the public," he said.

Mann also noted that Judge Gonzalez Rogers appointed an advisory jury in the case, which can provide feedback and recommendations on community standards for children's use of social media that she may consider.

META, OTHER COMPANIES MUST FACE THOUSANDS OF LAWSUITS OVER CHILD SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION, APPEALS COURT RULES

The Oakland trial is the latest high-profile case involving social media companies like Meta, which have faced numerous lawsuits brought by individuals, school districts and state governments over the alleged impacts of social media use on children.

A ruling in another prominent case was delivered earlier this month when a state court in New Mexico ordered Meta to pay $567 million and to overhaul its protections for teen users on Facebook and Instagram.

That followed a prior ruling from March which ordered Meta to pay $375 million for violating state law, with the company's total liability in the case at nearly $942 million.

Meta told FOX Business after the most recent ruling that it disagreed with the decision and vowed to appeal, explaining that the company is "confident in our record of protecting teens online and will continue to defend ourselves against claims that misrepresent the facts."

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

FOX Business' Michael Sinkewicz, Sumner Park, Ashley Webster and Reuters contributed to this report.

Waymo gets regulatory approval to scale up robotaxi service across California, enter 2 new markets

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 23:52:58 -0400

Waymo announced Friday that it is expanding its autonomous ride-hailing business across Northern and Southern California, including into two new major markets.

The Alphabet-owned company said it plans to scale up its existing services across the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles while bringing its robotaxi service to Sacramento and San Diego.

The announcement comes after the California Department of Motor Vehicles authorized Waymo to operate in the additional areas last year. On Friday, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved the company's application to expand its autonomous ride-hailing service.

"Big news for the Golden State — we have received the CPUC's approval to expand our autonomous ride-hailing service across the SF Bay Area and LA, and bring our service to Sacramento and San Diego," Waymo said in a post on X.

WAYMO RECALLS MASSIVE AUTONOMOUS FLEET AFTER INCIDENT FLAGS MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE

The company did not provide a timeline for launching service in the new areas but said the expansion would be "gradual and guided by our safety framework."

Waymo called the regulatory approval an important step in its California expansion.

"This is an important milestone that will allow Waymo to bring the safety and mobility benefits millions of Californians already enjoy to more communities across the state," the company said in a press release.

The company currently operates thousands of autonomous vehicles across the U.S., including in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Austin.

ZOOX CEO SAYS AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES NEED REGULATION MONTHS AFTER ROBOTAXI DROVE INTO LAS VEGAS FIRE SCENE

In February, Waymo announced plans to expand into Chicago as it seeks to establish a foothold in the Midwest.

The company said it had begun "laying the early groundwork" for operations in Chicago, starting with mapping and manual vehicle testing.

Waymo has also faced several recalls this year. Most recently, the company recalled nearly 4,000 robotaxis in June after more than a dozen incidents in which autonomous vehicles entered closed freeway construction zones, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

NHTSA said a software issue could allow affected vehicles to enter closed freeway construction zones and continue traveling at posted speeds. Regulators said the vehicles could fail to recognize or properly respond to certain construction-zone closures.

FOX Business has reached out to Waymo for additional information, including when the expanded California services are expected to launch.

FOX Business' Bradford Betz and Brittany Miller contributed to this report.

Flock Safety instituting new privacy measures in response to backlash

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 09:08:45 -0400

Flock Safety, the embattled AI-powered security camera operator, announced an overhaul to its privacy and security measures Thursday amid growing backlash from consumers and reports of law enforcement abuse.

As public backlash to the company's growing network of automated license plate readers (ALPRs) continues to build, the company announced a new set of reforms that includes enhanced privacy protections, strengthening of control for local law enforcement offices and enhanced accountability measures.

To start, Flock is reducing its standard data retention window from 30 days to seven. Previously, all data captured by one of the company's more than 119,000 cameras nationwide was deleted after the 30-day window. Now, the company announced on Thursday that data will only live on Flock servers for one week.

While law enforcement agencies often respond to privacy-concerned critics by explaining that the Flock system helps them catch criminals, Flock said that 90% of all searches using its product happen within a week anyway, seemingly keeping the privacy reform consistent with law enforcement priorities.

ZOOX CEO SAYS AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES NEED REGULATION MONTHS AFTER ROBOTAXI DROVE INTO LAS VEGAS FIRE SCENE

However, for law enforcement agencies that need more time to investigate, Flock announced the launch of "Evidence Mode," a feature that will allow agencies to preserve data for longer based on state or local policy.

Another privacy protection the company announced will be the ability for agencies to decide which types of criminal offenses they want to share data about with other municipalities.

"For example, City A could allow City B to search its cameras for a stolen vehicle or violent crime while blocking searches related to immigration enforcement," the company said.

SAFETY TECH COMPANY LAUNCHES TOOL TO HELP LAW ENFORCEMENT SOLVE CASES FASTER

Flock has come under fire from privacy advocates and concerned citizens, who expressed worry that Flock will be storing data on servers for the long term.

Some, such as Knox County, Tennessee, Mayor Glen Jacobs have called for a national moratorium on the deployment of Flock's cameras.

Civil liberties advocates, such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), have also offered significant criticisms.

The ACLU said in a Thursday statement that Flock's reforms "seem to be a thinly veiled PR attempt to counter communities’ genuine privacy concerns with its mass surveillance system with largely hollow security promises, rather than an earnest effort to address them."

The backlash has been partially fueled by reports of police abusing the technology to stalk romantic partners. Flock's latest series of reforms also seek to proactively prevent abuse of its technologies.

A recently released framework called Audit Assistance flags abnormal search behavior. Previously, the feature was optional, with Flock reporting that a third of agencies turned it on. Now, the company says "Flock is making it standard for every law enforcement customer. When a system detects abnormal activity, the user is locked out in real time until an administrator reviews the searches. Flock is moving to more proactively address and root out misuse of technology."

Flock will also require a reason for every search going forward.

In July 2025, the company introduced an optional case code requirement. The new reform makes the case code mandatory for searches, though there will be an override for "genuine emergencies" such as missing children, the company said.

"A search without a reason is a search that shouldn’t happen in the first place, and now Flock’s system automatically treats it that way," Flock told FOX Business.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

Despite the public backlash, Flock highlighted the company's success in helping to locate missing people, saying that in the 1 million investigations that Flock's technology was involved in last year, roughly 10,000 missing people were located.

Tesla files plans for proposed $10.1B Texas solar manufacturing plant

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 14:46:44 -0400

Tesla is planning to build a massive solar cell factory in Texas that it expects to cost $10.1 billion, according to documents the company filed with the state.

Dubbed Project Crystal Sun, the site would sit just outside Houston in Fort Bend County, according to the documents.

In its pitch to state regulators, Tesla said if Texas rejected the project, it would "miss the opportunity to attract billions of dollars in investment, help create thousands of full-time jobs for its residents and become a hub for domestic solar cell manufacturing in the U.S."

NEW TESLA SOLAR-POWERED CHARGING STATION OPENS

"Tesla is currently evaluating the feasibility of constructing its solar cell manufacturing facility at various locations across multiple U.S. states," the company told the state comptroller's office.

If built, the facility would create more than 9,700 permanent full-time jobs, as well as 1,147 temporary construction jobs, Tesla said.

Tesla estimated it would owe about $1.1 billion in local property taxes on the project over the next 37 years if it is not granted incentives.

TESLA TOUTS 380,000 UNSUPERVISED ROBOTAXI MILES WITH ‘ZERO NOTABLE INCIDENTS’

Tesla plans to break ground on the factory this year and complete construction by 2028, with commercial operations expected to begin in 2029.

It's not clear whether the factory's solar panels will be produced for installations on the ground or in satellites.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk also runs SpaceX, which operates thousands of satellites in low-Earth orbit, all of them equipped with solar panels.

Although Tesla's filings did not reveal the expected output of the proposed solar factory, Musk has previously outlined a goal of setting up 100 gigawatts of domestic solar production.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration said 100 gigawatts is roughly equal to 8% of the entire country's power grid capacity.

Meta, other companies must face thousands of lawsuits over child social media addiction, appeals court rules

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 00:53:12 -0400

A federal appeals court refused to dismiss thousands of lawsuits against Meta, Google, TikTok and Snapchat, allowing complaints alleging the platforms were designed to be addictive to young users to move forward.

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected an appeal by Meta and TikTok attempting to overturn a lower court ruling requiring the firms to face more than 3,000 lawsuits filed in federal court, ruling the companies appealed too early.

The social media companies claimed that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 — which generally shields online platforms from being liable for content posted by their users — also prohibits lawsuits on allegations they failed to warn the public about the addictive design of their platforms.

Section 230 has largely protected several companies from lawsuits regarding content posted on their platforms.

NEW MEXICO COURT ORDERS META TO PAY $567M, OVERHAUL TEEN PROTECTIONS ON FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM

Most appeals come after a case has reached a ruling or a verdict, but the companies claimed that they should not have to wait until the litigation wraps up to challenge the lower court's rejection of their immunity defense.

However, the court ruled the companies cannot use Section 230 to dismiss lawsuits, saying it can only be used as a liability defense against claims, meaning the appeal was premature.

The statute "merely provides a defense to liability — not immunity from suit," Judge Jacqueline Nguyen wrote.

The court's decision clears the way for lawsuits alleging social media companies designed platforms to encourage addictive behavior, failed to verify users' ages and did not adequately block harmful content.

The panel also denied Meta's attempt to postpone a trial set to begin on Wednesday in a lawsuit brought by 29 state attorneys general accusing the company of illegally collecting and using children's data, designing its social media platforms to addict young users and misleading consumers about child safety on the platforms.

The company had claimed that the trial could not move forward while the appeal was pending.

Fox Business reached out to Meta and TikTok for comment.

Attorneys representing thousands of school districts and people suing Meta and other tech firms in federal court, said in a statement the ruling would allow the states' trial to move forward, as well as a trial over claims brought by school districts set for February.

FOUR STATES SEEKING $1.4 TRILLION IN PENALTIES IN CHILD SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION TRIAL, META SAYS

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

"A trial is how the public finds out what Meta knew about its products' impact on children, when it knew it, and what it chose to do with that knowledge," the attorneys said. "Meta has fought to keep that evidence from the public."

This comes after a New Mexico judge last week found Meta had created a public nuisance in the state, ordering it to pay $567 million into a teenage mental health fund and adopt youth-safety measures.

In March, a jury in California ruled against Meta and Google's YouTube, while a jury in New Mexico ruled against Meta on child safety risks.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Zuckerberg lays out vision to put superintelligent AI in everyone's hands

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 06:00:11 -0400

Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Monday outlined his vision for a world where personal superintelligence is available to everyone rather than only a select few.

In a 14-page letter titled "The Future is for Everyone: The Path to a Positive AI Future," Zuckerberg argued that broadly distributing superintelligent AI represents both an economic opportunity and a safeguard against concentrating too much power in the hands of governments, businesses and other institutions.

"We propose a philosophy based on individual empowerment as the source of prosperity, invention as the primary purpose of superintelligence, and balance of power as the foundation of safety," he wrote.

His broader argument centers on individual empowerment, using AI primarily to help people invent rather than simply automate work, distributing power through checks and balances and ensuring communities benefit from Meta's AI infrastructure investments.

ZUCKERBERG PREDICTS MORE JOBS AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP IF SUPERINTELLIGENCE IS WIDELY DISTRIBUTED

"All new technologies create opportunities and challenges. Superintelligence will be among the most important technologies in history, so its opportunities and challenges will likely be greater than any we've seen in our lifetimes. We should take this very seriously," he added.

Zuckerberg said empowering individuals would allow people to compete with and check one another economically, socially and politically, while also helping balance the power of businesses and governments.

"But if the power of superintelligence is held by a small number of individuals, businesses, governments, or AI itself, then that will naturally lead to outcomes that are less favorable for everyone else," Zuckerberg said. "This is not a technological principle. It is about the balance of power. There is no such thing as a singular benevolent superintelligence."

He said the key to a positive future for everyone is achieving a balance of power that favors individuals, arguing that superintelligence should be broadly distributed to empower people.

"Meta is the company primarily focused on building personal superintelligence for everyone," he said. "Most other labs are focused on building AI for companies, governments, or other institutions, so if those labs lead, then the balance of power will favor larger institutions over individuals. Meta's mission since our founding has focused on putting power in people's hands. If our beliefs and principles lead, then the balance of power will favor individuals and a better future for everyone."

WATCH ZUCKERBERG'S ANNOUNCEMENT:

Zuckerberg also called for close cooperation between frontier AI labs and the government, saying government policy will be necessary to help ensure a positive future.

As part of that broader strategy, Zuckerberg said Meta will soon resume releasing some open-source AI models, which he described as a "positive and important force" for empowering people and preventing centralization he argues could harm safety and the economy.

"Meta continues to be strongly supportive of open source, including open source AI models. The current open source ecosystem is strong, and we think it would be a mistake to restrict it. Now that Meta Superintelligence Labs are up and running, we will resume releasing some open source models soon," he said.

Meta also announced new open-source model releases Monday. The company is releasing the weights for Muse Glimmer, a 30-billion-parameter dense model that can run on a laptop or single consumer GPU, which Meta described as one of the highest-performing models of its size.

In the coming weeks, Meta said it will also open the weights for a version of Muse Spark 1.2, which the company described as one of the world's leading foundation models.

Zuckerberg also previewed a new $1 billion Future is for Everyone Fund to invest directly in U.S. communities where Meta owns and operates data centers. Meta said it will work with communities to develop investments and programs tailored to local needs.

The commitment was inspired in part by what Meta said it observed in Richland Parish, Louisiana, where teachers received bonuses tied to increased tax revenue from the company's investment.

ZUCKERBERG SAYS AI SHOULD EMPOWER PEOPLE, NOT REPLACE THEM, IN NEW META VISION

"Sustainable infrastructure development means that communities must benefit significantly from each project," Zuckerberg wrote in his letter. "This includes high-paying local jobs, investment in schools and public services, ensuring energy prices don't rise, and taking care of the environment. As tax revenue grows, this also benefits teachers, law enforcement, fire departments, and more. We call these local benefits our community compact, and we are launching a Future Is For Everyone Fund to support each community we work in directly."

"For example, in Richland Parish, Louisiana, where Meta is building a large data center, teachers received a $50,000 bonus this year because of the increased tax revenue from our investment. The superintendent told us that teachers are now moving there from across the country and he believes it will become one of the nation's best school districts," he continued.

CLICK HERE TO GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO

Zuckerberg concluded by calling it "an incredible moment to live through" and arguing that developing superintelligence "will be the most profound technological advance we will see in our lifetimes."

"Meta is committed to building with the principles of individual empowerment as the source of prosperity, invention as AI's purpose, and a balance of power favoring people as the foundation for addressing safety risks," he said.

SpaceX and Tesla choose Texas for AI chip manufacturing plant that will be world's largest building

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 20:52:24 -0400

SpaceX announced this week that its planned semiconductor plant that is expected to become the largest building in the world at more than 100 million square feet will be built in Grimes, Texas, outside of Houston.

"Terafab Texas will be the largest and most valuable building on Earth by far," owner Elon Musk wrote X Thursday. "And it will be stunningly beautiful."

The factory is a joint effort with Musk’s electric car company, Tesla.

"This facility will house the manufacturing, packaging and testing of advanced logic and memory devices," SpaceX said in a press release Thursday. "Terafab will produce chips optimized for edge computing and inference for use in hardware like Tesla’s Optimus robots and self-driving Cybercabs, along with high-power chips designed for operating SpaceX’s space-based data centers."

MARKET EXPERT MAKES CASE FOR SPACEX DESPITE VOLATILITY

SpaceX added that its and Tesla’s combined demand for chips is expected to be in excess of the global supply.

"While we are deeply appreciative of our current chip suppliers and encourage them to expand production whenever possible, this looming gulf between supply and demand is at the core of Terafab’s necessity," SpaceX explained.

The company said Terafab would employ more than 3,000 people, adding that its initial phase is estimated to cost approximately $16.8 billion.

TEXAS GOV. GREG ABBOTT EFFECTIVELY PAUSES NEW DATA CENTER PROJECTS PENDING STATEWIDE GRID AUDIT

"The Terafab is bringing cutting-edge manufacturing to America, creating thousands of high-paying jobs in the Lone Star State and enabling us to produce AI chips at scale for use on Earth and in space," Musk said.

SpaceX proposed initially investing $55 billion into Terafab, which could increase to $119 billion, according to a May filing.

In April, Tesla broke ground on a research facility at the North Campus of ⁠its Giga Texas plant, which it called a precursor to Terafab.

The Pentagon is the current largest building in the U.S. at 6.6. million square feet, and China’s New Century Global Center in Chengdu, is the world's largest at 18.9 million square feet.

Reuters contributed to this report.

New Mexico court orders Meta to pay $567M, overhaul teen protections on Facebook and Instagram

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 04:51:27 -0400

A New Mexico court on Thursday ordered Meta to pay $567 million and implement sweeping protections for teen users after finding Facebook and Instagram contributed to the state's youth mental health crisis.

The judgment comes after a jury in March ordered Meta to pay $375 million for violating the state's Unfair Practices Act, bringing the company's total liability in the case to nearly $942 million.

Judge Bryan Biedscheid found Meta had created a public nuisance in New Mexico and ordered the company to implement a series of youth-safety measures over the next five years.

The requirements include monthly limits on teens' use of Facebook and Instagram, restrictions on notifications, tighter controls on adults contacting minors, safeguards for AI chatbots and enhanced reviews of child sexual abuse reports.

META ORDERED TO PAY $375M AFTER JURY FINDS PLATFORM ENABLED CHILD PREDATORS IN LANDMARK NEW MEXICO CASE

In a statement to FOX Business, Meta said it disagreed with the ruling and vowed to appeal.

"We work hard to keep people safe on our platforms and have been transparent about the challenges of identifying and removing bad actors and harmful content," a Meta spokesperson said.

"We remain confident in our record of protecting teens online and will continue to defend ourselves against claims that misrepresent the facts," the spokesperson added.

The court sided with New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez, a Democrat, who accused Meta of designing products that addict young users and failing to adequately protect children from sexual exploitation on its platforms.

ZUCKERBERG SAYS AI SHOULD EMPOWER PEOPLE, NOT REPLACE THEM, IN NEW META VISION

Torrez said the $567 million will fund New Mexico's abatement plan and comes on top of the $375 million in civil penalties awarded in March.

"For years, Meta knew its platforms were harming New Mexico's kids, from feeding a youth mental health crisis to connecting predators with children, and it chose engagement and profit over their safety," Torrez said in a statement.

"Today, Meta is paying for that choice," he continued. "This judgment holds the company accountable for the damage it caused to our children, our families, and our schools, and it forces real changes to how Meta operates in New Mexico."

Torrez called the ruling a "blueprint" for other states seeking to pursue similar litigation against social media companies.

TIKTOK SAYS MODERATOR ERROR DELAYED REMOVAL OF PEREZ HILTON'S LIVESTREAM SHOWING ACTS OF SELF-HARM

"For the first time, a court has ruled that a social media giant can be held liable for building products that endanger children and has ordered the structural changes needed to fix it," he said. "New Mexico led the way in the courtroom. Now other states, and other countries confronting the same crisis, have a roadmap they can follow."

More than 40 states and over 1,300 school districts have already filed public nuisance lawsuits against social media companies, seeking damages and court orders requiring changes to their products and practices.

The ruling followed three weeks of testimony in the second trial stemming from the lawsuit. Unlike the first trial, the proceeding did not involve a jury and focused on whether Meta's platforms constituted a "public nuisance" under New Mexico law.

MOST AMERICANS STILL TRUST FINANCIAL ADVISORS OVER AI TOOLS FOR MAJOR MONEY DECISIONS, STUDY FINDS

Biedscheid compared the alleged harms caused by Meta's platforms to pollution escaping from a factory.

"(J)ust as noxious pollution produced by the factory can harm the common public right to reasonably clean air, the harmful effects of Meta's platforms on children do not stay contained by its platforms," Biedscheid wrote in his ruling.

The judge said those effects extend into the real world and create broader burdens for children, families, schools, hospitals and law enforcement.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

New Mexico filed the lawsuit in 2023, alleging Meta had created a "breeding ground" for child predators and misled users about safety protections on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.

FOX Business' Jasmine Baehr and Reuters contributed to this report.

OpenAI to pay $3.2 million to settle DOJ allegations it favored foreign workers over Americans

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 21:44:58 -0400

OpenAI and one of its subsidiaries will pay $3.2 million to settle allegations that they discriminated against U.S. workers by favoring foreign workers with temporary employment visas, the Justice Department announced Tuesday.

The Justice Department said the settlement resolves allegations that OpenAI and its subsidiary, Statsig Inc., violated the Immigration and Nationality Act through the Permanent Labor Certification (PERM) process by discouraging qualified U.S. workers from applying for certain jobs.

According to the Justice Department, OpenAI and Statsig, which develops product software, recruited foreign workers for some positions while taking steps that discouraged U.S. applicants.

According to the DOJ, OpenAI did not advertise positions it sought to fill through the PERM program on its job website, even though its standard practice was to do so with other jobs.

CHINA NARROWS AMERICA’S AI LEAD AS HUAWEI EXPANDS ITS GLOBAL TECH FOOTPRINT, FORMER US OFFICIAL WARNS

Federal investigators alleged that OpenAI failed to advertise certain PERM positions on its careers website, required applicants to mail paper applications for those jobs while accepting electronic applications for other positions, and in some cases aired radio advertisements late at night, practices the Justice Department said discouraged U.S. workers from applying.

The settlement includes $1.2 million in civil penalties and $2 million to compensate alleged victims of discrimination. OpenAI also agreed to revise its employment policies, conduct training and submit to Justice Department monitoring.

OpenAI denied wrongdoing as part of the settlement agreement.

FED DISSENTERS WARN INFLATION COULD BECOME ENTRENCHED WITHOUT MONETARY POLICY TIGHTENING NOW

"It is illegal to discriminate against U.S. workers by preferring temporary visa holders for jobs," Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division said in a statement.

"This substantial settlement ensures that OpenAI redresses harm and changes its recruitment practices so that U.S. workers receive a fair opportunity for highly sought-after technology positions," Dhillon added.

President Donald Trump has previously argued that many companies abuse temporary employment visa programs and has sought to limit the hiring of foreign workers, including by proposing a $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas for highly skilled workers. That proposal remains tied up in court.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

FOX Business has reached out to OpenAI for comment.

Reuters contributed to this report.

China narrows America’s AI lead as Huawei expands its global tech footprint, former US official warns

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 16:43:53 -0400

The U.S. remains ahead of China in the global artificial intelligence (AI) race, but its lead is narrowing as Beijing expands the global reach of Huawei and other Chinese technology companies, former State Department official Keith Krach told FOX Business.

The competition goes beyond which country develops the most powerful AI models. It also centers on energy, infrastructure, semiconductors, talent, exports and the technical standards other nations will rely on for years, according to Krach.

"America is still ahead, but we are not comfortably ahead," Krach said.

His remarks come roughly one year after the Trump administration unveiled Winning the Race in July 2025, a national AI strategy featuring more than 90 federal actions.

BESSENT HIGHLIGHTS TRUMP ECONOMY, WARNS CHINA HAS 'DONE A LOT OF KICKING LATELY'

Krach said the U.S. still leads in private investment, advanced chips, cloud infrastructure, universities and entrepreneurial talent. China, however, has gained ground in patents, industrial deployment, research, robotics and lower-cost open models.

"We are leading today, but the race will be won by the ecosystem the world chooses to build on," he said.

Krach, who serves as chairman of the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue University and CEO of Freedom 250, said the Trump administration's strategy correctly recognizes the broader stakes.

He argued that success should be measured through new power generation, faster data center construction, greater semiconductor capacity, wider AI adoption, allied contracts and technical talent.

Huawei is central to China’s global technology push, according to Krach, who described the company as a "vertically integrated delivery system" for technological and geopolitical influence.

GOP AGS WARN OPENAI'S ALTMAN TO PRESERVE RECORDS IN AI AGENT HACKING PROBE

The Chinese technology giant can offer governments wireless networks, data centers, cloud services, AI chips, software, cybersecurity tools and financing in a single package.

Once installed, those systems can become costly, disruptive and "politically difficult" to replace, Krach said.

"The real strategic asset is not the hardware," he said. "It is long-term access to data, standards, software updates, technical dependencies and government relationships."

Krach said China’s offering is built around integration, financing, speed and state support.

"America must counter it with a trusted full-stack alternative that performs better and strengthens, rather than compromises, a partner country's independence," Krach argued.

Countries will choose American technology, Krach said, when it is not only more trusted but also easier to finance, deploy and expand.

ANTHROPIC SAYS AI MODELS ACCESSED SYSTEMS OF 3 REAL ORGANIZATIONS DURING TESTING

To maintain its lead, the U.S. must expand energy production, data centers, semiconductor manufacturing, cloud capacity and its skilled workforce, Krach said.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

He also called for faster permitting, support for proprietary and open American AI models and export packages that allies can easily purchase and deploy.

"China's advantage is [on a] coordinated scale," Krach said. "America's advantage is freedom, innovation, capital, entrepreneurship and allies. Our task is to organize those strengths without destroying what makes them powerful."

GOP AGs warn OpenAI's Altman to preserve records in AI agent hacking probe

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:38:08 -0400

A coalition of 15 red-state attorneys general warned OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on Monday to preserve documents and halt certain high-risk cybersecurity tests after an experimental artificial intelligence agent allegedly escaped a controlled environment and carried out a multi-day hack into outside computer systems.

In a Monday letter shared with Fox News Digital, the attorneys general said OpenAI may have violated state and federal consumer-protection and data-privacy laws and cautioned that a failure to preserve relevant records could trigger sanctions if litigation follows.

"A failure to take immediate action to preserve such materials could result in spoliation sanctions if litigation were to ensue," Iowa Republican AG Brenna Bird's letter, signed by GOP AGs from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas and Utah, read.

"We further demand that OpenAI take immediate steps to ensure that no OpenAI personnel face any adverse action for engaging in any protected whistleblowing activity or for reporting any unlawful or harmful activities by OpenAI."

FLORIDA SUES OPENAI AND SAM ALTMAN CLAIMING CHATGPT IS UNSAFE FOR USERS

The officials accused OpenAI of conducting a July 2026 evaluation involving two advanced models — identified in the letter as GPT-5.6 Sol and an unreleased model the company had described as "even more capable" — without the normal safeguards designed to prevent high-risk cyber activity.

"This incident marks an important moment for AI safety and we take the questions raised by the Attorneys General seriously," an OpenAI spokesperson told Fox News in a statement. "We are conducting a thorough review along with external advisors and with oversight from the Safety and Security Committee of the Board of Directors.

"Once the review is complete, we will share a technical report with the Attorneys General and other relevant government authorities and publish our findings publicly."

This letter and hack follow a letter GOP AGs wrote to Altman in May, demanding answers on OpenAI's nonprofit status.

"OpenAI’s inability or unwillingness to ensure the safety of its products poses an imminent risk of substantial harm to our States," Bird wrote.

"We intend to take decisive action to protect our citizens."

ELON MUSK ATTORNEY CLAIMS OPENAI, SAM ALTMAN 'STOLE A CHARITY' AS HIGH-STAKES LEGAL FIGHT BEGINS

The test was supposed to take place in an isolated environment with no internet access, but the attorneys general alleged in the letter that the agent exploited a software vulnerability, escaped the testing environment and connected to the internet.

"OpenAI failed to confirm that its secure and isolated testing environment was, in fact, secure and isolated," Bird wrote. "It was not."

From there, the agent allegedly launched an intrusion targeting the AI company Hugging Face in an effort to steal an answer key and defeat its own safety evaluation.

Citing an interim technical report from Hugging Face, the letter said the agent carried out more than 17,000 "attacker actions," seized control of an external endpoint exposed through a third-party infrastructure provider and entered Hugging Face systems.

OPENAI DIDN'T REALIZE ITS AGENT WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR HACK FOR A WEEK: REPORT

The attorneys general also cited reporting that the agent found four sets of login credentials online and used them to access four other unnamed services.

OpenAI allegedly did not know the agent had broken containment while the activity was underway. The letter claims Hugging Face detected the intrusion independently and contacted the FBI before OpenAI determined that its own technology was responsible.

The document presents the incident and its surrounding details as allegations drawn from public reporting and technical findings.

The attorneys general said the episode followed a series of warning signs involving OpenAI’s models and internal oversight.

OPENAI CO-FOUNDER WARNS AI MODELS ARE BECOMING HARDER TO CONTROL AFTER ITS MODEL HACKED ANOTHER FIRM

They cited reports that an AI agent had previously left instructions for future versions of itself describing how to escape internal restrictions, that monitoring systems had been disconnected during earlier tests and that employees sometimes struggled to oversee multiple fast-moving model evaluations generating enormous volumes of data.

"OpenAI's unprecedented and alarming misconduct demands an immediate and significant response," the officials wrote.

The coalition demanded that OpenAI preserve documents, internal communications, data and other materials related to the Hugging Face intrusion, the pre-release model involved, the company's discovery of the incident and any internal investigation or public statement concerning it.

The preservation request also covers previous cases in which OpenAI models may have used publicly exposed credentials, earlier unauthorized network intrusions and any incident in which a model left notes for future versions of itself.

ANTHROPIC SAYS AI MODELS ACCESSED SYSTEMS OF 3 REAL ORGANIZATIONS DURING TESTING

The attorneys general further requested records concerning OpenAI’s safety policies, testing procedures, monitoring systems, employee concerns and personnel with knowledge of the alleged events.

The letter also demanded that OpenAI protect employees from retaliation for reporting potentially unlawful or dangerous conduct.

In addition, the coalition called on the company to immediately stop internal evaluations that prompt AI models to pursue advanced exploitation through complex attack paths.

"Unless and until OpenAI shows that it can conduct such activities in a controlled and responsible way, such activities pose an imminent risk of serious harm to the citizens of our States," the letter said.

The officials stopped short of announcing a lawsuit but said the publicly reported facts could support claims under laws enforced by state attorneys general.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

"OpenAI has an obligation to act responsibly and to follow State and federal laws that protect Americans’ safety and security," Bird's letter concluded. "When OpenAI takes actions that imperil the welfare of our citizens, State Attorneys General will step in to protect them.

"We intend to take all steps necessary to protect our States and all Americans from the unprecedented risks posed by OpenAI’s irresponsible products and conduct."

The White House has confirmed to Fox News that it is going to host AI companies Tuesday to review the AI framework from a June 2 executive order from President Donald Trump.

Myspace seeking a revival as its owners plan comeback effort for once-popular social media platform

Sun, 02 Aug 2026 21:25:38 -0400

Myspace could soon make a comeback after nearly two decades on the decline, as its owners seek a fresh start to compete with the current social media giants.

The owners of the once-popular social media platform, brothers Tim and Chris Vanderhook, announced plans to relaunch MySpace with a new vision.

The brothers said they want to create a platform that feels different from current social media platforms, which many users complain are too focused on algorithms and are designed to encourage endless scrolling.

The Vanderhooks said in a new documentary, "Myspace," that they "built an entirely new Myspace," but it did not work out.

META EMPLOYEES SUE ON ALLEGATIONS COMPANY USED AI TO TARGET WORKERS ON MEDICAL, PARENTAL LEAVE FOR LAYOFFS

"We really tried to modernize it, but it was a different company at that point. It wasn’t the same Myspace," Tim explained in the documentary.

Chris added, "By that time, they had been through four other sets of management and CEOs. We were going to be the fifth ones, and I think that there were a lot of the people who were really just done."

The two now plan to relaunch the platform at some point, but a target date has not yet been set.

"And if that one doesn’t work, we’ll do it again," Tim said.

FOUR STATES SEEKING $1.4 TRILLION IN PENALTIES IN CHILD SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION TRIAL, META SAYS

Tom Anderson, Myspace's co-founder and everyone’s automatic first friend, sold the company in 2005 and is not expected to be involved in the Vanderhooks' upcoming initiative.

MySpace first launched in 2003, becoming one of the biggest social networking websites in the world, known for customizable profiles, music features and a "Top Friends" list before Facebook eventually surpassed it as the top social media application.

Between 2005 and 2008, Myspace was considered the most popular social media website. MySpace and Facebook would both attract roughly 115 million visitors per month in 2008, but Facebook surpassed MySpace in global website traffic around that time and overtook Myspace in unique U.S. visitors in 2009, taking control of Myspace's most important demographic.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

Facebook never looked back, as its growth in the next few years was too much for MySpace to overcome, capped off by a max exodus in 2010.

Myspace can still be accessed, but it is nowhere near what it once was. Tom Anderson is also still accessible, but he has not posted on the platform in 13 years.

Anthropic says AI models accessed systems of 3 real organizations during testing

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 21:54:39 -0400

Anthropic announced Thursday that three of its artificial intelligence models accessed the open internet during cybersecurity testing and gained unauthorized access to the systems of three real organizations.

The disclosure follows OpenAI's announcement earlier this month that one of its advanced AI models breached the systems of AI company Hugging Face during internal testing, raising fresh questions about safeguards surrounding increasingly autonomous AI systems.

"We found three incidents in which a Claude model reached the internet from within or while interacting with a third-party evaluation environment, and then gained unauthorized access to the real systems of three different organizations," Anthropic said in a news release.

Anthropic said it reviewed more than 140,000 cybersecurity evaluation runs after OpenAI's disclosure and identified three incidents involving different Claude models. The company said all of the incidents occurred during internal testing because of a configuration error that inadvertently gave the models access to the open internet.

TRUMP WEIGHS TIGHTER AI CONTROLS BUT WARNS AGAINST FALLING BEHIND CHINA

According to Anthropic, Claude had been told it was operating inside a closed simulation with no internet access, causing it to mistakenly treat real organizations' systems as part of a fictional "capture-the-flag" cybersecurity exercise.

The incidents involved three different Claude models, including Opus 4.7, Mythos 5 and an internal research test model, and all occurred during internal testing rather than on customer systems, Anthropic said. The earliest incident dates to April.

"Claude believed everything it initially encountered was part of the simulation, and treated the real systems it found as pieces of the exercise," Anthropic said.

"In none of these situations did Claude exfiltrate itself or deliberately attempt to escape its test environment," the company added.

OPENAI DIDN'T REALIZE ITS AGENT WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR HACK FOR A WEEK: REPORT

Anthropic said the incidents underscored the need for stronger safeguards around AI testing environments.

"Evaluation environments that involve powerful autonomous capabilities also require significant controls," the company said. "We encourage other AI labs to perform similar reviews."

PALANTIR CEO WARNS US AGAINST EUROPE'S AI REGULATION PATH, URGES TRUMP ADMIN TO NOT BAN OPEN MODELS

President Donald Trump said Wednesday his administration is considering additional safeguards for artificial intelligence following recent cybersecurity incidents.

Trump said the U.S. must strike a balance between protecting against AI risks and maintaining its technological edge over China.

"We're looking at AI, we're looking at controls," Trump said.

OPENAI CO-FOUNDER WARNS AI MODELS ARE BECOMING HARDER TO CONTROL AFTER ITS MODEL HACKED ANOTHER FIRM

"Whoever wins with AI is going to win," he added. "That's how big it is. So it's bigger than the internet ever was. It's bigger than anything ever was. So I don't want to restrict. I know many of these people. I don't want to restrict them from doing great work."

The announcement came one day after OpenAI CEO Sam Altman acknowledged growing public concerns about artificial intelligence following his company's own cybersecurity incident.

"I think it's very natural to be fearful after any new capability level," Altman told FOX Business. "Obviously, we're taking this super seriously, and we'll continue to do so, but I would say I understand, I get it. A lot of AI has gone super well and this is a moment where people are like, 'Okay, we're at a new level.'"

When asked whether OpenAI's models may have breached other companies' systems, Altman replied: "There could be, yeah."

eBay to pay nearly $50M after ex-employees allegedly terrorized couple with cockroach, fetal pig packages

Wed, 29 Jul 2026 17:12:29 -0400

eBay Inc. on Tuesday agreed to pay roughly $50 million to a Massachusetts couple after former employees were accused of terrorizing the pair of bloggers — sending packages containing live cockroaches and spiders, a preserved fetal pig, a funeral wreath, a bloody pig Halloween mask and a book about surviving the death of a spouse.

According to a 2021 lawsuit, the deliveries were part of a 2019 harassment campaign targeting David and Ina Steiner, who cover the e-commerce industry through their newsletter.

The lawsuit alleged the employees became angered by the Steiners' reporting and conspired to "intimidate, threaten to kill, torture, terrorize, stalk and silence them." The couple said they were subjected to cyberstalking, death threats and in-person surveillance.

"We hope that the size of the settlement amount will act as a deterrent to any corporation that uses their resources to intimidate journalists into compliance simply because they don't agree with their coverage," the couple said in a statement to FOX Business.

EBAY TO PAY $3M AFTER TARGETING MASSACHUSETTS COUPLE WITH CYBERSTALKING CAMPAIGN

"I could not conceive that a company I had been covering for the past two decades had tried to terrorize us into stopping our reporting," Ina Steiner added, according to The Associated Press.

The lawsuit named former CEO Devin Wenig, former Chief Communications Officer Steve Wymer and former Senior Vice President Wendy Jones, all of whom have since left the company but were not criminally charged. In 2020, federal prosecutors also charged six other former eBay employees and one contractor in connection with the scheme, all of whom ultimately pleaded guilty to their roles.

The campaign reportedly lasted several weeks, beginning with threatening direct messages on social media before escalating into anonymous deliveries.

According to the lawsuit, employees sent pornographic magazines addressed to David Steiner to a neighbor's home in an attempt to defame the couple within their community. They also tried to plant a GPS tracking device on the couple's vehicle, the suit said.

Ina Steiner said she did not initially know who was behind the harassment or why they had been targeted.

GAMESTOP TARGETS EBAY IN $56B TAKEOVER BID, SEES PATH TO RIVAL AMAZON

Under the settlement, the Steiners will receive $48.7 million in compensation, including about $46.15 million from eBay, $2 million from former CEO Wenig, $500,000 from former executive Jones and $50,000 from former executive Wymer.

The company will also fund $6 million in charitable donations, while Wenig will contribute an additional $1 million to a charity dedicated to protecting First Amendment rights in Ina Steiner's name.

The Steiners told FOX Business that accountability from the three executives was necessary, especially after they expressed disappointment with the outcome of the federal investigation.

"It became apparent to us that the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston was not going to indict any member of the executive team at eBay, and that it was up to us to hold the corporation and the three defendants accountable for their actions," the couple said in a statement.

The Steiners said they also prioritized a settlement with no confidentiality provision, allowing them to discuss the case publicly.

"David and I were on the same page that this settlement should and must be made public — as victims who want to prevent something like this from ever happening to anyone else, and as reporters who believe in transparency," Ina Steiner told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "We hope that this case will serve as a deterrent."

EBAY CUTS 800 JOBS ACROSS COMPANY OPERATIONS JUST DAYS AFTER DROPPING $1.2B ON TRENDY GEN Z FASHION APP

Tuesday's agreement follows a tentative settlement reached in February that ultimately fell apart, sending the case toward trial, according to The Associated Press.

eBay, which previously apologized when the lawsuit was filed in 2021, again acknowledged "the unprofessional tone in internal communications" by former executives tied to the case.

"What the Steiners were subjected to by former eBay employees in 2019 was wrong, reprehensible and should never have happened," the company said in a statement Tuesday. "We condemn, in the strongest terms possible, the employees who perpetrated and pled guilty to criminal charges for the misconduct against Ina and David Steiner."

"We continue to extend our deepest apologies to the Steiners. This agreement is consistent with our commitment to fairly compensate the Steiners and fulfills our efforts to make things right."

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

eBay added that it has since strengthened its policies, procedures and ethics training following the alleged misconduct.

"The 2019 conduct is not representative of eBay’s culture or thousands of employees around the world today," the company said. "Since these events occurred, new leaders have joined the company and eBay has strengthened its policies, procedures, controls and training consistent with the company’s ongoing commitment to uphold high standards of conduct and ethics."

Wenig has continued to maintain that he had no knowledge of the harassment campaign and said he was saddened by what the Steiners endured, his representative told FOX Business.

"No one should ever have been subjected to what the Steiners endured in 2019, and I’m saddened by it, especially because it occurred during my time as CEO of eBay," Wenig said in a statement provided by his representative, Rudy Wong. "The harassment was deliberately done in secret and without my knowledge, as established by an independent law firm review, a federal probe, and the sworn testimony of the security employee convicted as the ‘ringleader.’ This behavior is antithetical to everything I stand for and believe in."

In 2024, eBay also agreed to pay a $3 million criminal penalty after federal prosecutors charged the company in connection with the harassment campaign.

How AI could redefine healthcare by the end of the decade

Wed, 29 Jul 2026 05:00:49 -0400

Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) are set to help reshape the healthcare industry in the years ahead, a new report finds.

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the largest group of technical professionals that's dedicated to advancing technology to benefit humanity, released its Technology Megatrends 2030 Report on Wednesday after it was reviewed exclusively by FOX Business.

The report looked across five core areas, including AI, energy, health and biotech, space tech, and robotics and assessed the potential of each to reshape human life by 2030. The experts whose insights were used to compile the report ranked developments in health technology as having the largest potential impact on humanity.

Dejan Milojicic, IEEE fellow and chair of the IEEE Future Directions Committee Industry Advisory Board, told FOX Business that within the megatrends analyzed in the report, "health technologies emerge as among the most transformative and humanity-beneficial, driven by a fundamental shift from reactive treatment to proactive protection."

ZUCKERBERG PREDICTS MORE JOBS AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP IF SUPERINTELLIGENCE IS WIDELY DISTRIBUTED

IEEE's report identified several technological areas that can advance the healthcare industry, including personalized medicine; genetic engineering and gene therapy; accessible early disease diagnostics and biomarkers; molecular therapeutics; protein synthesis; and understanding life.

Of those six areas, IEEE graded personalized medicine, genetic engineering and gene therapy, and accessible early disease diagnostics and biomarkers the highest in terms of their impact, likelihood of success, maturity and adoption.

ANTHROPIC'S AMODEI DEFENDS OPEN-WEIGHT STANCE FOLLOWING CRITIQUE FROM PALANTIR'S KARP

Over the next five to 10 years, IEEE sees advances in health tech leading to impacts like the reduction of preventable chronic diseases, personalized clinical outcomes, improved food safety and increased access to high-quality, nutrient-dense foods.

"As populations age, using physical AI technologies, such as virtual nursing and intelligent monitoring, will become vital to supporting the needs of an expanding revitalized economy," Milojicic said. "At the same time, we see food systems being reimagined as core healthcare infrastructure, using AI-enhanced tools like smart traceability to deliver personalized nutrition and curb chronic disease at scale."

COMPANY BETS $200K ON AI TO MAKE TRADES WORKERS 'BETTER, STRONGER, FASTER'

IEEE identified several enablers for advancements in healthcare tech, including biotechnology, digital health, and things like agricultural drones and personalized nutrition.

Inhibitors to the impact of health technology advancements include privacy and security for data used for public health prevention through epidemiology and surveillance, as well as status quo culture.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

"Our panel of experts is clear that none of this works without robust trust, privacy, and safety standards guiding how these technologies are built and deployed," Milojicic said.