Lifeboat Foundation

X’s new privacy policy, which is due to come into effect on September 29, states that the company “may use the information we collect and publicly available information to help train our machine learning or artificial intelligence models for the purposes outlined in this policy.” This policy is not included in its previous terms, which are still posted online.

Musk responded to a post about this change on X, saying that it would only use publicly available information to train the AI and would not use “DMs or anything private.”

During a live audio session on X – formerly Twitter – in July, Elon Musk said that his AI startup, xAI, would use public data from his social media platform to train its AI models. Insider reached out to X for comment but didn’t immediately hear back. It is not clear how it will use the information from X and which AI models this relates to.

The FAA made a big splash when it unveiled its Innovate28 plan for advanced air mobility (AAM) operations with electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft at scale by 2028. But while Innovate28 is just that—a plan—the agency’s friend across the Atlantic is already proposing hard requirements for AAM certification, operations, and maintenance.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on Thursday shared its final opinion on rules and regulations for eVTOL air taxis, drones, and other emerging aircraft with the European Commission. Now, the ball is in the Commission’s court as it determines whether to accept EASA’s policy recommendations.

Opinion No 03/2023 lays out a comprehensive regulatory framework for safe operations of new aircraft types. It introduces requirements for piloted electric air taxi operations, flight crew licensing, air traffic management, and standardized European rules of the air (SERA). The proposal also suggests a criteria and process for the certification and maintenance of remotely piloted drones.

X, formerly known as Twitter, will begin collecting users’ biometric data, according to its new privacy policy that was first spotted by Bloomberg. The policy also says the company wants to collect users’ job and education history. The policy page indicates that the change will go into effect on September 29.

“Based on your consent, we may collect and use your biometric information for safety, security, and identification purposes,” the updated policy reads. Although X hasn’t specified what it means by biometric information, it is usually used to describe a person’s physical characteristics, such as their face or fingerprints. X also hasn’t provided any details about how it plans to collect it.

The company told Bloomberg that the biometrics are for premium users and will give them the option to submit their government ID and an image in order to add a verification layer. Biometric data may be extracted from both the ID and image for matching purposes, Bloomberg reports.

For the first time in my timezone, SpaceX completed 9 launches in a month. Previously, if you were based in Europe, you saw 9 launches in a month a few months ago. At 9 launches/month that is a current rate of 108 launches/year, making SpaceX’s goal of 100 launches this year a possibility.

They had a lot of trouble getting this flight off today as a recent hurricane is still affecting the weather some. They got around this by having a 5 and a half hour launch window so they just waited a few hours until the weather was clear for several minutes and they launched!

Continue reading “SpaceX Falcon 9 Launches Starlink 6-13 Mission” »

NIH-funded study suggests reducing exposure to airborne particulates may decrease dementia risk.

Higher rates of new cases of dementia in a population over time — known as incident dementia — are linked to long-term exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) air pollution, especially from agriculture and open fires, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health and published in JAMA Internal Medicine. Scientists found that 15% of older adults developed incident dementia during the average follow-up of 10 years.

“As we experience the effects of air pollution from wildfires and other emissions locally and internationally, these findings contribute to the strong evidence needed to best inform health and policy decisions,” said Richard J. Hodes, M.D., director, National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of NIH. “These results are an example of effectively using federally funded research data to help address critical health risks.”

SEATTLE — Undergirding recent budget guidance from the Biden administration to federal research and development organizations is a recognition of a steady and growing demand for microelectronics as a key enabler for advancement in nearly every technology sector, according to a senior White House technology advisor.

The White House on Aug. 17 issued its research and development priorities for the fiscal 2025 budget, offering direction to federal offices as they plan to submit their spending requests to the Office of Management and Budget in early September. The high-level focus areas include strengthening the nation’s critical infrastructure amid climate change, advancing trustworthy AI, improving healthcare and fostering industrial innovation alongside basic and applied research.

According to Steven Welby, deputy director for national security within the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy, most of those priorities have some sort of connection to the nation’s goals for boosting the microelectronics industrial base.

In the latest development to Amazon’s RTO saga, the tech giant sent an email Wednesday scolding employees for not adhering to a new policy mandating they come into the office at least three days a week.

“We now have three months under our belt with a lot more people back in the office, and you can feel the surge in energy and collaboration happening among Amazonians and across teams,” the email reads. “We are reaching out as you are not currently meeting our expectation of joining your colleagues in the office at least three days a week, even though your assigned building is ready. We expect you to start coming into the office three or more days a week now.”

The only problem: Some of the employees who received the email say they’ve been coming in as requested, Insider first reported.

The publication has updated its T&Cs to include rules that forbid its content from being used to train artificial intelligence systems.

The New York Times.

The updated terms now also specify that automated tools like website… More.

Continue reading “The New York Times says you can’t use its content to train AI models” »

We need a new philosophical framework for problem solving and global conflict resolutions or we will be finished as a species.

Jeffrey Sachs Interview — Resentment and Nuclear Threats.

Continue reading “Jeffrey Sachs Interview — Resentment and Nuclear Threats” »