Here’s a Mandela effect event that you probably thought was real: The Department of Government Efficiency, the pseudo-agency run by Elon Musk to cut “fraud, waste, and abuse” from federal operations, didn’t actually exist. At least, that is what Google’s AI Overview response will tell you if you search certain content related to DOGE’s operations. […]
Anthropic Agrees to $1.5 Billion Settlement for Downloading Pirated Books to Train AI
Anthropic has agreed to pay $1.5 billion to settle a lawsuit brought by authors and publishers over its use of millions of copyrighted books to train the models for its AI chatbot Claude, according to a legal filing posted online. A federal judge found in June that Anthropic’s use of 7 million pirated books was […]
Google Won’t Have to Sell Chrome Browser After All (But There’s a Catch)
A federal judge ruled in a high-profile antitrust case against Google on Tuesday with some good news and bad news for the tech giant. The good news for Google is that it won’t have to sell off its Chrome browser, which was a very real possibility. Google’s stock soared in after hours trading on the […]
EU Gets Cold Feet Over Google Fine, Fears Potential Trump Backlash
The European Union has put plans to fine Google on hold. The commission in charge of doling out punishment for digital infractions is reportedly worried that fining the U.S. tech giant for allegedly abusing its dominance in online advertising could provoke U.S. President Donald Trump. Bloomberg and Reuters reported, citing unnamed sources, that E.U. officials […]
Google Investors Surprisingly Chill About Major Data Breach
The stock of Google’s parent company ended Friday’s trading session relatively unchanged, as investors digested news of a major data leak and broader market developments. Alphabet Inc. (GOOG)’s shares closed at $213.53, up slightly from the day’s prior end price, despite Google‘s global security alert advising its 2.5 billion Gmail users to update their information […]
Pixel 10 Review: Google Delivers the AI Phone That Apple Promised
If you just look at the Pixel 10’s physical design, you’re going to be disappointed. Google’s new $800 Android smartphone looks almost identical to last year’s Pixel 9, save for an additional 5x telephoto camera lens and some new colors, including the makes-me-smile Indigo blue. But like most new phones, there are a bunch of […]
Mysterious ‘Nano-Banana’ Project Revealed to Be Google’s Latest Image Editor
Google just upgraded its AI image model, and it actually looks to be a pretty significant step up. The company rolled out Gemini 2.5 Flash Image today, a major refresh that promises smarter and more flexible image generation. The upgraded model allows users to issue natural language prompts to not only generate images but also […]
Taylor Switch 2 Is Launching the GTA 6 of Weddings
Taylor Swift is hearing wedding bells, but every website on Earth just hears the ka-ching of a cash register. At Gizmodo, we pride ourselves on bringing you the best updates in tech, science, and general nerd-ery, but every once in a while, a story comes along that sends a shockwave across the newsroom. Sometimes a […]
Intrusive Thought of the Day: Is That YouTube Video Enhanced With AI?
Have you noticed YouTube videos have started to have a little hint of the Uncanny Valley in recent months? You are far from alone, as a growing chorus of folks stuck in YouTube’s endless scroll of Shorts have started piecing together similar qualities across videos that give viewers the heebie jeebies. That’s probably not the […]
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She First Met Elon Musk at Sergey Brin’s Birthday Party
Elon Musk infamously threw Donald Trump under the bus in June when he insisted that the president was “in the Epstein files,” a reference to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. But a newly released interview with Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell might put the spotlight back on Musk when it comes to all things Epstein. […]