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☆ The copyright lawsuits against OpenAI are piling up as the tech company seeks data to train its AI
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-30 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | Lakshmi Varanasi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Leading tech companies like Google, Meta, OpenAI, Anthropic, and Microsoft are all scrambling to find new sources of data. Part of the problem is that publishers are increasingly accusing these companies of hoovering up copyrighted data. One solution is synthetic data, which is artificially generated rather than collected from the real world, and can easily be generated by machine learning algorithms. OpenAI has considered synthetic data as an option to train its models, but CEO Sam Altman has raised concerns about producing quality data. "As long as you can get over the synthetic data event horizon, where the model is smart enough to make good synthetic data, everything will be fine," Altman said at a tech conference in May 2023.

Persons: —, Simon, Schuster, OpenAI, they'll, Mother Jones, Monika Bauerlein, Axel Springer, Sam Altman, Altman Organizations: Service, Google, Microsoft, Meta, Business, US Copyright, Investigative, Center, Author's, New York Times, Guild, Associated Press, The, Street, New, New York Post, Prisa Media, Le Monde, Financial Times Locations: New York, The

☆ Tech billionaire Peter Thiel says he only allows his children 1.5 hours of screen time a week
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-30 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Peter Thiel said he only lets his kids use screens for 1.5 hours a week. Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . Or my kids, says Peter Thiel. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: Peter Thiel, Evan Spiegel, Sundar Pichai, —, Andrew Ross Sorkin, Thiel Organizations: Service, Aspen Ideas, PayPal, Facebook, Business Locations: Colorado

☆ The plot of a new Fox animated comedy series is about a guy who gets a $3,000 monthly 'universal basic income'
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-29 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Basic income programs are the next victim, now on Fox. "Universal Basic Guys" stars a pair of brothers who join a $3,000-a-month basic income program after the hot dog factory where they work becomes automated. A universal basic income is often cited as a potential solution to the likely job losses created by artificial intelligence. A universal basic income would give monthly no-strings-attached cash payments to everyone, regardless of their financial status. While more cities are experimenting with basic income programs, they have also been the target of conservative ire.

Persons: —, Fox, Mark, Hank Hoagies, Andrew Yang, Hank, Mark Hoagies, Homer Simpson, Bob of, Michael Thorn, Adam, Craig Malamut Organizations: Service, Fox, Business, Fox Entertainment, Sony Pictures Television, Sony, NBA, Sony Pictures Television Studios Locations: United States, Iowa

☆ Mexican cartels have stolen over $300 million from American seniors in elaborate timeshare property scams
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-16 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Mexican cartels are exploiting timeshare scams, targeting older Americans for over $300 million. Cartels often conduct "extensive research on their potential victims" before the scam, the FBI said. AdvertisementIt seems even Mexican drug cartels are cashing in on the day's most lucrative criminal enterprise: online scams. The Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Gulf Cartel, and the Sinaloa Cartel — which El Chapo once led — have all dabbled in online scams, the FBI says. Their scam of choice appears to be timeshare fraud, targeting mostly older Americans to the tune of over $300 million in the last five years.

Persons: —, El Chapo Organizations: FBI, Service, Jalisco New, Gulf Cartel, Business Locations: Jalisco, Gulf, Sinaloa

☆ Why OpenAI is getting harder to trust
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-15 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | Lakshmi Varanasi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

OpenAI appointed former NSA Director Paul Nakasone to its board of directors. Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . It just appointed a former NSA director to its board. In its latest eyebrow-raising move, the company said Friday it had appointed former NSA Director Paul Nakasone to its board of directors.

Persons: OpenAI, Paul Nakasone, — Organizations: NSA, Service, Business

☆ The number of Ozempic and Wegovy scams has grown by 183% so far this year
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-15 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Phishing scams targeting weight loss drugs like Ozempic rose 183% from January to April. Social media sites like Facebook are hotspots for these scams, McAfee says. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . The trendy weight loss drug Ozempic, which can cost $1,000 a month, is an opportunity apparently too good for them to pass up. New research released by McAfee, a computer and cybersecurity company, says that phishing scams targeting consumers interested in weight loss drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Semaglutide rose 183% from January to April compared to the previous three months.

Persons: McAfee, — Organizations: Service, McAfee, Business

☆ Fresno officials should have noticed a phishing scam that cost taxpayers more than $600,000, jury says
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-09 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Fresno lost over $600,000 to a phishing scam in 2020. AdvertisementThe city of Fresno lost more than $600,000 to to a phishing scam in 2020. Now, a grand jury says that city officials should have noticed the scam before it cost taxpayer dollars. City officials discovered the fraud after realizing an invoice from a contractor working on a section of the Fresno police station was fake, according to The Fresno Bee. City officials did not publicly comment on the scam until reporting by the paper uncovered it in 2022.

Persons: Jerry Dyer, — Organizations: Fresno, Service, Fresno police, Fresno Bee, Bee, Business Locations: Fresno

☆ OpenAI seems to be hiring undercover security guards at its office and it's creeping out local business owners
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-09 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewOpenAI's office in San Francisco is crawling with undercover security guards who don't take kindly to questions, locals say. Photographers for The San Francisco Standard, an online local news outlet, said they recently noticed what looked like undercover security guards standing outside the company's office. OpenAI first moved into its 59,000-square-foot office in San Francisco's Mission District in July 2023. Iain Langlands, a cashier at a pet store just one block from the office, told the Standard that the "vibe" surrounding the OpenAI office is "secretive." California's Bureau of Security and Investigative Services — which issues security guard licenses — did not immediately return Business a request for comment from Business Insider.

Persons: —, Candace Combs, Combs, OpenAI, Iain Langlands, James Organizations: Service, The San Francisco, Business, San Francisco's Mission, Health Ceramics, California's, of Security, Services Locations: San Francisco, San Francisco's

☆ A crypto trading platform that recruited users through prayer circles was a pyramid scheme that made $1 billion for its 'Reverand CEO,' lawsuit says
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-09 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Now, the New York attorney general says NovaTechFx is just a front for a $1 billion pyramid scheme. The lawsuit also names as a defendant AWS Mining Pty, a crypto mining platform previously run by the Petions. The lawsuit accuses the couple of targeting Haitian immigrants in New York City to recruit them into the pyramid scheme using local prayer circles. After founding NovaTechFx in 2019, Cynthia Petion rebranded herself as the "Reverend CEO," claiming that her company was "God's vision," the lawsuit says. The Petions also operated the NovaTechFx website, which the lawsuit says is where investors would go to invest in cryptocurrency through the company, according to court documents.

Persons: —, NovaTechFx, Leticia James, Eddy Petion, Cynthia Petion, mindlessly, James, Renold Julien, Konbit Organizations: Service, New, New York, New York Supreme, AWS Mining, Business, Yorkers, Mining Locations: New York, New York City, cryptocurrency, Haitian, United States

☆ South Africa could be the first-ever country to provide a no-strings-attached universal basic income
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-09 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

A universal basic income has wide support in South Africa. And South Africa's government just pledged to make universal basic income a reality. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . But its government thinks it has a solution: a universal basic income. The idea has broad political support and the country's largest political party, the African National Congress, said recently it is committed to implementing a universal basic income within two years.

Persons: — Organizations: Service, African National Congress, Business Locations: South Africa, Africa

☆ How scammers used 'social engineering' to steal over $1 million from an Idaho town of less than 4,000 people
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-08 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Scammers tricked Gooding, Idaho employees into sending over $1 million to fake contractors. The payment was intended for a wastewater project but was diverted into the criminal's account. Sign up for our newsletter to get the latest on the culture & business of sustainability — delivered weekly to your inbox. Officials in Gooding said this week that an employee sent a payment of $1,092,519 meant for contractors working on a wastewater project, but it went to scammers instead. According to a city press release, the scammers impersonated representatives of a contractor hired by city officials, using a tactic called "social engineering" to gain the employee's trust.

Persons: Scammers, Gooding Organizations: FBI, Service, Business Locations: Gooding, Idaho, scammers

☆ The gap between CEO pay and worker pay is widening again
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-06 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

CEOs in the S&P 500 made almost 200 times what their average worker did in 2023. CEO compensation had been trending downward before a 12.6% increase in 2023. Broadcom CEO Hock Tan was the highest-paid CEO in 2023 at $161.8 million. Broadcom CEO Hock Tan was the highest-earning CEO in 2023. Tan is the only CEO in the study to receive a compensation package of nine figures.

Persons: Hock Tan, —, Equilar, Tan Organizations: Broadcom, Service, Associated Press, Business

☆ Online scams might soon just be a battle between AIs
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-03 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

A Harvard study found that AI phishing scams are as effective as human ones. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementOnline scams might soon just be a battle between AIs, one launching the attacks and another defending against them. Online scams are only becoming more prevalent, and with new AI technology, Harvard researchers say they could become much more difficult to avoid. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: — Organizations: Harvard, Service, AIs, Harvard Business School, Harvard Business, Business

☆ Take-Two CEO seems totally over questions about 'Grand Theft Auto 6' release date
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-02 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Take-Two's CEO often gets asked about the release date for "Grand Theft Auto 6." When asked last week about a PC release date, he seemed entirely fed up. RockStar Games has said it plans to release 'Grand Theft Auto 6' on consoles next year. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementTake-Two's CEO appears to be getting tired of answering questions about when — or if — "Grand Theft Auto 6" will be released.

Persons: — Organizations: RockStar Games, Service, Rockstar Games, PlayStation, Business

☆ An Iowa basic income project gives low-income residents $500 a month. They say it helps them make rent and buy food.
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-02 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Iowa recently passed a law banning local governments from providing basic income programs. But one providing $500 a month to low-income residents says it will continue using private funds. AdvertisementConservatives in Iowa voted to ban local governments from sponsoring basic income programs earlier this year. The "UpLift" program in central Iowa provides up to $500 a month for 110 low-income residents. They said the program is showing similar results to other basic income programs around the country: Residents are mostly spending the money on food and shelter.

Persons: — Organizations: Service, Business Locations: Iowa

☆ How scammers use deepfakes of celebs to steal millions from fans
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-01 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Scammers are using deepfake celebrity videos to steal from fans. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementScammers in Australia are using deepfake photos and videos of celebrities to steal from people in increasingly creative ways. Australians have lost up to $8 million to scammers using online investment platform scams this year, according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. The scammers use fake news articles and deepfake videos to trick people into believing that a celebrity is asking them for a large sum of money.

Persons: Robert Irwin, — Organizations: Service, Australian Competition, Consumer Commission, Business Locations: Australia

☆ YouTube just made over 75 games available to everyone
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-30 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

YouTube launched a free gaming platform, called Playables, with over 75 games. Playables includes popular mobile titles like "Angry Birds" and "Cut the Rope." Netflix also launched a gaming platform in 2021 focused on mobile games. It's now an actual gaming platform that lets you play dozens of popular games — for free. YouTube launched its new gaming platform, called "Playables," earlier this week, making over 75 games free to play.

Persons: — Organizations: YouTube, Netflix, Service

☆ American Airlines fires attorneys who said 9-year-old girl 'should have known' she was being recorded in the bathroom
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-25 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

American Airlines replaced its lawyers after backlash over a bathroom recording case. The airline is facing lawsuits tied to a former flight attendant accused of filming underage girls. Previous lawyers argued a 9-year-old "should have known" she was being filmed. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementAmerican Airlines has new attorneys after previous lawyers said a 9-year-old should have realized she was being recorded in the bathroom by a flight attendant.

Persons: —, Estes Carter Thompson Organizations: American Airlines, Service, Airlines, Business

☆ A tax on millionaires might soon pay for universal free community college in Massachusetts
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-25 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

The Massachusetts Senate approved a $58 billion budget that includes free community college. The state's new tax on millionaires would fund the universal free community college program. AdvertisementThe Massachusetts State Senate approved a nearly $58 billion state budget that guarantees universal free community college for state residents. In 2022, Massachusetts placed a 4% tax on residents earning $1 million or more a year. In its last fiscal budget, the state set aside $1 billion — collected through the tax — to provide free school lunches to all children in public schools.

Persons: — Organizations: Senate, Service, Business Locations: Massachusetts

☆ Woman says 'near-vertical' Disney waterslide knocked her unconscious and caused brain damage in new lawsuit
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-25 | by ( Lauren Edmonds | Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

A Florida woman has filed a lawsuit against Disney theme parks, according to an Orlando news outlet. The lawsuit says she went unconscious and experienced brain damage on a Typhoon Lagoon waterslide. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementA Florida woman has filed a lawsuit against Disney, saying she lost consciousness and sustained a brain injury after riding a waterslide at Typhoon Lagoon Water Park. The lawsuit, filed on Monday in Orange County, says that Laura Reyes-Merino visited the theme park on May 11 and rode the Humunga Kowabunga, according to the lawsuit, obtained by WKMG, a local Orlando news outlet.

Persons: —, Laura Reyes, Merino, WKMG Organizations: Disney, Service, Business Locations: Florida, Orlando, Orange County

☆ Biden is hiring a meme manager and is willing to pay up to $85,000
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

President Joe Biden's campaign needs a manager for "content and meme pages." The role involves collaborating with podcasters, digital media firms, and social media meme pages. President Joe Biden's campaign has the job for you, but you'd have to move to Wilmington, Delaware for it. Nestled in a list of jobs posted by the Biden campaign is one with the title: "partner manager for content and meme pages." The job description says that the person will build and maintain relationships with podcasters, digital media companies, and large meme pages.

Persons: Joe Biden's, —, Biden Organizations: Service, Business Locations: Wilmington , Delaware

☆ American Airlines backtracks after saying 9-year-old girl 'should have known' flight attendant was filming her in the bathroom: lawsuit
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewAmerican Airlines is facing backlash after saying that a 9-year-old girl should have seen the cellphone filming her in the bathroom in its initial lawsuit defense. Paul Llewellyn, an attorney for the girl's family, told Business Insider that the airline placing blame on the 9-year-old was "shocking." This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. He is also representing the family of a 9-year-old girl, who says Thompson filmed her in the bathroom during a flight from Texas to Los Angeles in January 2023. American Airlines told Business Insider in a statement that it does "not believe this child is at fault, and we take the allegations involving a former team member very seriously."

Persons: —, Paul Llewellyn, Llewellyn, Estes Carter Thompson, Thompson Organizations: Service, American Airlines, Business, America Airlines, Airlines Locations: Charlotte , North Carolina, Boston, Texas, Los Angeles

☆ Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi dies in helicopter crash
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewIranian President Ebrahim Raisi has died after a helicopter crash in northwestern Iran, multiple news agencies reported, citing Iranian state media. Interior Minister Ahmed Vahidi told IRNA, Iran's state-run news agency, that a helicopter carrying Raisi and other senior Iranian officials was forced to make a "hard landing" on Sunday, without providing further details. Related storiesIran's foreign minister, the governor of Iran's East Azerbaijan province, and other officials were also on board the helicopter. Raisi is considered a "hard-liner" and a "protégé" of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Raisi has led Iran through heightened tensions in the region, including the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

Persons: —, Ebrahim Raisi, Ahmed Vahidi, IRNA, Mohammad Mokhber, Al, Mokhber, Raisi, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Organizations: Service, Business, Raisi, Associated Press, Iranian, United, United States Institute of Peace Locations: Iran, Iran's, Iran's East Azerbaijan province, Azerbaijan's, Al Jazeera, Israel, Gaza, Iranian, Damascus, United States, Russia, Ukraine

Binance is finding 300,000 fake addresses every week, mainly on Ethereum and Bitcoin networks. AdvertisementAs crypto thieves find more creative ways to trick people, so do those trying to crack down on them. Binance, a major crypto exchange, told Business Insider that it has developed an algorithm to spot fake crypto addresses — used in so-called "address poisoning" scams. According to Binance, the company's algorithm is detecting some 300,000 fake addresses every week, mostly on Ethereum and Bitcoin networks. The FBI warns that services offering to return money to the victims of crypto scams might actually also be scams themselves.

Persons: —, it's, Binance Organizations: Service, Services, FBI

Read previewLegal challenges by conservative lawmakers and activists against guaranteed basic income programs are heating up nationwide. Guaranteed basic income programs differ from their idealistic cousin — a universal basic income. AdvertisementWhile localized guaranteed basic income programs are tiny compared to a nationwide universal basic income, they are the subject of no less conservative opposition. Local politicians in places like South Dakota and Arizona have moved to block basic income programs for this reason alone. AdvertisementWhile these arguments appear to support giving basic income payments to a broader group of people, it's unlikely many conservatives would actually support a universal basic income.

Persons: —, Andrew Yang, Sam Altman, Republican Sen, John Wiik, Kathryn Blankenberg, Ken Paxton, Paxton, It's Organizations: Service, Business, Republican, Judicial Watch, American Civil Rights, Texas Locations: South Dakota, Arizona, Dakota, San Francisco, Texas, Houston, Harris County

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