ByteDance plans new AI model trained with Huawei chips | Google to invest $1 billion in Thai data centre, cloud infrastructure | After ditching Chinese funding, UAE forges AI alliance with US
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TikTok's Chinese parent ByteDance plans to develop an AI model trained primarily with chips from compatriot Huawei Technologies, said three people familiar with the matter, as U.S. curbs turn the social media giant homeward in search of chips. Reuters
Alphabet Inc.'s Google said on Monday it would invest $1 billion in Thailand to build a data center and cloud region to meet growing cloud demand and support artificial intelligence adoption in Southeast Asia. Reuters
Months after backing out of investments in Chinese tech firms under American pressure, the United Arab Emirates has formed a partnership with the United States to lead global advancements in artificial intelligence. South China Morning Post
ASPI
Are EVs at risk of being hacked? And will Chinese EVs be banned?
The Sydney Morning Herald
David Swan
Tilla Hoja, a China analyst with defence think tank the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, agrees, and says the Australian government should never relinquish control of its governing power to foreign actors on something as important as roads. "The Chinese government rapidly accelerated their sensor manufacturing business in recent years to decouple from Western supply chains. Such technologies often have dual-use capabilities, and have been reported to be feeding Chinese surveillance capabilities.”
The World
The pig butchering invasion has begun
WIRED
Lily Hay Newman & Matt Burgess
A WIRED review of law enforcement and civil society action as well as interviews with numerous researchers show that pig butchering operations that are offshoots of the Southeast Asian activity have emerged in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and West Africa.
Australia
‘Not just going to happen’: Telstra boss warns on AI boom
The Australian Financial Review
James Thomson
Telstra chief executive Vicki Brady says Australia could miss out on a vital boost to productivity from artificial intelligence if it fails to build the core infrastructure required to underpin the technological revolution.
Cyber expert says there’s ‘no space for failure of imagination’ in battery hack threat
The Australian
Jared Lynch
Cyber expert Rachael Falk has called for a “concerted global approach” to protect solar batteries and smart home devices from malicious attacks after an Australian tech entrepreneur warned about Israeli-style exploding pager strikes. While Australia wasn’t facing any immediate threats, Mr Craighead said Australians could not control the software in many home batteries, including cheap ones from China.
China
ByteDance plans new AI model trained with Huawei chips, sources say
Reuters
TikTok's Chinese parent ByteDance plans to develop an AI model trained primarily with chips from compatriot Huawei Technologies, said three people familiar with the matter, as U.S. curbs turn the social media giant homeward in search of chips.
China to roll out cybersecurity rules covering generative AI
Nikkei Asia
Shunsuke Tabeta
China will implement a string of new cybersecurity rules next year, authorities announced Monday, placing an emphasis on national security and requiring companies providing generative artificial intelligence services to add extra data protection.
China-developed photovoltaic nuclear battery could run for centuries
South China Morning Post
Zhang Tong
Chinese scientists say they have developed a nuclear-powered battery with a photovoltaic cell that could generate electricity for hundreds of years, at an overall efficiency thousands of times higher than its closest rivals.
USA
Verizon’s mobile services are down across the country
The Verge
Jay Peters
For hours, Verizon has been experiencing a huge outage affecting its mobile services across the country. Many people all over the US are experiencing outages with Verizon. Some users are reporting that their phones are in SOS mode.
US sets new rule that could spur AI chip shipments to the Middle East
Reuters
Karen Freifeld
The U.S. Commerce Department on Monday unveiled a rule that could ease shipments of artificial intelligence chips like those from Nvidia Corp to data centers in the Middle East.
CISA pledges to resolve issues with threat sharing system after watchdog report
The Record by Recorded Future
Jonathan Greig
The nation’s top cyber agency said it has plans to revitalise a system used to share cybersecurity threat information after a government watchdog raised concerns about the program’s recent shortcomings.
Crucial Texas hospital system turning ambulances away after ransomware attack
The Record by Recorded Future
Jonathan Greig
One of the largest hospitals in West Texas has been forced to divert ambulances after a ransomware attack shut down many of its systems last Thursday. The University Medical Center Health System in Lubbock confirmed on Friday that IT outages are being caused by a ransomware incident.
Southeast Asia
Google to invest $1 billion in Thai data centre, cloud infrastructure
Reuters
Alphabet Inc.'s Google said on Monday it would invest $1 billion in Thailand to build a data center and cloud region to meet growing cloud demand and support artificial intelligence adoption in Southeast Asia.
Singapore's Sea accelerates digital bank push in Thai license bid
Nikkei Asia
Tsubara Suruga & Apornrath Phoonphongphiphat
Singaporean tech group Sea is making another bid in its digital banking venture, applying for a license in Thailand after launching the business at home and also entering Malaysia following Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines.
Singapore's Changi Airport embraces biometric immigration screening
Nikkei Asia
Mayuko Tani
A new biometric immigration clearance system at Singapore's Changi Airport is offering greater convenience to travelers while allowing the government to keep a closer eye on who enters and leaves the country.
Ukraine-Russia
Russia fines Google, Discord over banned content
Reuters
Russia fined Alphabet's Google and instant messaging platform Discord on Monday for failing to delete or restrict access to information online, the Moscow courts' press service said.
The lies Russia tells itself
Foreign Affairs
Thomas Rid
On September 4, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that it had seized 32 Internet domains behind the Doppelganger campaign—and published an unprecedented 277-page FBI affidavit that included 190 pages of internal SDA documents likely sourced by American spies. The FBI affidavit and the European media leak offered something unprecedented: a glimpse into the planning of one of the most notorious disinformation efforts in the post–Cold War era.
Europe
Academics to chair drafting the Code of Practice for general-purpose AI
EURACTIV
Jacob Wulff Wold
A range of academics, from Turing award-winner Yoshua Bengio to PhD candidates, have been named chairs and vice-chairs of working groups that will draft a Code of Practice on general-purpose artificial intelligence, according to a Monday Commission press release.
German competition watchdog vows closer eye on Microsoft
Reuters
Germany's competition watchdog said on Monday that it had classified Microsoft as a "company with paramount cross-market significance for competition", meaning that it can take stronger action against the tech giant going forward.
Agence France-Presse says cyberattack targeted IT systems
The Record by Recorded Future
Jonathan Greig
The world’s oldest news agency said hackers launched an attack on its IT systems Friday. Agence France-Presse, known by most as AFP, said the attack affected “part of its delivery service to clients.”
Middle East
After ditching Chinese funding, UAE forges AI alliance with US in ‘tech hedging strategy’
South China Morning Post
Tom Hussain
Months after backing out of investments in Chinese tech firms under American pressure, the United Arab Emirates has formed a partnership with the United States to lead global advancements in artificial intelligence.
Africa
High tech, high yields? The Kenyan farmers deploying AI to increase productivity
The Guardian
Carlos Mureithi
In Kericho and other parts of Kenya, AI-powered tools have become increasingly popular among small-scale farmers seeking to improve the quality and quantity of their produce.
Big Tech
Inside two years of turmoil at Big Tech's anti-terrorism group
WIRED
Paresh Dave
X has left the board of GIFCT, an organisation through which tech companies exchange information to keep violent content off the web. It's the latest in a series of episodes driving tension within the ranks.
Epic is suing Google — again — and now Samsung, too
The Verge
Sean Hollister
Four years after Epic sued Google for running an illegal app store monopoly — a case it won this past December — Epic is suing again. The Fortnite game developer has filed a second antitrust lawsuit against Google, and now additionally Samsung, accusing them of illegally conspiring to undermine third-party app stores.
Events & Podcasts
CONVERGE: Indo-Pacific Critical Tech Forum 2024
Pacific Forum International
CONVERGE is a Track 2 dialogue that will baseline key technical, policy, and operational approaches of select Indo-Pacific countries on artificial intelligence and semiconductors to propose ways to harmonise efforts that will enhance cross-border tech collaboration between actors operating in different contexts.
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