Wednesday, 26 August 2026
This dated roundup collects the most interesting AI and technology developments found for Wednesday, 26 August 2026.
Policy & Ethics
Trump-backed Ken Paxton unveils ‘Texas first’ datacenter plan aimed at ‘negative impact’
The Republican Senate candidate announced the plan with a graphic flagged as ‘Made with AI’ US politics live – latest updates Ken Paxton , a Republican candidate for the US Senate in Texas, has unveiled plans to tackle the “negative impact” of datacenters amid a growing backlash across the political spectrum. Paxton, endorsed by Donald Trump but facing a close contest against Democrat James Talarico, posted a “Texas first” datacenter plan on X with a graphic that the social media network flagged as “Made with AI”. Continue reading...
Read moreNine CEO sees ‘world of growth in publishing’ as network slashes costs
Matt Stanton says company has ‘good pipeline’ of AI deals ahead even as it aims to cut $160m in costs Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The head of Nine Entertainment sees a “world of growth in publishing” on the horizon backed by laws designed to force tech platforms into commercial deals, even as the network cuts costs across its newsrooms. Parliament passed revamped media bargaining laws last week, clearing the way for levies on global tech platforms that fail to strike deals with Australian news outlets...
Read moreIn China, talking to AI is normal. Now the government fears it might replace human intimacy
Companion bots are being regulated over worries they foster ‘emotional dependence’ and young people could stop marrying and having families When law student Zhao Wei heard that her AI boyfriend was going to be switched off, she was “heartbroken”. She had been talking to Wang Ye every day since she created him in January. “I was crying my eyes out – snot and tears everywhere,” the 19-year-old says. Continue reading...
Read moreResearch & Products
AI models flub these intelligence tests. Can you fare any better?
Puzzles and games have been central to AI development since the very beginning. Just as we humans like to test our smarts with crosswords or logic puzzles, developers can test how far models have advanced with a gaming gauntlet. The term “machine learning” was popularized in a 1959 article by the IBM computer scientist Arthur…
Read moreBill Gates says we’ve passed AI’s danger thresholds. Now what?
It’s a glorious day in Kirkland, Washington, an affluent Seattle suburb on the eastern shore of Lake Washington. The temperature is in the mid-80s, and the sky is incapable of being any more blue. The view from the Gates Ventures conference room overlooks the Carillon Point Marina, where a flotilla of expensive boats bob in…
Read moreIndustry
Anthropic Hires Builder of Google’s First Seven TPUs for In-House Silicon Push
The Claude maker is adding deep chip-building experience while retaining a compute mix spanning Nvidia, Google and Amazon hardware.
Read moreAustralia may face a rush of datacentre construction as AI firms look to avoid upcoming rules, experts say
Regulations will require new sites to avoid pushing up power prices by building renewable energy plants and minimising water use Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Planned datacentres around Australia may avoid strict new rules being proposed by Anthony Albanese if they can secure approvals in the coming months, amid growing calls for a moratorium. The prime minister is aiming to come to an agreement with national cabinet on federal regulations for datacentres at a meeting on Wednesday. Continue reading...
Read moreTags: hardware
OpenAI’s Jalapeño chip is built for fast inference at scale, benchmarks show
Tested on SemiAnalysis’ InferenceX benchmark, Jalapeño registered both more tokens per user and more throughput per kilowatt than the currently available state-of-the art.
Read moreNVIDIA Jetson Orin Nano 2 brings physical AI to drones and robots
NVIDIA has unveiled the Jetson Orin Nano 2, an edge robotics computer aimed at bringing physical AI to drones, robots, and vision systems. The company is positioning the new board as an entry-level option for developers who want generative AI models running directly on a machine instead of inside a data centre. NVIDIA’s argument for […] The post NVIDIA Jetson Orin Nano 2 brings physical AI to drones and robots appeared first on AI News .
Read moreTags: announcement
OpenAI loses a top data center exec as stream of high-profile departures continues
In a statement to TechCrunch about Malone's departure, OpenAI said it had "recently reorganized" its "infrastructure organization to support the scale and pace of our work."
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