<!doctype html>
<html>
<head>
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width">
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
<!--[if mso]><xml><o:OfficeDocumentSettings><o:PixelsPerInch>96</o:PixelsPerInch><o:AllowPNG/></o:OfficeDocumentSettings></xml><![endif]-->
<title>California regulates AI companions</title>
<style>
.post-title-link {
display: block;
margin-top: 32px;
color: #15212A;
text-align: center;
line-height: 1.1em;
}
.post-title-link-left {
text-align: left;
}
.view-online-link {
word-wrap: none;
white-space: nowrap;
color: #15212a;
color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.6);
text-decoration: underline !important;
}
.kg-nft-link {
display: block;
text-decoration: none !important;
color: #15212A !important;
font-family: inherit !important;
font-size: 14px;
line-height: 1.3em;
padding-top: 4px;
padding-right: 20px;
padding-left: 20px;
padding-bottom: 4px;
}
.kg-twitter-link {
display: block;
text-decoration: none !important;
color: #15212A !important;
font-family: inherit !important;
font-size: 15px;
padding: 8px;
line-height: 1.3em;
}
.kg-cta-link-accent .kg-cta-sponsor-label a {
color: #2047FF !important;
}
.kg-cta-text a:not(.kg-cta-link-accent .kg-cta-text a) {
color: #15212A;
text-decoration: underline;
}
.kg-cta-link-accent .kg-cta-text a {
color: #2047FF !important;
}
.kg-audio-link {
color: #15212a !important;
color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.6) !important;
}
@media only screen and (max-width: 620px) {
table.body {
width: 100%;
min-width: 100%;
}
.hide-mobile {
display: none;
}
.mobile-only {
display: initial !important;
}
.hide-desktop {
display: initial !important;
}
.desktop-only {
display: none !important;
}
table.body p,
table.body ul,
table.body ol,
table.body td {
font-size: 16px;
}
table.header .post-excerpt {
font-size: 16px !important;
}
table.body .kg-callout-card {
padding: 16px 24px !important;
}
table.body .kg-callout-text {
font-size: 16px !important;
line-height: 1.5em !important;
}
table.body pre {
white-space: pre-wrap !important;
word-break: break-word !important;
}
table.body .content {
padding: 0 !important;
}
table.body .container {
padding: 0 !important;
width: 100% !important;
}
table.body .main,
table.header .header-main {
border-spacing: 10px 0 !important;
border-left-width: 0 !important;
border-radius: 0 !important;
border-right-width: 0 !important;
}
table.body .img-responsive {
height: auto !important;
max-width: 100% !important;
width: auto !important;
}
table.header .site-icon {
padding-top: 0 !important;
}
table.header .site-info {
padding-top: 24px !important;
}
table.header .post-title-link {
margin-top: 24px !important;
}
table.header .post-meta-wrapper {
padding-bottom: 24px !important;
}
table.header .site-icon img {
width: 36px !important;
height: 36px !important;
}
table.header .site-url a {
font-size: 13px !important;
padding-bottom: 16px !important;
}
table.header .post-meta,
table.header .post-meta-date {
white-space: normal !important;
font-size: 13px !important;
line-height: 1.2em;
}
table.header .post-meta,
table.header .view-online {
width: 100% !important;
}
table.header .post-meta-left,
table.header .post-meta-left.view-online {
width: 100% !important;
text-align: left !important;
}
table.header .post-meta.view-online-mobile {
display: table-row !important;
}
table.header .post-meta-left.view-online-mobile,
table.header .post-meta-left.view-online-mobile .view-online {
text-align: left !important;
}
table.header .post-meta.view-online.desktop {
display: none !important;
}
table.header .view-online {
text-decoration: underline;
}
table.body .footer p,
table.body .footer p span {
font-size: 13px !important;
}
table.header .view-online-link,
table.body .footer,
table.body .footer a {
font-size: 13px !important;
}
table.header .post-title a {
font-size: 26px !important;
line-height: 1.1em !important;
}
table.feedback-buttons {
display: table !important;
width: 100% !important;
max-width: 390px;
}
table.feedback-buttons img {
display: inherit !important;
}
table.body .feedback-button-text {
display: none!important;
}
table.body .latest-posts-header {
font-size: 12px !important;
}
table.body .latest-post-title {
padding-right: 8px !important;
}
table.body .latest-post h4,
table.body .latest-post h4 span {
padding: 4px 0 6px !important;
font-size: 15px !important;
}
table.body .latest-post-excerpt,
table.body .latest-post-excerpt a,
table.body .latest-post-excerpt span {
font-size: 13px !important;
line-height: 1.2 !important;
}
table.body .subscription-box h3 {
font-size: 14px !important;
}
table.body .subscription-box p,
table.body .subscription-box p span {
font-size: 13px !important;
}
table.body .subscription-details,
table.body .manage-subscription {
display: inline-block;
width: 100%;
text-align: left !important;
font-size: 13px !important;
}
table.body .subscription-details {
padding-bottom: 12px;
}
table.body .kg-bookmark-card {
width: 90vw;
}
table.body .kg-bookmark-thumbnail {
display: none !important;
}
table.body .kg-bookmark-metadata span {
font-size: 13px !important;
}
table.body .kg-embed-card {
max-width: 90vw !important;
}
table.body h1 {
font-size: 32px !important;
line-height: 1.3em !important;
}
table.body h2,
table.body h2 span {
font-size: 26px !important;
line-height: 1.22em !important;
}
table.body h3 {
font-size: 21px !important;
line-height: 1.25em !important;
}
table.body h4 {
font-size: 19px !important;
line-height: 1.3em !important;
}
table.body h5 {
font-size: 16px !important;
line-height: 1.4em !important;
}
table.body h6 {
font-size: 16px !important;
line-height: 1.4em !important;
}
table.body blockquote {
font-size: 16px !important;
line-height: 1.6em;
margin-bottom: 0;
}
table.body blockquote p {
margin-right: 15px !important;
margin-left: 15px !important;
}
table.body blockquote.kg-blockquote-alt {
border-left: 0 none !important;
margin: 0 !important;
font-size: 18px !important;
line-height: 1.4em !important;
}
table.body blockquote.kg-blockquote-alt p {
margin-right: 20px !important;
margin-left: 20px !important;
}
table.body hr {
margin: 2em 0 !important;
}
.feature-image-caption {
font-size: 13px!important;
}
.kg-card-figcaption {
font-size: 13px!important;
}
.kg-card-figcaption p,
.kg-card-figcaption p span {
font-size: 13px!important;
}
table.body .kg-cta-card {
padding: 0 20px;
}
table.body .kg-cta-card.kg-cta-bg-none {
padding: 0;
}
table.body .kg-cta-sponsor-label {
padding: 10px 0;
}
table.body table.kg-cta-content-wrapper:not(.kg-cta-bg-none.kg-cta-no-dividers table.kg-cta-content-wrapper) {
padding: 20px 0;
}
table.body .kg-cta-immersive.kg-cta-has-img:not(.kg-cta-bg-none):not(.kg-cta-no-label) table.kg-cta-content-wrapper {
padding-top: 0;
}
table.body .kg-cta-minimal .kg-cta-image-container {
padding-right: 20px;
}
table.body .kg-cta-immersive .kg-cta-image-container {
padding-bottom: 20px;
}
table.body .kg-cta-immersive.kg-cta-no-text .kg-cta-image-container {
padding-bottom: 0;
}
table.body .kg-cta-button-container {
padding-top: 16px;
}
table.body .kg-cta-minimal .kg-cta-image-container {
display: inline-block !important;
width: 100% !important;
padding: 0 !important;
padding-bottom: 16px !important;
padding-right: 0 !important;
}
table.body .kg-cta-minimal .kg-cta-content-inner {
display: inline-block !important;
width: 100% !important;
padding: 0 !important;
}
table.body .kg-cta-minimal img.kg-cta-image {
width: 52px !important;
height: 52px !important;
}
}
@media all {
.subscription-details p.hidden {
display: none !important;
}
.ExternalClass {
width: 100%;
}
.ExternalClass,
.ExternalClass p,
.ExternalClass span,
.ExternalClass font,
.ExternalClass td,
.ExternalClass div {
line-height: 100%;
}
.apple-link a {
color: inherit !important;
font-family: inherit !important;
font-size: inherit !important;
font-weight: inherit !important;
line-height: inherit !important;
text-decoration: none !important;
}
#MessageViewBody a {
color: inherit;
text-decoration: none;
font-size: inherit;
font-family: inherit;
font-weight: inherit;
line-height: inherit;
}
}
</style>
<!--[if mso]>
<style type="text/css">
ul, ol { margin-left: 1.5em !important; }
</style>
<![endif]-->
</head>
<body style="background-color: #fff; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; font-size: 18px; line-height: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; color: #15212A;"><img width="1" height="1" alt="" src="http://t.ghost.platformer.news/o/eJw8zk1uwyAQQOHThJ3RDD9js5jDQGZIULCpbNpKPX2lLLJ8m6dPOAJ5QqOMK0HY1i2R0T23vjRh2lQ1iZfgc1QAQJCQKZgnFweVtGClWOtWNYKuuSRKWe7V6900duAiAkYAF2K0QQumAg6K8-jF3wI8nuOa9qvnWce562kP_b3MybN1tdLyPg6xfrsFOK_Lvtrxp3PaNszk8t1fyxtqJr8_nyp9PBYETwnR_LD7DwAA__-TvkV6">
<span class="preheader" style="color: transparent; display: none; height: 0; max-height: 0; max-width: 0; opacity: 0; overflow: hidden; mso-hide: all; visibility: hidden; width: 0;">As safety concerns mount, one state becomes the first to implement guardrails. Will they be enough?</span>
<!-- HEADER WITH FULL-WIDTH BACKGROUND -->
<table role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="header" width="100%" style="mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; line-height: 1.4; background-color: #ffffff; width: 100%; border-spacing: 0; border-collapse: collapse;" bgcolor="#ffffff">
<!-- Outlook doesn't respect max-width so we need an extra centered table -->
<!--[if mso]>
<tr>
<td>
<center>
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="600">
<![endif]-->
<tr>
<td style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A;" valign="top"> </td>
<td class="container" align="center" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A;" valign="top">
<div class="content" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 0 auto; max-width: 600px;">
<!-- Header content constrained to 600px -->
<table role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="header-main" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; border-spacing: 20px 0; width: 100%; max-width: 600px; background: #ffffff; background-color: transparent;" width="100%" bgcolor="transparent">
<tr>
<td class="header-content" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; padding: 0; margin: 0 auto;" valign="top">
<table role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%;">
<tr class="site-info-row">
<td class="site-info" width="100%" align="center" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; padding-top: 32px;" valign="top">
<table role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%;" width="100%">
<tr>
<td class="site-icon" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; padding-bottom: 8px; padding-top: 8px; text-align: center; border-radius: 3px;" valign="top" align="center"><a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/e5fe21e3?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="color: #2047FF; text-decoration: none; overflow-wrap: anywhere;" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.platformer.news/content/images/2024/05/Logomark_Blue_800px.png" alt="Platformer" border="0" width="44" height="44" style="border: none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic; max-width: 100%; width: 44px; height: 44px; border-radius: 3px;"></a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="site-url site-url-bottom-padding" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.1px; font-weight: 700; text-transform: uppercase; text-align: center; padding-bottom: 12px;" valign="top" align="center"><div style="width: 100% !important;"><a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/ddeedd21?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" class="site-title" style="text-decoration: none; color: #15212A; overflow-wrap: anywhere;" target="_blank">Platformer</a></div></td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="post-title post-title-with-excerpt" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center; color: #000000; padding-bottom: 8px;" valign="top" align="center">
<table role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%;" width="100%">
<tr>
<td style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; font-size: 36px; line-height: 1.1; font-weight: 700; text-align: center; color: #000000;" valign="top" align="center">
<a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/87483e44?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" class="post-title-link" style="text-decoration: none; display: block; margin-top: 32px; text-align: center; line-height: 1.1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #000000;" target="_blank">California regulates AI companions</a>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="post-excerpt-wrapper" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; width: 100%; max-width: 600px;" width="100%" valign="top">
<p class="post-excerpt post-excerpt-with-feature-image" style="margin: 0; color: #15212A; font-size: 19px; line-height: 1.4em; text-align: center; padding-bottom: 28px;">As safety concerns mount, one state becomes the first to implement guardrails. Will they be enough?</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="100%" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; width: 100%;" align="center" valign="top">
<table class="post-meta-wrapper" role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%; padding-bottom: 32px;">
<tr>
<td height="20" class="post-meta post-meta-center" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: #15212a; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.6); font-size: 13px; font-weight: 400; text-align: center; padding: 0;" valign="top" align="center">
By Casey Newton • <span class="post-meta-date" style="white-space: nowrap;">14 Oct 2025 </span>
</td>
<td class="post-meta post-meta-center view-online desktop" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.6); font-size: 13px; font-weight: 400; text-align: center; display: none;" valign="top" align="center">
<a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/6f0c8b76?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" class="view-online-link" style="word-wrap: none; white-space: nowrap; color: #15212a; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.6); overflow-wrap: anywhere; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">View in browser</a>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="post-meta post-meta-center view-online-mobile" style="color: #15212a; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.6); font-size: 13px; font-weight: 400; text-align: center;" align="center">
<td height="20" class="view-online" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: #15212a; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.6); font-size: 13px; font-weight: 400; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline;" valign="top" align="center">
<a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/c4475165?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" class="view-online-link" style="word-wrap: none; white-space: nowrap; color: #15212a; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.6); overflow-wrap: anywhere; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">View in browser</a>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="feature-image-row">
<td class="feature-image
feature-image-with-caption
" align="center" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; padding-bottom: 30px; text-align: center; width: 100%; padding: 0; font-size: 13px;" width="100%" valign="top"><img src="https://www.platformer.news/content/images/size/w1200/2025/10/solen-feyissa-Aj7cDaR6QXs-unsplash.jpg" width="600" alt="ChatGPT shown open on a smartphone screen against a backdrop of plants" style="border: none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic; max-width: 100%;"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="center" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A;" valign="top">
<div class="feature-image-caption" style="width: 100%; padding-top: 5px; padding-bottom: 32px; text-align: center; color: #15212a; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.6); line-height: 1.5em; font-size: 13px;">
<span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">(Solen Feyissa / Unsplash)</span>
</div>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</div>
</td>
<td style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A;" valign="top"> </td>
</tr>
<!--[if mso]>
</table>
</center>
</td>
</tr>
<![endif]-->
</table>
<!-- MAIN CONTENT AREA -->
<table role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="body" width="100%" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%; line-height: 1.4; background-color: #ffffff;" bgcolor="#ffffff">
<!-- Outlook doesn't respect max-width so we need an extra centered table -->
<!--[if mso]>
<tr>
<td>
<center>
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="600">
<![endif]-->
<tr>
<td style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A;" valign="top"> </td>
<td class="container" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; display: block; max-width: 600px; margin: 0 auto;" valign="top">
<div class="content" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 0 auto; max-width: 600px;">
<table role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="main" width="100%" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; border-spacing: 20px 0; width: 100%; max-width: 600px; background: #ffffff; background-color: #ffffff;" bgcolor="#ffffff">
<tr>
<td class="wrapper" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; box-sizing: border-box;" valign="top">
<table role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%;">
<tr class="post-content-row">
<td class="post-content-sans-serif" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; font-size: 17px; line-height: 1.5em; color: #15212A; padding-bottom: 20px; border-bottom: 1px solid #e0e7eb; max-width: 600px;" valign="top">
<!-- POST CONTENT START -->
<p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><em>This is a column about AI. My boyfriend works at Anthropic. See </em><a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/55744e9d?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><em><u>my full ethics disclosure here</u></em></a><em>.</em></p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">On Tuesday, just a few months removed from the controversy over an update to GPT-4o that <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/7df8e7d7?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">made it dangerously sycophantic</a>, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the company will soon allow users to make its chatbot friendlier and more like a person.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">"In a few weeks, we plan to put out a new version of ChatGPT that allows people to have a personality that behaves more like what people liked about 4o (we hope it will be better!)," Altman said in <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/205acbc6?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">an X post</a>. "If you want your ChatGPT to respond in a very human-like way, or use a ton of emoji, or act like a friend, ChatGPT should do it (but only if you want it, not because we are usage-maxxing)."</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">It's possible to alter a chatbot to sound more human without also making it more sycophantic. In practice, though, chatbots' tendency to agree with their users is <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/badeac1f?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">one of the primary reasons many users find them compelling</a>. In the spring, that tendency found ChatGPT <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/c5bf5f0d?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">praising users</a> who had stopped taking their medications and telling some that they were a "divine messenger." That's enough to raise concerns about what the next version of that approach may look like.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Altman announced the return of 4o-like personalities as part of a larger set of changes that will also include explicitly allowing adults to create erotica using ChatGPT. He said the company is making those changes because it has begun to mitigate the mental health concerns that <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/589ecbeb?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">drew headlines</a> all summer. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">That conclusion seems premature. It has scarcely been two weeks since OpenAI <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/8605fd1d?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">introduced parental controls</a>. And aside from gently nudging users after heavy use, it's not clear what the company has done to address the risk that ChatGPT users will develop delusions. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">The United States came <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/80a9c3e6?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">very close to passing</a> a 10-year moratorium on state-level AI legislation that would have prevented state lawmakers from addressing situations like these. Happily, though, those forces were defeated. And over the weekend, California became the first state to address some of the risks associated with AI companions — a category that can include general-purpose chatbots like ChatGPT.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Here's <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/3a7bbcad?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Rebecca Bellan at <em>TechCrunch</em></a>:</p><blockquote style="margin: 0; padding: 0; border-left: #2047FF 2px solid; font-size: 17px; font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.6em; letter-spacing: -0.2px; color: #15212A;"><p style="line-height: 1.6em; margin: 2em 25px; font-size: 1em; padding: 0; color: #15212A;">The law, SB 243, is designed to protect children and vulnerable users from some of the harms associated with AI companion chatbot use. It holds companies — from the big labs like Meta and OpenAI to more focused companion startups like Character AI and Replika — legally accountable if their chatbots fail to meet the law’s standards.<br><br>"Emerging technology like chatbots and social media can inspire, educate, and connect — but without real guardrails, technology can also exploit, mislead, and endanger our kids,” Newsom said in a statement. “We’ve seen some truly horrific and tragic examples of young people harmed by unregulated tech, and we won’t stand by while companies continue without necessary limits and accountability." </p></blockquote><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">What does the law do? First, it requires developers to identify and address situations where users are expressing thoughts of self-harm. Second, developers must share those self-harm protocols with the state's department of public health, along with statistics about how often they are directing users to resources. (The department will publish that data publicly.) And third, chatbots must disclose that their output is generated by AI, and are prohibited from representing themselves as healthcare professionals.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Minors get a couple of additional protections: platforms must offer them occasional reminders to take a break, and cannot show them sexually explicit AI-generated images. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">SB 243 is part of <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/273436ca?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">a suite of tech safety bills</a> that Newsom signed in recent days. In addition to the companion law, Newsom also <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/a19e5eac?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">signed laws</a> requiring age verification for app stores, surgeon general-<a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/95f70855?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">inspired</a> warning labels for social media, and stronger protections for the victims of deepfake pornography. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">You'll note that some of what California now requires was already offered by OpenAI on a voluntary basis. But now other platforms will be legally required to follow suit. And perhaps most importantly, they will have to share data about the frequency with which their users are experiencing thoughts of self-harm with the state — offering critical transparency about an important public health hazard that is only beginning to come into view. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Sen. Josh Hawley is now <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/c849ad65?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">circulating drafts</a> of a similar bill that would operate at the federal level, should it somehow pass through Congress and get signed into law. Notably, though, it seems to lack the data reporting requirement. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">For the moment, chatbot companions are mostly seen as a sideshow. That misses just how quickly they are growing in popularity. An <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/073b0abe?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">analysis by <em>ChinaTalk</em></a> this month found that AI chatbots designed for sex and romance have about 29 million monthly users globally. (That's about 6 million more people than use Bluesky.) Meanwhile, a recent survey by the Center for Democracy and Technology found that one in five high school students say that <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/a407544e?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">they or someone they know has been in a romantic relationship with a chatbot</a>.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Those data points pair uneasily with statements from the CEOs of AI labs promising to make their products simultaneously more personable, more sexual, and more powerful. Some segment of the population seems already to be coming to the conclusion that AI companions are more engaging, agreeable, and easier to talk to than people. And the response of many chatbot makers so far has been to take those qualities and supercharge them.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">An engaging and helpful digital companion could do a lot of good for an individual. But it might also tear at the social fabric in ways that we are still working to understand. When millions prefer the company of their AI companions to most of the people they know in real life, the disruptions to the social order could be significant.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">For the moment, the least we can do is try to understand what effect these tools are already having among their most vulnerable users. And California's efforts on that front, however incomplete, are an important beginning. </p><div class="kg-card kg-image-card" style="margin: 0 0 1.5em; padding: 0;"><img src="https://www.platformer.news/content/images/2024/05/floating_linebreak_600px-1.png" class="kg-image" alt loading="lazy" width="600" height="157" style="border: none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic; max-width: 100%; display: block; margin: 0 auto; height: auto; width: auto;"></div><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">Talk about this edition with us in Discord: </strong><a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/5e191592?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">This link will get you in for the next week.</a></p><h2 id="following" style="margin-top: 0; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.11em; font-weight: 700; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility; margin: 1.5em 0 0.5em 0; font-size: 32px; color: #15212A;">Following</h2><h3 id="instagrams-pg-13-play" style="margin-top: 0; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.11em; font-weight: 700; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility; margin: 1.5em 0 0.5em 0; font-size: 26px; color: #15212A;"><br><br>Instagram's "PG-13" play</h3><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">What happened: </strong>Instagram <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/d77aedc1?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">said it would overhaul its Teen Accounts</a> to make them more consistent with the PG-13 rating issued by the Motion Picture Association. If accounts regularly share material inappropriate to teenagers, such as OnlyFans links or alcohol-related content, teens won't be able to view or interact with the accounts any more. (One of those updates that make you say — wait, that wasn't the case before?)</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">Why we’re following: </strong>Meta is now nearly a decade in what has so far been a losing battle to convince parents and policymakers that their products are safe for children. Last month, two former Meta employees who studied underage well-being on the platform testified that <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/baaef958?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Meta disregarded their findings of harm</a>. (Meta denies this.) Now the company is attempting to draft off the relatively high trust that people have in the MPA to bring a new sheen of responsibility to the app. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">The problem is that movies and social networks are very different. It's relatively easy to apply a consistent set of standards to the handful of PG-13 movies released each year. Social media is an ever-shifting landscape that continuously introduces new potential harms and dangerous trends, and those might not be covered by the guidelines. Telling parents "we're PG-13 now!" is genius marketing — but will bear close scrutiny in the months ahead. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">What people are saying: </strong>Among those calling BS on the whole thing is ... the MPA. "The Motion Picture Association was not contacted by Meta prior to the announcement of its new content moderation tool for Instagram Teen Accounts," the group <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/efa5f6c0?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">said in a statement</a>. "We welcome efforts to protect kids from content that may not be appropriate for them, but assertions that Instagram's new tool will be 'guided by PG-13 movie ratings' or have any connection to the film industry's rating system are inaccurate."</p><h3 id="does-social-media-makes-kids-worse-at-reading" style="margin-top: 0; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.11em; font-weight: 700; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility; margin: 1.5em 0 0.5em 0; font-size: 26px; color: #15212A;">Does social media makes kids worse at reading?</h3><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">What happened: </strong>Kids who use social media were associated with lower scores in reading tests than those who do not, a <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/9e6c1ce1?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>new study</u></a> suggests. They also perform worse on vocabulary and memory tasks. Researchers followed more than 6,000 9- and 10-year-olds and tracked their social media usage until they turned 13. They found that the children who spent between one and three-plus hours on social media daily scored lower in a range of tests, up to a difference of 4 to 5 points. Scores declined the more time kids spent on social media. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">Why we’re following: </strong>Nearly a decade into the tech backlash, public opinion around children and social media has hardened into a conventional wisdom: it's generally better to keep kids away from it until at <em>least</em> high school. Technically, kids aren't supposed to use social media apps until they turn 13 anyway; this study should give parents all the ammunition they need to enforce that rule in the house. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">What people are saying: </strong>It’s worth noting that in the study itself, the biggest group of kids — more than half of the sample — naturally used little or no social media throughout the study period. And even though social media usage is likely to increase around 15 to 17 years old, social media usage has been <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/24aedd0e?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>on the decline</u></a> since 2022, according to another study. (Caveat: that figure does not include YouTube.) And some in their teens and early twenties are <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/572175b1?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>falling back in love</u></a> with flip phones, digital cameras, and other products that strip out the social media. That so many find this approach necessary tells us that social media skepticism has now advanced well beyond the "moral panic" stage. </p><table class="kg-card kg-hr-card" role="presentation" width="100%" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr><td style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; margin: 0; padding-top: 1.5em; padding-bottom: 3em; font-size: 17px;" valign="top"><!--[if !mso]><!-- --><hr style="position: relative; width: 100%; margin: 3em 0; padding: 0; height: 1px; background-color: transparent; border: 0; border-top: 1px solid #e0e7eb; display: none;"><!--<![endif]--><table class="kg-hr" role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%;" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; padding-top: 1.5em; padding-bottom: 3em; margin: 0; padding: 0; border-top: 1px solid #e0e7eb; font-size: 0; line-height: 0;" valign="top"> </td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table><h3 id="openai-strikes-another-multi-billion-dollar-deal" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.11em; font-weight: 700; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility; margin: 1.5em 0 0.5em 0; font-size: 26px; margin-top: 0; color: #15212A;">OpenAI strikes another multi-billion dollar deal</h3><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">What happened: OpenAI</strong> is <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/84632f8a?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>partnering</u></a> with chipmaker <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Broadcom</strong> to develop and deploy 10 gigawatts of custom AI chips and computing systems over the next four years. The new agreement, reportedly worth multiple billions of dollars, will see OpenAI designing its own processors to let it integrate its AI systems into hardware. OpenAI is also <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/5d2c1024?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>working with</u></a> <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Softbank</strong>’s <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Arm</strong> unit to develop a CPU chip that will work alongside its Broadcom AI chip, sources told <em>The Information</em>. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">Why we’re following: </strong>OpenAI's dealmaking has been the talk of the industry in recent weeks. The company has already struck deals with <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Nvidia</strong>, <strong style="font-weight: 700;">AMD</strong> and <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Oracle</strong> that are worth a combined $1 trillion; meanwhile, the company is still burning through cash and doesn't expect to be profitable until the end of the decade.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">What people are saying: </strong>The question still remains—how is OpenAI, a startup that doesn’t have the cash that Meta and Microsoft has, financing any of these deals? <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Matt Levine</strong> at <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Bloomberg</strong> has <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/097e5df2?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>a guess</u></a>: </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">“The financing tool is, you go to Broadcom and you put your arm around their shoulder and you gesture sweepingly in the distance and whisper 'omniscient robots' and they whisper 'yesssss' and you say 'we’ll need a few hundred billions dollars of chips and equipment from you' and they say 'of course' and you say 'good' and they say 'do you have hundreds of billions of dollars' and you whisper 'omniscient robots' again and they are enlightened.” </p><table class="kg-card kg-hr-card" role="presentation" width="100%" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr><td style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; margin: 0; padding-top: 1.5em; padding-bottom: 3em; font-size: 17px;" valign="top"><!--[if !mso]><!-- --><hr style="position: relative; width: 100%; margin: 3em 0; padding: 0; height: 1px; background-color: transparent; border: 0; border-top: 1px solid #e0e7eb; display: none;"><!--<![endif]--><table class="kg-hr" role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%;" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; padding-top: 1.5em; padding-bottom: 3em; margin: 0; padding: 0; border-top: 1px solid #e0e7eb; font-size: 0; line-height: 0;" valign="top"> </td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table><h3 id="google-bets-big-on-india-for-ai-infrastructure" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.11em; font-weight: 700; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility; margin: 1.5em 0 0.5em 0; font-size: 26px; margin-top: 0; color: #15212A;">Google bets big on India for AI infrastructure</h3><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">What happened: </strong>After weeks of its competitor <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/cd48530c?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>OpenAI announcing new deals</u></a> for its ambitious AI infrastructure buildouts, <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Google</strong> announced plans to <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/70ee5751?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>invest $15B</u></a> to build a 1GW data center and AI hub in southern <strong style="font-weight: 700;">India</strong> and <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/4a7a03fc?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>invest $9B</u></a> to expand and construct data center campuses in the <strong style="font-weight: 700;">US</strong>. These plans are an addition to over $10B in data center investment Google has announced in the past two months. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Still, Google’s plans may seem conservative relative to the <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/2aeeeb7d?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>more than $1 trillion</u></a> in chip and data center deals OpenAI has announced via a string of unconventional financial arrangements, which would net them over 26GW of computing capacity when completed.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">Why we’re following: </strong>Although all the major competitors in AI are investing heavily infrastructure, there are notable discrepancies in investment levels. Is OpenAI massively over-building — or are the company's rivals falling short?</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">What people are saying: </strong>Discussing the India investments on <strong style="font-weight: 700;">X</strong>, Google’s CEO <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Sundar Pichai</strong> <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/09e6b916?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>said</u></a> his company “will bring our industry-leading technology to enterprises and users in India, accelerating AI innovation and driving growth across the country.” </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Google’s <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/3a8adac9?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>press release</u></a> and Pichai’s X <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/b163d971?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>post</u></a> on the US investments also focused on their collaborations with the regions they were investing in — with an absence of rhetoric about AGI. The most ambitious they got was when Google Cloud’s CEO <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Thomas Kurian</strong> said in <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/89baf30c?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>a blog post</u></a> that the India deal is “about pioneering a generational shift in AI capability that benefits both economies.”</p><div class="kg-card kg-image-card" style="margin: 0 0 1.5em; padding: 0;"><img src="https://www.platformer.news/content/images/2024/05/floating_linebreak_600px-1.png" class="kg-image" alt loading="lazy" width="600" height="157" style="border: none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic; max-width: 100%; display: block; margin: 0 auto; height: auto; width: auto;"></div><h3 id="side-quests" style="margin-top: 0; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.11em; font-weight: 700; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility; margin: 1.5em 0 0.5em 0; font-size: 26px; color: #15212A;">Side Quests</h3><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">President Trump <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/f9d03247?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>slapped</u></a> a 100 percent tariff on Chinese imports and export controls on “critical software” after China announced tariffs on rare earth metals. <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Salesforce </strong>CEO <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Marc Benioff, </strong>doing a full heel turn, <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/de021acf?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>said</u></a> Trump should send the <strong style="font-weight: 700;">National Guard</strong> to <strong style="font-weight: 700;">San Francisco</strong>. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">Facebook</strong> <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/1a781bf1?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>took down</u></a> a page the <strong style="font-weight: 700;">DOJ</strong> said was used to harass <strong style="font-weight: 700;">ICE</strong> agents. As far as we can tell, no journalist has actually seen the page.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Not yet taken down: the <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/99c9c206?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">extremely racist <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Telegram</strong> chats</a> of the Young Republicans.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">Meta</strong> AI adviser <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Robby Starbuck</strong> has spent the past few weeks spreading <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/1ddd38c8?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>disinformation</u></a> about shootings, transgender people, and vaccines. The joke is that he's advising the company on "bias." </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Meanwhile, Meta's metaverse chief is telling employees to <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/009d40fb?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>use AI</u></a> to “go 5x faster.” </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">An AI safety nonprofit <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/3dcfac03?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>accused</u></a> <strong style="font-weight: 700;">OpenAI</strong> of intimidation. <strong style="font-weight: 700;">GPT-5</strong> is OpenAI’s least <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/1b1b1560?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>politically biased</u></a> yet, OpenAI said. How <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/bf28811c?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>malicious AI prompts</u></a> could lead to harmful biological agents. Anthropic co-founder <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Jack Clark</strong> says <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/efe8ce8f?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">people aren't worried enough about powerful AI</a>.</p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Videos of dead celebrities <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/137967ad?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>generated by <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Sora</strong></u></a> are leaving families of the deceased horrified. <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Walmart</strong> <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/84da5e66?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>partnered</u></a> with OpenAI to let users shop on ChatGPT. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">The <strong style="font-weight: 700;">UK</strong> <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/afe064b0?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>issued</u></a> a ￡20,000 safety fine to <strong style="font-weight: 700;">4chan</strong> for failing to respond to requests for information. Former UK prime minister <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Rishi Sunak</strong> was appointed as a <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/31a1871b?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>senior adviser</u></a> by <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Microsoft</strong> and <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Anthropic</strong>. Major platforms <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/e9de8116?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>shut down political ads</u></a> instead of complying with new <strong style="font-weight: 700;">EU</strong> rules — but EU politicians want them to revisit that one. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><strong style="font-weight: 700;">Google</strong> offered to <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/a09005f3?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>further tweak</u></a> search results to avoid an antitrust fine. Microsoft <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/793afaf3?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>illegally tracked</u></a> Austrian students using its education software, a court found. The <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Dutch government</strong> <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/49a5ea83?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>seized control</u></a> of Chinese-owned chipmaker <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Nexperia</strong> in a rare move. <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Latin American</strong> courts <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/a736ce10?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>are struggling</u></a> to rule on AI cases. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Towns are increasingly <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/78c7b480?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>saying no</u></a> to building data centers. <strong style="font-weight: 700;"> Nvidia</strong> partnered with over 70 companies to design more efficient gigawatt AI factories. <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Thinking Machines Lab</strong> cofounder <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Andrew Tulloch</strong> <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/4a4d7ee1?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>left to join</u></a> Meta. Google <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/652e5fbb?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>boasted</u></a> about processing a suspiciously high 1.3 quadrillion tokens monthly. <strong style="font-weight: 700;">xAI</strong> <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/bbd4f3f2?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>joined the race</u></a> to design AI systems that can navigate physical environments. </p><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Apple TV+ <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/a87e24d7?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>rebranded</u></a> — or perhaps debranded? — to <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Apple TV</strong>. New <strong style="font-weight: 700;">YouTube</strong> <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/425f5707?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">video player</a> incoming. <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Grindr</strong> reportedly <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/a1e86de1?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>explores</u></a> taking the company private. <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Spotify</strong> podcasts <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/e1616d9d?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">coming to</a> <strong style="font-weight: 700;">Netflix</strong>. Facebook <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/e4f916e6?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u>revived</u></a> its job board. The <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/70f51e91?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><u><strong style="font-weight: 700;">Figure 03</strong> robot</u></a> will do your domestic chores. </p><div class="kg-card kg-image-card" style="margin: 0 0 1.5em; padding: 0;"><img src="https://www.platformer.news/content/images/2024/05/floating_linebreak_600px-1.png" class="kg-image" alt loading="lazy" width="600" height="157" style="border: none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic; max-width: 100%; display: block; margin: 0 auto; height: auto; width: auto;"></div><h3 id="those-good-posts" style="margin-top: 0; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.11em; font-weight: 700; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility; margin: 1.5em 0 0.5em 0; font-size: 26px; color: #15212A;">Those good posts</h3><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;"><em>For more good posts every day, </em><a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/f536501f?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank"><em>follow Casey’s Instagram stories</em></a><em>.</em></p><div class="kg-card kg-image-card" style="margin: 0 0 1.5em; padding: 0;"><img src="https://www.platformer.news/content/images/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-14-at-3.07.04---PM.png" class="kg-image" alt loading="lazy" width="600" height="140" style="border: none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic; max-width: 100%; display: block; margin: 0 auto; height: auto; width: auto;"></div><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">(<a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/cf1ba525?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Link</a>)</p><div class="kg-card kg-image-card" style="margin: 0 0 1.5em; padding: 0;"><img src="https://www.platformer.news/content/images/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-14-at-3.07.32---PM.png" class="kg-image" alt loading="lazy" width="600" height="145" style="border: none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic; max-width: 100%; display: block; margin: 0 auto; height: auto; width: auto;"></div><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">(<a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/bacf33a4?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Link</a>)</p><div class="kg-card kg-image-card" style="margin: 0 0 1.5em; padding: 0;"><img src="https://www.platformer.news/content/images/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-14-at-3.08.27---PM.png" class="kg-image" alt loading="lazy" width="600" height="405" style="border: none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic; max-width: 100%; display: block; margin: 0 auto; height: auto; width: auto;"></div><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">(<a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/2cfb886c?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" rel="noreferrer" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Link</a>)</p><div class="kg-card kg-image-card" style="margin: 0 0 1.5em; padding: 0;"><img src="https://www.platformer.news/content/images/2024/05/floating_linebreak_600px-1.png" class="kg-image" alt loading="lazy" width="600" height="157" style="border: none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic; max-width: 100%; display: block; margin: 0 auto; height: auto; width: auto;"></div><h3 id="talk-to-us" style="margin-top: 0; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.11em; font-weight: 700; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility; margin: 1.5em 0 0.5em 0; font-size: 26px; color: #15212A;">Talk to us</h3><p style="margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; line-height: 1.6em; color: #15212A;">Send us tips, comments, questions, and regulated companions: <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/2f823215?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">casey@platformer.news</a>. Read <a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/f4cc8473?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #2047FF; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">our ethics policy here</a>.</p><table class="kg-card kg-button-card" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%;" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td class="kg-card-spacing" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; padding: 0 0 1.5em 0;" valign="top"><table class="btn" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; box-sizing: border-box; width: auto;" width="auto"><tbody><tr><td align="center" style="font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; padding: 8px 20px 9px; background-color: #2047FF; border-radius: 6px; text-align: center; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;" valign="top" bgcolor="#2047FF"><a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/14679dac?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; box-sizing: border-box; color: #FFFFFF; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; font-size: 15px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Sponsor a Newsletter</a></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table><table class="kg-card kg-hr-card" role="presentation" width="100%" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr><td style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; margin: 0; padding-top: 1.5em; padding-bottom: 3em; font-size: 17px;" valign="top"><!--[if !mso]><!-- --><hr style="position: relative; width: 100%; margin: 3em 0; padding: 0; height: 1px; background-color: transparent; border: 0; border-top: 1px solid #e0e7eb; display: none;"><!--<![endif]--><table class="kg-hr" role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%;" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; padding-top: 1.5em; padding-bottom: 3em; margin: 0; padding: 0; border-top: 1px solid #e0e7eb; font-size: 0; line-height: 0;" valign="top"> </td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table>
<!-- POST CONTENT END -->
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
<!-- END MAIN CONTENT AREA -->
<tr>
<td class="feedback-buttons-container" dir="ltr" width="100%" align="center" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; padding: 32px 0 24px; border-bottom: 1px solid #e0e7eb; text-align: center; background-color: #ffffff;" valign="top" bgcolor="#ffffff">
<table class="feedback-buttons" role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; margin: auto; width: 100%;" width="100%">
<tr>
<td dir="ltr" valign="top" align="center" style="font-size: 18px; color: #15212A; display: inline-block; vertical-align: top; font-family: inherit; text-align: center; padding: 0 4px 4px; cursor: pointer; width: 30%;" width="30%">
<a href="https://www.platformer.news/r/066f10ee?m=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a" target="_blank" style="color: #2047FF; text-decoration: none; overflow-wrap: anywhere;">
<img src="https://static.ghost.org/v5.0.0/images/comment-mobile.png" border="0" width="42" height="42" alt="Comment" style="border: none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic; max-width: 100%; display: block; margin: 0 auto; vertical-align: middle;">
<p class="feedback-button-text" style="display: inline-block; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: #15212A; font-weight: 500; margin: 1em 0 0 0; line-height: 1.4em; word-break: break-word; font-size: 13px;">Comment</p>
</a>
</td> </tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="wrapper" align="center" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; box-sizing: border-box;" valign="top">
<table role="presentation" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%" style="border-collapse: separate; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; width: 100%; padding-top: 40px; padding-bottom: 30px;">
<tr>
<td class="footer" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: top; color: #15212a; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.6); margin-top: 20px; text-align: center; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-top: 10px; padding-left: 30px; padding-right: 30px; line-height: 1.5em; font-size: 13px;" valign="top" align="center">Platformer © 2025 – <a href="https://www.platformer.news/unsubscribe/?uuid=51418983-c335-42dc-b433-9fac3bd4e54a&key=ab39f1e399a193f5b48b951d60d1adc867fa24c13c783898ade216de5beaa05d&newsletter=77f5c760-d0b3-41c4-9bf2-a818790fe251" style="overflow-wrap: anywhere; color: #15212a; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.6); text-decoration: underline; font-size: 13px;" target="_blank">Unsubscribe</a></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="footer-powered" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A; text-align: center; padding-top: 70px; padding-bottom: 40px;" valign="top" align="center"><a href="https://ghost.org/?via=pbg-newsletter&ref=platformer.news" style="color: #2047FF; text-decoration: none; overflow-wrap: anywhere;" target="_blank"><img src="https://static.ghost.org/v4.0.0/images/powered.png" border="0" width="142" height="30" class="gh-powered" alt="Powered by Ghost" style="border: none; -ms-interpolation-mode: bicubic; max-width: 100%; width: 142px; height: 30px;"></a></td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<!-- END CENTERED WHITE CONTAINER -->
</div>
</td>
<td style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; vertical-align: top; color: #15212A;" valign="top"> </td>
</tr>
<!--[if mso]>
</table>
</center>
</td>
</tr>
<![endif]-->
</table>
</body>
</html>