• Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) introduced an updated version of the Kids Online Safety Act, which would require social media companies to take more action to mitigate potential harm to younger users, including undergoing annual independent audits to determine risks the platforms present to minors and enabling stronger default privacy settings for underage users. The proposal has more than 25 co-sponsors and has the support of groups like the American Psychological Association, but a number of civil society groups including the American Civil Liberties Union have criticized the bill over surveillance concerns. (CNBC)
• Vice President Kamala Harris will meet with the chief executives from Alphabet Inc., Anthropic, Microsoft Corp. and OpenAI Inc. tomorrow and is expected to tell the corporate leaders that they have a responsibility to mitigate potential harms that could come from artificial intelligence tools, according to a White House official. (Bloomberg)
  • A Morning Consult survey found that 65% of adults believe companies that develop AI models are responsible for ensuring the tools are developed ethically. 
• Eric Han, the head of TikTok’s trust and safety team in the United States, will leave the company on May 12, according to two people familiar with the matter and an internal memo to employees. Han led TikTok U.S. Data Security, a separate entity that was leading efforts to address the security concerns of the U.S. government, and will be replaced for the time being by interim USDS general manager Andy Bonillo until a long-term replacement is named. (The Verge)
• Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the Biden administration does not plan to extend the current July 1 deadline for airlines to upgrade plane altimeters — a measuring instrument that helps with landings in bad weather and low-visibility conditions — to address potential interference from 5G wireless technology. The International Air Transport Association, which represents more than 100 carriers that fly to the United States, said supply chain issues make it unlikely that all planes will be upgraded by the deadline. (Reuters)

Happening today: 

• The Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust and Consumer Rights will host a hearing titled “Competition in the Digital Advertising Ecosystem.”
• The Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on State Department and USAID Management, International Operations and Bilateral International Development will host a hearing titled “The Global Information Wars: Is the U.S. Winning or Losing?”
• Atera Networks Ltd. will host Ateraverse, a virtual event focused on the future of information technology. Speakers include Itzik Tzalaf, national security officer at Microsoft Corp., and Heather Ceylan, deputy chief information security officer at Zoom Video Communications Inc.
• TiEcon 2023, a conference for tech entrepreneurs and investors, will kick off in Santa Clara, Calif. Speakers include Surbhi Sarna, group partner at Y Combinator, and Sarah Friar, CEO at Nextdoor Holdings Inc.

Tech stocks: the missing data investors want to know

Financial Times

AMD shares sink on forecast miss as PC market remains weak

Chavi Mehta et al., Reuters

Advanced Micro Devices shares slumped on Tuesday after the chipmaker forecast quarterly sales below estimates due to a weak PC market, overshadowing the company’s optimism that the chip market would start to recover in the second half of 2023.

Quantum computing could break the internet. This is how

Sam Learner et al., Financial Times

The next generation of quantum computers will open a new world of possibilities, but also pose enormous risks to our online security.

China’s AI industry barely slowed by US chip export rules

Stephen Nellis et al., Reuters

U.S. microchip export controls imposed last year to freeze China’s development of supercomputers used to develop nuclear weapons and artificial-intelligence systems like ChatGPT are having only minimal effects on China’s tech sector.

Washington signals support for South Korean chipmakers in US battle with China

Christian Davies and Demetri Sevastopulo, Financial Times

Samsung and SK Hynix can expect extension to permission for sending US chipmaking tools to their Chinese plants.

Apple fights $2 bln London lawsuit for ‘throttling’ millions of iPhones

Sam Tobin, Reuters

Apple Inc urged a London tribunal on Tuesday to block a $2 billion mass lawsuit accusing it of hiding defective batteries in millions of iPhones by “throttling” them with software updates.

‘We have survived!’: China’s Huawei goes local in response to US sanctions

Qianer Liu, Financial Times

Tech group is trying to lead way for Chinese companies eager to reduce reliance on western technology.

AI experts warn of looming catastrophes

Ryan Heath, Axios

The “godfather of AI” quit Google and joined a growing chorus of experts warning that the rush to deploy artificial intelligence could lead to disaster. Axios asked AI experts — developers, researchers and regulators — to sketch their most plausible disaster fears.

AI ‘Will Cause Real Damage,’ Microsoft Chief Economist Warns

Bryce Baschuk, Bloomberg

Artificial intelligence will be dangerous in the hands of unscrupulous people, according to Microsoft Corp. Chief Economist Michael Schwarz.

Co-founders of Google DeepMind and LinkedIn launch chatbot

Madhumita Murgia, Financial Times

Debut of ‘Pi’ from Inflection AI comes as investors and consumer interest in the technology surges.

Judge says no class action against Peloton over fitness class availability

Jonathan Stempel, Reuters

A U.S. judge on Tuesday refused to let Peloton Interactive Inc customers pursue a class action accusing the bike and treadmill maker of misleading them about the “ever-growing” size of its library of on-demand fitness classes.

Education companies’ shares fall sharply after warning over ChatGPT

Bethan Staton, Financial Times

Declines follow admission from California-based Chegg over AI chatbot’s effect on revenue.

Scared of Leaking Data to ChatGPT? Microsoft Tests a Private Alternative

Aaron Holmes and Jon Victor, The Information

Later this quarter Microsoft’s Azure cloud server unit plans to sell a version of ChatGPT that runs on dedicated cloud servers where the data will be kept separate from those of other customers, according to two people with knowledge of the upcoming announcement. 

Code.org helping launch TeachAI to guide integration of artificial intelligence in education

Kurt Schlosser, GeekWire

Seattle-based computer science education nonprofit Code.org is helping to launch TeachAI, a new effort aimed at guiding governments and educators on teaching with and about artificial intelligence.

Tower firms eye 5G mid-band and small cells to boost 2023

Sue Marek, Fierce Wireless

5G is the gift that keeps giving to the top three U.S. tower companies. Although most agree that 2022 was the year of “peak” 5G deployments, executives with American Tower, SBA Communications and Crown Castle told investors during their Q1 earnings calls that they are still seeing continued 5G activity as operators like Verizon build their C-band 5G network and Dish Network rapidly expands its nationwide greenfield 5G network.

Match Will Pull Apps From Russia on Human Rights Concerns

Jennifer Ryan, Bloomberg

Match Group Inc., which operates dating apps including Tinder and Hinge, said it will pull all its services from Russia, citing human rights concerns. 

These are the specs of Motorola’s upcoming Razr 40 Ultra foldable

Adam Conway, XDA Developers

Motorola has been working on another foldable Razr phone this year, and leaks and rumors have suggested that we may even see two devices soon. One would be a flagship, high-end model, and the other is more of a “lite” alternative. While we don’t know a lot about the non-Ultra model, we have exclusive specifications to share from the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra.

Motorola is finally bringing a real flagship contender to the US

Allison Johnson, The Verge

The 2023 Edge Plus checks all the right boxes to go toe-to-toe with Samsung, but you’re probably not going to find it on your wireless carrier’s retail shelves.

Drugs, guns and crypto seized, 288 arrested, in ‘unprecedented’ dark web crackdown

Rohan Goswami, CNBC

Federal and international law enforcement arrested 288 suspects and seized tens of millions of dollars worth of crypto in a globe-spanning drug enforcement operation.

Mozilla buys startup that spots fake reviews

Ina Fried, Axios

Mozilla has acquired Fakespot, a small startup whose website and browser plug-in help users identify bogus product reviews on e-commerce sites.

Google, Apple working together to fight unwanted tracking

Tiyashi Datta, Reuters

Alphabet Inc-owned Google and Apple Inc said on Tuesday they were working together to curb unwanted tracking of people by Bluetooth devices such as AirTags used for finding lost items.

The Untold Story of the Boldest Supply-Chain Hack Ever

Kim Zetter, Wired

The attackers were in thousands of corporate and government networks. They might still be there now. Behind the scenes of the SolarWinds investigation.

Snap announces tests of sponsored links in My AI, new ad products for Spotlight and Stories

Sarah Perez, TechCrunch

Snap’s new President of Americas Rob Wilk, previously Microsoft’s Head of Advertising, and Chief Creative Officer Colleen DeCourcy, spoke about a test that allowed Snap partners to leverage its new AI feature, My AI, to place sponsored links in front of users. Snap also announced new ad slots, including the option to reserve the first video ad seen in Snapchat’s Friend Stories and the ability to advertise within its TikTok-like Spotlight feature.

Instagram, Google See Surge in Reports of Online Child Abuse

Cecilia D’Anastasio, Bloomberg

Reports of child exploitation online increased at many of the biggest tech and social media firms over the last year, including Meta Platforms Inc.’s Instagram and Alphabet Inc.’s Google.

Brazil pushes back on big tech firms’ campaign against ‘fake news law’

Anthony Boadle, Reuters

Brazil’s government and judiciary objected on Tuesday to big tech firms campaigning against an internet regulation bill aimed at cracking down on fake news, alleging undue interference in the debate in Congress.

Meta rolls out new discovery and personalization controls for Facebook Reels

Aisha Malik, TechCrunch

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced today that the company is introducing new features that make it easier for users to discover and personalize Facebook Reels recommendations. The company is launching new personalization controls for Reels that let users customize what they want to see more or less of.

Elon Musk threatens to re-assign @NPR on Twitter to ‘another company’

Bobby Allyn, NPR News

Elon Musk has threatened to reassign NPR’s Twitter account to “another company.” In a series of emails sent to this reporter, Musk suggested he would transfer the network’s main account on Twitter, under the @NPR handle, to another organization or person. The idea shocked even longtime observers of Musk’s spur-of-the-moment and erratic leadership style.

Twitter restores free API access for emergency, weather and transportation alerts

Jon Fingas, Engadget

The social network has restored free access to the app programming framework for verified government and publicly-owned services that use the tool for “critical purposes” such as emergency notifications, transportation updates and weather alerts.

Unity Conducts Its Third and Largest Round of Layoffs in a Year

Sarah E. Needleman, The Wall Street Journal

Unity Software is conducting its third and largest round of layoffs in the past year, according to people familiar with the matter, joining other companies in tech and beyond in trimming their workforces as recession fears mount.