TikTok says that the government didn’t adequately consider viable alternative options before charging ahead with a law that could ban the platform in the US. TikTok, whose parent company ByteDance is based in China, claims that it provided the US government with an extensive and detailed plan to mitigate national security risks and that this plan was largely ignored when Congress passed a law with a huge impact on speech.
Technology
Facebook won’t hold its F8 developer conference this year after pivoting to Meta
![](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/acasto_180123_1777_0003_v2.jpg)
Meta received’t be holding its F8 developer convention in 2022, the corporate introduced Wednesday.
“Just like years previous, we’re taking a quick break in programming and won’t maintain F8 in 2022 whereas we gear up on new initiatives which are all tailor-made in the direction of the following chapter of the web, and the following chapter of our firm too: constructing the metaverse,” Meta’s Diego Duarte Moreira mentioned in a weblog publish. “Just like the early phases of the online, constructing the metaverse might be a collaborative effort at each stage — with different firms, creators and builders such as you.”
In lieu of F8, Moreira pointed to Meta’s “inaugural enterprise messaging occasion,” dubbed Conversations, which is able to happen on Could nineteenth. Moreira additionally mentioned there might be one other Join occasion “later this 12 months” targeted on the corporate’s “VR, AR, and metaverse platform choices.” On the October 2021 Join, Fb introduced its rebrand to Meta, so it appears doubtless the corporate may have some massive information to share at that occasion.
Different massive tech conferences are transferring ahead within the coming months. Google I/O will happen Could eleventh and twelfth, whereas Apple simply introduced on Tuesday that the 2022 Worldwide Builders Convention is about for June sixth by way of tenth. Each might be totally obtainable on-line. And IFA 2022 is about to be an in-person occasion that’s scheduled to happen in-person in early September.
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Technology
TikTok makes its First Amendment case
![TikTok makes its First Amendment case](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/5IDBmiGazZk2tUqKn_Dbe6CUkGk=/0x0:2040x1334/1200x628/filters:focal(1020x667:1021x668)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25408587/STK051_TIKTOKBAN2_CVirginia_A.jpg)
In briefs filed at the DC Circuit Court on Thursday, both TikTok and a group of creators on the platform who’ve filed their own suit spelled out their case for why they believe the new law violates the First Amendment. The court is set to hear oral arguments in the case on September 16th, just a few months before the current divest-or-ban deadline of January 19th, 2025.
The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act would effectively ban TikTok from operating in the US unless it divests from ByteDance by the deadline. The president has the option to extend that deadline slightly if he sees progress toward a deal. But spinning out TikTok is not entirely simple, given the limited pool of possible buyers and the fact that Chinese export law would likely prevent a sale of its coveted recommendation algorithm.
But lawmakers who supported the legislation have said that divestiture is necessary to protect national security — both because they fear that the Chinese government could access US user information due to the company’s China-based ownership and because they fear ByteDance could be pressured by the Chinese government to tip the scales on the algorithm to spread propaganda in the US. TikTok denies that either is happening or could happen in the future, saying its operations are separate from ByteDance’s.
The broad strokes of TikTok’s arguments have already been laid out in the complaints. But the new filings provide a more extensive look into how TikTok engaged the US government over several years with detailed plans of how it thought it could mitigate national security concerns while continuing its operations.
In an appendix, TikTok submitted hundreds of pages of communications with the US government, including presentations the company gave to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS) when it was evaluating national security risks of its ownership setup. One deck explains the basics of how its algorithm figures out what to recommend to users to watch next, as well as a detailed plan to mitigate risk of US user data being improperly accessed. It goes as far as to include a floor plan of a “Dedicated Transparency Center,” through its collaboration with Oracle, where a specific group of employees in TikTok’s US data operations could access the source code in a secure computing environment. According to the slide deck, no ByteDance employees would be allowed in the space.
TikTok called the law “unprecedented,” adding, “[n]ever before has Congress expressly singled out and shut down a specific speech forum. Never before has Congress silenced so much speech in a single act.”
Courts usually apply a standard known as strict scrutiny in these kinds of speech cases — the government must have a compelling interest in restricting the speech, and the restriction must be narrowly tailored to achieve its aim.
TikTok claims that Congress has left the court “almost nothing to review” when scrutinizing “such an extraordinary speech restriction.” The company says Congress failed to produce findings to justify its reasoning behind the law, leaving only the statements of individual members of Congress for the court to go off of. (Many of those statements are included in an appendix filed by TikTok.)
“There is no indication Congress even considered TikTok Inc.’s exhaustive, multi-year efforts to address the government’s concerns that Chinese subsidiaries of its privately owned parent company, ByteDance Ltd., support the TikTok platform—concerns that would also apply to many other companies operating in China,” TikTok wrote in its brief. Lawmakers received classified briefings ahead of their votes, which some said impacted or solidified their final position on the bill. But the public still does not have access to the information in those briefings, although some lawmakers have pushed to declassify them.
The company also said that CFIUS, which was tasked with evaluating its risk mitigation plan in the first place, did not provide a substantive explanation for why it took such a hard line on divestment in March 2023. TikTok claims that when it explained why divestment wasn’t possible and asked to meet with government officials, it received “no meaningful responses.” CFIUS and the DOJ did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
TikTok has said it’s already implemented much of its plans voluntarily through its $2 billion Project Texas
The text of the draft National Security Agreement that TikTok presented to CFIUS was included in an appendix that was filed in court. The draft included proposed changes like the creation of TikTok US Data Security Inc., a subsidiary that would be tasked with managing operations involving US user data, as well as heavy oversight by the agencies that make up CFIUS. TikTok has said it’s already implemented much of its plans voluntarily through its $2 billion Project Texas. Still, recent reporting has raised questions about how effective that project really is for national security purposes. In a report in Fortune from April, former TikTok employees said the project was “largely cosmetic” and that workers still engage with China-based ByteDance executives.
Terrence Clark, a spokesperson for the Justice Department, said in an emailed statement to The Verge that the agency and intelligence officials have “consistently warned about the threat of autocratic nations that can weaponize technology — such as the apps and software that run on our phones – to use against us. This threat is compounded when those autocratic nations require companies under their control to turn over sensitive data to the government in secret.”
Regardless, the court will have to consider whether the US government should have considered a less speech-restrictive route to achieving its national security aims, and TikTok says it should have. “In short, Congress reached for a sledgehammer without even considering if a scalpel would suffice,” TikTok wrote in its brief. “It ordered the closure of one of the largest platforms for speech in the United States and left Petitioners — and the public —to guess at the reasons why a wide range of less speech-restrictive alternatives were disregarded. The First Amendment demands much more.”
Technology
Fox News AI Newsletter: Fmr Air Force secretary says what US must do now to keep competitive with China
![Fox News AI Newsletter: Fmr Air Force secretary says what US must do now to keep competitive with China](https://static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2022/08/US-Air-Force-F-16.jpg)
Welcome to Fox News’ Artificial Intelligence newsletter with the latest AI technology advancements.
IN TODAY’S NEWSLETTER:
– China AI arms race: Here’s what Air Force, Congress must do now to keep US competitive
– McDonald’s ending AI drive-thru ordering
– Could Microsoft’s creepy ‘Recall’ AI feature become potent spy tool for crooks?
FILE – A U.S. Air Force F-16 receives fuel from a fuel boom suspended from a US Air Force KC-10 Extender during mid-air refueling support to Operation Inherent Resolve over Iraq and Syria air space, March 15, 2017. (REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed)
CHINA AI ARMS RACE: In the last decade, however, a strategic adversary has emerged – China – so the Air Force must recapitalize its very old fleets quickly.
‘FUTURE’ NOT HERE: McDonald’s has informed franchisees that it is ending an artificial intelligence drive-thru order taking program, a report says.
![Could Microsoft's creepy 'Recall' AI feature become potent spy tool for crooks?](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/06/1200/675/1-Could-Microsofts-Recall-AI-feature-become-a-potent-spy-tool-for-crooks.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
Copilot + PC logo (Microsoft) (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
AI SPY TOOL?: Microsoft has announced a change in the rollout plan for the Recall preview feature on Copilot+ PCs. Recall is an AI tool capable of recording everything on your screen, and security researchers have exposed potential flaws that could expose personal data to malicious code.
Cha-ching!: Artificial intelligence skills are in high demand these days, with some companies offering salaries in the hundreds of thousands of dollars for employees that are experts in the rapidly developing technology.
![caption](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/06/1200/675/Apr2024_0615.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
caption (Courtesy of Biola University)
MERGING AI & FAITH: A new AI Lab at a Christian university in California is grounded in theological values — something the school hopes will help to prevent Christians and others of faith from falling behind when it comes to this new technology.
Subscribe now to get the Fox News Artificial Intelligence Newsletter in your inbox.
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Technology
Anker’s fastest power bank is matching its lowest price
![Anker’s fastest power bank is matching its lowest price](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Rac_ZfYEuqj5jMP6s9kuSytQoTs=/523x999:1417x1531/1200x628/filters:focal(1385x999:1386x1000)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25499389/anker_prime_power_bank.png)
My army of portable chargers is eight soldiers strong. It’s a little ridiculous, but the variety gives me flexibility to pick the perfect charger for the day’s needs, whether it’s my sleek MagSafe charger to keep my iPhone going on longer days or a bigger brick for my iPad, camera, and other devices when I anticipate heavier usage. My collection ballooned as charging tech improved over the years, but it’s way more than any one person needs.
I’m hoping to consolidate my kit with the Anker Prime 27,650mAh Power Bank (250W) I’ve been eyeing, and now seems a decent time to buy since it’s matching its all-time low of $124.99 ($55 off) at Amazon and directly from Anker with code WS7DV2MTYMJV. It’s compatible with an optional $69.99 magnetic charging base, but you can also use the included 140W charging cable to top up the power bank or charge your USB-C devices.
For most techies, a $125 power bank is absolutely overkill. If all you’re worried about charging is a phone and perhaps a Nintendo Switch or a pair of earbuds on the occasional extended outing, you could easily get by with something half the price. But it’s easier to justify expanding your budget for something like this when you regularly tote laptops, tablets, cameras, and other gear that you can’t wait around forever to charge.
It’s a little chunkier and heavier than the average power bank — it’s just small enough to be “portable” but definitely not meant for pockets — however, the 27,650mAh capacity may be worth the heft. Starting from 100 percent, it should fully charge smaller laptops like a MacBook Air with room to spare, and devices with smaller batteries can get several extra cycles. Cheaper power banks can, too, but you’re really paying for the charging bandwidth here.
The 250W maximum throughput (the fastest available from Anker’s smaller options) splits across two USB-C ports that can charge devices at up to 140W each (if used alone) and a USB-A port that can go up to 65W. If you’re charging two devices, you can simultaneously pull up to 140W and 100W from each USB-C port or 140W and 65W from USB-C and USB-A.
With three devices, the USB-C ports still offer plenty of headroom at 140W and 92W, but the USB-A port takes a steep drop to 18W — still suitable for charging a phone or smaller accessories at decent speeds. One caveat in all of this: a built-in mechanism periodically throttles charging speeds when the power bank is below 55 percent capacity, which Anker deems necessary for preserving long-term battery health.
I also like the built-in display that shows the power bank’s total capacity and how much time remains before it’s fully charged (Anker claims it can go from empty to full in as little as 37 minutes), plus the current power being delivered to each port. There’s also a companion app that’ll show all of this, plus a feature that makes the power bank emit a sound to help you locate it.
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