Heed warnings from Wolmar on robotaxis | Brief letters

In assessing the merits of driverless taxis (Driverless taxis from Waymo will be on London’s roads next year, US firm announces, 15 October), passengers should consider the cautions presented in Christian Wolmar’s book Driverless Cars: On a Road to Nowhere. Adherence to Isaac Asimov’s first law of robotics (“A robot may not injure a human being”) requires the taxi to stop if a person steps in front of it. Highway robbery or worse may be facilitated.Prof Clive CoenKing’s College London Your article (Parliamentary staff of colour earn £2,000 less than white colleagues, study suggests, 12 October) says that disabled employees earn £646 less a year “than able-bodied colleagues”. Disabilities come in many forms, not all physical

Barrister found to have used AI to prepare for hearing after citing ‘fictitious’ cases

An immigration barrister was found by a judge to be using AI to do his work for a tribunal hearing after citing cases that were “entirely fictitious” or “wholly irrelevant”.Chowdhury Rahman was discovered using ChatGPT-like software to prepare his legal research, a tribunal heard. Rahman was found not only to have used AI to prepare his work, but “failed thereafter to undertake any proper checks on the accuracy”.The upper tribunal judge Mark Blundell said Rahman had even tried to hide the fact he had used AI and “wasted” the tribunal’s time. Blundell said he was considering reporting Rahman to the Bar Standards Board

Italian news publishers demand investigation into Google’s AI Overviews

Italian news publishers are calling for an investigation into Google’s AI Overviews, arguing that the search engine’s AI-generated summaries feature is a “traffic killer” that threatens their survival.FIEG, the Italian federation of newspaper publishers, said it has submitted a formal complaint to Agcom, Italy’s communications watchdog.Similar complaints have been filed in other EU countries. Coordinated by the European Newspaper Publishers’ Association, the aim is to push the European Commission to open an investigation against Google under the EU Digital Services Act.The threat posed by AI Overviews, which gives users information without them having to click through to the original source by summarising searches with a block of text at the top of the results page, is among the main concerns of European news outlets

Spotify partnering with multinational music companies to develop ‘responsible’ AI products

Spotify has announced it is teaming up with the world’s biggest music companies to develop “responsible” artificial intelligence products that respect artists’ copyright.The market-leading music streamer is collaborating with the Sony, Universal and Warner music groups – whose combined rosters feature artists including Beyoncé, Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift – to create new AI features.Spotify did not give details of what the new products would entail, but the company said artists would not be forced to participate, and their copyright would not be violated.In a blogpost announcing the agreement, Spotify referred pointedly to a move-fast-and-break-things approach to copyright in some parts of the tech industry. The tension between the music industry and some tech firms has already led to three major labels suing AI companies whose tools create music from user prompts

Driverless taxis from Waymo will be on London’s roads next year, US firm announces

People in London could be hiring driverless taxis from Waymo next year, after the US autonomous vehicle company announced plans to launch its services there.The UK capital will become the first European city to have an autonomous taxi service of the kind now familiar in San Francisco and four other US cities using Waymo’s technology.The launch pits an innovation sometimes dubbed the “robotaxi” against London’s famous black cabs, which can trace their history back to the first horse-drawn hackney coaches of the Tudor era.But a representative of the capital’s cab drivers said they were not concerned by the arrival of a “fairground ride” and questioned the reliability of driverless vehicles.Waymo said its cars were now on their way to London and would start driving on the capital’s streets in the coming weeks with “trained human specialists”, or safety drivers, behind the wheel

iPhone Air review: Apple’s pursuit of absolute thinness

The iPhone Air is a technical and design marvel that asks: how much are you willing to give up for a lightweight and ultra-slender profile?The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more.Beyond the obvious engineering effort that has gone into creating one of the slimmest phones ever made, the Air is a reductive exercise that boils down the iPhone into the absolute essentials in a premium body.Cut away the rear cameras, slim down the battery, remove the stereo speakers and maximise the screen, and what is left is an impressive sliver of titanium and glass