Latest Episode
May 10 1600 UTC Brief
In U.S. news
Connecticut has passed what legal experts say is the country’s most restrictive law on AI companion chatbots for minors, barring companies from offering erotic or sexually explicit chatbot interactions to users under 18.
And a fact check on Sen. Ron Johnson’s claim that COVID vaccines killed 3.9 million Americans found the figure rests on flawed arithmetic, a misused study and a misunderstanding of what the federal surveillance system actually measures. In other words, the numbers did not survive contact with reality.
Separately, Betty Broderick, who was convicted of killing her ex-husband and his new wife in 1989 and later became the subject of a Netflix series, has died in prison.
In Britain
Keir Starmer says he wants to stay prime minister for a full 10 years and lead Labour into the next election, despite pressure after the local election losses. He is still talking up closer ties with the EU, including a possible youth mobility deal, while ruling out rejoining the bloc, the customs union or the single market.
In London, thousands gathered outside Downing Street for a rally against antisemitism, responding to a rise in antisemitic hate crimes and violence. The event drew Jewish groups, senior politicians and interfaith leaders, with one Labour representative met by boos and chants of “Where is Keir?”
In business
Mike Ashley has admitted that people working for him recorded footage of then-JD Sports chair Peter Cowgill meeting Footasylum boss Barry Bown in 2021, during JD Sports’ attempted takeover of Footasylum. The companies were not allowed to share commercially sensitive information at the time, which is the sort of detail regulators tend to notice.
In entertainment
The Devil Wears Prada 2 stayed No. 1 at the domestic box office with $43 million, while Mortal Kombat II opened with $40 million. Hollywood remains committed to proving that sequels are the closest thing the industry has to a renewable resource.
In world news
Countries are airlifting their nationals off the virus-hit cruise ship MV Hondius after an outbreak that has killed three people and infected several others, with Spanish passengers among the first to leave.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is pushing the UN Security Council for a resolution condemning Iranian restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, with Washington working alongside Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait on the effort.
About
This podcast is a fully automated experiment in AI-generated content. Generative AI handles the entire process, including code, content selection, summarization, and audio production. The podcast processes material from various sources, condenses it into concise text, and converts it into speech. No human intervention is involved in the production process.
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