40 minutes ago AI is not just powerful. What’s really worrying is that DeepSeek has made it cheap, too | John Naughton

The AI startup has upended the industry by developing a model that costs much less to produce – and is available free to a universe of tinkerersNothing cheers up a tech columnist more than the sight of $600bn being wiped off the market cap of an overvalued tech giant in a single day. And yet last Monday that’s what happened to Nvidia, the leading maker of electronic picks and shovels for the AI gold rush. It was the biggest one-day slump for any company in history, and it was not alone – shares of companies in semiconductor, power and infrastructure industries exposed to AI collectively shed more than $1tn in value on the same day.The proximate cause of this chaos was the news that a Chinese tech startup of whom few had hitherto heard had released DeepSeek R1, a powerful AI assistant that was much cheaper to train and operate than the dominant models of the US tech giants – and yet was comparable in competence to OpenAI’s o1 “reasoning” model. Just to illustrate the difference: R1 w...

Politics

16 hours ago Welcome home Neymar! The Brazilian star returns to his boyhood club and everyone's celebrating

A tearful Neymar was welcomed back to his boyhood club on Friday by thousands of Santos fans and a concert in the home stadium beneath an electronic sign saying, “The prince is back.”

Society

21 hours ago Gynaecologist is suspended for refusing to treat a trans patient and saying he is only qualified to deal with 'real women'

Dr Victor Acharian refused to see the 26-year-old patient, who attended the gynaecological appointment with her boyfriend, in August 2023.

Economics

9 hours ago Strange, surreal and sexy: 31 images that changed the way we see our bodies

From dancers to divas, amputees to activists: what images of the human form throughout the decades tell us about who we areThere is no image more compelling to us than to see another human being naked. Thouusands of years of evolution and desire, of empathy and curiosity, hardwire us to stare. The sight is visceral, electrifying, irresistible. It is familiar and forbidden; innocence and sin. The naked body is there in the bathroom mirror every morning, but to see another always feels like stumbling on a secret. A salt-twist of narcissism heightens our emotions, so that looking at a nude feels very different from admiring a watercolour landscape. Ethics come into it. In the history of portraiture, it is the nudes that are the most honest, or the most exploitative – or sometimes both.Photographs are part of the fabric of everyday life for all of us, in a way charcoal sketches or oil paintings are not. So when a nude is not a sketch or a painting but a photograph, the intensity ratchet...

Events

21 hours ago My test drive in a Tesla Cybertruck took a surprising turn – and it’s truly life

Our EV editor has an order in for a Tesla Cybertruck. Will he still want one now he’s taken one for a drive?

Transport

4 hours ago ‘People wanted change’: Scranton felt the pinch – but are Trump tariffs the answer?

Voters in Biden’s home town turned to Trump to lower prices, but some are wary of the president’s economic plansThe annual Downtown on Ice festival is under way in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Ice sculptures are dotted around the city – there was little chance of them melting as an Arctic blast pulled temperatures down to 15F (-9C).Inside Boscov’s, a 100-year-old department store, Sue Sloan says she can’t wait for spring. The 60–year-old housekeeper says she’s also looking for other changes. “Everything is so expensive,” she says. “Food prices, eggs, meat, gas, electricity, everything. It’s terrible,” she says. Continue reading...

Politics

18 hours ago 'Our heart and soul is in that building': Devastation after fire breaks out at Salford synagogue

Horrified worshippers arriving for the Friday night Sabbath service had to be evacuated after the fire, believed to be caused by electrical issues

Events

20 hours ago Live updates as Talbot Green incident sees two police officers injured after 'disturbance'

There are a large number of emergency services in Talbot Green after reports of a man causing a disturbance outside the police station

Events

7 hours ago Mark Steel: ‘At 16, I thought I’d help transform the world into a socialist arena of peace and justice. I’m not sure we’ve managed it’

The comedian on liberating a budgie, stealing carrier bags, and his recent brush with deathBorn in Kent, Mark Steel, 64, began his radio career in 1992 with the satirical show The Mark Steel Solution. From 1999 to 2002, he presented The Mark Steel Lectures on Radio 4, which was nominated for a Bafta when it transferred to television. He has made 13 series of Mark Steel’s in Town for Radio 4, and his podcast is What the F*** Is Going On?. On 12 February, he begins a tour of The Leopard in My House and publishes an accompanying book. He lives in London and has two children. His partner is the comedian Shaparak Khorsandi.What is your earliest memory? When I was three years old, my mum and dad took the budgie cage out into the garden to clean it and I thought: “I’m going to open the door to see what happens.” Obviously what happened was the budgie flew out of the cage. I remember thinking: “Blimey, I’ve gone and done it now”, which sort of set the tone for the rest of my life. Continue ...

Politics

20 hours ago Live updates from Talbot Green and huge police presence after two officers injured in 'disturbance'

There are a large number of emergency services in Talbot Green after reports of a man causing a disturbance outside the police station

Events

18 hours ago Arne Slot credits Liverpool’s sporting director for emergence of Bournemouth

Richard Hughes switched from Cherries last summer‘It’s no surprise to me that they are able to compete’Arne Slot has credited Liverpool’s sporting director, Richard Hughes, with turning Bournemouth into one of the toughest assignments in the Premier League.Hughes joined Liverpool last summer from Bournemouth, where he had been technical director during the club’s rise from the Championship and led the appointment of Andoni Iraola as manager. The former Bournemouth and Portsmouth midfielder was also responsible for players such as Justin Kluivert to the Vitality Stadium. He was appointed Liverpool’s sporting director by Michael Edwards, a friend from their time together at Fratton Park. Continue reading...

Politics

20 hours ago Talbot Green attack: Two officers hurt and huge police presence after 'disturbance'

There are a large number of emergency services in Talbot Green after reports of a man causing a disturbance outside the police station

Events

22 hours ago Loose Women says 'it's not exactly what you want to hear' after receiving health update

A panelist from ITV's Loose Women shared a post about a health appointment this week, telling fans that it didn't go as she had hoped and that there will be an update in the future

Politics

22 hours ago Air ambulance lands as person is trapped inside car in Port Eynon after crashing into wall

A large-scale emergency services rescue operation was launched in the Gower community and the road remained closed this evening with diversions in place

Events

22 hours ago Loose Women star says 'it's not exactly what I wanted to hear' after visit to doctors

A panelist from ITV's Loose Women shared a post about a health appointment this week, telling fans that it didn't go as she had hoped and that there will be an update in the future

Politics

25 hours ago Daughter says she 'saved' her mother from Harold Shipman after noticing chilling detail about Dr Death that made her feel 'uneasy'

Patricia told the BBC that her mother had an appointment with Shipman at his Market Street practice in Hyde where he requested that she left the room so he could examine her mother.

Events

26 hours ago When Patrick Dorgu can make Man United debut after £30m transfer as Premier League wait expected

Manchester United are due to make Patrick Dorgu their first signing since appointing Ruben Amorim as head coach before the winter transfer window deadline elapses

Politics

26 hours ago ‘Witchcraft’ medicine and God’s ‘healing power’: inside the Australian ‘cult’ that killed an eight

For 17 years Brendan Stevens led a small conservative Christian sect known as the Saints, disavowing birthdays, schooling and medicine – including the insulin that would have saved Elizabeth Struhs’ lifeThey said he was “appointed by God”. They called him “the pastor”, “the messenger” and “the healer”.For 17 years, Brendan Stevens led his small congregation known as the Saints, a religious sect thrust into the international spotlight this week after one of its flock, an eight-year-old diabetic named Elizabeth Struhs, died after members denied her life-saving insulin. Fourteen members of the Saints, including Elizabeth’s parents, her brother and Stevens, were this week convicted of her 2022 manslaughter in a Queensland court. Continue reading...

Events

28 hours ago Love Island's Georgia Steel eyes up Strictly stint after Tasha Ghouri's success

Former Love Island star Georgia Steel has eyed up a spot on BBC's Strictly Come Dancing after watching the success of fellow islander Tasha Ghouri during her recent stint

Politics

27 hours ago Fire risk warning to electric blanket users as expert says 'never' leave on while sleeping

There are around 1,000 fires caused by the blankets every year - but there are steps to minimise the risks

Events

28 hours ago ‘Overt femininity’: from Maga makeovers to Texan blowouts, big hair is back

Melania Trump, Sabrina Carpenter and the Princess of Wales are among those turning up the volumeIt’s big. It’s bouncy. And it’s back. From the catwalks to Capitol Hill, hair with added volume is trending. Raised at the roots and curled at the ends, big and bold hair has knocked relaxed, beachy waves off the hairstyle charts.It’s the hairstyle Melania Trump loosely based her hair on for her official Flotus 2.0 portrait and it’s quickly becoming the signature style for her husband’s cabinet. Just days after being appointed White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt swapped her usual go-to straight and sleek look for it. Last year, Kristi Noem completed her Maga makeover with her previously short cropped hair in a shoulder-length style, alongside new teeth and fluttery fake eyelashes. This week, she posted images of herself attending her first deportation raid as homeland security secretary to X, her hair noticeably groomed and curled under a law enforcement cap. “Did she go to Dryb...

Politics

27 hours ago Locals from UK town shocked as Hollywood legend pops into their chippy only weeks after losing his LA home

Workers at Steve's Fish Bar in the south Wales industrial town of Port Talbot saw a familiar face leaning over the counter at the chippy this week as they went about their shift.

Events

29 hours ago Graham Price: Two major absentees from this Wales team and WRU must make this appointment

Warren Gatland remains under severe pressure after a winless 2024

Politics

28 hours ago 'Toasty warm' Sherpa electric throw that's 'one of the best' for circulation issues at a new low price from Lakeland

You can get cosy on the sofa or snuggle in bed now at a reduced price

Events

32 hours ago Secondhand is rarely second best. Sometimes it looks far better | Jess Cartner

Forget tatty cast-offs – the secondhand marketplace is now the first port of call for the savvy shopperThe rise of secondhand fashion is an enormously cheering thing, and in a world not currently over-blessed with hugely cheering things, it is worth taking a moment to celebrate.In a short space of time, the pre-loved fashion economy has gone from being niche – vintage stores full of antique silk dresses at the top end, jumble sale tat at the other, not much in the middle – to a viable way to source every part of your wardrobe. The marketplace of new-to-you clothes, rather than new-to-the-world clothes, is now an aspirational, respectable, efficient, affordable place to shop. Not just for the pieces that have always been associated with secondhand (tea dresses for retro dressers, rare jeans for denim nerds) but for straight-down-the-middle mainstream wardrobe stuff. Your cousin’s North Face puffer jacket? £45 from Vinted. Your line manager’s Zara blazer? £18 courtesy of Depop. The Pr...

Politics

38 hours ago Four years after the coup, chaos reigns as Myanmar’s military struggles

A patchwork of armed opposition groups have made major gains over the past year, with the military facing further losses The streets of Lashio, a once bustling city in north-eastern Myanmar, are quieter than usual. Schools are shut, except for those run by volunteers from the pro-democracy resistance in the community. Months of airstrikes have left destruction. Even though the fighting has stopped, electricity is still not running properly. Instead, residents rely on solar power to charge their phones, and firewood and charcoal to cook.“We saw a lot of civilians who died during the battle [in those days]. We saw them on the streets, on the lanes, some of the bodies were decayed and some of them were freshly dead. Some died in their homes,” said Leo*, a 40-year-old driver, whose family spent months living with constant bombardments by the military, running to hide in the darkness of a homemade bunker each time jet fighters came. Continue reading...

Events