7 d. ago Ministers call on tech firms for ‘bold ideas’ to tackle justice system crisis

Tech bosses will meet with the Justice Secretary on Thursday as part of Government plans to use technology to overhaul the justice system.

Politics

8 d. ago From the archive: Food fraud and counterfeit cotton: the detectives untangling the global supply chain – podcast

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors.This week, from 2021: Amid the complex web of international trade, proving the authenticity of a product can be near-impossible. But one company is taking the search to the atomic levelBy Samanth Subramanian. Read by Raj Ghatak Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago A grizzly bear comeback in California? An old dream gets new legs

A feasibility report using historical maps and ecological data is raising excitement: ‘It would be a slow process’On the eve of the gold rush, California was teeming with grizzly bears – as many as 10,000 of them. They were so popular that the Bear Flag Republic – a short-lived attempt by a group of US settlers to break away from Mexico in 1846 – used the animals as their mascot; an image that still adorns California’s flag.But by the mid-1920s, the bears were all gone. The last documented sighting of a grizzly bear in California was in the spring of 1924 in Sequoia national park, a lonesome bear wandering among the trees. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago US asks judge to break up Google’s ad tech business after requesting Chrome sale

After Google lost its first monopoly trial, government asks it to sell off units of its core internet ads businessGoogle on Friday faced a demand by the US government to break up its hugely profitable ad technology business. The request came after a judge found the tech giant was commanding an illegal monopoly for the second time in less than a year.“We have a defendant who has found ways to defy” the law, US government lawyer Julia Tarver Wood told a federal court in Virginia, as she urged the judge to dismiss Google’s assurance that it would change its behavior. “Leaving a recidivist monopolist” intact was not appropriate to solve the issue, she added. Continue reading...

Economics

2 w. ago Tesla denies report claiming board looked to replace Elon Musk

Wall Street Journal article saying headhunters were contacted branded ‘absolutely false’ by chair Robyn DenholmTesla has denied a report that its board sought to replace Elon Musk as its chief executive amid a backlash against his rightwing politics and declining car sales.Robyn Denholm, the chair of the board at the electric carmaker, said in a statement on Tesla’s social media account on X: “Earlier today, there was a media report erroneously claiming that the Tesla Board had contacted recruitment firms to initiate a CEO search at the company. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Didn't get Glastonbury tickets this year? Here are the other routes into the festival

That’s right, you don’t need to attempt a break-in to have fun this summer

Politics

3 w. ago Sports pundit sprints off live TV broadcast for emergency toilet break

A sports pundit sprinted off a live TV broadcast in urgent need of an emergency toilet break as his co-presenters poked fun at his desperate attempt to make it in time

Sport

3 w. ago The US government is coming for Google and Meta – but what will happen next?

Google suffered another defeat last week in its clash with the justice department, while Meta hasn’t been able to wriggle its way out of antitrust cases eitherHello, and welcome to TechScape. This week, Google and Meta take legal beatings while Microsoft faces a “tipping point” over Gaza.Doge unemployment ‘fraud’ discoveries are old finds from Biden era, experts sayDoge tried to embed staffers in criminal justice non-profit, says group Doge cuts spark questions as employees supporting Musk space launches sparedTrump adviser Peter Navarro says ‘we’re great’ after Elon Musk calls him ‘moron’ Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Google to face off with US government in attempt to break up company in search monopoly case

Google on Monday will confront an existential threat as the U.S. government tries to break up the company as punishment for turning its revolutionary search engine into a ruthless monopoly

Politics

3 w. ago Famed Sherpa guide will attempt to climb Mount Everest for a 31st time and break his own record

One of the greatest mountain guides will attempt to scale the world’s highest peak for the 31st time — and possibly the 32nd time as well — and break his own record

Politics

3 w. ago Google illegally monopolized online advertising markets, US judge rules

Federal judge deals blow to tech giant and paves way for government to break up company’s advertising productsAlphabet’s Google illegally dominated two markets for online advertising technology, a judge ruled on Thursday, dealing another blow to the tech giant and paving the way for US antitrust prosecutors to seek a breakup of its advertising products.The US district judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria, Virginia, found Google liable for “willfully acquiring and maintaining monopoly power” in markets for publisher ad servers and the market for ad exchanges which sit between buyers and sellers. Publisher ad servers are platforms used by websites to store and manage their ad inventory. Antitrust enforcers failed to prove a separate claim that the company had a monopoly in advertiser ad networks, she wrote. Continue reading...

Events

4 w. ago Google sued for £5bn in UK over allegations of shutting out rivals

Class action argues US tech firm charged more for advertising on its preinstalled apps than it could in fair marketGoogle is being sued in the UK for up to £5bn in damages over allegations it shut out rivals in the internet search market and abused this dominance to overcharge businesses for advertisements. A class action filed at the competition appeal tribunal on Tuesday argues that the US technology company has taken actions that enable it to charge higher prices for the promotions that appear in search inquiries than it otherwise could in a fair market. It alleged that Google, which is owned by the US tech company Alphabet, contracted phone makers to preinstall the Google search app and Chrome browser on Android devices and paid Apple to make it the default search engine on iPhones, with the intention of shutting out competition. The claim is filed by the competition law expert Or Brook on behalf of thousands of businesses and alleges Google ensured its search engine had better ...

Economics