From Lagos to Nairobi

The U.S. Justice Department is doubling down on its attempt to break up Google by asking a federal judge to force the company to part with some of the technology powering the company’s digital ad network. The proposed dismantling coincides with an ongoing federal effort to separate Google’s Chrome browser from its dominant search engine….

The job cuts, amounting to about 4% of its 230,000 workers, will include early retirement offers in Japan and closures and consolidation of various operations, according to the Osaka-based maker of home appliances, such as washing machines and refrigerators. Panasonic also makes solar panels, delivery robots, facial recognition technology, fuel cells for homes and EV…

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese technology company SoftBank Group posted its first profit in four years Tuesday, as it raked in gains from its investment portfolios. SoftBank warned of major uncertainties ahead because of President Donald Trump’s tariff policies, tensions between the U.S. and China, and other global conflicts. Tokyo-based Softbank’s profit for the fiscal year through March…

WASHINGTON (AP) — OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and executives from Microsoft and chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices testified on Capitol Hill about the biggest opportunities, risks and needs facing an industry which lawmakers and technologists agree could fundamentally transform global business, culture and geopolitics. The hearing comes as the race to control the future of artificial…

Former employees of OpenAI are asking the top law enforcement officers in California and Delaware to stop the company from shifting control of its artificial intelligence technology from a nonprofit charity to a for-profit business. They’re concerned about what happens if the ChatGPT maker fulfills its ambition to build AI that outperforms humans, but is no longer…

Google will pay $1.4 billion to Texas to settle claims the company collected users’ data without permission, the state’s attorney general announced Friday. Attorney General Ken Paxton described the settlement as sending a message to tech companies that he will not allow them to make money off of “selling away our rights and freedoms.” To read…