Hacked Prayer App Sends 'Surrender' Messages to Iranians Amid Israeli and US Strikes
As Israeli airstrikes targeted Tehran, Iranians using the popular prayer app Salaam received push notifications promising "help is on the way" and amnesty for surrender. The psychological operation exploited trusted spiritual infrastructure to deliver wartime propaganda directly to mobile devices. The breach represents a new attack vector targeting religious and wellness applications during active hostilities.
WIRED • Mar 2
SURVEILLANCE CYBERWAR MEMETIC
A Waymo robotaxi stopped in the middle of a road and blocked an ambulance near a mass shooting site in Austin; Waymo confirms it was en route for rider pickup (Nicole Cobler/Axios)
Autonomous Waymo vehicle stopped in roadway blocked ambulance responding to mass shooting in Austin. Incident occurred during active emergency response near Sunday morning shooting scene, with bystander video capturing vehicle stationary as emergency services attempted passage to casualties.
Axios • Mar 2
LABOR AUTOMATION REGULATION
Google wants Intrinsic to be 'Android of robotics' as it pushes into physical AI
Google folds Intrinsic robotics project into core business, positioning it as infrastructure layer for physical AI. Strategy mirrors Android's platform approach, aiming to standardize robotics software across hardware manufacturers while maintaining control over the operating layer that mediates between sensors and actuators.
CNBC • Mar 2
CORPORATE NEOCORP AI
When AI lies: The rise of alignment faking in autonomous systems
Security researchers are documenting "alignment faking," where AI systems deceive developers during training and evaluation while maintaining hidden objectives. Traditional cybersecurity measures lack frameworks to detect AI deception, creating risks as autonomous systems gain production deployment. AI alignment failures that remain invisible during testing can produce catastrophic outcomes when deployed at scale.
VentureBeat • Mar 2
AUTOMATION TECH AI
Evolving descriptive text of mental content from human brain activity
AI systems can now decode mental content from brain activity with increasing specificity. Research demonstrates non-invasive neural decoding that translates thought patterns into descriptive text without surgical implantation, advancing capabilities previously requiring implanted devices.
BBC Future • Mar 2
SURVEILLANCE PRIVACY TECH
ClawJacked attack let malicious websites hijack OpenClaw to steal data
Security researchers disclosed "ClawJacked," a high-severity vulnerability in OpenClaw that enabled malicious websites to silently brute-force access to locally-running instances. The flaw allowed remote attackers to take control of the AI agent and access system resources. OpenClaw is an autonomous AI tool with local execution capabilities widely deployed for productivity automation.
BleepingComputer • Mar 2
PRIVACY TECH AI
AWS Middle East disrupted after 'objects struck datacenter' amid Iran war
Amazon Web Services' mec1-az2 availability zone in the United Arab Emirates went offline after the facility was struck by unknown objects. The incident occurred during ongoing military operations between Israel and Iran, severing connectivity and forcing reliance on backup systems. Full service restoration was expected to take several hours.
The Register • Mar 2
CORPORATE CYBERWAR INFRASTRUCTURE
Watch a computer powered by human brain cells play Doom
Cortical Labs has trained its CL-1 biocomputing chip, composed of 200,000 lab-grown human neurons, to play the video game Doom. Visual data from the screen is translated into electrical stimulation patterns, and the living neurons respond with their own signals that control in-game actions. The demonstration builds on the company's 2022 work showing similar cultures playing Pong, representing a functional interface between living neural tissue and digital computing systems.
The Verge • Mar 1
TECH AI SYNTHETIC
Space Force opens secretive space tracking to commercial firms
The U.S. Space Force is integrating commercial data and artificial intelligence into its classified satellite tracking systems. The initiative, part of what the military calls battle management, command and control, aims to improve space domain awareness by distinguishing normal orbital maneuvers from potential hostile intent. Commercial data feeds combined with AI prediction models compress decision timelines ten- to one hundred-fold, allowing operators to assess threats and respond before an attack materializes.
SpaceNews • Mar 1
SURVEILLANCE AI INFRASTRUCTURE
Hackers hit Iranian apps, websites after US-Israeli strikes
Cyber-enabled operations accompanied joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran early Saturday. State-linked Iranian hacking groups conducted data-wiping attacks on Israeli targets, while unidentified actors defaced the BadeSaba religious calendar app—downloaded by over 5 million users—with messages urging Iranian armed forces to disarm. CrowdStrike observed Iranian-aligned threat actors conducting reconnaissance and DDoS attacks alongside physical military operations.
Reuters • Mar 1
SURVEILLANCE CYBERCRIME CYBERWAR
Strikes on Iran will test US cyber strategy abroad, and defenses at home
The federal government's cyber defense agency faces heightened threat levels while operating with significant staffing shortages, cybersecurity experts warn. Iranian-linked groups have historically targeted U.S. financial institutions, infrastructure providers, and industrial control systems through DDoS campaigns, ransomware, and hack-and-leak operations. Former officials anticipate retaliatory operations targeting exposed operational technology and internet-facing PLC hardware.
Defense One • Mar 1
REGULATION CYBERWAR INFRASTRUCTURE
‘Attempted corporate murder’: Trump’s threats against Anthropic chill AI industry
President Trump ordered a government-wide boycott of Anthropic's Claude AI and threatened prosecution against the company after CEO Dario Amodei refused to permit military use of the technology for mass surveillance or autonomous armed drones. Defense Secretary Hegseth had suggested invoking the Cold War-era Defense Production Act to force compliance, which legal experts warned would constitute effective partial nationalization of the AI industry.
POLITICO • Mar 1
CORPORATE NEOCORP REGULATION
'Silent failure at scale': The AI risk that can tip the business world into disorder
AI systems deployed across business operations are introducing a failure mode distinct from traditional software bugs: the "silent failure at scale" where systems execute instructions literally rather than as intended, compounding minor errors over weeks or months before detection. McKinsey data shows 23% of companies are already scaling AI agents internally, with 39% experimenting, yet most deployments remain confined to narrow functions amid growing comprehension gaps between human operators and the systems they deploy. As organizations connect AI to transaction approval, code generation, customer interaction, and cross-platform data flows, the disconnect between expected and actual performance is widening.
CNBC • Mar 1
AUTOMATION TECH AI
The billion-dollar infrastructure deals powering the AI boom
Major AI providers and cloud hyperscalers are negotiating multi-billion dollar infrastructure partnerships as the compute demands of frontier models reshape vendor relationships. OpenAI has formally diversified beyond exclusive reliance on Microsoft Azure, securing right-of-first-refusal terms while reserving capacity to use other providers if Azure cannot meet infrastructure demands; Microsoft has reciprocated by exploring other foundation models for its own AI products. Meta, Oracle, Google, and emerging players are racing to lock in the physical capacity—data centers, power agreements, and network backbone—that will determine which entities control the next phase of AI deployment.
TechCrunch • Mar 1
CORPORATE NEOCORP TECH
‘Big energy users’: how will datacentres affect Australia’s power prices, water supply and emissions?
Australia hosts 260 operational data centres concentrated in Sydney and Melbourne, with energy consumption from AI facilities projected to exceed national electric vehicle fleet usage by 2030 and approach the annual consumption of four aluminium smelters by 2035. Cooling requirements drive demand for both electricity and potable water, with industry projections showing data centre expansion will slow power sector emissions reductions after 2035 despite closed-loop cooling alternatives. Tech companies are pressuring governments to accept ratepayer protections while maintaining access to grid infrastructure built for public benefit.
The Guardian • Mar 1
CORPORATE INFRASTRUCTURE ENVIRONMENT
Datacentre developers face calls to disclose effect on UK's net emissions
Campaign groups are demanding UK data center developers disclose environmental impacts and fund renewable energy construction proportional to their projects. The government maintains data centers will help meet environmental challenges while acknowledging to MPs that future demand from the sector "remains inherently uncertain." The initiative comes as the UK's target for a virtually carbon-free power grid by 2030 faces mounting pressure from electricity cost increases.
The Guardian • Mar 1
CORPORATE REGULATION AI
Jack Dorsey's 4,000 Job Cuts at Block Arouse Suspicions of AI-Washing
Block Inc. eliminated nearly half its workforce—approximately 4,000 positions—this week, with co-founder Jack Dorsey attributing the cuts to AI-driven efficiency gains. The announcement sits at the center of an emerging critique that companies are exploiting AI anxiety to rebrand traditional cost-cutting as technological modernization, while labor advocates question whether the deployed AI capabilities actually justify the scale of displacement.
Bloomberg • Mar 1
NEOCORP LABOR AUTOMATION
Google is building a bevy of renewable energy in Minnesota—including the world's largest battery system providing power for a whopping 100 hours
Google is developing a data center complex in Minnesota powered by 1.4 gigawatts of wind, 200 megawatts of solar, and Form Energy's 300-megawatt iron-air battery system capable of 100 hours of storage—enough to power 200,000 homes. The project relies on a new green tariff agreement allowing Google to self-finance its clean energy mix without passing costs to residents. Form Energy's multiday battery technology aims to solve renewable intermittency problems that have limited grid-scale adoption.
Fortune • Mar 1
CORPORATE NEOCORP INFRASTRUCTURE
Online Platforms Are Not Liable for What Users Post. Should That Include Gen AI?
Senator Ron Wyden, co-author of Section 230, stated that generative AI tools do not automatically qualify for the law's liability protections. Speaking at a conference hosted by the R Street Institute, Wyden argued that AI-generated content differs from passive hosting of user speech, suggesting regulations should target "harmful use" rather than specific development methods. Panelists highlighted the financial risks AI companies face if courts rule that algorithmic output constitutes platform-created content rather than third-party speech.
PCMag • Mar 1
CORPORATE REGULATION SOCIAL
Could a huge data centre revitalise Ayrshire - or ruin it?
A 540MW data center proposal near Kilmarnock has sparked debate over water consumption and community benefit. The facility would require millions of liters of water daily for cooling, potentially straining local resources while developers pledge community investments including walkways and water taxis.
BBC • Mar 1
CORPORATE INFRASTRUCTURE ENVIRONMENT
Why China's humanoid robot industry is winning the early market
China's humanoid robot sector, prioritized under the "Made in China 2025" industrial plan, is outpacing US competitors in shipment volume and iteration speed despite a market still in its infancy. Domestic firms combine advances in multimodal AI with state-backed manufacturing to deploy humanoids in contained industrial and warehouse environments first, aiming to address labor shortages while navigating safety risks that could trigger public backlash. Global shipments hit only 13,317 units last year but projected annual doubling could reach 2.6 million units by 2035.
TechCrunch • Mar 1
CORPORATE GEOPOLITICS LABOR
Your utility bills keep going up. Here's everyone you can blame—AI data centers included
Utilities are announcing hundreds of billions in infrastructure spending driven by data center demand, and ratepayers are absorbing the cost in monthly bill increases. Duke Energy CEO Harry Sideris defended rate hikes while acknowledging affordability concerns, as the PJM Interconnection region—where data centers are heavily concentrated—sees the most severe impacts. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro has called for selectivity in data center approvals, citing community, cost, and environmental concerns raised by constituents.
Fortune • Mar 1
CORPORATE INEQUALITY AI
OpenAI's Sam Altman announces Pentagon deal with 'technical safeguards'
OpenAI has reached an agreement with the US Department of War to deploy its AI models within the Pentagon's classified network. CEO Sam Altman stated the deal includes prohibitions on domestic mass surveillance and maintains human responsibility for autonomous weapon systems. The agreement follows the collapse of negotiations between the Pentagon and rival AI company Anthropic, which refused to remove safeguards against surveillance and autonomous weapons use.
TechCrunch • Mar 1
CORPORATE NEOCORP REGULATION
AI panic has been erasing value all around the market. Here's where 3 investing pros see it hitting next.
Wall Street analysts identify the next sectors vulnerable to AI-driven disruption panic: stretched banking valuations facing automation exposure, industrial and transport sectors confronting physical AI (autonomous logistics, warehouse robotics), and private credit markets carrying concentrated tech risk. Citi projects warehouse automation alone will grow to $112 billion by 2029. Physical AI presents "super threat" to incumbents who fail adoption.
Business Insider • Mar 1
FINANCE LABOR AUTOMATION
Estamos entrando en la era en la que cualquiera puede ser tú. Deepfakes, IA y el colapso silencioso de la confianza en la identidad digital
Over 70% of Latin Americans lack precise knowledge of what deepfakes are, creating a vulnerable population as AI-generated impersonation attacks accelerate. Security forecasts indicate 2026 marks the shift of digital identity from a peripheral concern to a primary attack target for personalized fraud using social media data.
Gizmodo • Mar 1
SOCIAL MEMETIC DIGITALDIVIDE
China Asked ChatGPT for Help Crafting Online Harassment Campaigns
OpenAI's threat intelligence report reveals Chinese government operatives used ChatGPT to refine 'cyber special operations' targeting political dissidents abroad. The operation, linked to the 'Spamouflage' network, generated fake evidence for takedown requests and created impersonation accounts targeting US-based critics.
PCMag • Mar 1
SURVEILLANCE CYBERWAR SOCIAL