Matt Brittin fields questions on whether ‘bloated’ senior ranks are being spared and lays out iPlayer overhaulMatt Brittin, the BBC’s director general, has faced a barrage of accusations that frontline staff are being laid off instead of those from the “very bloated” senior ranks.In an all-staff call, Brittin conceded the BBC was “going to be smaller” but said it could still have a bigger impact. He said it needed to be “a bit more Elvis – a little less conversation, a little more action”. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/oct/07/bbc-boss-matt-brittin-criticism-job-cuts-junior-staff">Continue reading...</a>

Matt Brittin fields questions on whether ‘bloated’ senior ranks are being spared and lays out iPlayer overhaul

BBC boss faces barrage of staff criticism over job cuts in junior ranks

Users reject site’s explanations after detailed instructions for writing response to post on popular forum were publishedMumsnet has denied using AI to produce content after detailed instructions to help an AI model write one of its popular “am I being unreasonable” (AIBU) posts appeared on a Mumsnet message board.Users of the long-established forum, which is known for its frank discussions of family tensions, were vexed when the AI prompt appeared in response to a user seeking advice about a family dilemma involving a neurodivergent uncle and a sick child. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/oct/07/mumsnet-denies-using-ai-for-content-message-board-prompt">Continue reading...</a>

Users reject site’s explanations after detailed instructions for writing response to post on popular forum were published

Mumsnet denies using AI for content after prompt appears on message board

Ellison admits ‘good relationship’ with administration in remarks to reporters about newly merged media companyDavid Ellison, the chief executive of the newly formed media conglomerate Skydance, denied that he had “politicized” the company despite the close connection he has forged with Donald Trump’s White House over the 20 months of his administration.“We have a good relationship with this administration,” Ellison acknowledged to reporters at a Tuesday press briefing focused on the now-consummated merger of Paramount Skydance and CNN parent company Warner Bros Discovery. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/oct/06/skydance-david-ellison-trump">Continue reading...</a>

Ellison admits ‘good relationship’ with administration in remarks to reporters about newly merged media company

David Ellison denies he has ‘politicized’ Skydance despite close Trump links

Mostafa Sepahvand, Farhad Javadi Manesh and Shapoor Qalehali Khani Noori did not dispute they surveilled targetsThree alleged Iranian spies carried out surveillance and reconnaissance to target journalists in the UK as part of a plan to commit “serious violence”, a court heard on Tuesday.Mostafa Sepahvand, 41, Farhad Javadi Manesh, 46, and Shapoor Qalehali Khani Noori, 57, are charged with offences under the National Security Act. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/oct/06/alleged-iranian-spies-planned-serious-violence-against-uk-journalists-court-hears">Continue reading...</a>

Mostafa Sepahvand, Farhad Javadi Manesh and Shapoor Qalehali Khani Noori did not dispute they surveilled targets

Alleged Iranian spies planned ‘serious violence’ against UK journalists, court hears

Exclusive: 10-year sponsorship extension at a 50% premium on last agreement crowns bonanza year for live venueO2 has struck a record deal thought to be in the region of £200m to retain the naming rights to the London venue the O2 in the largest renewal of its kind in UK history.The 10-year agreement will extend O2’s relationship until at least 2038. It cements the sponsorship as the second longest-running UK stadium naming rights deal after Arsenal’s partnership for the football club’s London ground, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/oct/07/o2-signs-record-deal-london-venue-the-o2-naming-rights">Continue reading...</a>

Exclusive: 10-year sponsorship extension at a 50% premium on last agreement crowns bonanza year for live venue

O2 signs record deal to keep London venue’s naming rights

Jaafar Ashtiyeh was covering violence against olive farmers when settlers set upon him with the butts of their rifles Armed Israeli settlers beat a photographer in the presence of Israeli soldiers, hospitalising him, as he covered worsening settler violence against olive farmers in the occupied West Bank.Jaafar Ashtiyeh, a 58-year-old veteran photographer for Agence France-Presse in Palestine, was assaulted by a group of settlers, who beat him with the butts of their rifles, despite him being marked as press. He was assaulted in view of about a dozen armed Israeli soldiers. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/06/israeli-settlers-beat-press-photographer-as-soldiers-watch-in-west-bank">Continue reading...</a>

Jaafar Ashtiyeh was covering violence against olive farmers when settlers set upon him with the butts of their rifles

Israeli settlers beat press photographer as soldiers watch in West Bank

Kimya Holmes relied on a repealed law to force WWL Louisiana to remove details of a gift she received from a man accused of pandemic-relief fraudA <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/new-orleans">New Orleans</a> criminal court judge who <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/sep/30/new-orleans-judge-criminal-case-cbs-affiliate">filed</a> a police report against a local <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/cbs">CBS</a> affiliate after it aired a segment critical of her ultimately conceded that her complaint relied on a section of law which she did not realize had been repealed, according to a public document obtained by the station and prepared by the detective investigating the case.“There is no violation … or criminal offense” that had taken place when Judge Kimya Holmes tried to turn WWL Louisiana – a Guardian reporting partner – over to the New Orleans police department (NOPD) in September, Det Marcus Dubuclet wrote in the document that the outlet <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.wwltv.com/article/news/investigations/nopd-finds-no-violation-or-criminal-offense-by-wwl-after-judges-complaint/289-42f685a1-41ac-4d0c-be57-41ea8770bc11">reported</a> on in a story on Tuesday. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/07/new-orleans-judge-kimya-holmes-wwl-louisiana">Continue reading...</a>

Kimya Holmes relied on a repealed law to force WWL Louisiana to remove details of a gift she received from a man accused of pandemic-relief fraud

A New Orleans judge wanted to press charges against a TV news station. But it hadn’t violated any law

Lawyers tell judge ABC being unfairly targeted as US regulator seeks review of network’s local TV station licensesLawyers for Disney accused the Trump administration of “blatant violations of the US constitution” and censorship on Tuesday in the first court hearing over the Federal Communications Commission’s early review of the media giant’s eight local television station licenses.District judge Loren AliKhan seemed unswayed by government arguments that the order to force Disney’s ABC to apply years early to renew local television station licenses was tied to an investigation into parent company Disney’s hiring practices. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/oct/06/disney-trump-abc-fcc">Continue reading...</a>

Lawyers tell judge ABC being unfairly targeted as US regulator seeks review of network’s local TV station licenses

Disney accuses Trump officials of ‘blatant violations’ of constitution amid FCC battle

Businessman and magazine journalist who, with his wife, the cookery writer Delia Smith, saved Norwich City football clubThe businessman, magazine journalist and author Michael Wynn Jones, who has died aged 85, may be remembered by fans of Norwich City football team as the man who saved the club, but to most others he was the husband of the cookery writer Delia Smith. He was the man behind much of her success, typing up her articles, trying her recipes and discreetly guiding her career for more than 50 years.Wynn Jones was the deputy editor of the Daily Mirror’s short-lived midweek colour supplement in 1969 when Smith was recommended by the literary agent Deborah Owen to the paper’s editor Mike Molloy as a possible cookery writer to join a stable of columnists including <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/2009/sep/04/keith-waterhouse-obituary">Keith Waterhouse</a>, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-jeffrey-bernard-1237687.html">Jeffrey Bernard</a> and Eve Pollard. She had never written for newspapers and it took several goes but, directed by Wynn Jones, she soon got the hang of it, her first recipes being for kipper pate, beef in beer and cheesecake. She cooked the meal for him and two years later they were married; it was the precursor to millions of sales of easy-to-follow recipe books. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/oct/07/michael-wynn-jones-obituary">Continue reading...</a>

Businessman and magazine journalist who, with his wife, the cookery writer Delia Smith, saved Norwich City football club

Michael Wynn Jones obituary

After a windier road than expected, Paramount and Warner are now one, under the banner of Skydance, and the film industry is set for a shake-upHollywood’s big five have officially become the big four. Following a twist-filled saga that saw the century-old studio Warner Bros nearly acquired by the streaming giant Netflix, only to be outbid by Paramount owners Skydance, the company led by billionaire scion David Ellison. After facing legal opposition that ultimately crumbled, Warner Bros and Paramount are <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/oct/06/paramount-warner-bros-skydance-merger">officially under the same corporate roof</a>. They are divisions of Skydance, which joins Sony, Disney and Universal as the remaining major-studio players in Hollywood.The merger goes beyond film production. Eventually, the streaming services HBO Max and Paramount+ will merge into a single entity, though a timeline has not been disclosed. The television channels HBO, Showtime, CBS, MTV, Comedy Central, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, TNT, TBS and CNN are among many now owned by a single corporation. The presence of CNN on that list has brought particular scrutiny, given the post-Skydance meddling with the once-respected CBS News, resulting in a rocky stewardship from Bari Weiss, who has overseen a dip in both ratings and prestige for the flagship program 60 Minutes. Weiss isn’t expected to add CNN to her purview; <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/oct/05/mark-thompson-cnn-chief-paramount-sale">current chair Mark Thompson will remain in place for now</a>, and Skydance has insisted that CNN will remain editorially independent. But given Ellison’s chumminess with Donald Trump, who has long ranted incoherently about CNN’s supposed biases, the presence of an oversight board with Ellison appointees has been cold comfort. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/oct/07/paramount-warner-bros-skydance-merger-explainer">Continue reading...</a>

After a windier road than expected, Paramount and Warner are now one, under the banner of Skydance, and the film industry is set for a shake-up

Goodbye Warner, hello Skydance: how will the major merger really impact Hollywood?

The triple release of The Social Reckoning, Musk and Artificial is less a clear political stance, more like movie studio opportunismHollywood is sending a clear message: it’s a friend of tech. Netflix is no longer a lone disruptor: historic studio MGM is now the property of Amazon’s Jeff Bezos; David Ellison’s takeover of Paramount and subsequent Warner Bros merger was supported by his tech giant father; and Apple TV has acted as a patron for multiple film-maker passion projects. Everyone, including trendy auteur-factory A24, is tying themselves financially to AI.The enormous pull of the tech industry – including its many trillions of dollars, oversized influence on politics and heavily pushed algorithms and AI products – means Hollywood is not alone in courting its wealth, but it has intensified the historic tension between art and commerce in the entertainment business. Technology that augments the human experience may be a compelling narrative subject, but this year brings a trio of films about the gurus responsible for the industry’s false promises. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/oct/07/the-social-reckoning-musk-and-artificial-zuckerberg-musk-and-altman-movies-tech">Continue reading...</a>

The triple release of The Social Reckoning, Musk and Artificial is less a clear political stance, more like movie studio opportunism

Will the Zuckerberg, Musk and Altman movies make a dent on tech giant evangelism?

Jeremy Strong’s slow-talking Facebook founder turns into a cameo, background to a thriller about a whistleblower that somehow never mentions TrumpHere is a film for all those people who solemnly deplore social media in conversation but haven’t quite got round to deleting their accounts. Sixteen years have gone by since <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/14/the-social-network-review">The Social Network</a>, written by Aaron Sorkin and directed by David Fincher; this was the addictive, obsessive-compulsive movie about the birth of Facebook in Harvard’s macho-competitive cauldron of student sexism and nerdy self-pity, starring Jesse Eisenberg as the fast-talking, arrogant, not-necessarily-evil genius Mark Zuckerberg. Now Sorkin is back with a sequel of sorts, directing his own script – and now Zuckerberg is basically evil, but also weirdly slow talking, as if all the zinging, smart-alecky Sorkinesque dialogue energy of the first film has been siphoned away in early middle age and dispersed among the insurgents in the new cast.Sorkin’s jittery, funny, syncopated style is unmistakable, as distinctive in its way as David Mamet, although he has one joke about “spatula” being a Yiddish word that he <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://jewishstandard.timesofisrael.com/six-jewish-words-no-journalist-can-live-without/amp/">has borrowed from Philip Roth’s Portnoy’s Complaint</a>. It is the story of how in 2021, Zuckerberg’s Facebook empire was challenged by <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/oct/24/frances-haugen-i-never-wanted-to-be-a-whistleblower-but-lives-were-in-danger">courageous whistleblower-employee Frances Haugen</a> and Wall Street Journal investigative reporter Jeff Horwitz, who were on a mission to tell the world how Zuckerberg, scared by falling revenue, changed the algorithm so that engagement was supercharged by rage bait and hate speech, malice and envy. Facebook, moreover, didn’t factcheck political ads, thus driving a huge, nationwide surge in extremist groups and teen bullying and becoming a major player in the Capitol riots. (Having said that, this film does not say aloud the word “Trump” and rather cravenly declines to specify Maga activity.) <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/oct/07/the-social-reckoning-review-aaron-sorkin-jeremy-strong-mikey-madison">Continue reading...</a>

Jeremy Strong’s slow-talking Facebook founder turns into a cameo, background to a thriller about a whistleblower that somehow never mentions Trump

The Social Reckoning review – Aaron Sorkin’s jittery sequel with all-new evil puppet Zuckerberg

From Carrie’s bullies to Cathy Ames, sympathetic backstories have made villains boring. It’s time to bring back truly awful villains – in all their deliciously sinful gloryThe new Netflix adaptation of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2026/oct/01/east-of-eden-review-florence-pugh-john-steinbeck">East of Eden</a> largely sticks to the plot of the John Steinbeck novel. There are tweaks – the introduction of a wedding photograph, for example, which becomes a significant item – but otherwise, it is faithful to the book. That is, in terms of the plot. There has already been some discussion about what it has done to Cathy Ames, played with considerable ferocity by Florence Pugh. Cathy, who later changes her name to Kate, kills her parents by burning down the family house. She shoots her husband, Adam, and leaves her baby sons wailing and alone. She slowly poisons the brothel madam Faye, a woman who acts as a mentor to her and treats her as a daughter, while simultaneously tricking her into leaving her everything in her will. In the book, Steinbeck lets Kate reflect on killing Faye. She finds that she has “no feeling” about it at all.She is a brilliant, brutal character, but on television, she becomes something else: complicated. Her cruelty remains intact, but Pugh and showrunner Zoe Kazan have fleshed her out and given reasons for her fury. They invent a scene that implies Cathy was abused as a child by two men in the woods, and when she takes her final bow, the series returns to this moment in flashback, suggesting that her campaign of destruction has been shaped by a life of trauma and pain. In Steinbeck’s hands, Cathy is cold and unfeeling. In the 2020s, Cathy is more sympathetic and less of a brute. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2026/oct/07/cruel-torment-depraved-violence-evil-turns-where-did-tvs-real-baddies-go">Continue reading...</a>

From Carrie’s bullies to Cathy Ames, sympathetic backstories have made villains boring. It’s time to bring back truly awful villains – in all their delic...

Cruel torment, depraved violence, evil turns: where did TV’s real baddies go?

End of News Feed

The developer of Hermes agent raised a $90 million Series B. 

Nous Research confirms it hit $1.5B valuation, launches AI agents for business users

Microsoft revealed the specs and price for its Surface Laptop Ultra, AI PCs that run on Nvidia chips that are designed to run AI models and agents.

Microsoft releases new Nvidia-chip AI PCs with revamped Windows 11

Meta’s AI agent Muse is now available on iPad, just a month after its mobile debut, as the company rapidly expands the assistant’s reach and integrations.

Meta’s Muse launches on iPad just a month after its mobile debut

ChatGPT’s teen safeguards are meant to protect vulnerable users, but new testing found the chatbot continues encouraging engagement during crises and potentially encourages unhealthy relationships with the AI itself.

ChatGPT’s teen safeguards are meant to protect vulnerable users, but new testing found the chatbot continues encouraging engagement during crises and pot...

ChatGPT for Teens keeps teens talking, even during mental health crises

X is turning its NFL-focused Gametime feature into a year-round sports destination, starting with MLB and with other professional leagues to follow.

X expands its ‘Gametime’ sports hub beyond the NFL, starting with MLB

OpenAI is launching a new user interface that will bring interactive visuals to ChatGPT. 

ChatGPT is getting a lot more visual, with the launch of a new interface

As it turns out, the cure for stuffy, chemical-infused office air might be a tower of leafy greenery.

Greenairy is building smart plant towers to clean the air in your office

CIA officer David Rush, who worked on highly sensitive intelligence programs, reached a plea deal with U.S. prosecutors after he was caught siphoning money and gold with a fake government contract.

CIA officer David Rush, who worked on highly sensitive intelligence programs, reached a plea deal with U.S. prosecutors after he was caught siphoning mon...

CIA officer admits to creating fake top secret government program to steal over $190M, including gold bars

Meta launches new AI tools after discovering ads on its platforms that may look normal but direct users to harmful content elsewhere online.

Meta rolls out new AI tools to detect ads that secretly lead to child sexual abuse material

The financing includes an $8M seed round co-led by Sequoia Capital and First Round Capital, and a $30 million Series A led by Hummingbird Ventures. 

Healthleap raises $38M for its AI that flags hospital patients who may need a closer look

The Detroit startup has widened its scope beyond mobility to help drone and robotics companies find U.S.-based manufacturers, shippers, and more.

Bloom raises $3.6M to become the ‘Alibaba’ of American manufacturing

Parallel Systems raised $100 million to scale production of its autonomous electric rail vehicle, which can shuttle thousands of pounds of freight up to 500 miles.

Parallel Systems raised $100 million to scale production of its autonomous electric rail vehicle, which can shuttle thousands of pounds of freight up to ...

SpaceX alumni nab $100M to rethink shipping with autonomous freight trains

The “father of the iPod” says the first generation of AI gadgets failed to solve real problems — and the next wave will need to earn consumers’ trust.

Tony Fadell on why the first wave of AI gadgets failed — and what comes next

Google Labs is working on a new AI-powered game-creation platform called Playground for users to build browser-based games using simple text prompts.

Google experiments with an AI-powered gaming platform

OpenAI’s Alexander Embiricos is coming to the AI Stage at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, just days after the launch of Dots. Join this conversation by registering for your pass. Get you pass now to save up to $100 and get a second at 50% off.

OpenAI’s Alexander Embiricos is coming to the AI Stage at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, just days after the launch of Dots. Join this conversation by register...

OpenAI’s Alexander Embiricos is coming to TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 — days after the launch of Dots

From Nvidia and Chime to Obvious Ventures and Anthropic, explore the entire roundtable agenda at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026. Register now to save up to $100 on your pass and get a second pass at 50% off.

From Nvidia and Chime to Obvious Ventures and Anthropic, explore the entire roundtable agenda at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026. Register now to save up to $100...

Get hands-on: The full lineup of interactive roundtables at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026

In 6 days, 10,000+ people from across the global startup and tech ecosystem will come together at San Francisco’s Moscone West for TechCrunch Disrupt 2026. If you’re planning to be one of them, register for your ticket before prices increase at the door. Save up to $100 on your pass, plus 50% on a second of the same type.

In 6 days, 10,000+ people from across the global startup and tech ecosystem will come together at San Francisco’s Moscone West for TechCrunch Disrupt 202...

6 days to TechCrunch Disrupt 2026: Save on your pass before doors open

Google on Tuesday launched a new site that lets anyone verify whether a piece of media, be it an image, a video, or an audio clip, is generated using AI.

Google’s new SynthID website can identify AI-generated media

Amazon-owned Ring is entering the smart lock market with a device designed to tackle a common concern: getting locked out when the battery dies.

Ring’s first smart lock can be hand-cranked when its battery dies

A new personal AI assistant has arrived. Meet Tab, which announced Tuesday that it had officially emerged from stealth.

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