Police Reports Undercount Cellphone Use Before Crashes: Study
A new study drawing on telematics data confirms that far more drivers are using cellphones in the lead-up to crashes than is reflected in police reports, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The data, derived from driver-enrolled safe-driving …
OpenAI, Anthropic Urge Cyber Defense Action as AI Models Improve
Artificial intelligence companies OpenAI and Anthropic PBC, along with more than 100 other tech and financial services organizations, warned that businesses and governments must do more to prepare for and defend against AI-enabled hacks. In an open letter Thursday, the …
Kalshi Weather Odds Are Coming to a Weather App Near You
Kalshi Inc. has entered a partnership with The Weather Company to bolster the data it uses to settle contracts in rapidly growing weather and climate prediction markets. The prediction platform is seeking to establish market-implied probabilities as another source of …
Researchers Discover Additional Backdoors in Chinese-Made Zbtlink Routers
More than a dozen models of Chinese-made Zbtlink routers ship with at least two backdoors that could allow for invasive remote access akin to “surveillance,” according to new findings from cybersecurity firm VulnCheck. The two new backdoors — dubbed “Darklantern” …
China Flexes its Auto-Safety Chops With Huge Recall of Tesla, Other Cars
A huge recall in China last week aims to address a long-standing fear of EV owners: potentially being trapped in their cars when the power fails. It also highlights how Beijing is now spearheading new auto safety standards for some …
Delaware Helps Firms Pay for Insurance, Trade Shows, Travel to Grow Exports
Many small business wanting to grow by selling to customers in other countries learn the costs for trade shows, international travel, insurance, and market research can be an obstacle. Delaware has a program — The Compass Grant— that helps cover …
US Widens Lettuce-Related Cyclosporiasis Probe to 20 States
U.S. health authorities have widened their probe into a cyclosporiasis outbreak tied to iceberg lettuce from central Mexico after detecting cases in three additional states, raising the total to 20 states, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers …
Analysis: Meta’s Social Media Settlement Leaves Its Money Machine Unscathed
Meta Platforms emerged from its biggest legal challenge in the U.S. with its core business intact. The social media giant agreed on Wednesday to pay as much as $18 billion over a decade and limit how teenagers use Facebook and …
LA Fire Zone Set to Get $3 Million Homes Funded by Muni Bonds
More than a year after wildfires devastated Pacific Palisades, a nonprofit is advancing a plan to tap the public debt market to create housing in the slow-to-recover Los Angeles wealthy enclave. Uplifters Foundation plans to build new $3 million houses …
Court Approves Bank of America’s $72.5 Million Settlement With Epstein Accusers
A federal judge said on Thursday he would grant final approval to Bank of America’s $72.5 million class-action settlement with women who accused the second-largest U.S. bank of facilitating their sexual abuse by the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. U.S. District …
DOJ to Challenge Dismissal of Harvard Civil Rights Suit
The Trump administration told a federal judge it will challenge the dismissal of its lawsuit against Harvard University alleging that the school violated civil rights laws by failing to protect Jewish and Israeli students after the October 2023 attack by …
NY City Mayor Mamdani Assembles Executive Panel to Smooth Ties With Business
More than a dozen corporate executives have been recruited by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to serve on a new business advisory council, as the democratic socialist leader seeks to improve his relations with a business community wary of …
Owner of Home on Fire Stole First Responder’s Rescue Truck: Police
A New Hampshire man faces multiple charges after police say he stole a rescue truck from one of the first responder agencies responding to his burning home in Dalton. At approximately 3:50 a.m. on August 25, State Troopers were responding …
Mercury Insurance Founder Joseph Dies at Age 104
George Joseph, who founded Mercury General Corp. nearly 65 years ago, has died at age 104, the company announced this week. Joseph served as chairman from the company’s founding and led Mercury as CEO for 45 years, ending his time …
Buc-ee’s Faces Backlash in Ohio Over Logo Lawsuit with Mini Mart
A lip-licking alligator, a smiling moose and a hat-wearing bear are among the many cartoon animals to have found themselves in the crosshairs of Buc-ee’s, the popular Texas convenience store chain that has a penchant for protecting its buck-toothed beaver. …
Wildfire Burns Structures in North Central Texas
A wildfire that exploded in size in a matter of hours ripped through wide swaths of ranchland in rural Texas, burning structures at a youth camp while forcing evacuations and closing schools Tuesday. The fire, which began early Monday afternoon, …
Carnival Cruise Line Wins New Trial After $10M Verdict in Sex Assault Suit
Carnival Cruise Line, long the subject of lawsuits accusing its crew members of unwanted sexual advances on passengers, has won a new trial in a case in which a Florida jury awarded $10.3 million to a young woman who said …
Near-Miss Data Can Expedite Self-Driving Vehicle Algorithm Training: Study
Researchers have developed a new approach to boosting self-driving vehicle algorithms that could significantly reduce the time and cost required to prepare automated vehicles for real-world deployment, according to the University of Michigan. Rather than relying on the vast amounts …
Marketing Firm Sued for Refusing to Hire Pregnant Woman
International advertising and marketing firm Dentsu International Americas, LLC, violated federal law when it refused to hire a pregnant woman for a Minneapolis-based position promoting alcoholic beverage brands, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit announced. …
Permian Basin Set to Become Top US Gas Producer, Citi Says
The Permian Basin is on track to become the largest US natural gas-producing region by the end of the decade, making the world’s most productive oil shale field also the nation’s leader in gas output, according to Citigroup Inc. analysts. …