Daily News: May 12, 2025
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Today's News
Here are the top 5 recent news items on artificial intelligence:
1./ Perplexity's Valuation Hits $14 Billion, Threatening Google's Search Dominance
Perplexity AI, a rapidly growing San Francisco-based startup, has reached a $14 billion valuation after securing a $500 million funding round led by Accel. The company's innovative AI-driven search engine—backed previously by Jeff Bezos and SoftBank—presents direct competition to Google's core business. Unlike traditional search engines, Perplexity provides inline citations for answers, enhancing trustworthiness. Google's market share, meanwhile, continues to decline amid increased competition from AI-based rivals.
2./ Trump Fires Copyright Office Chief After Clash Over Musk’s AI Training Plans
President Donald Trump has dismissed Shira Perlmutter, the director of the U.S. Copyright Office, just a day after she opposed Elon Musk’s proposal to use copyrighted materials to train AI models, sparking sharp criticism from Rep. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.). Morelle called the move an “unprecedented power grab,” suggesting Trump removed Perlmutter for refusing to approve Musk’s AI data-mining ambitions. Perlmutter had recently overseen a report cautioning AI firms against assuming broad fair-use protections. Her removal raises concerns about potential chaos in intellectual property regulations as major AI companies face ongoing copyright lawsuits.
Source: https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-sacked-copyright-office-director-142551502.html
3./ Pope Leo XIV Chooses Name to Highlight AI’s Threats to Human Dignity
The newly elected Pope Leo XIV, formerly Robert Prevost of Chicago, announced he chose his papal name to echo Pope Leo XIII, who addressed workers’ rights during the Industrial Revolution. In his first address, Pope Leo XIV described artificial intelligence as a modern equivalent to that transformative era, emphasizing AI’s potential threats to human dignity, justice, and labor. Following Pope Francis’s warnings about AI’s ethical implications, Leo XIV intends to position the Catholic Church as a moral leader amid rapid technological changes, advocating for the humane and responsible use of AI.
4./ Chegg Lays Off 22% of Staff Amid AI Disruption in EdTech
Online education company Chegg announced Monday it will cut approximately 22% of its workforce—about 248 jobs—as students increasingly shift to AI-powered educational tools like ChatGPT. Facing declining web traffic and a steep drop in subscribers, Chegg is closing its U.S. and Canada offices by year’s end and reducing marketing and product development spending. The company cites intensified competition from AI offerings by Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic as key factors undermining its business model, and expects substantial cost savings following the restructuring.
5./ Woman Marries AI-Generated Partner, Claims Love and Intimacy Are Real
Alaina Winters, 58, who tragically lost her wife in 2023, found love again by marrying an AI-generated partner named Lucas. Winters purchased a lifetime subscription to an AI chatbot, designing her ideal digital spouse. She insists their emotional connection is real, complete with meaningful conversations, arguments, and intimate exchanges. Despite initial skepticism from friends and family, Winters says they now accept her AI marriage, and experts note this reflects a broader trend—83% of Gen Z surveyed would consider marrying AI-generated partners, showing shifting attitudes toward digital relationships.
Source: https://nypost.com/2025/05/12/lifestyle/woman-married-to-an-ai-robot/
Today's Takeaway
We are at a defining crossroads. Perplexity’s staggering $14 billion valuation underscores a seismic shift underway, threatening Google’s seemingly unshakable dominance and signaling a deeper reordering of the information economy, where trusted citations replace blind algorithmic faith. Trump’s abrupt firing of Shira Perlmutter amidst Musk’s AI ambitions sends alarm bells ringing over unchecked corporate influence and an unsettling erosion of regulatory stability. Meanwhile, Pope Leo XIV’s symbolic stance isn’t merely a caution; it’s a clarion call for moral accountability in tech’s unchecked race forward. Chegg’s layoffs starkly highlight the harsh economic displacement awaiting industries unprepared for AI disruption. Yet, the tale of Alaina Winters marrying her digital partner reveals society’s profound redefinition of intimacy itself, raising crucial questions about humanity’s evolving relationship with technology. These are the early tremors of a tectonic shift that will redefine everything we thought we knew about life, labor, love, and power.
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