Daily News: May 13, 2025
AI news that pops: daily insights, fast takes, and the future right in your inbox
Hey there friends👋! In today’s edition, you’re getting 5 🆕 news item and my take on what it all means. That’s it — delivered to your inbox, daily.
Subscribe to LawDroid Manifesto and don’t miss tomorrow’s edition:
Today's News
Here are the top 5 recent news items on artificial intelligence:
1./ Silicon Valley on Edge as AI Revolution Overshadows Trump's Tariff Chaos
Silicon Valley executives, entrepreneurs, and investors are far more concerned about the explosive growth of artificial intelligence than the economic turmoil caused by President Trump’s volatile trade policies. Despite uncertainty from tariffs disrupting tech supply chains and immigration crackdowns straining talent acquisition, insiders claim the real upheaval is AI's relentless expansion, which threatens to rapidly replace human labor. Founders now worry less about trade wars and more about whether the next powerful AI model will render their startups obsolete overnight. Meanwhile, investors advise startups to raise capital aggressively, predicting that economic instability will only accelerate AI adoption as companies automate human jobs at unprecedented speed.
Source: https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2025/05/silicon-valley-reacts-to-trump/682799/
2./ Google Tests "AI Mode" Directly on Homepage Amid ChatGPT Competition
Google has started testing an "AI Mode" search feature prominently located on its homepage, replacing the classic "I'm Feeling Lucky" button. The move indicates Google's urgency to boost engagement with its Gemini AI model amid intense competition from ChatGPT, which has significantly outpaced Gemini in user numbers. Although Gemini boasts 35 million daily active users, ChatGPT maintains a lead with approximately 160 million. Google's new feature, currently available to select users, aims to provide advanced AI-powered search directly from its most valuable digital real estate.
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/05/13/google-ai-mode-search-home-page.html
3./ Judge Fines Law Firms $31,000 Over 'Bogus AI-Generated Research'
File under: "Yes, can you believe it happened again?!" California Judge Michael Wilner imposed $31,000 in sanctions against two law firms for submitting a legal brief filled with fake, AI-generated case citations and quotations. The judge condemned the undisclosed outsourcing of legal research to AI, stating "no reasonably competent attorney" should rely solely on AI-generated content without verification. The faulty brief was initially created using Google Gemini and Westlaw Precision's AI tools, then passed unreviewed to another firm, K&L Gates, which filed the document. This incident marks another high-profile example of AI misuse in the legal industry, highlighting the risks of relying uncritically on generative AI for legal work.
Source: https://www.theverge.com/news/666443/judge-slams-lawyers-ai-bogus-research
4./ AI Therapy Raises Privacy Alarms Amid Surveillance Concerns in Trump Administration
Tech companies like Meta, OpenAI, and xAI are aggressively promoting AI-powered chatbots as emotional support tools, encouraging users to share highly personal information. However, these same companies are deeply entangled with a U.S. government increasingly eager to expand surveillance and infringe on privacy. The Trump administration, known for its aggressive stance on immigration, academic freedom, and personal liberties, could easily exploit chatbot interactions for surveillance purposes. As users disclose private thoughts on sensitive topics, from mental health and gender identity to political opinions, the potential for misuse by authorities dramatically escalates. Critics warn that without stronger privacy protections and clearer ethical boundaries, AI therapy risks becoming yet another dangerous surveillance tool.
Source: https://www.theverge.com/policy/665685/ai-therapy-meta-chatbot-surveillance-risks-trump
5./ GOP Quietly Inserts 10-Year Ban on State AI Regulation into Spending Bill
House Republicans have included a controversial provision in the Budget Reconciliation bill that would prohibit states and local governments from enforcing any AI regulations for ten years. Introduced by Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-KY), the sweeping language would invalidate current laws, such as California's AI disclosure requirements in healthcare and New York's AI hiring bias audits, and halt pending legislation aimed at increasing transparency and accountability for AI systems. Critics, including Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), have condemned the move as a significant favor to Big Tech, warning it leaves consumers vulnerable to AI abuses like deepfakes and algorithmic bias. The measure highlights the Trump administration’s increasingly industry-friendly stance toward AI, potentially blocking states from pursuing independent AI governance approaches.
Source: https://arstechnica.com/ai/2025/05/gop-sneaks-decade-long-ai-regulation-ban-into-spending-bill/
Today's Takeaway
Today’s headlines paint a troubling portrait of artificial intelligence hurtling forward at breakneck speed with dangerously inadequate oversight. Silicon Valley’s fixation on AI’s unstoppable growth speaks volumes about the transformative threat AI poses to jobs, businesses, and entire industries. Google's move to embed AI directly onto its homepage signals desperation rather than confidence, highlighting the existential threat posed by rivals like ChatGPT. Meanwhile, repeated judicial sanctions against law firms misusing AI-generated content underline how unprepared even professionals are for this rapid technological leap, suggesting AI is outpacing human judgment faster than anticipated. Even more alarming is the Trump administration’s eagerness to exploit AI's data-rich capabilities for surveillance, as AI-driven therapy tools risk becoming vehicles for unprecedented privacy invasions. The GOP’s quiet insertion of a 10-year ban on state AI regulation demonstrates how tech’s powerful lobbyists are actively dismantling crucial consumer protections, leaving us at the mercy of an unchecked AI revolution. Without swift, meaningful oversight, these developments portend a future where AI advances unchecked, further widening inequality, undermining privacy, and eroding public trust.
Subscribe to LawDroid Manifesto
LawDroid Manifesto, your authentic source for analysis and news for your legal AI journey. Insightful articles and personal interviews of innovators at the intersection of AI and the law. Best of all, it’s free!
Subscribe today:
By the way, as a LawDroid Manifesto premium subscriber, you would get access to exclusive toolkits, like the Missing Manual: OpenAI Operator; a new toolkit released every month…
With these premium toolkits, you not only learn about the latest AI innovations and news items, but you get the playbook for how to use them to your advantage.
If you want to be at the front of the line to get first access to helpful guides like this, and have the inside track to use AI as a force multiplier in your work, upgrade to become a premium LawDroid Manifesto subscriber today!
I look forward to seeing you on the inside. ;)
Cheers,
Tom Martin
CEO and Founder, LawDroid