Reporting
Where Vice President Kamala Harris stands on tech policy
Democratic frontrunner Kamala Harris is a long-time friend to the tech industry. For those in Silicon Valley, some of whom have vocally supported former President Trump and Sen. J.D. Vance, Harris' California bona fides may make them think twice. Though Harris would continue President Biden's tech policy agenda, she'd likely be more hesitant to break up Big Tech and strip platforms of their liability shield. As San Francisco's top prosecutor, California's attorney general and the state's U.S.
In blacked-out Gaza, Elon Musk’s Starlink opens an internet bubble
Elon Musk said his Starlink satellite internet service is now operating in a hospital in Gaza, following months of negotiations over humanitarian exceptions to an internet blackout Israel imposed across the war-battered territory. Musk wrote that Starlink was now active there with the support of Israel and the United Arab Emirates, which has been involved in negotiations to mitigate some effects of the Israel-Gaza war.
Broadband Director: Vermont Forges Its Own Path on Rural Funding
Christine Hallquist was well-qualified to serve as the Executive Director of the Vermont broadband office when Governor Phil Scott appointed her to the position in 2021.
Comporium/York Electric Share Broadband Grant from Innovative South Carolina Program
Rural broadband provider Comporium said yesterday that it gave York Electric Cooperative (YEC) a check for nearly $1.1 million, which represents a portion of a grant that Comporium was awarded by the South Carolina Broadband Office. The money came through an innovative program offered by the state for a project on which Comporium and York Electric partnered.
AI companies promised to self-regulate one year ago. What’s changed?
On July 21, 2023, seven leading AI companies—Amazon, Anthropic, Google, Inflection, Meta, Microsoft, and OpenAI—committed with the White House to a set of eight voluntary commitments on how to develop AI in a safe and trustworthy way. These included promises to do things like improve the testing and transparency around AI systems, and share information on potential harms and risks. On the first anniversary of the voluntary commitments, the tech sector has made some welcome progress, with big caveats. Companies are doing more to pursue technical fixes such as red-teaming (
California re-enters the showdown over the future
After a campaign that started out looking like a Queens vs. Scranton rematch, Americans are all but certain to be asked to choose between two visions of the future shaped by California. One is the pioneering candidacy of Vice President Kamala Harris, a Bay Area-born politician who would become both the first woman president and woman president of color.
FTC set to look into unequal online pricing scheme
A great deal of the Biden administration’s economic agenda has focused on protecting people from getting ripped off: The ever-shrinking Snickers bar, fighting
A week of nonstop breaking political news stumps AI chatbots
In the hour after President Biden announced he would withdraw from the 2024 campaign, most popular artificial intelligence chatbots seemed oblivious to the news. Asked directly whether he had dropped out, almost all said no or declined to give an answer. Asked who was running for president of the United States, they still listed his name.
Highline acquires Internet Management Services
In a deal that will focus on networking in Texas, Highline has acquired Liberty-based Internet Management Services (IMS). The combined company plans to expand its footprint in the southeast region of the state. Highline traces its roots back more than 125 years and has been involved in fiber deployments for 27 years. In addition to Texas, it is active in Michigan, Colorado, Georgia, Kansas, and Nebraska. Its networks provide 1 Gbps to 10 Gbps fiber connections within its footprint.
Intrepid Gets $290 Million Investment to Support Colorado, Minnesota Network Builds
Open access provider Intrepid Fiber Networks says its newly secured $290 million in debt financing will support ongoing deployments in Colorado and Minnesota. In all, more than 250,000 premises will eventually have access to Intrepid’s networks in the two states. Société Générale is structuring and acting as coordinating advisor in the transaction.