Author: user
ChatGPT’s growth is starting to taper off, according to new data from market intelligence firm Sensor Tower. Today, OpenAI-owned AI chatbots remain the leaders in this space, accounting for 50% of global downloads on mobile devices and 55% of global monthly active users. However, Google’s Gemini is starting to outperform ChatGPT in terms of download growth, monthly active user growth, and time spent in the app, the company’s research found. Over time, this increased pace of adoption could help Gemini close the gap with ChatGPT. OpenAI is now concerned about that, as the recent “Code Red” memo showed. The document,…
December 5, 2025Ravi LakshmananEmail Security/Threat Investigation New agent browser attack targeting Perplexity’s Comet browser. A seemingly innocuous email can be turned into a destructive action that erases the entire contents of a user’s Google Drive, research from Striker STAR Labs reveals. Zero-click Google Drive wiper technology is all about automating everyday tasks by connecting your browser to services like Gmail and Google Drive, giving them access to read emails, browse files and folders, and perform actions such as moving, renaming, and deleting content. For example, a prompt issued by a benign user might look like this: “Please check your email…
Grand Theft Auto Online’s latest expansion includes robotaxis from a fictional but well-known company named “KnoWay,” whose sole purpose appears to be to cause havoc. A trailer released on Friday shows a KnoWay van equipped with lidar sensors barreling through city streets, destroying other cars and smashing through fake company signs. All of this is far more disruptive and destructive than some of the worst things done by Waymo’s robotaxis, but the self-driving cars in the game still resemble the company’s earlier-generation Chrysler Pacifica vans. The expansion is called “A Safehouse in the Hills” and will be available starting December…
December 5, 2025Ravi LakshmananApplication security/vulnerabilities A critical security flaw has been disclosed in Apache Tika that could lead to an XML External Entity (XXE) injection attack. This vulnerability is tracked as CVE-2025-66516 and is rated 10.0 on the CVSS scoring scale, indicating maximum severity. According to the vulnerability advisory, “A critical XXE in the Apache Tika tika-core (1.13-3.2.1), tika-pdf-module (2.0.0-3.2.1), and tika-parsers (1.13-1.28.5) modules on all platforms allows an attacker to create XML external entities via a crafted XFA file in a PDF. injection can be performed. Affects the following Maven packages: org.apache.tika:tika-core >= 1.13,= 2.0.0,= 1.13, < 2.0.0 (patched…
A huge sunspot group, roughly the same size as the sunspot that caused the largest solar storm in recorded history, has appeared on the Earth’s side of the Sun, and is now pointing directly at Earth. But don’t panic. Auroras and some technical disturbances are possible next week, but it seems unlikely that a new sunspot group will trigger a second Carrington event.The complex, named AR 4294-4296, consists of two different magnetically entangled sunspot groups, AR 4294 and AR 4296. It first became visible on November 28, when it rotated to the Earth-facing side of the Sun at the western…
The New York Times filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against AI search startup Perplexity on Friday, marking the second such lawsuit against an AI company. The Times joins multiple media outlets suing Perplexity, including the Chicago Tribune, which also filed suit this week. The Times’ lawsuit alleges that Perplexity offers commercial products that serve as an alternative to Outlet to its users “without authorization or compensation.” The lawsuit comes as several publishers, including The Times, are negotiating contracts with AI companies, part of the same strategy that has been going on for years. Recognizing that the tide of AI cannot…
In 1903, residents of the small town of Dexter, Kansas, gathered to celebrate a newly drilled natural gas well.Crowds flocked to the well for the lighting of the escaping gas, which officials had said would produce “a great pillar of flame.” But when they rolled a burning bale of hay onto the well, nothing happened.An analysis in 1905 revealed that most of the gas was nonflammable nitrogen, just 15% was methane — and a little less than 2% was a colorless, odorless, elusive element that scientists had discovered only a few decades earlier. This marked the first discovery of helium…
December 5, 2025Ravi LakshmananVulnerabilities/Software Security Two Chinese-linked hacker groups were observed weaponizing a newly revealed security flaw in React Server Components (RSC) within hours of it becoming public knowledge. The vulnerability in question is CVE-2025-55182 (CVSS score: 10.0), also known as React2Shell, which allows unauthenticated remote code execution. This issue is addressed in React versions 19.0.1, 19.1.2, and 19.2.1. Two China-linked threat actors known as Earth Lamia and Jackpot Panda have been observed attempting to exploit maximum severity security flaws, according to a new report shared by Amazon Web Services (AWS). “Our analysis of exploitation attempts on the AWS MadPot…
In one of the most groundbreaking deals the streaming world has ever seen, Netflix on Friday announced its acquisition of Warner Bros., valued at $82.7 billion. The deal involves both HBO Max and HBO Studios, making it one of the largest mergers in Hollywood history. With this move, Netflix will not only solidify its top position, but also significantly strengthen its content library and gain access to famous series such as DC Comics, “Game of Thrones” and “Harry Potter.” Netflix boasted more than 300 million paying subscribers in January, while HBO Max, along with Discovery+, now has about 128 million…
Six years ago at a StrictlyVC event in San Francisco, I asked Sam Altman how OpenAI, with its complicated corporate structure, would make money. He said that someday, he’d ask the AI. When everyone snickered, he added, “You can laugh. It’s all right. But it really is what I actually believe.” He wasn’t kidding. Sitting again in front of an audience, this time across from Max Hodak, the co-founder and CEO of Science Corp., I can’t help but remember that moment with Altman. Pale-complexioned Hodak, wearing jeans and a black zip-up sweatshirt, looks more like he’d fit in in a…