policy
The enforcer that could break up Apple and Google is facing upheaval
The sudden firing of two high-ranking antitrust officials this week is signaling upheaval at an agency responsible for arguing some of the biggest tech monopoly cases in decades. Two top deputies to Department of Justice Antitrust Division chief Gail Slater were fired earlier this week for what a DOJ official would only explain as “insubordination”…
How to secure your phone before attending a protest
Back in June 2020, when this article was first written, people were taking to the streets to organize for justice and protest against systemic racism and police brutality. There have been several other flashpoints for protests since then (for example, when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade), but the recent activities of ICE, especially…
A new cold war is brewing over rare earth minerals
The future of everything from smartphones, to military equipment, to electric vehicles hangs on 17 rare earth minerals and the magnets that they’re made into. And China, the world’s largest refiner and producer, is tightening its grip and threatening the US’ largest automakers. Over the last 30 years, China has methodically cornered the market on…
Neurotech companies are selling your brain data, senators warn
Three Democratic senators are sounding the alarm over brain-computer interface (BCI) technologies’ ability to collect — and potentially sell — our neural data. In a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Maria Cantwell (D-IN), and Ed Markey (D-MA) called for an investigation into neurotechnology companies’ handling of user data, and…
The Trump administration is coming for student protesters
The Trump administration is embarking on a massive university speech crackdown, starting with Columbia University, where it’s demanding external control of entire departments and punishment for student activists. Its first test case, Mahmoud Khalil, a graduate student with a green card, offers a hint of what’s to come: a state of intentional chaos that undermines…
Trump Wants a War With Cartels—and May Just Get One
This raises fundamental questions. “If they are going to designate traffickers as narco-terrorists, will they also include the Americans who are part of these networks? Because we are not just talking about the famous drug cartels, but also trafficking networks, money laundering, arms smuggling and other structures, many of which are incorporated in the United…