Ruling against US tech giant hailed as a significant win for Uganda’s data sovereignty ANALYSIS | IAN KATUSIIME | Google LLC, the tech giant that looms over the world gobbling tonnes of personal data and making billions in profit, has received a warning shot from Uganda: there are rules to be …
Read More »Mexico sues Google over Gulf of Mexico name change
MEXICO CITY, the United States | Xinhua | Mexico has filed a legal lawsuit against Google for labeling the Gulf of Mexico as “Gulf of America” on Google Maps for American users, arguing that the move violates the sovereignty and international recognition of Mexican territory, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said …
Read More »TikTok returns to Apple and Google app stores in the US
USA | THE INDEPENDENT | TikTok is again available on the US app stores of Apple and Google, after President Donald Trump postponed enforcement of a ban of the Chinese-owned social media platform until April 5, according to the BBC. The popular app, which is used by more than 170 million …
Read More »What Google and Facebook owe news publishers
By basic principle; if you reap massive profits by using others news content, you should pay for it COMMENT | HAARIS MATEEN, HARIS TABAKOVIC & PATRICK HOLDER | It’s the same story around the world. Faced with an avalanche of misinformation and disinformation online, declining trust in media and government, and …
Read More »Weather forecasts may soon become more accurate
Google’s AI can forecast extreme weather faster and more accurately than anything before ANALYSIS | AGENCIES | This year the Earth has been hit by a record number of unpredictable extreme weather events made worse by climate change. Predicting them faster and with greater accuracy could enable us to prepare better …
Read More »Google denies abusing power to gain monopoly
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Google has dismissed arguments that it is the world’s biggest search engine because of illegal practices, saying to switch to another company takes “literally four taps”, according to BBC’s news report for Sept.13. A lawyer for the company made the remarks in court in Washington …
Read More »Google tests watermark to identify AI images
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Google is trialling a digital watermark to spot images made by artificial intelligence (AI) in a bid to fight disinformation according to the BCC report. Developed by DeepMind, Google’s AI arm, SynthID will identify images generated by machines. It works by embedding changes to individual …
Read More »Google Bard launches in Swahili
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Google announced the expansion of Bard, its conversational AI service, to 40 new languages including Swahili- the first African language to be included and 59 new countries and territories. The expansion includes new features that allow users to better customize their experience, boost their creativity, …
Read More »Google reassures on artificial intelligence
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Google is searching for ways to reassure people that it is still out in front in the race for the best artificial intelligence technology. And so far, the internet giant seems to be coming up with the wrong answer. An advert designed to show off …
Read More »Experts warn Uganda, EAC to go slow on Digital Services Tax
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Experts have cautioned Uganda and other East African countries to go slow on the implementation of taxation of digital services. This comes as the countries prepare to join 133 others around the world to implement the Digital Services Tax (DTS) in line with the …
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