Good morning. We’re on to our first full week of 2024, so let’s get stuck into it.
1. The Moon’s commercialisation begins
Kicking things off with Engadget, which is reporting that United Launch Alliance’s new Vulcan Centaur rocket launched in the early hours of the morning, carrying Peregrine, the first lunar lander in half a century. If the craft successfully touches down on the Moon, it will be the first private craft to do so. Godspeed, Peregrine Mission 1.
2. SpaceX: no, the feds are the problem
Staying in space, and in response to a complaint from the U.S. National Labor Relations Board regarding alleged illegal firings at SpaceX over employee criticisms of Elon Musk, SpaceX has made its stance clear. In its lawsuit, SpaceX claims that the NLRB proceedings violate the company’s “constitutional right to trial by jury.” The company is seeking to block the NLRB complaint from going forward.
3. Tesla recalls millions of cars in China
Sticking with Musk’s companies, and The Guardian is reporting that Tesla is recalling 1.6 million cars in China over autopilot defects. The recall affects the majority of cars sold in China, with an over-the-air software update set to apply fixes to the cars. The recall notice claimed that, with autopilot engaged, drivers could misuse the system and increase the risk of accidents, without applying enough concentration on the road.
4. Social media companies take on Ohio
AP is reporting that a group representing major social media companies, including ByteDance, Meta, and X Corp, is suing the U.S. state of Ohio over a pending law that would require children to have consent from their parents to use apps like TikTok, Facebook, and Twitter (now X). The NetChoice trade group is seeking to block the law from coming into effect, with the argument that it impedes on free speech, and is vague in its language. NetChoice has won similar lawsuits in other U.S. states.
5. OpenAI hit with fresh lawsuits from authors
Reuters is reporting that OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has been hit with a fresh lawsuit from authors, alleging that the AI company misuses their work in training the bot and other AI-based services. The pair of authors in the new lawsuit, off the heels of Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin’s similar lawsuit, claim that OpenAI infringed upon the copyright of their books.
BONUS ITEM: Yeah, this is the mood leading into CES.
cant wait for CES 👍 pic.twitter.com/5CNtwxUTen
— Linus Tech Tips (@LinusTech) January 7, 2024
Have a lovely week.