TGIF. Let’s get into the tech news.
1. Microsoft lays off 1,900 gaming employees
Kicking things off with, you guessed it, more layoffs. This time, it’s Microsoft’s gaming brands making employees redundant, with 1,900 workers across the Xbox, Activision, Blizzard, and King brands laid off. It’s an 8 per cent drop in Microsoft’s gaming division headcount, and among the bloodshed, Blizzard president Mike Ybarra said he’d also be stepping down, alongside Blizzard co-founder and chief design officer Allen Adham. Blizzard’s upcoming survival game has also been scrapped entirely.
2. FTC to investigate Microsoft, OpenAI’s relationship
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) launched an inquiry into the billion-dollar AI deals of OpenAI, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and Anthropic. Throughout the inquiry, cloud providers must disclose details about the nature of their partnerships and investments with AI startups. Of particular interest is the partnership behind ChatGPT, OpenAI, and Microsoft, in which Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella hired Sam Altman and offered jobs to his 700-person staff after the OpeanAI CEO was fired in November. “History shows that new technologies can create new markets and healthy competition,” said FTC Chair Lina Khan in a statement. “As companies race to develop and monetize AI, we must guard against tactics that foreclose this opportunity.”
3. HP discloses data breach
HP’s enterprise wing has disclosed a data breach to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. suspecting that Russian state actor Cozy Bear, which was also believed to be behind the Microsoft data breach, is to blame. “While our investigation of this incident and its scope remains ongoing, the Company now understands this incident is likely related to earlier activity by this threat actor, of which we were notified in June 2023, involving unauthorised access to and exfiltration of a limited number of SharePoint files as early as May 2023,” the company said in its filing.
4. Apple to allow sideloading in the European Union
From Reuters, Apple is set to allow users to download apps on their iOS devices within the European Union, in compliance with the Digital Markets Act. This means that, for the first time ever, Apple users will be allowed to put apps and app marketplaces on their iPhones without any link to Apple – beyond a need to submit apps to Apple for review of cybersecurity risks and fraud. Apple will also charge a “core technology fee”.
5. No personal information compromised in the St Vincent’s hack
Wrapping things up with the Sydney Morning Herald, which is reporting that investigators have wrapped up their probe into the St Vincent’s Health cyberattack, and have concluded that personal and health information has not been compromised. About 4.3 gigabytes of data was stolen from the organisation, and it turns out that, at the very least, customer data has not been taken by bad actors. “As part of our immediate response, we have been undertaking necessary system remediation activities. This includes enhancing our 24-hour, 7-day-a-week monitoring across our digital environment to detect and respond to suspicious activity,” a spokesperson told the Sydney Morning Herald.
BONUS ITEM: Rest easy, Ingenuity.
Flight 72. That’s the final flight for our Ingenuity #MarsHelicopter.
— NASA (@NASA) January 25, 2024
Ingenuity and its team proved that powered, controlled flight on another world was possible. #ThanksIngenuity. You may rest, but your legacy will continue to soar: https://t.co/uEe2ZAw2ML pic.twitter.com/9YlmWFpl2z
Have a lovely weekend.