Technology

Microsoft has reportedly reached an agreement with HarperCollins, a subsidiary of News Corp., to utilise select nonfiction titles for training its artificial intelligence models. In a statement to Bloomberg News, HarperCollins confirmed it reached an agreement that would “allow limited use of select nonfiction backlist titles for training AI models to improve model quality and performance”. The deal includes strict limitations and safeguards to protect author rights and royalty streams. The agreement, yet to be publicly detailed, enables Microsoft to access HarperCollins' nonfiction backlist titles to improve AI model quality and performance. HarperCollins noted that authors could opt out of the initiative, ensuring their rights are respected. "Part of our role is to present authors with opportunities while protecting the underlying value of their works and shared revenue streams," HarperCollins said in a statement. The publisher emphasised that the deal includes "clear guardrails" around the use of AI outputs. Technology firms, including Microsoft, are increasingly seeking high-quality text for AI training to enhance model accuracy and expertise. Publishers like HarperCollins are becoming pivotal part

NASA has tasked SpaceX and Blue Origin with delivering heavy cargo and infrastructure to the moon, in preparation for its Artemis moon missions. SpaceX’s large cargo landers will bring a pressurised lunar rover to the moon, and Blue Origin will deliver a lunar surface habitat. “These large cargo lander demonstration missions aim to optimize our NASA and industry technical expertise, resources, and funding as we prepare for the future of deep space exploration,” said NASA’s Human Landing System programme manager Lisa Watson-Morgan. “Having two lunar lander providers with different approaches for crew and cargo landing capability provides mission flexibility while ensuring a regular cadence of Moon landings for continued discovery and scientific opportunity,” said Stephen D. Creech, assistant deputy associate administrator at NASA’s Moon to Mars Program Office. NASA’s Artemis III mission is scheduled for 2026, and will be the first American crewed moon landing since 1972. SpaceX is expected to deliver its pressurised rover to the moon no earlier than the 2032 fiscal year, and Blue Origin’s lunar habitat is set to arrive no earlier than the 2033 fiscal year. NASA first asked SpaceX and Blue Origin to develop these c

The U.S. Department of Justice will reportedly require Google to sell its Chrome browser. The department’s antitrust officials will request a federal judge’s order to mandate a sale today, according to Bloomberg. Chrome is the most widely used browser worldwide, and Bloomberg estimated it could sell for US$20 billion (A$30.75 billion). “The government putting its thumb on the scale in these ways would harm consumers, developers and American technological leadership at precisely the moment it is most needed,” said Google’s Regulatory Affairs Vice President Lee-Anne Mulholland. The federal judge, Amit Mehta, ruled in August that Google violated the law in its efforts to hold a monopoly on online searches. It was sued by the Department of Justice in 2020. Prosecutors argued Google paid over $10 billion each year to companies like Apple and Samsung to ensure Google was installed as the default search engine on their products. “Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly,” Mehta said in his opinion. Google plans to appeal the ruling. The Department of Justice will also reportedly require Google to license the data from its search engine. “Forcing the sharing of your searches with oth

Microsoft and Atom Computing will launch a commercially available quantum computer next year, after a major technological breakthrough. “We are co-designing and building the world’s most powerful quantum machine,” said Krysta Svore, vice president of advanced quantum development for Microsoft. The companies announced at the Microsoft Ignite conference today that they had entangled 24 logical qubits. Logical qubits are units of information used to run quantum algorithms, and this is the largest number of logical qubits managed to date. “Entanglement enables quantum computers to implement various protocols and algorithms that are not possible with classical systems,” according to Microsoft. The process allows quantum computers to perform large numbers of calculations simultaneously. Microsoft and Atom Computing will offer a commercially available quantum computer next year. Preorders began today ahead of delivery in 2025. “This offering is a comprehensive scientific suite that combines logical qubits, cloud HPC, and advanced AI models that, together, enable exploration across multiple fields, including chemistry and materials science, while also providing opportunities for skilling and education,” Svore said of the co