In the early hours of May 14, xAI’s chatbot Grok repeatedly gave X users responses that referred to claims about a “white genocide” in South Africa even if their inquiries had nothing to do about the subject. Now, in a statement posted on the social network, Elon Musk‘s AI company has explained that “an unauthorized modification” to Grok’s prompt on X caused it to “provide a specific response on a political topic.” It didn’t say what had happened to the personnel involved in rolling out the rogue update. But it added that the modification violated its “internal policies and core values” and that it has conducted a thorough investigation about the incident. 

The website’s various users had posted several instances wherein Grok included references to the controversial claims that white South African farmers are facing racial discrimination and land seizures in their country. Their questions? Well, in one tweet, someone asked how many times HBO has changed its streaming service’s name. In another, the user asked a baseball player’s salary history. In yet another one, someone asked for more information about a WWE match. CNBC was able to replicate the chatbot’s responses with white genocide references. When the news website asked if it was specifically programmed to promote “white genocide,” Grok said that it wasn’t and that its “purpose is to provide factual, helpful, and safe responses based on reason and evidence.”

Before xAI issued a response, OpenAI chief Sam Altman posted a snarky response on X. “I’m sure xAI will provide a full and transparent explanation soon,” he wrote, and then mimicked Grok’s responses by segueing into talking about white genocide. xAI said that from now on, it will be publishing its system prompts on GitHub so that the public can give feedback on every alteration. The company also said that it will put additional checks and measures to ensure xAI employees can’t modify Grok’s prompt without a review. Whoever edited it recently was able to circumvent its current review process in this case. In addition, the company said it’s putting together a team that can monitor incidents related to Grok’s answers not caught by automated systems 24/7.

As TechCrunch has noted, this isn’t the first time xAI had blamed a contentious Grok behavior to an unauthorized change. Back in February, the chatbot briefly censored sources that talked about how Musk and President Donald Trump are spreading misinformation. xAI co-founder Igor Babuschkin said at the time that a rogue employee had pushed an unapproved modification to Grok’s prompt.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/grok-kept-talking-about-white-genocide-due-to-an-unauthorized-modification-120044119.html?src=rss

It looks like we’re entering the era of crazy-thin phones. This week, Samsung finally announced the Galaxy S25 Edge, its slimmest smartphone yet. Is there actually a point to it, or is Samsung just trying to beat Apple to its rumored super-thin iPhone? Engadget’s Sam Rutherford joins us to dive into the S25 Edge, as well as some pre-Google I/O news from the Android Show.

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• Surface Pro 12-inch review: less weight, less power? – 2:04

• ASUS’ Xbox handheld photos leak in FCC filing – 21:39

• OpenAI restructures business, announces plan for hostile takeover-proof public benefit corp – 26:14

• The EPA announces plans to shut down the Energy Star Program – 31:16

• Telemessage, a Signal clone favored by Trump administration officials has been hacked – 34:44

• Samsung subsidiary buys Masimo and now it owns all the fancy speakers – 36:35

• Half-Life 3 is fully formed and playable?! – 40:59

• Around Engadget – 49:53

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Hosts: Devindra Hardawar and Cherlynn Low
Guest: Sam Rutherford
Producer: Ben Ellman
Music: Dale North and Terrence O’Brien

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/engadget-podcast-who-needs-samsungs-super-thin-galaxy-s25-edge-113049744.html?src=rss

When my colleague Kyle Orland submitted Tetrisweeper for a list of Ars’ favorite 2024 games not from 2024, I told him, essentially: “Good for you, not for me.” I’m a pedestrian Tetris player, at best, so the idea of managing a whole different game mechanic, while trying to clear lines and prevent stack-ups, sounded like taking a standardized test while baking a three-layer cake.

And yet, here I am, sneaking rounds of Drop Duchy (Steam, Epic, for Windows/Linux via Proton) into lunch breaks, weekend mornings, and other bits of downtime. Drop Duchy is similarly not just a Tetris-esque block-dropper. It also has you:

• Aligning terrain types for resources
• Placing both your troops and the enemy’s
• Choosing which cards to upgrade, sell, and bring into battle
• Picking between terrain types to leave behind
• Upgrading a tech tree with achievements
• Picking the sequence of battles for maximum effectiveness

Drop Duchy is a quirky game, one that hasn’t entirely fused together its various influences without some seams showing. But I keep returning to it, even as it beats me to a pulp on Normal mode, based on decisions I made five rounds ago. It feels like a medium-deep board game, played at triple speed, with someone across the table timing you on how fast you arrange your tiles.

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Welcome to Edition 7.44 of the Rocket Report! We had some interesting news on Thursday afternoon from Down Under. As Gilmour Space was preparing for the second launch attempt of its Eris vehicle, as part of the pre-launch preparations, something triggered the payload fairing to deploy. We would love to see some video of that. Please.

As always, we welcome reader submissions, and if you don’t want to miss an issue, please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets, as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.

Rotating detonation rocket engine takes flight. On Wednesday, US-based propulsion company Venus Aerospace completed a short flight test of its rotating detonation rocket engine at Spaceport America in New Mexico, Ars reports. It is believed to be the first US-based flight test of an idea that has been discussed academically for decades. The concept has previously been tested in a handful of other countries, but never with a high-thrust engine.

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Managing subscriptions directly from your iPhone is one of the simplest ways to prevent unwanted charges and keep track of active services. Whether you’re looking to cancel a streaming platform, cloud storage plan or any other recurring charge that you signed up for through Apple, doing so only takes a few steps.

If you download an app from the App Store, you may find the app unlocks additional features through a subscription. It’s easy to manage your subscription and app directly through your iPhone, allowing you to keep an eye on what you’re paying out. Some apps might tempt you with a free trial, so if you don’t want to pay a monthly subscription fee or you’ve had enough of your subscription, you can cancel or renew on your iPhone. Here’s how to find and cancel your subscriptions on iPhone.

How to cancel a subscription using your iPhone

Apple allows you to manage and cancel App Store subscriptions pretty easily. Subscriptions tied to your Apple ID include services such as Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, iCloud+ and third-party offerings purchased through the App Store.

To cancel a subscription:

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.

2. Tap your Apple ID name at the top of the screen.

3. Select Subscriptions.

4. Scroll through your list of active subscriptions.

5. Tap the subscription you want to cancel.

6. Tap Cancel Subscription, then confirm.

If the subscription is already marked as “Canceled” or shows an expiration date, no further action is needed.

Keep in mind that when you cancel a subscription, it typically remains active until the end of the current billing cycle(since you’ve already paid for it). You won’t be charged again, but you’ll still be able to use the service until the subscription officially ends.

Rob Webb for Engadget

How to cancel a subscription through the App Store

In addition to the Settings app, you can also access subscription details from within the App Store.

1. Open the App Store.

2. Tap your profile icon in the upper-right corner.

3. Tap Subscriptions.

4. Select the subscription you want to cancel.

5. Tap Cancel Subscription and follow the confirmation prompts.

This method leads to the same subscription menu found in the Settings app, so it’s simply a different way to get there. Both approaches work equally well, as they require the same number of taps.

What to do if you don’t see the subscription listed

If a subscription you want to cancel isn’t listed in the Subscriptions section, it may not be billed through Apple. Some services, such as Spotify, Netflix or Hulu, often require you to manage your subscription directly through their website or billing provider.

To check if a subscription is handled outside of Apple:

• Look at or search for the confirmation emails you received when signing up.

• Check your bank or credit card statement for the company name.

• Open the app and look under its account or settings section for billing info.

If the subscription isn’t associated with your Apple ID, canceling it will require visiting the provider’s website or app, or contacting its customer support directly.

How to cancel Apple One

If you’re subscribed to Apple One, which bundles several Apple services into one plan, you can cancel the entire bundle or individual services to stop using them.

To cancel Apple One:

1. Go to Settings > Apple ID > Subscriptions.

2. Tap Apple One.

3. Tap Cancel Apple One to remove the bundle.

4. If you only want to cancel one service within the bundle, tap Choose Individual Services and turn off the specific one you no longer want.

Canceling Apple One may remove access to multiple services, including Apple Music, iCloud+, and Apple Arcade, depending on your plan.

How to cancel a free trial

If you signed up for a free trial, be sure to cancel before the trial period ends to avoid charges. Apple will begin billing you automatically once the trial converts to a paid subscription.

Free trials follow the same cancellation process:

1. Go to Settings > Apple ID > Subscriptions.

2. Select the trial you want to cancel.

3. Tap Cancel Subscription.

The trial will end immediately if canceled, and you may lose access to premium features.

How to resubscribe after canceling

If you change your mind and want to restart a canceled subscription, you can do so from the same Subscriptions menu, as long as the service is still available.

1. Open Settings > Apple ID > Subscriptions.

2. Scroll down to the Inactive section.

3. Tap the service you want to reactivate.

4. Select a plan and confirm your payment method.

Your subscription will resume under the current terms, and the billing cycle starts from the date you resubscribe.

To downgrade or cancel iCloud+:

1. Go to Settings > Apple ID > iCloud > Manage Storage or iCloud Storage.

2. Tap Change Storage Plan > Downgrade Options.

3. Sign in if prompted.

4. Select the Free 5GB plan to cancel your paid plan.

Changes take effect at the end of your current billing period.

How to check for hidden or expired subscriptions

To view old subscriptions:

1. Go to Settings > Apple ID > Subscriptions.

2. Scroll to the Inactive or Expired section at the bottom of the screen.

These entries can’t be canceled again and are listed for reference only. If a subscription you no longer use is listed under “Active,” it’s still billing and needs to be manually canceled.

More tips for subscription management

• Use reminders: Set calendar reminders to review subscriptions before trials or renewals occur.

• Review billing statements: Check your monthly charges for unexpected renewals.

• Enable purchase sharing: If you’re in a Family Sharing group, know that some subscriptions can be shared or managed by the organizer.

• Consider using Apple’s Report a Problem page if you were charged for a subscription you didn’t authorize: reportaproblem.apple.com

• If a subscription doesn’t have a cancel option or is listed as “renewing soon,” you may not be able to cancel it from the iPhone directly. In this case:

• Double-check for another Apple ID you may have used to subscribe.

• Try restarting your iPhone and checking the Subscriptions list again.

• If it’s an Apple service like iCloud+ and the cancel button isn’t visible, you may need to change your iCloud storage plan instead.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/how-to-cancel-subscriptions-on-iphone-110015175.html?src=rss

China launched 12 satellites on Wednesday as part of the âoeThree-Body Computing Constellation,â the worldâ(TM)s first dedicated orbital computing network led by ADA Space and Zhejiang Lab. SpaceNews reports: A Long March 2D rocket lifted off at 12:12 a.m. Eastern (0412 UTC) May 14 from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China. Insulation tiles fell away from the payload fairing as the rocket climbed into a clear blue sky above the spaceport. The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) announced a fully successful launch, revealing the mission to have sent 12 satellites for a space computing constellation into orbit. Commercial company ADA Space released further details, stating that the 12 satellites form the “Three-Body Computing Constellation,” which will directly process data in space, rather than on the ground, reducing reliance on ground-based computing infrastructure. The constellation will be capable of a combined 5 peta operations per second (POPS) with 30 terabytes of onboard storage.

The satellites feature advanced AI capabilities, up to 100 Gbps laser inter-satellite links and remote sensing payloads — data from which will be processed onboard, reducing data transmission requirements. One satellite also carries a cosmic X-ray polarimeter developed by Guangxi University and the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (NAOC), which will detect, identify and classify transient events such as gamma-ray bursts, while also triggering messages to enable followup observations by other missions. […] The company says the constellation can meet the growing demand for real-time computing in space, as well as help China take the lead globally in building space computing infrastructure, seize the commanding heights of this future industry. The development could mark the beginning of space-based cloud computing as a new capability, as well as open a new arena for strategic competition with the U.S. You can watch a recording of the launch here.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Dartmouth researchers propose that dark matter originated from massless, light-like particles in the early universe that rapidly condensed into massive particles through a spin-based interaction. Phys.Org reports: [T]he study authors write that their theory is distinct because it can be tested using existing observational data. The extremely low-energy particles they suggest make up dark matter would have a unique signature on the cosmic microwave background, or CMB, the leftover radiation from the Big Bang that fills all of the universe. “Dark matter started its life as near-massless relativistic particles, almost like light,” says Robert Caldwell, a professor of physics and astronomy and the paper’s senior author. “That’s totally antithetical to what dark matter is thought to be — it is cold lumps that give galaxies their mass,” Caldwell says. “Our theory tries to explain how it went from being light to being lumps.”

Hot, fast-moving particles dominated the cosmos after the burst of energy known as the Big Bang that scientists believe triggered the universe’s expansion 13.7 billion years ago. These particles were similar to photons, the massless particles that are the basic energy, or quanta, of light. It was in this chaos that extremely large numbers of these particles bonded to each other, according to Caldwell and Guanming Liang, the study’s first author and a Dartmouth senior. They theorize that these massless particles were pulled together by the opposing directions of their spin, like the attraction between the north and south poles of magnets. As the particles cooled, Caldwell and Liang say, an imbalance in the particles’ spins caused their energy to plummet, like steam rapidly cooling into water. The outcome was the cold, heavy particles that scientists think constitute dark matter.
The findings have been published in the journal Physical Review Letters.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

A Northeastern University student demanded her tuition money back after discovering her business professor was secretly using AI to create course materials. Ella Stapleton, who graduated this year, grew suspicious when she noticed telltale signs of AI generation in her professor’s lecture notes, including a stray ChatGPT citation in the bibliography, recurring typos matching machine outputs, and images showing figures with extra limbs.

“He’s telling us not to use it, and then he’s using it himself,” Stapleton told the New York Times. After filing a formal complaint with Northeastern’s business school, Stapleton requested a tuition refund of about $8,000 for the course. The university ultimately rejected her claim. Professor Rick Arrowood acknowledged using ChatGPT, Perplexity AI, and presentation generator Gamma. “In hindsight, I wish I would have looked at it more closely,” he said.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.