Tag - california

 
 

CALIFORNIA

Sam Altman, CEO of ChatGPT maker OpenAI, joins a growing list of former tech leaders taking roles in San Francisco's government.
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 19, 2024
San Francisco taps OpenAI's Sam Altman for leadership role
The head of the artificial intelligence company behind ChatGPT was named by San Francisco Mayor-elect Daniel Lurie as one of seven co-chairs of his transition team.
Korey Kito, left, stands with his father Brian Kito in front of their confectionery, Fugetsu-Do, in Los Angeles.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Nov 4, 2024
How Fugetsu-Do survived the evolution of Little Tokyo in LA
In addition to selling mochi and other treats out of the storefront, Fugetsu-do also stocks other Japanese specialty food stores across California.
The Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani speaks to fans in English during a World Series victory celebration at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on Friday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Nov 2, 2024
Dodgers celebrate World Series win with long-awaited parade
Shohei Ohtani brought his brown-and-white dog, Decoy — a fan favorite — in an Ohtani jersey, for the celebrations, with the slugger offering a rare address in English.
Embers glow at night as the Basin Fire burns in the Sierra National Forest in Fresno County, California, on June 26.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Oct 25, 2024
Wildfires are gaining speed in a worrying trend for western U.S.
The growth rate of the fastest wildfires increased 249% in the region between 2001 and 2020.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass at city hall on Thursday.
OLYMPICS
Oct 19, 2024
'Time to get busy': LA mayor says 2028 Games preparations underway
The Paris Games were widely seen as a triumph of planning and execution and set a high bar for Los Angeles.
Efforts to protect neurological data have proliferated in recent years, as electronic devices available directly to consumers become capable of capturing medical-grade brain data similar to what neurologists would use to diagnose patients.
WORLD
Oct 11, 2024
A new frontier of data privacy in the U.S. — your brain
California's new law defines neurological data as "sensitive personal information," a class of data that includes DNA, precise geolocation and other protected data.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 10. The governor has signed a law that aims to prevent instances of stalking and harassment using sophisticated car features such as location tracking and remote control.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Oct 1, 2024
California enacts car data privacy law to curb domestic violence
The move aims to prevent stalking and harassment using features such as location tracking and remote control as automakers add more sophisticated tech to their cars.
Gov. Gavin Newsom of California speaks to reporters in South Haven, Michigan, on July 4, 2024. Newsom vetoed a California artificial intelligence safety bill on Sunday, blocking the most ambitious proposal in the nation aimed at curtailing the growth of the new technology.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 30, 2024
California governor vetoes contentious AI safety bill
The bill’s author, Democratic Sen. Scott Wiener, said legislation was necessary to protect the public before advances in AI become either unwieldy or uncontrollable.
A fan holds a sign with a message about missing the Oakland Coliseum during an Athletics game at the stadium on Sept. 8.
BASEBALL / MLB
Sep 27, 2024
Athletics pay emotional farewell to Oakland in last home game before move
The Athletics are following the path of the Raiders and moving to Las Vegas, where they are expected to play their first home games in 2028.
Kimberly Guilfoyle speaks at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on July 17. More than two decades ago, the future vice president Kamala Harris and the conservative firebrand Guilfoyle were rising legal stars in San Francisco when Guilfoyle accused Harris of trying to deny her a job.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 24, 2024
The long, strange saga of Kamala Harris and Kimberly Guilfoyle
More than two decades ago, the future vice president Harris and the conservative firebrand Guilfoyle were rising legal stars in San Francisco.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to kill thousands of barred owls in California, Oregon and Washington to protect the endangered spotted owl.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 23, 2024
If killing one species might save another, should we do it?
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to kill thousands of barred owls in California, Oregon and Washington to protect the endangered spotted owl.
OpenAI announced a new reasoning model on Thursday that it said was capable of surpassing human experts in a number of technical benchmarks for the first time. The new model received the company's first "medium" rating on bioweapon risk.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 20, 2024
Battle rages over U.S.' first binding AI safety bill in California
The legislation has exposed a deep divide across the tech industry and the political establishment, upending the usual coalitions.
The burnt-out remains of a vehicle in Wrightwood, California, on Wednesday
WORLD
Sep 12, 2024
Los Angeles wildfire explodes overnight, engulfing homes
Three out-of-control blazes have erupted around Los Angeles.
California has ambitious climate policies. But the state should shift more green energy-related costs from electricity bills to taxes to promote fairness and sustainability.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 9, 2024
California's crushing power bills challenge its climate goals
California is incredible, but making it livable, what with its droughts, floods, fault-lines and wildfires, has never been cheap.
A remote-controlled BurnBot RX1 prototype produces a containment line during a prescribed burn operation in Paicines, California, on Aug. 12.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 30, 2024
Robots are starting (good) fires in California
BurnBot's robot keeps combustion within its burning chamber, where propane torches and air blowers bring flame temperatures up to 1,000 degrees Celsius.
OpenAI, whose ChatGPT is credited with accelerating the frenzy over artificial intelligence since its broad release in late 2022, has said AI should be regulated by the federal government but that the California bill creates an uncertain legal environment, and could cause entrepreneurs and engineers to leave the state.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 28, 2024
Big Tech wants AI to be regulated. Why do they oppose a California AI bill?
Many tech giants say the bill threatens to make the state unfavorable to AI development and deployment and puts open-source models at risk.
A tug boat assists a container ship to its berth in Long Beach, California, on June 17.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 19, 2024
Busiest U.S. ports absorb import surge nearing pandemic-era frenzy
The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which account for roughly a third of all U.S. container imports, had their third-strongest month ever in July.
The destruction left behind by the Borel Fire near Lake Isabella, California, on July 29
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 13, 2024
Wildfires are getting weirder. Case in point: 'firenados.'
Sometimes fire thunderstorms even create their own lightning, which spawns new blazes miles away.
Disney resorts division head Josh D’Amaro
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 12, 2024
Disney plots villains-themed land and new cruise ships in resorts push
Disney is providing details after announcing plans for its parks and resorts unit last year that included doubling capital investment to $60 billion over 10 years.
Smoke and flames rise from Park Fire burning near Chico, California, on July 25.
WORLD
Aug 4, 2024
California wildfire now fourth-largest in state history
More than 6,000 firefighters in California's Central Valley continued to battle the largest blaze in the U.S. on Saturday.

Longform

The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?