Pinterest fired two engineers for creating a tool to track which employees were affected by recent layoffs, the BBC reported. The company, according to an employee's LinkedIn post, announced the job cuts in an email from Chief Executive Officer Bill Ready, who stated the company was "doubling down on an AI-forward approach."
Pinterest informed investors that the layoffs would impact approximately 15% of its workforce, roughly 700 roles, but did not specify which teams or workers would be affected. According to the BBC, the two engineers then "wrote custom scripts improperly accessing confidential company information to identify the locations and names of all dismissed employees."
In other technology news, Elon Musk's SpaceX is acquiring his artificial intelligence startup, xAI, in a deal that would value the combined entity at over $1 trillion. SpaceX confirmed the acquisition of xAI, known for its Grok chatbot, by posting a memo from Musk on its website, the BBC reported. While the terms of the deal were not disclosed, a source familiar with the matter told the BBC that it valued xAI at $125 billion and SpaceX at $1 trillion, potentially making it the most valuable private company ever. Musk stated in his memo that the combination would form an "innovation engine" bringing AI, rockets, space-based internet, and media under one roof.
Meanwhile, in France, the Paris prosecutor's cyber-crime unit raided the offices of Musk's X as part of an investigation into suspected offenses, including unlawful data extraction and complicity in the possession of child pornography, according to the BBC. The prosecutor's office also stated that both Musk and former X CEO Linda Yaccarino had been summoned to appear at hearings in April. Separately, the UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) announced an investigation into Musk's AI tool, Grok, over its "potential to produce harmful sexualised image and video content," the BBC reported. Musk responded to the raid on X, calling it a "political attack."
In China, new regulations have banned hidden door handles on electric vehicles (EVs), making it the first country to stop the use of the controversial designs popularized by Tesla, the BBC reported. The move comes amid increased scrutiny of EV safety following several deadly incidents, including two fatal crashes in China involving Xiaomi EVs where power failures were suspected of preventing doors from opening. According to state media, the new regulations will require cars to have a mechanical release both on the inside and outside of their doors. The new rules are scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2027.
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