Illegal online casinos using Roblox, Apple working on foldable laptop, phone?
Illegal online casinos are using Roblox, one of the most popular video games in the world, to draw children as young as 12 into online gambling, a Sky News investigation has found. The unlicensed casinos allow children of any age to sign up using their Roblox accounts and bet their in-game currency (Robux) on games like slots and blackjack. Winnings can be withdrawn as cryptocurrency – and then converted into real cash. Sky News
Tech companies will be allowed to freely use copyrighted material to train artificial intelligence models unless creative professionals and companies opt out of the process, under UK government proposals. The proposed changes are seeking to resolve a standoff between AI firms and creatives. Sir Paul McCartney has warned the technology “could just take over” without new laws. A government consultation is proposing an exception to UK copyright law that will allow companies such as Google and the ChatGPT developer OpenAI to train their models on copyrighted content. The Guardian
Apple could be making some major changes to the iPhone and iPad, according to a new report. In addition to radically redesigning the iPhone in the form of the iPhone 17 Air, Apple is set to unveil its biggest MacBook ever – a laptop that’s different from any MacBook you’ve seen before. The Wall Street Journal says that Apple is working on three key new devices: the iPhone 17 Air, a folding iPhone, and a folding MacBook with a 19-inch display. According to the source, the folding iPhone is currently scheduled for a 2026 or 2027 release, with the innovative MacBook following along later. T3.com
Amazon pushes its US warehouse workers to fulfill orders at speeds that could cause high rates of injury despite being aware of the risks, an investigation led by Senator Bernie Sanders has found. The findings, external, following an 18-month probe of the firm, support claims that workers and labour campaigners have made about the company for years. The report accused the firm of rejecting changes that would have reduced workers’ pace, but improved safety because of concerns about its bottom line. But Amazon said, external the report was “wrong on the facts”. BBC
European carmakers are raising petrol vehicle prices as they scramble to encourage take-up of costly electric vehicles (EVs). Vauxhall owner Stellantis, Volkswagen and Renault have all increased prices for petrol models by hundreds of euros in the last two months, as they prepare for tougher EU emissions targets in the new year. In November, Stellantis raised prices in France of all of its Peugeot models by up to €500 (£413) – apart from fully electric ones. Telegraph
One thing I didn’t have on my 2024 bingo card was a new Lumix point-and-shoot camera, even though it’s a trending market. But Panasonic just surprised us by announcing the Lumix ZS99 / TZ99 (it’s called the former in the US and the latter elsewhere), which will be available from February 2025. The Lumix ZS99 / TZ99 packs a Leica lens with a whopping 30x optical zoom – a 24-720mm range that’s way more versatile than your smartphone, and which can be doubled digitally to 60x using Panasonic’s iZoom feature. Tech Radar
