The New York Times

Our media and politics reporter Ken Bensinger examines how political campaigns in the U.S. are increasingly paying social media influencers for support, though the ties are not always clearly disclosed. https://nyti.ms/4yfk5pL

Microcars are lightweight vehicles for economical urban commuting. They're underpowered, noisy and sometimes smoky, and it helps if you’re good with a wrench. But “the struggle is what makes it fun,” one enthusiast said. https://nyti.ms/4qKAOP2

They have lived in the same rent-controlled apartment in San Francisco for decades. After their landlords offered them tens of thousands of dollars to leave, they fear of not being able to afford to stay in the city. New from me: https://lnkd.in/gjieVJMy

Meta has turned into one of Anthropic’s largest customers, according to people with knowledge of the companies, privately helping its rival rise in power. Their situation illustrates the friend-foe relationships underlying Silicon Valley’s A.I. race. https://nyti.ms/4cygevB

What led to the surprising return of Prince Harry and Meghan to Britain? What will it mean? And how does The New York Times cover this news moment? Our journalists who have experience reporting on the royal family weighed in.

Bill Gates is loudly warning that A.I. poses a grave threat to jobs and human life, and that addressing the risks should be “the world’s top priority.” In an interview with The New York Times, Gates said the tech industry was knowingly downplaying those threats. https://nyti.ms/4qXtgc1

Breaking News: Meta reached a landmark settlement of up to $17.1 billion with 47 states, D.C. and U.S. territories and has to make major changes to its products over claims it endangered children with addictive social media platforms.

A new study shows an alarming rate of CTE among former NFL players: At least 1 in 4 who died from 2016 to 2021 had the degenerative brain disease. And the rate might be even higher. Read more: https://nyti.ms/3SwsJAJ

I've been covering tech in schools for The New York Times for more than a decade. And I'm still fascinated by how new products like Chromebooks and A.I. chatbots seem to suddenly turn into classroom staples. In fact, my reporting shows it's a pattern. Every few years, Silicon Valley has urged American public schools to quickly adopt the latest technology or teach the latest tech subject: Big Data analytics; laptops for every child; algorithm-driven math and reading apps; compter programming; virtual reality. And each time the urgent arguments sounded remarkably similar: if schools just adopted the latest tech tool, or taught the latest tech subject, it would democratize learning for every child and equip students with valuable career skills. The campaign to expand student access to computer science and other efforts had good intentions. But today we know some of those classroom tech drives did not exactly pan out as advertised. Now some of the same companies that urged schools to provide laptops and coding lessons are employing similar arguments to urge schools to quickly adopt A.I. tools. I've spent years covering Chromebooks and student chatbot use. And I'm troubled by our collective amnesia around school tech. So I've written a book, called "Coding Kids," from which this article is adapted. It brings readers inside the powerful playbook that tech giants have used for years to promote their products in schools and influence how and what schoolchildren learn. The book also profiles pioneering teachers developing a broader approach to tech education -- one that not only teaches algorithms and app-making, but also equips students to ask deeper questions about emerging technologies and the companies behind them. A broader approach to tech in schools could equip more students to think independently as they navigate a world increasingly shaped by machines. I'd love to hear from educators, parents, students, researchers and others who care about school tech. Thanks for reading! https://lnkd.in/gHQj4kUX

Breaking News: An arbitrator ordered The Washington Post to rehire Karen Attiah, a columnist who was fired over her social media posts about the assassination of Charlie Kirk.