Technology

Burger King plans to test an OpenAI-powered chatbot called Patty in employee headsets at about 500 locations to provide meal-prep tips and track friendliness; the company says the effort is experimental and fewer than 100 restaurants currently test drive‑thru AI.

Managers have told some non-technical staff to use internal AI tools in their workflows, and in some cases that AI use will be considered in upcoming performance reviews.

The article reports that OpenAI uses large teams of human reviewers and logged over 75,000 reports to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the first half of 2025, while Anthropic relies on a 'Constitutional AI' system and recorded about 5,005 NCMEC reports in the same period.

Meta says Instagram will notify parents in selected countries if teens repeatedly search for suicide or self-harm terms; the change begins next week for Teen Accounts in the UK, US, Australia and Canada and is drawing criticism from the Molly Rose Foundation.

Meta says Instagram will begin rolling out alerts next week in the U.S., U.K., Australia and Canada to notify parents if teenagers repeatedly search for terms related to suicide or self-harm, and the company said it will collect feedback as it refines how alerts are triggered.

Meta says Instagram will notify parents who use supervision tools if a teen repeatedly searches for terms related to suicide or self-harm; the alerts begin next week and will first roll out in the U.S., the U.K., Australia and Canada.

The column examines whether users can readily exit conversations with large language models and highlights that some states have begun passing laws on AI mental-health guidance while no comprehensive federal law exists.

Denver plans to replace Flock Safety cameras with Axon automated license plate readers and says the new agreement restricts access to city officers, sets a 21-day retention period, and bars use for civil immigration and abortion-related investigations.

Tim Desoto, a nontechnical founder in San Francisco, built an AI-powered shopping platform using multiple models and tools and says AI helps generate ideas and prototypes but not long-term strategic judgment.

The Wall Street Journal reported Gates acknowledged two affairs and described his meetings with Jeffrey Epstein as a "huge mistake." The Justice Department files released in the disclosure included claims Gates denied, and a Gates Foundation spokesperson said he took responsibility for his actions.

At the State of the Union, President Trump called on Erika Kirk and praised late activist Charlie Kirk, saying he was killed and urging rejection of political violence; members of the Republican House delegation applauded and chanted Charlie's name.

A mother-and-daughter citizen science team located a Pavona clavus coral colony on the Great Barrier Reef measuring about 111 meters and covering roughly 3,973 square meters; size was verified with underwater measurements and high-resolution imagery, and the exact site location was withheld to reduce risk of unintended impacts.

Authorities say a suspect opened fire during a traffic stop and later during a manhunt, killing two Christian County deputies; the suspect was shot and killed and two other deputies were wounded and are reported stable. Undetermined at this time.

Rep. Ro Khanna invited Haley Robson, who told investigators she recruited girls for Jeffrey Epstein as a minor, to the State of the Union; Khanna defended the choice and other Democrats also brought survivors. Officials note the Justice Department has released many files, and further action or investigations remain undetermined at this time.

Boston received more than a foot of snow in Monday's blizzard, and with a snow emergency still in effect on Tuesday residents began digging out, guarding parking spots and joining city shoveling meet-ups.

The Steve Jobs Archive released two volumes called "Letters to a Young Creator," compiling letters given to 2023 and 2024 SJA fellows from figures including Tim Cook, Jony Ive, Bob Iger, Pete Docter and Arthur Rock to mark what would have been Jobs' 71st birthday.

Last October, 35 major donor families in TED's Audacious Project committed $1.03 billion to more than a dozen nonprofits after a year-long selection and pitch process; winners were announced this week.

U.S. airlines canceled many flights to Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara after violence in the region, leaving travelers stranded. Airlines are issuing waivers and canceled-flight refunds are available, while hotel and short-term rental policies vary by company and property.

ACEA data show BYD new-car registrations in Europe rose to 18,242 in January 2026 from 6,884 a year earlier, while ACEA reported overall passenger-car registrations in the region fell.

Photos and reports show the 1970s Osborne Reef tire project failed to create stable habitat and dispersed tires damaged coral; cleanup has removed nearly 650,000 tires by 2023 and will continue through at least February 2028.

Authorities say an 18-year-old Pennsylvania student has been arrested and charged with more than 300 felonies after an alleged social media sextortion network targeted multiple minors; he is being held without bail.

A nor'easter called Winter Storm Hernando is forecast to strengthen into a bomb cyclone, with blizzard warnings from Delaware to Connecticut and across New York City. Major airports in the region are reporting widespread flight cancellations and officials report possible power outages and hazardous road conditions.

An iPhone Emergency SOS via satellite feature helped rescuers locate six skiers after a California avalanche by enabling messages when cell service failed.

Lauren Koong, Eileen Gu’s Stanford roommate, says Gu is exceptionally smart and hardworking, and the article describes how Gu balances Stanford coursework with an international skiing career while facing intense public attention and occasional safety concerns.

Los Angeles County filed a lawsuit Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court alleging Roblox's platform enabled grooming and exploitation of children; Roblox says it strongly disputes the claims and will defend itself.

Pixar released the Toy Story 5 trailer on Feb. 19, showing Woody with a receding hairline, and social media users responded with nostalgia and lighthearted jokes.

A.I. code generators can speed up some software projects but typically require close human oversight, and experts warn they can introduce code quality and security problems.

Reuters reports the US has launched a portal called freedom.gov that it says will let users access content blocked under some European rules; the domain appears to be administered by CISA while the State Department described digital freedom as a priority.

West Virginia Attorney General JB McCuskey filed a lawsuit in Mason County Circuit Court alleging Apple did not deploy industry-standard tools to detect child sexual abuse material on iCloud; the complaint cites internal messages and seeks orders to require scanning. Undetermined at this time.

The Eganville Leader, a weekly community newspaper serving Renfrew County, has been sold to London Publishing Inc. and the Aylmer Express, which say they plan to keep operations largely unchanged.