AI companies are bulk-purchasing rare books, scanning them by cutting off spines, and shredding the originals. A service called ISBNdb facilitates anonymous orders of up to a million books, primarily pre-2022 works free of AI-generated text. A federal judge has ruled this practice legal under fair use, as eliminating the original ensures only one digital copy exists at a time. This irreversible destruction of cultural artifacts—books that survived wars and centuries—is accelerating, with Anthropic hiring the former head of Google Books partnerships to obtain 'all the books in the world.' The practice raises profound ethical questions about the cost of AI progress.

Federal prosecutors have charged Atlanta resident Sam Tunick after his GrapheneOS phone wiped itself during a Customs and Border Protection search at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The case, tied to the Cop City protest movement, marks a first-of-its-kind legal action using a duress password feature. Privacy advocates warn the prosecution could criminalize security tools.

Anthropic has overhauled its context engineering strategy for the Claude 5 model generation, removing over 80% of Claude Code's system prompt. The new approach emphasizes giving the model judgment over rigid rules, using progressive disclosure, and simplifying instructions. The shift, detailed by staff member Thariq Shihipar, reflects the improved reasoning capabilities of models like Claude Opus 5 and Fable 5, enabling them to handle complex tasks with less explicit guidance. Developers are advised to remove outdated constraints, design better tools, and rely on auto-memory.

Open-weight AI models are approaching a Kubernetes-like inflection point, where a neutral, extensible substrate attracts ecosystem-wide innovation. With Chinese models like Kimi K3 and GLM-5.2 rivaling frontier closed models, U.S. policymakers debate restrictions. Experts argue that banning Chinese models would isolate American developers, urging instead for domestic open-weight releases, procurement strategies, and standards-based governance to maintain competitive leadership.

A joint evaluation by the UK AI Security Institute and the U.S. Center for AI Standards and Innovation reveals that Moonshot AI's open-weight Kimi K3 model demonstrates significant cyber capabilities, outperforming prior open-weight models like GLM-5.2. However, it falls short of leading U.S. closed-weight frontier models in exploit development, particularly failing to achieve arbitrary code execution. The model successfully completed an autonomous attack on a simulated corporate network in one out of ten attempts, raising concerns about the security implications of open-weight models.

Nvidia, Microsoft, Meta, and over 20 other tech companies have jointly warned U.S. policymakers against imposing premature restrictions on open-weight AI models. The coalition argues such regulations could stifle competition, drive innovation overseas, and weaken national security, especially as Chinese open-weight models like Moonshot AI's Kimi K3 gain ground. Notably, OpenAI and Anthropic did not sign the letter, highlighting a deepening industry split between open and closed AI development approaches.

Nearly 200 Silicon Valley startups, including Y Combinator and Proton, are urging the Trump administration not to ban Chinese open-weight AI models. The newly-formed Little Tech Association argues that a ban would cripple U.S. startups, benefit big AI labs like Anthropic, and fail to stop model proliferation. The debate intensifies as Moonshot AI's Kimi K3 model outperforms U.S. offerings, and the White House weighs targeted safeguards over blanket restrictions.

Strict safety guardrails on frontier AI models from OpenAI and Anthropic are impeding legitimate offensive cybersecurity research, according to multiple experts. While designed to prevent malicious use, these restrictions block critical tasks like vulnerability analysis and exploit development. The U.S. government's export controls on Anthropic's models and inconsistent enforcement of safety policies are creating friction for defenders, who argue that current approaches weaken rather than strengthen security.

Science confirms handwriting recruits more brain regions, enhancing memory and cognitive resilience. Neurologists and author Neal Stephenson explain why writing by hand is superior to typing for brain health. Learn the optimal tools—fountain pens, gel pens, paper choices—and techniques like cursive to maximize benefits. Avoid common pitfalls like pencils or gadgets that cause fatigue.