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In November, a group of non-fiction authors filed a lawsuit accusing OpenAI and Microsoft of using other people’s intellectual property without permission to train the former’s generative AI technology. Now, more non-fiction writers are suing the companies for using their work to train OpenAI’s GPT large language models (LLM). Journalists Nicholas A. Basbanes and Nicholas Gage are accusing the defendants of “massive and deliberate theft of copyrighted works” by writers like them in a proposed class action lawsuit. 

Professional writers “have limited capital to fund their research” and “typically self-fund their projects,” they said in their complaint. Meanwhile, the defendants have “ready access to billions in capital” and “simply stole” the plaintiffs’ “copyrighted works to build another billion+ dollar commercial industry,” they allege. Using copyrighted works is a “deliberate strategy” by the companies, the complaint reads, and not paying writers give the defendants “an even higher profit margin.” The plaintiffs added that the companies could’ve explored alternative financing options, such as profit sharing, but have “decided to steal” instead. 

Basbanes and Gage are seeking “to represent a class of writers whose copyrighted work has been systematically pilfered” by the defendants. They’re seeking up to $150,000 per infringed work in damages, as well as a permanent injunction “to prevent these harms from recurring.” Basbanes is a “renowned authority on the history of books and book culture.” Gage, according to the CNBC, had previously worked for the Times and The Wall Street Journal.

OpenAI is contending with a growing list of lawsuits filed by creatives accusing it of using their work without permission to train its LLMs, including one by fiction authors George R.R. Martin, John Grisham and Jodi Picoult. In late December 2023, The New York Times sued the company and its biggest backer, Microsoft, for using the newspaper’s articles for AI training. An OpenAI representative told us at the time that both parties were engaged in “productive conversations” and that the lawsuit was unexpected.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/more-non-fiction-authors-are-suing-openai-and-microsoft-103046599.html?src=rss 

The Oral-B iO Series 7 smart electric toothbrush is down to $149 at Amazon after a $71 discount. That matches the best price we’ve seen and returns it to the low it hit for the shopping holidays last year. The deal comes as part of a larger sale in which Oral-B toothbrushes are up to 55 percent off. We named the iO Series 7 the top pick in our guide to smart toothbrushes because it hits a good balance between features and affordability (particularly if you can catch it on sale like right now).  

We tested a handful of smart electric toothbrushes (in this case “smart” means app-connected) and ultimately liked this one best. It has a black and white LED screen that tells you helpful info like mode, battery life and how long is left on your two minute timer. The vibrating head is vigorous but not lip-numbing like other models we tried and the lighted ring helpfully indicates whether you’re pushing too hard or not quite firmly enough.

If you want to brush while looking at your phone, you can watch an animated recreation of a set of teeth that slowly turns from blue to white as the internal sensors track the position and movement of your brush. It’s a bit of a surreal experience, but I did notice my teeth felt cleaner after using this than they do with a standard brush.

This set comes with a replacement head, travel case and charging dock which you should only need to use a couple times per month. If you want something even fancier, the Oral-B iO Series 9 is also on sale. The Series numbering refers to the level of features, not the newness of the brush, so Series 9 has extra brush modes, a color LED screen and a charging travel case — all of which the Series 7 lacks. Though in my tests, I didn’t find those perks were worth an additional $100.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/our-favorite-smart-electric-toothbrush-is-70-off-right-now-204912632.html?src=rss 

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) could file “a sweeping antitrust case” against Apple as soon as the first half of this year, according to The New York Times. The report says the agency is in “the late stages” of its investigation, focusing on the company’s control over hardware and software services and how its “walled garden” approach has allegedly made it harder for rivals to compete and customers to switch to competing products.

The New York Times report says the investigation has expanded beyond what was previously reported, according to people with knowledge of the meetings. Among other areas, its scope has allegedly covered how the Apple Watch is more tightly integrated with iPhone services than rival wearables and how it locks competing platforms out of iMessage.

Executives from Beeper, which got into a public spat with Apple late last year over the iPhone maker’s blocking of the app’s iMessage integration on Android, reportedly talked with investigators. In addition, Tile, which has made Bluetooth trackers since long before the AirTag existed, allegedly sat down with the DOJ, too. The agency is said to have “had conversations with” representatives from banking and payment apps about Apple’s practice of blocking rivals from using tap-to-pay on the iPhone.

Meta also reportedly talked with investigators. The social company allegedly “encouraged” the DOJ to look into Apple’s App Tracking Transparency (ATT) privacy tool in its meetings. ATT, launched in 2021, lets users hinder advertisers’ data collection, a feature Meta said in 2022 could cost it $10 billion that year. The NYT claims investigators have also looked into Apple’s cut of digital purchases made on the iPhone, a point Spotify, Epic Games and dating corporation Match Group have been vocal about in recent years.

The federal government currently has its hands full with Big Tech antitrust cases. The DOJ is pursuing two antitrust cases against Google (one for search and another for advertising), while the FTC has sued Meta and Amazon.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-doj-is-reportedly-prepared-to-file-a-broad-antitrust-lawsuit-against-apple-213030784.html?src=rss