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Reddit is suing companies SerApi, OxyLabs, AWMProxy and Perplexity for allegedly scraping its data from search results and using it without a license, The New York Times reports. The new lawsuit follows legal action against AI startup Anthropic, who allegedly used Reddit content to train its Claude chatbot.

 As of 2023, Reddit charges companies looking access to posts and other content in the hopes of making money on data that could be used for AI training. The company has also signed licensing deals with companies like Google and OpenAI, and even built an AI answer machine of its own to leverage the knowledge in users’ posts. Scraping search results for Reddit content avoids those payments, which is why the company is seeking financial damages and a permanent injunction that prevents companies from selling previously scraped Reddit material.

Some of the companies Reddit is focused on, like SerApi, OxyLabs and AWMProxy, are not exactly household names, but they’ve all made collecting data from search results and selling it a key part of their business. Perplexity’s inclusion in the lawsuit might be more obvious. The AI company needs data to train its models, and has already been caught seemingly copying and regurgitating material it hasn’t paid to license. That also includes reportedly ignoring the robots.txt protocol, a way for websites to communicate that they don’t want their material scraped.

Per a copy of the lawsuit provided to Engadget, Reddit had already sent a cease-and-desist to Perplexity asking it to stop scraping posts without a license. The company claimed it didn’t use Reddit data, but it also continued to cite the platform in answers from its chatbot. Reddit says it was able to prove Perplexity was using scraped Reddit content by creating a “test post” that “could only be crawled by Google’s search engine and was not otherwise accessible anywhere on the internet.” Within a few hours, queries made to Perplexity’s answer engine were able to reproduce the content of the post.

“The only way that Perplexity could have obtained that Reddit content and then used it in its ‘answer engine’ is if it and/or its co-defendants scraped Google [search results] for that Reddit content and Perplexity then quickly incorporated that data into its answer engine,” the lawsuit claims.

When asked to comment, Perplexity provided the following statement:

Perplexity has not yet received the lawsuit, but we will always fight vigorously for users’ rights to freely and fairly access public knowledge. Our approach remains principled and responsible as we provide factual answers with accurate AI, and we will not tolerate threats against openness and the public interest.

This new lawsuit fits with the aggressive stance Reddit has taken towards protecting its data, including rate-limiting unknown bots and web crawlers in 2024, and even limiting what access the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine has to its site in August 2025. The company has also sought to define new terms around how websites are crawled by adopting the Really Simple Licensing standard, which adds licensing terms to robots.txt.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/reddit-sues-perplexity-and-three-other-companies-for-allegedly-using-its-content-without-paying-205136436.html?src=rss 

Apple has removed dating apps Tea and TeaOnHer from the App Store for violating rules related to content moderation and user privacy. The company told TechCrunch that it pulled the apps as they broke several of its rules, including one mandating that apps can’t share or otherwise use an individual’s personal info without getting their permission first. 

Apple said they also violated a rule concerning user-generated content, which stipulates that apps need to allow for reporting offensive or concerning material, an option to block abusive users and the ability to filter “objectionable material from being posted.” In addition, Apple claimed the apps broke rules related to user reviews. It told TechCrunch they had an “excessive” volume of negative reviews and complaints from users, including ones related to minors’ personal details being shared. The company noted that it raised these issues’ with the apps’ developers, but they were not resolved.

As it stands, both apps are still available on Android through the Google Play Store. Tea (which is formally called Tea Dating Advice) enables women to post details about men they’ve met or dated. It allows them to post and comment on photos, look up public records on individuals, carry out reverse image searches, share their experiences and rate or review men. Users can, for instance, say whether they’d give a man a “green flag” or a “red flag.”

TeaOnHer flips that format on its head, with men sharing info about women. Both are pitched as dating safety apps, with Tea telling users they can “ask our anonymous community of women to make sure your date is safe, not a catfish and not in a relationship.”

Tea first emerged in 2023 and it went viral this year. In July, hackers breached the app and leaked tens of thousands of images, including around 3,000 selfies and photo IDs that users submitted to verify their accounts. The other images included posts, comments and private messages. A second hack exposed more than a million private messages.

Days after TeaOnHer went live in August (ripping off text from Tea’s App Store description in the process), it emerged that app had its own security issues. It was possible to view photo IDs and selfies that users had submitted for account verification, as well as their email addresses. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/apple-dumps-dating-apps-tea-and-teaonher-from-the-app-store-over-privacy-and-moderation-issues-191305457.html?src=rss 

Google Gemini is coming to GM vehicles in 2026. The company will be integrating a conversational AI assistant powered by Google’s platform into many of its cars, trucks and SUVs.

GM says this assistant will be able to access vehicle data to suss out maintenance concerns, alerting the driver when necessary. The company also promises it’ll be able to help plan routes and explain various features of the car. It should also be able to do stuff like turn on the heat or air conditioning, even before entering the vehicle.

This will replace the “Google built-in” operating system that already exists in many GM vehicles. This OS already offers access to stuff like Google Maps, Google Assistant and related apps. The upcoming Gemini-based chat assistant will do the same type of things, but it should perform better.

“One of the challenges with current voice assistants is that, if you’ve used the, you’ve probably also been frustrated by them because they’re trained on certain code words or they don’t understand accents very well or if you don’t say it quite right, you don’t get the right response,” GM VP Dave Richardson told TechCrunch. “What’s great about large language models is they don’t seem to be affected by that.”

One brand-new feature that Gemini will bring to the table is web integration. This will let drivers ask the chatbot questions pertaining to geographic location and the like. GM gives an example of someone asking about the history of a bridge they are passing over.

The Gemini assistant will be available via the Play Store after launch as an over-the-air upgrade to Onstar-equipped vehicles. It won’t be limited to newer releases, as GM says it’ll work with vehicles from the model year 2015 and above. The company also says it’s working on its own AI chatbot that has been “custom-built for your vehicle.” There’s no timetable on that one. 

GM ran into hot water recently when it was found that it had been selling some customer information sourced from its OnStar Smart Driver program to insurance companies without user consent. This led to the FTC banning the company from selling any driver data for five years. Richardson says the Gemini integration will be privacy-focused and the software will let drivers control what information it can access and use.

The company made these announcements at the GM Forward media event, where it also discussed other forthcoming initiatives. It has scheduled a rollout of its self-driving platform for 2028. It’s also developing its own computing platform, also launching in 2028. This does mean that GM will be sunsetting integration with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. This software will be phased out over the next few years. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/google-gemini-will-arrive-in-gm-cars-starting-next-year-181249237.html?src=rss 

Enabled by the introduction of its Willow quantum chip last year, Google today claims it’s conducted breakthrough research that confirms it can create real-world applications for quantum computers. The company’s Quantum Echoes algorithm, detailed in a paper published in Nature, is a demonstration of “the first-ever verifiable quantum advantage running the out-of-order time correlator (OTOC) algorithm.”

A core belief in quantum computing is that developing computer systems with qubits — which can represent multiple states at once, as opposed to binary ones and zeroes — could lead to greater understanding of the quantum systems surrounding us. Google believes its new algorithm is further proof of that assumption. The Quantum Echoes algorithm is able to illustrate how different parts of a quantum system interact with each other, in a way that’s repeatable by other quantum computers and that “runs 13,000 times faster on Willow than the best classical algorithm on one of the world’s fastest supercomputers.”

The “echo” in Quantum Echoes comes from how Google’s algorithm interacts with a quantum system, in this case the Willow chip. “We send a carefully crafted signal into our quantum system (qubits on Willow chip), perturb one qubit, then precisely reverse the signal’s evolution to listen for the ‘echo’ that comes back,” the company explained in its announcement blog. That echo is magnified by the “constructive interference” of quantum waves, making the measurement Google is able to take extremely sensitive.

That sensitivity suggests quantum computers could be an important tool in modeling things like the interaction of particles or the structure of molecules. In a separate experiment with the University of California, Berkeley, Google tried to prove that by running the Quantum Echoes algorithm to study two different molecules, and comparing it to the Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) method currently used by scientists to understand chemical structure. The results from both systems matched, and Google says Quantum Echoes even “revealed information not usually available from NMR.”

In the longterm, a full-scale quantum computer could be used for everything from drug discovery to the development of new battery components. For now though, Google believes its Quantum Echoes research means real-world quantum computer applications could arrive within the next five years.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/google-says-it-made-a-breakthrough-toward-practical-quantum-computing-183502245.html?src=rss 

Nintendo has announced a free update for Pikmin 4 that could remedy one of fans’ biggest complaints about the game. (Yes, free. From Nintendo. We’re shocked too, but we’ll take it.) The update, which arrives in November, adds Fierce mode to make the game more challenging for those who want it. We don’t know exactly what that will look like yet, but a higher difficulty level is a welcome addition to a game that is, for many players including myself, absolutely delightful but much too easy. It may not reach Pikmin 2 heights still, but maybe we’ll see enemies respawn? 

On the opposite end, for players who want to breeze through an even chiller experience than Pikmin 4 already offered, the update also brings Relaxed mode, where enemies won’t bother you unless you attack them first. This mode could go hand in hand with another new feature, the Field Camera, which puts a Pokémon-Snap-style spin on things. With this, you’ll be able to take photos of your Pikmin and squad in the wild, and “set the scene with various angles, hide characters, and decorate your pics with filters, frames and stamps.” It might be nice not to have enemies pestering you while you’re just trying to have a photoshoot. 

The update also brings a Pikmin Bloom staple over to the mainline game: Decor Pikmin. You’ll soon be able to find Pikmin that are decked out in little costumes, and can add these characters to your squad. The announcement hints that snapping a picture of them may be the way to do this. And, Pikmin Bloom players will be able to send these special Decor Pikmin to the app to join their squad over there too. There’s more news for Pikmin Bloom players as well. The mobile game is finally getting Ice Pikmin on November 1. These will sprout from new blue seedlings that will be found, to start, at Restaurant and Roadside locations. 

An Ice Pikmin with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on its head and a pink spoon sticking out sits on a rocky ledge

At the beginning of October, Nintendo got us all worked up about the possibility of new Pikmin content when it dropped an animated short that at first seemed to be Pikmin related, and was later confirmed to be. The company eventually put the hype to rest, explaining that the videos were indeed just the first short films from Nintendo Pictures Co., which will “explore new creative possibilities through video content” — not a promotion for a new game, as fans hoped. But with a new reason to dive back into Pikmin 4 now on the horizon, maybe all the excitement wasn’t for nothing. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/pikmin-4-is-getting-a-free-update-with-hard-mode-decor-pikmin-and-a-camera-to-snap-field-photos-165200723.html?src=rss 

Ever since Rivian spun off its “micromobility business” into a standalone startup called Also earlier this year, there’s been much speculation about what kind of vehicles the company is working on. Now, Also is showing off its first products: a lineup of e-bikes and two pedal-assisted electric quads. 

The TM-B e-bike is Also’s attempt at a do-it-all e-bike that can adapt to different use cases whether that’s daily commuting, trail riding or kid and cargo-hauling. It sports a modular frame that can also accommodate a bench seat or rear cargo rack that supports up to 35KG of weight. It only comes in one frame size, but Also says it should be able to adapt to “multiple body sizes.” 

The removable USB-C battery comes in two sizes: standard, which can power up to 60 miles of riding, and large, which maxes out at 100 miles of range. In terms of power, the TM-B’s throttletops out at 20MPH. Also is taking an interesting approach to its drive system, with a setup it’s labeled “DreamRide.” Instead of a mechanical connection between the bike’s rear wheel and the pedals, the TM-B uses “software-defined pedaling,” which will make the riding experience more customizable, according to Also. 

The Also app and Portal display.

Given the bike’s roots at Rivian, it’s not surprising that there are also a bunch of other tech-enabled features, including a 5-inch touchscreen display, called “Portal,” that supports navigation, music playback and calling features via an accompanying app. There’s also a built-in security system that automatically locks the frame and rear wheel when you walk away.

Also is selling the TM-B in three configurations. The first to ship next spring will be the $4,500 TM-B Limited Launch Edition, which has a range up to 100 miles, support for standard and sport ride modes and features transparent purple accents. The $4,500 TM-B Performance has the same features as the limited edition model, but has a slightly different color scheme, and will be available within the “first half” of 2026. Finally, there’s a base-level TM-B model with a range of up to 60 miles that only comes with standard ride modes. Also hasn’t announced an exact price, but says it will cost less than $4,000 when it ships “later in 2026.” Pre-orders for the Launch Edition are open now and the other two bikes are available to reserve with a $50 deposit. The bikes will also be on display in Rivian showrooms later this year,

Also’s quad for commercial uses cases (left) and a smaller quad for families (right).

The company also previewed two electric, pedal-assisted quads it’s calling TM-Q. The smaller quad is apparently meant for “families and individuals seeking a safe, compact alternative to cars” that can still haul “significant loads.” The larger TM-Q, on the other hand, is meant for commercial deliveries. Also has partnered with Amazon to develop fleets of such vehicles that can be used by delivery drivers. Both quads are intended to be used in bike lanes, according to Also. 

The company didn’t share details about when these vehicles might be available or how much they’ll cost.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/the-first-e-bike-from-rivian-spinoff-also-has-a-virtual-drivetrain-173000250.html?src=rss