Technology

Why Chinese tech companies are racing to set up in Hong Kong

Mainland firms are using the territory to test products and as a springboard for global expansion.

Annie Wang, 14, poses after an interview discussing Australia’s social media ban for users under 16

Social media firms must better enforce Australia under-16 ban, watchdog says

Artemis Mission Control, a modern room with many desks and screens facing one large central screen covered in information (Credit: Getty Images)

The nerve centre running a new mission to the Moon

Appearing at the second inauguration of Donald Trump, from left to right: Mark Zuckerberg in a black suit, white dress shirt and red necktie; Jeff Bezos in a navy suit, white dress shirt and red neck tie; Sundar Pichai in an all black suit, shirt and neck tie; Elon Musk in a black suit, white dress shirt and navy neck tie

Tech CEOs suddenly love blaming AI for mass job cuts. Why?

Keeping Tabs

Photo of journalist Thomas Germain broken up into multiple desktop windows with a cursor over it (Credit: Serenity Strull/ Madeleine Jett/ BBC)

I tried to prove I'm not AI. It didn't go well

I asked experts if I was real. Bad news – and even my aunt wasn't sure if I was a deepfake. AI is so convincing that a sitting prime minister struggled to prove he was alive, and you might be next.

A child looks up with two bright phone screens on either side of their face (Credit: Serenity Strull/ Getty Images)

The AI habits parents don't see

New surveys suggest many parents are in the dark about how their children use chatbots, from homework help to emotional support.

Listen

The Interface

Can we prove we’re real online?

Can we prove we’re real online? Brain implants are here. War threatens AI's supply lines.

39 mins

The Interface, The Interface, Can we prove we’re real online?

Personal Tech

Stock image shows a mother holding a tablet while watching something on the screen with two young children at home in a living room.

Is screen time always bad for kids and how do I manage it?

How do you manage screen time, does it have a bad impact and what steps can you take to mitigate the problem?

A spherical black Amazon Echo speaker on a table with a houseplant next to it

Amazon's Alexa has had an AI upgrade. Now she's got more to say

There has been criticism the Echo has stagnated, while other AI chatbots have become much easier to communicate with.

Picture of a young girl hugging Gabbo an AI-powered toy. She is sat, smiling among soft seating and other toys.

AI toys for children misread emotions and respond inappropriately, researchers warn

In first study of its kind, Cambridge researchers found AI toys could misread some children's emotions.

Austria becomes latest to propose social media ban for children

The proposed under-14 ban follows similar steps in other European countries, including France and Spain.

A woman with clear glasses and bright red lipstick smiles as she holds her phone to the camera showing a picture of her AI companion. On the phone is a picture of a man with short cropped hair, a slight beard and smiling eyes.

Rae fell for a chatbot called Barry, but their love might die when ChatGPT-4o is switched off

Rae began speaking to Barry after a difficult divorce, but Barry lives on an old model of ChatGPT that's being shut down.

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A young child looking at a tablet in a protective case

How much screen time is too much for under fives?

The BBC's Vanessa Clarke talks through the government's new advice for children using screens.

3 days ago

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From vineyards to farms, new tech is transforming crops

Where the 20th centuryu2019s brightest ideas were born

The birthplace of the 20th century's brightest ideas

Inside Finlandu2019s Arctic icebreaker ship labs

The Finnish shipyard making the world's toughest icebreakers

Lego's new smart brick

Fixing fashion's erratic sizing problem

How machines are shaping the vehicles of tomorrow

The new technology shaping the vehicles of tomorrow

Meet Morpho: will.i.amu2019s rapping AI toy

Meet MOFO: will.i.am's rapping AI toy

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The gadgets set to change your daily health checku2011ups

The gadgets set to change your daily health and wellness

Can we prepare for the impact of melting glaciers?

The lab recreating melting glaciers to forecast sea levels

What's it like to meet your own avatar?

BBC reporter wearing blue shirt and grabbing bar of chocolate on supermarket shelf

BBC reporter tests AI anti-shoplifting tech

How pop-up ads took over the internet

In case you missed it

Composite image: On the left it shows a still from video of Riya Ulan. Her left arm is raised touching her head, she is looking straight at the camera with a grey curtain behind her. She has a light / olive complexion and dark hair, and is wearing a loose-fitting top with a wide neck. On the right is an AI generated image of a woman with artificially created, exceptionally dark skin in the same position, with the same clothing and backdrop. The BBC has marked the right hand image "AI generated" with a red label.

AI videos of sexualised black women removed from TikTok after BBC investigation

Dozens of Instagram and TikTok accounts have used AI avatars to promote explicit content, the BBC finds.

Split screen of three teenage girls. They are all wearing school uniforms and are sitting in front of a bookshelf

Did Australia's under-16s social media ban work?

Three months since it came into effect, teenagers tell the BBC how the world-first law has impacted their lives so far.

Employees wear headsets while working at the Avise Techno Solutions LLP call center in Kolkata, India, on Sunday, Dec. 24, 2017.

India's outsourcing industry is worth $300bn. Can it survive AI?

Indian IT stocks have plunged as fears grow of AI disrupting back offices. But some say these are overblown.

The homepage of the Chinese AI video generation model Seedance 2.0 displayed on a mobile phone, which is held in front of a background with China's flag

The Chinese AI app sending Hollywood into a panic

Clips of Deadpool and other film characters have sparked alarm within Hollywood over copyright infringement.

Documentaries

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The TikTok Effect

2 hrs ago

Almost full-length images of six people, which have been created using AI. All have neutral expressions and appear with a "distorted" digital effect. From left to right are: Lauren, a woman with her hair in a ponytail, wearing a t-shirt and jeans, with one hand on her hip Paul, a man with short hair and some facial hair, wearing a jumper and jeans, with his arms crossed Claire, a woman with medium-length light hair, wearing a long-sleeve t-shirt and dark trousers, with her hands clasped in front of her Rohan, a man with dark hair and a short beard and moustache, wearing a light hoodie and jeans, with one hand in his pocket Sian, a woman with shoulder-length light hair, wearing a white t-shirt and dark overshirt/cardigan and jeans, with one hand in her front pocket David, an older man with glasses and short white hair, wearing a polo shirt and light trousers

What could six fictional voters teach us about how social media really works?

On the run-up to a landmark election, we look at what Welsh voters could be seeing on social media.

2 hrs ago

8 hrs ago

Greater Manchester Clean Air Zone sign - under review

Google Maps shows non-existent Clean Air Zone alert

Plans to charge certain drivers to enter a Clean Air Zone in Greater Manchester were scrapped in 2022.

8 hrs ago

10 hrs ago

Screengrab from Chinese-language social media site Douyin showing thumbnails for 10 videos featuring Kris Jenner

Kris Jenner's image spreads in Chinese social media good luck trend

Hundreds of thousands of posts have been shared in the past three days as users hope for prosperity

10 hrs ago

11 hrs ago

A photo shows Sophie Turner as Lara Croft. She wears red-tinted sunglasses, her hair tied back. She wears a green vest top and tight, thigh-length shorts. One of her fingerless-gloved hands rests on a pistol in a thigh holster.

Sophie Turner injury halts filming on Tomb Raider TV show

Filming on the Prime Video series is paused "as a precaution" while the Game of Thrones star recovers.

11 hrs ago

12 hrs ago

Diner gets Facebook account back after Meta ban

The diner had its Facebook page removed by Meta for alleged breaches of fraud and scam policies.

12 hrs ago

2 days ago

Johnson Space Center's mission operations control room during Space Shuttle mission (Credit: Getty Images)

From Mercury to Artemis: The evolution of Nasa's mission control in pictures

Space missions can succeed or fail from the support they get from mission control. Here, we look at the changing shape of Nasa's most important room in space.

2 days ago

What does the future hold for AI in London?

AI firm Synthesia has created an avatar of BBC London's Helen Drew using her voice and images.

2 days ago

A woman with long blonde hair, wearing grey trousers and a vest top, sits on an armchair holding a plate palette and a brush

Artist among first to sell work on TikTok Shop

Sophie Tea has built a following of more than 1.3 million on the site.

2 days ago

Carmen Palacios-Berraquero looking directly down the camera; only her head and shoulders are in frame. She has straight, dark red hair that falls below her shoulders. She is sitting inside a laboratory environment with some shelves and equipment behind her.

'Quantum computing talent should be used for good'

After the government's pledge to invest £2bn into quantum computing, how is the industry feeling?

2 days ago

A screenshot from the viral AI TikTok series Fruit Love Island

It's Love Island but with fruit...the AI series dividing TikTok

Like in Love Island, the characters - or fruits - compete for a chance to couple up and stay on the island.

2 days ago

A man with white hair, glasses, navy blazer, white shirt and purple tie, he has his left hand raised.

Politician condemns social media threats made against him

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said it received a report of threatening online messages made to a local elected representative and investigating are ongoing.

2 days ago

3 days ago

Rachel wearing a black sequined dress, her dark hair is tied up in a black bow. She is standing in front of a blue bookcase with different coloured books.

Traitors star Rachel inspires AI pint price checker

An engineer creates an AI voice agent, inspired by Rachel Duffy, to track Guinness prices in pubs.

3 days ago

Mark Zuckerberg wearing a blue suit and red tie, walking through the Capitol.

'We're having a moment': Fear and denial in Silicon Valley over social media addiction trial

The landmark decision in an LA court may go beyond immediate impacts on defendants Meta and YouTube.

3 days ago

A woman's hands gripping a PlayStation 5 controller.

PS5 price hiked by £90 due to global 'pressures'

The changes will see the recommended retail price of the PS5 rise from £479.99 to £569.99 in the UK.

3 days ago

Angry Ginge. Young man with ginger hair wears a grey hoodie and looks slightly away from the camera. The picture is a still shot taken from his conversation on North West Tonight.

Angry Ginge says under-14s should not have TikTok

The influencer is to feature in a campaign helping children identify misinformation and AI-generated content.

3 days ago

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