A fire in LA has been burning for days. What’s taking so long to put it out? 23. June 2026 (01:21) While warehouse fires are often extinguished in a day, the Boyle Heights blaze is on its sixth day. Here’s what to knowLos Angeles firefighters are on their sixth day of battling a fire at a massive warehouse near downtown that stores frozen food.Smoke has billowed from the warehouse, which was covered in solar panels and insulated like a freezer, filling the air surrounding the roughly 500,000-sq-ft (46,450-sq-meter) facility. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Met to expand use of live facial recognition into central London by Christmas 23. June 2026 (01:01) Technology to be used in six more areas next year as critics say tens of thousands of people will be forced into ‘digital police lineup’The Metropolitan police is to expand its use of live facial recognition (LFR) technology, first into London’s West End by Christmas and then into a further six areas next year.The new cameras will be fixed, and could be attached to street furniture such as lamp-posts. Critics said the new plans mean tens of thousands of people will be forced into a “digital police lineup”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
US Senate passes bipartisan bill to lower housing costs 23. June 2026 (00:44) 21st Century Road to Housing Act, which aims to boost supply and stop investors buying up homes, heads to HouseSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxThe Senate on Monday passed a bipartisan measure aimed at lowering housing costs by streamlining construction and permitting, ending months of fraught negotiations on a priority for both parties ahead of November’s midterm elections.The 21st Century Road to Housing Act would limit investors’ ability to buy homes, waive some federal permitting rules in a bid to ease new construction, and authorize pilot programs to facilitate grants for home improvements and planning affordable housing. It passed the Senate overwhelmingly, with a vote of 85-5, and now heads to the House of Representatives. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Reflecting pool to be drained again as Trump claims five vandalism arrests 23. June 2026 (00:40) President says ‘vandals’ to blame for algae blooms and peeling paint as $14m renovation to undergo further repairsThe Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool is set to be drained again after Donald Trump said on Monday – without providing proof – that five people were arrested for vandalism and five more are under investigation in connection to the algae blooms and peeling paint that appeared weeks after his ill-fated $14m renovation attempt.“It’s not a lot of damage, but we’ll probably have to let the water out and refix it. They went in there with a knife,” Trump told reporters, describing what he first said was a 290- to 300ft slit in the paint but then later amended to a 350ft slit. He also said someone had put fertilizer into the water, which caused the algae to grow. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Plan to auction over 100 Titanic artifacts faces US government opposition 23. June 2026 (00:28) Company wants to sell objects despite agreements to only display them at museums and traveling exhibitionsA plan to auction more than 100 artifacts salvaged from the wreckage of the Titanic – including personal belongings, currency, kitchen items and decor – is facing pushback from the US government, according to newly unsealed court documents.RMS Titanic Inc, the company that owns exclusive salvage rights to the famous wreck deep in the North Atlantic, wants to sell the artifacts for the first time despite previous agreements to only display them at museums and traveling exhibitions. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
California drivers sue gas stations for allegedly using AI to inflate prices 22. June 2026 (23:39) Firms including BP and 7-Eleven accused of coordinating prices to ‘wring more money from pockets of consumers’Gas station operators including BP, Circle K, Marathon, 7-Eleven, Walmart and Albertsons were sued on Monday by California drivers who accused them of using artificial intelligence to boost prices at the pump.According to a proposed class action, the defendants violated California’s main antitrust law, the Cartwright Act, by using an AI-based tool that uses data from competing gas stations to “coordinate high prices and wring more money from the pockets of consumers”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK plans to give established media more visibility on YouTube and TikTok 22. June 2026 (23:30) Move for greater prominence on social media comes as ministers warn online misinformation risk becoming ‘existential for our democracy’Plans to hand established broadcasters and media companies greater prominence on digital platforms such as YouTube and TikTok have been unveiled, as ministers warned online misinformation risked becoming “existential for our democracy”.In proposals that set up a new clash with global tech companies, content from the likes of the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 would have to be awarded more promotion by their algorithms – with special rules considered for times of social unrest or crisis. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
HR consultant wins English court case using AI lawyer in apparent legal first 22. June 2026 (23:09) Barrister who was given material produced by Garfield AI says advocacy at trial ‘remained fundamentally human’An artificial intelligence law firm has won a case in an English court, in what is believed to be the first time a trial has been won using an AI lawyer.A freelance HR consultant, Tamires Camal Taquidir, paid the firm, Garfield AI, about £400 to send a legal letter and then issue court proceedings over an unpaid debt of £7,000. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Two killed and several injured as tornado rips through southern Illinois 22. June 2026 (22:43) Officials say Sarita Kimble, 62, and Delores Shelton, 83, killed in Mount Vernon as several buildings destroyedAuthorities in Illinois say that two older residents were killed and at least five other people were injured in a tornado that ripped through a rural county and destroyed several buildings on Sunday evening.The fatalities occurred in Mount Vernon, Sheriff Jeff Bullard of Jefferson county said on Monday. He identified the victims as Sarita Kimble, 62, and Delores Shelton, 83, who were inside separate structures leveled by the tornado. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
New York City House primary emerges as key battleground in ‘AI civil war’ 22. June 2026 (21:03) AI-focused Super Pacs are spending heavily in the midterms, and half has gone to a single Manhattan congressional raceThe artificial intelligence industry is spending heavily in the 2026 midterms, hoping to secure influence over the technology’s first generation of legislation – and New York City’s primary has emerged as the key battleground.AI-focused Super Pacs have raised over $100m this cycle, of which $49m has been spent so far, in dozens of congressional races across the country. Half of all spending has converged on a single Manhattan race: Tuesday’s Democratic primary in the district of NY-12.Will Craft and Andrew Witherspoon contributed reporting Continue reading...(The Guardian)
