Technology

Startups such as London’s Fate use agentic AI to interview users, offer a small set of curated matches and provide optional coaching; some users report more thoughtful interactions while a Match Group study found 62% of Europeans were skeptical about AI-guided conversation.

Shinto priests at Nagano's Lake Suwa recorded an 'open sea' season after the miwatari (God's Crossing) failed to appear, continuing an absence that began in 2018. The shrine's consecutive observations, kept since 1443, are used by researchers to track long-term change.

SpaceX delivered four astronauts to the International Space Station to replace four colleagues who returned to Earth after a medical evacuation earlier this year.

The Wall Street Journal reports the US military used Anthropic's AI model Claude during a raid in Venezuela; Anthropic and the Pentagon did not confirm the report.

China will implement zero‑tariff treatment for imports from the 53 African countries with which it has diplomatic relations starting May 1, 2026, and will push for joint economic partnership pacts and expanded market access through an upgraded "green channel," state media reported.

The article notes early-2026 industry layoffs and slowdown affecting VR, and describes hands-on testing of the Arcade2TV-XR, an arcade-style accessory that works with a Quest 3 and with flat displays.

Matt Shumer's essay argues AI development has accelerated, citing models such as OpenAI's GPT-5.3 Codex and Anthropic's Opus 4.6 and noting instances of AI helping to build itself. The article says some jobs and industries will face disruption and resource strains, but it argues society is not necessarily doomed.

Fifteen global tech companies, led by Microsoft and Ericsson, launched the Trusted Tech Alliance on Feb. 13 with five principles covering governance, ethics, secure development, supply-chain security standards and support for an open digital environment.

IBM plans to triple entry-level hiring across the US in 2026 and will emphasise customer engagement and oversight of AI outputs; Dropbox says it will expand internship and new graduate programmes by about 25%.

Four astronauts — Jessica Meir, Jack Hathaway, Sophie Adenot and Andrei Fadyaev — are scheduled to lift off to the International Space Station aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon from Kennedy Space Center at 5:15am ET (10:15am UK), in a flight the article describes as following an ISS evacuation.

Saudi Aramco and Microsoft signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding to explore AI and other digital initiatives for industrial operations and workforce training in Saudi Arabia.

Ubisoft and Digital Eclipse are releasing Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition digitally on PS5 on 13 February, presented as a definitive edition of the 1995 platform game. The package includes multiple versions of the original game, 120 additional levels drawn from fan and classic collections, a reimagined soundtrack, and archival materials.

Two newborns were discovered in a freezer at a property in Aillevillers-et-Lyaumont, France, and a woman in her 50s has been arrested, prosecutors said.

Prince Harry spoke to bereaved families in Los Angeles after the start of a landmark trial that will examine whether Instagram and YouTube harmed young users; he appeared visibly moved and thanked parents for sharing their stories.

A nursery worker, Vincent Chan, has been reported to have filmed and abused young children using devices including a staff-issued iPad; he has pleaded guilty to 56 offences and is due to be sentenced at Wood Green Crown Court on Thursday.

The court named Kian Moulton and sentenced him to life with a minimum term of 13 years for the killing of 12-year-old Leo Ross.

One year after DeepSeek's 2025 breakthrough, Chinese firms including ByteDance, Alibaba and Zhipu are readying new low-cost, often open-source AI models timed around the Spring Festival holiday beginning Feb. 15.

The FBI said it recovered previously inaccessible footage that shows an armed person appearing to tamper with a front‑door camera at Nancy Guthrie's home; Nancy Guthrie, 84, remains missing and Savannah Guthrie has made public pleas.

Surfshark and Internews will provide fully paid Surfshark One subscriptions to 100 media and civil society organizations across nine high-risk countries, and Internews held a digital security training in Kampala for Sudanese journalists and activists.

Greenland-born Sondre Slettemark finished 62nd in the 20km individual biathlon at Anterselva and said he was proud to be an Olympian; he will race the 10km sprint on Friday with a chance to qualify for the 12.5km pursuit.

The Democratic Republic of Congo said it will look for other partners if its December framework with the United States does not produce concrete mining projects, and officials described the arrangement as preliminary aimed at building a supply chain for critical minerals.

Researchers developed two human spinal cord organoid injury models, and a preclinical supramolecular peptide amphiphile treatment reduced scar-like tissue and supported axonal regeneration in those models.

A tribunal overruled the privacy commissioner and allowed Bunnings to use facial recognition to monitor customers, renewing debate about Australia's decades-old privacy laws and proposed reforms.

Police intervened as a group of men knelt in prayer during a Sydney protest against Israeli president Isaac Herzog, and a coalition of Muslim organisations has called for an independent inquiry and possible prosecutions and the NSW police commissioner's resignation. NSW police and the state premier defended the officers' actions, and the prime minister said police would investigate.

Google will expand its 'Results about you' tool in the US to let people register and monitor passport, driver's license and Social Security numbers and request removal of links if those details appear in search results.

Uber and Baidu said they will launch fully autonomous ride-hailing services in Dubai in the coming month, initially operating in parts of the Jumeirah area; passengers can request Apollo Go vehicles via the Uber app when booking Uber Comfort or UberX or by choosing an 'Autonomous' option.

Cadence introduced ChipStack AI Super Agent to help automate parts of chip design, and the article says it can build a model of a design and speed some tasks by about ten times.

Giovanna Fletcher speaks with families on Safer Internet Day about children using AI for homework and daily life, and Tesco Mobile's Online Safety Hub offers age-specific AI toolkits developed with the UK Safer Internet Centre.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has launched the 'You Won't Know until You Ask' campaign to give parents guidance on talking about harmful online content, after research found half of UK parents report never having had that conversation with their children.

AI companies featured prominently in Super Bowl commercials, and Serena Williams appeared in an advert for telehealth firm Ro saying she had lost 34lbs; some social media users expressed disappointment.