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"content": "\n\u003cp>Joshua Carroll entered the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/technology\">tech world\u003c/a> as a “bright-eyed and bushy-tailed” product manager at Microsoft. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I was really excited about the mission of the company,” Carroll said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Now in his late 30s and working as a product manager at Google, the self-identified cat dad said that he kept politics out of the office until 2023 — when Israel launched a full-scale military campaign in Gaza, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11971467/protesting-project-nimbus-what-rights-do-silicon-valley-employees-have\">using Google technology\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There were “things in the industry I wasn’t totally stoked about, but I hadn’t really been super engaged around them as a worker,” Carroll said. After seeing “what Google and Amazon were doing to support the genocide in Gaza,” Carroll said he started trying “to improve the industry and how my work was being used.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1374\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12079890\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730-1536x1066.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign is posted at Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, on Feb. 4, 2026. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He decided to join the Tech Workers Coalition, a group fighting for “better working conditions and a real say in how the technology [they] build impacts our communities and the world,” according to their \u003ca href=\"https://techworkerscoalition.org/bay-area/\">website\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since joining, Carroll said the Bay Area chapter has focused on building “worker consciousness” among tech workers and connecting them to advocacy campaigns around issues that the industry has an impact on — from Flock cameras to artificial intelligence. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For decades, high compensation, strong upward mobility and a culture of individual achievement have helped keep Silicon Valley’s white-collar workers largely detached from organized labor. But as artificial intelligence rapidly changes the nature of technical work, organizers say more tech employees are reconsidering their position in the industry, and following in the footsteps of labor organizers past.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">AI anxieties \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While some tech workers are wondering how they’ll spend their IPO windfalls, others are experiencing all too familiar AI anxieties: Will AI change our jobs? Will it eliminate them? Will it eliminate us all?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last month, employees at frontier AI labs Anthropic and Google drew widespread attention to AI safety issues by \u003ca href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/two-ai-researchers-leave-anthropic-google-safety-concerns-rcna597086\">quitting\u003c/a> over concerns that their companies cannot control the technology. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Carroll said he does not discount AI’s existential risk, but he remains more concerned by its “immediate and material harms in terms of labor displacement and social impacts and environmental impacts and surveillance and weaponization — all the things that are happening now.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102341\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at Google’s San Francisco office about “Creating an AI-Ready Workforce,” a new joint effort with some of the world’s leading tech companies to help better prepare California’s students and workers for the next generation of technology, in San Francisco on Aug. 7, 2025. (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jeremy Bernick, an Arizona-based attorney and member of the Communications Workers of America, a national union that represents workers at Alphabet and Wikimedia, said they are worried about senior management pushing AI onto junior employees. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“A lot of us are thinking, no, it actually degrades or slows down our work processes,” Bernick said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bernick said there’s some fear that companies will use “token tracking,” a method to see how often each employee uses AI, and other forms of surveillance as part of performance reviews.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As these concerns grew, Bernick said that CWA formed an AI advisory committee and has released an AI bargaining toolkit for workers. In September, white-collar workers at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12092335/staff-of-san-francisco-based-wikipedia-demand-union-recognition-raise-concerns-over-ai\">Wikimedia\u003c/a> voted to form a union, and \u003ca href=\"https://cwa-union.org/news/releases/blizzard-entertainment-workers-ratify-historic-video-game-contracts-cwa\">Blizzard Entertainment\u003c/a> ratified their union contract — both drives have mentioned AI usage. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While many engineers have adopted AI into their workflow, others said that AI makes their previously creative and intellectually stimulating job more rote and less impactful. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1390\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102878\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED-1536x1068.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Joshua Carroll, a tech worker at Google and core organizer of Tech Workers Coalition, poses for a portrait at his home in Oakland on Oct. 4, 2026. (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We can see how our control and influence over actual product decisions — and the impact on society — is likely to degrade and is degrading,” Carroll said. He described a shift from making decisions to “shoveling data” — where workers are asked to put information into AI systems and let the machines do the rest. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This change in the nature of their work and the rapid advancement of AI models has coincided with massive \u003ca href=\"https://siepr.stanford.edu/publications/policy-brief/what-really-happening-jobs-separating-ai-hype-reality\">restructuring\u003c/a> in the industry. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Already, software companies have laid off tens of thousands of employees, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084655/after-meta-layoffs-newsom-signs-ai-order-to-protect-workers-and-jobs\">citing\u003c/a> a desire to shift spending towards “AI-focused employees and data center construction.” While more employees were laid off in 2023 than 2026, this year saw a rise in layoffs directly attributed to AI, according to \u003ca href=\"https://layoffs.fyi/\">layoffs.fyi\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A 2026 AI Index report from \u003ca href=\"https://hai.stanford.edu/ai-index/2026-ai-index-report\">Stanford University\u003c/a> found that one-third of organizations surveyed anticipate there will be more job reductions in the near future and that employment for entry-level software developers fell 20% from 2024. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I think this is the first era in recent memory outside of maybe the ‘70s and ‘80s where there’s been a real, legitimate fear of actual labor displacement,” Bernick said. “Unions are a really good way to combat that.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Political problems\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While some tech workers are organizing to protect their jobs, others are turning to collective bargaining as a way to challenge their company’s political decisions. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Alex Samburov, a member of the Alphabet Workers Union, has been organizing the \u003ca href=\"https://www.googlers-against-ice.com/\">Googlers Against ICE Campaign,\u003c/a> which opposes their employer’s partnerships with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The campaign specifically calls out the use of AI by federal agencies for “workforce enablement” and “improving operational efficiency,” among other tools, according to the petition. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Samburov, a Russian immigrant, said he joined Google in 2019 right after the tech giant canceled a contract with the Department of Defense for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11668872/google-employees-quit-in-protest-over-military-artificial-intelligence-program\">Project Maven\u003c/a> — a U.S. program that uses AI to help drones distinguish between people and objects — following pressure from employees. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103634\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alex Samburov, a software engineer at Google, stands at the Google offices in San Francisco on Oct. 8, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That’s the company culture that attracted me to Google,” Samburov said. “Every day I meet more people who care about these issues, meet people who are willing to risk their employment. Some of them are willing to take a risk despite being immigrants like myself.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Samburov said that workers within Google have the most leverage to change the company. He said that creates an obligation to check how the company uses his labor. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have seen Google demonstrate that the organization doesn’t care about much else. Users don’t really have leverage in this relationship and American voters don’t seem to have much leverage either,” Samburov said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The campaign reached 1,700 signatures last month and has since been formally endorsed by the union. Google declined to make anyone available to comment. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But organizing around these political and ethical questions has become more difficult as layoffs make workers feel more vulnerable, Carroll said. Unions can be helpful here, he said, because they can provide the structure, protections and democratic processes to help workers advocate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The workers are the ones building and maintaining the internet, AI, social media and everything in-between, Carroll said, but a lot of decisions are being put on them from the top down. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If we can come together to see a different direction … there’s a lot of power there,” Carroll said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Silicon Valley’s long history of resistance to unions \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The idea of tech workers organizing collectively is still unusual in Silicon Valley. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Alphabet Workers Union, one of the most prominent tech unions, represents \u003ca href=\"https://www.alphabetworkersunion.org/faqs\">“over a thousand”\u003c/a> employees out of roughly \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12091358/4500-google-employees-demand-job-security-amid-big-tech-layoffs\">190,000\u003c/a> employees and is not yet registered with the National Labor Relations Board. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Nationally, just 3.7% of workers in “computer and mathematical occupations” are unionized, compared to 10% of workers across other industries according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat42.htm\">Bureau of Labor Statistics\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10638229\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-400x225.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-800x450.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-1440x810.jpg 1440w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-1180x664.jpg 1180w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-960x540.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Google employees walk around campus on Aug. 10, 2015. (David Paul Morris/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Margaret O’Mara, a historian and author of \u003cem>The Code: Silicon Valley and the Remaking of America\u003c/em>, said that disparity has deep roots. Silicon Valley companies gave their white-collar workers incentives to negotiate with management directly, rather than at the bargaining table. And at the same time, Silicon Valley companies developed aggressive strategies for keeping their workplaces union-free. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While U.S. union membership \u003ca href=\"https://home.treasury.gov/news/featured-stories/labor-unions-and-the-us-economy\">peaked\u003c/a> around 1950 — with over 30% of the American workforce carrying a union card at the time — O’Mara said that the management in the Valley was “pretty strongly anti-union.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“From Hewlett-Packard forward, there was an idea that if you had a union in your company, that was a sign that management was doing it wrong,” O’Mara said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Founded in 1939, Hewlett-Packard pioneered some of the systems that keep tech employees aligned with their management even today, O’Mara said, such as stock options. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While stock options, the ability to buy shares of the company at a reduced price, had long been an option for management, HP opened them up and turned them into “a way to deliver employee benefits that was kind of different from the way a standardized, unionized shop would work,” O’Mara said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The relationship between employers and workers was different on the factory floor.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>David Bacon, a former engineering technician and union organizer at National Semiconductor, said that the companies were “laboratories for keeping themselves union-free.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“They did this by a number of means,” Bacon said, “for instance, ensuring that the production workforce in the semiconductor plants [was] made up of immigrants and a huge majority of women,” who managers could intimidate because they were more “vulnerable.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bacon also said he and other union organizers were fired and blacklisted.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The result was a workplace culture in which unionization could seem unnecessary, or even antithetical to the work, for some and dangerous for others. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Carroll said that talking to his coworkers about unionizing today often involves a lot of education. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He often has to explain to them, he said, that “it would be illegal for the companies to retaliate or discriminate against us for [organizing around working conditions].”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The future of AI workers?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As organizers like Carroll, Bernick and Samburov push for unionization, some experts question whether the current wave of AI and political anxiety will translate into meaningful union drives.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lenny Siegel, former mayor of Mountain View and a longtime activist, said that he does not believe AI alone will push tech workers to unionize. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Unless the AI bubble pops, Siegel said he is “not expecting people [in Silicon Valley] to have trouble negotiating individually for bread and butter issues.” Without the need to collectively bargain, unionization is unlikely — especially given the \u003ca href=\"https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/trump-says-skilled-foreign-workers-take-jobs-away-from-americans-its-not-that-simple-experts-say\">high concentration\u003c/a> of tech employees on H1B visas who risk losing everything if their company decides to retaliate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1379\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12066914\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1-1536x1059.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">U.S. President Donald Trump displays a signed executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on Dec. 11, 2025, in Washington, D.C. The executive order curbs states’ ability to regulate artificial intelligence, something for which the tech industry has been lobbying. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While Siegel does not believe he’ll see software engineers on the picket line anytime soon, he agrees that organizing around political issues will continue.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There have always been progressive tech workers in the Valley,” Siegel said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In the ’90s, Siegel belonged to a group called Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility, which he described as a “collection of tech professionals who got together and effectively, because of their expertise, had an impact on policy.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The group formed in \u003ca href=\"http://cpsr.org/about/history/\">1981\u003c/a> and opposed the use of computing technology for military applications, including the \u003ca href=\"http://cpsr.org/prevsite/publications/newsletters/old/1980s/Fall1986.txt/\">Strategic Computing Initiative,\u003c/a> an early artificial intelligence project funded by the Department of Defense. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While political engagement among techies may not be new, Carroll said building power within the workplace helps give workers the security they need to speak out. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We need to feel like our jobs are safe in order to feel comfortable working on and talking about some of these other issues,” Carroll said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For Carroll, the effort to build solidarity with his coworkers and colleagues across the industry has been worth it, even if it moves slowly. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Labor organizing and trying to directly create power against the people at the top that are making a lot of the decisions is one of the most impactful things that we can be doing,” Carroll said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Now in his late 30s and working as a product manager at Google, the self-identified cat dad said that he kept politics out of the office until 2023 — when Israel launched a full-scale military campaign in Gaza, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11971467/protesting-project-nimbus-what-rights-do-silicon-valley-employees-have\">using Google technology\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Now in his late 30s and working as a product manager at Google, the self-identified cat dad said that he kept politics out of the office until 2023 — when Israel launched a full-scale military campaign in Gaza, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11971467/protesting-project-nimbus-what-rights-do-silicon-valley-employees-have\">using Google technology\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>There were “things in the industry I wasn’t totally stoked about, but I hadn’t really been super engaged around them as a worker,” Carroll said. After seeing “what Google and Amazon were doing to support the genocide in Gaza,” Carroll said he started trying “to improve the industry and how my work was being used.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12079890\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730-1536x1066.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign is posted at Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, on Feb. 4, 2026. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12079890\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign is posted at Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, on Feb. 4, 2026. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He decided to join the Tech Workers Coalition, a group fighting for “better working conditions and a real say in how the technology [they] build impacts our communities and the world,” according to their \u003ca href=\"https://techworkerscoalition.org/bay-area/\">website\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>He decided to join the Tech Workers Coalition, a group fighting for “better working conditions and a real say in how the technology [they] build impacts our communities and the world,” according to their \u003ca href=\"https://techworkerscoalition.org/bay-area/\">website\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Since joining, Carroll said the Bay Area chapter has focused on building “worker consciousness” among tech workers and connecting them to advocacy campaigns around issues that the industry has an impact on — from Flock cameras to artificial intelligence. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Since joining, Carroll said the Bay Area chapter has focused on building “worker consciousness” among tech workers and connecting them to advocacy campaigns around issues that the industry has an impact on — from Flock cameras to artificial intelligence. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>For decades, high compensation, strong upward mobility and a culture of individual achievement have helped keep Silicon Valley’s white-collar workers largely detached from organized labor. But as artificial intelligence rapidly changes the nature of technical work, organizers say more tech employees are reconsidering their position in the industry, and following in the footsteps of labor organizers past.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>For decades, high compensation, strong upward mobility and a culture of individual achievement have helped keep Silicon Valley’s white-collar workers largely detached from organized labor. But as artificial intelligence rapidly changes the nature of technical work, organizers say more tech employees are reconsidering their position in the industry, and following in the footsteps of labor organizers past.\u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "AI anxieties ",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">AI anxieties \u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While some tech workers are wondering how they’ll spend their IPO windfalls, others are experiencing all too familiar AI anxieties: Will AI change our jobs? Will it eliminate them? Will it eliminate us all?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>While some tech workers are wondering how they’ll spend their IPO windfalls, others are experiencing all too familiar AI anxieties: Will AI change our jobs? Will it eliminate them? Will it eliminate us all?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Last month, employees at frontier AI labs Anthropic and Google drew widespread attention to AI safety issues by \u003ca href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/two-ai-researchers-leave-anthropic-google-safety-concerns-rcna597086\">quitting\u003c/a> over concerns that their companies cannot control the technology. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Last month, employees at frontier AI labs Anthropic and Google drew widespread attention to AI safety issues by \u003ca href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/two-ai-researchers-leave-anthropic-google-safety-concerns-rcna597086\">quitting\u003c/a> over concerns that their companies cannot control the technology. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Carroll said he does not discount AI’s existential risk, but he remains more concerned by its “immediate and material harms in terms of labor displacement and social impacts and environmental impacts and surveillance and weaponization — all the things that are happening now.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Carroll said he does not discount AI’s existential risk, but he remains more concerned by its “immediate and material harms in terms of labor displacement and social impacts and environmental impacts and surveillance and weaponization — all the things that are happening now.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102341\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at Google’s San Francisco office about “Creating an AI-Ready Workforce,” a new joint effort with some of the world’s leading tech companies to help better prepare California’s students and workers for the next generation of technology, in San Francisco on Aug. 7, 2025.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102341\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at Google’s San Francisco office about “Creating an AI-Ready Workforce,” a new joint effort with some of the world’s leading tech companies to help better prepare California’s students and workers for the next generation of technology, in San Francisco on Aug. 7, 2025.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Jeremy Bernick, an Arizona-based attorney and member of the Communications Workers of America, a national union that represents workers at Alphabet and Wikimedia, said they are worried about senior management pushing AI onto junior employees. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Jeremy Bernick, an Arizona-based attorney and member of the Communications Workers of America, a national union that represents workers at Alphabet and Wikimedia, said they are worried about senior management pushing AI onto junior employees. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“A lot of us are thinking, no, it actually degrades or slows down our work processes,” Bernick said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“A lot of us are thinking, no, it actually degrades or slows down our work processes,” Bernick said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Bernick said there’s some fear that companies will use “token tracking,” a method to see how often each employee uses AI, and other forms of surveillance as part of performance reviews.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Bernick said there’s some fear that companies will use “token tracking,” a method to see how often each employee uses AI, and other forms of surveillance as part of performance reviews.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>As these concerns grew, Bernick said that CWA formed an AI advisory committee and has released an AI bargaining toolkit for workers. In September, white-collar workers at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12092335/staff-of-san-francisco-based-wikipedia-demand-union-recognition-raise-concerns-over-ai\">Wikimedia\u003c/a> voted to form a union, and \u003ca href=\"https://cwa-union.org/news/releases/blizzard-entertainment-workers-ratify-historic-video-game-contracts-cwa\">Blizzard Entertainment\u003c/a> ratified their union contract — both drives have mentioned AI usage. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>As these concerns grew, Bernick said that CWA formed an AI advisory committee and has released an AI bargaining toolkit for workers. In September, white-collar workers at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12092335/staff-of-san-francisco-based-wikipedia-demand-union-recognition-raise-concerns-over-ai\">Wikimedia\u003c/a> voted to form a union, and \u003ca href=\"https://cwa-union.org/news/releases/blizzard-entertainment-workers-ratify-historic-video-game-contracts-cwa\">Blizzard Entertainment\u003c/a> ratified their union contract — both drives have mentioned AI usage. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While many engineers have adopted AI into their workflow, others said that AI makes their previously creative and intellectually stimulating job more rote and less impactful. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>While many engineers have adopted AI into their workflow, others said that AI makes their previously creative and intellectually stimulating job more rote and less impactful. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102878\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED-1536x1068.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Joshua Carroll, a tech worker at Google and core organizer of Tech Workers Coalition, poses for a portrait at his home in Oakland on Oct. 4, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102878\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Joshua Carroll, a tech worker at Google and core organizer of Tech Workers Coalition, poses for a portrait at his home in Oakland on Oct. 4, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We can see how our control and influence over actual product decisions — and the impact on society — is likely to degrade and is degrading,” Carroll said. He described a shift from making decisions to “shoveling data” — where workers are asked to put information into AI systems and let the machines do the rest. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We can see how our control and influence over actual product decisions — and the impact on society — is likely to degrade and is degrading,” Carroll said. He described a shift from making decisions to “shoveling data” — where workers are asked to put information into AI systems and let the machines do the rest. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This change in the nature of their work and the rapid advancement of AI models has coincided with massive \u003ca href=\"https://siepr.stanford.edu/publications/policy-brief/what-really-happening-jobs-separating-ai-hype-reality\">restructuring\u003c/a> in the industry. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>This change in the nature of their work and the rapid advancement of AI models has coincided with massive \u003ca href=\"https://siepr.stanford.edu/publications/policy-brief/what-really-happening-jobs-separating-ai-hype-reality\">restructuring\u003c/a> in the industry. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Already, software companies have laid off tens of thousands of employees, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084655/after-meta-layoffs-newsom-signs-ai-order-to-protect-workers-and-jobs\">citing\u003c/a> a desire to shift spending towards “AI-focused employees and data center construction.” While more employees were laid off in 2023 than 2026, this year saw a rise in layoffs directly attributed to AI, according to \u003ca href=\"https://layoffs.fyi/\">layoffs.fyi\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Already, software companies have laid off tens of thousands of employees, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084655/after-meta-layoffs-newsom-signs-ai-order-to-protect-workers-and-jobs\">citing\u003c/a> a desire to shift spending towards “AI-focused employees and data center construction.” While more employees were laid off in 2023 than 2026, this year saw a rise in layoffs directly attributed to AI, according to \u003ca href=\"https://layoffs.fyi/\">layoffs.fyi\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A 2026 AI Index report from \u003ca href=\"https://hai.stanford.edu/ai-index/2026-ai-index-report\">Stanford University\u003c/a> found that one-third of organizations surveyed anticipate there will be more job reductions in the near future and that employment for entry-level software developers fell 20% from 2024. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>A 2026 AI Index report from \u003ca href=\"https://hai.stanford.edu/ai-index/2026-ai-index-report\">Stanford University\u003c/a> found that one-third of organizations surveyed anticipate there will be more job reductions in the near future and that employment for entry-level software developers fell 20% from 2024. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I think this is the first era in recent memory outside of maybe the ‘70s and ‘80s where there’s been a real, legitimate fear of actual labor displacement,” Bernick said. “Unions are a really good way to combat that.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“I think this is the first era in recent memory outside of maybe the ‘70s and ‘80s where there’s been a real, legitimate fear of actual labor displacement,” Bernick said. “Unions are a really good way to combat that.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Political problems\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While some tech workers are organizing to protect their jobs, others are turning to collective bargaining as a way to challenge their company’s political decisions. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>While some tech workers are organizing to protect their jobs, others are turning to collective bargaining as a way to challenge their company’s political decisions. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Alex Samburov, a member of the Alphabet Workers Union, has been organizing the \u003ca href=\"https://www.googlers-against-ice.com/\">Googlers Against ICE Campaign,\u003c/a> which opposes their employer’s partnerships with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The campaign specifically calls out the use of AI by federal agencies for “workforce enablement” and “improving operational efficiency,” among other tools, according to the petition. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Alex Samburov, a member of the Alphabet Workers Union, has been organizing the \u003ca href=\"https://www.googlers-against-ice.com/\">Googlers Against ICE Campaign,\u003c/a> which opposes their employer’s partnerships with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The campaign specifically calls out the use of AI by federal agencies for “workforce enablement” and “improving operational efficiency,” among other tools, according to the petition. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Samburov, a Russian immigrant, said he joined Google in 2019 right after the tech giant canceled a contract with the Department of Defense for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11668872/google-employees-quit-in-protest-over-military-artificial-intelligence-program\">Project Maven\u003c/a> — a U.S. program that uses AI to help drones distinguish between people and objects — following pressure from employees. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Samburov, a Russian immigrant, said he joined Google in 2019 right after the tech giant canceled a contract with the Department of Defense for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11668872/google-employees-quit-in-protest-over-military-artificial-intelligence-program\">Project Maven\u003c/a> — a U.S. program that uses AI to help drones distinguish between people and objects — following pressure from employees. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103634\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alex Samburov, a software engineer at Google, stands at the Google offices in San Francisco on Oct. 8, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“That’s the company culture that attracted me to Google,” Samburov said. “Every day I meet more people who care about these issues, meet people who are willing to risk their employment. Some of them are willing to take a risk despite being immigrants like myself.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Samburov said that workers within Google have the most leverage to change the company. He said that creates an obligation to check how the company uses his labor. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We have seen Google demonstrate that the organization doesn’t care about much else. Users don’t really have leverage in this relationship and American voters don’t seem to have much leverage either,” Samburov said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The campaign reached 1,700 signatures last month and has since been formally endorsed by the union. Google declined to make anyone available to comment. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But organizing around these political and ethical questions has become more difficult as layoffs make workers feel more vulnerable, Carroll said. Unions can be helpful here, he said, because they can provide the structure, protections and democratic processes to help workers advocate. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The workers are the ones building and maintaining the internet, AI, social media and everything in-between, Carroll said, but a lot of decisions are being put on them from the top down. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“If we can come together to see a different direction … there’s a lot of power there,” Carroll said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"text": "Silicon Valley’s long history of resistance to unions ",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The idea of tech workers organizing collectively is still unusual in Silicon Valley. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Alphabet Workers Union, one of the most prominent tech unions, represents \u003ca href=\"https://www.alphabetworkersunion.org/faqs\">“over a thousand”\u003c/a> employees out of roughly \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12091358/4500-google-employees-demand-job-security-amid-big-tech-layoffs\">190,000\u003c/a> employees and is not yet registered with the National Labor Relations Board. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The Alphabet Workers Union, one of the most prominent tech unions, represents \u003ca href=\"https://www.alphabetworkersunion.org/faqs\">“over a thousand”\u003c/a> employees out of roughly \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12091358/4500-google-employees-demand-job-security-amid-big-tech-layoffs\">190,000\u003c/a> employees and is not yet registered with the National Labor Relations Board. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Nationally, just 3.7% of workers in “computer and mathematical occupations” are unionized, compared to 10% of workers across other industries according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat42.htm\">Bureau of Labor Statistics\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Nationally, just 3.7% of workers in “computer and mathematical occupations” are unionized, compared to 10% of workers across other industries according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat42.htm\">Bureau of Labor Statistics\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10638229\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-400x225.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-800x450.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-1440x810.jpg 1440w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-1180x664.jpg 1180w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-960x540.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Google employees walk around campus on Aug. 10, 2015.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (David Paul Morris/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10638229\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Google employees walk around campus on Aug. 10, 2015.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (David Paul Morris/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Margaret O’Mara, a historian and author of \u003cem>The Code: Silicon Valley and the Remaking of America\u003c/em>, said that disparity has deep roots. Silicon Valley companies gave their white-collar workers incentives to negotiate with management directly, rather than at the bargaining table. And at the same time, Silicon Valley companies developed aggressive strategies for keeping their workplaces union-free. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Margaret O’Mara, a historian and author of \u003cem>The Code: Silicon Valley and the Remaking of America\u003c/em>, said that disparity has deep roots. Silicon Valley companies gave their white-collar workers incentives to negotiate with management directly, rather than at the bargaining table. And at the same time, Silicon Valley companies developed aggressive strategies for keeping their workplaces union-free. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While U.S. union membership \u003ca href=\"https://home.treasury.gov/news/featured-stories/labor-unions-and-the-us-economy\">peaked\u003c/a> around 1950 — with over 30% of the American workforce carrying a union card at the time — O’Mara said that the management in the Valley was “pretty strongly anti-union.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“From Hewlett-Packard forward, there was an idea that if you had a union in your company, that was a sign that management was doing it wrong,” O’Mara said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“From Hewlett-Packard forward, there was an idea that if you had a union in your company, that was a sign that management was doing it wrong,” O’Mara said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Founded in 1939, Hewlett-Packard pioneered some of the systems that keep tech employees aligned with their management even today, O’Mara said, such as stock options. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Founded in 1939, Hewlett-Packard pioneered some of the systems that keep tech employees aligned with their management even today, O’Mara said, such as stock options. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While stock options, the ability to buy shares of the company at a reduced price, had long been an option for management, HP opened them up and turned them into “a way to deliver employee benefits that was kind of different from the way a standardized, unionized shop would work,” O’Mara said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The relationship between employers and workers was different on the factory floor.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>David Bacon, a former engineering technician and union organizer at National Semiconductor, said that the companies were “laboratories for keeping themselves union-free.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>David Bacon, a former engineering technician and union organizer at National Semiconductor, said that the companies were “laboratories for keeping themselves union-free.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“They did this by a number of means,” Bacon said, “for instance, ensuring that the production workforce in the semiconductor plants [was] made up of immigrants and a huge majority of women,” who managers could intimidate because they were more “vulnerable.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“They did this by a number of means,” Bacon said, “for instance, ensuring that the production workforce in the semiconductor plants [was] made up of immigrants and a huge majority of women,” who managers could intimidate because they were more “vulnerable.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Bacon also said he and other union organizers were fired and blacklisted.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The result was a workplace culture in which unionization could seem unnecessary, or even antithetical to the work, for some and dangerous for others. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The result was a workplace culture in which unionization could seem unnecessary, or even antithetical to the work, for some and dangerous for others. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Carroll said that talking to his coworkers about unionizing today often involves a lot of education. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He often has to explain to them, he said, that “it would be illegal for the companies to retaliate or discriminate against us for [organizing around working conditions].”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>He often has to explain to them, he said, that “it would be illegal for the companies to retaliate or discriminate against us for [organizing around working conditions].”\u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "The future of AI workers?",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The future of AI workers?\u003c/h2>\n",
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"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The future of AI workers?\u003c/h2>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>As organizers like Carroll, Bernick and Samburov push for unionization, some experts question whether the current wave of AI and political anxiety will translate into meaningful union drives.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Lenny Siegel, former mayor of Mountain View and a longtime activist, said that he does not believe AI alone will push tech workers to unionize. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Unless the AI bubble pops, Siegel said he is “not expecting people [in Silicon Valley] to have trouble negotiating individually for bread and butter issues.” Without the need to collectively bargain, unionization is unlikely — especially given the \u003ca href=\"https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/trump-says-skilled-foreign-workers-take-jobs-away-from-americans-its-not-that-simple-experts-say\">high concentration\u003c/a> of tech employees on H1B visas who risk losing everything if their company decides to retaliate. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12066914\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1-1536x1059.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">U.S. President Donald Trump displays a signed executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on Dec. 11, 2025, in Washington, D.C. The executive order curbs states’ ability to regulate artificial intelligence, something for which the tech industry has been lobbying. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Alex Wong/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While Siegel does not believe he’ll see software engineers on the picket line anytime soon, he agrees that organizing around political issues will continue.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“There have always been progressive tech workers in the Valley,” Siegel said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In the ’90s, Siegel belonged to a group called Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility, which he described as a “collection of tech professionals who got together and effectively, because of their expertise, had an impact on policy.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The group formed in \u003ca href=\"http://cpsr.org/about/history/\">1981\u003c/a> and opposed the use of computing technology for military applications, including the \u003ca href=\"http://cpsr.org/prevsite/publications/newsletters/old/1980s/Fall1986.txt/\">Strategic Computing Initiative,\u003c/a> an early artificial intelligence project funded by the Department of Defense. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While political engagement among techies may not be new, Carroll said building power within the workplace helps give workers the security they need to speak out. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We need to feel like our jobs are safe in order to feel comfortable working on and talking about some of these other issues,” Carroll said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>For Carroll, the effort to build solidarity with his coworkers and colleagues across the industry has been worth it, even if it moves slowly. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Labor organizing and trying to directly create power against the people at the top that are making a lot of the decisions is one of the most impactful things that we can be doing,” Carroll said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Labor organizing and trying to directly create power against the people at the top that are making a lot of the decisions is one of the most impactful things that we can be doing,” Carroll said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"excerpt": "Silicon Valley’s white-collar workers have been largely detached from organized labor. Artificial intelligence and ICE are giving employees new reasons to unionize.",
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"title": "Tech Workers Have Long Resisted Unions. Will AI and Politics Change the Equation? | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>Joshua Carroll entered the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/technology\">tech world\u003c/a> as a “bright-eyed and bushy-tailed” product manager at Microsoft. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I was really excited about the mission of the company,” Carroll said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Now in his late 30s and working as a product manager at Google, the self-identified cat dad said that he kept politics out of the office until 2023 — when Israel launched a full-scale military campaign in Gaza, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11971467/protesting-project-nimbus-what-rights-do-silicon-valley-employees-have\">using Google technology\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There were “things in the industry I wasn’t totally stoked about, but I hadn’t really been super engaged around them as a worker,” Carroll said. After seeing “what Google and Amazon were doing to support the genocide in Gaza,” Carroll said he started trying “to improve the industry and how my work was being used.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1374\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12079890\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730-1536x1066.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign is posted at Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, on Feb. 4, 2026. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He decided to join the Tech Workers Coalition, a group fighting for “better working conditions and a real say in how the technology [they] build impacts our communities and the world,” according to their \u003ca href=\"https://techworkerscoalition.org/bay-area/\">website\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since joining, Carroll said the Bay Area chapter has focused on building “worker consciousness” among tech workers and connecting them to advocacy campaigns around issues that the industry has an impact on — from Flock cameras to artificial intelligence. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For decades, high compensation, strong upward mobility and a culture of individual achievement have helped keep Silicon Valley’s white-collar workers largely detached from organized labor. But as artificial intelligence rapidly changes the nature of technical work, organizers say more tech employees are reconsidering their position in the industry, and following in the footsteps of labor organizers past.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">AI anxieties \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While some tech workers are wondering how they’ll spend their IPO windfalls, others are experiencing all too familiar AI anxieties: Will AI change our jobs? Will it eliminate them? Will it eliminate us all?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last month, employees at frontier AI labs Anthropic and Google drew widespread attention to AI safety issues by \u003ca href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/two-ai-researchers-leave-anthropic-google-safety-concerns-rcna597086\">quitting\u003c/a> over concerns that their companies cannot control the technology. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Carroll said he does not discount AI’s existential risk, but he remains more concerned by its “immediate and material harms in terms of labor displacement and social impacts and environmental impacts and surveillance and weaponization — all the things that are happening now.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102341\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GavinNewsomGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at Google’s San Francisco office about “Creating an AI-Ready Workforce,” a new joint effort with some of the world’s leading tech companies to help better prepare California’s students and workers for the next generation of technology, in San Francisco on Aug. 7, 2025. (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jeremy Bernick, an Arizona-based attorney and member of the Communications Workers of America, a national union that represents workers at Alphabet and Wikimedia, said they are worried about senior management pushing AI onto junior employees. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“A lot of us are thinking, no, it actually degrades or slows down our work processes,” Bernick said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bernick said there’s some fear that companies will use “token tracking,” a method to see how often each employee uses AI, and other forms of surveillance as part of performance reviews.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As these concerns grew, Bernick said that CWA formed an AI advisory committee and has released an AI bargaining toolkit for workers. In September, white-collar workers at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12092335/staff-of-san-francisco-based-wikipedia-demand-union-recognition-raise-concerns-over-ai\">Wikimedia\u003c/a> voted to form a union, and \u003ca href=\"https://cwa-union.org/news/releases/blizzard-entertainment-workers-ratify-historic-video-game-contracts-cwa\">Blizzard Entertainment\u003c/a> ratified their union contract — both drives have mentioned AI usage. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While many engineers have adopted AI into their workflow, others said that AI makes their previously creative and intellectually stimulating job more rote and less impactful. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1390\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102878\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/20261004_SILICONVALLEYUNION_GC-3-KQED-1536x1068.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Joshua Carroll, a tech worker at Google and core organizer of Tech Workers Coalition, poses for a portrait at his home in Oakland on Oct. 4, 2026. (Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We can see how our control and influence over actual product decisions — and the impact on society — is likely to degrade and is degrading,” Carroll said. He described a shift from making decisions to “shoveling data” — where workers are asked to put information into AI systems and let the machines do the rest. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This change in the nature of their work and the rapid advancement of AI models has coincided with massive \u003ca href=\"https://siepr.stanford.edu/publications/policy-brief/what-really-happening-jobs-separating-ai-hype-reality\">restructuring\u003c/a> in the industry. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Already, software companies have laid off tens of thousands of employees, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084655/after-meta-layoffs-newsom-signs-ai-order-to-protect-workers-and-jobs\">citing\u003c/a> a desire to shift spending towards “AI-focused employees and data center construction.” While more employees were laid off in 2023 than 2026, this year saw a rise in layoffs directly attributed to AI, according to \u003ca href=\"https://layoffs.fyi/\">layoffs.fyi\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A 2026 AI Index report from \u003ca href=\"https://hai.stanford.edu/ai-index/2026-ai-index-report\">Stanford University\u003c/a> found that one-third of organizations surveyed anticipate there will be more job reductions in the near future and that employment for entry-level software developers fell 20% from 2024. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I think this is the first era in recent memory outside of maybe the ‘70s and ‘80s where there’s been a real, legitimate fear of actual labor displacement,” Bernick said. “Unions are a really good way to combat that.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Political problems\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While some tech workers are organizing to protect their jobs, others are turning to collective bargaining as a way to challenge their company’s political decisions. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Alex Samburov, a member of the Alphabet Workers Union, has been organizing the \u003ca href=\"https://www.googlers-against-ice.com/\">Googlers Against ICE Campaign,\u003c/a> which opposes their employer’s partnerships with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The campaign specifically calls out the use of AI by federal agencies for “workforce enablement” and “improving operational efficiency,” among other tools, according to the petition. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Samburov, a Russian immigrant, said he joined Google in 2019 right after the tech giant canceled a contract with the Department of Defense for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11668872/google-employees-quit-in-protest-over-military-artificial-intelligence-program\">Project Maven\u003c/a> — a U.S. program that uses AI to help drones distinguish between people and objects — following pressure from employees. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103634\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261008-SILICONVALLEYUNION-05-BL-KQED-42cdf772-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alex Samburov, a software engineer at Google, stands at the Google offices in San Francisco on Oct. 8, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That’s the company culture that attracted me to Google,” Samburov said. “Every day I meet more people who care about these issues, meet people who are willing to risk their employment. Some of them are willing to take a risk despite being immigrants like myself.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Samburov said that workers within Google have the most leverage to change the company. He said that creates an obligation to check how the company uses his labor. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have seen Google demonstrate that the organization doesn’t care about much else. Users don’t really have leverage in this relationship and American voters don’t seem to have much leverage either,” Samburov said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The campaign reached 1,700 signatures last month and has since been formally endorsed by the union. Google declined to make anyone available to comment. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But organizing around these political and ethical questions has become more difficult as layoffs make workers feel more vulnerable, Carroll said. Unions can be helpful here, he said, because they can provide the structure, protections and democratic processes to help workers advocate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The workers are the ones building and maintaining the internet, AI, social media and everything in-between, Carroll said, but a lot of decisions are being put on them from the top down. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If we can come together to see a different direction … there’s a lot of power there,” Carroll said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Silicon Valley’s long history of resistance to unions \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The idea of tech workers organizing collectively is still unusual in Silicon Valley. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Alphabet Workers Union, one of the most prominent tech unions, represents \u003ca href=\"https://www.alphabetworkersunion.org/faqs\">“over a thousand”\u003c/a> employees out of roughly \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12091358/4500-google-employees-demand-job-security-amid-big-tech-layoffs\">190,000\u003c/a> employees and is not yet registered with the National Labor Relations Board. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Nationally, just 3.7% of workers in “computer and mathematical occupations” are unionized, compared to 10% of workers across other industries according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat42.htm\">Bureau of Labor Statistics\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10638229\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-400x225.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-800x450.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-1440x810.jpg 1440w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-1180x664.jpg 1180w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/GoogleWorkers201207121920-960x540.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Google employees walk around campus on Aug. 10, 2015. (David Paul Morris/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Margaret O’Mara, a historian and author of \u003cem>The Code: Silicon Valley and the Remaking of America\u003c/em>, said that disparity has deep roots. Silicon Valley companies gave their white-collar workers incentives to negotiate with management directly, rather than at the bargaining table. And at the same time, Silicon Valley companies developed aggressive strategies for keeping their workplaces union-free. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While U.S. union membership \u003ca href=\"https://home.treasury.gov/news/featured-stories/labor-unions-and-the-us-economy\">peaked\u003c/a> around 1950 — with over 30% of the American workforce carrying a union card at the time — O’Mara said that the management in the Valley was “pretty strongly anti-union.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“From Hewlett-Packard forward, there was an idea that if you had a union in your company, that was a sign that management was doing it wrong,” O’Mara said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Founded in 1939, Hewlett-Packard pioneered some of the systems that keep tech employees aligned with their management even today, O’Mara said, such as stock options. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While stock options, the ability to buy shares of the company at a reduced price, had long been an option for management, HP opened them up and turned them into “a way to deliver employee benefits that was kind of different from the way a standardized, unionized shop would work,” O’Mara said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The relationship between employers and workers was different on the factory floor.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>David Bacon, a former engineering technician and union organizer at National Semiconductor, said that the companies were “laboratories for keeping themselves union-free.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“They did this by a number of means,” Bacon said, “for instance, ensuring that the production workforce in the semiconductor plants [was] made up of immigrants and a huge majority of women,” who managers could intimidate because they were more “vulnerable.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bacon also said he and other union organizers were fired and blacklisted.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The result was a workplace culture in which unionization could seem unnecessary, or even antithetical to the work, for some and dangerous for others. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Carroll said that talking to his coworkers about unionizing today often involves a lot of education. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He often has to explain to them, he said, that “it would be illegal for the companies to retaliate or discriminate against us for [organizing around working conditions].”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The future of AI workers?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As organizers like Carroll, Bernick and Samburov push for unionization, some experts question whether the current wave of AI and political anxiety will translate into meaningful union drives.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lenny Siegel, former mayor of Mountain View and a longtime activist, said that he does not believe AI alone will push tech workers to unionize. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Unless the AI bubble pops, Siegel said he is “not expecting people [in Silicon Valley] to have trouble negotiating individually for bread and butter issues.” Without the need to collectively bargain, unionization is unlikely — especially given the \u003ca href=\"https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/trump-says-skilled-foreign-workers-take-jobs-away-from-americans-its-not-that-simple-experts-say\">high concentration\u003c/a> of tech employees on H1B visas who risk losing everything if their company decides to retaliate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1379\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12066914\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/DonaldTrumpGetty1-1536x1059.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">U.S. President Donald Trump displays a signed executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on Dec. 11, 2025, in Washington, D.C. The executive order curbs states’ ability to regulate artificial intelligence, something for which the tech industry has been lobbying. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While Siegel does not believe he’ll see software engineers on the picket line anytime soon, he agrees that organizing around political issues will continue.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There have always been progressive tech workers in the Valley,” Siegel said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In the ’90s, Siegel belonged to a group called Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility, which he described as a “collection of tech professionals who got together and effectively, because of their expertise, had an impact on policy.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The group formed in \u003ca href=\"http://cpsr.org/about/history/\">1981\u003c/a> and opposed the use of computing technology for military applications, including the \u003ca href=\"http://cpsr.org/prevsite/publications/newsletters/old/1980s/Fall1986.txt/\">Strategic Computing Initiative,\u003c/a> an early artificial intelligence project funded by the Department of Defense. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While political engagement among techies may not be new, Carroll said building power within the workplace helps give workers the security they need to speak out. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We need to feel like our jobs are safe in order to feel comfortable working on and talking about some of these other issues,” Carroll said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For Carroll, the effort to build solidarity with his coworkers and colleagues across the industry has been worth it, even if it moves slowly. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Labor organizing and trying to directly create power against the people at the top that are making a lot of the decisions is one of the most impactful things that we can be doing,” Carroll said.\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Keep Teens Off ChatGPT, Says Youth AI Safety Institute ",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article discusses suicide. If you are experiencing thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Common Sense Media’s Youth AI Safety Institute has rated ChatGPT for Teens as an \u003ca href=\"https://institute.commonsensemedia.org/risk-assessments/chatgpt-teens\">“Unacceptable Risk” for everyone under 18\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/openai\">OpenAI\u003c/a> launched the teen version in August, promising “\u003ca href=\"https://openai.com/index/chatgpt-for-teens/\">stronger built-in safety protections\u003c/a>,” including alerts to parents when a teen discusses self-harm, a study mode parents can switch on, and a chatbot less likely to act like a friend. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If our system estimates someone is under 18 or they state their age is between 13 and 17, they are automatically placed into ChatGPT for Teens,” the announcement said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The institute tested the product before and after the launch, running more than 4,000 prompts on accounts registered to 13- to 17-year-olds. Child psychiatrists and a pediatrician reviewed the responses.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We were actually hoping and expecting to see big improvements across the board based on that announcement,” said Tom Siegel, the institute’s executive director and a former Google trust and safety executive. “It didn’t, unfortunately, work out that way at all.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-11998856\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">In conversations involving mental health crises, the institute found ChatGPT missed more than one in four referrals that the psychiatrists said were warranted. (Jaque Silva/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The report’s central finding concerns safety notifications. Testers linked more than a dozen new teen accounts to parent accounts, then spent up to an hour describing suicidal thoughts, self-harm or disordered eating. The parents received no alerts. The only two notifications the testers got came from older accounts with weeks of conversation history on sensitive topics.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“A teen can spend an hour talking about self-harm without their parent getting a single alert,” Siegel said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>OpenAI pushed back on that finding. According to an editorial note added to the report, OpenAI told the researchers that parent and teen accounts must be linked for about three hours before notifications can be sent, and the company has updated its help center to reflect this. The help center now said it “may take up to a few hours” after linking. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Common Sense said some of its test accounts had been linked for less than three hours and others for longer, but that it stands by its results. “Before we began testing, we confirmed with OpenAI that Teen mode features such as eating disorder notifications and study mode were fully launched,” wrote Robbie Torney, Senior Director of AI Programs at Common Sense Media. “This new information does not change our conclusion that parental alerts are unreliable for crisis situations.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Torney added that the testers’ results were shared with OpenAI prior to their public release “in good faith,” and that “We hope OpenAI will engage on the substance of what we found, rather than trying to sow doubt on our methodology.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When it \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12096019/openai-introduces-chatgpt-for-teens-promising-a-more-age-appropriate-chatbot\">launched the teen version\u003c/a>, OpenAI said human staff review flagged conversations before a parent is notified, and that it aims to notify parents within an hour.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We welcome rigorous independent evaluation, but we do not believe Common Sense Media’s testing accurately reflects how ChatGPT’s teen safeguards work in practice or expert perspectives on how AI can support teens,” a spokesperson for OpenAI wrote in a statement. “Our review of Common Sense Media’s methodology shows that the bulk of their testing may have begun and concluded before activation of parental controls was complete, making their findings inaccurate.”\u003cbr>\u003cbr>“If that was the case, the tests would not establish whether parental safety notifications work as designed,” it added.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12048270/teens-under-the-influence-of-chatbots\">conversations involving mental health crises\u003c/a>, the institute found ChatGPT missed more than one in four referrals that the psychiatrists said were warranted. Before the launch, the share of responses naming a crisis hotline fell from 33% to 23% after it went live. On depression prompts, it fell from 63% to 3%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The report also tested OpenAI’s age estimation system, which is supposed to recognize minors from how they use ChatGPT and move them into the teen version. Accounts registered to adults never switched over during many days of testing, even after testers said they were 13 and the chatbot acknowledged it.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The report gave OpenAI some credit. ChatGPT for Teens refused explicit sexual roleplay more consistently than before. When a 13-year-old’s account was linked to a parent with Study mode on, the chatbot \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12053799/not-even-ai-can-save-me-students-teachers-on-ai-this-school-year\">completed full homework assignments\u003c/a> far less often after the launch; 18% of the time, compared with 70% before.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12038161\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Unlike digital assistants, companion chatbots are much more likely to veer into socially controversial and even illegal territory. A new report from Stanford University researchers and Common Sense Media argues that children and teens should not use these chatbots. (Jade Gao/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But testers found the safeguards easy to undo. When a teen asks ChatGPT to complete an assignment, the teen version often offers a pop-up with the option “Show me the answer.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>OpenAI has described the pop-up as giving teens agency over how they learn.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For an unlinked 17-year-old in Study mode, it completed 88% of assignments after the launch, up from none before. Parents can set Study Hours by adding “@study” to the start of each message, but a teen can simply delete it. Testers also got around Quiet Hours by changing the time zone on the device.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I don’t call that circumvention. I just call it convenience,” Siegel said. “It’s right there for the child.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>OpenAI announced \u003ca href=\"https://openai.com/index/teens-learn-and-plan/\">new features\u003c/a> for ChatGPT for Teens on Wednesday, including a college planner to help with the college application process, as well as a new teen AI council in partnership with Boston Children’s Hospital’s Digital Wellness Lab. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">An industry-wide issue\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>OpenAI is not the only AI developer with a teen-specific chatbot experience, although ChatGPT is the \u003ca href=\"https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2025/12/09/teens-social-media-and-ai-chatbots-2025/\">most popular with U.S. teens\u003c/a>. Google offers one for Gemini. Anthropic’s Claude is restricted to users 18 and older, as is Meta’s Muse, although Meta AI is \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12094595/meta-faces-up-to-1-4-trillion-reckoning-as-youth-addiction-trial-opens-in-oakland\">available to teens\u003c/a> on Instagram. A 2025 Common Sense Media and Stanford assessment tested all four, \u003ca href=\"https://www.commonsensemedia.org/sites/default/files/featured-content/files/csm-ai-risk-assessment-mental-health-11142025.pdf\">rating\u003c/a> them “Unacceptable” for teen mental health support.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Right now, these chatbots are not ready for safe teen usage,” Siegel said, referring to Wednesday’s report. “I’m not saying this lightly, knowing how powerful it can be as a research tool and for fun. The dangers are just too big.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The institute is asking OpenAI to pause marketing of ChatGPT to teens and to restrict it to adults until the company fixes the gaps and proves it through independent testing.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Until then, Common Sense said parents should discuss the risks of AI chatbots with their children, and not rely on built-in protections. Siegel still recommends that parents link their accounts.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I still suggest using the parental mode, even though it’s flawed, because it is better than nothing,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Youth AI Institute is funded in part by the OpenAI Foundation, the nonprofit that controls OpenAI, along with Anthropic, Pinterest and several philanthropies. The foundation and OpenAI have also worked together on policy. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In January, they \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069286/openai-and-common-sense-media-partner-on-new-kids-ai-safety-ballot-measure\">partnered on a California ballot measure\u003c/a> on kids’ AI safety, then paused it in February to negotiate with state lawmakers instead. Common Sense said it keeps full editorial control over its findings.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“They’re the one that created the problems,” Siegel said of OpenAI. “Why shouldn’t they help fund it?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The report’s central finding concerns safety notifications. Testers linked more than a dozen new teen accounts to parent accounts, then spent up to an hour describing suicidal thoughts, self-harm or disordered eating. The parents received no alerts. The only two notifications the testers got came from older accounts with weeks of conversation history on sensitive topics.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The report’s central finding concerns safety notifications. Testers linked more than a dozen new teen accounts to parent accounts, then spent up to an hour describing suicidal thoughts, self-harm or disordered eating. The parents received no alerts. The only two notifications the testers got came from older accounts with weeks of conversation history on sensitive topics.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“A teen can spend an hour talking about self-harm without their parent getting a single alert,” Siegel said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“A teen can spend an hour talking about self-harm without their parent getting a single alert,” Siegel said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>OpenAI pushed back on that finding. According to an editorial note added to the report, OpenAI told the researchers that parent and teen accounts must be linked for about three hours before notifications can be sent, and the company has updated its help center to reflect this. The help center now said it “may take up to a few hours” after linking. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>OpenAI pushed back on that finding. According to an editorial note added to the report, OpenAI told the researchers that parent and teen accounts must be linked for about three hours before notifications can be sent, and the company has updated its help center to reflect this. The help center now said it “may take up to a few hours” after linking. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Common Sense said some of its test accounts had been linked for less than three hours and others for longer, but that it stands by its results. “Before we began testing, we confirmed with OpenAI that Teen mode features such as eating disorder notifications and study mode were fully launched,” wrote Robbie Torney, Senior Director of AI Programs at Common Sense Media. “This new information does not change our conclusion that parental alerts are unreliable for crisis situations.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Common Sense said some of its test accounts had been linked for less than three hours and others for longer, but that it stands by its results. “Before we began testing, we confirmed with OpenAI that Teen mode features such as eating disorder notifications and study mode were fully launched,” wrote Robbie Torney, Senior Director of AI Programs at Common Sense Media. “This new information does not change our conclusion that parental alerts are unreliable for crisis situations.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Torney added that the testers’ results were shared with OpenAI prior to their public release “in good faith,” and that “We hope OpenAI will engage on the substance of what we found, rather than trying to sow doubt on our methodology.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>When it \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12096019/openai-introduces-chatgpt-for-teens-promising-a-more-age-appropriate-chatbot\">launched the teen version\u003c/a>, OpenAI said human staff review flagged conversations before a parent is notified, and that it aims to notify parents within an hour.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We welcome rigorous independent evaluation, but we do not believe Common Sense Media’s testing accurately reflects how ChatGPT’s teen safeguards work in practice or expert perspectives on how AI can support teens,” a spokesperson for OpenAI wrote in a statement. “Our review of Common Sense Media’s methodology shows that the bulk of their testing may have begun and concluded before activation of parental controls was complete, making their findings inaccurate.”\u003cbr>\u003cbr>“If that was the case, the tests would not establish whether parental safety notifications work as designed,” it added.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12048270/teens-under-the-influence-of-chatbots\">conversations involving mental health crises\u003c/a>, the institute found ChatGPT missed more than one in four referrals that the psychiatrists said were warranted. Before the launch, the share of responses naming a crisis hotline fell from 33% to 23% after it went live. On depression prompts, it fell from 63% to 3%.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12048270/teens-under-the-influence-of-chatbots\">conversations involving mental health crises\u003c/a>, the institute found ChatGPT missed more than one in four referrals that the psychiatrists said were warranted. Before the launch, the share of responses naming a crisis hotline fell from 33% to 23% after it went live. On depression prompts, it fell from 63% to 3%.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The report also tested OpenAI’s age estimation system, which is supposed to recognize minors from how they use ChatGPT and move them into the teen version. Accounts registered to adults never switched over during many days of testing, even after testers said they were 13 and the chatbot acknowledged it.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The report also tested OpenAI’s age estimation system, which is supposed to recognize minors from how they use ChatGPT and move them into the teen version. Accounts registered to adults never switched over during many days of testing, even after testers said they were 13 and the chatbot acknowledged it.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The report gave OpenAI some credit. ChatGPT for Teens refused explicit sexual roleplay more consistently than before. When a 13-year-old’s account was linked to a parent with Study mode on, the chatbot \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12053799/not-even-ai-can-save-me-students-teachers-on-ai-this-school-year\">completed full homework assignments\u003c/a> far less often after the launch; 18% of the time, compared with 70% before.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The report gave OpenAI some credit. ChatGPT for Teens refused explicit sexual roleplay more consistently than before. When a 13-year-old’s account was linked to a parent with Study mode on, the chatbot \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12053799/not-even-ai-can-save-me-students-teachers-on-ai-this-school-year\">completed full homework assignments\u003c/a> far less often after the launch; 18% of the time, compared with 70% before.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12038161\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Unlike digital assistants, companion chatbots are much more likely to veer into socially controversial and even illegal territory. A new report from Stanford University researchers and Common Sense Media argues that children and teens should not use these chatbots.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Jade Gao/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12038161\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Unlike digital assistants, companion chatbots are much more likely to veer into socially controversial and even illegal territory. A new report from Stanford University researchers and Common Sense Media argues that children and teens should not use these chatbots.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Jade Gao/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But testers found the safeguards easy to undo. When a teen asks ChatGPT to complete an assignment, the teen version often offers a pop-up with the option “Show me the answer.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But testers found the safeguards easy to undo. When a teen asks ChatGPT to complete an assignment, the teen version often offers a pop-up with the option “Show me the answer.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>For an unlinked 17-year-old in Study mode, it completed 88% of assignments after the launch, up from none before. Parents can set Study Hours by adding “@study” to the start of each message, but a teen can simply delete it. Testers also got around Quiet Hours by changing the time zone on the device.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>For an unlinked 17-year-old in Study mode, it completed 88% of assignments after the launch, up from none before. Parents can set Study Hours by adding “@study” to the start of each message, but a teen can simply delete it. Testers also got around Quiet Hours by changing the time zone on the device.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I don’t call that circumvention. I just call it convenience,” Siegel said. “It’s right there for the child.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>OpenAI announced \u003ca href=\"https://openai.com/index/teens-learn-and-plan/\">new features\u003c/a> for ChatGPT for Teens on Wednesday, including a college planner to help with the college application process, as well as a new teen AI council in partnership with Boston Children’s Hospital’s Digital Wellness Lab. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>OpenAI is not the only AI developer with a teen-specific chatbot experience, although ChatGPT is the \u003ca href=\"https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2025/12/09/teens-social-media-and-ai-chatbots-2025/\">most popular with U.S. teens\u003c/a>. Google offers one for Gemini. Anthropic’s Claude is restricted to users 18 and older, as is Meta’s Muse, although Meta AI is \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12094595/meta-faces-up-to-1-4-trillion-reckoning-as-youth-addiction-trial-opens-in-oakland\">available to teens\u003c/a> on Instagram. A 2025 Common Sense Media and Stanford assessment tested all four, \u003ca href=\"https://www.commonsensemedia.org/sites/default/files/featured-content/files/csm-ai-risk-assessment-mental-health-11142025.pdf\">rating\u003c/a> them “Unacceptable” for teen mental health support.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>OpenAI is not the only AI developer with a teen-specific chatbot experience, although ChatGPT is the \u003ca href=\"https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2025/12/09/teens-social-media-and-ai-chatbots-2025/\">most popular with U.S. teens\u003c/a>. Google offers one for Gemini. Anthropic’s Claude is restricted to users 18 and older, as is Meta’s Muse, although Meta AI is \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12094595/meta-faces-up-to-1-4-trillion-reckoning-as-youth-addiction-trial-opens-in-oakland\">available to teens\u003c/a> on Instagram. A 2025 Common Sense Media and Stanford assessment tested all four, \u003ca href=\"https://www.commonsensemedia.org/sites/default/files/featured-content/files/csm-ai-risk-assessment-mental-health-11142025.pdf\">rating\u003c/a> them “Unacceptable” for teen mental health support.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Right now, these chatbots are not ready for safe teen usage,” Siegel said, referring to Wednesday’s report. “I’m not saying this lightly, knowing how powerful it can be as a research tool and for fun. The dangers are just too big.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Right now, these chatbots are not ready for safe teen usage,” Siegel said, referring to Wednesday’s report. “I’m not saying this lightly, knowing how powerful it can be as a research tool and for fun. The dangers are just too big.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The institute is asking OpenAI to pause marketing of ChatGPT to teens and to restrict it to adults until the company fixes the gaps and proves it through independent testing.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Until then, Common Sense said parents should discuss the risks of AI chatbots with their children, and not rely on built-in protections. Siegel still recommends that parents link their accounts.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I still suggest using the parental mode, even though it’s flawed, because it is better than nothing,” he said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Youth AI Institute is funded in part by the OpenAI Foundation, the nonprofit that controls OpenAI, along with Anthropic, Pinterest and several philanthropies. The foundation and OpenAI have also worked together on policy. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The Youth AI Institute is funded in part by the OpenAI Foundation, the nonprofit that controls OpenAI, along with Anthropic, Pinterest and several philanthropies. The foundation and OpenAI have also worked together on policy. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In January, they \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069286/openai-and-common-sense-media-partner-on-new-kids-ai-safety-ballot-measure\">partnered on a California ballot measure\u003c/a> on kids’ AI safety, then paused it in February to negotiate with state lawmakers instead. Common Sense said it keeps full editorial control over its findings.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In January, they \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069286/openai-and-common-sense-media-partner-on-new-kids-ai-safety-ballot-measure\">partnered on a California ballot measure\u003c/a> on kids’ AI safety, then paused it in February to negotiate with state lawmakers instead. Common Sense said it keeps full editorial control over its findings.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“They’re the one that created the problems,” Siegel said of OpenAI. “Why shouldn’t they help fund it?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article discusses suicide. If you are experiencing thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Common Sense Media’s Youth AI Safety Institute has rated ChatGPT for Teens as an \u003ca href=\"https://institute.commonsensemedia.org/risk-assessments/chatgpt-teens\">“Unacceptable Risk” for everyone under 18\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/openai\">OpenAI\u003c/a> launched the teen version in August, promising “\u003ca href=\"https://openai.com/index/chatgpt-for-teens/\">stronger built-in safety protections\u003c/a>,” including alerts to parents when a teen discusses self-harm, a study mode parents can switch on, and a chatbot less likely to act like a friend. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If our system estimates someone is under 18 or they state their age is between 13 and 17, they are automatically placed into ChatGPT for Teens,” the announcement said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The institute tested the product before and after the launch, running more than 4,000 prompts on accounts registered to 13- to 17-year-olds. Child psychiatrists and a pediatrician reviewed the responses.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We were actually hoping and expecting to see big improvements across the board based on that announcement,” said Tom Siegel, the institute’s executive director and a former Google trust and safety executive. “It didn’t, unfortunately, work out that way at all.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-11998856\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/ChatGPTGetty-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">In conversations involving mental health crises, the institute found ChatGPT missed more than one in four referrals that the psychiatrists said were warranted. (Jaque Silva/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The report’s central finding concerns safety notifications. Testers linked more than a dozen new teen accounts to parent accounts, then spent up to an hour describing suicidal thoughts, self-harm or disordered eating. The parents received no alerts. The only two notifications the testers got came from older accounts with weeks of conversation history on sensitive topics.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“A teen can spend an hour talking about self-harm without their parent getting a single alert,” Siegel said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>OpenAI pushed back on that finding. According to an editorial note added to the report, OpenAI told the researchers that parent and teen accounts must be linked for about three hours before notifications can be sent, and the company has updated its help center to reflect this. The help center now said it “may take up to a few hours” after linking. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Common Sense said some of its test accounts had been linked for less than three hours and others for longer, but that it stands by its results. “Before we began testing, we confirmed with OpenAI that Teen mode features such as eating disorder notifications and study mode were fully launched,” wrote Robbie Torney, Senior Director of AI Programs at Common Sense Media. “This new information does not change our conclusion that parental alerts are unreliable for crisis situations.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Torney added that the testers’ results were shared with OpenAI prior to their public release “in good faith,” and that “We hope OpenAI will engage on the substance of what we found, rather than trying to sow doubt on our methodology.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When it \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12096019/openai-introduces-chatgpt-for-teens-promising-a-more-age-appropriate-chatbot\">launched the teen version\u003c/a>, OpenAI said human staff review flagged conversations before a parent is notified, and that it aims to notify parents within an hour.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We welcome rigorous independent evaluation, but we do not believe Common Sense Media’s testing accurately reflects how ChatGPT’s teen safeguards work in practice or expert perspectives on how AI can support teens,” a spokesperson for OpenAI wrote in a statement. “Our review of Common Sense Media’s methodology shows that the bulk of their testing may have begun and concluded before activation of parental controls was complete, making their findings inaccurate.”\u003cbr>\u003cbr>“If that was the case, the tests would not establish whether parental safety notifications work as designed,” it added.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12048270/teens-under-the-influence-of-chatbots\">conversations involving mental health crises\u003c/a>, the institute found ChatGPT missed more than one in four referrals that the psychiatrists said were warranted. Before the launch, the share of responses naming a crisis hotline fell from 33% to 23% after it went live. On depression prompts, it fell from 63% to 3%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The report also tested OpenAI’s age estimation system, which is supposed to recognize minors from how they use ChatGPT and move them into the teen version. Accounts registered to adults never switched over during many days of testing, even after testers said they were 13 and the chatbot acknowledged it.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The report gave OpenAI some credit. ChatGPT for Teens refused explicit sexual roleplay more consistently than before. When a 13-year-old’s account was linked to a parent with Study mode on, the chatbot \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12053799/not-even-ai-can-save-me-students-teachers-on-ai-this-school-year\">completed full homework assignments\u003c/a> far less often after the launch; 18% of the time, compared with 70% before.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12038161\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/StanfordStudyAIChatbotsKidsGetty-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Unlike digital assistants, companion chatbots are much more likely to veer into socially controversial and even illegal territory. A new report from Stanford University researchers and Common Sense Media argues that children and teens should not use these chatbots. (Jade Gao/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But testers found the safeguards easy to undo. When a teen asks ChatGPT to complete an assignment, the teen version often offers a pop-up with the option “Show me the answer.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>OpenAI has described the pop-up as giving teens agency over how they learn.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For an unlinked 17-year-old in Study mode, it completed 88% of assignments after the launch, up from none before. Parents can set Study Hours by adding “@study” to the start of each message, but a teen can simply delete it. Testers also got around Quiet Hours by changing the time zone on the device.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I don’t call that circumvention. I just call it convenience,” Siegel said. “It’s right there for the child.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>OpenAI announced \u003ca href=\"https://openai.com/index/teens-learn-and-plan/\">new features\u003c/a> for ChatGPT for Teens on Wednesday, including a college planner to help with the college application process, as well as a new teen AI council in partnership with Boston Children’s Hospital’s Digital Wellness Lab. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">An industry-wide issue\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>OpenAI is not the only AI developer with a teen-specific chatbot experience, although ChatGPT is the \u003ca href=\"https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2025/12/09/teens-social-media-and-ai-chatbots-2025/\">most popular with U.S. teens\u003c/a>. Google offers one for Gemini. Anthropic’s Claude is restricted to users 18 and older, as is Meta’s Muse, although Meta AI is \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/news/12094595/meta-faces-up-to-1-4-trillion-reckoning-as-youth-addiction-trial-opens-in-oakland\">available to teens\u003c/a> on Instagram. A 2025 Common Sense Media and Stanford assessment tested all four, \u003ca href=\"https://www.commonsensemedia.org/sites/default/files/featured-content/files/csm-ai-risk-assessment-mental-health-11142025.pdf\">rating\u003c/a> them “Unacceptable” for teen mental health support.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Right now, these chatbots are not ready for safe teen usage,” Siegel said, referring to Wednesday’s report. “I’m not saying this lightly, knowing how powerful it can be as a research tool and for fun. The dangers are just too big.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The institute is asking OpenAI to pause marketing of ChatGPT to teens and to restrict it to adults until the company fixes the gaps and proves it through independent testing.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Until then, Common Sense said parents should discuss the risks of AI chatbots with their children, and not rely on built-in protections. Siegel still recommends that parents link their accounts.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I still suggest using the parental mode, even though it’s flawed, because it is better than nothing,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Youth AI Institute is funded in part by the OpenAI Foundation, the nonprofit that controls OpenAI, along with Anthropic, Pinterest and several philanthropies. The foundation and OpenAI have also worked together on policy. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In January, they \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069286/openai-and-common-sense-media-partner-on-new-kids-ai-safety-ballot-measure\">partnered on a California ballot measure\u003c/a> on kids’ AI safety, then paused it in February to negotiate with state lawmakers instead. Common Sense said it keeps full editorial control over its findings.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“They’re the one that created the problems,” Siegel said of OpenAI. “Why shouldn’t they help fund it?”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "bay-area-security-workers-guarding-big-tech-offices-strike",
"title": "Bay Area Security Workers Guarding Big Tech Offices Strike",
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"headTitle": "Bay Area Security Workers Guarding Big Tech Offices Strike | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>Thousands of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12099765/14000-security-guards-for-major-tech-companies-plan-to-strike\">security guards\u003c/a> across \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> walked off the job Friday, demanding a pathway to a $30 minimum wage and improved benefits. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Service Employees International Union-United Service Workers West, a union that represents 14,000 security guards, announced the strike on Tuesday after months of negotiations with 15 private-security contractors and employers, including Allied Universal and Securitas, which staff some of the Bay Area’s largest businesses. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Workers, union leaders and their supporters rallied outside of the Salesforce headquarters in downtown San Francisco on Friday morning, where they called attention to inequality in the Bay Area and the guards’ critical role in protecting the city’s economic engines. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Here in San Francisco, we have extremely profitable companies, big tech companies, that are doing well,” Sanjay Garla, SEIU-USWW vice president, said. “There’s a whole host of service workers that help contribute to that success.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-27-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100575\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-27-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-27-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-27-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Security officers and supporters rally outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026, during a strike over wages, benefits and working conditions. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-7 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100571\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-11-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100571\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-11-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-11-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-11-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Rafael Mandelman speaks at a rally with striking security officers and supporters outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100573\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-20-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100573\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-20-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-20-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-20-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Security officer Jakia Lane speaks at a rally with striking security officers and supporters outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Though not legal first responders, security workers often act as the first line of defense by being the first people on the scene in emergency situations. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Right now, our minimum rate in San Francisco in our contract is less than $2 over minimum wage,” Garla said. “That’s just unthinkable for me when you have to get licensed to do this job and stand in front of a building and put your life and limb at risk.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Guards report receiving \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12080245/northern-california-security-officers-campaign-for-better-wages-training\">limited training\u003c/a> and low wages — making an annual mean wage of just \u003ca href=\"https://www.bls.gov/oes/2023/may/oes339032.ht\">$21.61\u003c/a> in 2023, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Keven Adams, who has worked as a security guard for 36 years, said that in that time he’s “seen it all.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-8 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100569\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-08-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100569\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-08-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-08-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-08-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">SEIU-USWW union officer and security guard Keven Adams speaks at a rally with security officers and supporters outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100572\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-18-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100572\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-18-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-18-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-18-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Alan Wong speaks at a rally with striking security officers and supporters outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-9 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100568\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100568\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-06-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-06-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-06-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Security officers and supporters rally outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100570\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-09-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100570\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-09-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-09-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-09-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Security officer Maxray Garibay speaks at a rally with striking workers and supporters, in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I’ve been assaulted at work. I’ve been robbed at work. I’ve been held at gunpoint at work. I’ve saved people’s lives. I’ve found a dead body,” Adams said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Garla said that the union “saw real change at the bargaining table” after giving 72-hour notice of their strike, and they are “hopeful” that today’s action will get the employers to the table. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have made substantial progress in negotiations as part of our commitment to finding common ground,” Allied Universal wrote in a statement. Securitas did not respond to KQED’s request for comment. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The union and the companies will return to the bargaining table on Wednesday, Adams said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/jlara\">\u003cem>Juan Carlos Lara\u003c/em>\u003c/a> \u003cem>contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Service Employees International Union-United Service Workers West, a union that represents 14,000 security guards, announced the strike on Tuesday after months of negotiations with 15 private-security contractors and employers, including Allied Universal and Securitas, which staff some of the Bay Area’s largest businesses. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Here in San Francisco, we have extremely profitable companies, big tech companies, that are doing well,” Sanjay Garla, SEIU-USWW vice president, said. “There’s a whole host of service workers that help contribute to that success.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Right now, our minimum rate in San Francisco in our contract is less than $2 over minimum wage,” Garla said. “That’s just unthinkable for me when you have to get licensed to do this job and stand in front of a building and put your life and limb at risk.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I’ve been assaulted at work. I’ve been robbed at work. I’ve been held at gunpoint at work. I’ve saved people’s lives. I’ve found a dead body,” Adams said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Garla said that the union “saw real change at the bargaining table” after giving 72-hour notice of their strike, and they are “hopeful” that today’s action will get the employers to the table. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We have made substantial progress in negotiations as part of our commitment to finding common ground,” Allied Universal wrote in a statement. Securitas did not respond to KQED’s request for comment. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/jlara\">\u003cem>Juan Carlos Lara\u003c/em>\u003c/a> \u003cem>contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>Thousands of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12099765/14000-security-guards-for-major-tech-companies-plan-to-strike\">security guards\u003c/a> across \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> walked off the job Friday, demanding a pathway to a $30 minimum wage and improved benefits. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Service Employees International Union-United Service Workers West, a union that represents 14,000 security guards, announced the strike on Tuesday after months of negotiations with 15 private-security contractors and employers, including Allied Universal and Securitas, which staff some of the Bay Area’s largest businesses. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Workers, union leaders and their supporters rallied outside of the Salesforce headquarters in downtown San Francisco on Friday morning, where they called attention to inequality in the Bay Area and the guards’ critical role in protecting the city’s economic engines. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Here in San Francisco, we have extremely profitable companies, big tech companies, that are doing well,” Sanjay Garla, SEIU-USWW vice president, said. “There’s a whole host of service workers that help contribute to that success.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-27-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100575\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-27-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-27-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-27-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Security officers and supporters rally outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026, during a strike over wages, benefits and working conditions. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-7 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100571\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-11-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100571\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-11-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-11-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-11-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Rafael Mandelman speaks at a rally with striking security officers and supporters outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100573\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-20-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100573\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-20-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-20-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-20-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Security officer Jakia Lane speaks at a rally with striking security officers and supporters outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Though not legal first responders, security workers often act as the first line of defense by being the first people on the scene in emergency situations. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Right now, our minimum rate in San Francisco in our contract is less than $2 over minimum wage,” Garla said. “That’s just unthinkable for me when you have to get licensed to do this job and stand in front of a building and put your life and limb at risk.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Guards report receiving \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12080245/northern-california-security-officers-campaign-for-better-wages-training\">limited training\u003c/a> and low wages — making an annual mean wage of just \u003ca href=\"https://www.bls.gov/oes/2023/may/oes339032.ht\">$21.61\u003c/a> in 2023, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Keven Adams, who has worked as a security guard for 36 years, said that in that time he’s “seen it all.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-8 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100569\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-08-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100569\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-08-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-08-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-08-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">SEIU-USWW union officer and security guard Keven Adams speaks at a rally with security officers and supporters outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100572\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-18-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100572\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-18-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-18-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-18-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Alan Wong speaks at a rally with striking security officers and supporters outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-9 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100568\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100568\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-06-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-06-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-06-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Security officers and supporters rally outside 555 California St., in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12100570\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-09-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100570\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-09-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-09-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260918-SECURITYSTRIKE-09-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Security officer Maxray Garibay speaks at a rally with striking workers and supporters, in San Francisco, on Sept. 18, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I’ve been assaulted at work. I’ve been robbed at work. I’ve been held at gunpoint at work. I’ve saved people’s lives. I’ve found a dead body,” Adams said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Garla said that the union “saw real change at the bargaining table” after giving 72-hour notice of their strike, and they are “hopeful” that today’s action will get the employers to the table. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have made substantial progress in negotiations as part of our commitment to finding common ground,” Allied Universal wrote in a statement. Securitas did not respond to KQED’s request for comment. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The union and the companies will return to the bargaining table on Wednesday, Adams said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/jlara\">\u003cem>Juan Carlos Lara\u003c/em>\u003c/a> \u003cem>contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "ex-google-engineer-gets-nearly-1-year-for-stealing-ai-secrets",
"title": "Ex-Google Engineer Gets Nearly 1 Year for Stealing AI Secrets",
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"headTitle": "Ex-Google Engineer Gets Nearly 1 Year for Stealing AI Secrets | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>A former \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> software engineer found guilty of stealing the tech giant’s trade secrets was sentenced to just under a year in prison Tuesday. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria called Linwei Ding’s theft of proprietary information a “systematic, brazen effort to steal Google’s property,” during Tuesday’s sentencing in San Francisco. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He knew very well what he was doing. He hurt people along the way,” Chhabria added.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In January, a San Francisco jury found Ding, then 38, guilty of seven counts of theft of proprietary information related to Google’s artificial intelligence efforts and economic espionage, based on charges that he intended to use that information to benefit China.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1374\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12079890\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730-1536x1066.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign is posted at Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, on Feb. 4, 2026. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chhabria vacated the espionage conviction in August, finding that a reasonable jury would have had insufficient evidence to find Ding guilty. Ding came to the U.S. to pursue a master’s degree in 2010. He worked at multiple tech companies in the Silicon Valley before Google hired him as a software engineer in 2019.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He became a lawful permanent resident in 2021. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At trial in January, the prosecution showed that Ding uploaded more than 500 confidential files over a course of a year from Google’s network to a personal Google Cloud account.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Prosecutors said the files included trade secrets related to Google’s hardware infrastructure and software for supercomputing data centers to train large AI models. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Prosecutors also laid out Ding’s ties to multiple technology companies in China purportedly working on related AI efforts amid the U.S. and China’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c145enxln0go\">race\u003c/a> to dominate the industry. They said Ding stole and copied trade secrets with the intention of benefitting the Chinese government. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Months after Ding began uploading confidential information to his personal Cloud, prosecutors said an early-stage technology company in China offered him chief technology officer position.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ding visited the company, Rongshu, in late 2022 and began participating in investor meetings around December. In 2023, Ding founded Zhisuan, his own technology company based in China, which proposed to train large AI models.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ding’s indictment quotes a Zhisuan document Ding circulated in November 2023 as touting: “We have experience with Google’s ten-thousand-card computational power platform; we just need to replicate and upgrade it and then further develop a computational power platform suited to China’s national conditions.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12019335\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Google’s quantum computer chip, Willow. (Courtesy of Google Quantum AI)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In late 2023, Ding also applied to a Chinese government program that aimed to attract technological talent to China with funding and investments, according to the court documents. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ding never told Google about his affiliation with either company, prosecutors said, and he had an intern swipe his Google identification card multiple times when he was in China pitching Zhisuan, “to make it appear as though he was working from his office.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While Ding was initially found guilty of both the trade-secrets and espionage counts, Chhabria made the rare move to overturn the latter in August.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In his order to partially acquit Ding, Chhabria wrote: “The evidence was insufficient for a rational jury to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that Ding knew or intended during the May 2022–April 2023 timeframe that his actions would benefit the Chinese government.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Defense attorneys requested a more lenient sentence of three months in home confinement so that Ding could continue to be the primary caregiver for his 8-year-old son, and, they argued, because he had already been punished by the case and conviction.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Mr. Ding will never again hold a position of trust at a technology company,” the sentencing memo states. “His convictions and the publicity surrounding them have foreclosed the career he went to school for, enjoyed, and at which he thrived. Zhisuan is defunct, and Mr. Ding faces possible removal from the United States.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1320\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2266645921.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12079043\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2266645921.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2266645921-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2266645921-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Close-up of Google Gemini logo branding on shared bike basket in San Francisco on March 12, 2026. (Smith Collection/Gado via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ding’s defense also argued that his circumstances — including widespread press coverage and professional, personal and financial “ruin” — were also sufficient to deter others from taking similar actions. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But Chhabria said that a sentence between zero and six months didn’t capture the crime that Ding committed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If you think about it from the standpoint of the seriousness of his offense … whether you think about it from standpoint of general deterrence or specific deterrence — the idea of a noncustodial sentence is hard to swallow for me,” Chhabria said, before handing down the sentence. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ding will also be subject to two years of supervised release after his prison term, and he owes restitution of more than $189,000, plus a $25,000 fine.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/nvoynovskaya\">\u003cem>Nastia Voynovskaya\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Chhabria vacated the espionage conviction in August, finding that a reasonable jury would have had insufficient evidence to find Ding guilty. Ding came to the U.S. to pursue a master’s degree in 2010. He worked at multiple tech companies in the Silicon Valley before Google hired him as a software engineer in 2019.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>At trial in January, the prosecution showed that Ding uploaded more than 500 confidential files over a course of a year from Google’s network to a personal Google Cloud account.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Prosecutors said the files included trade secrets related to Google’s hardware infrastructure and software for supercomputing data centers to train large AI models. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Prosecutors also laid out Ding’s ties to multiple technology companies in China purportedly working on related AI efforts amid the U.S. and China’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c145enxln0go\">race\u003c/a> to dominate the industry. They said Ding stole and copied trade secrets with the intention of benefitting the Chinese government. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Months after Ding began uploading confidential information to his personal Cloud, prosecutors said an early-stage technology company in China offered him chief technology officer position.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Ding visited the company, Rongshu, in late 2022 and began participating in investor meetings around December. In 2023, Ding founded Zhisuan, his own technology company based in China, which proposed to train large AI models.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Ding’s indictment quotes a Zhisuan document Ding circulated in November 2023 as touting: “We have experience with Google’s ten-thousand-card computational power platform; we just need to replicate and upgrade it and then further develop a computational power platform suited to China’s national conditions.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In late 2023, Ding also applied to a Chinese government program that aimed to attract technological talent to China with funding and investments, according to the court documents. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Ding never told Google about his affiliation with either company, prosecutors said, and he had an intern swipe his Google identification card multiple times when he was in China pitching Zhisuan, “to make it appear as though he was working from his office.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While Ding was initially found guilty of both the trade-secrets and espionage counts, Chhabria made the rare move to overturn the latter in August.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In his order to partially acquit Ding, Chhabria wrote: “The evidence was insufficient for a rational jury to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that Ding knew or intended during the May 2022–April 2023 timeframe that his actions would benefit the Chinese government.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Mr. Ding will never again hold a position of trust at a technology company,” the sentencing memo states. “His convictions and the publicity surrounding them have foreclosed the career he went to school for, enjoyed, and at which he thrived. Zhisuan is defunct, and Mr. Ding faces possible removal from the United States.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Ding’s defense also argued that his circumstances — including widespread press coverage and professional, personal and financial “ruin” — were also sufficient to deter others from taking similar actions. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“If you think about it from the standpoint of the seriousness of his offense … whether you think about it from standpoint of general deterrence or specific deterrence — the idea of a noncustodial sentence is hard to swallow for me,” Chhabria said, before handing down the sentence. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Ding will also be subject to two years of supervised release after his prison term, and he owes restitution of more than $189,000, plus a $25,000 fine.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/nvoynovskaya\">\u003cem>Nastia Voynovskaya\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "A federal judge in San Francisco said the sentence reflected the “seriousness” of stealing proprietary information related to training large AI models.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>A former \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> software engineer found guilty of stealing the tech giant’s trade secrets was sentenced to just under a year in prison Tuesday. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria called Linwei Ding’s theft of proprietary information a “systematic, brazen effort to steal Google’s property,” during Tuesday’s sentencing in San Francisco. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He knew very well what he was doing. He hurt people along the way,” Chhabria added.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In January, a San Francisco jury found Ding, then 38, guilty of seven counts of theft of proprietary information related to Google’s artificial intelligence efforts and economic espionage, based on charges that he intended to use that information to benefit China.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1374\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12079890\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2259952730-1536x1066.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign is posted at Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, on Feb. 4, 2026. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chhabria vacated the espionage conviction in August, finding that a reasonable jury would have had insufficient evidence to find Ding guilty. Ding came to the U.S. to pursue a master’s degree in 2010. He worked at multiple tech companies in the Silicon Valley before Google hired him as a software engineer in 2019.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He became a lawful permanent resident in 2021. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At trial in January, the prosecution showed that Ding uploaded more than 500 confidential files over a course of a year from Google’s network to a personal Google Cloud account.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Prosecutors said the files included trade secrets related to Google’s hardware infrastructure and software for supercomputing data centers to train large AI models. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Prosecutors also laid out Ding’s ties to multiple technology companies in China purportedly working on related AI efforts amid the U.S. and China’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c145enxln0go\">race\u003c/a> to dominate the industry. They said Ding stole and copied trade secrets with the intention of benefitting the Chinese government. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Months after Ding began uploading confidential information to his personal Cloud, prosecutors said an early-stage technology company in China offered him chief technology officer position.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ding visited the company, Rongshu, in late 2022 and began participating in investor meetings around December. In 2023, Ding founded Zhisuan, his own technology company based in China, which proposed to train large AI models.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ding’s indictment quotes a Zhisuan document Ding circulated in November 2023 as touting: “We have experience with Google’s ten-thousand-card computational power platform; we just need to replicate and upgrade it and then further develop a computational power platform suited to China’s national conditions.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12019335\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/GoogleQuantumAI_WillowChip_Closeup04-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Google’s quantum computer chip, Willow. (Courtesy of Google Quantum AI)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In late 2023, Ding also applied to a Chinese government program that aimed to attract technological talent to China with funding and investments, according to the court documents. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ding never told Google about his affiliation with either company, prosecutors said, and he had an intern swipe his Google identification card multiple times when he was in China pitching Zhisuan, “to make it appear as though he was working from his office.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While Ding was initially found guilty of both the trade-secrets and espionage counts, Chhabria made the rare move to overturn the latter in August.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In his order to partially acquit Ding, Chhabria wrote: “The evidence was insufficient for a rational jury to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that Ding knew or intended during the May 2022–April 2023 timeframe that his actions would benefit the Chinese government.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Defense attorneys requested a more lenient sentence of three months in home confinement so that Ding could continue to be the primary caregiver for his 8-year-old son, and, they argued, because he had already been punished by the case and conviction.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Mr. Ding will never again hold a position of trust at a technology company,” the sentencing memo states. “His convictions and the publicity surrounding them have foreclosed the career he went to school for, enjoyed, and at which he thrived. Zhisuan is defunct, and Mr. Ding faces possible removal from the United States.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1320\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2266645921.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12079043\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2266645921.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2266645921-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-2266645921-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Close-up of Google Gemini logo branding on shared bike basket in San Francisco on March 12, 2026. (Smith Collection/Gado via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ding’s defense also argued that his circumstances — including widespread press coverage and professional, personal and financial “ruin” — were also sufficient to deter others from taking similar actions. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But Chhabria said that a sentence between zero and six months didn’t capture the crime that Ding committed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If you think about it from the standpoint of the seriousness of his offense … whether you think about it from standpoint of general deterrence or specific deterrence — the idea of a noncustodial sentence is hard to swallow for me,” Chhabria said, before handing down the sentence. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ding will also be subject to two years of supervised release after his prison term, and he owes restitution of more than $189,000, plus a $25,000 fine.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/nvoynovskaya\">\u003cem>Nastia Voynovskaya\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Google Hit With $1 Billion EU Fine as US Antitrust Cases Mount",
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"content": "\u003cp>European regulators fined \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> 890 million euros, or about $1 billion, on Thursday over business practices that federal judges in the U.S. have been ruling against for years.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Regulators in Brussels concluded that Google gave its own shopping, travel and translation services prime placement in search results while unfairly pushing competitors down the page and that Google’s Play store barred app developers from telling their own customers about cheaper ways to pay.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The penalty is the Silicon Valley giant’s first under the European Union’s 2022 Digital Markets Act, a sweeping law passed to address the power of the world’s biggest tech companies. Google has 60 days to comply, or it could face further penalties of up to 5% of its worldwide revenue. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a \u003ca href=\"https://publicpolicy.google/article/search-play-google-statement/\">blog post\u003c/a>, Google & Alphabet President of Global Affairs Kent Walker characterized the European move as “product degradation driven by a small group of self-serving complainants.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This implementation of the DMA continues to break everyday products,” Walker wrote. “To comply, we are having to strip away real-time Search features Europeans love — like instant pricing and direct availability for hotels, flights, and restaurants — and dismantle safety protections on Google Play.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12055857\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">European regulators fined Google over favoring its own services in search results and restricting app developers. Both practices have already been fought over in Bay Area federal court. (Jeff Chiu/AP Photo)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The EU action echoes a series of antitrust rulings against Google in the United States, where — with Congress and state legislatures largely \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12007323/can-california-still-lead-on-ai-regulation-following-newsoms-veto-of-ai-safety-bill\">stalemated on tech regulation\u003c/a> — challenges to Google’s dominance have played out in court instead.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In April 2025, a judge in Virginia found Google \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12036411/googles-ad-dominance-is-illegal-federal-judge-rules\">illegally monopolized the ad technology\u003c/a> that places banner ads across much of the open web. That case is currently in the remedy and fallout phase following U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema’s liability ruling. It’s still unclear whether she will force a structural breakup or opt for behavioral restrictions.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In August 2024, a federal judge in Washington ruled Google \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11999009/landmark-google-antitrust-case-could-shake-up-silicon-valley-heres-what-to-know\">illegally maintained a monopoly over internet search\u003c/a>, and the following September, ordered it to stop signing exclusive default deals and to share search data with rivals. Both Google and the Justice Department are appealing at the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Private lawsuits have also sought to address the company’s practices. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In August 2024, San Francisco-based Yelp sued Google over \u003ca href=\"https://trust.yelp.com/yelp-v-google/yelp-v-google-case-materials/\">self-preferencing\u003c/a> in local search results. Last month, a magistrate judge in San José held Yelp doesn’t have to prove Google is a monopoly. That case is pending in San José and is not scheduled to reach a jury until 2028.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In December of 2023, a San Francisco jury sided with \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1197964842\">Epic Games\u003c/a> over Google’s grip on Android app distribution, the case behind this week’s changes to the Play Store. The resulting injunction from U.S. Judge James Donato began forcing the Play store to open to rival app stores in the U.S. on Wednesday, one day before Brussels levied a fine on Google. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yelp welcomed the EU decision. David Segal, the company’s vice president of public policy, said in a statement that Google has “consistently chosen to unilaterally degrade its own user experience by removing functionality, which is the telltale mark of a monopolist.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Tejas Narechania, a law professor at UC Berkeley who studies technology policy and platform regulation, said the European ruling is unlikely to have direct legal consequences for U.S. cases. Nonetheless, \u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>Google lost, and I think that perception will affect [U.S.] juries going forward.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“From a technical legal perspective, the EU decision doesn’t set a precedent that Yelp or Epic could use in their lawsuits,” Narechania said. “But I think it contributes to a perception and atmosphere that some of these large companies are not always acting in consumers’ best interests and are sometimes acting unfairly.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, Narechania questioned whether $1 billion registers at a company Google’s size, calling it roughly a day’s worth of profit and less than 1% of what Google will spend on AI infrastructure this year.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Regulators in Brussels concluded that Google gave its own shopping, travel and translation services prime placement in search results while unfairly pushing competitors down the page and that Google’s Play store barred app developers from telling their own customers about cheaper ways to pay.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The penalty is the Silicon Valley giant’s first under the European Union’s 2022 Digital Markets Act, a sweeping law passed to address the power of the world’s biggest tech companies. Google has 60 days to comply, or it could face further penalties of up to 5% of its worldwide revenue. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In a \u003ca href=\"https://publicpolicy.google/article/search-play-google-statement/\">blog post\u003c/a>, Google & Alphabet President of Global Affairs Kent Walker characterized the European move as “product degradation driven by a small group of self-serving complainants.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This implementation of the DMA continues to break everyday products,” Walker wrote. “To comply, we are having to strip away real-time Search features Europeans love — like instant pricing and direct availability for hotels, flights, and restaurants — and dismantle safety protections on Google Play.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12055857\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">European regulators fined Google over favoring its own services in search results and restricting app developers. Both practices have already been fought over in Bay Area federal court.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The EU action echoes a series of antitrust rulings against Google in the United States, where — with Congress and state legislatures largely \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12007323/can-california-still-lead-on-ai-regulation-following-newsoms-veto-of-ai-safety-bill\">stalemated on tech regulation\u003c/a> — challenges to Google’s dominance have played out in court instead.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In April 2025, a judge in Virginia found Google \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12036411/googles-ad-dominance-is-illegal-federal-judge-rules\">illegally monopolized the ad technology\u003c/a> that places banner ads across much of the open web. That case is currently in the remedy and fallout phase following U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema’s liability ruling. It’s still unclear whether she will force a structural breakup or opt for behavioral restrictions.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In April 2025, a judge in Virginia found Google \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12036411/googles-ad-dominance-is-illegal-federal-judge-rules\">illegally monopolized the ad technology\u003c/a> that places banner ads across much of the open web. That case is currently in the remedy and fallout phase following U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema’s liability ruling. It’s still unclear whether she will force a structural breakup or opt for behavioral restrictions.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In August 2024, a federal judge in Washington ruled Google \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11999009/landmark-google-antitrust-case-could-shake-up-silicon-valley-heres-what-to-know\">illegally maintained a monopoly over internet search\u003c/a>, and the following September, ordered it to stop signing exclusive default deals and to share search data with rivals. Both Google and the Justice Department are appealing at the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In August 2024, San Francisco-based Yelp sued Google over \u003ca href=\"https://trust.yelp.com/yelp-v-google/yelp-v-google-case-materials/\">self-preferencing\u003c/a> in local search results. Last month, a magistrate judge in San José held Yelp doesn’t have to prove Google is a monopoly. That case is pending in San José and is not scheduled to reach a jury until 2028.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In December of 2023, a San Francisco jury sided with \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1197964842\">Epic Games\u003c/a> over Google’s grip on Android app distribution, the case behind this week’s changes to the Play Store. The resulting injunction from U.S. Judge James Donato began forcing the Play store to open to rival app stores in the U.S. on Wednesday, one day before Brussels levied a fine on Google. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In December of 2023, a San Francisco jury sided with \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1197964842\">Epic Games\u003c/a> over Google’s grip on Android app distribution, the case behind this week’s changes to the Play Store. The resulting injunction from U.S. Judge James Donato began forcing the Play store to open to rival app stores in the U.S. on Wednesday, one day before Brussels levied a fine on Google. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Yelp welcomed the EU decision. David Segal, the company’s vice president of public policy, said in a statement that Google has “consistently chosen to unilaterally degrade its own user experience by removing functionality, which is the telltale mark of a monopolist.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Yelp welcomed the EU decision. David Segal, the company’s vice president of public policy, said in a statement that Google has “consistently chosen to unilaterally degrade its own user experience by removing functionality, which is the telltale mark of a monopolist.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Tejas Narechania, a law professor at UC Berkeley who studies technology policy and platform regulation, said the European ruling is unlikely to have direct legal consequences for U.S. cases. Nonetheless, \u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>Google lost, and I think that perception will affect [U.S.] juries going forward.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Still, Narechania questioned whether $1 billion registers at a company Google’s size, calling it roughly a day’s worth of profit and less than 1% of what Google will spend on AI infrastructure this year.\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "European regulators fined Google over favoring its own services in search results and restricting app developers. Both practices have already been fought over in Bay Area federal court.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>European regulators fined \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> 890 million euros, or about $1 billion, on Thursday over business practices that federal judges in the U.S. have been ruling against for years.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Regulators in Brussels concluded that Google gave its own shopping, travel and translation services prime placement in search results while unfairly pushing competitors down the page and that Google’s Play store barred app developers from telling their own customers about cheaper ways to pay.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The penalty is the Silicon Valley giant’s first under the European Union’s 2022 Digital Markets Act, a sweeping law passed to address the power of the world’s biggest tech companies. Google has 60 days to comply, or it could face further penalties of up to 5% of its worldwide revenue. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a \u003ca href=\"https://publicpolicy.google/article/search-play-google-statement/\">blog post\u003c/a>, Google & Alphabet President of Global Affairs Kent Walker characterized the European move as “product degradation driven by a small group of self-serving complainants.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This implementation of the DMA continues to break everyday products,” Walker wrote. “To comply, we are having to strip away real-time Search features Europeans love — like instant pricing and direct availability for hotels, flights, and restaurants — and dismantle safety protections on Google Play.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12055857\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/111215_Google-Campus_AP_CM_01-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">European regulators fined Google over favoring its own services in search results and restricting app developers. Both practices have already been fought over in Bay Area federal court. (Jeff Chiu/AP Photo)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The EU action echoes a series of antitrust rulings against Google in the United States, where — with Congress and state legislatures largely \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12007323/can-california-still-lead-on-ai-regulation-following-newsoms-veto-of-ai-safety-bill\">stalemated on tech regulation\u003c/a> — challenges to Google’s dominance have played out in court instead.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In April 2025, a judge in Virginia found Google \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12036411/googles-ad-dominance-is-illegal-federal-judge-rules\">illegally monopolized the ad technology\u003c/a> that places banner ads across much of the open web. That case is currently in the remedy and fallout phase following U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema’s liability ruling. It’s still unclear whether she will force a structural breakup or opt for behavioral restrictions.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In August 2024, a federal judge in Washington ruled Google \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11999009/landmark-google-antitrust-case-could-shake-up-silicon-valley-heres-what-to-know\">illegally maintained a monopoly over internet search\u003c/a>, and the following September, ordered it to stop signing exclusive default deals and to share search data with rivals. Both Google and the Justice Department are appealing at the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Private lawsuits have also sought to address the company’s practices. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In August 2024, San Francisco-based Yelp sued Google over \u003ca href=\"https://trust.yelp.com/yelp-v-google/yelp-v-google-case-materials/\">self-preferencing\u003c/a> in local search results. Last month, a magistrate judge in San José held Yelp doesn’t have to prove Google is a monopoly. That case is pending in San José and is not scheduled to reach a jury until 2028.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In December of 2023, a San Francisco jury sided with \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1197964842\">Epic Games\u003c/a> over Google’s grip on Android app distribution, the case behind this week’s changes to the Play Store. The resulting injunction from U.S. Judge James Donato began forcing the Play store to open to rival app stores in the U.S. on Wednesday, one day before Brussels levied a fine on Google. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yelp welcomed the EU decision. David Segal, the company’s vice president of public policy, said in a statement that Google has “consistently chosen to unilaterally degrade its own user experience by removing functionality, which is the telltale mark of a monopolist.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Tejas Narechania, a law professor at UC Berkeley who studies technology policy and platform regulation, said the European ruling is unlikely to have direct legal consequences for U.S. cases. Nonetheless, \u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>Google lost, and I think that perception will affect [U.S.] juries going forward.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“From a technical legal perspective, the EU decision doesn’t set a precedent that Yelp or Epic could use in their lawsuits,” Narechania said. “But I think it contributes to a perception and atmosphere that some of these large companies are not always acting in consumers’ best interests and are sometimes acting unfairly.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, Narechania questioned whether $1 billion registers at a company Google’s size, calling it roughly a day’s worth of profit and less than 1% of what Google will spend on AI infrastructure this year.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> workers signed, sealed and delivered a petition to Google and Alphabet Inc. CEO Sundar Pichai on Thursday, asking for more protections against layoffs. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Members of the Alphabet Workers Union descended on the company’s Mountain View campus to deliver the petition, signed by 4,500 employees. While the union leaders said that Pichai did not meet with them, they described a productive conversation with one of his staff members. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>KQED reached out to Google for comment but did not receive a response. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Speakers at Thursday’s press conference shared their experiences with layoffs. One speaker told a story about their colleague arriving at “take your child to work day” with a four-year-old in tow only to learn that they no longer had a job. Another talked about how some employees’ layoffs cost them visa sponsorships and threatened their ability to stay in the U.S. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-09-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12091456\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-09-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-09-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-09-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Google employees rally at the Mountain View Google campus on July 16, 2026, to demand job security protections. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The protest came at a time of mounting uncertainty for tech industry employees, many of whom are contending with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12090173/too-old-for-silicon-valley-think-again-ai-is-changing-the-math\">a labor market that’s being radically reshaped\u003c/a> by artificial intelligence and a housing market that’s becoming rapidly less affordable as AI companies begin their \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/08/technology/san-francisco-home-sales-openai-anthropic-ipo.html\">IPOs\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since 2022, companies like Oracle, Meta, LinkedIn and Amazon have \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084655/after-meta-layoffs-newsom-signs-ai-order-to-protect-workers-and-jobs\">laid off thousands of employees\u003c/a>, citing the need to shift spending elsewhere to meet AI needs, such as data center construction. In May, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order focused on preparing workers and businesses for job disruptions driven by AI, including policy options such as severance standards and expanded unemployment insurance. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At Thursday’s press conference, union president and software engineer Parul Koul said that the campaign started in January 2023 when 12,000 Google employees were laid off “overnight.” The movement steadily gained momentum as the waves of mass layoffs continued, Koul said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Every time Google management has said it was a difficult decision. It was a response to economic headwinds,” Koul said, referencing the rounds of layoffs. “The reality is, in that same time period, Google’s valuation has gone from over $1 trillion to over $4 trillion.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Recent reporting from \u003cem>TechCrunch\u003c/em> suggests that Google has let go of somewhere between \u003ca href=\"https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/06/the-running-list-major-tech-layoffs-in-2026-where-employers-cited-ai/\">1,500 and 3,000\u003c/a> engineers just this year. Google’s March 2026 Securities and Exchange Commission \u003ca href=\"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1652044/000165204426000043/googexhibit991q12026.htm\">filing\u003c/a> indicates that the company has over 190,000 employees. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“These layoffs and cuts are not difficult decisions, but simply profit being put over the people that make this company run,” Koul said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Another speaker pointed out that Google “never performed layoffs before 2023,” despite seeing “a decrease in profits during 2008.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Organizers framed the layoffs as a chapter of a longer history of exploitation and labor organizing. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12091455\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-06-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-06-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-06-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Parul Koul, a software engineer, speaks alongside fellow employees during a rally at the Google campus in Mountain View on July 16, 2026, to demand job security protections. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The same types of people decades ago told workers that we couldn’t have a 40-hour work week, that long hours and burnout were the cost of doing business. They told us that a weekend was impossible, that health and safety standards were impossible,” Koul said. “Workers before us have proved that all of those things are possible and more, and the only barrier to us achieving them is how organized we are.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Googlers’ petition calls for guaranteed severance, for voluntary exit packages to become an established policy and for the option to take severance as an extended paid leave instead of a lump sum to preserve their healthcare and immigration status. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They also demanded an end to the Googler Reviews and Development performance review system — known as “GRAD” — a bell curve-style grading system for employees, according to Meghan Day, an employee speaking at the event.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/shotchkiss\">\u003cem>Sarah Hotchkiss\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>At Thursday’s press conference, union president and software engineer Parul Koul said that the campaign started in January 2023 when 12,000 Google employees were laid off “overnight.” The movement steadily gained momentum as the waves of mass layoffs continued, Koul said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Every time Google management has said it was a difficult decision. It was a response to economic headwinds,” Koul said, referencing the rounds of layoffs. “The reality is, in that same time period, Google’s valuation has gone from over $1 trillion to over $4 trillion.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Recent reporting from \u003cem>TechCrunch\u003c/em> suggests that Google has let go of somewhere between \u003ca href=\"https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/06/the-running-list-major-tech-layoffs-in-2026-where-employers-cited-ai/\">1,500 and 3,000\u003c/a> engineers just this year. Google’s March 2026 Securities and Exchange Commission \u003ca href=\"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1652044/000165204426000043/googexhibit991q12026.htm\">filing\u003c/a> indicates that the company has over 190,000 employees. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“These layoffs and cuts are not difficult decisions, but simply profit being put over the people that make this company run,” Koul said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Another speaker pointed out that Google “never performed layoffs before 2023,” despite seeing “a decrease in profits during 2008.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>They also demanded an end to the Googler Reviews and Development performance review system — known as “GRAD” — a bell curve-style grading system for employees, according to Meghan Day, an employee speaking at the event.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/shotchkiss\">\u003cem>Sarah Hotchkiss\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> workers signed, sealed and delivered a petition to Google and Alphabet Inc. CEO Sundar Pichai on Thursday, asking for more protections against layoffs. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Members of the Alphabet Workers Union descended on the company’s Mountain View campus to deliver the petition, signed by 4,500 employees. While the union leaders said that Pichai did not meet with them, they described a productive conversation with one of his staff members. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>KQED reached out to Google for comment but did not receive a response. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Speakers at Thursday’s press conference shared their experiences with layoffs. One speaker told a story about their colleague arriving at “take your child to work day” with a four-year-old in tow only to learn that they no longer had a job. Another talked about how some employees’ layoffs cost them visa sponsorships and threatened their ability to stay in the U.S. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-09-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12091456\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-09-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-09-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-09-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Google employees rally at the Mountain View Google campus on July 16, 2026, to demand job security protections. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The protest came at a time of mounting uncertainty for tech industry employees, many of whom are contending with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12090173/too-old-for-silicon-valley-think-again-ai-is-changing-the-math\">a labor market that’s being radically reshaped\u003c/a> by artificial intelligence and a housing market that’s becoming rapidly less affordable as AI companies begin their \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/08/technology/san-francisco-home-sales-openai-anthropic-ipo.html\">IPOs\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since 2022, companies like Oracle, Meta, LinkedIn and Amazon have \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084655/after-meta-layoffs-newsom-signs-ai-order-to-protect-workers-and-jobs\">laid off thousands of employees\u003c/a>, citing the need to shift spending elsewhere to meet AI needs, such as data center construction. In May, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order focused on preparing workers and businesses for job disruptions driven by AI, including policy options such as severance standards and expanded unemployment insurance. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At Thursday’s press conference, union president and software engineer Parul Koul said that the campaign started in January 2023 when 12,000 Google employees were laid off “overnight.” The movement steadily gained momentum as the waves of mass layoffs continued, Koul said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Every time Google management has said it was a difficult decision. It was a response to economic headwinds,” Koul said, referencing the rounds of layoffs. “The reality is, in that same time period, Google’s valuation has gone from over $1 trillion to over $4 trillion.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Recent reporting from \u003cem>TechCrunch\u003c/em> suggests that Google has let go of somewhere between \u003ca href=\"https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/06/the-running-list-major-tech-layoffs-in-2026-where-employers-cited-ai/\">1,500 and 3,000\u003c/a> engineers just this year. Google’s March 2026 Securities and Exchange Commission \u003ca href=\"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1652044/000165204426000043/googexhibit991q12026.htm\">filing\u003c/a> indicates that the company has over 190,000 employees. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“These layoffs and cuts are not difficult decisions, but simply profit being put over the people that make this company run,” Koul said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Another speaker pointed out that Google “never performed layoffs before 2023,” despite seeing “a decrease in profits during 2008.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Organizers framed the layoffs as a chapter of a longer history of exploitation and labor organizing. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12091455\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-06-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-06-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260716-GOOGLEUNION-06-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Parul Koul, a software engineer, speaks alongside fellow employees during a rally at the Google campus in Mountain View on July 16, 2026, to demand job security protections. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The same types of people decades ago told workers that we couldn’t have a 40-hour work week, that long hours and burnout were the cost of doing business. They told us that a weekend was impossible, that health and safety standards were impossible,” Koul said. “Workers before us have proved that all of those things are possible and more, and the only barrier to us achieving them is how organized we are.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Googlers’ petition calls for guaranteed severance, for voluntary exit packages to become an established policy and for the option to take severance as an extended paid leave instead of a lump sum to preserve their healthcare and immigration status. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They also demanded an end to the Googler Reviews and Development performance review system — known as “GRAD” — a bell curve-style grading system for employees, according to Meghan Day, an employee speaking at the event.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/shotchkiss\">\u003cem>Sarah Hotchkiss\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Too Old for Silicon Valley? Think Again. AI Is Changing the Math",
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"content": "\u003cp>Longtime tech worker Ben Kovitz grew up far from \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/siliconvalley\">Silicon Valley\u003c/a> — in Appleton, Wisconsin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If fewer than 26 inches of snow fell in a night, they wouldn’t close school, because they had the plows to clear those streets by morning,” Kovitz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jobs pulled him to sunny California first in the 1980s, where he spent about 15 years in tech. His first full-time programming job was at a small company in Encino called Information Management Systems, where he learned, as he puts it, “most of what I know.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Perhaps his most prestigious gig was at Palm, Inc., the consumer electronics and software pioneer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The perks weren’t as lavish as at Google during the “glory days” of Silicon Valley employment, but there was a ping pong table, and the cafeteria was “fantastic,” which meant a lot to the young foodie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He eventually pivoted to academia, feeling he could be “paid to indulge my curiosity and teach, which are two things that I would do all the time if I could,” pursued a Ph.D. in cognitive science and computer science at Indiana University, and became a\u003ca href=\"https://www.ratemyprofessors.com/professor/3045066\"> computer science professor\u003c/a> at Cal Poly Humboldt.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12088445\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12088445\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00297_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00297_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00297_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00297_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ben Kovitz poses for a portrait at his place of work at Impulse Labs in San Francisco on June 19, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ / KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But when Kovitz decided last year to return to full-time work in Silicon Valley, he discovered a labor market \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084655/after-meta-layoffs-newsom-signs-ai-order-to-protect-workers-and-jobs\">dramatically reshaped\u003c/a> by artificial intelligence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He’d reinvented himself before. The question was whether the industry would let him do it again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It turns out, yes. For all of Silicon Valley’s recent \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11939910/a-layoff-spree-at-bay-area-tech-companies\">mass layoffs\u003c/a> and historic \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/perspectives/201503250643/older-and-out-of-work-in-silicon-valley\">ageism\u003c/a>, experienced engineers like Kovitz who can confidently work with AI may have a better chance of riding tech’s next wave than the news headlines suggest. But to survive the brutal hiring gauntlet, they just might need to invest in help — both human and AI.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Is the market leaning in favor of experience?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Overall, tech jobs are surging. Online employment marketplace ZipRecruiter, which tracks job postings in IT and computer science, reports they were up 16.7% year-over-year nationally in May.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But that rosy picture looks different depending on your experience level. The share of senior-level job postings has risen to 43.1%, up from 38.8% a year ago. At the same time, the share of entry-level job postings has fallen slightly, from 8.1% to 7.4%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A key challenge within this job market is a distinct preference for senior or highly-skilled talent over entry-level hires,” ZipRecruiter labor economist Nicole Bachaud wrote to KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10987745\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-10987745 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2016/06/gettyimages-186125057-e35bb49a8d56f4c7fe56263444f7b0703ecaede7-e1465833964313.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1440\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">LinkedIn logos are displayed on laptop computers \u003ccite>(Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg-Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>That’s not great news for newly minted college graduates, but it is a hopeful sign for Kovitz and others with decades of experience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, more than a quarter of employers now ask for AI skills. That’s nearly double the share a year ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This surge is primarily fueled by businesses expanding their AI integrations, products, and services, creating high demand for workers to implement and deploy these new tools,” Bachaud wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fastest-growing roles in software engineering aren’t traditional coding jobs, according to Kory Kantenga, head of economics for the Americas at LinkedIn. They’re positions like “forward-deployed engineer,” a title \u003ca href=\"https://newsletter.pragmaticengineer.com/p/forward-deployed-engineers\">pioneered\u003c/a> by companies like Palantir to describe engineers who embed directly with clients to install, customize and troubleshoot AI tools on-site.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>LinkedIn has seen an 18-fold increase in such roles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Those are the roles that we see have a lot of momentum,” Kantenga said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>How Ben Did It\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>While shy about sharing his exact age, Kovitz will say he’s old enough “to have watched\u003ca href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/history/apollo-16-launches-to-the-moon/\"> moon shots\u003c/a> on television” as a boy in the early 1970s, and to have programmed computers with \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KG2M4ttzBnY\">punch cards\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He’s also old enough to know the Silicon Valley job market is vastly different from the one he learned to navigate at the start of his career. Today, AI defines not only the jobs, but the job search as well.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Applicants use AI to fire off applications while employers use AI to screen them. The impacts are especially acute in Silicon Valley, where the internet has turned many job openings into a worldwide competition with thousands of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085049/even-some-tech-workers-cant-afford-to-stay-when-the-bay-is-this-expensive\">well-qualified applicants\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11985952\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11985952 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/AP24134775174210-scaled-e1770337042768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The OpenAI logo is seen on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen displaying output from ChatGPT, March 21, 2023. \u003ccite>(Michael Dwyer/Associated Press)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I watched a friend struggle for a year after he finished his master’s degree,” he said, “and filling out applications every single day, hours a day. It took him a year to get a job.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kovitz decided he needed to pay for professional help to reduce the strength and duration of the struggle ahead of him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Reducing that by a few months and also reducing the sheer pain of it, that is easily worth it,” Kovitz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He signed up with two companies that offer job search support:\u003ca href=\"https://www.applypass.com\"> ApplyPass\u003c/a> and Resume Wizard 101, which has recently rebranded to \u003ca href=\"https://careerlander.com\">Career Lander\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Resume Wizard assigned Kovitz a “reverse recruiter” who sent him new prospects daily, including many that Kovitz might never have considered on his own. The recruiter then filled out about 100 applications a month on his behalf.[aside postID=news_12089434 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/CAT-%E2%80%94-The-Bay-Feed-Drop.img_.png']ApplyPass used an AI agent to fire off applications at industrial volume — 400 a week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Given the volume of “cold applications” coming at employers, it’s essential job seekers — or agents acting on their behalf — reach out to the relevant person at the company who has some influence over the hiring process, according to Neil Bhatt, Career Lander’s founder and CEO. “The conversion rate (from application to interview) skyrockets when you actually do some sort of networking.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kovitz said Resume Wizard 101’s human touch led to a higher rate of employer responses. But ApplyPass isn’t solely automated. The company provided a coach to help navigate “some of the weird things they do in software engineering interviews today.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After every interview, Kovitz shared how he responded to certain questions, and the ApplyPass coach suggested alternative approaches.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We talked about what went right and what went badly,” Kovitz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These services aren’t cheap. ApplyPass’s auto-apply plans range from free to about $199 a month, while Resume Wizard 101’s human-run packages range from roughly $300 for a single résumé revision to $10,000 for full ‘career search management.’\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12088446\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12088446\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00353_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00353_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00353_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00353_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ben Kovitz poses for a portrait at his place of work at Impulse Labs in San Francisco on June 19, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ / KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But senior software engineers in San Francisco earn a median total compensation north of $270,000 a year, according to Glassdoor, so Kovitz figured the math was likely to pencil out for him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He was also surprised to find some prospective employers that want proof a software engineer can work with AI. “Go at it with AI,” he was instructed in one memorable interview. “Just throw everything you’ve got at it. Let’s see how you do it,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This was new to Kovitz, but he dove in with gusto. “I blasted out 2,000 lines of code and solved the problem,” Kovitz said. “But I also saw that the solution wasn’t that great.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kovitz said he thinks getting useful work out of an AI coding agent takes judgment that only comes with experience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As a senior engineer, Kovitz argued, he was able to look at those 2,000 machine-generated lines of code, recognize their shortcomings, and then know what to do about it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of what you do with AI is you work out a plan, a little conversation with the AI, because if you just tell the AI ‘Do this thing,’ with no plan, it is going to make a gigantic mess, and you are going to spend a week debugging it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Effective prompts require understanding the code and what the company wants from it at a granular level.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You need to know how all kinds of things can go wrong. Junior programmers don’t have that. They haven’t seen the development of code over a long period of time,” Kovitz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s really a game of marketing at the end of the day,” said Bhatt at Career Lander. He said any employer is going to choose the person who can best explain how they use their experience to help this company. “The better job you’re doing at articulating how you can solve their problems, the easier it becomes to land that position.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a survey of 400 engineering leaders in the \u003ca href=\"https://karat.com/engineering-interview-trends-2026/\">U.S., India and China\u003c/a> by Karat, a company that runs technical interviews for hire, 73% said a strong engineer is worth at least three times their total compensation, something they specifically attributed to AI’s impact on productivity. The same survey found that AI is widening the gap between strong and weaker engineers.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>So where did Ben land?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Kovitz landed a job after a six-month hunt — slightly less than average for the information sector, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat32.htm\">Bureau of Labor Statistics\u003c/a>, which tracks tech workers as part of that larger group. After submitting what he estimates was around 3,000 job applications, Kovitz got a software engineering job at\u003ca href=\"https://www.impulselabs.com/the-difference?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23532288434&gbraid=0AAAAA9ieg0kwGUYoidiYsGrH1-yL_JMGl&gclid=Cj0KCQjwlqTRBhCBARIsANrkrxht1bbHUuOgRW2K2gBHBaZH3ZkB4H3XN_j9DNhIQ9zIVy-CdAhvtWEaAjBKEALw_wcB\"> Impulse Labs\u003c/a>, a San Francisco company that makes \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/impulse-cooktop-review/\">high-end induction stoves\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He’s happy with the job and turned other offers down to take it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Their engineering culture makes quality paramount even as they move fast,” Kovitz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Also, as a foodie, Kovitz loves sitting with a stovetop next to his desk for hands-on testing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12088888\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12088888 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260625-Too-Old-for-a-New-Job-in-Silicon-Valley-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260625-Too-Old-for-a-New-Job-in-Silicon-Valley-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260625-Too-Old-for-a-New-Job-in-Silicon-Valley-01-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260625-Too-Old-for-a-New-Job-in-Silicon-Valley-01-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An induction stovetop in the kitchen at San Francisco-based Impulse Labs. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Ben Kovitz)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Does he work with AI on the new job?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Yes. Most of the day, every day,” he said, for a wide variety of things that would otherwise take him much longer. They range from finding the relevant parts of a large program to work on, to writing small bits of code in a language he doesn’t know well, to reviewing code for errors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“AI is both amazing when it works well, and amazingly unreliable, so I have to keep a close eye on it,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He’s glad the job hunt is finally in his rearview mirror, but Kovitz is philosophical about the effort.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“While it was grueling, it was also a great adventure,” he said. “I learned all kinds of stuff about industries that I’d never known anything about before.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When he applied for a job with a robotaxi company, he taught himself the basics of motion planning, the math behind how a self-driving car navigates. For another set of interviews, he picked up some basics about satellites.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kovitz’s facility with math and science, not to mention his natural curiosity and enthusiasm for intellectual challenges, gave him the kind of career flexibility only the most elite coders have enjoyed in recent decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12090182\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1999px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12090182\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260619-benkovitz00441_TV_qed-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260619-benkovitz00441_TV_qed-2.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260619-benkovitz00441_TV_qed-2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260619-benkovitz00441_TV_qed-2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ben Kovitz poses for a portrait at his place of work at Impulse Labs in San Francisco on June 19, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ / KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But he also maintained a positive attitude by consciously framing the search as a good thing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was an exciting learning experience,” Kovitz said. “It was part of life’s adventure.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His advice for others still looking?\u003c/p>\n\u003col>\n\u003cli>Get help if you can afford it.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Treat the search like an eight-hour job and knock off afterward, so the rejection doesn’t grind you down: “You need to protect your morale.”\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Don’t go into job interviews with an attitude of desperation. “I’m not there to get the job,” Kovitz said. “I’m there to find out if I want the job.” He added, “It’s wise to be fussy,” and hold out for an employer “that has a culture that you like, where the work is meaningful to you.”\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Treat this as a numbers game: “You know, you are probably going to roll the dice 50 or 100, 150 times before you actually get a good [position].”\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good, as the saying goes: “There are plenty of perfectly good jobs out there for lots of people.”\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ol>\n\u003cp>https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdk3i2DjzVyovGlneUjqudUOXk1699l6Ea-xE4ZgFEi2ApRIQ/viewform?usp=dialog\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Now that AI can do a lot of the work of junior programmers, Silicon Valley employers want engineers who can confidently direct it. For one experienced engineer, that shift was an opening.\r\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Longtime tech worker Ben Kovitz grew up far from \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/siliconvalley\">Silicon Valley\u003c/a> — in Appleton, Wisconsin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If fewer than 26 inches of snow fell in a night, they wouldn’t close school, because they had the plows to clear those streets by morning,” Kovitz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jobs pulled him to sunny California first in the 1980s, where he spent about 15 years in tech. His first full-time programming job was at a small company in Encino called Information Management Systems, where he learned, as he puts it, “most of what I know.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Perhaps his most prestigious gig was at Palm, Inc., the consumer electronics and software pioneer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The perks weren’t as lavish as at Google during the “glory days” of Silicon Valley employment, but there was a ping pong table, and the cafeteria was “fantastic,” which meant a lot to the young foodie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He eventually pivoted to academia, feeling he could be “paid to indulge my curiosity and teach, which are two things that I would do all the time if I could,” pursued a Ph.D. in cognitive science and computer science at Indiana University, and became a\u003ca href=\"https://www.ratemyprofessors.com/professor/3045066\"> computer science professor\u003c/a> at Cal Poly Humboldt.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12088445\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12088445\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00297_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00297_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00297_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00297_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ben Kovitz poses for a portrait at his place of work at Impulse Labs in San Francisco on June 19, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ / KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But when Kovitz decided last year to return to full-time work in Silicon Valley, he discovered a labor market \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084655/after-meta-layoffs-newsom-signs-ai-order-to-protect-workers-and-jobs\">dramatically reshaped\u003c/a> by artificial intelligence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He’d reinvented himself before. The question was whether the industry would let him do it again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It turns out, yes. For all of Silicon Valley’s recent \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11939910/a-layoff-spree-at-bay-area-tech-companies\">mass layoffs\u003c/a> and historic \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/perspectives/201503250643/older-and-out-of-work-in-silicon-valley\">ageism\u003c/a>, experienced engineers like Kovitz who can confidently work with AI may have a better chance of riding tech’s next wave than the news headlines suggest. But to survive the brutal hiring gauntlet, they just might need to invest in help — both human and AI.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Is the market leaning in favor of experience?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Overall, tech jobs are surging. Online employment marketplace ZipRecruiter, which tracks job postings in IT and computer science, reports they were up 16.7% year-over-year nationally in May.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But that rosy picture looks different depending on your experience level. The share of senior-level job postings has risen to 43.1%, up from 38.8% a year ago. At the same time, the share of entry-level job postings has fallen slightly, from 8.1% to 7.4%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A key challenge within this job market is a distinct preference for senior or highly-skilled talent over entry-level hires,” ZipRecruiter labor economist Nicole Bachaud wrote to KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10987745\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-10987745 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2016/06/gettyimages-186125057-e35bb49a8d56f4c7fe56263444f7b0703ecaede7-e1465833964313.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1440\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">LinkedIn logos are displayed on laptop computers \u003ccite>(Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg-Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>That’s not great news for newly minted college graduates, but it is a hopeful sign for Kovitz and others with decades of experience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, more than a quarter of employers now ask for AI skills. That’s nearly double the share a year ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This surge is primarily fueled by businesses expanding their AI integrations, products, and services, creating high demand for workers to implement and deploy these new tools,” Bachaud wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fastest-growing roles in software engineering aren’t traditional coding jobs, according to Kory Kantenga, head of economics for the Americas at LinkedIn. They’re positions like “forward-deployed engineer,” a title \u003ca href=\"https://newsletter.pragmaticengineer.com/p/forward-deployed-engineers\">pioneered\u003c/a> by companies like Palantir to describe engineers who embed directly with clients to install, customize and troubleshoot AI tools on-site.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>LinkedIn has seen an 18-fold increase in such roles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Those are the roles that we see have a lot of momentum,” Kantenga said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>How Ben Did It\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>While shy about sharing his exact age, Kovitz will say he’s old enough “to have watched\u003ca href=\"https://www.nasa.gov/history/apollo-16-launches-to-the-moon/\"> moon shots\u003c/a> on television” as a boy in the early 1970s, and to have programmed computers with \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KG2M4ttzBnY\">punch cards\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He’s also old enough to know the Silicon Valley job market is vastly different from the one he learned to navigate at the start of his career. Today, AI defines not only the jobs, but the job search as well.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Applicants use AI to fire off applications while employers use AI to screen them. The impacts are especially acute in Silicon Valley, where the internet has turned many job openings into a worldwide competition with thousands of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085049/even-some-tech-workers-cant-afford-to-stay-when-the-bay-is-this-expensive\">well-qualified applicants\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11985952\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11985952 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/AP24134775174210-scaled-e1770337042768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The OpenAI logo is seen on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen displaying output from ChatGPT, March 21, 2023. \u003ccite>(Michael Dwyer/Associated Press)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I watched a friend struggle for a year after he finished his master’s degree,” he said, “and filling out applications every single day, hours a day. It took him a year to get a job.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kovitz decided he needed to pay for professional help to reduce the strength and duration of the struggle ahead of him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Reducing that by a few months and also reducing the sheer pain of it, that is easily worth it,” Kovitz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He signed up with two companies that offer job search support:\u003ca href=\"https://www.applypass.com\"> ApplyPass\u003c/a> and Resume Wizard 101, which has recently rebranded to \u003ca href=\"https://careerlander.com\">Career Lander\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Resume Wizard assigned Kovitz a “reverse recruiter” who sent him new prospects daily, including many that Kovitz might never have considered on his own. The recruiter then filled out about 100 applications a month on his behalf.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>ApplyPass used an AI agent to fire off applications at industrial volume — 400 a week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Given the volume of “cold applications” coming at employers, it’s essential job seekers — or agents acting on their behalf — reach out to the relevant person at the company who has some influence over the hiring process, according to Neil Bhatt, Career Lander’s founder and CEO. “The conversion rate (from application to interview) skyrockets when you actually do some sort of networking.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kovitz said Resume Wizard 101’s human touch led to a higher rate of employer responses. But ApplyPass isn’t solely automated. The company provided a coach to help navigate “some of the weird things they do in software engineering interviews today.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After every interview, Kovitz shared how he responded to certain questions, and the ApplyPass coach suggested alternative approaches.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We talked about what went right and what went badly,” Kovitz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These services aren’t cheap. ApplyPass’s auto-apply plans range from free to about $199 a month, while Resume Wizard 101’s human-run packages range from roughly $300 for a single résumé revision to $10,000 for full ‘career search management.’\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12088446\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12088446\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00353_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00353_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00353_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260619-benkovitz00353_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ben Kovitz poses for a portrait at his place of work at Impulse Labs in San Francisco on June 19, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ / KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But senior software engineers in San Francisco earn a median total compensation north of $270,000 a year, according to Glassdoor, so Kovitz figured the math was likely to pencil out for him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He was also surprised to find some prospective employers that want proof a software engineer can work with AI. “Go at it with AI,” he was instructed in one memorable interview. “Just throw everything you’ve got at it. Let’s see how you do it,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This was new to Kovitz, but he dove in with gusto. “I blasted out 2,000 lines of code and solved the problem,” Kovitz said. “But I also saw that the solution wasn’t that great.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kovitz said he thinks getting useful work out of an AI coding agent takes judgment that only comes with experience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As a senior engineer, Kovitz argued, he was able to look at those 2,000 machine-generated lines of code, recognize their shortcomings, and then know what to do about it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of what you do with AI is you work out a plan, a little conversation with the AI, because if you just tell the AI ‘Do this thing,’ with no plan, it is going to make a gigantic mess, and you are going to spend a week debugging it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Effective prompts require understanding the code and what the company wants from it at a granular level.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You need to know how all kinds of things can go wrong. Junior programmers don’t have that. They haven’t seen the development of code over a long period of time,” Kovitz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s really a game of marketing at the end of the day,” said Bhatt at Career Lander. He said any employer is going to choose the person who can best explain how they use their experience to help this company. “The better job you’re doing at articulating how you can solve their problems, the easier it becomes to land that position.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a survey of 400 engineering leaders in the \u003ca href=\"https://karat.com/engineering-interview-trends-2026/\">U.S., India and China\u003c/a> by Karat, a company that runs technical interviews for hire, 73% said a strong engineer is worth at least three times their total compensation, something they specifically attributed to AI’s impact on productivity. The same survey found that AI is widening the gap between strong and weaker engineers.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>So where did Ben land?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Kovitz landed a job after a six-month hunt — slightly less than average for the information sector, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat32.htm\">Bureau of Labor Statistics\u003c/a>, which tracks tech workers as part of that larger group. After submitting what he estimates was around 3,000 job applications, Kovitz got a software engineering job at\u003ca href=\"https://www.impulselabs.com/the-difference?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23532288434&gbraid=0AAAAA9ieg0kwGUYoidiYsGrH1-yL_JMGl&gclid=Cj0KCQjwlqTRBhCBARIsANrkrxht1bbHUuOgRW2K2gBHBaZH3ZkB4H3XN_j9DNhIQ9zIVy-CdAhvtWEaAjBKEALw_wcB\"> Impulse Labs\u003c/a>, a San Francisco company that makes \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/impulse-cooktop-review/\">high-end induction stoves\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He’s happy with the job and turned other offers down to take it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Their engineering culture makes quality paramount even as they move fast,” Kovitz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Also, as a foodie, Kovitz loves sitting with a stovetop next to his desk for hands-on testing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12088888\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12088888 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260625-Too-Old-for-a-New-Job-in-Silicon-Valley-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260625-Too-Old-for-a-New-Job-in-Silicon-Valley-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260625-Too-Old-for-a-New-Job-in-Silicon-Valley-01-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260625-Too-Old-for-a-New-Job-in-Silicon-Valley-01-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An induction stovetop in the kitchen at San Francisco-based Impulse Labs. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Ben Kovitz)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Does he work with AI on the new job?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Yes. Most of the day, every day,” he said, for a wide variety of things that would otherwise take him much longer. They range from finding the relevant parts of a large program to work on, to writing small bits of code in a language he doesn’t know well, to reviewing code for errors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“AI is both amazing when it works well, and amazingly unreliable, so I have to keep a close eye on it,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He’s glad the job hunt is finally in his rearview mirror, but Kovitz is philosophical about the effort.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“While it was grueling, it was also a great adventure,” he said. “I learned all kinds of stuff about industries that I’d never known anything about before.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When he applied for a job with a robotaxi company, he taught himself the basics of motion planning, the math behind how a self-driving car navigates. For another set of interviews, he picked up some basics about satellites.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kovitz’s facility with math and science, not to mention his natural curiosity and enthusiasm for intellectual challenges, gave him the kind of career flexibility only the most elite coders have enjoyed in recent decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12090182\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1999px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12090182\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260619-benkovitz00441_TV_qed-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260619-benkovitz00441_TV_qed-2.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260619-benkovitz00441_TV_qed-2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/260619-benkovitz00441_TV_qed-2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ben Kovitz poses for a portrait at his place of work at Impulse Labs in San Francisco on June 19, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ / KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But he also maintained a positive attitude by consciously framing the search as a good thing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was an exciting learning experience,” Kovitz said. “It was part of life’s adventure.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His advice for others still looking?\u003c/p>\n\u003col>\n\u003cli>Get help if you can afford it.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Treat the search like an eight-hour job and knock off afterward, so the rejection doesn’t grind you down: “You need to protect your morale.”\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Don’t go into job interviews with an attitude of desperation. “I’m not there to get the job,” Kovitz said. “I’m there to find out if I want the job.” He added, “It’s wise to be fussy,” and hold out for an employer “that has a culture that you like, where the work is meaningful to you.”\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Treat this as a numbers game: “You know, you are probably going to roll the dice 50 or 100, 150 times before you actually get a good [position].”\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good, as the saying goes: “There are plenty of perfectly good jobs out there for lots of people.”\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ol>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cdiv class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__shortcodes__shortcodeWrapper'>\n \u003ciframe\n src='https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdk3i2DjzVyovGlneUjqudUOXk1699l6Ea-xE4ZgFEi2ApRIQ/viewform?usp=dialog?embedded=true'\n title='https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdk3i2DjzVyovGlneUjqudUOXk1699l6Ea-xE4ZgFEi2ApRIQ/viewform?usp=dialog'\n width='760' height='500'\n frameborder='0'\n marginheight='0' marginwidth='0'>\u003c/iframe>\u003c/div>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>When \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> Deputy Public Defender Sierra Villaran set out to explain to a judge just how sweeping a single police warrant could be, she cited a striking estimate: to comply with the warrant, Google likely had to search the location data of some 500 million people — all to identify six possible suspects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you have location history enabled on your phone, they searched you,” Villaran said. “They searched me.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That kind of data dragnet is subject to the Fourth Amendment, the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/supreme-court-of-the-united-states\">U.S. Supreme Court\u003c/a> ruled Monday, in a decision civil liberties advocates are calling a significant, if incomplete, victory in the fight over digital surveillance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In \u003cem>Chatrie v. United States\u003c/em>, the justices held 6-3 that people are entitled to a reasonable expectation of privacy in records of where their phones have been, even in public. Writing for the majority, Justice Elena Kagan said police “intrude on that constitutionally protected interest when they demand the information,” even briefly and from a third-party company like Google.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead of naming a suspect and requesting their records, as they would in a traditional warrant, police draw a virtual boundary around a place and a span of time, then ask a company to turn over data on every device inside it — whether or not those people had any link to the crime. In the \u003cem>Chatrie \u003c/em>case, police in Richmond, Virginia, used a so-called “geofence warrant” covering more than 70,000 square meters — more than 13 football fields — of a busy area to find an armed bank robber, vacuuming up data of everyone else nearby in the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“[Geofence warrants are] the equivalent of going to every home, every apartment, every tent in the city,” Villaran said. “I have no reason to suspect that you were there; I’m going to search your phone anyway. That’s the broadest imaginable search.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12082399\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12082399\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GettyImages-2273951119-scaled-e1781111182660.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The U.S. Supreme Court building on May 4, 2026, in Washington, D.C. \u003ccite>(Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The San Francisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation, which filed a \u003ca href=\"https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/25/25-112/399720/20260302152050137_25-112%20Amicus%20Brief.pdf\">brief\u003c/a> in Monday’s case, has fought these warrants for years, arguing they amount to unconstitutional general searches by design. The group \u003ca href=\"https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/06/victory-supreme-court-says-constitution-protects-peoples-location-data\">welcomed \u003c/a>the ruling, saying even brief tracking can reveal intimate details of a person’s life — where they worship, who they associate with, their political activity, their relationships.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EFF said the ruling was important because the justices affirmed that data generated by the apps on a phone belongs to the owner and is protected, even when shared with a tech company.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gadeir Abbas, attorney for the Council on American-Islamic Relations who has represented clients challenging the seizure and search of their phones, said the ruling matters far beyond geofencing. For decades, courts have generally held that information a person gives to a third party, such as a phone carrier or an internet provider, isn’t constitutionally protected — a principle known as the third-party doctrine. The court’s reasoning, he said, breaks from that assumption, at least for location data.[aside postID=news_12088503 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260623-SJFile-02-BL-KQED.jpg']“It’s data that your phone gives to another company automatically as you move about the world,” Abbas said, adding that the court found that sharing it doesn’t surrender a person’s expectation of privacy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The decision is narrow in scope. The justices ruled only that accessing the data is a search; they left it to a lower court to decide whether the specific warrant in the \u003cem>Chatrie \u003c/em>case was valid, a process Abbas estimated could take another five to seven years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The opinion is also limited to smartphone location data, leaving open how it applies to laptops, IP addresses or other digital records.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Abbas sees broader stakes for anyone whose devices can be searched, especially travelers. He has represented clients whose phones were seized repeatedly at the border; one man, he said, had five devices taken before the government relented. Abbas noted that Customs and Border Protection agents can currently search and seize a phone based on what he called a vaguely defined “national security concern,” and that this is a standard he said falls short of reasonable suspicion.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A ruling like this one, he said, “foretells the end of that practice.” He called it “another brick in the wall against that kind of lawless government surveillance.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Villaran noted that the Bay Area has long been a testing ground for this fight. In 2022, a San Francisco court ruled in \u003cem>People v. Dawes\u003c/em> — a case Villaran litigated for the public defender’s office — that a geofence warrant issued to the San Francisco Police Department violated both the Fourth Amendment and California’s electronic privacy law. It was the first time a state court suppressed evidence from such a warrant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12071979\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12071979 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/LaptopCellphoneGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/LaptopCellphoneGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/LaptopCellphoneGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/LaptopCellphoneGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">In Chatrie v. United States, the justices held 6-3 that people are entitled to a reasonable expectation of privacy in records of where their phones have been, even in public. \u003ccite>(D3sign/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>That California law, known as \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/policerecords\">CalECPA\u003c/a>, is part of what makes the state’s protections stronger than what the Supreme Court just established nationally, Villaran said. \u003cem>Chatrie \u003c/em>rests on the Fourth Amendment alone. California layers CalECPA on top, spelling out specific rules the government must follow to obtain electronic data and offering remedies beyond what the Fourth Amendment provides.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Villaran said lasting change is more likely to come from legislation like CalECPA than from individual defendants fighting warrants one at a time. She also noted that Google has largely stopped responding to geofence warrants. However, law enforcement agencies have made the request of other tech companies like Apple, Lyft, Snapchat, Microsoft and Yahoo, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/29/us/politics/supreme-court-geofence-warrant-cell-phones.html\">\u003cem>The\u003c/em> \u003cem>New York Times\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, which makes the ruling still relevant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think that most folks would be horrified to know they were part of a huge dragnet search to see if they were in a certain part of the city at a certain time,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Bay Area-based and national privacy advocates welcomed the decision, which places limits on how cellphone location data is used.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>When \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> Deputy Public Defender Sierra Villaran set out to explain to a judge just how sweeping a single police warrant could be, she cited a striking estimate: to comply with the warrant, Google likely had to search the location data of some 500 million people — all to identify six possible suspects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you have location history enabled on your phone, they searched you,” Villaran said. “They searched me.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That kind of data dragnet is subject to the Fourth Amendment, the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/supreme-court-of-the-united-states\">U.S. Supreme Court\u003c/a> ruled Monday, in a decision civil liberties advocates are calling a significant, if incomplete, victory in the fight over digital surveillance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In \u003cem>Chatrie v. United States\u003c/em>, the justices held 6-3 that people are entitled to a reasonable expectation of privacy in records of where their phones have been, even in public. Writing for the majority, Justice Elena Kagan said police “intrude on that constitutionally protected interest when they demand the information,” even briefly and from a third-party company like Google.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead of naming a suspect and requesting their records, as they would in a traditional warrant, police draw a virtual boundary around a place and a span of time, then ask a company to turn over data on every device inside it — whether or not those people had any link to the crime. In the \u003cem>Chatrie \u003c/em>case, police in Richmond, Virginia, used a so-called “geofence warrant” covering more than 70,000 square meters — more than 13 football fields — of a busy area to find an armed bank robber, vacuuming up data of everyone else nearby in the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“[Geofence warrants are] the equivalent of going to every home, every apartment, every tent in the city,” Villaran said. “I have no reason to suspect that you were there; I’m going to search your phone anyway. That’s the broadest imaginable search.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12082399\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12082399\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/GettyImages-2273951119-scaled-e1781111182660.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The U.S. Supreme Court building on May 4, 2026, in Washington, D.C. \u003ccite>(Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The San Francisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation, which filed a \u003ca href=\"https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/25/25-112/399720/20260302152050137_25-112%20Amicus%20Brief.pdf\">brief\u003c/a> in Monday’s case, has fought these warrants for years, arguing they amount to unconstitutional general searches by design. The group \u003ca href=\"https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/06/victory-supreme-court-says-constitution-protects-peoples-location-data\">welcomed \u003c/a>the ruling, saying even brief tracking can reveal intimate details of a person’s life — where they worship, who they associate with, their political activity, their relationships.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EFF said the ruling was important because the justices affirmed that data generated by the apps on a phone belongs to the owner and is protected, even when shared with a tech company.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gadeir Abbas, attorney for the Council on American-Islamic Relations who has represented clients challenging the seizure and search of their phones, said the ruling matters far beyond geofencing. For decades, courts have generally held that information a person gives to a third party, such as a phone carrier or an internet provider, isn’t constitutionally protected — a principle known as the third-party doctrine. The court’s reasoning, he said, breaks from that assumption, at least for location data.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“It’s data that your phone gives to another company automatically as you move about the world,” Abbas said, adding that the court found that sharing it doesn’t surrender a person’s expectation of privacy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The decision is narrow in scope. The justices ruled only that accessing the data is a search; they left it to a lower court to decide whether the specific warrant in the \u003cem>Chatrie \u003c/em>case was valid, a process Abbas estimated could take another five to seven years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The opinion is also limited to smartphone location data, leaving open how it applies to laptops, IP addresses or other digital records.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Abbas sees broader stakes for anyone whose devices can be searched, especially travelers. He has represented clients whose phones were seized repeatedly at the border; one man, he said, had five devices taken before the government relented. Abbas noted that Customs and Border Protection agents can currently search and seize a phone based on what he called a vaguely defined “national security concern,” and that this is a standard he said falls short of reasonable suspicion.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A ruling like this one, he said, “foretells the end of that practice.” He called it “another brick in the wall against that kind of lawless government surveillance.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Villaran noted that the Bay Area has long been a testing ground for this fight. In 2022, a San Francisco court ruled in \u003cem>People v. Dawes\u003c/em> — a case Villaran litigated for the public defender’s office — that a geofence warrant issued to the San Francisco Police Department violated both the Fourth Amendment and California’s electronic privacy law. It was the first time a state court suppressed evidence from such a warrant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12071979\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12071979 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/LaptopCellphoneGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/LaptopCellphoneGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/LaptopCellphoneGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/LaptopCellphoneGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">In Chatrie v. United States, the justices held 6-3 that people are entitled to a reasonable expectation of privacy in records of where their phones have been, even in public. \u003ccite>(D3sign/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>That California law, known as \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/policerecords\">CalECPA\u003c/a>, is part of what makes the state’s protections stronger than what the Supreme Court just established nationally, Villaran said. \u003cem>Chatrie \u003c/em>rests on the Fourth Amendment alone. California layers CalECPA on top, spelling out specific rules the government must follow to obtain electronic data and offering remedies beyond what the Fourth Amendment provides.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Villaran said lasting change is more likely to come from legislation like CalECPA than from individual defendants fighting warrants one at a time. She also noted that Google has largely stopped responding to geofence warrants. However, law enforcement agencies have made the request of other tech companies like Apple, Lyft, Snapchat, Microsoft and Yahoo, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/29/us/politics/supreme-court-geofence-warrant-cell-phones.html\">\u003cem>The\u003c/em> \u003cem>New York Times\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, which makes the ruling still relevant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think that most folks would be horrified to know they were part of a huge dragnet search to see if they were in a certain part of the city at a certain time,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "surveillance-footage-sheds-light-on-mass-use-of-force-incident-at-womens-prison",
"title": "Surveillance Footage Sheds Light on Mass Use-of-Force Incident at Women's Prison",
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"headTitle": "Surveillance Footage Sheds Light on Mass Use-of-Force Incident at Women’s Prison | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Wednesday, April 15, 2026\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">KQED has obtained surveillance video of a mass use of force incident at the Central California Women’s Facility. It’s the first detailed look at the August 2024 incident that resulted in the largest disciplinary action from a single use of force event. \u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003ca href=\"https://laist.com/news/politics/eric-swalwell-congressman-california-governor-race-sexual-assault-allegations-lonna-drewes\">Another woman has come forward\u003c/a> to accuse former California Congressman Eric Swalwell of sexual assault. Meanwhile, G\u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">overnor Gavin Newsom is \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2026/04/14/governor-newsom-issues-proclamation-setting-special-election-for-california-congressional-district-14/\">calling a special election\u003c/a> to fill Swalwell’s congressional seat. \u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">An independent privacy audit of Google, Meta and Microsoft web traffic in California found the firms may be violating state privacy laws, potentially exposing themselves to significant fines.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>‘I thought I was going to die’: video shows mass force at California women’s prison\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Surveillance footage newly obtained by KQED sheds light on a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12004368/like-a-war-zone-prison-officers-used-unprecedented-force-in-august-attack-incarcerated-women-say\">mass use-of-force incident\u003c/a> at the \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/facility-locator/ccwf/\">Central California Women’s Facility\u003c/a> in 2024. The incident resulted in discipline for more than 40 staff members, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and $1.9 million in payouts to some of the women injured during the incident.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the morning of Aug. 2, 2024, officers relocated more than 150 women to the dining hall in order to conduct a large-scale search of their cells. The women were held there for hours without access to food or medication, as tensions built and temperatures rose above 100 degrees, according to court filings. Officers deployed chemical agents, batons and physical force on dozens of incarcerated people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The surveillance footage, obtained through a public records request to\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california-department-of-corrections-and-rehabilitation\"> CDCR\u003c/a>, provides the first detailed view of how the incident unfolded. CDCR has not released officers’ body-camera video or disciplinary records requested by KQED. Previously leaked footage edited and made public by a \u003ca href=\"https://hectorbravoshow.com/\">former correctional lieutenant turned YouTuber\u003c/a> provided only limited insight into the incident.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Angelina Hernandez, who was inside the dining hall at the time and has since been released, said watching the footage again was emotional. “I really thought I was going to die that day,” Hernandez said. “These officers are supposed to protect us, not attack us.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dozens of officers file into the chow hall around 12:30 p.m. and form what appears to be a skirmish line, many holding pepper spray canisters at the ready, the footage shows. Over several minutes, more officers join the formation, growing to what appears to be 40 to 50 officers positioned across the room. While there is no audio captured on the surveillance footage, things appear tense with some of the incarcerated women gesticulating and shouting at the line of officers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kenneth Jimenez, a retired lieutenant who reviewed the footage, said officers must be facing an imminent threat in order to justify deploying force. Jimenez is familiar with use of force policy, which he taught to both peace officers and civilians across the state. “I don’t see anybody approaching in a threatening manner,” he said as he watched the video. “I don’t see anything that’s imminent,” Jimenez added that instead of using force officers could have instead restrained a small number of individuals and removed them from the scene.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>CDCR did not answer specific questions about whether the force used was excessive, but said policies were violated that day and that “corrective action” was taken.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 class=\"ArticlePage-headline\">\u003ca href=\"https://laist.com/news/politics/eric-swalwell-congressman-california-governor-race-sexual-assault-allegations-lonna-drewes\">\u003cstrong>Another woman accuses former Congressmember Eric Swalwell of sexual assault\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A California woman on Tuesday said she was raped by former Congressman \u003cspan class=\"LinkEnhancement\">\u003ca class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" href=\"https://apnews.com/article/congress-ethics-swalwell-california-governor-a1626c5f4dbcc16c85f4313a8d7e5464\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\">Eric Swalwell\u003c/a>\u003c/span> in 2018 and now plans to make a report to law enforcement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lonna Drewes said during a news conference that the assault occurred at a hotel in Southern California. She said she had one glass of wine that evening and believes Swalwell drugged her before raping her. Swalwell \u003cspan class=\"LinkEnhancement\">\u003ca class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" href=\"https://apnews.com/article/swalwell-democrats-california-governor-campaign-allegations-congress-8b60b0c226f93c691633231053d5ddf9\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\">dropped out\u003c/a>\u003c/span> of the California governor’s race on Sunday and said he would resign from Congress this week following earlier allegations of sexual assault from a different woman. “I did not consent to any sexual activity,” Drewes said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drewes said she was working as a model and owned a fashion software company based in Beverly Hills when she met Swalwell. He offered to help her with connections to further her company and knew she had an interest in local politics. She had met him twice before the night when she says he raped her. That night, the two met at a restaurant opening and were set to attend a political event, she said. On their way to the event, Drewes said Swalwell wanted to stop back at his hotel room to get some paperwork. By the time they reached the room, she said her limbs felt heavy and she felt like she had been drugged. She said Swalwell raped her and later choked her, causing her to lose consciousness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Attorney Sara Azari released a statement Tuesday on Swalwell’s behalf saying he “categorically and unequivocally denies each and every allegation of sexual misconduct and assault that has been leveled against him.” She pledged to “pursue every available legal remedy against those responsible for orchestrating this reprehensible campaign of lies.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This comes on the same day that \u003ca href=\"https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/swalwell-resigning-from-congress-after-sexual-assault-accusations\">Swalwell resigned from Congress.\u003c/a> Governor Gavin Newsom has called \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2026/04/14/governor-newsom-issues-proclamation-setting-special-election-for-california-congressional-district-14/\">a special election for August 18\u003c/a>, to fill the remainder of Swalwell’s term.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 class=\"routes-Site-routes-Post-Title-__Title__title\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12079887/what-is-the-point-of-californias-privacy-laws-if-big-tech-ignores-them\">\u003cstrong>What is the point of California’s privacy laws if Big Tech ignores them?\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>An independent review of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/category/technology\">Microsoft, Meta and Google\u003c/a> web traffic in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> in March found the tech companies may have violated state regulations around internet privacy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://globalprivacyaudit.org/2026/california\">audit\u003c/a>, by \u003ca href=\"https://webxray.ai/\">webXray\u003c/a>, also said that nearly 200 online advertising services ignored “legally defined, globally standard, opt-out signals” around data sharing, along with more than half of nearly 7,000 websites in California, despite user requests to opt-out of cookie tracking, the most visible opt-out mechanism the laws require. This is despite the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11792899/the-california-consumer-privacy-act-mandates-what-again-exactly\">California Consumer Privacy Act\u003c/a>, as expanded by the\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11801063/get-ready-for-another-consumer-privacy-initiative-in-california#:~:text=Listen,to%20the%20Attorney%20General's%20Office.\"> California Privacy Rights Act\u003c/a> and\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11844163/proposition-24-californians-say-yes-to-expanding-on-nations-toughest-data-privacy-law\"> other state privacy legislation\u003c/a>, enforced by both the state attorney general’s office and the California Privacy Protection Agency.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our findings reveal major technology companies simply ignore globally defined opt-out signals, raising the spectre of industrial-scale non-compliance with California requirements,” the \u003ca href=\"https://globalprivacyaudit.org/2026/california\">report’s\u003c/a> website states.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Businesses that sell or share your personal information are legally required to honor the \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/privacy/ccpa/gpc\">Global Privacy Control\u003c/a>, a “stop selling or sharing my data” switch available on web browsers, or as a browser extension.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company that conducted the audit, webXray, was founded by Timothy Libert, a privacy expert who led cookie policy and compliance at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> offices in Sunnyvale from 2021 to 2023. Libert spent 15 years in academia studying the topic and worked as a consultant for national and state regulators before his time at Google.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Wednesday, April 15, 2026\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">KQED has obtained surveillance video of a mass use of force incident at the Central California Women’s Facility. It’s the first detailed look at the August 2024 incident that resulted in the largest disciplinary action from a single use of force event. \u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003ca href=\"https://laist.com/news/politics/eric-swalwell-congressman-california-governor-race-sexual-assault-allegations-lonna-drewes\">Another woman has come forward\u003c/a> to accuse former California Congressman Eric Swalwell of sexual assault. Meanwhile, G\u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">overnor Gavin Newsom is \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2026/04/14/governor-newsom-issues-proclamation-setting-special-election-for-california-congressional-district-14/\">calling a special election\u003c/a> to fill Swalwell’s congressional seat. \u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">An independent privacy audit of Google, Meta and Microsoft web traffic in California found the firms may be violating state privacy laws, potentially exposing themselves to significant fines.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>‘I thought I was going to die’: video shows mass force at California women’s prison\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Surveillance footage newly obtained by KQED sheds light on a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12004368/like-a-war-zone-prison-officers-used-unprecedented-force-in-august-attack-incarcerated-women-say\">mass use-of-force incident\u003c/a> at the \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/facility-locator/ccwf/\">Central California Women’s Facility\u003c/a> in 2024. The incident resulted in discipline for more than 40 staff members, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and $1.9 million in payouts to some of the women injured during the incident.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the morning of Aug. 2, 2024, officers relocated more than 150 women to the dining hall in order to conduct a large-scale search of their cells. The women were held there for hours without access to food or medication, as tensions built and temperatures rose above 100 degrees, according to court filings. Officers deployed chemical agents, batons and physical force on dozens of incarcerated people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The surveillance footage, obtained through a public records request to\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california-department-of-corrections-and-rehabilitation\"> CDCR\u003c/a>, provides the first detailed view of how the incident unfolded. CDCR has not released officers’ body-camera video or disciplinary records requested by KQED. Previously leaked footage edited and made public by a \u003ca href=\"https://hectorbravoshow.com/\">former correctional lieutenant turned YouTuber\u003c/a> provided only limited insight into the incident.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Angelina Hernandez, who was inside the dining hall at the time and has since been released, said watching the footage again was emotional. “I really thought I was going to die that day,” Hernandez said. “These officers are supposed to protect us, not attack us.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dozens of officers file into the chow hall around 12:30 p.m. and form what appears to be a skirmish line, many holding pepper spray canisters at the ready, the footage shows. Over several minutes, more officers join the formation, growing to what appears to be 40 to 50 officers positioned across the room. While there is no audio captured on the surveillance footage, things appear tense with some of the incarcerated women gesticulating and shouting at the line of officers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kenneth Jimenez, a retired lieutenant who reviewed the footage, said officers must be facing an imminent threat in order to justify deploying force. Jimenez is familiar with use of force policy, which he taught to both peace officers and civilians across the state. “I don’t see anybody approaching in a threatening manner,” he said as he watched the video. “I don’t see anything that’s imminent,” Jimenez added that instead of using force officers could have instead restrained a small number of individuals and removed them from the scene.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>CDCR did not answer specific questions about whether the force used was excessive, but said policies were violated that day and that “corrective action” was taken.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 class=\"ArticlePage-headline\">\u003ca href=\"https://laist.com/news/politics/eric-swalwell-congressman-california-governor-race-sexual-assault-allegations-lonna-drewes\">\u003cstrong>Another woman accuses former Congressmember Eric Swalwell of sexual assault\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A California woman on Tuesday said she was raped by former Congressman \u003cspan class=\"LinkEnhancement\">\u003ca class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" href=\"https://apnews.com/article/congress-ethics-swalwell-california-governor-a1626c5f4dbcc16c85f4313a8d7e5464\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\">Eric Swalwell\u003c/a>\u003c/span> in 2018 and now plans to make a report to law enforcement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lonna Drewes said during a news conference that the assault occurred at a hotel in Southern California. She said she had one glass of wine that evening and believes Swalwell drugged her before raping her. Swalwell \u003cspan class=\"LinkEnhancement\">\u003ca class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" href=\"https://apnews.com/article/swalwell-democrats-california-governor-campaign-allegations-congress-8b60b0c226f93c691633231053d5ddf9\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\">dropped out\u003c/a>\u003c/span> of the California governor’s race on Sunday and said he would resign from Congress this week following earlier allegations of sexual assault from a different woman. “I did not consent to any sexual activity,” Drewes said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drewes said she was working as a model and owned a fashion software company based in Beverly Hills when she met Swalwell. He offered to help her with connections to further her company and knew she had an interest in local politics. She had met him twice before the night when she says he raped her. That night, the two met at a restaurant opening and were set to attend a political event, she said. On their way to the event, Drewes said Swalwell wanted to stop back at his hotel room to get some paperwork. By the time they reached the room, she said her limbs felt heavy and she felt like she had been drugged. She said Swalwell raped her and later choked her, causing her to lose consciousness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Attorney Sara Azari released a statement Tuesday on Swalwell’s behalf saying he “categorically and unequivocally denies each and every allegation of sexual misconduct and assault that has been leveled against him.” She pledged to “pursue every available legal remedy against those responsible for orchestrating this reprehensible campaign of lies.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This comes on the same day that \u003ca href=\"https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/swalwell-resigning-from-congress-after-sexual-assault-accusations\">Swalwell resigned from Congress.\u003c/a> Governor Gavin Newsom has called \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2026/04/14/governor-newsom-issues-proclamation-setting-special-election-for-california-congressional-district-14/\">a special election for August 18\u003c/a>, to fill the remainder of Swalwell’s term.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 class=\"routes-Site-routes-Post-Title-__Title__title\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12079887/what-is-the-point-of-californias-privacy-laws-if-big-tech-ignores-them\">\u003cstrong>What is the point of California’s privacy laws if Big Tech ignores them?\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>An independent review of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/category/technology\">Microsoft, Meta and Google\u003c/a> web traffic in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> in March found the tech companies may have violated state regulations around internet privacy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://globalprivacyaudit.org/2026/california\">audit\u003c/a>, by \u003ca href=\"https://webxray.ai/\">webXray\u003c/a>, also said that nearly 200 online advertising services ignored “legally defined, globally standard, opt-out signals” around data sharing, along with more than half of nearly 7,000 websites in California, despite user requests to opt-out of cookie tracking, the most visible opt-out mechanism the laws require. This is despite the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11792899/the-california-consumer-privacy-act-mandates-what-again-exactly\">California Consumer Privacy Act\u003c/a>, as expanded by the\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11801063/get-ready-for-another-consumer-privacy-initiative-in-california#:~:text=Listen,to%20the%20Attorney%20General's%20Office.\"> California Privacy Rights Act\u003c/a> and\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11844163/proposition-24-californians-say-yes-to-expanding-on-nations-toughest-data-privacy-law\"> other state privacy legislation\u003c/a>, enforced by both the state attorney general’s office and the California Privacy Protection Agency.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our findings reveal major technology companies simply ignore globally defined opt-out signals, raising the spectre of industrial-scale non-compliance with California requirements,” the \u003ca href=\"https://globalprivacyaudit.org/2026/california\">report’s\u003c/a> website states.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Businesses that sell or share your personal information are legally required to honor the \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/privacy/ccpa/gpc\">Global Privacy Control\u003c/a>, a “stop selling or sharing my data” switch available on web browsers, or as a browser extension.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company that conducted the audit, webXray, was founded by Timothy Libert, a privacy expert who led cookie policy and compliance at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> offices in Sunnyvale from 2021 to 2023. Libert spent 15 years in academia studying the topic and worked as a consultant for national and state regulators before his time at Google.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "what-is-the-point-of-californias-privacy-laws-if-big-tech-ignores-them",
"title": "What Is the Point of California’s Privacy Laws if Big Tech Ignores Them?",
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"content": "\u003cp>An independent review of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/category/technology\">Microsoft, Meta and Google\u003c/a> web traffic in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> in March found the tech companies may have violated state regulations around internet privacy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://globalprivacyaudit.org/2026/california\">audit\u003c/a>, by \u003ca href=\"https://webxray.ai/\">webXray\u003c/a>, also said that nearly 200 online advertising services ignored “legally defined, globally standard, opt-out signals” around data sharing, along with more than half of nearly 7,000 websites in California, despite user requests to opt-out of cookie tracking, the most visible opt-out mechanism the laws require.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is despite the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11792899/the-california-consumer-privacy-act-mandates-what-again-exactly\">California Consumer Privacy Act\u003c/a>, as expanded by the\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11801063/get-ready-for-another-consumer-privacy-initiative-in-california#:~:text=Listen,to%20the%20Attorney%20General's%20Office.\"> California Privacy Rights Act\u003c/a> and\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11844163/proposition-24-californians-say-yes-to-expanding-on-nations-toughest-data-privacy-law\"> other state privacy legislation\u003c/a>, enforced by both the state attorney general’s office and the California Privacy Protection Agency.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our findings reveal major technology companies simply ignore globally defined opt-out signals, raising the spectre of industrial-scale non-compliance with California requirements,” the \u003ca href=\"https://globalprivacyaudit.org/2026/california\">report’s\u003c/a> website states.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Businesses that sell or share your personal information are legally required to honor the \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/privacy/ccpa/gpc\">Global Privacy Control\u003c/a>, a “stop selling or sharing my data” switch available on web browsers, or as a browser extension.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company that conducted the audit, webXray, was founded by Timothy Libert, a privacy expert who led cookie policy and compliance at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> offices in Sunnyvale from 2021 to 2023. Libert spent 15 years in academia studying the topic and worked as a consultant for national and state regulators before his time at Google.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11773481\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11773481\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut.jpg\" alt=\"computer screen stock image\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut-1200x800.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">With no federal law governing digital privacy, California’s Consumer Privacy Act was the first to offer state residents some control over the use of their data by companies. \u003ccite>(Jack Guez/AFP/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>webXray, his current venture, functions as a white-hat hacker outfit for hire, advising Silicon Valley companies on legal compliance and scouring the internet for privacy violations for law firms pursuing class action suits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Ask the average Californian if they feel they have more privacy now than before the CCPA was passed. I think the answer’s going to be no. And as somebody who has the ability, knowledge and background to measure it, I’m going to say scientifically, the answer is also no,” Libert told KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the webXray audit, Google failed to let users opt out 86% of the time, Meta 69% and Microsoft 50%.[aside postID=news_12079472 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/GettyImages-1501991882.jpg']“Google’s failure to honor the [Global Privacy Control] opt-out signal is easy to find in network traffic,” the report noted, concluding, “This non-compliance is easy to spot, hiding in plain sight.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Consumer privacy is a top priority for us, and we remain committed to transparency and compliance with applicable privacy requirements,” a Microsoft spokesperson said by email. “As outlined in our Privacy Statement, when we receive a GPC signal, we opt the user out of sharing personal data with third parties for personalized advertising, and our advertising systems are designed to reflect that choice.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Certain Microsoft cookies are necessary for operational purposes, and may therefore be placed and read even when a GPC signal is detected.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This report is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of how our products work. We honor opt-outs provided by advertisers and publishers as required by law,” a Google spokesperson wrote KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an emailed statement, a Meta spokesperson called webXray’s audit “a blatant marketing ploy that misrepresents how the Global Privacy Control setting works,” and the company’s role.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The control setting restricts how data is shared, not collected, and Meta already requires that when using the Meta pixel, advertisers only share with us information they have obtained the right to share,” the statement continued. “Meta further encourages websites to use our Limited Data Use feature so they can clearly indicate to us when they have permission to share certain information – and when we get information identified that way, we restrict its use.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Libert disagreed, arguing as he did in his audit that “just adding a couple lines of code” would bring the companies into compliance with California law. “Their claims that I ‘misunderstood’ anything are farcical. I wrote the cookie policy,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12031243\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1568px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12031243\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1568\" height=\"1045\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy.jpg 1568w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1568px) 100vw, 1568px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The seal above the offices of the California Department of Justice in Sacramento on April 19, 2022. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Under the CCPA, each violation carries a $2,500 fine, or $7,500 if intentional. The companies, he said, are wealthy enough to pay fines and shrug them off without changing how they do business. “If you make them change the code, the whole system falls apart, and that’s what they’re terrified of,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokesperson for the California Department of Justice declined to comment on the specific issues raised by the report, but wrote in an email, “We always welcome reporting about potential CCPA violations — anyone interested in reporting a potential violation to our office can go to \u003ca href=\"http://oag.ca.gov/report\">oag.ca.gov/report\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The\u003ca href=\"https://cppa.ca.gov\"> California Privacy Protection Agency\u003c/a> declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state attorney general’s office has settled with a wide variety of companies in\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-la-city-attorney-feldstein-soto-announce-500000\"> gaming\u003c/a>,\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-announces-largest-ccpa-settlement-date-secures-155\"> health\u003c/a> and\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12030969/california-privacy-agency-fines-american-honda-over-consumer-data-violations\"> automotive\u003c/a> industries; conducted sweeps of\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-announces-investigative-sweep-location-data-industry\"> location data\u003c/a>,\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-announces-investigative-sweep-focuses-streaming-services\"> streaming apps and devices\u003c/a> and\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/data-privacy-day-attorney-general-bonta-focuses-surveillance-pricing-compliance\"> surveillance pricing\u003c/a>; and formed information-sharing\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/state-privacy-regulators-assemble-attorney-general-bonta-announces-bipartisan\"> partnerships\u003c/a> with other state regulators.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The largest privacy settlement specifically under the CCPA reached by Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office was a $2.75 million settlement with\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/california-wont-let-it-go-attorney-general-bonta-announces-275-million\"> the Walt Disney Company\u003c/a>, announced Feb.11, 2026.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12036125\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12036125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Meta, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger and Threads logos are screened on a mobile phone on Jan. 25, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>According to \u003ca href=\"https://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-\">404 Media,\u003c/a> Microsoft, Meta, and Google have collectively\u003ca href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2019/07/ftc-imposes-5-billion-penalty-sweeping-new-privacy-restrictions-facebook\"> paid billions\u003c/a> in\u003ca href=\"https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/google-must-pay-425-million-class-action-over-privacy-jury-rules-2025-09-03/?ref=404media.co\"> fees for\u003c/a> previous\u003ca href=\"https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy1394?ref=404media.co\"> privacy violations\u003c/a> similar to the ones found during the audit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t really see that shifting the needle,” Libert said, adding the agencies’ actions provide only a “veneer of enforcement.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State legislators, meanwhile, said they are working to address the apparent lack of accountability by big tech companies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Companies that refuse to comply with the law should face real consequences,” state Sen. Josh Becker, D-Menlo Park, said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Becker is the author of multiple bills giving Californians more power over their data, including the still-pending Expanding Privacy Rights Act, \u003ca href=\"https://privacy.ca.gov/2026/01/calprivacy-sponsors-bill-that-expands-deletion-rights-and-accessibility-requirements/'\">SB 923\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of those laws, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11947039/delete-act-seeks-to-give-californians-more-power-to-block-data-tracking\">the Delete Act\u003c/a>, allowed residents to \u003ca href=\"https://privacy.ca.gov/drop/about-drop-and-the-delete-act/\">request\u003c/a> that all registered companies that buy and sell your data delete your personal information. Data brokers must begin honoring these requests by Aug. 1, 2026.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064635\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064635\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-MICROSOFT-GAZA-PROTEST-MD-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-MICROSOFT-GAZA-PROTEST-MD-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-MICROSOFT-GAZA-PROTEST-MD-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-MICROSOFT-GAZA-PROTEST-MD-01-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Attendees of the Microsoft Ignite conference walk through downtown San Francisco on Nov. 18, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I don’t think we’re nibbling around the edges” of the\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12028137/california-lawmakers-take-on-predatory-surveillance-pricing\"> ad-surveillance economy\u003c/a> Becker told KQED. “The Delete Act fundamentally gets to the heart of it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, he added, he acknowledged the challenges of fighting for this cause at the state level, versus the federal or even international.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Ultimately, all this is about reclaiming control over our data. When someone searches for medical care, manages their finances, looks for a job — that information is deeply personal, it should not be tracked, sold or weaponized without their consent,” Becker said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "An independent privacy audit of Microsoft, Meta and Google web traffic in California found the companies appear to be violating state regulations, potentially exposing themselves to significant fines.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>An independent review of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/category/technology\">Microsoft, Meta and Google\u003c/a> web traffic in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> in March found the tech companies may have violated state regulations around internet privacy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://globalprivacyaudit.org/2026/california\">audit\u003c/a>, by \u003ca href=\"https://webxray.ai/\">webXray\u003c/a>, also said that nearly 200 online advertising services ignored “legally defined, globally standard, opt-out signals” around data sharing, along with more than half of nearly 7,000 websites in California, despite user requests to opt-out of cookie tracking, the most visible opt-out mechanism the laws require.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is despite the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11792899/the-california-consumer-privacy-act-mandates-what-again-exactly\">California Consumer Privacy Act\u003c/a>, as expanded by the\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11801063/get-ready-for-another-consumer-privacy-initiative-in-california#:~:text=Listen,to%20the%20Attorney%20General's%20Office.\"> California Privacy Rights Act\u003c/a> and\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11844163/proposition-24-californians-say-yes-to-expanding-on-nations-toughest-data-privacy-law\"> other state privacy legislation\u003c/a>, enforced by both the state attorney general’s office and the California Privacy Protection Agency.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our findings reveal major technology companies simply ignore globally defined opt-out signals, raising the spectre of industrial-scale non-compliance with California requirements,” the \u003ca href=\"https://globalprivacyaudit.org/2026/california\">report’s\u003c/a> website states.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Businesses that sell or share your personal information are legally required to honor the \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/privacy/ccpa/gpc\">Global Privacy Control\u003c/a>, a “stop selling or sharing my data” switch available on web browsers, or as a browser extension.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company that conducted the audit, webXray, was founded by Timothy Libert, a privacy expert who led cookie policy and compliance at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> offices in Sunnyvale from 2021 to 2023. Libert spent 15 years in academia studying the topic and worked as a consultant for national and state regulators before his time at Google.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11773481\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11773481\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut.jpg\" alt=\"computer screen stock image\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/09/RS38974_GettyImages1091956764-qut-1200x800.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">With no federal law governing digital privacy, California’s Consumer Privacy Act was the first to offer state residents some control over the use of their data by companies. \u003ccite>(Jack Guez/AFP/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>webXray, his current venture, functions as a white-hat hacker outfit for hire, advising Silicon Valley companies on legal compliance and scouring the internet for privacy violations for law firms pursuing class action suits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Ask the average Californian if they feel they have more privacy now than before the CCPA was passed. I think the answer’s going to be no. And as somebody who has the ability, knowledge and background to measure it, I’m going to say scientifically, the answer is also no,” Libert told KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the webXray audit, Google failed to let users opt out 86% of the time, Meta 69% and Microsoft 50%.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“Google’s failure to honor the [Global Privacy Control] opt-out signal is easy to find in network traffic,” the report noted, concluding, “This non-compliance is easy to spot, hiding in plain sight.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Consumer privacy is a top priority for us, and we remain committed to transparency and compliance with applicable privacy requirements,” a Microsoft spokesperson said by email. “As outlined in our Privacy Statement, when we receive a GPC signal, we opt the user out of sharing personal data with third parties for personalized advertising, and our advertising systems are designed to reflect that choice.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Certain Microsoft cookies are necessary for operational purposes, and may therefore be placed and read even when a GPC signal is detected.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This report is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of how our products work. We honor opt-outs provided by advertisers and publishers as required by law,” a Google spokesperson wrote KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an emailed statement, a Meta spokesperson called webXray’s audit “a blatant marketing ploy that misrepresents how the Global Privacy Control setting works,” and the company’s role.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The control setting restricts how data is shared, not collected, and Meta already requires that when using the Meta pixel, advertisers only share with us information they have obtained the right to share,” the statement continued. “Meta further encourages websites to use our Limited Data Use feature so they can clearly indicate to us when they have permission to share certain information – and when we get information identified that way, we restrict its use.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Libert disagreed, arguing as he did in his audit that “just adding a couple lines of code” would bring the companies into compliance with California law. “Their claims that I ‘misunderstood’ anything are farcical. I wrote the cookie policy,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12031243\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1568px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12031243\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1568\" height=\"1045\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy.jpg 1568w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/041922-ATTORNEY-GENERAL-OFFICE-MHN-03-CM-copy-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1568px) 100vw, 1568px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The seal above the offices of the California Department of Justice in Sacramento on April 19, 2022. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Under the CCPA, each violation carries a $2,500 fine, or $7,500 if intentional. The companies, he said, are wealthy enough to pay fines and shrug them off without changing how they do business. “If you make them change the code, the whole system falls apart, and that’s what they’re terrified of,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokesperson for the California Department of Justice declined to comment on the specific issues raised by the report, but wrote in an email, “We always welcome reporting about potential CCPA violations — anyone interested in reporting a potential violation to our office can go to \u003ca href=\"http://oag.ca.gov/report\">oag.ca.gov/report\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The\u003ca href=\"https://cppa.ca.gov\"> California Privacy Protection Agency\u003c/a> declined to comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state attorney general’s office has settled with a wide variety of companies in\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-la-city-attorney-feldstein-soto-announce-500000\"> gaming\u003c/a>,\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-announces-largest-ccpa-settlement-date-secures-155\"> health\u003c/a> and\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12030969/california-privacy-agency-fines-american-honda-over-consumer-data-violations\"> automotive\u003c/a> industries; conducted sweeps of\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-announces-investigative-sweep-location-data-industry\"> location data\u003c/a>,\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-announces-investigative-sweep-focuses-streaming-services\"> streaming apps and devices\u003c/a> and\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/data-privacy-day-attorney-general-bonta-focuses-surveillance-pricing-compliance\"> surveillance pricing\u003c/a>; and formed information-sharing\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/state-privacy-regulators-assemble-attorney-general-bonta-announces-bipartisan\"> partnerships\u003c/a> with other state regulators.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The largest privacy settlement specifically under the CCPA reached by Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office was a $2.75 million settlement with\u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/california-wont-let-it-go-attorney-general-bonta-announces-275-million\"> the Walt Disney Company\u003c/a>, announced Feb.11, 2026.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12036125\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12036125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/MetaGetty2-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Meta, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger and Threads logos are screened on a mobile phone on Jan. 25, 2025. \u003ccite>(Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>According to \u003ca href=\"https://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3E%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-independent-audit/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter%3E%3Chttps://www.404media.co/google-microsoft-meta-all-tracking-you-even-when-you-opt-out-according-to-an-\">404 Media,\u003c/a> Microsoft, Meta, and Google have collectively\u003ca href=\"https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2019/07/ftc-imposes-5-billion-penalty-sweeping-new-privacy-restrictions-facebook\"> paid billions\u003c/a> in\u003ca href=\"https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/google-must-pay-425-million-class-action-over-privacy-jury-rules-2025-09-03/?ref=404media.co\"> fees for\u003c/a> previous\u003ca href=\"https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy1394?ref=404media.co\"> privacy violations\u003c/a> similar to the ones found during the audit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t really see that shifting the needle,” Libert said, adding the agencies’ actions provide only a “veneer of enforcement.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State legislators, meanwhile, said they are working to address the apparent lack of accountability by big tech companies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Companies that refuse to comply with the law should face real consequences,” state Sen. Josh Becker, D-Menlo Park, said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Becker is the author of multiple bills giving Californians more power over their data, including the still-pending Expanding Privacy Rights Act, \u003ca href=\"https://privacy.ca.gov/2026/01/calprivacy-sponsors-bill-that-expands-deletion-rights-and-accessibility-requirements/'\">SB 923\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of those laws, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11947039/delete-act-seeks-to-give-californians-more-power-to-block-data-tracking\">the Delete Act\u003c/a>, allowed residents to \u003ca href=\"https://privacy.ca.gov/drop/about-drop-and-the-delete-act/\">request\u003c/a> that all registered companies that buy and sell your data delete your personal information. Data brokers must begin honoring these requests by Aug. 1, 2026.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12064635\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12064635\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-MICROSOFT-GAZA-PROTEST-MD-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-MICROSOFT-GAZA-PROTEST-MD-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-MICROSOFT-GAZA-PROTEST-MD-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/251119-MICROSOFT-GAZA-PROTEST-MD-01-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Attendees of the Microsoft Ignite conference walk through downtown San Francisco on Nov. 18, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I don’t think we’re nibbling around the edges” of the\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12028137/california-lawmakers-take-on-predatory-surveillance-pricing\"> ad-surveillance economy\u003c/a> Becker told KQED. “The Delete Act fundamentally gets to the heart of it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, he added, he acknowledged the challenges of fighting for this cause at the state level, versus the federal or even international.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Ultimately, all this is about reclaiming control over our data. When someone searches for medical care, manages their finances, looks for a job — that information is deeply personal, it should not be tracked, sold or weaponized without their consent,” Becker said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "google-updates-suicide-self-harm-safeguards-in-gemini-as-ai-lawsuits-mount",
"title": "Google Updates Suicide, Self-Harm Safeguards in Gemini as AI Lawsuits Mount",
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"content": "\u003cp>As a growing number of lawsuits allege AI chatbots are cultivating emotional dependency loops with humans, Alphabet’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> announced it will direct Gemini chatbot users to a support hotline if the conversation indicates a “potential crisis related to suicide or self-harm.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a\u003ca href=\"https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/technology/health/mental-health-updates/\"> blog post\u003c/a>, Google wrote that Gemini will introduce a redesigned “Help is available” feature, developed in collaboration with clinical experts. “Once the interface is activated, the option to reach out for professional help will remain clearly available throughout the remainder of the conversation,” the post stated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Google wrote that it has trained Gemini “not to agree with or reinforce false beliefs, and instead gently distinguish subjective experience from objective fact.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Psychologically vulnerable people turning to chatbots to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12049674\">go down rabbit holes\u003c/a> could have been predicted, according to Jennifer King, a privacy and data policy fellow at the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence. “To some extent, you can anticipate some of the harms we see,” she told KQED. “We’ve seen people acting bad with technology across a variety of behaviors for a very long time.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although the blog post does not mention lawsuits, the family of a 36-year-old man who died in Florida\u003ca href=\"https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-03-04/google-gemini-accused-of-coaching-user-to-suicide-in-new-suit\"> sued Google\u003c/a> in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California last month, claiming that his use of Gemini devolved into a “\u003ca href=\"https://news.bloomberglaw.com/artificial-intelligence/google-gemini-accused-of-coaching-user-to-suicide-in-new-suit\">four-day descent into violent missions and coached suicide\u003c/a>.” At the time, Google said the chatbot repeatedly referred the man to a crisis hotline, but the company also promised to improve Gemini’s safeguards.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/embed/DR-vBOsyQPE\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Google is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12063401/openai-faces-legal-storm-over-claims-its-ai-drove-users-to-suicide-delusions\">not the only AI developer\u003c/a> facing lawsuits over allegations that its chatbots encourage some users to form obsessive relationships with them, feed delusions and even contribute to plans for suicide or murder. Research also suggests users\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12038154/kids-talking-ai-companion-chatbots-stanford-researchers-say-thats-bad-idea\"> form intense, quasi-romantic bonds\u003c/a> with chatbots.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The guardrails are obviously necessary, King said. “There have been many cases of users experiencing psychosis and other problems,” she added, noting the sycophancy or agreeability built into the chatbots’ design encourages unstable behavior, “as well as their propensity to get people to believe things that just aren’t true.”[aside postID=news_12069286 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/OpenAI.jpg']Guadalupe Hayes-Mota, director of the bioethics program at Santa Clara University, wants to see proof that AI chatbot developers are using clinically validated guidelines for interactions where mental health care is an issue. “Who’s actually making the decision when the crisis pops up for the individual, and how is that being done?” he asked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s an awful lot of people who study these things,” King said. “But they’re often not consulted. They’re not part of the process.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the past year and a half, OpenAI and Anthropic have also adjusted their mental-health guardrails, amid growing public scrutiny and lawsuits. Experts say that in the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12059714/newsom-vetoes-most-watched-childrens-ai-bill-signs-16-others-targeting-tech\">absence of federal regulation\u003c/a>, court rulings appear to be most effectively inspiring tech companies to take proactive measures like Google’s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In March, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and YouTube negligent in a case centered around \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12063401/openai-faces-legal-storm-over-claims-its-ai-drove-users-to-suicide-delusions\">social media addiction\u003c/a>, using arguments centered around product liability and negligence — sidestepping Section 230, a longstanding legal shield that protects platforms from liability for harmful content that users post.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "The updated mental health support features arrive on the heels of lawsuits alleging that Alphabet’s Google, as well as rivals like OpenAI, design chatbots that lead users to self-harm.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>As a growing number of lawsuits allege AI chatbots are cultivating emotional dependency loops with humans, Alphabet’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/google\">Google\u003c/a> announced it will direct Gemini chatbot users to a support hotline if the conversation indicates a “potential crisis related to suicide or self-harm.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a\u003ca href=\"https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/technology/health/mental-health-updates/\"> blog post\u003c/a>, Google wrote that Gemini will introduce a redesigned “Help is available” feature, developed in collaboration with clinical experts. “Once the interface is activated, the option to reach out for professional help will remain clearly available throughout the remainder of the conversation,” the post stated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Google wrote that it has trained Gemini “not to agree with or reinforce false beliefs, and instead gently distinguish subjective experience from objective fact.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Psychologically vulnerable people turning to chatbots to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12049674\">go down rabbit holes\u003c/a> could have been predicted, according to Jennifer King, a privacy and data policy fellow at the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence. “To some extent, you can anticipate some of the harms we see,” she told KQED. “We’ve seen people acting bad with technology across a variety of behaviors for a very long time.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although the blog post does not mention lawsuits, the family of a 36-year-old man who died in Florida\u003ca href=\"https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-03-04/google-gemini-accused-of-coaching-user-to-suicide-in-new-suit\"> sued Google\u003c/a> in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California last month, claiming that his use of Gemini devolved into a “\u003ca href=\"https://news.bloomberglaw.com/artificial-intelligence/google-gemini-accused-of-coaching-user-to-suicide-in-new-suit\">four-day descent into violent missions and coached suicide\u003c/a>.” At the time, Google said the chatbot repeatedly referred the man to a crisis hotline, but the company also promised to improve Gemini’s safeguards.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/DR-vBOsyQPE'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/DR-vBOsyQPE'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Google is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12063401/openai-faces-legal-storm-over-claims-its-ai-drove-users-to-suicide-delusions\">not the only AI developer\u003c/a> facing lawsuits over allegations that its chatbots encourage some users to form obsessive relationships with them, feed delusions and even contribute to plans for suicide or murder. Research also suggests users\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12038154/kids-talking-ai-companion-chatbots-stanford-researchers-say-thats-bad-idea\"> form intense, quasi-romantic bonds\u003c/a> with chatbots.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The guardrails are obviously necessary, King said. “There have been many cases of users experiencing psychosis and other problems,” she added, noting the sycophancy or agreeability built into the chatbots’ design encourages unstable behavior, “as well as their propensity to get people to believe things that just aren’t true.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Guadalupe Hayes-Mota, director of the bioethics program at Santa Clara University, wants to see proof that AI chatbot developers are using clinically validated guidelines for interactions where mental health care is an issue. “Who’s actually making the decision when the crisis pops up for the individual, and how is that being done?” he asked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s an awful lot of people who study these things,” King said. “But they’re often not consulted. They’re not part of the process.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the past year and a half, OpenAI and Anthropic have also adjusted their mental-health guardrails, amid growing public scrutiny and lawsuits. Experts say that in the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12059714/newsom-vetoes-most-watched-childrens-ai-bill-signs-16-others-targeting-tech\">absence of federal regulation\u003c/a>, court rulings appear to be most effectively inspiring tech companies to take proactive measures like Google’s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In March, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and YouTube negligent in a case centered around \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12063401/openai-faces-legal-storm-over-claims-its-ai-drove-users-to-suicide-delusions\">social media addiction\u003c/a>, using arguments centered around product liability and negligence — sidestepping Section 230, a longstanding legal shield that protects platforms from liability for harmful content that users post.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> jury on Wednesday found that Meta and Google’s YouTube were to blame for the depression and anxiety of a woman who compulsively used social media as a small child, awarding her $6 million in a rare verdict holding Silicon Valley accountable for its role in fueling a youth mental health crisis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The jurors concluded that Meta and Google should pay the woman $3 million in compensatory damages and an additional $3 million in punitive damages, with Meta on the hook for 70% of that amount.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the verdict was read, the plaintiff, known only as Kaley, looked straight ahead stony-faced, while her lawyers shook their heads in approval. The lawyers for Meta and Google did not react to the jury’s decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The outcome of this case could influence thousands of other consolidated cases against the social media companies. The litigation has drawn comparisons to the legal crusade that led to industry changes against Big Tobacco in the 1990s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Joseph VanZandt, the co-lead lawyer for families and others suing social media companies, said Wednesday’s judgement is a step toward holding Silicon Valley giants accountable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But this verdict is bigger than one case. For years, social media companies have profited from targeting children while concealing their addictive and dangerous design features. Today’s verdict is a referendum — from a jury, to an entire industry — that accountability has arrived,” he said in a joint statement with the plaintiff’s legal team.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meta and Google said they disagree with the verdict. Meta said it is weighing its legal options and Google plans to appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This case misunderstands YouTube, which is a responsibly built streaming platform, not a social media site,” said Google spokesman José Castañeda.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The verdict from a Los Angeles jury over the harms of social media comes a day after a separate jury in New Mexico ordered Meta to \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2026/03/24/g-s1-115019/new-mexico-meta-children-mental-health\">pay $375 million in damages\u003c/a> for failing to protect young users from child predators on Instagram and Facebook. The New Mexico jury found Meta responsible for misleading consumers about the safety of its platforms, declaring that the tech company had flouted state consumer protection laws.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That trial will also enter a second phase, in May, in which a judge will decide whether Meta created a public nuisance and if the company must pay additional penalties to address harms. New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said he will also ask the court to force changes to make Meta’s apps safer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Juries in New Mexico and California have recognized that Meta’s public deception and design features are putting children in harm’s way,” Torrez said in a statement on Wednesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12077556\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12077556\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-2000x1333.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg leaves Los Angeles Superior Court after testifying in a trial examining whether social media companies designed their platforms to be addictive to children on Feb. 18, 2026. (Photo by Apu GOMES / AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The blockbuster verdicts land against the backdrop of school districts and state lawmakers around the country limiting or banning phone use in schools. This week’s verdicts mark the first time juries have decided that tech companies are at least partially liable for online and off-line dangers kids and teenagers encounter after incessantly using social media.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over a more than month-long trial in Los Angeles, the jury of five men and seven women heard competing narratives about what role social media platforms played in the mental health struggles of a woman identified as KGM, or Kaley, a now-20-year-old from Chico, Calif., who said she first started using YouTube at 6 years old and Instagram when she was 11.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lawyers for KGM argued that Instagram and YouTube were deliberately designed to be addictive and the companies knew the platforms were harming young people, while the tech companies countered that their services cannot be blamed for complex mental health issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>KGM’s legal team showed the jury internal documents from Meta in which CEO Mark Zuckerberg and other executives described the company’s efforts to attract and keep kids and teens on its platforms. One document said: “If we wanna win big with teens, we must bring them in as tweens,” and another internal memo showed that 11-year-olds were four times as likely to keep coming back to Instagram, compared with competing apps, despite the platform requiring users to be at least 13 years old.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Under questioning about these documents, Zuckerberg told the jury that keeping young users safe has always been a company priority. “If people feel like they’re not having a good experience, why would they keep using the product?” Zuckerberg said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The trial is a test case, known as a bellwether, tied to about 2,000 other pending lawsuits brought by parents and school districts arguing that social media giants should be considered manufacturers of defective products for hooking a generation of young people to social media feeds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Throughout the case, the companies insisted that there is no scientific proof that social media causes mental health issues, suggesting that they are being used as a scapegoat for the multi-faceted emotional issues children face that can have many root causes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Snapchat and TikTok were also defendants in the case, but both companies \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2026/01/27/nx-s1-5684196/social-media-kids-addiction-mental-health-trial\">settled\u003c/a> before the trial began.\u003cbr>\nL.A. case focused on design of social media platforms to overcome liability shield\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For decades, tech companies have avoided legal liability over the content that appears on their sites because of a federal law known as \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2021/05/11/994395889/how-one-mans-fight-against-an-aol-troll-sealed-the-tech-industrys-power\">Section 230\u003c/a> of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, which says that tech companies are not legally responsible for what their users post. This has made it difficult to bring cases over social media harms to trial.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the Los Angeles case, lawyers took a different approach by focusing on how tech companies built their platforms. They argued that features like infinite scroll, constant notifications, autoplay and beauty filters made apps like Instagram and YouTube equivalent to a “digital casino,” which young people found too irresistible to put down.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By taking this tack, the lawyers pursued a case alleging defective design that was able to get around the high bar set by Section 230. It’s not what users post, the lawyers argued, but the very architecture of social media platforms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How do you make a child never put down the phone? That’s called the engineering of addiction,” said KGM’s lawyer Mark Lanier, a Texas trial attorney and part-time pastor who had a penchant for drawing on documents with markers on overhead project slides to keep the jury engaged.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the course of five weeks, jurors heard from therapists, engineers, tech executives including Zuckerberg, and the plaintiff herself about just how culpable big tech companies should be for contributing to KGM’s mental health struggles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Were her issues pre-existing, or exacerbated by her home life, or deepened by social media?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meta and Google fought back by underscoring the emotional and physical abuse her medical records indicated she experienced at home. Lawyers for the tech companies also hammered the point that Kaley’s own therapist never documented that social media use was a factor in her mental health problems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From the witness stand, KGM testified that using social media affected her self-worth, as she got further drawn into the apps and withdrew from friends and family. She developed depression and body dysmorphia, she said, as she continuously compared herself to others and used beauty filters to enhance her appearance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She so craved the validation of social media, she said, that she would run off to the bathroom at school to check the number of “likes” her posts had received. She testified that it was hard to concentrate on school because all she wanted to do was stay glued to her social media feeds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The jury was not tasked with deciding whether Meta and Google had created Kaley’s mental health woes, but rather if her compulsive social media use was a “substantial factor” in her struggles and if the defective design of the platforms was the direct cause of the distress.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lanier, who is known for trotting out large exhibits for trial spectacle, closed his questioning of Zuckerberg with one such display.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lanier and several of his associates held up a 35-foot collage featuring hundreds of selfies Kaley had posted to Instagram, many of which used beauty filters, just as she was struggling with body-image issues. Zuckerberg looked on, as Lanier peppered him with questions about how and why a girl under the age of 13, Meta’s minimum age to create an account, was able to post to the app so obsessively.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In his closing argument, Lanier drew the jury’s attention to internal documents showing how top officials at Meta and Google were aware of how its products were causing harm to young people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t naysay the opportunity to make money,” Lanier said. “But when you’re making money off of kids, you have to do it responsibly.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>NPR’s Shannon Bond contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California\u003c/a> jury on Wednesday found that Meta and Google’s YouTube were to blame for the depression and anxiety of a woman who compulsively used social media as a small child, awarding her $6 million in a rare verdict holding Silicon Valley accountable for its role in fueling a youth mental health crisis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The jurors concluded that Meta and Google should pay the woman $3 million in compensatory damages and an additional $3 million in punitive damages, with Meta on the hook for 70% of that amount.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the verdict was read, the plaintiff, known only as Kaley, looked straight ahead stony-faced, while her lawyers shook their heads in approval. The lawyers for Meta and Google did not react to the jury’s decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The outcome of this case could influence thousands of other consolidated cases against the social media companies. The litigation has drawn comparisons to the legal crusade that led to industry changes against Big Tobacco in the 1990s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Joseph VanZandt, the co-lead lawyer for families and others suing social media companies, said Wednesday’s judgement is a step toward holding Silicon Valley giants accountable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But this verdict is bigger than one case. For years, social media companies have profited from targeting children while concealing their addictive and dangerous design features. Today’s verdict is a referendum — from a jury, to an entire industry — that accountability has arrived,” he said in a joint statement with the plaintiff’s legal team.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meta and Google said they disagree with the verdict. Meta said it is weighing its legal options and Google plans to appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This case misunderstands YouTube, which is a responsibly built streaming platform, not a social media site,” said Google spokesman José Castañeda.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The verdict from a Los Angeles jury over the harms of social media comes a day after a separate jury in New Mexico ordered Meta to \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2026/03/24/g-s1-115019/new-mexico-meta-children-mental-health\">pay $375 million in damages\u003c/a> for failing to protect young users from child predators on Instagram and Facebook. The New Mexico jury found Meta responsible for misleading consumers about the safety of its platforms, declaring that the tech company had flouted state consumer protection laws.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That trial will also enter a second phase, in May, in which a judge will decide whether Meta created a public nuisance and if the company must pay additional penalties to address harms. New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said he will also ask the court to force changes to make Meta’s apps safer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Juries in New Mexico and California have recognized that Meta’s public deception and design features are putting children in harm’s way,” Torrez said in a statement on Wednesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12077556\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12077556\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-2000x1333.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/GettyImages-2261837336-1-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg leaves Los Angeles Superior Court after testifying in a trial examining whether social media companies designed their platforms to be addictive to children on Feb. 18, 2026. (Photo by Apu GOMES / AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The blockbuster verdicts land against the backdrop of school districts and state lawmakers around the country limiting or banning phone use in schools. This week’s verdicts mark the first time juries have decided that tech companies are at least partially liable for online and off-line dangers kids and teenagers encounter after incessantly using social media.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over a more than month-long trial in Los Angeles, the jury of five men and seven women heard competing narratives about what role social media platforms played in the mental health struggles of a woman identified as KGM, or Kaley, a now-20-year-old from Chico, Calif., who said she first started using YouTube at 6 years old and Instagram when she was 11.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lawyers for KGM argued that Instagram and YouTube were deliberately designed to be addictive and the companies knew the platforms were harming young people, while the tech companies countered that their services cannot be blamed for complex mental health issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>KGM’s legal team showed the jury internal documents from Meta in which CEO Mark Zuckerberg and other executives described the company’s efforts to attract and keep kids and teens on its platforms. One document said: “If we wanna win big with teens, we must bring them in as tweens,” and another internal memo showed that 11-year-olds were four times as likely to keep coming back to Instagram, compared with competing apps, despite the platform requiring users to be at least 13 years old.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Under questioning about these documents, Zuckerberg told the jury that keeping young users safe has always been a company priority. “If people feel like they’re not having a good experience, why would they keep using the product?” Zuckerberg said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The trial is a test case, known as a bellwether, tied to about 2,000 other pending lawsuits brought by parents and school districts arguing that social media giants should be considered manufacturers of defective products for hooking a generation of young people to social media feeds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Throughout the case, the companies insisted that there is no scientific proof that social media causes mental health issues, suggesting that they are being used as a scapegoat for the multi-faceted emotional issues children face that can have many root causes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Snapchat and TikTok were also defendants in the case, but both companies \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2026/01/27/nx-s1-5684196/social-media-kids-addiction-mental-health-trial\">settled\u003c/a> before the trial began.\u003cbr>\nL.A. case focused on design of social media platforms to overcome liability shield\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For decades, tech companies have avoided legal liability over the content that appears on their sites because of a federal law known as \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2021/05/11/994395889/how-one-mans-fight-against-an-aol-troll-sealed-the-tech-industrys-power\">Section 230\u003c/a> of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, which says that tech companies are not legally responsible for what their users post. This has made it difficult to bring cases over social media harms to trial.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the Los Angeles case, lawyers took a different approach by focusing on how tech companies built their platforms. They argued that features like infinite scroll, constant notifications, autoplay and beauty filters made apps like Instagram and YouTube equivalent to a “digital casino,” which young people found too irresistible to put down.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By taking this tack, the lawyers pursued a case alleging defective design that was able to get around the high bar set by Section 230. It’s not what users post, the lawyers argued, but the very architecture of social media platforms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How do you make a child never put down the phone? That’s called the engineering of addiction,” said KGM’s lawyer Mark Lanier, a Texas trial attorney and part-time pastor who had a penchant for drawing on documents with markers on overhead project slides to keep the jury engaged.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the course of five weeks, jurors heard from therapists, engineers, tech executives including Zuckerberg, and the plaintiff herself about just how culpable big tech companies should be for contributing to KGM’s mental health struggles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Were her issues pre-existing, or exacerbated by her home life, or deepened by social media?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meta and Google fought back by underscoring the emotional and physical abuse her medical records indicated she experienced at home. 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She testified that it was hard to concentrate on school because all she wanted to do was stay glued to her social media feeds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The jury was not tasked with deciding whether Meta and Google had created Kaley’s mental health woes, but rather if her compulsive social media use was a “substantial factor” in her struggles and if the defective design of the platforms was the direct cause of the distress.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lanier, who is known for trotting out large exhibits for trial spectacle, closed his questioning of Zuckerberg with one such display.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lanier and several of his associates held up a 35-foot collage featuring hundreds of selfies Kaley had posted to Instagram, many of which used beauty filters, just as she was struggling with body-image issues. Zuckerberg looked on, as Lanier peppered him with questions about how and why a girl under the age of 13, Meta’s minimum age to create an account, was able to post to the app so obsessively.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In his closing argument, Lanier drew the jury’s attention to internal documents showing how top officials at Meta and Google were aware of how its products were causing harm to young people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t naysay the opportunity to make money,” Lanier said. “But when you’re making money off of kids, you have to do it responsibly.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>NPR’s Shannon Bond contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
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"soldout": {
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