Crime, Conflict, AI, Gaming: 2025’s Breaking Headlines

News

UK Current Affairs & Crime

• Woman ’50-50′ on whether she is Madeleine, jury told – BBC News
• British man accused of spying for Russia arrested in Ukraine – BBC News
• Teenager guilty of murdering 16-year-old at New Year’s Eve event – Sky News
• Luke Littler misses Players Championship event due to traffic jam – Sky News
• MPs demand Crown Estate explains why Prince Andrew paid ‘peppercorn’ rent at Royal Lodge – Sky News
• Southport killer’s ‘left-wing extremist behaviour’ worried support workers, inquiry told – Sky News
• Small boat migrant who stabbed man to death in high street bank jailed for at least 25 years – Sky News
• Council backtracks on Zoë Bread parking fine – BBC News
• Starmer declines to rule out breaking manifesto tax pledges – BBC News

International News & Conflict

• Israel carries out fresh strike on Gaza and accuses Hamas of preparing ‘imminent terror attack’ – Sky News
• Suspects arrested over Louvre heist ‘partially admit involvement’ – as officials address inside job theory – Sky News
• At least 132 killed in Rio police raid, officials say – BBC News
• Families mourn dozens killed during Rio’s ‘biggest’ raid against drugs gang – Sky News
• Bodies lined up in neighbourhood square after deadly Rio police raid – BBC News

Technology & Infrastructure

• Thousands of users unable affected by Microsoft Azure outage – Sky News

Legal & Political

• Attorney general blames outdated law for collapse of China spy case – BBC News

AI

AI Infrastructure & Energy

• Exclusive eBook: We did the math on AI’s energy footprint – Technology Review – AI
• The Download: Boosting AI’s memory, and data centers’ unhappy neighbors – Technology Review – AI
• The AI Hype Index: Data centers’ neighbors are pivoting to power blackouts – Technology Review – AI

AI Safety & Security

• Anthropic scientists hacked Claude’s brain — and it noticed. Here’s why that’s huge – VentureBeat – AI
• Introducing gpt-oss-safeguard – OpenAI Blog
• Technical Report: Performance and baseline evaluations of gpt-oss-safeguard-120b and gpt-oss-safeguard-20b – OpenAI Blog

AI Products & Business Advances

• Microsoft’s Copilot can now build apps and automate your job — here’s how it works – VentureBeat – AI
• IBM’s open source Granite 4.0 Nano AI models are small enough to run locally directly in your browser – VentureBeat – AI
• GitHub’s Agent HQ aims to solve enterprises’ biggest AI coding problem: Too many agents, no central control – VentureBeat – AI
• Geostar pioneers GEO as traditional SEO faces 25% decline from AI chatbots, Gartner says – VentureBeat – AI
• DeepSeek may have found a new way to improve AI’s ability to remember – Technology Review – AI
• Microsoft gets 27% stake in OpenAI, and a $250B Azure commitment – GeekWire – AI

AI and Climate / Sustainability

• Roundtables: Seeking Climate Solutions in Turbulent Times – Technology Review – AI

Seattle AI Community

• A tale of two Seattles in the age of AI: Harsh realities and new hope for the tech community – GeekWire – AI

AI Investment & ROI

• Finding return on AI investments across industries – Technology Review – AI

Technology

Infrastructure & Climate

• How to Keep Subways and Trains Cool in an Ever Hotter World – Wired

Cloud & Infrastructure

• An Azure outage is affecting Microsoft 365, Xbox and Minecraft – Engadget
• Google to bring shuttered nuclear power plant back from the dead – TechCrunch
• Extropic Aims to Disrupt the Data Center Bonanza – Wired
• Windows 11 looks set for a big update early in 2026, but most people won’t get it – TechRadar
• Adobe integrates industry AI models for more powerful creative workflows – TechRadar

AI & Deepfakes

• YouTube adds automatic AI upscaling for low‑res videos – Engadget
• More people watched a fake NVIDIA livestream than the real thing – Engadget
• ElevenLabs CEO says AI audio models will be commoditized over time – TechCrunch

Startups & M&A

• Bending Spoons to acquire AOL – TechCrunch
• It’s official. Fubo is combining with Hulu Live TV – TechCrunch
• TechCrunch Disrupt 2025: How to watch the Startup Battlefield finale, Cluely, Solana, SF’s Mayor – TechCrunch

Cybersecurity & Trade Secrets

• Ex‑L3Harris Cyber Boss Pleads Guilty to selling trade secrets to Russian firm – Wired

Consumer Tech & Wearables

• Fitbit’s Biggest App Overhaul Is Coming, but Not to Everyone (Yet) – CNET
• 9 Best Seiko 5 Sports Watches (2025) – Wired
• Magic Leap reveals an Android XR smart glasses prototype – Engadget

Media & Entertainment

• ‘You think you’re okay – then comes the shock’: James Callis on Claude’s dramatic ending in Slow Horses season 5 – TechRadar
• The Classic ‘Batman’ Costumes Sold for $1 Million and We Hope One Person Bought Them All – Gizmodo
• I tried Grokipedia, the AI-powered ‘anti-Wikipedia.’ Here’s why neither is foolproof – ZDNet
• How to replace your Windows 11 Start menu with something better – ZDNet

Gaming

Game Reviews

• Floorboards creak, spooks spook and I harass a man with a bell in detective puzzler The Séance of Blake Manor – Rock Paper Shotgun
• After 40 hours and counting, Arc Raiders has me convinced: extraction shooters are brilliant – Eurogamer
• Dragon Quest I & II HD‑2D Remake Review – IGN
• The X‑Files: Resist or Serve is a forgotten fright, and the type of tie‑in gem we sadly don’t see anymore – Eurogamer

Game Announcements & Releases

• Yes, after 13 years it really does look like retrofuture survival horror Routine has a release date – Rock Paper Shotgun
• Dark Souls meets Ocarina of Time in Mouseward, a back‑to‑basics “soulslike collectathon” with sweet N64 visuals – Rock Paper Shotgun
• Stellar Trader, a 4X Strategy Game Where You Wield Galactic Economic Influence, Announced for PC – IGN

Sales & Financial Data

• Monster Hunter: Wilds sales have plummeted, lagging behind even the last game’s DLC and a two‑year‑old Street Fighter game – Eurogamer
• Following FBC: Firebreak flopping, Remedy have a “sense of urgency” and are banking on hits from their established series – Rock Paper Shotgun

Industry Commentary & Controversies

• Escape from Duckov is not what I was expecting at all, and it’s another startling reminder that perhaps we’re going about this whole making games business all wrong – Eurogamer
• “The Flood Are Evil Space Zombie Parasites and Are Not an Allegory to Any Group of People” — Original Halo Devs Hit Out at Homeland Security ICE Recruitment Ad – IGN
• Arc Raiders doesn’t AI‑generate guns from YouTube videos, Embark clarifies: “that’s a research project, and not something that we’re using in the game now” – Rock Paper Shotgun
• “We Won!” – Battlefield 6 Fans Rejoice as EA Tones Down Bright Colors on “Monster Energy” Skin – IGN
• If only Hideo Kojima had known the Wachowskis wanted him to make a Matrix game, maybe he could have found a way to make it work – Eurogamer

Merchandise & Collectibles

• Pokémon TCG: White Flare Binder Collection Is Now At Market Value at Amazon – IGN
• Deals for Today: Pokémon Black Bolt ETB Under Market Value At Amazon and Hot Preorders – IGN
• Darth Vader and More Star Wars Black Series and Vintage Collection Action Figures Are Up for Preorder – IGN

Subscription & Services

• Here are the PlayStation Plus monthly games for November – Eurogamer

TV & Media

• The Boys Season 5 Release Date Coming “Reasonably” Soon, Showrunner Eric Kripke Teases – IGN