Latest news with #Doge
The Guardian
9 hours ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Ex-Doge employee ‘Big Balls' gets new Trump administration position
Edward Coristine – the 19-year-old who quit Elon Musk's controversial, so-called 'department of government efficiency' (Doge) earlier this week, where he gained notoriety in part for having used the online moniker 'Big Balls' – has in fact been given a new government job, this time at the Social Security Administration (SSA). Coristine, whose lack of experience and super-loyalty to Musk saw him become a flashpoint for outrage at Doge's ruthless but haphazard efforts to slash government spending and fire thousands of workers, resigned from Doge earlier this week. However a spokesperson for SSA, Stephen McGraw, told Wired magazine that he was now working for that department. 'His work will be focused on improving the functionality of the Social Security website and advancing our mission of delivering more efficient service to the American people,' McGraw told Wired. Coristine may have previously worked for the SSA, but reporting on his employment history is conflicted. Doge caused chaos early on in the new Trump administration by muscling into dozens of departments and forcing access to computer systems, in a blaze of publicity and combative announcements. A high school graduate, Coristine's experience before Doge was largely limited to a few months working for Neuralink – which Musk owns – and as an intern for a cybersecurity company, which Bloomberg reported fired him for leaking company secrets. Reuters also reported that Coristine had provided tech support to a cybercrime gang that had bragged about trafficking in stolen data and harassing an FBI agent. At Doge, Coristine was dropped into several major government agencies as they went about slashing services and terminating thousands of workers. Last month, Reuters reported that Coristine was one of two Doge associates promoting the use of artificial intelligence AI across the federal bureaucracy. Musk also left Doge in May after months working by Donald Trump's side then falling out with him. Doge, however, continued to operate until Trump's budget chief, hard right nationalist Russell Vought, who says he wants government employees 'in trauma'. On Friday the Washington Post reported, citing anonymous sources, that Doge's latest target was the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), attempting to slash gun restrictions. Nick Robins-Early and Reuters contributed reporting
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
‘Big Balls' now working at Social Security Administration after departing DOGE: report
Edward Coristine, the 19-year-old nicknamed 'Big Balls' who was working in the Department of Government Efficiency, has landed a new role at the Social Security Administration. Coristine, who was hired by Elon Musk to join the DOGE team, recently left the White House but a Social Security Administration spokesperson confirmed he has since joined the agency as a special government employee. 'Edward Coristine joined the Social Security Administration this week as a special government employee,' spokesperson Stephen McGraw told WIRED. 'His work will be focused on improving the functionality of the Social Security website and advancing our mission of delivering more efficient service to the American people.' It was not immediately clear when Coristine started his new role. Sources told the outlet that Coristine 'looked nervous' and 'almost embarrassed' after being spotted at the agency's Woodlawn headquarters in Maryland this week. He was seen with DOGE engineer Aram Moghaddassi, another Musk hire who is working for X and Neuralink. 'Coristine looked nervous, almost embarrassed,' the source told WIRED. 'Aram was on the phone with someone … then said 'Yes I'm with him right now,' gesturing to Big Balls.'' Coristine's appointment at the agency follows a recent report that Musk and allies insisted on giving a 21-year-old former Silicon Valley intern sweeping access to personal data on hundreds of millions of Americans at the Social Security Administration. Musk ordered 21-year-old Akash Bobba, a former Palantir intern who'd been hired as a programmer for DOGE, be granted access to Social Security data without proper training so he could run his own analysis, The New York Times reported. When the acting commissioner, Michelle King, declined to do so, Musk had her fired and replaced with Leland Dudek. Dudek, brought back from a suspension on the DOGE team's recommendation, got Bobba the access. Coristine was first selected to work for the Tesla boss as a technologist, and received full-time staff status at the General Services Administration last month. Coristine became well known online and among Musk's immense fanbase publicly after he was paraded on Fox News alongside his boss. 'Who is Big Balls?' host Jesse Watters asked on his program, surrounded by DOGE members and supporters at a huge oval conference table. 'I am,' piped up 19-year-old DOGE staff member Edward Coristine. 'That should be obvious,' Musk quipped to laughter. Coristine claimed to have caught the eye of the world's richest man after simply changing his name on LinkedIn to 'Big Balls.' In addition to his brief stint as a government employee, the teenage high school graduate worked at Neuralink for several months and founded a company called LLC in 2021, according to WIRED. Speaking to Fox News, Coristine stated that while working in the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Technology, he used 'computer stuff' as he claimed to ferret out 'fraud and waste,' the old mantra of his former boss. With additional reporting from Mike Bedigan
The Independent
a day ago
- Business
- The Independent
‘Big Balls' now working at Social Security Administration after departing DOGE: report
Edward Coristine, the 19-year-old nicknamed 'Big Balls' who was working in the Department of Government Efficiency, has landed a new role at the Social Security Administration. Coristine, who was hired by Elon Musk to join the DOGE team, recently left the White House but a Social Security Administration spokesperson confirmed he has since joined the agency as a special government employee. 'Edward Coristine joined the Social Security Administration this week as a special government employee,' spokesperson Stephen McGraw told WIRED. 'His work will be focused on improving the functionality of the Social Security website and advancing our mission of delivering more efficient service to the American people.' It was not immediately clear when Coristine started his new role. Sources told the outlet that Coristine 'looked nervous' and 'almost embarrassed' after being spotted at the agency's Woodlawn headquarters in Maryland this week. He was seen with DOGE engineer Aram Moghaddassi, another Musk hire who is working for X and Neuralink. 'Coristine looked nervous, almost embarrassed,' the source told WIRED. 'Aram was on the phone with someone … then said 'Yes I'm with him right now,' gesturing to Big Balls.'' Coristine's appointment at the agency follows a recent report that Musk and allies insisted on giving a 21-year-old former Silicon Valley intern sweeping access to personal data on hundreds of millions of Americans at the Social Security Administration. Musk ordered 21-year-old Akash Bobba, a former Palantir intern who'd been hired as a programmer for DOGE, be granted access to Social Security data without proper training so he could run his own analysis, The New York Times reported. When the acting commissioner, Michelle King, declined to do so, Musk had her fired and replaced with Leland Dudek. Dudek, brought back from a suspension on the DOGE team's recommendation, got Bobba the access. Coristine was first selected to work for the Tesla boss as a technologist, and received full-time staff status at the General Services Administration last month. Coristine became well known online and among Musk's immense fanbase publicly after he was paraded on Fox News alongside his boss. 'Who is Big Balls?' host Jesse Watters asked on his program, surrounded by DOGE members and supporters at a huge oval conference table. 'I am,' piped up 19-year-old DOGE staff member Edward Coristine. 'That should be obvious,' Musk quipped to laughter. Coristine claimed to have caught the eye of the world's richest man after simply changing his name on LinkedIn to 'Big Balls.' In addition to his brief stint as a government employee, the teenage high school graduate worked at Neuralink for several months and founded a company called LLC in 2021, according to WIRED. Speaking to Fox News, Coristine stated that while working in the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Technology, he used 'computer stuff' as he claimed to ferret out 'fraud and waste,' the old mantra of his former boss.
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First Post
2 days ago
- Automotive
- First Post
Tesla's European sales drop for fifth straight month, unnerving investors
Data by the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association shows that Tesla sales fell by 28 per cent last month in 30 European countries, even as the overall market for electric vehicles expanded sharply read more Elon Musk's exit from the White House and his resignation from Doge have not been able to turn Tesla's fortunes in Europe, as sales slumped for the fifth month in a row in May, causing jitters among investors who had hoped anger towards the company's CEO would have gone down by now. Data by the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association shows that Tesla sales fell by 28 per cent last month in 30 European countries, even as the overall market for electric vehicles expanded sharply. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The poor showing comes after Tesla's billionaire CEO had promised a 'major rebound' was coming last month, adding to a recent buying frenzy among investors. Musk had said Tesla was sure to get a boost once the company was done retooling its factories to produce a new version of its biggest seller, the Model Y. But that was finished months ago, and the new models are widely available. Investors are now hoping that a cheaper Tesla expected to be out later this year will help reverse the sales decline. The problem of a slump in sales is being felt by Tesla alone, as overall purchases of electric vehicles rose 25 per cent in Europe compared to a year earlier. China's SAIC Motor was the big winner for the month with its European sales of EVs and other kinds of cars jumping 38 per cent. Tesla's robotaxi The record decline in sales comes at a time when Tesla is conducting test drives of its driverless 'robotaxis' service in Austin, Texas. Musk has pinned hopes on robotaxis' success for Tesla's financial future. However, the test drives hit a snag after the flagship robotaxis encountered several issues during the trial runs, including entering the wrong lane, dropping passengers off in the middle of multiple-lane roads or at intersections, sudden braking, speeding and driving over a curb. In one instance, a robotaxi drove into a lane meant for oncoming traffic for about 6 seconds. It had pulled into an intersection in its left-turn lane with its turn blinker on. Then the steering wheel wobbled momentarily, and instead of turning, it proceeded straight into the lane meant for oncoming traffic, prompting a honk from a car behind it. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In another incident, the car suddenly braked with no obstruction apparent in the video. The passenger jerked forward and their belongings were thrown to the floor. In a third video, taken from another vehicle, a robotaxi abruptly stopped twice in the middle of the road while passing police vehicles with flashing lights. Why have Tesla's sales dropped? Analysts attribute Tesla's struggles to growing competition from Chinese brands, EU tariffs on Chinese EVs, and consumer backlash against CEO Elon Musk's political affiliations and activism in Europe. Musk downplayed the issue, calling the European market 'quite weak,' but data shows rising EV adoption overall, suggesting Tesla is losing market share rather than the market shrinking. Tesla's Berlin Gigafactory supplies Europe but has faced production retooling delays and market headwinds, contributing to the sales slump. With inputs from agencies
The Guardian
3 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Doge employee ‘Big Balls' has resigned, says White House official
One of the US so-called 'department of government efficiency' (Doge) service's best-known employees, 19-year-old Edward Coristine, has resigned from the US government, a White House official said on Tuesday, a month after the acrimonious departure of his former boss Elon Musk. The White House official gave no further details on the move and Coristine did not immediately return an email seeking comment. Coristine worked at Musk's brain connectivity company Neuralink before joining the tech billionaire as he led Doge established by the Trump administration earlier this year. Doge has overseen job cuts at almost every federal agency but is starting to see losses itself. Key Musk lieutenant Steve Davis, who was in charge of day-to-day running of Doge, has also left, along with others. The White House has said that Doge's mission will continue. Coristine's youth and online moniker 'Big Balls' became a pop-culture meme as Doge swept through the US government, seizing data and firing employees en masse. Last month, Reuters reported that Coristine was one of two Doge associates promoting the use of AI across the federal bureaucracy. Media outlets, including Wired which first reported his departure, revealed that Coristine had been active in a chat room popular with hackers and previously had been fired from a job following an alleged data leak. In March, Reuters reported that Coristine had provided tech support to a cybercrime gang that had bragged about trafficking in stolen data and harassing an FBI agent. Beginning around 2022, while still in high school, Coristine ran a company called DiamondCDN that provided network services, according to corporate and digital records reviewed by Reuters and interviews with half a dozen former associates. Among its users was a website run by a ring of cybercriminals operating under the name 'EGodly', according to digital records preserved by the internet intelligence firm DomainTools and the online cybersecurity tool The digital records reviewed by Reuters showed the EGodly website, was tied to internet protocol addresses registered to DiamondCDN and other Coristine-owned entities between October 2022 and June 2023, and that some users attempting to access the site around that time would hit a DiamondCDN 'security check'. In 2023, EGodly boasted on its Telegram channel of hijacking phone numbers, breaking into unspecified law enforcement email accounts in Latin America and Eastern Europe, and cryptocurrency theft. Early that year, the group distributed the personal details of an FBI agent who they said was investigating them, circulating his phone number, photographs of his house, and other private details on Telegram. EGodly also posted an audio recording of an obscene prank call made to the agent's phone and a video, shot from the inside of a car, of an unknown party driving by the agent's house in Wilmington, Delaware, at night and screaming out the window: 'EGodly says you're a bitch!' Reuters could not independently verify EGodly's boasts of cybercriminal activity, including its claims to have hijacked phone numbers or infiltrated law enforcement emails. But it was able to authenticate the video by visiting the same Wilmington address and comparing the building to the one in the footage. The FBI agent targeted by EGodly, who is now retired, told Reuters that the group had drawn law enforcement attention because of its connection to swatting, the dangerous practice of making hoax emergency calls to send armed officers swarming targeted addresses. The agent didn't go into detail. Reuters is not identifying him out of concern for further harassment. 'These are bad folks,' the former agent said. 'They're not a pleasant group.'
