Latest news with #democratic
Gizmodo
6 days ago
- Business
- Gizmodo
Is This the End of Google As We Know It?
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman arrived in Washington this week with a carefully crafted message for policymakers: Artificial intelligence is already boosting productivity for millions of Americans, and his company intends to keep it 'democratic' by putting it in everyone's hands. As the capital buzzes with debates over AI regulation, Altman is positioning OpenAI not as a disruptor to be feared, but as an engine for universal progress. 'It's not about stopping disruption, but putting it into people's hands so they have the opportunity to benefit,' a source familiar with Altman's thinking told Axios. The timing of this pitch could not be more strategic. ChatGPT is now handling a staggering 2.5 billion prompts every day, with 330 million daily queries coming from the U.S. alone, OpenAI told Axios. Just eight months ago, that figure was a billion daily prompts. For perspective, Google processes an estimated 14 to 16 billion daily searches. This means that in less than two years, OpenAI's conversational AI has grown to handle a volume equivalent to one sixth of the world's largest search engine. For decades, search meant one thing: 'Google it.' A new analysis by marketing researcher Rand Fishkin of Datos shows just how ingrained this behavior has been. In 2024, the average active American desktop user performed 126 unique Google searches a month. That includes everything from navigational queries like 'Facebook login' to shopping, news, and local lookups. But AI tools like ChatGPT are starting to chip away at that habit, and not just for power users. A small but growing cohort is using AI as a direct replacement for search engines, asking it to find, summarize, or create answers instead of scanning a list of blue links. Fishkin notes that while most users have not ditched Google yet, the threat is real enough that Google has defensively rolled out its own AI powered 'Search Generative Experience' and even a 'Web' tab for users who still prefer traditional links. Google's core business is search advertising, which generated $175 billion in revenue last year, accounting for more than half of its total $307 billion in revenue. If even a fraction of high value searches migrate to ChatGPT, Google's economic engine faces a significant long term risk. The company is spending billions to integrate its own Gemini AI into search, but that strategy carries two major dilemmas: Altman's Washington trip is about more than bragging rights. He is pitching a third path between the 'AI will take your job' doomers and the 'AI will save the world' optimists. His economic case is that AI is a productivity driver that should be broadly accessible, not a tool hoarded by a handful of corporations or governments. OpenAI is betting that ChatGPT will evolve from a curiosity into a daily utility that users consult for work, shopping, and creativity. In Altman's words, the goal is to build a 'brain for the world' with intelligence that is 'too cheap to meter.' The fight between ChatGPT and Google could fundamentally change how we experience the web. For consumers: You may get faster, more conversational answers, but at the cost of seeing fewer diverse links and perspectives. AI could centralize information power even more than search engines did. For creators and businesses: Google's dominance once meant optimizing for a single algorithm. AI driven search means content could be summarized and stripped of attribution unless strong guardrails are built in. That is a looming threat to publishers already fighting for traffic. For society: Altman argues democratization is key, asking, it's who gets how much of a slice of the economic pie? But AI also raises the risk of misinformation, bias, and greater economic concentration in fewer hands. We may be watching the first major shift in online behavior since the smartphone. Fishkin remains skeptical that AI will replace Google for most people anytime soon, but he admits the early adopters are showing what is possible. If ChatGPT can handle one sixth of Google's volume today, what happens when AI native search is built into our phones, cars, and voice assistants? Google is not going away, but its once unassailable dominance is under pressure for the first time since the days of Yahoo and AltaVista. The fight for the future of search is about whether information online remains open and distributed, or collapses into a handful of powerful AI driven platforms.
LBCI
11-07-2025
- Politics
- LBCI
PKK says destroying arms 'a historic, democratic move'
The PKK's move to begin destroying its weapons was a "historic" act that it hoped would bring peace, the Kurdish militants said on destroying a first batch of guns at a ceremony. The move was "a historic, democratic move," they said in a statement read out in a cave in Iraqi Kurdistan, expressing hope that it would "bring about peace and freedom." AFP
LBCI
24-05-2025
- Politics
- LBCI
LADE election monitor assaulted inside polling station in Ghazieh, South Lebanon
An election observer from the Lebanese Association for Democratic Elections (LADE) was physically assaulted inside a polling station in the southern Lebanese town of Ghazieh, the National News Agency reported on Saturday.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Connecticut GOP-backed bill aims to eliminate public benefits charge on electric bill
HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) — A public hearing in Hartford on a bill designed to lower electric rates. It's backed by republicans who want to get rid of the 'public benefits charge' on your power bill. Democrats also say they want to lower rates but say it's a long-term problem. This idea has a lot of people talking. A big chunk of your electric bill consists of this public benefits charge. Republicans say get rid of that, and everybody's bill gets a lot cheaper. Connecticut lawmakers prepare to tackle energy costs in 2025 legislative session Most Democrats are fighting that because of what the charge funds. It supports energy efficiency initiatives, renewable energy, Operation Fuel, which helps keep the lights and heat on for low-income families. It also funds low-income loan programs and assistance for customers struggling to pay their electric bills. Republicans say it funds over 40 different discretionary government programs and is equivalent to a 'hidden tax' on electric bills. They want to get rid of that hidden tax. They tried to do this last year, as well. Democrats say high electric rates are a long-term problem they are working on. Right now, democratic Representative Mary Mushinsky has a press conference planned for 10 here at the Legislative Office Building. It says she is supporting the public benefits charge. Then, the Energy and Technology Committee is scheduled to begin its hearing at 10:30. I looked up the list of people who have signed up to speak at that hearing. There are close to a thousand people on that list, so this could be a very long day for the people in that hearing. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
