Lucid Motors is set to release a software update on July 30, enabling hands-free highway driving in its Air sedans. This advancement places Lucid among the few companies offering such technology in the U.S., alongside Ford (BlueCruise), General Motors (Super Cruise), and Mercedes-Benz (Drive Pilot). Tesla's Full Self-Driving (Supervised) also offers hands-free capabilities under specific conditions.

The hands-free update will initially be available for Air sedans, with a similar update planned for the Gravity SUV later this year. The feature is exclusive to vehicles equipped with the $2,500 “Dream Drive Pro” package, which includes 32 sensors like lidar, radar, cameras, and ultrasonics.

Drivers must remain attentive and ready to take control, as the system uses a camera to monitor driver attentiveness and is limited to compatible divided highways. Lucid has delivered approximately 20,000 cars since 2021.

Billy McFarland, the mastermind behind the infamous Fyre Festival, has sold the rights to the brand on eBay for $245,300. The buyer's identity and intentions remain unknown.

The original Fyre Festival was a disastrous event in the Bahamas, marked by inadequate accommodations and poor food, leading to McFarland's conviction for financial crimes.

Despite his past, McFarland attempted a second Fyre Festival in Mexico, but it was canceled due to lack of permits. He then decided to auction off the Fyre Festival brand.

McFarland claims the brand has potential in entertainment, media, and fashion. A portion of the sale proceeds will go toward restitution, though he still owes $26 million.

AI researchers from leading companies are urging deeper investigation into monitoring the 'thoughts' of AI reasoning models using Chain-of-Thought (CoT) techniques.

A position paper emphasizes that CoT monitoring could be crucial for controlling AI agents as they become more capable, providing insights into their decision-making processes.

The paper calls on AI developers to study the factors that make CoTs monitorable and to track monitorability as a potential safety measure.

Notable figures from OpenAI, Safe Superintelligence, Google DeepMind, and others have signed the paper, highlighting a unified effort to enhance AI safety research and attract more attention to areas like CoT monitoring.

Betsy Fore, a Native American woman, has launched Velveteen Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on healthcare, climate, consumer, and community sectors. The firm aims to invest $500,000 to $4 million in seed and Series A companies.

Velveteen Ventures seeks to invest in 15 to 20 companies, with a portion of Fund I’s carry going to Native American tribes. Karla Brollier, also of Native descent, will lead climate investments, and Katherine Stabler joins as COO.

Fore, previously with TinyOrganics and Wondermento, aims to support founders and prove that profits and purpose can coexist.

Reddit has introduced age verification for users in the United Kingdom to comply with the U.K.’s Online Safety Act (OSA). This measure aims to prevent children from accessing inappropriate content.

Users are required to verify their age using Persona, a third-party service, by submitting a picture of their government-issued ID or taking a selfie. Reddit will only save the verification status and date of birth, not the images themselves.

Restricted content for users under 18 includes sexually explicit posts, content encouraging suicide and disordered eating, and posts spreading hate based on various protected characteristics. Bluesky has also announced similar age verification measures in the UK to comply with the OSA.

Critics have raised concerns about the security and privacy risks associated with companies collecting and storing identity documents.

Apple is investing $500 million in MP Materials to bolster the domestic rare earth supply chain.

The investment will support the development of American-made rare earth magnets at MP Materials' Texas facility, specifically for Apple products.

Apple and MP Materials will collaborate on a rare earth recycling line in California to process recycled materials for reuse in Apple products.

The companies will also work together on novel magnet materials and processing technologies.

This commitment is part of Apple's pledge to spend over $500 billion in the U.S. over the next four years.

A staff member with access to sensitive U.S. government data reportedly leaked a private API key for Elon Musk's xAI chatbot.

Marko Elez, a government employee who worked on systems at the Treasury, Social Security Administration, and Homeland Security, published code containing the key to his GitHub account.

The exposed key granted access to multiple xAI models, including Grok.

While the key was removed from GitHub, it wasn't revoked, raising concerns about data security practices.