Axios

The Justice Department announced Wednesday that it is seizing 32 domains tied to a Russian influence campaign accused of spreading propaganda to influence voters in U.S. and foreign elections.

Why it matters: Members of Russian President Vladimir Putin's inner circle directed Russian companies to promote disinformation as part of a campaign to influence the 2024 election, the Justice Department alleged.

Meta's oversight board ruled on Wednesday that posts with the pro-Palestinian phrase "from the river to the sea" don't violate the social media company's rules on hate speech.

Why it matters: Meta has faced criticism from users who have said its platforms stifled pro-Palestinian speech and enabled antisemitic speech.

Google unveiled a new tool Wednesday aimed at helping city-based decision-makers take steps to lower the impacts from extreme heat.

Why it matters: Climate change is disproportionately affecting urban areas, particularly disadvantaged areas that tend to be the hottest.

• Multiple cities, for example, now have chief heat officers or their equivalent, including Miami-Dade County and Phoenix.

Zoom in: The Google tool uses satellite-based, high-resolution land surface temperature data.

• It employs machine-learning algorithms to identify buildings, trees and other factors critical to determining how much heat a portion of land absorbs.

A pair of devices launching Wednesday highlight a growing trend in consumer hardware: doing one thing well.

Why it matters: The smartphone rendered many formerly standalone devices obsolete, but now some tech with a single purpose can offer an experience that a digital Swiss Army knife can't.

Google unveiled a new tool Wednesday that is aimed at helping city-based decision-makers take steps to lower the impacts from extreme heat.

Why it matters: Climate change is disproportionately affecting urban areas, particularly in disadvantaged areas that tend to be the hottest.

Gecko Robotics this fall will begin examining a U.S. aircraft carrier for wear-and-tear using its artificial intelligence-fueled software and fleet of automatons.

Why it matters: High-tech machines promise to streamline the arduous and often inexact task of scouring military hardware for flaws.

Spotify expanded its viral daylist feature Wednesday, launching it in all of its global markets and in 14 new languages, Axios is first to report.

Why it matters: The music streaming giant is leaning into a feature that's gotten a lot of attention — reactions ranging from impressed to amused — in a bid to get more paying customers in the long term.

Military analysts are buzzing online about a new, secretive Ukrainian weapon that blurs the line between missile and drone.

Why it matters: The Palianytsia, named after a Ukrainian bread, highlights the country's wartime ingenuity, with from-scratch design and production taking 18 months.

Francessca Vasquez — a VP at Amazon Web Services with a 27-year career in tech and the Department of Defense — says it's more important than ever for companies to build a strong business case for generative AI.

The big picture: Amid the hype cycle, businesses are still struggling to find practical and responsible uses for genAI that justify its high costs.