Axios

Iranian "malicious cyber actors" emailed associates of President Biden's re-election campaign with information "taken from stolen, non-public material from former President Trump's" campaign over the summer, U.S. investigators said Wednesday.

The big picture: The incidents that occurred before Biden suspended his campaign mark "the latest example of Iran's multipronged approach" to "stoke discord and undermine confidence" in the U.S. electoral process, per a joint statement from the FBI, CISA and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI).

Elon Musk and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) on Wednesday both took to X to share a rumor that police later called false about an explosive device was discovered near the Long Island site where former President Trump is set to hold a rally Wednesday night.

Why it matters: The rumor surfaced just days after Trump was targeted in an apparent second assassination attempt and further underscored the security concerns that have permeated the 2024 presidential race.

T-Mobile and OpenAI will build a new customer service system powered by AI agents as part of a multi-year partnership announced Wednesday.

Why it matters: Customer service has emerged as one of the top business uses for generative AI, along with coding and marketing.

Passport renewal is finally joining the 21st Century and going digital, easing the frustrations of travelers previously stuck in a paper-only process.

Why it matters: Passport processing should be faster than the six- to eight-week wait the State Department currently advertises.

BlackRock and Microsoft announced that they are part of a group seeking to form a $30 billion fund to invest in data centers and related energy infrastructure.

Why it matters: This is a recognition that the AI revolution requires massive compute power, which is rooted in the physical world.

A global, high-stakes race is on to figure out not just how to build affordable autonomous weapons, but also invent ways they can fight together.

Why it matters: Today, individual drones are a tool for troops. Tomorrow, collaborating swarms will define conflict, turning battlefields into an unmanned "hellscape," in the words of America's top leader in the Indo-Pacific.

Nearly three-fourths of teens have used at least one type of generative AI tool, most often for homework help, according to a Wednesday Common Sense Media report.

The big picture: Teens and their parents exhibit a disconnect in their understanding of AI use and its potential outcomes.

Amazon's hard-core move to push employees back into the office five days a week is a signal that — in the tech sector at least — employers have regained some leverage over workers.

Why it matters: The labor market has weakened. The rank-and-file mostly don't want to be in the office for a full work week — but in a looser labor market, their opinions matter less.

Generative AI is demonstrating one of the most enduring laws in tech: Teenagers are always a lap ahead of their elders.

Why it matters: Efforts to keep kids safe from potentially harmful or dangerous technology regularly falter because adults don't understand what youngsters are actually doing.

Cigna's Express Scripts filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging a federal report that places the blame for rising drug prices on pharmacy benefit managers, describing it as "seventy-four pages of unsupported innuendo" and calling for a retraction.

Why it matters: Experts say the lawsuit is legally dubious but represents significant pushback from pharmacy middlemen "to counterbalance the narrative" from regulators.

Elon Musk said Tuesday that SpaceX will be filing a lawsuit against the Federal Aviation Administration for "regulatory overreach."

Why it matters: The Musk-led aerospace giant has been knocked by air-safety regulators on multiple occasions, even as it becomes an increasingly prominent player in outer space.

Russia is now throwing all of its disinformation resources behind operations designed to undermine the Harris-Walz campaign, according to a Microsoft report released Tuesday.

Why it matters: The new report suggest Russia wants to use these operations to influence the outcome of another U.S. presidential election.

Snapchat on Tuesday unveiled a new, proprietary operating system to power its fifth generation of augmented reality (AR) Spectacles glasses and other hardware in the future.

Why it matters: Snap CEO Evan Spiegel believes AR hardware, like its smart glasses, will one day become as ubiquitous as phones and tablets are today — and that Snap's early investments in AR software will help the company seal a leading market position.

Chinese-manufactured cargo cranes are sounding alarm bells in D.C. about state-backed espionage and cyber threats.

Why it matters: Many China hawks now believe that Beijing holds the power to knock out most of the U.S.'s cargo cranes — potentially disrupting the global trade of consumer goods, military equipment and other resources.

@ D.C.

🇷🇺 The Biden administration declassified new evidence that Russian state media network RT is fully integrated into Russia's intelligence operations. (CNN)

⚠️ The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is urging federal agencies to either remove or update an end-of-life Ivanti product that hackers are actively targeting. (The Record)

🏛️ The Treasury Department issued additional sanctions against Intellexa, the maker of Predator spyware. (CyberScoop)

@ Industry

🧳 Cisco's latest round of layoffs appears to have affected some members of Talos Security, its threat intelligence and security research unit. (TechCrunch)

Nothing to see here, just another story about jailbreaking ChatGPT to get it to spit out harmful content by telling it you're "playing a game." 🙃

The rise of artificial intelligence will boost the global economy a cumulative $19.9 trillion by 2030, according to a new IDC study released Tuesday.

Why it matters: The study takes a broad look at AI's impact, including the revenue of AI companies, AI's impacts on consumer spending and the massive spending on infrastructure needed to power AI systems.

Meta is banning RT and other Russian state media outlets due to "foreign interference activity" after the U.S. accused the organizations of advancing an election interference scheme.

Why it matters: The Justice Department (DOJ) alleged in an indictment earlier this month that employees of the Kremlin-backed outlet spent millions to direct an American company and several right-wing influencers to unwittingly publish Russian propaganda.

Instagram on Tuesday announced major changes to teen accounts that give parents more control over their teen's messaging and content settings.

Why it matters: Worldwide, over 100 million accounts will likely be impacted.

Microsoft is boosting its investment in AI for the Middle East and Africa, in conjunction with Abu Dhabi-based G42.

Why it matters: Microsoft wants its technology — and U.S. tech more broadly — to beat China in the battle to power the world's AI systems, especially in developing countries.

Former President Obama is taking to TikTok today in search of eligible voters who aren't yet registered to pull the lever for Vice President Harris.

Why it matters: Democrats want to press their advantage with young Americans.

U.S. students have made up for some pandemic-era learning losses in math and reading — but the recovery has been slow and uneven, especially among students of color, per a new report.

Why it matters: The pandemic exposed deep racial and income inequalities in the nation's public school system, and the uneven recovery is showing few of those inequities have been addressed enough.

Former President Trump praised the U.S. Secret Service and local law enforcement on Monday for their "fantastic" response to an apparent second assassination attempt against him.

The big picture: In his first detailed account since suspect Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, was charged with two gun counts, Trump recounted during an X Spaces discussion how Sunday's events unfolded at his golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, while he was playing golf with friends including real estate developer Steve Witkoff.