Politico: Unions flex muscle as states weigh data center rules. “From California to New Jersey, labor groups are throwing their weight behind the energy-guzzling facilities, even as public opposition grows. As legislators in both parties — but especially in blue states — pitch everything from cost restrictions to water standards to outright bans on new data centers, unions are pushing back […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/06/02/politico-unions-flex-muscle-as-states-weigh-data-center-rules/

Politico: Trump signs downsized AI order after weeks of reversals. “In a quiet action with none of his usual fanfare, Trump issued an executive order Tuesday that seeks to address the potentially catastrophic cybersecurity threats posed by artificial intelligence. But the directive calls for less-advanced government scrutiny than the White House had been set to impose last month — the AI […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/06/02/politico-trump-signs-downsized-ai-order-after-weeks-of-reversals/

Reuters: Luxury brands seek to lure America’s AI super-rich. “European luxury brands have sharpened their focus on the United States, with a surge of ​store openings and fashion shows to lure a new crop of wealthy shoppers enriched by the AI and tech boom and offset weak consumer confidence in ‌the rest of the world.”

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/06/02/reuters-luxury-brands-seek-to-lure-americas-ai-super-rich/

Northeastern University: This researcher put AI in the big game. It did not play well. “Northeastern University researcher Lorenzo Torresani wanted to test whether AI can help a group facing a challenge, and he found an interesting dataset with which to evaluate various popular AI models: sports footage. The result? Let’s just say the AI models were no slam dunk.”

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/06/02/northeastern-university-this-researcher-put-ai-in-the-big-game-it-did-not-play-well/

Mississippi Today: Mississippi developer plans to move forward with data center plans, even as state declines to give ruling. “A Mississippi company plans to move forward in building a private power plant and an artificial intelligence industrial campus. State utility regulators, though, declined to make a ruling on the project, calling the developer’s request for an opinion ‘premature’ and […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/06/02/mississippi-today-mississippi-developer-plans-to-move-forward-with-data-center-plans-even-as-state-declines-to-give-ruling/

TechSpot: Fake downloads of popular PC utilities are quietly installing crypto miners on enthusiast PCs. “The Windows Defender security team is alerting users with dedicated GPUs about scammers manipulating search engine results to distribute remote monitoring and cryptomining payloads. The hackers are manipulating not only search engine results but also AI chatbot responses.”

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/06/02/techspot-fake-downloads-of-popular-pc-utilities-are-quietly-installing-crypto-miners-on-enthusiast-pcs/

American Prospect: Take This Data Center and Shove It. “In an era of poisonous politics, Democrats, Republicans, and independents have found common cause over the value of tax breaks worth billions to Big Tech companies worth trillions. What residents see in exchange are higher electricity and water rates, a paltry number of new permanent jobs, and a host of unsavory environmental impacts, from […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/06/02/american-prospect-take-this-data-center-and-shove-it/

UC Irvine: UC Irvine-led research team to develop evaluation protocols, tools for city chatbots. “Beginning in June, they’ll bring together UC Irvine researchers, city technology leaders and practitioners alongside industry and community experts from across Los Angeles and Orange counties to study municipal chatbots for public services. Over three Policy Innovation Days featuring open […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/06/02/uc-irvine-uc-irvine-led-research-team-to-develop-evaluation-protocols-tools-for-city-chatbots/

Ars Technica: AI costs how much? GitHub Copilot users react to new usage-based pricing system.. “In April, GitHub announced that it was moving subscribers from request-based billing to a usage-based model for its AI-powered Copilot service. As that new pricing model goes into effect today, many GitHub Copilot users are reporting some extreme sticker shock as they realize just how quickly their […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/06/02/ars-technica-ai-costs-how-much-github-copilot-users-react-to-new-usage-based-pricing-system/

CNBC: Alphabet plans to raise $80 billion from stock sales to fund AI build-out. “In addition to the $10 billion from Berkshire, Alphabet plans $30 billion in underwritten offerings, including $15 billion in ‘depositary shares representing mandatory convertible preferred stock.’ The remaining $40 billion will come from an at-the-market offering program for Class A and Class C shares, expected […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/06/02/cnbc-alphabet-plans-to-raise-80-billion-from-stock-sales-to-fund-ai-build-out/