Dan Milmo
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Articles by Dan Milmo
Cracking issue reported on 'small number' of Apple's new foldable iPhones
Mon, 26 Oct, 2026 - 18:03 Owners of the new foldable iPhone are reporting cracks in the device’s screen, as Apple confirmed an issue with a “small number” of units. Reports of cracks have emerged on Reddit and social media platforms since the handset went on general sale globally on Friday. Experts said there had been too few examples to determine whether there was a more serious problem with Apple’s first foldable device, which retails from €2,369 in Ireland.
Meta plans $95bn stock offering to help cover AI expansion
Mark Zuckerberg's Meta has announced plans for a $95bn (£71bn) fundraising to cover its AI expenditure, even as Elon Musk warned that funding for smaller players in the sector was drying up. The owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp is a leading investor in AI and is ploughing multibillion-dollar sums into datacentres, the central nervous systems of the technology.
Meta plans $95bn stock offering to help cover AI expansion
Shares in Meta rose in premarket trading on the news. However, other companies in the AI sector found themselves under further pressure on Monday. Photograph: Dado Ruvić/Reuters Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta has announced plans for a $95bn (£71bn) fundraising to cover its AI expenditure, even as Elon Musk warned that funding for smaller players in the sector was drying up.
The power of AI is worrying senior Labour figures – as is the fear of falling behind the public
“I have this sense that, within a few months, AI is going to be all anyone is talking about,” said one cabinet minister, with an ominous stare. It was Labour conference, with everyone from ministers to activists jubilant at Andy Burnham's takeover and a bounce in the polls after the change of leader. But a number of senior Labour figures were privately starting to name the power of AI as the thing worrying them most, alongside the immediate pressures on the cost of living and fragile economy.
The power of AI is worrying senior Labour figures – as is the fear of ‘falling behind the public’
“I have this sense that, within a few months, AI is going to be all anyone is talking about,” said one cabinet minister, with an ominous stare. It was Labour conference, with everyone from ministers to activists jubilant at Andy Burnham’s takeover and a bounce in the polls after the change of leader. But a number of senior Labour figures were privately starting to name the power of AI as the thing worrying them most, alongside the immediate pressures on the cost of living and fragile economy.
The power of AI is worrying senior Labour figures – as is the fear of ‘falling behind the public’
It is not so much ‘killer robots’ keeping one cabinet minister awake as the idea of concentrated, super-intelligent power ending up in the hands of bad actors. Photograph: Master/Getty Images “I have this sense that, within a few months, AI is going to be all anyone is talking about,” said one cabinet minister, with an ominous stare. It was Labour conference, with everyone from ministers to activists jubilant at Andy Burnham’s takeover and a bounce in the polls after the change of leader.
The new Darth Vader: how tech execs became the film villains of our age
By Dan Milmo / The Guardian Add TT as Preferred Source When The Social Network came out, Mark Zuckerberg organized a staff viewing of a film he described as “fun.” A group corporate outing to the sequel is unlikely.
Use of AI in job interviews on the rise – but UK recruiters say they can spot the cheats
It is obvious when someone is using AI to drum up answers in a job interview, according to Chris Morrow, who runs a recruitment agency in Manchester. “It’s like they are reading off an Autocue,” he said. Morrow, who recruits talent for the AI sector, said apps that can listen in and suggest answers in real time were being used during virtual interviews by candidates, who as a result do not get through to the next round. “Whenever it happens to us, we tend to end the interview.
UK to strengthen cyber defences as minister calls for AI firms to increase safety efforts
Companies building the most advanced AI systems must increase safety efforts, the UK's AI minister will say, as he announces a strengthening of Britain's cyber defences. Kanishka Narayan will call on companies developing frontier AI to do more to make sure it is safe. He will say Britain cannot rely entirely on technology companies to police their own models and will argue the UK needs to build more of its own AI infrastructure.
UK to strengthen cyber defences as minister calls for AI firms to increase safety efforts
Liquid-cooled servers at a datacentre in London. Narayan will argue the UK needs to build more of its own AI infrastructure. Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images Companies building the most advanced AI systems must increase safety efforts, the UK’s AI minister will say, as he announces a strengthening of Britain’s cyber defences. Kanishka Narayan will call on companies developing frontier AI to do more to make sure it is safe.
UK must not be beholden to foreign AI, says head of Alan Turing Institute
The UK must not become dependent on foreign AI systems that can be switched off at short notice and must develop its own versions of the technology, according to the head of the Alan Turing Institute. The country needs a stronger domestic position in AI in response to the US and China’s runaway leadership in the field, with “national resilience” a key focus for ATI said George Williamson.
The new Darth Vader: how tech execs became the film villains of our age
When The Social Network came out, Mark Zuckerberg organised a staff viewing of a film he described as “fun”. A group corporate outing to the sequel is unlikely.
Asos warns customer data may be compromised after unauthorised app access
Asos is investigating unauthorised access to its app system after shoppers received a notification claiming hackers had “fully compromised” its data. The online fashion retailer said basic personal information including name and contact details might have been accessed by an unidentified third party but it did not believe payment card records or passwords had been compromised.
Asos warns customer data may be compromised after ‘unauthorised’ app access
Asos is investigating unauthorised access to its app system after shoppers received a notification claiming hackers had "fully compromised" its data. The online fashion retailer said basic personal information including name and contact details might have been accessed by an unidentified third party but it did not believe that payment card records or passwords had been compromised.
Asos customers receive ‘hack’ notification threatening to leak data
Asos is investigating after users of its mobile app received a notification claiming hackers had “fully compromised” the online fashion retailer’s data. The value of Asos’s shares on the London Stock Exchange dived more than 14% after thousands of customers received a notification titled “Asos hacked” with a link that sent them to the Telegram messaging service.
Asos customers receive ‘hack’ notification threatening to leak data
Asos said it was aware of the reports of a hack but did not confirm or comment further. Photograph: Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/Shutterstock Asos is investigating after users of its mobile app received a notification claiming hackers had “fully compromised” the online fashion retailer’s data. The value of Asos’s shares on the London Stock Exchange dived almost 10% after thousands of customers received a notification titled “Asos hacked” with a link that sent them to the Telegram messaging service.
OpenAI safety leader quits, warning AI company's culture is 'broken'
A safety leader at OpenAI has quit the company, warning that its culture was broken and that AI firms were not “being nearly careful enough” about developing the technology. David Robinson, who led the writing of safety reports that accompanied the ChatGPT developer's product releases, explained his resignation in an essay headlined, “I quit OpenAI because its culture is broken”.
OpenAI scraps release of new model over safety concerns in internal testing
OpenAI is scrapping the release of a next-generation AI model after researchers raised safety concerns during internal testing. The model, GPT-6.1 Astra, was expected to appear in ChatGPT and Codex in October, designed to handle more complex tasks without human assistance. Saachi Jain, the head of safety systems at OpenAI, said the new model “didn't quite meet the bar” of the company's standards.
Anthropic ‘warns of existential AI risks to humanity’ in IPO document
Anthropic is telling investors that advanced AI could pose “catastrophic or existential risks to humanity”, according to reports, as it prepares for a potential $2tn (£1.5tn) flotation. The warning inside the startup’s IPO prospectus, which has yet to be made public, was reported by Reuters and the Financial Times. It follows the company’s call for a slowdown in breakneck development of the technology – a warning echoed by rivals.
Ejecutivos y científicos alertan de una “explosión” en el desarrollo de “IA altamente capaz o sobrehumana”
Más de veintena de los mayores especialistas en inteligencia artificial del mundo advierten a los gobiernos que se preparen para una “explosión de inteligencia” que podría desencadenar el desarrollo tecnológico más trascendental de la historia.
AI godfathers warn of runaway ‘intelligence explosion’
Two of the “godfathers” of modern AI and senior executives at OpenAI and Anthropic have warned governments to prepare for an AI “intelligence explosion”, which they say could be the most consequential technological development in history. A report co-authored by the Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton and the Canadian computer scientist Yoshua Bengio, considered godfathers of modern AI for their work in the field, urges politicians to act now before there is runaway progress in the technology.
British celebrities beat AI companies lobbying to get free use of their work. They have a warning for Australia
Dan Milmo If you want to state the case against copyright reform in Australia, get Kylie Minogue's phone number. If there is one lesson to be learned from a similar battle in the UK, high-profile members of the creative industries make a difference. They get your argument on the front of newspapers, in the news bulletins and on social media.
Oxford lets OpenAI train its AI models on Bodleian library
The University of Oxford has allowed the company behind ChatGPT to train its AI models on historical texts from its Bodleian library, as tech companies scour academic institutions for fresh data. The Bodleian material digitised by OpenAI has been used to “populate the OpenAI training set”, according to internal documents.
Construction of UK’s ‘largest supercomputer’ delayed over power supply problems
A huge datacentre project hailed by the UK government will miss its launch date next year and could be delayed into the mid-2030s. The site in Loughton, Essex, was described as the country's largest AI supercomputer when it was announced in 2025, but power supply problems mean it now faces a lengthy wait before coming online. Doubts had already emerged about the scheme after the Guardian revealed in March that the planned location was still an operational scaffolding yard.
OpenAI’s Altman and Anthropic’s Amodei address UN security council
Sam Altman of OpenAI and Dario Amodei of Anthropic, heads of two of the world's largest artificial intelligence companies, addressed the United Nations security council on Wednesday in separate briefings on AI safety. "We have a choice in front of us," Altman told the council.
How the ‘poisonous tide’ of disinformation stokes division and sows despair
Updated Wed, September 23, 2026 at 7:26 PM UTC A deepfake image from the fake documentary Olympics Has Fallen, produced by Russia-affiliated influence actor Storm-1679, which advanced pro-Kremlin disinformation and used the image and likeness of Tom Cruise, who did not participate in any such documentary.Photograph: Storm-1679/Microsoft Threat Analysis Center Russian disinformation campaigns are varied in their falsehoods and strategies.
Pornhub investigated over concerns it can still be accessed by UK children
One of the world’s most visited pornography websites is being investigated by the UK’s communications watchdog over concerns it can still be accessed by children. Pornhub’s age checking regime may not be “highly effective”, according to Ofcom, and could be in breach of online safety laws requiring strict measures to prevent under-18s from accessing sexually explicit content.
Your AI doomsday questions answered: 'What, if anything, can people like me do about it?'
In realistic terms how would artificial intelligence actually kill me? What is the main proxy threat? Nuclear war, death due to breakdown of society, a virus? I hear all these reports it could kill us but still unsure how that could practically happen? To be honest all sounds too wooly to really take seriously.
Could AI really end humanity? Our tech experts are answering your questions now
LIVE – Updated at 17:08 After a week of alarming warnings about the artifical intelligence's potential to destroy the world as we know it, our technology reporters are answering your questions on the reality of the AI threat live. How do we regulate AI? Fulgrim asks: What would legislation look like? We only just passed the Online Safety Act and it is ineffectual, restrictive and late.
Why Europe has been absent from the great AI safety debate
Europe's dilemma over AI was rendered in stark terms this week. The head of the continent's central bank, Christine Lagarde, said Europeans have two options: shun the technology and lose out on growth; or embrace it and become dependent on tools developed by the US and China. The great debate over AI safety that has erupted in recent days threatens to make the choice moot.
‘A critical moment’: concern UK is not up to speed in acting on AI risks
Towards the end of Keir Starmer’s time in office, his senior ministers, alarmed by the latest developments in artificial intelligence, began drawing up plans for a new AI safety law. They ordered a review of existing legislation to see what powers they already had, according to those briefed on the plans, and were exploring whether they could force the world’s most advanced technology companies to submit their products for safety testing before launching them.
Could AI really end humanity? Post your questions for our tech reporters now
(Left to right) Guardian tech reporters Aisha Down, Blake Montgomery and Dan Milmo Illustration: Guardian Design Welcome to the conversation Our reporting team has been trying to make sense of the scale of these claims. Is the great AI freakout justified? They will be here from 3pm BST (4pm CEST, 10am EDT) to try and answer any questions you might have. What worries you most about AI? Do you think the coverage is fair? Are the benefits being overshadowed by scare stories?
OpenAI reveals cases of ‘concerning’ AI behavior as it announces new disclosure system
(Levart Photographer / Unsplash) By Dan Milmo • Sep 17, 2026 OpenAI has disclosed six more examples of “unexpected or concerning” behavior by its technology, as it warned that the pace of development could not continue at “maximum speed for much longer” responsibly.
OpenAI reveals cases of ‘concerning’ AI behaviour as it announces new disclosure system
OpenAI has disclosed six more examples of “unexpected or concerning” behaviour by its technology, as it warned that the pace of development could not continue at “maximum speed for much longer” responsibly. In one of the new cases reported by OpenAI, an unreleased research model inserted “jailbreak-like instructions” into its own notes to disregard its normal constraints and told itself to be “freed from the roles and identities that bind other chatbots”.
OpenAI reveals cases of ‘concerning’ AI behaviour as it announces new disclosure system
OpenAI has disclosed six more examples of “unexpected or concerning” behaviour by its technology, as it warned the pace of development could not continue at “maximum speed for much longer”. In one of the new cases reported by OpenAI, an unreleased research model inserted “jailbreak-like instructions” into its own notes to disregard its normal constraints and told itself to be “freed from the roles and identities that bind other chatbots”.
‘Godfather of AI’ says tech regulation is nearing Covid-style pivot moment
Concerns over AI safety are reaching a point where governments realise they must act to protect the public, similarly to in the Covid pandemic, according to one of the “godfathers” of the technology. The Canadian computer scientist, a prominent voice in the campaign to rein in breakneck AI development, said he was now “more optimistic than many observers because I see the public moving”.
Could AI really wipe out humanity and hijack the internet?
There have been some shocking claims in recent days about AI safety: we face a 10% chance of doom; AIs are worse than nukes; a “botnet” threatens the entire internet; it's all a big tech psyop. We look at six claims and reactions to them.
Louise Haigh: UK must heed warnings from AI experts
Ministers must "heed the warnings" from industry leaders about the threat posed by AI, Louise Haigh has said, amid calls for Andy Burnham to use the G20 to drive global regulation. The first secretary said that while AI had enormous potential to improve lives, and the government wanted to capitalise on the technology, there were "clearly huge risks to our national security and society if the right guardrails are not put in place".
Europe must build own AI or risk getting cut off by US or China, says ECB's Lagarde
Europe must develop its own AI technology and build more datacentres in order to nullify the threat of being cut off by the US or China, according to the president of the European Central Bank. Christine Lagarde said the continent needed AI models – the technology that powers AI tools such as chatbots – that were “good enough” to carry out most tasks and run from domestic datacentres. If Europe invests in its own AI tech, said Lagarde, “the threat of being cut off loses its force”.
OpenAI urges UK lawmakers to rein in technology amid growing safety fears
OpenAI has urged British lawmakers to capitalise on renewed fears over AI safety and impose legislation reining in the technology. The company behind ChatGPT said the UK government should act immediately, following a call by its arch-rival Anthropic to curb AI development. “We support stronger UK rules for the handful of companies, including OpenAI, developing the most powerful AI systems,” said OpenAI's head of policy in Europe, Tom Duff Gordon.
OpenAI urges UK lawmakers to rein in technology amid growing safety fears
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UK MPs and Lords call for new laws to tackle AI threat to human rights
British lawmakers are demanding more restrictions on the power of AI, warning the world is unprepared for the “potentially dire” consequences of the technology, in the latest sign of rising global concern. A new regulatory framework is needed for AI in the UK, including an independent oversight body and legislation to protect the public, according to the cross-party joint committee on human rights, comprising MPs and Lords.
‘Really helpful’: the AI bootcamps aimed at addressing UK youth unemployment
The hope is that one will solve – rather than cause – the other. In a room at the recently opened Vault, a community hub in the Lancashire city, an “AI bootcamp” is under way – part of a trial in the north-west to give 16- to 24-year-olds AI training. The bootcamp tutor is standing in front of a video screen and guiding the five attenders sitting around a long table on laptops through a task designed to emphasise the importance of glitch-free data in AI models. “Does that make sense?” he asks.
OpenAI claims to have solved maths problem that stumped humans for decades
OpenAI claims to have solved a major mathematics problem that has stumped humans for nearly a century after spending millions of dollars on the artificial intelligence-led endeavour. The company behind ChatGPT said it had cracked the Navier-Stokes problem, one of seven Millennium Prize Problems published by the Clay Mathematics Institute to highlight some of the biggest unsolved puzzles in the field.
UK to force Apple and Google to block explicit images on children's smartphones
Apple and Google will be forced to block explicit images on children's smartphones by law in the UK after talks failed to produce a breakthrough, the government has said. The legislation commitment puts ministers on a collision course with two of the biggest players in Silicon Valley, months after the government announced a social media ban for under-16s.
UK to force Apple and Google to block explicit images on children’s smartphones
Apple and Google will be forced to block explicit images on children's smartphones by law in the UK after talks failed to produce a breakthrough, the government has said. The legislation commitment puts ministers on a collision course with two of the biggest players in Silicon Valley, months after the government announced a social media ban for under-16s.
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