News - For Consumers

Big Tech has hollowed out the internet, argue scholars at an EDRi event. The current online landscape is detrimental to innovation and user experience.

Mercadona emerges as an energy giant, outbuying Microsoft in renewables via long-term power purchase agreements. Spain leads Europe in energy contracts, securing 3,900 MW.

EU digital rights group EDRi warns "Digital Omnibus" proposals weaken GDPR and ePrivacy safeguards. These changes, presented as simplification, risk deregulation and undermine fundamental rights protections for citizens.

Civil society groups urge EU lawmakers to reject AI Omnibus proposals weakening AI Act transparency. This move risks fundamental rights and enforcement for negligible company benefits.

WhatsApp scores a win as the European Court of Justice allows direct appeals against the European Data Protection Board. This decision impacts potential multi-billion euro data protection fines for Meta.

Spain's MareNostrum 5 supercomputer receives €129 million to integrate AI capabilities. The upgrade, co-funded by Spain, Portugal, and Turkey, aims to boost its capacity for AI model training and inference.

EDRi urges the Council to reject the Digital Omnibus proposal, citing fundamental rights violations and poor regulatory practice. The group demands the Commission resubmit the legislation with comprehensive assessments.

LibreOffice slams Microsoft's commercial practices, accusing them of hindering interoperability over proprietary interests. This renewed criticism highlights ongoing tensions in the software market regarding open standards.

ZB MED launches fundraising for European OLSPub, a PubMed alternative aiming for digital sovereignty in research data. The project seeks funding to secure independent access to scientific literature.

Big Tech lobbies against the EU's Digital Fairness Act, aiming to curb manipulative online design. Google and Meta face scrutiny over practices that steer user behavior.

EU Commission threatens Meta with enforcement actions over WhatsApp data API access. Brussels deems Meta's conduct anti-competitive, citing restricted rival access.

Siemens CEO envisions automating entire factory processes with AI, merging physical and digital worlds. This ambitious plan aims for optimal operations but raises questions about workforce displacement.

EU regulators preliminarily found TikTok breached the Digital Services Act with its addictive platform design. EDRi urges TikTok to swiftly mitigate risks to its 500 million European users.

Mannheim's AI-powered "behavior scanner" surveillance project faces scrutiny. Baden-Württemberg's data protection authority is investigating a section where no crimes were reported since cameras were installed.

EU threatens provisional measures against Meta for blocking third-party AI chatbots like ChatGPT on WhatsApp. Meta's policy shift now excludes rivals, prioritizing its own AI.

Barcelona-born iLovePDF offers free PDF editing tools, growing into one of the internet's most visited websites. The platform simplifies document management for millions globally.

Europe unveils 8 digital alternatives to replace Big Tech, championing private life over surveillance. These homegrown solutions cover search engines to AI, aiming for greater digital sovereignty.

Nextcloud unleashes its ADA Engine, slashing server load and speeding up large installations. This new data access architecture promises significant performance gains for the open-source platform.

EU lawmakers are extending a temporary loophole for the second time, allowing internet services to voluntarily scan user communications. This exemption bypasses privacy rules for combating child sexual abuse, raising proportionality concerns.

Ford explores partnerships with Chinese EV makers like Geely for European production. Talks include technology sharing, potentially impacting its Almussafes plant.