Business

BOSTON (AP) — Microsoft said Wednesday that U.S. adversaries — chiefly Iran and North Korea and to a lesser extent Russia and China — are beginning to use its generative artificial intelligence to mount or organize offensive cyber operations. The technology giant and business partner OpenAI said they had jointly detected and disrupted the malicious cyber actors’ use of their …

Thousands of ride-hailing and delivery workers in the U.S. and the U.K. went on strike on Valentine’s Day, calling for higher pay and other changes to their working conditions. In the U.S., Uber and Lyft drivers planned daylong strikes in Chicago; Philadelphia; Pittsburgh; Miami; Orlando and Tampa, Florida; Hartford, Connecticut; Newark, New Jersey; Austin, Texas; and Providence, Rhode Island. Drivers …

NEW YORK (AP) — It turns out there are lots of sharp elbows in the plush toy business. Build-A-Bear and the makers of Squishmallows are facing off in federal court. Kelly Toys and its Berkshire Hathaway -controlled parent company Jazwares have sued Build-A-Bear, saying its new “Skoosherz” toys copy the look and feel of their mega-popular Squishmallows products. The Skoosherz …

NEW YORK (AP) — Fidelity Charitable, the nation’s largest grantmaker, distributed a record-setting $11.8 billion to nonprofits in 2023, up more than 5% from the previous year at a time when generally donations are dropping. The grant total shows how quickly use of the donor-advised fund — an investment account that allows donations to be distributed over time — is …

U.S. auto safety regulators have closed a seven-year investigation into complaints about power-assisted steering failures in Ford Fusions without seeking additional recalls. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says in documents posted Monday that its testing found only minor steering effort changes if the power-assist failed. It also found a declining failure trend, and a lower failure rate in Fusions …

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese technology conglomerate SoftBank Group returned to profitability in October-December after four straight quarters in the red, the company said Thursday. Tokyo-based SoftBank reported a 950 billion yen ($6.4 billion), profit for the October-December quarter, a reversal from a 783 billion yen loss in the same period a year earlier. It remained in the red for the …

Satya Nadella marks his tenth year as Microsoft CEO on Sunday, capping a decade of stunning growth as he pivoted the slow-moving software giant into a laser focus on cloud computing and artificial intelligence. Microsoft’s stock has soared by more than 1,000% since Nadella took the helm in 2014, compared to the more gradual 185% growth of the broader S&P …

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Inflation in Europe edged lower in January to 2.8%, keeping alive speculation about quicker interest rate cuts that would lower borrowing costs for businesses and consumers — and help boost the stagnating economy. The annual figure released Thursday by the European Union statistics agency Eurostat was down from 2.9% in December and matched what market analysts …

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Dueling legislative proposals in Virginia backed by different gambling companies would open the door for an expansion of slot-like betting machines in businesses such as truck stops, restaurants and convenience stores. At the center of the debate are “gray machines,” arcade-style games that look similar to slot machines but involve an element of skill, manufacturers say. …

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Dueling legislative proposals in Virginia backed by different gambling companies would open the door for an expansion of slot-like betting machines in businesses such as truck stops, restaurants and convenience stores. At the center of the debate are “gray machines,” arcade-style games that look similar to slot machines but involve an element of skill, manufacturers say. …