James Farrell

James Farrell is the former editor-in-chief of Chiang Mai CityNews, where he wrote and managed daily news, features, op-eds and blogs on a diverse range of topics. Prior to this, in the same city of Northern Thailand where he lives, he was the longstanding deputy editor of the monthly magazine Citylife. He has written on culture, politics, travel, tech, business, human rights, for local, national, and international news services and magazines. He has a keen interest in the role technology is playing in the transformation of society, culture and politics, especially in developing nations. This is reflected in his not-so-successful first novel.

Latest from James Farrell

Tesla shares slump after Trump threatens Elon Musk with DOGE and entertains deportation

Shares of Tesla Inc. plunged more than 7% today after President Trump again targeted his former ally and the world’s richest man, Elon Musk. The bluster between the two men reached new heights in the ongoing spat, with Musk doubling down on his criticism of the president’s flagship spending bill. Trump (pictured) threatened to go ...

Meta comes out winner in AI copyright case against authors

A U.S. judge sided with Meta Platforms Inc. today in an AI copyright lawsuit brought by 13 authors who claimed the social media firm had illegally trained its AI systems on their work without permission. This is the second major AI copyright case this week, with both decisions in favor of the AI companies. In the first, which ...

Waymo’s robotaxis are now available through the Uber app in Atlanta

Google LLC-owned Waymo continues its U.S. expansion, announcing today that its self-driving taxis are now available in Atlanta through its partnership with Uber Technologies Inc. This is the second time the two companies have collaborated, with both of them operating a robotaxi service in Austin since March this year. This week, Tesla Inc. announced it will launch its ...

Meta hits back after US House bans WhatsApp for staffers

Meta Platforms Inc. today said it disagrees “in the strongest possible terms” after its WhatsApp messaging service was banned on all U.S. House of Representatives devices. The House’s chief administrative officer, or CAO, had earlier emailed staffers to inform them that the Office of Cybersecurity had deemed WhatsApp “high-risk” because of a “lack of transparency ...

Waymo’s robotaxis will soon hit the streets of New York City

Google LLC’s autonomous vehicle firm Waymo announced today that it’s about to send part of its legion of robotaxis to the Big Apple, albeit with human drivers at the wheel. The move is part of a fairly rapid expansion for the company, whose robotaxis have already graced the streets of San Francisco, Phoenix, Los Angeles ...

Trump will push TikTok sale deadline another 90 days

President Donald Trump will grant the popular short-video app TikTok another temporary reprieve so it has time to find a buyer to remain operating in the U.S., according to the White House today. The app, owned by Chinese tech giant ByteDance Ltd., has been at the center of national security concerns for years. Following legislation ...

Meta files lawsuit against AI firm behind fake nonconsensual nude images

Meta Platforms Inc. announced today that it’s suing a company that advertised generative artificial intelligence apps on Meta’s platforms that enabled users to “nudify” people from a clothed image. The lawsuit, launched in Hong Kong against Joy Timeline HK Ltd., states that the company consistently tried to circumvent Meta’s review process by advertising the CrushAI ...

Disney and NBC Universal take ‘copyright free-rider’ Midjourney to court over alleged plagiarism

The Walt Disney Co. and NBC Universal Media LLC today announced they have joined forces in a lawsuit against artificial intelligence image creator Midjourney Inc., the lawsuit calling the company a “bottomless pit of plagiarism.” The complaint, filed in a U.S. District Court in central California, follows a slew of lawsuits in which creators of ...

Uber will bring robotaxis to London in 2026

London’s famed black cabs will be joined by autonomous taxis early next year when Uber Technologies Inc. links up with British artificial intelligence firm Wayve Technologies Ltd. in Uber’s first pilot scheme for robotaxis. With Google LLC’s Waymo currently leading the pack where robotaxis are concerned, Uber is playing catch-up, as is Tesla Inc., which ...

After cars destroyed in protests, Waymo suspends operations in parts of LA and San Francisco

Google LLC-owned Waymo has suspended operations in downtown Los Angeles and is doing the same in part of San Francisco after protesters against President Trump’s immigration policies vandalized and set fire to a number of its cars. In L.A. on Sunday, one of several U.S. cities where Waymo’s robotaxis currently operate, at least five cars ...