Governance/Regulation/Legislation

UN experts: Safeguard human freedoms from systematic digital interference, surveillance and chilling effects on civic space

(OHCHR) In a joint statement, UN experts raised serious concerns over the growing global spread of intrusive surveillance technologies, and their normalisation in everyday life, and called for the urgent strengthening of human rights safeguards. “Digital surveillance tools and practices are often incompatible with international human rights obligations. Globally, arbitrary and pervasive surveillance is overwhelmingly used against civil society, human rights defenders, journalists, peaceful assemblies, minorities, political opposition and dissenting voices, thereby undermining free democratic participation. Digital surveillance creates an environment of fear and exerts profound chilling effects on fundamental freedoms, civic space, and the right to express dissent. – https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2026/04/un-experts-safeguard-human-freedoms-systematic-digital-interference

Governing AI Responsibly: Building Trusted Digital Systems in the Age of AI

(GovTech Singapore) AI is rapidly transforming how organisations design services, make decisions, and engage users. From automating routine tasks to generating insights at scale, AI offers significant potential, but also real risks. As AI adoption accelerates, issues such as bias, security vulnerabilities, and misuse must be actively managed. In Singapore, where digital services are deeply embedded in everyday life, ensuring AI systems remain secure, reliable, and aligned with societal values is critical. Robust AI governance is therefore foundational to building trust, safeguarding users, and enabling responsible innovation. – https://www.tech.gov.sg/technews/governing-ai-responsibly/

ARC releases updated policy on the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence in grant assessment

(Australian Research Council) The ARC has released an updated Policy on Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence in the ARC’s grants programs, providing guidance on AI use by researchers, Administering Organisations and assessors engaged in the National Competitive Grants Program. – https://www.arc.gov.au/news-and-publications/media/arc-releases-updated-policy-use-generative-artificial-intelligence-grant-assessment

Geostrategies

Singapore’s Home Team Science and Technology Agency and Mistral AI partner to advance AI for public safety

(DigWatch) HTX, Singapore’s Home Team Science and Technology Agency, and Mistral AI have signed a Strategic Partnership for Innovation master agreement at MTX 2026 to collaborate on AI for public safety. Under the agreement, the two sides will work on technology and engineering solutions for Home Team operations, draw on each other’s networks, and strengthen HTX’s technical capabilities through training. In AI specifically, the collaboration covers integrating AI into humanoid and other robotic systems, using advanced temporal modelling to turn raw video streams into actionable intelligence, and strengthening digital defences through agentic AI workflows. Mistral AI will also provide infrastructure to support high-performance inference and fine-tuning, as well as a developer toolkit for rapid and secure application development. – https://dig.watch/updates/mistral-ai-htx-public-safety-partnership

OpenAI’s new Microsoft deal opens door to Amazon

(Ina Fried – Axios) OpenAI’s revised Microsoft pact lets it sell AI models across multiple clouds, enabling a likely expansion with Amazon and broader enterprise distribution. The shift ends OpenAI’s effective cloud exclusivity, widening its reach to customers using AWS, Google Cloud or others — and intensifying AI platform competition. A rewritten deal frees OpenAI to sell through any cloud, caps Microsoft’s cut of OpenAI revenue and scraps a controversial provision that would have changed the companies’ business relationship once artificial general intelligence (AGI) was achieved. Amazon and OpenAI are poised to quickly capitalize on the change. – https://www.axios.com/2026/04/28/openai-microsoft-cloud-amazon

Defense/Intelligence/Warfare

Experts call for halt of AI chip exports to China after White House distillation warning

(David DiMolfetta – Defense One) The Trump administration is facing new calls to halt U.S. exports of advanced AI chips to China after the White House warned last week that Beijing is attempting to copy components of American AI systems to build similar models of its own. Americans for Responsible Innovation, an AI policy advocacy group, told White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Michael Kratsios that the administration should bar exports of advanced chips that could help China use U.S. AI systems to develop similar capabilities, according to a letter sent Monday that was first seen by Nextgov/FCW. It comes after OSTP last Thursday accused China and other foreign nations of engaging in “deliberate, industrial-scale campaigns to distill U.S. frontier AI systems,” and said the Trump administration will be taking steps to safeguard domestic AI systems. Distillation campaigns involve sending large volumes of queries to an AI model to train a competing version. –  https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2026/04/experts-call-halt-ai-chip-exports-china-after-white-house-distillation-warning/413155/?oref=d1-featured-river-secondary

Army releases commercial solutions opening for rapid EW and signals intelligence capabilities

(Mark Pomerleau – Breaking Defense) The US Army is on the prowl for industry solutions related to electronic warfare and signals intelligence to become part of a new “library” of commercial tech from which commanders can draw as needed. The Rapid Electromagnetic Warfare & Signals Intelligence Commercial Solutions Offering (REWSI), unveiled by Capability Program Executive Intelligence and Spectrum Warfare (CPE ISW) on Thursday, is part of the service’s effort to reinvigorate its electromagnetic spectrum capabilities and embrace more commercial, rather than bespoke, solutions. – https://breakingdefense.com/2026/04/army-releases-commercial-solutions-opening-for-rapid-ew-and-signals-intelligence-capabilities/

Textron unveils autonomous ground vehicle designed for Marine Corps littoral units

(Meghann Myers – Defense One) Textron debuted the RIPSAW M1 demonstrator on the floor of the Modern Day Marine conference Tuesday, hoping to catch the service’s eye as it expands its unmanned vehicle portfolio. “It’s really an early investment in what we believe the Marines will need in the future,” Sara Willett, Textron’s vice president of programs, told Defense One. “It’s not replacing something, but augmenting the capability that they have, keeping those Marines out of harm’s way and really providing additional effective range of both manned and unmanned platforms, is where we see it going.” –  https://www.defenseone.com/defense-systems/2026/04/textron-unveils-autonomous-ground-vehicle-designed-marine-corps-littoral-units/413153/?oref=d1-featured-river-top

Security and Surveillance

OpenAI, Anthropic meet with House committee over advanced cyber models

(Sam Sabin, Ashley Gold – Axios) OpenAI and Anthropic briefed House Homeland Security Committee staff on their new cyber-capable AI models and their implications for cybersecurity, Axios has learned. This is one of the first briefings that lawmakers have had with the AI giants about the cyber threats posed by their new models, including to under-resourced critical infrastructure sectors. Anthropic has held off on a public release of its Mythos Preview model due to its ability to quickly find and exploit critical security flaws. OpenAI decided on a tiered approach for releasing its GPT-5.4-Cyber model. Both companies are working with federal agencies to get them access to the models. – https://www.axios.com/2026/04/28/openai-anthropic-congress-cyber-briefings

Signal Phishing Campaign Targets German Officials in Suspected Russian Operation

(Pierluigi Paganini – Security Affairs) A new wave of cyber operations targeting European political leadership is once again highlighting how modern espionage increasingly relies on deception rather than technical exploits. Recent investigations by German authorities point to a large-scale phishing campaign conducted via the Signal messaging platform, with strong suspicions of Russian involvement. According to multiple reports, the campaign targeted high-profile individuals, including German politicians, ministers, military personnel, diplomats, and journalists. German prosecutors have launched an investigation into what they believe may be a coordinated espionage effort, with early evidence suggesting a state-sponsored actor. The attack did not rely on malware or vulnerabilities in Signal itself. Instead, it exploited human trust—arguably the weakest link in cybersecurity. Victims were approached through messages impersonating official Signal support or trusted contacts, prompting them to share authentication codes, scan malicious QR codes, or click on crafted links. Once compromised, attackers gained access to private chats, contact lists, and potentially sensitive political discussions. – https://securityaffairs.com/191425/intelligence/signal-phishing-campaign-targets-german-officials-in-suspected-russian-operation.html

New Android spyware Morpheus linked to Italian surveillance firm

(Pierluigi Paganini – Security Affairs) The non-partisan, non-religious, nonprofit organization Osservatorio Nessuno exposed a new spyware called Morpheus, distributed through fake Android apps posing as updates. Once installed, it can steal extensive data from the infected devices. The report shows strong demand from law enforcement and intelligence agencies, fueling a growing market of spyware vendors, many operating quietly outside public scrutiny. Attackers used a typical low-cost spyware tactic: disrupt a service and trick the victim into installing a fake app to restore it. In this case, targets received an SMS linking to a site impersonating an ISP. The first stage, a dropper app, installs a hidden second-stage payload embedded within it. It checks if the payload is already present, then silently deploys it with minimal user awareness. The second stage disguises itself as legitimate system components, using fake icons and names to appear trustworthy. It forces users to grant dangerous permissions, including Accessibility access, which allows it to read screens, interact with apps, and capture sensitive data. – https://securityaffairs.com/191398/malware/new-android-spyware-morpheus-linked-to-italian-surveillance-firm.html

NCSC launches SilentGlass, a plug-in device to secure HDMI and DisplayPort links

(Pierluigi Paganini – Security Affairs) The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has launched SilentGlass, a new device to protect one of the most overlooked parts of modern IT systems: the physical links between screens and computers. It is a small plug-in security device designed to monitor and block suspicious activity on HDMI and DisplayPort connections. Developed through research led by the NCSC and now licensed for production to Goldilock Labs in partnership with Sony UK Technology Centre, SilentGlass represents a shift in how hardware interfaces are treated in cybersecurity. Instead of focusing only on software threats, it addresses risks that arise when physical connections themselves are exploited. “First commercially available product licensed to use NCSC branding granted to Goldilock Labs in manufacturing partnership with Sony UK Technology Centre.” reads the announcement. “UK government and businesses to be protected at scale by the affordable plug-in cyber security device” – https://securityaffairs.com/191408/security/ncsc-launches-silentglass-a-plug-in-device-to-secure-hdmi-and-displayport-links.html

Frontiers

A faster way to estimate AI power consumption

(MIT News) Due to the explosive growth of artificial intelligence, it is estimated that data centers will consume up to 12 percent of total U.S. electricity by 2028, according to the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Improving data center energy efficiency is one way scientists are striving to make AI more sustainable. Toward that goal, researchers from MIT and the MIT-IBM Watson AI Lab developed a rapid prediction tool that tells data center operators how much power will be consumed by running a particular AI workload on a certain processor or AI accelerator chip. Their method produces reliable power estimates in a few seconds, unlike traditional modeling techniques that can take hours or even days to yield results. Moreover, their prediction tool can be applied to a wide range of hardware configurations — even emerging designs that haven’t been deployed yet. – https://news.mit.edu/2026/faster-way-to-estimate-ai-power-consumption-0427

Meta partners with Overview and Noon Energy to power AI data centres

(DigWatch) Meta has announced two energy partnerships to support its AI infrastructure, teaming up with Overview Energy for space solar power and Noon Energy for ultra-long-duration storage, with up to 1 GW reserved under each agreement. Overview Energy operates satellites in geosynchronous orbit, roughly 22,000 miles above Earth, where sunlight is constant. The satellites collect solar energy and beam it to existing ground-based solar farms as low-intensity, near-infrared light, enabling around-the-clock electricity generation without requiring additional land or grid infrastructure. – https://dig.watch/updates/meta-partners-with-overview-and-noon-energy-to-power-ai-data-centres