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Some video games have been trying to use generative AI for years now, and for the most part people simply have not been having it. Why would we? It's lazy, it's ugly, it's an ethical black hole and it's being driven by an executive class desperate to lay off even more workers. While earlier and more brazen attempts at employing the tech were obvious, lately it's becoming more common for studios to slide a little AI-generated content in without drawing attention to it.

Jurassic World Evolution 3 launched with some AI-generated character portraits, then got bullied into removing them. Clair Obscur, which will be a lot of people's game of the year, appeared to quietly launch with some AI-generated art then just as quietly patch it out. I was going to review the city-building grand strategy game Kaiserpunk until I saw they were using AI-generated images for their dialogue sections, after which I promptly uninstalled it.

The latest culprit is The Alters, which has found to have shipped not only with AI-generated placeholder text in-game, but also employed AI-generated translations in some of its side content as well. None of this was disclosed prior to the game's release; it was all discovered later, by players, and has prompted an explanation of sorts from the developers which tries to calm everyone down, but which has just made things worse, because if it took people discovering these specific instances to find that 11 Bit had used AI-generated content in the game's development, how do we know there's not more of it?

Live reporting of the second reading of the infamous welfare bill.

The Work and Pensions Minister Sir Stephen Timms is expected to tell MPs that the timing of the eligibility changes to the personal independence payment (Pip) will now take account of the findings of the review that Timms is to lead.

MPs have expressed concerns over the last 24 hours that the planned scheduling of the Timms review was too close to the planned changes to Pip eligibility, that are due to come into affect in November of next year - and so its conclusions wouldn’t be able to be acted upon.

The government will seek to reassure MPs that this issue will now be resolved.

The New South Wales tenants union has called for nationwide reforms to crack down on misleading rental advertisements after the state government introduced new laws in response to the growing use of artificial intelligence in real estate.

The legislation, announced on Sunday, will require mandatory disclosure when images in rental advertisements have been altered to conceal faults and mislead rental applicants.

The state government cited examples of real estate agents using artificially generated furniture that showed a double bed in a bedroom that was only large enough to fit a single in listings, or digitally modifying photos to obscure property damage.

Bluesky

Considering the overwhelmingly negative feedback, I am hereby withdrawing this Change proposal.

The reasoning is twofold:

1. I have always argued that Changes that are overwhelmingly rejected by the community should not be approved by FESCo. So it would be very hypocritical if I attempted to push this through over the almost entirely negative feedback. I stand by my positions and also apply them to myself.
2. At this point, I believe that this has no chance of being approved by FESCo for Fedora 43, so I do not want to waste everyone's time by continuing this discussion that is not leading anywhere.

The Independent has been told that MPs – including ministers – considering rebelling against the government’s welfare reforms on Tuesday next week have been threatened with losing the whip and even, according to two sources, deselection.

The issue came to a head in a fiery meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party addressed by work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall on Monday evening with several MPs privately claiming it could end up with Sir Keir being forced out as leader.

The rebellion became official shortly after with an amendment to the welfare reform bill next week calling for a pause in the reforms, which some believe could be signed by as many as 100 MPs.

The government plans to make £5bn a year in savings on welfare mostly by reducing personal independence payments (PIPs) for those with disabilities by limiting access to them for all apart from the most disabled.

Previously, at least 80 Labour MPs, including 12 ministers, are understood to be considering rebelling against the legislation needed to cut the welfare bill by £5bn a year. But the new amendment, which is understood to be fronted by the Treasury select committee chair Meg Hillier and other committee chairs, may garner even more support.
[…]
[I]t is understood that MPs requesting permission to miss the vote are being denied because the government wants a show of loyalty on the second reading vote on 1 July.

In the PLP meeting on Monday evening, just a week before the vote, Ms Kendall will try to persuade fellow Labour MPs that the government has no choice but to balance the books.

But former Jeremy Corbyn ally Richard Burgon MP has announced that he will be presenting a petition demanding wealth taxes instead of benefits cuts next week just 24 hours before the crucial vote.
[…]
The issue became a subject of tensions in the run-up to last month’s spending review when a leaked memo from Ms Rayner also proposed eight new wealth taxes on the richest individuals and big corporations as an alternative to cuts.

The row played out during work and pensions questions in the Commons with one MP suggesting the benefits cuts will lead to "appalling poverty".

Labour MP Andy McDonald asked for further evidence on how many people will lose out on Personal Independence Payments as a result of the welfare reform bill.