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Dara Kerr

@darakerr.bsky.social
8.3K followers 871 following 229 posts

Tech Reporter @us.theguardian.com. Tips: dara.kerr@theguardian.com or darakerr.01 on Signal

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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
A secretive super PAC has created new websites and X accounts with AI images that are targeting progressive lawmakers in the Bay Area. The super PAC is based in San Diego and has almost no public footprint. Great reporting by @jrivanob.bsky.social missionlocal.org/2026/06/jack...
missionlocal.org
Mystery ‘Recall Jackie Fielder’ campaign launches — and it’s not the only one
At least 10 linked websites have sprung up in recent weeks targeting progressive officials and tax measures across the Bay Area.
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
What economist Gabriel Zucman said when I asked about SpaceX's IPO and how the concentration of wealth will affect us: "There is a fundamental tension in democratic societies between extreme wealth – which is always an extreme power – and the very possibility of a well-functioning democracy." 1/3
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
New: xAI doubled the gas turbines at its data center, even as NAACP sues alleging the turbines violate the Clean Air Act. This comes as SpaceX IPOs tomorrow, and Anthropic and Google signed deals to use xAI's data center. Here's a graph showing how much toxic NOx xAI's data center is emitting
Graph showing xAI emits far more Nox than the local gas plant and the Tennessee International airport
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
I looked into whether tech billionaire big spending paid off in the California primaries. And, well, it did. Despite the Matt Mahan loss, the industry came out ahead in smaller races up and down the ballot -- especially in state legislature races. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Tech industry wins big in California primary election with millions spent paying off
Silicon Valley is fighting against AI regulation and taxation and will benefit from having political leverage
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
just a short list of 62 candidates to choose from for california governor
Photo of an un-filled out ballot for California governor primary
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Welp, I missed this filing that came in at 6:55pm on Friday night. Brin shells out another $16M to fight the billionaire tax, making his contributions to this Super PAC total $82M.
Campaign filing saying Sergey Brin spent $16M on "Building a Better California" Super PAC
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
So much tech money flowing into CA politics. Crypto boss Chris Larsen spent $1M on the state insurance commissioner primary. Sergey Brin spent $66M to fight the wealth tax. Larsen, Google & Meta have thrown millions to local campaigns in the state legislature. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Tech billionaires are spending unprecedented sums in California races. Experts say it’s the tip of the iceberg
From Google co-founder Brin spending $66m to fight a billionaire tax to Google and Meta funding a joint Super Pac, Silicon Valley is engaged in an existential fight for its political power at home
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Acyn @acyn.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Campos: While I want to thank CBS news for funding this generous gift towards my education, I want to acknowledge how the recent direction of the outlet stains the legacy of Mike Wallace, the namesake of this scholarship.
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
The plaintiff, who filed a lawsuit that he says is existential, is not going to be in the courtroom for closing arguments. This is highly unusual.
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
I spent the last two weeks sitting in court watching the billionaire-on-billionaire drama. It felt like a modern-day version of Bonfire of the Vanities with ambition, ego, greed and the spectrum of social class on full display--along with a good dose of humor. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
What I saw at the Musk-OpenAI trial: petty billionaires, protests and a stern judge
Showdown between Musk and Altman has rendered the world’s most wealthy comical under egalitarian eye of court
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
"There is a grim satisfaction in watching this organization hoist with its own petard."
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Covered Shivon Zilis' testimony at Musk v Altman today and this text from her to a friend came up: “When the father of your babies starts a competitive effort and will recruit out of openai there’s nothing to be done.” And honestly, who among us? www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
Shivon Zilis, mother of four of Elon Musk’s children, testifies in OpenAI trial
Zilis, an executive at Musk’s brain implant startup Neuralink, served on OpenAI’s board from 2020 to 2023
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
The jury was finalized in Musk v Altman today. The judge had to repeatedly ask if people could put aside negative feelings for Musk. One called him a “jerk”, another said they “disagree with a lot of things he’s done”. One said: “Elon doesn’t care about people” www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
Elon Musk and Sam Altman face off in court over OpenAI’s founding mission
Musk’s lawsuit accuses Altman of fraud, while OpenAI says that Musk is ‘motivated by jealousy’
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
The billionaire tax has made it to the California ballot for a vote November. With 1,550,000 signatures, it nearly doubled the amount of signatures necessary to get on the ballot
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
Google's Sergey Brin throws $3M more into the fight against the CA billionaire tax. That brings his total known contributions to $48M. In this new filing, other techies donated too, incl crypto exec Chris Larsen and VCs John Doerr and Michael Moritz. Background: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
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Katie J. Wells @katiejwells.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
for all the talk of how AI is going to replace your job, let's make sure we also talk about how AI is degrading work today. we uncovered a political campaign by ShiftKey & Clipboard Health to spread surveillance wages.
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
This essay, so good. "For soon-to-be trillionaires, no level of loss could significantly change their global standing or personal power. For them, the word failure has ceased to mean anything." www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
theatlantic.com
What I Learned About Billionaires at Jeff Bezos’s Private Retreat
For the richest men on Earth, everything is free and nothing matters.
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Tech Won’t Save Us @techwontsave.us · 16/04/2026
Elon Musk wanted the Cybertruck to be his dream vehicle. Now people are burning alive inside them. This week @darakerr.bsky.social joins @parismarx.com to explore the safety disaster that the vehicles have become and why regulators aren’t acting faster. Full ep: techwontsave.us/episode/324_...
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Julia Carrie Wong @joolia.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
Pete Hegseth believes that Jesus guides Tomahawk missiles, even when they hit elementary schools. I wrote about the roots of his militant faith - from the Crusades to the confederacy - and what they mean for the US and Iran today.
theguardian.com
Pete Hegseth’s holy war: the militant Christian theology animating the US attack on Iran
The bible-thumping US defense secretary is overseeing another strategic disaster in the Middle East. Is this a war or a crusade?
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
Goodnight, TX, is the site of an upcoming Google data center. Cleanview got ahold of documents showing how the facility will be powered. Turns out a gas plant is in the works. This would be one of Google's first direct investments in fossil fuel infrastructure. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
Google teams up with gas plant for AI datacenter in sharp turn from climate goals
Texas power plant would emit 4.5m tons of carbon dioxide per year, more than that of the entire city of San Francisco
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Guardian US @us.theguardian.com · 27/03/2026
With two unprecedented trial defeats, big tech firms face crisis akin to that faced by cigarette makers in the 1990s
theguardian.com
‘Accountability has arrived’: dual US court losses show shifting tide against Meta and co
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Ton Aarts @tonaarts.bsky.social · 24/03/2026
h/t @teslaqasia.bsky.social My spreadsheet documenting all 167 Tesla fire victims: docs.google.com/spreadsheets... Reminder: Nissan Leaf, since 2009: zero (!) burned alive Tesla now has nearly 2,5 times MORE fire victims per Tesla than even the infamous $1800 Ford Pinto from half a century ago ..
docs.google.com
People burned alive in a Tesla, by Ton Aarts
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Bobby Allyn @bobbyallyn.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
No verdict today. “There’s a good chance tomorrow we get a verdict,” said plaintiff lawyer Mark Lanier.
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Ridgehead @ridgeheadgames.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
$45M is 0.018% of $247bn. For someone with a net worth of $125K (the median in the US), that's the equivalent of spending $22.
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
New filings in California show Google's Sergey Brin has now donated $45M to a super PAC dedicated to kneecapping the proposed billionaire tax in the state. Google's Eric Schmidt has also upped his donations with totals now at $4M to anti-wealth tax PACs www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Google co-founder spends $45m in fight against California billionaire tax
Sergey Brin gives $25m on top of $20m he’s already given to Super Pac trying to blocking state’s proposed 5% wealth tax
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
I did a deep dive into five Cybertruck fires. What I learned was the truck's design can hamper rescue efforts and lead to worst-case scenarios where fires rapidly ignite, the vehicle’s electric door handles won’t unlock and passengers are trapped inside www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
Inside the fiery, deadly crashes involving the Tesla Cybertruck
Cybertrucks have locked passengers inside and burned so hot they’ve disintegrated drivers’ bones. Victims’ families blame what they say is the faulty design of a truck Elon Musk calls ‘apocalypse-proo...
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Guardian US @us.theguardian.com · 13/03/2026
Meta and YouTube accused of creating harmful products in trial seen as a bellwether for attitudes towards social media
theguardian.com
‘IG is a drug’: jury to deliberate as US trial over social media addiction wraps up
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 12/03/2026
Lots of new campaign filings coming out in California with tech billionaires spending big. One new filing I hadn't seen reported on yet was Google's Eric Schmidt donating more than $1M to a committee combating the proposed billionaire tax www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Campaign filing showing Eric Schmidt donated $1,041,896 to California Business Roundtable
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
welp, it appears the public hearing supposedly held today didn't make a dent in any decisions www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
Musk’s xAI wins permit for datacenter’s makeshift power plant despite backlash
Billionaire’s artificial intelligence company gets approval to run 41 methane gas turbines at its ‘Colossus 2’ in Mississippi
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
Mississippi's environmental agency called a public hearing over xAI's proposed 41 gas turbines for tomorrow... on primary election day... in a county that's a 3-hour drive away. "This is not a public hearing, this is a deliberate attempt to silence frontline communities" naacp.org/articles/naa...
naacp.org
NAACP Demands Mississippi Regulators Reschedule Data Center Permit Hearing
The NAACP is calling on the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) to immediately reschedule a public hearing scheduled for Tuesday, March 10, 2026—Election Day—regarding an air permit...
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 04/03/2026
This suit reads like a dystopic spy novel. The chatbot sent the 36-year-old on stealth missions, instructing him not sleep and cut off contact with his dad. Then, it allegedly instructed him to kill himself. This is the first suit against Google over its AI. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
Google faces lawsuit after Gemini chatbot allegedly instructed man to kill himself
Lawsuit is first wrongful death case brought against Google over flagship AI product after death of Jonathan Gavalas
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
this is the tech we all need
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
My colleague Nick tracked Musk's X posts, so the rest of us didn't have to. “If you stripped Elon Musk’s name off of these things and showed them to me, I would think that this was a white supremacist,” said Heidi Beirich of Global Project Against Extremism. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
Elon Musk posted about race almost every day in January
Many social media posts by Tesla CEO on his platform are indiscernible from those of white supremacists, say experts
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Lauren Goode @laurengoode.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
NEW: Salesforce employees are circulating a letter urging CEO Marc Benioff to denounce ICE www.wired.com/story/letter...
wired.com
Salesforce Workers Circulate Open Letter Urging CEO Marc Benioff to Denounce ICE
The letter comes after Benioff joked at a company event on Monday that ICE was monitoring international employees in attendance, sparking immediate backlash.
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
welp www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Epstein engineered intimate relationship for Tesla’s Kimbal Musk, emails show
Elon Musk’s younger brother and the woman were involved for about six months between 2012 and 2013
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Rodger Sherman @rodger.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
again we do not really do a good job of explaining how wealthy people like Jeff Bezos are his net worth is $253.2 billion. so he could take one million dollars, and just light it on fire and then do it again tomorrow and again the day after that and then do it every day for 693 years and 8 months
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Ben Mullin @benmullin.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
A staggering statement from former Washington Post editor Marty Baron: "This ranks among the darkest days in the history of one of the world's greatest news organizations."
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Jose Pagliery @josepagliery.bsky.social · 03/02/2026
According to FOX 9, a Minneapolis federal judge demanded to know why DOJ is missing deadlines & AUSA Julie Le said, "The system sucks, this job sucks" & asked to be held in contempt so she could sleep. PACER shows she got assigned to defend the govt in 88+ cases since Operation Metro Surge started.
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 03/02/2026
the man keeps an uranium rod on his desk (along with a sword, an ax and a blade from a concorde jet engine)
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maddy varner @regret.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
NEW: I reviewed nearly 1,400 screenings at over 300 movie theaters in the united states, and I am here to report that I successfully found two (2) sold out Melania screenings. Read on at @wired.com: www.wired.com/story/we-fou...
wired.com
We Found Two Theaters With Sold-Out ‘Melania’ Opening Day Screenings
A WIRED analysis of nearly 1,400 Friday showtimes of Melania found only two with no tickets available. Both are before 3 pm.
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dell cameron @dell.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
I’ve never heard of a “law enforcement” agency putting an officer who just killed someone back on the street under 24 hours. And that’s because all shootings are treated as homicides pending investigation. This is as clear a sign as you’ll get that DHS personnel enjoy practical immunity from murder.
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
honestly can't decide if this auto-response for a reporter email to one of musk's companies is better or worse than the poop emoji
Email response from xAI saying "Legacy Media Lies"
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Justin Hendrix @justinhendrix.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
"A US regulator ruled on Thursday that Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company had acted illegally by using dozens of methane gas turbines to power massive data centers in Tennessee." - @darakerr.bsky.social
theguardian.com
Elon Musk’s xAI datacenter generating extra electricity illegally, regulator rules
Win for Memphis activists who say ‘Colossus’ facilities add extra pollution to already overburdened communities
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Diedrich Bader @diedrichbader.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
Gonna ask Meryl Streep to give me one of her Oscars
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
"Welcome to gangster tech regulation!" I will read every @lopatto.bsky.social piece until the day I die
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
"Portland’s mayor, Keith Wilson, confirmed the shooting in a statement. 'Just one day after the horrific violence in Minnesota at the hands of federal agents, our community here in Portland is now grappling with another deeply troubling incident,' he said." www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Two people shot by US federal agents in Portland, police say
Mayor calls shooting ‘deeply troubling’ as police say two people taken to hospital and conditions not known
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The New Republic @newrepublic.com · 06/01/2026
The White House has unveiled a new website recounting a wildly inventive version of the insurrection. The site says the “massive crowd peacefully” approached the Capitol in an “orderly and spirited" fashion. And, crucially, that "President Trump emerges triumphant." trib.al/VV6RuKa
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
Despite all that's going in the world right now, I'm sure everyone is curious about what happened with Elon Musk's Tesla diner over the last six months. Turns out, it's not great. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
What happened after Tesla opened a diner in Los Angeles?
The novelty of eating at a diner owned by the richest person in the world seems to have worn off in just a few months
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 03/01/2026
😑
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Dara Kerr @darakerr.bsky.social · 03/01/2026
It’s just the third day of 2026
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