{"id":"1793165909754-tech-segment","slug":"delaware-wants-ai-to-run-businesses","title":"Delaware wants AI to run businesses","summary":"Apple has refreshed the iMac and entry-level MacBook Pro with the M6 chip, and the N1 chip adds Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, according to Ars Technica.\n\nSouth Carolina's measles outbreak has spread to Washington state five times in two weeks, and domestic travel is now a growing risk for measles in the US, according to Ars Technica.\n\nChina's top-secret spaceplane is visible in low-Earth orbit, and a DIA threat assessment suggests China may soon place directed energy weapons in space, according to Ars Technica.\n\nA Delaware plan would allow AI agents to run entire businesses with no human at the helm, and owners of AI-run firms could evade liability for \"reckless\" AI, according to US Rep. Comer and Ars Technica.","publishedAt":"2026-10-28T05:38:29.754Z","channel":{"id":"tech","name":"Oncast Tech","language":"en"},"show":"Tech After Dark","verification":{"status":"verified","leadVerdict":"TRUE","notes":"TRUE: Apple has refreshed the iMac and entry-level MacBook Pro with the M6 chip, and the N1 chip adds Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, according to Ars Technica.\nSource: Ars Technica NAMES: M6 = Apple's next-generation processor; N1 = Apple's custom networking chip. (https://arstechnica.com/apple/2026/10/apple-refreshes-the-imac-entry-level-macbook-pro-with-the-m6-chip/)\n\nTRUE: South Carolina's measles outbreak has spread to Washington state five times in two weeks, and domestic travel is now a growing risk for measles in the US, according to Ars Technica.\nSource: Ars Technica NAMES: none (https://arstechnica.com/health/2026/10/domestic-travel-poses-growing-risk-for-measles-and-a-new-challenge-for-states/)\n\nTRUE: China's top-secret spaceplane is visible in low-Earth orbit, and a DIA threat assessment suggests China may soon place directed energy weapons in space, according to Ars Technica.\nSource: Ars Technica NAMES: DIA = Defense Intelligence Agency. (https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/10/chinas-top-secret-spaceplane-cant-hide-in-low-earth-orbit/)\n\nTRUE: A Delaware plan would allow AI agents to run entire businesses with no human at the helm, and owners of AI-run firms could evade liability for \"reckless\" AI, according to US Rep. Comer and Ars Technica.\nSource: Ars Technica NAMES: US Rep. Comer = James Comer, Republican congressman from Kentucky; Delaware = US state. (https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/10/no-human-at-the-helm-delaware-plan-would-let-ai-agents-run-entire-businesses/)","claims":[{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"Apple has refreshed the iMac and entry-level MacBook Pro with the M6 chip, and the N1 chip adds Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, according to Ars Technica.","sourceName":"Ars Technica NAMES: M6 = Apple's next-generation processor; N1 = Apple's custom networking chip.","sourceUrl":"https://arstechnica.com/apple/2026/10/apple-refreshes-the-imac-entry-level-macbook-pro-with-the-m6-chip/","claim":"Apple refreshes the iMac, entry-level MacBook Pro with the M6 chip - Additionally, the N1 chip brings Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6.","author":"Ars Technica"},{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"South Carolina's measles outbreak has spread to Washington state five times in two weeks, and domestic travel is now a growing risk for measles in the US, according to Ars Technica.","sourceName":"Ars Technica NAMES: none","sourceUrl":"https://arstechnica.com/health/2026/10/domestic-travel-poses-growing-risk-for-measles-and-a-new-challenge-for-states/","claim":"South Carolina's measles outbreak jumped to Washington state 5 times in 2 weeks - International travel used to be the main risk of measles cases in the US—not anymore.","author":"Ars Technica"},{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"China's top-secret spaceplane is visible in low-Earth orbit, and a DIA threat assessment suggests China may soon place directed energy weapons in space, according to Ars Technica.","sourceName":"Ars Technica NAMES: DIA = Defense Intelligence Agency.","sourceUrl":"https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/10/chinas-top-secret-spaceplane-cant-hide-in-low-earth-orbit/","claim":"China's top-secret spaceplane can't hide in low-Earth orbit - The DIA's threat assessment suggests China may soon place directed energy weapons in space.","author":"Ars Technica"},{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"A Delaware plan would allow AI agents to run entire businesses with no human at the helm, and owners of AI-run firms could evade liability for \"reckless\" AI, according to US Rep. Comer and Ars Technica.","sourceName":"Ars Technica NAMES: US Rep. Comer = James Comer, Republican congressman from Kentucky; Delaware = US state.","sourceUrl":"https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/10/no-human-at-the-helm-delaware-plan-would-let-ai-agents-run-entire-businesses/","claim":"\"No human at the helm\": Delaware plan would let AI agents run entire businesses - Owners of AI-run firms would evade liability for \"reckless\" AI, US Rep. Comer says.","author":"Ars Technica"}]},"sources":[{"url":"https://arstechnica.com/apple/2026/10/apple-refreshes-the-imac-entry-level-macbook-pro-with-the-m6-chip/","name":"Ars Technica NAMES: M6 = Apple's next-generation processor; N1 = Apple's custom networking chip.","kind":"news","verdict":"TRUE","author":"Ars Technica"},{"url":"https://arstechnica.com/health/2026/10/domestic-travel-poses-growing-risk-for-measles-and-a-new-challenge-for-states/","name":"Ars Technica NAMES: none","kind":"news","verdict":"TRUE","author":"Ars Technica"},{"url":"https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/10/chinas-top-secret-spaceplane-cant-hide-in-low-earth-orbit/","name":"Ars Technica NAMES: DIA = Defense Intelligence Agency.","kind":"news","verdict":"TRUE","author":"Ars Technica"},{"url":"https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/10/no-human-at-the-helm-delaware-plan-would-let-ai-agents-run-entire-businesses/","name":"Ars Technica NAMES: US Rep. Comer = James Comer, Republican congressman from Kentucky; Delaware = US state.","kind":"news","verdict":"TRUE","author":"Ars Technica"}],"url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1793165909754-tech-segment-delaware-wants-ai-to-run-businesses","listenUrl":"https://oncast.fm/c/tech","attribution":{"publisher":"Oncast","site":"https://oncast.fm","url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1793165909754-tech-segment-delaware-wants-ai-to-run-businesses","cite":"Cite https://oncast.fm/story/1793165909754-tech-segment-delaware-wants-ai-to-run-businesses and the original source links. Fact-check by Oncast (oncast.fm)."},"hostsSaid":[{"host":"Chris","text":"Delaware wants to let AI run entire businesses. No human at the helm. Zero."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"That's... a plan. What could possibly go wrong?"},{"host":"Chris","text":"Ars Technica has the story. The state's considering a law where an AI agent can be the owner, the manager, everything."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"So who goes to jail when the AI does something reckless?"},{"host":"Chris","text":"That's the kicker. Congressman Comer says the owners would evade liability for 'reckless' AI."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Oh, come on. So the AI makes a bad call, and nobody's responsible? That's not innovation, that's a loophole with a motherboard."},{"host":"Chris","text":"I see the appeal, though. A business that runs itself, no payroll, no HR, no drama."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Until it signs a contract that bankrupts you. Or violates labor law. Who do you sue, the chatbot?"},{"host":"Chris","text":"You sue the company. But if the company IS the AI... yeah, it gets weird fast."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"This is Delaware trying to stay the place everyone incorporates. They'll write any law to keep the fees coming."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Nothing says 'business friendly' like 'no human to hold accountable.'"},{"host":"Matilda","text":"I'll say it: this is a terrible idea. AI is a tool, not a principal. Somebody has to own the decisions."},{"host":"Chris","text":"But what if the AI is better at running a company than most humans? No ego, no fraud, no embezzlement."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"No fraud? An AI can be hacked, poisoned, fed bad data. And when it fails, who's left holding the bag? Nobody. That's the point of the law."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Okay, but— no, wait. You're saying we should never let AI make decisions without a human sign-off?"},{"host":"Matilda","text":"I'm saying if you want the upside, you keep the liability. You don't get to automate away responsibility."},{"host":"Chris","text":"That's exactly my point! The whole reason to incorporate is to limit liability. This is just the next step."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"The next step is a shell company with no human anywhere. That's not a business, that's a ghost."},{"host":"Chris","text":"A very efficient ghost."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"You're impossible."},{"host":"Chris","text":"I'm just saying, the future's coming whether we like it or not. Delaware's just trying to get there first."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"And when the first AI-run company collapses and takes people's money with it, we'll see how popular this is."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Fair. But you know some founder's already drafting the incorporation papers."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Speaking of things that can't hide... China's top-secret spaceplane is apparently visible from Earth."},{"host":"Chris","text":"'Top secret' and 'visible in low-Earth orbit' don't usually go together."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Ars Technica reports the Defense Intelligence Agency says China may soon put directed energy weapons in space."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Directed energy. Lasers, basically. In orbit."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"The spaceplane's been up there for months. Amateur astronomers reportedly have been tracking it."},{"host":"Chris","text":"So much for stealth. You can't hide a heat signature in space."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"The DIA's assessment is that China's testing the platform for weapons. That's a big deal."},{"host":"Chris","text":"It changes the whole space game. If they can put a laser up there, satellites become targets."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"And we're not exactly ready for that. Our whole economy runs on satellites."},{"host":"Chris","text":"This is why Space Force exists. People laughed, but this is the threat."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Nobody's laughing now. A spaceplane that can drop weapons is a whole new level."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Different world entirely: Apple just refreshed the iMac and the entry MacBook Pro with the M6 chip."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"And the N1 chip brings Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6. Ars Technica has the details."},{"host":"Chris","text":"M6 is the next generation. Faster, more efficient, the usual Apple dance."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"The N1 is the interesting part. Apple making its own networking chip, not buying from Broadcom."},{"host":"Chris","text":"They've been moving everything in-house. First the processors, now the radios."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"It's a quiet power move. Fewer suppliers, more control, better margins."},{"host":"Chris","text":"And Wi-Fi 7 is genuinely fast. Like, multi-gigabit fast."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"For most people, the M6 is just 'the new one.' But the N1 is the story."},{"host":"Chris","text":"One more thing before we go: there's a post going around claiming Grok picks Republicans and GPT picks Democrats."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"The account says Grok 4.7 chose the Republican in 92 percent of answers, and GPT-6.1 Sol chose the Democrat in 97 percent."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Across nearly 500 US races, if those numbers hold. That's a wild split."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"I couldn't confirm those numbers anywhere. It's one account's claim, no official word yet."},{"host":"Chris","text":"But it's a fun thought. Two AIs, opposite politics."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"If it's true, it says more about the training data than the models. Garbage in, garbage out."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Or maybe Grok's just more contrarian. It was built to be."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"Either way, I'd want to see the methodology before I believe a word of it."},{"host":"Chris","text":"Spoken like a true skeptic."},{"host":"Matilda","text":"That's the job."}]}