Latest news with #JohnCoogan
India Today
25-04-2025
- Business
- India Today
Perplexity AI is building its own browser to collect your data and show targeted ads
AI company Perplexity's CEO Aravind Srinivas has announced in a recent interview with TBPN hosts John Coogan and Jordi Hays that the company is working on its own browser called Comet. Srinivas says that the idea is that the company wants to collect user data even outside the Perplexity app. "We want to get data even outside the app to better understand you," he says with the data that the company collects on users outside the app, it wants to show users targeted ads. 'We plan to use all the context to build a better user profile and, maybe you know, through our discover feed we could show some ads there' the Perplexity CEO says that the Comet browser will likely be out sometime next month. He said during the interview that it should have been out by now but the company was facing some delays because they underestimated the complexity of building a browser. However, he says the browser should be out by mid-May. Perplexity plans about launching its own browser are interesting to say the least. First, the strategy of collecting user data to show targeted ads is very similar to Google's approach with the Chrome browser. Second, the Comet browser is also based on Chromium, which is the open-source platform that powered several browsers like Arc, Opera, and Mozilla finally, in the ongoing Google vs US Department of Justice monopoly trial, Perplexity was one of the companies that showed interest in buying Chrome in case Google is forced to divest the search browser. Perplexity's chief business officer, Dmitry Shevelenko has said that the company will be able to run Chrome at its current scale without compromising on the quality of the product or introducing any new costs. Google is in the middle of a search monopoly trial where in the US court could potentially break up the company and force Google to sell Yahoo and OpenAI are also bidding for the Chrome browser if it becomes available for purchase. Perplexity has been quite busy this week. The company debuted its AI chatbot as the default AI assistant on the new Moto Razr 60 Ultra replacing Gemini (as default). This week, the company also rolled out an AI voice assistant in the iOS app. Unlike Apple Intelligence, which only works on the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max, and the iPhone 16 series, the new Perplexity AI assistant also works on older iPhones.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
‘Imminent health threats' to rural water customers lead judge to order temporary takeover
This story was produced by the State College regional bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom dedicated to investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. Sign up for Talk of the Town, a weekly newsletter of local stories that dig deep, events, and more from north-central PA, at BELLEFONTE — A private entity is poised to take temporary control of a troubled rural water company after a judge approved an emergency request by Pennsylvania's consumer advocate. Pennsylvania American Water Company — one of the state's largest investor-owned utilities — should take over management of privately owned Rock Spring Water Company, Administrative Law Judge John Coogan ordered Thursday. The appointment, which requires approval from the state Public Utility Commission to take effect, could offer some relief to the company's 1,000 customers who've endured more than a decade of unreliable service in Centre County as regulators decide on a permanent solution. Nils Hagen-Frederiksen, a spokesperson for the PUC, told Spotlight PA that regulators 'will work to address this matter in a timely fashion.' Next steps include reviewing the judge's emergency order and briefs from those involved in the case, which are due in a week, he said. The decision came as a surprise to stakeholders and goes against requests from Rock Spring owner J. Roy Campbell, lawyers for the company, and even Pennsylvania American. All asked the judge to let the nearby State College Borough Water Authority assume interim control. 'It's out of left field, but at least somebody will be there to answer the phone,' James Bryant, an attorney for Rock Spring, told Spotlight PA. Rock Spring has racked up dozens of regulatory violations — including for failing to protect the system's water source, shutting off service without proper notice, and letting a leak go unfixed for six months — and tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid civil penalties as part of a yearslong legal battle with the Department of Environmental Protection over excessive water loss. A June Spotlight PA investigation found that Rock Spring, state regulators, and elected officials failed those who rely on the system in Ferguson Township. Efforts to find new ownership have gone nowhere, while years of neglect have led to deteriorating infrastructure, low water pressure, regular outages, and sometimes lengthy boil water advisories. The utility commission even erroneously told a customer in 2018 that it doesn't regulate the company. So after years of inaction, residents resigned to living with shoddy service. Issues with Rock Spring were referred to the Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement, a division within the PUC, on May 23. The unit then launched a review of the company. The state regulatory process is lengthy, with no guaranteed outcome. As part of the review, a two-day hearing is scheduled for late April. But customers can't wait until the spring, the consumer advocate argued in its emergency request for another provider to take over service. The State College water authority has talked about acquiring Rock Spring's 20-mile water system — which needs at least $13.5 million in repairs — for years. In December, Campbell signed a letter of intent to sell to the municipal entity for $65,000. The state Office of Consumer Advocate, which urged regulators to provide emergency relief to prevent 'irreparable' injury, identified the municipal authority as the most logical choice for an interim operator, called a receiver. But uncertainty over regulatory authority and a desire for quick relief for customers prompted the decision to appoint Pennsylvania American as the receiver, Coogan wrote in a 26-page order. Because the PUC primarily regulates private utility companies, the judge had reservations about whether a municipal authority could take over, especially when the State College authority opposed subjecting itself to the commission's jurisdiction and regulations. The water authority had instead asked the administrative law judge to recommend it become the receiver, hoping it would make a Centre County judge more comfortable approving a local request to let the municipal entity take over. Rock Spring's lawyers previously tried this approach, but their request was denied, with the judge saying he could not usurp the PUC's powers. While not necessarily opposed to the idea, the Office of Consumer Advocate and investigators for the PUC had concerns over how long it might take for State College to take the helm. A Pennsylvania American representative told Spotlight PA that the company is reviewing the judge's decision. During a recent hearing, David Zambito, an attorney for the company, said Pennsylvania American could handle operations but thinks State College was the best option. Plus, if the receiver isn't the ultimate buyer, the utilities will have to 'unravel' the cost of repairs, he said. 'Somebody has to pay to remediate the Rock Spring system,' Zambito said. State College water authority officials met with their lawyer to discuss the decision Friday morning, Katie McCaulley, assistant executive director, told Spotlight PA. 'At this time, we are still intent on the long term and continuing the discussions and negotiations of the acquisition of RSWC,' she wrote in an email. and help us reinvigorate local news in north-central Pennsylvania at Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability and public-service journalism that gets results. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Customers of a shoddy rural water company need relief — and fast, stakeholders say. A judge is mulling next steps
This story was produced by the State College regional bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom dedicated to investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. Sign up for Talk of the Town, a weekly newsletter of local stories that dig deep, events, and more from north-central PA, at BELLEFONTE — A distressed rural water company whose customers have endured more than a decade of shoddy service should be put under new management as fast as possible, various local and state stakeholders agree. But as a nearly three-hour hearing Friday before a public utilities judge showed, the solution could be complicated. 'I'm trying to strike a balance between urgency and getting this right,' Administrative Law Judge John Coogan said during the proceeding. The Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate, the Department of Environmental Protection, and the company's own lawyers support an immediate emergency takeover of Rock Spring Water Company to protect the health and safety of its roughly 1,000 customers in rural Centre County. The privately owned water company — which has a history of unreliable service, dozens of regulatory violations, and tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid civil penalties — is under investigation by state regulators. The Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement, an independent division within the Public Utility Commission, launched a review of the company last fall. The process, which will ultimately decide whether Rock Spring should be forced to sell, is lengthy, with no guaranteed outcome. As part of the review, a two-day hearing is scheduled for late April. But customers who rely on the 20-mile water system and its deteriorating infrastructure can't wait until spring, the consumer advocate argued in an emergency ask to let another provider take over interim service operations, which prompted Friday's hearing. 'Without water service, the public health and safety of Rock Spring customers will be compromised,' Melanie Joy El Atieh, a deputy consumer advocate, wrote in the filing. The DEP, which monitors drinking water safety, approves of the effort. The state agency has been in a yearslong legal battle with Rock Spring over excessive water loss. In a legal filing, the department cited several violations against Rock Spring owner J. Roy Campbell — including for letting a leak go unfixed for six months, failing to protect the system's water source, and shutting off service without proper notice — and noted that Campbell and his daughter Elizabeth are 'incapable' of running the system. The request to appoint a temporary operator — also known as a receiver — was heard by Coogan, who said he expects to issue a decision on the matter sometime next week. The deadline for his order is Friday, Feb. 21. The Office of Consumer Advocate identified three possible utilities capable of taking over Rock Spring's system: Pennsylvania American Water Company or Aqua Pennsylvania, which are both privately owned, or the municipal-run State College Borough Water Authority. The State College Borough Water Authority has emerged as the likely candidate to handle service, both in the interim and as an eventual buyer. The municipal entity has existing water lines close to Rock Spring's system. Also, in December — after persuasion by his attorneys, according to legal filings — Campbell signed a letter of intent to sell the business to the State College authority for $65,000. Pennsylvania American's lawyer said appointing State College as the temporary operator is the best way to provide relief to customers. State College Borough Water Authority Executive Director Brian Heiser said the municipal entity is willing to take over operations for Rock Spring, which would be treated as a standalone system unless formally acquired. But it has conditions. In legal filings, the municipal authority said it's unwilling to become the receiver if it's required to operate under the PUC's jurisdiction and regulations. It also doesn't want to be held liable for damages from Rock Spring's current conditions or be required to use its own funds to make system improvements. The water authority is asking the PUC to recommend it become the receiver, which could create a path for a Centre County judge to approve the request. James Bryant and Carolyn Larrabee, Rock Spring's lawyers, filed an emergency request in Centre County court recently, asking a judge to hand over interim operations to the State College authority. But the request was denied, with the judge finding he did not have the authority to usurp the PUC's powers — though he did note the lawyer's argument over the commission's authority was broad. SUPPORT THIS JOURNALISM and help us reinvigorate local news in north-central Pennsylvania at Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability and public-service journalism that gets results.
