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Newsweek
16-07-2025
- Business
- Newsweek
A New Deal for American Entrepreneurship
This week, Nevada took a step forward in advancing a bold new economic vision for the future. As part of a federal-state collaboration between the two of us, Nevada Assemblymember Joe Dalia submitted a bill draft request with the Nevada Legislature for the Homegrown Opportunity Act, a first-in-the nation policy that invests in no-cost housing for American entrepreneurs and innovators. As a Nevada assemblymember and a congressman from Silicon Valley who both spent years of our legal careers advising tech companies, including startups in Palo Alto, we know how challenging it is for young entrepreneurs and innovators to get started, especially if they don't have wealth to begin with. The legislation has various goals, ranging from stabilizing housing costs to creating a self-sustaining engine for economic growth, but its primary aim is to help low-income families break through inter-generational poverty and realize their American Dream. The time is right for this bill. America stands at an economic crossroads. Too many families remain trapped in cycles of financial insecurity, owing to rising costs, stagnating wages, and diminishing opportunities for upward mobility. Homeownership and economic independence, once staples of the middle class, have become increasingly unattainable. Meanwhile, a recent McKinsey study forecasts that AI and automation could displace up to 30 percent of American work hours in the next five years, increasing the risk of unemployment and underemployment in critical sectors. The economically devastating "big, beautiful bill" already slashes access to our most critical safety nets in SNAP and Medicaid. When AI-driven labor displacement begins, demanding that benefit recipients "go find work" as that work is evaporating means sentencing families to financial ruin. We must act swiftly and take bold steps to give Americans a chance at financial freedom in an increasingly unfair system. A sold sign is posted in front of a house in Washington, D.C. A sold sign is posted in front of a house in Washington, D.C. STEFANI REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images Nevada's Homegrown Opportunity Act is a template for America to do just that. The bill proposes a novel yet pragmatic solution rooted in entrepreneurship. In its initial implementation, the legislation would provide entrepreneurs with two years of housing, food, and essential services in exchange for launching and maintaining businesses. It sets a target for Nevada to convert unused commercial real estate stock to launch 10,000 residential units, with at least 75 percent allocated to low-income Nevadans that just need an opportunity and a hand up. As currently proposed, it would create 50,000 new home-grown businesses and provide a hand up to 37,500 low-income entrepreneurs in just its first 10 years. In a state of just over 3 million people, that level of impact could reshape Nevada's future for generations. That is an economic vision that folks can see and feel, and it can be adopted anywhere, from Detroit to Fresno. Consider the young innovator priced out of housing in New York City, or the skilled worker displaced by automation in Ohio. The Homegrown Opportunity Act breaks down barriers to entry and empowers those individuals to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams without being hindered by immediate financial pressures. It leverages entrepreneurial spirit as a shield against economic uncertainty and technological disruption. This legislation is an investment that rests on a fair deal: your contribution back to the program is modest, limited in duration, and tied to your level of future financial success. Participants would repay housing costs through a modest revenue-based fee that would sunset after each business' first 10 years of operation and through conditional-debt instruments that apply only if the participant's income crosses into the top 10 percent of earners. In short, the program sustains itself on the success stories of its participants, and that success fuels further reinvestment into elevating working-class families and communities. Imagine the retail worker in East Las Vegas with a dream for her own shop that she'll never realize because she has to fight daily to keep a roof over her head. Imagine the teenager in Reno whose family depends on food assistance programs who is just thinking about how to get by. The Homegrown Opportunity Act gives them back the heart of the American Dream: a chance at financial independence. Some may be skeptical of this approach because it is a significant departure from the solutions of the past, but there has never been a greater urgency to act boldly and try new things. Our economic problems will not be resolved on their own or by rehashing the same policy debates we've had for years. This approach breaks through the noise and through ideological lines. It recognizes the need for productive market intervention without discouraging market growth. It's a practical alternative that promotes our shared values of economic prosperity and self-determination. And it's a return to what America does best: innovation and opportunity. We urge policymakers nationwide to join us in championing Nevada's Homegrown Opportunity Act, and we urge our congressional colleagues to dedicate resources to investing in states that are willing to break new ground in pursuing this housing-for-opportunity model. By embracing this fresh vision, we can begin to renew the promise of the American Dream, unlocking economic prosperity, innovation, and genuine opportunity for every American. Congressman Ro Khanna is serving his fifth term representing the heart of Silicon Valley which is the technology engine for the nation. As a leading progressive voice in Congress, he is working to get money out of politics, offer a fresh economic vision to improve life for the working class, and make America a manufacturing superpower. He was co-chair of Bernie Sanders' 2020 presidential campaign. He previously served as deputy assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Commerce under President Barack Obama. Nevada Assemblymember Joe Dalia is an attorney, former startup co-founder and COO, and father of three girls located in Henderson, Nev., where he represents his childhood Assembly district. Prior to serving in the legislature, Joe spent several years advising technology startups and venture capital firms in Palo Alto before moving home to Henderson. He graduated with high honors from both Boston University (economics and political science) and the University of Michigan Law School, and is a former intern for the late Senator Harry Reid. The views expressed in this article are the writers' own.
Toronto Sun
12-06-2025
- Toronto Sun
Meta sues Hong Kong firm in crackdown on deepfake nude apps
Published Jun 12, 2025 • 1 minute read An advertisement to create AI girls reflected in a public service announcement issued by the FBI regarding malicious actors manipulating photos and videos to create explicit content and sextortion schemes. Photographer: Stefani Reybolds/AFP/Getty Images Photo by STEFANI REYNOLDS / Photographer: STEFANI REYNOLDS/A (Bloomberg) — Meta Platforms Inc. is suing a Hong Kong-based business for allegedly promoting so-called nudify apps, as the Facebook owner attempts to combat a surge in naked and sexual images created by artificial intelligence. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account The tech giant said it filed a lawsuit in Hong Kong to stop Joy Timeline HK Ltd. allegedly advertising CrushAI apps on Meta platforms. The apps allow people to create AI-generated nude or sexually explicit images of individuals without their consent, Meta said in a post on its website Thursday. The legal action is part of broader crackdown on online non-consensual sexual images, which can be used for sextortion, blackmail and abuse. Meta, which also owns Instagram, said it will now share with other technology companies information about ads, accounts and content that have been removed for promoting nudify apps. In its post, Meta said it had noticed 'concerning growth' in this area. 'With nudify apps being advertised across the internet — and available in App Stores themselves — removing them from one platform alone isn't enough,' Meta said. Joy Timeline didn't immediately respond to a request for comment sent to its public email address. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Meta is under fire around the world for not doing enough to protect teenagers and young people. In Australia, a world-first ban on social media for under-16s will start this year, and other countries are tightening content oversight. But while Meta is fighting back against some fake, auto-generated material, it's pushing deeper into artificial intelligence more broadly. Advertisers promoting nudify apps are changing tactics to avoid being caught, according to Meta. Some use benign images to evade detection, while others swiftly create new domain names to replace blocked websites. In response, Meta said it has developed technology to identify such ads, even when they don't include nudity. In its Hong Kong lawsuit, Meta claims Joy Timeline repeatedly tried to circumvent ad review processes after they were removed for breaking Meta's rules. —With assistance from Kurt Wagner and Newley Purnell. Celebrity Sunshine Girls Sunshine Girls Columnists Toronto Maple Leafs
