Tech companies commit to fighting harmful AI sexual imagery by curbing nudity from datasets

Canadians loving Carney’s decision to stand tall against floundering U.S. bully

It’s hard to imagine a more dramatic political contrast than the one unfolding on opposite sides of the Canada-U.S. border.

Mark Carney is fighting a trade war with Donald Trump, taking the occasional verbal punch from the American president and imposing retaliatory tariffs on U.S. products.

And the prime minister is being rewarded for it politically.

Trump, meanwhile, is fighting pretty much everyone he can find — including some of America’s closest allies — and his own voters are increasingly giving him the political equivalent of a raised middle finger. That’s quite a tale of two leaders.

Tory health critic ‘disappointed’ after being rebuffed by health officials

The health critic for the Progressive Conservative party says her ability to get information about the accelerated reopening of Dauphin’s emergency department was stymied by Prairie Mountain Health officials because they refused to meet with her.

“I wanted to meet with PMH staff to discuss the status of the facility and the challenges they’re facing and getting services back online,” Kathleen Cook said Friday.

“I was very disappointed that Prairie Mountain Health declined me that opportunity.”

Cook said she asked for a meeting a few days after the Sept. 7 reopening of a temporary ER at the hospital, that was severely damaged by flooding.

Citizen reports help highlight connectivity issues across southwest Manitoba

A southwestern Manitoba man has created a map to document cell service blackout spots in an effort to push for better access in rural areas.

Mark Custance compiled more than 300 citizen reports over the last few months to document where service in southwest Manitoba is strong, spotty or doesn’t exist at all.

“I’ve heard people complain and say, ‘cell service sucks’ or ‘this is not working.’ But what does the data actually say?” Custance said from his office in Melita, where he has installed a cell-service booster to maintain connectivity with the rest of the world.

Analyzing where service is good and poor, he cross-references it with the location of cellphone towers across the region.

Tech companies commit to fighting harmful AI sexual imagery by curbing nudity from datasets

WASHINGTON (AP) — Several leading artificial intelligence companies pledged Thursday to remove nude images from the data sources they use to train their AI products, and committed to other safeguards to curb the spread of harmful sexual deepfake imagery. In a deal brokered by the Biden administration, tech companies Adobe, Anthropic, Cohere, Microsoft and OpenAI said they would voluntarily commit to removing nude images from AI training datasets “when appropriate and depending on the purpose of the model.” The White House announcement was part of a broader campaign against image-based sexual abuse of children as well as the creation of […]

The port of Churchill — but done right

The seagoing grain carrier wasn’t christened with a champagne bottle. There was no confetti or streamers. Nevertheless, the Aug. 31 event marking the first shipment of grain to be loaded at the Port of Churchill since 2020 was celebrated like the launch of a brand new vessel.

The presence of the federal minister of northern and arctic affairs, provincial cabinet ministers and leaders and elders from several northern First Nations signalled that the fast-tracked process of refurbishing and buffing up Manitoba’s deep-water seaport gem is gaining momentum.

For OneNorth, the partnership of 29 First Nations and 12 northern communities which owns the Port of Churchill and the Hudson Bay Railway (both operated by the Arctic Gateway Group) the event heralded a new beginning. It’s been eight years since OneNorth purchased the port and railroad, and six years since grain was moved by rail through Manitoba and then by ship to European markets. Two more grain shipments, plus shipments of potash and critical minerals, will continue through the fall.

When Prime Minister Mark Carney solicited the premiers to suggest “nation-building” projects following his election in 2025, Premier Wab Kinew pitched a Manitoba trade corridor that would move wheat, critical minerals, potash and energy (oil or liquid natural gas) through the Port of Churchill.

Young Winnipeg Jet hopeful, Viggo Bjorck, shines brightly in prospects tournament

It’s safe to say Viggo Bjorck made plenty of new friends and fans this past weekend — including members of his own Winnipeg Jets prospects team which split a pair of tournament games in Quebec.

Take Davis Burnside for example. The undrafted 22-year-old forward, who signed with the Manitoba Moose last spring after finishing up at Ohio State University, couldn’t believe his eyes when he was put on a line with Bjorck, the eighth-overall pick from this summer’s draft and one of the most exciting young players in 2.0 Jets history.

“You see all the highlights and you just can’t wait to play with him,” said Burnside.

It wasn’t long before they teamed up for a highlight of their own. Bjorck made a sensational through-the-legs, no-look pass to Burnside on Sunday afternoon, setting him up for a shorthanded snipe in an eventual 6-4 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs young guns.