The costs of AI fall on consumers

Hello and welcome to TechScape. I’m your host, Blake Montgomery, US tech editor at the Guardian. Today we examine how a range of tech earnings predict an expensive future for everyday electronics buyers and two big developments in the UK tech world: Workers at London-headquartered Google DeepMind have launched a unionization petition to stop their employer’s military work. And British police are increasingly relying on live facial recognition, with significant consequences.

How the AI ​​boom is forcing you to spend more money

Last week, a number of technology heavyweights reported their quarterly financial results. The results showed that the prevailing financial trend of the AI ​​boom is not stopping: spend, spend, spend. That’s what the tech giants are doing, and you’ll probably soon be doing it too. The enormous demand for computer memory is driving up the cost of electronics, from massive arrays in data centers to the smartphone you are using to read this email. Chipmakers make profits and…