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Only 776 air traffic controllers and technicians who had perfect attendance during the government shutdown will receive $10,000 bonuses while nearly 20,000 other workers will be left out, the Federal Aviation Administration announced Thursday. A number of controllers started calling out of work as the shutdown dragged on longer than a month and they dealt with the financial pressure of working without a paycheck. Some of them got side jobs, but others simply couldn’t afford the child care or gas they needed to work. Their absences forced delays at airports across the country and led the government to order airlines to cut some of their flights at 40 busy airports. President Donald Trump suggested the bonuses for those who have stayed on the job in a social media post, but he also suggested that controllers who missed work should have their pay docked. FAA officials haven’t publicly announced plans to penalize controllers. Thousands of FAA technicians also had to work during the shutdown to maintain the equipment that air traffic controllers rely on. At least 6,600 technicians were expected to work throughout the shutdown but more than 3,000 others were subject to be recalled to work. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the bonuses acknowledged the dedication of these few workers who never missed a shift during the 43-day shutdown. In a post on X he described it as Santa’s coming to town a little early. These patriotic men and women never missed a beat and kept the flying public safe throughout the shutdown, Duffy said in his formal announcement. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association union said only 311 of its more than 10,000 members will receive the bonuses. The union said these workers with perfect attendance deserve recognition but so do the others. We are concerned that thousands of air traffic controllers who consistently reported for duty during the shutdown, ensuring the safe transport of passengers and cargo across the nation, while working without pay and uncertain of when they would receive compensation, were excluded from this recognition. More than 311 of these dedicated professionals were instrumental in keeping America moving, the union said in a statement. The Professional Aviation Safety Specialists union said the thousands of technicians it represents worked hard to keep the aging computer and radar systems controllers use operating during the shutdown, and they should all be recognized not just the 423 getting bonuses. It took many hands to ensure that not one delay during the historic 43-day shutdown was attributed to equipment or system failures, the union said in a statement. Democratic Rep. Rick Larsen questioned why all the controllers and others who worked to keep flights moving during during the shutdown won’t get bonuses. For the Trump administration to not give a bonus to every single one of these hardworking women and men is wrong; they all deserve a bonus and back pay, said Larsen, who is the ranking member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure committee. The controllers union said they hope to work with Duffy to find a way to recognize all the other air traffic controllers who worked during the shutdown. Last week, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced that any TSA officers who went above and beyond while working without pay would get $10,000 bonuses, but she never specified how many will qualify beyond the handful of checks she handed out to officers at a news conference. The FAA was already critically short on air traffic controllers before the shutdown. Duffy had been working to boost controller hiring and streamline the years of training required in the hope of eliminating the shortage over the next several years. Duffy has said that some students and controllers quit and more experienced controllers retired during the shutdown. Many controllers already work 10-hour shifts six days a week because the FAA is so short on staffing. As more controllers missed work, the FAA ordered airlines to cut flights to relieve pressure on the system. Duffy said repeatedly that FAA safety experts became worried as the absences grew because of reports from pilots concerned about controllers responses and a number of runway incursions. Since the shutdown ended, controller staffing has improved significantly and airlines were allowed to resume normal operations this week. Josh Funk, AP transportation writer
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E-Commerce
The U.S. government on Thursday released a new crash test dummy design that advocates believe will help make cars safer for women. The Department of Transportation will consider using the dummy in the government’s vehicle crash test five star-ratings once a final rule is adopted, the agency said in a news release. Women are 73% more likely to be injured in a head-on crash, and they are 17% more likely to be killed in a car crash, than men. The standard crash test dummy used in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration five-star vehicle testing was developed in 1978 and was modeled after a 5-foot-9 (175-centimeter), 171-pound (78-kilogram) man. The female dummy is smaller and has a rubber jacket to represent breasts. Its routinely tested in the passenger or back seat but seldom in the drivers seat, even though the majority of licensed drivers are women. The new female dummy endorsed by the department more accurately reflects differences between men and women, including the shape of the neck, collarbone, pelvis, and legs. It’s outfitted with more than 150 sensors, the department said. Some American automakers have been skeptical, arguing the new model may exaggerate injury risks and undercut the value of some safety features such as seat belts and airbags. Lawmakers and transportation secretaries from the past two presidential administrations have expressed support for new crash test rules and safety requirements but developments have been slow. U.S. Sens. Deb Fischer, a Republican from Nebraska, and Tammy Duckworth, a Democrat from Illinois, both released statements welcoming the female crash test dummy announcement. Any progress here is good because theres simply no good reason why women are more likely to be injured or die in car crashes, Duckworth said. Fischer introduced legislation, the She Drives Act, that would require the most advanced testing devices available, including a female crash test dummy. Duckworth is a co-sponsor. Its far past time to make these testing standards permanent, which will help save thousands of lives and make Americas roads safer for all drivers, Fischer said. The department said the new specifications will be available for manufacturers to build models and for the automotive industry to begin testing them in vehicles. Audrey McAvoy, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
The following sentence might cause anxiety. As Thanksgiving looms near, its time to begin holiday shopping. The current level of inflation makes that even more stressful. How can you show your love without breaking the bank? It turns out, shoppers are turning to off-price retailers such as Ross, T.J. Maxx, and HomeGoods, according to recent earnings reports and data from location analytics company Placer.ai. Lets break down the numbers. Ross Stores posts rosy earnings Its fair to say that Jim Conroy, CEO of Ross Stores, is very pleased with the third-quarter earnings report released on Thursday, November 20. The company earned $1.58 per share, resulting in a $512 million profit. This is an increase from last years figures of $1.48 per share and $489 million in profit. When you zoom out beyond Q3, the numbers are equally as impressive. Rosss year-to-date sales earnings are $16.1 billion, which is a 3% increase. People are clearly bargain shopping to get through these hard economic times and it’s safe to predict this trend will only continue to grow in the holiday shopping season. Foot traffic is reportedly up at off-price retailers Do you ever feel like you are being watched? Well, your cellphone is collecting data on you, most likely with permission buried deep in the terms and conditions of some of the apps downloaded on your phone. Placer.ai uses mobile-device data that is anonymized and aggregated to analyze customer behavior. It estimates how much foot traffic certain stores get and how long customers linger. According to the analytics platform, things are good for off-price retailers. TJX HomeGoods, which includes both HomeGoods and Homesense stores, saw a 9.6% increase in shopper volume in the third quarter, according to data shared with Fast Company. Similarly, TJX Marmaxx, which includes TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and Sierra stores, saw an 8.1% increase in store traffic. And store visits at Ross rose 9.4%. Target cannot say the same. The companys store visitors declined 2.7% year-over-year in Q3, according to Placer.ai. The big-box retailer’s struggles were apparent in its third-quarter earnings report, which saw $25.3 billion in sales, around 1.5% lower than the same quarter last year. Ross has been opening new stores in 2025 Because of its overwhelming success, Ross is doubling down to keep this momentum going. In October, the retailer announced that it had opened 36 Ross Dress for Less and four Dd’s Discounts stores in October and September. These store locations span 17 states. In an economy where many brick-and-mortar retail chains are closing stores, this is no small accomplishment. Shares of Ross Stores (NYSE: ROST) are up 6.64% this week. TJX Companies stock (NYSE: TJX) is up 3.67%.
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E-Commerce
President Donald Trump has called New York City’s Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani a “100% Communist Lunatic” and a total nut job. Mamdani has called Trumps administration authoritarian” and described himself as Donald Trumps worst nightmare. So their first-ever meeting, scheduled for Friday at 3 p.m. EST at the White House, could be a curious and combustible affair. Despite months of casting each other as prime adversaries, the Republican president and new Democratic star have also indicated an openness to finding areas of agreement that help the city theyve both called home. Mamdani, a democratic socialist who takes office in January, said he sought the meeting with Trump to talk about ways to make New York City more affordable. Trump has said he may want to help him out although he has also falsely labeled Mamdani as a communist and threatened to yank federal funds from his hometown. But for both men, the meeting offers opportunities beyond any areas of potential bipartisan agreement. The two men are convenient political foils for each other, and taking the other one on can galvanize their supporters. Trump loomed large over the mayoral race this year, and on the eve of the election, endorsed independent candidate and former Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, predicting the city has ZERO chance of success, or even survival if Mamdani won. He also questioned the citizenship of Mamdani, who was born in Uganda and became a naturalized American citizen after graduating from college, and said he’d have him arrested if he followed through on threats not to cooperate with immigration agents in the city. Mamdani beat back a challenge from Cuomo, painting him as a puppet for the president, and said he would be a mayor who can stand up to Donald Trump and actually deliver. He declared during one primary debate, “I am Donald Trumps worst nightmare, as a progressive Muslim immigrant who actually fights for the things that I believe in. The president, who has long used political opponents to fire up his backers, predicted Mamdani will prove to be one of the best things to ever happen to our great Republican Party. As Mamdani upended the Democratic establishment by defeating Cuomo and his far-left progressive policies provoked infighting, Trump repeatedly has cast Mamdani as the face of Democratic Party. For Mamdani, a sit-down with the president of the United States offers the state lawmaker who until recently was relatively unknown the chance to go head-to-head with the most powerful person in the world. The meeting gives Trump a high-profile chance to talk about affordability at a time when hes under increasing political pressure to show hes addressing voter concerns about the cost of living. But thats if the meeting doesnt turn rocky. A chance for some Oval Office drama It was not immediately clear whether cameras will be allowed into the meeting. Trump’s daily schedule said it will be private, but the president often invites in a small pool of reporters at the last minute. The president has had some dramatic public Oval Office faceoffs this year, including an infamously heated exchange with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in March. In May, Trump dimmed the lights while meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and played a four-minute video making widely rejected claims that South Africa is violently persecuting the countrys white Afrikaner minority farmers. A senior Trump administration official who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe internal discussions said Trump had not put a lot of thought into planning the meeting with the incoming mayor but said Trumps threats to block federal dollars from flowing to New York remained on the table. Mamdani said Thursday that he was not concerned about the president potentially trying to use the meeting to publicly embarrass him and said he saw it as a chance to make his case, even while acknowledging many disagreements with the president. If the president does use the meeting as a public confrontation, Mamdani may be uniquely ready for it. He, like Trump, was a relative political outsider who rose to victory with a populist message that promised a break from the establishment, known for his savvy navigation of the spotlight and a distinctive use of social media. Mamdani, who lives in Queens where Trump was raised also has shown a cutthroat streak. During his campaign, he appeared to borrow from Trump’s playbook when he noted during a televised debate with Cuomo that one of the women who had accused the former governor of sexual harassment was in the audience. Cuomo has denied wrongdoing. The moment evoked Trump’s tactics before a debate with Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016, when he appeared with accusers of her husband, former President Bill Clinton, who denied the accusations against him. Michelle L. Price, Associated Press Associated Press writers Aamer Madhani and Anthony Izaguirre contributed to this report.
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E-Commerce
A creepy account thats almost certainly using AI to generate videos of imaginary New Yorkers criticizing mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani raises a frightening prospect: that deepfakes could be used not just to impersonate politicians, but also constituents. Accounts on several social media platformswhich are using similar profile pictures and appear to be linkedare calling themselves the Citizens Against Mamdani. In recent days, these accounts have posted confessionals and rants from New Yorkers slamming Mamdani for hisallegedanti-Americanism, plans to hike taxes, and false promises on rent and transportation. They appear to be trying to imitate the diversity of New York, and many of the videos feature some of the citys classic accents. While none of the videos have gone viral, they have shown up on TikTok, Twitter, and Instagram, with some racking up tens of thousands of views. The TikTok account itself has about 30,000 likes. Fast Company reached out to the Instagram and TikTok pages but had not heard back at the time of publication.In the last election cycle, hiring human influencers to spread a particular message was all the rage. Now, teams don’t even need those personalities, explains Emmanuelle Saliba, the chief investigative officer at GetReal Security, a cybersecurity firm that analyzes deepfakes. GenAI has made such significant progress that campaigns and activists can use text-to-video to create hyperrealistic videos of supporters or detractors, and online consumers will be none the wiser, she adds. The online campaign shows how generative AI has, in essence, democratized astroturfing. Astroturfing has been automated, and it’s pretty much undetectable without technology, Saliba saysa notable evolution from the last election cycle, when it was more common for political operatives to hire influencers, she adds. Using online tools to create a false impression of support or opposition to a movement or candidate isnt new. In 2017, for example, bots were deployed to submit comments to the Federal Communications Commission, which was, at the time, considering new rules on net neutrality. But those types of campaigns have typically required at least some significant human effort, like operating a network of social media accounts or hiring influencers. The rise of generative AI makes it far easier to create the mirage of political popularity online: Now, with just a few prompts and access to the right platform, you can simply generate videos of a bevy of real-ish seeming people. A mirage Of course, one of the challenges of deepfake detection is that theres no absolutely surefire way to confirm that theyre generated by AI. With the anti-Mamdani videos, however, the evidence is overwhelming. Beyond the visible Sora watermarka label created by OpenAI to denote content created with the companys technologyon some of the videos, the accounts have published numerous, similar videos at around the same time. Another major hint is the objects in the background of the images, noted Siwei Lyu, a computer science professor who studies deepfakes at University of Buffalo. Reality Defender, another firm that investigates AI-generated content, analyzed several of the videos using a platform it offers called RealScan and found that the odds they were manipulated were extremely high. The firm assessed that one video featuring a man in a blue hat, screaming You all got fooled by Mamdani had a 99 percent likelihood of being a deepfake. (It is impossible to score 100 percent: Theres no way to truly verify the ground truth of the contents creation). While it’s unclear the extent to which people have been actually convinced by the videos, the comments on them suggest at least some online users seem to be taking them seriously. They show the illusion of broad support for or against an issue, and the people depicted in the videos are ordinary citizens. So its harder to verify their existence, says Lyu. This is yet another dangerous form of an AI-driven disinformation campaign. Astroturfing at scale The accounts are a reminder that the cost of producing disinformation is lower than ever. It used to be that social engineering support for a particular cause would require real effort for instance investing in creating believable and realistic content, explains Alex Lisle, the chief technology officer of Reality Defender. Now I can define an LLM with a sentiment and a message I’m trying to give it, and then ask it to come up with what to say, Lisle says. And I can do that at a scale which before would require hours and hours of work,manufacturing hundreds of different quotes, thousands of different quotes, very, very quickly, he adds. Combining deepfakes with large language models allows political operatives to not only generate myriad scripts for what a deepfake can say, but also videos of people with convincing voices to actually spread those narratives. You are now having a force multiplier, Lisle continued. In order to do this required multiple people and hours of effort. Now it just costs me computing. The problem expands beyond politics, emphasized Saliba, from GetReal. While Mamdani might be one example of a target, the low cost of creating this kind of content means that a business or a loved one could be the future subject of these kinds of disinformation campaigns.
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E-Commerce
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