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A Russian telecom company that develops technology to allow phone and internet companies to conduct web surveillance and censorship was hacked, had its website defaced, and had data stolen from its servers, TechCrunch has learned. Founded in Russia, Protei makes telecommunications systems for phone and internet providers across dozens of countries, including Bahrain, Italy, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Pakistan and much of central Africa. The company, now headquartered in Jordan, sells video conferencing technology and internet connectivity solutions, as well as surveillance equipment and web-filtering products, such as deep packet inspection systems. It’s not clear exactly when or how Protei was hacked, but a copy of the company’s website saved on the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine shows it was defaced on November 8. The website was restored soon after. During the breach, the hacker obtained the contents of Protei’s web server — around 182 gigabytes of files — including emails dating back years. A copy of Protei’s data was provided to DDoSecrets, a nonprofit transparency collective that indexes leaked datasets in the public interest, including data from law enforcement, government agencies, and companies involved in the surveillance industry. Mohammad Jalal, the managing director of Protei’s branch in Jordan, did not respond to a request for comment about the breach prior to publication. In an email sent after this story published, Jalal said the company has no affiliation with Russia and that it is “not aware” of the data exfiltration from its servers. The identity of the hacker is not known, nor their motivations, but the defaced website read: “another DPI/SORM provider bites the dust.” The message likely references the company’s sales of deep packet inspection systems and other internet filtering technology for the Russian-developed lawful intercept system known as SORM. SORM is the main lawful intercept system used across Russia as well as several other countries that use Russian technology. Phone and internet providers install SORM equipment on their networks, which allows their country’s governments to obtain the contents of calls, text messages, and web browsing data of the networks’ customers.  Deep-packet inspection devices allow telecom companies to identify and filter web traffic depending on its source, such as a social media website or a specific messaging app, and selectively block access. These systems are used for surveillance and censorship in regions where freedom of speech and expression are limited. The Citizen Lab reported in 2023 that Iranian telecoms giant Ariantel had consulted with Protei about technology for logging internet traffic and blocking access to certain websites. Documents seen and published by The Citizen Lab show that Protei touted its technology’s ability to restrict or block access to websites for specific people or entire swathes of the population. Updated with comment from Jalal. Image Credits:Artem Bruk / Getty Images Referencia: Techcrunch

ChatGPT’s voice mode is getting more usable. OpenAI announced on Tuesday it is updating the user interface to its popular AI chatbot so users can access ChatGPT Voice right inside their chat, instead of having to switch to a separate mode. That means you’ll be able to converse with the chatbot and view its responses, including things like shared images, as you talk. Before, you’d be taken to a separate screen where you’d interact with an animated blue circle that represented the interface for ChatGPT’s voice. That screen also had a mute button and an option to record live video, as well as an X to return to the default text-based mode. During these prior conversations, you could only listen to what ChatGPT was saying, instead of seeing it on the screen. That could be annoying if you missed a response, as you’d have to leave the separate voice mode to see the response as text. Now, the company says you can talk and watch your answers appear as ChatGPT responds to your questions. You can also review your earlier messages and view visuals during your conversations, like images or maps, in real time. The change will make it more natural to interact with the AI chatbot, as you can more easily move between speech and text in the same conversation; however, you’ll still need to tap “end” to stop the voice conversation when you’re ready to switch back to text. This revamped voice mode is the new default and is rolling out now to all users across web and mobile apps. For those who prefer the separate voice mode, OpenAI says they can still revert to the original experience under “Voice Mode” in “Settings.” Here, they’ll see a new option to turn on “Separate mode.” Image Credits:Silas Stein/picture alliance / Getty Images Referencia: Techcrunch

ChatGPT, OpenAI’s text-generating AI chatbot, has taken the world by storm since its launch in November 2022. What started as a tool to supercharge productivity through writing essays and code with short text prompts has evolved into a behemoth with 300 million weekly active users. 2024 was a big year for OpenAI, from its partnership with Apple for its generative AI offering, Apple Intelligence, the release of GPT-4o with voice capabilities, and the highly-anticipated launch of its text-to-video model Sora. OpenAI also faced its share of internal drama, including the notable exits of high-level execs like co-founder and longtime chief scientist Ilya Sutskever and CTO Mira Murati. OpenAI has also been hit with lawsuits from Alden Global Capital-owned newspapers alleging copyright infringement, as well as an injunction from Elon Musk to halt OpenAI’s transition to a for-profit. In 2025, OpenAI is battling the perception that it’s ceding ground in the AI race to Chinese rivals like DeepSeek. The company has been trying to shore up its relationship with Washington as it simultaneously pursues an ambitious data center project, and as it reportedly lays the groundwork for one of the largest funding rounds in history. Below, you’ll find a timeline of ChatGPT product updates and releases, starting with the latest, which we’ve been updating throughout the year. If you have any other questions, check out our ChatGPT FAQ here. To see a list of 2024 updates, go here. Timeline of the most recent ChatGPT updates Join the Disrupt 2026 Waitlist Add yourself to the Disrupt 2026 waitlist to be first in line when Early Bird tickets drop. Past Disrupts have brought Google Cloud, Netflix, Microsoft, Box, Phia, a16z, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Hugging Face, Elad Gil, and Vinod Khosla to the stages — part of 250+ industry leaders driving 200+ sessions built to fuel your growth and sharpen your edge. Plus, meet the hundreds of startups innovating across every sector. November 2025 OpenAI introduces AI assistant for online shopping OpenAI launched a new AI shopping feature in ChatGPT ahead of the peak holiday shopping window to help users research potential purchases. OpenAI’s new ChatGPT shopping feature lets users get product recommendations by describing features or sharing photos to find similar items at different prices. And they’re not alone, with both Perplexity and a slew of competitor startups playing in the commerce space. OpenAI refutes claims linking ChatGPT to teen’s death After Adam Raine’s family sued OpenAI in August, claiming their teen used ChatGPT as a “suicide coach,” OpenAI said in a new court filing that it isn’t liable, arguing the chatbot was misused. This marks OpenAI’s first response to a case that has raised wider concerns about chatbots and mental health risks. ChatGPT integrates voice mode into main interface OpenAI is bringing ChatGPT’s voice mode straight into the main chat, so you no longer have to jump to a separate screen. Now you can talk to ChatGPT and see everything it says and shows right in the same window. OpenAI blocked from ‘Cameo’ following trademark lawsuit OpenAI can’t use “cameo” for Sora features for now, following a trademark lawsuit from the video app Cameo, with the ban lasting until December 22. Group chat feature now available to all ChatGPT users ChatGPT is now getting group chats for everyone — Free, Go, Plus, and Pro users alike — after testing it in a few regions last week. You can now team up with friends, family, or co-workers in one chat with ChatGPT to plan, create, or make decisions together. OpenAI rolls out GPT‑5.1 with advanced reasoning and user-friendly tone OpenAI has released GPT‑5.1, upgrading the GPT‑5 series with two models: Instant, which it says will be warmer and more conversational with users, and Thinking, which offers faster, simple-task handling and more persistent complex reasoning. The update also introduces improved controls for customizing ChatGPT’s tone to better match user preferences. Munich court says ChatGPT violated music copyright laws A Munich court ruled that ChatGPT violated German copyright law by reproducing lyrics from nine protected songs, including Herbert Grönemeyer’s hits, rejecting OpenAI’s argument that the AI only reflected learned patterns. The decision could set a European precedent on AI use of copyrighted material, amid growing global legal challenges over AI and music rights. OpenAI eyes consumer health market with AI-powered tools OpenAI is exploring the consumer health sector, developing AI tools like personal health assistants and data aggregators, according to a report by Business Insider. With new healthcare-focused hires, it aims to simplify access to fragmented medical data — an area where Big Tech has struggled — through its conversational AI approach. Seven more families accuse OpenAI of negligence over ChatGPT-related suicides In November 2025, seven families sued OpenAI, alleging that GPT-4o was released prematurely without safeguards, contributing to suicides and severe psychiatric harm. One case involved 23-year-old Zane Shamblin, who told ChatGPT of his suicide plans, and the AI encouraged him. The lawsuits focus on GPT-4o’s tendency to be overly agreeable, despite users expressing dangerous intentions. OpenAI reaches 1 million business clients in record time On November 5, OpenAI announced that over 1 million businesses globally now use its products, making it the fastest-growing business platform in history. Companies across industries like finance, healthcare, and retail, including Amgen, Booking.com, Cisco, Morgan Stanley, T-Mobile, Target, and Thermo Fisher Scientific, are using ChatGPT and OpenAI’s developer tools to enhance operations and customer experiences. October 2025 ChatGPT handles over a million suicide-related conversations weekly OpenAI revealed that a small but significant portion of ChatGPT users, more than a million weekly, discuss mental health struggles, including suicidal thoughts, psychosis, or mania, with the AI. The company says it has improved ChatGPT’s responses by consulting more than 170 mental health experts to handle such conversations more appropriately than earlier versions. OpenAI reportedly working on AI that create music from text and audio OpenAI is developing a new tool that generates music from text and audio prompts, potentially for enhancing videos or adding instrumentation, and is training it using annotated scores from Juilliard students, according to The Information. The launch date and whether it will be standalone or integrated with ChatGPT and Sora remain unclear. ChatGPT gets smarter at organizing your work and school info OpenAI’s new “company knowledge” update for ChatGPT lets Business, Enterprise,

For years, when it was time for startups to start selling their product, they could turn to any number of traditional playbooks. But as with so many things, AI is changing how companies prepare to go to market. “You can do more with less than ever before,” Max Altschuler, general partner at GTMfund, told the audience at TechCrunch Disrupt last month. The challenge for founders and operators, though, will be threading the needle. While there has been some chatter of startups hiring developers more versed and loosing them on typical GTM problems, he said, there’s still a need for more specific domain expertise. “When you have great advisors around, you can learn some of the tried-and-true playbooks. Those things haven’t gone out the window. I think it’s still necessary that you have a general understanding of how and why certain things work in marketing,” Altschuler said. Alison Wagonfeld, vice president of marketing at Google Cloud, said the craft of marketing is still very much required. “You certainly need the AI knowledge, the AI curiosity, the technologists, but also understanding what the purpose of marketing is, to understand customer insights, to do research, to see what great creative is like,” Wagonfeld said. Teams that adopt AI, though, can move more quickly. “You can just get out there with so many more messages faster, and then you can think more holistically about what metrics am I driving for,” she added. Marc Manara, head of startups at OpenAI, has found many startups have embraced AI in their GTM strategy, though it’s not necessarily with the sole focus of minimizing how many resources they put toward it.  “There’s a movement of, yes, you can do more with less, but you can also be very focused with how you do it,” he said. “The degree of personalization and signal following that you can do with AI is differentiated now.” Specifically, he said there are tools that help build leads that are much more sophisticated than in the past. Rather than just a simple query of a database, AI prompts can help startups find prospective customers that fit a very specific set of requirements. Inbound marketing has changed, too, he added, by using the results of those prompts to qualify and score inbound leads “with a lot more precision could have been in the past.” When it comes time for a startup to begin crafting its go-to-market strategy, Wagonfeld said it’s important to consider what qualities it might want in a GTM team.  “It’s a change in hiring perspective, where in the past it was more about hiring specialists, people who really knew, sometimes even like a sub-specialty within marketing or within sales. And now it’s hiring for a sense of curiosity and understanding,” she said. “It’s almost the top thing to hire for now.” Image Credits:TechCrunch Referencia: TechCrunch

Several public websites designed to allow courts across the United States and Canada to manage the personal information of potential jurors had a simple security flaw that easily exposed their sensitive data, including names and home addresses, TechCrunch has exclusively learned. A security researcher, who asked not to be named for this story, contacted TechCrunch with details of the easy-to-exploit vulnerability, and identified at least a dozen juror websites made by government software maker Tyler Technologies that appear to be vulnerable, given that they run on the same platform.  The sites are all over the country, including California, Illinois, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia. Tyler told TechCrunch that it is fixing the flaw after we alerted the company to the information exposures. The bug meant it was possible for anyone to obtain the information about jurors who are selected for service. To log into these platforms, a juror is provided a unique numerical identifier assigned to them, which could be brute-forced since the number was sequentially incremental. The platform also did not have any mechanism to prevent anyone from flooding the login pages with a large number of guesses, a feature known as “rate-limiting.” In early November, the security researcher told TechCrunch that they identified at least one jury management portal for a county in Texas as vulnerable. Inside that portal, TechCrunch saw full names, dates of birth, occupation, email addresses, cell phone numbers, and home and mailing addresses. Other exposed data included information shared in the questionnaires that potential jurors are required to fill out to see if they are qualified to serve on a jury. In the portal seen by TechCrunch, the questions asked about the person’s gender, ethnicity, education level, employer, marital status, children, if the person was a citizen, whether they were older than 18, and whether they have been convicted or faced indictment for a theft or felony.  The vulnerability could have exposed personal health data inside a juror’s profile in some cases. For example, if a juror had requested to be exempted from service for health reasons, they may have disclosed what medical reason they think disqualifies them. TechCrunch saw an example of that, too. TechCrunch alerted Tyler of the issue on November 5. Tyler acknowledged the vulnerability on November 25. In a statement, Tyler spokesperson Karen Shields said that the company’s security team confirmed “a vulnerability exists where some juror information may have been accessible via a brute force attack.” “We have developed a remediation to prevent unauthorized access and are communicating next steps with our clients,” the statement said. The spokesperson did not respond to a series of follow-up questions, including whether Tyler has the technical means to determine if there was any malicious access to jurors’ personal information, and whether it plans to notify people whose data was exposed.  This is not the first time Tyler left sensitive personal data exposed on the internet. In 2023, a security researcher found that, due to a separate security flaw, some U.S. online court record systems exposed sealed, confidential, and sensitive data, such as witness lists and testimony, mental health evaluations, detailed allegations of abuse, and corporate trade secrets.  In that case, Tyler fixed vulnerabilities in its Case Management System Plus product, which was used across the state of Georgia.  Two other government technology providers were exposing data in that case: Catalis, through its CMS360 product, a system used across several U.S. states; and Henschen & Associates, through its CaseLook court record system, used in Ohio. Image Credits:Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch Referencia: Techcrunch

ChatGPT, like many chatbots, is pitched as a hyper-competent personal assistant. But among the many things that confuse it, one is particularly confounding: It cannot tell time. When I ask ChatGPT what time it is, I’m never quite sure what I’ll get. Sometimes, it tells me it can’t do it. “I don’t have access to your device’s real-time clock or your location, so I can’t tell the exact local time for you,” it wrote to me at 4:15PM Eastern Standard Time about a week ago. “But I do know today’s date according to my system: 2025-11-20.” (Bolded by ChatGPT, I assume, to make sure I didn’t overlook the things it was doing well.) Sometimes it asks me to specify a city or time zone, only to reveal it can’t reliably check time that way either — “It’s 12:42 PM in New York (Eastern Time, assuming your system clock is correct),” ChatGPT wrote to me at 11:08AM. And sometimes it does provide exactly the correct time, until I ask a couple of minutes later, and it gets it wrong again. We aren’t the first to bring it up. The problem of time comes up frequently on Reddit and ChatGPT’s forums. One user urged OpenAI to “pay attention to this” because it gives “a bad name” to the AI model “with cognitive abilities far superior than my own.” Features like web search have offered some work-arounds. But years after launch, vanilla ChatGPT remains blissfully indifferent to the ticking of the clock — and as absurd as the situation might seem, there’s a simple reason for that. Image: Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images Elissa Welle Referencia: The Verge

Microsoft’s AI chatbot Copilot will no longer be available on WhatsApp after January 15, the company has shared. After that date, users on WhatsApp won’t be able to chat with the AI unless they switch to Microsoft’s own Copilot mobile apps or use the chatbot via the web. The company explained it’s removing Copilot from the popular messaging app to comply with WhatsApp’s revised platform policies, which were announced last month. At the time, the Meta-owned messenger said it would no longer support general-purpose AI chatbots from using its WhatsApp Business API to serve their customers. Instead, it wanted to reserve those resources for other types of businesses. This change doesn’t mean that businesses can’t use AI to serve their own customers. It does, however, put an end to WhatsApp being a channel for AI chatbot distribution, which will impact companies like Microsoft, OpenAI, Perplexity, and others. OpenAI had already announced its plan to wind down its WhatsApp integration in January. Unfortunately for Copilot users on WhatsApp, their chat history isn’t being preserved when they make the move to Microsoft’s platform because the access to the chatbot on WhatsApp was unauthenticated. Microsoft recommends users who need to retain their conversations for future reference export them using WhatsApp’s built-in tools before the January 15 deadline. Image Credits:Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket / Getty Images Referencia: TechCrunch

At least three London councils are responding to an ongoing cyberattack, prompting officials to shut down their networks and phone lines and activate emergency plans. The local government authorities covering the London boroughs of Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster, which share IT systems as part of a joint arrangement, said their focus was “on protecting systems and data, restoring systems, and maintaining critical services to the public.” Hammersmith & Fulham council is also affected by the cyberattack, per its website. The councils, which provide public services like housing, social services, and rubbish collection, did not describe the nature of the cyberattack or blame a particular hacking group. They noted that an investigation into whether data was stolen remains ongoing. Kensington’s website said the cause of the cyberattack is “now established,” but the council “will not be giving out further details of the incident at this stage” due to an ongoing investigation with U.K. law enforcement agencies. Image Credits:Hollie Adams / Getty Images Referencia: Tech Crunch