Weekly Rewind: October 6

 5. UK Government threatened by WhatsApp

There have been countless clashes between tech companies and international governments over the security of encryption technology used by apps like WhatsApp and iMessage. This week the Independent reported the latest on the subject after UK home secretary Amber Rudd (pictured above) announced that although she doesn't understand the technology, she's keen to "combat" it and possibly even ban it - to prevent criminals from communicating on the sly. However changing legislation on encryption will not be without its problems as it could affect other industries, like secure banking. 

4. Microsoft's Groove Music loses its rhythm

Microsoft is to close its music streaming and download service, Groove Music, and direct users to Spotify instead, reported the BBC this week. From the end of this year users will no longer be able to use the service and subscriptions will end. Groove Music, Microsoft's last remaining music service, came into existence in 2015 after the closure of the previous incarnation, the Xbox Music service. Microsoft has been unable to compete with other music services such as Spotify, Google Play Music and Apple's iTunes, in the same way that its ill-fated Zune could not compete with the dominance of Apple's iPod. 

3. Mattel cancels the release of AI babysitter, Aristotle

"Aristotle isn’t a nanny, it’s an intruder. Children’s bedrooms should be free of corporate snooping.” So said the US–based Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood about toy company Mattel's planned release of Aristotle, an AI-powered 'babysitter' Mattel had developed and, until recently, had planned to release. Aristotle was planned as something that would aid parents with a view "to protect, develop, and nurture the most important asset in their home - their children".

However, as reported on DailyTech this week, Mattel has decided against releasing Aristotle ”as part of an ongoing effort to deliver the best possible connected product experience to the consumer”. There was concern among politicians about the amount of data potentially held by the device, as well as where that data was stored. Looks like parents will just have to read bedtime stories themselves for now... 

2. Jeff Koons vandalised in AR 

This week graffiti artist Sebastian Errazuriz challenged - what he calls - the inevitable commercialisation of augmented reality space [Dezeen]. Snapchat had installed an AR version of Jeff Koons' famous Balloon Dog sculpture in New York's Central Park and allowed smartphone users to superimpose artworks over it. However only one day after its launch, Errazuriz together with his CrossLab studio team used the geotags to overwrite the scuplture with a graffiti-covered version - in protest "of a future invasion of corporate 3D imagery." He believes that by making this space public, brands will inevitably pollute the AR medium with "corporate content" and is trying to get the public to think about these implications before it's too late.

1. 'Sexually explicit' buildings pulled from Louvre

Take a long look at the above picture... A) does the sculpture look like houses having sex? And B) does that offend you? In a recent turn of events, Dazed has revealed that the Louvre has removed the sculpture ahead of public art program, Hors les Murs, because "it risks being misunderstood by visitors" according to the museum's director, Jean-Luc Martinez. Obviously the designer is pretty upset, arguing that it's actually a very innocent piece considering it doesn't actually feature any genitalia, however this hasn't seemed to change the Louvre's decision.