Charities/Philanthropy

Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX doled out millions in charitable donations. Now, new management is asking for it back.Some of the money, however, has already been spent, and the gifts flowed through myriad sources and agreements that are proving difficult to tally.  Mr. Bankman-Fried, FTX and its affiliates used stolen customer money to pour billions of dollars into risky wagers that imploded, according to federal prosecutors and regulators. The company collapsed into bankruptcy in November.…

Melinda French Gates met recently with a group of fellow philanthropists to stress a need to cure what she calls one of America’s greatest ills. “We have to fix this country’s broken caregiving system,” Ms. French Gates said to the virtual session in November with wealthy people who have signed the Giving Pledge, promising to donate more than half of their fortunes to charitable causes. Philanthropy and new policies are needed, she said, “if we want to see more women unlock real power in…

ChatGPT, the artificial-intelligence program captivating Silicon Valley with its sophisticated prose, had its origin three years ago, when technology investor Sam Altman became chief executive of the chatbot’s developer, OpenAI.Mr. Altman decided at that time to move the OpenAI research lab away from its nonprofit roots and turn to a new strategy, as it raced to build software that could fully mirror the intelligence and capabilities of humans—what AI researchers call “artificial general…

ChatGPT, the artificial-intelligence program captivating Silicon Valley with its sophisticated prose, had its origin three years ago, when technology investor Sam Altman became chief executive of the chatbot’s developer, OpenAI.Mr. Altman decided at that time to move the OpenAI research lab away from its nonprofit roots and turn to a new strategy, as it raced to build software that could fully mirror the intelligence and capabilities of humans—what AI researchers call “artificial general…

How doctors determine death is up for debate.For more than four decades, death in the U.S. has been determined in two main ways. Life ends when the heart and lungs stop working. Or physicians might declare a person brain-dead, defined as the irreversible cessation of all brain function, even if the heart and lungs can be maintained with machines. A group of lawyers as well as observers including neurologists and philosophers met Friday and Saturday to discuss potential revisions to the determination. The group, part of…

Households, retailers and charities nationwide, feeling the pinch of inflation, are bracing for a humbug holiday season. U.S. consumers and businesses have trimmed spending plans for gifts, charitable contributions and holiday events, data show. The penny-pinching threatens to spoil the year-end for many, especially firms and nonprofits that tally their largest share of sales and donations in November and December. “We’re hopeful for a strong giving season, but we’re not counting on it,” said…

Toyota Motor Corp. TM -1.27% wants to meet with critics who say it is behind rivals in the race for greener cars, nearly a year after the auto maker pledged to spend billions of dollars expanding its electric-vehicle lineup. Some investors and environmental groups have said Toyota isn’t committed to fully electric cars, pointing to the company’s statements of caution about EVs and its promotion of the competing gas-electric hybrid technology that it invented. Toyota has…

Contributions totaling $5 million to Donald Trump’s charity in 2007 and 2009 were among $19.6 million in unrecorded company expenses Vince McMahon paid out before he stepped down from World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. amid misconduct allegations, an internal board investigation found.In securities filings this month, WWE said that the roughly $20 million that came out of Mr. McMahon’s pocket should…

Mr. Birchall, a straight-laced, 48-year-old wealth manager who rose to become Mr. Musk’s top deputy and the head of his family office, had growing concerns about a new power player in the Tesla Inc. TSLA 0.74% CEO’s orbit. Mr. Musk was increasingly relying on a new adviser, a 34-year-old, Russian-born ex-professional gambler named Igor Kurganov. Mr. Kurganov spent some of the pandemic sleeping in Mr. Musk’s home, where they…

Hilcorp Energy Co., Exxon Mobil Corp. , Conoco COP -4.07% Phillips and Occidental Petroleum Corp. OXY -2.99% are the U.S. oil-and-gas industry’s top emitters of planet-warming greenhouse gases, according to a new report based on federal data.The four companies are also the top emitters of methane, according to the report Thursday by environmental nonprofits Ceres and the Clean Air Task…