Technologies

Airbnb Says It May Ban People Likely to Travel With Already-Banned Guests

The short-term rental company isn’t taking risks with potentially problematic guests.

Airbnb will ban some people who are closely associated with already-banned guests. Following a report from Vice, the short-term rental company on Wednesday confirmed that in some circumstances it may restrict the accounts of people «who are likely to travel» with a person that has been removed for «safety reasons.»

Airbnb may also remove an account if a person books a future reservation with the same credit card as a person who was banned from the site for a serious safety incident, according to a scenario detailed by an Airbnb spokesperson.

It’s unclear when Airbnb started banning people associated with already-banned guests or how often it does so.

Airbnb uses a background check system to vet its large number of users. On Airbnb’s website, the company says it’s had 1.4 billion «guest arrivals» as of December 2022. The system, however, can end up banning users for smaller misdemeanor charges on their record, according to a Vice report.

There’s reportedly an appeals process for those who feel they’ve been unfairly banned.

The caution put forward by short-term-rental companies like Airbnb and Vrbo comes as stories have percolated over the years of problem guests turning homes into party houses. Such stories have included complaints by neighbors and in some instances, deaths. To combat this, Airbnb implemented a permanent party ban in the summer of 2022 and launched anti-party tech at the end of last year. Ahead of Super Bowl 2023, Vrbo too implemented tech to prevent renters from turning homes into party houses.

«As an online platform that facilitates real-world travel and connections, this is a necessary safety precaution,» an Airbnb spokesperson said.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Saturday, Aug. 23

Technologies

With Apple’s Siri AI Overhaul Delayed, Google Might Help It Catch Up

Siri’s long-delayed overhaul could end up powered by Google’s Gemini AI, a move that shows how urgently Apple is trying to close the gap with rivals.

Apple is reportedly weighing up a potentially major change to its digital assistant: powering a revamped Siri with Google’s Gemini artificial intelligence tool.

According to Bloomberg, the companies are in early discussions about a partnership that could reshape Apple’s AI strategy for the iPhone, iPad and Apple’s other products. While no agreement is in place, the talks signal Apple’s growing urgency to keep up in the generative AI race.

Siri, once a pioneer, has lagged behind its voice assistant rivals. Apple had planned to roll out a smarter, AI-driven Siri in 2025 as part of its Apple Intelligence initiative, but executives delayed the launch until spring 2026, admitting the early version wasn’t reliable enough to ship. That setback has left Apple at a disadvantage while Samsung, Microsoft and Amazon push ahead with AI assistants that are more conversational and capable.

Apple has long prided itself on controlling the technologies that make its products distinct, but generative AI has proven harder to master internally. To bridge the gap, Apple has leaned on partners: today’s Siri can already route certain requests to OpenAI’s ChatGPT when its own models fall short, and later this year, Apple Intelligence is set to upgrade that integration with GPT-5. You’ll be able to call on ChatGPT for writing help, image understanding and complex questions directly through Siri, Writing Tools and Visual Intelligence.

That reliance underscores the fact that Apple’s own models aren’t yet competitive at the same scale as its rivals.

Apple is reportedly exploring additional options, including Anthropic’s Claude and, most prominently, Google’s Gemini. A deal with Google wouldn’t just inject advanced capabilities into Siri, it would echo a long-running partnership between the two companies. Google already pays billions annually to remain the default search engine on Safari, and a Gemini deal could extend that relationship into Apple’s core AI experience.

If the talks advance, we may see a very different Siri emerge in the coming years: one less constrained, more conversational and powered by the same AI that underpins Google’s own products.

Apple and Google didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against ChatGPT maker OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)