On June 12, 2025, a widespread internet outage impacted numerous online services and platforms, including Google Cloud, Cloudflare, Spotify, Discord, and others, affecting services like OpenAI, Shopify, Twitch, Gmail, YouTube, and Etsy. The outages were attributed to disruptions within Google Cloud, with Cloudflare also reporting related issues. Services experienced intermittent failures, but recovery began later in the afternoon. In other news, AI is increasingly prevalent across various sectors. AI bots are becoming more common, leading websites to optimize for AI visitors. Trend Micro has launched its AI Factory to enhance the security of AI systems, aligning with NVIDIA's safety blueprint. Utah leaders are opposing a federal bill provision that could restrict the state's AI regulations. The GAIA Foundation Model is using AI and satellite imagery to improve weather predictions. AI is also transforming content marketing, with 92% of B2B marketers using it regularly. China is expanding its AI and microchip talent pool, gaining an edge in the global tech race. Gartner's survey indicates that most supply chain leaders lack a formal AI strategy, emphasizing the need for long-term planning. Federated learning is suggested as a method for the G7 to develop AI systems securely while protecting privacy. Slack is integrating AI to enhance user efficiency, including AI agents and a 'Channel Knowledge Agent'.
Key Takeaways
- Major internet outage on June 12, 2025, disrupted services like Spotify, Discord, Google, and Amazon Web Services due to issues at Cloudflare and Google Cloud.
- Google Cloud outage affected OpenAI, Shopify, and other services, prompting investigation and restoration efforts.
- AI bot traffic has increased by 49% in early 2025, requiring websites to optimize for AI visitors.
- Trend Micro launched AI Factory to improve AI system security, aligning with NVIDIA's Agentic AI Safety blueprint.
- Utah leaders are resisting a federal bill provision that could prevent the state from regulating AI for ten years.
- The GAIA Foundation Model uses AI and satellite images to enhance weather predictions.
- 92% of B2B marketers are using AI regularly in content marketing, according to Statista's Content Marketing Trend Study 2025.
- China is expanding its AI and microchip talent pool, potentially giving them an advantage in the global tech race.
- Gartner reports that only 23% of supply chain leaders have a formal AI strategy, highlighting the need for long-term AI planning.
- Slack is integrating AI, including AI agents and a 'Channel Knowledge Agent', to improve user efficiency.
Spotify, Google, and other online services face outages
On Thursday, June 12, 2025, many popular online services like Spotify, Discord, Google, and Amazon Web Services experienced outages. The problems stemmed from service disruptions at Cloudflare and Google Cloud. Cloudflare stated that a Google Cloud issue caused the outage, but their main services weren't affected. Google mentioned they were investigating the service disruption. The outages impacted thousands of users, but services started to recover later that afternoon.
Google Cloud outage disrupts OpenAI, Shopify, and other services
Google Cloud experienced a significant outage on Thursday, affecting several internet services. The outage, which began at 10:51 a.m. PT, caused problems for OpenAI, Shopify, and other companies. Google stated that its engineering team was investigating the issue and working to restore service. Cloudflare also reported that a Google Cloud outage impacted some of its services. The Google Cloud unit, led by Thomas Kurian, has been growing due to the demand for AI products.
Internet outage causes technical issues for major websites
On Thursday, June 12, 2025, several major platforms, including Google Cloud, Cloudflare, and Spotify, had technical issues and outages. Cloudflare reported intermittent failures and said the issues were due to a Google Cloud outage. Google Cloud also confirmed disruptions to some of its services. Other affected websites and platforms included Discord, Snapchat, YouTube, Gmail, Google Meet, and Etsy. Amazon Web Services initially showed outage reports but stated their services were operating normally.
Major internet outage hits Google, Cloudflare, and Spotify
On June 12, 2025, a large internet outage caused widespread service disruptions for many popular websites and apps. Users reported errors on platforms like Twitch, Gmail, Discord, Spotify and Character.ai. Cloudflare, a hosting service, reported broad service outages, as did Google Cloud. The disruptions impacted various services, including online games, e-commerce sites, and AI platforms. While some services began to recover, the outage highlighted the potential for ripple effects across the internet.
AI bots are taking over the web
As people switch from Google to AI tools like ChatGPT, a new type of bot is emerging. These bots, used by companies like OpenAI and Anthropic, retrieve and summarize online content in real time. Data from TollBit shows that traffic from these bots grew by 49 percent in early 2025. This shift means websites may need to optimize for AI visitors instead of just humans. The AI industry's use of online content has led to copyright lawsuits and licensing deals.
AI bots are taking over the web
People are using AI tools like ChatGPT instead of Google, leading to a new type of bot on the internet. Companies like OpenAI and Anthropic use these bots to quickly find and summarize content for users. TollBit reports that traffic from these bots increased by 49 percent in the first part of 2025. Websites may need to change how they work to accommodate these AI visitors.
Trend Micro launches AI Factory for better AI security
Trend Micro introduced its Trend Secure AI Factory to improve the security of agentic AI systems. The AI Factory uses Trend Vision One and Trend Vision One – Sovereign Private Cloud platforms. It aligns with the NVIDIA Agentic AI Safety blueprint, providing security from AI model adoption to deployment. The system integrates with NVIDIA NeMo for model safety evaluation. Trend Micro also uses its Trend Cybertron large language model via NVIDIA NIM to detect and respond to threats in real time.
Utah leaders fight ban on state AI rules in federal bill
Utah lawmakers and Governor Spencer Cox are worried about a provision in President Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill'. This provision could stop Utah from regulating artificial intelligence for ten years. Utah has been praised for its AI rules, like requiring healthcare industries to disclose when AI is used in communications. Governor Cox and Utah lawmakers are urging the state's senators to oppose the bill's provision. The Senate is scheduled to vote on the bill by July 4.
Satellites and AI team up to improve weather predictions
Weather patterns are becoming less reliable, affecting many industries. The GAIA Foundation Model uses AI and satellite images to help researchers better understand weather. GAIA is trained on 25 years of satellite imagery, providing real-time images of Earth every 30 minutes. This allows meteorologists to visually map weather developments. BCG X used a network of university computers to process the large amount of data needed for the GAIA model.
How brands use AI in content marketing
Artificial intelligence is becoming essential for content marketing. Statista's Content Marketing Trend Study 2025 shows that 92% of B2B marketers use AI regularly. AI helps automate tasks, optimize content, and personalize user experiences. Common AI tools include ChatGPT, Canva, and Gemini. Companies plan to invest more in AI for content creation, customer experience, and data analysis. Data protection and integration with existing processes are key challenges.
China's AI and chip grads ready as tech trade struggles
China's focus on AI and microchips is growing, especially since the trade war with the United States began. In 2019, China started offering AI majors at many universities. Now, over 535 universities offer AI-related programs, and many top AI researchers are from China. This large pool of talent gives China an advantage in the global tech race.
Gartner says supply chain leaders lack AI strategy
A Gartner survey reveals that only 23% of supply chain leaders have a formal AI strategy. Many focus on short-term ROI, which may hurt long-term AI transformation. Gartner suggests developing a formal AI strategy and balancing short-term and long-term priorities. They recommend using the Run-Grow-Transform framework and investing in AI-ready infrastructure. This helps ensure AI investments provide both quick wins and lasting value.
G7 should use federated learning for AI security
AI is changing the world, but it raises privacy concerns. As G7 leaders meet, they should consider federated learning to build AI systems without sacrificing privacy. Federated learning trains AI models on local data and shares only model updates, reducing the risk of data breaches. This approach is already being used in healthcare and banking. The G7 should promote federated learning to ensure AI is developed ethically and securely.
AI teammates are coming to Slack
Slack is integrating AI to help users work more efficiently. Salesforce Channels now connect Salesforce records within Slack, streamlining data flow. Slack users can interact with AI agents in real-time on the platform. A 'Channel Knowledge Agent' is being developed to answer questions based on channel content and other data sources. This will make it easier for users to access information and materials within Slack.
Sources
- Internet outages show signs of recovery as Spotify, Google and other popular online services are down for thousands of users
- Google cloud and other internet services are reporting outages
- Major Websites Experience Technical Issues Amid Widespread Internet Outage
- Massive internet outage reported: Google services, Cloudflare, Character.AI are all down
- ‘This is coming for everyone’: A new kind of AI bot takes over the web
- 'This is coming for everyone': A new kind of AI bot takes over the web
- Trend Micro unveils AI Factory to boost agentic AI security
- Utah leaders push back against ban on state AI regulation in federal spending bill
- Orbital Intelligence: When Satellites Meet Machine Learning
- How do brands use Artificial Intelligence in content marketing? This is what Statista reveals
- China’s orchard of AI, chip grads now ripe for the pickin’ as tech trade sours
- Gartner Survey: Supply Chain Leaders Lack AI Strategy
- Mitigating AI security threats: Why the G7 should embrace ‘federated learning’
- Get used to working with AI teammates in Slack