--- title: Best The Register posts — October 2025 | daily.dev description: The most upvoted The Register posts from October 2025, curated by the daily.dev community. canonical: https://daily.dev/sources/theregister/best-of/2025/10 twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:url: https://daily.dev/sources/theregister/best-of/2025/10 og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Best The Register posts — October 2025 | daily.dev og:description: The most upvoted The Register posts from October 2025, curated by the daily.dev community. og:image: https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--VAY5ToZt--/f_auto/v1724209435/public/daily.dev%20-%20open%20graph --- # Best of The Register — October 2025 1. 1 [](https://daily.dev/posts/chatgpt-so-popular-hardly-anyone-will-pay-for-it-kkmhijrwz "ChatGPT: so popular, hardly anyone will pay for it") Article The Register · 47w ChatGPT: so popular, hardly anyone will pay for it OpenAI is losing three times more money than it earns, with 95% of ChatGPT's 800 million users not paying for the service. The company posted a $13.5 billion net loss in the first half of 2025 against $4.3 billion in revenue, while committing over $1 trillion in datacenter spending through partnerships with Nvidia, AMD, and others. Despite ChatGPT generating 70% of OpenAI's recurring revenue and dominating 80% of generative AI web traffic, the company faces significant challenges converting free users to paid subscribers, with only 5% currently paying compared to an industry average of 3%. 54 16 2. 2 [](https://daily.dev/posts/ai-layoffs-to-backfire-half-quietly-rehired-at-lower-pay-ufskfwnhp "AI layoffs to backfire: half quietly rehired at lower pay") Article The Register · 45w AI layoffs to backfire: half quietly rehired at lower pay Forrester predicts that half of AI-attributed layoffs will be reversed, with 55% of employers regretting workforce cuts made in anticipation of AI automation. Many companies are laying off workers based on future AI promises rather than actual automation capabilities, with research showing AI agents achieving only 58% success rates on single-step tasks. Organizations like Klarna and Duolingo have already walked back aggressive AI strategies, while companies like Salesforce and Amazon continue cutting thousands of jobs citing AI efficiency gains. 35 8 3. 3 [](https://daily.dev/posts/windows-7-slimmed-down-to-69-mb-v6icegcva "Windows 7 slimmed down to 69 MB") Article The Register · 45w Windows 7 slimmed down to 69 MB A developer reduced Windows 7 to just 69 MB by stripping it to bare essentials, creating a proof-of-concept that boots but lacks critical components for running GUI applications. While impractical for general use, such minimal installations have legitimate applications in virtual machines, containers, and legacy software environments. Microsoft previously explored similar approaches with Nano Server for containers, but hasn't applied this philosophy to desktop Windows despite ongoing concerns about OS bloat. 29 5 4. 4 [](https://daily.dev/posts/framework-flame-war-erupts-over-linux-controversy-gcf5zpj7r "Framework flame war erupts over Linux controversy") Article The Register · 47w Framework flame war erupts over Linux controversy Framework, the upgradeable laptop maker, faces community backlash over its sponsorship of Hyprland (a Wayland compositor) and promotion of Omarchy, both associated with politically controversial figures. A Debian developer called for boycott, criticizing Framework's "big tent" approach to open source sponsorships. The controversy sparked over 1,500 forum replies debating whether companies should vet projects for community conduct beyond technical merit. Framework defended its apolitical stance on sponsorships but later clarified it had researched Hyprland's past moderation issues and found improvements, while announcing plans to involve the community more in future sponsorship decisions. 22 30 5. 5 [](https://daily.dev/posts/ai-gets-more-meh-the-more-you-use-it-researchers-find-59bezr42f "AI gets more 'meh' the more you use it, researchers find") Article The Register · 48w AI gets more 'meh' the more you use it, researchers find Wiley's 2025 survey reveals a paradox in AI adoption among researchers: while usage jumped from 57% to 84% year-over-year, confidence in AI matching human capabilities plummeted from 53% to under 33%. Concerns about hallucinations, security, and ethics are rising, with 64% worried about inaccuracies. Despite skepticism, 85% report efficiency gains, primarily using AI for writing assistance, documentation, and literature review. The data suggests growing familiarity breeds realistic expectations rather than enthusiasm, though 83% expect widespread AI adoption in research by 2027. 21 8 6. 6 [](https://daily.dev/posts/ibm-ceo-apologized-to-techie-who-found-rude-error-message-kf8jightz "IBM CEO apologized to techie who found rude error message") Article The Register · 48w IBM CEO apologized to techie who found rude error message A technician working for an IBM dealer in the late 1980s discovered an extremely profane error message hidden in IBM's AADU software while exploring it with Norton Utilities. After showing the discovery to his IBM contact, the situation escalated to IBM's CEO, who sent a formal apology letter. The technician never managed to trigger the error message despite multiple attempts, and wondered whether any IBM developers lost their jobs over the incident. 19 5 7. 7 [](https://daily.dev/posts/japan-asks-openai-to-keep-sora-2-s-hands-off-anime-ip-rkocvo93n "Japan asks OpenAI to keep Sora 2’s hands off anime IP") Article The Register · 47w Japan asks OpenAI to keep Sora 2’s hands off anime IP Japan's government formally requested OpenAI to prevent Sora 2 from generating content that infringes on copyrighted anime and manga characters. The video generator has been producing anime-style content resembling Studio Ghibli and other Japanese IP, while blocking American characters like Mickey Mouse. Japanese officials invoked the AI Promotion Act, which allows government action against AI misuse affecting citizens' rights. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman promised better copyright controls after political pressure, and the platform now blocks specific character generation, though style mimicry remains possible. 17 4 8. 8 [](https://daily.dev/posts/microsoft-illegally-tracked-students-via-365-education-2flapmata "Microsoft 'illegally' tracked students via 365 Education") Article The Register · 47w Microsoft 'illegally' tracked students via 365 Education Austria's data protection authority ruled that Microsoft illegally tracked students through its 365 Education platform and violated GDPR by failing to provide complete information about data processing. Microsoft attempted to shift GDPR compliance responsibility to schools and education authorities, who lacked control over student data. When a complainant requested access to their data, Microsoft redirected them to their school, which couldn't provide complete information. The authority ordered Microsoft to disclose full details about data transmission, explain vague terms like 'business modelling,' and reveal any third-party data transfers. Microsoft must also stop deflecting data protection obligations to educational institutions. 14 3 9. 9 [](https://daily.dev/posts/microsoft-warns-of-the-dangers-of-shadow-ai-c9doow4mh "Microsoft warns of the dangers of Shadow AI") Article The Register · 47w Microsoft warns of the dangers of Shadow AI Microsoft published a report warning about Shadow AI, where 71% of UK employees use unapproved consumer AI tools at work, potentially exposing organizations to security risks and data leaks. Despite these warnings, Microsoft recently encouraged users to bring personal Copilot subscriptions to work. The report reveals employees primarily use unauthorized AI for drafting communications (49%), creating reports (40%), and finance tasks (22%), with 32% concerned about data privacy but only 29% worried about IT security. 11 4 10. 10 [](https://daily.dev/posts/ai-eats-leisure-time-makes-employees-work-more-study-finds-crtizfio5 "AI eats leisure time, makes employees work more, study finds") Article The Register · 46w AI eats leisure time, makes employees work more, study finds Research analyzing US Bureau of Labor Statistics data from 2004-2023 reveals that workers in occupations with higher AI exposure work an average of 3.15 additional hours per week while experiencing 3.20 fewer leisure hours. Despite productivity gains from AI tools like ChatGPT, the economic benefits primarily flow to employers and consumers rather than workers, who report lower job satisfaction and longer hours due to increased surveillance and productivity demands. The study challenges the assumption that AI automation reduces workload, showing instead that competitive labor markets prevent workers from capturing technology-driven productivity gains. 10 2 [See all The Register archives](/sources/theregister/best-of) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"CollectionPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/sources/theregister/best-of/2025/10#page","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/theregister/best-of/2025/10","name":"Best The Register Posts — October 2025","description":"The most upvoted The Register posts from October 2025, curated by the daily.dev community.","isPartOf":{"@type":"WebSite","url":"https://daily.dev"}},{"@type":"ItemList","@id":"https://daily.dev/sources/theregister/best-of/2025/10#items","numberOfItems":10,"itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"url":"https://daily.dev/posts/chatgpt-so-popular-hardly-anyone-will-pay-for-it-kkmhijrwz","name":"ChatGPT: so popular, hardly anyone will pay for it"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"url":"https://daily.dev/posts/ai-layoffs-to-backfire-half-quietly-rehired-at-lower-pay-ufskfwnhp","name":"AI layoffs to backfire: half quietly rehired at lower pay"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"url":"https://daily.dev/posts/windows-7-slimmed-down-to-69-mb-v6icegcva","name":"Windows 7 slimmed down to 69 MB"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"url":"https://daily.dev/posts/framework-flame-war-erupts-over-linux-controversy-gcf5zpj7r","name":"Framework flame war erupts over Linux controversy"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":5,"url":"https://daily.dev/posts/ai-gets-more-meh-the-more-you-use-it-researchers-find-59bezr42f","name":"AI gets more 'meh' the more you use it, researchers find"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":6,"url":"https://daily.dev/posts/ibm-ceo-apologized-to-techie-who-found-rude-error-message-kf8jightz","name":"IBM CEO apologized to techie who found rude error message"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":7,"url":"https://daily.dev/posts/japan-asks-openai-to-keep-sora-2-s-hands-off-anime-ip-rkocvo93n","name":"Japan asks OpenAI to keep Sora 2’s hands off anime IP"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":8,"url":"https://daily.dev/posts/microsoft-illegally-tracked-students-via-365-education-2flapmata","name":"Microsoft 'illegally' tracked students via 365 Education"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":9,"url":"https://daily.dev/posts/microsoft-warns-of-the-dangers-of-shadow-ai-c9doow4mh","name":"Microsoft warns of the dangers of Shadow AI"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":10,"url":"https://daily.dev/posts/ai-eats-leisure-time-makes-employees-work-more-study-finds-crtizfio5","name":"AI eats leisure time, makes employees work more, study finds"}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Sources","item":"https://daily.dev/sources"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"The Register","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/theregister"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Best of","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/theregister/best-of"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":5,"name":"October 2025"}]}]} ```