• Texas Governor-elect wants more protections against AI expansion
• Gina Hinojosa says AI firms are ‘taking advantage of Texas’
• Communities must ‘have a seat at the table’ in AI discussions, Hinojosa says

Texas has long been one of the most data center-friendly locations in the US, with new facilities springing up at a tremendous rate of knots over the last few years. But with mounting public opposition and a so-called “blue tsunami” in the US mid-term elections, that could be about to change, with the state’s incoming Governor-elect warning that there will be a new game in town for the massive AI firms that have outsourced operations to Texas.

Speaking during an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper, Texas Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa said that any work with AI companies “has to be a partnership that benefits Texans. And right now, what has happened is that data centers have moved into mostly rural communities and there are no rules and laws to protect Texans. And Texans are being taken advantage of.”

Hinojosa promised to introduce laws to reverse that situation in the state’s dealings with AI outfits, adding that “we need to stop what we are doing with data centers until we have those protections.” One of those changes, Hinojosa suggested, was to ensure that “communities have a seat at the table to decide if and how these data centers come into their communities.”

“We need to make sure they are partners in this effort,” she continued. “ It is not that I hate data centers. I hate the way they are taking advantage of Texas, and that stops when I’m Governor.”

Data center free-for-all

Hinojosa campaigned on the promise of a temporary data center moratorium in Texas. Her stance seems popular with residents of the Lone Star State, with a CNN poll showing that 75% of respondents in Texas opposed building data centers near where they lived.

Hinojosa is far from alone in her opposition to the expansion of data centers throughout the US, and many Democratic candidates who were victorious in the US mid-term elections campaigned on similar opposition to the facilities — as did some Republicans.

This could raise questions about AI companies’ future plans, with several of the biggest names previously planning to build data centers that could face stiff opposition from elected officials. For example, Anthropic noted in its recent IPO filings that the supply chain for its data center infrastructure is highly complex and any “delays or failures” along the way could significantly impact the company.

It’s not entirely clear what shape Hinojosa’s new approach to data centers could take. But from her statements so far, it looks like the expansion free-for-all that has affected Texas — and many other communities across the US — could be coming to an end.

• Famed game creator Hideo Kojima has voiced his opinions on AI
• He said human creativity is a vital part of the game-development process
• And he’s worried about a future where AI dominates the industry

Legendary games maker Hideo Kojima is known for the creativity of his output, from the Metal Gear Solid series to Death Stranding, so it’s unsurprising to hear that he has strong opinions on the use of AI in video games. And in a fresh interview, he told readers exactly where he feels AI falls flat compared to human-made artistic expression.

Speaking to Japanese site Game*Spark, Kojima said that while it’s good that AI has improved efficiency, “the fun isn’t in finishing the picture. It’s in the process … While it’s fine to tell a computer to create this or that, and then say, ‘That’s wrong, change it,’ I don’t find that very interesting in terms of craftsmanship.”

“I’m worried about what will happen to that aspect of the enjoyment of craftsmanship in the future,” he added.

Kojima said he feels that there’s a distinction between using AI for creative output and employing it to form a finished product: “If you’re just making a ‘product,’ that’s fine, but I think the fun for creators lies in the creative process itself. I think ‘creativity’ and ‘products’ are different things.”

In other words, AI doesn’t offer creators the kind of spark they get from crafting something themselves. And it’s that kind of magic that so often resonates with consumers of Kojima’s media.

His comments reflect those of Jason Graves, the composer of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4’s soundtrack, who spoke out against AI music generation, saying that “Music is not just a bunch of notes strung together.” Instead, the process is essential as it is based on “creative instincts forged by emotion and all the little decisions that give a piece of art its own unique personality.”

The effort itself is key

Kojima didn’t just muse on what AI means for video games and other creative outlets in the present — he also had thoughts on how it could impact the future.

For instance, the game director said: “It’s not about telling someone to make a song like this and then being satisfied with the result; it’s the trial and error in between that gets the adrenaline pumping, and it’s incredibly exciting. I don’t want a future where that’s lost.”

He then reflected that, “I think it will be fine for five or 10 years, but if AI continues unchecked, perhaps a future where AI plays a vital role in creative fields will come someday. Well, I won’t be around by then. It’s up to the younger generation to decide, so I want to pass the baton to them.”

If the goal is purely to improve efficiency, AI could help to build a “good future,” Kojima noted. But for someone like him, there’s evidently much more to crafting something than just making it quickly with minimal effort.

Indeed, the effort itself is a key part of creative development. As Kojima put it, “Even with plastic models, the shape is the same no matter who builds it, but the process of assembling it is what’s interesting, isn’t it?”

Razer Basilisk V4 Pro two-minute review

One of the first gaming mice I ever used was a Razer Basilisk, and I enjoyed it so much I wore the grippy rubber sides down until they were completely smooth. I’ve moved over to much more lightweight pointers in the years since, but with Razer launching the Basilisk V4 Pro, has the company done enough to tempt me back and resurrect that fond old love affair?

Spoiler alert: not completely. Because while the Basilisk V4 Pro is an excellent upgrade over its predecessor, it also comes with a few drawbacks that prevent it from being a total must-buy. It’s a great gaming mouse and might be ideal in the right (large) hands, but don’t go into this expecting perfection.

Let’s start with the positives. Razer has kept the Basilisk’s familiar ergonomic form factor, which is best suited to palm grip users, and its comfortable sculpted shape fits snugly into your hand. The build quality is also good, with solid plastics throughout and grippy textured finishes on the sides. And while it’s still a fairly hefty 100g, that’s still 10% lighter than the 112g Basilisk V3 Pro.

Battery life has increased to 200 hours in 2.4GHz mode at a 1,000Hz polling rate, or 275 hours on Bluetooth LE — up from 140 hours and 210 hours on the Basilisk V3 Pro. Note that that’s with the RGB lighting disabled. My review unit arrived with 66% battery, and in my testing (using it in 2.4GHz mode with a 1,000Hz polling rate and the RGB switched on), that dropped to 0% after 45 hours, so you can probably expect just under 70 hours on a full charge when using these settings. That’s a sizeable drop on 200 hours, but you’ll get much more juice if you dim the RGB lights.

Compared to the Basilisk V4 Pro’s predecessor, Razer has outfitted the latest version with a couple of extra buttons: one on the top-left corner of the left click and another next to the side buttons. That means you’ve now got 14 customizable controls on this device, making it a sort of halfway solution between a regular mouse and the button-crazy Razer Naga V3 Pro.

One of those buttons — the additional on one the side — could be assigned to Razer’s “Perfect 180” feature, the company suggested. This instantly spins your in-game character around 180 degrees, and if you think that sounds like cheating, you might have a point — even Razer admitted to us that they thought it could get banned in competitive games. Still, until that happens…

Razer also told us it had made the left and right click buttons sound less “ticky,” and they do have a satisfyingly soft and quiet actuation, one that’s a little less piercing to the ears than those on the Viper V4 Pro. They’re not silent, but they’re pleasing in use.

Sandwiched between those buttons is Razer’s HyperSpeed scroll wheel that, while not strictly a gaming feature, might be one of the Basilisk V4 Pro’s best aspects. You can set it to spin freely or ratchet (with two strength options) in Razer’s Synapse app, but its real party trick is its Smart-Reel feature. If you’ve set it to ratchet, a quick spin of the wheel automatically flips it into free-spin mode; put the brakes on and it moves back to ratcheting. It’s a great way to rapidly move through documents and spreadsheets without having to manually change modes.

But while I liked the HyperScroll wheel, I didn’t love it. Every time it switches modes (from free spinning to ratcheting, say), there’s a loud and slightly disconcerting crunching sound that starts to grate after a while.

Pushing it in to click the scroll wheel also feels very soft and mushy — it’s imprecise compared with Razer’s own alternatives like the Viper V4 Pro, which is much crisper to click. It’s a welcome feature on the mouse, but it’s clearly inferior to the MagSpeed wheel you’ll find on the Logitech MX Master 4.

This was something I found time and again with the Basilisk V4 Pro: I’d often be pleased with one feature, only to observe a downside to it after I’d used it a little more. I was happy to see an extra side button that I could program to my needs, for instance, but then started to notice it getting in the way and messing up my two-side-button muscle memory.

Or take the RGB lighting as another example: it looks lovely (especially on the Spectrum Cycling setting), but considering you never look at the mouse when using it, and your hand covers it up anyway, it felt a little pointless. Perhaps Razer could have done away with it and eked more battery life out of the Basilisk.

Ultimately, the Basilisk V4 Pro hasn’t converted me back to its temptingly sculpted form factor. It offers a capable combination of features, buttons and comfort, and for many gamers — especially those with larger hands — it’ll be an attractive option. It’s still one of the best gaming mice around, despite its drawbacks.

But for every two steps forward, there’s one step back that tempers its progress, whether that’s the imperfect HyperScroll wheel, the hard-to-reach buttons for all but palm grip users or the questionable, battery-draining RGB. I went into this looking to rekindle my love for an old flame, but in the end, I found myself stuck in the Basilisk’s friend zone.

Razer Basilisk V4 Pro: Price & release date

• Available to buy now
• Priced at $169.99 / £169.99 / $289.95 AUD

The Razer Basilisk V4 Pro is priced at $169.99 / £169.99 / $289.95 AUD and is available now from Razer’s website and third-party retailers. Its price has crept up by $10 / £10 / $10 AUD versus the Basilisk V3 Pro 35K.

Razer Basilisk V4 Pro review: Specs

Should I buy the Razer Basilisk V4 Pro?

Buy it if…

Don’t buy it if…

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How I tested the Razer Basilisk V4 Pro

• I spent a week testing the Razer Basilisk V4 Pro in various games to see how it managed in different genres
• I also explored its customization options in the Razer Synapse app to see how well it could be adapted to different needs

I tested the Razer Basilisk V4 Pro over the course of a week. I used it for everyday tasks like browsing the web and writing this review, and tried it in a range of different games, including Call of Duty, Football Manager 27 and Stardew Valley. Additionally, I explored its customization options in the Razer Synapse app to see how easy it was to adjust its settings.

• Read TechRadar’s reviews guarantee
• First reviewed: November 2026