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Showing posts from September, 2023

Adobe's 'Photoshop on the web' service is now available to all Creative Cloud subscribers

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Users will be able to edit, share and receive feedback on their Photoshop projects from anywhere on the web, Adobe announced Wednesday , regardless of whether an Adobe product is installed on their PC or tablet. The company is bringing its Photoshop on the web service out of beta and incorporating a few handy new AI features as well. Adobe first introduced a feature-svelt online version of the popular Photoshop app in December, 2021. Originally, users could share their psd files but only if the recipient had a copy of Photoshop or Illustrator on their computer too. That changed with the introduction of Creative Cloud, which allowed for sharing without the need for a local install. The beta version of Photoshop on the web took that concept a step further by incorporating basic editing tools into the web UI geared towards "minor tweaks and quick edits" — the easy sort of stuff that took less time to fix than the program took to boot. The production version released Wednesday
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Looks like NVIDIA got raided by French antitrust authorities

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At dawn on Wednesday, French antitrust authorities conducted a surprise raid on a company in the country that specializes in graphics cards — and according to The Wall Street Journal and Challenges business magazine, that company was NVIDIA. We reached out to NVIDIA for clarification and a spokesperson declined to comment. Here's what we know for sure: The French Competition Authority conducted a surprise raid early Wednesday morning on "a company suspected of having implemented anticompetitive practices in the graphics cards sector," according to a brief press release from the regulator. The raid was tied to a larger investigation into the health of the cloud computing market, with a focus on identifying whether new companies were being unfairly squeezed out by larger, existing ones. The results of that investigation were published in June and they centered on three "hyperscalers," Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure.  The results read,
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Google will let publishers hide their content from its insatiable AI

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Google has announced a new control in its robots.txt indexing file that would let publishers decide whether their content will "help improve Bard and Vertex AI generative APIs, including future generations of models that power those products." The control is a crawler called Google-Extended, and publishers can add it to the file in their site's documentation to tell Google not to use it for those two APIs. In its announcement , the company's vice president of "Trust" Danielle Romain said it's "heard from web publishers that they want greater choice and control over how their content is used for emerging generative AI use cases." Romain added that Google-Extended "is an important step in providing transparency and control that we believe all providers of AI models should make available." As generative AI chatbots grow in prevalence and become more deeply integrated into search results, the way content is digested by things like Bard
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Google opens its AI-generated search experience to teens

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Google is opening its AI-powered search experience to teens. In addition, the company’s Search Generative Experience (SGE) is adding new context pages to shed light on generated responses and individual web links within answers. The company is opening its search-based AI tool to US teenagers between 13 and 17. Google says it received “particularly positive feedback” from 18- to 24-year-olds who tested SGE, which influenced its decision. (Younger people being more open to AI isn’t exactly a shock, given older adults’ tendency to be more suspicious of new technologies.) SGE has been available as part of Google Search Labs since late May . Google says it has added safeguards to prevent inappropriate or harmful content based on its research with experts in teen development. “For example, we’ve put stronger guardrails in place for outputs related to illegal or age-gated substances or bullying, among other issues,” the company wrote on Thursday. Google says it will continue to gather f
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Meta’s metaverse is getting an AI makeover

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Meta’s Connect keynote felt different this year, and not just because it marked the return of an in-person event. It’s been nearly two years since Mark Zuckerberg used Connect to announce that Facebook was changing its name to Meta and reorienting the entire company around the metaverse. But at this year’s event, it felt almost as if Zuckerberg was trying to avoid saying the word “metaverse.” While he did utter the word a couple of times, he spent much more time talking up Meta’s new AI features, many of which will be available on Instagram and Facebook and other non-metaverse apps. Horizon Worlds, the company’s signature metaverse experience that was highlighted at last year’s Connect, was barely mentioned. That may not be particularly surprising if you’ve been following the company’s metaverse journey lately. Meta has lost so much money on the metaverse, its own investors have questioned it. And Zuckerberg has been mercilessly mocked for trying to hype seemingly minor metaverse
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Epic Games asks Supreme Court to reconsider Apple antitrust ruling

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Epic Games has asked the US Supreme Court to review a ruling from 2021 that cleared Apple of violating antitrust laws, according to a Bloomberg   report. The Fortnite maker previously claimed that Apple violated California's Unfair Competition law, stating that the App Store prohibits developers from directing users to other third-party payment systems. The US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the 2021 court’s decision back in April, finding that Apple’s practices had “a substantial anticompetitive effect that harms consumers,” but didn’t meet the bar for an antitrust case. Should Epic win its appeal, Apple could stand to lose a substantial source of revenue. The company takes a cut of all purchases made through its App Store, which can run as high as 30 percent. Epic Games has been the loudest voice protesting this cut, though other companies like Spotify and Tile are also part of the Coalition for App Fairness , which has been pressuring Apple to change its policies. Outs
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Counter-Strike 2 is now available as a free upgrade to CS:GO

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Valve launched Counter-Strike 2 today. The long-rumored game, officially announced in March , has replaced Counter-Strike: Global Offensive as a free upgrade. It uses Valve’s in-house Source 2 engine, leading to sharper textures, more believable lighting and new geometry. Valve said it broke down maps into three categories. First, “Touchstone” maps are classic scenes “with solid foundations” left mostly untouched so players can check out fundamental gameplay changes from Counter-Strike: Global Offensive to Counter-Strike 2 . Next, “Upgrade” maps focus on Source 2 lighting for more realistic-looking reflections and materials. Finally, “Overhaul” maps are fully rebuilt from the ground up, showcasing Source 2’s full capabilities. Smoke grenades should also appear more realistic. Valve says it overhauled how they function, making them more dynamic. “Now not only do all players see the same smoke regardless of position, but the smoke can interact with the environment in interesting
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The US electrical grid is in desperate need of upgrades, watchdog warns

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The US’ outdated electrical grid is not equipped to handle rising demands for renewable energy or the “new normal” threats of extreme weather and cyberattacks. This is according to energy security watchdog, SAFE, whose Grid Security Project found that problems like blackouts and shortages are becoming increasingly common. Without updates to both policy and infrastructure, SAFE warns, these issues are only likely to get worse. In a new report , SAFE points to events like the deadly 2021 power crisis in Texas, when millions of people were left without electricity during a winter storm, and a 2022 shooting at a North Carolina substation that led to outages for more than 40,000 people. While instances like these may once have been considered rare events, they’re unfortunately becoming par for the course. The report also highlights sophisticated cyberattacks abroad, like the historic hack into Ukraine’s power grid in 2015, as examples of what the US grid could find itself up against. “Ex
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European Union report finds X has a major disinformation problem

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X, the company previously known as Twitter, could soon find itself in hot water with European Union officials due to the amount of misinformation on its platform. The platform has an outsize role in the spread of misinformation , according to a new EU report. The EU shared its findings in its first report on platforms’ handling of mis and disinformation as part of the Digital Services Act. The sweeping law, which recently went into effect, requires major platforms to disclose details about their handling of misinformation. Dozens of companies have additionally agreed to a voluntary “Code of Practice” on disinformation. X announced in May that it was pulling out of the agreement, though the company said it would adhere to the stricter disinformation policies required under the DSA. The report found that X outstripped many of its larger peers when it comes to the volume of disinformation on its platform, and the engagement such posts attract. “X … is the platform with the largest r
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Ford halts construction of Michigan EV battery factory as strikes continue

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Ford said on Monday that it was suspending construction of a Michigan battery factory for electric vehicles. The automaker didn’t specify its exact reasons for the shutdown as United Auto Workers (UAW) strikes continue. However, it stated ( via The New York Times ) that it was “pausing work and limiting spending on construction on the Marshall project until we’re confident about our ability to competitively operate the plant.” The factory was established earlier this year to produce battery tech licensed from China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology Co (CATL). It isn’t yet clear if the suspension is temporary or permanent. The news came ahead of President Biden’s trip to Michigan on Tuesday to protest alongside picketing workers. Ford didn’t state whether its decision was related to the strikes. The UAW’s walkout against the Big Three automakers expanded to 38 locations in 20 states last week. The $3.5 billion factory, scheduled to open in 2026, is slated to produce lithium-iron
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The Hollywood writers strike may soon end after tentative deal is struck

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Following marathon negotiations over the last five days, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and major studios have reached a tentative deal to end a 146-day strike that has shut down much of the industry, Variety has reported. "We can say, with great pride, that this deal is exceptional – with meaningful gains and protections for writers in every sector of the membership," the WGA wrote in an email to members. Picketing has been suspended as of Sunday night, but the strike is still in force until it's ratified and approved by members. "To be clear, no one is to return to work until specifically authorized to by the Guild. We are still on strike until then," the email stated. One of the last sticking points was reportedly around the use of generative AI in content production. Other details of the contract have yet to be released, including around streaming residuals, staffing levels for shows and more. "Though we are eager to share the details of what h
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You can find love on Tinder for $500 a month, if you qualify for its elite tier

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Tinder has officially rolled out its most exclusive subscription — “Tinder Select” — according to a report by Bloomberg. This elite pay-to-date tier will cost love seekers $500 per month (or $6,000 annually — apparently there are no bulk discounts to be found here) for access to unique features like exclusive search and matching. This may sound ridiculous to the general public, and it may be why Tinder has decided to hold off on making the new tier available to everyone just yet. Tinder Select has only been offered to less than one percent of users the company considers “extremely active.” Tinder told Bloomberg that it will open up applications for Tinder Select on a rolling basis but it didn’t say exactly when. Tinder's exclusive membership was originally hinted at all the way back in 2019 . Tinder’s parent company, Match Group, reported that the app’s direct revenue raked in about $475 million in the second quarter of 2023, growing about six percent year over year. However,
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iPhone 15 stuck on the Apple logo during setup? Here’s how to fix it

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If you’re setting up a new iPhone 15 today, you might run into some problems. As first reported by 9to5Mac , the new models (including standard and pro variants) can get stuck in a boot loop where they may freeze on the Apple logo when transferring apps and data to the new model. Although Apple says the setup process should prompt you to install iOS 17.0.2, which fixes the problem, some users (including one Engadget staff member) have reported that it failed to do that. Here’s what to do. First, if your iPhone 15 setup prompts you to install iOS 17.0.2 before reaching the data-transfer step, you’re good to go: That means Apple’s hotfix worked as planned, and you don’t need to worry about any special instructions. Accept the update, wait for it to install and complete the process. But you’ll need to hop on a computer if it doesn’t prompt you to update. Computer workaround Start by plugging your iPhone into a Mac or Windows PC using its supplied (or any compatible) USB-C cable. The
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This $90,000 fireproof tankbot will scout burning buildings for people to save

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Fighting fires was always dangerous. But with climate change, there have been more wildfires, which means even more risky rescue missions for local firefighting squads. That’s why multiple different companies and teams of scientists are working to develop robots that can scope out burning buildings before human firefighters have to enter. The latest entrant is FireBot , a remote-controlled robot that can withstand temperatures as high as 650 degrees Celsius. At that scalding temperature, a firefighter wearing a protective suit can only withstand about 15 minutes of exposure. FireBot, which can be operated for four hours at a time, looks like an object straight out of a sci-fi film. With its saw-like “arms” that help the metallic boxy device move, the bot can climb obstacles in its path using tracks that allow it to climb stairs and debris – a requirement for navigating raging fires. According to   TechCrunch , which hosted FireBot’s parent company at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francis
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YouTube’s upcoming AI-powered creator tools include a generative green screen

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YouTube has new AI features for creators on the way. AI-powered features the company announced at its Made on YouTube event on Thursday include a green screen feature, insights to stimulate ideas, automatic dubbing to other languages and a soundtrack search. Dream Screen gives YouTube Shorts creators an AI-powered green screen, similar to a popular feature on TikTok. YouTube’s tool will automatically remove backgrounds from your videos, replacing them with AI-generated images or videos based on your prompts. Although it’s yet to be seen how professional and convincing the generated content appears in practice, the idea is for Dream Screen to make it easier to illustrate fantasy scenarios or simply liven up otherwise ho-hum backdrops. YouTube suggests trekking through an enchanted forest or riding shotgun as your pug drives you to school as two oddball scenes Dream Screen can craft. The company says it will start to test the tool with “select creators” later this year before a broa
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All the hilarious corporate BS you might have missed in the Xbox leaks

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It's the day after the largest document leak in Xbox's history, and now that the important news is on the record, we can all take a step back and process the ridiculousness of the whole situation. One facet that made the debacle so delicious was the insight into Xbox's corporate communications, from executive emails simmering with ill-concealed annoyance to internal slide decks filled with imaginary quotes from fictional, diehard Xbox fans. Here we've collected a handful of email messages and slides from the Xbox leak that made us giggle, raise our eyebrows, or enact some strange combination of the two: The emails Wild rumors can lead to actual product discussions Five months before the launch of the Xbox Series X/S, division chief Phil Spencer was pleased to discover that, due to a series of logistical hurdles, Yakuza: Like a Dragon would be a next-gen Xbox exclusive. He was so pleased, in fact, that he wrote in an email to other executives, "They are real
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Xbox head Phil Spencer responds to a day of massive leaks

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After a day of leaks comprising an all-digital Xbox Series X , an advanced controller, a "cloud-hybrid" console , fruitless Nintendo acquisition plans and some very mean words about Baldur's Gate 3 ,   Xbox head Phil Spencer has spoken publicly — and semi-privately — about the situation for the first time. On X, Spencer said, "It is hard to see our team's work shared in this way because so much has changed and there's so much to be excited about right now, and in the future." He added that the company "will share the real plans when we are ready." We've seen the conversation around old emails and documents. It is hard to see our team's work shared in this way because so much has changed and there's so much to be excited about right now, and in the future. We will share the real plans when we are ready. — Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) September 19, 2023 In an internal memo sent to employees at Microsoft's gaming division, and
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Neuralink opens enrollment for its first human BCI implants

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Elon Musk's Neuralink company, purveyors of the experimental N1 brain-computer interface (BCI), announced on Tuesday that it has finally opened enrollment for its first in-human study, dubbed P recise R obotically Im planted Brain-Computer Interfac e (PRIME, not PRIBCI). The announcement comes nearly a year after the company's most recent "show and tell" event, four months beyond the timeframe Musk had declared the trials would start, and nearly a month after rival Synchron had already beaten them to market . Per the company's announcement, the PRIME study "aims to evaluate the safety of our implant (N1) and surgical robot (R1) and assess the initial functionality of our BCI for enabling people with paralysis to control external devices with their thoughts." As such, this study is looking primarily for "those who have quadriplegia due to cervical spinal cord injury or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)," despite Musk's repeated and unf
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The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative is building a massive GPU cluster to ‘cure, prevent or manage all diseases’

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The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), the philanthropic organization created in 2015 by Priscilla Chan and her husband Mark Zuckerberg, announced a bold new generative AI initiative today. The group is funding and building a high-end GPU cluster that will use AI to create predictive models of healthy and diseased cells; it hopes they’ll help researchers better understand the human body’s cells and cellular reactions. The group believes the collection of computers will help it achieve its incredibly lofty goal of helping to “cure, prevent, or manage all diseases by the end of this century.” “Researchers are gathering more data than ever before about the trillions of cells within our bodies, and it’s too complex for our brains to grapple with,” Jeff MacGregor, CZI vice president of communications, wrote in an emailed statement to Engadget. He lists an example of imaging one cell at nanometer resolution, which would use the same amount of data as 83,000 photos on a smartphone. Sifting
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