Author: zppiot
A few months ago, Derek Carrier started seeing someone and became infatuated. He experienced a “ton” of romantic feelings but he also knew it was an illusion.That’s because his girlfriend was generated by artificial intelligence. Carrier wasn’t looking to develop a relationship with something that wasn’t real, nor did he want to become the brunt of online jokes. But he did want a romantic partner he’d never had, in part because of a genetic disorder called Marfan syndrome that makes traditional dating tough for him. The 39-year-old from Belleville, Michigan, became more curious about digital companions last fall and tested…
Since its launch/rebrand last week, Google’s been steadily adding updates to its newest iteration of its chatbot, Gemini. First came the rebrand from “Bard” to “Gemini,” attempting to keep the branding more in line with the name of the LLM that runs it. Next, a paid subscription version came about as well as a mobile version with a dedicated app on Android that can double as your phone’s assistant.Now, it appears that Google might be working on an even bigger update to Gemini that changes how we use smart headphones. This was spotted by the folks over at 9to5Google when…
According to data compiled by Consumer Intelligence Research Partners, LLC (CIRP), over the last five years, the percentage of iPhone buyers who switched from an Android phone to an iPhone ranged between 11% and 15%. In 2023, 13% of iPhone buyers switched from Android to iOS which was two percentage points less than the 15% that made the switch the year before. In the two prior years, 2020 and 2021, the percentage of iPhone buyers that came from an Android phone was 11% each year while that number in 2019 came to 13%.Considering that approximately 85% of iPhone purchases are…
To say that Elon Musk is having a tough time with his purchase of Twitter would be a gross understatement. Almost from the moment that Musk closed on the $44 billion transaction in October 2022, the multi-billionaire was like a struggling fisherman trying to land that huge fish on his line. Most of the problems that Musk faced were self-inflicted. He fired employees without realizing how important some were to running Twitter daily. He tried various monetization schemes and at one point warned that Twitter could file for bankruptcy. With all the problems that Musk has had with Twitter, including…
For Android users, using Google Photos to store your digital media is a very popular choice. While having 128GB, 256GB, or even 512GB of storage was once upon a time enough to not have to worry about running out of space anytime soon, nowadays devices with more advanced camera systems and better quality photos and videos, usually equate to larger file sizes. Now, all of a sudden, we always need more space.This is where cloud storage comes in. Though it is still something extra we have to pay for, it is at least flexible to the point where you can…
What a difference a zero can make. Lyft shares went on a short-lived ride after Tuesday’s closing bell, surging as much as 67% after the company issued an outlook mistakenly projecting that its margins would expand an astounding 500 basis points.Less than an hour later, the ride-sharing provider offered that the estimate had missed the mark — by a lot, with the real estimate at 50 basis points, or a half of a percentage point. “This is actually a correction from the press release,” Erin Brewer, Lyft’s CFO, told an earnings call, less than an hour after the company issued its…
Google One is by no means the search giant’s most popular or profitable product, but with over 100 million global subscribers as of just last week, the cloud storage service certainly deserves to make headlines… for good and for bad reasons.The latest story is likely to enrage some users, at least if it proves to be as bad as it looks at first glance. If you’re not a paid Google One subscriber yet and want to become one, its official website currently gives you a choice between 100GB, 2TB, and 2TB AI Premium plans.That’s all well and good, but while…
Jorge: Certainly. My role, I will call, has two major focuses in two areas. One of them is I lead the machine learning engineering operations of the company globally. And on the other hand, I provide all of the analytical platforms that the company is using also on a global basis. So in role number one in my machine learning engineering and operations, what my team does is we grab all of these models that our community of data scientists that are working globally are coming up with, and we grabbed them and we strengthened it. Our major mission here…
Picture a phone with a smooth, sleek screen, and guess what? It doesn’t have that annoying (for some people) black dot for the selfie camera. Believe it or not, these phones are already out there, making it a simple reality. This is all thanks to under-display cameras (UDCs), a cool new technology that might change the way phones look.Take the Galaxy Z Fold models, for example. Since the Galaxy Z Fold 3, Samsung has used UDC for its foldable smartphones. And it is not just Samsung; other smartphones including ones from Oppo, Xiaomi and vivo, also have this feature. But…
Once in orbit, MethaneSAT’s software and spectrometers, which measure different wavelengths of light to detect methane, will pinpoint both concentrated locations for methane plumes as well as the broader areas where the gases diffuse and spread. It will also use Google’s image detection algorithms to create the first comprehensive, global map of the oil and gas industry’s infrastructure, like pump jacks and storage tanks, where leaks most commonly occur. “Once those maps are lined up, we expect people will be able to have a far better understanding of the types of machinery that contribute most to methane leaks,” says Yael…
Recently we’ve heard that people have gotten excited over a new phone that’s currently on pre-order. We’re talking about the Oppo Find X7 Ultra, and unfortunately, we’re not talking about a global release after that pre-order period. Some Oppo fans have made a curious statement that actually sparked this article: “Why doesn’t Oppo release this phone globally as a OnePlus 12 Ultra”? Apparently, there’s something here that gets people on their toes: I mean, the phone got 1 million pre-bookings, after all. So, in a parallel universe, Oppo does release the Find X7 Ultra as a OnePlus 12 Ultra globally. Let’s…
But as the need for more batteries grows, digging up the required materials becomes more challenging. The solution may lie in alternatives like lithium-sulfur, which could soon reach a major milestone, as startup Lyten plans to deliver limited quantities of lithium-sulfur cells to its first customers later this year. Read the full story. —Casey Crownhart The must-reads I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 Is it worth paying for AI?Tech giants have made huge bets that businesses will think it is—but some are unconvinced. (WSJ $)+ AI hype is starting to look a bit like…
The Pixel 7a is among the best mid-range smartphones money can buy, and the best thing is that Amazon UK is currently offering it at a sweet 27% discount. This means you can now snag this awesome phone for £120 off its price if you pull the trigger on this sweet offer now while it’s still available. With a powerful Google Tensor G2 chipset under the hood, complemented by 8GB of RAM, the Pixel 7a offers top-tier performance despite boasting a more budget-friendly price tag. It has enough firepower for day-to-day tasks such as web browsing and video streaming,…
The first collaboration between TikTok and Adobe Express is bringing users of the social app a brand-new add-on integration, which is meant to create and optimize video content easier.Previously only available in TikTok’s Creative Center, the so-called Creative Assistant is now available as an add-on within Adobe Express. As some of you probably know already, this is an AI-powered virtual assistant that helps users be creative when it comes to their video content.The new integration with TikTok Creative Assistant allows businesses of all sizes to create TikTok content within Adobe Express. Here is how the new add-on integration works:Log onto…
Lyten has made progress in stretching the lifetime of its batteries, recently seeing some samples reach as high as 300 cycles, Mickolajczak says. She attributes the success to Lyten’s 3D graphene material, which helps prevent unwanted side reactions and boost the cell’s energy density. The company is also looking to use 3D graphene, a more complicated structure than the two-dimensional variety, in other products like sensors and composites. Even with recent progress, Lyten is still far from producing batteries that can last long enough to power an EV. In the meantime, the company plans to bring its cells to market…
Apple has been rumored for a while to release a foldable iPhone, iPhone, and even Mac with a bendy display. The foldable screen for Apple’s first such device is expected to be supplied by Samsung, reports Korean media, and it is now expected to replace the iPad mini, of all things.”So, there is talk that, other than these products, a foldable product that can replace the iPad mini, that is, the 8.3-inch model, that is, that can replace the market, may be released first,” tips The Elec’s dedicated discussion. The reasoning behind those claims and rumors is that Apple wouldn’t…