Apple Prepares to Spend Big to Catch Up In Generative AI

WebProNews
Apple Prepares to Spend Big to Catch Up In Generative AI

Apple is preparing to spend big to catch up in generative AI, with the company preparing to hire more people in the field.

The revelation came courtesy of comments by CEO Tim Cook, via BBC, reiterating that the company did not want to follow the rest of the industry in conducting mass layoffs. Cook called such action a “last resort.”

BBC says the CEO told the PA news agency that Apple was looking to hire specifically in the AI field:

“We’re hiring in that area, yes, and so I do expect [investment] to increase.”

The news was welcomed by Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan:

“Apple’s ongoing investment in brilliant British talent highlights our global credentials as both an AI and technology superpower,” she wrote on X.

The comments by Cook also come at a time when Apple is deeply concerned about recent actions taken by the UK government. The government passed the Online Safety Bill which initially targeted strong encryption. Apple was one of several companies that threatened to pull its services out of the UK if the bill passed. While it did ultimately pass, lawmakers significantly watered down the portion that would have required compromising encryption at the very last minute.

One can’t help but wonder if Cook’s comments are a little bit of dangling the proverbial carrot in front of the UK, emphasizing what a valuable partner Apple can be to the country — as long as it does not pass laws that threaten the safety, privacy, and security of users around the world.

Apple Prepares to Spend Big to Catch Up In Generative AI
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/9Aha3kB

WhatsApp Brings Search Feature to the Update Tab

WebProNews
WhatsApp Brings Search Feature to the Update Tab

WhatsApp is continue to improve its Update tab, making it easier for users to find what they’re looking for.

According to WABetaInfo, WhatsApp is working on a search feature for the Updates tab that will allow users to find channels, updates, and more.

As you can see in this screenshot, WhatsApp has plans to introduce a search button within the top app bar. This feature will make it possible to search for status updates, followed channels, and other verified channels without the need to open the channel directory. In our opinion, it finally enhances the overall user experience with channels, making it significantly more convenient to search for and access the content users are interested in.

WhatsApp Updates Tab Search Feature – Credit WABetaInfo

The new feature will hopefully address complaints many users have had about the difficulty finding relevant information in the new format.

WhatsApp Brings Search Feature to the Update Tab
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/nRZ6tz9

Nissan Commits to All-Electric Vehicles in Europe by 2030

WebProNews
Nissan Commits to All-Electric Vehicles in Europe by 2030

Nissan has committed to selling only electric vehicles in Europe by 2030, the latest automaker to commit to eliminating gasoline engines.

BBC reports that Nissan made the commitment despite the UK pushing back its proposed ban on new gasoline vehicles by five years, from 2030 to 2035.

“Nissan will make the switch to full electric by 2030 in Europe. We believe it is the right thing to do for our business, our customers and for the planet,” said Nissan’s CEO Makoto Uchida in an interview with the outlet.

“It may take a bit of time, but we are looking at the next few years,” he said.

“We are looking at it from the point of view of the technology, from the point of view of cooperating with suppliers, and of course working with the government on how we can deliver that kind of cost competitiveness to the consumer,” Mr Uchida added.

Automakers have been working to electrify their lineups in response to calls to address climate change and growing legislation aimed at pushing greener options.

Nissan Commits to All-Electric Vehicles in Europe by 2030
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/Ad7NYZn

Ampere Scores Major Win As Oracle Cloud Goes All-In On AmpereOne CPUs

WebProNews
Ampere Scores Major Win As Oracle Cloud Goes All-In On AmpereOne CPUs

Ampere has scored a major win with Oracle announcing it is migrating its Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) to the company’s CPUs.

Ampere was founded by Renée James, a long-time Intel executive who served as its president until she left in 2016. Her new company is focused on “Cloud Native Processors,” and has been gaining ground among some of the biggest cloud providers.

Oracle was the first major cloud provider to adopt Ampere’s processors, even investing $40 million in the company in late 2019, but the company is now going all-in on the latest AmpereOne CPUs which offer a whopping 320 cores.

“Oracle was the first cloud services provider to globally deploy compute instances based on Ampere processors,” said Jeff Wittich, chief product officer, Ampere Computing. “This new generation of Ampere A2-based instances from Oracle Cloud Infrastructure will provide up to an industry-leading 320 cores per instance for even better performance, workload density, and scale.”

“The announcement of our next generation of compute instances, powered by AmpereOne processors, marks a key milestone as OCI expands our foundational usage of Ampere processors,” said Clay Magouyrk, EVP of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Development. “This next generation compute instance will provide unmatched core density, which is critical in delivering to the performance and sustainability needs of our customers.”

“Oracle Cloud is growing rapidly, which has pushed us up to the limits of available power. Therefore, we need efficiency in addition to performance to continue to scale our cloud,” Magouyrk added. “That’s why we are using Ampere for everything from the Oracle Database to Fusion Apps, and now, all of our OCI services. With the growth of AI processing, this shift in computing has become even more of an imperative. Ampere is OCI’s solution to a sustainable cloud.”

Ampere Scores Major Win As Oracle Cloud Goes All-In On AmpereOne CPUs
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/emVB71G

Meta Spends $181 Million to Break London Lease

WebProNews
Meta Spends $181 Million to Break London Lease

Meta has paid dearly to get out of a lease for London offices, spending roughly $181 million to exit the 20-year agreement.

According to The Register, Meta leased the office pre-COVID. Since the pandemic, however, the offices have remained empty as employees worked from home. The termination fee is roughly equivalent to seven years of rent at the location.

Despite taking such drastic action, Meta told The Register it remains committed to its London presence.

“The past few years have brought new possibilities around the role of the office, and we are prioritising making focused, balanced investments to support out most strategic long-term priorities and lead the way in creating the workplace of the future,” the company said.

“We remain fully committed to London, as evident by the recent opening of our King’s Cross office further anchoring our local footprint.”

Meta Spends $181 Million to Break London Lease
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/ieMCNh3

Microsoft Brings DALL-E AI-Powered Features to Paint

WebProNews
Microsoft Brings DALL-E AI-Powered Features to Paint

Microsoft continues to incorporate AI into its product line, bringing the power of the DALL-E image generator to Paint.

The new feature is called Paint Cocreator and is rolling out to Windows Insiders in the latest build. The company announced the feature in a blog post:

With this update, we are excited to introduce Paint Cocreator, a new AI-powered experience powered by DALL-E that helps you create amazing artwork in Paint by describing in a few words what you’d like to create. You can optionally select an art style, and when you click Create, Paint Cocreator will generate three variations of artwork for you to choose from. Select any of them to add to the canvas to start creating!

We will be rolling out access slowly at first, so when you get the update, you must first join the waitlist by signing in with your Microsoft account and clicking on the new Cocreator button in the toolbar. You will get an email notification when you are in the preview, and we will give you 50 credits to get started. Each credit lets you generate a new set of images.

The company says it it committed to responsible AI use and has put safeguards in place:

Microsoft is committed to responsible AI practices. When you use Paint Cocreator, we apply content filtering and have other safeguards in place to prevent the generation of images that may be harmful, offensive, or inappropriate, and we are continuing to optimize how Paint Cocreator works based on real-world usage and feedback. Paint Cocreator is available in preview to users in English in the following regions: United States, France, UK, Australia, Canada, Italy, and Germany.

Microsoft Brings DALL-E AI-Powered Features to Paint
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/fDslzyP

Jony Ive Reportedly In Talks With OpenAI to Develop AI-Based Hardware

WebProNews
Jony Ive Reportedly In Talks With OpenAI to Develop AI-Based Hardware

Sir Jony Ive, of Apple fame, is reportedly talking with OpenAI regarding the possibility of designing some kind of AI-based hardware.

Ive gained fame as Apple’s lead hardware designer, working closely with Steve Jobs and designing virtually all of the company’s hit products until his departure in late 2019. Ive left Apple to start his own design firm, LoveForm.

According to The Information, via TechCrunch, Ive is in talks with OpenAI to collaborate on a hardware project. Very little else is known about the potential venture, although SoftBank founder and CEO Masayoshi Son is reportedly involved as well.

Given Ive’s penchant for designing products that appeal to a wide range of people, his involvement in an OpenAI hardware project could be pivotal to helping AI see wider adoption.

Jony Ive Reportedly In Talks With OpenAI to Develop AI-Based Hardware
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/B3He7np

Where Is The Aramid Fiber Market Heading? Probing the Future Growth Opportunities

WebProNews
Where Is The Aramid Fiber Market Heading? Probing the Future Growth Opportunities

The Aramid Fiber market is booming, with projections indicating a bright future. As of 2022, the global market size was valued at USD 4559.93 million. It’s expected to reach USD 6.3 billion by 2026, exhibiting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.5%. This suggests that using Aramid Fiber across various industries is set to continue, further fueling its market growth.

Thanks to its unique properties, Aramid Fiber has found its way into various applications. It’s notably used in defense due to its heat resistance and strength, which explains the rise in demand with increased defense spending. Other key end-users include the automotive and phone case industries, where Aramid Fiber is utilized for its lightweight yet robust nature.

The phone case industry is experiencing a significant upswing, with growth primarily driven by several key factors.

Growth Drivers for the Aramid Fiber Phone Case Market

Increased Demand for Protective and Aesthetic Accessories

As smartphones become increasingly ubiquitous, the demand for protective cases that can enhance these devices’ aesthetic appeal is on the rise. Phone cases now serve as a fashion statement and personal expression tool, protecting phones from damage.

Rising Smartphone Usage Globally

The smartphone users worldwide are expected to exceed 7.3 billion by 2023. This surge in smartphone usage is directly contributing to the growth of the phone case market, as more smartphones in circulation means more demand for protective cases.

Technological Advancements and Innovation

Innovation is at the heart of the phone case industry’s growth. From cases that offer advanced protection features to those that support wireless charging or include built-in batteries, technological advancements continually push the boundaries of what phone cases can offer.

Key Players in the Industry 

In the expansive world of Aramid Fiber, its application in the phone case industry stands out. It’s a sector where Aramid Fiber’s unique combination of strength, durability, and lightness is truly appreciated.

This market has a diverse range of players, each contributing to its growth and innovation. Notably, Spigen, Urban Armor Gear, OtterBox, Incipio LLC, and Thinborne are heavyweights in this arena. These companies are continually pushing the envelope in research and development, harnessing the power of Aramid Fiber to create phone cases that are aesthetically pleasing and provide exceptional protection.

Other major players include Mophie Technology, Moshi, Apple Inc., Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., CG Mobile Ltd., and Incipio, LLC. These companies have made significant strides in the phone case industry, with Incipio holding a substantial market share of 2.53% in 2022.

Challenges and Obstacles

Price Volatility and Raw Material Concerns

The Aramid Fiber market faces the challenge of price volatility, primarily stemming from fluctuations in raw material costs. In fact, data from June 2022 shows that raw material prices paid by Canadian manufacturers climbed a staggering 37% year over year. This unpredictability can greatly impact a company’s budgeting and success2, as seen with Bayer in the German chemical industry.

Environmental and Sustainability Issues

Another hurdle for the Aramid Fiber market is the environmental and sustainability concerns. The production process of Aramid Fiber requires significant energy and generates waste, both of which are environmental issues that need to be addressed.

Competition from Alternative Materials

The Aramid Fiber industry has its share of challenges, including competition from other materials.

Plastic and silicon are two such materials that are widely available and relatively inexpensive to produce. Alibaba, for instance, offers a wide range of silicon materials at wholesale prices. Similarly, plastic parts can be affordably produced using unhardened steel molds, making them a cost-effective choice for many industries2.

With their low cost and diverse properties, these alternative materials pose a significant competitive threat to the Aramid Fiber market. As material science continues to advance, developing new materials with comparable or superior properties could slow down the growth of the Aramid Fiber market.

Environmental Considerations

Sustainability Initiatives within the Aramid Fiber Industry

The Aramid Fiber industry increasingly embraces sustainability, with major companies like Teijin Aramid leading the charge. They strive for carbon neutrality and near-zero waste, underlining their commitment to a circular economy. This shift towards sustainable and eco-friendly production practices is becoming a significant trend in the industry.

Efforts to Reduce the Carbon Footprint

Efforts to minimize the carbon footprint are also emerging in the Aramid Fiber industry. Companies are implementing life cycle assessments and promoting circularity to reduce CO2 emissions. The drive towards electric vehicles, which use Aramid Fiber due to its strength and lightness, also reduces carbon emissions.

The Future is Bright for Aramid Fiber Phone Cases

The Aramid Fiber market is on a roll, especially in phone cases. This industry is pulsing with potential, powered by continuous innovation and a growing demand for durable, lightweight, and sustainable products. It’s not just a trend. It’s a revolution in the making.

For businesses and investors, the message is clear: now is the time to dive into this exciting market. With consumers becoming more conscious about product quality and environmental impact, the demand for aramid fiber phone cases is skyrocketing. Take advantage of this golden opportunity to be part of a sustainable and profitable future.

SOURCE: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/aramid-fibers-market-112849061.html

Where Is The Aramid Fiber Market Heading? Probing the Future Growth Opportunities
Brian Wallace

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/pJcQt5Y

The Application of Data in Business

WebProNews
The Application of Data in Business

When it comes to what’s important in business, you might think it all boils down to money. While that might be true, a lot of attention and focus is put on maximizing your profits, and in order to achieve that particular goal, you’re going to have to turn your attention toward the smaller details.

Those details might be found by analyzing various sources of data. Data might not be something that you often associate with the field of business, but knowing where to look can allow you to change that perception – meaning you can use that knowledge to push your business in a more positive direction.

Business Analytics

The go-to answer here for many people is going to be the data generated by your business itself. This data can inform you of an incredible number of things. Analyzing your business data tells you more about your audiences, where you’re reaching them, and where you’re not. It tells you about the varying success of your different marketing campaigns, and it can give you a better idea of how you can spend your money for a more effective effort. This means you can take measures to improve the various areas that aren’t performing as well as you’d like, or you can cut them out entirely in order to put more resources toward what’s working.

Knowledge is power, and having access to this information, in particular, can tell you everything about your business that you need to know to make more informed decisions moving forward.

Prospective Marketing Opportunities

Risks are everywhere in the business world. Making a decision doesn’t come without some possibility of failure, and your ability to minimize this risk comes from the data that is available on these routes. For example, social media marketing isn’t going to be seen as risky because it doesn’t cost you very much in resources to add to your repertoire, but what about something more committed, like search engine optimization? Looking at information on its success for other businesses can tell you that it’s thought of highly, but that might not be enough for you. Therefore, to improve your chances of success, you could look to blogger outreach services to further strengthen your approach.

Inventory Control

If your business is one that deals with a lot of inventory or stock, you might deem it appropriate to have inventory management systems put into place. Not only can these allow you to keep better track of your wares, but they can prevent you from losing as much of your stock – the advantages of which are pretty obvious. The shift towards this model might take some time if your team isn’t accustomed to using technologies such as these, but the data that you gather through this ordeal can give you a much more thorough understanding of your business, and utilizing that to your advantage means saving yourself money.

The gains (or lack of losses) from this might seem minimal at first, but they accumulate, and that can ultimately lead to a big difference in your financial situation.

The Application of Data in Business
Brian Wallace

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/MhevmTc

Rivos Strikes Back, Sues Apple For ‘Overbroad’ Non-Competes

WebProNews
Rivos Strikes Back, Sues Apple For ‘Overbroad’ Non-Competes

Semiconductor firm Rivos has fired back in its legal battle with Apple, countersuing over the company’s “overbroad” non-compete agreements.

Apple is suing Rivos, a stealth startup focused on RISC-V chips, claiming the company poached Apple employees and stole trade secrets in an effort to improve its chip design. A judge recently cleared Apple’s case to move forward.

According to AppleInsider, Rivos’ countersuit claims that Apple is far too restrictive in its application of non-competes, effectively trying to cover “anything ‘learned’ during the course of employment, regardless whether it is a trade secret.”

Rivos Strikes Back, Sues Apple For ‘Overbroad’ Non-Competes
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/lgTmKBn

CIA Is Working On Its Own Chatbot

WebProNews
CIA Is Working On Its Own Chatbot

The Central Intelligence Agency is working on its own chatbot, the latest evidence of the growing importance of AI developments.

AI is the latest battleground tech, with companies and governments alike vying for dominance. The CIA wants to make use of generative AI and chatbots to help agencies process the massive amount of data intelligence they are now collecting.

“We’ve gone from newspapers and radio, to newspapers and television, to newspapers and cable television, to basic internet, to big data, and it just keeps going,” Randy Nixon, the CIA’s director of Open Source Enterprise, said in an interview with Bloomberg, via Engadget. “We have to find the needles in the needle field.”

“The scale of how much we collect and what we collect on has grown astronomically over the last 80-plus years, so much so that this could be daunting and at times unusable for our consumers,” Nixon added. He hopes the AI will help analysis “pushing you the right information, one where the machine can auto-summarize, group things together.”

Nixon says US intelligence agencies will have access to the new tool “soon.”

The CIA’s efforts underscore just how important AI is, as well as its role as a surveillance tool. Signal CEO Meredith Whittaker has called AI “a surveillance technology.”

CIA Is Working On Its Own Chatbot
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/vfAehUt

FCC Formally Unveils Net Neutrality Proposal

WebProNews
FCC Formally Unveils Net Neutrality Proposal

As expected, the Federal Communications Commission has formerly announced a new net neutrality proposal.

Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announced the new proposal, making the case that such regulation was more important than ever in a post-pandemic world when people rely on the internet far more than in the past.

“In the wake of the pandemic and the generational investment in internet access, we have a window to update our policies to make sure that the internet is not only open, but fast and fair, safe and secure,” said Rosenworcel. I am committed to seizing this opportunity. Now is the time for our rules of the road for internet service providers to reflect the reality that internet access is a necessity for daily life. Let’s get to it.”

Rosenworcel outlined the benefits to consumers:

• Openness – Establish basic rules for Internet Service Providers that prevent them from blocking legal content, throttling your speeds, and creating fast lanes that favor those who can pay for access.
• Security – Reclassify broadband internet access to give the FCC and its national security partners the tools needed to defend our networks from potential security threats.
• Safety – Allow the FCC to enhance the resiliency of broadband networks and bolster efforts to require providers to notify the FCC and consumers of internet outages.
• Nationwide Standard – Establish a uniform national standard rather than a patchwork of state-by-state approaches, benefiting consumers and Internet Service Providers.

The Chairwoman plans to release the full proposal on Thursday. Meanwhile, she urged individuals to keep an open mind regarding the regulation.

On Thursday, I will release the full text of this rulemaking. It seeks comment on putting back in place policies to prevent your broadband provider from engaging in blocking, throttling, and paid prioritization along with a general conduct rule that prohibits your broadband provider from unreasonably interfering or unreasonably disadvantaging consumers from going where they want and doing what they want online. For consumers, this means internet openness, security, safety—and one nationwide net neutrality standard they can count on. Three weeks later, on October 19, I will ask my colleagues to vote. And, if we get at least three votes to kick off this rulemaking, I promise you I will do a lot of listening. We all need to have an open mind and would all benefit from a fresh record on this subject.

FCC Formally Unveils Net Neutrality Proposal
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/EyCJtYF

The iPhone 15 Pro Has An Overheating Problem

WebProNews
The iPhone 15 Pro Has An Overheating Problem

The iPhone 15 Pro has an overheating problem that could spell trouble for Apple’s custom line of semiconductors.

The latest iPhone Pro is powered by the all-new A17 Pro chip, the first 3nm chip used in a mobile device. Apple’s chips are based on Arm designs which are renowned for offering a strong blend of performance and energy efficiency.

Unfortunately, a myriad of reports have started surfacing indicating that the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max are running significantly hotter than their predecessors.

Android Authority’s Robert Triggs did a deep dive, thoroughly testing the new models to see how they compare to other flagship devices. The results are not good news for Apple.

While the iPhone stayed within a degree or two of other flagship devices under most tests, when the device was used for more intense operations, the heat quickly rose far beyond its competitors.

However, once we move into more demanding waters that engage more SoC components, it’s clear that the A17 Pro chip is an issue. Turn on the six-core GPU and temperatures spike quickly. Our iPhone 15 Pro passes the 40°C mark within five minutes of running the 3DMark Wild Life stress test. Wait until the end of the 20-minute run, and the phone’s 47°C peak verges on too hot to hold. The Galaxy S23 Ultra doesn’t do great here either, but the iPhone 15 Pro is 5.7% hotter, and any handheld device approaching 50°C with any workload is worrisome.

Our 4K/60 video recording test showcases the most significant discrepancy. After just five minutes, the iPhone 15 Pro is about 7°C hotter than the S23 Ultra and 4°C hotter than the Pixel 7 Pro, a phone already widely regarded as too warm. Worse, the iPhone 15 Pro far exceeds an acceptable level of comfort in the hand after extending the test to 10 minutes.

iPhone 15 Pro Temperature – Credit Android Authority

While a single model overheating is concerning enough, it’s especially so when considering the iPhone Pro uses the latest and greatest Apple-designed, TSMC-manufactured silicon.

The results raise questions about whether Arm-based semiconductor design still has room to increase performance without a significant increase in heat, or whether it has hit a thermal limit.

The iPhone 15 Pro Has An Overheating Problem
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/gtTQiyu

Signal CEO: ‘AI Is a Surveillance Technology’

WebProNews
Signal CEO: ‘AI Is a Surveillance Technology’

Signal CEO Meredith Whittaker doesn’t mince words about AI and privacy, saying the tech “is a surveillance technology.”

In an interview with TechCrunch’s Devin Coldewey, Whittaker outlined her concerns regarding AI and privacy (lightly edited by TechCrunch for clarity):

“It requires the surveillance business model; it’s an exacerbation of what we’ve seen since the late ’90s and the development of surveillance advertising. AI is a way, I think, to entrench and expand the surveillance business model,” she said. “The Venn diagram is a circle.”

“And the use of AI is also surveillant, right?” she continued. “You know, you walk past a facial recognition camera that’s instrumented with pseudo-scientific emotion recognition, and it produces data about you, right or wrong, that says ‘you are happy, you are sad, you have a bad character, you’re a liar, whatever.’ These are ultimately surveillance systems that are being marketed to those who have power over us generally: our employers, governments, border control, etc., to make determinations and predictions that will shape our access to resources and opportunities.”

“There’s no way to make these systems without human labor at the level of informing the ground truth of the data — reinforcement learning with human feedback, which again is just kind of tech-washing precarious human labor. It’s thousands and thousands of workers paid very little, though en masse it’s very expensive, and there’s no other way to create these systems, full stop,” she explained. “In some ways what we’re seeing is a kind of Wizard of Oz phenomenon, when we pull back the curtain there’s not that much that’s intelligent.”

Privacy has become a growing concern in the realm of AI. AI models vacuum up gargantuan quantities of data, often giving people little recourse to reclaim it. AI models have also become a nightmare for some companies, with some of the biggest names in tech accidentally leaking private corporate data and trade secrets via AI chatbots.

Ultimately, the future of privacy and AI are becoming increasingly intertwined.

Signal CEO: ‘AI Is a Surveillance Technology’
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/wdyfoVK

FCC Reportedly Poised to Reinstate Net Neutrality

WebProNews
FCC Reportedly Poised to Reinstate Net Neutrality

The Federal Communications Commission looks poised to reinstate net neutrality, a move that will be welcomed by many in the tech industry.

Net neutrality is regulation that prohibits companies from favoring or restricting certain internet traffic. An example is AT&T not counting Max access against users’ mobile data since it owns the streaming service, but counting access to rival streaming services against those data plans.

Under the Trump administration, then-Chair Ajit Pai led the charge to dismantle net neutrality regulation that had been previously passed. According to Bloomberg, with the addition of a fifth commission, sources say the FCC is preparing to once again unveil net neutrality regulation.

While some companies — mainly ISPs and other companies that benefit from being able to discriminate against certain types of data — much of the tech industry embraced net neutrality. Internet startups, in particular, benefit greatly from the regulation, as it prevents them from being priced out of the market if ISPs choose to throttle their traffic unless they pay more.

FCC Reportedly Poised to Reinstate Net Neutrality
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/0aRE6PJ

FTC and 17 States Sue Amazon For Alleged Antitrust Violations

WebProNews
FTC and 17 States Sue Amazon For Alleged Antitrust Violations

The Federal Trade Commission has launched a widely expected lawsuit against Amazon over alleged antitrust violations.

The FTC has been investigating Amazon’s business practices and preparing a case against the tech giant for months. The FTC makes clear that it is not suing Amazon become of its size, but because of alleged “exclusionary conduct” aimed at stifling competition from existing or potential rivals.

“Our complaint lays out how Amazon has used a set of punitive and coercive tactics to unlawfully maintain its monopolies,” said FTC Chair Lina M. Khan. “The complaint sets forth detailed allegations noting how Amazon is now exploiting its monopoly power to enrich itself while raising prices and degrading service for the tens of millions of American families who shop on its platform and the hundreds of thousands of businesses that rely on Amazon to reach them. Today’s lawsuit seeks to hold Amazon to account for these monopolistic practices and restore the lost promise of free and fair competition.”

The FTC took special note of Amazon’s practice of punishing sellers who try to offer lower prices through other outlets, as well as the company’s efforts to force sellers into gaining “Prime” status, ensuring Amazon is able to charge them significant fees for fulfillment services. The agency also took issue with Amazon’s practice of pushing its own products, preferring advertised products over genuine results, and adding more fees to sellers, with many of them paying Amazon as much as 50% of what they earn.

“We’re bringing this case because Amazon’s illegal conduct has stifled competition across a huge swath of the online economy. Amazon is a monopolist that uses its power to hike prices on American shoppers and charge sky-high fees on hundreds of thousands of online sellers,” said John Newman, Deputy Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition. “Seldom in the history of U.S. antitrust law has one case had the potential to do so much good for so many people.”

The FTC was joined in its lawsuit by the attorneys general of Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin.

FTC and 17 States Sue Amazon For Alleged Antitrust Violations
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/yqXOot4

Dave Limp, Former Amazon Exec, To Become Blue Origin CEO

WebProNews
Dave Limp, Former Amazon Exec, To Become Blue Origin CEO

Dave Limp, the 13-year Amazon veteran who recently resigned, has been tapped to take the top job at Blue Origin.

Limp surprised the industry when he announced he was resigning from Amazon after 13 years at the company, where he led the division responsible for Alexa, Echo, and other consumer devices. At the time of the announcement, Limp said he was unsure what the future held, but it wouldn’t be in the consumer space.

According to CNBC, it appears that future involves literal space, with Limp poised to become CEO of Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos’ space company. The outlet saw memos written by current CEO Bob Smith and owner Jeff Bezos informing employees of Smith’s impending retirement. The memo also indicated Limp would replace Smith.

CNBC reached out to Blue Origin for comment, with the company praising Limp as “a proven innovator with a customer-first mindset,” with “extensive experience in the high-tech industry and growing highly complex organizations.”

According to the memos, Smith will retire on December 4, although he will remain until at least January 2 to help facilitate a smooth transition.

Dave Limp, Former Amazon Exec, To Become Blue Origin CEO
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/GdjvIDg

Getty Images Provides Customers An AI Image Copyright Guarantee

WebProNews
Getty Images Provides Customers An AI Image Copyright Guarantee

Getty Images is providing customers a guarantee that its AI-generated images are free of copyright art, even offering to pay customers’ legal bills if they get sued.

According to MIT Technology Review, Getting Images is assuring its customers that its AI-generated images are completely free of copyright issues. Much like Microsoft recently did, the company is even promising to pay any legal fees arising from the use of said images.

“Fundamentally, it’s trained; it’s clean. It’s viable for businesses to use. We’ll stand behind that claim,” says Craig Peters, the CEO of Getty Images.

Peters says the Getty’s AI has been trained on the company’s own content, not on images of real people or places. This limits the AI’s ability to generate deepfake content at the heart of many legal and ethical debates around AI-generated content.

“The service doesn’t know who the pope is and it doesn’t know what Balenciaga is, and they can’t combine the two. It doesn’t know what the Pentagon is, and [that] you’re not gonna be able to blow it up,” says Peters.

Peters also called “bullshit” on the arguments some companies use when they claim they can’t effectively train AI models without using copyrighted work.

“I think there are some really sincere people that are actually being thoughtful about this,” he told the outlet. “But I also think there’s some hooligans that just want to go for that gold rush.”

Getty Images Provides Customers An AI Image Copyright Guarantee
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/4Kf9Ldr

Spotify Is Testing Podcast ‘Voice Translation’

WebProNews
Spotify Is Testing Podcast ‘Voice Translation’

Spotify is piloting a major new feature, one that would translate podcasts into other languages — while still using the podcaster’s voice.

Podcasts continue to grow in popularity, but the language barrier can sometimes be an impediment. Spotify is working to address that, leveraging OpenAI’s latest innovations.

The company announced the development in a website post:

Today, we’re excited to pilot Voice Translation for podcasts, a groundbreaking feature powered by AI that translates podcasts into additional languages—all in the podcaster’s voice.

This Spotify-developed tool leverages the latest innovations—one of which is OpenAI’s newly released voice generation technology—to match the original speaker’s style, making for a more authentic listening experience that sounds more personal and natural than traditional dubbing. A podcast episode originally recorded in English can now be available in other languages while keeping the speaker’s distinctive speech characteristics.

As part of the pilot, we’ve worked closely with podcasters Dax Shepard, Monica Padman, Lex Fridman, Bill Simmons, and Steven Bartlett to generate AI-powered voice translations in other languages—including Spanish, French, and German—for a select number of catalog episodes and future episode releases. We’re also looking forward to including other shows, such as Dax Shepard’s eff won with DRS, The Rewatchables from The Ringer, and Trevor Noah’s new original podcast, which launches later this year.

The news is a big step forward for the podcasting industry, as well as communication in general.

“By matching the creator’s own voice, Voice Translation gives listeners around the world the power to discover and be inspired by new podcasters in a more authentic way than ever before,” says Ziad Sultan, VP of Personalization. “We believe that a thoughtful approach to AI can help build deeper connections between listeners and creators, a key component of Spotify’s mission to unlock the potential of human creativity.”

Spotify Is Testing Podcast ‘Voice Translation’
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/qariS7m

Amazon Announces Expanded Partnership With Anthropic In a Blow to Google

WebProNews
Amazon Announces Expanded Partnership With Anthropic In a Blow to Google

Amazon has announced an expanded partnership with Anthropic, the maker of the Claude AI, and will invest up to $4 billion.

Anthropic has been developing the Claude AI as a competitor to OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Bard. The company has already scored some high-profile partnerships, most notably with Zoom, for the latter to integrate Claude with their software.

As part of the expanded partnership, Anthropic will use AWS as its primary cloud provider for all mission-critical workloads and will rely on AWS for the majority of its workloads. At the same time, AWS customers will benefit by gaining access to Anthropic AI foundation models via Amazon Bedrock.

“We have tremendous respect for Anthropic’s team and foundation models, and believe we can help improve many customer experiences, short and long-term, through our deeper collaboration,” said Andy Jassy, Amazon CEO. “Customers are quite excited about Amazon Bedrock, AWS’s new managed service that enables companies to use various foundation models to build generative AI applications on top of, as well as AWS Trainium, AWS’s AI training chip, and our collaboration with Anthropic should help customers get even more value from these two capabilities.”

“We are excited to use AWS’s Trainium chips to develop future foundation models,” said Dario Amodei, co-founder and CEO of Anthropic. “Since announcing our support of Amazon Bedrock in April, Claude has seen significant organic adoption from AWS customers. By significantly expanding our partnership, we can unlock new possibilities for organizations of all sizes, as they deploy Anthropic’s safe, state-of-the-art AI systems together with AWS’s leading cloud technology.”

Interestingly, the news seems to be a blow to Google Cloud. In early February, Google Cloud announced a $300 million investment in Anthropic, one that would see the AI firm run Claude on Google Cloud. At the time, Google was desperately looking for an answer to Microsoft’s Bing AI, based on OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

With Anthropic now pivoting to AWS, the deal appears to be a setback for Google Cloud.

Amazon Announces Expanded Partnership With Anthropic In a Blow to Google
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/12KgeZY

EU Fines Intel $400 Million Over Antitrust Violations

WebProNews
EU Fines Intel $400 Million Over Antitrust Violations

The EU Commission has reinstated a fine against Intel for antitrust violations, the latest development in a long-running saga.

Intel and the EU have gone back and forth over efforts on Intel’s part to exclude AMD and other rivals from the EU market. The company was found guilty of paying computer makers to delay computers that included components from rival chipmakers, or to stop making them altogether.

According to The Register, after successfully appealing the initial $1.2 billion fine, Intel then asked the EU Commission to compensate it for the trouble it experienced as a result of the investigation. Instead, the EU went back to the decision and is now re-imposing a $400 million fine to address a narrower scope of Intel behavior, behavior that was proven to be illegal.

Intel sent the following statement to The Register:

We are reviewing today’s decision and fine, which follows from the European General Court’s 2022 vindication of Intel in the key contentions of the case, resulting in the return to Intel of the original 2009 fine of 1.06 billion Euros. This decision relates to the smaller part of the original 2009 European Commission Decision. While we are disappointed in a fine of this amount, we continue to focus on our future investments in the EU, and on cooperating with the EC in helping advance Europe’s semiconductor industry.

Perhaps the entire episode should be a lesson to companies not to push their luck.

EU Fines Intel $400 Million Over Antitrust Violations
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/FVWQkPJ

Rivos Strikes Back, Sues Apple For ‘Overbroad’ Non-Competes

WebProNews
Rivos Strikes Back, Sues Apple For ‘Overbroad’ Non-Competes

Semiconductor firm Rivos has fired back in its legal battle with Apple, countersuing over the company’s “overbroad” non-compete agreements.

Apple is suing Rivos, a stealth startup focused on RISC-V chips, claiming the company poached Apple employees and stole trade secrets in an effort to improve its chip design. A judge recently cleared Apple’s case to move forward.

According to AppleInsider, Rivos’ countersuit claims that Apple is far too restrictive in its application of non-competes, effectively trying to cover “anything ‘learned’ during the course of employment, regardless whether it is a trade secret.”

Rivos Strikes Back, Sues Apple For ‘Overbroad’ Non-Competes
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/bAduoJf

Get Ready For Ads On Amazon Prime Video

WebProNews
Get Ready For Ads On Amazon Prime Video

The days of ad-free Prime Video are coming to an end — at least at the current price point — with Amazon introducing ads in 2024.

Prime Video is one of the better TV streaming deals, giving consumers access to a wide array of ad-free programming for a yearly price that also includes free Amazon shipping. Unfortunately, the company is preparing to make a major change in 2024:

To continue investing in compelling content and keep increasing that investment over a long period of time, starting in early 2024, Prime Video shows and movies will include limited advertisements. We aim to have meaningfully fewer ads than linear TV and other streaming TV providers. Ads in Prime Video content will be introduced in the U.S., U.K., Germany, and Canada in early 2024, followed by France, Italy, Spain, Mexico, and Australia later in the year. No action is required for Prime members.

Fortunately, Amazon will give users the option to opt out of the ads, although it will cost $2.99 per month to do so:

We’re not making changes in 2024 to the current price of Prime membership. We will also offer a new ad-free option for an additional $2.99 per month* for U.S. Prime members and will share pricing for other countries at a later date. We will email Prime members several weeks before ads are introduced into Prime Video with information on how to sign up for the ad-free option if they would like.

Get Ready For Ads On Amazon Prime Video
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/2ixAmf1

T-Mobile App Showed Customers Each Other’s Data

WebProNews
T-Mobile App Showed Customers Each Other’s Data

T-Mobile customers were treated to seeing each other’s data, as the T-Mobile app leaked billing information across customers.

According to The Mobile Report, T-Mobile customers logging into the app were shown billing information for other customers. After initial reports started showing up, some feared the issue might be the result of yet another data breach.

Fortunately, T-Mobile provided a statement to The Mobile Report saying a data breach was not the cause:

There was no cyberattack or breach at T-Mobile. This was a temporary system glitch related to a planned overnight technology update involving limited account information for fewer than 100 customers, which was quickly resolved.

While the clarification is certainly reassuring, the incident is still a massive privacy issue.

T-Mobile App Showed Customers Each Other’s Data
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/ydj40UY

Windows Subsystem for Linux Improves ‘Automatic Memory Reclaim’

WebProNews
Windows Subsystem for Linux Improves ‘Automatic Memory Reclaim’

Microsoft has released the latest Windows Subsystem for Linux update, adding Automatic Memory Reclaim.

Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) allows developers to run a Linux instance with Windows, giving them access to Linux software. WSL is a popular option for developers creating and testing software for Linux.

In the September 2023 update, Microsoft has added Automatic Memory Reclaim to the list of features:

When this is set to gradual, after being idle for 5 minutes, WSL will slowly start to release cached memory in Linux and make it available as free memory back to the Windows host. This means that your WSL VM will automatically shrink in memory size when you’re not using it!

This works by WSL detecting that you’re idle by seeing if CPU usage is continuously low for 5 minutes, and then we start reclaiming cached memory by using the cgroup memory.reclaim feature. We reclaim a fixed portion of your VM’s memory size, which is calculated so that if your VM was full of cached memory it would go to zero cached memory after 30 minutes (e.g: If you have 3000MB of memory, we reclaim 100MB every minute). The memory.reclaim cgroup feature allows us to intelligently reclaim a portion of memory over time, striking a balance between performance and memory usage. However, this feature does require disabling cgroups v1 in WSL, which can cause some issues. In early testing we noticed that this will break the docker daemon when running it as a service in WSL, and so if you’re using this feature we recommend you use Docker Desktop for your docker needs. We are working with the Docker team to address this in the future.

Microsoft has also improved Automatic Disk Space Clean Up:

WSL virtual hard disks (VHDs) grow in size as you use them, and now with this feature enabled they will automatically shrink in size too! This new setting automatically sets any new VHD to be a sparse VHD, which can automatically reduce their size. Additionally, we’ve added the wsl –manage–set-sparse <true/false> command to allow you to set your existing distros to be sparse or not if you’d like.

Windows Subsystem for Linux Improves ‘Automatic Memory Reclaim’
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/Vr4EkRF

iPager: Google’s Latest Poke At Apple’s Use of SMS

WebProNews
iPager: Google’s Latest Poke At Apple’s Use of SMS

Google continues to make fun of Apple’s use of SMS for messaging Android users, running an Apple-like reveal of the “iPager” in its latest video.

While Apple’s iMessage is wildly popular among iPhone users, iOS falls back to old-fashioned SMS text messages when texting with an Android device. Apple does this despite the advent of RCS, which is the iMessage-like successor to SMS.

Google has long maintained that Apple should keep iMessage for iPhone-to-iPhone communication but fall back to RCS for iPhone-to-Android texts. Doing so would give users on both ends of the conversation a superior experience and keep conversations protected with end-to-end encryption, something woefully lacking in SMS.

Apple has resisted all such calls to adopt RCS, seeing iMessage as a way to keep users locked into the company’s ecosystem, prompting Google to release a humorous video highlighting how un-Apple-like such a stance really is.

iPager: Google’s Latest Poke At Apple’s Use of SMS
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/J3PGXav

MGM Resorts Is Operational Once Again

WebProNews
MGM Resorts Is Operational Once Again

MGM Resorts says it is fully operational, finally recovering from a devastating cyberattack that impacted its hotels and casinos.

MGM Resorts was hit by a cyberattack, made possible by a 10-minute social engineering scam. The company’s slot machines and ATM machines were disabled, and guests reported being locked out of their room, unable to access them with their digital keys.

According to a post on its website, MGM Resorts says it is now operational once again:

We are pleased that all of our hotels and casinos are operating normally. Our amazing employees are ready to help guests with any intermittent issues. We thank you for your patience and look forward to welcoming you soon.

Please note that Slot Dollars and FREEPLAY are available at all properties. MGM Rewards members’ accounts will be adjusted to reflect Tier Credits and MGM Rewards points at a later date. MGM Rewards points redemption and certain promotional offers may be unavailable. Please see the MGM Rewards desk or your Casino Host for more details.

MGM Resorts Is Operational Once Again
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/4Vl3NLR

Cisco Buying Splunk for $28 Billion

WebProNews
Cisco Buying Splunk for $28 Billion

Cisco announced plans to purchase Splunk for $28 billion improve digital resiliency for the enterprise market.

Splunk helps companies mitigate security issues, using AI to identify risks and threats, giving organizations the ability to address them become they become full-blown security incidents.

Cisco sees an opportunity to integrate Splunk’s services to help usher in a new era of AI-driven cybersecurity.

“We’re excited to bring Cisco and Splunk together. Our combined capabilities will drive the next generation of AI-enabled security and observability,” said Chuck Robbins, chair and CEO of Cisco. “From threat detection and response to threat prediction and prevention, we will help make organizations of all sizes more secure and resilient.”

“Uniting with Cisco represents the next phase of Splunk’s growth journey, accelerating our mission to help organizations worldwide become more resilient, while delivering immediate and compelling value to our shareholders,” said Gary Steele, president and CEO of Splunk.

“Together, we will form a global security and observability leader that harnesses the power of data and AI to deliver excellent customer outcomes and transform the industry. We’re thrilled to join forces with a long-time and trusted partner that shares our passion for innovation and world-class customer experience, and we expect our community of Splunk employees will benefit from even greater opportunities as we bring together two respected and purpose-driven organizations,” Steele added.

The deal, worth $28 billion, breaks down to $157 per share in cash and is expected to close by the end of Q3 2024.

Cisco Buying Splunk for $28 Billion
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/3NCorLu

Arizona Governor: TSMC Plant May Be Upgraded

WebProNews
Arizona Governor: TSMC Plant May Be Upgraded

Governor Katie Hobbs is telling critics not to rule out TSMC’s Arizona plant as a “paperweight,” saying it may be upgraded.

TSMC has been building a semiconductor plant in Arizona, but the project has been mired in issues. Among the latest is accusations by an analyst that the factory will be a “paperweight,” since any chips produced there still have to go to Taiwan for final assembly, a process known as packaging.

According to 9to5Mac, Governor Hobbs is saying people shouldn’t rule out the facility’s importance, with Arizona and TSMC officials discussing the possibility of upgrading the plant to include packaging capabilities.

Governor Hobbs said Arizona and TSMC are “working through some bugs.”

Arizona Governor: TSMC Plant May Be Upgraded
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/HDO7TuG

YouTube Ups the Ante In Its War On Ad Blockers

WebProNews
YouTube Ups the Ante In Its War On Ad Blockers

YouTube is turning up the heat on users using ad blockers, going so far as to block them after multiple warnings.

YouTube has been aggressively combating the use of ad blockers on its platform, prompting users to disable their blockers or buy a Premium subscription. The company has been getting pushier as time goes on.

According to Search Engine Land, YouTube is threatening to block ad block users after three plays.

YouTube Ad Block Warning – Credit Search Engine Land

The company says its stance is aimed at protecting creators, despite the fact that many creators have railed against the company’s actions.

“YouTube’s ad-supported model supports a diverse ecosystem of creators, and provides billions of people globally access to content for free with ads,” the company said in a statement.

YouTube Ups the Ante In Its War On Ad Blockers
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/9eGutPC

Hyundai Targets 2024 EV Production At Georgia Plant

WebProNews
Hyundai Targets 2024 EV Production At Georgia Plant

Hyundai is pulling out all the stops in its efforts to begin EV production at its Georgia plant, eager to benefit from government incentives.

According to AP News, Hyundai President and Global COO Jose Munoz, said the company is targeting 2024 to begin EV production at its Georgia facility, speeding up construction to meet the goal.

“What we decided is to double down,” Munoz said. “We try to accelerate as much as possible, the project. And we are confident that the original date of January 2025 would be probably pulled ahead maybe three months or so. If we can, even more.”

At stake is the $7,500 tax credit buyers can receive when purchasing an EV, thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act. The catch, however, is that buyers are only eligible if buying EVs made in North America and containing domestic batteries.

“We would like to ensure that the sourcing of the batteries is 100% USA in order to comply with the IRA,” Munoz said.

Hyundai Targets 2024 EV Production At Georgia Plant
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/DKesJrq

Signal Announces Quantum Computing Resistant Encryption Protocol

WebProNews
Signal Announces Quantum Computing Resistant Encryption Protocol

Signal is preparing for a quantum computing world, unveiling a new protocol designed to be resistant to quantum computers.

Quantum computing is a revolutionary advance in computing, one that threatens to obsolete existing encryption and security standards. Signal, one of the most secure messaging platforms, is already working on a new protocol designed for the quantum era.

The company announced the development in a blog post:

Today we are happy to announce the first step in advancing quantum resistance for the Signal Protocol: an upgrade to the X3DH specification which we are calling PQXDH. With this upgrade, we are adding a layer of protection against the threat of a quantum computer being built in the future that is powerful enough to break current encryption standards.

Signal goes on to highlight the new measures:

To address this problem, new post-quantum cryptosystems have been created to implement new one-way functions that cannot be advantageously reversed by a quantum computer. Thanks to innovation from cryptographic researchers and the NIST Standardization Process for Post-Quantum Cryptography we now have stable options that have been created and vetted by a large community of experts.

The company is not relying exclusively on the new protocol, but using a combination of both:

We believe that the key encapsulation mechanism we have selected, CRYSTALS-Kyber, is built on solid foundations, but to be safe we do not want to simply replace our existing elliptic curve cryptography foundations with a post-quantum public key cryptosystem. Instead, we are augmenting our existing cryptosystems such that an attacker must break both systems in order to compute the keys protecting people’s communications.

The essence of our protocol upgrade from X3DH to PQXDH is to compute a shared secret, data known only to the parties involved in a private communication session, using both the elliptic curve key agreement protocol X25519 and the post-quantum key encapsulation mechanism CRYSTALS-Kyber. We then combine these two shared secrets together so that any attacker must break both X25519 and CRYSTALS-Kyber to compute the same shared secret.

The new protocol is already implemented in the latest version of Signal.

Signal Announces Quantum Computing Resistant Encryption Protocol
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/ZH5pvWy

Twilio Is a Gartner Leader In First Magic Quadrant for Communications Platform as a Service

WebProNews
Twilio Is a Gartner Leader In First Magic Quadrant for Communications Platform as a Service

Twilio has been selected as a Leader in Gartner’s first-ever Magic Quadrant for Communications Platform as a Service (CPaaS).

Twilio credits the smartphone, and the convergence it created, for making CPaaS viable:

With the rise of smartphones, the world witnessed a seismic shift as voice calls, texts, and multimedia converged into a single device. This convergence was a turning point, setting the stage for CPaaS. As businesses and individuals alike craved seamless communication experiences, the need for embedding real-time interactions into applications became apparent. Enter CPaaS, a game-changer that harnessed cloud computing’s power to deliver APIs and SDKs, empowering developers to effortlessly integrate voice, video, messaging, and more. CPaaS emerged as a bridge between traditional communication modes and the digital era, revolutionizing how we connect and collaborate in a borderless world.

Thanks to the versatile platform in provides, it’s no surprise that Twilio was named a Gartner Magic Quadrant Leader:

Twilio’s versatile CPaaS platform spans messaging, voice, video, AI/ML features, security, integrations, and more. With a commitment to global operations, compliance support, scalability, CustomerAI capabilities, and a far-reaching partner network, Twilio plays a pivotal role in helping businesses transcend borders, work efficiently, deliver trusted communications, and connect seamlessly.

Of course, any CPaaS platform won’t do. Modern communication evolves quickly and Twilio exemplifies several factors that set a CPaaS platform apart.

Twilio Is a Gartner Leader In First Magic Quadrant for Communications Platform as a Service
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/Iqy8EDv

WhatsApp Releases An iPad Beta

WebProNews
WhatsApp Releases An iPad Beta

WhatsApp has released an iPad beta, finally giving users one of the most requested features in the app’s history.

WhatsApp has never had a native iPad version, forcing users to either use the iPhone version or a third-party alternative. Neither is the most appealing option, but WhatsApp is finally on the verge of giving users an official version.

According to WABetaInfo, the company is testing a beta of the iPad vesion:

To set up WhatsApp on your iPad, you’ll need to have the beta iOS version of the app installed on your iPhone and iPad. Once this is done, you need to use WhatsApp on your iPhone and open WhatsApp Settings > Linked devices > “Link a device” in order to scan the QR code by using your iPad. After linking your iPad with your iPhone, you will be able to use WhatsApp on your iPad independently, without needing your phone to be connected to the Internet, which is a significant convenience for those who work on their tablets.

The new companion mode also means that any messages sent or received on your iPad will be synced with your phone, regardless of whether it is an iOS or Android device: this way, you won’t miss out on any important messages while using your iPad when you turn off your mobile device. In addition, your messages and calls are still protected with end-to-end encryption when using the companion mode, so nobody can read your personal messages and listen to your private calls.

The announcement is welcome news for iPad users and will finally give iPad users what they’ve been asking for.

WhatsApp Releases An iPad Beta
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/j6Zz1XA

iOS 17 Will Encrypt Voice Memo Titles in iCloud

WebProNews
iOS 17 Will Encrypt Voice Memo Titles in iCloud

Apple has made an important change to Voice Memos to improve privacy, encrypting their titles when stored in iCloud.

Apple announced the change in a support document:

Starting in iOS 17, iPadOS 17, and macOS Sonoma, Voice Memos encrypts the titles of recordings stored in iCloud, in addition to the recordings themselves. Because of this change, Voice Memos may display the date of the recording, rather than the previous title, on devices with older software.

The change is a welcome one for Voice Memos users.

iOS 17 Will Encrypt Voice Memo Titles in iCloud
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/ZALtN46

FTC Takes Aim At Pharmaceuticals Trying to Block Generic Alternatives

WebProNews
FTC Takes Aim At Pharmaceuticals Trying to Block Generic Alternatives

The Federal Trade Commission, with the support of the Food and Drug Administration, is warning pharmaceuticals not to unfairly try to block generic drug makers.

According to the FTC, some pharmaceuticals “improperly list patents in the FDA’s catalog of ‘Approved Drug Products with Therapeutic Equivalence Evaluations,” commonly known as the ‘Orange Book.'” Such behavior unfairly prevents other companies from entering the market with off-brand alternatives at a much cheaper price.

“Improper patent listings in the Orange Book illegitimately delay or lock out generic manufacturers from entering the market, depriving Americans of access to lower-cost medicines and drug products,” said FTC Chair Lina M. Khan. “The FTC is making clear that improper Orange Book listings may be an unfair method of competition in violation of the FTC Act. We won’t hesitate to use all our tools to combat illegal practices that are inflating the price of health care, including medicines.”

“The FDA appreciates and supports the FTC’s efforts to examine whether brand drug companies are impeding generic drug competition by improperly listing patents in the Orange Book,” said FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf, M.D. “The FDA stands ready to assist the FTC as part of our long history of collaboration to protect American consumers, including our continued engagement under the Executive Order on Competition in the American Economy to help identify and address efforts to block or delay generic drug and biosimilar competition.”

FTC Takes Aim At Pharmaceuticals Trying to Block Generic Alternatives
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/MsNECd8

Raimondo: No Evidence China Can Produce 7nm Chips At Scale

WebProNews
Raimondo: No Evidence China Can Produce 7nm Chips At Scale

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo doesn’t believe China can produce 7nm chips at scale, despite Huawei’s recent announcement.

Huawei surprised the industry and US lawmakers when it announced the Mate 60 Pro, a smartphone powered by a 7nm chip made by Chinese firm SMIC. US lawmakers did not believe China was capable of manufacturing such an advanced chip, especially in the wake of US sanctions aimed at keeping such advanced tech beyond the reach of Chinese companies.

According to the Washington Examiner, Raimondo told the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology that she was upset by the news, but didn’t believe China could duplicate the results at scale.

“I was obviously upset when I saw the [Huawei announcement for the Mate 60],” Raimondo said. “The only good news I can offer is that we have no evidence they can produce 7 nanometers at scale.”

At this point in time, it is unclear if Huawei’s chip incorporates any technology obtained in violation of US sanctions.

Raimondo: No Evidence China Can Produce 7nm Chips At Scale
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/Sb4JtQq

Jack Dorsey Is Taking Over As Square CEO

WebProNews
Jack Dorsey Is Taking Over As Square CEO

Jack Dorsey is once again going to be CEO of Square, taking over after current CEO Alyssa Henry steps down in October.

Spotted by CNN, Square filed regulatory paperwork that revealed Henry will be resigning on October 2. The same filing indicated Dorsey will take over as “Square Head.”

The filing gave no indication as to the reason for Henry’s resignation.

“As CEO of Square, Alyssa Henry helped transform the business into a software-led technology company, guided the team during the uncertainty of global pandemic lockdowns, and expanded our breadth of services for small businesses around the world,” a Block company spokesperson told CNN.

“Square is what it is today in large part because of Alyssa’s leadership and we wish her the best in her future endeavors,” the statement added.

Jack Dorsey Is Taking Over As Square CEO
Staff

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/usbzoIL

The Maintainer of Nouveau, the Open Source Linux Nvida Driver, Resigns

WebProNews
The Maintainer of Nouveau, the Open Source Linux Nvida Driver, Resigns

Ben Skeggs, the maintainer of the the open source Nouveau driver for Linux, has resigned from Red Hat and is “stepping back from nouveau development.”

Nvidia has historically not played nice with Linux, refusing to open source its drivers until recently. As a result, developers took it upon themselves to reverse engineer Nvidia’s drivers, resulting in the open source Nouveau driver.

Skeggs has maintained the Nouveau driver for years, but announced his decision to step back in an email to the project mailing list:

Hi all,

As you may have gathered from the MAINTAINERS patch I just sent out, I have resigned from my position at Red Hat, and will be stepping back from nouveau development.

This is a personal decision that I’ve been mulling over for a number of years now, and I feel that with GSP-RM greatly simplifying support of future HW, and the community being built around NVK, that things are in good hands and this is the right time for me to take some time away to explore other avenues.

I still have a personal system with an RTX 4070, which I’ve been using the nouveau GSP-RM code on for the past couple of weeks, so chances are I’ll be poking my nose in every so often

I wish everyone the best, and look forward to seeing the progress you all make on nouveau in the future.

Happy hacking!

Ben.

The Maintainer of Nouveau, the Open Source Linux Nvida Driver, Resigns
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/71rogIp

Microsoft AI Researchers Exposed 38TB of Sensitive Company Data

WebProNews
Microsoft AI Researchers Exposed 38TB of Sensitive Company Data

Microsoft’s reputation for not being able to protect its data and keys has taken another hit, with its AI researchers exposing 38TB of data.

According to TechCrunch, security firm Wiz discovered a GitHub repository belonging to Microsoft that directed users to download source code and AI training models from an Azure storage URL. Unfortunately, Wiz’s security researchers found that the URL was misconfigured, giving users access to everything on the storage account.

Unfortunately, the Azure storage account in question held some 30,000 internal Teams messages, secret keys, passwords to corporate services, and personal backups of at least two employees. To make matters worse, the URL granted users “full control” instead of restricting them to “read-only,” meaning anyone who accessed it had free reign to wreak havoc. The URL has been misconfigured since at least 2020.

“AI unlocks huge potential for tech companies,” Wiz co-founder and CTO Ami Luttwak told TechCrunch. “However, as data scientists and engineers race to bring new AI solutions to production, the massive amounts of data they handle require additional security checks and safeguards. With many development teams needing to manipulate massive amounts of data, share it with their peers or collaborate on public open source projects, cases like Microsoft’s are increasingly hard to monitor and avoid.”

Microsoft has been under fire recently for its security, or lack thereof. The company’s services were compromised by Chinese hackers, leading to US government email accounts being compromised. At the same time, Tenable CEO Amit Yoran has accused the company of being “grossly irresponsible” with its Azure security.

This latest revelation is unlikely to improve Microsoft’s reputation in the realm of security.

Microsoft AI Researchers Exposed 38TB of Sensitive Company Data
Matt Milano

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/YHaBIRD

3 Challenges of AI in Content Translation

WebProNews
3 Challenges of AI in Content Translation

The concern raised by political authorities and technology companies about the rise of Chat GPT and its potential dangers to society has brought the use of artificial intelligence (AI) into debate. Artificial intelligence has become a technology that is taking on more and more roles in our society. The content translation industry was also revolutionized. Machine translators and voice recognition systems help to carry on conversations in other languages and adapt documents efficiently. However, as AI becomes more advanced, concerns about its challenges also arise.

Revolution in content translation

The creation of machine translation had a powerful impact on this more interconnected world. It awakened the illusion of being able to change people’s lives with a simple but revolutionary idea: communicating without knowledge or intermediaries in languages very different from the ones they know. Soon, challenges also arose that put the use of AI in content translation under debate.

1. Replacing human labor with machines

One of the biggest dangers of AI in content translation is its potential to replace jobs that used to be done by people. Automation has already replaced many jobs in the manufacturing industry and is expected to have a similar impact when it comes to consulting expert translation services. 

Supporters of the use of machine translators and other technologies in the translation field say that AI can be very useful for solving repetitive translations, such as legal or technical documents. In addition, by efficiently moving work forward, it can allow human translators to concentrate on more complex and creative tasks. 

The complication lies in robots and AI algorithms becoming more sophisticated, making them capable of performing tasks that were previously considered exclusively human. This could have serious consequences for the people who dedicate their lives to these jobs. Professional translators would be exposed to technological advances that are cheaper than their services, self-refining and increasingly accurate in their output.

2. Discrimination in translated languages

AI is based on data and patterns that are made by humans. This increases the risk of human bias and discrimination being transferred to the machine.

If an algorithm in a translation tool is trained with data that contains biases towards certain ethnic groups or genders, they are likely to be perpetuated in its decisions. Who decides what language should appear in a machine translator and in what form it should appear?

3. Data privacy risks

Translating content with technological tools introduces privacy policy concerns. AI can collect personal information, which could be maliciously used to generate personalized advertising or to influence political opinions.

Discussions about the challenges of AI in our society have reached such an extreme that they have surpassed the practical issues. The risks are also measured in existential terms and philosophers and scientists spoke out about the threat it poses to humanity as a whole. Some AI experts, such as theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, have warned that if AI becomes sufficiently intelligent it could surpass the human ability to control it and eventually take over the world. A somewhat more complicated problem than delegating content translation.

3 Challenges of AI in Content Translation
Brian Wallace

from WebProNews https://ift.tt/H1hVuQm