Apple will reportedly focus its first round of generative AI enhancements on beefing up Siris conversational chops. Sources speaking with The New York Times say company executives realized early last year that ChatGPT made Siri look antiquated. The company allegedly decided that the large language model (LLM) principles behind OpenAIs chatbot could give the iPhones virtual assistant a much-needed shot in the arm. So Apple will reportedly roll out a new version of Siri powered by generative AI at its WWDC keynote on June 10.
Apple Senior Vice Presidents Craig Federighi and John Giannandrea reportedly tested ChatGPT for weeks before the company realized that Siri looked outdated. (I would argue that the epiphany came about a decade late.) What followed was what The NYT describes as Apples most significant reorganization in more than a decade.
The company sees generative AI as a once-in-a-decade tentpole area worth shifting heaps of resources to address. You may recall the company canceled its $10 billion Apple Car project earlier this year. Apple reportedly reassigned many of those engineers to work on generative AI.
Apple executives allegedly fear AI models could eventually replace established software like iOS, turning the iPhone into a dumb brick by comparison. The clunky, awkward and overall unconvincing first wave of dedicated AI gadgets weve reviewed, like the Human AI Pin and Rabbit R1, arent good enough to pose a threat. But that could change as software evolves, other smartphone makers incorporate more AI into their operating systems and other hardware makers have a chance to innovate.
So, at least for now, it appears Apple isnt launching direct competitors to generative AI stalwarts like ChatGPT (words), Midjourney (images) or ElevenLabs (voices). Instead, it will start with a new Siri and updated iPhone models with expanded memory to better handle local processing. In addition, the company will reportedly add a text-summarizing feature to the Messages app.
Apples M4 chip (shown next to VP John Ternus) could help process local Siri requests.Apple
Apples first foray into generative AI, if The NYTs sources are correct, sounds like less of an immediate threat to creators than some had imagined. At its May iPad event, the company ran a video plugging the new iPad Pro that showed various creative tools crushed by a hydraulic press. The clip accidentally served as the perfect metaphor for the (legitimate) fears of artists, musicians and other creators, whose work AI models have trained on and who stand to be replaced by those same tools as they become more normalized for content creation.
On Thursday, Apple apologized for the ad and said it canceled plans to run it on TV.
Samsung and Google have already loaded their flagship phones with various generative AI features that go far beyond improving their virtual assistants. These include tools for editing photos, generating text and enhancing transcription (among other things). These features typically rely on cloud-based servers for processing, whereas Apples approach will allegedly prioritize privacy and handle requests locally. So Apple will apparently start with a more streamlined approach that sticks to improving whats already there, as well as keeping most or all processing on-device.
The New York Times sources add that Apples culture of internal secrecy and privacy-focused marketing have stunted its AI progress. Former Siri engineer John Burkey told the paper that the companys tendency to silo off the information various divisions share with each other has been another primary culprit in Siris inability to evolve far past where the assistant was when it launched a day before Steve Jobs died in 2011.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apples-big-ai-rollout-at-wwdc-will-reportedly-focus-on-making-siri-suck-less-203035673.html?src=rss
Samsungs HW-Q990C was the best overall soundbar I tested last year, mostly due to its stellar audio and the fact that a subwoofer and rear speakers came with it. The company didnt change much for the 2024 version, the HW-Q990D, but one tweak delivers a feature last years model shouldve had: HDMI 2.1. There are some new audio modes too, but you can find those on other Samsung soundbars. The Q990D is as powerful as ever, but its still pricey at $2,000. If you already bought a Q990C, the company hasnt given you a reason to upgrade just yet.
Whats new on the Samsung Q990D?
The biggest addition on the Q990D is HDMI 2.1. With this, Samsung addressed my main criticism of the Q990C, which debuted last year at a time when much of the competition had already adopted the standard. HDMI 2.1 delivers 4K passthrough at 120 frames per second, which will improve the visuals if you connect your PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X directly to the soundbar.
The Q990D also arrives with new audio modes. Private Listening turns off all of the front-firing drivers and uses only the rear satellite speakers. Its basically an expanded version of the night mode a lot of companies offer on soundbars, aimed at reducing boomy bass when family or roommates might be asleep. My house has an open floor plan and my TV faces towards the hallway to the bedrooms, which means any soundbar will beam noise in that direction. Private Listening sends the audio the opposite way, and while you have to sacrifice some overall quality, its good enough for all the times you need to be quieter.
Theres also a new Party Play mode that provides more balanced sound between the soundbar and rear speakers for a better experience when youre hosting a rager. When this is active, you get the full audio range rather than just the channels specifically programmed for the speakers behind you. I actually turned the speakers around and faced them out of the living room to project the re-tuned audio into other communal spaces. This makes a bigger difference for movies and TV because music already plays from the rear speakers with more balanced levels.
These two modes arent unique to the Q990D; the rest of the 2024 Q-series lineup will be able to use them too. This is the first time Ive tested them though, and its notable that they actually work well on Samsungs most expensive soundbar.
Whats good
Billy Steele for Engadget
The combination of a driver-packed soundbar, large subwoofer and more-robust rear speakers produces immersive sound that envelops my living room. Whether youre listening to music or the soundscape of Dune, the Q990D retains the sonic prowess of its predecessor. Dolby Atmos content from Disney+ is as immersive as ever. I could hear the finer details of Knowhere in the opening scenes of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, including the life-like reverb of Radioheads Creep playing over a loudspeaker. The directional sounds of the town, including the hustle and bustle of people moving around, make it seem like youre standing right there.
For music, theres deep, boomy bass when a track calls for it, and that crisp detail that I heard in movies is here too. Justices Hyperdrama shows off the Q990Ds range, with driving low-end tone on songs like Neverender accompanied by textured synths. Quieter genres like jazz are a blanket of sound too, with albums like Miles Davis Kind of Blue offering subtleties that make you feel like youre in the studio.
The thing I like most about the Q990D is that everything you need for a complete surround sound setup is included in the box. The subwoofer and rear speakers come with the soundbar and dont require an additional purchase. Those satellite speakers also house up-firing and side-firing drivers, which isnt always the case on comparable accessories from the competition. And the setup is as easy as plugging everything in because pairing with the rest of the system happens automatically.
Whats bad
Billy Steele for Engadget
An all-in-one setup is great, but that also means the Q990D is expensive. At $2,000, this is a considerable investment even if youre getting everything you need in the package. The Q990D is currently on sale for $1,750, but we dont know how long that discount will last. For comparison, Sonys upcoming Bravia Bar 9 is $1,400. The cheapest subwoofer and rear speakers you can get for it are $400 and $350 respectively, which puts your total cost at $2,150. Of course, with Sony you have two options for subs and rears, and you dont have to buy all of them. LG offers some respite if you want to go that route, with its S95TR coming in at $1,500 and including the subwoofer and rear speakers with up-firing drivers.
The overall size of the soundbar is something else youll need to consider. The Q990D houses 11 front-facing speakers, two up-firing drivers and a subwoofer. All of those components need space, and accommodating them means this soundbar ends up being quite large at 48.5 inches wide. While thats not a deal-breaker per se, it does require some planning, so just know youll need ample room.
Like soundbars from other companies, the Q990D has some handy features that are reserved for Samsung TVs. For example, Q-Symphony, which uses your TV speakers in addition to the soundbar to expand the audio capabilities, requires a compatible 2020-2024 Samsung TV. The Q990D sounds great without this, but just know youre not getting the full bg of tricks unless you also have a supported TV.
Wrap-up
Unless you care for the latest HDMI standards, the Q990D doesnt offer a huge upgrade over last years model. Their design and features lists are nearly identical, except for two new sound modes and 4K/120 passthrough. And some of those additions are available on more-affordable Samsung soundbars. So if you already sprang for last years Q990C, theres probably not enough reason to make another sizable investment. If you dont already own a Samsung flagship soundbar, the Q990D offers boomy, immersive sound in an all-in-one package that now has all the modern conveniences it should.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsung-hw-q990d-soundbar-review-a-small-but-significant-update-180022782.html?src=rss
Climate protestors in Germany broke through police barricades on Friday, amid clashes between activists and law enforcement. The protestors either made it onto (according to protestors) or near (according to local police) the grounds of a Tesla gigafactory in Grünheide, Germany, near Berlin. Its part of a planned five-day demonstration ahead of a local government vote next week to determine whether Teslas plant can expand.
Wired flagged social media videos showing activists, many of whom have been camping out in treehouses in nearby forest encampments, running toward a Tesla building on the site. In addition, the German newspaper Welt said at least one person participating was injured. Police reportedly police used pepper spray and batons to try to thwart the crowd, and there were at least some arrests.
A spokesperson for one of the groups participating in the protests told Wired that they broke the police barriers and stormed the Tesla grounds. Eight hundred people have entered the premises of the gigafactory, Lucia Mende of Disrupt Tesla said. However, local police posted on X (Musks social media platform) that the activists only reached a field facing the site. We have been able to prevent them from entering so far, they posted.
Axel Schmidt via Getty Images
At least at first glance, its easy to wonder why activists are pouring so much energy into fighting Tesla. After all, despite Musks increasingly unhinged right-wing conspiracy-mongering and Nazi-catering on X, other automakers pushing gas-guzzling cars seem like more appropriate targets (not to mention the fossil fuel companies spending big bucks on anti-climate-reform disinformation). However, several factors make the issues at the heart of the protests less simplistic.
A (nonbinding) vote in February showed Grünheide residents opposed the expansion by almost a two-to-one ratio. If for no other reason, the local government having a chance to brush aside the overwhelming will of the voters in the name of capitalism is enough to raise the eyebrows of anyone who balks at minority rule.
Wired notes the area is also one of the most water-scarce in Germany, and residents worry the gigafactory will drain the resource, leaving much less for the humans who live there. The plant could also pollute local water supplies.
Those fears appear to have merit: The plant is licensed to use 1.4 million cubic meters of water annually, and a separate Wired report from Tuesday noted thats enough to supply for a large town. As for the contamination fears, Tesla was fined in 2019 by the EPA for several hazardous waste violations at a California factory. The company paid a grand total of $31,000 to settle. (Tesla had a market cap of almost $76 billion in 2019.)
But some of the groups protesting have concerns that go much farther than those more immediate issues affecting the locals, instead taking issue with the entire electric vehicle movement. Companies like Tesla are there to save the car industry, theyre not there to save the climate, Esther Kamm, spokesperson for Turn Off the Tap on Tesla told Wired.
Another activist, who only gave Wired the name Mara, described the factory as the result of green capitalism. She views the EV movement as little more than a theatrical performance in the name of profit. This has been completely thought up by such companies to have more growth, even in times of an environmental crisis, she said.
I wouldnt exactly say flipping the bird to the EV movement is a workable solution to the very real and pressing climate crisis. Regardless of your thoughts on the matter, the world needs to move quickly to fend off climate changes most ravaging effects, and the scientific consensus is that the planned shift to EVs will need to play a central role.
Tesla reportedly told its employees at the factory to work from home on Friday, shutting down the plants for the planned protests. As for Fridays protests, Welt reports that the situation had calmed by afternoon at least for now.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/climate-protestors-clash-with-police-outside-teslas-german-gigafactory-175726961.html?src=rs
Swiss start-up Climeworks has done it again. The company just opened the worlds largest carbon capture plant in Iceland, dwarfing its own record of how much CO2 it can pull from the air. The companys previous record-holding carbon capture plant, Orca, sucks around 4,000 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere per year, but the new plant can handle nearly ten times that, as reported by The Washington Post.
The plants called Mammoth and boasts 72 industrial fans that can pull 36,000 tons of CO2 from the air each year. Just like with Orca, the CO2 isnt recycled. Its stored underground and eventually trapped in stone, permanently (within reason) removing it from the environment. The plants actually located on a dormant volcano, so itll make a great hideout for a James Bond villain should it ever cease operations.
The location was chosen for its proximity to the Hellisheidi geothermal energy plant, which is used to power the facility's fans and heat chemical filters to extract CO2 with water vapor. After extraction, the CO2 is separated from the steam, compressed and dissolved in water. Finally, its pumped 2,300 feet underground into volcanic basalt. This compound reacts with the magnesium, calcium and iron in the rock to form crystals, which become solid reservoirs of CO2. Its pretty nifty technology.
However, its not the end-all solution to climate change. Its barely a blip. For the world to achieve "carbon neutrality" by 2050, "we should be removing something like six to 16 billion tons of CO2 per year from the air," said Climeworks founder Jan Wurzbacher, according to reporting by CBS News.
Therein lies the problem. This facility, the largest of its kind by a wide margin, can capture up to 36,000 tons of CO2 from the air each year, but thats just 0.0006 percent of whats needed to meet the minimum annual removal threshold as indicated by Wurzbacher. There are other plants, of course, but all of them combined dont make a serious dent in whats required to pull us from the brink.
To that end, Wurzbacher has pleaded with other companies to take up the cause. He says that Climeworks has a goal of surpassing millions of tons captured per year by 2030 and a billion by 2050. The companys chief technology officer, Carlos Haertel, told 60 Minutes that scaling up the process globally is possible, but requires political will to rally behind the initiative.
The Biden administration recently committed $4 billion to jumpstart the industry here in the states and earmarked $1.2 billion for a pair of large-scale projects. The US Department of Energy also started a program called Carbon Negative Shot, with a goal of fostering the development of budget-friendly carbon capture technology.
Today, we're officially launching a new portfolio offering to expand our carbon removal service beyond direct air capture and fast-track the industry's scale-up. We're thrilled to finally reveal Climeworks Solutions! https://t.co/0CDAQLObEU pic.twitter.com/f8ojbF3ZLo Climeworks (@Climeworks) April 17, 2024
The method of carbon capture deployed by Climeworks is just one of many approaches. These processes range from stacks of limestone blocks that absorb CO2 like a sponge to giant hot air balloons that freeze and trap the chemical compound. Restoring forests is another option, which is something companies like Apple and Goldman Sachs have experimented with. Which one is best? All of them together deployed at global scale. Whatever it takes. Climate change isnt fooling around.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-worlds-largest-direct-carbon-capture-plant-just-went-online-172447811.html?src=rss
The new iPad Pro and iPad Air and the internet's reaction to how they've been advertised may have been the big Apple news of the week, but we're turning our attention to AirPods for our latest deals roundup. More specifically, all four models in Apple's wireless headphone lineup are currently on sale. The noise-canceling AirPods Pro and third-gen AirPods back down to lows of $180 and $140, respectively, while the entry-level earbuds and top-end AirPods Max are both cheaper than usual at $80 and $450. Beyond that, we've also found noteworthy discounts on Amazon's Kindle, LG's C3 OLED TV, Keychron's budget-friendly C3 Pro keyboard and annual Paramount+ with Showtime subscriptions, among others. Here are the best tech deals from this week that you can still get today.
Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apples-entire-airpods-lineup-is-discounted-plus-the-rest-of-the-weeks-best-tech-deals-164320939.html?src=rss
Not all connected speakers have a voice assistant built in. The Sonos One SL, for instance, doesn't have a microphone. So, if you want to use your voice to control such devices, you may need to pick up a secondary smart speaker, such as Amazon's Echo Dot. As luck would have it, that little Alexa-enabled device is on sale for $28. That's 44 percent off and just $5 more than the record-low price.
That's not to say the Echo Dot isn't a decent speaker in its own right. In fact, we think it's the best smart speaker under $50.
Amazon has been steadily improving the Dot's audio quality over the years and the most recent version from 2022 pumps out far louder and clearer audio than could be reasonably expected from a sub-$50 speaker. The globe-shaped speaker has some physical buttons, including ones for volume control and another that mutes/unmutes the microphone if you don't want Alexa to remain alert for voice commands at all times.
If you'd prefer to save a few extra bucks, you could instead opt for the Echo Pop. That Alexa-enabled speaker is currently half off at $20. The colorful speaker also has a mic mute switch. It could prove to be a handy bedside speaker for listening to podcasts or a sleep story when it's time to nod off.
Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazons-echo-dot-drops-to-just-28-162815137.html?src=rss
They say "Twitter isn't real life," but Black Twitter proved otherwise. For years, that phrase has been a way to ignore the real-world impact of social media conversations, especially when they spark radically new ideas. But that's clearly not true when you look at Black Twitter, an unofficial community made up of the site's black users, which inspired culturally significant movements with hashtags like #BlackLivesMatter and #OscarsSoWhite. Hulu's new documentary, "Black Lives Matter: A People's History," adapted from Jason Parham's Wired article, explores the rise and global influence of the community. Over the course of three engaging and often hilarious episodes, the series cements itself as an essential cultural document.
"The way I would define Black Twitter is a space where Black culture specifically was hanging out in a digital way," said Prentice Penny, the series director and former show-runner of HBO's Insecure, in an interview on the Engadget Podcast. "And even though it was a public space clearly, it's Twitter, anybody can get on it it still felt like you were having conversations with your friends that are like on the back of the bus. Or like on the stoop, or in the lunchroom. I mean, that's the energy of it."
In particular, Penny says that Twitter felt special because there was no real hierarchy, especially in the early days. That meant that even celebrities weren't immune to being mocked, or acting out on their own social media profiles (like Rihanna's notorious early Twitter presence). Twitter in its heyday felt like a place where money or class didn't really matter.
"This was kind of an equalization of a lot of things, that somebody in Kentucky who nobody knows could have the same strong opinion as someone who you revere, right?" Penny said. "And I think that's what made the space so fresh, because we don't really have spaces that are kind of a level playing ground in this country."
Twitter also felt genuinely different from the other social networks in the late 2000s. At the time, Facebook was mostly focused on connecting you with schoolmates and family members it wasn't really a place for simply hanging out and joking around. Prentice notes that the forced brevity on Twitter also made it unique, since you had to really focus on what you were trying to say in 140 characters.
"Each of the creators [in the series] had a different idea of what Twitter should be," Penny added. "Some thought it should be a town square, some people thought it should be a news information thing... I think like with Black culture, the one thing we do really well is, because we're often given the scraps of things, we have to repurpose something, like taking the worst of the pig and making soul food... I think we are really good at taking things that could kind of be different things and make it be pliable for us."
The documentary recounts the many ways Black Twitter leveraged the platform, both for fun and for kicking off serious social movements. The community helped make live-tweeting TV shows a common occurrence, and it's one reason Scandal became a hit TV show. But Black users also helped raise the profile around Trayvon Martin's killing by George Zimmerman. His eventual acquittal led to the creation of the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag, a movement which sparked national protests in 2020 following the killing of George Floyd and other Black Americans.
If you've been online and following the Black Twitter community for years, the Hulu documentary may not seem particularly revelatory. But there's value in charting the impact of cultural movements, especially given how quickly social media and the tech world moves. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/hulus-black-twitter-documentary-is-a-vital-cultural-chronicle-161557720.html?src=rss
Google has released a security update for the Chrome browser to fix a zero-day vulnerability exploit that has been used by threat actors. This is the fifth time this year the company has had to issue a patch for one of these vulnerabilities, as reported by Bleeping Computer.
"Google is aware that an exploit for CVE-2024-4671 exists in the wild," the company said in a short advisory. It did not issue any specifics as to the nature of the real-world attack or the identity of the threat actors. This is common for Google, as it likes to wait until a majority of users have updated the software before announcing specific details.
We do know some stuff about the exploit. Its being classified as a high-severity issue and as a user after free vulnerability. These bugs arise when a program references a memory location after it has been deallocated, leading to any number of serious consequences from a crash to a random execution of code. It looks like the CVE-2024-4671 vulnerability is attached to the visuals component that handles rendering and the display of content on the browser.
The exploit was discovered and reported to Google by an anonymous researcher. The fix is available for Mac, Windows and Linux and updates will continue to roll out to users over the coming days and weeks. Chrome updates automatically with security fixes, so users can confirm they are running the latest version of the browser by going to Settings and About Chrome. Users of Chromium-based browsers like Microsoft Edge, Brave, Opera and Vivaldi should also update to a new version as soon as they are available.
As stated, this is the fifth of this type of flaw addressed by Google this year. I dont mean within the last calendar year. I mean in 2024. Three were discovered back in March at the Pwn2Own hacking contest in Vancouver. This isnt a record or anything. Google found and fixed five in one month back in 2020.
Zero-day exploits have been a constant thorn in Googles side. These are a type of cyberattack that take advantage of an unknown or unaddressed security flaw in computer software, hardware or firmware. The company typically pays out big money for bug discoveries, as part of its Vulnerability Rewards Program.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-just-patched-the-fifth-zero-day-exploit-for-chrome-this-year-153723334.html?src=rss
A Prince of Persia game from the studio behind Dead Cells was supposed to hit early access on PC on May 14. Thats no longer the case. Evil Empire says The Rogue Prince of Persias debut is delayed until later this month, and its because of a little game called Hades II.
Soon after a technical test wrapped up, Supergiant Games released Hades II into early access on Monday. It skyrocketed up the Steam charts and quickly reached a peak of 102,000 concurrent players. Evil Empire suggested that everyone and their mom is playing Hades II, including its own team, so its getting out of that games way. The new early access date for The Rogue Prince of Persia will be revealed on Monday.
While we have every confidence in The Rogue Prince of Persia, its not every day that a game in the same genre as you, which is one of the most anticipated upcoming games of 2024, will release into early access a week before you plan to do the same, Evil Empire wrote on X. We are not prideful enough to ignore the implications of that, and we truly believe that this short delay is the best decision for us and our early access journey.
So we've got a little bit of news about The Rogue Prince of Persia, it's all in the big yellow boxhttps://t.co/S3FiyGFfrY pic.twitter.com/9PXlw4J2MZ Evil Empire (@Studio_Evil) May 10, 2024
As it happens, the delay will also give Evil Empire some extra time to polish up The Rogue Prince of Persia. While the whole point of releasing a game in early access is to get feedback from players on a project thats far from the finished article, developers still want their games to be in as good a shape as possible when the public goes hands on with them for the first time.
Evil Empire says it can add even more cool things and try to squish some bugs before the games debut. The team also has a bit more time to test and refine the hefty day one patch.
Getting out of Hades IIs way is a smart idea given the two games are both roguelikes. Its nice to see Evil Empire being transparent about the reasons for the delay too. But there are a bunch of other indies that were released this week that reviewed well and have been overshadowed at least to some degree by that blockbuster sequel.
Another Crabs Treasure (a cute spin on From Software's Soulslike format), PS1-style survival horror Crow Country, sci-fi title 1000xResist and adorable-looking adventure Little Kitty, Big City all debuted to strong reviews this week. So too did Animal Well, a Metroidvania about which the word masterpiece has been invoked by some reviewers (though thats actually the number one best-selling game on Steam at the time of writing, just above Hades II).
The train doesnt stop there as some other buzzed-about indies are arriving over the next couple of weeks, including Lorelei and The Laser Eyes (were very excited about that one) and Paper Trail. Theres another one coming next week that Ive been playing and is worth checking out, though I cant talk about it just yet.
Although there might not be too many AAA games from the likes of Sony, Microsoft and EA dropping at the minute, theres a lot of fascinating stuff going on in the indie scene. So maybe go check some of those games out if you haven't already.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-rogue-prince-of-persia-is-delayed-because-hades-ii-is-a-juggernaut-144229150.html?src=rss
