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Bixby isnt typically part of the conversation when it comes to virtual assistants for mobile devices, but Samsung is clearly hoping that you would use it more. The company has launched the latest version of Bixby with the new One UI 8.5 beta, and it has been tweaked to work as a conversational agent. Samsung says youll now be able to talk to it and give it tasks using natural language, like how youd talk to other people or, these days, to chatbots. You dont have to remember exact commands or names for specific settings. You can just describe what you want to happen, such as I dont want the screen to time out while Im still looking at it. Bixby will then automatically turn on the Keep Screen on While Viewing setting. If you ask it a question, such as Why is my phone screen always on when its inside my pocket, it could provide several solutions you can choose from. In addition, the assistant can now access new and up-to-date information on the web. You do searches without opening a browser, and Bixby will display web results right within its interface. At the moment, the updated Bixby is only available in Samsungs home country of Korea, as well as in Germany, India, Poland, the UK and the US, but company will roll it out more widely in the future. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/samsung-updates-bixby-to-become-more-conversational-112649179.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
Google has announced that with the help of AI, it blocked 1.75 million apps that violated its policies in 2025, significantly down from 2.36 million in 2024. The lower numbers this year, it said, are because its "AI-powered, multi-layer protections" are deterring bad actors from even trying to publish bad apps. Google said it now runs more than 10,000 safety checks on every app and continues to recheck them after they're published. Its use of the latest generative AI models helps human reviewers discover malicious patterns more quickly, it added. The company also blocked 160 million spam ratings, preventing an average 0.5-star rating drop for apps targeted by review bombing. Finally, Google stopped 255,000 apps from gaining excessive access to sensitive user data in 2025, down from 1.3 million the year before. Meanwhile, Google Play Protect, the company's Android defense system, sniffed out over 27 million new malicious apps, either warning users or preventing them from running. The company added that Play Protect's enhanced fraud protection now covers 2.8 billion Android devices in 185 markets and blocked 266 million risky "side-loading" installation attempts. "Initiatives like developer verification, mandatory pre-review checks, and testing requirements have raised the bar for the Google Play ecosystem, significantly reducing the paths for bad actors to enter," the company said its blog. "This year, well continue to invest in AI-driven defenses to stay ahead of emerging threats and equip Android developers with the tools they need to build apps safely." Google has steadfastly justified its relatively high fees on app purchases and subscriptions by touting its investments in app safety. However, its Play store has been under pressure from regulators in Europe and other regions that claim it amounts to a monopoly. Last year, the company changed its fee structure for developers using alternative payment channels, but EU regulators recently claimed the company still isn't complying with Digital Markets Act regulations. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/google-play-used-ai-to-help-block-175-million-bad-apps-in-2025-102208054.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
Blizzard Entertainment has finally launched player housing in World of Warcraft (a feature its community had been requesting for decades), and Zillow is jumping in with a playful crossover. Zillow for Warcraft is a custom microsite that lets anyone browse a curated collection of in-game homes from the fantasy realm of Azeroth, complete with 3D tours and aerial-style visuals modeled on Zillow's real-world tools. Listings range from Stormwind townhouses to Horde-influenced bungalows, and the site will continue adding player-created homes over time.For Blizzard, the partnership lends its new housing feature cultural legitimacy beyond the gaming bubble. For Zillow, it's an entry point into one of the most loyal digital communities on earth, arriving at the precise moment players are most excited about making a space their own. The meaning transfer runs both ways: World of Warcraft channels its fandom's creative energy toward Zillow, while Zillow confers "home legitimacy" on virtual housing. If Zillow becomes synonymous with envisioning your future home whether that home is suburban, urban, or virtual the brand equity compounds across realities.TREND BITEAs the boundaries between physical and digital worlds dissolve, people are increasingly eager to play at the seams, exploring moments where the real and the imagined overlap. This collaboration works because it invites exactly that kind of play: browsing fantasy homes with real-world tools, treating a digital realm with the same aspirational energy usually reserved for Sunday afternoon Zillow scrolling. The takeaway for other brands? Don't just parachute into fantasy spaces. Instead, consider crafting singular moments that have one foot in the real and one in the constructed experiences that feel native to both worlds and forced in neither.
Category:
Marketing and Advertising
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