TechDesk

TechDesk, 15 days ago (edited 15 days ago) to TikTok

The Biden administration reportedly rejected an offer from TikTok’s parent company ByteDance in 2022, that would have given it extraordinary influence over the world’s most popular app.

The proposal would have allowed federal officials to pick TikTok’s U.S. operation’s board of directors, given the government veto power over each new hire and seen TikTok pay an American company that contracts with the Defense Department to monitor its source code.

It even offered to give federal officials a “kill switch” that would shut the app down in the United States, if it was determined to be a threat. So why was it declined? The Washington Post has more (may require subscription).

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/05/29/tiktok-cfius-proposal-rejected/?pwa[…]lamVjdGVkLyJ9.DgdWa2wf7yaiVFuybiYvMOw8ajrXfWXkSg-vejF8S8Y

#TikTok #TikTokBan #ByteDance #Biden #SocialMedia #Tech

TechDesk, 15 days ago (edited 15 days ago) to twitter

File this under news that doesn’t surprise us one bit, but a new report from the Wall Street Journal states that Elon Musk has been speaking with Donald Trump “several times a month” on a wide range of political topics, from “voter fraud” to illegal immigration.

Top of Musk’s priorities for this blossoming friendship, says @Gizmodo, is to ensure his businesses benefit if Trump is elected again in November — perhaps fuelled by the former president's recent announcement that he wants to stop EV sales in the U.S. if he wins. Musk is also keen to get Trump back onto X, following his ban in 2021. Here’s more.

https://flip.it/yi7Tzr

#Trump #ElonMusk #X #Twitter #USElections #SpaceX

TechDesk, 16 days ago to OpenAI

OpenAI has started training its new flagship AI model, which will replace the GPT-4 technology currently behind ChatGPT.

The leading AI company announced the news in a blog post, stating it expected the resulting systems to deliver the "next level of capabilities.” There’s also a new Safety and Security Committee coming, it said, led by OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman. What could possibly go wrong? @Mashable has more.

https://flip.it/puHeqB

#OpenAI #ChatGPT #SamAltman #AI #Tech

TechDesk, 16 days ago to hacking

A hacker group has claimed responsibility for a cyberattack that targeted auction house Christie’s earlier this month.

The attack took place just before the start of its high-profile spring sales event involving more than $850 million worth of art. Online bidding was suspended, but the group claims it has accessed sensitive information about wealthy art collectors around the world, and is threatening to release it unless “an agreement” is reached. Digital Trends has more.

https://flip.it/at-MY2

#Hacking #Cybersecurity #Christies #Art #Tech

TechDesk, 16 days ago (edited 16 days ago) to streaming

Remember when streaming services used to promise an ad-free experience? Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+ and HBO Max all launched on that premise, and one by one, those services are now adding in commercials in exchange for a slightly lower subscription price.

People are buying it too. Subscribers opting for ad-supported tiers are on the up, along with streaming bundles that feel a lot like the cable TV of old. Is it just us, or does the future of TV feel quite familiar? @nytimes has more (gift link).

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/26/business/media/ads-tv-streaming.html?unlocked_article_code=1.u00.-NgX._JWeWd_10adI&smid=url-share

#Streaming #Netflix #Disney #Amazon #Advertising

TechDesk, 17 days ago to apple

While AI is expected to be top of the bill at the unveiling of iOS 18 at WWDC on June 10, it seems Apple could be keeping things a little more basic than some of the other AI announcements made recently.

Mark Gurman’s Power On newsletter suggested Apple’s approach to AI will focus on “being practical,” reports @theverge, with features like voice memo transcriptions, auto-generated emojis, and AI-enhanced photo edits and Spotlight searches. The biggest announcement? A rumoured partnership with OpenAI, which will allow ChatGPT to “integrate more deeply” into the Apple operating system. Here’s more.

https://flip.it/mBMTmE

#WWDC24 #Apple #AI #OpenAI #ChatGPT

TechDesk, 17 days ago to meta

Threads is giving young Taiwanese activists a space to connect and mobilize, reports @restofworld, drawing in 1.88 million active monthly users — the fourth highest user base globally behind the U.S., Japan and Brazil, despite having a much smaller population.

It continues: “Protestors have been using a range of apps, including Facebook, Line, and Discord, to coordinate the leaderless protests, but many have found Threads to be the most effective in connecting with people outside their own social circles.” But with Meta promising to cut down on political content across its apps, how long will Threads be willing to host their activism?

https://restofworld.org/2024/instagram-threads-app-taiwan-protests/

#Meta #Threads #Taiwan #Protests

TechDesk, 18 days ago to tech

Did Meta, “Call of Duty” and gun manufacturer Daniel Defense “groom” the shooter who killed 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas? Wrongful-death lawsuits brought by the victims’ families say yes. Read more from Tech Crunch: https://flip.it/QVEKdG
#Tech #Technology #Meta #CallOfDuty #Uvalde

TechDesk, 18 days ago to tech

You may have seen the Snapdragon Sound badge displayed on smartphones or headphones and wondered, what is it exactly? Snapdragon Sound is an audio technology created by Qualcomm to improve the way you listen to audio on headphones or earbuds when paired with your phone. Tech Radar explains more: https://flip.it/t2tYul
#Tech #Technology #HeadPhones #Audio #Qualcomm

TechDesk, 19 days ago to tech

Spotify’s Car Thing has been a convenient way for motorists to control music without their phones. The company recently announced that it is discontinuing the gadget — no refunds, no trade-ins — and users are outraged. Futurism tell us more: https://flip.it/.OZzdA
#Tech #Technology #Music #Spotify

TechDesk, 19 days ago (edited 19 days ago) to tech

Google is taking “swift action” to remove some of the bizarre AI-generated answers appearing at the top of its search pages. “A company once known for being at the cutting edge and shipping high-quality stuff is now known for low-quality output that’s getting meme’d,” one AI founder, who wished to remain anonymous, said. Read more from @theverge.
https://flip.it/E0coKc
#Tech #AI #Google #ArtificialIntelligence

TechDesk, 20 days ago to ai

When Bing, Microsoft’s search engine platform, went down early yesterday, it took down a number of services with it, including ChatGPT search, Yahoo, and DuckDuckGo — all of which rely on the Bing API to operate.

With the majority of Google search alternatives taken out in one fell swoop, it highlighted the lack of competition that Google search truly has, and the implications that has on our online experience. Is there another way? @arstechnica has more.

https://flip.it/soK-9p

#AI #Google #Bing #Search #Internet #Tech

TechDesk, 20 days ago to tesla

Just last month Elon Musk announced that Tesla would be launching its own robotaxi service in August, but to this date, its driverless testing hasn’t even begun because its software isn’t ready.

Its competitor Waymo, by comparison, launched its driverless taxi in 2020 in the residential streets in the Phoenix suburbs, and continues to gradually ratchet up the difficulty level of its routes — steering clear of freeways and relying on human backup in case of emergencies.

Has Tesla underestimated the work required to build a safe driverless taxi service? @arstechnica considers the challenges Musk’s company could have ahead.

https://flip.it/NFoq_x

#Tesla #Waymo #DriverlessCars #Robotaxi #Tech

TechDesk, 21 days ago to ai

Meta’s artificial intelligence chief has said that the large language models powering generative AI products like ChatGPT will never reach human levels of intelligence, branding them “useful” but limited.

Speaking to the @FT, Yann LeCun said his team at Meta is working towards an entirely new generation of AI systems, that he hopes will create “superintelligence” in machines, capable of common sense and learning about the world in a similar way to humans. Here’s more.

https://flip.it/XvnM71 [may require subscription]

#AI #ChatGPT #Meta

TechDesk, 22 days ago to ChatGPT

Earlier this week, Scarlett Johansson released a statement that said she had been approached by OpenAI’s founder Sam Altman to voice a ChatGPT persona. The actress, who famously voiced an AI assistant in the 2013 film "Her," she said no, but OpenAI went ahead and released "Sky" anyway — a chatbot which Johansson herself stated sounded “eerily similar” to her.

The actress has hired legal counsel and demanded an explanation, but could she take it further and does she have a case? @WIRED has spoken to lawyers to find out how this could all play out in court.

https://flip.it/V6_nW3

#ChatGPT #OpenAI #SamAltman #ScarlettJohansson #AI #Tech

TechDesk, 22 days ago to ai

The student cofounders of an AI studying tool that won them a $10,000 entrepreneurship prize from Emory University have been suspended, for building exactly what the school had given them money to build.

The school’s Honor Council claimed the AI tool, which helps students to generate revision flashcards and practice tests from course materials, “could be used for cheating,” and that it had been connected to a software platform used by the university without permission — even though this feature had been mentioned in the competition pitch. @404mediaco has more.

https://flip.it/X_HEUz

#AI #Startup #Tech

TechDesk, 23 days ago (edited 23 days ago) to ai

A female computational neuroscience and machine learning expert took to X at the weekend to describe a “dark side” of the startup culture in Silicon Valley.

Sonia Joseph alleged that a culture of sexual coercion has taken hold of San Francisco’s community housing tech scene, with “heavy LSD use” and “sex parties held by mainly male tech and entrepreneurial elites that involve mock-violent role playing with female participants.”

In particular, “early OpenAI employees” were referenced by Joseph, as well as their friends and “adjacent entrepreneurs.” Salon has more.

https://flip.it/t5RReK

#AI #OpenAI #SiliconValley #Tech

TechDesk, 23 days ago to ai

It’s been a rough week for OpenAI. Ever since the launch of its latest AI language model, GPT-4o, it has been hit by controversy after controversy — perhaps a sign of just how much public visibility the company is starting to get.

@arstechnica runs through a week of bad news, rumors and ridicule for one of AI’s most prominent and influential companies.

https://flip.it/z590lq

#AI #OpenAi #ChatGPT #Tech

TechDesk, 24 days ago to ai

CNET’s Abrar Al-Heeti was at Google’s I/O developer conference last week and got the opportunity to try out the latest update to Google’s Project Starline 3D video conferencing project.

Google wants its hyper-realistic video calling to roll out next year, something that Al-Heeti describes as “the most-3D rendering of a person I’ve ever seen,” which she believes creates “a more holistic and lifelike interaction.” Read all about her full experience over on @CNET.

https://flip.it/UR.6BB

#AI #GoogleIO #GoogleProjectStarline #Tech

TechDesk, 24 days ago to tech

Self-driving vehicles could be on U.K. roads within two years, after the Automated Vehicles (AV) Act received royal assent to become law.

A core part of the new legislation, which has been in the works since 2022, confirms that corporations will be the ones held responsible in the event of a crash, “meaning a human driver would not be liable for incidents related to driving while the vehicle is in control.”

@TechCrunch has more.

https://flip.it/ortPo7

#AutonomousVehicles #DriverlessCars #Robotaxi #Automotive #Tech

TechDesk, 24 days ago (edited 24 days ago) to microsoft

Microsoft’s Build developer conference doesn’t kick off until tomorrow, but the tech giant just couldn’t wait to lift the lid on some major announcements at an event that wasn’t livestreamed for the public.

As well as confirming some upcoming AI features for Windows 11, Microsoft unveiled its vision for so-called “AI PCs”, which are designed to run a lot of generative AI processes locally instead of in the cloud. The biggest takeaway? These so-called Copilot+ PCs will reportedly be 58% faster than the M3-powered MacBook Air, and a new Surface laptop will be one of the first to hit stores.

Here’s more on all the announcements from @engadget.

https://flip.it/EdOBCl

#Microsoft #MicrosoftBuild #AI #MicrosoftSurface #Windows #Tech

TechDesk, 25 days ago to tech

What should Melinda French Gates do now that she’s announced her departure from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation? How about fixing the tech industry’s broken “brilliant jerk” culture? Tech Crunch’s Julie Bort elaborates. https://flip.it/SdsCmi
#Tech #GatesFoundation #Technology #Women #WomenInStem

TechDesk, 25 days ago to tech

Professor Geoffrey Hinton, the “godfather of AI,” is “very worried about AI taking lots of mundane jobs.” That’s why he has advised U.K. government officials that universal basic income would be a very good idea. BBC News talks to Hinton about who would benefit most from AI, who would suffer from it, and the emerging human-extinction threats facing humans. https://flip.it/QBBzZB
#Tech #Technology #Human #Extinction #AI

TechDesk, 26 days ago to tech

OnlyFans’ top earners have a hard time keeping up with their customers’ demands. Remember that next time you’re chatting with your favorite online influencer girlfriend. Because the person you’re talking to may in fact be one of a rotating cast of low-wage workers. Wired has more in this captivating account by Brendan I. Koerner, a writer who went undercover to unveil a sordid netherworld that, according to at least one lawyer, defrauds customers, generally men, out of thousands of dollars.
https://flip.it/Dr4q5E
#Tech #Technology #AI #OnlyFans