Tech
Web blackouts don’t just silence dissent – they hurt your wallet too
The global cost of internet blackouts rose to $24 billion in 2022, more than quadruple the total for the previous year – although the lion’s share of that was suffered by Russia. Meanwhile, experts are warning that this economic toll may prove even more harmful to citizens of authoritarian countries than the human rights cost.
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Robot liquifies to escape jail Terminator-style
The robot's transformation has been widely compared to a scene from Terminator. Chinese researchers behind the technology claim to have been inspired by sea cucumbers.
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AI doctor will see you now: ChatGPT takes medical exams
A group of researchers had the viral chatbot take the same US medical licensing exams as aspiring doctors. It performed “comfortably within the passing range,” they said.
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Google axes 12,000 jobs
“We hired for a different economic reality than the one we face today,” Google CEO Sundar Pichai said in an email to employees.
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It can dance and it can do parkour – now, Atlas gets to work
Atlas, the humanoid robot, is “one step closer” to performing real-world manipulation tasks at human speed, developer Boston Dynamics said.
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Microsoft announces it will cut 10,000 jobs
Some employees will start receiving notices immediately as Microsoft joins the likes of Amazon and Meta with plans to cut thousands of jobs this year.
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Gas app sold to Discord
The Gas app, which encourages friends to compliment each other, will continue as a standalone app for the time being, Discord said.
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Despite Norton’s woes, passwords may not quite be done just yet
The recent hacking of Norton LifeLock brings the number of high-profile password manager breaches to two after LastPass was also compromised in 2022. This begs the question – if the very entities designed to safeguard our access codes cannot be trusted, is there any point in having either of them?
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Google Stadia is shutting down – Meta should take notice
Google envisioned its cloud gaming service as a Netflix for video games but quickly pulled the plug once it became clear the project would fail. Its problems were similar to those Meta faces in its metaverse gamble.
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Artist builds GPT-3 typewriter that replies to you on paper
The Ghostwriter is an “artifact from the past” powered by a text-generating language model from OpenAI.
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Apple’s mixed reality headset could be released this year
Apple might finally unveil its long-awaited mixed reality headset in spring – unless it postpones, again.
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ChatGPT blocked in NYC schools over cheating concerns
Educators fear the chatbot could be used for cheating and serve as a vehicle for misinformation.
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Nvidia announces new AI tools to “reimagine” metaverse
The chip maker said new features would help accelerate 3D workflows through its Omniverse platform.
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Mental health chatbots can help treat depression symptoms, research shows
Even though conversational programs could not deliver personalized advice, they were found to be “encouraging, nurturing, and motivating.”
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TikTok banned on House-issued devices
The US House of Representatives members and staff were told to delete the Chinese-owned app from their phones as it was "high risk."
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WhatsApp to stop working on older iPhones and Androids
Starting 31 December, the popular messaging app will no longer support 49 older smartphones, including two iPhones and seven Samsung Galaxy models.
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Google enables beta data-encrypting feature
In an apparent effort to shore up its reputation as accusations of data stockpiling mount up, Google has announced it is adding end-to-end encryption – for some, but not all, Gmail users.
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Companies ignore cybersecurity threats as they plunge into metaverse
Most organizations across Australia, the UK, and the US have either already invested in the metaverse or plan to do so soon. Yet, fewer than half are confident existing security infrastructure is capable of tackling associated cyberthreats.
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Apple will allow some Europeans to fix their own phones
Apple expands its self-repair program that launched in the US earlier this year to select countries in Europe.
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Nvidia sued over allegations its graphics card melts cables
A class action suit has been filed at a federal court in California over claims that hardware maker Nvidia's new RTX 4090 graphics card burnt or melted power cables.
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