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Elon Musk drags OpenAI into federal court
Here we go again. Elon Musk has filed another lawsuit against OpenAI and the company's CEO Sam Altman, two months after withdrawing a previous one. Musk once again alleges that OpenAI breached its founding commitments by putting commercial concerns ahead of the public good.
This time around, though, the suit has been filed in federal court rather than in a state court. That's because the new filing alleges that OpenAI violated federal racketeering laws by conspiring to defraud Musk, according to Musk's lawyer Marc Toberoff. “The previous suit lacked teeth — and I don’t believe in the tooth fairy,” Toberoff told The New York Times. “This is a much more forceful lawsuit.”
The latest suit claims that Altman and fellow OpenAI founder Greg Brockman knowingly misled Musk when the trio (and others) formed the company. It alleges that Altman and Brockman walked back on their pledge to open source OpenAI's tech by instead granting Microsoft an exclusive license to it. Microsoft has invested billions of dollars into OpenAI's for-profit subsidiary and holds a 49 percent stake (the FTC is said to be investigating those business dealings).
Furthermore, Musk has asked the court to determine whether OpenAI has achieved artificial general intelligence (AGI), a form of AI that's the equivalent of a human brain. Altman said in January that AGI could be developed in the “reasonably close-ish future.”
Per the suit, Microsoft's contract with OpenAI stipulates that once the latter has reached AGI, it can no longer use the company's tech. If OpenAI has reached AGI in the eyes of the court, then its pact with Microsoft should be declared null and void, according to the filing.
Musk filed the original suit in February. He withdrew it in June, one day before a judge was set to rule on OpenAI's request to dismiss it, but did not provide a reason for doing so.
In a response to the original suit, which it claimed was "incoherent," OpenAI says it aimed to serve the public good by creating AGI. It claims that it needed far more resources than initially thought to do so. The company added that it (and Musk) agreed that a for-profit arm was required to accrue enough resources. However, the parties disagreed on how to go about this, according to OpenAI. The company said Musk wanted full control or for OpenAI to merge with Tesla. Musk ultimately left OpenAI and eventually went on to start his own AI company, xAI.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/elon-musk-drags-openai-into-federal-court-152709507.html?src=rss
https://www.engadget.com/elon-musk-drags-openai-into-federal-court-152709507.html?src=rss
Apple's 13-inch M3 MacBook Air is $250 off right now and cheaper than ever
No matter how many years have passed since I had to prepare to go back to school, I can't help but feel like August requires getting some new equipment. If you're the same, then it's worth looking at the 23 percent sale on Apple's 2024 MacBook Air 13-inch Laptop with an M3 chip. The MacBook is currently available for an all-time low price of $850, rather than its usual $1099. The 15-inch model is also on sale, down to $1,050 from $1,299 — a 19 percent discount.
This model is our choice for Apple's best MacBook overall. We gave it a 90 in our review thanks to a solid bump in power over its predecessor and reliable features. It comes with an 8-core CPU, 8-core GPU and 16-core Neural Engine. It also has 256GB of storage, 8GB of memory and up to 18 hours of battery life. Plus, we love the solid quad-speaker array, sturdy, sleek design and fast performance.
If you're in the market for a very heavy-duty laptop, then check out the 24 percent discount on Apple's 2023 MacBook Pro Laptop with an M3 Pro chip — our choice of best MacBook for creatives. The 512GB model with 18GB of unified memory is available for $1900, down from $2,499. The 2023 MacBook Pro offers a 14.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR display with an Extreme Dynamic Range and 1000 nits of sustained brightness. This is the model to look into if you're going to be completing high-speed editing and incredible clarity.
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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apples-13-inch-m3-macbook-air-is-250-off-right-now-and-cheaper-than-ever-140221470.html?src=rss
Neuralink successfully implants its chip into a second patient's brain
Neuralink's brain chip has been implanted into a second patient as part of early human trials, Elon Musk told podcast host Lex Fridman on Saturday. The company hasn't disclosed when the surgery took place or the name of the recipient, according to Reuters.
Musk said 400 of the electrodes on the second patient's brain are working out of 1,024 implanted. "I don't want to jinx it but it seems to have gone extremely well," he said. "There's a lot of signal, a lot of electrodes. It's working very well."
The device allows patients with spinal cord injuries to play video games, use the internet and control electronic devices using their thoughts alone. In May, the company announced that it was "accepting applications for the second participant" in trials following FDA approval.
The original Neuralink implant patient, Nolan Arbaugh, described the surgery as "super easy." In a demo, the company showed how Arbaugh was able to move a cursor around the screen of a laptop, pause an on-screen music device and play chess and Civilization VI.
Arbaugh himself participated in the marathon podcast with Musk and Fridman. He said that the device allows him to make anything happen on a computer screen just by thinking it, helping reduce his reliance on caregivers.
However, problems cropped up shortly after his surgery when some of electrodes retracted from his brain. The issue was partly rectified later on by modifying the algorithm to make the implants more sensitive. Neuralink told the FDA that in a second procedure, it would place the implant’s threads deeper into the patient’s brain to prevent them from moving as much as they did in Arbaugh’s case.
Neuralink previously tested its implant in animals, including chimps, and some of those testing practices have been the subject of federal investigations.
Despite those issues, the company said it had over 1,000 volunteers for its second surgical trial. Musk said he expects Neuralink to implant its chips in up to eight more patients by the end of 2024.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/neuralink-successfully-implants-its-chip-into-a-second-patients-brain-123013864.html?src=rss
HBO drops the first teaser for The Last of Us season two
HBO has released the first teaser for The Last of Us season two and while short, it offers clues as to what we can expect when the series debuts in 2025. It starts off with Joel (Pedro Pascal) in conversation with a new character played by Catherine O'Hara (seemingly his therapist), reckoning with his past actions. "Did you hurt her?" she asks. "I saved her," he replies.
On top of O'Hara's unknown role, we see other characters for the first time including Kaitlyn Dever's Abby, Jeffrey Wright reprising his video game voice role as Isaac, and Dina, played by Isabela Merced. Meanwhile with returning cast, Joel's brother Tommy (Gabriel Luna) as well as Ellie (Bella Ramsey) appear briefly in some intense action scenes.
As revealed last year, showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann decided to split the events from The Last of Us Part II video game into two seasons, since the story was far more complex than the original. The second season will be just seven episodes to create a natural break, while the third season will be "significantly larger," they said.
The original series mostly followed the events of the game, with some smart deviations and changes. Expect more of the same for season two, though the teaser already shows one significant divergence. In the game, Joel only confesses the events that occurred at the hospital to his brother, but here, he's telling Catherine O'Hara's character.
The teaser appeared as part of HBO's Coming to Max trailer, along with previews for The Penguin, Dune: Prophecy, It: Welcome to Derry, and our first peak at A Knight of the Seven Kingdom, the next Game of Thrones spinoff.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/hbo-drops-the-first-teaser-for-the-last-of-us-season-two-120035871.html?src=rss
The Morning After: Meta is reportedly offering millions to get Hollywood voices into its AI projects
According to Bloomberg and The New York Times, Meta is in talks with the likes of Keegan-Michael Key, Awkwafina and Dame Judi Dench, among others, for its AI projects. The company apparently intends to incorporate their voices into a conversational generative AI-slash-digital assistant called MetaAI, which is rumored to be like Siri and Google Assistant, which could live within Facebook, Meta hardware, and all the other parts of the multimillion-dollar social network company.
The actors’ representatives are still negotiating for stricter limits, though SAG-AFTRA has reportedly agreed on terms with Meta. SAG-AFTRA, if you recall, fought for provisions to protect actors from the threat of job loss due to AI.
Didn’t Meta already do something like this? Yes. During its Connect event last year, the company also introduced a chatbot platform with 28 “characters” voiced by celebrities, including Snoop Dogg, Paris Hilton, Dwyane Wade and Kendall Jenner. However, those celebrity chatbots’ pages have since disappeared, and The Information reports that Meta has just quietly scrapped that project.
This appears to be more central to Meta’s AI ambitions.
— Mat Smith
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Apple has finally started sending out payments from its butterfly keyboard settlement
It agreed to pay $50 million.
Payments relating to a class action lawsuit filed in 2018 over Apple’s butterfly MacBook keyboards have reportedly begun. The settlement website now states that payments for approved claims will go out in August, and claimants will receive checks. For some, it could mean a check of up to $395.
After Apple introduced the butterfly keyboard in 2015, complaints arose over “sticky” and unresponsive keys. A lawsuit filed in 2018 accused Apple of knowing its keyboards had problems and concealing this from consumers. While Apple denied the lawsuit’s allegations of defective keyboards, it agreed to pay $50 million as part of a settlement. It also started phasing out the keyboard design in 2019.
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Instagram scammer faces felony charges after bragging on a podcast
Idriss Qibaa is being charged over death threats in social media extortion.
A guest who appeared on a podcast to boast about a hack-and-payback scheme involving his victims’ social media accounts is now facing the wrath of the FBI. It received a tip about Qibaa’s alleged extortion scheme on April 1, pointing to his appearance on the No Jumper podcast. Qibaa outlined a financial scheme using over 200 victims’ social media accounts, in which he would lock them out of their pages and charge them to regain access. He added he made about $600,000 a month.
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Game Informer magazine is shutting down
After 33 years.
Game Informer
Game Informer announced its parent company, GameStop, is shutting the magazine after 33 years in the business. The entire website and its archives are gone, redirecting to the magazine’s final statement of thanks to its readers. The publication’s content director, Kyle Hilliard, said on X the bad news about the mass staff layoffs landed right when they were in the middle of creating an issue. Game Informer launched in August 1991 with Sonic the Hedgehog sprinting across its cover.
Continue reading.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-meta-is-reportedly-offering-millions-to-get-hollywood-voices-into-its-ai-projects-111549125.html?src=rss
The best ergonomic keyboards for 2024
Spending hours at a computer can be rough on your body. If your wrists, shoulders, neck or other areas have started complaining, you might want to get an ergonomic keyboard. The ergonomic design shifts the position of your arms and wrists, which, for some, can relieve tension and strain. After using a fully split keyboard for a number of months, I feel an improvement in my shoulder tension. But split boards come with a learning curve. Semi-split, or Alice boards, are easier to get used to while still opening up space between your elbows. Other factors, like tenting and a negative tilt can also address discomfort. Since there’s no single best ergonomic keyboard for everyone, this guide will help you decide which type of board might suit your needs.
What to look for in an ergonomic keyboard
Alice vs split
Most ergonomic keyboard layouts fall into two categories: Alice and split. The former is a single board with the two halves of the keys rotated about 30 degrees apart at the bottom. The separation forms an A-shaped space between the keys — which has nothing to do with why it’s called an Alice layout, it’s just a happy coincidence. This subtle tweak pushes your elbows away from your ribs while keeping a straight line from your forearm to your middle knuckle. Using one, I pretty instantly felt more open along the front side of my body. This layout more closely resembles a traditional keyboard, so it should be easier for most folks to get used to than a fully split option.
Speaking of, split boards break the keys into two separate parts you can position individually. You can put them shoulder distance apart, bring them closer together or angle them as much as feels comfortable. You can also put your mouse between the halves, which may feel like an easier trip for your cursor hand. Personally, I like being able to put my current snack between the two parts. I've also found that pairing a split keyboard with a good ergonomic mouse has helped me even more.
Tenkeyless
You can find ergonomic keyboards with and without number pads. Not having those number keys on the right side lets you keep your mouse closer in, minimizing overall reach. But if you work with numbers a lot, you’ll likely want that pad included. Some programmable boards allow for the use of layers, which temporarily repurpose keys and can provide you with a ten-key option through clever remapping of letter keys.
Tenting and negative tilt
Tenting raises the middle of the keyboard up, so your hands move closer to a “handshake” position. Alice keyboards usually angle up towards the middle and always to a fixed degree, since the two sides are connected. Split boards often let you adjust the degree of tenting, going from flat to subtle to extreme lift.
You may have encountered keyboards with an optional lift at the back of the board, raising the top keys higher than the space bar. Every set of hands is different, but for most people, pulling the backs of the hands towards the forearms increases strain. Negative tilt has the opposite effect by sloping in the other direction, lowering the top number keys while raising the edge with the spacebar. Many Alice and some split keyboards offer an optional negative tilt. I found it was more comfortable to enable that feature when I’m standing, and I preferred to have the keys flat when sat at my desk.
Staggered vs columnar
This decision seems to be one of the more hotly-contested among ergo enthusiasts. A conventional keyboard has staggered keys, with each row slightly offset to the rows above and below it — so the A key is about halfway between the Q and W above it. This is a holdover from vintage mechanical typewriters, in which each press activated a hammer that smashed ink onto paper in the shape of a letter. To fit the hammers as close together as possible, while still allowing for finger pads, the keys were staggered.
Columnar or ortholinear keyboards stack the keys in orderly columns, often with rows that are not linear. Proponents claim this makes the keys easier to reach. Whether that’s true will be up to your fingers to decide, but I can say for certain that if you learned to type on a staggered keyboard, switching to a columnar layout is tough. It will take days, possibly weeks before you instinctively hit the C key. The N, M and B keys don’t fare much better.
Programmable keys
With a few exceptions, most ergonomic keyboards will work with PCs or Macs as a standard typing input, but the use of function and hot keys may require some remapping. It can be as easy as an onboard switch to toggle between Mac and PC layouts, or as involved as downloading software to change up the keys. Some boards even include (or let you buy) extra keycaps to change, say, the Mac’s Command and Option keys to PC’s Start and Alt buttons.
For some boards, remapping or programming keys is a crucial feature. Gaming peripherals have extra keys that you can set to execute a series of keystrokes with the push of a single button. Keyboards that work with layers, in which a single button can perform several functions, typically allow you to change what those are. Some ergo keyboards have non-standard layouts, like thumb clusters with multiple keys near the space bar that you operate with your thumb. You’ll also be able to program those.
Other considerations
Ergonomic keyboards come in mechanical, membrane, and scissor switch versions. Which works best for you is, again, up to your preference. I won’t get too deep into the particulars here, as we have an entire guide devoted to mechanical boards, but the short of it is that membrane and scissor switches are less customizable than mechanical and typically cheaper. Typing on them tends to be quieter and softer. Mechanical switches are more customizable, offer a more responsive typing experience and are usually pricier.
You’ll also have the option of wired or wireless ergonomic boards. All other things being equal, wired models are less expensive. Competitive gamers who rely on split-second responses may prefer the zero-lag of wired keyboards. Wired models also never run out of battery life and have fewer connectivity issues. But wireless keyboards keep your desk less cluttered.
Some ergonomic keyboards come with permanent or removable wrist or palm rests, which can be cushioned or hard. This is another area where opinions diverge: proponents claim they help you maintain a neutral hand position, while detractors say they put pressure on the tendons in your wrist and can exacerbate conditions like carpal tunnel. Ideally, your palms should be resting, not your wrists, and you might find you like having that support or you may find the pressure uncomfortable.
How we tested
All our guides begin with extensive research to figure out what’s out there and what’s worth testing. We consider brands with good reputations that we’ve heard good things about from colleagues and look at keyboard reviews in forums and other trusted publications. For this guide, I looked for keyboards with ergonomic features like tenting, split keys, palm support and so on. I also zeroed in on boards that didn’t require a deep amount of familiarity with the vast and exhaustive world of custom keyboards.
Once I settled on ten boards, I acquired them and used each one for anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. I tried out the remapping and macros software and considered the comfort, design, price and durability of each model before arriving at picks I think will work best for the most people out there.
Best ergonomic keyboards for 2024
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/best-ergonomic-keyboard-130047982.html?src=rss
https://www.engadget.com/best-ergonomic-keyboard-130047982.html?src=rss
I finally understand the hype around the Playdate game Root Bear
Root Bear is one of those games that seems to get recommended all the time to new Playdate owners looking for somewhere to start. After months of encountering the title on the internet and vaguely wondering what could be so great about a game where all you do is pour root beer for bears, I finally decided to give it a go this weekend. And, yup, I totally get it now. Root Bear is ridiculously fun — emphasis on ridiculous.
Root Bear is a $3 Catalog game in which your goal is to achieve the perfect pour from the root beer tap while picky customers (all bears, of course) judge your work. You can also get it on itch.io. The game requires precise use of the crank to get the root beer flowing at just the right rate, and cut it off at just the right time so it doesn’t go above or fall short of the desired fill line. There’s foam to consider too, and how it settles can really mess you up if you aren’t careful. The closer you get to a perfect pour, the more money you’ll earn.
Alex Sussman/Cole O'Brien/Andrea Cabral/Beau QP
It’s exactly the kind of design to bring out a person’s competitive streak. But the best part about Root Bear is the bears themselves. Or, their reactions. The first time I royally messed up a customer’s order, the bear let loose a Howie Scream that I was in no way prepared for — with a facial expression to match — and I was completely floored. So yes, Root Bear is a really good, really silly time.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/i-finally-understand-the-hype-around-the-playdate-game-root-bear-002037850.html?src=rss
OpenAI confirms it’s looking into text watermarking for ChatGPT that could expose cheating students
Following a report from The Wall Street Journal that claims OpenAI has been sitting on a tool that can detect essays written by ChatGPT with a high degree of accuracy, the company has shared a bit of information about its research into text watermarking — and why it hasn’t released its detection method. According to The Wall Street Journal’s report, debate over whether the tool should be released has kept it from seeing the light of day, despite it being “ready.” In an update published on Sunday to a May blog post, spotted by TechCrunch, OpenAI said, “Our teams have developed a text watermarking method that we continue to consider as we research alternatives.”
The company said watermarking is one of multiple solutions, including classifiers and metadata, that it has looked into as part of “extensive research on the area of text provenance.” According to OpenAI, it “has been highly accurate” in some situations, but doesn’t perform as well when faced with certain forms of tampering, “like using translation systems, rewording with another generative model, or asking the model to insert a special character in between every word and then deleting that character.” And text watermarking could “disproportionately impact some groups,” OpenAI wrote. “For example, it could stigmatize use of AI as a useful writing tool for non-native English speakers.”
Per the blog post, OpenAI has been weighing these risks. The company also wrote that it has prioritized the release of authentication tools for audiovisual content. In a statement to TechCrunch, an OpenAI spokesperson said the company is taking a “deliberate approach” to text provenance because of “the complexities involved and its likely impact on the broader ecosystem beyond OpenAI.”
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/openai-confirms-its-looking-into-text-watermarking-for-chatgpt-that-could-expose-cheating-students-223920531.html?src=rss
What we’re listening to: I Dreamt I Found a Red Ruby, Stampede and more
In this installment of What We're Listening To, Engadget's Weekend Editor Cheyenne MacDonald shares some recent music releases she's been loving.
Francesca Wexler - I Dreamt I Found a Red Ruby
Every once in a while, “the algorithm” actually does right by me. While scrolling through my Instagram feed sometime in the last month or so, a suggested Reel from artist Francesca Wexler popped up, and I couldn’t help but get pulled in by her captivating flow. Her style isn’t so easy to nail down to a single genre, but would fit under the alt hip-hop umbrella — she described her work in one instance as “psychedelic rap.”
Some songs on Wexler’s latest album, I Dreamt I Found a Red Ruby, have almost an ethereal quality to them, like its opening and closing tracks, “Heaven on Earth” and “Moonwalking.” The upbeat and catchy “Ain’t I” hits like a sunny day. But there are darker, harder moments too in songs like “Amphetamine Man” that really show off Wexler’s depth as a rapper. With I Dreamt I Found a Red Ruby, it’s evident that Wexler is an artist that shouldn’t be slept on.
Orville Peck - Stampede
Orville Peck didn’t make us wait long for a full album after dropping Stampede: Volume 1 in May. On Friday, the country artist released the duets album in its entirety, and even though it hasn’t been a full three days yet since it came out, I can already tell it’s going to dominate my Most Listened playlists for the foreseeable future.
Stampede sees Peck collaborating with country legends and emerging artists alike, and genre-wise, there’s a little of everything in there. On top of the songs I shouted out from the first half, the rest of Stampede brings a bunch of new bangers, my favorites including “Back At Your Door” featuring Debbii Dawson, “Papa Was a Rodeo” featuring Molly Tuttle and Golden Highway, and “You’re an Asshole, I Can’t Stand You (and I Want a Divorce) featuring Margo Price.
Honorable mention:
Street Cleaner — I recently set out looking for music that sounds like it could be straight out of an ‘80s horror/thriller movie, and Reddit pointed me to Street Cleaner. Well let me tell you, I was not disappointed. Street Cleaner, whose style is described on Bandcamp as being a “theatrical and grimey take on synth music,” has become my go-to artist to pop on when I need to get some work done or otherwise be locked in.
There isn’t a particular song or album I've latched onto — I just throw the entire discography on and let it get me in the zone. Street Cleaner released some new music in April, though, and that's as good a place as any to start your listening journey. The artist apparently also made a video game, which I fully plan on checking out.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/what-were-listening-to-i-dreamt-i-found-a-red-ruby-stampede-and-more-205000229.html?src=rss
The Eternal Life of Goldman is a gorgeous platformer that looks like a hand-drawn cartoon
There’s a new hand-drawn platformer coming to PC and consoles, and it looks absolutely breathtaking. The Eternal Life of Goldman, announced on Friday during THQ Nordic’s Digital Showcase, is an upcoming title from Weappy Studio that’s “inspired by ancient fables and depicted in classic frame-by-frame animation.” There’s no release date just yet, but when it does come out, it’ll be available for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC and Nintendo Switch.
Weappy describes The Eternal Life of Goldman as “a vibrant yet dark platformer adventure that weaves together legends, fairy tales and myths.”
Its protagonist is an old man who uses his cane to fight off legendary creatures in a land known as the Archipelago. The trailer gives us a glimpse at some gameplay footage, revealing a sprawling and gorgeously animated fantasy world. The developers say it’s designed to be challenging but not grueling, and encourages exploration to uncover all the secrets of the Archipelago.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-eternal-life-of-goldman-is-a-gorgeous-platformer-that-looks-like-a-hand-drawn-cartoon-173751928.html?src=rss
A four-pack of Apple AirTags is back on sale for $76
Apple’s AirTags are the best item trackers an iPhone user can get, and they’re going for cheap right now in a deal on Amazon. A four pack of AirTags — normally $100 — is 23 percent off, making it just $76. That’s only $1 more than the pack was selling for during Amazon Prime Day. AirTags tap into Apple’s Find My network, sending out a signal that can be picked up by nearby devices to guide you to your lost item.
AirTags work seamlessly with other devices in the Apple ecosystem and have a battery life of over a year. In addition to helping locate belongings you may have left somewhere outside the home, AirTags can also help you track down items you’ve misplaced in your immediate surroundings thanks to the Precision Finding feature in the Find My app. You can also ping the AirTag so it’ll play a sound that you can follow.
AirTags don’t have a loop or clip that would allow you to attach them to a keyring, so you’ll need to pick up a case if you want to do so. There are all sorts of accessories available for AirTags to secure them to your belongings, including keyring holders and cases designed to adhere to fabric so you can securely stick them in the lining of a jacket or purse. AirTags have an IP67 rating, meaning they’ll withstand dust and brief exposure to water, and the CR2032 battery is easily replaceable. The Find My app supports tracking up to 32 items.
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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/a-four-pack-of-apple-airtags-is-back-on-sale-for-76-150547693.html?src=rss
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Apple has finally started sending out payments from its butterfly keyboard settlement
Payments relating to a class action lawsuit filed in 2018 over Apple’s butterfly MacBook keyboards have reportedly begun to arrive. The settlement website now states that payments for approved claims will go out in August — and sure enough, 9to5Mac’s Michael Burkhardt reports that he received two settlement checks in the mail on Saturday. Just how much eligible MacBook owners will get varies depending on the extent of the repairs their devices needed. But for some, it could mean a check (or multiple) of up to $395.
After Apple introduced the butterfly keyboard in 2015, complaints arose over “sticky” and unresponsive keys, susceptibility to debris and other major issues. The company ultimately started phasing out the design in 2019. While Apple denied the lawsuit’s allegations of defective keyboards and did not admit to any wrongdoing, it agreed to pay $50 million as part of a settlement.
Per the settlement website, people who got two or more topcase replacements within four years of purchasing one of the affected MacBooks are expected to get between $300-$395. MacBook owners who got just one topcase replacement could get up to $125. Claimants who only needed keycap replacements will get a maximum of $50. Of course, to receive a payment, you’d need to have filed any claims by the deadlines outlined in the settlement. And, when the settlement was first reached in 2022, Reuters reported that it will only apply to customers who bought the affected laptops in California, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, New York and Washington. You can find the full details in the case’s FAQ.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-has-finally-started-sending-out-payments-from-its-butterfly-keyboard-settlement-210754935.html?src=rss
What to read this weekend: Existential sci-fi, a repair manual for the climate crisis, EC Comics resurrected
New releases in fiction, nonfiction and comics that caught our attention.
Toward Eternity by Anton Hur
Toward Eternity does not waste any time in getting to the drama. The novel by Anton Hur begins in the not-so-far-off future, and opens with a moment of crisis: a patient in a nanotherapy research clinic has seemingly vanished into thin air. This patient had been undergoing a new type of treatment that uses android cells (dubbed “nanites”) to cure cancer by replacing the body’s own cells. In doing so, however, it transforms the body entirely into a nanodroid, giving rise to “nano humans” that are no longer subjected to mortality.
The story jumps through time and different perspectives, exploring what it means “to be human in a world where technology is quickly catching up to biology.” From the second I started reading this one, I did not want to put it down.
Into the Clear Blue Sky: The Path to Restoring Our Atmosphere by Rob Jackson
It can be hard not to get swept up in the doom and gloom of climate change, especially amid reports marking Earth’s hottest years on record and still-rising emissions from fossil fuels. Stanford climate scientist Rob Jackson’s new book Into the Clear Blue Sky: The Path to Restoring Our Atmosphere aims to foster a more optimistic outlook by calling attention to the courses of action that could lead us to a better future for our planet and its inhabitants.
“I view my book as a home repair manual for the planet,” Jackson said in a recent interview published by the scientific journal ACS Central Science. “It highlights the people and the ideas needed to solve the climate crisis. I want most of all to give people hope, a sense of optimism. Yes, climate change is already bad, but we can still fix this problem.”
Epitaphs from the Abyss #1
Legendary comic book publisher EC Comics, which brought us series like Tales from the Crypt and Weird Science more than 70 years ago, is making a comeback with its first new series in decades: Epitaphs from the Abyss. The first issue of the horror series was released at the end of July and features four tales — which are introduced by a ghoulish narrator dubbed The Grave-Digger.
Epitaphs from the Abyss #1 has stories by Brian Azzarello, J. Holtham, Stephanie Phillips and Chris Condon, with art by Lee Bermejo, Phil Hester, Peter Krause and Jorge Fornés. There’s something about those old EC Comics that just hits different, and Epitaphs faithfully slips back into that vibe to deliver spooky new stories that have a classic feel.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/what-to-read-books-existential-sci-fi-ai-technology-climate-crisis-solutions-ec-comics-horror-183058573.html?src=rss
Prison Architect 2 is delayed indefinitely
Prison Architect 2, the sequel to the 2015 cult hit, isn't coming out this year as its creators had planned. The prison construction simulator's publisher, Paradox Interactive, has announced that its release has been delayed indefinitely. In its post, Paradox has admitted that its internal reviews and beta testing feedbacks surfaced the areas that need more attention, mainly the game's performance and content. "We need to raise the quality a bit more to meet the standards we'd like to achieve with this sequel," it wrote.
This latest development comes after a series of delays. Prison Architect 2 was supposed to come out on March 26, but it was pushed back a couple of times so that its developers at Double Eleven and Kokku could resolve issues concerning memory usage and minimum spec configuration. This time, Paradox decided not to set a new release date. It says it will announce a new one once the Prison Architect 2 teams are done reworking the game's scope.
Earlier this year, Paradox Interactive also had to deal with the overwhelmingly negative reception for Cities: Skylines 2's Beach Properties asset pack. Players weren't happy with the $10 DLC's contents, especially since they're still waiting for patches for the main game that was riddled with visual and mechanical bugs when it was released in 2023. Prison Architect 2's delay could prevent a repeat of what happened to Cities: Skylines.
Paradox explained that improving the game will take time, because it has "deep systems that all interact with each other." If one area is fixed, other parts of the game need to be fixed or adjusted, as well. For now, the publisher and the developers will refund all pre-orders. Those who purchased from Paradox directly will automatically be reimbursed, but those who purchased from the Xbox, PlayStation or Steam stores will have to go through those platforms to get their refund. Paradox will remove the option to pre-order the game entirely and will add the supposed pre-order bonus to the base game instead.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/prison-architect-2-is-delayed-indefinitely-160038125.html?src=rss
https://www.engadget.com/prison-architect-2-is-delayed-indefinitely-160038125.html?src=rss
NVIDIA’s Blackwell AI chips have reportedly hit a snag and may arrive months late
NVIDIA has discovered “design flaws” in its upcoming series of AI chips that may push their release back at least three months, The Information reports. The company has reportedly started notifying customers of the delay, including Microsoft. Large orders of the new Blackwell chips were initially slated to start shipping sometime this year, but sources told The Information that they’re now not expected until early 2025. In addition to Microsoft, the publication reports that Google, Meta and other major companies have placed bulk orders of the Blackwell chips that are collectively worth “tens of billions of dollars.”
NVIDIA announced the Blackwell series chips back in March, touting performance boosts of up to 30 times what’s achieved by its flagship H100, which serves as the backbone for some of today’s biggest AI systems. The company at the time also said the Blackwell chips could reduce “cost and energy consumption by up to 25x.” But according to The Information, citing sources involved with the Blackwell chip, “design problems arose unusually late in the production process.”
NVIDIA and its chip manufacturer, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, are now doing test production runs to get to the bottom of the issues, according to The Information, which reports that the first big shipments may not go out until the first quarter.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/nvidias-blackwell-ai-chips-have-reportedly-hit-a-snag-and-may-arrive-months-late-163009474.html?src=rss
Meta is reportedly offering millions to use Hollywood voices in AI projects
A future artificial intelligence product by Meta could have you chatting with celebrities. According to Bloomberg and The New York Times, the company is in talks with Awkwafina, Judi Dench and Keegan-Michael Key, among other celebrities from various Hollywood agencies for its AI projects. The company apparently intends to incorporate their voices into a conversational generative AI-slash-digital assistant called MetaAI, which is similar to Siri and Google Assistant.
Meta plans to record their voices and to secure the right to use them for as many situations as possible across Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp and even the Ray-Ban Meta glasses. Bloomberg says negotiations have started and stopped many times, because both sides can't seem to agree with the terms for use. For now, they seemed to have settled on a time limit, meaning any voice the company records can only be used over a set period. However, the deals with the actors could be renewed or extended by the time their contract is up.
The actors' representatives are still looking to negotiate for stricter limits, though SAG-AFTRA has reportedly reached an agreement with Meta on terms. SAG-AFTRA, if you'll recall, fought for the establishment of provisions to protect actors from the threat of job loss due to AI when it went on strike last year. Under those terms, a company will have to pay actors and obtain their consent before it can use their AI-generated likeness. If Meta reaches a deal with the actors it's talking to, it could pay them millions of dollars in fees.
Meta is looking to finalize deals before its Connect conference in September, The Times says, where it's expected to launch a bunch of AI products. During the same event last year, the company also introduced a chatbot platform with 28 "characters" voiced by celebrities, including Snoop Dogg, Paris Hilton, Dwyane Wade and Kendall Jenner. The Information reports that Meta has just quietly scrapped that project, and the celebrity chatbots' pages on Facebook and Instagram are no longer available.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/meta-is-reportedly-offering-millions-to-use-hollywood-voices-in-ai-projects-121019385.html?src=rss
Apple apologizes for another ad that missed the mark
Apple pulled the latest short film in its The Underdogs: OOO (Out of Office) series set in Thailand. The tech giant scrubbed it over complaints about stereotypical portrayals of Thailand and its people in certain scenes.
The Bangkok Post reports that Apple issued an apology to the people of Thailand for the fifth film in its Underdogs series. The ad series features a group of travel weary office workers navigating the world using Apple’s various products.
Several viewers posted comments criticizing the film’s use of a sepia filter to make Thailand seem underdeveloped. The comments also called out the costuming and scenery decisions in its airport scene using outdated representations of Thailand’s citizens.
Sattra Sripan, the spokesman for the Thai House of Representatives’ committee on tourism, called for a boycott over the ad.
“Thai people are deeply unhappy with the advertisement,” Sripan said in a statement. “I encourage Thai people to stop using Apple products and change to other brands.”
Apple issued an apology for the ad shortly after pulling it off of YouTube. Lawmakers have also invited Apple representatives to visit with them to discuss the ads and how they portray Thailand on film.
“Our intent was to celebrate the country’s optimism and culture, and we apologize for not fully capturing the vibrancy of Thailand today,” the statement read.
This is the second time this year that Apple has apologized for a commercial. Apple pulled an ad back in May that it told AdAge “missed the mark” for its new thin iPad Pro. The commercial features a giant pneumatic press crushing a large collection of items used in or to represent creative endeavors such musical instruments, paints, a generic arcade cabinet, and camera equipment. The steel crusher smooshes everything flat and lifts up to reveal an intact iPad sitting on the lower steel block that a voiceover describes as “the most powerful iPad ever is also the thinnest.”
Artists, musicians and other creators took offense to the ad’s implied tone that generative AI would replace human artistic endeavors. Apple vowed not to air the ad on TV but it’s still on its YouTube page with the comments section disabled.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-apologizes-for-another-ad-that-missed-the-mark-220045564.html?src=rss
https://www.engadget.com/apple-apologizes-for-another-ad-that-missed-the-mark-220045564.html?src=rss
Hack and payback Instagram scammer gets nabbed after bragging about it on a podcast
A guest who appeared on the No Jumper podcast to boast about a hack and payback scheme involving his victims’ social media accounts could face federal charges. Idriss Qibaa, also known as “Dani” and “Unlocked” who authorities allege ran the social media hacking site Unlocked4Life.com, faces two criminal felony counts filed by the US Attorney's Office in Nevada for allegedly violating interstate communications laws for threats he issued in text messages to two victims and members of their families, according to documents obtained by 404 Media.
Investigators filed the sealed complaint against Qibaa on July 25 and issued a warrant the following Monday when also made his first initial appearance in court, according to federal court records.
The criminal complaint states that the FBI received a tip about Qibaa’s alleged extortion scheme on April 1 pointing to an appearance he made on the No Jumper podcast hosted by Adam22, also known as Adam Grandmaison, back in January under his pseudonym “Dani.” Qibaa outlined a financial scheme using over 200 victims’ social media accounts in which he would lock them out of their pages and charge them to regain access.
He also boasted that he made about $600,000 a month from his activities and hired two security guards to follow him.
“You’re making $2 million a month off your Instagram and Telegraph,” Qibaa says on the podcast. “I come and I take it away and make you pay for it back and I make it public and I post it and I expose you.”
Qibaa even said on the podcast episode that he pulled the scheme on celebrities who unknowingly kept paying him to get their social media back. He later noted “I’m very petty” followed by a menacing laugh.
“I’ve talked to stars who have told me that they’ve paid to get it back 20 times over and over and over they just have to keep paying to get it back,” Qibaa says, “and I’m like you realize what’s happening to you right like the same that’s getting you it back is…you’re getting extorted.”
The criminal complaint tells the story of eight victims’ encounters with Qibaa and his services. One identified as “J.T.” operated two Instagram accounts: a cannabis news aggregate account called “theblacklistxyz” and a cannabis merchandising store under “caliplug,” both of which are currently set to private. J.T. reached out to Qibaa asking if he could obtain a username. Qibaa quoted a price back between $4,000-$5,000. J.T. refused to take Qibaa up on the offer and Qibaa responded with threats.
“Qibba told J.T. that J.T. had wasted Qibaa’s time, blocked J.T.’s Instagram pages and demanded $10,000 to reinstate it,” the complaint reads. “J.T. offered Qibaa $8,500 to reinstate the account, an officer Qibaa accepted.”
The complaint asserts that Qibba reached out to J.T. two more times. The first time, Qibba asked if J.T. would promote his Instagram page under the username “unlocked4life” that’s since been taken down. J.T. agreed but when he learned Qibaa had been threatening and extorting other victims, he confronted Qibaa and “Qibaa was irate.”
A few months later, Qibaa apparently increased the scope of his threats to J.T. and members of his family. He sent threats to call the victim’s ex-wife’s lawyer and child protective services on his kids. Screenshots of the victims’ phone show Qibaa allegedly identifying the address and phone number of the victim’s sister. He texted another family member and introduced himself as “The guy that’s gonna murder your drug dealer brother. Tell him Unlocked says hi though. We have your entire family’s info.”
Another victim identified as a journalist and comedian with the initials “E.H.” learned they were a target of Qibaa’s illegal services. Qibaa blocked their Instagram account, the name of which was redacted, at the request of a dentist in California who treated them. E.H. reached out to the Unlocked4Life account and received a reply that read, “Yo its Idriss.” He then told E.H. to pull up the No Jumper podcast episode featuring his interview. Qibaa not only took the victim’s Instagram account access away but also threatened to take their Social Security number and “blast it out” if they didn’t pay him $20,000.
According to the complaint, not even restraining orders could make Qibaa leave his victims alone. One named “R.B.” received a restraining order from Los Angeles County Superior Court in July but “Unblocked” responded, “Cute restraining order..last I checked you’re still gonna die.” Then “UNLOCKED UNCENSORED” posted on Telegram, “$50,000 reward for whoever sleeps BO this week.”
Perhaps the most disturbing threats happened to several victims in which Qibaa claimed he’d happily go to jail if payments weren’t made to him. Screenshots of the text chains show a person named “Dani” and “Daniel” telling his victims, “I will come and shoot you myself,” “I’m going to bury you for this shit” and “D., L., J., T., Children-Main Targets” referring to the victims’ children.
Another text chain shows Qibaa allegedly threatening someone that he would “rather take a life sentence for murdering you then this,” “Idc if I have to shoot you my self [sic]” and “I’ll go to jail happily.” He follows the text with the threat “Here’s the last guy that came to take photos / came near my home” and sends three pictures of an unidentified bearded man, his car and a photo of his badly bruised and bloodied on the ground.”
Adam22 concluded his podcast interview with “Dani” saying he was “very excited to see the fallout from this” and “I respect the hustle even though I can’t justify it on a moral level.”
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/hack-and-payback-instagram-scammer-gets-nabbed-after-bragging-about-it-on-a-podcast-202509349.html?src=rss
Google will no longer air an Olympics ad that showed a child using AI to write a fan letter
Google is phasing out an Olympics ad after for its AI-powered chatbot, Gemini, after receiving widespread criticism of showing a father use AI to help his daughter write a fan letter to her favorite athlete. The 60-second commercial, which is still available on YouTube, shows a father using Gemini to write a fan letter to an idol, Olympic track star Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, on behalf of his young daughter.
“She wants to show Sydney some love and I am pretty good with words, but this has to be just right,” the dad says in the commercial. “So Gemini, help my daughter write a letter telling Sydney how inspiring she is.” The ad ends with the words: “A little help from Gemini.”
A Google spokesperson told CNBC that although the ad tested well before it aired, “given the feedback, we have decided to phase the ad out of our Olympics rotation.” The spokesperson added that the ad’s goal was to create an authentic story to celebrate Team USA. “We believe that AI can be a great tool for enhancing human creativity, but can never replace it,” they added.
“The commercial showing somebody having a child use AI to write a fan letter to her hero SUCKS,” wrote Linda Holmes, the host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast, on Threads. “Obviously there are special circumstances and people who need help, but as a general ‘look how cool, she didn’t even have to write anything herself!’ story, it SUCKS. Who wants an AI-written fan letter??”
Shelley Palmer, a professor of advanced media at Syracuse University’s communications school, strongly criticized the ad in a widely-shared post on her blog. She argued that the commercial’s approach could lead to a “monocultural future where original human thoughts become increasingly rare” and expressed concern for the ads’s implications for parenting and education.
The backlash reflects the broader debates around the role of AI in creative processes and its potential impact on the quality of human expression. As AI technologies continue to advance, companies are facing increasing scrutiny not only over how they portray and promote these tools but also about using the work of creative professionals without permission to train AI models.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-will-no-longer-air-an-olympics-ad-that-showed-a-child-using-ai-to-write-a-fan-letter-201214273.html?src=rss
The Justice Department sues TikTok for breaking child privacy laws
The US Department of Justice is suing TikTok for violating a child privacy law and violating a 2019 agreement with the Federal Trade Commission for previous privacy violations. The lawsuit stems from an earlier investigation into the company by the Federal Trade Commission, which referred its privacy case to the DoJ earlier this year.
The FTC had been looking into whether TikTok had violated the terms of an earlier privacy settlement with Musical.ly, which was acquired by ByteDance prior to the launch of TikTok. According to the FTC, the investigation found that TikTok had “flagrantly” violated both the 2019 settlement and the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
In a statement, the Justice Department also cited TikTok’s collection of personal information about children on its platform and its failure to comply with the requests for the information to be deleted.
From 2019 to the present, TikTok knowingly permitted children to create regular TikTok accounts and to create, view, and share short-form videos and messages with adults and others on the regular TikTok platform. The defendants collected and retained a wide variety of personal information from these children without notifying or obtaining consent from their parents. Even for accounts that were created in “Kids Mode” (a pared-back version of TikTok intended for children under 13), the defendants unlawfully collected and retained children’s email addresses and other types of personal information. Further, when parents discovered their children’s accounts and asked the defendants to delete the accounts and information in them, the defendants frequently failed to honor those requests. The defendants also had deficient and ineffectual internal policies and processes for identifying and deleting TikTok accounts created by children.
In a statement, TikTok said it took issue with the allegations, saying it had previously addressed some of the conduct described by the Justice Department. “We disagree with these allegations, many of which relate to past events and practices that are factually inaccurate or have been addressed,” the company said. “We are proud of our efforts to protect children, and we will continue to update and improve the platform. To that end, we offer age-appropriate experiences with stringent safeguards, proactively remove suspected underage users, and have voluntarily launched features such as default screentime limits, Family Pairing, and additional privacy protections for minors.”
The lawsuit comes at a particularly inconvenient time for TikTok, which is set to face off with the Justice Department in federal court next month over a law that aims to force ByteDance to sell the app or face a ban in the United States.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-justice-department-sues-tiktok-for-breaking-child-privacy-laws-190456433.html?src=rss