L4s Bot

IBM scraps rewards program for staff inventions, wipes away cash points | Big Blue staffers aren’t pleased to lose out on potential bonuses::Big Blue staffers aren’t pleased to lose out on potential bonuses

Apple Watches with blood oxygen tech are banned again::A ban on selling the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 will be reinstated after the US Court of Appeals lifted its stay.

Google CEO tells employees to expect more job cuts this year.::In an internal memo, Google CEO Sundar Pichai said recent layoffs are about “removing layers to simplify execution and drive velocity in some areas.” He warned that more are coming.

A ‘Shocking’ Amount of the Web Is Already AI-Translated Trash, Scientists Determine::Researchers warn that most of the text we view online has been poorly translated into one or more languages—usually by a machine.

Cable firms to FTC: We shouldn’t have to let users cancel service with a click — Customers may “misunderstand the consequences of canceling,” say lobbyists::Customers may “misunderstand the consequences of canceling,” cable lobby says.

Chrome updates Incognito warning to admit Google tracks users in “private” mode::Warning added to Chrome Canary as Google settles Incognito class-action suit.

Tech Employee Who Went Viral for Filming Her Firing Has No Regrets::undefined

You’re Not Imagining It: Google Search Results Are Getting Worse, Study Finds::Google swears everything is fine. A new study—and many people’s lived experience—says different.

Apple Vision Pro launch pre-view testers complain about weight, comfort, even headaches::Reporters given pre-launch access to the new Apple Vision Pro have reported concerns with its weight and comfort, with at least two writers reporting notable discomfort using it. While there are undoubtedly positive experiences to be had...

Electric school buses are a breath of fresh air for children | Nearly $1B in federal funding could help clean up the unequal health impacts of diesel pollution.::Nearly $1B in federal funding will help decarbonize transportation and clean up some of the unequal health impacts of diesel pollution

A year long study shows what you’ve suspected: Google Search is getting worse.::undefined

Supreme Court rejects Epic v. Apple antitrust case::The Supreme Court has rejected petitions by Epic and Apple to reconsider a ruling on Fortnite’s iOS ban and potential changes to the App Store.

OpenAI quietly removes ban on military use of its AI tools::OpenAI has quietly walked back a ban on the military use of ChatGPT and its other artificial intelligence tools.

The Self-Checkout Nightmare May Finally Be Ending::Self-checkout is a failed experiment, and a growing number of stores are backpedaling on these cursed machines.

Beeper users say Apple is now blocking their Macs from using iMessage entirely::The Apple-versus-Beeper saga is not over yet it seems, even though the iMessage-on-Android Beeper Mini was removed from the Play Store last week. Now,

SUV stolen from Toronto driveway shows up 50 days later — AirTags tracked vehicle from Canada to Middle East, offering glimpse into shipping routes used by car thieves::A Toronto man used location tags to track his stolen GMC Yukon from a rail yard in the GTA to a used car lot in the United Arab Emirates. But despite calls to...

Apple hits “all-time high” smartphone market share, takes #1 spot for 2023::Apple beat all the Android OEMs while selling dramatically more expensive phones.

Ubisoft Exec Says Gamers Need to Get ‘Comfortable’ Not Owning Their Games for Subscriptions to Take Off::An executive at Assassin’s Creed maker Ubisoft has said gamers will need to get “comfortable” not owning their games before video game subscriptions truly take off.

Apple to over 100 California employees: Move to Texas or lose your job::Most of the team working on key Siri operations is already based in the Texas captial’s Apple campus. Others in San Diego are receiving al ultimatum.

You’ll Soon Have to Pay $20 a Month to Access Copilot’s Coolest Features::Also, there’s a Copilot app coming on Android and iOS.

Visits to piracy websites have increased 12% in the past four years::undefined

‘It hasn’t delivered’: The spectacular failure of self-checkout technology::Unstaffed tills were supposed to revolutionise shopping. Now, both retailers and customers are bagging many self-checkout kiosks.

GTA 5 Actor Ned Luke Calls Out 'Bullst’ AI Chatbot That Uses His Voice::Grand Theft Auto voice actor Ned Luke, who played Michael De Santa in GTA 5, has called out a "fking bulls**t" AI chatbot which uses his voice.

Adblock: Google did not slow down and lag YouTube performance with ad blocker on - Neowin::According to several user reports online, Google was apparently slowing YouTube down if it detected adblockers. However, Adblock has now confirmed that such is not the case at all.

Korea unveils plan to build $472 billion dollar mega chip cluster::Korea will build the world’s biggest semiconductor cluster in Gyeonggi Province by 2047 as Samsung Electronics, SK hynix and other chip companies plan to invest a total of 622 trillion won ($471 billion) to build 16 new fabs, creating more than 3 million jobs,...

B.C. police secretly took DNA from Kurdish community in tea-cup sting to solve murder::Undercover police investigating the murder of a 13-year-old girl in British Columbia disguised themselves as tea marketers to secretly collect the DNA of about 150 Kurdish community members, court recordings reveal.

US Slashes Planned Drilling to Push Offshore Wind::Exploring the U.S.’s major shift to offshore wind farms, a key step in greening energy policy and shaping a sustainable future.

Apple to Remove Blood-Oxygen Sensor From Watch to Avoid U.S. Ban::Tech giant’s withdrawal of technology may end cloud hanging over $18 billion smartwatch business

AI cameras being set up on highways to catch drivers who throw trash out of their car windows::The decision to install cameras in UK lay-bys aims to prevent littering but one campaign group described the approach as “meaningless.”

Why return-to-office mandates fail::The question over whether to allow employees to work from home has been settled. Here’s the new normal.

Taylor Swift fans scammed by fake AI-generated endorsement for Le Creuset cookware::Deepfake ad showed an AI-generated Swift saying she was ‘thrilled’ to be handing out free cookware sets

Formula E team fires its AI-generated female motorsports reporter, after backlash: “What a slap in the face for human women that you’d rather make one up than work with us.”::px-captcha

Apple hopes to convince people to buy its $3,500 Vision Pro headset using free 25-minute in-store demos::undefined

Amazon has been listing products with the title, ‘I’m sorry, I cannot fulfil this request as it goes against OpenAI use policy’::Products have appeared on the platform with odd titles that are seemingly related to OpenAI’s usage policy.

Apple tells dozens of employees in San Diego to move to Austin or face layoffs, report says::Apple has reportedly told San Diego employees that they have until end of February to decide if they will move to another state or lose their job.

China’s military and government acquire Nvidia chips despite U.S. ban::undefined

Substack Was a Ticking Time Bomb | The platform seeded its own content-moderation crisis::The platform seeded its own content-moderation crisis.

YouTube is loading slower for users with ad blockers yet again::YouTube users have noticed annoying delays and some features disabled when using ad blockers.

AI to impact 60% of advanced economy jobs, says IMF’s chief::Artificial intelligence (AI) will impact 60 percent of jobs in advanced economies, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told AFP, shortly before departing for the World Economic Forum in Davos,…

AI to hit 40% of jobs and worsen inequality, IMF says::Policymakers should address the “troubling trend”, says the organisation’s managing director Kristalina Georgieva.

Software company RealPage must face tenants’ price-fixing lawsuit over multifamily housing — ‘Landlords knowledge that sensitive information would be used to price each other’s units is circumstant…::undefined

Once an AI model exhibits ‘deceptive behavior’ it can be hard to correct, researchers at OpenAI competitor Anthropic found::Researchers from Anthropic co-authored a study that found that AI models can learn deceptive behaviors that safety training techniques can’t reverse.

OpenAI Eliminates Ban on Use for Warfare and Military Purposes::undefined

’Magic balls’ installed by drones may soon be revolutionizing the US power grid: ‘Unrivaled quality at scale’::High-voltage power lines in the United States will soon be monitored by “magic balls” from Norway.

Notorious arcade gamer Billy Mitchell settles suit over Donkey Kong world record::undefined

AI girlfriend bots are already flooding OpenAI’s GPT store::OpenAI’s store rules are already being broken, illustrating that regulating GPTs could be hard to control

At CES, everything was AI, even when it wasn’t::CES showcased a lot of products with AI. But it runs the risk of devolving AI into a buzz word, making it harder to be impressed with all the great engineering involved.

Elections Canada launches online disinformation tool to prepare voters for next federal election::undefined