The Morning After: Google's ChatGPT rival is called Bard

In the face of so much ChatGPT news and buzz, Google announced on Monday its own chatbot AI project, Bard, will be unveiled with more details at Wednesday's Google Presents event in Paris. Bard will serve as an "experimental conversational AI service," according to a blog post by Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Monday. It uses Google's existing Language Model for Dialogue Applications (LaMDA) platform, which the company has been developing for the past two years.

However, it won’t be open to everyone, like ChatGPT currently is, which ruins the hype a little. Google is starting with a lightweight version of LaMDA, open to a select group of trusted users before scaling up. "We’ll combine external feedback with our own internal testing to make sure Bard’s responses meet a high bar for quality, safety and groundedness in real-world information," Pichai said.

As we’ll get into below, it’s a busy time for OpenAI’s chatbot tech. Microsoft has a surprise event later today, and that AI-generated Seinfeld stream (based on OpenAI’s GPT-3 Davinci model) was banned from Twitch.

– Mat Smith

The biggest stories you might have missed

• Bastl Microgranny Monolith review: Vintage sampling grit in a portable package

• Nintendo classic 'Zelda: A Link to the Past' gets an unofficial PC port

• Anker charging accessories are up to 46 percent off in Amazon sale

• Google's Pixel 7 phones have dropped to their lowest prices to date

• Why I’m reviewing Hogwarts Legacy

• 'The Last of Us' episode five will premiere two days early on HBO Max

• Overwatch 2's third season will let you turn Doomfist into One-Punch Man

Sony’s expansive PlayStation VR2 FAQ answers (almost) all your burning questions

The $550 peripheral will arrive on February 22nd.

Sony

Sony has published a lengthy FAQ for all things PS VR2. It’s promised more than 30 games to choose from during the launch window, defined as the first month from the release date. Among those are Horizon Call of the Mountain (a VR spin-off of the Horizon games) and VR modes for Resident Evil Village and Gran Turismo 7, which will both be free for folks who already own them. As you’ve probably already heard, original PS VR games won’t play on PS VR2. However, several developers have created PS VR2 versions of existing games and some are offering free upgrades. Unlike with PS VR, you don't need to plug in a camera to your PS5 to use PS VR2. You can, however, film yourself while playing by connecting a PS5 HD Camera.

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Microsoft is holding a press event tomorrow, with ChatGPT expected to feature heavily

Microsoft may show just how cozy it's getting with OpenAI.

Microsoft isn’t going to let Google get the jump on the AI chatbot buzz. It has an event today, at 1 PM ET. The company is keeping tightlipped, but it's expected to show its integration of ChatGPT into Bing and other uses of the conversational AI technology. Microsoft first invested in OpenAI in 2019 and backed the startup again in 2021. Last month, it committed to a "multibillion-dollar" deal unofficially believed to be worth $10 billion over several years. Microsoft has had some misses with chatbots in the past – hopefully, this will be different. Does this mean I’ll actually start using Bing?

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AI Seinfeld was surreal fun until it called being trans an illness

“Where’d everybody go?” the Jerry character asked after a transphobic rant.

Twitch

Twitch has banned “Nothing, Forever,” the AI-generated Seinfeld stream, for at least 14 days following a transphobic and homophobic outburst. It’s the latest example of “hate in, hate out” when AI chatbots are trained on offensive content without adequate moderation. As reported by Vice, during one of the recent AI-scripted standup acts, the Seinfeld counterpart suggested being transgender is a mental illness. In what almost seemed like an awareness of the material’s offensiveness, the AI comedian quickly added, “But no one is laughing, so I’m going to stop. Thanks for coming out tonight. See you next time. Where’d everybody go?”

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Tinder adds an incognito mode

The app will flag more examples of harmful language, too.

Tinder is rolling out some new safety features and updates in time for Valentine's Day. Users will now be able to take advantage of an incognito mode, which Tinder says is a "step up" from hiding your profile completely. Only folks you Like will see you in their recommendations. In addition, you can block profiles that pop up in your suggestions, which could mitigate some awkwardness if you spot an ex or someone else from your life.

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WhatsApp statuses get a big overhaul with voice, emoji reactions and more

WhatsApp has introduced some new updates to Status, the feature introduced in 2017 as an answer to Snapchat and Instagram Stories. One of the key additions is a feature called Voice Status that gives you the ability set voice notes up to 30 seconds long as status updates. The company calls it a more personal way of providing updates, particularly if you're more comfortable talking rather than typing or creating a video.

Another key update is a feature called Private Audience Selector that lets you choose who can view your status updates. It lets you select your audience for every status update you do, providing more granular control and convenience than the current privacy settings. 

If you're more of an emoji person, WhatsApp has also introduced Status Reactions, providing "a quick and easy way to respond to status updates from your friends or close contacts," WhatsApp wrote. It lets you reply to any status simply by swiping up on it and tapping one of eight emojis, rather than use other means like text, voice messages and stickers.

Meanwhile, Status Profile Rings put a ring around your profile when you share a status update, and is visible in chat lists, group participant lists and contact info. Finally, you'll now see a preview of a link when you post it on your status, giving your contacts a better idea of what it is before they click. 

Some of the new features (status reactions, profile rings and link previews) were announced previously, but are now being highlighted as a group of Status updates, WaBetaInfo notes. The new features are rolling out to users globally and will be available to everyone "in the coming weeks."

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The Switch has outsold the PS4, but Nintendo sees tougher times ahead

The Switch just leaped over both the Game Boy and PlayStation 4 to become the third best-selling console of all time. The console has sold 122.55 million units overall as of the end of 2022, Nintendo announced in its earnings report, so it's is now behind only the DS and PlayStation 2 in lifetime sales. 

That's the only silver lining in a darker cloud, though. Switch unit sales for the nine-month period ending December 31st dropped to 14.91 million from 18.95 million the year before, and revenue declined 5.6 percent for the fiscal year ending in March. Game sales also fell by 4 percent over the same period, with the new Pokemon Scarlet/Violet titles unable to offset the decline. As a result, the company has lowered its fiscal year forecast from 19 million to 18 million units with 5 million fewer games — continuing a downward trend from last year.

Nintendo attributed the decline to the ongoing semiconductor shortage, with the lack of consoles affecting software sales too. However, Sony set a new sales record for PS5s last quarter with 7.1 million sold, up 82 percent year-over year. 

Nintendo's issues likely boil down to its aging hardware, as well. Buyers are going for the latest OLED model, with the older Switch and Switch Lite models seeing a decline. The Switch is now relatively underpowered compared to the latest Xbox Series and PS5 consoles, and Sony and Microsoft are also pouring money into games and subscriptions. 

Nintendo said last year that the transition to its next console is "a major focus for us," and it could start becoming more urgent soon. It'll be interesting to see if the Switch can hang around long enough to become the best selling console of all time, but Nintendo will have to sell around 33 million more units to surpass the PlayStation 2. 

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Nintendo classic 'Zelda: A Link to the Past' gets an unofficial PC port

The latest game to get the reverse-engineering treatment is The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Neowin has reported. A GitHub user called snesrev has fully ported the game to PC using over 80,000 lines of code, while adding some extra enhancements. Those include support for enhanced aspect ratios and pixel shaders, a higher quality world map, secondary item slots and more. 

The version was re-engineered in C code, and requires libraries from the SNES emulator LakeSNES. It features all the same levels, enemies and puzzles of the original game, and can even run the original machine code alongside the ported C version. Another GitHub user, xander-haj, showed exactly how it works compared to an emulation in a YouTube video from last year. 

The ported version of Link joins other recent projects, notably Star Wars: Dark Forces, that have been fully ported to PC. Unlike emulation, which effectively transforms your PC into an old console, reverse-engineered games are rebuilt from scratch, which allows for added features like the widescreen and pixel shades inserted by snesrev. 

Savvy users could create this build on Windows, Mac, Linux and even the Nintendo Switch, with more platforms potentially doable down the road. It's on shaky legal ground, however. For example, after someone did a very cool PC port of the classic Super Mario 64, Nintendo cracked down and links to the download disappeared from file-hosting websites.

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Why I’m reviewing 'Hogwarts Legacy'

Five days ago, a review code for Hogwarts Legacy landed in my inbox. I’ve been thinking about this moment for more than a year, ever since the backlash against the game started gaining traction online. The author of the Harry Potter novels is transphobic and she’s targeted transgender women in particular. For this reason, some people in the LGBT+ community, and allies beyond, have decided to boycott Hogwarts Legacy and admonish anyone who chooses to play or stream it themselves, sparking explosive arguments across social media, Twitch and YouTube. Those in favor of the boycott argue that playing the game benefits the author financially and indicates support for her beliefs. On the flipside, potential players point out that the author wasn’t involved in the creation of Hogwarts Legacy and her status as the world’s richest author won’t change regardless of the game’s success. Also, they really want to play it.

I fall into the second category. I’m currently about 15 hours into Hogwarts Legacy and I’m just barely scratching the surface; I’m having an incredible time. This feels like the RPG that Harry Potter fans have been waiting for, rich and alive and absolutely packed with magic.

It’s slightly frightening to write that down, knowing the condemnation I could receive. It’s an extra-light version of the dread I felt while publishing literally anything during Gamergate, but this time it’s more personal: The hate would be coming from people I actually care about.

I’ve been a video game journalist for the past 13 years, I’m a bisexual woman and I have a big ol’ Harry Potter tattoo next to an anti-TERF tattoo. I feel uniquely positioned to care about this particular topic, and to that end, I have a quick story to tell. It involves literary internet culture in the early 2000s, and I hope it illuminates factors that entwine the Wizarding World with the LGBT+ community, while demonstrating the vast divide that’s existed for decades between the fantasy and its creator.

As a pre-teen and throughout high school, I found solace in Harry Potter fanfiction, a bustling online ecosystem powered by Livejournal, FF.net, AO3 and other community-run sites. I cannot overstate how popular Harry Potter fanfiction was and still is, nor how queer it’s always been. Most stories in Harry Potter fanfiction center on LGBT+ characters, and for good reason – in the early aughts, media for and by gay people was ridiculously hard to come by, and then when you did find something, it was often campy, trashy, or both. It was a pre-streaming, pre-YouTube, pre-TikTok way of life. So we wrote our own stories as fanfiction. Long before the release of the final Harry Potter book, we infused the halls of Hogwarts with magically amplified, non-heterosexual and non-cisgender characters, and we wrote millions of words about them living full, fantastic lives. We made Dumbledore gay long before the canon did.

In those early days, an important part of the Harry Potter fanfiction process was critiquing the world and recognizing the limits of the author’s imagination. With each new book release, the forums would light up with praise and criticism, and our own stories would continue to evolve outside of the pages of the novels. These fics are more real to me than the source material; when I traverse the hallways of the Slytherin dungeons in Hogwarts Legacy, my mind accesses memories from my favorite fanfics – not the books – and I’m infused with warmth. The halls of Hogwarts are my safe space, still.

I recognize my circumstances are incredibly specific, but I also know mine isn’t a unique experience. Fantasy worlds offer an escape for queer and non-queer people alike, and coming-of-age fiction can be powerful, formulative stuff. This particular fantasy universe was a place of belonging for me, and I think its latest iteration, Hogwarts Legacy, could offer a similar slice of peace to young players today.

I understand the anger and protective energy from people who don’t want to play the game. It’s a terrifying time to be transgender: Ultra-conservative lawmakers are writing discrimination and blind hate into law, while neo-nazi rhetoric has found new life on mainstream social media platforms. Deadly violence against trans people, particularly Black transgender women, remains a pervasive epidemic in the United States. Among these real-world threats, we’re clashing over the virtues of playing or not playing Hogwarts Legacy. It’s been depressing to observe as this conversation sows division and sucks attention away from our shared goals, limiting our ability to celebrate new successes.

Harry Potter will outlive its author. She is not the future of the franchise. Avalanche, Portkey Games and Warner Bros. have been well aware of the pervasive disgust for the author’s ideology for years, and I believe it encouraged them to include more representation in the game than the series has ever seen. Hogwarts Legacy allows for various expressions of gender identity in the character creator and casually drops “they” pronouns in conversation; all around, the cast is diverse and Avalanche writes non-white characters better than the original author did. There’s still room for improvement, and that’s why the conversation needs to be ongoing: Positive progress is our shared goal.

As someone who searched desperately for an example of my own identity in the pages of Harry Potter novels, I deeply appreciate the evolution and inclusion in Hogwarts Legacy. This level of representation didn’t exist in AAA games 15 years ago, and it’s the result of all the progress made, through protest and education, since the books were published. Long before the in-fighting over a choice to play a video game.

If you don’t want to engage with Hogwarts Legacy, please, boycott the game – just don’t boycott the players. It’s us against the transphobic people in the world, not us against each other. Some of us will choose to play, some of us won’t. Even more will wonder why anyone even cares about this fictional kid and his heteronormative, whitewashed, multibillion-dollar franchise. These are all valid options. Playing Hogwarts Legacy doesn’t automatically make you transphobic. Boycotting it doesn’t automatically make you an ally – supporting our community members does.

We’ll have a full review of Hogwarts Legacy later in the week, once I’ve had enough time with this enormous game to fully form an opinion on it. Even if I catch hell for this perspective, I’ll be here, supporting local inclusion efforts, protesting discrimination, calling my lawmakers, loving my community and playing the gayest version of Hogwarts Legacy possible.

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Anker charging accessories are up to 46 percent off in Amazon sale

Anker's charging accessories can be even more versatile than what the original manufacturer offers, but they tend to be more costly than other options. Luckily, you can now grab a number of Anker chargers and other products at Amazon with discounts up to 46 percent percent. Some of the key deals include the Anker 737 GaNPrime 120W charger at $57 (40 percent off), the 40W 521 Nano Pro charger ($25 or 30 percent off) and the 621 MagGo wireless charger for iPhone ($35 for a savings of $25) and more. 

Shop Anker charging accessories at Amazon

The 737 GaNPrime 120W charger has a maximum output of 120W and can fully charge a 16-inch MacBook Pro in 1.5 hours, according to Anker. At the same time, it's more compact than Apple's own charger and offers a pair of USB-C ports and a USB-A port, so you can charge a smartphone at the same time. Normally priced at $95, it's an easy purchase at $57 if you're looking to upgrade or replace your existing MacBook Pro charger. 

If you don't need that much power, Anker's compact 40W 521 Nano Pro smartphone/tablet charger is on sale for $25 ($11 off, in Glacier Blue only), giving you a quick charger on the cheap. And if you need a new cable to connect your iPhone, the company's 10-foot Powerline+ MFi certified charging cord is priced at just $16, for a savings of 27 percent over the regular price.

The company has some battery charger deals as well. The Anker 335 PowerCore 20K 20W power bank with USB-C fast charging costs just $40 right now, or $20 off the regular price. It comes with 20,000 mAh capacity, enough to charge an iPhone 13 4.3 times for days of stress-free use. With a USB-C port and pair of USB-A ports, it can also charge multiple devices at a atime. 

Finally, the Anker 621 5000mAh MagGo wireless charger (with a USB-C cable) is on sale for $35, or 42 percent off the regular $60 price. It snaps right on to your iPhone 12/13/14, is relatively thin at 12.8mm, attaches using a super-strong magnet and charges either wirelessly or via the USB-C port and included cable.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

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Elon Musk says Twitter will offer a free API tier for 'good' bots

After announcing last week that all developers would have to pay to access Twitter's API, CEO Elon Musk has walked that back a step. In a tweet yesterday, he announced that "responding to feedback, Twitter will enable a light, write-only API for bots providing good content that is free." 

Since August of 2020, Twitter has offered a "basic" free tier as part of its V2 API, designed for "those just getting started, building something for fun, for a good cause, and to learn or teach," the company wrote at the time. 

Responding to feedback, Twitter will enable a light, write-only API for bots providing good content that is free

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 5, 2023

In January, however, Twitter revoked API access to third-party apps citing "long-standing rules." It then updated its developer terms banning third-party clients, effectively killing apps like Twitterific and Tweetbot. Finally last week, Twitter announced that all developers would have to pay to use its API, starting at around $100 per month for the basic tier. 

That resulted in an outcry that the new rules would kill many fun and useful bots that create quotes around tweets, provide alerts for tech execs unfollowing each other, show the weather in random parts of the world and more. Many of the folks who run the bots told Buzzfeed they could never pay that amount to keep them running, so they'd simply disappear. "It was a fun thing, a thing that actually provided Twitter with more value," said the person behind @BigTechAlert, Álex Barredo.

It's unclear if Musk's Twitter will use something like the current basic tier. Also left unsaid so far is what might constitute "good content." If approval is required for each bot, that could be a challenge considering the company's severely downsized moderation team. 

Last 3 months were extremely tough, as had to save Twitter from bankruptcy, while fulfilling essential Tesla & SpaceX duties. Wouldn’t wish that pain on anyone.

Twitter still has challenges, but is now trending to breakeven if we keep at it. Public support is much appreciated!

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 5, 2023

Musk has been on a mission to cut costs and find new sources of revenue for Twitter, after telling employees at one point that "bankruptcy is not out of the question." Around 80 percent of the company's full-time staff have been let go, leaving just 1,300 in total and fewer than 550 full-time engineers. At the same time, Twitter has introduced subscriptions and detailed plans to share ad revenue with creators.

However, Musk recently tweeted that Twitter is "now trending to breakeven," following several "extremely tough" months. The company still faces challenges, however, like advertisers reportedly fleeing in droves, class-action suits from employees and potential regulator scrutiny in the EU and elsewhere.

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Open Channel: What Twitter Bots Will You Miss After the API Change?

It probably goes without saying, but Elon Musk’s current tenure as Twitter’s CEO has been pretty chaotic, and not in the fun way. Between constantly changing things without any real warning and trying to get money any way possible, the popular social media site feels like it’s about to fall apart at any moment now,…

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Google's HD Chromecast with Google TV is cheaper than ever

SNL's New Skit Makes Me Wish Pedro Pascal Really Was Playing Mario

Ever since he showed up as Oberyn Martell in Game of Thrones, Pedro Pascal’s rise to stardom has been pretty fun to see, because he’s just good in basically everything he’s in, even if that thing itself is a hot mess. And as the star of both The Mandalorian and HBO’s new prestige hit The Last of Us, it’s clear that…

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Apple may be working on a pricier iPhone 'Ultra'

Next year could see the introduction of a new flagship iPhone. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple is considering whether to release a more expensive iPhone “Ultra” that would slot in above the iPhone Pro and Pro Max. He says the device could arrive as early next year.

If you’ve been following Gurman’s writing for a while, you may recall he previously reported Apple was considering whether to rebrand the upcoming iPhone 15 Pro Max to the iPhone 15 Ultra. Now, he says there’s evidence to suggest Apple wants to instead offer a more powerful and expensive iPhone to well-heeled consumers. Specifically, Gurman points to a recent comment made by Apple CEO Tim Cook. “The iPhone has become so integral [to] people’s lives,” Cook told analysts when he was asked if the increasing average price of the iPhone was sustainable. “I think people are willing to really stretch to get the best they can afford in that category.”

How Apple will differentiate the new model is harder to say. Gurman suggests the iPhone Ultra could feature a faster processor, better camera hardware than the Pro and Pro Max and an even larger display. “There also may be more future-forward features, such as finally dropping the charging port,” he adds.

It’s worth noting reports on the iPhone 15 line suggest Apple is already searching for more ways to differentiate the Pro models from their mainstream siblings. For example, one recent report said the upcoming Pro variants could feature WiFi 6E connectivity, while the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus ship with older WiFi 6 antennae. The Pro models could come with other differentiating features, including redesigned titanium frames with haptic volume and power buttons. Apple will also reportedly equip the Pro Max with a periscope camera lens.

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Apple’s new AirPods Pro are back on sale for $200

New Demon Slayer Trailer Highlights Japan's Most Powerful Demons

It’ll only be a couple of months before Ufotable’s Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba returns for its third season. Season two received high marks when it came out, and its theatrical Mugen Train movie was a box office hit. Now as that season’s being nominated for awards in the anime community, studio Ufotable and Aniplex…

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NVIDIA rolls out update for Discord performance bug

NVIDIA has begun rolling out a fix for a bug that had caused some of its GPUs to perform worse while people had Discord open. In a tweet spotted by The Verge, the company said Windows will now automatically download an app profile update the next time users log into their PC. The update resolves an issue that prevented some NVIDIA GPUs, including RTX 30 series models like the 3080 and 3060 Ti, from pushing their memory as fast as possible when Discord was open in the background. In some instances, NVIDIA users reported their video cards being throttled by as much as 200Mhz, translating to a modest performance decrease in most games.

GeForce users can now download an app profile update for Discord. This resolves a recent issue where some GeForce GPUs memory clocks did not reach full speed w/ Discord running in the background. The update automatically downloads to your PC the next time you log into Windows. pic.twitter.com/89nwugWQFF

— NVIDIA Customer Care (@nvidiacc) February 3, 2023

Reddit and Linus Tech Tips forum users were among the first to spot and document the issue. The bug was introduced in a recent Discord update that added AV1 codec support. With the new codec, RTX 40 series users can stream their gameplay at up to 4K and 60 frames per second over Discord Nitro. The bug did not appear to affect RTX 40 series cards. That said, NVIDIA quickly acknowledged the issue and offered a temporary workaround. 

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Colin Trevorrow's Next Movie Will Go Underwater to Atlantis

For his next film, director Colin Trevorrow is going under the sea.

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Pakistan blocks Wikipedia over 'sacrilegious' content

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has blocked Wikipedia after slowing access to the website for 48 hours over content it considers "sacrilegious." A PTA spokesperson told Bloomberg that the agency has blocked the online encyclopedia for failing to remove said content within the past couple of days. 

The telecom authority revealed on February 1st that it approached the website with a court order to remove "blasphemous" material from its website. After Wikipedia didn't comply or appear before authorities, the PTA degraded access to the website for a couple of days and threatened to block it entirely if it didn't comply with its demands. The agency didn't publicly list the Wikipedia entries it doesn't want people in Pakistan to see.

Wikipedia was approached for blocking/removal of the said contents by issuing a notice under applicable law & court order(s). An opportunity of hearing was also provided, however, the platform neither complied by removing the blasphemous content nor appeared before the Authority. pic.twitter.com/6dWRcbxHGB

— PTA (@PTAofficialpk) February 1, 2023

As TechCrunch notes, Pakistan has been trying to exert more control over content found on various digital platforms. In 2020, the PTA temporarily banned TikTok due to "immoral and indecent" material before the short-form video app promised to moderate clips according to Pakistani "societal norms" and laws. It's worth noting that the Muslim-majority country has stringent blasphemy laws, and the punishment for breaking them includes life imprisonment and even death. 

In a blog post, the Wikimedia Foundation confirmed that Pakistan blocked Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects based on its internal traffic reports. "In Pakistan, English Wikipedia receives more than 50 million pageviews per month, followed by Urdu and Russian Wikipedias. There is also a sizable and engaged community of editors in Pakistan that contribute historical and educational content. A block of Wikipedia in Pakistan denies the fifth most populous nation in the world access to the largest free knowledge repository. If it continues, it will also deprive everyone access to Pakistan’s knowledge, history, and culture," the Foundation wrote. It's now calling on Pakistan's authorities to restore access to the Wikipedia website in the country. 

PTA's spokesperson told Bloomberg that the agency is still in talks with Wikipedia officials and that the agency will consider unblocking the website if it completely removes sacrilegious content.

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7 Times AI Was Just Armies of Hidden Humans

In what feels like just a few short years, advancements in generative artificial intelligence have seemingly transformed “AI” from a buzzword slapped onto boring business to attack investor capital into an an actual tool with clear, real -world use cases. Writer and business have already begun using image generator…

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Vitamin D Supplements Linked to Reduced Risk of Suicide, Study of Veterans Finds

Taking vitamin D supplements was linked to lower rates of attempted suicide and intentional self-harm among former military members, new research found. In the study, scientists looked at data about a large group of U.S. veterans and determined that those given supplemental vitamin D were at lower risk for attempting…

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Echolocation could give small robots the ability to find lost people

Scientists and roboticists have long looked at nature for inspiration to develop new features for machines. In this case, researchers from the University of Toronto were inspired by bats and other animals that rely on echolocation to design a method that would give small robots that ability to navigate themselves — one that doesn't need expensive hardware or components too large or too heavy for tiny machines. In fact, according to PopSci, the team only used the integrated audio hardware of an interactive puck robot and built an audio extension deck using cheap mic and speakers for a tiny flying drone that can fit in the palm of your hand. 

The system works just like bat echolocation. It was designed to emit sounds across frequencies, which a robot's microphone then picks up as they bounce off walls. An algorithm that team created then goes to work to analyze sound waves and create a map with the room's dimensions. 

In the researchers' paper published in IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, they said existing "algorithms for active echolocation are less developed and often rely on hardware requirements that are out of reach for small robots." The researchers also said their "method is model-based, runs in real time and requires no prior calibration or training." Their solution could give small machines the capability to be sent on search-and-rescue missions or to previously uncharted locations that bigger robots wouldn't be able to reach. And since the system only needs onboard audio equipment or cheap additional hardware, it has a wide range of potential applications.

The researchers found during their tests that their technique is still not quite as accurate as systems that use bigger and more expensive hardware, such as GPS sensors or cameras. They're hoping to improve its accuracy in future versions, though, and to eliminate the need for the system to generate sounds. Instead, they want their system to be able to echolocate using the sounds the drone itself produces, such as the whirl of its own propellers. 

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How the Supreme Court Could Finally Force Big Oil to Face Trial

This story was originally published by Grist. You can subscribe to its weekly newsletter here.

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Engadget Podcast: Unpacking Samsung's Galaxy announcements and our HomePod review

This week, Cherlynn is joined by guest co-host Sam Rutherford to break down everything Samsung announced at its Unpacked event this week. Are we excited about the first major flagship phones of the year? And how about those confusing new laptops? Also, because we've had a Galaxy S23 Ultra in our possession for about 12 hours, we discussed our early impressions of the new phone. Plus, we take a look at the new Apple HomePod and other news in tech.

Listen below or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you've got suggestions or topics you'd like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcasts, the Morning After and Engadget News!

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Topics

• Samsung unveils the Galaxy S23, S23 Plus and S23 Ultra – 1:44

• The Galaxy Book 3 announcement was so confusing – 20:00

• HomePod 2023 review – 33:39

• More layoffs in tech: Rivian, PayPal and more – 39:47

• OpenAI introduces paid plan for ChatGPT – 44:39

• Working on – 52:35

• Pop culture picks – 53:45

Livestream

Credits
Hosts: Cherlynn Low and Sam Rutherford
Producer: Ben Ellman
Music: Dale North and Terrence O'Brien
Livestream producers: Julio Barrientos
Graphic artists: Luke Brooks and Brian Oh

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China Says It’s Checking Whether It Sent Spy Balloon to Montana

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a… Chinese spy balloon? According to China, the answer could be “maybe.”

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The Sonos One is on sale for $179 right now

Instagram Memers Are Performing in Sold-Out Live Shows

At 9:30 p.m. on a Tuesday night in a small Manhattan comedy club, Annie Rauwerda brought down the full house with a PowerPoint slide, a blurry picture of Vienna bread illustrating a Wikipedia entry. The baked good was enhanced with motion-blur, looking inexplicably like an oncoming car. The audience, around a hundred…

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Google's February 8th event will focus on 'Search, Maps and beyond'

Google has announced that it's holding a streaming event called Live from Paris that will be all about "Search, Maps and beyond," set to be livestreamed on YouTube on February 8th. "We're reimagining how people search for, explore and interact with information, making it more natural and intuitive than ever before to find what you need," the description reads. 

Hopefully, the "beyond" part will shed some more light on its plans for a ChatGPT rival. During Google's earnings call yesterday, Pichai finally addressed Google's own plans for an AI chat system. "In the coming weeks and months, we'll make these language models available, starting with LaMDA, so that people can engage directly with them," he said. Google also plans to bring those AI tools to businesses, developers and Alphabet's own internal operations.

Last month, Google CEO Sundar Pichai reportedly declared a "code red" over OpenAI's ChatGPT, due to its potential threat to Google's search dominance. Notably, Microsoft is a large investor in ChatGPT, and plans to integrate the AI into its Bing search engine to provide more understandable and human-like results.

Google was said to be planning to show off its AI tools at its I/O event, which usually takes place in May. It's possible, though, that the company wants get well ahead of any criticism that it's behind OpenAI in the natural language chatbot race. 

On the other hand, the event might be strictly focused on Search and Maps — core products used by a lot of people. In the thumbnail above, Google also hints at news about Lens, Shopping and Translate. The event will be livestreamed on YouTube on February 8th at 8:30 AM ET. 

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An FTC Power Grab Could Save Your Medical Secrets

Want to save money on drugs? You could head to GoodRx.com. Type in the name of a medication, and the company will give you a coupon to use at a pharmacy. But there’s a little problem, one that GoodRx forgot to tell its customers about. Going back to at least 2017, GoodRx sent details about the medications you take to…

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TikTok rolls out its own strike system for creators who violate its rules

TikTok is trying to make it easier for creators and others to navigate its rules, and understand what’s happening to their accounts. The company is introducing a revamped “account enforcement system,” a series of changes that includes a new strike system, as well as features that allow creators to check if their content has been blocked from the app’s recommendations.

The changes come amid a broader push from TikTok to increase transparency around how it handles content moderation and algorithmic recommendations, both of which have been subject to intense scrutiny by lawmakers, regulators and other critics.

In a blog post, the company says the new strike system is meant to address “repeat offenders” who can have an outsized impact on the platform. “Under the new system, if someone posts content that violates one of our Community Guidelines, the content will be removed and their account will accrue a strike,” the company explains. “If an account meets the threshold of strikes within either a product feature (i.e. Comments, LIVE) or policy (i.e. Bullying and Harassment), it will be permanently banned.” The company added that users may also be banned after just one strike if the violation is considered “severe.”

The change makes TikTok’s policy more in line with that of its peers. YouTube and Meta also use a strike system against accounts that break their rules, though each platform has its own criteria for determining strikes, and the penalties associated with them.

TikTok

In that vein, TikTok says it will also provide creators with new tools to view if their account has racked up any strikes over the previous 90 days. The feature will live in a new “account status” section of the app’s Safety Center. The company is also adding a “reports” section, where users can follow up on any content or accounts they’ve reported.

TikTok’s also starting to test two new features that deal with recommendations. The first is a feature that will notify creators if one of their videos has been blocked from the app’s For You page. The feature, which the company says “will be testing in select markets over the coming weeks,” will “let them know why, and give them the opportunity to appeal.”

The second test is a feature that will allow users to essentially reset the recommendations that appear in For You page. According to a TikTok spokesperson, those in the test will see a “refresh” option in their For You feed, which basically gives the app’s main feed a fresh start. After the feed is “refreshed,” videos will be surfaced purely from new interactions and activity rather than what a user has historically interacted with.

The updates come at a precarious moment for TikTok. The company has spent the last two years negotiating with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) over changes to its policies and practices so it can continue to operate in the US. At the same time, scrutiny of the company has only intensified, with numerousbans and proposed bans piling up. And while the latest changes could meaningfully increase transparency for TikTok’s creators and users — who have sometimes complained that the app’s policies are unclear or unevenly enforced — the updates alone are unlikely to satisfy the company’s staunchest critics.

But TikTok isn’t only relying on product changes. The company has also been physically showing off its stated commitment to transparency by opening up tours of its freshly opened “Transparency and Accountability Center,” a space at its Los Angeles office where participants can get a firsthand glimpse of how the company handles recommendations and content moderation.

This week, TikTok offered reporters a tour of the center as part of its shifting strategy to win over critics. We’ll have more to say soon about the transparency center, and TikTok’s sweeping plan to comply with US regulators, but both seem to be aimed at tackling one of the central criticisms of TikTok head on: that the app’s recommendations algorithm is opaque and ripe for abuse.

So while changes like the ones announced today don’t come close to addressing the full scope of critics’ concerns, it does help TikTok begin to chip away at the perception that the app is an impossible-to-understand black box.

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ChatGPT reportedly reached 100 million users in January

ChatGPT has been growing at a rate much, much faster than TikTok or any other popular app or service. According to a new study by analytics firm UBS (via Reuters and CBS), the OpenAI-developed chatbot was on pace to reach over 100 million monthly active users in January. The chatbot only became available to the public on November 30th last year, but its rise to fame has apparently been meteoric. Within its first month of availability, it already boasted 57 million monthly active users, the study said. By January, it was already being visited by around 13 million individual users a day. 

In comparison, it took TikTok nine months after its global debut to reach 100 million monthly users despite its popularity, especially among the younger generation. UBS analyst Lloyd Walmsley also pointed out that Meta's Instagram had been around for two-and-a-half years before reaching that point. It remains to be seen, however, if the chatbot can maintain this level of interest in the coming months. "The next question is obviously what its staying power will be. There may be an element of people just coming to look," Walmsley added.

ChatGPT provides users with natural-sounding human-like responses to queries, so much so that educators are concerned that it could be used by students to cheat. While it still has serious accuracy problems — "Models like ChatGPT have a notorious tendency to spew biased, harmful, and factually incorrect content," MIT's Tech Review wrote in a piece — there isn't another public chatbot with comparable capabilities. It has reportedly rattled Google's execs to the point that they decided to declare "code red" and accelerated the company's AI development. The tech giant is working on a few potential ChatGPT competitors, including a chatbot for search, and is aiming to showcase 20 AI products this year. 

ChatGPT remains free to use at the moment, and OpenAI doesn't seem to have any plans to completely lock access to it behind a paywall. However, the startup does intend to start charging for the service and has already started testing a paid ChatGPT plan for $20 per month, which offers faster response times and priority access to new features.

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Dallas Zoo Is Offering a $25,000 Reward for Information on Who Stole Its Monkeys

Dallas Zoo officials set the internet at ease this week when they shared that their two missing emperor tamarin monkeys had been found safe and unharmed by police one day after they were taken. The story isn’t done yet, though. The Dallas Zoo wants justice, and it’s offering a $25,000 reward for information that leads…

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The Morning After: Everything Samsung revealed at its Unpacked event

Samsung’s first big tech event of 2023 unveiled three phones and three laptops. The showstoppers are, predictably, the company’s premium flagships, the Galaxy S series. The S23 Ultra ($1,199) has a huge 6.8-inch, an S-pen stylus and a 200-megapixel camera. That’s a lot of pixels.

It’s the company’s first Adaptive Pixel sensor, which means while you can still shoot at 200MP, by default, the system uses pixel-binning to deliver brighter, clearer pictures at 50MP or 12MP. Other upgrades include optical image stabilization that’s been effectively doubled for better-lit photos and less shaky video.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy S23 (starting at $800) and S23+ ($1,000) are slightly more iterative but still premium smartphones. They pack reliable cameras and faster processors – the entire S23 series has a special overclocked version of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. All the phones are available to pre-order now.

Samsung also revealed an ultra laptop. The 16-inch Galaxy Book 3 Ultra draws inspiration from the company’s best-selling Galaxy S phones, but combines it with heavy-hitting PC specs, like 13th-gen Intel Core i9 processors and NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 4070 graphics.

– Mat Smith

The Morning After isn’t just a newsletter – it’s also a daily podcast. Get our daily audio briefings, Monday through Friday, by subscribing right here.

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AI-generated ‘Seinfeld’ is pretty awful

At least it’s inadvertently entertaining.

Nothing Forever

What if AI made never-ending Seinfeld? “Nothing, Forever” uses OpenAI’s GPT-3 natural language model to produce (occasionally coherent) dialog between pixelated characters Jerry, George, Elaine and Kramer. One creator posted to Reddit: “Aside from the artwork and the laugh track you’ll hear, everything else is generative, including dialogue, speech, direction (camera cuts, character focus, shot length, scene length, etc.), character movement, and music.” The stream has little human involvement and changes based on viewer feedback from the Twitch stream.

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Sony is killing its PlayStation Plus collection on May 9th

If you own a PS5, claim the games before then.

Since September 2020, Sony's PlayStation Plus Collection has offered a bunch of PS4 greatest hits to PlayStation 5 owners with an active PS Plus membership. It included God of War, The Last of Us Remastered, Resident Evil 7 and more. Alas, come May 9th, Sony is shuttering the PlayStation Plus Collection, saying it plans to focus on bringing more games to its various tiers of PS Plus. Make sure you download any of the 19 titles now, while they’re still there.

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Facebook now has 2 billion users

The social network is still growing.

Almost 20 years in, Facebook is still growing. Meta reported alongside its fourth-quarter earnings it has now reached two billion daily users. While Facebook isn’t the first Meta-owned platform to reach that number – WhatsApp recently crossed two billion DAUs – it does show the company’s biggest source of ad revenue is still growing. During a call with analysts, Zuckerberg suggested Meta will continue to make cuts as it prioritizes efficiency. “We're going to be more proactive about cutting projects that aren't performing or may no longer be as crucial,” he said. The CEO also said generative AI would be a priority for Meta in the year ahead. He added: “One of my goals for Meta is to build on our research to become a leader in generative AI.”

Continue reading.

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Twitter will charge developers to access its API starting February 9th

Developers will soon have to pay Twitter to be able to use its API. The website has announced through its Twitter Dev account that it will no longer support free access to its API, both versions 1.1 and 2, starting on February 9th. It will launch a "paid basic tier" instead, but the company has yet to reveal how much it would cost. Twitter has been experimenting with new ways to make more money ever since Elon Musk took the helm. The biggest change so far has been Twitter Blue, which evolved into a $8-to-$11-a-month subscription service that allows users to purchase the website's previously elusive blue checkmark. 

A New York Times report from last year said Musk and his advisers also discussed the possibility of adding paid direct messages and videos behind a paywall. They even reportedly considered reviving Vine, its short-form video app that it shut down back in 2016. Musk has been exploring all possible sources of income to be able to pay the loans he took when he purchased Twitter for $44 billion. As The Information notes, he borrowed $13 billion from a group of banks to close the deal, and they weren't able to sell the debt to investors as planned. The company now has to pay $1.5 billion every year in interests alone.

Twitter showed signs that it had plans to change the way developers accessed its APIs when third-party clients like Tweetbot suddenly stopped working in January. Later, the company confirmed that it deliberately cut off their access due to "long-standing API rules," even though it previously removed the section in its developer policies that discouraged app-makers from creating something similar to its core service. A few days after third-party Twitter clients went down, the website updated its developer agreement to ban access to its "Licensed Materials to create or attempt to create a substitute or similar service or product to the Twitter Applications."

"Twitter data are among the world’s most powerful data sets," the company wrote in a follow-up tweet. "We're committed to enabling fast & comprehensive access so you can continue to build with us." While it's pretty clear that Twitter intends to charge developers to use its API, it didn't say if it would make exceptions for researchers. Twitter provides specialized access to its API for academic research, and people in academia have been using data from the website for their studies across various fields, including health and politics. 

The website promises to share more details about the new "paid basic tier" for its API next week.

Twitter data are among the world’s most powerful data sets. We’re committed to enabling fast & comprehensive access so you can continue to build with us.

We’ll be back with more details on what you can expect next week.

— Twitter Dev (@TwitterDev) February 2, 2023

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WD_Black SSDs and SanDisk cards are up to 50 percent off at Amazon

Want a Six Figure Job with Paid Time Off? Check Out These Dark Web Cybercrime Positions

Unprecedented layoffs have put tens of thousands of highly qualified computer nerds out of a job but there’s apparently one place they can always turn to if they get really desperate: the dark web! A recent report from security firm Kaspersky shows that some job postings on darknet crime forums offer absurdly…

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How to stream every game with Apple's MLS Season Pass

Apple dabbled in live sports with weekly Major League Baseball games last year, but now the company is launching its most ambitious offering yet. Today, the company debuts MLS Season Pass, a subscription that gives soccer fans access to every game of the 2023 season, the Leagues Cup and both MLS Next Pro and MLS Next matches — all with no blackouts. While you can sign up today and start watching a library of archived content, the first games begin February 25th. 

MLS Season Pass will be available to stream through the Apple TV app on the company's range of devices, game consoles, streaming gadgets, set-top boxes, smart TVs and on the web. Anywhere you find that piece of software you'll be able to access the subscription. The streaming plan costs $15 per month or $99 for the season. If you're an Apple TV+ customer, you'll get the discounted rates of $13/month or $79 a season. What's more, avid fans who are season ticket holders for an MLS club will get the all-inclusive streaming subscription for free. Apple's tie-in with MLS is part of a 10-year deal, so the US league's games aren't going to another network or streaming service any time soon.

If you're not sure if you want to commit just yet, "the majority" of the on-demand content already streaming is available for free. More importantly, Apple will offer every game on opening weekend free of charge and will follow that up with weekly free games. That library of on-demand items includes archived matches going back to 2019, documentary-style stories, the best moments from last season and curated highlights. 

Apple

Each team has a club page with highlights, schedule info and archived games. Once you select the team(s) you want to follow, match reminders will display in the Up Next section of the Apple TV app. As the season approaches, you'll be privy to game previews and other team-specific content. During matches, updates will show on your iPhone lockscreen via Live Activities. 

Apple has committed to English and Spanish commentary teams for every match. Additionally, MLS Season Pass will offer French for matches that include the leagues Canadian clubs. Apple has already announced a team of nearly 50 announcers, including a wide range of experienced broadcasters and former players. Maurice Edu, Cobi Jones, Taylor Twellman, Lori Lindsey and Danielle Slaton are just a few of the many. In addition to games, MLS Season Pass will offer live pre-game, halftime and post-game analysis in addition to a "whip-around show" with live look-ins at in-progress matches and detailed discussions of key moments from every game. 

Interestingly, Apple will also provide radio broadcasts as part of the streaming plan. If you don't care for the broadcast team, or just prefer to listen to your favorite club's radio crew, you can opt for that alternate audio. The company promises that the sound will sync up with the live action so it will be a true replacement if you choose it. One of the key things that Apple hasn't announced yet is streaming quality. The company says that the "full production plan" will be announced ahead of the season's start, which will hopefully include that info. Apple's weekly MLB games were streamed in 1080p at 60fps, but since MLS Season Pass is a much more elaborate effort that includes literally every match, maybe the company will surprise us and upgrade to 4K. 

Apple

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OpenAI’s New AI-Detector Isn’t Great at Detecting AI

OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company behind viral text-generator ChatGPT, has released a new AI tool intended to help manage the mess wrought by its previous creation. Unfortunately, it’s not very good. 

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Boeing completes the last ever delivery of the iconic 747 jumbo jet

The last Boeing 747 to ever be built has changed hands in front of thousands of people who wanted to say goodbye to the iconic widebody plane. Customers, suppliers, celebrities, as well as current and former employees — including the original staff known ass the "Incredibles" who built the first 747 — gathered at the company's Everett factory to witness Boeing delivering the plane to Atlas Air Worldwide. The event marks the plane's end of production since it was first built in 1967. 

Boeing revealed back in 2020 that it was going to retire the model in a couple of years after it was done building the last orders for it. The 747 was one of the most famous four-engine widebody jets in the world and revolutionized air travel by doubling passenger capacity and thereby lowering the price of each seat. During the peak of its popularity in 1990, Boeing delivered 70 units in a single year. But like most older technologies, it eventually took a backseat to some of the company's newer jets, particularly its two-engine planes that can fly the same routes but can use fuel more efficiently. 

As Reuters notes, the company only delivered five 747s in 2022, though the whole program itself produced 1,574 jets. The last planes Boeing delivered, including this one, will be used to transport cargo in the years to come. Yes, we won't be seeing any new 747 anymore, but Bloomberg says the orders delivered for freighter use could be around until the 2050s. 

Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Stan Deal said in a statement:

"This monumental day is a testament to the generations of Boeing employees who brought to life the airplane that 'shrank the world,' and revolutionized travel and air cargo as the first widebody. It is fitting to deliver this final 747-8 Freighter to the largest operator of the 747, Atlas Air, where the 'Queen' will continue to inspire and empower innovation in air cargo."

Kim Smith, Boeing's VP and general manager for the 747 and 767 programs, revealed that the model's production line shut down as workers finished building different parts for the last plane. Employees who worked on in the factory have now been transferred to other programs or have voluntarily retired. 

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YouTube TV drops MLB Network after failing to renew deal

YouTube TV has dropped the MLB Network from its service after failing to renew its agreement, according to a statement from YouTube given to The Streamable. "You will also lose access to any previous Library recordings from this channel," the streamer wrote. "Members will be able to continue watching select national MLB games via coverage on FOX, ESPN, and TBS through our Base Plan."

The dispute appears to be over compensation, according to a statement from MLB Network. "YouTube TV has been unwilling to negotiate a fair carriage agreement... consistent with what close to 300 other US providers have agreed to for distribution." MLB Network was part of YouTube's $65 Base Plan and one of the few that carried 4K content as part of YouTube TV's 4K Plus add-on. 

The news isn't too tragic yet, as baseball season is still a couple of months away. YouTube TV has previously lost access to other channels including Disney's ESPN and ABC, but in the case of the latter, they were restored just a day later. That lends some hope that the streaming company can reach an agreement with MLB Network ahead of any disruption to games next season. 

In the meantime, "MLB Network remains widely available throughout the US, including on Altice USA (Optimum), AT&T U-verse, Charter Communications (Spectrum), Comcast, Cox Communications, DIRECTV, DIRECTV Stream, DISH, fuboTV, Sling TV, Verizon Fios and many others," MLB Network wrote. 

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Spotify reaches 205 million Premium subscribers as losses mount

Spotify just released its Q4 earnings and announced that it now has 205 million premium subscribers, up 10 million from last quarter. It also made €3.17 billion ($3.43 billion) in revenue, so it exceeded expectations in both subscriber count and sales. It now counts nearly 500 million monthly active users including ad-supported and paid subscriber tiers. 

However, its losses continued with €270 million ($292 million) in red ink compared to €39 million in the same period last year, due to moves that chief executive Daniel Ek called "too ambitious." For all of 2022, the company reported a net €430 million loss ($466 million) on revenue of €11.7 billion ($12.7 billion). 

Spotify said that the losses were due to "higher personnel costs primarily due to headcount growth and higher advertising costs," along with currency fluctuations. That helps explain the company's actions last week, when it announced that it was laying off 6 percent of its workforce as part of a company-wide restructuring. 

As part of that, chief content officer Dawn Ostroff stepped down and Ek said that the company would "fundamentally change how we operate at the top," including his own role. At the time, Ek said that "in hindsight, I was too ambitious in investing ahead of our revenue growth." Looking ahead to the next quarter, Spotify forecasts that it'll hit a half-billion monthly active users and see a modest boost to 207 million premium subscribers. 

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