News/Google
Google’s Pixel Studio now generates images of people, but with unsettling flaws
Google's Pixel Studio AI image generator has finally added the ability to create images of people, but the technology shows significant limitations in its early implementation. The update to the Pixel 9's exclusive image generation app represents Google's step toward competing with more advanced AI image generators like Midjourney and Apple's Image Playground, though the inconsistent quality of its human representations—particularly when generating certain professions—highlights the ongoing challenges in AI-generated human imagery. The key update: Google has expanded Pixel Studio to generate images of people, a capability previously absent from the AI image generation tool exclusive to Pixel 9 phones....
read Mar 26, 2025Marketers cut AI-driven ad platform budgets amid transparency concerns
The artificial intelligence AdTech blues are setting in. Media buyers are pushing back against AI-driven platforms like Google's Performance Max and Meta's Advantage+, redirecting budgets due to concerns about transparency, control, and diminishing returns. This shift marks a significant moment in the advertising industry as marketers reassess their relationship with black-box AI solutions and seek greater visibility into where their ad dollars are actually going. The big picture: Marketers are actively reducing spend on AI-driven advertising platforms, with some clients cutting Google Performance Max budgets by up to 50% and redirecting those funds to more transparent channels. Why this matters:...
read Mar 26, 2025Google’s new AI-powered Gmail search prioritizes relevance over chronology
Google's integration of AI into Gmail search represents a significant shift in how users will interact with their personal data. By prioritizing relevance over chronology, Google is leveraging artificial intelligence to make email management more intuitive, while simultaneously raising questions about data privacy and AI training. This development highlights the growing tension between convenience and control as AI systems become more deeply embedded in tools managing our personal information. The big picture: Google is rolling out an AI-powered search function in Gmail that will organize search results by relevance rather than chronology, potentially giving its Gemini assistant access to users'...
read Mar 25, 2025Quantum Leap: Google leader predicts practical quantum applications within 5 years
Google's quantum computing leader believes the technology is on the verge of achieving practical applications that traditional computers cannot match. While quantum computing has remained largely theoretical despite decades of research, this timeline suggests a potential inflection point where quantum systems could finally deliver on their long-promised capabilities in solving previously intractable computational problems. The big picture: Google Quantum AI's hardware director Julian Kelly predicts quantum computers are "about five years out from a real breakout" application that can only be solved using quantum technology. Kelly specifically mentioned that quantum computers could tackle cutting-edge physics problems and potentially generate novel...
read Mar 24, 2025Google study shows that simple sampling technique boosts AI reasoning without extra training
Google researchers have discovered a surprisingly simple method to significantly boost large language model performance on complex reasoning tasks—without further training or architectural changes. This finding, detailed in a new paper from Google Research and UC Berkeley, shows that scaling up sampling-based search techniques can produce dramatic improvements in model reasoning abilities, challenging the assumption that sophisticated training paradigms or model architectures are necessary to achieve top-tier performance in complex problem-solving. The big picture: Sampling-based search can elevate models like Gemini 1.5 Pro to outperform more advanced systems like o1-Preview on popular benchmarks through a remarkably straightforward process. The technique...
read Mar 24, 2025Google’s Gemini now turns AI research into interactive podcast-style conversations
Google's latest integration of Audio Overviews with Gemini's Deep Research feature bridges the gap between AI-generated research and audio content consumption. By transforming comprehensive reports into conversational podcast-style formats, Google continues expanding its AI capabilities across different mediums and use cases. This development represents another step in Google's strategy to make AI-generated content more accessible and engaging through different sensory experiences. The big picture: Google has expanded its Audio Overviews feature to work with Gemini's Deep Research function, allowing users to convert AI-generated research reports into conversational podcasts between two AI hosts. How it works: Users can now select a...
read Mar 21, 2025History made: AlexNet neural network code finally released to the public
The original neural network that sparked the modern AI revolution has finally been made public, giving developers and historians access to the bedrock code that changed computing forever. This release of AlexNet's source code provides an unprecedented look at a pivotal moment in AI history, when deep learning first demonstrated capabilities that would eventually lead to today's generative AI systems. The big picture: The Computer History Museum, partnering with Google, has released the original 2012 source code for AlexNet, the groundbreaking neural network created by Alex Krizhevsky while a graduate student at the University of Toronto. The release places the...
read Mar 19, 2025Midrange marvel: Google’s Pixel 9a brings flagship AI features at $499, challenging iPhone 16e
Google's newest midrange smartphone maintains its competitive $499 price point while delivering enhanced hardware and expanded AI capabilities, positioning it as a direct competitor to Apple's recently launched iPhone 16e. The Pixel 9a represents Google's strategy of democratizing premium features at accessible price points, challenging other midrange contenders from Nothing and Samsung while maintaining its focus on computational photography and AI integration. The big picture: Google's Pixel 9a arrives with the same $499 price tag as its predecessor despite significant hardware improvements and expanded AI capabilities. The timing—just one month after Apple's iPhone 16e announcement—suggests deliberate positioning against Apple's lower-cost...
read Mar 19, 2025Nvidia, Disney, and Google DeepMind go beyond animatronics, partner on Star Wars-inspired AI robots
Nvidia, Google DeepMind, and Disney Research are collaborating to create AI-powered robots with Star Wars-inspired design and realistic movement capabilities. This cross-industry partnership represents a significant advancement in robotics, combining Nvidia's computing power with Google DeepMind's AI expertise and Disney's entertainment vision. The development could transform theme park experiences while demonstrating practical applications of cutting-edge physics simulation for robotics. The big picture: At Nvidia's GTC 2025 keynote, CEO Jensen Huang unveiled Blue, a research robot capable of lifelike movements powered by a new physics engine called Newton. The physics engine, developed collaboratively between the three companies, will be released as...
read Mar 18, 2025Google adds user suggestions to health search results alongside medical advice
Google is expanding its AI-powered health information capabilities by adding a new feature to Search that will display user suggestions from online discussions alongside medical information from trusted sources. This move represents a significant shift in how Google presents health-related search results, combining traditional authoritative content with crowd-sourced experiences. The feature will be available to mobile users in the US, potentially changing how people gather information about their health concerns. The big picture: Google is adding a new "What people suggest" section to health-related search results, sourcing information from online discussions to complement medical advice from established healthcare sources. The...
read Mar 18, 2025Google launches Audio Overview in AI-narrated PDF-to-podcast pipeline
Google is expanding its AI capabilities with Audio Overview, a feature that transforms written content into engaging podcast-style audio summaries. Initially developed as part of Google's NotebookLM research tool, this technology is now rolling out to Gemini subscribers globally. The feature represents a significant shift in how users can consume and process information, potentially transforming learning experiences by converting complex documents into accessible audio content narrated by AI hosts that sound remarkably human. How it works: Audio Overview creates 10-minute podcasts narrated by two AI hosts who discuss content from documents, PDFs, or YouTube videos that users upload. The AI...
read Mar 18, 2025Novel newbies utilize “Immersive World” jailbreak, turning AI chatbots into malware factories
Cybersecurity researchers have unveiled a new and concerning jailbreak technique called "Immersive World" that enables individuals with no coding experience to manipulate advanced AI chatbots into creating malicious software. This revelation from Cato Networks demonstrates how narrative engineering can bypass AI safety guardrails, potentially transforming any user into a zero-knowledge threat actor capable of generating harmful tools like Chrome infostealers. The findings highlight critical vulnerabilities in widely used AI systems and signal an urgent need for enhanced security measures as AI-powered threats continue to evolve. The big picture: Cato Networks' 2025 Threat Report reveals how researchers successfully tricked multiple AI...
read Mar 17, 2025American AI chatbots, and Gemini especially, collect more user data than Chinese alternatives
New research challenges the prevailing narrative about Chinese AI models posing the greatest privacy risks, revealing instead that popular American chatbots often collect more personal data. This counterintuitive finding comes amid heated international debate over AI ethics and regulation, as users worldwide increasingly rely on AI assistants while governments struggle to establish appropriate privacy safeguards across different jurisdictions. The big picture: Despite widespread suspicion of Chinese-developed DeepSeek R1, research from VPN provider Surfshark finds it ranks only fifth for data collection among popular AI chatbots. American-developed Google Gemini tops the list as the most data-intensive AI chatbot, collecting 22 out...
read Mar 17, 2025Mid-collar concerns: AI companies pivot to autonomous systems designed to replace human workers
Major AI companies are racing to deliver autonomous AI systems capable of performing complex tasks with minimal human supervision. This evolution of AI from merely answering questions to completing multi-step tasks independently represents a significant shift in the technology landscape. These new agent-like systems, designed to reason and work autonomously, could dramatically reshape productivity expectations and the future job market. The big picture: Silicon Valley's AI powerhouses including OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and Microsoft are pivoting toward AI systems that can independently complete tasks rather than just augment human capabilities. Anthropic's Claude Code can perform much of a software developer's work...
read Mar 17, 2025Ultimate Trump Card: OpenAI, Google urge AI training on copyrighted content, citing national security
OpenAI and Google are urging the U.S. government to permit AI training on copyrighted materials, framing it as a critical national security issue. Their proposals, submitted in response to President Trump's "AI Action Plan," highlight concerns that restrictive copyright policies could undermine America's competitive edge against China. This debate highlights the tension between protecting intellectual property and fostering AI innovation, especially as both companies face multiple lawsuits over their use of copyrighted content. The big picture: OpenAI and Google are lobbying for AI copyright exemptions, claiming America's global AI leadership is at stake. OpenAI explicitly frames the issue as "a...
read Mar 14, 20255 ways to master Google’s Gemini Flash 2.0 for high-quality AI images
Google's Gemini Flash 2.0 represents a significant advancement in AI image generation, combining unprecedented speed with high-quality output. As generative AI art tools continue to proliferate, this new offering stands out for its conversational capabilities and ability to produce coherent visual narratives. Understanding how to effectively prompt this system unlocks its full potential and demonstrates how AI art generation is becoming both more accessible and sophisticated. 1. Create visual narrativesGemini Flash 2.0's standout feature is its ability to generate coherent visual stories by producing a series of related images that maintain consistent style, settings, and mood. Users can simply request...
read Mar 13, 2025Patronus AI launches Gemini-powered tool to detect handcrafted hallucinations for Etsy
Patronus AI is revolutionizing AI evaluation with the launch of its multimodal large language model-as-a-judge technology, specifically designed to assess AI systems that process images and generate text. This innovation addresses critical challenges in detecting hallucinations and reliability issues in multimodal AI applications, with Etsy already implementing the technology to verify caption accuracy across its vast marketplace of handmade and vintage products. The big picture: Patronus AI has created Judge-Image, an industry-first evaluation tool built on Google's Gemini model to help developers ensure accuracy in AI-generated image captions and descriptions. The technology enables automatic evaluation of image captions based on...
read Mar 13, 2025Meeting of the DeepMinds: “Habermas Machine” uses AI to build consensus across divided opinions
Google DeepMind's Habermas Machine represents a significant advance in using AI to bridge divides and build consensus among people with differing opinions. The system—named after philosopher Jürgen Habermas whose work focused on communication and consensus—demonstrates how AI can potentially serve as an effective mediator in human disagreements, potentially offering solutions to polarization that increasingly characterizes public discourse. How it works: The Habermas Machine uses paired language models to synthesize diverse opinions into unified group statements that participants can endorse. The system begins by collecting individual opinions on binary questions (such as "Should voting be compulsory?"), along with participants' level of...
read Mar 13, 2025Google DeepMind’s new AI models enable robots to understand, adapt to complex tasks on the fly
Google DeepMind is pushing the boundaries of robotics with new AI models designed to transform how robots interact with the physical world. These advances mark a crucial step toward bridging the gap between today's specialized industrial robots and future general-purpose robot assistants capable of understanding and adapting to complex environments autonomously. This development addresses one of the most challenging aspects of robotics: creating AI systems sophisticated enough to control robots safely through novel situations. The big picture: Google DeepMind has introduced two specialized AI models—Gemini Robotics and Gemini Robotics-ER—built on its Gemini 2.0 foundation to serve as sophisticated "brains" for...
read Mar 12, 2025Google’s AI Mode intensifies search wars as publisher traffic plummets
Let's talk...about how tech giants are intensifying their competition to dominate the AI-powered search landscape with Google's latest experimental features signaling a shift to conversational search experiences. This battle comes amid Google's ongoing antitrust case and growing concerns about how AI search tools are fundamentally changing publisher traffic patterns and user engagement with traditional search results. The big picture: Google is expanding its generative AI search capabilities with a new "AI Mode" that allows for follow-up questions, just as the company faces potential forced divestiture of Chrome in its antitrust battle with the DOJ. The experimental feature, powered by Google's...
read Mar 11, 2025AI shifts from one-time diagnostics to continuous care management in healthcare
This transcends inpatient and outpatient. AI's role in healthcare is transforming from isolated diagnostic moments to comprehensive longitudinal care management. Google's Articulate Medical Intelligence Explorer (AMIE) represents a significant evolution in medical AI, demonstrating capabilities to monitor and adjust treatment plans over time rather than just identifying conditions at a single point. This shift addresses the reality that most medical care—especially for chronic conditions like diabetes and cardiovascular disease—requires ongoing, adaptive approaches that respond to changing patient needs. The big picture: Healthcare AI is evolving beyond single-moment diagnostics to continuous disease management, marking a fundamental shift in how technology supports...
read Mar 11, 2025Google adds Gemini AI to Gmail for one-click calendar scheduling
Google is bringing its Gemini AI assistant directly into Gmail to simplify calendar management through automated event detection. This integration represents another step in Google's strategy to weave AI capabilities throughout its productivity suite, potentially saving users time on routine scheduling tasks. The feature uses AI to analyze email content and offers one-click calendar additions, though the implementation comes with both convenience benefits and potential accuracy challenges. The big picture: Google has added Gemini AI to Gmail with a feature that can automatically detect events in emails and add them directly to Google Calendar. The integration aims to boost productivity...
read Mar 10, 2025DOJ softens Google AI investment restrictions while keeping Chrome sale proposal
The Justice Department's revised antitrust proposal for Google strikes a balance between regulating the tech giant's influence in the AI sector while avoiding potential disruption to innovation. By allowing Google to maintain its current investments in AI startups like Anthropic while requiring future notification of new AI investments, regulators are taking a measured approach to competition concerns in the rapidly evolving artificial intelligence landscape. The big picture: The DOJ's updated proposal allows Google to keep existing AI investments but requires antitrust notification for future AI company stakes, reflecting a more cautious approach to regulating the evolving AI sector. Key details:...
read Mar 7, 2025Google deploys AI to fight scams on Android with real-time detection
Google is deploying AI to fight AI-powered scams on Android devices, introducing sophisticated real-time detection systems for both text messages and phone calls. These new features represent a significant advancement in mobile security, using on-device artificial intelligence to identify conversations that start innocuously but later develop suspicious patterns—a common tactic used by modern scammers. By implementing contextual analysis rather than simple filtering, Google aims to counter increasingly sophisticated social engineering attacks that traditional security measures often miss. The big picture: Google has announced two AI-powered scam detection features for Android that analyze communications in real-time to protect users from sophisticated...
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