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Building Colossus: Inside the AI supercomputer Supermicro is building for xAI
A cutting-edge AI supercomputer, claimed to be the world's largest liquid-cooled GPU cluster, is being built through a partnership between xAI, Supermicro, and NVIDIA in Memphis, Tennessee. Project scale and specifications: The supercomputer installation represents an unprecedented deployment of computing power in terms of both size and speed. The system incorporates over 100,000 NVIDIA HGX H100 GPUs across four compute halls, with each hall housing approximately 25,000 GPUs The facility includes exabytes of storage capacity (an exabyte is equivalent to one billion gigabytes) The entire system was transformed from an empty building to a functioning AI supercomputer in just 122...
read Jan 14, 2025Meta allegedly trained its AI models on pirated torrent content
Meta's use of pirated content from torrent sites to train its Llama large language model has been revealed through court documents, leading to copyright litigation. Key developments: Court documents in the "Kadrey et al. v. Meta Platforms" case have exposed internal communications suggesting Meta's use of unauthorized content for AI training. Novelists Richard Kadrey and Christopher Golden filed the lawsuit in 2023, alleging Meta used their copyrighted works without permission Judge Vince Chhabria ordered the release of unredacted documents that were previously hidden from public view Internal communications show Meta employees expressing concerns about downloading torrented content on corporate laptops...
read Jan 14, 2025The latest news on Amazon Alexa’s AI makeover
Latest Amazon AI Development: Amazon is working on upgrading Alexa with generative AI capabilities, though significant technical challenges remain before the virtual assistant can be relaunched as an AI Agent. Key challenges ahead: Amazon's AGI lead Rohit Prasad has identified several critical issues that need to be resolved before the enhanced version of Alexa can be released to the public. The primary concern is eliminating AI hallucinations, where the system generates false or fabricated information Response speed and overall reliability remain significant hurdles in the development process The technical team is focused on achieving near-zero hallucination rates before any public...
read Jan 14, 2025Samsung’s Sketch-to-Image feature will soon let you incorporate voice commands too
One of Samsung's next big reveals will reportedly include a new AI-powered Sketch to Image tool that allows users to combine voice and text inputs with drawings to generate images. Latest Features: Samsung is expanding the capabilities of its Galaxy AI-powered Sketch to Image tool within Drawing Assist, introducing multimodal input functionality that enhances creative possibilities. Users can now complement their sketches with typed text or voice commands to generate more detailed and specific images The upgraded tool allows for intuitive combinations, such as sketching a cat and adding "spacesuit" via text or voice to create a composite image Previously...
read Jan 14, 2025Apple just joined a consortium of Big Tech companies to challenge Nvidia’s closed AI hardware ecosystem
Apple has joined the Ultra Accelerator Link Consortium as a board member, marking its formal entry into an industry-wide effort to develop next-generation AI accelerator connectivity standards. Key development: Apple has secured a board position in the Ultra Accelerator Link (UALink) Consortium, a group of over 65 members working to establish open standards for AI hardware connectivity. Becky Loop, Apple's Director of Platform Architecture, emphasized the company's commitment to addressing connectivity challenges and expanding AI capabilities through this collaboration The consortium includes major tech players such as AWS, Google, Meta, Microsoft, AMD, and Intel Apple's involvement will enable the company...
read Jan 14, 2025ChatGPT now handles reminders and to-do lists — plus more on its forthcoming agents
OpenAI is introducing Tasks, a beta feature in ChatGPT that enables users to schedule future actions and reminders, marking the chatbot's expansion into digital assistant territory. Core functionality and access: ChatGPT's Tasks feature allows subscribers to schedule one-time or recurring actions, representing a significant evolution from its real-time-only interactions. The feature is currently available exclusively to Plus, Team, and Pro subscribers Users can access Tasks by selecting "4o with scheduled tasks" in the model picker A limit of 10 active tasks can run simultaneously Task management is available through chat threads or a dedicated Tasks section on the web interface...
read Jan 14, 2025Key announcements to look out for at Samsung’s Unpacked 2025 event
Breaking news: Samsung's upcoming Unpacked 2024 event, scheduled for January 22 in San Jose, California, will showcase the company's latest Galaxy S25 smartphone lineup and AI innovations. Event details and accessibility: The event will be broadcast live across multiple platforms, making it accessible to a global audience. The presentation begins at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET on Tuesday, January 22 Viewers can tune in through Samsung.com, Samsung Newsroom, or Samsung's YouTube channel The physical event will take place in San Jose, California, marking a significant tech industry gathering New flagship smartphones: Samsung is expected to unveil three new models in...
read Jan 14, 2025Meta to eliminate 5% of staff in shift to AI and AR development
Meta has announced plans to cut 5% of its workforce, approximately 3,600 employees, as part of a strategic shift to prioritize artificial intelligence and augmented reality development. Strategic reshaping: Mark Zuckerberg is implementing performance-based cuts to create space for new talent focused on AI innovation and smart glasses development. Employees deemed as "low performers" will be notified by February 10 and receive generous severance packages The company will retain some underperforming employees if management sees potential for future improvement This represents Meta's largest workforce reduction since 2023's "year of efficiency" cuts Performance management overhaul: Zuckerberg aims to accelerate the process...
read Jan 14, 2025How AI deepfakes convinced the world that the Hollywood sign burned down
The recent Los Angeles wildfires sparked widespread misinformation when AI-generated images falsely depicted the Hollywood sign burning down, highlighting the growing challenge of distinguishing real from artificial content during crisis situations. Current situation; Los Angeles County is battling devastating wildfires that have claimed ten lives, destroyed 10,000 structures, and forced over 130,000 residents to evacuate. The Pacific Palisades neighborhood has suffered extensive damage A suspected arsonist, allegedly armed with a flamethrower, was arrested in connection with the Kenneth fire Official fire incident maps from CAL FIRE confirm the Hollywood sign remains unaffected by the blazes Viral misinformation spread; AI-generated images...
read Jan 14, 2025New Mexico schools now use AI to track student absenteeism
New Mexico school districts are implementing AI-powered attendance tracking software to address chronic absenteeism, with four districts piloting the technology to automate parent notifications and improve student attendance rates. Current implementation status: The AI platform, developed by San Francisco-based Edia, is being tested in Farmington, Raton, Carlsbad, and Hobbs school districts. Farmington Municipal Schools launched the program in November across three high schools, covering approximately 3,400 students Initial results show improved attendance rates and increased parent response rates The system replaces traditional attendance tracking methods and robocalls with an AI chatbot that communicates directly with parents How the technology works:...
read Jan 14, 2025The most significant global risks of 2025
A new analysis by Foreign Policy outlines the most significant global risks for 2025, with particular emphasis on geopolitical instability, climate concerns, and technological governance challenges. Here's what you need to know. Key Global Threats: The world faces an interconnected web of risks in 2025, ranging from domestic U.S. political shifts to international security concerns and environmental tipping points. Political uncertainty in the United States could significantly impact global alliances and international cooperation Regional tensions in the Middle East are expected to escalate following regime changes and ongoing conflicts Economic relationships between major powers face increasing strain, particularly U.S.-China and...
read Jan 14, 2025NVIDIA scientist sparks outrage for suggesting the use of humanoid robots to fight fires
An Nvidia AI scientist's proposal for AI-powered firefighting robots has sparked controversy amid California wildfires and growing concerns about AI's environmental impact. Current context: Amid devastating wildfires in Los Angeles, Nvidia scientist Jim Fan suggested using humanoid robots for firefighting, drawing criticism for the timing and environmental implications. Fan shared a video on X (formerly Twitter) of a humanoid robot in China, suggesting it could be deployed for firefighting The proposal came as Los Angeles faced severe wildfires, with the nearby town of Altadena experiencing significant damage Environmental concerns: Recent research from UC Riverside and Caltech highlights AI's growing environmental...
read Jan 14, 2025Pebble Beach introduces AI cameras and shot tracing tech to its nine-hole golf course
Pebble Beach Resorts has introduced ReelGOLF®, an AI-powered video capture system, at The Hay's ninth hole, allowing golfers to create and share high-quality videos of their shots. What's new: The ReelGOLF Experience combines AI-enabled cameras, shot tracing technology, and social sharing capabilities to enhance the golfing experience at the Tiger Woods-designed short course. AI-powered Bosch cameras positioned near tee boxes and greens automatically record players' shots Players activate the system by scanning a QR code, receiving enhanced videos with shot tracing and branding within minutes Starlink satellite internet ensures reliable video delivery even in remote course locations Technology implementation: The system...
read Jan 14, 2025Mistral’s new Codestral AI model tops third-party code completion rankings
Mistral's latest code completion model, Codestral 25.01, has quickly gained popularity among developers while demonstrating superior performance in benchmark tests. Key updates and improvements: The new version of Codestral features an enhanced architecture that doubles the speed of its predecessor while maintaining specialization in code-related tasks. The model supports code correction, test generation, and fill-in-the-middle tasks It's specifically optimized for low-latency, high-frequency operations Enterprise users can benefit from improved data handling and model residency capabilities Performance metrics: Codestral 25.01 has demonstrated significant improvements in benchmark testing, particularly outperforming competing models. Achieved an 86.6% score in the HumanEval test for Python...
read Jan 14, 2025The rise of reasoning models spark new prompting techniques and a debate over cost
The advent of reasoning AI models like OpenAI's o1 has sparked new discussions about effective prompting techniques and their associated costs. The evolution of reasoning AI: OpenAI's o1 model, launched in September 2024, represents a new generation of AI that prioritizes thorough analysis over speed, particularly excelling in complex math and science problems. The model employs "chain-of-thought" (CoT) prompting and self-reflection mechanisms to verify its work Competitors including DeepSeek's R1, Google Gemini 2 Flash Thinking, and LlamaV-o1 have emerged with similar reasoning capabilities These models intentionally slow down their response time to enable more thorough analysis and verification Cost considerations:...
read Jan 14, 2025Leaked email outlines Nothing’s AI-driven vision for Phone (3) and future platform
A leaked email suggests Nothing's upcoming Phone (3) will prioritize AI features as part of the company's broader strategy to develop an AI-powered platform. The context: Nothing, a consumer technology company, is preparing to launch its next flagship device in 2025 after focusing on budget devices throughout 2024. Nothing spent 2024 developing its Phone (2a) series, releasing four variants The company previously confirmed plans for a Nothing Phone (3) in 2025 The information comes from an internal email allegedly written by Nothing's founder Carl Pei, shared by tech leaker Evan Blass Key details from the leak: The email describes ambitious...
read Jan 14, 2025Vertical Compute raises $20.5M to advance memory chip tech
Imec has spun out a new memory chip company called Vertical Compute with $20.5 million in seed funding to develop innovative vertical integrated memory technology for AI applications. Key funding details: The seed round was led by Imec.xpand with participation from Eurazeo, XAnge, Vector Gestion, and imec. The company, founded by former Google executive Sylvain Dubois (CEO) and ex-imec executive Sebastien Couet (CTO), will be headquartered in Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium R&D operations will be spread across Leuven, Grenoble, and Nice The funding will support development of vertical integrated memory and compute technology aimed at enabling more efficient AI applications Technical innovation:...
read Jan 14, 2025UAE’s Sheikh Tahnoun who controls $1.5 trillion sovereign wealth to expand AI investments and U.S. partnerships
UAE's Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed al Nahyan, who controls approximately $1.5 trillion in sovereign wealth, is rapidly expanding his artificial intelligence investments and partnerships with U.S. technology companies. Key background and influence: Sheikh Tahnoun serves as the UAE's national security adviser and intelligence chief, overseeing the nation's technology conglomerate G42 while wielding significant control over sovereign wealth funds. His early interest in technology emerged through sponsorship of the Hydra chess computer project in the mid-2000s As part of a succession agreement with his brother, the UAE's president, Tahnoun gained extensive control over the country's sovereign wealth G42, under his leadership,...
read Jan 14, 2025AI assistants will gain access to your screen in 2025
AI assistants now integrate directly with various applications, simplifying tasks and offering contextual help through visual recognition and natural language interaction. Key innovations: Nvidia's Project RTX and Razer's Project AVA represent significant advances in AI assistance technology, demonstrating how AI can actively monitor and respond to user activities in real-time. Project RTX features a graphical assistant that observes screen activity and webcam input to provide contextual help and execute commands The system can identify applications being used and guide users through specific features, such as Photoshop's Generative Fill Physical object recognition through webcam enables real-world interactions, like identifying a coffee...
read Jan 14, 2025Ericsson debuts AI chatbot to streamline 5G network management
Ericsson has launched NetCloud Assistant (ANA), a generative AI chatbot designed to streamline 5G network administration for enterprise customers. Core functionality: ANA serves as the first generative AI 'virtual expert' specifically built for enterprise Wireless WAN networks, operating within Ericsson's environment to ensure data privacy and security. The system leverages large language models to process network data and technical documentation By avoiding third-party consumer AI applications, ANA maintains strict control over sensitive network information The chatbot integrates with Ericsson's NetCloud AIOps dashboard, which monitors network performance and detects anomalies Key capabilities: The platform transforms complex network management tasks that typically...
read Jan 14, 2025How Wikipedia emerged as one of the web’s most trusted sources of information
The rise of Wikipedia: In an era of AI mishaps and social media turbulence, Wikipedia has established itself as the world's seventh most visited website and a remarkably dependable source of information. The platform's accuracy and reliability have steadily improved over its two-decade existence, while other major platforms have experienced declining quality Unlike its top-ranked peers, Wikipedia remains independent of tech giants Alphabet, Meta, and Elon Musk's holdings The platform's success challenges the conventional wisdom that profitable, centralized control is necessary for maintaining quality online information Community-driven moderation: The Wikimedia Foundation's volunteer-based editing system has proven exceptionally effective at maintaining...
read Jan 14, 2025Biden signs new executive order to grow US AI infrastructure
President Biden signed a new executive order designed to expand America's artificial intelligence infrastructure through strategic development of data centers on federal lands while ensuring clean energy usage and domestic AI capabilities. Core initiative details: The executive order establishes a framework for building AI infrastructure on government sites while implementing specific requirements for private sector developers. The Departments of Defense and Energy must each identify a minimum of three sites suitable for private sector AI data center development Select locations will be reserved specifically for small and medium-sized AI companies to ensure diverse market participation The Interior Department will assess...
read Jan 14, 2025YouTube may soon integrate Gemini AI for real-time video chats
YouTube is preparing to integrate Google Gemini AI into its platform with a new Talk Live feature that would allow users to directly interact with AI while watching videos or reading PDFs, based on code discovered by Android Authority. The core functionality; The Talk Live feature will enable real-time AI conversations about video content through contextual "chips" that appear during playback. Users can ask questions about video content without pausing or searching elsewhere The feature will provide instant explanations, summaries, and contextual information Similar functionality will be available for PDF documents, allowing users to discuss and clarify content directly with...
read Jan 14, 2025This startup is on a mission to transform satellite navigation with AI
GPS security vulnerabilities have prompted the development of an AI-powered magnetic navigation system called AQNav by SandboxAQ, offering a potential backup to traditional satellite navigation. The technology explained: AQNav utilizes quantum magnetometers and artificial intelligence to determine location by detecting and analyzing Earth's magnetic field patterns. The system works by comparing real-time magnetic field readings against detailed magnetic field maps, enabling accurate position tracking without relying on satellite signals Quantum magnetometers, which measure magnetic fields at the quantum level, provide the precise measurements necessary for navigation The AI component processes the magnetic data and performs pattern matching to determine exact...
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