Aug 7, 2025

Samsung’s new AI photo features turn Galaxy phones into professional-looking DSLR cameras

Samsung has launched two new AI features in its Galaxy Enhance-X photo editing app, including "Focus Shift" that mimics professional DSLR-style depth of field effects with a simple tap. These features are currently exclusive to Samsung phones running One UI 8, giving users another compelling reason to upgrade to the latest software version. What you should know: The Galaxy Enhance-X app version 16.0.01.8 introduces two AI-powered photo enhancement tools designed to bring professional-quality editing to smartphone users. Focus Shift allows users to tap anywhere on a photo to bring that area into sharper focus while blurring the background, creating the...

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xAI makes Grok video generator free as OpenAI launches GPT-5

Elon Musk's xAI has made its Grok Imagine video generation tool free for all users, marking a strategic move to counter OpenAI's recent GPT-5 upgrade to ChatGPT. The decision positions xAI as one of the few companies offering publicly accessible image-to-video AI generation at no cost, potentially expanding its user base while competing directly with OpenAI's premium offerings. What you should know: Grok Imagine transforms static images into short videos using generative AI technology. Users can either generate new images or upload existing ones through the Grok app on iOS and Android. The tool then presents a simple button to...

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Job alert: YC-backed Foundry hiring founding engineer at $300K+ for AI browser simulation

Foundry, a Y Combinator-backed startup, is seeking a founding product engineer to build what it describes as the "world model for browser agents"—a comprehensive simulation platform for training and testing AI-powered web automation. The San Francisco-based company, founded in 2024, is positioning itself to capture part of what it calls a trillion-dollar opportunity in automating digital work by creating the infrastructure necessary for reliable, scalable AI agents. What they're building: Foundry aims to solve the brittleness problem plaguing current AI agents by providing a high-fidelity simulation environment for browser-based automation. The platform combines deterministic web simulation with live web evaluation,...

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British MP’s AI avatar struggles with Yorkshire accents

Leeds MP Mark Sewards has launched what's billed as the first AI avatar of a British MP, allowing constituents to interact with a digital version that responds in his voice. However, testing by The Guardian revealed significant limitations when the AI encountered Yorkshire accents and local dialect, highlighting ongoing challenges with voice recognition technology for regional speech patterns. How it works: The "Sewardsbot" features a Pixar-style cartoon representation of the Labour MP for Leeds South West and Morley that can field questions from constituents.• The AI responds in Sewards' actual voice, offering advice, support, or promising to pass messages to...

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Brookfield commits $33B to European AI infrastructure buildout

Canadian investment giant Brookfield Asset Management is making a massive bet on the infrastructure gold rush powering artificial intelligence, committing over $33 billion to European AI projects as demand for specialized computing facilities explodes worldwide. The Toronto-based asset manager, which oversees more than $900 billion in assets across real estate, infrastructure, and renewable energy, announced a dedicated investment strategy targeting the complex web of physical infrastructure that AI systems require to function. This isn't just about building more data centers—it's about creating an entirely new category of industrial facilities designed specifically for AI's voracious appetite for computing power and energy....

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Beyond the science fair: North Carolina students build AI chatbots in 2-day prompt-a-thon

Catawba County Schools in North Carolina hosted a two-day "prompt-a-thon" this week to help 30 students build AI literacy through hands-on experimentation with generative AI tools. The event marks the beginning of a three-year partnership with AI for Education, a nonprofit organization, to implement AI programs across all 28 schools in the district, preparing students for an increasingly AI-driven future. What you should know: The prompt-a-thon took place August 4-5 at the Hickory Metro Convention Center, where students worked in teams to design AI solutions for real-world problems. One team created a program to help students manage daily schedules, while...

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Google and Microsoft launch Gemini CLI GitHub Actions for AI-powered coding

Google and Microsoft's GitHub have partnered to launch Gemini CLI GitHub Actions, a free beta AI tool that integrates Google's Gemini AI directly into GitHub repositories as an autonomous coding assistant. The collaboration expands Google's recently launched Gemini CLI beyond terminal interfaces, positioning it as a comprehensive AI teammate for software development workflows. What you should know: Gemini CLI GitHub Actions functions as both an autonomous agent and on-demand collaborator within GitHub repositories. The tool can auto-label, prioritize and filter new issues, provide instant feedback on code quality, style and correctness, and collaborate through @gemini-cli commands to write tests, implement...

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Farcical recognition: UK users bypass face-based age verification with video game characters

Discord users in the UK are bypassing new age verification requirements by using video game characters instead of their real faces, exploiting weaknesses in facial recognition systems. The workaround highlights significant vulnerabilities in age verification technology that could become even more problematic as AI-generated content grows more sophisticated. What's happening: The UK's new child safety laws require platforms like Discord to verify users are over 18 through government ID or face scans to access age-restricted content. Users discovered they could pass facial verification using screenshots from video games like Death Stranding, God of War, and Cyberpunk 2077. One user successfully...

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Data center spending to hit $1.2T as AI reshapes infrastructure

The global data center industry is experiencing unprecedented growth, driven by an artificial intelligence boom that's reshaping how companies think about computing infrastructure. New research reveals that worldwide data center capital expenditure will surge at a 21% compound annual growth rate through 2029, reaching $1.2 trillion in total investment over the next five years. This explosive growth represents far more than incremental technology upgrades. It signals a fundamental shift in how businesses process information, with artificial intelligence applications demanding entirely new categories of specialized computing hardware and infrastructure capabilities. The hyperscaler effect Hyperscalers—the massive cloud computing providers like Amazon Web...

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OpenAI launches GPT-5 with claimed PhD-level AI capabilities

OpenAI has launched GPT-5, claiming the new AI model delivers "PhD-level" expertise across areas like coding and writing. The release marks a significant upgrade in the company's flagship ChatGPT service, with CEO Sam Altman describing it as ushering in a new era of AI capabilities that would have been "unimaginable at any previous time in human history." What you should know: GPT-5 represents a major leap in AI reasoning and problem-solving capabilities compared to its predecessors. Altman characterized the progression as moving from high school level (GPT-3) to college level (GPT-4) to PhD-level expertise (GPT-5). The model can create complete...

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AI school surveillance creates false alarms in 67% of cases

AI surveillance systems in American schools are flagging students for false threats at alarming rates, leading to arrests, strip searches, and involuntary mental health commitments for teenagers whose words were taken out of context. A 13-year-old Tennessee girl was arrested and jailed overnight after making an offensive joke about her friends calling her "Mexican," while data from one Kansas district shows nearly two-thirds of AI alerts were deemed non-issues by school officials. The big picture: Thousands of school districts now use AI-powered surveillance software like Gaggle and Lightspeed Alert to monitor student communications on school accounts and devices, creating a...

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NSF awards $32M to 5 teams for AI-powered protein design breakthroughs

The National Science Foundation has awarded nearly $32 million to five teams across the United States through its inaugural Use-Inspired Acceleration of Protein Design (NSF USPRD) initiative. This strategic investment aims to accelerate the translation of AI-based protein design approaches into real-world applications, strengthening America's competitive position in the rapidly expanding bioeconomy sector. Why this matters: The funding represents a critical push to maintain U.S. leadership in biotechnology as global competition intensifies, particularly in areas where AI-driven protein design could revolutionize industries from manufacturing to healthcare. The big picture: The National Science Foundation's Technology, Innovation and Partnerships directorate is betting...

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AI progress needs experts, not white-collar sweatshop workers, says study

The era of "sweatshop data"—where low-skill contractors performed basic labeling tasks for AI training—is ending as artificial intelligence models require more sophisticated training approaches. A new analysis from AI researchers at Mechanize Inc. argues that advancing beyond current AI capabilities will demand high-skill specialists, interactive software environments, and deep subject-matter expertise rather than traditional dataset creation methods. The big picture: Current AI models have mastered basic tasks but struggle with complex, long-horizon challenges like managing large-scale software projects or autonomous debugging of intricate systems. Early AI systems benefited from simple, mass-produced datasets created by contractors paid "just a few dollars...

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Google DeepMind expands Perch AI to track endangered wildlife sounds

Google DeepMind has released an updated version of Perch, an AI model designed to help conservationists analyze bioacoustic data from endangered species and ecosystems. The new model features improved bird species predictions, better adaptation to underwater environments like coral reefs, and training on nearly twice as much data covering mammals, amphibians, and anthropogenic noise. What you should know: The updated Perch model significantly expands beyond its original bird-focused capabilities to analyze a broader range of wildlife sounds. The model can now process complex acoustic scenes across thousands or millions of hours of audio data from microphones and underwater hydrophones (underwater...

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James Cameron warns AI weapons could trigger “Terminator”-style apocalypse

James Cameron has warned about the potential dangers of combining artificial intelligence with weapons systems, drawing parallels to his own "Terminator" franchise while promoting his upcoming book adaptation "Ghosts of Hiroshima." The Oscar-winning director's comments highlight growing concerns about AI's role in military applications, even as he explores the technology's benefits for filmmaking through his recent appointment to Stability AI's board of directors. What he's saying: Cameron believes humanity faces three converging existential threats that could define our future. "I do think there's still a danger of a 'Terminator'-style apocalypse where you put AI together with weapons systems, even up...

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OpenAI offers $1.5M bonuses as Meta hoovers up AI talent

OpenAI has announced a $1.5 million bonus for every employee over the next two years, including new hires, according to a social media post by Yuchen Jin, a tech industry observer. The unprecedented retention package appears to be a direct response to Meta's aggressive talent poaching from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google as tech giants race to build artificial general intelligence. What you should know: The bonus structure effectively makes every OpenAI employee a millionaire, distributed as approximately $750,000 per year over two years.• The announcement comes as Meta has been on what industry observers describe as a "poaching spree," aggressively...

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Truth Social launches AI search powered by Perplexity amid legal battles

Trump's Truth Social has launched Truth Search AI, a beta AI search engine powered by Perplexity, currently available on the web with mobile versions coming soon. The move represents the platform's effort to expand beyond social media into AI-powered search, despite Perplexity facing multiple legal challenges from major publishers for content scraping practices. What you should know: Trump Media & Technology Group says the AI search tool will "exponentially increase the amount of information available to its users." The feature is currently in beta testing for web users, with iOS and Android versions planned for release soon. Trump Media CEO...

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Showing themselves the door: Apple loses AI researchers to Meta, OpenAI amid talent crisis

Apple is hemorrhaging senior AI talent, with roughly a dozen researchers and engineers departing for rivals like Meta and OpenAI in recent months. The exodus has created what one AI recruiting firm describes as "a crisis of confidence" within Apple, signaling to competitors that the iPhone maker's AI team is vulnerable to aggressive poaching efforts. The big picture: Apple's AI brain drain began with the departure of Ruoming Pang, who led the company's foundation model team responsible for Apple Intelligence features like Genmoji and Priority Notifications. Pang joined Meta in July after managing Apple's roughly 100-person AI team since 2021,...

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80% of consumers use zero-click searches for 40% of queries, says study

The rise of zero-click searches is fundamentally disrupting digital marketing as AI-powered search results increasingly provide answers without requiring users to visit websites. According to Bain & Company, a global consulting firm, 80% of consumers rely on zero-click answers for at least 40% of their searches, forcing marketers to completely rethink strategies that have long depended on driving website traffic and capturing leads through traditional conversion funnels. What you should know: Zero-click searches occur when users find the information they need directly on search engine results pages without clicking through to websites. AI overviews, snippets, and info boxes now provide...

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Magician, heal thyself: Midjourney claims Disney hypocrisy amid AI company lawsuits

Midjourney has filed its first legal response to Disney and Universal's copyright infringement lawsuit, arguing that AI training constitutes protected "fair use" and accusing the studios of hypocrisy. The AI image platform's defense centers on claims that the entertainment giants are simultaneously using AI tools while seeking to restrict others from the same technology, potentially setting a precedent for how courts will balance AI innovation against traditional copyright protections. What you should know: Midjourney's legal team is mounting a comprehensive fair use defense while highlighting the studios' own AI usage. The company argues that "copyright law does not confer absolute...

read Aug 6, 2025

Canadian enterprises use genAI to tackle labor shortages while boosting productivity

Canadian enterprises are turning to generative AI to address labor shortages and rising digital demands by transforming content management systems into intelligent information ecosystems. OpenText, a Canadian enterprise software company, is leading this transformation by embedding AI directly into the content layer, allowing organizations to unlock productivity gains while maintaining data sovereignty and regulatory compliance. What you should know: Research shows that AI is enhancing rather than replacing human workers, with significant productivity benefits already being realized. According to Foundry research, 76% of IT and business leaders believe genAI will enhance existing roles, while 68% expect it to create entirely...

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Creative freelancers see 25% job surge countertrend as businesses ditch AI content

Creative freelancers are experiencing a surge in demand as businesses grow fatigued with AI-generated content and seek authentic, emotionally resonant work that machines cannot replicate. According to the Freelancer Fast 50 Global Jobs Index, job postings for writers, designers, and video editors climbed steadily in Q2 2025, even as AI-adjacent roles declined, signaling a clear market preference for human creativity over algorithmic predictability. What the data shows: Communications jobs surged by 25.2% in Q2 2025, making it the fastest-growing category among creative freelancers. The findings are based on more than 251,000 projects posted on a leading freelance site during the...

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Breakthru Beverage CIO targets $700M in AI-powered e-commerce revenue

Glenn Remoreras has joined Breakthru Beverage Group as Chief Information Officer with a mandate to transform the $8.6 billion family-owned distributor into the most technologically advanced company in its industry. His strategy centers on scaling digital commerce, implementing AI across operations, and modernizing the sales process for the company's 10,000-person workforce. What you should know: Remoreras is taking a methodical approach to AI adoption that prioritizes education and infrastructure before deployment. The company targets $700 million in revenue through its B2B e-commerce platform Breakthru Now this year, enhanced with AI-powered chatbots and dynamic recommendations. Rather than rushing AI pilots, Remoreras...

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AI dons a hard hat as construction industry unveils safety tools for jobsites

The Construction Industry Institute has unveiled new AI-powered safety tools for jobsites, developed by a research team from Texas A&M University, Louisiana State University, and 20 industry professionals. The initiative identifies 19 best use cases for artificial intelligence in construction safety protocols and provides a matching tool to help companies implement the most effective solutions for their specific needs. What you should know: The research team created a comprehensive framework that connects AI applications with current safety challenges on construction sites. Wearables and generative AI can predict dangerous jobsite locations and establish geofenced alerts that notify workers when entering high-risk...

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