Techmeme
February 22, 2024, 3:35 PM

Top News

Jake Rudnitsky / Bloomberg:
Google plans to “pause the image generation of people” via Gemini and “re-release an improved version soon” while working to fix its race inaccuracy “issues”  —  - Critics on X say model is unable to accurately depict races  — Google said it will re-release an improved version soon
Kate Irwin / PCMag:
Google says it is working to immediately fix Gemini's “inaccuracies in some historical image generation depictions”, after some users complained  —  Controversy is swirling around Google's generative AI tool Gemini as some users complain that its historical depictions are not accurate.
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Sony is testing PC support for its PlayStation VR2 headset, which currently works exclusively with the PS5, and hopes “to make this support available in 2024”  —  Sony's PlayStation VR2 headset is designed to work exclusively with a PS5, but the company is now testing out support for PC.
Washington Post:
Leaked files detail Chinese state-linked hacking groups carrying out large-scale, systematic cyber intrusions against governments, companies, and infrastructure  —  A trove of leaked documents from a Chinese state-linked hacking group shows that Beijing's intelligence and military groups …
Sean Michael Kerner / VentureBeat:
Stability AI debuts a preview of Stable Diffusion 3.0, its next-gen flagship text-to-image model, aiming to offer improved image quality and better performance  —  Stability AI is out today with an early preview of its Stable Diffusion 3.0 next-generation flagship text-to-image generative AI model.
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Bluesky opens up federation, letting anyone run their own server connecting to Bluesky's network, which uses the AT Protocol; Mastodon uses ActivityPub  —  Social network Bluesky, a competitor to X, Threads, Mastodon, and others, is opening up its doors with today's news that the network …
Ismail Shakil / Reuters:
The US FTC says Avast needs to pay $16.5M and stop selling web browsing data for ads to settle charges that the UK company misrepresented its use of such data  —  Software provider Avast Plc will need to pay $16.5 million and stop selling any web browsing data for advertising purposes …
Abner Li / 9to5Google:
Google strikes a deal with Reddit, reportedly for $60M/year, gaining Reddit Data API access to surface more Reddit content in Search and to train its AI models  —  Google today announced an “expanded partnership” with Reddit that sees it get access to the forum website's data for training and other product uses.
Jess Weatherbed / The Verge:
Google rolls out its Gemini-powered “Help me write” tool in Chrome for macOS and Windows for English-speaking US users, offering shortform writing suggestions  —  Google has started rolling out “Help me write” — an experimental Gemini-powered generative AI feature for its Chrome browser …
Bloomberg:
EigenLayer, which facilitates crypto “restaking” to build Ethereum projects via a points system, raised $100M from a16z, after raising $50M in March 2023  —  - VC firm was the sole investor in EigenLayer's funding round  — Crypto venture investments declined sharply in the past year
Ben Schoon / 9to5Google:
Samsung plans to roll out One UI 6.1 in “late March” for the Galaxy S23 series, Z Fold 5, Z Flip 5, and Tab 9 series, adding the full Galaxy AI suite and more  —  Samsung's next big Android update, One UI 6.1, debuted on the Galaxy S24 series last month, but is getting ready to make its way to more Galaxy devices.
Financial Times:
Sources: Nigeria ordered telecoms to restrict access to the websites of some of the world's largest crypto exchanges, including Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken  —  Local consumers given only restricted access to markets like Binance and Coinbase  —  Authorities in Nigeria have blocked access …
Shivam Patel / Reuters:
X reports taking down accounts and posts following an order by the Indian government, which local media tied to farmers' protests, but disagrees with the action  —  Social media platform X said on Thursday it took down certain accounts and posts following an order by the Indian government …
Carly Page / TechCrunch:
Researchers warn that hackers are exploiting ConnectWise's remote access tool via a flaw “embarrassingly easy” to exploit; ConnectWise has confirmed the attacks  —  “I can't sugarcoat it — this shit is bad," said Huntress' CEO  —  Security experts are warning that a high-risk vulnerability …
Lauly Li / Nikkei Asia:
Sources: Google plans to start assembling the Pixel 8 Pro in southern India in Q2 2024, followed by production of the Pixel 8 in northern India around mid-2024  —  Search engine giant joins Apple, Samsung in tapping big South Asian market  —  Google will prepare a production line …
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge:
Amazon's $180 Echo Hub review: fast and interactive widgets, supports Zigbee, Thread, and Matter, but a laggy touchscreen and some features need a subscription  —  Amazon's new control panel makes using an Alexa-powered smart home as easy as flipping a light switch (only better, trust me).
Dr Richard Fletcher / Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism:
Analysis: at 2023's end, 48% of the top news websites in the US, the UK, and eight others had blocked OpenAI's crawler and 24% had blocked Google's AI crawler  —  In this factsheet we describe the proportion of top news websites in ten countries that block AI (artificial intelligence) crawlers.
Sheila Dang / Reuters:
Google plans to integrate Gemini into its Performance Max ad placement tool, helping brands generate longer headlines, after adding Gemini into Google Workspace  —  Alphabet's (GOOGL.O) Google said on Thursday it will integrate its Gemini artificial intelligence models into an existing product …
David Gilbert / Wired:
Gab launched 91 chatbots over the last month, including AI versions of Hitler and Trump, several of which deny the Holocaust, call climate change a scam, more  —  The proliferation of generative AI chatbots on extremist platforms could lead to increased radicalization, experts warn.

Sponsor Posts

Meta:
Open Source AI: Available to all, not just the few  —  Meta's open source AI enables small businesses, start-ups, students, researchers and more to download and build with our models at no cost.
Zoho:
How remote support can make your Christmas stress-free  —  As Christmas approaches, the air fills with the anticipation of joy, family gatherings, and gift-giving.  While the season brings immense happiness …
Genesys:
Executive Insights: The Era of Contact Center AI Copilots  —  How AI copilots are transforming customer experience and agent performance.
Tribe AI:
Build AI products that matter  —  Tribe AI helps organizations rapidly deploy AI solutions that have real business impact.  We bring together world class AI talent and tooling to drive differentiated results.
Techmeme Ride Home:
(BNS) Calvin And Hobbes - With Daniel Kibblesmith
The day's tech news, every day at 5pm ET. Fifteen minutes and you're up to date.
Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or RSS.
 

About This Page

This is a Techmeme archive page. It shows how the site appeared at 3:35 PM ET, February 22, 2024.

The most current version of the site as always is available at our home page. To view an earlier snapshot click here and then modify the date indicated.

More News

Earlier Picks

Manish Singh / TechCrunch:
Anna Tong / Reuters:
Taylor Soper / GeekWire:
Juli Clover / MacRumors: