Canopy is a new peer-to-peer social networking app for content creators to connect, crowdsource, and “spill the tea.” The company announced its 1,000-influencer pilot program today. Founder and CEO Ayomi Samaraweera told that Canopy hopes the program will “build critical mass on the platform in our core content niches: beauty, …
Read More »Spotify restricts its free tier in India to attract paid users
Spotify is restricting free features in India to attract paid users. Years after the streaming service launched in India in 2019, these limits will prevent users from playing songs manually or rewinding, skipping, or repeating them. The Swedish company has offered a generous free tier in India to let users …
Read More »Instagram Threads prepares Trending Topics to fight X
In order to compete with X (formerly Twitter), Instagram’s Threads will launch Trends, a popular feature. A Threads user noticed the update in a screenshot posted accidentally by a Threads employee over the weekend, which showed a numbered list of trending topics and how many “threads” were discussing each item. …
Read More »Meta Quest 3 approaches mainstream AR/VR
2023 will likely be a turning point for AR and VR. Apple unveiled the Vision Pro at WWDC in June after years of waiting for the iPhone moment. This was the company’s usual big, boisterous, polished presentation with lofty promises and a high price. From my conversations with most of …
Read More »UK competition regulators are investigating AWS, Microsoft, and Google for cloud lock-in
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is investigating whether big cloud infrastructure companies make it hard for businesses to switch or use multiple providers, putting the U.K. cloud market in the regulatory crosshairs. A year ago, Ofcom announced it was starting a market study of the £7.5 billion U.K. cloud …
Read More »Lemurian Labs is creating a cheaper compute paradigm for AI models
The resource demands of generative AI models have driven demand for Nvidia GPU chips to an all-time high, but what if there was a cheaper chip with similar power? Google, Intel, and Nvidia alumni’s early-stage startup Lemurian Labs aims to build that. It’s a moonshot idea, and it takes a …
Read More »Artifact, a news app that competes with X, adds AI images to posts
The news aggregator turned X competitor Artifact is adding generative AI. The app, created by Instagram’s co-founders, announced last week that users could post updates without links. Users can now use generative AI to create images for their posts. An appealing image can help tell a story, so the company …
Read More »Pixel 8 and 8 Pro will include Google Photos’ AI-powered Magic Editor
Google Photos will have generative AI with the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro smartphones. The feature, announced at the company’s I/O developer conference in May, allows more complex edits like filling gaps, repositioning the subject, and other foreground or background edits. Google showed how Magic Editor could easily combine …
Read More »Android 14 adds lock screen customization, accessibility, and more
Google launched Android 14 in NYC today at its Made By Google event. Android 14 has new customization, accessibility, and more, the company said. Pixel devices are getting Android 14 today, and Samsung Galaxy, iQOO, Nothing, OnePlus, Oppo, Realme, Sharp, Sony, Tecno, Vivo, and Xiaomi devices will get it later …
Read More »Google Assistant gets many improvements on Pixel 8 and 8 Pro
Google launched the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro at a hardware event this morning. Temperature sensor, off-device video processing, and improved photo editing are highlights. Both have substantially improved AI features thanks to Google Assistant. Google Assistant can summarize, read aloud, and translate web pages on the Pixel 8 …
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