Engadget Podcast: How AI created a 'South Park' episode around us

AI can now place us inside South Park episodes – should we be worried? This week, Devindra and Deputy Editor Nathan Ingraham chat with Edward Saatchi, the CEO of The Simulation, about his company’s new AI technology that can generate TV episodes, movies and more. We preview a test South Park episode featuring Devindra, and discuss if this technology is actually a good thing for creatives. Also, Editor at Large James Trew joins to discuss his piece on AI-powered immortality. And to keep the sci-fi theme going, Devindra chats with the director and writer of Netflix’s They Cloned Tyrone, Juel Taylor and Tony Rettenmaier.

Listen below or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you’ve got suggestions or topics you’d like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcasts, the Morning After and Engadget News!

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Topics

  • Interview with The Simulation CEO Edward Saatchi around AI-powered South Park – 0:59

  • James Trew on digital immortality and AI’s place in a new field, “grief tech” – 20:48

  • Microsoft / Activision Blizzard’s final merger deadline pushed to October – 32:19

  • Apple is working on its own generative AI chatbot – 33:19

  • Google tests AI tool to generate news articles – 38:15

  • ASUS takes over Intel’s NUC PC business – 44:20

  • Around Engadget: Sam Rutherford’s Nothing Phone 2 review – 51:21

  • Listener mail: Rohan from Singapore on what’s keeping the iPad from being a “real” computer – 56:11

  • Working on – 1:03:54

  • Pop culture picks – 1:07:43

  • Interview with the the creators of the new Netflix movie They Cloned Tyrone – 1:13:25

Credits
Hosts: Devindra Hardawar and Nathan Ingraham
Guests: Edward Saatchi, James Trew, Juel Taylor and Tony Rettenmaier
Producer: Ben Ellman
Music: Dale North and Terrence O’Brien

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/engadget-podcast-ai-south-park-they-cloned-tyrone-123026251.html?src=rss

5 Members Of White Nationalist ‘Patriot Front’ Convicted Of Planning Riot At Idaho Pride

Police found riot gear, a smoke grenade, shin guards and shields inside a van near where the North Idaho Pride Alliance was holding a “Pride in the Park” event in 2022.

Top AI Companies to Meet With Biden, Commit to Third-Party Testing and Watermarking

Seven of the world’s leading tech firms working on artificial intelligence are meeting with the Biden Administration today where they will agree to a set of new commitments intended to manage potential risks posed by AI.

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The Morning After: What to expect at Samsung’s Unpacked 2023 event next week

As competition finally starts to figure out foldables, Samsung’s ready to prove it can still deliver them best. Its next Unpacked event is teasing a new generation of foldable phones, flanked by smartwatches and tablets. Here’s what we’re expecting.

While it hasn’t named the new hardware, the company is expected to reveal the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 5. This year, though, the priorities are inverted. Where the book-style Fold is usually the main attraction, this year the Flip clamshell might get the most attention, with a substantially expanded front screen to go up against competition like Motorola’s Razr+. Both the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 5 may adopt a “waterdrop” hinge, which narrows the gap while closed. Why should we care? It’ll be a slimmer foldable and have a smaller gap when the device is closed.

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Wearable-wise, the company has not-so-subtly hinted the Galaxy Watch 6 will appear at Unpacked, and reports even hint at a Classic or Pro version to bring back the physical rotating bezel. (Some people are obsessed with smartwatches with a rotating bezel.)

Rounding out predictions, expect to see Samsung’s latest premium Android, the Galaxy Tab S9. We’re expecting to see base, plus and ultra versions of the laptop with upgraded screens and maybe even IP67 dust and water protection.

Samsung is streaming the event on its YouTube channel, starting at 7 AM ET on the 26th. Don’t worry if you’d rather sleep in — we’ll be liveblogging along and will hopefully get some hands-ons with the new devices. Stay tuned.

– Mat Smith

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Kevin Mitnick, formerly the world’s most-wanted hacker, has passed away

Mitnick became a White Hat hacker and cybersecurity consultant after prison.

Once the world’s most wanted computer hacker, Kevin Mitnick, passed away at 59 on July 16th. The first time Mitnick infiltrated a computer system was way back in 1979, but he wasn’t convicted until 1988 when he was sentenced to 12 months in prison for copying a company’s software. He broke into Pacific Bell’s voicemail computers when he was under supervised release and continued to hack into cell networks, as well as company and government websites, as a fugitive in the ‘90s.

Mitnick was also involved in the theft of thousands of files and credit card numbers, but his obituary says he “never took one dime from any of his ‘victims.’ Mitnick eventually ended up spending five years in prison, which he described as a “vacation” by the time he was freed. From there, he changed the course of his career and became a White Hat hacker and cybersecurity consultant.

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YouTube Premium quietly goes up to $14 per month

That’s a significant $2 increase with no official announcement.

I hinted at this yesterday, but here are the finer details. YouTube Premium has jumped by a significant $2 from $12 to $14, while the annual price went from $120 to $140 per month, a savings of about $28 over paying month by month. Last year, Google hiked the family Premium plan to $23 per month and charged existing month-by-month subscribers the new fee.

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Google is reportedly testing an AI tool to generate news articles

The tech giant has pitched it to ‘The New York Times’ and other publications.

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According to The New York Times, Google is testing a new AI technology, codenamed Genesis, which can generate news articles. The tech giant has reportedly demonstrated the tool to The Times and executives at The Washington Post and News Corp, which owns The Wall Street Journal. Based on reports from people who witnessed the pitch, Genesis can whip up copy from the data fed to it, whether it’s current events or other types of information. Google believes journalists could use it as an assistant to automate tasks and free them up for other things. Some journalists fear it could well free them up from their jobs.

But the bots aren’t quite there yet: CNEThad to issue corrections after being made aware of substantial errors in most of the 77 machine-written articles it published under the CNET Money byline. And just earlier this month, Gizmodo’s io9published a Star Wars piece full of errors attributed to the Gizmodo Bot.

Continue reading.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-what-to-expect-at-samsungs-unpacked-2023-event-next-week-111516314.html?src=rss

Why Your Skin Gets Crepey As You Age, And What You Can Do About It

Dermatologists reveal what contributes to the condition, how to prevent it and whether any over-the-counter products actually work to eliminate crepey skin.

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The GoPro Hero11 Black Mini is 50 percent off right now

Summer is all about adventure, with better weather and longer days giving you more opportunities to bike, run, hike or even surf. If you want to keep a record of it all without breaking the bank, now is your chance. The GoPro Hero 11 Black Mini is half off right now — down to $200 from $400 — at both Amazon and Adorama.

The GoPro Hero11 Black Mini is a great choice if you want a camera mounted on your body. Its slightly smaller frame and lower weight make it a more comfortable option for placement somewhere like on a helmet. In fact, when we reviewed the Hero11 Black Mini, it felt like it was made to sit on a helmet, thanks also due to its additional rear mounting fingers that help position it facing forward. Other features include 360-degree rotation, HyperSmooth 5.0 video stabilization and 2X Zoom. You can also use TimeWarp 3.0, Time Lapse and Night Lapse when shooting a video with up to 5.3K resolution.

The Hero11 Black Mini does give up some features in exchange for its smaller size. It can’t take pictures and instead pulls 24.7MP ones from videos. It also doesn’t have a screen, so you need the Quik app to do most of the setup.

The classic GoPro Hero11 Black is also on sale if you’re looking for a slightly more complex option, with a 30 percent discount bringing its price down to $349 from $500. The Hero11 Black is about three-quarters of an inch wider than the mini and offers several more features, such as the ability to take 27MP photos and pull 24.7MP ones from videos if you like. It also has a built-in 1.9-inch screen so you can review content right from the device. Additional tools include the ability to schedule when and how long it will capture content, the addition of a webcam and a removable 1720mAh Enduro battery.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-gopro-hero11-black-mini-is-50-percent-off-right-now-100521133.html?src=rss

Nigerian Goalkeeper Notches Epic Game-Saver At The Women’s World Cup

Chiamaka Nnadozie spectacularly denied Canadian great Christine Sinclair for underdog Nigeria.

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Telegram Stories arrive for paid Premium users

Telegram’s new Stories feature is here as promised, but it’s only available to Premium users for now, the company said in a Tweet. Last month, CEO Pavel Durov revealed the upcoming feature that offers more granular control than Stories on other apps, letting you select who can see them and how often they last before disappearing. Multiple users on Twitter reported seeing the new feature as well.

Telegram’s Stories resembles the same feature on Facebook’s Messenger, showing up as expandable bubbles at the top of the conversation list. Users can choose to make them viewable to the public, along with a range of other options: contacts only (with exceptions), selected contacts or Close Friends. You can add captions and links and tag others as well. Users can also share photos and videos captured by the front-facing and the rear cameras simultaneously, similar to posts found on BeReal.

If you don’t want to see posts from a certain contact, you can move them to the “Hidden” list in their contacts section. On top of that, users can choose when their Stories expire. You can set them to disappear in 24 hours like other services, but also make them disappear within 6, 12 or 48 hours. Stories can even be permanently displayed on your profile page — while still choosing the privacy settings for each post.

Everyone can see Stories, and users can send reactions and replies. However, you’ll need to be a Telegram Premium subscriber to Post Stories. To do so, you’ll need the latest version of Telegram (it may not have rolled out to your region yet), and must pay $4.99 per month for a Premium subscription — with a discount available by the web. Premium, which arrived last year, also offers perks like 4GB uploads, faster downloads, unique stickers, voice-to-text transcriptions, double the follow limits and more.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/telegram-stories-arrive-for-paid-premium-users-091247585.html?src=rss