Summer’s almost here, and that means it’s time for the return of everyone’s favorite superhero show The Boys. With season four set to kick off in a little over a month, Prime Video released a new trailer that’s got everything you expect from the show now: Supes being chaotic freaks, pointed political imagery, and a lot…
Tom Clancy’s XDefiant is almost upon us. Ubisoft is releasing the free-to-play first-person shooter on May 21 for the Xbox Series X|S, the PS5 and PC through Ubisoft Connect. The developer is kicking things off with the preseason version of the game, which is scheduled to last for six weeks before XDefiant’s first season officially starts. Ubisoft announced the game way back in 2021, promising team-based matches with a focus on gunplay that will include elements from other games in the Tom Clancy universe.
The preseason will offer five different game modes with 14 maps, 24 weapons and five playable factions inspired by Ubisoft’s other franchises. Players will need to choose their faction before the match begins and before they respawn. They must also choose their primary and secondary weapon — their options include assault rifles, submachine guns, shotguns and sniper rifles — and a grenade. To customize a weapon, they can add barrel and muzzle attachments, such as sights and grips.
Each faction will give players access to two active abilities, one passive buff and another ultra ability that they have to charge up while the match is ongoing. Libertad, one of the available factions, puts a focus on healing, while members of the Cleaners faction can use fire to burn their opponents. Echelon players can reveal enemy locations with their stealth technology, whereas Phantoms’ abilities can block damage. The last faction available, DedSec, is for those who want to play as hackers.
When the first season launches, Ubisoft is adding four new factions, 12 new weapons and 12 new maps to the game. According to the Year 1 roadmap the developer shared last year, it expects to roll out four seasons with the game’s first year, with each one adding more new content meant to keep players engaged, invested and more likely to come back and keep playing.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ubisofts-first-person-shooter-xdefiant-is-launching-on-may-21-074940344.html?src=rss
If you thought the less-than-stellar launch of the highly anticipated Rabbit R1 AI device was all that happened in gadget news this week, we understand. Everyone in the tech industry was talking about this thing and no one particularly likes it. Our full review is still forthcoming, but our first impressions were very…
The Rabbit R1 is finally here, and it’s yet another useless AI gadget. Sure, at $199 with no monthly fee, it’s a lot cheaper than the $699 Humane AI Pin. But the R1 is slow, hard to use, and doesn’t actually do much. The much-promised “Large Action Model” mostly powers things you can easily do on your phone. In this episode, Devindra and Engadget’s Sam Rutherford chat with CNET’s Lisa Eadicicco about the Rabbit R1 and whether AI devices are necessary at all. Just like cameras, the best AI device is the one you always have with you: your smartphone.
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 podcast, Engadget News!
Rabbit R1 review: appealing design, underwhelming performance – 0:49
Tesla lays off Supercharger development team leaving future of the network unclear – 25:28
FCC fines U.S. wireless carriers $200m for selling customer location data – 30:05
Razer will refund all Zephyr mask purchases over false N95 filtering claims – 32:52
Drake deletes track featuring an AI clone of Tupac Shakur’s voice – 35:16
Working on – 36:23
Pop culture picks – 40:18
Hosts: Devindra Hardawar and Sam Rutherford
Guest: Lisa Eadicicco from CNET
Producer: Ben Ellman
Music: Dale North and Terrence O’Brien
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/engadget-podcast-rabbit-r1-ai-review-103009224.html?src=rss
May the 4th be with you! But if you’d like to read some things that aren’t about Star Wars this Star Wars Day, our most-read stories of the week have you covered, from Captain America merchandise to critical reflections (and not quite so critical ones) behind the scenes of Marvel, our continued look back at the Planet…
Google has updated its Inappropriate Content Policy to include language that expressly prohibits advertisers from promoting websites and services that generate deepfake pornography. While the company already has strong restrictions in place for ads that feature certain types of sexual content, this update leaves no doubt that promoting “synthetic content that has been altered or generated to be sexually explicit or contain nudity” is in violation of its rules.
Any advertiser promoting sites or apps that generate deepfake porn, that show instructions on how to create deepfake porn and that endorse or compare various deepfake porn services will be suspended without warning. They will no longer be able to publish their ads on Google, as well. The company will start implementing this rule on May 30 and is giving advertisers the chance to remove any ad in violation of the new policy. As 404 Media notes, the rise of deepfake technologies has led to an increasing number of ads promoting tools that specifically target users wanting to create sexually explicit materials. Some of those tools reportedly even pretend to be wholesome services to be able to get listed on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, but it’s masks off on social media where they promote their ability to generate manipulated porn.
Google has, however, already started prohibiting services that create sexually explicit deepfakes in Shopping ads. Similar to its upcoming wider policy, the company has banned Shopping ads for services that “generate, distribute, or store synthetic sexually explicit content or synthetic content containing nudity. ” Those include deepfake porn tutorials and pages that advertise deepfake porn generators.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-prohibits-ads-promoting-websites-and-apps-that-generate-deepfake-porn-130059324.html?src=rss
This week saw a blast from the past as we told the tales of numerous fraud victims who were targeted by scammers on the cheating site, Ashley Madison. A new chatbot came and went leaving so many people with questions.And then there’s Elon Musk who went “hardcore” with layoffs he even got rid of those pesky interns…
The Rabbit R1 is finally here, and it’s yet another useless AI gadget. Sure, at $199 with no monthly fee, it’s a lot cheaper than the $699 Humane AI Pin. But the R1 is slow, hard to use, and doesn’t actually do much. The much-promised “Large Action Model” mostly powers things you can easily do on your phone. In this episode, Devindra and Engadget’s Sam Rutherford chat with CNET’s Lisa Eadicicco about the Rabbit R1 and whether AI devices are necessary at all. Just like cameras, the best AI device is the one you always have with you: your smartphone.
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 podcast, Engadget News!
Rabbit R1 review: appealing design, underwhelming performance – 0:49
Tesla lays off Supercharger development team leaving future of the network unclear – 25:28
FCC fines U.S. wireless carriers $200m for selling customer location data – 30:05
Razer will refund all Zephyr mask purchases over false N95 filtering claims – 32:52
Drake deletes track featuring an AI clone of Tupac Shakur’s voice – 35:16
Working on – 36:23
Pop culture picks – 40:18
Hosts: Devindra Hardawar and Sam Rutherford
Guest: Lisa Eadicicco from CNET
Producer: Ben Ellman
Music: Dale North and Terrence O’Brien
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/engadget-podcast-rabbit-r1-ai-review-103009224.html?src=rss
Peloton had a great pandemic. It’s a weird thing to say, but the company’s premium exercise equipment (expanding from bikes to treadmills and even weight-training tech) were the hot workout-from-home products. That boom made some people (not normal, sensible people) suggest we were never going back to bricks-and-mortar gyms once the world reopened.
But… we went back. Now, Peloton’s latest financial numbers and statements are not great, and further cuts, nips and tucks are now on the cards. Its shares have gone from $156 in 2021 to less than $3 today. Peloton is laying off 15 percent of its workforce, shuttering more of its showrooms and getting rid of its CEO, again. It also killed Mr. Big.
The company says it’s planning to expand overseas (it’s gained a foothold in the UK), but it might just be a case of the company resizing to fit the reality of at-home fitness in 2024.
— Mat Smith
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Engadget Podcast: Kill the Rabbit (R1)
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Microsoft says the April security updates for Windows may break your VPN. According to its own status update: “Windows devices might face VPN connection failures after installing the April 2024 security update.” It affects Windows 11, Windows 10 and Windows Server 2008 and later. However, user reports on Reddit are mixed, with some commenters saying their VPNs still work. So you might get lucky.
TikTok and Universal Music Group (UMG) have signed a deal so Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, The Weeknd and other artists can return to the platform. Universal pulled its song back in February. Now, a key part of the deal is artist protection from generative AI. “TikTok and UMG will work together to ensure AI development across the music industry will protect human artistry and the economics that flow to those artists and songwriters,” the companies wrote. Drake, also part of UMG, has had his own recent troubles with AI tools and music.
Elon Musk is not a fan of the block button. The button (and feature) persists for now, but X is changing how it works. X is tweaking the visibility of replies in a block. Previously, a user could block someone on X and still reply to their posts. The blocked person wouldn’t be able to view that reply, but other X users could. It’s a black-belt passive-aggressive X move. Now, users see direct replies even if the person posting has blocked them.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-pelotons-grim-post-pandemic-reality-111518934.html?src=rss
Elon Musk became the butt of more than a few jokes after internet users pointed out Tesla’s robot demo wasn’t all it appeared to be. As it turns out, a video the billionaire posted of Optimus, the company’s much-hyped humanoid robot, was actually being controlled by a human slightly off-screen. And it’s interesting to…
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