AI News

News

Page 160
Meta Gears Up to Launch EMG Wristband for Next-Gen AR Glasses

Meta Gears Up to Launch EMG Wristband for Next-Gen AR Glasses

Meta is preparing to release a neural wristband that reads muscle impulses to control its upcoming augmented‑reality glasses. Tested on the company’s Project Orion prototype, the EMG band enables gestures such as pinches, taps and thumb swipes without relying on cameras. The accessory is expected to accompany a new display‑enabled glasses platform, code‑named Hypernova, at the Meta Connect event. While the band may cost at least $800 and could be bundled with a smartwatch, Meta executives say it may become less essential for display‑free glasses like the Ray‑Bans. The move positions Meta against rivals such as Apple, Google and Samsung, all pursuing their own gesture‑based wearables.

Anthropic Launches Free Incognito Mode for Claude AI

Anthropic Launches Free Incognito Mode for Claude AI

Anthropic has introduced a free incognito mode for its Claude chatbot, allowing users on any subscription tier—including the free level—to conduct private, unsaved conversations. When activated, chats disappear from history and are not retained in the AI’s long-term memory, with only a temporary 30‑day safety retention. The feature complements Claude’s newer memory system, which remains limited to Team and Enterprise plans and enables the bot to recall context across sessions. By separating privacy and memory, Anthropic aims to give users clear control over what the AI remembers, positioning Claude against rivals like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google Gemini.

Roku Announces AI-Powered Advertising Platform Targeting Small Businesses

Roku Announces AI-Powered Advertising Platform Targeting Small Businesses

Roku's finance and operating chief, Dan Jedda, told investors the company will expand its ad ecosystem from a few hundred major brands to tens of thousands of small and medium‑sized advertisers. Leveraging artificial intelligence, Roku aims to let local retailers and eateries create high‑quality video ads in minutes, shifting ad spend from social media to the Roku Channel. With more than one‑fifth of U.S. TV viewing occurring on Roku devices and a growing household base, the move could reshape the streaming ad market and prompt rivals to adopt similar AI tools.

RabbitOS 2 Transforms Rabbit R1 with New Look and AI Features

RabbitOS 2 Transforms Rabbit R1 with New Look and AI Features

Rabbit has launched RabbitOS 2, a major software overhaul for the Rabbit R1 handheld AI device. The update adds a colorful card‑based interface, multimodal voice, text and image interactions, and a new "Creations" platform that lets users build tools, games and experiences through conversational "vibe coding". The update aims to close the gap between early expectations and the original experience, offering a more visual and intuitive way to access the R1’s capabilities while keeping the device’s low price and niche appeal.

VPN Industry Opposes EU's Proposed Chat Control Scanning Bill

VPN Industry Opposes EU's Proposed Chat Control Scanning Bill

The VPN Trust Initiative, representing leading VPN providers, has publicly warned against the EU's draft legislation known as "Chat Control," which would require messaging services to scan private communications for child sexual abuse material. Members argue the mandate would undermine end‑to‑end encryption, create systemic security vulnerabilities, and set a precedent for broader surveillance. Experts and scientists have voiced concerns, while a growing number of EU member states have joined the opposition. The initiative calls for strong encryption to remain a cornerstone of privacy and digital trust.

AI-Driven Dialogue Mod Brings Real-Time Conversation to GameCube's Animal Crossing

AI-Driven Dialogue Mod Brings Real-Time Conversation to GameCube's Animal Crossing

A developer has created a mod that injects large‑language‑model generated dialogue into the GameCube version of Animal Crossing. By monitoring memory for conversation triggers and inserting placeholder text, the mod races to fetch AI responses and format them using the game's encoded text system. The solution splits the workload between a Writer AI, which crafts character‑specific lines, and a Director AI, which adds the necessary control codes for color, emotion, and sound. The tool runs on Python, requires API keys for Google Gemini or OpenAI, and works with the Dolphin emulator on macOS, though it contains known bugs.

Education Report on AI Ethics Marred by Fabricated Citations

Education Report on AI Ethics Marred by Fabricated Citations

A recent education policy report urging ethical AI use in schools has come under fire after multiple experts identified fabricated citations throughout the document. Critics say the errors reveal how AI language models can generate plausible but false references, undermining trust in policy research. The report’s co‑chairs have promised to review and correct the mistakes, while the Department of Education acknowledges a “small number of potential errors” and plans to update the online version. The incident highlights growing concerns about the reliability of AI‑generated content in public policy.

Meta Connect 2025 Unveils Hypernova Smart Glasses, AI Advances and Metaverse Updates

Meta Connect 2025 Unveils Hypernova Smart Glasses, AI Advances and Metaverse Updates

Meta Connect 2025, the company’s annual AR, VR, AI and metaverse showcase, featured a lineup of announcements that highlighted the next generation of smart glasses, new AI capabilities, and future metaverse software. Mark Zuckerberg opened the event with a keynote, followed by developer sessions. The centerpiece, dubbed Hypernova, is the first consumer‑ready Meta glasses with a display, paired with a gesture‑control wristband. AI updates included broader language bots and hints about the delayed Llama 4 model, while Horizon Worlds received a preview of AI‑driven NPCs and third‑party VR headset collaborations.

FTC probes ad auction practices at Google and Amazon

FTC probes ad auction practices at Google and Amazon

The Federal Trade Commission is investigating whether Google and Amazon misled advertisers about pricing and terms for their online ads. The probe focuses on the auction-style sale of ad space, including Google's automated search auctions and Amazon's real‑time listings auctions. Regulators are examining Amazon's use of "reserve pricing" and Google's internal pricing processes to determine if advertisers were kept in the dark about price floors or hidden cost increases. The FTC investigation adds to broader federal scrutiny of big‑tech firms, following other antitrust actions involving Google.

Bloomberg’s Leak of Epstein’s Yahoo Emails Exposes Maxwell’s Deep Involvement

Bloomberg’s Leak of Epstein’s Yahoo Emails Exposes Maxwell’s Deep Involvement

Bloomberg obtained more than 18,000 emails from Jeffrey Epstein’s personal Yahoo account, revealing that Ghislaine Maxwell remained tightly linked to Epstein’s operations. The messages show Maxwell managing finances, property, and personal relationships, coordinating luxury gifts, opening a foreign bank account using Epstein’s address, and acting as a director at one of his companies. They also detail efforts to discredit women accusing the pair, including arranging high‑value gifts such as a $71,000 Lexus and lingerie for teenage victims. The archive underscores Maxwell’s central role in Epstein’s network and her ongoing connections to powerful figures.

xAI Cuts Over 500 Data Annotation Workers While Expanding Specialist Tutor Team

xAI Cuts Over 500 Data Annotation Workers While Expanding Specialist Tutor Team

xAI has laid off at least 500 employees from its data annotation team, the company's largest workforce, after notifying them by email on September 12. Affected staff will receive salary until the end of their contracts on November 30, but their system access was revoked immediately. The company responded on X by announcing a ten‑fold increase in its specialist AI tutor team and a new hiring push across STEM fields. The specialist tutors will provide high‑quality inputs, labels, and annotations, including audio and video data. The layoffs follow recent high‑profile departures, including CFO Mike Liberatore, and come after the launch of Grok 4.

Robotics Startups Gain Momentum as Venture Capital Flows In

Robotics Startups Gain Momentum as Venture Capital Flows In

Venture capitalists are pouring record funding into robotics startups, with investors committing $6 billion in the first seven months of 2025. The surge follows key catalysts such as Amazon’s 2013 acquisition of Kiva Systems, declining hardware costs, and advances in AI. Partners at firms like Eclipse Ventures, Bee Partners, and Cybernetix Ventures highlight how a decade of trial and error has clarified market demand across manufacturing, warehousing, construction, healthcare, and elder‑care. While consumer‑focused robots remain a challenge, investors see strong growth potential in industrial and vertical‑specific applications.