Microsoft-New Autonomous AI Agents; AirPods Pro Hearing Features; Ford Replacing EV Adapters for Tesla Charging Stations; Google Flights-New ‘Cheapest’ Tab
Posted: October 21, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: AI, Artificial Intelligence, copilot, Microsoft, technology Leave a commentThe Agents are coming, the Agents are coming! Microsoft has rolled out 10 new AI agents for its Dynamics 365 line of business applications. Geekwire.com reports that the tools can complete tasks autonomously in areas including sales, service, finance, and supply chain operations. Microsoft has dropped these in a preemptive strike against Salesforce’s new agents, which will bow on October 25th. Salesforce already has billboards up in San Francisco, touting its own agents. Microsoft showed off theirs at their ‘AI Tour’ presentation in London. Microsoft also said at the event that 60% of Fortune 500 companies are using its Copilot AI tech. Microsoft says it will make its new AI agents available in public preview for Dynamics 365 starting later this year and stretching into early next year. These AI agents come in a few categories:
Sales, including a Sales Qualification Agent and Sales Order Agent, designed to help prioritize leads and automate order intake.
Operations, including a Supplier Communications Agent and Financial Reconciliation Agent, which optimize supply chain and financial processes.
Service, including a Customer Intent Agent and Customer Knowledge Management Agent, designed to improve customer service by automating case management and updating knowledge bases.
Others include a Financial Reconciliation Agent that prepares and cleanses data sets for financial reporting; an Account Reconciliation Agent that automates the matching and clearing of transactions; and a Time and Expense agent for time entry, expense tracking, and approval workflows.
Apple made some fuss at the September hardware event about the AirPods Pro 2 hearing aid features. According to techcrunch.com, which got an advanced pair and the software, the hearing test feature is ‘painless.’ One would hope so! Hearing tests from an audiologist are painless. Instead of speaking to an audiologist or technician, with Apple’s home test you tap the screen when you hear a tone played. The test is visible from the settings menu when you have a pair of AirPods Pro 2 earbuds connected to your phone and in your ears. You may need to turn devices off in your room….the AirPods will even pick up an air purifier. The hearing aid feature will only be available to those who test as having mild to moderate hearing loss. One real issue that might put hearing impaired users off…real hearing aids have no problem making it through a full day on a charge. The AirPods Pro 2 can only make it 4-6 hours on a charge, before returning them to the charging case to charge back up. At $249, they are much cheaper than dedicated hearing aids, but 4-6 hours then no use for a little while may be a deal breaker.
Ford had offered EV customers free NACS adapters for Tesla Superchargers. Now, the blue oval company is telling folks to stop using them. Engadget.com says there is a ‘potential issue’ that could reduce charging speeds and even cause charging port damage. Ford will send a replacement adapter ‘in the coming weeks,’ and customers will need to send back the defective ones…all at no charge to the customers. A number of other companies have made adapters for Superchargers, which use the NACS standard. So far none of them have issued recalls like Ford.
Google Flights has a new ‘Cheapest’ tab. Bgr.com reports that it will display the cheapest routes for your trip..but may involve more work and more creative itineraries. In other words, you may save by longer layovers, taking red-eyes, or ‘self-transfers,’ a euphemism for rechecking your bags. You also may need to use multiple carriers or booking sites. That said, if you are in invariant skinflint, who squeezes every nickel until the buffalo poops, this is for you.
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
FTC-Click to Cancel Rule; Google ‘Cancels’ Popular Ad Blocker on Chrome; Boston Dynamics & Toyota Research Institute Partner on Atlas Humanoid Robot; UCSD Surgeons Assisted by Apple Vision Pro Headsets
Posted: October 17, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: AI, Apple, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, technology Leave a commentWe have all been through it…a big hassle, sometimes taking hours, to cancel a subscription after a free trial. As a friend of mine always says, ‘That’s how they getcha!’ Now, the Federal Trade Commission has finalized a rule aimed at stopping businesses from making you jump through endless hoops to cancel a subscription after the free trial. Under the rule, any subscription that can be signed up for online must be able to be canceled online. And cancellation paths for in-person sign-ups must be just as easy, offered either by phone or online. The new rule tells businesses to keep ‘three guardrails in mind.’ First, customers cannot be required to talk to a live agent or chatbot to cancel if that wasn’t required for sign-up. Next, any phone cancellation methods cannot include charges and must be offered during normal business hours. And finally, canceling services in person must always be optional. Now, let’s hope they actually enforce this rule!
Google has been on a tear, trying to get people to see their ads…whether on search results or YouTube…across all their platforms. Now, it’s Chrome’s turn. According to mashable.com, Google has turned off popular ad blocker extensions uBlock Origin, MDN Search, and Neat URL. This all comes as Chrome moves from Manifest V2 to Manifest V3. There are options for Manifest V3 if you use AdBlock, AdBlock Plus, AdGuard, and uBlock Origin. If you would rather not hassle with trying to configure to keep the ads blocked or at least volume down, switch to Firefox, and select Duck Duck Go as your search engine. You can also try Microsoft Edge….but the former is really cleaner if you want to go the most ad free possible.
While Elon Musk was trotting out robots that are nearly fully human operated and not autonomous at all, Boston Dynamics…which makes real robots…has teamed up with Toyota Research Institute to bring AI-based robotic intelligence to the electric Atlas humanoid robot. Techcrunch.com notes that the partnership will leverage work that TRI has done around large behavior models…which are not terribly unlike Large Language Models like that of ChatGPT. The lab has been able to get robots to 90% accuracy when performing household tasks like flipping pancakes through overnight training. Hell, I could try all night, and mess up flipping a pancake! TRI says that while machine learning takes millions of training cases, they have been able to reduce physical training of a robot down to only dozens of training cases…sometimes even less than that. Boston Dynamics just unveiled its design for the electric Atlas in April. The electric designation differentiates the robot from its larger, hydraulic namesake, Trust me, you wouldn’t want one of those robots possibly leaking caustic hydraulic fluid in your house! Toyota Research and Boston Dynamics have a goal of making a true general purpose machine. Rosie from The Jetsons…you’re up!
Regular followers of this report are well aware of my opinion of the preposterously priced but great Apple Vision Pro headsets. Now, Surgeons at UC San Diego have found them very helpful for minimally invasive surgery. Macrumors.com reports that while the headsets are pricy for you and I, they are pretty cheap compared to most gear hospitals buy in trying to keep or make us healthy. Surgeons have now done over 20 minimally invasive operations wearing the headsets. They are saying the headsets are ‘more transformative’ than robotic devices used to assist. Think about it… laparoscopic surgeries, where the docs send a camera through a small incision, and have to guide it and do the procedure while craining their necks to watch on a video screen. That can’t be helpful. Unlike previous headsets, the Apple ones have such accurate displays, that the surgeons can do the procedure while keeping their heads in a more normal position. That has to help with accuracy! They normally also have to look away to refer to CT scans, and to monitor vitals. Now, all of those things can appear on the panoramic display of the Vision Pro. This application is really a game changer…and one that will make a difference in the outcomes for patients…to say nothing of saving doctors from a literal pain in the neck that could cause mistakes!
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
New Amazon Kindles-Including Color; YouTube Rolling Out New Miniplayer & Updates; Threads Option-Shows When You Are Online; Taiwan Semiconductor to Build More Chip Plants in Europe
Posted: October 16, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Amazon, books, Kindle, Reading, writing Leave a commentAmazon has announced new Kindles, including a first…a new color model. Theverge.com reports that the Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition…which is a lot like the updated Paperwhite with a color screen…is priced at $279.99 and you can preorder now. It ships on October 30th. It is still based on E Ink’s Kaleidoscope tech, but uses an entirely new display stack as compared to other Kindles. The new tech also allows for faster page turns. Kevin Keith, who runs Kindle products for Amazon said “All the things you think about with Kindle — high resolution, long battery life, fast page turns, good fluidity — we weren’t willing to sacrifice those.” The goal was to offer a color screen that still looked just as good as the Paperwhite in black and white, and he’s convinced Amazon got there. Amazon also freshened the Kindle and Kindle Paperwhite. The Paperwhite gets a bigger screen that is totally flush with the bezels, and the entry level model gets a pop of color and speed improvements. The standard Paperwhite is increased in price by 10 bucks and is now $159.99. the Signature Edition is $199.99, and is identical to the entry level model, but has 32 gigs of storage, optional wireless charging, and an auto-adjusting front light. The entry level Kindle has a new dark mode and is 25% brighter with improved contrast. It starts at $109.99, up $10 from the previous model.
The YouTube app on both Android and iOS is getting a new MiniPlayer. According to 9to5google.com, instead of a second bar above the bottom bar with a tight rectangular crop, play/pause, and an x, the new player looks like a picture-in-picture window. The video appears above with a close button in the corner, and a strip at the bottom with controls. You can resize the window if you like. YouTube also rolled out some playlist updates, and the ability to create custom thumbnails using your own images or with AI.
Threads has added an ‘activity status’ now, to let you choose to let people know when you are online…as well as see when accounts you follow are online if they choose to disclose that. Theverge.com says the feature is being pitched as a “way to help you find others to engage with in real-time.” At least that is what Threads head Adam Mosseri is pitching. The activity status will show up next to your profile picture in the feed and on your profile. It is off by default, by the way.
We have followed the progress of new chip plants from TSMC…Taiwan Semiconductor….here in the US. Now, thenextweb.com notes that they are planning to expand further in to Europe, too. TSMC broke ground in August on a plant in Dresden, Germany. The German government will kick in half the funding with 5 billion Euros in aid. Right now, Europe makes about 10% of the world’s supply of semiconductors, but most are older school…not the advanced ones made in Taiwan or even here in the US. Most of what will be made in the German plant will be for automotive and industrial use. TSMC didn’t comment on where other facilities may go, saying they wanted to get the ones being built up and running first. This one should be producing by 2029.
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
Apple- New iPad Mini With A17 Pro Chip; Google Turns to Nuclear Power for AI; Musk’s Optimus Robots- All Human Operated; Apple Study-LLM’s Really Can’t Reason Yet
Posted: October 15, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: AI, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Robots, technology Leave a commentApple made a surprise announcement today and bowed a new iPad Mini. Macrumors.com reports that the new 8.3 inch Mini will rock the A17 Pro chip and will be able to run Apple Intelligence. Apple claims a 30% boost in CPU performance and 25% boost in GPU performance compared to the older model. It will support the Apple Pencil Pro, and have faster WiFi, faster USB-C data transfer, a better 12MP wide camera, and has 128 Gigs of memory for the base model….double the amount from before. You can preorder today, it delivers October 23rd. $499 for WiFi only and $649 for WiFi plus cellular. Colors include blue, purple, space gray, and starlight.
Google is going nuclear…well, to power AI anyway. According to mashable.com, Google has cut a deal with California based Kairos Power to build between 6 and 7 mini-nuclear reactors to furnish ‘clean, round-the-clock-power’ to run its AI operations running and carbon free. they expect the first one to go online by 2030. Google is not alone. As we reported here earlier, Microsoft has cut a deal to reactivate the infamous Three Mile Island nuclear plant…which melted down years ago…in Pennsylvania to run Microsoft AI server farms. The plant could power 800,000 homes…but instead will have Microsoft as its sole customer. Not to be left out…Amazon also has a nuclear energy deal!
It had been pointed out by some tech reporters who attended that the Optimus robots at Tesla’s Cybercab and ‘We Robot’ event were human operated. Now, the verge.com says one of those, Robert Scoble, noted that an engineer told him the robots used AI to walk. However, Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas wrote that the robots “relied on tele-ops (human intervention)”. One so-called robot even told an attendee…or the human voicing the robot said… “Today, I am assisted by a human,” adding that it’s not fully autonomous. (The voice stumbled on the word “autonomous.”) The first law of robotics says no harm to humans. Perhaps we need an addendum to the law of robotics…you shall not impersonate a robot and claim it is an actual robot.
As discussed here fairly often, Large Language Models…or AI, as it has been branded, isn’t really intelligent at this point. Despite OpenAI and Google claiming theirs have advanced ‘reasoning’ capabilities as the next big move for AI models. Arstechnica.com reports that a new study by 6 Apple engineers indicates that the mathematical “reasoning” displayed by advanced large language models can be extremely brittle and unreliable in the face of seemingly trivial changes to common benchmark problems. The fragility highlighted in these new results helps support previous research suggesting that LLMs use of probabilistic pattern matching is missing the formal understanding of underlying concepts needed for truly reliable mathematical reasoning capabilities. “Current LLMs are not capable of genuine logical reasoning. Instead, they attempt to replicate the reasoning steps observed in their training data.” An example from another article told of an expert witness in a legal case about real estate using Microsoft’s Copilot to figure the money damages in the case. The judge called him out on it…the AI basically faked the damages with its guesstimate. That jurist admonished the attorneys and warned that future AI attempted use has to be disclosed.
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
US DOJ May Make Google Spin off Android or Chrome; Amazon Tweaks Ring Subscriptions with AI Video Search; Samsung Drops Support for $2000 Galaxy Fold 2 after 4 Years; Nintendo Motion-Controlled Mario Alarm Clock
Posted: October 9, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Android, Google, News, Smartphone, technology Leave a commentThe US Department of Justice is weighing asking a federal judge to make Google spin off Android and/or Chrome among other possible antitrust solutions in the aftermath of Google being found to have a monopoly over online search. 9to5google.com reports that Google, to the surprise of no one, is arguing against such moves. Ahead of a deciding trial scheduled for this coming spring, the DOJ offered an outline of what it might recommend: “…considering behavioral and structural remedies that would prevent Google from using products such as Chrome, Play, and Android to advantage Google search and Google search-related products and features—including emerging search access points and features, such as artificial intelligence—over rivals or new entrants.” The DOJ outline continues: “Breaking them (referring to Android and Chrome) off would change their business models, raise the cost of devices, and undermine Android and Google Play in their robust competition with Apple’s iPhone and App Store.” the government might also make Google offer an API that lets competitors access indexes, data, feeds, and models used for Google search, as well as their search results, features, and ads…including underlying ranking signals! Google is arguing that the government’s proposed remedies are much too broad. After a trial this spring, the judge should issue a decision by August 2025. No matter the outcome, expect Google to immediately appeal, with remedies on hold throughout the appeal process.
Amazon has rebranded the Ring Basic Plan as Ring Home Basic, and it’s $4.99 a month. Not that long ago, it was less than $3 a month. Ring Protect Plus is not Ring Home Standard, and it’s $5.99 a month, while Ring Home Premium is now $19.99 a month with professional alarm monitoring. According to techcrunch.com, all subscribers will get person and package alerts, video preview alerts, and 180 days of event history. Home Standard customers can now see up to 30 minute streams, and there’s a continuous stream for Home Premium. Now, with Home Premium, subscribers will get Smart Video Search, which lets them find specific moments in recorded footage. Coming on the heels of Smart Video Search…AI updates that will bring detailed captions for cam footage and natural language search functionality. Because you know you need that AI to scroll back through the footage from earlier today to see if a porch pirate ripped you off.
Samsung has outrageously quit updating the Galaxy Z Fold 2. the $2000 folding phone just came out in 2020, 4 years ago. that’s a pretty expensive paperweight. Ok, not a paperweight yet, but will be as more updates leave it behind. Arstechnica.com notes that newer Samsung phones are promised 7 years of updates. I’m sure that some people will keep using the pricy phone and risk hacking and data theft, considering what they paid, but no security updates after 4 years is the height of corporate arrogance and irresponsibility. Apple promises 5 years of security updates, but generally has to go longer…usually 7 years… under California’s ‘legacy’ device law.
In the product in search of a market department, Nintendo has rolled out a motion-controlled alarm clock, so you can awaken to the sounds of Super Mario and Zelda. It’s complete with chunky low resolution looking display that resembles 8 bit, too. Theverge.com reports that the $99.99 clock…called Alarmo…responds to your movements. That means you can snooze it without getting out of bed. You can order right now, and it will be out in early 2025. Honestly, if they can’t make it jump like Mario when making the sound effect, why make it? It does at least feature sounds from 5 different Switch games: Breath of the Wild, Pikmin 4, Splatoon 3, Super Mario Odyssey, and Ring Fit Adventure. You can connect it to your Nintendo account for even more. The clock is supposed to also track movement so you can check your sleep.
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
New Macs & iPad Mini November 1st; Android Rolling Out New Anti-Theft Features; Supremes Turn Away Suit Over Special Counsel Demanding Trump X Info; GM Working on Hands AND Eyes-Off Driving System
Posted: October 7, 2024 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, iPhone, News, security, technology Leave a commentLast month, we got the new iPhones, Watches, and Apple ear buds upgrades. Now, macrumors.com reports that Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman is saying we will probably see updated bigger Apple Hardware as early as November 1st. This will include new M4 low-end 14 inch MacBook Pros, and the higher end 14 and 16 inch models…and also a refreshed Mac Mini with M4 and M4 Pro chips. The iMac will get the upgrade as well. One iPad seems to be in the mix for sure…the Mini. It is due for it, as the Mini hasn’t seen an upgrade in 3 years. Don’t expect Mac Studio or Mac Pro models with more powerful M4 chips quite yet. Those won’t be out until mid 2025 for the Studio and the Pro at the tail end of that year.
Google is now releasing anti-theft protection features in the US. They had previously only been available in Brazil. According to androidpolice.com, not all US users are seeing all of them even after the rollout. The 3 features are Theft Detection Lock, Offline Device Lock, and Remote Lock. So far, some Pixel users are getting Remote Lock, but not the other two. Other Pixel users are seeing all three protective features. You can check your phone to see what you have…go to the Settings app, and search for ‘theft protection’ to see if the 3 features are available for your phone. Theft Detection Lock determines if the phone is forcefully taken from your hand, and automatically locks it. Offline Device lock automatically locks your phone’s screen when “a thief tries to disconnect your phone for prolonged periods of time.” Remote Lock is for when you know when you phone is gone for good…you can remotely lock the screen with just your phone number and a security challenge. You use the website android.com/lock.
The Supreme Court is back in session, and promptly refused to take a case disputing special counsel Jack Smith’s efforts to get the records of former President Trump from Twitter (which, of course, is now X) and keep that platform from letting him know about the demand for production. In refusing to take the case, the lower court ruling stands that upheld a nondisclosure order, which Elon Musk claimed violated his platform’s First Amendment right to communicate with Trump. Bloomberg says a judge decided the order was valid, and fined X $350,000 for civil contempt. Twitter eventually turned over 32 direct messages, which the special counsel’s office said was a ‘minuscule proportion’ of the information they requested.
It won’t be a first, but it will certainly be the most widely used when it hits the road. General Motors is working on a hands AND eyes-off driving system. Techcrunch.com reports that this will be a step up from their 7 year old Super Cruise hands-off system that is currently available. This would be what is known as a Level 3 or L3 system…not quite self-driving cars like Waymo is running in several cities or even like GM’s Cruise division has…which are just getting back on the streets of San Francisco after an accident earlier this year where a woman was dragged. Right now, the only L3 system is Mercedes-Benz’ Drive Pilot. Even Tesla’s Autopilot and so-called ‘Full Self-Driving’ system are only Level 2. No word on how soon the Level 3 setup would be available from GM, but since they are teasing it, it should be sooner, not later. GM says Super Cruise will have about 750,000 miles of roads it can use by the end of 2025.
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
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