October Amazon Prime Day(s); TikTok in America Framework; YouTube Bows New AI Tools for Shorts; OpenAI Plans AI Auto Age Verification for Teens on ChatGPT

Posted: September 16, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

Didn’t we just have Prime Day…for about a week? Amazon has announced its next Prime Day. Zdnet.com reports that this one will only be a 48 hour long Prime Day, starting on Tuesday October 7th, and running through October 8th. Expect the usual crazy deals on all sorts of stuff, particularly Amazon’s own. With the Amazon hardware event coming up on September 30th, deep discounts on the older model Kindles, Echo speakers, and Fire TVs are likely. As usual, expect ‘early deals’ between September 30th and the start of Prime Day.

The US and China have been continuing trade talks in Europe, and it looks like we may finally…finally see an actual deal with a US owned version of TikTok. According to gizmodo.com, the plan is to have it be owned by several American investors, but it would continue to rely on the Chinese algorithm running the platform. That is the main sticking point, by the way. The highly addictive algorithm is something China has been unwilling to give up, and it is a main draw for the platform. It now appears that the Trump administration has agreed to a licensing deal with ByteDance retaining the intellectual property rights but that Chinese company would “entrust the operation of TikTok’s U.S. user data and content security.” Negotiations are ongoing, so it isn’t quite a done deal yet.

YouTube has unveiled new generative AI tools for Shorts creators. TechCrunch.com notes that YouTube is getting a custom version of Google’s text-to-video generative AI model…Veo 3…to Shorts. In addition, Shorts will get a new remixing tool, and ‘Edit with AI’ feature, and more. This will make it the first time that Shorts creators can make video clips with AI with sound. The update is being pushed out now in the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. YouTube will be distributing the functionality to other areas in the upcoming months. 

In the aftermath of a teen suicide, Open AI is working on a system aimed at automatically identifying teen users of ChatGPT, and restricting their usage. Engadget.com says that the teen restrictions would include a block of graphic sexual content, among other things. “In cases of acute distress,” the system will also have the capability to contact law enforcement to ensure user safety. In scenarios where ChatGPT can’t definitively estimate the age of a user, it will default them to the new gated experience. OpenAI will provide a way for adult users to verify their age and unlock ChatGPT’s full capabilities. This is an iffy game…Google is at it as well, as are some British companies. Critics point out that AI doesn’t have great accuracy at this sort of thing so far, and that having to prove you are of legal age exposes more of your private identity documentation and proof that could be used to steal your identity…not that that isn’t already a big problem. OpenAI hasn’t disclosed when they will be taking the teen identifying system live. 

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.

Amazon-AR Glasses like Meta’s Coming; Samsung Might Launch a Wider Z Fold Next Year; Microsoft Distances from OpenAI & Uses from Anthropic; Pfizer-Latest COVID Booster 4x Positive Results

Posted: September 10, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

The tech companies have seen the future, and it apparently has all of us walking around, looking nerdy in augmented reality glasses. Yahoo.com reports that Amazon is working on AR glasses for consumers that would go head to head with Meta’s Ray-Bans. The glasses are code named ‘Jayhawk,’ which makes this former Kansan think that someone high on the development team is a Jayhawk themselves…an alum of Kansas University. At any rate, Amazon is aiming to have the AR glasses out by late 2026 or early 2027. Amazon has already been working on specialized glasses for delivery drivers. Those specs would provide turn by turn navigation on a small screen along routes and at each stop. The AR glasses allegedly would have a full-color display and a sleeker, less bulky design than the delivery model already in the works. Those ones should be out by the 2nd quarter of 2026…and Amazon plans to produce some 100,000 units. 

With almost every phone maker either putting out a folding phone or working on one now, early leader Samsung is apparently working on a second Z Fold, to go along with the present Galaxy Z Fold 7 and its Z Flip 7 folding phones. According to bgr.com, Samsung is not only working on a tri-fold phone, but also on a wider Fold. The wider fold would have a flatter, square appearance when open, and a shorter overall design…something like an early Pixel fold design that was considered. The wide Fold would have an aspect ration of 18:18. Some speculators think the wider Fold might be related to the rumored Apple folding iPhone that may drop next year. 

Microsoft, which was an early large investor in Open AI, has now taken steps to distance a bit from that artificial intelligence firm. Techcrunch.com says that Microsoft will pay for Anthropic’s AI in Office 365 apps. That means that Anthropic’s tech will help power new features in Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint alongside OpenAI’s, marking the end of Microsoft’s previous reliance solely on the ChatGPT maker for its productivity suite. Microsoft is presently negotiating a new deal with Open AI to secure access to its AI models after a pending for-profit restructuring. Apple has been using OpenAI’s ChatGPT as an extension of its flailing Siri, but lately, there is word that Apple is working on a deal to use Google’s Gemini AI. It appears that no one wants all their AI eggs in one basket.

Pfizer has announced that the 2025-26 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine boosts antibody levels by at least four times in older people and those with underlying medical conditions. Arstchnica.com notes that even with the patchwork of state-by-state access caused by Bobby Kennedy Jr’s nuttiness at Health & Human Services, this is some good news. The Kennedy/Trump FDA now limits COVID-19 vaccine approvals to people 65 and older or those under 64 if they have an underlying medical condition. Those conditions include asthma, diabetes, heart conditions, HIV, mental health conditions, Parkinson’s disease, obesity, or smoking. 

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now. 

Google Will Bow Gemini for Home Oct 1; Apple Plans AI-Powered Web Search for Siri; Samsung Health App Will Give Access to Licensed Docs; Adobe Brings Premiere Video Edit App to iPhone

Posted: September 4, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

A Google event is slated for October 1st, and it looks like there will be a number of announcements. Engadget.com reports that we should see new Nest devices, including a new Nest camera and Nest speaker. In addition, more will be revealed about Gemini for Home, Gemini for Home will replace Google Assistant and enable natural language commands, as well add easier to use controls. There will be both free and subscription versions, much like Amazon has Alexa and Alexa +. 

Apple has been working overtime, playing catch-up when it comes to AI. They have talked to OpenAI, and have a present deal with them that adds some muscle to the puny Siri. Now, according to gizmodo.com, Apple will launch a new AI-powered web search tool for Siri next year. Reports have the improved AI search being powered by a custom version of Google’s Gemini. Internally at Apple, the system is being called World Knowledge Answers…and besides Siri, it may be available in Safari and Spotlight. It is expected that even if Gemini is used for some functions such as summarizing, that the system will run on Apple’s Private Cloud Compute servers, to protect user privacy. Expect this all to come together next spring, not next week when the new iPhones are rolled out. 

Medical plan apps can let you access a doctor or a PA or nurse. Now, Samsung has announced that it is bringing virtual physicians to its Health App. Androidpolice.com notes that the medical service comes by Samsung partnering with HealthTap, an online service provider that has been around a while. Using the app, you can meet virtually with a doctor the same week, or in some cases, the same day. Besides doctor access, the app claims to give better management of prescription medication using a new system that integrates with Walgreen’s. You won’t be able to submit or renew prescriptions via the app, though. 

Adobe will bring its Premiere video editing software to the iPhone. TechCrunch.com reports that the software will let users edit videos and export them without watermarks. Some features will be the same as the desktop version…the ability to trim, layer, and fine-tune frames. Automatic captions are also available as is support for 4K HDR. The app is free use, but users will have to pay for using AI credits and cloud storage. An Android version is in the works.

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now. 

Samsung Galaxy Glasses; OpenAI Adding Parental Controls-ChatGPT; YouTube Flagging Premium Family Plans-Different Homes; Amazon Ending Prime Free Shipping Sharing Outside Your Home

Posted: September 2, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The smart glasses battles heat up, as now Samsung is expected to bow ‘Galaxy Glasses’ this month…specifically, at an Unpacked event on September 29th. The offering from Samsung will be powered by Android XR. Zdnet.com reports that the smart glasses are expected to be a direct competitor with Meta’s Ray-Bans. Besides the glasses, Samsung is expected to roll out an XR headset and a tri-fold smartphone. Back to the glasses, though. They are expected to be audio only, and focus on features like faster and more convenient access to an AI assistant, cameras, and audio…for calls, music, and podcasts. The glasses will also feature navigation, real time translation, and situational awareness. The glasses will be powered by A Qualcomm Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1 chip…the same chip as in the Meta Ray-Bans.

OpenAI is now promising to release parental controls for ChatGPT. Once in place, the controls will allow parents to link their personal ChatGPT account with accounts of their teen kids. According to engadget.com, parents will be able to decide how ChatGPT responds to their kids, and disable select features, including memory and chat history. Additionally, ChatGPT will generate automated alerts when it detects a teen is in a “moment of acute distress.” According to OpenAI, “expert input will guide this feature to support trust between parents and teens.” While parental controls are nice as ‘eye-wash,’ or cover your butt acts for companies, expect most teens to figure out a way around the controls nearly instantly. 

It appears to be the season for crack downs on sharing by tech companies. YouTube is starting to flag accounts on Premium family plans that aren’t in the same household. Androidpolice.com notes that YouTube’s Premium Family Plan lets you add up to 5 family members to your plan for the $23 a month subscription.The requirement that people all reside at the same address has actually been around since 2023, but YouTube has just started really enforcing it. They are presently testing out a new two-person Premium plan, too. One pain in the neck…YouTube is going to conduct an ‘electronic check-in’ every 30 days, to make sure each family member resides at the same address. If a member fails the check in, and isn’t at the same place as the ‘family manager,’ their access is paused for 14 days.

Amazon will end allowing Prime members sharing of free shipping outside their household, starting October 1st. Theverge.com reports that after that date, Amazon will let invitees who don’t live with the account holder to sign on for their own subscription at just $14.99 for the following year…but then the rate will go up to $14.99 a month. Amazon is replacing the program with Amazon Family. The new program will let account holders share Prime benefits, but just with people who live with them at their address. You can add one additional adult, up to 4 teens, and up to 4 child profiles. 

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.

Apple Event Announced; Google Gemini AI Image Model Upgrade; AT&T Picks Up Spectrum from EchoStar; Farmers’ Insurance Data Breach

Posted: August 26, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

Apple has put out the invite to their next event, with the tease ‘Awe Dropping.’ The rollout of the new iPhones will be Tuesday, September 9th at 10 AM Pacific at the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park in Cupertino. Macrumors.com reports that we will see the expected thin profile iPhone 17 Air, in addition to the iPhone 17, the 17 Pro, and 17 Pro Max. Also expected…the Apple Watch Series 11, and a further refreshed Watch Ultra 3, and the Watch SE. Don’t be surprised if there is an updated AirPods Pro 3 as well, and maybe a new HomePod mini. We’ll have a full recap here, of course.

Google is upgrading its Gemini chatbot with a new AI image model that is supposed to allow finer control for users over editing pics…a move intended to catch up with the popular ChatGPT image tools from OpenAI. The more precise edits to images require the usual natural language requests from the users, and are aimed at preserving the consistency of faces, animals, and the like. Google is hoping to close the gap with ChatGPT, which gets over 700 million weekly users. Right now, google Gemini has 450 million MONTHLY users. 

AT&T is picking up $23 billion worth of spectrum licenses from EchoStar, the parent of Dish Network, Sling TV, and Boost Mobile. EchoStar had been under the gun from the FCC for not building out anything on the spectrum. The FCC has a ‘use it or lose it’ policy on spectrum licenses. The licenses cover over 400 markets in the US, and AT&T says it plans to start work as soon as possible. The licenses are for low-band and mid-band spectrum, which are used for 5G and LTE networks. 

Farmers Insurance says it was hit by a data breach that exposed information of over a million policy holders. Mashable.com reports that the third party attack came via a vishing scam that was related to a series of SalesForce associated attacks. According to Farmers, the compromised data includes names, addresses, dates of birth, driver’s license numbers, and in some cases, the last four digits of Social Security numbers. Reports indicate that around 1,111,386 people were affected across 10 states: California, Washington D.C., Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, and Rhode Island.

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now. 

iPhone Fold Next Year-5 Cams; xAI (Musk) Sues Apple and OpenAI; YouTube Secretly Edited Videos With AI, Waymo Can Test Self-Drivers in NYC

Posted: August 25, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Even though the new iPhones are due out in just weeks, including the anticipated iPhone Air…or whatever they actually end up calling the new ‘skinny’ iPhone, tidbits are already leaking out about next year’s Folding iPhone. 9to5mac.com reports that the Cupertino folder will feature 5 cameras, and will have Touch ID…and will use and Apple cellular modem. A number of these new details come from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman and his Power On newsletter. As already reported, the iPhone folder will use the book style, not the flip phone style. Expect one cam on the front screen, one on the inside, and two on the back. The phone will use Touch ID, and will run on Apple’s in-house designed cellular modem…as Apple switches its entire line to the new modems. The camera setup will allow the phone to be used much like a regular iPhone when closed…with a selfie cam on one side and the two main cams on the back. When you open the phone up, the inside cam takes over as the selfie cam. Why no Face ID? In a word, space. Touch ID doesn’t require as much room, and since the folding phone will be notably thicker than a regular iPhone, every millimeter counts. 

Elon Musk’s xAI is suing Apple and OpenAI, claiming that their deal to build ChatGPT into the iPhone is stifling competition in the AI industry. According to theverge.com, Musk-owened X Corp, the parent of xAI, accuses Apples App Store of “deprioritizing” rival chatbots and “super” apps, including Grok and X. Musk’s companies claim that iPhone users “have no reason” to download third-party AI apps because the company “force[s]” users to use ChatGPT as their default chatbot app when enabling Apple Intelligence. “Apple and OpenAI have locked up markets to maintain their monopolies and prevent innovators like X and xAI from competing,” the companies allege. “This latest filing is consistent with Mr Musk’s ongoing pattern of harassment,” OpenAI spokesperson Kayla Wood said in a statement. As for Apple, it had already put out a statement saying that the App Store  is “designed to be fair and free of bias.” 

YouTube has, in recent months, secretly used AI to tweak some creators’ videos without letting them know or asking permission. Bbc.com notes that one content creator noticed that his hair was different and that he seemed to be wearing makeup. In another case, wrinkles in a shirt were more sharply defined. Some ears appeared to be warped. YouTube has finally at least come clean on admitting the AI changes. Rene Ritchie, YouTube’s head of editorial and creator liaison, posted on “X: We’re running an experiment on select YouTube Shorts that uses traditional machine learning technology to unblur, denoise, and improve clarity in videos during processing (similar to what a modern smartphone does when you record a video). YouTube is always working on ways to provide the best video quality and experience possible, and will continue to take creator and viewer feedback into consideration as we iterate and improve on these features.” YouTube hasn’t answered media questions as to if it will now seek user permission before using AI to tweak their videos. I, for one, would really rather they didn’t use AI to give me Vulcan pointy ears like Mr Spock!

Waymo can now go forward and test its self-driving cars in New York City. The word came from the office of Mayor Eric Adams. Engadget.com said the company has a permit to operate the autonomous vehicles in parts of Manhattan and Downtown Brooklyn. Right now, a small fleet of 8 vehicles will be able to operate until late September 2025. At that point, Waymo will be offered the opportunity to get an extension if all goes well. Right now, human operators will be on board…New York state law prohibits operation of vehicles without a driver behind the wheel. Waymo is lobbying to get this regulation changed.

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now. 

OpenAI Returns GPT-4o Over User Revolt; Amazon Same-Day Grocery Delivery-2300 Cities by Year’s End; TeaOnHer-Driver Licenses Exposed in 10 Minutes; US Secretly Tracked Diversion of Dell & Super Micro Chips to China

Posted: August 13, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

OpenAI has had a pretty rocky rollout of its latest-greatest…or allegedly greatest, GPT-5. in fact, it has been rough enough that arstechnica.com reports that the user backlash has forced OpenAI to let users revert to GPT-4o. That AI model now appears in the model picker for all paid ChatGPT users by default (including ChatGPT Plus accounts), marking a swift reversal after thousands of users complained about losing access to their preferred models. The backlash wasn’t pretty at all, with a Reddit thread titled “GPT-5 is horrible” amassing over 2,000 comments in just days. OpenAI has now made some modifications to address the user outrage over GPT-5. Rate limits for GPT-5 Thinking mode increased from 200 to 3,000 messages per week, with additional capacity available through “GPT-5 Thinking mini” after reaching that limit. The company also added new routing options—”Auto,” “Fast,” and “Thinking”—giving users more control over which GPT-5 variant handles their queries.

Amazon has announced that it will offer same-day grocery delivery in some 2300 cities by the end of the year…that’s double what they are doing now. According to Bloomberg, users will be able to order perishables like produce, meat, seafood, dairy, and baked goods…in addition to frozen foods and household items. Same day delivery for grocery items is free for Amazon Prime subscribers on orders over $25 in most cities. For non-members, it runs $12.99 per order, no matter what the order size is. 

We recently reported on the Tea app, an app that lets women clue each other in on men they know or have dated, and tip them off to ‘red flags’ with those men. It turned out, the app was leaking the women’s information, including driver’s licenses. Well, as the old saying goes, ‘what’s good for the goose is good for the gander,’ only in this case it’s what’s bad! Techcrunch.com says the app for guys, TeaOnHer, also leaked like a sieve…with driver’s licenses found by TechCrunch within 10 minutes of being sent a link to the app in the App Store! The flaws that allowed this kind of leak have apparently been resolved now, but not before thousands of guys’ driver’s license info was exposed. Once again, I get to warn…no matter what an app might potentially do for you…DON’T upload your driver’s license or government ID to use it! With new laws in the United Kingdom, this has become a major issue, with authorities there enacting a law requiring sites to demand age verification…even Wikipedia! The Wiki is fighting it, and may even make itself unavailable in Britain over this issue if it loses in court. 

The US government has apparently put location tracking devices in targeted shipments of advanced AI chips considered at hight risk of illegal diversion to China. Benzinga.com reports that the trackers are hidden in server packaging from Dell and Super Micro Computer for units containing chips from NVIDIA and AMD. Some shipments of the restricted chips have resumed, after the chipmakers agreed to virtual extortion by the Trump administration of 15% of their profits on sales of the chips in China. Normally the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security oversees such operations, but this appears to also involved Homeland Security Investigations, and the FBI. Super Micro declined to comment on the issue, and Dell said it was ‘not aware’ of such trackers in its shipments. To me this has the vibe of Mad Magazine’s old ‘Spy vs. Spy’ cartoons. Will the Black Spy get the upper hand on the White Spy…or will the Lady in Gray bamboozle both of them?

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.

Live Translation Coming to AirPods; Musk Rages Apple Favors OpenAI over Grok; Ford Universal EV Platform Called Game Changer; Reddit Blocks Internet Archive Over AI Scraping

Posted: August 12, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Some folks have noted new images in iOS 26’s latest beta version that point to in-person Live Translation being available soon on Apple AirPods. Macrumors.com reports that a graphic shows AirPods with ‘Hello’ in several different languages, along with a suggestion that the feature will be activated with a double press. There is also a file in the beta named ‘Translate.’ Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman had previously reported that Apple was working on such a feature. From what shows up the the iOS 26 beta, Live Translation will work on AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4…and will be very similar to what is already offered in Apple’s Phone App, Messages App, and FaceTime. Note that existing Live Translation is linked to Apple Intelligence, so the AirPods might need to be connected to an iPhone that supports Apple Intelligence. My 15 Pro Max supports Apple Intelligence, as does the 15 Pro, and all the iPhone 16 models do, too. Of course, the upcoming iPhone 17 handsets will support Apple Intelligence. It will be super handy doing Live Translate right from the AirPods at the double touch of a finger!

Elon Musk is harping again on something of a favorite target of his…Apple. Now, Musk claims that Apple is favoring OpenAI in its App Store Rankings over Grok 4, the product from his xAI. According to 9to5mac.com, Elon is accusing Apple of an “unequivocal antitrust violation.” After introduction of Grok 4, the app moved from about 60th in the App Store to 29th place last week. Today, August 12th, xAI made Grok 4 free for users worldwide…pushing it to 5th overall in the App Store ratings and to #2 in the Productivity category. That sounds like it is doing pretty well…yet ChatGPT is still at or near the top, as it has been for most of the last year. It should be noted that Apple has repeatedly featured ChatGPT in its App Store editorial content, and has partnered with OpenAI as part of the new Apple Intelligence…where it is directly integrated with Siri. Musk is mad, and threatening immediate legal action. That is quite a threat from the richest man on earth…but he’d best keep in mind that his wealth is dwarfed by the value of Apple…they are a more than worthy opponent in court, as many have found out. 

Ford is looking to its new Universal EV platform to be a serious game changer…one the will hit a holy grail of sorts for EVs…breaking the $30,000 barrier. Electrek.co says that Ford is claiming that its new midsize EV pickup will have a lower cost of ownership than the Tesla Model Y and will have more space than a Toyota RAV4. It will have a base price of $30,000…about the same as the RAV4. The midsize pickups will be built at Ford’s Louisville Assembly Plant. Ford will be the first vehicle maker to build prismatic LFP batteries in the US, which will not only cut costs but also free up interior space. Ford CEO Jim Farley says the new universal platform will reduce parts by 20% compared with the average vehicle. It features 25% less fasteners, 40% fewer workstations dock-to-dock in the plant, and….15% faster assembly time. Ford claims a “lower cost of ownership over five years than a three-year-old used Tesla Model Y.”

Reddit is blocking the Internet Archive from indexing popular threads on Reddit. Why? Apparently, they have caught sneaky AI firms scraping data from the archive…data the have been restricted from scraping from Reddit itself. Arstechnica.com reports that the Internet Archive is in ongoing discussions with Reddit since the block. The AI firms who were doing the scraping haven’t been named so far. Internet Archive has not signaled whether it’s looking into fixes to get Reddit’s restrictions lifted. It could be completely over protecting users, or Reddit might be jockeying for a more lucrative licensing deal like Reddit struck with OpenAI and Google. The OpenAI deal isn’t publicly known, but the Google one is reportedly worth some $60 million. Reddit expects to make more than $200 million the next 3 years on licensing deals around AI.

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.

OpenAI Hits 700 Million Weekly Users; Anthropic Cuts, Part Restores OpenAI Access to Claude; Tesla Gives $29 Million in Comp to Musk; Apple Hiring for ‘ChatGPT-like’ Search

Posted: August 4, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

OpenAI is looking to hit 700 million active weekly users this week for ChatGPT. CNBC.com reports that the figure is up 200 million for the 500 million actives they had just in March…and it is also 4 times the number of just a year ago. This user number includes folks using all ChatGPT AI products…free, Plus, Pro, Enterprise, Team, and Edu. OpenAI also reports having 5 million paying business users on ChatGPT, up from 3 million in June. 

Anthropic cut OpenAI access to its Claude model, after OpenAI was found to be using Anthropic’s Claude Code to assist in creating and testing OpenAI’s upcoming GPT-5, which is due to release in August. According to mashable.com, this act of plugging into Claude’s internal tools violated Anthropic’s commercial terms of service. A spokesperson for Anthropic did say that OpenAI’s access to their API would be reinstated for ‘benchmarking and safety evaluations.’ 

Even though Elon Musk’s around $56 billion payout has been tied up in the courts for a while, the board has now decided to award him a new compensation package of about $29 billion in shares. TechCrunch.com says the board released a statement citing the “ever-intensifying AI talent war and Tesla’s position at a critical inflection point” as reasons for the payout. Back to the court…this new compensation plan will be entirely voided if the Delaware Supreme Court decides to overturn a judge’s January 2024 decision to strike down Musk’s 2018 compensation package because of how it was negotiated behind the scenes. That pay package was worth around $56 billion. That’s because it is based on the 2019 Equity Incentive plan which was approved by shareholders. Musk has threatened to stop working on AI and robotics at Tesla unless he gains more control over the company. 

Apple is hiring engineers for a team to work on improving Siri, Spotlight, and Safari. Macrumors.com reports that the team has the unwieldy name Answers, Knowledge, and Information. Cupertino is looking to attract around a dozen engineers for the team to develop a ‘new ChatGPT-like search experience.’ Mark Gurman of Bloomberg notes that Apple is even apparently exploring a standalone app in addition to bulking up back end infrastructure to power future Siri, Spotlight, and Safari iterations. 

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.

ChatGPT Study Mode; Tea App Security Breaches; Photoshop-Even Easier AI to Edit People & Objects in & Out of Photos; Meta Continues AI Poaching Drive

Posted: July 29, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

ChatGPT has bowed its new Study Mode which they claim will help give students a better understanding of complex subjects. Engadget.com reports that it is much like Learning Mode from Anthropic’s Claude, which came out in April. Study Mode uses something like the Socratic method…instead of answering a question outright, it will try to steer the user to their own solution. OpenAI says the conversations will unfold using a ‘scaffold’ structure, which means ChatGPT will slowly roll out info so as not to overwhelm the user. The feature is available to Edu users, and also to Free, Plus, Pro, and Team users. The Edu users will get it first over the next few weeks. 

A couple of major Security vulnerabilities have showed up in the Tea app…an app that is supposed to make dating safer for women. According to 9to5mac.com, the Tea app is designed to let women share ‘red flags’ for men they have dated, and the app supposedly has 4 million active users. That’s all cool, but the security breaches have exposed a database containing personal data, including selfies and images of driver’s licenses Tea uses to verify user identities. To quote the late, great Ron Popiel…’but wait, there’s more.’ Tea claims that was an old database, but the other breach affects messages through this past week. The chats just have user names, but also links and images. Over 70,000 images have been exposed….possibly many more. Unless you are dealing with the state or federal government, I’d avoid any app that wants an image of your driver’s license!

The dark side of AI is that it just keeps making it easier and easier to blur reality. Now, Adobe has launched new AI features for Photoshop that make it even more simple to convincingly add people and objects to photos or to delete them from same. The “Harmonize” feature is a step further than the Project Perfect Blend that Adobe showed last year. Theverge.com notes that when you add a new object to a photo, Harmonize will automatically adjust the color, lighting, shadows, and visual tone of the item to blend it into the main image…like a skilled Photoshop user would do manually. The automatic removal tool uses AI to ‘clean up your images with more precision,’ too. Note that Adobe says there are safeguards in place to prevent it from generating anything concerning, like deepfakes of notable public figures, violence, or sexually explicit materials. Let’s hope.

Meta’s AI recruiting binge continues, as Zuckerberg tries to scoop up more top tier talent for his Meta Superintellegence labs. Wired.com reports that over a dozen staffers at Mira Murati’s 50 person startup…Thinking Machines Lab…have been approached with big offers. Murati is the former chief tech officer at OpenAI. In a move that will make sports contracts look pale, one person was offered over a billion dollars over a multi-year period. Others have seen offers of between $200 and $500 million over 4 years! First year payouts are between $50 and $100 million! I need to use AI to convince Zuck I’m one of the top talents in the field, so I can cash in on this bonanza. Ok, kidding…but hey, Mark…if you could spare a million or two for a tech report writer, here I am!

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now. 

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