Google has announced several updates to its Gemini portfolio, including a budget-friendly product, amid growing demand for low-cost AI models driven by the rise of Chinese competitor DeepSeek. “We’re releasing a new model, Gemini 2.0 Flash-Lite, our most cost-efficient model yet, in public preview in Google AI Studio and Vertex AI,” the company said in a blog post.
The trouble with virtual assistants is that they’re just so darn needy. Specifically, they need to be told exactly what to do. They sit around doing nothing until explicitly directed. They don’t take any initiative. They’re, for lack of a better word, lazy. Science fiction writers, industry prognosticators, and techno-futurists like me have been predicting…
Workday said Wednesday it will lay off 1,750 employees, roughly 8.5% of its workforce, as part of a restructuring plan to invest more heavily in artificial intelligence (AI) and accelerate international growth. The California-based company disclosed the layoffs in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, attributing the decision to its focus on…
If you get stressed out when surfing the web, Norwegian browser company Opera has something for you: a new browser for Windows and Mac designed to help you relax. Opera Air offers a minimalist design and scheduled breaks for breathing exercises, neck training and meditation, among other things. The new browser can also play a…
They say great art reflects its time. When it comes to Apple’s business, just as the iMac and iPod matched the zeitgeist, the company must now develop its business to meet the complex demands of a divided, post-globalist world struggling with economic and climate insecurity. Apple should bear that in mind as it faces its…
The company that once opened its code of conduct with the words “Don’t be evil” is now opening the door to assisting in the creation of AI-powered weapons and surveillance systems. Changes in the company’s statement of AI principles introduced in a blog post on Tuesday remove the company’s earlier prohibition on engaging in such…
Hey, remember the Apple Vision Pro? For a while there, everyone was talking about Apple’s $3,499 headset being the future of productivity. You’d strap a headset to your face and work on large monitors floating in a “mixed reality” world. Well, that vision has now officially arrived on Windows PCs, and it’s more than 10…
Have you heard the buzz? Good vibrations are on their way to Android — or at least to Google’s own homemade Pixel devices. As we discussed in my Android Intelligence newsletter on Friday, word broke the other day about a still-under-wraps plan to bring custom vibration patterns into the ever-evolving Android arena. The feature appears…
2025 began in turmoil, with layoffs at some of the largest tech companies despite the support shown by the new US administration. 2024 had been a year of recovery, with the pace of layoffs slowing and IT employment the highest for years following two years of massive IT layoff in 2022 and 2023. According to…
Chinese AI startup, DeepSeek, has been facing scrutiny from governments and private entities worldwide but that hasn’t stopped enterprises from investing in this OpenAI competitor. European regulators joined Microsoft, OpenAI, and the US government last week in independent efforts to determine if DeepSeek infringed on any copyrighted data from any US technology vendor. The investigations could potentially…