Oops: Google says it might have deleted your Maps Timeline data

Oops: Google says it might have deleted your Maps Timeline data

The Google Maps Timeline has long been a useful though slightly uncomfortable feature that maintains a complete record of everywhere your phone goes (and probably you with it). Google recently changed the way it stored timeline data to improve privacy, but the company now confirms that a “technical issue” resulted in many users losing their…

Can we make AI less power-hungry? These researchers are working on it.

Can we make AI less power-hungry? These researchers are working on it.

For the tests, his team used setups with Nvidia’s A100 and H100 GPUs, the ones most commonly used at data centers today, and measured how much energy they used running various large language models (LLMs), diffusion models that generate pictures or videos based on text input, and many other types of AI systems. The largest…

Italy demands Google poison DNS under strict Piracy Shield law

Italy demands Google poison DNS under strict Piracy Shield law

Spotted by TorrentFreak, AGCOM Commissioner Massimiliano Capitanio took to LinkedIn to celebrate the ruling, as well as the existence of the Italian Piracy Shield. “The Judge confirmed the value of AGCOM’s investigations, once again giving legitimacy to a system for the protection of copyright that is unique in the world,” said Capitanio. Capitanio went on…

CEO of AI ad-tech firm pledging “world free of fraud” sentenced for fraud

CEO of AI ad-tech firm pledging “world free of fraud” sentenced for fraud

A page from Kubient’s July 2020 prospectus for its initial public offering (IPO), making a few bold claims about the firm’s technology that would later factor into federal prosecutors’ charges. Credit: SEC A page from Kubient’s July 2020 prospectus for its initial public offering (IPO), making a few bold claims about the firm’s technology that…

Apple loses $1B a year on prestigious, minimally viewed Apple TV+: report

Apple loses $1B a year on prestigious, minimally viewed Apple TV+: report

The Apple TV+ streaming service “is losing more than $1 billion annually,” according to The Information today. The report also claimed that Apple TV+’s subscriber count reached “around 45 million” in 2024, citing the two anonymous sources. Per one of the sources, Apple TV+ has typically spent over $5 billion annually on content since 2019,…

The early 2000s capacitor plague is probably not just a stolen recipe

The early 2000s capacitor plague is probably not just a stolen recipe

It’s a widely known problem with roots in urban legend: Devices with motherboards failing in the early 2000s with a sudden pop, a gruesome spill, or sometimes a burst of flames. And it was allegedly all due to one guy who didn’t copy a stolen formula correctly. The “capacitor plague” of the early 2000s was…

Discord heightens ad focus by introducing video ads to mobile apps in June

Discord heightens ad focus by introducing video ads to mobile apps in June

Discord’s mobile app will have video ads starting in June, the company announced today. The initial pilot for the video ads, which Discord calls Video Quests on Mobile, will offer advertisers the ability to “showcase trailers, make impactful announcements, and highlight premium content” to users, Discord said. Discord was a proudly ad-free platform until March…

HP avoids monetary damages over bricked printers in class-action settlement

HP avoids monetary damages over bricked printers in class-action settlement

HP also now provides disclaimers on the product pages for most of the printers that it sells, stating that the device “is intended to work only with cartridges that have a new or reused HP chip” and uses Dynamic Security “to block cartridges using a non-HP chip.” “Periodic firmware updates will maintain the effectiveness of…

Apple and Google in the hot seat as European regulators ignore Trump warnings

Apple and Google in the hot seat as European regulators ignore Trump warnings

The European Commission is not backing down from efforts to rein in Big Tech. In a series of press releases today, the European Union’s executive arm has announced actions against both Apple and Google. Regulators have announced that Apple will be required to open up support for non-Apple accessories on the iPhone, but it may…

Plex ups its price for first time in a decade, changes remote-streaming access

Plex ups its price for first time in a decade, changes remote-streaming access

Plex is a bit hard to explain these days. Even if you don’t know its roots as an outgrowth of a Mac port of the Xbox Media Center project, Plex is not your typical “streaming” service, given how most people use it. So as Plex announces its first price increase to its Plex Pass subscription…