Tech
LG Unveils AI-Powered, Wheeling Smart Robot for the Home
Ahead of CES 2024, LG has given a first look at some of the new technologies it’s been developing over the past year. As part of its vision for a “zero labor home,” LG created an AI robot with two legs connected to wheels.Capable of roaming one’s home independently, the bot is designed to connect to and control smart appliances in the household and deliver information and reminders, similar to Amazon's Alexa. The bot uses both voice and facial recognition to identify and execute commands.LG describes the bot, which doesn’t have an official name just yet, as a “moving smart home hub.” The bot comes packed with Qualcomm’s RB5 robotics chip, cameras, speakers and sensors for gauging temperature, humidity and air quality.LG didn’t say if the bot will only be compatible with other LG appliances...
Celine Brings Luxury to Your Ears With Master & Dynamic Headphones
Of course, Celine is known for its high-fashion wares that foster sleek looks across menswear and womenswear. But now the Parisian brand is venturing into audio accessories with its new collaborative headphones that tapped Master & Dynamic – talk about ear candy.Bringing luxury to listening, the headphones aptly channel the sleek and elevated stylings of Celine and the New York-based audio company. The headphones first made their debut during Celine's Spring/Summer 2024 womenswear show ‘La Collection de la Bibliothèque Nationale’ under the direction of Hedi Slimane. Comprising the design is an anodized aluminum and lambskin leather build that appears in hues of tan and silver, black and silver and monochrome black. Additionally, the headband and ear pads contain the Celine name engrave...
Google broke labor laws when it refused to bargain with YouTube Music contract workers
/ The NLRB ruled that Google’s refusal to negotiate with a group of Austin-based contractors is illegal. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The National Labor Relations Board ruled that Google’s refusal to bargain with a group of unionized YouTube Music contractors is illegal. The three-member panel decided that despite denials by Google, which owns YouTube Music, and its subcontractor Cognizant, the two are, in fact, joint employers of the Austin-based workers who perform data-related tasks, like finding errors in its charts algorithm. “...
Tesla’s first smart home partner is Samsung SmartThings
/ The SmartThings Energy platform will connect to some of Tesla’s products, starting with the Powerwall home battery. a:hover]:text-black [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-e9 dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray-63 [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-13 dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63″>A “simulated” image from Samsung showing what the Tesla connections in the SmartThings app may look like.
How to configure and use hot corners on macOS
/ Make use of one of your Mac’s lesser-known features to do more in less time. a:hover]:shadow-highlight-franklin dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-highlight-franklin [&>a]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-white”>Configuring hot corners To pick a function for each corner of the display or to disable particular hot corners: Open the Apple menu and pick System Settings. Open up the Desktop & Dock panel and scroll down to the bottom. Click Hot Corners (bottom right) to see the current configuration. Select any shortcut from the four drop-down menus. Click Done to apply the changes. You can add any modifier key (Command, Shift, Option, or Control) or modifier key combination to a hot corner. The modifier key options make hot corners a bit more of a deliberate acti...
SpaceX is suing to bust up federal union protections
/ SpaceX is suing the NLRB after it accused the rocket company of illegally firing a group of employees. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Illustration by Laura Normand / The Verge SpaceX is suing the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) after the agency accused the Elon Musk-owned company of illegally firing employees. In a lawsuit filed in federal court on Thursday, SpaceX claims the NLRB’s actions are unconstitutional. On Wednesday, the NLRB filed a complaint alleging SpaceX illegally fired a group of employees for drafting an open letter that criticized Musk’s behavior. Th...
Google wrote a “Robot Constitution” to make sure its new AI droids won’t kill us
/ The data gathering system AutoRT applies safety guardrails inspired by Isaac Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Image: Google The DeepMind robotics team has revealed three new advances that it says will help robots make faster, better, and safer decisions in the wild. One includes a system for gathering training data with a “Robot Constitution” to make sure your robot office assistant can fetch you more printer paper — but without mowing down a human co-worker who happens to be in the way. Google’s data gathering system, AutoRT, can use a visual lan...
OpenAI will open its custom ChatGPT store next week
Artificial Intelligence/ Tech / The store to share and sell custom AI agents will launch after being delayed for a month. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Illustration by William Joel / The Verge After delaying its launch, OpenAI’s GPT store is almost ready to open for business. GPT Store, where users can sell and share customized AI agents based on OpenAI’s large language models, will officially launch next week, OpenAI said in an email to people signed on as GPT Builders. The email asked users to double-check that their GPT creations meet brand guidelines and reminded people to m...
Willis Gibson “Beats” ‘Tetris,’ Sky News Anchor Hates On Him
One human did the impossible and "beat" Tetris; of course, another human found a way to hate on the massive accomplishment.
TikTok Reportedly Aims To Grow E-Commerce to $17.5B USD Following Seller Fee Hike
TikTok is angling to amp up its e-commerce sector in 2024. The ByteDance-owned video app is aiming to increase its e-commerce business “tenfold,” according to Business of Fashion, which cited people familiar with the matter.For TikTok, that would reportedly equate to about $17.5 billion USD in sales. The 2024 goals for the TikTo Shop on the US version of the app were recently discussed in internal business meetings, Business of Fashion reported. Those goals, however, are subject to change throughout the year.Seemingly, as part of that effort, TikTok announced on Wednesday that it would be quadrupling its seller fees. Currently, TikTok takes just 2% of sales in the US. That cut will be increased to 6% in April and then once again raised to 8% come July. The fee is still relatively low in co...
Xbox’s New Toaster Sears Its Logo Onto Your Morning Toast
Xbox wants you to always be thinking about them – even when you’re eating breakfast. The company has a new gadget: a two-slice toaster designed to replicate an Xbox Series S.Billed as offering the "Optimal Carb Experience,” the toaster not only crisps your bread to perfection but also toasts the Xbox logo onto its surface.The toaster offers a countdown timer and six heat levels depending on the level of toastiness its user prefers. And just like an Xbox console, it can be programmed with multiple user profiles, each of which will save the preferred heat setting.It also comes with an anti-jam setting for ejecting bread and crumbs, as well as a defrost button for heating up icy bagels.“No more breakfast-induced jump scares or trying to spread butter on bread that's already gone cold because ...
