Skip to main content

Posts

Fear and loathing at OpenAI

Sam Altman's tenure at OpenAI has been… messy. Messy to the point where Altman was briefly fired from his role as CEO, only to be reinstated days later, at which point he began reshaping the organization permanently. This week, The New Yorker published a deep look at Altman , his time at OpenAI, and the questions about whether he's the right person to be in charge of a technology as important and transformative as artificial intelligence. Verge subscribers, don't forget you get exclusive access to ad-free Vergecast wherever you get your podcasts. Head here . Not a subscriber? You can sign up here . On this episode of The Vergecast , David … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/3wD4Tib
Post a Comment
Read more
Recent posts

Snap is sticking with Qualcomm for its next AR glasses

Snap's upcoming consumer AR glasses are still set to launch sometime this year, and they'll be powered by a Snapdragon XR chip from Qualcomm, according to an announcement of a "multi-year strategic agreement" between the companies. Snap has been working on smart glasses for a decade, with the first model of its camera-equipped Spectacles glasses launching in 2016 . But the past couple generations , which have been AR glasses capable of layering digital experiences over the real world, haven't been available to general consumers. The consumer Specs won't be the first time Qualcomm and Snap have worked together, as Snapdragon chips have powered … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/tpO5Qrl
Post a Comment
Read more

YouTube Premium is getting pricier

YouTube Premium is getting more expensive in the US, with prices rising by $2 on standard individual accounts and as much as $4 for the family plan. The price hike is already in effect for new accounts, and is rolling out now for existing customers. Premium's Individual plan now costs $15.99 per month, up from $13.99, while the five-person Family plan is $26.99, previously $22.99. Premium Lite, which removes "most" ads but doesn't include YouTube Music, is now $8.99 monthly, up from $7.99. The new prices are live now for new signups, and 9to5Google reports that existing subscribers are beginning to be notified about the price hike via the … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/GUH1fA2
Post a Comment
Read more

The AI industry’s race for profits is now existential

Today on Decoder , let’s talk about the looming AI monetization cliff, and whether some of the biggest companies in the space can become real, profitable businesses before they careen right off it. My guest today is Hayden Field, who’s our senior AI reporter here at The Verge . She’s been keeping close tabs on both Anthropic and OpenAI, and how these two companies in particular tell us a whole lot about the AI industry in 2026.  You’ve certainly heard a version of the monetization cliff story before. The biggest AI firms are built off the back of hundreds of billions in capital investment, and they’re linked to even greater amounts of forward-looking investment in data center build-out, chips, and other infrastructure spend. At some point, the profits have to materialize, or the bubble pops. Maybe AGI arrives, maybe the economy crashes, who knows.  You’ve heard me ask some version of this question to scores of CEOs here on this show, and a majority of them have hinted towa...
Post a Comment
Read more

Amazon’s Starlink competitor Leo gets a new date

An Amazon Leo terminal being installed. | Image: Amazon Amazon CEO Andy Jassy says the company's space-internet service Leo (formerly known as Project Kuiper) will " launch in mid-2026 ." I'm going to assume that means proper commercial availability since the company already announced the start of an " enterprise preview " at the end of 2025, when the service was supposed to originally launch. Unlike SpaceX's Starlink service, Amazon doesn't (yet) have its own fleet of rockets to regularly send Leo satellites into low-Earth orbit. That's meant hitching rides with a variety of launch partners, including SpaceX, until Jeff Bezos's own reusable New Glenn rocket is fully operational. Amazon has FCC ap … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/sZfxaMD
Post a Comment
Read more

Google makes it easy to deepfake yourself

YouTube Shorts is rolling out a new AI-powered feature giving creators an easy way to realistically clone themselves on camera. The launch, hinted at earlier this year , reflects the platform's fraught relationship with AI-generated content, adding more generative features while struggling to contain AI slop , deepfake scams, and impersonations. YouTube says the new tool will let users create a digital version of themselves, called an avatar, that can be inserted into existing Shorts videos or used to generate entirely new ones. The company said avatars will "look and sound like you," framing them as a safer and more secure way to use AI to … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/HbGFinR
Post a Comment
Read more

Spotify now lets you turn off all its videos

The new controls apply to both individual and family accounts. | Image: Spotify Spotify is adding new toggles to stop any and all video from playing inside the app, for both music and podcasts. The controls are rolling out worldwide, work across all platforms and devices, and can be used by managers of Family Plans to limit video content for every member on the subscription. The new controls haven't arrived on my UK account or devices yet, but will appear under the "Content and display" settings on a phone, or the "Display" section on desktop. The existing toggle to disable Canvas clips - the short, looping, autoplay videos that Spotify added to the app in 2019 - is joined by a new toggle that disables access to music … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/KPGmkw8
Post a Comment
Read more