Some specialists suspect that constantly filtering out background noise may have unintended consequencesThey are prized for making the commute more bearable and shielding against the din of daily life. But noise-cancelling headphones have come under scrutiny after audiologists raised concerns that overuse might impair people's hearing skills.While the technology has clear benefits, not least in helping people listen to music at lower volume, some specialists suspect that constantly filtering out background noise may have unintended consequences. Continue reading...
Experts warn young people should have limited use of devices and spend more time outdoorsEvery hour young people spend in front of screens increases their chance of being shortsighted, researchers have found, with experts warning young children should have limited use of devices and spend more time outdoors.Myopia is caused by having an over elongated eyeball and is a growing problem, with research suggesting about 40% of children and adolescents worldwide could have the condition by 2050. Continue reading...
Platform cites legal requirements around when we remove data' after lawsuit filed over deaths of children attempting blackout challenge'Four British parents who are suing TikTok for the alleged wrongful deaths of their children say they are suspicious" about the social media platform's claim to have deleted their children's data.The parents have filed a lawsuit in the US that claims that their four children died in 2022 as a result of attempting the blackout challenge", a viral trend that circulated on social media in 2021. Continue reading...
by Miranda Bryant Nordic correspondent and Agence Fra on (#6VE1E)
Musk claimed without evidence Nasa's Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were left stranded on orbital outpost for political reasons'Elon Musk has become embroiled in a heated row with a Danish astronaut who criticised the tech billionaire's claim that the former US president Joe Biden abandoned two American astronauts at the International Space Station on purpose.Andreas Andy" Mogensen accused Musk of lying when he claimed in a Fox News interview alongside Donald Trump that Nasa's Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were left stranded for political reasons" by Biden. Continue reading...
by Samuel Gibbs Consumer technology editor on (#6VE4B)
Compact phone has flagship chip and buckets of AI, but hasn't changed much from predecessorsThe smallest and cheapest of Samsung's new Galaxy S25 line might be the one to buy, offering top performance and the very latest AI features for less and proving that smaller-sized Androids can still be great.Unlike previous generations of Samsung's smaller models sold in the UK and Europe, the regular S25 has the same top-flight chip as the enormous and pricey Ultra model, offering a lot of performance while costing 799 (919/$800/A$1,399). Continue reading...
We asked top DJs to share their favourite headphones for seamless setsAsk any DJ what their most important bit of kit is and they'll tell you it's what goes around their head. Whether playing off a laptop, CDJs or decks, a pair of decent headphones is your portal to the mix and an essential element to get right.Luckily, we've assembled some of the world's best selectors to evangelise about the pairs they're faithful to: from reliable specialist brands to old-school one-ear models, these are the best DJ headphones for crystal-clear sound and to hear that all-important bass. Continue reading...
The team behind Capcom's hit series was known for its extensive grounding in real-world adventures. The latest chapter, developed during Covid, required a different kind of daringMy favourite thing about Monster Hunter is that despite the name, you often feel more like the prey than the predator. Even armed with a sword several times your own size and weight, you are often outmatched by the incredible creatures in this action game. In Monster Hunter Wilds, out next week, you are also frequently outmatched by the weather. A routine hunt for some relatively unthreatening creature can go awry as storm clouds gather, bringing with them some terrifying lightning-dragon that will eat you for breakfast. Monsters entangle with each other, tearing with teeth and claws as you turn tail and head for the hills.Over the past couple of weekends, players have been able to get hands-on with Wilds in beta tests, trying out the exquisite character creator and a couple of hunts against a horrid lion (Doshaguma) and an overgrown poisonous chicken (Gypceros). As someone old enough to have played these games on the PlayStation 2, and then later with my fingers contorted uncomfortably around a PlayStation Portable during a student year abroad in Japan, I am amazed and delighted by what Monster Hunter has become. What was once a stiff and densely complex game that hid all its thrills behind a barricade of mushroom-gathering quests is now a fluid, inviting and globally popular spectacle of a thing. Monster Hunter World, 2018's entry, broke Capcom records and reached 23m sales. Continue reading...
Chan Zuckerberg Initiative ends internal inclusion efforts and social advocacy' grants and scrubs site of commitmentThe for-profit charity organization founded by Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, has done an about-face on its commitment to corporate diversity.Executives at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) informed employees on Tuesday evening that the organization would in effect do away with both internal and external diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts, according to an internal email and other correspondence viewed by the Guardian. On 10 January, leaders at CZI reassured staff that its longstanding support for DEI was not changing. Zuckerberg's company Meta had announced earlier that day it would terminate its DEI programs, in the days before Donald Trump's second inauguration. Continue reading...
A friend sent me the image by surprise and I felt a lot of things very strongly: love, upset, amusement, pleasure and angerAn old friend sent me a photo that caused me to stop whatever I was doing. I stared at it for a long time, possibly without drawing breath. Martin and I grew up living next door to each other. He now lives in Australia. It was from there that he sent me a screenshot of Google Maps' Street View, showing what had been our homes. Side by side, just bricks and mortar obviously, but teeming with meaning for both of us. That wasn't the thing though. The thing was that in a corner of the photo stood a familiar figure in a red jumper. My dad.He died this time last year. And yet here he was, standing under the tree next to his car. I felt a lot of things very strongly all at the same time: love, surprise, upset, amusement, anger, pleasure and other things. This was a month ago, but it's on my mind again this week as it would have been his 87th birthday. And I'm still no nearer computing what I feel about the image being there, available to all, on what my dad always referred to as the net". Continue reading...
by Samuel Gibbs Consumer technology editor on (#6VCRJ)
Revamped entry-level iPhone is last to exchange touch ID home button for face ID, modern design - and a price hikeApple has put the final nail in the coffin of the home button after 18 years with the release of the new iPhone 16e.The lowest-cost new iPhone replaces the 2022 iPhone SE, which was the last Apple product standing with the touch ID button, finishing off its drawn-out demise, which started with the iPhone X back in 2017. Continue reading...
Authorities blame crypto exchange, already facing four counts of tax evasion in the country, for currency woesNigeria has filed a lawsuit seeking to compel Binance to pay $79.5bn for economic losses the country's government says were caused by the cryptocurrency exchange's operations there and $2bn in back taxes, court documents showed on Wednesday.Authorities blame Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, for Nigeria's currency woes and detained two of its executives in 2024 after crypto websites emerged as platforms of choice for trading the local naira currency. Continue reading...
Chip is powered by world's first topoconductor, which can create new state of matter that is not solid, liquid or gasQuantum computers could be built within years rather than decades, according to Microsoft, which has unveiled a breakthrough that it said could pave the way for faster development.The tech firm has developed a chip which, it says, echoes the invention of the semiconductors that made today's smartphones, computers and electronics possible by miniaturisation and increased processing power. Continue reading...
Discovery Mode gets artists noticed in exchange for a 30% royalty reduction. A new book suggests that the platform is squeezing musicians and misleading listenersIn November 2020, Spotify published an opaque headline on its company blog: Amplifying Artist Input in Your Personalised Recommendations." The post introduced a new program called Discovery Mode, which would ask artists to accept lower royalty rates in exchange for algorithmic promotion. It was pay-to-play, but Spotify introduced the scheme using neutral language: artists would be able to identify music that's a priority for them", which would become one of thousands" of data inputs influencing how Spotify delivers the perfect song for the moment, just for you". Rather than charge an upfront fee, labels or rights-holders agree to be paid a promotional recording royalty rate for streams in personalised listening sessions where Spotify provided this service".Participating artists and labels take a 30% royalty reduction on tracks enrolled in the program, when they are discovered through its channels. Only tracks more than 30 days old are eligible. Notably, there have been no signs that Spotify plans to publicly label which songs are enrolled: a lack of disclosure that has caused many music advocacy groups to liken Discovery Mode to the radio payola of the 1950s, which was eventually outlawed by the US Federal Trade Commission. (Though the company points out that it has published a broad guide to understanding recommendations on Spotify, including a paragraph on commercial considerations".) Continue reading...
Architect of copyright law says EU is supporting big tech instead of protecting European creative ideas'An architect of EU copyright law has said legislation is needed to protect writers, musicians and creatives left exposed by an irresponsible" legal gap in the bloc's Artificial Intelligence Act.The intervention came as 15 cultural organisations wrote to the European Commission this week warning that draft rules to implement the AI Act were taking several steps backwards" on copyright, while one writer spoke of a devastating" loophole. Continue reading...
Is this fun fathering or a cynical and exploitative PR strategy from the tech billionaire? I suspect the latter ...Welcome to the White House, where every day seems to be bring-your-kid-to-work-day if you're Elon Musk. The tech billionaire, fascist-salute-enthusiast, and de facto president of the US hasn't just moved himself into government digs - he has seemingly moved in a selection of his kids as well. Over the last couple of weeks, mini-Musks have been popping up at high-profile political events, generating a steady stream of memes, headlines and analysis.Three of Musk's young children were at a meeting with Indian prime minister Narendra Modi last Thursday, for example. Why were Musk and Modi meeting? Good question. Even Trump doesn't seem to know, but told reporters he assumed Musk wants to do business in India". Which, considering Musk has burrowed his way deep into the US government, sounds a teeny bit like a conflict of interest. But let's not focus on that, eh? Let's focus on Musk's parenting instead! Don't ask any difficult questions, just look at the cute pictures - disseminated widely - of Modi showering Musk's kids with gifts. Adorbs. Continue reading...
Amazon's hugely successful extreme competition series is the latest attempt to lure younger online viewers to TVBeast Games, Amazon Prime Video's reality competition series hosted by the YouTuber known as MrBeast, is not a well-made show. It is certainly an expensive show, something Mr Beast, the alter ego for 26-year-old Jimmy Donaldson of Greenville, North Carolina, likes to frequently remind viewers. The series is a feat of scale shocking to audiences outside the realm of YouTube, and especially Donaldson's fiefdom: 1,000 contestants, filmed by a system of 1,107 cameras, battling each other for a $5m cash prize - the largest in entertainment history, according to Donaldson. For the competition, Donaldson and his posse designed a warehouse war zone modeled on the Netflix dystopian series Squid Game, constructed a bespoke city and purchased a private island (also to be given away, along with a Lamborghini and other lavish prizes). Contestants eliminated in the first episode are dropped through trap doors to unseen depths; there is a pirate ship with cannons.Yet for all the ostentatious displays of wealth, the show still looks terrible - garishly lit, frenetically edited, poorly structured, annoyingly loud and tackily designed. Many have pointed out that the show's central conceit - broke Americans duking it out and playing psychological warfare for luxury prizes, many in the name of paying their bills - is as dystopian as the Netflix series it's based on, a depressing spectacle of aggro-capitalism for our neo-Gilded Age times, with Donaldson as a self-styled Willy Wonka figure. Continue reading...
Project Waterworth, which involves cable longer than Earth's circumference, to also reach South Africa and BrazilMeta has announced plans to build the world's longest underwater cable project, which aims to connect the US, India, South Africa, Brazil and other regions.The tech company said Project Waterworth involved a 50,000km (31,000-mile) subsea cable, which is longer than the Earth's circumference. Continue reading...
This week: mornings made better, affordable jewellery and the ultimate wild swimming kit list Don't get the Filter delivered to your inbox? Sign up hereI've always disliked getting up in winter. As a kid, I'd hurkle-durkle while blearily watching my school uniform warming on the radiator. These days, I set smartphone alarms for several consecutive minutes, just to make sure I'm roused. It's too dark, and I'm too groggy.I'd heard of sunrise alarm clocks before the Filter asked me to review them, but little did I suspect they could resolve my waking woes. Essentially, they're a combination of alarm clock and light-therapy device that glows with increasing brightness as your wake-up time approaches. The light interacts with our circadian rhythms, much as the sun does when it rises, so we wake up biologically prepared for the day.12 affordable jewellery brands, worn and rated for style and qualityThe best iPhones in 2025: which Apple smartphone is right for you, according to our expertThe best bike lights to see and be seen when cycling in the dark, tried and testedThe best online flower delivery services: seven favourites, freshly picked Continue reading...
by Samuel Gibbs Consumer technology editor on (#6VB10)
Huge glass and metal slab packs super-fast chip, long battery life and unrivalled camera zoom, but its AI features are overhypedThe Ultra is Samsung's largest and greatest phone and is packed to the gills with the very latest technology, which means more artificial intelligence than ever before.The Galaxy S25 Ultra is at the front of the line of a new wave of Android phones that promise to basically do everything for you. It combines Google's advanced AI assistance with numerous Samsung tools for writing, drawing, photography and chatting.Main screen: 6.9in QHD+ Dynamic Amoled 2X (500ppi) 120HzProcessor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for GalaxyRAM: 12GBStorage: 256, 512GB or 1TBOperating system: One UI 7 (Android 15)Camera: 200MP + 50MP 0.6x + 10MP 3x + 50MP 5x; 12MP front-facingConnectivity: 5G, USB-C, wifi 7, NFC, Bluetooth 5.4, UWB and GNSSWater resistance: IP68 (1.5m for 30 mins)Dimensions: 162.8 x 77.6 x 8.2mmWeight: 218g Continue reading...
Software engineer and developer Nadia Odunayo created the social media readers' platform StoryGraph and its popularity has rocketedNadia Odunayo never planned to take on the mighty global juggernaut that is Amazon, but for many book lovers, she has become the hero they didn'tknow they needed.For 18 years, bibliophiles have been able to catalogue their reading, leave reviews and star ratings, and get recommendations for their next read on Goodreads, which was set up by two Stanford University alumni from California. Continue reading...
The Kids Online Safety act passed the Senate 91-to-3 but died in the House. Advocates on both sides say they won't give upWhen Congress adjourned for the holidays in December, a landmark bill meant to overhaul how tech companies protect their youngest users had officially failed to pass. Introduced in 2022, the Kids Online Safety act (Kosa) was meant to be a huge reckoning for big tech. Instead, despite sailing through the Senate with a 91-to-3 vote in July, the bill languished and died in the House.Kosa had been passionately championed by families who said their children had fallen victim to the harmful policies of social media platforms and advocates who said a bill reining in the unchecked power of big tech was long overdue. They are bitterly disappointed that a strong chance to check big tech failed because of congressional apathy. But human rights organizations had argued that the legislation could have led to unintended consequences affecting freedom of speech online. Continue reading...
Demonstrations across the US against tycoon's ties to Trump highlight potential risks to firm's reputation and salesProtesters gathered outside Tesla dealerships across the US on Saturday in response to Elon Musk's efforts to shred government spending under the president, Donald Trump.Groups of demonstrators up to 100-strong gathered outside the electric carmaker's showrooms in cities including New York, Seattle, Kansas City and across California. Organisers said the protests took place in dozens of locations. Continue reading...
GMB says 60 workers have been targeted, with disciplinary action increasing significantly, but company denies claimsAmazon has been accused of targeting 60 trade union members with disciplinary action after narrowly defeating a recognition vote at its Coventry warehouse last summer.The GMB trade union said all 60 workers were involved in action at the warehouse - where it has about 700 members out of a workforce of at least 1,500 - that culminated in a ballot on formal recognition in July last year that failed by only a handful of votes. Continue reading...
Defense and tech firms - including Musk's own - await potential contracts as Doge decimates US agenciesThe world's richest man, Elon Musk, has vowed to oversee a radical hollowing out of government agencies, asserting this week that some should be deleted entirely" as he defunds public programs and lays off federal workers. While the immense cuts are framed as a means of removing waste, they may also become a boon to private companies - including Musk's own businesses - that the government increasingly relies on for many of its key initiatives.Musk and his allies in the department of government efficiency" (Doge), the unofficial committee acting as the operations arm of his cost-cutting efforts, have targeted a range of major government departments. They have moved to close the United States Agency for International Development, slashed the Department of Education and taken over the General Services Administration that controls federal IT structures. Doge staffers have also gained access to the treasury department, as well as set their sights on the Department of Defense, energy department, Environmental Protection Agency and at least a dozen others. Continue reading...
Silicon Valley wants to spend a fortune on the fantasy of human-level intelligence. But there are more practical and valuable things to achieveThere's a moment in the 1967 film The Graduate that has become renowned. At a party thrown by his parents to celebrate his graduation, Benjamin (Dustin Hoffman) is approached by Mr McGuire, an elderly bore who wants to say just one word" to him: plastics". Exactly how do you mean?", asks the hapless Ben. There's a great future in plastics," says McGuire. Think about it."Listening last week to the spending plans of the techlords who run Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon and Meta leads one to wonder if something analogous might have happened to them on their graduation nights. Except that in their cases, the magic word would have been AI". Continue reading...
by Haroon Siddique Legal affairs correspondent on (#6VA40)
Exclusive: Barristers at Doughty Street Chambers say they have been subject to surveillance, hacking and rape threatsUK-based lawyers have spoken out about being targeted by the Chinese state and its supporters in a campaign of intimidation including surveillance, hacking of bank accounts and rape threats.The barristers, from Doughty Street Chambers in London, say there has been a coordinated and concerted campaign against them since they began acting for the jailed Hong Kong pro-democracy activist and media mogul, Jimmy Lai, three years ago. Continue reading...
Maker of ChatGPT rebuffs consortium led by Tesla owner and rejects latest attempt to disrupt his competition'OpenAI on Friday rejected a $97.4bn bid from a consortium led by billionaire Elon Musk for the ChatGPT maker, saying the startup is not for sale.The unsolicited approach is Musk's latest attempt to block the startup he co-founded with CEO Sam Altman - but later left - from becoming a for-profit firm, as it looks to secure more capital and stay ahead in the AI race. Continue reading...
Julius Smit likes that analogue demands time, patience and thought, while David R Freke loves his refurbished 1970s SLR. Plus, letters from Roger Foster and David BaughIt is good to read of Sundus Abdi's renunciation of digital photography as a means to capture the personal and ephemeral aspects of her photographic life (The one change that worked: I began a quiet, satisfying rebellion against the digital age, 10 February). Photography with a smartphone has much to answer for the disposable image, often captured inan instant with little attention.In contrast, analogue photography, as she states, demands time, patience and thought. It also requires an investment in film and processing, knowing there are only 36 exposures on a roll of 35mm film. It has been hugely encouraging to discover a rise in the number of film-processing laboratories around Britain, which are clearly answering a need. Also, there are now many more new exciting film emulsions on the market. Continue reading...
Fair Election Fund has yet to reveal evidence of voter fraud despite deep-pocketed backers - and has now gone silentIn May 2024, a flashy ad went viral on social media warning that across the country, there are real cases of fraud and abuses of the [election] system that have eroded our trust". The ad pledged that whistleblowers" who shared evidence of election fraud will be rewarded with payment from our $5m fund".This reward was courtesy of a just-announced group, the Fair Election Fund, which has deep connections to Elon Musk's political network, according to materials obtained by Documented.This article was produced in partnership with Documented, an investigative watchdog and journalism project. Brendan Fischer is deputy executive director and Emma Steiner is a researcher with Documented Continue reading...
Plan represents move away from SoftBank-owned group licensing its chip blueprints to firms such as Apple and NvidiaThe British semiconductor designer Arm is reportedly planning to launch its own chip this year, after landing Meta as one of its first customers.The move represents a major overhaul of the SoftBank-owned group's business model of licensing its chip blueprints to the likes of Apple and Nvidia. Continue reading...
A blind audition, a fruitful collaboration, a tense creative fallout: composer Jack Wall's journey through the Mass Effect universe was as epic as the player'sMass Effect is some of the best science fiction ever made. That may sound like a grandiose comment, but it's true. As a trilogy, the original games from 2007-2013 effortlessly plucked the most cerebral ideas from the sci-fi genre and slotted them into a memorable military role-playing game that had players invested from beginning to controversial end.Whether you prefer the hopeful, optimistic outlook of Asimov, the dark and reflective commentary of Shelley, the accessible thought experiments of Star Trek, or the arch melodrama of Battlestar Galactica, Mass Effect has it all. The trilogy is as happy grazing on the western-inspired tropes of Star Wars as the hard" sci-fi of Iain M Banks, blending all its moods and micro-stories into a compelling, believable galaxy that somehow walks a line between breathless optimism and suffocating bleakness. Continue reading...
Chinese social media platform again available for download in US as Donald Trump continues to mull its future there amid security concernsTikTok returned to the US app stores of Apple and Google on Thursday as President Donald Trump delayed a ban on the Chinese-owned social media app and assured the tech giants they would not be fined for distributing or maintaining it.The popular short video app used by nearly half of all Americans went dark briefly last month, before a law took effect on 19 January that requires its Chinese owner ByteDance either to sell it on national security grounds or face a ban. Continue reading...
About 200 drivers got in touch with the Guardian to share their views on the industrial actionWhen Simon Waite began working as a private hire driver in 2017, it gave him the flexibility and income to spend time with his children, then aged five, 12 and 18. One of the reasons I loved Uber was because I could now go to the school plays, my son's football, I could earn my money around life," he says.But over the past few years, Waite, a 41-year-old in Hertfordshire, says he has to spend dramatically more time on the road to earn a living. To make 1,000 a week a couple of years ago it took about 50 hours, he says, whereas now it's about 70 hours - with most drivers needing to pay insurance, tax, vehicle fees and upkeep, fuel, licenses, rent, bills and living costs. Continue reading...
by Dan Milmo Global technology editor in Paris on (#6V9DJ)
AI Action Summit ends with US vice-president criticising European regulation and warning against cooperation with ChinaPolitical and business leaders descended on Paris this week for the third annual artificial intelligence summit with the technology causing tensions across the globe.Emmanuel Macron, who opened the summit with a montage of deepfakes of himself, acknowledged AI's potential to disrupt". A day later, the schism threatened by the rapidly developing technology was apparent. Continue reading...
Billionaire's lawyers say offer will be withdrawn if firm he helped found a decade ago preserves the charity's mission'Elon Musk says he will abandon his $97.4bn offer to buy the non-profit behind OpenAI if the ChatGPT maker drops its plan to convert into a for-profit company.If OpenAI, Inc's Board is prepared to preserve the charity's mission and stipulate to take the for sale' sign off its assets by halting its conversion, Musk will withdraw the bid," lawyers for the billionaire said in a filing to a California court on Wednesday. Otherwise, the charity must be compensated by what an arms-length buyer will pay for its assets." Continue reading...
by Nadia Khomami Arts and culture correspondent on (#6V8WX)
Short film falsely depicts actor and other Jewish celebrities opposing recent antisemitic remarks from pop starScarlett Johansson has warned of the imminent dangers of AI" after a deepfake video of her and other prominent Jewish celebrities opposing recent antisemitic remarks from Kanye West went viral this week.The video contained AI-generated versions of more than a dozen celebrities, including Johansson, David Schwimmer, Jerry Seinfeld, Drake, Adam Sandler, Stephen Spielberg, and Mila Kunis. Continue reading...
Earlier procurement forecast had suggested Elon Musk's company would be a beneficiary of planned purchasesThe US Department of State has removed the name Tesla" from a list of planned purchases, after an earlier version of the list said it would spend $400m buying new electric armoured vehicles, even as the carmaker's boss, Elon Musk, leads efforts to slash government spending under Donald Trump.A procurement forecast produced by the department showed the $400m (320m) proposed spending on armoured Tesla (production units)" in December. The most likely Tesla model was the Cybertruck, the company's electric pickup, given Musk's claims that the vehicle is bulletproof. Continue reading...
by Samuel Gibbs Consumer technology editor on (#6V8PT)
Looking for the latest iPhone, or a good deal on a refurbished handset? Our expert has assessed and rated the current crop of Apple smartphonesThe best iPhone may be the one you already own. There is generally no need to buy a fresh phone just because new models have been released, as hardware updates are broadly iterative, adding small bits to an already accomplished package. But if you do want a replacement handset, whether new or refurbished, here are the best devices of the current crop of Apple smartphones.Many other smartphones are available besides the iPhone, but if you're an Apple user and don't fancy switching to Android, you still have a couple of choices. Whether your priority is the longest battery life, the best camera, the biggest screen or simply the optimal balance of features and price, there's more to choose from in the Apple ecosystem than you may expect, especially after the iPhone 16 models were released in September 2024.Best iPhone for most people:
Eric Schmidt fears terrorist groups or countries such as North Korea, Iran or Russia may use AI to develop weaponsGoogle's former chief executive has warned that artificial intelligence could be used by rogue states such as North Korea, Iran and Russia to harm innocent people".Eric Schmidt, who held senior posts at Google from 2001 to 2017, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that those countries and terrorists could adopt and misuse the technology to develop weapons to create a bad biological attack from some evil person". Continue reading...
RPG Maker was launched in 1992 and has become increasingly complex, but it's still a remarkably accessible way to make adventure games with no development experienceIt is said that every 100 years, a small fishing village on the southern coast of an unknown fantasy realm holds a magical artisanal cheese festival. As an adventurer and fan of ethically produced dairy products, you are determined to attend the fabled event, arriving at the dock on a small boat with only a few gold coins and a dream. This is the backdrop to the worst role-playing adventure I have ever experienced - and, entirely coincidentally, the only one I have ever designed.The game creation package RPG Maker has been around since 1992, the first version launching on the Japanese PC-98 computer. Since then, development has been passed from veteran software publisher ASCII to Enterbrain and then Chiyoda-based Gotcha Gotcha Games, and dozens of instalments have appeared. Although it has become increasingly complex over the years, RPG Maker remains a remarkably intuitive way to make adventure games with no development experience at all. Continue reading...
by Emily Elena Dugdale and Hanisha Harjani on (#6V8JS)
Match Group has known since 2016 about abusive users on its dozen dating apps, but leaves millions of people in the darkThe Dating Apps Reporting Project is an 18-month investigation. It was produced in partnership with the Pulitzer Center's AI Accountability Network and the Markup, now a part of CalMatters, and co-published with the Guardian and the 19th.When a young woman in Denver met up with a smiling cardiologist she matched with on the dating app Hinge, she had no way of knowing that the company behind the app had already received reports from two other women who had accused him of rape. Continue reading...
President brought suit under X's previous leadership after he was banned from platform following January 6 eventsElon Musk's social media platform X will pay Donald Trump $10m to settle a lawsuit the president filed after he was banned from the platform following the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, according to a report.The lawsuit was filed against X under the leadership of its previous CEO, Jack Dorsey. After Musk purchased X, reinstated Trump's account, began developing a relationship with the president and spent $250m on his re-election campaign, Trump's legal team considered abandoning the lawsuit, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the case. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Google executives gave employees details on dropping the company's promise against weaponized AI and nixing diversity goalsGoogle's executives gave details on Wednesday on how the tech giant will sunset its diversity initiatives and defended dropping its pledge against building artificial intelligence for weaponry and surveillance in an all-staff meeting.Melonie Parker, Google's former head of diversity, said the company was doing away with its diversity and inclusion employee training programs and updating" broader training programs that have DEI content". It was the first time company executives have addressed the whole staff since Google announced it would no longer follow hiring goals for diversity and took down its pledge not to build militarized AI. The chief legal officer, Kent Walker, said a lot had changed since Google first introduced its AI principles in 2018, which explicitly stated Google would not build AI for harmful purposes. He said it would be good for society" for the company to be part of evolving geopolitical discussions in response to a question about why the company removed prohibitions against building AI for weapons and surveillance. Continue reading...
Dragon Age: The Veilguard has reached 1.5 million gamers around the world - yet its developers have labelled it a disappointment. With unfair expectations, it's the niche and left-field titles that will sufferBack in 2013, having bought the series from Eidos, Square Enix released a reboot of the hit 1990s action game Tomb Raider starring a significantly less objectified Lara Croft. I loved that game, despite a quasi-assault scene near the beginning that I would later come to view as a bit icky, and I wasn't the only one - it was extremely well received, selling 3.4m copies in its first month alone. Then Square Enix came out and called it a disappointment.Sales did not meet the publisher's expectations, apparently, which raises the question: what were the expectations? Was it supposed to sell 5m in one month? If a book sells 10,000 copies in a week it's considered a bestseller. Even at the height of its popularity in the 90s, no Tomb Raider game ever sold more than a few million. Square Enix's expectations were clearly unrealistic. It wouldn't be the last time; in a 2016 interview with Hajime Tabata, Final Fantasy XV's director, he told me that game needed to sell 10m to succeed. Continue reading...
Voice actors demanding compensation when AI generates performances from their work have taken industrial action since JulyWhen Harrison Ford spoke to the Wall Street Journal last week, praising the performance of voice actor Troy Baker in the recent video game Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, he was doing much more than recognising a great impression of himself. You don't need artificial intelligence to steal my soul," he told the paper. You can already do it for nickels and dimes with good ideas and talent. [Baker] did a brilliant job, and it didn't take AI to do it."Video game performers in the SAG-AFTRA union have been on strike since July, the major issue being the use of generative AI in the games industry. The union wants members to be compensated when AI performances are generated from their work, and demands consent and transparency around Gen AI technology. Major video game publishers such as Activision Blizzard, Disney, Warner Bros and Electronic Arts are involved in the dispute, and several recent titles including Destiny 2: Heresy and Genshin Impact have been affected, with English-language voice performances missing. AI voice synthesis is being touted as a means of cutting costs in an industry where game budgets are spiralling, but such technologies imperil actors' livelihoods while relying on their work to seed virtual performances. Plus, the budgetary benefits of the tech are still in question. Continue reading...
Technology | The Guardian