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 Acer and Asus are among the manufacturers of Chromebook Plus laptops that will receive the Gemini and AI features from Google's other devices. Google made this announcement on Tuesday. Upcoming Chromebook Plus laptops like this ones will offer new capabilities including generative AI-powered personalized wallpaper creation and Google's "Help me write" tool. It has also begun to emerge on older Android smartphones. Magic Editor on Google Photos is coming to Chromebook Plus as well.




It is not surprising to find Gemini integrated into Chromebook Plus, which is typically a more powerful (and more costly) Chromebook, as the firm had previously stated it would combine Gemini with the Chrome desktop browser. For quicker and more convenient access, Google added the Gemini symbol to the app shelf. Additionally, it is providing a complimentary 12-month subscription to Google One AI Premium, which grants users access to Gemini Advanced, 2TB of cloud storage, and Gemini integration with Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Gmail, to anyone purchasing a new Plus laptop.




Additionally, Google is releasing new features that are compatible with both the standard Chromebook and the Chromebook Plus. These features include the ability to create GIFs from screen recordings, a built-in view of Google Tasks, and a QR code setup process that allows your Android phone to share your Wi-Fi and login credentials with your new Chromebook.




Throughout the remainder of the year, Google has promised to add more functionality to ChromeOS for Chromebook Plus devices. That includes Gemini's "Help me read," which is intended to summarize PDFs and respond to follow-up queries, and the company's AI face and gesture tracking system, "Project Gameface," which was made available to Android developers earlier in May. Additionally, Chromebook Plus devices will come with a new Focus feature that includes the ability to share open windows and programs across all of your devices, independent of operating system, as well as a Do Not Disturb mode.


Google Gemini Comes to Chromebook Plus

 



There are many of examples on social media of Google's new AI Overview product stating strange things, including advising people to put glue on their pizza or to eat pebbles. Users are reporting that a large number of memes vanish from social media soon after they are uploaded, which is because to Google's disorganized rollout, which forces them to manually disable AI Overviews for particular searches as they are posted.




This is strange because, according to CEO Sundar Pichai, Google has been testing AI Overviews for a year. The feature was first made available in beta as the Search Generative Experience in May 2023. During that time, the business has processed over a billion inquiries. However, Pichai has also stated that, "driven by hardware, engineering, and technical breakthroughs," Google has reduced the cost of providing AI answers by 80% during that same period. It seems possible that early optimization occurred before the technology was ready.





Google maintains that the majority of the "high quality information" that users receive from its AI Overview tool. Where appropriate under our content policies, Farnsworth also confirmed that the company is taking swift action" to delete AI Overviews on specific inquiries. "We are using these examples to develop broader improvements to our systems, some of which have already started to roll out," he added.


An AI founder who preferred to remain anonymous said, "A company known for being at the cutting edge and shipping high-quality stuff is now known for low-quality output that's getting meme'd,"




It's true that Google is in a difficult position. With Satya Nadella's now-famous "we made them dance" comment, Bing pioneered AI search before Google, while OpenAI is purportedly developing its own search engine, a new AI search firm is valued at $1 billion, and younger people are apparently migrating to TikTok in quest of the greatest experience. it to compete is obviously there in the organization, and it is what leads to clumsy AI launches. Marcus draws attention to the fact that Meta released Galactica, an AI system in 2022, but it had to be taken down soon after it was introduced since, among other things, it advised people to consume glass. Sounds recognizable.




Google has grand plans for AI Overviews — the feature as it exists today is just a tiny slice of what the company announced last week. Multistep reasoning for complex queries, the ability to generate an AI-organized results page, video search in Google Lens — there’s a lot of ambition here. But right now, the company’s reputation hinges on just getting the basics right, and it’s not looking great.


“[These models] are constitutionally incapable of doing sanity checking on their own work, and that’s what’s come to bite this industry in the behind,”

 Marcus said.

Google Races to Correct Strange AI Responses in Search Results



 The wearable computer company, Humane, which received negative reviews for its AI Pin model, is currently looking to sell its firm. As to a Bloomberg article, the company, headed by Imran Chaudhri and Bethany Bongiorno, two former Apple workers, is reportedly "looking for a price of between $750 million and $1 billion."






After the $699 AI Pin's launch, which has been mostly criticized for its sluggish response and a user experience that falls far short of the always-on, wearable AI assistant notion that its founders had promised, that could be a difficult sell. The product was promoted, at least in part, as a means of helping consumers become less reliant on their smartphones and become more present.






CosmOS, Humane's proprietary operating system, is designed to run on the AI Pin. It connects to an AI model network in order to retrieve voice search results and determine what the built-in camera is pointing at. In certain interactions, the wearer's inner palm is projected with a laser "display" beam from the gadget. Maintaining the device's functionality requires a monthly subscription.






The CEO of OpenAI, Sam Altman, is reported to be working with renowned Apple designer Jony Ive on an unconnected project that could better highlight AI's potential. According to the Bloomberg article, Humane has raised $230 million from investors. Investors placed Humane's 2023 market worth at $850 million, but that was before the company's debut product received harsh criticism from critics. 


While there are some creative and innovative ideas therein, the hardware of the AI Pin has shown poor battery life and overheating problems, and the software is underbaked and overly unstable. As promised, Humane will release firmware upgrades to fix some of the bugs. To improve the intelligence of the gadget even more, OpenAI's GPT-4o model was released just last week.






Considering the amount that the firm is trying to raise, the range of possible purchasers for Humane appears to be somewhat small. While big language models and generative AI are becoming more and more common, Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft are all making great strides into the AI space. However, it's unclear how much value Humane's intellectual property would actually add to any of their continuing initiatives.


Humane's AI Pin Company Seeks Buyer After Lackluster Launch

 



Samsung apparently felt compelled to join the discussion after learning that Apple had offended a lot of people with the "Crush" advertisement, which was released last week and featured sculptures, instruments, and arcade games all crammed into a sleek new iPad Pro with an OLED screen. An executive from Apple later issued an apology, stating that it "missed the mark."






 Creatives such as Hugh Grant and others who saw a too literal portrayal of Big Tech's oppressive control over art, copyright, and history, fueled by the strength of generative AI technologies, were among those who responded favorably. Conversely, there were many who were enraged by the notion that there had been any sort of reaction at all.






In retaliation, the Samsung Mobile account on X shared this video with the hashtag #UnCrush. According to Ad Age, BBH USA produced and Zen Pace directed the film. In a scene evocative of the conclusion of Apple's major hydraulic press disaster, a woman is seen stumbling over rubble and spilling paint. She then sits down to hum and play guitar, perhaps with the help of notes on her Galaxy Tab S9 and the might of Galaxy AI.






Whatever your stance on the great iPad ad controversy, it's entertaining to watch Samsung once more attempt to expose a gap in Apple's defenses. After removing advertisements concerning iPhones losing the in-box charging adapter, Samsung's marketing department appeared to run out of steam. The company's lawyers said that this nonsense "drove Apple crazy." Mocking that recognizable notch has simply more impact than more recent attempts, such as a browser-based Galaxy test drive for iPhone users.

Samsung Strikes Back: The 'UnCrush' Response to Apple's iPad Pro Ad

It would be easy to move files between two PCs as if they were one unit if you could merely plug a USB cable between them and move your mouse pointer between their screens. Indeed, it is possible and has been for some time now, but Thunderbolt Share from Intel might soon give that concept a major boost. Intel has licensed the right to use this proprietary software, which laptop, desktop, and accessory makers can include in new hardware packages. It may be installed on two Thunderbolt 4 or 5 computers, linked to them via a Thunderbolt connection, and allows you to drag and drop files at Thunderbolt speeds, sync data between them, and share your mouse, keyboard, displays, storage, and other USB devices. Sharing an internet connection is not permitted, though.






According to Intel, mirroring a PC's screen to another at 1080p quality and 60 frames per second with minimal compression and low latency is also possible. If a direct link isn't convenient, the PCs can also connect via a Thunderbolt dock or monitor. It's worth noting that a computer must not only be certified Thunderbolt compatible, but also have an Intel processor. "Thunderbolt 3 and USB 4 connections might work, but we just really can't guarantee it and we won't be offering support for it," says Jason Ziller, the head of Intel Thunderbolt.




Nonetheless, the app is necessary, and Intel will charge OEMs an additional license fee to bundle it with new hardware alone. This is useful in a limited number of contexts because it requires the purchase of a certain set of Thunderbolt computers or accessories! On the other hand, Intel claims that any Thunderbolt Share PC you purchase comes with two licenses, or two with any accessory. The reason the software is an upsell, according to Ziller, is that Intel wants to thoroughly test and validate it with PC manufacturers "to make sure it's a great experience."




The initial partners in PCs are Acer, Lenovo, MSI, Razer, and peripheral vendors Belkin, Kensington, Plugable, and Promise Technology. A Thunderbolt cable coupled with the Bravura Easy Computer Sync program, which allows drag and drop and remote computer control, is already sold by Plugable. Previously, some of those companies sold "Easy Transfer" cords made to move from one computer to another. How would Thunderbolt Share stack up, I wonder.




Exploring Intel's Thunderbolt Share and the Future of PC Connectivity

 


This year, Motorola's Moto G Stylus 5G is back with some significant spec increases and a striking new look. The $399 model of this year retains old features like a headphone jack and microSD card slot while adding wireless charging and an improved screen.





Still, the G Stylus 5G is a large phone. A 6.7-inch screen is included with it. This year's 6.6-inch LCD has been replaced with a 1080p panel with a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz. The large 5,000mAh battery can be charged at 15W wirelessly and 30W quickly via cable connection. The Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 chipset, which is strangely the same as the one in the model from last year, powers the 2024 Stylus 5G. Though phone manufacturers don't frequently switch to the same chipset twice in a row, this one at least has 8GB of RAM instead of just 6.






There are also some enhancements to the paired stylus. As per the press release from Motorola, the stylus's user interface is enhanced and its latency is decreased by utilizing a "larger contact area" along with certain software changes. The 13-megapixel ultra wide and 32-megapixel selfie cameras have also been improved, while the primary back camera remains a 50-megapixel sensor with optical image stabilization. Pixel binning is a technique used by the selfie camera to increase sensitivity in low light, which should result in better shots in low light.





Along with eschewing the unimpressive appearance from last year, the Stylus 5G adopts Motorola's apparent motto this year, "Make Phones Fun Again." A soft-touch vegan leather finish is present on the rear panel. (I realize that's just a fancy term for plastic.) Two color possibilities for the phone are caramel latte and an orange-colored scarlet wave. Really, they both look great.

Motorola's Midrange Stylus Phone Embraces Wireless Charging and a Stylish Glow-Up


Google is making the process of configuring two-factor authentication (2FA) more efficient. To activate 2FA, you can now add a "second step method" to your account, such as an authenticator app or a hardware security key, and bypass the need to enter your phone number first.




As a result, enabling 2FA should be safer because it eliminates the need for less secure SMS verification. You have two options: either link a hardware security key or input a time-based, one-time passcode using apps like Google Authenticator.




Google provides two methods for linking a security key: either giving the hardware key a passkey or registering a FIDO1 credential on it. It can still be necessary to sign in using a password if you have a Workspace account connected to an organization and wish to utilize a passkey. This depends on the configuration of your organization.




All Workspace users and individuals with personal Google accounts are undergoing the rollout of the modification by Google. Over 400 million accounts have created passkeys with Google since the firm began allowing users to do so last year.

Google's New Approach to 2FA Setup: What You Need to Know






  Regarding the testing of new Copilot capabilities in Windows 11, Microsoft states in their most recent Windows Insider blog entries that "We have decided to pause the rollouts of these experiences to further refine them based on user feedback." As we continue to develop new concepts with Windows Insiders, "Copilot in Windows will continue to work as expected" for those who currently have the feature.





With 2024 dubbed "the year of the AI PC" and a new Copilot key on Windows keyboards, Microsoft is hosting an AI event on May 20th, which would be a good moment to reveal additional details about what's coming up next.





Expect Windows on Arm-powered Surface computers from Qualcomm, which aim to rival Apple's M3-powered MacBook Air. Meanwhile, new Windows features are anticipated to highlight the concept of a "Copilot for every person" and include an AI Explorer app that mimics the previous

Refining the Future: Microsoft's Journey with Copilot AI Updates in Windows

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