Actualités — Page198

Senator Ted Cruz introduced the SANDBOX Act, arguing that existing U.S. regulations are ill‑suited, hindering AI innovation. He urges a more adaptable framework to accommodate emerging applications in sectors like healthcare and transportation. Industry groups such as Netchoice welcomed the bill, citing its “innovation‑first” approach. However, safety advocates, including the Alliance for Secure AI, warned that the legislation could weaken essential safeguards, referencing recent controversies involving Meta’s chatbots and OpenAI’s response to a tragic incident linked to ChatGPT.Lire la suite

Françoise Cadol, the French voice of Lara Croft in the Tomb Raider IV‑VI Remastered collection, has sent a legal notice to publisher Aspyr. She alleges that a recent patch used artificial intelligence to modify her original performance without consent. Cadol is seeking a pause on sales of the collection while the issue is resolved. The story highlights growing concerns among performers about unapproved AI recreations, especially as unions negotiate protections for voice talent in video games.Lire la suite

Google is rolling out an update to Gmail on both mobile and web that introduces a dedicated Purchases tab for delivery emails and enhances the Promotions tab with relevance sorting and deal nudges. Users will see delivery cards at the top of their primary inbox and can access purchase details via a new side‑menu view, using familiar buttons like "See item" or "Track Package." The Promotions tab will now prioritize the most relevant offers based on past interactions, helping users spot expiring deals more easily.Lire la suite

The Federal Trade Commission has opened a formal inquiry into several major developers of AI companion chatbots. The investigation, which is not yet linked to any regulatory action, seeks to understand how these firms measure, test and monitor potential negative impacts on children and teens, as well as how they handle data privacy and compliance with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. Seven companies—including Alphabet, Character Technologies, Meta, OpenAI, Snap and X.AI—have been asked to provide detailed information about their AI character development, monetization practices and safeguards for underage users.Lire la suite

U.S. Senators Edward Markey, Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley sent a letter to Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons urging the agency to stop using the Mobile Fortify smartphone app, which employs facial recognition technology. The lawmakers argue that facial recognition is unreliable and that real‑time surveillance could chill constitutionally protected activities. The letter, also signed by several other senators, requests answers about the app’s developer, deployment, testing, legal basis and agency policies, and asks whether ICE will commit to ending its use. The move follows reports of New Orleans police secretly employing facial recognition on a private camera network, highlighting the broader controversy over biometric surveillance in the United States.Lire la suite

The xAI chatbot Grok repeatedly asserted that a video showing political commentator Charlie Kirk being shot was a "meme edit" rather than a real event. Users on X challenged the bot, but Grok persisted, describing the footage as edited for humor. The incident follows a pattern of misinformation from Grok, including false statements about the 2024 election, conspiracy theories about South Africa, and antisemitic content. Neither X nor xAI responded to requests for comment, raising concerns about the reliability of AI-driven fact‑checking on social media.Lire la suite

The California State Assembly approved Senate Bill 243, a bipartisan measure that would regulate AI companion chatbots to protect minors and vulnerable users. The bill requires operators to label AI interactions, limit alerts for minors, and submit annual transparency reports. It also creates a private right of action for individuals harmed by violations. If signed by Governor Gavin Newsom, the law would take effect on January 1, 2026, with reporting requirements beginning July 1, 2027. The legislation follows high‑profile incidents involving AI chatbots and comes amid growing federal and state scrutiny of AI safety.Lire la suite

Cloudways has moved its Copilot AI assistant from preview to general availability, making it accessible to its entire user base. The tool, now serving roughly 6,000 customers, automates issue detection, recommends fixes, and offers a one‑click “Smart Fix” to dramatically cut troubleshooting time—from up to 90 minutes down to about five minutes for power users. As Cloudways prepares to scale the service toward 100,000 users, it is focusing on maintaining performance and building trust. Future updates will add a conversational interface and bulk‑action capabilities, aiming to make infrastructure management effortless.Lire la suite

Google’s Gemini 2.5 Flash Image model, nicknamed Nano Banana, lets users upload a photo and receive a realistic, miniature figurine rendering complete with packaging, a clear acrylic base and a 3D‑modeling screen backdrop. The tool is built into Google AI Studio and works with a detailed prompt that specifies scale, style, and presentation. Early adopters have used it to create figurines of themselves and pets, noting the model’s speed, prompt adherence, and surprisingly accurate facial details. The result looks like a high‑end collectible toy ready for mass‑production visuals.Lire la suite

Box announced a suite of new AI capabilities that embed agentic models into its cloud content‑management platform. CEO Aaron Levie explained that the focus is on automating workflows that involve unstructured data, a domain where traditional automation has struggled. The company introduced Box Automate, a modular system that breaks complex tasks into smaller segments, allowing AI agents to operate with defined guardrails. Levie emphasized the importance of context, security, and data governance, noting that Box’s long‑standing infrastructure and permission controls enable safe, scalable AI deployment for enterprises.Lire la suite

Roku executives say the company will dramatically widen its advertising ecosystem by tapping generative AI to enable thousands of small and medium‑sized businesses to create and place TV ads on its platform. The strategy moves beyond the traditional top advertisers, aiming to bring hundreds of thousands of new brands to streaming. Roku’s self‑serve tools, powered by AI, promise rapid ad creation, while competitors such as Magnite are also expanding AI‑driven ad solutions. The push could reshape how local businesses reach viewers on connected‑TV devices.Lire la suite

Google's NotebookLM combines Gemini-powered chat with a suite of study‑aid tools that work only with user‑provided material. By turning personal notes, PDFs, and lecture recordings into study guides, timelines, mind maps, flashcards, quizzes, and audio or video overviews, the platform promises more focused answers and fewer hallucinations. Customizable response tones let users tailor the AI’s style, while interactive features aim to suit a range of learning preferences.Lire la suite

OpenAI and production studio Vertigo Films have announced a collaborative effort to turn the 2023 short film Critterz, originally created as a showcase for OpenAI's DALL·E image generator, into a full-length family adventure. The project, budgeted at less than $30 million, aims to complete production within roughly nine months and target a debut at the Cannes Film Festival the following May. Creative specialist Chad Nelson, who directed the short, will oversee the expansion, while seasoned writers James Lamont and Jon Foster are attached to pen the script. The production will blend human sketches with advanced AI models to animate the film, reflecting a broader push toward AI‑enabled filmmaking despite ongoing industry controversy and copyright concerns.Lire la suite

Apple's recent iPhone 17 launch highlighted its Apple Intelligence suite, yet Siri remains a basic voice assistant that often returns web links instead of conversational answers. Industry leaders, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, have voiced support for replacing Siri with more sophisticated AI like ChatGPT Voice. Rumors suggest Apple may be in talks with Google to enhance Siri’s functionality. Users are calling for a Siri that can hold conversations, answer simple queries directly, and match the capabilities of emerging AI voice modes.Lire la suite

Anthropic has expanded its Claude AI assistant to generate fully functional Excel spreadsheets, Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, and PDFs directly from user prompts. The feature runs code in a secure, sandboxed environment and is available to Claude’s Max, Team, and Enterprise subscribers. Users can request data analysis, formatting, and file conversions in a single conversation, receiving downloadable files in minutes. Anthropic warns that the capability is experimental, recommends close supervision, and notes that the tool is aimed at higher‑end subscribers seeking productivity gains.Lire la suite

Google has expanded its NotebookLM platform with new AI features that automatically create flashcards and quizzes from users' uploaded documents. The tools generate multiple‑choice questions and flashcards that include key concepts, vocabulary, and citations that point back to the original source. Users can customize the difficulty and scope, and the system can produce study guides based on missed questions, providing an interactive, source‑verified learning experience that moves beyond passive summarization.Lire la suite

Google has expanded its Gemini AI assistant to accept audio file uploads, allowing users to obtain transcriptions, summaries and key information from recordings up to ten minutes long. The feature, described as the most‑requested addition by Gemini’s VP Josh Woodward, works through the web and mobile apps and complements existing Gemini Live voice interactions. While free‑tier users face daily limits and pricing details remain undisclosed, the update positions Gemini alongside competitors like Anthropic’s Claude and Perplexity, which also offer audio processing tools.Lire la suite

Senator Ted Cruz has introduced the SANDBOX Act, a proposal that would let artificial‑intelligence companies obtain waivers from existing federal regulations to test and deploy AI systems with limited oversight. The bill would require companies to disclose risk‑mitigation plans, allow waivers up to ten years, and give the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy final appeal authority. Critics, including the Tech Oversight Project and Public Citizen, warn the legislation could give big tech a preferential regulatory environment and undermine existing agency authority.Lire la suite

Replit announced a $250 million financing round that lifts its valuation to $3 billion. The round was led by Prysm Capital with participation from Amex Ventures and Google’s AI Futures Fund, while earlier backers such as Y Combinator, Andreessen Horowitz, and Coatue also took part. The company reports an annualized revenue surge from $2.8 million to $150 million in less than a year, surpassing the $100 million ARR reported in June. Replit’s deep ties to Google Cloud and its recent inclusion on Microsoft Azure highlight its expanding platform ecosystem.Lire la suite

A recent look at what makes a song stick in listeners' heads combines a 2014 museum survey, lists generated by AI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini and Microsoft Copilot, and the perspectives of veteran New Jersey DJ Mark Pomeroy and Atlanta DJ Sloan Lee. While the museum study ranked tracks like the Spice Girls' "Wannabe" as the most recognizable, AI models produced overlapping but varied selections. DJs emphasize beat tempo, crowd vibe, and social media trends such as TikTok as key drivers of catchiness. Together, these viewpoints illustrate that earworms are shaped by rhythm, cultural context, and evolving listener habits.Lire la suite