Monzo co-founder Jonas Templestein has commenced a new journey with a fresh startup seeking to put software developers out of business.

With fundraising efforts underway and drawing support from OpenAI and Index Ventures amongst others, Nustom wants to take full advantage of artificial intelligence (AI), in return for low or no-code web development. The company has launched its website, is recruiting and has set out its vision, stating within the next decade “the majority of software will be made by people with no technical background, collaborating with an AI.”

It is presenting an end-to-end SaaS offering for “those who want software made, but don’t have experience building or running it.”

The new direction for Templestein, comes at a time when Monzo is thriving. He is joined by co-founder Oliver Beattie, formerly Monzo’s VP of architecture.

Founded in 2015, the digital bank now boasts more than nine million customers and has reached a stage where it is profitable.

The company is said to be on the cusp of selling an additional stake to one of Singapore’s sovereign wealth funds, on the back of securing a £4 billion valuation last month. The top-up to the recent funding round is expected to bring in an additional $50 million from the Singaporean entity, in exchange for the issue of new shares.

Does this mean Nustom won’t be working with software developers?

Not quite, not yet anyway.

Despite the lofty ambitions of the startup, the company will “have human engineers guarantee the quality of the software until our AI agents are reliable enough to do it without assistance.”

Maria Campbell has become the third executive at Nustom, taking up the position of COO. She joins her former colleagues and Monzo alumni, having also worked at GoCardless and banking-as-a-service fintech Griffin.

The founding team at Nustom is completed with two engineers.

Fred Jonsson is another with a background at Monzo, whilst Eugenio Marchiori is the only individual not to have such a link. He is a PhD computer scientist with over ten years of experience at Google.

Image credit: Monzo

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DraftKings has confirmed executive changes at the company with Jason Park taking up the newly created position of Chief Transformation Officer to lead strategic initiatives for additional growth, including a targeted acquisition of Jackpocket.

Park’s existing role as Chief Financial Officer will be filled by Alan Ellingson, who is elevated from his current position as Senior Vice President of Finance and Analytics. 

The changes will take place as of 1 May 2024, with the rationale explained by Jason Robins, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of DraftKings.

“I have asked Jason Park to take on a new role at DraftKings to address and capture large efficiency opportunities that I expect will generate significant incremental profitability over the coming years,” he said.

“Jason’s unique skill set, based on his accomplishments over the last five years as our Chief Financial Officer and 11 years as a private equity Operating Partner, will allow us to further improve how we operate. In addition, I’m confident he will unlock the benefits of our proposed acquisition of Jackpocket following its closing to strengthen DraftKings’ position in U.S. online gaming.”

Robins indicated the company is set to move with the times to exploit transformational artificial intelligence (AI) applications which have the potential to deliver a long-term advantage for betting platforms.

He continued, “I am very excited to elevate Alan Ellingson to Chief Financial Officer and have him continue to lead the Company on the very clear path that we have laid out. Alan has been with DraftKings for more than four years, has extensive experience across our finance and analytics teams, and most importantly, deeply understands our core value drivers and focus on maximizing shareholder value.”

Further expansion for DraftKings

Last week, DraftKings announced the launch of its online sportsbook in North Carolina, the 27th US state in which it now operates.

The company detailed the latest expansion for the gambling platform, as the arrival of online and mobile DraftKings betting in North Carolina follows on from an agreement earlier this year with NASCAR, which opened up its initial foray into digital sports entertainment and gaming in the state. 

Image credit: DraftKings

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The Starfield devs at Bethesda continue to stay true to their word of releasing regular, large patches for the game and it is already in much better shape than when it launched last Fall.

A huge amount of fixes to the base game have been made and if you want to read the full Patch Notes you can do so on the Starfield Blog, but we will be picking out some of the cool bits we like the look of most here.

The patch also includes additional features to things such as Photo mode, which now allows you to pose characters in your screenshots, opening the possibility for some seriously funny meme action.

Other quality-of-life tweaks such as simply being able to open doors while you have the Scanner open should really have been a thing from the off, but then, we guess you would not have appreciated it as much as you will now.

Digipicks have also been altered because, of how we love the way Digipicks worked. Thankfully now they allow you to Undo without the penalty cost of a digipick during the Security mini-game. Now, if we could just get rid of the mini-game altogether with a slider in the menu. Maybe next time.

Latest Starfield Patch major features

• PHOTOMODE: Added the ability to set Expressions and Poses on player and companions in Photomode.
• SCANNER: You can now open doors and harvest with the scanner opened.
• Setting course on an inactive quest will now make it the active quest.
• Added support for adjusting FOV when using 3rd Person Ship view.
• Added an Anisotropic filtering quality slider (PC).
• Removed the digipick cost for using Undo during the Security mini-game.
• Added an autosave when fast traveling from a planet’s surface to orbit.
• Updated the Ship UI to perform more smoothly at higher framerates.

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A new study that looks into the influence of artificial intelligence in the workplace has shown negative results, indicating a decline in quality of life while the use of AI rises.

The U.K.-based Institute for the Future of Work (IFOW) has looked into the link between worker wellbeing and technology exposure, with almost 5,000 people who are representative of the working population being analyzed.

Results have shown that “quality of life negatively correlated with frequency of interaction with newer workplace technologies such as wearables, robotics, AI and ML software.”

The team goes on to say in their published report that “this is consistent with research that connects such technologies to exacerbated feelings of disempowerment, increased sense of insecurity, task intensification and stress and loss of meaning, as well as anxiety and poorer overall health.”

Not all technologies have a negative impact though, with some actually helping with employee wellbeing.

“Results showed that digital information and communication technologies correlated with improved quality of life, whereas newer and more advanced technologies were correlated with reduced wellbeing.”

So computers and messaging tools have been proven within this research to bring more freedom and flexibility to workers, but the use of smart devices or AI isn’t as well received.

Use of AI in the workplace

One of the main focuses of businesses appears to be around the productivity of their employees, with the use of artificial intelligence being implemented to handle repetitive tasks or speed up processes.

Some are even opting to replace workers with AI completely, including the likes of tech giant IBM. Back in 2023, the CEO publicly announced plans to replace nearly 8,000 jobs with technology.

At the time, he noted that back-office functions, specifically in the human resources sector, would be the first to face these changes.

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Xbox Game Pass has added another title with the arrival of Lightyear Frontier in early access mode, today, 19 March.

The indie game combines a farming sim with mech elements as players roam to discover the landscape on a solo run, or together with up to three additional users.

To get started on the game developed by Frame Break, players are urged to choose a flat area in The Meadows to set up camp. This allows space for building, farming and proximity to water for efficient resource management.

This step will be required once you have located and repaired the damaged Mech you fell from the sky in.

One of several tasks to be completed in the gameplay is to restore Pine Heights, a multi-step process, including using the map to locate the area, collecting tools with your Mech, and utilizing specific tools.

Jump inside and wander around the map until you have collected all the tools it tells you to. You can spot them on the terrain because they will be issuing colored smoke from the wreckage.

How does Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass work?

Xbox Game Pass gives gamers a diverse game library accessible across Xbox consoles, PCs, and compatible devices.

Subscribers enjoy a constantly refreshed selection of AAA and indie titles, making it a versatile gaming solution. This subscription model has revolutionized the gaming industry, offering a cost-effective and flexible way for players to access a wide range of gaming experiences without needing to buy individual titles.

It’s not without drawbacks, however. The rotating library, which sees games removed or added sporadically, is not for everyone, and this lack of ownership may be a concern for those who prefer to have a permanent collection.

Other games coming to Xbox Game Pass in March 2024

Final Fantasy 14 Online – Starter Edition (Xbox Game Pass Perk (21 March)

The Last Case of Benedict Fox: Definitive Edition (26 March)

Diablo 4 (28 March)

Open Roads (28 March)

Image credit: Lightyear Frontier/X

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It seems as though complaints about wooden acting and poor NPC dialogue will become a thing of the past as gaming development continues to use more and more generative AI in its processes. We aren’t there yet, but by the end of the year, we will probably have our first game with NPC characters generating their own realistic dialogue depending on what you ask them.

For gaming realism, this could be a game changer, and while it is unclear where it may actually lead us, Unity and generative AI company Convai are keen to give us a sneak peek into the future with the release of Project Neural Nexus – a demo “game” which will feature smart NPCs and Unity’s MUSE behavior tool.

“Step into the world of Neo City, a cyberpunk theme city where danger lurks at every corner. You wake up at a hotel and are being chased by the police and killer robots. Your objective is to make out of the hotel filled with assassins – alive. But you are not alone. You have help from your AI companion, who can equip you with weapons, teach you how to shoot, guide you at every step and is helping you get out of the hotel. Your decisions change the storyline but be careful, one wrong step and it’s game over. The game is powered by Convai’s smart NPCs where you can have open-ended conversations, make decisions, perform actions, interact with various environmental objects, and are guided by an AI companion. Welcome to Neo City. Your survival story begins now.”

That’s how Convai is positioning PNN and is more of a tech demonstration of where gaming could be headed and headed quickly. The problem will be if an NPC can talk to you about anything, and you can ask it anything, how do you keep the story on track? The idea of an NPC answering questions more realistically is appealing. What we see in demonstrations like this is the “game” being played the way the developers intend. The general public will not necessarily play as nicely.

When you watch the video there is no doubt it is exciting and impressive in equal amounts. Text to Speech might not still be quite there yet when it comes to vocal emotion and some of the dialogue sounds a little stilted but the potential is there for all to see. Especially as we move along towards a world that has GPT5 in it.

You can sign up for early access now and it should be released later in the year. Interesting times ahead

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It could soon be possible to speak without vocal cords, as engineers are focusing on a square-inch device that can help people regain their voice.

This could be extremely beneficial for people with pathological vocal cord conditions or those who are recovering from laryngeal cancer surgery as this tiny new patch is being developed by engineers at the University of California.

In a journal published in Nature Communications last week (Mar. 12), the researchers outlined their invention and the results of testing the device on eight adults.

They describe the wearable tool as being a “self-powered sensing-actuation system” based on soft magnetoelasticity to enable assisted speaking. It works by patients articulating sentences through muscle movements that are usually used in regular speech or lip-synching.

The sensing component of the device then recognizes the movements without the vibration of vocal folds. Electrical signals are then fed to a pre-trained machine-learning model that converts throat movement into voice signals.

Other solutions for helping people without vocal cords to speak are available but these largely include handheld electro-larynx devices or tracheoesophageal-puncture procedures. Both of these options could be considered to be inconvenient and uncomfortable.

How does it work?

The system was attached to the throat of the participants and data on laryngeal muscle movement was collected, with a machine-learning algorithm used to correlate the resulting signals to specific words.

The research team had the patients pronounce five sentences – both out loud and voicelessly – including ‘I don’t trust you’ and ‘I love you.’ Each person had to repeat the five sentences 100 times for data collection purposes.

The overall prediction accuracy of the model was 94.68%, working well across the different people involved.

Going forward, the research team plans to expand the vocabulary of the device through machine learning and test their findings in people with speech disorders. 

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Bitcoin (BTC) experienced a sudden drop to $8,900 on BitMEX, deviating significantly from its stable $60,000+ valuation on other exchanges.

What is a Bitcoin flash crash?

On a late Monday, Bitcoin experienced a swift downturn, dropping to a low of $8,900 on the cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX, a stark contrast to its stability above $60,000 on other platforms. This is known as a flash crash.

A sharp decline started at 22:40 UTC that within two minutes led Bitcoin’s price down to $8,900, marking its lowest point since the beginning of 2020. However, the recovery was just as rapid, with the price surging back to $67,000 by 22:50 UTC.

During this rapid rise and fall on BitMEX’s spot market, the global average price of BTC hovered around $67,400. Speculation arose on the social media platform X, with some users suggesting that massive sell-offs by large holders, or ‘whales’ triggered the price drop.

User @syq pointed out that an individual had sold more than 850 BTC (valued at approximately $55.49 million) on BitMEX, causing the XBT/USDT spot pair to dive to $8,900.

The XBT index on BitMEX monitors the price of Bitcoin, whereas the XBT/USDT pair indicates the price of Bitcoin in terms of Tether (USDT), the leading stablecoin pegged to the US dollar. Despite the turbulence in the spot market, BitMEX’s derivatives markets, worth billions, remained unaffected.

In response to the incident, BitMEX announced via social media that it had initiated an investigation into the large sell orders. Furthermore, BitMEX reassured its users, stating, “The trading platform is fully functional, and all user funds are secure.”

As mentioned earlier today already – we are investigating unusual activity on our BTC-USDT Spot Market.

This did not affect any of our derivative markets, nor the index price for our popular XBT derivatives contracts.

The trading platform is operating as normal and all funds…

— BitMEX (@BitMEX) March 19, 2024

The development follows Bitcoin reaching new all-time highs of almost $74,000 on Mar. 15, before then dropping to $66,885 on Mar. 15. The world’s first cryptocurrency’s price started skyrocketing following the approval of Bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund (ETFs) contracts back in January.

The newly-approved ETF contracts have attracted significant attention from market participants, reaching daily net inflows in excess of $1 billion for the first time on Mar. 12.

Featured image: ideogram

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The real estate industry, known for its reliance on traditional methods, is undergoing a major shift thanks to the integration of AI. From property valuations to customer service, AI is not only streamlining operations but also enhancing the customer experience and reshaping business strategies.

Understanding AI’s Influence in Real Estate

AI currently has its fingers on every major industry – instigating big changes from the inside out of sectors that have been stuck in their ways for 20-plus years. But it could be argued that there’s no industry with more potential for major, sweeping change than real estate.

Let’s explore a few of the big ways AI is currently changing real estate, along with peeking at some of the ways it will continue to evolve moving forward.

1. AI-Driven Analytics for Property Valuations

Accurately valuing a property is both an art and a science. It has traditionally relied on a blend of physical inspections and market trend analysis. However, AI is proactively changing this process by introducing AI-driven analytics, offering a new level of precision and efficiency.

At the core of AI-driven property valuations are sophisticated algorithms capable of sifting through extensive datasets, including historical transaction prices, current market trends, property features, and even socio-economic indicators. 

Unlike traditional appraisal methods, which might depend heavily on the appraiser’s experience and available local data, AI systems can analyze national and global data trends to make more accurate predictions. 

Practical applications and use cases of AI in property valuations are already evident across the real estate industry. For example, Zillow’s “Zestimate” leverages AI to provide instant property valuations based on public and user-submitted data. Similarly, Redfin uses machine learning models to deliver accurate home value estimates, taking into account thousands of data points.

Another example is the use of AI by banks and financial institutions in their appraisal processes for mortgage lending. By integrating AI analytics, they quickly assess a property’s value, making the loan approval process faster and more efficient.

2. Enhancing Customer Service with AI

AI has been fast at work over the past few years, using advanced chatbots and virtual assistants that are capable of handling client inquiries quickly in real-time, regardless of the time of day.

Several different companies leverage AI chatbots and digital assistants, including HouseJet. Their platform has two different AI technologies: MAX AI and LISA AI. MAX is an AI-powered lead generation tool that optimizes real estate agent marketing strategies to help them improve the number (and quality) of leads they bring in on a daily basis. Then, LISA acts as a digital AI assistant that texts clients on the agent’s behalf to set appointments. This frees the agent up to actually go to appointments, take calls, and spend more time with family during “off” hours.

This is the new approach that agents will be using moving forward. AI won’t necessarily be the one showing the house or doing the negotiations – we still need real, breathing agents for that – but it will help offload some of the time-consuming administrative tasks that eat up a realtor’s schedule. 

3. AI in Property Management

When it comes to property management, AI has the ability to automate routine and time-consuming tasks. This includes everything from sorting and responding to tenant inquiries to managing lease renewals and payments. By automating these processes, AI frees up property managers to focus on higher-level strategic aspects of their role, such as tenant relations and property improvements.

For example, AI-powered systems can prioritize maintenance requests based on urgency and schedule them automatically with the service providers. Technology is also making strides in energy management within properties, using smart algorithms to optimize heating, cooling, and lighting systems. These systems can analyze usage patterns, weather forecasts, and even occupancy rates to adjust settings in real-time, reducing energy consumption and costs.

Beyond routine maintenance, AI is paving the way for predictive maintenance. By analyzing data from various sensors and systems within a building, AI can predict when equipment might fail or when structures may need repairs before they become critical issues. This proactive approach can save huge amounts of money in emergency repairs and downtime, ensuring that properties remain in top condition and enjoy optimum cash flow.

4. AI and Real Estate Marketing

One of the big areas where AI excels (in a marketing context) is in its ability to analyze large volumes of data, including browsing habits, interaction rates, and past purchasing behavior. Based on this, it can create highly targeted marketing campaigns. This means real estate agents can now send property listings that align closely with a client’s specific preferences, such as location, price range, and property features (without spending hours browsing listings or sifting through the MLS). This increases the likelihood of engagement and response, which makes both the client and the agent happy.

Redfin recently released a new AI-powered tool that improves listing photos by allowing home buyers to see what they could do with a space by just clicking a few buttons. This shows them different flooring types, paint colors, countertop finishes, etc. As a result, even outdated homes get a fair shake when listed.

On top of all of this, AI-driven marketing tools can segment audiences with surgical-like precision, ensuring that marketing messages are tailored to different groups based on their unique characteristics and interests. This level of personalization enhances the client experience and improves the efficiency of marketing efforts. The result is better ROI across the board. 

5. Virtual Property Tours and AI

Virtual property tours are not entirely new; however, AI has created a whole new world of opportunities and advantages. Traditionally, virtual tours have been simple panoramic images or video walkthroughs. Now, with AI, these tours are highly interactive and personalized experiences.

AI can tailor the virtual tour to highlight features specific to a client’s preferences, such as focusing on the kitchen. Or if another client is big on having outdoor living, the virtual tour can revolve around the outdoor space.

Not only that, but AI-driven virtual tours can provide real-time information overlay, such as material finishes, appliance details, or even renovation possibilities. This level of interaction and information has never been possible before now.

AI also enhances virtual tours by making them more engaging and informative. Chatbots can answer questions, provide additional property details, and guide potential buyers to areas of the home that match their interests. This gives home buyers more flexibility in how they decide to purchase a home.

6. AI in Real Estate Financing

The loan processing stage has historically been defined by lots of paperwork and waiting periods. Now, thanks to AI, it’s seeing significant improvements in efficiency. AI algorithms are capable of rapidly analyzing vast amounts of data like credit scores, income history, and debt ratios. This can expedite the pre-approval and application processes.

We’re also seeing some advances in the industry where AI is able to automate document verification and fraud detection. This speeds up the process and allows human loan officers to focus on more complex cases or customer service.

It’s also worth noting that AI is giving lenders more sophisticated risk assessment models to use in the underwriting and loan approval processes. Whereas traditional lending models often rely on a narrow set of criteria, AI can incorporate a broader range of factors. This includes non-traditional credit data to further assess a borrower’s creditworthiness. 

The result of all of this is more nuanced risk profiles. In some cases, this opens up financing opportunities for individuals who might be marginalized by traditional models. For example, this would include freelancers with irregular income streams or first-time buyers with limited credit history.

The Future is Bright for AI in Real Estate

If you were to fast forward 25 years and look at this current moment in time, it would become overwhelmingly evident that we’re only at the very origins of the AI journey in real estate. With as much innovation as has occurred over the past two to three years, it’s easy to feel like we’ve arrived. However, the proverbial train is only just now leaving the station. 

Now’s the time for real estate professionals to really lean in and understand what’s happening, so they can grow along with the technology that’s feeding this industry!

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Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) is considering Bitcoin (BTC) as a potential investment diversification tool amidst economic and technological changes.

According to a Mar. 19 announcement, the Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) of Japan, recognized as the world’s biggest pension fund, is considering Bitcoin as a possible tool for diversification. The GPIF unveiled plans for new long-term investment strategies in light of significant societal and economic shifts, alongside rapid technological advancements.

To address these evolving challenges, the GPIF has initiated a five-year research initiative aimed at discovering innovative investment diversification methods. This initiative places a strong focus on sustainability and managing risks.

Part of this initiative involves the GPIF seeking information on a range of potential diversification instruments, including assets it currently views as illiquid and does not possess. Among those assets there are cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, precious metals such as gold, and other types of assets.

This recent announcement from the GPIF serves as a request for information and does not confirm the fund’s future expansion into any of those assets. The decision to conduct further research will be based on the data gathered through this request.

What is the world’s largest pension fund?

Founded in 2006 by the Japanese government, the GPIF’s investment strategy has traditionally focused on core infrastructure funds, which support essential social and economic activities. The fund diversifies its investments across traditional assets such as domestic and international stocks and bonds, in addition to alternative assets like infrastructure and real estate.

The report highlighted the fund’s goal to leverage its long-term investment horizon for achieving stable and efficient returns, despite short-term market price fluctuations. As of December 2023, GPIF managed assets totaling 225 trillion Japanese yen ($1.54 trillion), securing its position as the largest pension fund globally.

Although GPIF is in the preliminary stages of exploring the inclusion of Bitcoin in its portfolio, some global pension funds have already made moves into Bitcoin-related assets. For instance, in November 2023, South Korea’s National Pension Service announced the acquisition of over 280,000 shares in the U.S.-based Coinbase.

With the approval of the United States Bitcoin spot exchange-traded funds (ETF) by the Securities and Exchange Commission back in January, the world’s first cryptocurrency has gained more credibility which may get major financial institutions on  board. Following the approval, the daily Bitcoin ETF inflows surpassed $1 billion earlier this month.

Featured image: Ideogram

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Dune is pretty big business at the moment with the second movie riding high at the Box Office and news of the new MMO from Funcom on the horizon.

Dune: Spice Wars, also from Funcom, however, is a Frank Herbert-based game you should not be overlooked if you are a fan of the story. It’s been out since around the time the first movie dropped and offers a great opportunity to get into the Dune universe (Duneiverse?), especially if you like your games with a more strategic flavor.

Today, the first major update for the game, as well as its first DLC drops and goes by the name of House Vernius of Ix.

The House Vernius of Ix DLC, priced at €12.99 / $12.99, introduces the technologically advanced Ixians as the game’s seventh faction. Hailing from the technologically advanced Ixian Confederation and led by the cybernetically enhanced Rhombur Vernius, they discreetly explore the self-learning tech forbidden by the Butlerian Jihad.

Meanwhile, the free Heroes of Dune update marks a major milestone for Dune: Spice Wars, allowing players to control legendary individuals from the Dune universe. With each faction offering a choice of two Heroes, players can recruit from a total of fourteen iconic characters, each with its own active skill, global effect, and localized effects. From Duncan Idaho and Gurney Halleck for the House Atreides to Chani Kynes and Otheym for the Fremen, players can now lead their chosen faction with legendary figures, reshaping the course of history on Arrakis.

The update also includes several improvements to combat, enriching its gaming experience and making it more accessible to players of all skill levels.

Dune: Spice Wars is a hardcore Dune 4x strategy game, and playing as iconic characters from the story will mainly appeal to fans of Herbert’s books but even if you are not invested in the Dune storyline it is still a really solid RTS game with lots of cool features that you should definitely check out.

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Steam has officially overhauled its family sharing system which faced difficulties when others on the plan were loading up games, in favor of the new ‘Steam Families.’

Introduced via a blog post on the Steam website yesterday (Mar. 18) the video game service said they were ‘excited’ to announce the update which is now available in the Steam Beta Client.

Steam Families is a collection of new and existing family-related features, replacing both Steam Family Sharing and Steam Family View.

It provides a single location to manage which games your family can access and when they can play. Up to six family members can be included in one plan, with management access available from Steam Client, a mobile device, or web browser.

Members of a family will be classified as either adult or child, with the adult having management access.

In the previous system, there were limits on how many people could play games from one library. This has now been removed, as has the need for two systems.

To give Steam’s family debut a try, you’ll need to be in the beta program. You can do this by visiting Settings > Interface > Client Beta Participants and selecting ‘Steam Family Beta.’

New features in Steam Families

For parents who are monitoring children’s online activity, this new update is set to make it a whole lot easier to manage as new features open up ease of access.

Family Sharing

The family sharing feature brings in the library which is accessible via the left column on the home screen once you’ve signed in.

Anyone in a ‘family’ gains automatic access to the shareable games library, meaning users can play a game from other family member’s collections – even if they are online playing another game.

When you are playing a game from your family library, you can create your own saved games and earn individual Steam achievements.

Parental Controls

New to Steam is the major upgrade on parental controls, with the tool focusing on this. 

Parents can set limits on what and when children play games on Steam and you can control what games your children have access to and monitor their activity. This is even possible via your mobile phone when you’re away from your at-home device.

Parental control features let adults:

• Allow access to appropriate games
• Restrict access to the Steam Store, Community or Friends Chat
• Set playtime limits (hourly/daily) 
• View playtime reports 
• Approve or deny requests from child accounts for additional playtime or feature access (temporary or permanent) 
• Recover a child’s account if they lost their password

Child Purchase Requests 

With this addition to the family service, adults no longer have to spend time manually purchasing games for their children. Instead, to streamline this process, Steam Families has a payment option where a child account can request an in-family adult to pay for their shopping cart.

The adult then has the choice to approve and pay for the purchase from their mobile device or email or to decline the request.

Featured Image: Via Steam News

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A US safety body for artificial intelligence (AI) experts has admitted a researcher from China-owned ByteDance was mistakenly added to an online discussion channel.

The worker, employed by the parent company of TikTok, was granted access to a Slack group chat used by members of the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

It is an embarrassing incident for the organization given that TikTok is currently embroiled in a high-profile national debate in the States on whether or not the popular video-hosting app is an asset for the Chinese government to spy on, or influence a significant number of American citizens.

TikTok is said to have almost 150 million users in the US, its most important market, with the company ready to strongly defend its status after the House of Representatives passed a bill that could result in the social media platform being banned in the US within six months unless the company divests from its Chinese ownership.

The proposed legislation will now proceed to the Senate, where the outcome is less predictable.

A spokesman for the Beijing government implored the US has “never found evidence that TikTok threatens national security,” and the prohibitive action “will inevitably come back to bite the United States itself.”

How has NIST responded to the news?

The researcher, supposedly based in California, was added to a Slack conversation between members of NIST’s US Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute Consortium, which is said to be made up of around 850 users.

An email from the safety body has set out how it has reacted to the mishap.

“Once NIST became aware that the individual was an employee of ByteDance, they were swiftly removed for violating the consortium’s code of conduct on misrepresentation,” it read.

The specific working group on AI safety developments is a multi-agency collaboration, set up to address concerns and measure risks of the evolving technology. The Institute comprises involvement from various American big tech firms, researchers, startups, NGOs, and others.

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Humanoid Robots could soon be building your next car, as Mercedes-Benz enters into a commercial agreement with Apptronik.

In a press release shared last Friday (Mar. 15) via the Apptronik website, the details of the partnership have been shared.

The German automaker will be trying out the robots at its factories and in the manufacturing process.

The duo is working on a pilot program, with Mercedes-Benz “exploring potential use cases for Apollo humanoid robots in logistics to bring parts to the production line for workers to assemble, the so-called delivery of assembly kits, while simultaneously inspecting the components.”

Apollo, the 5’8” and 160 lb general-purpose robot, is the brainchild of Texas-based company Apptronik.

They describe it as being the ‘first commercial humanoid robot that was designed for friendly interaction, mass manufacturability, high payloads, and safety.’

The co-founder and CEO of the company, Jeff Cardenas, says: “When we set out to build Apollo, an agreement like the one we’re announcing today with Mercedes-Benz was a dream scenario.

“Mercedes plans to use robotics and Apollo for automating some low-skill, physically challenging, manual labor – a model use case which we’ll see other organizations replicate in the months and years to come.”

Why Mercedes are turning to the robots

In the press release, Jörg Burzer who is in charge of the production, quality, and supply chain management division at the Mercedes-Benz Group refers to robotics being a new area to explore for the team.

“To build the most desirable cars we continually evolve the future of automotive production.”

“Advancements in robotics and AI open up new opportunities also for us. We are exploring new possibilities with the use of robotics to support our skilled workforce in manufacturing.

“This is a new frontier and we want to understand the potential both for robotics and automotive manufacturing to fill labor gaps in areas such as low skill, repetitive and physically demanding work and to free up our highly skilled team members on the line to build the world’s most desirable cars.”

Featured Image: AI-Generated by MidJourney

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In this new age of artificial intelligence, platforms worldwide have seen a rise in AI-generated content. To help viewers better understand if what they’ve watched has been created by a human or otherwise, YouTube has outlined some new disclosures.

Shared via a blog post published yesterday (Mar. 18) on the YouTube Official Blog, a new tool has been released.

In the Creator Studio, people should now disclose to viewers when realistic content is made with altered or synthetic media, including generative AI.

These disclosures will appear as labels that will be visible in the expanded description or on the front of the video player. YouTube says this applies to “content a viewer could easily mistake for a real person, place, or event…”

The labeling won’t apply to all AI videos though, as the platform says: “We’re not requiring creators to disclose content that is clearly unrealistic, animated, includes special effects, or has used Generative AI for production assistance.”

Some examples of videos that require disclosure include:

• Using the likeness of a realistic person: Digitally altering content to replace the face of one individual with another’s or synthetically generating a person’s voice to narrate a video.
• Altering footage of real events or places: Such as making it appear as if a real building caught fire, or altering a real cityscape to make it appear different than in reality.
• Generating realistic scenes: Showing a realistic depiction of fictional major events, like a tornado moving toward a real town.

They intend for this to ‘strengthen transparency with viewers and build trust between creators and their audience.’

When will the labels be rolled out

The labels are said to be rolled out across all YouTube surfaces and formats in the week ahead. This will begin with the YouTube app and then on desktop and TV.

While creators will be the ones responsible for correctly marking their videos, the online video-sharing platform says in the future “we’ll look at enforcement measures for creators who consistently choose not to disclose this information.

“In some cases, YouTube may add a label even when a creator hasn’t disclosed it, especially if the altered or synthetic content has the potential to confuse or mislead people.”

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Nearly there, so nearly there. One of the most eagerly anticipated games of the year is almost with us. It is so close we can smell it.

Many of you will have already created your characters ready to get going as quickly as you can as the free Character Creator was released ahead of the game last week. If you are unsure what role you want to play in the game we also have a handy breakdown of all the starting vocations you can choose from when you start off.

Dragon’s Dogma 2 worldwide release times

Capcom has handily provided a global map showing all the launch times across the planet for the game. The game unlocks at the same time for everybody but depending on where you are in the world, that will be a different time or even day for you. If you live in North or South America your game will unlock for you on the evening of the 21st whereas the further East you go the later it gets due to time differences.

Check out the map below to locate your time zone:

The key ones for ease are:

• PDT – 5pm 21st March
• EDT – 8pm 21st March
• GMT – Midnight 22nd March
• CET- 1am 22nd March
  
• JST- 9am 22nd March

Dragon’s Dogma 2 preload

As we are looking at a download size of around 70 GB and you will have already checked you hit the system requirements it is good news we bring that the game can be pre-loaded onto your systems from Wednesday 20th March. Pre-load is available for PC, Xbox, and PlayStation and will help you avoid any potential slow download times if the servers all get hammered at the same time of release, so we would strongly advise getting set up ahead of time if you possibly can.

The post Dragon’s Dogma 2 – Worldwide launch times and preload announced – when can you play it? appeared first on ReadWrite.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has reiterated his disdain for Elon Musk as he commented on a gesture the Tesla billionaire made toward Amazon chief Jeff Bezos in 2021.

When Musk surpassed Bezos as the richest person in the world, he sent him an emoji of a silver medal to outline his own new-found status in a manner typical of the controversial South African-born entrepreneur.

Altman’s comments, during an interview with podcaster Lex Fridman, extended to complaints over a lack of collaboration on artificial intelligence (AI). His comments mark another chapter in the ongoing dispute between the influential pair, on the back of recent legal action taken by Musk to sue Altman and OpenAI for supposedly reneging on its original mission of developing responsible AI technology.

As expected, the Microsoft-backed company made a court filing to counter the lawsuit.

What did Sam Altman say about Elon Musk?

In a conversation on the Lez Fridman podcast, the host put to Altman that all of the AI heavyweights should be working together on matters of interest and toward the goal of artificial general intelligence (AGI) but the boss of the ChatGPT maker said this wasn’t “really the thing [Musk is] most known for.”

He continued, “I was thinking, someone just reminded me the other day about how the day that he surpassed Jeff Bezos for richest person in the world, he tweeted a silver medal at Jeff Bezos.”

“I hope we have less stuff like that as people start to work towards AGI,” said Altman.

Bezos would later retake the number one spot, after a surge in the price of Amazon shares, but the oneupmanship witnessed in this incident is a theme that extends to Musk’s business dealings and relationships, just like he wants to have the upper hand on OpenAI, the company he co-founded with Altman before a parting of the ways led to the creation of his own xAI startup.

This week, it confirmed the open release of its Grok artificial intelligence (AI) model, detailing the weights and architecture of the system.

Image credit: Canva

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OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has taken a very honest approach as he suggests GPT-4, the latest AI model from the team, isn’t as impressive as the world is making out. 

In an interview with Lex Friedman, published on Monday (Mar. 18), he said “I think it kind of sucks,” when asked about GPT-4 and its capabilities.

The OpenAI boss, 38, went on to say: “I think it is an amazing thing, but relative to where we need to get to and where I believe we will get to, at the time of like GPT-3, people were like ‘oh this is amazing, this is like marvel of technology’ and it is, it was.

“But now we have GPT-4 and look at GPT-3 and you’re like that’s unimaginably horrible.”

In the process of creating new models, the technology mastermind implies that critiquing former updates is key: “I think it is our job to live a few years in the future and remember that the tools we have now are going to kind of suck, looking backward at them, and that’s how we make sure the future is better.”

Altman explains how he takes inspiration from the GPT-4 and uses it as a ‘brainstorming partner.’

While this model hasn’t been praised too highly by its company’s founder, it has amassed 180 million weekly users for OpenAI and has helped to drive generative AI into the mainstream consciousness.

What can we expect from GPT-5

When asked about the date of GPT-5, Altman answered “I don’t know. That’s an honest answer.

“We will release an amazing model this year. I don’t know what we’ll call it.”

In discussing the leap from GPT-4 to a potential GPT-5, he said: “I’m excited about it being smarter…

“It’s getting like better across the board.”

The billionaire vowed there would be ‘many different things’ that people will see over the coming months, but these could be different from the GPT-5 model everyone is expecting. And, despite the interviewer’s best efforts, he wouldn’t give away any details in what is a highly competitive sector. 

This will likely further fuel rumors as to future updates like a GPT-5, GPT 4.5, and GPT-4.5 Turbo.

Altman previously made guarded comments on the importance of mitigating the dangers of artificial intelligence (AI), as he revealed some concerns about the technology keep him awake at night.

Featured Image: Canva

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Lightyear Frontier might just be our new favorite game of the moment. The chilled-out space farming sim gives off No Man’s Sky vibes with its aesthetics and its simple crafting and and farming mechanics are really well done for a game that has just come out in an Early Access preview.

It’s easy to just crank up a game like this and make a load of mistakes early on that will need rectifying later on. If you don’t start your base camp in a good area, while you can move it at any time, it is a little bit of a pain and extra time and effort you can be spending elsewhere.

Also, there are a ton of early resources you can gather but some are much more vital than others to get up and running quickly. This guide will help you get off to the best possible start as a space farmer on the edges of the Lightyear Frontier.

What to do first in Lightyear Frontier

A fresh save in LF starts you off in the same spot – The Meadows – and gives you your initial tasks that need completing before you can start to forge your own path. Task one, you will need to locate and repair the damaged Mech that you fell from the sky in. It’s probably about a minute’s walk from your starting location and you can’t really do anything until you approach it other than walk – no tree-punching here. As you follow the navigation point on your compass and get nearer you will be given access to your axe so can start hacking away at some resources en route.

Unless you are in the Mech however, which you are not, you cannot add things to your inventory yet. This was quite confusing at first as we couldn’t work out how to pick things up. Once you are in your Mech you simply walk over the resource to collect it, but if out of it you have to grab it and throw it at your Mech to add it to your inventory. So not much point in bothering at this stage, just head to your Mech which should now be close by.

When you get there you will find it on its side and you need to reassemble the engine and the arm that has broken off. Pick them up one at a time and walk towards the Mech and they should automatically attach. Once both are on, Flip the Mech as per instructions and climb on board.

Locating tools in Lightyear Frontier

The next job is to find the farming tools that are scattered around the landscape. There are five of them and you can see where they are by the column of colored smoke that the crash site emits. They aren’t particularly close to each other so there is a bit of busy work to collect them all. As you get each one you will get instructions on how to use it. They can all be accessed from the tool wheel quickly if you need to change. There is no correct order to collect them but depending on what you get first, if it is the Saw for example you can cut some trees down and smash up some stone along the way which we will need for the next bit of the mission.

Best place to camp in Lightyear Frontier

Now you have all your tools and had a bit of a wander around The Meadows it’s possible you muight have seen a spot that looks good to make your camp. The tutorial will have been prodding you to make things as you go, but now we have everything it will be easier.

We are going to set up camp, at least for the start of the game in a flat area of the Meadows. It is important that there is space around because for your farming journey to flourish, you are going to need space to build things and also make sure you have enough space to plant seeds. You will want to plant tree seeds, maybe at the edge of your encampment so you have a constantly replenishing supply of wood. Plant them, water them once, and off they go.

The other vital natural resource you should set up camp near is water. You are going to be using a lot of it and you don’t need to be moving too far from place to place as the mech is quite a slow mode of transport.

Once you are happy with where you are going to base, build the things you are instructed to to progress the tutorial. By gathering resources as you mooch around you will also have opened up a few new recipes which you can also try out.

Once you have got the bones of your base up it’s time to complete the next starting mission which is to Restore Pine Heights and you can read our guide page on how to go about that for extra help.

Is Lightyear Frontier on Game Pass?

If you want to try out Lightyear Frontier and have a Game Pass subscription you can jump right in. The game was announced as coming to Game Pass the day before it was released which is great news. It is also available on Steam, but if you have Game Pass you may as well plump for that option to try things out. It is Early Access remember so doubtless parts of it will be broken and need to change over the coming months.

The post Getting started in Lightyear Frontier: best place to camp, what to do first appeared first on ReadWrite.

Nvidia today introduced its Earth-2 cloud platform at the GTC 2024 event in San Jose, California, aimed at advancing global climate change predictions through AI-powered simulations. According to VentureBeat, the platform, which was first mentioned in 2021, has now reached full operational status.

During a keynote address, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang highlighted Earth-2’s role in addressing the frequent occurrence of climate disasters such as droughts, hurricanes, and floods. The Earth-2 platform, according to Huang, offers APIs that enable large-scale simulation and visualization of weather and climate data, providing a tool to better prepare for and mitigate the effects of extreme weather events.

The technology behind Nvidia’s Earth-2

Earth-2 relies on a combination of Nvidia’s CUDA-X microservices software and AI models, including the CorrDiff generative AI model. This integration allows for simulations that are both faster and more energy-efficient than traditional numerical models. Rev Lebaredian, Nvidia’s vice president of simulation, underscored the economic impact of extreme weather, which results in $140 billion in losses annually, and the need for detailed, kilometer-scale simulations to effectively address this challenge.

One of the first organizations to utilize Earth-2 is Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration, which aims to use the platform’s models to improve typhoon forecasting and evacuation planning. Additionally, Earth-2’s capabilities are being extended through integration with Nvidia Omniverse, enabling users to develop 3D workflows that incorporate actual weather data into their digital twin environments.

The Weather Company, an entity focused on weather data forecasting and insights, announced plans to integrate Earth-2 APIs to enhance their weather modeling products and services. This collaboration is intended to provide more accurate weather intelligence for enterprise clients and improve the overall understanding and simulation of weather impacts.

At the GTC 2024 conference, Nvidia also showcased other innovations such as the NIM software platform for streamlined AI deployment, and advancements in humanoid robotics with Project GR00T.

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