Author: Geek Planet

Remember that green-on-black terminal cascade from The Matrix? A new browser-based operating system called Aether OS just dropped into alpha, and it brings that whole cyberpunk aesthetic with it. You can now run an entire desktop environment inside a browser tab, complete with window management, a file system, and 42 built-in apps that connect directly to Bluesky‘s AT Protocol. The project treats decentralized protocols as first-class citizens instead of bolting them onto a traditional OS. That means your Bluesky account and other public records on the AT Protocol network become part of the operating system itself. A full creative suite…

The fate of third-party cookies is arguably the ad tech story of the 2020s, particularly how the industry’s most popular web browser (Google Chrome) will permit third parties to track its three billion-plus users.  However, the online behemoth’s recent policy update, particularly around the timings of its rollout of a much-anticipated user consent prompt, hints at the continuation of the status quo for much of the remainder of the decade. Of course, an undercurrent to this has been device fingerprinting, an issue that has generally been frowned upon by the sector, given concerns over the ethics of collecting user attributes…

Apple is reportedly preparing one of the most significant changes to Siri in years, with plans to open its voice assistant to third-party AI services as part of the upcoming iOS 27 update. The move signals a major shift in Apple’s artificial intelligence strategy, transforming Siri from a closed assistant into a broader AI platform that can integrate with competing technologies. A Shift Toward An Open AI Ecosystem According to a Bloomberg report by Gurman, Apple intends to allow Siri to route user queries to external AI assistants beyond its current ChatGPT integration, potentially including services like Google’s Gemini or…

AI Briefing: The FTC is leaning into ‘tech censorship’ Source link

Just yesterday, we saw the Fold 8’s CAD renders, indicating that Samsung isn’t reimagining its most expensive foldable this year. Today, the same source (Android Headlines, in collaboration with OnLeaks) has published the CAD renders of yet another Samsung foldable, the Fold 8 Wide, or at least that’s what the outlet is calling it.  For those catching up, the Fold 8 Wide is a brand-new, wider foldable that the company is preparing to launch this summer, aiming to compete with Apple’s purported iPhone Fold. What does the Fold 8 Wide actually like? The Fold 8 Wide ditches the tall, narrow…

Andrew McDiarmid, known to many of our readers as a thoughtful podcast host and writer, has published an op-ed in the Chicago Tribune this morning: “AI can’t function without our creativity. What does that tell us about humanness?” Claiming that AI can do anything from therapy to laundry is all the rage these days. But, he says, here is what gets overlooked: But what we recognize as creativity in AI is actually coming from a source we’re intimately familiar with: human imagination. Human training data, human programming and human prompting all work together to allow our AI-powered devices to converse…

Gigabyte quietly posted a new Panther Lake Brix on its website. The GB-BRU9-386H is a compact desktop built around Intel’s Core Ultra 9 386H, a 16-core processor from the company’s latest chip family. What makes this one different is that you can swap the RAM yourself. The best mini PCs solder memory to save space inside the chassis. This one gives you two SO-DIMM DDR5 slots instead. You can pop them open and install up to 128GB down the road when your needs change. The listing also confirms Wi-Fi 7 support and dual M.2 storage slots, with one of them…

Qualcomm’s next flagship chip lineup could be more fragmented than previously expected. A new leak has detailed key specifications of the rumored Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 lineup, reiterating that the company may launch both a standard and a Pro variant this year. The two chips are expected to give smartphone makers more flexibility across price tiers, while also widening the performance gap between regular flagship phones and more premium “Ultra” models. How does the Snapdragon 8 Gen 6 Pro differ from the standard variant? Multiple reports have already pointed to Qualcomm’s dual-chip strategy, and tipster Digital Chat Station has…

Last year, Snapchat started laying the foundations to make Snapchat more accessible to small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs), with the goal of creating a more consistent, sustainable and diverse ad revenue stream. And so far, the strategy appears to be paying off, according to the company’s recent earnings call.With a big year ahead to prove these investments were, and continue to be, the right ones for Snapchat to make, Digiday caught up with Snap’s vp of SMB and mid-market executive Sid Malhotra, to get the lowdown on how important SMBs are to Snapchat’s overall ad revenue stream, what the platform…

Android 17 is getting a new Contact Picker that changes how apps access your contacts list. Earlier reports hinted at this shift toward tighter privacy, and now Google is rolling it out. Instead of giving apps full access to your address book, you will be able to choose exactly which contacts they can see. Previously, apps often relied on a broad permission that exposed your entire contact list. That resulted in sharing data more than necessary without even realizing it. With this update, Android is trying to limit that exposure while keeping things simple for you. How the new Contact…