Artificial Intelligence

UK mobile carrier O2 has created Daisy, an AI grandmother designed to waste the time of phone scammers by keeping them on the line as long as possible.

Anyone can report a scam call or message by texting their number to 7722, where it will be checked and then added to the list of targets …

Apple may be pitching Apple Intelligence as a key reason to upgrade to the iPhone 16, but it seems that most smartphone buyers are far more interested in the basics – like battery life.

A survey found that only a relatively small minority of consumers are currently using AI features on their smartphones, and it doesn’t yet seem to be a purchase driver …

After teasing a native app for macOS last month, Perplexity AI on Thursday officially launched a version of its app for the Mac. Users can now interact with the platform more easily without having to rely on the web version.

At a time when you can ask AI to modify an existing photo in almost any way you please, or even ask it to generate a completely artificial image, can we ever trust photos again?

Apple is working to address the issue in two ways, and many of us are hoping it will also join an emerging new standard for content authenticity …

The US Commerce Department is carrying out an investigation into whether Apple chipmaker TSMC breached US sanctions against China by supplying smartphone and AI chips to Huawei. The probe was in part driven by Huawei’s surprising ability to resume competing with iPhones.

Update: A new report today says that TSMC reported itself to the US government based on its own suspicions about an order.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported over the weekend that some Apple employees believe that the company is about two years behind the curve on artificial intelligence.

Tim Cook didn’t directly address that during an interview with the WSJ, but did say that the company’s aim is always to be best, not first – and that this includes AI …

While the iPhone 16 launch was all about Apple Intelligence, many have accused the company of being very late to the AI party. Indeed, a new piece yesterday suggested that this view is shared by many inside the company.

But Apple CEO Tim Cook argues in a new interview that he doesn’t see it that way, and says that the company has taken its time with AI for the same reason it has with every innovation …

Meta on Wednesday announced that it is expanding its AI features to 21 additional countries. Meta AI includes a chatbot that can be used for conversations or searches, as well a Studio to generate images based on text inputs.

Following the release of the ChatGPT app for macOS earlier this year, Perplexity AI has now announced that it will soon be launching its own app for Mac as well. But unlike ChatGPT for macOS, Perplexity will be available for download on the Mac App Store.

Former Apple design chief Jony Ive this week confirmed he’s working Sam Altman on an AI hardware product of some kind, despite the failure of existing products like the Humane AI Pin and Rabbit R1.

Humane last month admitted that returns were exceeding sales, and now Rabbit founder Jesse Lyu has confessed that the R1 averages just 5,000 daily active users …

Former Apple design head Jony Ive has confirmed reports that he was working on an AI hardware product in partnership with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. We still have no idea what it will do, or what form it will take (image is just a conceptual one of a mystery device).

Ive also shared that he bought a chunk of real estate in one of San Francisco’s most famous blocks, and plans include a LoveFrom store selling everything from notebooks to clothing …

As the world debates what is right and what is wrong about generative AI, the California State Assembly and Senate have just passed the Safe and Secure Innovation for Frontier Artificial Intelligence Models Act bill (SB 1047), which is one of the first significant regulations for AIs in the United States.

A research paper explains how Apple Intelligence is designed, and the steps the company takes to ensure the safety of the models.

The paper also gives a glimpse into the scale and complexity of the on-device AI capabilities, noting that the core model which runs entirely on an iPhone, iPad, or Mac has around three billion parameters …

ChatGPT was originally limited to text interactions, but paid subscribers last year gained the ability to use the chatbot to generate images with DALL-E 3.

That feature is now coming to free ChatGPT users too, though you’ll be limited to just two images per day …

A prompt injection attack on Apple Intelligence reveals that it is fairly well protected from misuse, but the current beta version does have one security flaw which can be exploited.

However, the issue would be very easy for the company to fix, so this will almost certainly be done before the public launch …

Humane has had a tough go with the launch of its Ai Pin launch this year and a new report from The Verge reveals just how bad things are. Alongside selling a fraction of what the company aimed for, internal sales data shows that Ai Pin returns have been outpacing sales between May and August.

A Redditor has discovered built-in Apple Intelligence prompts inside the macOS beta, in which Apple tells the Smart Reply feature not to hallucinate.

Smart Reply helps you respond to emails and messages by checking the questions asked, prompting you for the answers, and then formulating a reply …

The US government is taking potential AI dangers more seriously, following its decision to create an Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute Consortium (AISIC) earlier this year, with Apple as a member.

A proposed new law would outlaw the use of deepfakes, and a government body will be carrying out safety checks on the next version of ChatGPT before it is released to the public …

The latest version of ChatGPT has been described as “a data hoover on steroids” as a result of its new capabilities (like seeing everything happening on your screen) and extremely loose privacy policy.

While Apple Intelligence will use ChatGPT as a fallback option for queries which cannot be answered by the new Siri, Apple has put in place additional safeguards which will likely make it the safest way to use the chatbot …

The iPhone 16 will launch without some of the headline Apple Intelligence features – which are arguably the biggest reason for most to upgrade to the new models.

While Apple is taking an understandably cautious approach here, the company runs the risk of disappointing or confusing its customers …