Tag: Google

ShinyShiny snippets: Dyson working on home robots for household chores

Dyson is moving beyond vacuum cleaners and hand driers and will try to develop robots capable of helping with household chores. The company has announced plans to create a major robotics centre at its facility at Hullavington Airfield, in Wiltshire, that will work on new types of domestic robot. The site will be home to…

ShinyShiny snippets: TikTok leading platform for fake Ukraine videos

TikTok has emerged as one of the leading platforms for snappy false videos about the war in Ukraine which are reaching millions. With a user base of more than one billion people - more than half of whom are under 30 - TikTok is where many young people have been getting updates about the conflict,…

ShinyShiny snippets: Facebook allows calls for violence against Putin

The owner of Facebook and Instagram will allow users in some countries to call for violence against Vladimir Putin and Russian soldiers. Meta says it has temporarily made allowances for some violent speech, like "death to the Russian invaders," that would usually break its rules. However, it says it won't permit calls for violence against…

ShinyShiny tech roundup: Skip ‘Hey, Google’ with Quick phrases

“Quick phrases” is a new feature currently under development for Google Assistant that could one day let you skip having to say “Hey, Google” for common phrases like “What time is it?” or “Turn the lights on,” 9to5Google reports. The feature is yet to be officially announced, and it’s unclear when it might launch or exactly which…

Shiny Shiny daily round up: Google launches Global.Health

Google has worked with researchers to create a new Covid-19 tracking database that will help governments monitor how the easing of lockdown measures is affecting case rates and spot the next wave before it spreads. Global.health, which launches today, will pool anonymised data on Covid-19 cases, allowing researchers to chart factors such as whether people had been…

Shiny Shiny daily round up: Google fires head of AI ethics unit

Google has fired the founder and co-head of its artificial intelligence ethics unit, claiming she violated the company's code of conduct. In a statement, Google said an investigation found Margaret Mitchell had moved files outside the company. The ethics unit has been under scrutiny since December, following the departure of another senior figure, Timnit Gebru.…

Google breaks free photos promise

Google has broken its promise made in 2015 to offer unlimited free photo storage, in a move that will also affect storage for other Google products including email. "When we say a lifetime of memories, we really mean it," Google said when it launched the Photos service in 2015. "With Google Photos, you can now…

Designers create smart boat complete with all mod cons

Always wanted to live on a boat but put off by lack of mod cons? Then how about this smart boat which comes with the latest tech innovations including smart kettle, robot vacuum cleaner and a video doorbell. Seafarers can take a break and enjoy a warming cup of tea without even flicking a switch…

Google ghosts back for Halloween – this time with multiplayer gaming

Google ghosts are back once again for Halloween, and this time it's something of a first. Google’s 2018 Halloween Doodle is multiplayer game hosted on Google’s Cloud platform that lets you share an invite link with friends to join in and play. Also check out: Motherboard for i5 8600K The game is a bit like Snake in which…