It’s easy to be cynical about AI and poke fun at its inability to draw hands or spiders, or to correctly explain why you shouldn’t eat glass. But while LLMs may still be learning (albeit very quickly), the AI revolution is now starting to have real, tangible impacts on our daily life – for good and ill.
Just this week, for instance, we have stories about how Apple Intelligence is making the already traumatic experience of a relationship break-up worse; ending the 147-year-old tradition of line judges at Wimbledon; and even, potentially, breaking Google’s search dominance. AI may have been little more than meme fodder two years ago, but you can bet that it will be a far more serious subject two years from now.
When not marveling at (or recoiling from) AI this week, we’ve mainly been wearing things. Meta’s impressive prototype Orion glasses, for instance, and Loop’s amazing noise-blocking earbuds. We’ve also been speculating about a possible new Apple wearable – the Apple ring – and debating whether it’s real or not. Spoiler: it depends which TechRadar staffer you ask, but you'll find articles putting both cases linked below.
As always, there’s also lots more in this newsletter, including our pick of the best new movies and shows to stream, some exciting new developments in the EV world, and some big news around Intel’s first AI processors (yes, AI, again).
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The Week in AI
Sometimes message summaries can be quite blunt (Future / Apple / @spreen_co)
The beta versions of iOS can now summarize your incoming messages for you, courtesy of Apple Intelligence: it's handy in certain situations perhaps, but maybe not ideal when your partner is breaking up with you, as one unfortunate iPhone owner discovered.
Our Editor-at-Large Lance Ulanoff has been spending some time with the prototype AR glasses recently unveiled by Meta – and if the finished versions are anything like the specs he's tested, he thinks consumers are going to enjoy an incredible experience.
Toyota has been busy showcasing some very interesting sustainable technology innovations this week, including swappable hydrogen cartridges for electric vehicles, which could one day put an end to lengthy recharging stops for your car.
Intel, like everyone else, is getting into artificial intelligence: the processors in its new Core Ultra 200 series are the first desktop CPUs to come with dedicated neural processing units (NPUs) for tackling AI tasks, and we've got all the details you need to know.
It’s not just horror taking up the new-release shelves at the best streaming services this weekend: Netflix has returning fan-favorite drama Outer Banks and a new Tomb Raider animation, while Prime Video serves up more spy thrills with a new Citadel spin-off.
