Month: October 2024

What is red_panda? This image-generating AI surpasses the best on the market, and almost nothing is known about it

A new image generation model called “red_panda” excels in benchmark tests conducted by the Artificial Analysis platform, surpassing models from renowned companies like Midjourney, Black Forest Labs, and OpenAI. The most curious thing of all? No one knows where it comes from. According to TechCrunch, in the results from Artificial Analysis, “red_panda” leads by 40 points over Flux1.1 Pro from Black Forest Labs (the model used by Grok) in the text-to-image conversion ranking. Besides its performance, “red_panda” also stands out for its speed, being able to generate images in just 7 […]

A new image generation model called “red_panda” excels in benchmark tests conducted by the platform Artificial Analysis, surpassing models from renowned companies such as Midjourney, Black Forest Labs, and OpenAI. The most curious thing of all? No one knows where it comes from.

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According to TechCrunch, in the results of Artificial Analysis, “red_panda” leads by 40 points over Flux1.1 Pro from Black Forest Labs (the model used by Grok) in the text-to-image conversion ranking. Apart from its performance, “red_panda” also stands out for its speed, being able to generate images in just 7 seconds, which leaves models like DALL-E 3 from OpenAI far behind.

Amazing data wrapped in an aura of mystery. And the fact is that it is not known who developed “red_panda” or what optimization technologies have been implemented to achieve this speed without compromising quality. The lack of details has led to speculation whether the model could be the work of an emerging laboratory seeking to stand out with an innovative methodology, or if, on the contrary, it belongs to a large technology company that has not yet made an official announcement. Either way, the only thing that is clear is that “red_panda” has captured the attention of both industry professionals and enthusiasts.

DALL-E DOWNLOAD

Is Marathon going to come out next year? For now, don't count on it

Eh, do you remember Marathon? Yes, the Bungie game that was supposed to come out this year. The one that was a science fiction shooter. Yes, the one they ended up delaying to 2025 after showing just one gameplay video. Well, we have news about it, and if you were waiting for it, I recommend you focus on other things for now, because it really seems like we won’t see it on our consoles next year. Marathon Man Joe Ziegler, the game’s director, has given an update on its development, and it seems like everything […]

Hey, do you remember Marathon? Yes, the Bungie game that was supposed to come out this year. The one that was a science fiction shooter. Yes, the one they ended up delaying to 2025 after showing just a gameplay video. Well, we have news about it, and if you were waiting for it, I recommend you get busy with other things for now, because it looks like we won’t see it on our consoles next year.

Steam DOWNLOAD

Marathon Man

Joe Ziegler, the game director, has provided an update on its development, and it seems anything but optimistic: he talks about tough mechanics that may not be for everyone… and not much else. It’s surprising, given that the game should be released within a year and, therefore, should already be, at the very least, well conceptualized. Yes, it presents the basic mechanics of the game (basically, the characters will try to escape alive from their rivals after stealing everything they can on the stage), but that’s about it.

This somewhat hidden reboot of the 90s trilogy by Bungie itself will be “a tense survival experience” in a “very tough and interesting” game. Not only are these things we’ve heard before, but the word “interesting,” usually, when referring to your own product, means it’s very, very far from being ready to launch and you don’t know what to say about it to keep the public’s attention. What makes it interesting? Why is it special? Those are the answers we should have by now.

For now, Ziegler states that he can’t even show a demo because they still don’t have the models for the characters and enemies, and that means only one thing: they won’t be ready in a year unless they significantly expand the team. It’s okay; it’s better to have a game that comes out late and is better than one that meets the indicated date and then has patches for a year to make it somewhat playable. What can we expect in the future? Several gameplay tests, different closed betas, and then, perhaps, an early access release before the final launch. But this marathon, certainly, still has a few kilometers to go before it finishes.

The writer of Disco Elysium says that the industry is finished (but not video games)

I think all of us who play video games have the strange feeling that something is wrong. That there is a bubble about to burst that is somehow limping along despite the million-dollar numbers, and it seems like no one is steering in a market increasingly aimed at a consumer and not an active player. If you liked Fortnite, you’ll like these other fifty Fortnites from Hacendado. If you liked Overwatch, we’ve created a hundred identical games without anything that stands out. Have you ever felt this way? Don’t worry: you’re not alone. […]

I think all of us who play video games have the strange feeling that something is wrong. That there is a bubble about to burst that is somehow limping along despite the million-dollar numbers, and it seems that no one is steering in a market increasingly directed at a consumer and not an active player. If you liked Fortnite, you’ll like these other fifty generic Fortnites. If you liked Overwatch, we’ve created a hundred identical games with nothing that stands out. Have you ever felt this way? Don’t worry: you’re not alone.

Disco Elysium DOWNLOAD

Rayadium Album

Do you remember Disco Elysium? It was an amazing game that became a mass phenomenon, and everything seemed to indicate that it was going to give birth to a franchise. Instead, the studio ZA/UM fired almost everyone and they have dispersed into small mini-studios where everyone is waiting to release the spiritual sequel of the game that truly resonates with the audience.

One of them is the screenwriter Dora Klindžić, who, after her experience, is very clear about what is happening: “I think this industry is over. But, luckily for everyone, video games are not.” In fact, the studio she set up afterward, Summer Eternal, aims to fight against the big companies that want to interfere in her art, which is very commendable. We will have to see if she succeeds, because the industry may not be as dead as she claims.

The idea is clear, of course: “I subscribe to the accelerationist view that the only way to achieve better conditions is by entering crises that highlight the contradictions of society and force us to remake the world.” For now, Klindžić has made it clear that his anti-capitalist view of the industry does not necessarily translate into a sequel to Disco Elysium and that, really, no one should expect that as the first game from his studio. But of course, on the other hand… We are all aware that this is exactly what we are going to compare it to, right?

A hair salon simulator is charging a fortune for a DLC to… let the hair grow long

I don’t know how to deliver this news without it sounding like an April Fool’s joke, but I promise you it’s completely true. If you’re gamers, I don’t think it will be hard for you to believe that there is a hairdressing simulator called Hairdresser Simulator, developed by the studio Frozen Way, which was released nine months ago. Today, you can find it at an average price everywhere, and it promises that you will gradually improve your hairdressing skills, discovering how a hairstyle can change someone. Well. Not all hairstyles, apparently. Are you […]

I don’t know how to deliver this news without it sounding like an April Fool’s joke, but I promise you it’s completely true. If you’re gamers, I don’t think it will be hard for you to believe that there is a hairdressing simulator called Hairdresser Simulator, developed by the studio Frozen Way and released nine months ago. As of today, you can find it at an average price everywhere, and it promises that you will gradually improve your hairdressing skills, discovering how a hairstyle can change someone. Well. Not all hairstyles, apparently.

Steam DOWNLOAD

Are you pulling my leg?

Believe it or not, if you want to let your clients have long hair, you’ll have no choice but to buy the new expansion for the DLC called, coincidentally, “Long Hair DLC”. And yes, I said “buy”: on December 5th, this paid addition will allow you not only to have longer hair to style, but also new mechanics related to it. One would think that a game about hairdressing should already have an option for all hair lengths from the start, but if they can make a few extra dollars, why not take advantage?

By the way, and to be fair: the DLC will have more than just a simple hairstyle, such as new tools, characters with a unique story (which promises to be exciting) and up to 15 new styles. Steam is certainly buzzing.

AMD could be the big surprise at CES 2025 and Nvidia knows it

AMD could go all out during CES 2025 next January. According to a well-known leaker from the Chiphell forums, AMD is preparing a bunch of consumer products, from more X3D CPUs for desktop computers to chips for portable devices and RDNA 4 graphics cards. This powerful rumor comes from Zhangzhonghao, a leaker known for discussing new releases in advance. Starting with laptops, it is said that AMD will launch the new generation of Kraken APUs along with Ryzen AI Max (or Strix Halo) and, finally, the Fire range CPUs. Everything that […]

AMD could give it all during CES 2025 next January. According to a well-known leaker from the Chiphell forums, AMD is preparing a bunch of consumer products, from more X3D CPUs for desktop computers to chips for portable devices and RDNA 4 graphics cards.

Xbox Game Pass DOWNLOAD

This powerful rumor comes from Zhangzhonghao, a well-known leaker who talks about new releases in advance. Starting with laptops, it is said that AMD will launch the new generation of Kraken APUs along with Ryzen AI Max (or Strix Halo) and, finally, the Fire range CPUs.

Everything AMD could present at CES 2025

There are many different product ranges, so to refresh the memory, Kraken Point is expected to be the successor to the current AMD Ryzen 8040 series. Leakers claim it will come with up to four standard Zen 5 cores and four Zen 5c cores, as well as RDNA 3.5 graphics with up to eight compute units (CU).

The Strix Halo processors are more on the higher end of the scale, and AMD might launch three CPUs for laptops to start with, all under the Ryzen AI Max umbrella: The Ryzen AI Max+ 395 with 16 cores, the Ryzen AI Max 390 with 12 cores, and finally, the Ryzen AI Max 385 with eight cores.

All of them will offer integrated RDNA 3.5 graphics. The Fire range is the successor to the Dragon range and will basically be the laptop version of the desktop Zen 5 CPUs, aimed at high-performance laptops for gamers. Zhangzhonghao also claims that AMD will simultaneously introduce X3D CPUs for laptops.

Those who are on the hunt for the best gaming laptops will be able to rely on a mix of new chips, such as the Ryzen Z2, the Ryzen Z2 Extreme, and the Ryzen Z2G.

Graphics cards are no surprise: AMD is said to launch RDNA 4 GPUs during CES 2025. For some time, it has been said that AMD will let Nvidia dominate the high-end market and will stick to mid-range GPUs with this generation. This could mean a flagship RX 8800 XT, but we will have to wait to see it.

Finally, the Zen 5 X3D CPUs. AMD itself confirmed that it will present a new Ryzen 9000X3D CPU on November 7, but did not specify which model it would be exactly. However, most sources expect it to be the Ryzen 7 9800X3D, and this leak only confirms it. AMD will follow it with the Ryzen 9 9900X3D and the Ryzen 9 9950X3D at CES 2025.

AMD is betting everything in 2025 with its new business line focused on AI and its changes in consumer hardware. We will see what happens.

Microsoft Teams mimics some of Slack’s best features

Microsoft has announced significant changes to Teams that seem to be inspired by its rival Slack, the communication platform for professionals. One of the highlights is the future introduction of threads in conversations, a highly anticipated feature that will allow messages to be organized more clearly and enable direct responses to specific topics within threads. Although this functionality will not arrive until mid-2025, Microsoft has another major change prepared that will soon affect the way chats and channels are viewed on the platform. In November of this year, the company will launch a new […]

Microsoft has announced significant changes in Teams that seem to be inspired by its rival Slack, the communication platform for professionals. One of the highlights is the future introduction of threaded conversations, a highly anticipated feature that will allow messages to be organized more clearly and enable direct responses to specific topics within threads.

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Although this functionality will not arrive until mid-2025, Microsoft has another major change prepared that will soon affect the way of viewing chats and channels on the platform. In November of this year, the company will launch a new unified user interface that brings together both chats and channels in a single view, available in a public preview.

As explained in a blog post by Jeff Teper, President of Collaboration Apps and Platforms at Microsoft, this new user experience “will simplify the digital workspace by bringing together chats, teams, and channels in one place under Chat.” This will allow users to manage their workflows more easily by having quick access to their most important conversations in a more organized manner.

The upcoming update aims to resolve one of the traditional inconveniences of Teams: the separation of chats and channels, which forced users to switch sections to keep up with different conversations. With the new interface, users will be able to choose to keep them separate or integrate them into a combined view. Additionally, Microsoft will add a favorites section where the most relevant chats and channels can be pinned, as well as new controls to customize the experience, such as the option to view message previews and order channels in a single list.

Another notable update is the new view of @mentions, which will specially highlight direct messages or channels where the user has been mentioned. This major update to Microsoft Teams will arrive on both mobile and desktop applications next month, and testing of threads in conversations will begin this quarter, extending until early 2025.

Microsoft Teams DOWNLOAD

In the UK, they already have physical sales of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6: has the game's release on Game Pass affected it?

One of the good things about the gaming sector in the United Kingdom is that, for decades, physical sales of video games have been published. This makes it easy to see how well releases are doing when there is no official data from the companies. And since the United Kingdom is one of the strongest markets in terms of sales, it is usually a good indicator to know how well a specific game is selling. By the way, in Japan, they also publish this data (there, they even publish the number of consoles sold each week). The […]

One of the good things about the gaming sector in the United Kingdom is that, for decades, the physical sales of video games have been published. This makes it easy to see how well releases are performing when there is no official data from the companies.

Xbox Game Pass DOWNLOAD

And since the United Kingdom is one of the most powerful markets in terms of sales, it is usually a good indicator to know how well a specific game is selling. By the way, in Japan they also publish this data (there they even publish the number of consoles sold each week).

The game that was released last Friday and has everyone interested is Black Ops 6, the new Call of Duty from Activision, which for the first time is launching on the Xbox Game Pass service. Has its arrival on Xbox’s subscription service affected the game’s sales? Here’s what we know.

Very good sales, despite the obvious drop due to Game Pass

As noted on Twitter by Chris Dring, editor of Games Industry, the physical sales of Black Ops 6 during the launch weekend are 10% lower than those of Modern Warfare 3 last year.

Dring points out that the drop in sales is “almost entirely due to a decline in Xbox sales,” suggesting that this “was inevitable with Game Pass.” Clearly, Xbox players who already enjoy Game Pass were not going to buy Black Ops 6 when it was included in the service.

Black Ops 6 was the first Call of Duty game available on Xbox Game Pass on the same day of its release, following Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

Dring also points out that “sales on PlayStation 5 remain stable year after year,” suggesting that, at least in terms of physical sales in the UK, the fact that Call of Duty is now an Xbox brand has had no apparent influence on its popularity on PS5.

The digital data is yet to come, which will shed more light on the situation and reveal to what extent Xbox Game Pass has affected sales of the Xbox Series X/S version. The world holds its breath as it seems the game is performing very well.

Microsoft accuses Google of destroying its Cloud business in Europe from the shadows

Amazon, Google, and Microsoft have a large part of their business in the cloud and server sector. They all strive to improve their customer share year after year, no matter how much AI is the new darling of the tech sector. The cloud business is stronger than ever and generates a lot of money. That’s why it’s not surprising that big companies play all possible cards to get as many customers as possible, even if along the way they have to discredit their rivals, as is the case we are dealing with today. The deputy general counsel […]

Amazon, Google, and Microsoft have a significant portion of their business in the cloud and server sector. They all strive to improve their customer share year after year, even though AI is the new darling of the tech sector. The cloud business is more powerful than ever and generates a lot of money.

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That is why it is not surprising that large companies play all their cards to get as many customers as possible, even if, along the way, they have to discredit their rivals, as is the case today.

Microsoft’s Deputy General Counsel, Rima Alaily, has criticized Google’s efforts to influence European regulators with the launch of the Open Cloud Coalition, a group of 10 cloud companies campaigning for a fairer and more competitive cloud landscape in the UK, Europe, and other countries.

Alaily criticized Google for forming a lobbying group, which she says is part of a broader attempt by the company to undermine its competitors.

Additionally, Alaily stated that Google has organized the group as a front to discredit Microsoft’s business practices in Europe, which antitrust regulators have recently criticized.

Hidden campaigns against Microsoft and its cloud

The deputy general counsel of Microsoft claimed that Google has recruited small European cloud service providers as the public face of the coalition to hide its involvement and divert regulators’ attention from its own business practices, noting that the company has done everything possible to appear as a secondary member of the Coalition.

The group is made up of international companies such as Centerprise International, Civo, and Gigas, and national ones like ControlPlane, DTP Group, Prolinx, Pulsant, Clairo, and Room 101.

Google Cloud may be the only hyperscaler in the group, but this is not uncommon. CISPE, a group of cloud companies operating in Europe, has only one resident hyperscaler: AWS.

The blog post by Alaily also highlights Google’s failed efforts to get CISPE members to maintain their case against Microsoft. Apparently, Google offered 470 million euros in favor, but the group ultimately decided to go with Microsoft’s agreement.

This is NotebookLlama, Meta's completely free podcast-generating AI

Meta has launched a new AI-powered podcast creator called NotebookLlama, which is presented as a free and open-source alternative to Google’s NotebookLM. Although both products offer similar features, NotebookLlama is characterized by its simplicity and focus on customization, while sacrificing some polish and design compared to its competitor. According to Tom’s Guide, which has already tested it, NotebookLlama allows transforming raw files, such as PDF documents, into podcast episodes where two voices discuss the content. Meta’s platform, based on language models […]

Meta has launched a new AI-powered podcast creator called NotebookLlama, which is presented as a free and open-source alternative to Google’s NotebookLM. Although both products offer similar features, NotebookLlama is characterized by its simplicity and focus on customization, while sacrificing some polish and design compared to its competitor.

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According to the website Tom’s Guide, which has already been able to test it, NotebookLlama allows transforming raw files, such as PDF documents, into podcast episodes where two voices discuss the content. Meta’s platform, based on Llama language models, stands out for its adaptability as it is open source, which invites users to customize the experience according to their needs.

Although the audio quality of NotebookLlama is less sophisticated than that of Google and there are occasional technical issues, such as volume drops and cut-off words, the basic combination allows for the creation of emotive voices and nuances in tone, offering a more human listening experience.

Additionally, the team behind NotebookLlama is seeking help from the open-source community to expand the type of content the tool can process. Although it currently only supports PDF, in the future, integration of web links, audio files, and even YouTube videos is expected. The open-source community has the opportunity to contribute to these improvements, potentially matching or even surpassing Google’s capabilities in the long term.

Available on Github, NotebookLlama is an especially attractive option for those who wish to dive into complex topics in a simple and accessible way. The tool also works with lighter versions of the Llama models, making it easier to use on lower-capacity devices.

Llama 2 DOWNLOAD

"90% of AI is currently a big marketing campaign," claims the creator of Linux

Linus Torvalds, creator of the third most used PC operating system in the world, recently participated in an event focused on open source, where he had a few things to say about AI technology and the future of the sector. Torvalds stated that the current state of AI is 90 percent marketing and 10 percent reality. The developer, awarded the Millennium Technology Prize of Finland for creating the Linux kernel, was interviewed during the Open Source Summit held in Vienna, where he had the opportunity to talk about both the world of […]

Linus Torvalds, creator of the third most used operating system in the PC world, recently participated in an event focused on open source, where he had a few things to say about AI technology and the future of the industry.

ChatGPT DOWNLOAD

Torvalds stated that the current state of AI is 90 percent marketing and 10 percent reality. The developer, awarded the Millennium Technology Prize of Finland for creating the Linux kernel, was interviewed during the Open Source Summit held in Vienna, where he had the opportunity to talk about both the open source world and the latest technological trends.

The technologist stated that modern generative AI services represent an interesting advancement in machine learning technology, and that they will eventually change the world. At the same time, he expressed his discontent with the hype that is fueling too many AI-related initiatives and contributing to the impossibly high market valuations of Nvidia.

A promising technology, but full of smoke and exploiters

Nowadays, everyone and their dog are talking about AI, or setting up some cloud-based AI service, or funding a multi-million dollar AI-focused startup somewhere in the world.

Torvalds hates the hype cycle so much that he doesn’t even want to get involved in it. The developer is essentially ignoring everything related to AI, although things are likely to change drastically in a few years.

According to Torvalds, in five years, generative algorithms and machine learning technology will be much more useful and interesting. At that time, everyone will be able to understand how AI can really be used and what types of everyday workloads it can accelerate.

The creator of Linux is not the only one who distrusts the modern capabilities of AI, as the CEO of Baidu recently stated that 99% of current “AI companies” will soon follow the path of the (digital) dodo.

Torvalds admitted that ChatGPT and other similar services are magnificent as a pure technological demonstration and that, obviously, they are already used in many fields and for different workloads. “But I hate the hype cycle,” and we couldn’t agree more with the genius.