Archives April 2024

An AI chatbot released by the New York City government designed to assist business owners in accessing information has come under scrutiny for sharing inaccurate and misleading guidance.

A report by The Markup, co-published with local nonprofit newsrooms Documented and The City, reveal multiple instances where the chatbot provided wrong advice about legal obligations.

Poco India has revealed the Xiaomi HyperOS update rollout plan for the second quarter of this year. A few Poco handsets have already received the HyperOS update. Now, the company has revealed the list of phones that will get the update by June this year. Notably, Xiaomi introduced the HyperOS user interface in India in February this year. The Chinese OEM also announced the list of Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones that will get the HyperOS update in the second quarter of 2024.

In a post on X, Poco India announced the Q2 2024 Xiaomi HyperOS rollout plan for Poco smartphones in India. Among the models that are confirmed to receive the HyperOS update are the Poco F4, Poco M4 Pro, Poco C65, Poco M6, and Poco X6 Neo.

The company also confirmed that the Poco C55, Poco M5, Poco X5, Poco X5 Pro, Poco X6 Pro, and Poco F5 have already received the Xiaomi HyperOS update in India. Even Poco X6, Poco M4 5G, and Poco M6 Pro users in the country received the upgrade in March.

According to Xiaomi, the new HyperOS user interface is designed to improve device performance and interconnectivity. The interface features an AI-powered gallery, a new colour scheme, updated icons, and Xiaomi’s HyperConnect, which is intended to boost productivity across all Xiaomi devices. The availability of particular features may differ depending on the device receiving the update.

Meanwhile, one of the models set to receive the HyperOS update in Q2 this year is the Poco X6 Neo 5G, which launched in India in March 2024 and runs Android 13-based MIUI 14 out-of-the-box. The phone is powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 6080 SoC, a 6.67-inch 120Hz full-HD+ AMOLED display with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection, a 108-megapixel dual rear camera system, a 16-megapixel selfie shooter, and a 5,000mAh battery with support for 33W wired fast charging. It is priced in India at Rs. 15,999 and Rs. 17,999 for the 8GB + 128GB and 12GB + 256GB variants, respectively.

Google Podcasts app is going away, and users will no longer be able to listen to their favourite shows starting Tuesday, April 2, 2024. The Podcast app now shows a message when opening the app highlighting that it will not be functional after the due date and that users should export their subscriptions to access them once the app is discontinued. The tech giant is also promoting YouTube Music as an alternative space to listen to podcasts and has even added a tool to easily export subscriptions.

Opening the Google Podcasts app now shows a message which states, “After April 2, 2024, you will no longer be able to listen to podcasts on Google Podcasts. You can get podcasts, music, and more, all on the YouTube Music app as an alternative.” The company first revealed its plans to discontinue the app in September 2023, when in a blog post it added the feature to watch and listen to podcasts on YouTube Music in the US.

Even as the Podcasts app has more than 500 million downloads just on Android’s Play Store, Google cited data from Edison Research, a firm that tracks data on podcasts, to highlight that about 23 percent of weekly podcast users in the US prefer listening to the shows on YouTube Music as opposed to just 4 percent on Google Podcasts.

With the shutdown, users cannot play content on the Podcasts app, however, Google will provide a few more days for users to export their data and subscriptions to either YouTube Music or another app of their choosing. While the tech giant has provided a tool to easily export subscriptions to YouTube Music, shifting to other apps will require turning the subscriptions into an OPML file first. Alternatively, users can simply add the podcasts manually using the RSS feed.

For those users who intend to switch to YouTube Music, Google has also created a support page with a step-by-step guide to make the transition easy. However, it should be noted that some podcasts may not be transferred using this process. If a podcast does not comply with YouTube’s Community Guidelines, it will not be transferred automatically. If this happens, users can go to Library > select Podcasts > click Add podcast > choose Add a podcast by RSS feed.

The crypto market valuation, for the first time since 2021, is close to its last all-time high of $3 trillion thanks to Bitcoin, ETH, and other cryptocurrencies undergoing a bull run. Startups looking to establish their name in the crypto sector are taking this bull phase seriously and are swarming towards accelerator programmes. Subsequently, the number of fund pools to financially aid early-stage Web3 startups have also risen in number over the last few weeks.

In a symbiotic relationship, accelerator and investment programmes provide Web3 startups with funding, mentorship, and industry guidance from experts – whereas these venture firms get the opportunity to have promising upcoming firms under their umbrellas.

Investment firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) was among the first whistleblowers to highlight the swarming of crypto firms towards accelerators programmes. In the last week of March, the venture firm that claims to have over $35 billion in assets – released a list of 25 Web3 startups that have gathered in London to be part of its Crypto Startup Accelerator Spring 2024 program (CSX).

After deliberating which startups to bet on, a16z shortlisted the 25 startups from eight different countries that include Israel, Japan, Poland, Romania, Switzerland, UAE, the UK, and the US.

“The founders of these 25 companies have an ambitious vision paired with the drive and talent to advance core sectors of the crypto ecosystem, including infrastructure, consumer apps, DeFi, payments, games, dev tools, and DePIN,” Jason Rosenthal, the Operating Partner and Head of Crypto Startup School at a16z’s crypto initiative published in a post on X along with the names of the selected startups and their fields of expertise.

Over the course of ten weeks, this programme from a16z will provide the startups with industry-specific resources and mentorship along with giving them a common ground for exploring collaborations with each other.

At present, the crypto market valuation stands at $2.67 trillion (roughly Rs. 2,22,68,721 crore). Bitcoin, which touched its new all-time high of $73,000 (roughly 60.8 lakh) in March – is estimated by many, including financial mammoths like Standard Chartered, to soon reach the price mark of $100,000 (roughly Rs. 83 lakh).

The use-cases of blockchains are also on a boom. Blockchains like Solana, Ethereum, and now Bitcoin are roping in newer Web3 projects everyday offering better security and scalability than Web2 server systems along with better cost effectiveness.

Market analysts predict a boom in Web3 activities in the near future, banking on which, more investment firms are launching investment and mentorship programmes for Web3-specific projects.

A group of venture capital firms like Pantera Capital, CoinFund, Spartan Capital and Sfermion have joined web3 gaming infra provider Helika in launching the Helika Accelerator programme last week.

“With total VC investment in Web3 gaming for 2023 estimated to be about $2.3B, this vertical is poised for colossal growth in 2024,” Anton Umnov, co-founder and CEO of Helika said in a statement.

Through this programme, startups developing blockchain gaming with elements of metaverse, NFTs, and cryptocurrencies can avail studios and a suite of tools for enhancing user acquisition, engagement, retention, and growth. Industry players will also educate selected startups in tokenomics expertise, chain selection, data analytics, marketing, and AI game management.

Web3 venture capital firm Hack VC is another platform to have launched a hefty funding of $150 million (roughly Rs. 1,250 crore) to pour it in young crypto and AI firms.

This increase in accelerator and investment programmes focussed on Web3 come as quite the relief for startups hoping to enter this arena. In 2022, as the world stepped into the post-Coronavirus era, banks in several parts of the world resorted to interest rate hikes to keep their economies from entering the inflation phase. That is when the crypto sector, like many others, underwent a funding winter. The situation is gradually changing.

Venture funding for crypto-related companies in the fourth quarter of 2023 amounted to $1.9 billion, as per data by PitchBook.

Hulu’s April 2024 schedule is here, and it’s set to be another entertainment-packed month with a wave of fresh movies and shows coming your way. There’s a plethora of blockbusters that could compete with our best Hulu movies picks, but what makes Hulu one of the best streaming services is the diverse range of titles that come to the platform each month, and April is stacked with everything from thrillers to comedy, to drama and sci-fi.

I’d tip you towards giving the classic The Big Lebowski (1998) and Greta Gerwig’s wholesome Little Women (2019) a watch if you haven’t already. If you’ve seen those, no doubt you can find some other gems in the full list below! 

Everything new on Hulu in April 2024

Samsung could soon upgrade its native voice assistant Bixby with generative artificial intelligence features, as per a report. Bixby was introduced by the South Korean tech giant in 2017 with the Samsung Galaxy S8 series as a replacement for its S Voice assistant. Ever since, Samsung users have had the option to use Bixby as the default voice assistant instead of Google Assistant. Now, a company executive has reportedly revealed that Samsung is planning to “make it smarter” by bringing AI features to the assistant.

Won-joon Choi, Executive Vice President, Mobile Business, Samsung, spoke with CNBC and said, “So Bixby has been a key voice assistant for Samsung not just for the mobile devices, but also for TVs and digital appliances that exist in Samsung’s ecosystem. So it has been the core voice assistant assistant so far.” Notably, Bixby competes with Apple’s Siri, Amazon’s Alexa, and the Google Assistant in the voice assistant segment.

Choi also highlighted the need to improve the product with the help of AI and large language models (LLMs) to make it smarter than it already is. He told CNBC, “With the emergence of generative AI and LLM (large language model) technology, I believe that we have to redefine the role of the Bixby, so that Bixby could be equipped with generative AI and become more smarter in the future.” Further, he also added that the AI could enable a more natural conversation with users as well as bring a new interface that would also support other products in the Samsung ecosystem.

While the report did not mention the features that could be added to Bixby, recently, Google allowed users to use its Gemini AI as assistant on Android-powered smartphones. The voice assistant can answer a call, snooze an alarm, and run basic Google searches to answer queries.

It also performs advanced tasks such as opening an app, turning on the flashlight, control smart home appliances, and more. Additionally, it can generate content, suggest itineraries for a trip, help make a recipe from ingredients at home, and all other tasks that AI chatbots can do.

Nothing Phone 3 is expected to be unveiled later this year. The phone is said to launch as a successor to the Nothing Phone 2, which was introduced in July 2023. The launch timeline of the anticipated handset has not yet been officially confirmed but following the launch pattern of the company, it is likely to be launched in July. We do not know much about the phone’s features or specifications, but a new report has suggested its processor details and the price range in India.

A 91Mobiles Hindi report citing industry sources claims that the Nothing Phone 3 is likely to be powered by Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 SoC. The phone is tipped to be priced around Rs. 40,000 and Rs. 45,000 in India. The report claims that the UK-based OEM is not planning to enter the premium handset segment yet and is looking to solidify its base within the Rs. 20,000 – Rs. 40,000 range. This is also likely the reason why Nothing is not expected to use a more high-end chipset, according to the report.

The previous two flagship handsets from the brand, the Nothing Phone 2 and Phone 1, were teased with an octopus and a parrot, respectively. Nothing recently teased a new upcoming product by revealing its mascot, however, that’s expected to be the Nothing Ear 3.

Nothing Phone 3 is expected to come with upgrades over the Phone 2. The current Phone 2 has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC, a 4,700mAh battery with 45W wired charging support, a 6.7-inch full-HD+ LTPO OLED display, a 50-megapixel dual rear camera unit, and a 32-megapixel selfie shooter.

At launch, the Nothing Phone 2 was priced at Rs. 44,999 for the 8GB + 128GB option, while the 12GB + 256GB and 12GB + 512GB variants were listed at Rs. 49,999 and Rs. 54,999, respectively. The phone is offered in Dark Gray and White colour options.

We’ve seen Apple Maps improve steadily over the years, growing to become a genuine competitor to Google Maps, and a newly filed Apple patent gives us an idea of another new feature that could be introduced in the app in the near future.

As spotted by Wccftech, the patent has the title “User Interfaces for Customized Navigation Routes” and talks about altering suggested routes based on the profile of a vehicle – and how much gas (or electric charge) it has left.

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