Here are the top trending news from the world of technology. News that every tech enthusiast should keep a tab on.
1)
Google’s new Pixel Phones are packed with AI photo Editing Features
At its annual Made By Google event, Google announced several AI photo editing features for its new Pixel 8 series phones. These AI features will help Pixel 8 phone owners to edit and create photos like a pro. One of the exciting new features is Magic Editor which uses generative AI to enable background filling and subject repositioning. Another new feature is ‘Best Take,’ which combines multiple shots to create the best group photo. Alongside, Google is also improving other photo editing features. For instance, Magic Eraser will now be able to remove larger objects from photos and Zoom Enhance will use generative AI to improve photo quality and fill in gaps between pixels when you crop an image.
2)
Google Assistant to be Upgraded with Bard’s AI Power
Google announced at its Made by Google event that its voice search feature Google Assistant will soon get Bard’s AI capabilities. Google Assistant will now be known as ‘Assistant with Bard’ and will be available on both Android & IOS apps. Thanks to its integration with Bard, Google Assistant will be able to handle a broader range of questions and tasks, and provide more intelligent and personalized responses. For instance, Google Assistant can now generate different creative text formats, like poems, code, scripts, musical pieces, email and letters. It can also help you with personal tasks in new ways, such as planning trips, searching emails, creating grocery lists, and sending messages. However, Assistant with Bard is still in beta testing phase.
3)
Amazon pulls the plug on live-audio streaming app ‘Amp’
Amazon has announced that it is shutting down its live-audio streaming app ‘Amp.’ Amp was launched in March last year but failed to gain much traction in the market where Spotify Live and Clubhouse are dominant players. In a memo to employees, Steve Boom, who is head of Amazon’s digital music unit, said that company has learnt lot of lessons from Amp and would implement those learnings to build new fan experiences on Amazon Music. Over all, shutting down of ‘Amp’ clearly indicates that live-audio streaming market has stagnated over the years. Clubhouse, once the hottest audio apps in the world, has seen its user base decline sharply. Spotify Live has also struggled to gain much traction in the market.
4)
Meta debuts Generative AI features for Advertisers
Facebook and Instagram’s parent company Meta has unveiled series of generative AI features that will help advertisers to create high-quality ad creatives. Some of the generative AI features that will be available to advertisers include ‘text variations,’ which allows advertisers to generate multiple versions of ad text based on their original copy. Additionally, advertisers can create multiple backgrounds to complement the advertiser’s product images. They can also adjust creative assets to fit different aspect ratios across multiple surfaces such as Feed or Reels. However, all these generative AI features are still in beta testing phase and will probably take weeks or even months before they are launched on a full-fledge basis.
5)
X to stop showing headlines on Articles
Starting from today X, formerly known as Twitter, will stop showing headlines on all articles that will be shared on its platform. Instead, X will only show the article’s lead image and the domain it will link users to. In the past, Elon musk has been very assertive about removing headlines from X, claiming that it will greatly improve the overall aesthetics of the platform and will also reduce the clickbait on its platform. The latest change has been met with mixed reactions by X users. It remains to be seen how the latest change will impact the distribution of content on X.