AI startup Dumme (pronounced “dummy”) is generating prerelease fervor, with hundreds of creators signing up for a test and a waitlist topping 20,000 for the video editing platform, which automates creation of short-form videos from long-form fare. The Y Combinator-backed company has raised $3.4 million in a seed round following its 2022 launch. Dumme’s pitch is two-fold: you don’t have to be a genius to use it, and the AI-generated results will be better than what a human could achieve manually when it comes to trimming long-form YouTube content for short-form platforms like TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels. Continue reading AI Startup Dumme Makes Easy Work of Editing Short Videos

Family history platform MyHeritage is releasing a mobile app called Reimagine that enables high-speed scanning of entire album pages to complement the company’s AI tools for restoring — and even facially animating — historical photos. Now users can easily import printed photos stored in albums by snapping page pictures on their iOS or Android device. The app will separate the individual photos, cropping and saving them as standalone images to which metadata can be added for indexing. The app also works with individual photos, or digital uploads from a camera roll. Continue reading Photo App Reimagine Brings Old Images to Life with AI Tools

To help chart the course of our AI-driven future, the Entertainment Technology Center at the University of Southern California will hold its inaugural Synthetic Media Summit this Thursday, June 8 on the USC campus. This high-level event will gather the world’s top AI experts and media executives to discuss the state, media use cases, and ethics of synthetic media for the news and entertainment industries. In-person seating is limited, and remote attendance is available at a reduced cost. Tickets can be purchased via Eventbrite, for $175 and $50, respectively (plus tax). Enter the discount code ETCSMS15 for 15 percent off in-person attendance. Continue reading Last Chance to Register for the ETC Synthetic Media Summit

Apple’s $3,499 Vision Pro headset will begin shipping in early 2024, CEO Tim Cook announced Monday at WWDC, calling it a device for “spatial computing.” The company’s new visionOS operating system is described as a mashup of iOS, macOS and tvOS, designed for “an entirely new universe of apps for Vision Pro,” according to Apple. Unity was revealed as the principal development engine for Vision Pro content. The upcoming headset, powered by Apple’s high-end M2 chip, supports 4K resolution and features embedded audio pods. The company emphasized gaming and streaming services, in addition to productivity and communication. Continue reading WWDC: Apple Unveils Its ‘Vision Pro’ Mixed Reality Headset

Day one of Apple’s WWDC 2023 conference from the company’s headquarters in Cupertino was about much more than the anticipated Vision Pro mixed reality headset. The company introduced a powerhouse Mac Pro with Ultra M2, starting at $6,999, and upgraded Mac Studio desktops with M2 Max or M2 Ultra chips. The macOS Sonoma desktop operating system was among the reveals, along with the new 15-inch MacBook Air. Apple took the wraps off iOS 17 and announced that FaceTime and videoconferencing are coming to Apple TV in 4K with tvOS 17. The company’s watchOS 10 rounded out the new product and software highlights. Continue reading WWDC: Apple Surprises with Product and Software Reveals

Nvidia Research is releasing a new AI model called Neuralangelo that can turn 2D iPhone video clips into 3D structures, virtually replicating sculptures, buildings and other real world objects in great detail. Named for Michelangelo’s life-like creations from blocks of marble, Neuralangelo is able to accurately capture repetitive texture patterns, homogenous colors, and strong color variations, tasks that were problematic for earlier AI models. Neuralangelo accomplishes the feat using instant neural graphics primitives, the technology behind Nvidia Instant NeRF. Continue reading Nvidia’s Neuralangelo AI Turns 2D Video Clips into 3D Worlds

AMC Theatres is closing its on-demand movie streaming service and transferring users and their content libraries to Vudu, a digital rental and sales streaming platform owned by NBCUniversal’s Fandango. Beginning last week, customers were invited to transfer their AMC Theatres On Demand accounts to Vudu, where they will be “upgraded to the highest-quality format” the platform offers, including 4K Ultra HD. Migrating customers will also receive 15 percent off any titles purchased within their first month of Vudu service. Since 2019 the theater chain has been offering AMC Stubs loyalty members on-demand movie delivery. Continue reading AMC Theatres Ends Streaming and Ports Customers to Vudu

The Meta Quest 3 is a thinner, wireless AR/VR headset that will sell for $499 beginning this fall. Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed the device last week ahead of Apple’s WWDC, taking place today through Friday (during today’s WWDC keynote, Apple announced its visionOS software platform for the company’s much anticipated Vision Pro headset). Powered by a new Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset developed in conjunction with Meta, Zuckerberg describes the Quest 3 as “the first mainstream headset with high-res color mixed reality” and promises more details at Meta Connect, September 27-28. Continue reading Meta Quest 3 Is Unveiled Just Ahead of Apple’s WWDC 2023

Apple is reportedly planning at least 15 new retail stores in the Asia-Pacific market, as well as five more outlets in Europe and the Middle East, and four additional locations in North America. Initial reports indicate the expansion is expected to run through 2027 and will also include refurbishing or relocating existing stores in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Overall, the company is exploring 53 new, remodeled or relocated stores over the next four years. Revitalization of the 22-year-old retail operation arrives in the wake of Apple contending with the COVID-19 pandemic downturn and labor unrest at some of its locations. Continue reading Apple Is Planning Expansion and Updates to Retail Presence

Roll, a new app for web and iOS, puts an AI spin on timeworn video capture and editing techniques, delivering virtual bokeh, motion graphics and multicam shots, as well as sliders, cranes, dollies and jibs. As the latest consumer artificial intelligence entry, Roll professes to empower anyone to create professional-quality remote video quickly using just an iPhone and Roll’s proprietary software. The Roll app is free to use, with the whole platform offered as a free trial with a paid subscription option. Roll lets users record broadcast-quality remote video calls, add generative AI special effects, and publish quickly. Continue reading Roll Uses Generative AI to Simulate Jibs, Dollies, Much More

Character.AI is a new chatbot that generates facsimiles of conversations with famous personages or original creations. Napoleon Bonaparte, Billie Eilish and Ariana Grande are among the  historical or contemporary characters the site recreates using a neural network. Anyone can use the free app to create a character, whether fictional or real, dead or alive, but a paid offering called c.ai+ provides perks including faster response times, priority access and early previews of new features. In addition to a website, the app launched on iOS and Android this month, triggering 700,000 Android installs within 48 hours. Continue reading Character.AI Lets Users Chat with Wide Variety of Characters

Snapchat is rolling out a new feature for its premium Snapchat+ platform that enables users who send Snaps to My AI let the artificial intelligence know what they’re up to “receive a unique generative Snap back that keeps the conversation going” via My AI Snaps. The feature was previewed at the Snap Partner Summit in April as part of a larger push on AI updates, including the ability to invite the My AI chatbot to participate in group chats with friends and the ability to get AI Lens suggestions and place recommendations. In addition, the My AI chatbot — made free to all users this year — was updated to reply to users’ Snaps with a text-based response. Continue reading Snapchat+ Introduces ‘My AI Snaps’ for Chatbot Snap Backs

Netflix says it will preemptively purge its UK library of films and TV shows that run afoul of new streamer regulations being implemented by the British government. UK ministers are calling on media regulator Ofcom to police streaming content as it does traditional broadcasters, which means video-on-demand platforms including Netflix and Amazon Prime Video could face fines of up to $310,000 per instance for hosting “harmful material.” Draft legislation that seeks to codify “due impartiality” for streamers as part of the proposed Media Bill were rebuked by Netflix as “nebulous” and potentially “onerous.” Continue reading Netflix Threatens to Purge Content to Avoid UK Streamer Bill

Mitigating the risk of extinction due to AI must should be as much a global priority as pandemics and nuclear war, according to the non-profit Center for AI Safety, which this week released a warning that artificial intelligence systems may pose an existential threat to humanity. Among the more than 350 executives, researchers and engineers who signed the statement are the CEOs of three leading AI firms: OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Google DeepMind’s Demis Hassabis and Anthropic’s Dario Amodei. The statement comes as rapid advancements in large language models raise fears of societal disruption through job loss and widespread misinformation. Continue reading Industry Leaders Caution That AI Presents ‘Risk of Extinction’

Twitter is emphasizing crowdsourced moderation. The launch of Community Notes for images in posts seeks to address instances where morphed or AI-generated images are posted. The idea is to expose altered content before it goes viral, as did the image of Pope Francis wearing a Balenciaga puffy coat in March and the fake image of an explosion at the Pentagon in May. Twitter says Community Notes about an image will appear with “recent and future” posts containing the graphic in question. Currently in the test phase, the feature works with tweets featuring a single image. Continue reading Twitter Community Notes Aim to Curb Impact of Fake Images