Reddit has launched a new AI-powered search tool called Reddit Answers. Reddit is already appearing regularly in Google Search returns. The new interface provides a way users can utilize a conversational model to get answers directly from the social platform. “Once a question is asked, curated summaries of relevant conversations and details across Reddit will appear, including links to related communities and posts,” according to Reddit. Whether users will want to skip their usual go-to search engines in favor of querying Reddit alone could have long term ramifications for the 19-year old social platform, which went public in 2023. Continue reading ‘Reddit Answers’ Wants to Gain More Users Searching In-App

Microsoft has launched a new AI-powered feature for its Edge Browser. Copilot Vision is now in preview for a limited number of U.S. Copilot Pro subscribers by opt-in through Copilot Labs. With user permission, Copilot Vision “sees” what is onscreen and can respond to questions about text and images, explains the company. Calling Copilot Vision “the first AI experience of its kind,” Microsoft suggests the experience is “almost like having a second set of eyes as you browse,” adding that when users turn on Copilot Vision it will “instantly scan, analyze, and offer insights based on what it sees.” Continue reading Microsoft Previews AI-Powered Copilot Vision for Edge Browser

“AI won’t exist as an app, or a button… it’ll be an entirely new environment built on top of a web browser.” That is the pitch from The Browser Company, the New York-based firm behind the Arc browser that is now developing an AI-first web interface called Dia, expected to debut early next year. Dia aims to leverage AI tools to simplify common Internet tasks. The repertoire is now a familiar one, with things like writing assists and inspirational prompts becoming AI givens in a competitive field where Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini are already established. The Browser Company is trying to distinguish Dia with a simple, user-friendly interface. Continue reading The Browser Company is Building Dia, an AI-First Web Browser

DirecTV has abandoned its proposed merger with Dish Network after EchoStar bondholders with $10.7 billion of debt in Dish and its DBS subsidiary rejected an exchange provision, dooming a deal that would have created the largest pay-TV service in the U.S. EchoStar announced it respects the decision and will continue to operate its own pay-TV brands. While DirecTV still believes the merger “would have benefitted all stakeholders,” it deemed the exchange necessary to protect its balance sheet operational flexibility, DirecTV CEO Bill Morrow explained. Continue reading DirecTV Terminates Deal to Merge with Rival EchoStar’s Dish

Midjourney is turning heads with its new image editor, which lets users upload images and then make adjustments. The company’s models — most recently Midjourney 6.1 — accept uploaded images as a reference to use for generative results. Now the Midjourney image editor allows precise adjustments to aspects of the frame. An “image retexturing mode” is also being introduced, as is v2 of its “AI moderator.” The new features are only available to users with yearly memberships, monthly memberships for the past 12 months, or those who have generated at least 10,000 Midjourney images. Continue reading Midjourney Makes Powerful AI Image Editor Available in Alpha

YouTube has added new features to its apps for mobile, Web and TV, including expanded controls for playback speeds, badges, a miniplayer redesign, and the ability to create collaborative playlists. The company is also debuting an authenticity tool. By affixing a “captured with a camera” label, creators can indicate their work is shot with an actual camera, with unaltered visual and audio. Among the general platform improvements that YouTube implements annually, users can now share playlists via link or QR code, and create custom thumbnails for those lists, either by uploading an image or generating one with AI. Continue reading YouTube Expands Features and Adds an Authentication Tool

The Tor Project has merged operation with Tails, a Linux-based portable operating system that uses Tor to protect users from digital surveillance. Tor, a global non-profit that develops tools for online privacy and anonymity, will incorporate Tails into its structure for simpler collaboration, “better sustainability, reduced overhead, and expanded training and outreach programs to counter a larger number of digital threats,” according to the Tor Project. The move comes as regulatory forces heighten efforts to break end-to-end encryption. Tor emphasizes the alliance will “strengthen both organizations’ ability to protect people worldwide from surveillance and censorship.” Continue reading Privacy-Focused Tor Platform Absorbs Linux-Based Tails OS

Cloudflare has released AI Audit, a free set of new tools designed to help websites analyze and control how their content is used by artificial intelligence models. Described as “one-click blocking” to prevent unauthorized AI scraping, Cloudflare says it will also make it easier to identify the content bots scan most, so they can wall it off and negotiate payment in exchange for access. Helping its clients toward a sustainable future, Cloudflare is also creating a marketplace for sites to negotiate fees based on AI audits that trace cyber footprints on server files. Continue reading Cloudflare Tool Can Prevent AI Bots from Scraping Websites

Verizon has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire competing fiber Internet service provider Frontier Communications in a transaction valued at $20 billion, including $9.6 billion in cash. The deal is expected to close in about 18 months, pending Frontier shareholder and regulatory approval. Verizon says the deal will increase its fiber subscribers by 2.2 million customers and extend its network reach to 25 million households across 31 states and Washington, D.C. It is also expected to expand Verizon’s intelligent edge network for digital innovations like artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things. Continue reading Verizon Plans Frontier Acquisition in Deal Valued at $20 Billion

Last year Sony entered into a joint venture with Singapore-based startup Startale Labs. Now the first fruits of that collaboration have come to light, with the launch of Soneium, an Ethereum layer 2 blockchain, from Startale and Sony Block Solutions Labs. The platform is first being made available to developers, with plans for an eventual public launch, the goal being “to create new services by leveraging the various businesses and IP within the Sony Group so that Soneium becomes an infrastructure that everyone can use on a daily basis,” according to Sony. Continue reading Sony and Startale Labs Launch Soneium Blockchain for Web3

WordPress parent Automattic has launched Write Brief with AI to help make documents more concise. Available for free to WordPress.com users, Write Brief with AI measures “readability,” suggests edits and will even make them for you. It identifies complex words and offers alternatives and focuses on simplifying convoluted sentences — all from within the editor function in the WordPress dashboard. Write Brief with AI is now built-in to Jetpack for those who host through WordPress.com, available only in English, though the company says it is working to expand language support. Continue reading WordPress Introduces AI Assistant to Help Users with Writing

Two landmark bills designed to bolster online safety for children — the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0) — were overwhelmingly approved by the U.S. Senate on Tuesday in bipartisan 91-3 votes. If approved by the House, the legislation would introduce new rules regarding what tech companies can offer to minors and how those firms use and share children’s data. The three senators who voted against the bills cited concerns that the regulations could stifle free speech, open the door to government censorship, and fail to adequately address the greatest threats to children online. Continue reading Senate Passes Two Bills to Strengthen Children’s Online Safety

Microsoft has begun the release of Bing generative search, making it available for “a small percentage of user queries.” The company says it will solicit user feedback and undertake further testing prior to a broader rollout. Google began dabbling in what it called the Search Generative Experience last summer, then upped the ante by adding a search-optimized version of its Gemini model this spring. The journey was not without controversy, something Microsoft will surely try to avoid. Microsoft says its new AI-driven search functionality “combines the foundation of Bing’s search results with the power of large and small language models (LLMs and SLMs).” Continue reading Microsoft Testing Bing Generative Search for User Feedback

Major League Baseball has rolled out a standalone streaming option of MLB Network for $5.99 per month without requiring a pay-TV subscription. The direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service is currently available to baseball fans in the U.S. without the need for cable, satellite or Internet TV. For die-hard fans, the MLB Network + At Bat bundle — available for $6.99 per month — also includes live game audio for all MLB teams through MLB At Bat, live Minor League Baseball games, and access to highlights and live look-ins via MLB Big Inning. Current MLB.TV subscribers can stream MLB Network for the rest of this season at no additional cost. Continue reading MLB Network Launches $5.99 Standalone Streaming Service

Google has reconsidered its previously announced plan to turn off third-party tracking cookies in its Chrome browser in favor of an option to be controlled by consumers. The original plan was pushed back a few times but was expected to take place early next year. Competitors and regulators have raised concerns about the deprecation that would have left Google — which hauled in more than $237.86 billion in ad revenue last year — free to use its own tracking to serve targeted ads to those using Chrome. Google is now developing a new plan to let consumers make their own informed decisions about whether to allow third-party cookies. Continue reading Google Changes Direction with Plans for Third-Party Cookies