What's New In Consumer Tech World Last Week? News That You Should Know (May 12-May 19, 2024)

Here’s what happened in the world of consumer tech in the last week:

In a significant development, Chinese chipmakers are making headway in producing high bandwidth memory (HBM) semiconductors, a crucial component in artificial intelligence (AI) chipsets. This marks a key step in China’s efforts to diminish its dependence on foreign suppliers amid ongoing tensions with the U.S.

Tech

Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta Platforms Inc. META, is reportedly set to celebrate his 40th birthday on his new superyacht, Launchpad, in Panama.

Also Read: Elon Musk Reacts After Doge Designer Says Meta ‘Would Be Trillionaires By Now’ If They Had A Dollar For Every Child Safety Investigation

Alphabet Inc.’s GOOG GOOGL Google slipped in a pair prototype version of augmented reality (AR) glasses at the Google I/O 2024 conference, sparking speculation about a potential revival of the once-abandoned Google Glass project.

Also Read: Beating US Sanctions, Chinese Scientists Achieve Mass Production Of Optical Chips At Low Cost

Elon Musk 

Tesla Inc. TSLA and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has expressed skepticism about the capabilities of ChatGPT-parent OpenAI’s latest AI model development.

Also Read: Elon Musk’s Neuralink Patient, Noland Arbaugh, Shares His Journey From Paralysis To Cyborg: ‘Once You Get A Taste For Using It…’

Elon Musk revealed that his AI-powered chatbot, Grok, will soon offer a humorous take on the news.

Also Read: Elon Musk Says ‘High Priority Fix’ Is In Works For Live Content On X, Days After Acknowledging It’s Not Female-Friendly

Media & Streaming Platform

Comcast Corporation CMCSA is set to introduce a new streaming bundle featuring Apple Inc. AAPL TV+, Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX), and Peacock, a service by NBCUniversal.

To prioritize streaming services, Walt Disney Co DIS has significantly reduced its investment in traditional television networks, said CEO Bob Iger.

Also, Walt Disney and Airbnb, Inc ABNB have joined forces to offer fans a unique experience. Starting May 24, guests can stay in a recreation of the iconic Edna Mode house from the Pixar film “The Incredibles.”

Video sharing platform, Rumble Inc. RUM has initiated legal proceedings against Google, accusing it of monopolistic practices in its digital advertising products. Rumble is seeking damages in excess of $1 billion.

Tech & Smartphone

Apple and Alphabet are collaborating to support alerts for unwanted Bluetooth tracking device recognition across operating systems.

In a bid to curb the rising incidents of mobile phone theft, Google has announced a new feature that will use artificial intelligence to detect theft and lock the screen of Android smartphones.

Also Read: Samsung’s ‘UnCrush’ Ad Mocking Apple Invites Barrage Of Criticism Online: ‘You Think This Will Make People Switch?’

Apple has announced a groundbreaking set of accessibility features that will allow users to control iPhones and iPads with their eyes.

Related: Tim Cook Hyped ‘Thinnest Apple Product Ever’ At Recent iPad Event, But Cupertino’s Newest Gadget Flunks Durability Test In ‘Catastrophic Failure’

Apple is reportedly close to finalizing a partnership with OpenAI that could bring significant AI features to its devices. 

Gaming

Sony Group Corp. SONY announced this week that it shipped 4.5 million PS5 units during the three-month period ending March 31, 2024, a decrease from the 6.3 million shipped in the same period the previous year.

Also, Sony announced that “Helldivers 2” sold over 12 million copies in its first 12 weeks, making it PlayStation’s fastest-selling game ever. Moreover, the company revealed the complete list of PlayStation Plus Games Catalog additions for May 2024, headlined by the highly anticipated return of Red Dead Redemption 2.

Also Read: Marvel Rivals Creators Were Banned From Making Negative Reviews, NetEase Apologizes

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc TTWO has reaffirmed that Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA 6) is set for release in the fall of 2025, dispelling rumors of a potential delay to 2026.

Electronic Arts Inc’s (NASDAQ: EA) Madden NFL 25 is reportedly set for release on August 16, with early access on August 12 for Deluxe Edition buyers and EA Play subscribers.

Also Read: Black Ops 6: Next Call Of Duty Game Might Skip Numbered Title

Ubisoft Entertainment SA UBSFF announced the arrival of Skull and Bones Season 2, citing a “tremendous response” from the community following the game’s launch.

Microsoft Corp. MSFT unveiled the second wave of Xbox Game Pass additions for May 2024, featuring a variety of games spanning different genres.

Related: Xbox Exec Sarah Bond Addresses Microsoft’s Studio Closures: ‘It’s Always Extraordinarily Hard To Make Decisions Like That’

GameStop Corp GME, the U.S. video game retail chain, is expanding its market reach by venturing into the lucrative collectibles domain.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

To enhance data privacy for educators and students, Google is set to introduce its Gemini AI to schools. The tech giant has assured that it will not use the data for AI model training or share it with any third parties.

OpenAI dropped GPT-4o on Monday after several weeks of rumors about the AI startup’s next big reveal. The company showed off several examples of what this updated version of GPT is capable of.

OpenAI has skipped its biggest investor, Microsoft’s Windows 11, instead launching the ChatGPT app for Apple’s macOS operating system while unveiling the new GPT-4o model. OpenAI introduced a more efficient and cost-effective version of its AI model, GPT-4, which has existed for over a year.

John Schulman, the co-founder of OpenAI, has shared his insights on the performance of GPT-4 and the potential challenges it faces due to a limited amount of training data being available. 

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is currently leading one of the biggest AI startups in the world, but less than six months ago, he was at the center of a “palace coup.”

Also Read: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman Seems To Be On The Same Page With Elon Musk About One Thing — To Ensure ‘Reasonable Safety’ In AI Era Via Strong Regulation

OpenAI’s chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, who announced departure from his post on Wednesday, might now be heading to Elon Musk’s xAI, according to Deepwater Asset Management’s managing partner, Gene Munster.

Related: Meet Jakub Pachocki, OpenAI’s New Chief Scientist After Ilya Sutskever’s Exit: Sam Altman Hails Him As ‘One Of The Greatest Minds Of Our Generation’

Sam Altman expressed his support for international regulation of AI, echoing similar statements shared previously by Elon Musk.

Also Read: Elon Musk Recalls Breaking Friendship With Google’s Larry Page Over Ilya Sutskever: ‘Linchpin For OpenAI Being Successful’

Alphabet’s Sundar Pichai thinks that key AI rival, OpenAI, should be the one to answer if it violated YouTube’s terms of service after it allegedly scraped over a million hours of videos to train its AI model, Sora.

Google and Amazon.com Inc. AMZN-backed AI startup Anthropic has introduced its Claude chatbot and subscription plans in Europe.

Related: Google Advances AI Integration, While Apple May Partner with OpenAI to Enhance Siri, Analysts Say

Humane, the company behind the AI Pin, which received some bad reviews after the initial hype, has announced a significant upgrade to its product.

To bolster China’s artificial intelligence sector, renowned AI pioneer and founder of Beijing-based startup — 01.AI — Kai-Fu Lee is launching the company’s first consumer AI application.

Photo via Pixabay.