Tech
Microsoft hires OpenAI founder Sam Altman to lead AI research team
Microsoft announced Monday that it has hired Sam Altman and another co-founder of ChatGPT maker OpenAI after they unexpectedly departed the company days earlier in a corporate shakeup that shocked the artificial intelligence world.
Microsoft Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella also tweeted that the major investor in OpenAI — behind the chatbot that kicked off the generative AI craze — looked “forward to getting to know” OpenAI's new chief executive, former Twitch leader Emmett Shear, and the rest of the management team.
Nadella wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, that Microsoft was “extremely excited to share the news that Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, together with colleagues, will be joining Microsoft to lead a new advanced AI research team.”
Altman said “the mission continues,” in reply to Nadella on X.
OpenAI said Friday that Altman was pushed out after a review found he was “not consistently candid in his communications” with the board of directors, which had lost confidence in his ability to lead OpenAI.
Altman catapulted ChatGPT to global fame while serving as company CEO and in the past year has become Silicon Valley’s sought-after voice on the promise and potential dangers of artificial intelligence.
OpenAI last week had announced co-founder Brockman would step down as board chairman but remain onas president. Brockman followed with a post on X reprinting a message he sent to OpenAI employees in which he wrote, “based on today’s news, i quit.”
In another X post Friday night, Brockman said Altman was asked to join a video meeting with the company’s board members, when co-founder and chief scientist Ilya Sutskever informed Altman he was being fired.
Brockman added that he was informed of his removal from the board in a separate call with Sutskever a short time later.
“Sam and I are shocked and saddened by what the board did today,” Brockman wrote on X.
Human drama at OpenAI: Board reportedly ‘in discussion’ with Sam Altman to return as CEO
The OpenAI board is reportedly "in discussion" with Sam Altman regarding his potential return as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) after he was suddenly fired on Friday (November 17, 2023), according to The Verge.
Quoting sources close to the matter, The Verge reported that Altman is “ambivalent” about coming back and would want significant governance changes.
Also read: ChatGPT-maker OpenAI fires CEO Sam Altman
Earlier, many staffers of OpenAI, the US-based AI research and deployment company that developed ChatGPT, gave an ultimatum to the OpenAI board to resign and bring back Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, chairman of OpenAI who resigned in protest of firing Altman.
As per The Verge, the board has initially reached an agreement to resign, making way for Altman and Brockman to return. However, there seems to have been a change in their stance since then.
A source close to Altman told Verge that if he decides to start a new company, those staffers will go with him, which could lead OpenAI towards a state of free-fall.
Also read: ChatGPT-4: All you need to know
Following Altman’s termination as CEO, a string of senior researchers of the organisation have resigned from their posts at OpenAI.
Meanwhile, in a memo sent to OpenAI staffers, one executive member of the company has reportedly said "we remain optimistic" about bringing back Sam Altman, The Verge reports, quoting The Information. The Verge, however, couldn't confirm whom the executive was referring to with the term "we."
Luna Shamsuddoha honoured posthumously by Portugal for contributions in ICT sector
Luna Shamsuddoha, a pioneer in Bangladesh’s ICT sector, was posthumously honoured with the ‘Meritorious Achievement Award-2023’ by Portugal for her contributions to ICT.
The award ceremony organized by the International Centre for Parliamentary Studies (ICPS) and the National Electoral Commission of Portugal was held in Lisbon on November 15.
The award was conferred on Luna Shamsuddoha in recognition of her invaluable contributions and lifetime dedication to electoral management including the formulation of fingerprint and photograph-based voter lists in Bangladesh alongside her contribution to electoral management in different countries of the world.
Her remarkable legacy in the realm of electoral affairs has left an indelible mark, the organisers said.
The ‘Meritorious Achievement Award’ was handed over to Reem Shamsuddoha, daughter of the late Luna Shamsuddoha, at the function which was attended by dignitaries from electoral commissions from around the world.
Soreto de Barros, president of the National Electoral Commission of Portugal, officials of election commissions of various countries, and former chief election commissioner of India Nasim Zaidi, were present, among others, on the occasion.
Luna Shamsuddoha breathed her last on February 17, 2021. The ICPS mentioned that Luna Shamsuddoha was conferred the prestigious award due to her invaluable contributions to the electoral management of various countries of the world including Bangladesh through the use of ICT.
Regarding the award, AKM Shamsuddoha, husband of the late Luna Shamsuddoha, said the ‘Meritorious Achievement Award’ conferred posthumously on Luna is a matter of great pride. He also recalled the tireless efforts of the engineers and officials of Dohatec New Media towards the achievement.
Honor X5 Plus Review: A decent budget-friendly phone
The Honor X series has been the brand’s entry-level and mid-range line of smartphones. The X series has always brought a compelling price-performance balance that has aided in its huge popularity. Honor launched X5 Plus in Bangladesh on 16th August 2023. Apart from the large screen, the Honor X5 Plus brings some exciting features. Let’s check them out.
Key Specifications of Honor X5 Plus
Design and Build Quality
The X5 Plus is sort of a semi-update to the X5 released earlier this year. As a result, the X5 Plus carries a lot of the design elements forward with several internal updates. There are subtle changes in the design on the X5 Plus with the back having a frosted glass hue. However, the back is still plastic which just looks like glass. The camera housing now has a refractive glossy finish which stands out in direct light. As for colors, users will be getting a choice of Cyan Lake or Midnight Black.
Dimension-wise the devices come in at around 163.32 mm by 75.07 mm by 8.35 mm with 188g of effective weight. The lightweight design and the rounded edges give an impressive hand feel to the device. The device has all the ports and buttons in their usual place. Except for the sim slot which is placed at the top of the device. Apart from the two stand-by nano sims, there is a dedicated micro SDXC slot as well. It’s a useful addition considering the internal storage is only 64 GB.
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The power button on the right also doubles as the fingerprint scanner on the X5 Plus. There is also the usual bottom-firing speaker, Type C port, and the ever-disappearing 3.5 mm headphone jack at the bottom of the device. Being an entry-level smartphone, there is a noticeable chin at the bottom of the smartphone. Other than that, the X5 Plus is a well-built solid device that will withstand heavy and rough usage.
The Display
The display on the X5 Plus is a 6.56-inch TFT LCD panel with HD+ configuration. The resolution stands at 720 by 1612 pixels with a 20:9 aspect ratio and 269 ppi density. The slightly larger display on the X5 Plus allows for the screen-to-body ratio to be bumped up to 84.3%.
As mentioned before, the front chin stands out as an eyesore in 2023. But given the ultra-budget positioning of the X5 Plus, it only makes sense that Honor had to cut corners.
Read more: Xiaomi Mix Fold 3 Review: Flagship Phone with Slim Foldable Design
However, it's not all gloomy with the display. Even as a TFT panel, the screen showed good contrast and balance. The blacks weren’t completely washed out and there wasn’t also any noticeable blue tint. What’s even better is that users will be getting a 90 Hz refresh rate on the X5 Plus.
It’s not a great display by any means. But for its price, it doesn’t get any better than this.
The Camera
There is a dual camera module on the X5 Plus. The main camera is a 50 MP f/1.8 wide-angle shooter with PDAF. There is no OIS and EIS for stabilization. Pictures during the daytime came out pretty well. There were good details in the images with post-processing color pop. The boosted colors rendered a better result as the color reproduction was almost always on point. However, the camera failed to replicate the same in shades or under artificial lights. The dynamic range was also average with passable details.
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The story continues the same in low light conditions as well. There were noticeable noises in the pictures and most shots came out softer than one would like. The shutter speed on the night mode is pretty slow. But if one can keep a steady hand, the images would come out far better than they usually do.
There is an additional 2 MP f/2.4 depth sensor. It aids a bit in the portrait shot but nothing other than that.
The front-facing 5 MP shooter can be considered generic at best.
Videography is rated at 1080P at 30 fps. But without any form of stabilization, the results aren’t really passable per se.
Read more: Top 10 Smartphones Coming to Bangladesh in November 2023
SpaceX launched its giant new rocket but explosions end the second test flight
SpaceX launched its mega rocket Starship but lost both the booster and the spacecraft in a pair of explosions minutes into Saturday’s test flight.
The rocketship reached space following liftoff from South Texas before communication suddenly was lost. SpaceX officials said it appears the ship’s self-destruct system blew it up over the Gulf of Mexico.
Minutes earlier, the separated booster had exploded over the gulf. By then, though, its job was done.
Saturday’s demo lasted eight or so minutes, about twice as long as the first test in April, which also ended in an explosion. The latest flight came to an end as the ship’s engines were almost done firing to put it on an around-the-world path.
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At nearly 400 feet (121 meters), Starship is the biggest and most powerful rocket ever built, with the goal of ferrying people to the moon and Mars.
“The real topping on the cake today, that successful liftoff,” said SpaceX commentator John Insprucker, noting that all 33 booster engines fired as designed, unlike last time. The booster also separated seamlessly from the spaceship, which reached an altitude of 92 miles (148 kilometers).
Added commentator Kate Tice: "We got so much data, and that will all help us to improve for our next flight.”
SpaceX founder Elon Musk watched from behind launch controllers at the southern tip of Texas near the Mexico border, near Boca Chica Beach. At company headquarters in Hawthorne, California, employees cheered as Starship soared at daybreak. The room grew quiet once it was clear that the spaceship had been destroyed.
Read: SpaceX launches 4 astronauts for NASA after private flight
SpaceX had been aiming for an altitude of 150 miles (240 kilometers), just high enough to send the bullet-shaped spacecraft around the globe before ditching into the Pacific near Hawaii about 1 1/2 hours after liftoff, short of a full orbit.
Following April's flight demo, SpaceX made dozens of improvements to the rocket as well as the launch pad. The Federal Aviation Administration cleared the rocket for flight on Wednesday, after confirming that all safety and environmental concerns had been met.
After Saturday's launch, the FAA said no injuries or public damage had been reported and that an investigation was underway to determine what went wrong. SpaceX cannot launch another Starship until the review is complete and corrections made, the FAA added.
NASA is counting on Starship to land astronauts on the moon by the end of 2025 or shortly thereafter. The space agency awarded SpaceX a $3 billion contract to make it happen, by transferring astronauts from its Orion capsule to Starship in lunar orbit before heading down to the surface.
Read: Four station astronauts catch ride with SpaceX back home
“Today’s test is an opportunity to learn — then fly again,” noted NASA Administrator Bill Nelson via X, formerly known as Twitter.
Starship is 34 feet (10 meters) taller than NASA’s Saturn V rocket which carried men to the moon more than a half-century ago, and 75 feet (23 meters) taller than NASA’s Space Launch System rocket that flew around the moon and back, without a crew, last year. And it’s got approximately double the liftoff thrust.
Like before, nothing of value was aboard Starship for the trial run.
Once Starship is proven, Musk plans to use the fully reusable mega rockets to launch satellites into orbit around Earth and equipment and people to the moon, and eventually, to Mars.
ChatGPT-maker OpenAI fires CEO Sam Altman
ChatGPT-maker Open AI said Friday it has pushed out its co-founder and CEO Sam Altman after a review found he was “not consistently candid in his communications” with the board of directors.
“The board no longer has confidence in his ability to continue leading OpenAI,” the artificial intelligence company said in a statement.
In the year since Altman catapulted ChatGPT to global fame, he has become Silicon Valley’s sought-after voice on the promise and potential dangers of artificial intelligence and his sudden and mostly unexplained exit brought uncertainty to the industry’s future.
Mira Murati, OpenAI’s chief technology officer, will take over as interim CEO effective immediately, the company said, while it searches for a permanent replacement.
The announcement also said another OpenAI co-founder and top executive, Greg Brockman, the board’s chairman, would be stepping down from that role but remain at the company, where he serves as president. But later on X, formerly Twitter, Brockman wrote, “based on today’s news, i quit.”
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OpenAI declined to answer questions on what Altman’s alleged lack of candor was about. The statement said his behavior was hindering the board’s ability to exercise its responsibilities.
Altman posted Friday on X: “i loved my time at openai. it was transformative for me personally, and hopefully the world a little bit. most of all i loved working with such talented people. will have more to say about what’s next later.”
The Associated Press and OpenAI have a licensing and technology agreement that allows OpenAI access to part of AP’s text archives.
Altman helped start OpenAI as a nonprofit research laboratory in 2015. But it was ChatGPT’s explosion into public consciousness that thrust Altman into the spotlight as a face of generative AI — technology that can produce novel imagery, passages of text and other media. On a world tour this year, he was mobbed by a crowd of adoring fans at an event in London.
He’s sat with multiple heads of state to discuss AI’s potential and perils. Just Thursday, he took part in a CEO summit at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference in San Francisco, where OpenAI is based.
He predicted AI will prove to be “the greatest leap forward of any of the big technological revolutions we’ve had so far.” He also acknowledged the need for guardrails, calling attention to the existential dangers future AI could pose.
Some computer scientists have criticized that focus on far-off risks as distracting from the real-world limitations and harms of current AI products. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has launched an investigation into whether OpenAI violated consumer protection laws by scraping public data and publishing false information through its chatbot.
The company said its board consists of OpenAI’s chief scientist, Ilya Sutskever, and three non-employees: Quora CEO Adam D’Angelo, tech entrepreneur Tasha McCauley, and Helen Toner of the Georgetown Center for Security and Emerging Technology.
OpenAI’s key business partner, Microsoft, which has invested billions of dollars into the startup and helped provide the computing power to run its AI systems, said that the transition won’t affect its relationship.
“We have a long-term partnership with OpenAI and Microsoft remains committed to Mira and their team as we bring this next era of AI to our customers,” said an emailed Microsoft statement.
While not trained as an AI engineer, Altman, now 38, has been seen as a Silicon Valley wunderkind since his early 20s. He was recruited in 2014 to take lead of the startup incubator YCombinator.
“Sam is one of the smartest people I know, and understands startups better than perhaps anyone I know, including myself,” read YCombinator co-founder Paul Graham’s 2014 announcement that Altman would become its president. Graham said at the time that Altman was “one of those rare people who manage to be both fearsomely effective and yet fundamentally benevolent.”
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OpenAI started out as a nonprofit when it launched with financial backing from Tesla CEO Elon Musk and others. Its stated aims were to “advance digital intelligence in the way that is most likely to benefit humanity as a whole, unconstrained by a need to generate financial return.”
That changed in 2018 when it incorporated a for-profit business Open AI LP, and shifted nearly all its staff into the business, not long after releasing its first generation of the GPT large language model for mimicking human writing. Around the same time, Musk, who had co-chaired its board with Altman, resigned from the board in a move that OpenAI said would eliminate a “potential future conflict for Elon” due to Tesla’s work on building self-driving systems.
While OpenAI’s board has preserved its nonprofit governance structure, the startup it oversees has increasingly sought to capitalize on its technology by tailoring its popular chatbot to business customers.
At its first developer conference last week, Altman was the main speaker showcasing a vision for a future of AI agents that could help people with a variety of tasks. Days later, he announced the company would have to pause new subscriptions to its premium version of ChatGPT because it had exceeded capacity.
Altman’s exit “is indeed shocking as he has been the face of” generative AI technology, said Gartner analyst Arun Chandrasekaran.
He said OpenAI still has a “deep bench of technical leaders” but its next executives will have to steer it through the challenges of scaling the business and meeting the expectations of regulators and society.
Forrester analyst Rowan Curran speculated that Altman’s departure, “while sudden,” did not likely reflect deeper business problems.
“This seems to be a case of an executive transition that was about issues with the individual in question, and not with the underlying technology or business,” Curran said.
Altman has a number of possible next steps. Even while running OpenAI, he placed large bets on several other ambitious projects.
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Among them are Helion Energy, for developing fusion reactors that could produce prodigious amounts of energy from the hydrogen in seawater, and Retro Biosciences, which aims to add 10 years to the human lifespan using biotechnology. Altman also co-founded Worldcoin, a biometric and cryptocurrency project that’s been scanning people’s eyeballs with the goal of creating a vast digital identity and financial network.
DOOGEE V31GT 5G Rugged Phone Review: Sturdy mid-range gaming device
The Doogee V31GT, crafted by the Chinese company Doogee, is a rugged phone released in China on September 23, 2023. Despite its initial appearance as a typical budget-friendly rugged phone, the V31GT stands out in the smartphone market with distinctive features. Representing a noteworthy advancement in Doogee's V series, it combines durability with unique functionalities, making it a compelling option in the evolving landscape of rugged smartphones.
Key Features and Specification of the Doogee V31GT
Design
The Doogee V31 GT phone stands out with its robust build, resembling a tool with dimensions of 178.5 mm by 83.1 mm by 17.9 mm and a weight of 390g. Its Hybrid Dual SIM setup and IP68/IP69K dust/water resistance make it durable, surviving drops with a drop-to-concrete resistance of up to 1.8m.
The device sports dual speakers for practical stereo sound. On the back, a distinctive circular camera module houses a thermal camera, LED flash, main optical camera, and night vision camera, all protected by a robust rim. The handset, encased in black-coated metal with protective rubber, includes a fingerprint-sensing power button, textured volume buttons, a custom button, and a TF/SIM card slot.
Unlocking options include a fingerprint ID and 2D face ID. While lacking an always-on display, a small red/green LED signals a full charge effectively. Overall, it's a rugged, functional device with a unique design.
Read more: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 Review: An Incremental Update Nearing Perfection
Display
The Doogee V31 GT features a sizable 6.58-inch IPS LCD display with a smooth 120Hz refresh rate, providing users with an expansive and engaging visual platform. Covering about 70.5% of the front, the screen strikes a balance between size and usability.
Measured diagonally, the display's 6.58-inch height contributes to a visual experience without sacrificing practicality. Sporting a resolution of 1080 by 2400 pixels and a 20:9 aspect ratio, the display ensures clarity and detail, boasting a pixel density of around 400 ppi.
The use of Corning Gorilla Glass 5 adds durability, protecting against scratches. The multi-touch capable screen enhances user interactions on the Doogee V31 GT, making it a versatile tool for various tasks. Whether enjoying multimedia content or navigating the device, the display's size, resolution, and responsiveness contribute to a user-friendly and immersive experience.
Cameras
The Doogee V31 GT boasts a robust quad-camera setup on its rear, headlined by a 50 MP wide lens with an f/1.8 aperture for detailed and bright photos. Accompanying this is a 24 MP (f/1.8) night vision lens with two infrared lights for low-light scenarios, an 8 MP (f/1.8) wide lens, and a unique 256 by 192 pixels thermal camera. This thermal camera adds a distinct capability to capture temperature variations in the environment.
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The array supports features like LED flash, HDR, and panorama, catering to various photography needs. On the video front, it can shoot in 4K at 30fps and 1080p at 30fps.
The front-facing selfie camera is a 32 MP wide lens with an f/1.8 aperture, delivering detailed self-portraits, and it supports 1080p video recording at 30fps.
The Doogee V31 GT's camera system is designed to offer versatility, covering a range of photographic scenarios with its varied lenses and capabilities.
Hardware and Performance
The DOOGEE V31 GT boasts a powerful MediaTek Dimensity 1080 processor, featuring an octa-core solution clocked at 2.6 GHz. This includes 6 Cortex-A55 cores running at 2.0 GHz and 2 Cortex-A78 cores at 2.6 GHz. Complementing the processor is a Mali-G68 MC4 GPU.
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Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 Review: An Incremental Update Nearing Perfection
Samsung entered the foldable smartphone market back in 2019 with their Galaxy Fold. Since then, the brand has introduced a new foldable each year with incremental updates. This year, users will get the Z Fold5 with several new developments over last year’s fold. Samsung launched the Z Fold5 on 11th August in India. Let’s check out what’s changed from the Z Fold4 and how it stacks up against the competitors.
Key Specifications of Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5
Design and Build Quality
The design of the Fold from its first generation to the current iteration has stayed fairly similar. The changes from the Fold4 to the Fold5 are so minute that it’s difficult to tell them apart unless looked at closely. The only visible design change on the Fold5 is the shift in the flashlight position.
However, the biggest change in the Fold5 is in the hinge mechanism. It is now made from armored aluminum with a dual rail structure. The new hinge mechanism allows the device to fold flat, unlike the wedge-shaped gap that was seen up until the last generation.
The unfolded dimension of the device is 154.9 mm by 129.9 mm by 6.1 mm while the folded dimension comes in at 154.9 mm by 67.1 mm by 13.4 mm. The relatively compact form factor makes for 235 g of effective weight on the Fold5. The aluminum frame and the plastic inner screen are the same as before with the outer screen and back getting the updated Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2.
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Additionally, the device is IPX8 water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 min). There is also stylus support like the last generation.
Overall, the design and build quality has seen a little update over the last generation. It’s the same refined Samsung design with some minor tweaks here and there.
The Display
The display on the Galaxy Z Fold5 is also similar to that of last year’s Fold4. The inner screen is Foldable Dynamic AMOLED 2X with 120Hz refresh rate and HDR10+ support. The 7.6-inch inner screen has an 1812 x 2176 pixels (QXGA+) resolution which accommodates 373 ppi. The near-symmetrical display also has an impressive 91.1% screen-to-body ratio. The inner display is brighter this time around on the Fold5. In a test, the manual brightness slider could go up to 800 nits, and in auto mode, it could go up to 1100 nits.
The outer display is what Samsung is calling their Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel. It comes with a 120Hz refresh rate. The 6.2-inch display is tall and narrow with a 23.1:9 ratio at 904 x 2316 pixels. The HBM on the outer screen can also go up to 1150 nits.
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While the quality of the panel is impeccable as ever, Samsung couldn’t find a way around the crease. It is one of those drawbacks that foldable enthusiasts will have to put up with for the time being.
The Camera
There is a triple camera setup on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5. The camera system is almost identical to last year’s Fold4 with most of the changes happening at the processing end.
The main camera is a 50 MP f/1.8 sensor. It's a 23mm wide angle lens with standard OIS and PDAF. The secondary cameras are a 10 MP, f/2.4 telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom and a 12 MP f/2.2 123 ̊ ultrawide sensor.
The main camera can take some amazing shots in daylight. Pictures had good details and contrast to them along with decent dynamic range. The images come out in 12 MP in the auto mode through pixel binning technology. Portrait shots came out pretty well through the main lens with great subject details and realistic background blur. The ultrawide and the telephoto lenses also did their part pretty well.
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The image quality stayed consistent in artificial and low-light conditions as well. The variable shutter speed of the main lens assisted in taking well-exposed images with good details and colors in low light. The videography on the Fold5 is absolutely stacked with 8K@30fps, 4K@60fps, 1080p@60/240fps (gyro-EIS), 720p@960fps (gyro-EIS) with all having HDR10+ support.
UK cybersecurity center says 'deepfakes' and other AI tools pose a threat to the next election
Britain’s cybersecurity agency said Tuesday that artificial intelligence poses a threat to the country’s next national election, and cyberattacks by hostile countries and their proxies are proliferating and getting harder to track.
The National Cyber Security Center said “this year has seen the emergence of state-aligned actors as a new cyber threat to critical national infrastructure” such as power, water and internet networks.
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The center — part of Britain’s cyberespionage agency, GCHQ — said in its annual review that the past year also has seen “the emergence of a new class of cyber adversary in the form of state-aligned actors, who are often sympathetic to Russia’s further invasion of Ukraine and are ideologically, rather than financially, motivated.”
It said states and state-aligned groups pose “an enduring and significant threat,” from Russian-language criminals targeting British firms with ransomware attacks, to “China state-affiliated cyber actors” using their skills to pursue “strategic objectives which threaten the security and stability of U.K. interests.”
Echoing warnings by Britain’s MI5 and MI6 intelligence agencies, the center called the rise of China as a tech superpower “an epoch-defining challenge for U.K security.”
“We risk China becoming the predominant power in cyberspace if our efforts to raise resilience and develop our capabilities do not keep pace,” it said.
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The report also highlighted the threat posed by fast-evolving AI technology to elections, including a U.K. national election due to be held by January 2025.
While Britain’s old-fashioned method of voting, with pencil and paper, makes it hard for hackers to disrupt the vote itself, the center said deepfake videos and “hyper-realistic bots” would make the spread of disinformation during a campaign easier.
Video Games Coming in 2024: January to March
As the new year is approaching, game developers have scheduled video games lined up for the first three months of 2024. Nintendo has a new Princess Peach game, Ubisoft is working on a 2D Prince of Persia game similar to Metroid Dread, and the next part of Final Fantasy 7 remake is on the way. There's also a big Star Wars release in the works, and more game announcements are likely to come from events like The Game Awards and Nintendo Direct. Let’s take a look at the most hyped video games releasing in early 2024.
The Most Anticipated Video Games Scheduled for Launch in 2024
January
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is an action-adventure video game developed and published by Ubisoft. Set to release on January 18, 2024, for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S, the game marks the return of the Prince of Persia series after a decade.
Developed by Ubisoft Montpellier, the 2.5D platform game features Sargon, an acrobatic warrior with time-based powers. Inspired by Persian mythology, the three-and-a-half-year development aimed to modernize the franchise's image, introducing fresh visual designs while retaining the iconic time powers. The game's debut trailer, though divisive, received support from series creator Jordan Mechner.
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Enshrouded
Enshrouded is a captivating action RPG and survival game developed and published by Keen Games for Microsoft Windows. Set in the realm of Embervale, players embark on a journey of survival, crafting, and intense combat against the corrupted Shroud. The voxel-based open world allows for creative building, providing a canvas for grand structures.
Players can customize legendary weapons and armor to battle menacing bosses and factions. With a robust skill tree system, players can develop unique playstyles. The game supports 16-player co-op, offering a collaborative experience in raiding, treasure gathering, and facing the Shroud's challenges.
"Enshrouded" promises a rich narrative, vibrant biomes, and immersive gameplay, making it an enticing adventure for players. The early access of the game is available on Steam on January 24.
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Tekken 8
Tekken 8 is the highly anticipated fighting game, set to launch on January 26, 2024, developed by Bandai Namco Studios and Arika, and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. This marks the eighth main and tenth overall installment in the Tekken series. Director Katsuhiro Harada promises a more aggressive gameplay with a new "Heat" gauge system, building on Tekken 7's features.
The game introduces stage destruction, character reactions, and focuses on being enjoyable for both players and spectators in the esports scene. Featuring 32 unique fighters, including new characters like Azucena Milagros Ortiz Castillo, Jack-8, and Victor Chevalier, "Tekken 8" aims to set a new standard in fighting games with Unreal Engine 5 graphics and innovative gameplay elements.
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