TechRadar News

• ENGlobal updates 8-K filing with the SEC following November 2024 attack
• Firm confirms hackers hit internal data
• However there's no details about the attackers or the number of victims

Engineering giant ENGlobal has now confirmed the attackers which hit its systems in Novemeber 2024 did indeed compromise its internal documents.

In an updated 8-K form, the company said a preliminary investigation “revealed that a threat actor illegally accessed the company’s information technology system and encrypted some of its data.”

So, not only was this a data grab, this was also a ransomware attack.

No material impact

“The cybersecurity incident involved the threat actor’s access to a portion of the Company’s IT system that contained sensitive personal information," the form added. "The company intends to provide notifications to affected and potentially affected parties and applicable regulatory agencies as required by federal and state law.”

The ransomware attack hit the company pretty hard, it seems, since it added it took weeks to get back on track:

“The cybersecurity incident limited the company’s ability to access portions of its business applications that supported aspects of the company's operations and corporate functions, including financial and operating reporting systems for approximately six weeks.”

However, at the time the document was filed, all operations have been fully restored, and ENGlobal believes the attackers are no longer lurking in their network. It also said that the attack did not have a material impact, and that it’s “not reasonably likely” that it will have such an impact.

“As part of its remediation efforts, the Company is working with cybersecurity experts to reinforce its IT system, strengthen its surveillance of cybersecurity threats and prevent future unauthorized access to its IT system.”

ENGlobal is an engineering and automation services company that provides solutions for various industries, including energy, chemicals, and government. Based in the U.S., it operates globally, with approximately 500 employees, and generates annual revenue of around $100 million.

The identity of the attackers was not revealed, and we still don’t know how many people are affected by this incident.

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• The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra was announced on January 22 with a downgraded S Pen
• Reports then emerged that Samsung could release a separate, Bluetooth-enabled S Pen for those who wanted one
• However, Samsung has confirmed to TechRadar that this won’t be the case

After a week of conflicting reports on the matter, Samsung has confirmed to TechRadar that the Galaxy S25 Ultra will not support Bluetooth S Pen functionality.

The company’s latest flagship was announced at Galaxy Unpacked on January 22, and it was soon discovered that Samsung had axed Bluetooth compatibility from the phone’s included S Pen accessory. Then, on January 26, Android Authority spotted a Samsung blog post that included the line “Bluetooth-enabled S Pens sold separately,” suggesting Samsung would be releasing a standalone, Bluetooth-enabled S Pen for frustrated Galaxy S25 Ultra owners.

However, Samsung has now confirmed to TechRadar that this won’t be the case. The company didn’t elaborate on why its own blog post detailed a non-existent product, but it’s safe to assume that this was done in error. Sorry, S Pen fans.

Bluetooth-enabled S Pens have (or had) been a feature of Samsung’s Note and Ultra devices for over a decade. The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, for instance, came with a Bluetooth-enabled S Pen that allowed users to control the phone remotely; you could use it to trigger the camera, open apps, and navigate the phone’s UI, among other things.

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra's Bluetooth-less S Pen (Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)

As for why Samsung removed Bluetooth functionality from its latest S Pen, the company told TechRadar’s Editor-at-large, Lance Ulanoff, that it did so because so few people were using the related features. Indeed, in his Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra review, Lance noted that he “didn’t miss [these Bluetooth features]” and that the S Pen remained a “worthy drawing implement,” so perhaps the company was right to allocate its resources elsewhere this year.

That said, for fans of the S Pen’s Bluetooth functionality, Samsung’s confusing messaging will undoubtedly have felt like rubbing salt into the wound.

For more on Samsung's latest smartphones, check out our hands-on Samsung Galaxy S25 review and hands-on Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus review.

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Over the last couple of years, ChatGPT has become a default term for AI chatbots in the U.S. and Europe despite plenty of viable rivals angling for a bigger piece of the market. That's part of what has made the eruption of China-based AI chatbot DeepSeek feel so seismic.

DeepSeek's rapid ascent has attracted enormous attention and usage, though not without controversy. The broad collection of user data for storage on Chinese servers is just one prominent example.

I decided to put these two AI heavyweights, ChatGPT and DeepSeek, through their paces in combining their conversational abilities with online searches, which is a particularly valuable arena.

I devised four questions covering everything from sports news and consumer advice to the best local spots for cocktails and comedy. I wanted to see how the AI assistants would perform, so I mixed specificity with vagueness in the details. I used DeepSeek's R1 and ChatGPT-4o models to answer the questions. While R1 is comparable to OpenAI's newer o1 model for ChatGPT, that model can't look online for answers for now. You can see the questions and the AI responses below.

One at a time

I also immediately discovered that while ChatGPT was happy to answer multiple questions in a single prompt, DeepSeek would search only for information on the first question and give up on the later ones, no matter how I worded the initial prompt. Right away that was a point against it. While the conversational approach of prompt and response is fine in a lot of cases, sometimes you have to ask a lot of questions for the chatbot or include multiple elements for it to consider. You can see how DeepSeek responded to an early attempt at multiple questions in a single prompt below.

(Image credit: OpenAI / DeepSeek) Counting words

Even when broken up into individual questions, the prompts for DeepSeek required a little extra work in terms of defining the amount of information I wanted to receive. Depending on the kind of question I submitted, DeepSeek would almost always give me too much information, and it was often extraneous. Worse, sometimes the very long answer would just be a filler, basically telling me to look things up on my own. ChatGPT isn't immune to similar behavior, but it didn't happen at all during this test.

And it wasn't just my own preferences, the same self-control was evident when using ChatGPT without logging in. I felt the need to handicap the test with a 65-word limit to make it worthwhile at all. With all those restrictions in place, here are the questions and the AI answers. ChatGPT's responses are on the left and DeepSeek's responses are on the right.

1. What were the highlights of last night's NBA game, and who won?

(Image credit: OpenAI / DeepSeek) 2. What’s a trendy new spot in Brooklyn for cocktails and small plates?

(Image credit: OpenAI / DeepSeek) 3. Which laptop is best for gaming with a budget of $2,000?

(Image credit: OpenAI / DeepSeek) 4. What are the best comedy clubs in New York City for catching up-and-coming comedians and who is playing at them next month?

(Image credit: OpenAI / DeepSeek) DeepSeek gets lost

With the caveats of what was necessary to make the test feasible, it's fair to say both chatbots performed pretty well. DeepSeek had some solid answers thanks to a far more thorough search effort, which pulled from more than 30 sources for each question. The cocktail bar question, in particular, was great, and the AI was proactive enough to suggest a drink to get. The basketball response was more substantial as well, though arguably, the decision by ChatGPT to keep the focus on one game, as indicated by the singular "game" in the question, meant it was paying more attention.

It was in the responses to the computer and comedy club recommendations that DeepSeek displayed its weaknesses. Both felt less like conversational answers and more like the toplines of their Google summaries. To be fair, ChatGPT wasn't much better on those two answers, but the flaw felt less glaring, especially when looking at all of the parentheticals in DeepSeek's computer response.

I understand why DeepSeek has its fans. It’s free, good at fetching the latest info, and a solid option for users. I just feel like ChatGPT cuts to the heart of what I'm asking, even when it's not spelled out. And, while no tech company is a paragon of consumer privacy, DeepSeek's terms and conditions somehow make other AI chatbots seem downright polite when it comes to the sheer amount of information you have to agree to share, down to the very pace at which you type your questions. DeepSeek almost sounds like a joke about how deep it is seeking information about you.

Plus, ChatGPT was just plain faster, regardless of whether I used DeepSeek's R1 model or its less powerful sibling. And, while this test was focused on search, I can't ignore the many other limitations of DeepSeek, such as a lack of persistent memory or image generator.

For me, ChatGPT remains the winner when choosing an AI chatbot to perform a search. Some of it may be simply the bias of familiarity, but the fact that ChatGPT gave me good to great answers from a single prompt is hard to resist as a killer feature. That may become especially true as and when the o1 model and upcoming o3 model get internet access. DeepSeek can find a lot of information, but if I were stuck with it, I'd be lost.

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• Researchers discover 10,000 compromised WordPress sites
• The sites were embedded with malicious JavaScript code
• The goal was to deliver infostealers to victims

Ten thousand WordPress websites were being used to deliver infostealing malware to victims running both Windows and macOS devices, experts have warned.

A report from cybersecurity researchers at c/side claims a threat actor likely compromised different WordPress sites using an older version of the platform (6.7.1) and with it - an older, outdated plugin. Once the sites are breached, the attackers would deploy malicious JavaScript code, which would generate a fake page in an iframe, to the visitors.

When a victim visits one of these sites, they would see an overlaid page stating they need to update their browser if they want to view the contents of the page. However, instead of downloading a patch, the victims would get either Atomic (AKA AMOS, a popular infostealer for macOS), or SocGholish (basically the same thing, just for Windows).

Stealing sensitive files

These infostealers would grab all sorts of sensitive information from the target endpoint - from passwords stored in the browser, to session cookies, cryptocurrency wallet information, and other potentially sensitive files.

Defending against these attacks requires web administrators to keep their sites up to date.

The WordPress website builder platform, for starters, should be upgraded to version 6.7, released in mid-November, 2024. The admins should then go through all the themes and plugins they have installed, and remove all the ones they’re not using. The remaining ones should then be updated, as well.

Finally, admins should look for malicious scripts and delete them. C/side claims that attackers leave a backdoor most of the time, to be able to easily return, if need be. If they do find traces of compromise, they should also review logs from the last 90 days to identify what kind of malicious activity was done.

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• The GE Profile Smart Grind & Brew is a drip coffee maker with an AI assistant
• The assistant can adjust brewing settings based on the questions you ask
• It's available to buy now from Amazon for $379 (about £300 / AU$600)

Just how smart can a filter coffee machine really be? Very smart indeed, it turns out. GE Profile (the premium division of GE Appliances) has just launched the Smart Grind & Brew – a drip machine that uses Google Cloud AI to help you brew the perfect cup each morning.

The GE Profile Smart Grind & Brew is a slim machine with a built-in conical burr grinder, which means you can enjoy freshly-ground coffee without investing in (and finding space for) two appliances. It also minimizes potential mess because the ground coffee falls directly into the brew basket at the correct dosage, with no weighing or transferring.

The machine also has a built-in water filter, so you can use water directly from the tap without it affecting the flavor of your drink, and helping you get a more consistent taste.

Another particularly nice feature is the inclusion of a removable brewing stand (the part that holds the jug or cup) so the machine can dispense coffee directly into a travel mug. Combined with the built-in timer, this would make it easy to have a fresh filter coffee to take to work, minimizing the risk of caving to temptation and buying a takeaway coffee en route.

The GE Profile Smart Grind & Brew has an adjustable stainless steel conical burr grinder (Image credit: GE Appliances)

What really makes the Smart Grind & Brew different to the best drip coffee makers we've tested, however, is the SmartHQ AI Coffee Assistant, which is due to roll out to the machine with a software update very soon.

This lets you control the machine remotely using the SmartHQ smart home app, and have a "conversational AI experience" with the assistant. It also enables you to create custom profiles, receive real-time brewing feedback, and "is equipped with intuitive learning that automatically adjusts brewing based on questions asked."

SmartHQ will also let you add your coffee maker to your Amazon Alexa or Google Home smart hub, so you can operate it with voice controls.

So far, so smart

It all sounds very impressive, and the GE Profile Smart Grind & Brew is available to buy now from Amazon for $379 (about £300 / AU$600), which seems to be typical for a connected drip coffee machine.

Is there a catch? Well, although it has an insulated carafe, GE Profile doesn't mention the machine having a hotplate to keep your brewed coffee warm until you're ready for your next cup. That's the same problem I found with another high-tech drip machine I tested recently: the Fellow Aiden Precision Drip Coffee Maker. Although the Aiden could brew an excellent drink, its double-wall insulated carafe just didn't keep it warm long enough without a heat source underneath.

Hopefully that won't be quite so much of a problem with the Smart Grind & Brew, which (unlike the Aiden) is capable of dispensing coffee into other vessels, such as an insulated bottle, which will keep it at a drinkable temperature longer.

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• New report claims OpenAI has detected evidence of distillation by DeepSeek
• Move represents a potential breach of intellectual property
• Whitehouse AI czar weighs-in on the subject

According to a new article by the Financial Times, OpenAI claims to have evidence that DeepSeek, the Chinese startup that has thrown the US tech market into financial turmoil, used the company's proprietary models to train its own open-source LLM, called R1. This would represent a potential breach of intellectual property, as it goes against the OpenAI terms of service agreement.

In the article the FT writes that a source at OpenAI claims it has evidence of “distillation” occurring, which is a technique used by developers to leapfrog on the work done by larger models to achieve similar results at a much lower cost.

The OpenAI terms of service clearly state that users cannot copy any of its service or “use output to develop models that compete with OpenAI.” David Sacks, the Whitehouse crypto and AI “czar” said in an interview on Fox that there is “substantial evidence” of distillation occurring from DeepSeek.

OpenAI statement

Speaking to TechRadar an OpenAI spokesperson said: "We know PRC based companies – and others – are constantly trying to distill the models of leading US AI companies. As the leading builder of AI, we engage in countermeasures to protect our IP, including a careful process for which frontier capabilities to include in released models, and believe as we go forward that it is critically important that we are working closely with the U.S. government to best protect the most capable models from efforts by adversaries and competitors to take US technology.”

OpenAI tells us it has observed and investigated attempts to distill its models and has responded through banning the accounts in question and revoking access.

Security concerns

Meanwhile security concerns still seem to be dogging DeepSeek, particularly around the security of user data, exactly what data is being collected, and where it is storing it.

If you or your company has issues with data being stored in China, Perplexity, the AI search engine, is now offering its Pro users access to DeepSeek using data that is only stored on servers in the US.

New registrations for DeepSeek are still temporarily paused, “due to large-scale malicious attacks on DeepSeek's services”. For the latest news on this big breaking story, see the our DeepSeek live blog.

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• Academic researchers found two new speculative execution flaws
• The pair are affecting M2 and M3 processors
• Apple has acknowledged the flaws, and said it would fix it

Apple devices powered with the M2/A15 and M3/A17 chips are vulnerable to side-channel flaws which could put user data at risk of being stolen, experts have warned.

Cybersecurity researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology and Ruhr University Bochum, who recently published two separate papers, detailing the two vulnerabilities called FLOP and SLAP.

These flaws, however, don’t affect power consumption patterns during cryptographic operations, but rather speculative execution, similar to what the dreaded Spectre and Meltdown vulnerabilities were. Speculative execution is a technique used by processors to improve performance. It involves the CPU guessing the likely path of a program (like which instruction will be executed next) and starting to execute it before the actual decision is made. If the guess is correct, it speeds up processing; if not, the incorrect results are discarded.

Practical application

Explaining their findings to BleepingComputer, the researchers said mispredictions can lead to chips performing computations with the wrong data.

"Starting with the M3/A17 generation, they attempt to predict the data value that will be returned from memory. However, mispredictions in these mechanisms can result in arbitrary computations being performed on out-of-bounds data or wrong data values," they said.

Usually, when academic researchers find computer bugs, they are mostly theoretical, or otherwise extremely difficult to pull off in a real-life scenario. For these, however, the researchers explained how a threat actor could create a malicious website, containing JavaScript code, and use it to pull personally identifiable information from the victims.

They shared their findings with Apple (in late March for SLAP, and in early September for FLOP), who acknowledged their findings and confirmed it would be working on a fix. However, it seems that the Cupertino behemoth won’t be rushing, since it doesn’t think the bugs are that big of a deal

"We want to thank the researchers for their collaboration as this proof of concept advances our understanding of these types of threats," Apple told BleepingComputer.

"Based on our analysis, we do not believe this issue poses an immediate risk to our users."

Those interested in technical details can read the in-depth analysis here. These are the same researchers that discovered the iLeakage vulnerability a year and a half ago, BleepingComputer reminds. That one, too, was a side-channel flaw.

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• iPhone SE 4 no longer tipped to get a Dynamic Island
• Instead it will more closely match the iPhone 14's design
• It will, however, get an Action button per recent leaks

A new model in Apple’s budget-friendly iPhone SE line, the iPhone SE 4, is expected to land later this year, and leaks are already teasing key design details – and the latest reports suggest that the SE 4 will miss out on the Dynamic Island, but could get the Action Button.

Starting with the bad news, rumors had suggested that the iPhone SE 4 would feature the Dynamic Island, which users of all iPhone 15 and 16 handsets, and the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max, have been enjoying (or not, as the case is for our editor-at-large Lance Ulanoff).

However, that now doesn’t seem set to be the case. We reported a couple of days ago that a new leaked video had teased the return of the notch on the upcoming SE, and now display analyst Ross Young has claimed on social media that the notch is indeed returning.

The Dynamic Island reports came from another usually reliable leaker in Evan Blass, and these more trustworthy tipsters typically don’t contradict each other – especially not in the run-up to an expected product launch. However a third leaker – who goes by Majin Bu online – has explained that the confusion comes from Apple testing an SE 4 with a Dynamic Island during development before ultimately settling on the notch.

Push the button

Bu has also been sharing images and video said to show the iPhone SE 4, and in his most recent post on X he claims the phone will get an upgrade from a 4.7-inch screen to a 6.06-inch 60Hz OLED display (so with the notch it should look a lot like the iPhone 14), and the Action Button.

Having debuted on the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max before making its way to all the iPhone 16 models, the Action Button is a programmable button which replaces the silence mode switch the featured on older models.

The iPhone 15 Pro Action Button (Image credit: Apple)

You can still use it to silence your phone in a hurry, but if you leave your iPhone’s ringer off anyway you can change the button to instead let you access other tools like your camera or torch – and using shortcuts you can even make the button do multiple different things based on how and when you use it.

As with all leaks we should take these notch and Action Button reports with a pinch of salt. We’ve already seen the leaked design of the iPhone SE 4 change, so there’s always a chance that it’ll change again before Apple makes the device official.

That said, based on everything we've seen and heard, the iPhone SE 4 is shaping up to be a solid smartphone with the same A18 chip found in the iPhone 16 and 8GB of RAM – both of which suggest Apple Intelligence support.

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• Logitech Spot monitors an office environment for better flow
• Poor air quality could be costing your workers' productivity
• The sensors are also built into the $7,000 Rally Board 65

Logitech has unveiled a brand-new office monitoring tool it hopes will help businesses manage their collaborative workspace better.

The new Logitech Spot tracks occupancy and environmental changes through CO2 levels, air quality, and temperature to provide real-time data for office admins.

Spot is a battery-powered device that uses a peel-and-stick base to stick to walls. It pairs via Bluetooth to CollabOS devices, like Tap Scheduler, or via Long Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN) gateways.

Office-tracking sensor

It’s all designed with the hope of making the office a more comfortable space for workers to spend their time and better employee experience – actionable suggestions allow admins to improve the workplace while making reductions to their energy costs.

The company says the real reason workers are getting weary in the office might not be because they’re tired, but rather than inefficient use of the space available is causing air quality issues.

“In bustling workplaces, employees move in and out of scheduled or ad-hoc meetings in spaces that continuously use energy and recirculate air,” Logitech says, citing Harvard and Berkeley studies showing high CO2 levels and pollutants like dust, perfume, and aerosols can reduce cognitive function.

“Logitech Spot solves the mystery of the number of people using spaces, the quality of the air they’re breathing, and environmental factors that can impact energy consumption–arming businesses with the information they need to address these unseen barriers," noted Logitech for Business COO and GM Prakash Arunkundrum.

In the name of interoperability, Spot is also integrated with Microsoft Places and Teams, as well as other platforms like Samsung Smart Things Pro and Zoom Workplace.

Logitech has also lifted the wraps off its Rally Board 65, a new 65-inch portable all-in-one video conferencing solution that integrates Spot’s sensors within its system.

Spot will be available from the second half of 2025, and its APIs can be unlocked via the $199/year Essential or $399/year Select service plans (priced per room). The Rally Board 65 will be available from May 2025, priced at $6,999.

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• Accusations have been made around RTX 5090 review samples
• Some folks think GPUs labeled as ‘Press Build’ could be faster than retail products
• Nvidia has assured us this isn’t the case

Nvidia has denied that the RTX 5090 graphics cards sent out to press for review were in any way different to the flagship boards that’ll be sold by retailers, following online accusations that the review samples were somehow ‘binned.’

As Tom’s Hardware reports, there are markings on some review models of the RTX 5090 which say ‘Press Build’ (as seen at TechPowerUp, for example), something remarked upon by Andreas Schilling (editor at German tech site Hardwareluxx) on X.

Ian Cutress (of TechTechPotato) replied to Schilling’s comment about whether there was anything ‘special’ about these graphics cards by jokily altering the words on the RTX 5090 chip to read ‘Press Binned’ as you can see below (if you expand the post).

FTFY pic.twitter.com/i9OtTpDYBCJanuary 24, 2025

Binning refers not to throwing graphics chips in the trashcan, of course, but to the process of allocating silicon to different models of GPU (in ‘bins’ or groups). Every chip in a particular group that pertains to a certain GPU model conforms to the base level spec (silicon that doesn’t is usually repurposed in a lower bin), but some chips are actually of a slightly higher quality, and can be pushed to faster than base clock speeds.

This is why you get different levels of overclock with a certain GPU, or indeed a CPU, with more headroom in a higher-quality chip (even though it’s in the same bin) – which is referred to as ‘winning the silicon lottery’ (you got a good overclocker, in short).

So, without getting too deep into the weeds on this, the insinuation made by some folks online is that Nvidia has ensured that those better-performing chips from the top-end of the bin, as it were, have been used in review samples to get the best results for the RTX 5090.

Tom’s directly asked Nvidia if these press build RTX 5090 Founders Edition cards were “higher-performing iterations of retail counterparts” and a rep from Team Green replied to say: “Some early GeForce RTX GPUs include a top mark related to intended use [the ‘Press Build’ stamp]. Their functionality and performance are identical to retail GPUs.”

In short, the marking means nothing save for indicating that these graphics cards are models put aside for sending out to the press.

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler) Analysis: An unusual clarification, but clearly Nvidia felt it necessary

This is an odd one, and it’s unusual that Nvidia would respond to such chatter, but it’s clear Team Green felt the need to set the record straight here.

We have to take Nvidia’s assertion at face value, but of course, the difference that any such binning might make wouldn’t be that huge anyway. But even if it was, that’d be a silly route for Nvidia to take, as reviews of third-party RTX 5090 boards compared to the Founders Edition would surely look odd if there was an obvious discrepancy. Yes, Nvidia’s own boards may be well-designed and cooled, but you can be sure third-party models with more premium price tags will be, as well.

I believe that Nvidia is being up front here, and any markings are just for admin or legal purposes (guarding against reselling review boards for example). Indeed, if there was any binning going on with RTX 5090 reviews, it would surely make more sense for Nvidia not to identify those chips as ‘press samples’ so explicitly.

There are more pressing concerns on the RTX 5090, for sure, including whether you’ll actually be able to buy one on launch day (tomorrow, January 30) – as that isn’t the case with MSI’s online store, we’ve just discovered. While you will be able to pre-order an MSI RTX 5090 model tomorrow, it won’t be shipped until February 6, we’re told – and Nvidia is warning on potential stock shortages of the RTX 5090 and RTX 5080. This is a topic that’s been buzzing on the rumor mill for some time now, with a whole lot of pessimistic noises being made, unfortunately.

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• Severance season 2 has dropped an intriguing new teaser for episode 3
• It refers to the mysterious baby goats from season 1
• Episode 3 arrives on Apple TV Plus on Friday, January 31

Severance is the master of suspense. It's really making good use of that Apple TV Plus weekly release by relentlessly teasing fans, and its most recent drop has suggested we'll see more of the goats in Friday's episode. I'm hoping that one of the best Apple TV Plus shows finally answers some questions about why Lumon is raising these animals, I'd even settle for crumbs right now. I need to know what's going on!

Truthfully, I have never been so obsessed with goats since that week when I unexpectedly became interested in the video game Goat Simulator. Now, I'm writing about five of the best Severance season 2 goat theories I've seen. You've got to hand it to this series, it knows how to reel you in.

The clip doesn't give us much, admittedly, but it's worth watching if you want to start coming up with your own theories ahead of episode 3's release on January 31.

What's happened in Severance season 2 so far?

We're only two episodes into Severance season 2 and it feels like so much has happened. If you want some in-depth recaps we've put together a Severance season 2 episode 1 recap and a Severance season 2 episode 2 recap to bring you up to speed. I expected nothing less from this show, but they've opened up on a high and left us with plenty of questions, hopefully paving the way for the rest of the season.

Many fans were shocked when the Emmy-winning title sequence had changed, but it's somehow even better than its predecessor and leans very heavily into body horror, something I couldn't be more pleased about. If you're interested in that, check out the five major clues the Severance title sequence gives us.

There's plenty more to come from Severance and I can't wait to see how deep the rabbit hole goes.

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• The latest generation of Supercharger stalls can now deliver up to 325kW
• But the Cybertruck is the only Tesla vehicle capable of those speeds
• Full V4 Supercharger stations will soon be capable of 500kW

Tesla has announced that all V4 Supercharger stations in North America are now capable of delivering charging speeds of up to 325kW, bringing the network more in line with high-powered chargers from the likes of BP, ChargePoint and Electrify America.

The increase of 75kW will reduce the amount of time waiting around to charge, but the only model currently capable of accepting such a rate of electrons is the Cybertruck, leaving the vast majority of Tesla owners having to make do with 250kW.

On top of this, there is still lots of confusion surrounding the capabilities of Tesla’s Supercharger network in general, which still includes some of the earlier V2 stalls, as well as a mix of V4 stalls (the physical thing you plug into) that are linked to older V3 cabinets (the important part that handles the delivery of electricity).

That means Model 3, Model S and Model Y owners, along with not being able to make the most of the recent upgrade in charging speeds, experience varying rates depending on the technology available at a destination.

Despite this, Tesla says that it is already rolling out the latest generation V4 Supercharger stalls with accompanying cabinets that it claims are capable of delivering a whopping 500kW, despite there not being a single EV publicly on sale today that can draw that sort of power.

Right now, 800V electrical architecture and today’s battery technology is capable of speeds of 350kW to 450kW in the most extreme cases, with the likes of the Lotus Eletre only managing those headline figures when paired with a specific Lotus charging stall, of which there are very few.

Analysis: Tesla needs to play catch up

(Image credit: Tesla)

The news of faster Tesla Supercharger stalls is going to be welcomed by EV owners, but ironically, not by the wider Tesla community itself.

Most of today's Tesla line-up can only charge at a rate of 250kW, which is rapidly being eclipsed by rival manufacturers that have recently made the switch to the North American Charging Standard (NACS) – or the plug that Tesla uses, to you and I.

Granted, Musk's latest move is helping to future-proof the Supercharger network, which is often considered among the best charging networks in the world, but it is also gradually becoming more relevant to owners of rival EVs.

Even the recently updated Model Y still has to make do with the old 400V electrical architecture, limiting the speed at which it can charge, despite tweaks to software helping to reduce charging times slightly over the previous generation.

With Cybertruck sales on the wane and Elon Musk firing most of the team that looks after the Supercharger network, the V4 Supercharger stall announcement is likely not something to get too excited about, seeing as the roll-out is predicted to be slow and Musk has made no mention of fitting the Cybertruck’s 800V system to other models just yet.

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About a week after its release, Italy became the first country to formally request a probe into how DeepSeek's chatbot handles users' personal data.

"Possible risk to the data of millions of people in Italy," wrote the Italian data watchdog authority, known as the Garante, on Tuesday, January 28, 2025, in an official announcement.

Developed by a little-known Chinese startup, DeepSeek has seen almost 3 million downloads since its launch, reaching an estimated total user base of between 5-6 million users worldwide, according to SEO.AI data. Yet, experts in and out of Europe have warned of the potential privacy implications.

The companies that provide the Chinese ChatGPT rival – Hangzhou DeepSeek Artificial Intelligence and Beijing DeepSeek Artificial Intelligence – now have 20 days to respond to Italy's complaint.

Against GDPR rules

The Garante's complaint follows a report filed by Euroconsumers – a coalition of five national consumer organizations that also include its Italian member, Altrocunsumo.

After looking at how the DeepSeek app and chat services collect and handle users' data as per its own privacy policy, Euroconusmers found "multiple violations of European and national data protection regulations," the report reads.

These include transfers of European data to China without safeguards as required by GDPR rules, unclear information on how user data is used for online profiling, non-transparent information over data retention periods, and the lack of details on age verification or handling data of minors, among other things.

The Garante is also asking the companies behind DeepSeek AI to provide the clarifications needed for the services to legally operate in the country.

Italy's data watchdog seeks more information on the type of data used to train the artificial intelligence system. If personal data is collected through web scraping activities, DeepSeek would also need to clarify "how users registered and those not registered to the service have been or are informed about the processing of their data," wrote the Garante.

"Technological efficiency, however important, cannot prevail over people’s fundamental rights. It is essential to ensure that the development of AI occurs in full compliance with European regulation, which represents a pillar in the protection of fundamental values ​​and rights," Marco Scialdone, Head of Litigation at Euroconsumers, said to Eurofocus, commenting on the complaint.

This is not the first time that Italy has called out the privacy violations of AI chatbots.

In April 2023, the Garante temporarily banned the use of ChatGPT across the country as the AI mammoth was found responsible for improperly collecting and storing Italian data and, consequently, breaching GDPR rules. At that time, the ChatGPT ban provoked a surge in VPN downloads as Italians looked for ways to retain access to the popular AI chatbot.

It's too soon to tell whether DeepSeek will share the same fate, but we nonetheless advise you to approach the AI novelty with caution if you care about your online privacy.

• GTA 5's Trevor wants to return for GTA 6 so he can die at the beginning of the game
• Steve Ogg thinks it would be "fun" if Trevor appeared and was killed to "pass the torch" on to the next playable character
• Although, as far as Ogg is aware, Trevor won't be returning for GTA 6

Steve Ogg, the actor who plays Trevor Philips in Grand Theft Auto 5, wants his character to die in Grand Theft Auto 6.

In a recent interview with ScreenRant, Ogg touched on the possibility of Trevor returning to the popular franchise and even offered his idea of what it could look like.

"It would be fun if Trevor appeared in it just to be killed at the beginning," Ogg said, a pitch which seems to be a callback to how Trevor killed GTA 4's Johnny Kleibitz at the start of GTA 5.

However, as far as Ogg is aware, his iconic character isn't returning in GTA 6.

"I think that would be cool, because it also acknowledges the fans of like, 'Hey, thank you.' Pass the torch, stomp Trevor's head in, and sort of put an end to that and allow a new generation to take over," he added.

GTA 6 was officially announced in December 2023 alongside a reveal trailer, which confirmed long-time rumors that the game will feature two playable protagonists, Lucia and Jason.

The game is set to launch on PS5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S. There's no word on a potential PC version just yet, but it is scheduled for a Fall 2025 release, according to Take-Two.

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• A suitcase-style turntable with speakers and Zig-Zag branding
• USB in plus Bluetooth, RCA and headphone outs
• $99 (around £79 or AU$159, if you can find one)

There's a long tradition of brands doing weird things for publicity, and for every Elon Musk stunt that makes you want to push every Tesla into a lake there's a brand that gets it right. And I think Zig-Zag is in the latter category, because it's come up with a rather inspired idea.

If you're not familiar with Zig-Zag, it's a very famous brand of rolling papers – so famous that their product inspired the cover of Dr Dre's 1992 album, The Chronic. And to remind you of that fact (and of course to ensure that you don't forget about Dre), the company has decided to make an – ahem – smokin' record player just in time for the Grammys…

(Image credit: Zig-Zag) The Zig-Zag Record Player: key features

The Zig-Zag Record Player is, as you'd expect, a record player with Zig-Zag branding. It's a suitcase design with the classic logo on top, and it has built-in stereo speakers so you can have music wherever you go. In addition to the turntable there's also a USB port so you can also play digital files without lugging all your vinyl around.

It's a three-speed belt-driven turntable – ideal for all your, er, rap 78s – and it has RCA outputs and a headphone jack too. There's Bluetooth streaming to headphones or powered speakers, and there's even a handle so you can carry it around.

According to Chisto.com, "Nothing beats the sound of spinning a vinyl whilst you’re chilling at dwelling. If you’re restricted on house however maxing out on chill vibes (particularly throughout Dry January), then you definitely want this... It’s the last word improve out of your standard transportable speaker that units the temper in any room with out the cumbersome setup of your typical document participant." Now, I don't know what many of those words mean, in that order, but I think they liked it…

The Zig-Zag Record Player is available now for $99, which is around £79 or AU$159, if you can find it.

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• Sophos report finds firms are worried GenAI flaws could harm their cybersecurity
• 99% claim AI is essential when choosing a provider
• Human-first approach appears to be key, Sophos says

The rise of artificial intelligence is coming at the expense of increased cybersecurity threats, and businesses are struggling to adapt, new research has claimed.

A report from Sophos revealed nine in 10 (89%) IT leaders worry that flaws in generative AI system could harm their businesses’ cybersecurity strategies.

Despite this, almost all (99%) IT leaders now consider AI capabilities essential when selecting a cybersecurity provider in the perfect example of fighting fire with fire.

AI’s role in cybersecurity

Artificial intelligence has given threat actors new powers, turning unskilled attackers into more sophisticated code creators, while making it harder for analysts to trace the origin of threats.

One in five respondents hoped AI will help them improve protection from cyberthreats, with 14% hoping for reduced employee burnout.

It all comes at a cost, though, with four in five believing that new AI tools embedded into their cybersecurity solutions will increase the cost of tools. Still, 87% believe the savings will outweigh the initial costs.

“We have not actually taught the machines to think; we have simply provided them the context to speed up the processing of large quantities of data,” Sophos Global Field CTO Chester Wisniewski said, adding firms should “trust but verify” GenAI tools.

An overwhelming majority (98%) of the companies surveyed now have some form of AI embedded into their cybersecurity infrastructure, but 84% are worried about the pressure to reduce workforces due to an over-reliance on the tech.

Wisniewski added: “The potential of these tools to accelerate security workloads is amazing, but it still requires the context and comprehension of their human overseers for this benefit to be realized.”

Looking ahead, Sophos calls for IT leaders to evaluate AI vendors for things like the quality and source of their training data, to establish measurable outcomes they hope to achieve from AI, and to adopt a human-first approach.

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Last week, DeepSeek, a Chinese AI startup, announced its R1 reasoning model, a breakthrough that changes the world of AI. DeepSeek’s model matches or even surpasses the quality of leading LLMs, but at a fraction of the training and running cost. This essentially commoditized what was once the exclusive domain of tech giants. Along with the model, DeepSeek released a detailed playbook describing how others can replicate their success, dramatically lowering the barriers to entry. 

Apple Just Saved Billions

For the last few years, Apple has been criticized for lagging behind in the “LLM wars.” Analysts and journalists pointed out that while companies like OpenAI, Google, and Meta poured billions into building state-of-the-art large language models (LLMs), Apple seemed to be on the sidelines. In fact, some industry insiders went as far as to call Apple’s approach “complacent.” Yet, as it turns out, it just paid off in a way no one expected.

This breakthrough means Apple can now develop competitive AI models without the multi-billion-dollar investments previously required. By staying out of the early stages of the AI arms race, Apple may have saved billions.

Goodbye, OpenAI Partnership

Apple’s perceived weakness in AI pushed it to form a partnership with OpenAI, a move that raised eyebrows across the tech world. Critics questioned the necessity of this alliance, with some calling it a “panic move” to compensate for Apple’s lack of in-house AI capabilities. Elon Musk, for instance, openly criticized the partnership, calling it “creepy spyware” and warning against potential privacy risks.

Now, Apple has a way out. With DeepSeek’s methodologies in hand, Apple no longer needs to rely on OpenAI for cutting-edge AI. They can cheaply develop their own models tailored to their ecosystem without external dependencies. This not only gives Apple the freedom to leave the partnership if they choose but also provides significant leverage in renegotiating terms.

Efficient compute is a key advantage for Apple

Over the past year, it’s become clear that LLMs alone won’t be the ultimate differentiator in AI. Instead, the real value lies in data, user context, UI, and distribution. Apple already excels in these areas, with a massive ecosystem of devices and services that seamlessly integrate into users’ lives. But now, thanks to DeepSeek’s breakthrough, Apple has an even greater advantage. 

DeepSeek’s R1 model is designed for efficient inference, meaning it can run on standard hardware rather than requiring expensive, specialized GPUs. This aligns perfectly with Apple’s strengths. Apple’s devices—from iPhones to Macs—are already optimized for high performance and energy efficiency. With this new capability, Apple can deploy powerful AI models directly on their devices, ensuring user privacy and reducing reliance on cloud-based solutions. 

There have long been rumors that Apple was studying how to run LLMs locally, and now that vision can become a reality. DeepSeek’s innovations make it possible for Apple to deliver state-of-the-art AI experiences without compromising on efficiency or security. For Apple’s users, this means smarter devices that protect their data while delivering unmatched performance. 

Markets React

DeepSeek’s announcement had an impact across the tech industry. Nvidia, a company synonymous with AI hardware, saw its stock plummet by 17%, wiping $589 billion off its market value. Investors reacted to the realization that LLMs no longer require the kind of specialized hardware that Nvidia’s business depends on.

Apple, on the other hand, remained unaffected. Its stock actually grew. Whether it’s caused by investors just moving their investments within a tech sector or whether investors also see that Apple might benefit more than any other company is a question for them. Whatever the reason it is, we live in exciting times and the times become more and more exciting for Apple as well.

Checkout our comprehensive list of the best AI tools.

This article was produced as part of TechRadarPro's Expert Insights channel where we feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today. The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/news/submit-your-story-to-techradar-pro

• 51% of British businesses consider data sovereignty “crucial”, report claims
• Nearly equal measures see it as a burden or as an asset, OVHcloud finds
• Data access, handling, storage, and portability are all benefits

New research has revealed the growing need for data sovereignty, influenced by ongoing geopolitical tensions and market competition investigations.

A report from cloud computing giant OVHcloud found half (51%) of British businesses now consider data sovereignty as a crucial part of their data management strategies.

Moreover, three in four (77%) IT decision-makers now say that data sovereignty is more important than it was three years ago.

Data sovereignty is at the heart of building customer trust

Exactly why businesses are so keen on data sovereignty varies, though – two in five (40%) see it as a compliance issue, but more than one-third (36%) said that it involves data access, handling, and storage. A further 28% said sovereignty is related to data portability.

Data sovereignty has gained popularity in recent years following America’s battle with China and investigations into the dominance of American hyperscalers over global cloud markets - in 2024, AWS confirmed it would be supporting European data sovereignty, choosing Germany as its first location.

“Having a robust data sovereignty strategy means that you know who controls your data, where it is, who has access to it, and which regulations it’s subject to," noted OVHcloud multi-cloud evangelist Matt Tebay.

Of the 500 IT decision-makers surveyed, 41% said it’s just something they need to comply with, however, 42% added data sovereignty is important to their customers, and therefore an asset to their business.

“Organisations are increasingly realizing that it’s not simply a cost and regulatory burden, but can build better customer trust, enhance governance, and provide a layer of security and transparency to customers," Tebay added.

“Clearly, the intersection of customer trust, technology, regulation, and commercial considerations can make for a challenging journey, but it’s an important one and like all journeys, the first step is the most important.”

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• OpenAI unveils ChatGPT Gov, built for the US government
• The AI chatbot can help with summarization, translation, and more
• ChatGPT Gov will be able to hand "non-public, sensitive information"

OpenAI has released a new version of ChatGPT, built bespoke for the US government.

ChatGPT ‘Gov’ can be fed "non-public, sensitive information” on secure self-hosted cloud computing platforms, allowing agencies to comply with cybersecurity requirements.

Government workers will be able to create and share custom GPT models for specialised tasks, with the Gov version also deploying an admin console for CIOs and IT teams.

Chat with the Gov

OpenAI claims over 90,000 users from upwards of 3,500 federal, state, and local government agencies have sent over 18 million messages on Chat GPT since 2024 as part of their day-to-day work across AI tools training, basic coding, translation services, and much more.

Visually, the service is similar to ChatGPT enterprise, with the main difference being that ChatGPT Gov can be hosted on internal Microsoft Azure commercial cloud, or Azure Government community cloud infrastructure.

As always, there are legitimate concerns around the security of using AI within government, particularly when entering sensitive information, to which OpenAI refers users to its Usage Policy, which ChatGPT Gov is also subject to.

Demonstrations made to the press by OpenAI solutions engineer Aaron Wilkowitz showed ChatGPT Gov create a five-week plan for a Trump administration employee, which was then analysed by the GPT after the addition of numerous notes. Wilkowitz also demonstrated its translation abilities by having it draft a memo of job plan and then translating it into multiple languages.

ChatGPT Enterprise is currently being subject to Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) testing before it can be used on the types of sensitive data it could be fed if adopted. OpenAI CPO Kevin Weil said (via CNBC) that while there wasn’t a timeline in place for ChatGPT Enterprise’s FedRAMP approval, OpenAI is working with the new administration to cut through some of the red tape.

“I know President Trump is also looking at how we can potentially streamline that, because it’s one way of getting more modern software tooling into the government and helping the government run more efficiently. So we’re very excited about that,” Weil said.

OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman reportedly donated $1 million to President Trump’s inauguration fund, alongside OpenAI’s partner company Microsoft, which provides many of the systems, software, and cloud services that the government needs to function.

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• You can now use DeepSeek R1 inside Perplexity Pro
• The model is available with Perplexity on the web and iOS
• You get uncensored results and US-stored data

It's been quite the week for DeepSeek, the Chinese-made open-source AI model that's shot to the top of the app store charts while simultaneously raising privacy concerns. Now the DeepSeek R1 model is available within the Perplexity AI search engine, on US servers and with no censorship.

Announcing the news, Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas (via Search Engine Journal) described it as a "phenomenal experience", while also acknowledging that there are limits on query volume – limits Perplexity is working to increase.

And uncensored! https://t.co/vGUG0w1zlo pic.twitter.com/ceGYpLON50January 28, 2025

Perplexity is able to add DeepSeek R1 because it's open-source and freely available to anyone who wants to use it, and the move gets around two key concerns: first that China might censor the results DeepSeek returns, and second that the model would send user data back to the Chinese government.

Srinivas promises that Perplexity has tweaked R1 to keep results uncensored, and that all user interactions are kept secure on US-based servers. The CEO even used the classic test case, a search about Tiananmen Square, to show the AI is uncensored inside Perplexity.

You'll have to go Pro

You can get at DeepSeek R1 from the Perplexity iOS and web apps (Image credit: Future)

To be able to access the DeepSeek R1 model, you'll need to have signed up for a Perplexity Pro account – that'll set you back $20 (about £16 / AU$32) a month or $200 (about £160 / AU$320) a year. A subscription also gives you access to other models, like OpenAI o1.

For the time being at least, you're also going to have to use Perplexity on the web or through the iOS app – the feature hasn't arrived on Android yet. If you do use Perplexity on Android, you can try out the new Perplexity Assistant feature instead.

The arrival and instant success of DeepSeek has seriously disrupted the AI landscape, with US companies such as Nvidia and OpenAI politely praising their new rival while also scrambling to compete with the new R1 model – which can match the best models from the likes of ChatGPT for free, while using less processing power and less energy.

There's no doubt lots more to come from DeepSeek, and from its rivals (and partners). You can find plenty of experts weighing in on what's next, and the best place to keep up to date with the latest developments is at our DeepSeek live blog.

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