TechRadar News

• Another Samsung Galaxy Watch is getting the Wear OS 5 treatment
• One UI 6 Watch is rolling out to the Galaxy Watch 4 range
• It comes with new AI fitness features, watch faces, and more

After a slow, gradual rollout of Wear OS 5 to its Galaxy Watch 6 and Galaxy Watch 5 models, Samsung has confirmed that the Galaxy Watch 4 is now also receiving the free upgrade, as One UI 6 Watch rolls out to users.

It's a major milestone for Samsung, as its entire Wear OS smartwatch range now supports the latest software, despite a fairly clunky and disjointed rollout.

Samsung has confirmed that it's now rolling out the One UI 6 Watch (Samsung's skin for Wear OS 5) upgrade for its Galaxy Watch 4 range. So what's new in the One UI 6 upgrade for 2024?

Wear OS 5 comes to the Galaxy Watch 4

(Image credit: Future)

As with the Wear OS 5 updates for the Galaxy Watch 5 and 6, the new software brings a host of upgrades, tweaks, and improvements.

Galaxy Watch 4 owners will get new watch faces and visual improvements to the interface, with a new default font, buttons, and toggles. Tile graphics have also been upgraded to make things look better.

Under the hood, new health metrics and improvements bring Samsung's AI-powered energy score, showing you your physical and mental condition based on your sleep and exercise, with advice to help you stay on top of your wellbeing.

There are also more detailed sleep insights, custom workout routines, and the new double-pinch gesture to make navigation easier.

There's also a new power-saving mode that limits some health features and extends battery life.

First released in August 2021, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 marked the return of Wear OS to the Galaxy Watch lineup, but it's possible that this year will be the last major software update the aging model gets.

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• New Reddit Answers tool will search Reddit for the answer you want
• It produces a summary of the information on Reddit
• The feature is in testing right now and US-only

Reddit is full of great information, at least if you can find it. Now, the forum is testing an AI solution to dig up the actual information you are seeking in the depths of its threads. The new Reddit Answers tool, hinted at earlier this year, sorts through all those posts for you, filtering out any irrelevancy (or personal digression) in the way of what you’re looking for.

Reddit Answers has a simple premise: You ask Reddit a question, and Reddit Answers digs through relevant posts and threads to give you curated responses. No more clicking through page after page of search results—just the insights, recommendations, and entertaining banter you’re actually looking for.

Say, for instance, you’re planning a trip to Tokyo and want the best local food spots. Instead of scrolling through endless threads or posting a question and waiting hours for replies, you ask Reddit Answers, “What are the best hidden food gems in Tokyo?” The AI pulls together summaries from threads where people have already debated this topic, giving you a bite-sized collection of recommendations, complete with links to the original threads for deeper exploration. Whether you want ramen joints hidden in alleys, quirky cafes, or sushi spots only the locals know, Reddit Answers helps you zero in on what you need.

Or maybe you’re staring at a long row of wood and nail options at the hardware store because you believe you can build a backyard deck on your own. Instead of sifting through conflicting opinions, Reddit Answers might serve up a summary of tips from r/HomeImprovement, like which materials to use, what mistakes to avoid, and links to step-by-step guides posted by fellow DIYers.

Reddit AI

Of course, if the summaries only whet your appetite, you can get more in-depth. A quick round-up explaining why a particular movie from the ‘90s is having a resurgence in popularity is nice, but if you want to see all of the arguments, jokes, and debates that led to that conclusion, you can jump to the end of the original thread. It’s like getting a highlight reel before deciding if you want to binge the whole series.

Reddit Answers is only in testing right now and limited to the U.S. and in English. The company has plans for a wider rollout if the testing goes well. Reddit Answers also fits with Reddit’s broader push to integrate AI across its services. Earlier this year, Reddit announced a partnership with OpenAI, allowing the AI powerhouse to train its models using Reddit’s vast ocean of posts and comments.

Combining AI and the content on Reddit makes sense since AI can be quite good at collecting information but not always great for people looking for specifics, especially on less active threads. But, with AI summaries and guidance, you might find a lot more people leaning on the Reddit community for advice on everything from their personal lives to what electronics to buy, the source of a weird noise in your car, or even just which website always has the best insight into new AI tools being released for you to find those answers (hint: you're already there).

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The key to AI success is having the right data foundation in place. Put simply, there is no AI without data. But data alone isn’t enough; organizations need to bridge the silos between data, AI and infrastructure to get the most value out of “traditional AI”.

Most organizations, especially non-digital natives, are missing the connection between these three efforts, which is hindering scaled innovation ambitions.

Bridging the gap

In today’s digital world, organizations are focusing on monetizing data as an asset. To achieve this, there needs to be a deliberate business strategy on how to leverage the technology innovations happening in the world of data, AI and infrastructure.

The basic value chain of data and AI is simple: Data is converted into insights, which is converted into actions and decisions to create solutions and services. For example, with traditional AI use cases like personalization, an AI tool provides insights based on someone’s personal data, like from social media, and then generative AI (GenAI) models produce the relevant content for the specific individual.

What’s often missing from this unified data and AI strategy is infrastructure. Both data and AI are infrastructure hungry, and while storage costs have become lower over time, if organizations don’t consider the infrastructure strategy, then the ROI becomes highly questionable.

Very few organizations have an enterprise-wide unified data strategy that connects both AI and infrastructure, as well as structured and unstructured data. Organizational models need to pivot to break these silos. Agile DevOps ways of working and embracing change management are imperative to scale AI to transform your business.

Connecting the dots

Once a business strategy is created, to build the connections between data, AI and infrastructure, there are four steps that organizations can follow:

1. First, understand that you need to shift from collecting to connecting the dots. A mindset shift needs to occur.

2. Identify the big problem you're trying to solve and the use cases that will create the maximum business impact, rather than just collecting data and building AI models and use cases in isolation.

3. Determine the optimal way to run AI models — either by sending the data to the model, such as with OpenAI’s ChatGPT, or getting the AI or the model to the data, which resides in a private, secure environment. Either route depends on factors like data sensitivity and cost, and infrastructure must be a consideration, as AI models consume a lot of GPUs.

4. Strategically ensure the AI, data and infrastructure teams are aligned and working together to solve the problem, rather than operating in silos. Otherwise, organizations will end up with multiple flavors of execution from a technology standpoint for the same project.

Scaling AI and innovation

Once the dots are connected, organizations can start scaling AI and innovation initiatives throughout their enterprise by following these steps:

1. Shift from a use-case-driven approach to a capability-driven approach, building reusable AI capabilities like conversational AI and voice analytics for internal or external service desks.

2. Establish a centralized data, AI and infrastructure team to build the core foundation, platform and capabilities, while allowing business units to build their own AI-powered applications on top. This is crucial for establishing efficiency and consistency.

3. Ensure the technology approach is aligned to the organizational model.

4. Democratize the use of AI across the organization, making it easy for non-technical employees to leverage the capabilities and create value. It’s important to understand how to make it easy for the employees to consume AI create value.

5. Focus first on targeting the low hanging fruit, which is driving efficiencies before transforming employee and customer experiences and then creating new products and services.

The shift has begun

The organizations that will succeed in scaling their innovation and AI ambitions need to shift from simply collecting data to connecting the dots between data, AI and infrastructure through a simplified, outcome-focused approach.

By adopting a unified data, AI and infrastructure strategy, organizations can lay the foundation to effectively scale their AI ambitions and drive tangible business value.

A shift in attitude is taking place and organizations are realizing they need to be much more strategic about how they leverage these three areas to scale innovation effectively and achieve their business’ goals.

It’s advisable to start with the outcomes and then work backwards to figuring out what datasets are needed and how to industrialize that data with AI. The good news today is that cloud, AI and data management technology is now available to change ways of working, bridge connections and drive innovation at scale.

We;ve lised the best Gantt chart software.

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

• The 8BitDo Ultimate 2C Bluetooth controller is available now in the US
• Comes in blue or pink colors and has a number of notable upgrades
• Worldwide release isn't confirmed as of yet

One of my favorite controller brands has just released a new version of its excellent budget gamepad: the 8BitDo Ultimate 2C Bluetooth controller.

A refined version of the 8BitDo Ultimate C Bluetooth controller - which I also consider to be one of the best Nintendo Switch controllers - the 2C is currently only available in the US for an impressive $29.99. Coming in two distinct colorways - blue or pink - I imagine availability will extend to the UK and other regions in due time.

At a glance, the 8BitDo Ultimate 2C Bluetooth controller has some noticeable upgrades over its predecessor. The Hall effect thumbsticks look to be improved with sturdy metal rings and a pair of remappable bumpers have been added. These are situated between the triggers, much like the ones we see on the Razer Wolverine V3 Pro.

Another change is found in the wireless controller's overall aesthetic. The rear shell now bears a lighter shade of its main color (again, either blue or pink), which I think is a very pleasing touch. It appears that the d-pad and bumpers have also been further refined, this time offering a more tactile and responsive feel overall.

You're also still getting gyro aiming with the 2C - quite a rarity for controllers that are this affordable. However, it does seem like near-field communication (NFC) support for amiibo figures and cards is still absent here, just like the original model. Though that's an omission I'm willing to forgive, especially given the controller's low price point.

Much like GameSir, 8BitDo is a brand that I find to rarely miss the mark when it comes to controller design. I've tested and reviewed several 8BitDo products including the 8BitDo Ultimate and 8BitDo Arcade Stick, and always found something to love with the brand's hardware. Be that in overall quality, affordability, or impressive feature sets, it's a brand that I'm typically confident in recommending to those looking to buy a new controller.

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• Judge orders Automattic to stop blocking WP Engine’s access to its servers
• WordPress owner must also restore access to how it was before the falling out
• Automattic CEO has indicated he’s unhappy with the decision

In the latest development in what has been a chequered few months for the WordPress hosting platform, the US District Court for the Northern District of California has sided with WP Engine in its battle against Automattic, the parent company of WordPress.com.

The court’s order demands Automattic stop, “blocking, disabling, or interfering with WPEngine’s and/or its employees’, users’, customers’, or partners’ access to WordPress.org” and “interfering with WPEngine’s control over, or access to, plugins or extensions.”

Judge Martínez-Olguín also criticized Automattic’s defense, which argued WP Engine’s reliance on WordPress.org resource was self-imposed, noting Automattic’s targeted actions specifically against WP Engine exacerbated the harm.

WP Engine comes out victorious?

The dispute began when Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg accused WP Engine of being a “cancer” for taking more than it gives to the open source project.

Mullenweg later banned WP Engine from accessing WordPress.org’s resources for free after days of tit-for-tat arguments.

Apart from blocking WP Engine’s access to WordPress.org servers, WP Engine also accused Mullenweg of seizing control of its Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) plugin. In response to Automattic's drastic measures, WP Engine took legal action.

Judge Martínez-Olguín confirmed that Automattic’s “conduct is designed to induce breach or disruption.”

The court also heard WP Engine “experienced a 14% increase in the average number of daily cancellation requests between September 26 and 30, and an increase of 17% in cancellation requests between October 1 and October 14, as compared to September 1 through September 25.”

The Judge also demanded Automattic “[restores] WPEngine’s and Related Entities’ access to WordPress.org in the manner that such access existed as of September 20, 2024,” including to functionality and development resources, data resources, security resources and support resources.

A WPEngine spokesperson told TechRadar Pro, "We are grateful that the court has granted our motion for a preliminary injunction. The order will bring back much-needed stability to the WordPress ecosystem. WP Engine is focused on serving our partners and customers and working with the community to find ways to ensure a vigorous, and thriving WordPress community.”

We’ve reached out to Automattic for their responses to the court ruling, but did not immediately receive a response - however, Mullenweg did share another user’s X post seemingly indicative of his disagreement. It reads: “Agree with him or not, the court is forcing an open source maintainer into providing services to a user.”

UPDATE: Automattic shared the following statement with TechRadar Pro in an email:

"Today’s ruling is a preliminary order designed to maintain the status quo. It was made without the benefit of discovery, our motion to dismiss, or the counterclaims we will be filing against WP Engine shortly. We look forward to prevailing at trial as we continue to protect the open source ecosystem during full-fact discovery and a full review of the merits."

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• A new report suggests we'll be seeing two Galaxy Z Flip phones next year
• The report also tips both phones will run on Samsung's own Exynos 2500 chipset
• But Samsung has yet to offer any official information on upcoming foldables

A new report has pulled together two different threads of rumors concerning the future of the company’s flip foldable lineup following the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6.

According to Korean news outlet Chosun Biz, the rumored Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 and Galaxy Z Flip FE smartphones will use Samsung’s own Exynos 2500 chipset, as the company has managed to overcome hurdles in the chipset manufacturing process. The report was shared on Twitter by notable leaker Jukanlosreve.

The direct mention of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip FE in this report adds to previous rumors of a cheaper folding phone from Samsung, though the use of a flagship-class Exynos 2500 chipset may suggest a more premium device than originally expected.

For comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE uses Samsung’s own Exynos 2400e chipset, while the flagship Galaxy S24 models all use the more powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset from Qualcomm.

Samsung has been making efforts to move away from Qualcomm and towards its own Exynos platform for quite some time now but has faced difficulties with production, chiefly the inability to produce enough chipsets for the amount of phones the company sells.

It is currently the only major phone maker to not use a proprietary chipset in its flagship phones – Apple equips the iPhone 16 family with the A18 chipset, whereas Google implements its Tensor G4 in the Pixel 9 series.

The report quotes an unnamed senior official at Samsung, who noted that 3nm chipset production has “stabilized” after difficulties with mass production. The official added that “It seems difficult to install it in the Galaxy S25 series due to insufficient quantity, but it will be possible to fully install it in the premium models of the Z Flip series.”

Note the plural “models” in the above quote – this seems to support the idea that multiple new Z Flip phones are on the way, and the emphasis on premium may allude to more powerful specs for the rumored Z Flip FE.

If this is the case, the Exynos 2500 will seem right at home within the Galaxy Z Flip FE, though it may bring the total cost of the handset up somewhat.

No matter the price of the new Galaxy Z Flip devices, it’s likely we’ll see both phones make it to our list of the best folding phones.

Samsung have yet to officially comment on these developments, and likely won’t reveal either rumored phone until close to launch. For the latest official updates as we hear them, be sure to keep up with our Samsung Galaxy phones coverage.

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• The follow-up to the SU7 takes on the globally-popular SUV body shape
• It boasts larger batteries and more power than the Tesla Model Y
• Xiaomi says the YU7 will go on sale in China next year

Chinese smartphone and technology manufacturer Xiaomi has proven it can make waves in the electric vehicle market with the runaway success of its SU7 electric sedan – a high-performance Ultra version of which recently set a record around Germany’s Nurburgring.

Now, details and imagery of the brand’s debut SUV have been revealed via the company's Weibo site, alongside the name. Dubbed the YU7, the large SUV borrows several design cues from its sedan counterpart and features a nod to one its closest rivals in the nomenclature.

Tesla’s Model Y is clearly going to be Xiaomi’s number one target, with its newest vehicle tipped to offer battery sizes of 94.3kWh and 101kWh, which could equate to an all-electric range in excess of 400 miles on a single charge.

(Image credit: Xiaomi)

The YU7 is also longer and wider than the Tesla counterpart, boasting styling that is reminiscent of Ferrari’s Purosangue performance SUV, with hints of Porsche Macan at the rear. It’s certainly not the most original piece of design, but it’s arguably a more purposeful-looking EV than Tesla’s almost formless Model Y.

The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology’s website, which publishes details of planned electric vehicle launches, suggested that the YU7 would receive a dual-motor powertrain that could offer a combined power output of 681bhp – almost 100hp more than the most potent Tesla Model Y Long Range Performance model.

There is currently no word on what the interior will look like, although we would expect it share many of its components (including its smartphone-derived technology) with the SU7 sister model. Xiaomi says deliveries of the YU7 will start in China next year.

Analysis: Xiaomi is shaking up the EV industry

(Image credit: Xiaomi)

Many scoffed at the thought of a smartphone-maker taking on some of the biggest names in the automotive game, but the company has proven that its domestic customers crave the absolute cutting-edge in technology.

The company had built and sold 10,000 SU7 models just 32 days after its initial announcement and then went on to hit its 100,000-unit sales target in 230 days. Since that point, it has out-sold Toyota in pure EV sales in China and has gone on to produce a 1,526hp, tri-motor performance version that out-gunned the most ferocious Porsche Taycan around Germany’s infamous Nurburgring.

Xiaomi is shaking up the market and the release of its long-awaited SUV model will only help bolster its sales. Tesla will likely be the most worried about the news, seeing as China has historically been one of its most successful markets.

But, like BYD, Nio and a whole host of fellow Chinese brands, it likely won’t be long before Xiaomi starts to look at other profitable global markets as it seeks expansion.

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• Android phones are getting a new Motion Cues feature
• The feature should help combat motion sickness when reading in cars
• iPhones recently got a similar feature in iOS 18

If you were paying attention to the iOS 18 launch, you may have noticed a new Vehicle Motion Cues feature that promises to help to combat car sickness. There's now an Android equivalent on the way – and we just got a better idea of how it's going to work.

The folks over at Android Police did some digging into the Google Play Services code on Android, discovering that the feature Google is planning – called, apparently, Motion Cues – is almost ready to be rolled out.

With a few tweaks, the Android Police team was able to get the feature working: You get a simple Motion Cues toggle switch, plus an Auto-enable when Driving option that has the feature kick in whenever your phone thinks you're in a car.

As on iOS, the feature puts small black dots at the edge of the screen, which then move to match the motion of the vehicle you're in. The idea is to remove the disconnect between your body feeling movement and your eyes seeing something fixed and stationary.

Coming soon

The hidden screens enabled by Android Police (Image credit: Android Police)

Google hasn't said anything officially yet, so we don't know when this feature is going to be pushed out – we might not see it until Android 16 arrives around mid-2025, though it could also be part of an Android 15 update. The feature was first spotted last month.

When it does turn up, you'll be able to activate it through the Quick Settings panel, Android Police reports – so with a quick one-finger or two-finger swipe down from the top of the screen you can turn it on and try and ward off any nausea.

Here's how Apple describes its own feature: "With Vehicle Motion Cues, animated dots on the edges of the screen represent changes in vehicle motion to help reduce sensory conflict without interfering with the main content."

That "sensory conflict" happens when there's a disconnect between what you see and what you feel, and Motion Cues should help – not just in cars, but in other places where you might get motion sickness (on a boat, for example).

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• Samsung will reportedly sell magnetic cases for the Galaxy S25 series
• These could allow you to attach other magnetic accessories to the phones
• It's unclear whether these would be used with or instead of Qi2

One clear advantage the iPhone 16 and other iPhones have over Samsung’s devices is their MagSafe system, which allows you to magnetically attach wireless chargers, tripods, and other accessories to the back of them. But this is a feature that Samsung might be looking to match with the Samsung Galaxy S25 series.

According to leaker Roland Quandt (writing for WinFuture), Samsung is making a range of covers – including transparent covers and what’s being referred to as a “card cover” – with built-in magnets.

According to Quandt’s sources, these magnets will allow you to magnetically attach other accessories to the phone. So, in other words, the case might attach like any normal smartphone case, but its built-in magnet could allow you to attach additional magnetic accessories to the case.

This, then, could allow Samsung to somewhat replicate the MagSafe system without having any MagSafe-like tech built into the phone itself.

The Qi2 question

This leak is all well and good, but recently we heard that the Samsung Galaxy S25 line might support the Qi2 magnetic wireless charging standard. This should mean that you wouldn't need one of these cases to attach magnetic accessories to the phone, as the magnets would already be built into the handset.

So, what’s going on here? It’s possible that both leaks are right, and that Samsung's cases contain additional magnets so you can securely attach accessories even with a case on the phone.

Or maybe the claims of Qi2 were wrong and Samsung’s MagSafe alternative will be powered purely by these cases. Quandt, for his part, said on Bluesky that he hasn’t seen any evidence of Qi2, but that he also wouldn’t be surprised if the standard was supported.

One way or another, though, it’s looking very likely that you’ll be able to use magnetic accessories with the Samsung Galaxy S25 and its siblings.

In other Galaxy S25 news, Quandt has also shared images of some Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra dummy units.

Post by @rquandt030 View on Threads

These images show the phone from all angles in both black and white shades, but they don’t really show us much that we haven’t seen before. As noted by Quandt, they also seem to lack the periscope camera we’re expecting the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra to come equipped with – the device in question has the right number of cameras, but none of the lenses are the square shape we’d expect from a periscope.

As such, it’s possible that other details are wrong too, but these dummy units seem to otherwise line up with other leaked images, which show an S25 Ultra with slightly more rounded corners than the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra but an otherwise similar design.

We’re expecting the Samsung Galaxy S25 series to launch in January, with leaks pointing to January 22, so we should get an official look at the design – and any MagSafe-like accessories – before long.

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• The US Treasury Dept. is bringing sanctions against a Chinese cybersecurity firm and one of its employees
• The Government believes the employee is singlehandedly responsible for over 80,000 Sophos firewall breaches
• Many of the targets were part of US critical infrastructure

Chinese cybersecurity firm Sichuan Silence has been sanctioned by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) for its role in a string of Ragnarok ransomware attacks in April of 2020, in which tens of thousands of firewalls were compromised across the globe.

Also sanctioned was an employee of the firm, Guan Tianfeng, who is allegedly single-handedly responsible for exploiting 81,000 Sophos firewalls. Guan discovered a zero-day exploit in the Sophos firewall and used this to compromise businesses, and steal information like passwords.

Once the information was obtained, Guan would often disable the victims anti-virus software and encrypt the device with a Ragnarok ransomware variant, which infected the victim’s device.

23,000 successful compromises

The wide-reaching cyber espionage campaign compromised over 23,000 firewalls in the US alone, with 36 critical infrastructure targets - including an energy company. Obviously an impressive cybercriminal, Guan (also known as GbigMao), also competed in cybersecurity tournaments on behalf of Sichuan Silence.

The Justice Department has offered a $10 million reward for any information that could lead to the location of the attacker. The ‘malicious cyber activities’ against infrastructure are violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.

“The defendant and his conspirators compromised tens of thousands of firewalls and then continued to hold at risk these devices, which protect computers in the United States and around the world,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G. Olsen.

The sanctions include the seizure of any US property or assets belonging to the firm or to Guan, and blocking any entities that are more than 50% owned by Sichuan Silence, unless authorized by the OFAC.

The US government recently announced that mitigating Chinese cyberattacks is a top priority for US security forces, citing serious national security concerns.

The cybersecurity firm is said to have served as a third-party contractor for the Chinese government’s intelligence agency, offering tools and skills. From now on, US organizations and citizens are prohibited from engaging in any financial transactions with the firm.

Via BleepingComputer

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• Tenstorrent positions itself as a viable alternative to Nvidia
• Startup plans to ramp up hiring for engineering roles following new funding
• Interoperability is a key appeal for Tenstorrent

AI chip startup Tenstorrent has secured $700 million in funding as part of an investment round valuing the company at $2.6 billion.

The investment, led by AFW Partners and Samsung Securities, also included funding pledges LG Electronics, Fidelity, and Bezos Expeditions, the venture capital firm launched by former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

The company says this funding will play a key role in enabling it to expand headcount, further develop supply chain capabilities, and build AI training servers to showcase its technologies.

Major expansion

Tenstorrent specializes in developing powerful, cost-efficient chips aimed specifically for use in AI development. Notably, the company uses open source technology in its development, enabling it to swerve pricey high-bandwidth memory (HBM) currently used by Nvidia.

Similarly, it also focuses heavily on interoperability with other providers, and has been a vocal proponent of the open-standard RISC-V processor architecture.

It's this aspect of the firm's operations which makes the Santa Clara-headquartered firm an appealing alternative to Nvidia, according to CEO Jim Keller.

“You can’t beat Nvidia if you use HBM, because Nvidia buys the most HBM and has a cost advantage. But they’ll never be able to bring the price down the way HBM is built into their products and their sockets,” Keller said in a statement.

Enterprises have been making efforts to seek alternatives to Nvidia in recent years amidst its meteoric rise to prominence in the global tech industry, and Tenstorrent is one of a number aiming to fill that void.

In March 2024, Toronto-based AI chip startup Taalas secured $50 million in funding – again with the aim of challenging the GPU-centricity of the industry created by Nvidia's dominance.

While Tenstorrent is still a relatively young firm, it’s already secured around $150 million in contracts and is scaling significantly.

The company’s first chips to hit the market were manufactured as part of a deal with GlobalFoundries. The launch of Grayskull, Tenstorrent’s RISC-V alternative, was designed to be far easier to program and scale.

Future chip series will be built through a deal with TSMC and Samsung. This includes development of a 2nm AI Accelerator, but exact details on release dates are yet to be determined.

Long-term, the company intends to release a new AI processor every year.

Via Bloomberg

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• Google unveils Willow quantum chip, promises major leaps forward
• Willow can outperform previous generations of chips across a range of benchmarks
• The chip has the potential for exponential error reduction - a key milestone

Google has unveiled a new quantum chip capable of exponential error reduction - a huge milestone in the journey towards quantum advantage.

The release of Willow, marks the second milestone in Google’s journey towards creating a large error-corrected quantum computer.

When tested using the random circuit sampling benchmark, Willow was able to complete the benchmark in five minutes - just slightly faster than the world's current fastest supercomputer, which would take 10,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 years.

One small step for quantum computation

The chip was made at Google’s purpose-built Santa Barbara lab, with Willow housing 105 qubits. A qubit is quantum’s equivalent of a ‘bit’ used in classical computing, with the difference being that a qubit can exist as both a binary one and zero at the same time thanks to a qubit's ability to exist in a state known as superposition.

Willow’s qubits are also capable of retaining their state of excitation, their ‘one’ state in binary terms, for almost 100 microseconds - five times longer than previous generations of chips produced by Google.

While the benchmarks performed by Willow are impressive, they are just a step in the journey towards creating a viable quantum computer that provides an actual advantage over a classic computer. Current quantum computers may be faster at solving certain problems, but classic computing is better optimized for a wider range of tasks that are not only scientifically viable, but also commercially.

In a blog postannouncing the launch, Hartmut Neven, Founder and Lead, Google Quantum AI, states, “On the one hand, we’ve run the RCS benchmark, which measures performance against classical computers but has no known real-world applications. On the other hand, we’ve done scientifically interesting simulations of quantum systems, which have led to new scientific discoveries but are still within the reach of classical computers.”

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Russia restricted foreign internet access across several regions over the weekend to test its national infrastructure.

Residents of the affected regions couldn't access both foreign and local apps, including the likes of YouTube (one of the last Western social media platforms still available in Russia), Google, WhatsApp, and Telegram – The Record reported.

As per local reports, not even virtual private network (VPN) apps managed to help citizens bypass internet restrictions in what looks like a new phase of online censorship for the country.

"This event is crucial in the possible evolution of online censorship in Russia because it shows what's technically possible – a very limited internet experience where most common things simply don't work," a technical expert from the Russian digital rights group Roskomsvoboda told TechRadar.

ℹ️ Note: Metrics show the disruption and restoration of connectivity in Dagestan, #Russia, following what telecoms regulator Roskomnadzor has described as a trial of its capacity to disable access to the foreign internet in a specific region; incident duration ~24 hours pic.twitter.com/7iYtDcVtSGDecember 7, 2024

According to reports, Runet trials mostly affected residents living in areas populated by ethnic minorities, such as Chechnya, Dagestan, and Ingushetia.

Data from the internet watchdog NetBlocks (see tweet above) confirmed that authorities restored internet connectivity in Dagestan late on Saturday, December 7, 2024, after 24 hours of blockage which "telecoms regulator Roskomnadzor has described as a trial of its capacity to disable access to the foreign internet in a specific region," experts noted.

The latest incidents don't come as a total surprise, though. Russia's censor body conducted similar tests in July, in fact, to ensure the functionality of the "sovereign internet" infrastructure when it was disconnected from the wider web.

In September, the Kremlin also shared its plans to invest over half a billion US dollars (almost 60 billion rubles) over the next five years to update its internet-blocking system, especially against VPN usage.

A new phase of Russian censorship

Russian censorship is clearly getting tougher, and visitors and residents are left with fewer means to overcome restrictions.

While the best VPN apps have become a crucial resource for people in Russia struggling to access international news and other blocked websites, 2024 has seen the Kremlin double down against Russia's VPN usage.

For starters, a new law enforced in March now criminalizes the spread of information about ways to circumvent internet restrictions – VPNs included.

Do you know?

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

VPNs encrypt users' internet connections and mask their real IP address location. The latter ability is particularly useful to Russians who wish to use VPNs to bypass stringent internet restrictions – exactly what the authorities seek to prevent.

As per the latest data, nearly 200 VPN services are currently blocked in the country at the time of writing.

Between July and September alone, about 60 VPN apps silently disappeared from the Russian Apple App Store, bringing the total of unavailable applications in the Big Tech giant's official store to 98.

Roskomsvoboda confirmed to TechRadar that most VPN apps weren't working during the shutdown, but some did. "That's an arms race, where both censors and circumvention tech developers work to cancel out each other's efforts and it's been going on for over a decade. So, there is still hope," the expert added.

The bad news for Russian internet users does not end here, either.

On December 7, Roskomnadzor also announced plans to restrict at least eight foreign web hosting providers as they fail to meet the agency’s censorship requirements. These include Amazon Web Services (AWS), GoDaddy, and HostGator.

This represents "a new stage in Russian online censorship," noted one of Roskomsvoboda’s IT specialists, adding that "Something similar has already happened on a small scale, but this is the biggest one."

Russian IT expert Ilya Vaitsman expressed his concerns, too. Vaitsman is especially worried about a potential boost in VPN censorship across the country since, he explains, these platforms host a significant portion of these services.

He said: "Of course, there are hundreds of other sites in the world, not so noticeable, where there are also VPN nodes, but in general the situation is deteriorating sharply."

• Artivion submitted a new filing with the SEC, confirming a ransomware attack
• It was forced to take some systems offline, but says operations are unaffected
• No threat actors claimed responsibility just yet

Artivion, a major American company building heart surgery devices, has confirmed suffering a ransomware attack.

In a new 8-K filing submitted with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the company said it identified, and tackled, a “cybersecurity incident” in late November 2024.

“Artivion’s response measures included taking certain systems offline, initiating an investigation, and engaging external advisors, including legal, cybersecurity, and forensics professionals to assess, contain, and remediate the incident,” the company said in the filing. “The incident involved the acquisition and encryption of files.”

Orders and shipping disrupted

Artivion said it was working on restoring its systems “as quickly as possible” and that it was currently evaluating whether or not its clients, customers, or employees, would need to be notified of the attack.

It also added that at the date of the filing, it did not see the attack having a material impact on its overall financial condition or results of operations, further stressing that such a scenario is unlikely.

The ransomware attack wasn’t completely benign, though: “The incident has caused disruptions to some order and shipping processes, as well as to certain corporate operations, which have largely been mitigated,” Artivion stressed. “The Company has and will continue to incur expenses related to its response to this incident, and the Company believes it has adequate insurance coverage.”

While insurance will cover parts of the expenses, it will not cover all. There are still risks such as further delays in restoration, meaning that the bottom line is yet to be determined.

Artivion did not say who the attackers were, what their demands were, or if they stole any sensitive information. Given the sensitivity of the information it handles, it’s safe to assume the crooks did ask for money, under the threat of releasing the files to the public. However, those threats are usually done by posting the name, and a sample, on a data leak site which, at press time, did not yet happen. That could also suggest that a ransom payment is currently being negotiated.

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• A trailer for the ZenGrip 2, a third-party accessory from the brand Satsifye, seems to show the Switch 2 for the first time
• The now-deleted trailer seems to show that the Switch 2 will be all black
• Nintendo's next console is expected to launch in 2025

The design for the Nintendo Switch 2 has seemingly leaked via a third-party accessory company.

Rumors surrounding the Nintendo Switch successor have been ramping up over the past few months, from leaked specs to alleged 3D model renders of the console. However, we may now have received our first look at the handheld ahead of its supposed 2025 release.

In a now-deleted trailer from third-party accessory manufacturer Satisfye showcasing its new ZenGrip 2, its latest attachment for the next Switch console, someone was able to spot a glimpse of the Switch 2.

X / Twitter user 'DP19' shared a screenshot in a recent post that seems to capture the first look of the handheld. The image is quite blurry, but it does appear to show a Switch-like console attached to the ZenGrip 2.

"Satisfye accidentally put a trailer for their upcoming product the Zengrip 2 for the Nintendo Next Gen Console and in it," the user wrote.

"They just show the Nintendo Switch 2 in it like straight up just show it it's blurred a bit but not much that is our first official Switch 2 look."

Satisfye accidentally put a trailer for their upcoming product the Zengrip 2 for the Nintendo Next Gen Console and in itThey just show the Nintendo Switch 2 in it like straight up just show it it's blurred a bit but not much that is our first official Switch 2 look pic.twitter.com/S0zPNewla6December 10, 2024

Another user named 'WickedRay' also replied to the post in the X / Twitter thread with another image from the now-deleted trailer, which provides a much clearer look at the console.

Although hidden behind a wall of text, the handheld does appear to be similar to the original Nintendo Switch and its design is all black. It also appears to feature the "extra button" the Switch 2 joycons allegedly have, DP19 notes.

Nintendo hasn't formally revealed its next handheld console just yet, but a release date announcement for the Switch 2 is confirmed before the end of 2024. The company has also confirmed that it will be backwards compatible with the original Switch.

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• 28 Days Later isn't available to watch on any streaming service
• The sequel 28 Weeks Later is available to stream on Hulu in the US, and Disney Plus in the UK and Australia
• I hope that the first movie will be added to a streamer ahead of the release of 28 Years Later

I know what you're thinking: how can I be a fan of zombie movies when I haven't even seen Danny Boyle's cult classic 28 Days Later? Well, there's just one problem: it's not available to stream on any of the best streaming services!

28 Days Later is considered one of the best horror classics of the early 2000s for having revitalized the zombie genre by putting a unique and chilling spin on the monsters, which made the trope more terrifying even for the most seasoned of horror fans.

As a zombie lover, I would love to experience this trailblazer of modern cinema for the first time and with the highly-anticipated sequel 28 Years Later set to hit cinemas in 2025, now is the perfect time to stream it. But unfortunately 28 Days Later has managed to stay dead and buried from any streaming services.

In the UK, US and Australia, 28 Days Later isn't on a single streaming platform and you can't even rent or buy it on Prime Video. Right now, the only alternative is purchasing the 28 Days Later DVD, but with the world of streaming at your fingertips it's very surprising that this horror juggernaut hasn't found a home on the likes of Netflix, Prime Video or Disney Plus.

There is one positive though. As I was scouring through the content mines of my streaming subscriptions, I did manage to find and watch the sequel 28 Weeks Later on Disney Plus (also available on Hulu in the US), so I'm at a loss on why its blood-curdling predecessor isn't also on there too. For now, I have my fingers crossed that 28 Days Later will be added to one of the many streaming services ahead of the new movie's release on June 20, 2025.

What is 28 Days Later about?

In 28 Days Later, a group of animal rights activists free a caged chimp infected with the 'Rage' virus from a medical research facility. London bike courier Jim (Cillian Murphy) wakes from a coma 28 days later and discovers that society has turned into aggressive zombie-like beings after contracting the Rage. Desperately trying to escape the infected, Jim comes across a group of survivors, including Selena (Naomie Harris) and cab driver Frank (Brendan Gleeson), and joins them on a dangerous journey to (hopefully) safety.

28 Days Later made the concept of fast-moving zombies a popular craze in modern-day cinema, with them later being seen in I Am Legend, World War Z, and Train to Busan. Boyle has since produced two sequels to the zombie franchise with 28 Weeks Later and the upcoming third installment 28 Years Later, which features a jaw-dropping unexpected cameo in the trailer.

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The UK, the US, Israel and the EU signed the first international treaty on artificial intelligence (AI) in September. Under the legally binding agreement, national states must implement safeguards against any threats posed by AI to human rights, democracy and the rule of law.

While this is a welcome step towards establishing international standards for AI governance, there is still a glaring gap between the rapid pace of AI innovation and governments' ability to regulate the technology. This poses significant risks to democracies and individuals, and at the core of these risks lies data.

The nations that lead the way in safe AI adoption will be the ones that reap the biggest benefits of the technology. To realise its ambition to become a global AI superpower, the UK needs to get the balancing act between providing regulatory oversight and encouraging innovation right. This would require establishing clear AI policies that safeguard data and protect the rights of content owners.

Leaders and laggards in the AI race

So far, Europe has a head start on AI because there is more clarity on regulation, which is vital for the future development of the technology. The EU AI Act that came into force in August this year is the world's first comprehensive AI law. It requires businesses to comply with security, transparency, and quality requirements depending on the risk level associated with their AI applications.

However, outside of the EU AI Act, other significant regulations are cropping up, too, with the UK and US currently working on developing their regulatory frameworks for AI. As the first comprehensive AI regulation, the EU AI Act is expected to become a blueprint for future AI regulations. According to IDC, 60% of governments worldwide will adopt a risk management approach to framing their AI policies by 2028.

The UK has a great opportunity to seize the moment and lead the way in AI regulation alongside other major powers such as the EU. However, this will require bold action and effective policies that encourage competition and defend the rights of citizens and content creators.

Getting AI regulation right

To get AI policies right, the government needs to address the biggest issues in AI regulation - data. Currently, large language models (LLMs) can use privately owned data provided it is anonymized. This places too much power in the hands of a few big tech giants and does not adequately protect intellectual property. We need to assert more data rights and safeguard the rights of data owners and content creators.

To assure data privacy and intellectual property, governments must introduce regulatory provisions such as mandatory disclosure of data sources used to train LLMs and consent and compensation for using copyrighted information and private data. Protecting data privacy and intellectual property is the number one thing we should be focusing on in the age of AI, yet it is the last thing anyone seems to be talking about.

Secondly, we need to consider more holistically who needs to have a say in the future of AI. Focusing discussions on AI regulation on the usual suspects from Big Tech is limiting and potentially dangerous. This technology impacts everyone in our society, and we must ensure that a wider range of viewpoints gets heard. We should be mindful not to create unhealthy market dynamics by concentrating excessive power into the hands of a few big players who have a disproportionate influence on how AI gets developed and regulated.

A safer model for enterprise AI adoption

One of the biggest challenges to regulating AI is that the most widely used open-source generative AI models offer limited control over who can access the data fed into these LLMs and how it has been used. Making these models accessible to many developers or users increases the risk of misuse by malicious actors as well as the number of actors in scope for any regulatory approach.

To minimize the risk of AI misuse, governments should encourage the adoption of private AI models, particularly in business sectors such as financial services, healthcare, insurance, and the public sector, where data protection is of critical importance. With private AI, users can purpose-build an AI model to deliver the needed results and train it on the data they have while ensuring their data never escapes their control. This will enable organizations to keep their innovations and customer, patient or citizen data safe while reducing the risk of data misuse or leakage.

The way forward

Data safety is the number one issue regulators must address today to regulate AI. This means not only safeguarding the data that feeds AI algorithms but also securing the rights of content creators and consumers.

What we need in these transformative times is an enabling environment for wide-ranging innovation governed by clear regulatory frameworks that provide fair opportunities for everyone. The implications of AI touch every corner of our society, and we must ensure everyone can have a say in how our lives will be impacted by it.

The UK can play a leading role on the global AI stage but to do so, it needs to carefully balance openness to innovation with regulatory oversight while taking swift action to address the most pressing AI risks and protect the rights of citizens and content owners.

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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

5G and generative artificial intelligence, or Gen AI, are two technologies driving business objectives forward for enterprises worldwide. A 5G network, whether through a wireless wide area network (WWAN) or a private network, helps transfer large amounts of data with low latency and a more secure connection. As for Gen AI, there are many cases where it is streamlining business insights and automating repetitive tasks across multiple industries.

While both technologies are providing value separately, their true value is realized once they are paired together. More specifically, Gen AI and 5G can — and quite frankly should — co-exist in a mutual relationship that maximizes network performance while simultaneously optimizing each Gen AI use case.

How 5G benefits Gen AI

The very nature of Gen AI, whether training a large language model (LLM) or using a mainstream Gen AI tool, makes 5G its perfect partner.

Training a Gen AI model is a long process with multiple steps. It begins with collecting the data upon which the model will be trained. Then, there’s introducing the data to the model and, depending on the model’s function, dictating how the model is supposed to respond. Next, whoever is training the model must, in real-time, tune the model to ensure it is reacting correctly. This process requires almost instantaneous feedback to correct inaccurate or irrelevant responses from the model. For example, if you’re training a customer service bot, you don’t want it responding with product prices if the customer asked for product features.

Any enterprise attempting to train a LLM, could be leveraging as much as petabytes if not more to ensure the Gen AI function is able to support massive workflows and a large customer base. This training process requires large and continuous data transfers and, therefore, requires a network to facilitate these transfers with high bandwidth and low latency. A centrally managed 5G WWAN network allows network administrators to leverage the power of 5G and ensure each data training exercise gets the network support it needs. This could include traffic steering to create bandwidth for Gen AI training or link bonding to increase the bandwidth necessary for large data transfers. Alternatively, enterprises can leverage a private 5G network to ensure each Gen AI model has dedicated 5G bandwidth while the model is trained.

Once a model is deployed, or if enterprise personnel leverage a more general AI tool like ChatGPT, the goal is to get live responses to complete business goals. For example, Gen AI-enhanced cameras are becoming an everyday use case for businesses to collect large amounts of actionable data. These cameras, which organizations also use for security purposes, can track who enters a facility, the number of people entering, and their license plates. The camera then shares all that data back to a central system for analysis. Often these cameras are placed in areas where it might be cost-prohibitive or too time-consuming to run wires. Therefore, 5G can play an important role in ensuring that video from the cameras is delivered back to its AI-analytics platform with a high level of performance and reliability.

How Gen AI benefits 5G networks

If an enterprise invests in a 5G WWAN or a private 5G network, the hope is to have a highly available network that’s ready to support business objectives. Gen AI technology can help improve the performance and availability of the overall network, while simultaneously streamlining operations for IT teams in charge of network administration.

A high performance and available network

Gen AI models are trained on massive amounts of data about the operation of the network. Based on this data, a model can identify a baseline for network traffic performance, allowing Gen AI to detect disruptions or anomalies. The model can also pin-point the root cause of the issue and formulate recommendations on how to troubleshoot the issue before it impacts network service – and ultimately impacts business success. This intelligent approach to fault management keeps 5G networks highly available.

Technology that supports network administrators

For lean IT teams that are constantly asked to do more with less, Gen AI can be the perfect asset to alleviate team workload and increase team efficiency. Most notably, some enterprises are implementing LLM-based Virtual Experts into their network administrative workflows. These virtual experts are helping some administrators get real-time answers to questions about the network using Natural Language Processing, or AI that allows software to understand and communicate in human language.

In the past, a difficult query about network performance could force the network administrator to consult multiple technical documents. Now, the Gen AI based Virtual Expert can synthesize information from many different documents to provide an answer to the administrator in just a few sentences or through graphs – saving valuable time for today’s IT teams.

Gen AI’s role in network security

Gen AI will be especially useful for network security purposes. Today’s enterprise networks are experiencing an unprecedented amount and sophistication of attacks. In fact, some threat actors are even leveraging Gen AI to help them. Network security personnel already see everything from more targeted phishing attacks to new forms of mass-produced malware.

It’s only right that enterprises use Gen AI to protect their networks. Leveraged correctly, Gen AI tools can monitor your 5G network for all types of unusual behavior. This includes unusual or unauthorized sign-ons, phishing attempts, and various malware. Gen AI will provide real-time alerts — on the very same 5G network — so IT security teams can quickly respond and minimize any network damage.

Investing in technologies that work together

As enterprises across each industry lean further into a digitally connected world, there will be less room for investment in technologies that operate in silos. Organizations that implement technologies that complement each other will be able to maximize their investments while also gaining a competitive advantage. Gen AI and 5G provide a perfect example. With Gen AI set to power the future of automation and 5G primed to become the standard for connectivity, investing in both will create faster data analysis, streamlined processes and ultimately expedite business success.

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• Amazon has announced push on decommissioned tech being diverted back to AWS
• Reusable and refurbished tech is being used to help meet sustainability goals
• Amazon says it wants to create a 'circular economy roadmap'

Amazon has revealed more details on its progress towards a goal of being net-zero carbon goal by 2040 through a push on recycling and reusing data center components.

In a new blog post, the company outlined how in 2024, over 99% of all Amazon Web Service (AWS) securely decommissioned racks were sent to its Amazon re:Cycle Reverse Logistics centers, meaning the hardware was diverted from landfills and reused by AWS, sold into the secondary market for reuse, or recycled.

This planning has meant AWS has been able to source 13% of spare parts from its own reuse inventory, which Amazon expects to increase as it expands its data center footprints even further.

A circular economy

The journey won’t be linear, Amazon says, but a ‘big part of it will be circular’.

Anyone who’s bought any tech or even clothing or kitchen appliances in the last ten years will recognize that build quality has rapidly deteriorated. Avid consumerism means many items just aren’t built to last anymore, which is obviously pretty terrible for the planet.

Part of Amazon’s push for sustainability is to ‘design better’, extending the lifetime of hardware and equipment, and using recycled materials which can be repaired and reused.

Alongside this commitment, Amazon recently announced it runs on 100% renewable energy, reportedly seven years ahead of schedule, and the company also plans to develop and implement a ‘comprehensive circular economy roadmap’ to help the firm offset the huge energy consumption that is brought on by expansion.

“We're challenging the traditional 'take-make-waste' model, taking a holistic approach to extend the lifecycle of our resources.” said Manju Murugesan, AWS's circular economy strategy lead.

“While we're encouraged by our progress, we recognize the complexity of the challenge ahead. Our journey towards true circularity requires ongoing innovation and collaboration, and we're committed to this critical work for the benefit of our business, customers, and the planet."

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• Internet traffic rose by 17% year-over-year in 2024, Cloudflare finds
• Google.com and Chrome maintain significant market share
• ChatGPT is still the most popular AI tool

Just like Spotify Unwrapped and Apple Music Replay, Cloudflare has given us its run-down of internet traffic of 2024, showing how we’ve become more connected than ever.

The company's analysis claims internet traffic saw a 17% year-over-year increase driven primarily by the growing number of connected and smart devices, as well as ongoing interest in artificial intelligence.

The company also confirmed that Google Chrome accounts for as close as makes no difference two-thirds (65.73%) of the global browser market – a figure that aligns with separate figures from Statcounter, which puts the browser’s reach at 66.33%.

2024 internet habits

Apart from accessing its browsers, internet users across the globe are also huge fans of Google's search engine, accounting for 88.5% of all internet searches, significantly outpacing rivals like Russia’s Yandex (3.1%), China’s Baidu (2.7%), America’s Bing (2.6%) and the privacy-focused DuckDuckGo (0.9%).

In its 2024 Year in Review, Cloudflare also explored the market shares of social networks. Although Meta has three of the most accessed internet services of the year – Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp – TikTok’s rise has continued. Landing itself in fourth position, behind Apple, the Chinese-owned social network spent a few days in the summer ahead of Apple, highlighting its immense reach.

Longer-term, ChatGPT’s continued rise has kept it the most widely accessed AI tool on the net. Starting 2023 in the top 200 most accessed sites overall, it’s now closing in on the top 50. Cloudflare highlighted the fluctuation, which sees more users access ChatGPT on weekdays rather than weekends, demonstrating its position as a useful workplace AI tool.

Other popular sites and online services worth mentioning are Stripe, which maintained its position as the number one financial service; Tesla, which saw spikes surrounding the launch of its Cybercab robotaxi and following the US elections; and GitHub, which has upgraded its AI tools and security functions over the course of the year in a bid to attract more developers.

“The Internet is everywhere, woven throughout almost all of the daily activities of modern life – how we interact and connect on social media, use our smart refrigerators and vacuums, travel from one place to another through rideshare apps, connect to our banks and more," Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince concluded.

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