Feed aggregator

The surge in electric-vehicle sales comes at the start of what experts predict will be a volatile year for the market.

The action is intended to build upon the existing program for Medicare drug price negotiations, which was created by the Inflation Reduction Act that passed during the Biden administration.

(Image credit: Spencer Platt)

• Google and the Wild Dolphin Project have developed an AI model trained to understand dolphin vocalizations
• DolphinGemma can run directly on Pixel smartphones
• It will be open-sourced this summer

For most of human history, our relationship with dolphins has been a one-sided conversation: we talk, they squeak, and we nod like we understand each other before tossing them a fish. But now, Google has a plan to use AI to bridge that divide. Working with Georgia Tech and the Wild Dolphin Project (WDP), Google has created DolphinGemma, a new AI model trained to understand and even generate dolphin chatter.

The WDP has been collecting data on a specific group of wild Atlantic spotted dolphins since 1985. The Bahamas-based pod has provided huge amounts of audio, video, and behavioral notes as the researchers have observed them, documenting every squawk and buzz and trying to piece together what it all means. This treasure trove of audio is now being fed into DolphinGemma, which is based on Google’s open Gemma family of models. DolphinGemma takes dolphin sounds as input, processes them using audio tokenizers like SoundStream, and predicts what vocalization might come next. Imagine autocomplete, but for dolphins.

The model is very slim and can run on a Google Pixel. WDP is already deploying DolphinGemma in the field this summer, using Pixel 9s in waterproof rigs. These models will be listening in, identifying vocal patterns, and helping researchers flag meaningful sequences in real time.

Flipper speaks

But the ultimate goal here isn’t just passive listening. WDP and Georgia Tech are also working on a system called CHAT (short for Cetacean Hearing Augmentation Telemetry), which is essentially a two-way communication system for humans and dolphins. CHAT lets researchers assign synthetic whistles to objects dolphins like, including seagrass and floating scarves, and then waits to see if the dolphins mimic those sounds to request them. It’s kind of like inventing a shared language, except with underwater microphones instead of flashcards.

DolphinGemma doesn’t just analyze dolphin sounds after the fact; it helps anticipate what sounds might be coming, enabling faster response times and smoother interactions. In essence, it’s like a predictive keyboard for dolphins. The whole project is still in an early stage, but Google plans to open-source DolphinGemma later this year to accelerate progress.

The initial model is trained on the vocalizations of Atlantic spotted dolphins, but it could theoretically be adapted to other species with some tuning. The idea is to hand other researchers the keys to the AI so they can apply it to their own acoustic datasets. Of course, this is still a long way from chatting with dolphins about philosophy or their favorite snacks. There’s no guarantee that dolphin vocalizations map neatly to human-like language. But DolphinGemma will help sift through years of audio for meaningful patterns.

Dolphins aren't the only animals humans may use AI to communicate with. Another group of scientists developed an AI algorithm to decode pigs' emotions based on their grunts, squeals, and snuffles to help farmers understand their emotional and physical health. Dolphins are undeniably more charismatic, though. Who knows, maybe someday you'll be able to ask a dolphin for directions while you're sailing, at least if you don't drop your phone in the water.

You might also like

• Google Search can help people learn English with new language tutor tool
• YouTube could be getting a real-time translator in the future
• Google Translate will now understand the difference between bass and bass

The Northern Lights come from a solar wind that erupted from the sun over the weekend.

The White House is proposing that virtually all federal funding for public media—that's NPR and PBS—be eliminated, starting a process that will reach Congress later in April.

A top House Democrat is asking independent agency watchdogs to investigate after NPR reporting revealed DOGE may have taken sensitive data from the National Labor Relations Board.

(Image credit: Kayla Bartkowski)

Hamas is rejecting a new Israeli proposal to pause the war in Gaza, a Hamas official told NPR. Earlier, officials mediating talks had expressed optimism that a deal could be reached within weeks.

(Image credit: OMAR AL-QATTAA)

The president's comments came after the administration froze $2 billion in federal grants for Harvard after the university rejected what it saw as illegal government demands.

(Image credit: Kevin Dietsch)

Books "overtly promoting DEI, gender ideology, and critical race theory" are under new scrutiny following a memo issued by acting Assistant Secretary of the Army Derrick Anderson.

(Image credit: Patrick Smith)

When a 5.2 earthquake hit near San Diego yesterday, the San Diego Zoo Safari Park caught its elephants on video taking action to protect their young, forming what experts call an "alert circle."

(Image credit: Ken Bohn)

• Intel sells 51% of Altera to Silver Lake for $4.46bn, valuing business at $8.75bn
• Altera gains independence as largest pure-play FPGA semiconductor company
• Raghib Hussain named new CEO as Intel shifts its strategic focus

Intel, now under the leadership of new CEO Lip-Bu Tan, has been facing a number of challenges in recent years, to the point where it was rumored the tech giant could sell off its chip-design and marketing business or spin off its chip plants.

Whether that will happen in the future remains to be seen, but Intel says it has signed a definitive agreement to sell 51% of its Altera business to Silver Lake for $4.46 billion.

This values the company at $8.75 billion, which is quite a drop from nearly $17 billion Intel paid for it in 2015.

Once-in-a-generation opportunity

Altera has been active in FPGA (field programmable gate array) development for over four decades, providing programmable semiconductor solutions for use in industries like communications, aerospace, government, data centers, and industrial automation.

The sale gives Altera operational independence and establishes it as the largest pure-play FPGA semiconductor company in the world. Intel will keep a 49% stake, allowing it to remain involved while shifting its focus more squarely to its core operations.

The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2025, pending customary closing conditions.

Once finalized, Intel plans to deconsolidate Altera’s financials. In 2024, Altera reported $1.54 billion in revenue, a GAAP operating loss of $615 million, and non-GAAP operating income of $35 million.

Raghib Hussain, previously president of Products and Technologies at Marvell, will succeed Sandra Rivera as CEO of Altera on May 5, 2025.

“This investment represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in a scale leader in advanced semiconductors,” said Kenneth Hao, chairman and managing partner of Silver Lake.

“Together with Raghib, we will be focused on strengthening Altera’s technology leadership position and investing in emerging AI-driven markets such as edge computing and robotics. We look forward to working closely with Intel as a strategic partner who will continue to provide U.S.-based foundry services and complementary engagement with customers.”

Lip-Bu Tan described the agreement as a strategic step forward. “Today’s announcement reflects our commitment to sharpening our focus, lowering our expense structure and strengthening our balance sheet,” he said.

“Altera continues to make progress repositioning its product portfolio to participate in the fastest growing and most profitable segments of the FPGA market. We are grateful for Sandra’s strong leadership and lasting impact throughout her 25-year Intel career and wish her continued success as she begins a new chapter. Raghib is a superb executive we selected to lead the business forward based on his vast industry experience and proven track record of success. We look forward to partnering with Silver Lake upon closing of the transaction, as their industry expertise will help to accelerate Altera's efforts and unlock additional economic value for Intel.”

You might also like

• Intel debuts super-fast AI chips to match AMD in the race for supremacy
• Intel's former CEO invests in hardware startup that wants to make Nvidia obsolete
• How Intel is bringing AI advantage and unrivaled security to every industry

In his fifteen years as prime minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban has steadily chipped away at his country's democratic freedoms. We go to Budapest to see what the erosion of democracy looks like and we find that may of Orban's strategies are being studied by politicians elsewhere.

(Image credit: ATTILA KISBENEDEK)

Hints and answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, No. 205, for April 16.

Here are hints and the answer for today's Wordle No. 1,397 for April 16.

Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441: Two-minute review

(Image credit: Future / James Holland)

The best way to think of the Dell Inspron 14 Plus 7441 is as a Windows version of a MacBook Air. Not as superpowered as a Dell XPS (or a MacBook Pro), but snappy performance, a thin and light chassis, and long battery life are all features you can expect here.

For the right person, namely someone who wished there was a Windows MacBook Air, the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 might be the best laptop for them. Its performance, powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon CPU, is snappy while being power efficient. The battery life is very, very impressive, even if it doesn’t reach its advertised heights. And as one of the many laptops built in the mold of the clamshell MacBook, it’s thin, light, and encased in an all-aluminum chassis.

It’s also at a similar price point, though it doesn’t get much more expensive at its maxed out configuration. Of course, since it is a tinier bit cheaper, there are elements that feel a little lower quality than I would expect. Namely, the keyboard, touchpad, and audio quality are a bit underwhelming considering the price. They’re all fine, but feel like they belong on a computer a couple hundred dollars cheaper.

Still, the pros vastly outweigh the cons. The quality of the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441’s performance and battery life bode well for future Qualcomm-equipped laptops, and offer a solid alternative to the MacBook Air and other $1,000 Ultrabooks.

Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441: Price and availability

(Image credit: Future / James Holland)

• How much does it cost? Starting at $949.99 (about £760 / AU$1,470)
• When is it available? Available now
• Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia

Since it’s a solid mid-range option utilizing Snapdragon ARM CPUs, it’s no surprise that the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 is available just about everywhere. While it leans more mid-range than a premium Ultrabook, its starting price of $949.99 (about £760 / AU$1,470) feels a little high. I would expect it to be closer to around an $800 / £600 price point.

At the very least, going up in price is not hugely significant. Going from a 256GB to 512GB SSD adds just about $50 to the price. It should be noted that this configuration with the slightly larger drive is the base configuration in the UK and Australia with a price point of $999.99 / £749.99 / AU$1,597.20. Going up to the max configuration with the slightly more powerful Snapdragon X Plus X1E-80-100 CPU and 1 TB SSD goes for $1,099.99 / £899.99 / AU$1,897.50.

For around the same price, you can get the base configuration of the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M3) with 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD, which has better battery life and at least equal performance. However, upgrading the RAM or SSD adds quite a bit to its cost – the configuration with 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD is pricier at $1,299 / £1,299 / AU$2,099.

If you want more performance in a similarly slim form factor and are okay sacrificing battery life, the slightly older version of the Acer Swift X14 starts at the same price point (the new 2024 version got a bit of a price bump).

• Value: 4 / 5

Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441: Specs

When it comes to different configurations, the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 only allows a small amount of customization. Not including software upgrades (Windows 11 Home vs Windows 11 Pro primarily), you can choose between just two CPUs: the 10-core 3.4GHz Snapdragon X Plus X1P-64-100 and the 12-core 3.4GHz Snapdragon X Plus X1E-80-100 that can be boosted to 4.0 GHz. There are also three SSD options: 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB. The faster CPU and the 1TB SSD are tied together, so if you upgrade one, you have to upgrade the other.

It’s also worth noting that there’s an additional M.2 slot if you want to expand the memory at a later date.

The display that comes with the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 is a 14-inch 1600p screen with a 16:10 aspect ratio and 400 nits of brightness. It’s also a touch screen. Only the one screen is available - no luck if you were hoping to upgrade a mid-tier performance laptop to have an OLED screen.

Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441: Design

• Utilitarian Ultrabook form factor
• Light and thin
• Keyboard and touchpad are nothing special

The Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 follows in Dell’s Inspiron line insofar that it’s a bit utilitarian in its design. Well, that’s certainly the case here. It fits that Ultrabook mold of trying to compete with Apple’s more entry level laptops, with a focus on non-power users who want a competent, portable, and attractive device. So, then this laptop is thin, light, and comes in an attractive if discreet silver aluminum chassis.

I’ll cover its competence in the next section, but it’s certainly thin at just over a half-inch thick and light at a little over three pounds. You don’t have to worry about portability with this version of the Dell Inspiron. And the aluminum chassis feels sturdy as well if you tend to throw your laptops in a backpack with a case.

(Image credit: Future / James Holland)

As far as the display goes, it’s a sharp 1600p touchscreen with up to 400 nits of brightness. While HDR is not on hand, the color accuracy is good enough for photo editing with a 97.6% sRGB, though its DCI-P3 color coverage is 69% so video editing, especially with HDR is not a good idea here.

The keyboard is responsive and attractive with its white backlighting, but is a little stiff to touch. I do wish the individual keys had a little more of a concave shape to them as well. Essentially, it’s good enough, but a little below what I would expect for a laptop like this.

The touchpad is likewise good enough. It’s not the smoothest feeling I've used, but it does the job and is as responsive as it should be.

Lastly, the port selection is about par for this form factor. There are two USB-C 4 ports (one of which is taken up by the charger when plugged in), one regular USB port, an audio jack, and a microSD reader. The last one is something you won’t find on a MacBook Air, by the way.

Image 1 of 3

(Image credit: Future / James Holland)Image 2 of 3

(Image credit: Future / James Holland)Image 3 of 3

(Image credit: Future / James Holland)

• Design: 4.5 / 5

Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441: Performance

• Speedy performance for day-to-day tasks
• Has Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 for speedy connectivity
• Audio and webcam are adequate

The Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus X1P-64-100 and integrated Adreno Graphics are plenty powerful for everyday users. It’s not powerful enough for any real gaming as is to be expected and video editing is going to be an exercise in patience. But, if you need enough power to have 15 tabs open without suffering a slowdown even while streaming, then this laptop can do it.

I was even able to do some light gaming, so if you like to blow off some steam with less demanding titles like Counter-Strike, you shouldn’t have any issues. For most people, the performance on tap is enough.

Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441: Benchmarks

3DMark: Fire Strike: 5965; Time Spy: 1903; Wild Life: 16797

GeekBench 6.3 2436 (single-core); 13281 (multi-core)Handbrake 1.8.1: 7:02

CrossMark: Overall: 1234 Productivity: 1145 Creativity: 1383 Responsiveness: 1098

PC Mark 10 Battery Test (Office): 9:55

PC Mark 10 Battery Test (Video): 18:19:44

It’s also pretty quick when it comes to connectivity as it comes with Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4. That also helps with having those 15-20 tabs open, not to mention that connecting devices should be speedy as well.

The audio and webcam are similar to the keyboard and touchpad in that they’re serviceable, but just that. Again, I would expect slightly better. Starting with the audio, it gets plenty loud, but also gets a bit boomy as the volume goes up.

The webcam is sharp enough at 1080p. The 30 fps it’s capable of is okay, but isn’t the smoothest. Plus, there’s some graininess to it as well. At least, there’s a physical privacy shutter.

• Performance: 4 / 5

Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441: Battery life

(Image credit: Future / James Holland)

• Lasts over 18 hours on a single charge
• Takes awhile to charge back up

The Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441’s battery life both fails to meet its advertised benchmark, though it's still utterly impressive. When a laptop is supposed to last 21 hours and gets pretty close, it’s quite the feat.

In test, this laptop made it to almost 18 hours and 20 minutes on a single charge. During use, that means I’ve been able to cart this laptop around and use it when needed for three days without plugging it in and still have 50% battery life.

Since the battery life is so long, it does take some time to get back to full. It took me about 35 minutes to back up to 99%. While that’s not bad at all, you’ll want to give it some time to juice back if you get it down to nothing.

Another bright spot with the battery life is the fact that, like MacBooks and unlike many other Windows laptops, the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 doesn’t use a whole lot of battery when inactive, but not off. There have been plenty of laptops that I’ve used where the battery life would still drain from when the lid is closed to when the laptop is woken back up.

• Battery life: 5 / 5

Should I buy the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441?  Buy it if…

You want a very, very long battery life

Partially because of the efficiency of the Qualcomm CPU, the battery life on this laptop is ridiculously long. Even if it doesn’t quite hit the advertised 21 hours, almost 18 and a half hours is very impressive.

You wish you could get a MacBook Air with Windows

If you ever wanted the appointments of a MacBook Air, specifically long battery life and quick performance in a slim package, the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 does a very good job of filling that niche.

You want to try an ARM-equipped laptop

If you want something outside of the usual Intel or AMD offerings, the Qualcomm CPU on here provides very good day-to-day performance.

Don't buy it if...

You want premium throughout

There are a few areas, notably the keyboard, touchpad, audio, and webcam, that don’t feel as premium as the rest of the laptop (or its price tag). If you want something without any cut corners, spend a little more on a Dell XPS.

You want the most value possible

The Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 is a lot of things, but a value proposition it’s not. The price isn’t bad, but it feels just slightly overpriced, not to mention that it’s more for those that want a competent laptop, not a cheap one.

Also Consider

If our Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 review has you considering other options, here are two laptops to consider...

Acer Swift X14

For around the same price, the Acer Swift X14 offers an interesting alternative. Instead of a more power-efficient and snappier ARM CPU, it comes with a solid one from Intel. But, you also get discrete graphics that can handle gaming and more demanding editing while still retaining the slim form factor. The Acer does have a much shorter battery life.

Read our full Acer Swift X14 review

Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M3)

The Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M3) offers excellent performance with a long battery life thanks to Apple’s own M3 system-on-a-chip, is incredibly lightweight, not to mention attractive, and provides an intuitive user experience. Of course, its base configuration comes with just 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD, upgrading either adds quite a bit to the price tag.

Read our full Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M3) review

How I tested the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441

• Tested for a couple weeks
• Used it for work, gaming, and streaming
• Tested the hybrid features

I used the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 for a couple weeks, doing some light gaming, watching some online content, and working on it. I also used it on the go and tested its various features like the webcam and audio.

The Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 takes advantage of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon ARM CPUs to offer snappy and efficient performance in an Ultrabook form factor. It’s slightly pricey for what it is, but is ideal for those that want something utilitarian, yet attractive and powerful enough for extended day-to-day work on the go.

I’ve spent the last few years reviewing tech gear for gaming and otherwise, where I’ve gotten a feel for what to look for and how to put a piece of kit through its paces to see whether it’s worth the recommendation.

Hints and answers for Connections for April 16, #675.

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle No. 409 for April 16.

Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni, in its natural habitat. The team on Schmidt Ocean Institute's Research Vessel Falkor captured footage of the nearly one foot squid at a depth of 1,968 feet, using their remotely operated vehicle "SuBastian" on March 9, during an Ocean Census flagship expedition searching for new marine life.'/>

Colossal squid are known to be elusive and likely avoid the bright and loud research equipment used underwater.

(Image credit: ROV SuBastian)

In Zuckerberg's second day of testifying in the federal antitrust trial, he defended Meta's acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. The U.S. government wants Meta to bust up the two companies.

(Image credit: Andrew Harnik)

The government says Meta's acquisition of Instagram and WhatsApp boxed out competitors.