Techmeme: A leaked Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro promo video reveals new camera features: an Audio Eraser, the ability to swap faces, full manual controls like ISO, and more (Sanket Vijayasarathy/91mobiles)

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September 24, 2023, 2:55 PM

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Sanket Vijayasarathy / 91mobiles:

A leaked Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro promo video reveals new camera features: an Audio Eraser, the ability to swap faces, full manual controls like ISO, and more — - A new promo video focuses on the many camera features of the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro. — Both the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro will get a 50MP primary camera.

More: 9to5Google, PCMag, Forbes, MySmartPrice, Android Police, TechRadar, Neowin, PhoneArena, SPARROWS NEWS, Droid Life, Laptop Mag, Tom's Guide, BigTechWire, TechEBlog, The Verge, Android Headlines, TweakTown, Wccftech, Notebookcheck, The Mobile Report, GSMArena.com, and Android Authority

Mastodon: @rolle@mementomori.social and @grumpasaurus@fosstodon.org

X: @evowizz, @boringstein, @neilcybart, @u_m_a_m_i, @nexusben, @zachhazard, @broderick, @parkerortolani, and @za_raczke

Forums: r/GooglePixel and r/Android

Reuters:

A look at Scattered Spider, which experts say is a group of 17- to 22-year-old native English speakers likely behind MGM and 52+ other hacks since March 2022 — About a year ago, the U.S. security firm Palo Alto Networks began to hear from a flurry of companies that had been hacked in ways that weren't the norm for cybercriminals.

More: Washington Post, Dark Reading, CyberScoop, and DeviceSecurity.io

Bluesky: @nohomers.bsky.social. X: @mattjay, @mattjay, @nicastronaut, @menendezrand, @darrennesbitt, @mattjay, @jldastin, @aselawaid, @vchampain, and @ericgeller. LinkedIn: Thomas O'Malley. Forums: Beehaw

Washington Post:

Academics and US agencies are overhauling or ending online misinformation research due to Representative Jim Jordan and other Republicans' escalating campaign — An escalating campaign, led by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and other Republicans, has cast a pall over programs that study political disinformation …

Abhirup Roy / Reuters:

California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoes a bill that would have required a human safety operator in heavy-duty self-driving trucks on public roads in the state — California Governor Gavin Newsom late on Friday vetoed a bill to prevent heavy-duty driverless trucks from operating in the state …

Kate Knibbs / Wired:

A look at the flood of near-identical YouTube obituary videos, in which men read obituaries scraped from authorized publishers like funeral homes and newspapers — If you Google someone who recently died, you might see a flood of near-identical videos of men reading obits. Here's why.

X: @pearlriverflow, @waterslicer, @mattsreynolds1, @nicklucchesi, and @knibbs. Forums: r/privacy

Wall Street Journal:

Sources: Meta plans to release AI chatbots with personalities, internally called Gen AI Personas, across its apps at this week's Connect, to attract young users — Facebook parent is developing bots with personalities, including a ‘sassmaster general’ robot that answers questions

More: The Messenger, Analytics Insight, and BigTechWire

Bluesky: @simonlester.bsky.social, @2xaught7.bsky.social, @hunterwalk.com, @simli.bsky.social, and @cheron.bsky.social. X: @zamaan_qureshi

PTI:

Sources: Apple to increase its production in India over 5x to $40B in the next four to five years, and start making AirPods, in addition to iPhones, in 2024 — iPhone maker Apple has plans to scale up production in India by over five-fold to around $40 billion, or about Rs 3.32 lakh crore …

More: Bloomberg

Dave Lee / Bloomberg:

Q&A with outgoing Amazon SVP of Devices and Services Dave Limp on using generative AI for Alexa, a possible Alexa subscription, advice for Panos Panay, and more — The departing executive in charge of Amazon's voice assistant has a conversation about its future in the age of AI.

More: Cryptopolitan. X: @daveleebbg

Zheping Huang / Bloomberg:

A look at the role of pro gaming in Tencent's long-term strategy as China hosts the Hangzhou Asian Games, the first event where esports are eligible for medals — - Hundreds of pro players will compete at Hangzhou Asian Games — Tencent places esports at the heart of its online media empire

More: Tech Xplore, The Korea Herald, Tom's Guide, ChinaTechNews.com, and Nikkei Asia. X: @tsegerblom

Vauhini Vara / Wired:

A writer whose AI-assisted essay went viral reflects on testing GPT-3 early, Sudowrite's novel generator, and whether AI is good for writers and literature — Despite my success with AI-generated stories, I'm not sure they are good for writers—or writing itself.

Mastodon: @AthenaHelivoy@mastodon.world. X: @englishoer, @srhm_ca, @dan_jeffries1, @aldaily, @notoriousrel, @vauhinivara, @porcupinesquill, and @chameauleon

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From Mediagazer

Bloomberg:

Paramount reaches a settlement with the US states suing to block its WBD acquisition, after four states that opposed a deal conceded over the weekend

Casey Loving / The Wrap:

The White House launches Trump TV, a 24/7 YouTube livestream of the administration's “top past moments”, after press pool ban; critics call it “state-run media”

Jamie Grierson / The Guardian:

After Piers Morgan threatened to sue, Princess Diana's brother Charles Spencer apologizes for saying Morgan was behind the publication of intrusive Diana photos

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More News

Malathi Nayak / Bloomberg:

In a countersuit, chip startup Rivos and six ex-Apple staff claim Apple intimidates those who “dare to leave”; Apple sued Rivos over trade secrets theft in 2022

Forums: r/hardware

Sean Lyngaas / CNN:

Three major US voting equipment makers let some researchers stress-test their software and hardware, to take on conspiracy theories with greater transparency

X: @vote_mfg_qa, @knash99, and @benadida

Manish Singh / TechCrunch:

Walmart-backed PhonePe, which leads India's UPI-based payments market, launches the Indus AppStore on Android and promises no platform fees or IAP commission

More: MSPoweruser and Moneycontrol

X: @ashishdogradir, @rahulchari9, @tsuvik, @phonepe, @tsuvik, @indusappstore, @pushkar_dongare, and @upadhyay_harsh1. LinkedIn: Hari Padmanabhan

Reuters:

Sources: India plans to delay its import license requirement for laptops and tablets by a year and propose a simpler import registration process from November

More: Apple Must. X: @adityakalra

Christopher Mims / Wall Street Journal:

A look at chip equipment makers, like Applied Materials, that push the boundaries of sculpting materials at the atomic level, in a quest to make chips faster

X: @akwyz. Forums: Hacker News

Ed Bott / ZDNet:

A look at Microsoft's Surface business as device revenue plunged in FY 2023 after growing steadily since FY 2014, as a major correction hits the wider PC market

X: @edbott and @mukund. Forums: r/Surface

Earlier Picks

Javier Espinoza / Financial Times:

Doc: Booking accuses EU officials of using “misleading” and “selective” facts to block its €1.63B Etraveli acquisition and plans to challenge any ban in court

More: Reuters and Skift

Paresh Dave / Wired:

A look at the antitrust activists attending the DOJ's Google antitrust trial every day and documenting their observations via social media and daily newsletters

More: The Verge. X: @matthewstoller, @ddayen, @william_fitz, and @lutherlowe

LinkedIn: Rafael Brown and Paresh Dave