Author: GT

More online platforms are giving secondhand shopping a digital upgrade, rolling out features like livestream shopping and AI-powered search to make thrifting faster and more exciting. Although choosing secondhand over new is often the more sustainable option, experts say it’s not a license to overconsume. They warn that resale has its limits, since buying more than you need still fuels waste, and shopping online can add emissions from servers and shipping, thrifted or not. eBay brought secondhand fashion to the runway. Experts say if you want to shop sustainably, skip the hauls and choose pieces you’ll actually wear. Here’s how…

Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwardsGoogle’s AI ModeCourtesy of GoogleGoogle is adding visual results to its artificial intelligence-powered search experience called AI Mode, the company announced on Tuesday.The search giant rolled out AI Mode in the U.S. in May, launching primarily as a text-based tool that could answer questions using natural language. Now, if users are looking for inspiration or shopping help, AI Mode can also generate results in the form of images. Google has been racing to find ways to integrate generative AI into its search engine since OpenAI rocked the tech sector with the launch of its chatbot ChatGPT in…

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed SB 53, a first-in-the-nation bill that sets new transparency requirements on large AI companies. SB 53, which passed the state legislature two weeks ago, requires large AI labs — including OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta, and Google DeepMind — to be transparent about safety protocols. It also ensures whistleblower protections for employees at those companies.   In addition, SB 53 creates a mechanism for AI companies and the public to report potential critical safety incidents to California’s Office of Emergency Services. Companies also have to report incidents related to crimes committed without human oversight, such as cyberattacks, and deceptive behavior by a model that isn’t required under the EU AI Act.   The…

LONDON (AP) — Spotify said Tuesday that founder Daniel Ek is stepping down as CEO to become the executive chairman, in an announcement that sent its shares sliding in premarket trading. The Stockholm-based streaming giant said Ek will be replaced by two lieutenants who will become co-CEOs: Chief Product and Technology Officer Gustav Söderström and Chief Business Officer Alex Norström. The pair, who are also currently copresidents, will transition into their new jobs on Jan. 1 and will report to Ek. Spotify said in a press release that the move “formalizes” how Spotify has been operating since 2023, with Söderström…

As more companies in Asia Pacific adopt artificial intelligence to boost their operations, the pressure on data centres is growing fast. Traditional facilities, built for earlier generations of computing, are struggling to keep up with the heavy energy use and cooling demands of modern AI systems. By 2030, GPU-driven workloads could push rack power densities toward 1 MW, making incremental upgrades no longer enough. Instead, operators are now turning toward purpose-built “AI factory” data centres that are designed from the ground up.AI News spoke with Paul Churchill, Vice President of Vertiv Asia, to better understand how the region is preparing…

The lack of growth capital in Europe is such a persisting issue that some early-stage firms have taken the matter into their own hands. London-headquartered firm Notion Capital is one of them. In 2017, Notion Capital was one of the first in Europe to close an opportunities fund to provide its portfolio companies with follow-on capital. Now, it has closed a $130 million growth fund, nearly twice the size of its previous one, that will also invest outside of its portfolio, TechCrunch learned exclusively. U.S. VCs that used to fill the growth capital gap currently tend to focus more on…

Walking into Huawei’s Shanghai Acoustics R&D Centre, I expected a standard facility tour. What I encountered instead was a comprehensive automotive sound engineering operation that challenges the established order of in-car audio systems.The facility, which Huawei has developed since beginning serious audio research investments in 2012, houses three distinct testing environments: a fully anechoic chamber measuring 4.8x4x4 metres, a larger semi-anechoic room spanning 14x12x5 metres with a reflective floor, and a dedicated listening room configured in a 9.1.6 layout. Photography wasn’t permitted due to proprietary technology concerns, but the technical specifications tell their own story. The challenge of in-car audioGoller, whose background includes positions at Gamut Audio,…

Walking into Huawei’s Shanghai Acoustics R&D Centre, I expected a standard facility tour. What I encountered instead was a comprehensive automotive sound engineering operation that challenges the established order of in-car audio systems.The facility, which Huawei has developed since beginning serious audio research investments in 2012, houses three distinct testing environments: a fully anechoic chamber measuring 4.8x4x4 metres, a larger semi-anechoic room spanning 14x12x5 metres with a reflective floor, and a dedicated listening room configured in a 9.1.6 layout. Photography wasn’t permitted due to proprietary technology concerns, but the technical specifications tell their own story. The challenge of in-car audioGoller, whose background includes positions at Gamut Audio,…

Browser maker Opera launched its AI-centric browser Neon Tuesday, with the ability to create apps through AI prompts and create repeatable prompts through a feature it calls cards. With this Opera joins a growing number of companies like Perplexity and The Browser Company that are trying to make agentic browsers happen. The company first announced that it was working on Neon in May, but the browser was in closed preview. It will now start sending invites to select people, who can use the browser for a fee of $19.99 per month. “We built Opera Neon for ourselves – and for…

An Amazon device is displayed at an Amazon Devices launch event in New York City on Feb. 26, 2025.Brendan McDermid | ReutersAmazon is hosting a launch event on Tuesday where it’s expected to unveil significant updates to its devices lineup.The event is slated to kick off at 10 a.m. ET and will feature announcements from Panos Panay, who oversees Amazon’s sprawling devices and services business.Invites sent to the media and analysts earlier this month showed what appeared to be an Echo smart speaker, Fire TV, Ring doorbell button and a Kindle e-reader, suggesting what could be in store at the…