Technology

Is Google playing catchup on search with OpenAI?

March 17, 2025
This story originally appeared in The Debrief with Mat Honan, a weekly newsletter about the biggest stories in tech from our editor in chief. Sign up here to get the next one in your inbox. I’ve been mulling over something that Will Heaven, our senior editor for AI, pointed out not too long ago: that all the big players…

Republican Congressman Jim Jordan asks Big Tech if Biden tried to censor AI

March 14, 2025

On Thursday, House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) sent letters to 16 American technology firms, including Google and OpenAI, asking for past communications with the Biden Administration that might suggest the former President “coerced or colluded” with companies to “censor lawful speech” in AI products. The Trump Administration’s top technology advisers previously signaled it would pick […]

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Tern AI’s low-cost GPS alternative actually works

March 14, 2025

We’ve all experienced that moment of frustration when the GPS glitches and you miss an exit on the highway. The team at Tern AI, which is building a low-cost GPS alternative, says that’s because the current technology is limited by its reliance on satellite positioning.  Tern AI says it has figured out how to locate […]

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The Download: HIV prevention shots, and fixing a broken sex doll

March 14, 2025
This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. This annual shot might protect against HIV infections Every year, my colleagues and I put together a list of what we think are the top 10 breakthrough technologies of that year. When it…

This annual shot might protect against HIV infections

March 14, 2025
This article first appeared in The Checkup, MIT Technology Review’s weekly biotech newsletter. To receive it in your inbox every Thursday, and read articles like this first, sign up here. Every year, my colleagues and I put together a list of what we think are the top 10 breakthrough technologies of that year. When it came to innovations…

Y Combinator’s police surveillance darling Flock Safety raises $275M at $7.5B valuation

March 13, 2025

Flock Safety and one of its long-time VCs, Bedrock Capital, announced Thursday that the startup raised a fresh $275 million at a $7.5 billion valuation. Flock makes computer vision-enabled video surveillance technology used by law enforcement as well as businesses, property management companies, and so on. It’s best known for its automatic license plate recognition […]

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Android is adding Auracast support, which allows hearing aids to connect to public audio broadcasts

March 13, 2025

Google announced on Thursday that Android phones will soon support Auracast, a new Bluetooth technology that uses a phone to enable a direct connection from hearing aids to audio broadcasts in noisy environments. With Auracast, compatible hearing aids and earbuds can receive direct audio streams, such as a PA system at a train station or […]

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Oracle is reportedly a top choice for helping run TikTok

March 13, 2025

TikTok has until April to finalize a sale to a U.S.-based buyer, yet uncertainties about the future of the short-form video app remain. However, a new report has emerged, suggesting that Oracle is the leading candidate to serve as the cloud technology partner for managing TikTok in the U.S., according to The Information.  Sources including […]

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Xbox debuts a new AI-powered gaming companion for mobile users

March 13, 2025

Ahead of the Game Developer’s Conference (GDC), Xbox revealed on Thursday that it’s experimenting with an AI-powered gaming sidekick. “Copilot for Gaming,” powered by Microsoft’s AI technology, is a voice-activated assistant designed to enhance the gaming experience and is designed to answer questions, complete tasks, and even criticize if you’re playing poorly.  “It can trash […]

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