July 4, 2025

The Download: India’s AI independence, and predicting future epidemics

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. Inside India’s scramble for AI independence Despite its status as a global tech hub, India lags far behind the likes of the US and China when it comes to homegrown AI. That gap…

Technology

Gogoro’s battery swapping stations in Taiwan are now virtual power plants

April 18, 2023

Taiwanese two-wheeler battery swapping company Gogoro has a plan to give energy back to Taiwan’s electrical grid and make money while doing it. The company is partnering with Enel X, an energy services provider, to integrate 2,500 of its GoStations in Taiwan into Enel X’s Virtual Power Plant (VPP). A VPP is a collection of […]

Gogoro’s battery swapping stations in Taiwan are now virtual power plants by Rebecca Bellan originally published on TechCrunch

Let’s talk about ‘Mrs. Davis’ and the show’s wild approach to AI

April 18, 2023

Set in an alt-near future reality, Peacock’s newest original series, “Mrs. Davis,” releasing on April 20, is edging towards being a little too believable—minus the kidnapping Germans, an elusive Holy Grail, and a life-threatening venture inside a gargantuan whale. The show centers around an all-knowing AI that’s designed to satisfy its users, sending them on […]

Let’s talk about ‘Mrs. Davis’ and the show’s wild approach to AI by Lauren Forristal originally published on TechCrunch

Can’t watch without subtitles? Prime Video’s new feature makes dialogue easier to hear

April 18, 2023

Can’t hear the TV anymore? You’re not alone. TV dialogue has gotten harder to understand over the years, leading everyone to turn subtitles on while watching. Today, that problem is top of mind as Amazon Prime Video introduces a new feature that may make subtitles no longer necessary — at least on some titles. It’s […]

Can’t watch without subtitles? Prime Video’s new feature makes dialogue easier to hear by Sarah Perez originally published on TechCrunch

Founded by actors, Mansa brings its free streaming service for global Black culture out of stealth

April 18, 2023

Mansa, a free ad-supported streaming service and content aggregator that offers a curated selection of Black cultural content, launched out of stealth today. Mansa offers a wide variety of content, from on-demand titles and digital linear (FAST) channels to short-form videos and user-generated content. The company was founded by actors David Oyelowo (“Selma”), Chiké Okonkwo […]

Founded by actors, Mansa brings its free streaming service for global Black culture out of stealth by Lauren Forristal originally published on TechCrunch

Goodbye to the fat middle

April 18, 2023

Adobe debuted its Firefly generative AI initiative last month, showcasing first a model trained on its own Adobe Stock images, and then yesterday it unveiled what it’s working on initially around video and audio editing. The features sound like powerful, efficiency-enhancing additions to a creative workflow – but they also sound poised to replace a […]

Goodbye to the fat middle by Darrell Etherington originally published on TechCrunch

Whisper Aero wants to make aviation, and the rest of the world, quieter

April 18, 2023

The world is loud. If delivery drones and air taxis – also known as electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft – gain the level of market saturation investors are hoping for, cities and neighborhoods are only going to get noisier. That’s the assumption, anyway. But Whisper Aero does not seem to care much for […]

Whisper Aero wants to make aviation, and the rest of the world, quieter by Aria Alamalhodaei originally published on TechCrunch

Elon Musk wants to develop TruthGPT, “a maximum truth-seeking AI”

April 18, 2023

On Tuesday, Elon Musk said in an interview with Fox News’ Tucker Carlson that he wants to develop his own chatbot called TruthGPT, which will be “a maximum truth-seeking AI” — whatever that means. The Twitter owner said that he wants to create a third option to OpenAI and Google with an aim to “create […]

Elon Musk wants to develop TruthGPT, “a maximum truth-seeking AI” by Ivan Mehta originally published on TechCrunch

The Download: fire-resistant homes, and Big Tech’s AI chokehold

April 18, 2023
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. The quest to build wildfire-resistant homes With each devastating wildfire in the US West, officials consider new methods or regulations that might save homes or lives the next time. In the parts of…

Alaska Airlines does away with check-in kiosks

April 18, 2023

Alaska Airlines recently started a 3-year, $2.5 billion project to improve the airport experience at its hubs and focus cities like Seattle, Portland, San Francisco and Los Angeles. As a part of this project, the airline is looking to modernize the lobby experience and as the company announced today, the most visible change here will […]

Alaska Airlines does away with check-in kiosks by Frederic Lardinois originally published on TechCrunch