November 12, 2024

After Working at Google and Facebook, She Started a Company to Fight Forest Fires. Now The Government Is Her Customer.

Allison Wolff cofounded Vibrant Planet because she realized how much of an impact technology could have on land management — a huge aspect of controlling forest fires.

President Biden signs Executive Order aimed at legal reboot of EU-US data flows

October 7, 2022

US president Joe Biden has signed an Executive Order attached to reupping a flagship data transfer agreement with the European Union — with the goal of making life easier for businesses that need to export EU user-data to the US for processing. The White House announced the development in a statement today — saying that […]

President Biden signs Executive Order aimed at legal reboot of EU-US data flows by Natasha Lomas originally published on TechCrunch

FlyFeed flies in the face of the global food crisis

October 7, 2022

FlyFeed claims it signed more than $10 million worth of contracts and closed a $3 million round of investment to launch its first insect farm in Vietnam, in its push to produce low-cost, high-nutrient protein for human consumption. The company was founded less than a year ago and is targeting the three billion people who […]

FlyFeed flies in the face of the global food crisis by Haje Jan Kamps originally published on TechCrunch

AI music generators could be a boon for artists — but also problematic

October 7, 2022

It was only five years ago that electronic punk band YACHT entered the recording studio with a daunting task: They would train an AI on 14 years of their music, then synthesize the results into the album “Chain Tripping.” “I’m not interested in being a reactionary,” YACHT member and tech writer Claire L. Evans said […]

AI music generators could be a boon for artists — but also problematic by Kyle Wiggers originally published on TechCrunch

Meta Quest 2 gets exclusive VR series ‘Scream Park’ from entertainment studio BlackBox TV

October 7, 2022

Premiering on October 8, entertainment studio BlackBox TV is releasing a short-form series exclusive to Meta Quest TV and in Meta Horizon Worlds with the Meta Quest 2 headset. The 360° VR experience “Scream Park” takes users on a virtual reality horror rollercoaster ride just in time for spooky season. Meta Quest TV is the […]

Meta Quest 2 gets exclusive VR series ‘Scream Park’ from entertainment studio BlackBox TV by Lauren Forristal originally published on TechCrunch

What happened when this entrepreneur put her startup on hold to help Ukraine, and told VCs to donate

October 7, 2022

When Russia invaded her home country of Ukraine, UK-based tech entrepreneur Irra Ariella Khi, cofounder of Zamna — set up a fundraising page to directly support people inside Ukraine. Khi’s father (aged 70) and godmother (aged 82) are both in Ukraine, as are her stepsister and her children. Khi then temporarily stepped back from her […]

What happened when this entrepreneur put her startup on hold to help Ukraine, and told VCs to donate by Mike Butcher originally published on TechCrunch

The Download: music-making AI, and Kasparov’s defeat

October 7, 2022
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. Google’s new AI can hear a snippet of song—and then keep on playing A new AI system can create natural-sounding speech and music after being prompted with a few seconds of audio. AudioLM,…

Is a covid and flu “twindemic” on the horizon?

October 7, 2022
Hello, and welcome back to The Checkup! I’m back home in London after last week’s trip to the Swiss Alps to meet millionaires who want to live forever. Alas, I brought more than suspect supplements home with me—I’ve been out of action with a virus for the last few days. I can’t really blame my…

Google’s new AI can hear a snippet of song—and then keep on playing

October 7, 2022
A new AI system can create natural-sounding speech and music after being prompted with a few seconds of audio. AudioLM, developed by Google researchers, generates audio that fits the style of the prompt, including complex sounds like piano music, or people speaking, in a way that is almost indistinguishable from the original recording. The technique…