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1Password

1Password will soon skip passwords in favor of passkeys

Starting this summer, the password vault 1Password will allow you to safeguard your password vault with a passkey, embracing a new authentication technique that is intended to be as simple to utilize as passwords but much more secure.

When it relates to creating and memorizing the tens or hundreds of passwords we use every day, password managers are fantastic. However, a single password might be a vulnerability for a hacker attempting to access all of your accounts.

1Password
Image Source: engadget.com

Chief Product Officer of 1Password, Steve Won noted, “For passkeys to be the way forward, it’s not enough for them to replace some of your passwords,” They have to be able to replace all passwords — including the one you use to unlock 1Password.”

With the support of the FIDO (Fast Identity Online) Alliance, a business alliance, Apple, Microsoft, and Google developed passkeys. Passkeys employ a method similar to hardware security keys, the most secure login technique available, but they are made to be simpler to use when authenticating into an app or service.

Also Read: Google will blur explicit images in search by default

One must have a device like a smartphone or a computer that is registered with the application or service in order to utilize passkeys. The second authentication step that the device does will probably be a biometric scan of one’s face or fingerprint. Advocates of passkeys contend that they will be as user-friendly as passwords while being significantly safer.

Their benefits include blocking phishing attacks because they can’t be used on fake websites meant to trick users into providing personal information.

Even if someone steals their master password, 1Password has an additional authentication safeguard called a secret key required to access this password on a new device, so it’s not necessarily a catastrophe. Passkeys, however, are superior and “a win-win for both security and usability,” according to Won.

Passkey support was added to iOS by Apple in 2022, and Google added it to Chrome in 2022. This year, Google is introducing it to Android.

The majority of users probably create, save, and sync passkeys using Google or Apple password managers, but Dashlane, a competitor of 1Password, began beta-testing passkey functionality for logging in to passkey-supporting websites and applications in September.

With 1Password’s method, users may extend passkey authentication to some other trusted device utilizing already-existing passkey QR code functionality after they set it up on one device, such as their phone.

Also Read: Salesforce’s Bret Taylor to Start AI Firm With Departing Google VP

The growing security problems related to conventional passwords are the driving force behind the use of passkey technology. They can be hacked or otherwise exposed in data breaches, giving attackers access to personal data, and they are vulnerable to phishing attacks.

Even if users presently sign in to one 1Password account utilizing biometrics like Face ID or fingerprint scanners, the company reminds users that while these sign-on features may be more secure, they are ultimately still dependent on the passwords they are attached to.

Google

Google will blur explicit images in search by default

In the following months, Search engine giant, Google, will introduce a brand new SafeSearch blurring functionality available by default to all consumers.

The filter is designed to safeguard individuals as well as their households from accidentally having to experience explicit images and videos on Search. The search engine giant says it’s launching the function on 7 February to commemorate Safer Internet Day.

Google
Image Source: canadatoday.news

A new setting, rolling out “in the coming months,” “will blur explicit imagery if it appears in Search results when SafeSearch filtering isn’t turned on,” writes Google’s Jen Fitzpatrick, senior vice president of Core Systems & Experiences. “This setting will be the new default for people who don’t already have the SafeSearch filter turned on, with the option to adjust settings at any time.”

Source: arstechnica.com

The option will shortly become the latest default for users who are not yet using the SafeSearch filter enabled. As a result, if explicit imagery shows up on results pages, Google will distort it.

Also Read: Google announces Bard A.I. in response to ChatGPT

Explicit sexual content such as violence, pornography, and gore are examples of explicit results. Google mentions that users can change the configuration at any moment. Previous to this development, the filter had already been enabled by default for registered members under the age of 18.

When the setting would become the default, Google would then inform you that SafeSearch blurring has been enabled. If users get brought near a graphic image, users can view it by simply clicking the “view image” button.

Alternatively, you can change the filter as well as turn it off entirely by selecting the “manage setting” toggle. Users can, for instance, choose the “filter” option to assist in filtering explicit pictures, text, & links.

Alternatively, you can select “off,” which also means you’ll see all useful results for your request, regardless of whether they’re explicit.

Also Read: Can ChatGPT assist Microsoft in dethroning Google Search?

It is important to note that SafeSearch just works on results from Google searches and will not restrict explicit content found on other browsers or webpages that you visit directly. Google as well observes that, even though SafeSearch isn’t perfect, it does help extract explicit material in Google’s search results for all of your inquiries, including pictures, videos, as well as websites.

Elon Musk

Elon Musk to unveil Tesla’s ‘Master Plan 3.’ What to expect for us?

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, said on Twitter on Wednesday that he will unveil the eagerly anticipated Master Plan 3 on March 1 at the company’s investor day.

Tesla announced it will discuss its next-generation vehicle platforms at the forthcoming investor day, which will be held at its gigafactory in Texas. Elon Musk has said that these platforms would result in a car that costs around half as much as Tesla’s current vehicle underpinnings. The session will be broadcasted live.

Elon Musk
Image Source: hypebeast.com

The company said that some retail and institutional investors will be welcome to attend in person. According to the company, investors will be able to tour its manufacturing facility and speak with members of the leadership team about issues such as the company’s long-term expansion goals, its generation 3 platform, and capital allocation.

Also Read: Tesla is getting cheaper. Is it a good move by Elon Musk?

Musk originally made vague promises to increase Tesla operations to “extreme size” in his Master Plan 3 hints from last March. He also touched on issues like AI and said that his other companies, SpaceX and The Boring Company, would be a part of this next phase of the plan.

On Wednesday, there was a new update. He tweeted, “Master Plan 3, the path to a fully sustainable energy future for Earth will be presented on March 1.”

In 2006, Musk published a blog entry on Tesla’s website explaining what he referred to as the Master Plan. The four-step approach began with the development of a high-priced, low-volume vehicle, and then used the proceeds to fund the creation of a medium-volume, lower-priced car.

An affordable, high-volume car would be produced with the money made from the medium-volume car. The plan concluded with the phrase “provide solar power.”

Part two, or Part Deux, was introduced in 2016 with the goal to “create stunning solar roofs with seamlessly integrated battery storage,” expand Tesla’s EV product line to include all key market segments, and provide self-driving technology that is ten times safer than manual.

Also Read: Why is Meta shutting down Echo VR?

The plan also claimed that owners will be able to use ride-sharing to leverage self-driving technology and profit from their unused vehicles. In part two, Tesla did not check off all the boxes. The Cybertruck, which is apparently a part of the strategy to extend the EV line of products, has not yet been released.

Despite the branding, its advanced driver-aid technology does not drive itself, so owners cannot convert their cars into money-making robot axis. Musk appears to be prepared to continue with Part 3 anyway.

Last year, Tesla shares experienced their worst yearly performance as a result of Musk selling Tesla shares to pay for his acquisition of Twitter and other shareholders losing faith in his commitment to the automaker, whose sales growth fell short of expectations.

chatgpt

Can ChatGPT assist Microsoft in dethroning Google Search?

By incorporating ChatGPT into its Bing search engine, Microsoft is hoping to unseat Google as the dominant search engine. That is stated in a recent report from The Information, but will the risk be worthwhile?

Despite ChatGPT’s recent November 2022 launch, its uncanny realism has caused it to become popular among both the general population and artificial intelligence experts.

chatgpt
Image Source: bdtechtalks.com

Users have been utilizing it to write articles, create code, and create musical scores since they can enter any prompt they can imagine and get back something that closely resembles human-generated writing.

According to the Information, the Redmond-based corporation is attempting to introduce a new edition of Bing that uses ChatGPT technology to respond to user questions.

Also Read: Microsoft Considers $10 Billion Investment in ChatGPT Creator

Interestingly, the report asserts that this may be accomplished in a manner distinct from the standard list of links and text excerpts that users receive from any search engine presently.

Though the specifics of Bing’s AI-powered search results are still unknown, they most likely won’t significantly differ from current practices given that ChatGPT isn’t intended to be a search engine.

According to StatCounter, Google currently holds a nearly insurmountable lead among search engines, devouring 92.5% of the worldwide market. With only 3% of the market, Bing is mired in second place, making Google’s dominance glaringly obvious. Google is allegedly still concerned.

According to a December 2022 New York Times article, Google management had issued a “code red” alert in reaction to the release of ChatGPT because it posed a threat to the company’s hegemony and revenue.

And ChatGPT isn’t the sole AI that might put Google’s position as the industry leader in danger. There are also additional contenders for the title of best AI, including Google’s own LaMDA and BlenderBot from Meta.

Microsoft has included AI in its offerings in the past, in addition to ChatGPT. The corporation declared in 2022 that it would integrate the DALL-E 2 picture bot into its Designer application and Image Creator tool in Bing.

Microsoft invested $1 billion in OpenAI, the company that created both DALL-E 2 and ChatGPT, leading to the development of both of these connections. Microsoft will consider its investment success if it ultimately manages to topple Google from its lofty heights.

Also Read: China’s Baidu to launch ChatGPT-style bot in March

ChatGPT is an OpenAI project that is built on top of the GPT-3 autocomplete text generator.ChatGPT is an OpenAI project that is built on top of the GPT-3 autocomplete text generator. On OpenAI, a demo of the chatbot was made accessible in late November (login required).

In addition to producing AI-generated material like music and poems, ChatGPT can accurately answer trivia questions. The AI’s capacity to assist with code debugging is another characteristic that might make it the perfect GitHub Copilot companion.

However, there are numerous reports claiming that ChatGPT frequently provides incorrect but plausible replies. Stack Overflow briefly banned the chatbot last month as a result of this uncertainty.

Dell

Dell to slash about 6,650 jobs in latest tech job cuts

Dell Technologies Inc is laying off 6,650 workers, or 5 percent of its worldwide workforce, as it faces challenges with a downturn in the market for personal computers and prepares for a global recession.

Dell’s decision aligns it with a slew of U.S. firms on Monday, ranging from Goldman Sachs Group Corporation to Alphabet Inc, that already have fired thousands this year to weather a demand slump caused by high rising prices and increasing interest rates.

Dell
Image Source: bloomberg.com

Dell had already implemented cost-cutting measures such as a hiring freeze and travel restrictions because it coped with a post-pandemic slump in PC sales, which also comprise more than half of its earnings.

Also Read: Twitter to start charging developers for API access

However, those actions are “no longer sufficient,” according to Jeff Clarke, the co-Chief Operating Officer, as he stated in a memo to the workforce.

“What we know is market conditions continue to erode with an uncertain future,” Clarke said. Dell expects to book costs related to the layoffs in its fiscal fourth quarter, which ends in January.

Source: reuters.com

HP Inc has also announced job cuts of up to 6,000 people. As per a research company IDC, the PC, as well as tablet market, will decline by 2.6 percent in 2023 after experiencing fast expansion during the global epidemic due to working remotely.

“It was only a matter of time before the wave of tech layoffs reached Dell’s shores, given how sensitive the company is to both consumer and corporate confidence,” said Susannah Streeter, markets analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown.

Source: reuters.com

As of January 28, 2022, Dell had approximately 133,000 staff members, with approximately one-third located in the United States.

Bloomberg News announced the news of the job cuts earlier today.

Dell’s stock was unchanged before the bell.

Also Read: Samsung, Google & Qualcomm team up on mixed-reality platform

According to preliminary findings from industry expert International Data Corp. (IDC), personal computer deliveries will drop dramatically in the final quarter of 2022. According to IDC, Dell experienced the greatest decline within and between major corporations, with a 37 percent drop when compared to the same period in 2021. PCs account for approximately 55 percent of Dell’s earnings.

In 2022, the technical sector declared 97,171 job cuts, an increase of 649 percent compared to the previous year.

Echo VR

Why is Meta shutting down Echo VR?

The critically acclaimed virtual reality game Echo VR will be going down in August, Meta announced last week. Since then, previous Meta consulting CTO John Carmack and Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth have both provided additional information about the shutdown.

The multiplayer VR-based game’s developer, Ready At Dawn, said on Tuesday that the game will be ending on August 1st, 2023 in a piece on Medium. According to the statement, gamers can play to their hearts’ content for the time being, buy the game, and re-download it.

Echo VR
Image Source: fossbytes.com

However, the article stated that following that, the game’s servers and services would be turned off. Echo Points can still be used by players up until that point, but there will be “no refunds on in-app purchases, DLC, and in-game currencies,” according to the post.

The creator of Echo VR, Ready at Dawn, has given a clue that it would be concentrating on the future. The Echo VR development team stated in a blog post on the closure that “by no means was this decision made lightly.

Also Read: When does Hogwarts Legacy come out?

But it was made for many good reasons and chief among them is the studio coming together to focus on our next project. We can’t say anything about it yet, but we are all excited and need all hands on deck.”

According to UploadVR, Bosworth stated in an Instagram AMA that while the player base of Echo VR was “loyal as all get out,” it has decreased to the “low ten thousand.” He noted, “Unfortunately, keeping things alive takes work.

This is not like a return on investment money standpoint; it’s just those resources could be put to other uses that I think will be useful to the now tens of millions of people who are in VR.” Additionally, he said that certain “regulatory constraints” in Meta make maintaining the game more expensive.

The servers for Echo VR will continue to run until 1st August at 1 PM ET, after which time they will cease to exist entirely. While one would have thought that Meta would make it playable in a way similar to how Velan Studios is making Knockout City available, Bosworth appears to be ruling that out.

Echo VR has rapidly risen to the level of an e-sport in recent years. According to the Oculus website, Echo VR may be used with the Meta’s Oculus Quest, Quest 2, Meta Quest Pro, and Rift S devices.

Also Read: Why Apex Legends Mobile is shutting down?

After donning their headsets, participants are transported into a zero-gravity arena where they engage in robotic combat using a combination of gaming prowess and athletic prowess. According to The Verge, the game was one of the centerpieces of the Oculus Quest and Rift S launches.

Following the launch of the Meta Quest (formerly Oculus Quest) and Rift S, Facebook acquired Ready At Dawn in 2020, establishing Echo VR as one of the company’s flagship games