The Morning After: Meta teases high-spec VR headset prototypes
'Our mission for this project was to provide the best image quality possible,' said Xuan Wang, an optical research scientist with Reality Labs Research's Optics, Photonics and Light Systems (OPALS) team.
And Meta's Tiramisu project seemingly has the numbers to back up those ambitions. It promises three times the contrast, 14 times the maximum brightness and 3.6 times the angular resolution of the Meta Quest 3. The headset offers 1,400 nits of brightness and an angular resolution of 90 pixels per degree.
It's a work in progress, however. Tiramisu has a field of view of just 33 degrees by 33 degrees compared to the 110 degrees horizontal and 96 degrees vertical FOV in the Meta Quest 3. It also looks like Google's Daydream, from back in the day.
Conversely, another pair of prototypes, codenamed Boba 3, leans into an ultrawide field of view. It has a 180-degree FOV, when human vision extends to around 200 degrees. Also, they're roughly the same size as current VR headsets.
— Mat Smith
Get Engadget's newsletter delivered direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here! The news you might have missed Google says AI in Search is driving more queries and higher quality clicks Everyone else says differently.
A Pew Research Center report last month shed light on Google's AI Overviews' effect on web publishing, showing an abysmal outlook for anyone relying on web traffic. But this week, Google Search head Liz Reid penned a blog post that puts quite a different spin on things. Naturally, she claims click quality and Google Search's total organic click volume to websites has been 'relatively stable' year over year. Reid also said Google sends more 'quality clicks' (visitors who don't quickly bounce) to websites than a year ago.
She shared no numbers, however.
Continue reading. OpenAI's GPT-5 is here, and it's free for everyone It's safer, faster and more accurate than OpenAI's past models.
OpenAI is releasing the long-awaited GPT-5 and says it has across-the-board enhancements. The company claims the model is its best yet for coding, writing, safety, accuracy and more. At the start of the year, Altman said GPT-5 would offer a unified experience for users, and the new model delivers on that promise.
For the first time, OpenAI's default offering is a reasoning model, meaning the system is programmed to tackle complex problems by breaking them into smaller parts. Previously, if you wanted to force ChatGPT to use one of OpenAI's reasoning models, you had to select the Think Longer option from the prompt bar. This meant most free users didn't even know OpenAI had more capable models.
Continue reading. Framework Desktop (2025) review Powerful, but not for everyone.
Framework's 2025 edition of its Desktop PC is powerful, particularly for creative professionals and developers. It uses an AMD Ryzen AI Max APU, which is a workstation-level chip, but to integrate it, the CPU and RAM are soldered directly to the mainboard, making them non-upgradable. The DIY Edition of the Desktop fortunately requires minimal setup, but this isn't the easy-to-make gaming PC you might be hoping for: It's better suited to productivity tasks, like running AI models and video editing.
Continue reading. The most fun Switch 2 accessory is on sale If you're going to get a webcam, make it a Pirhana Plant.
If you've got a Switch 2 but haven't yet dived into the camera functionality, here's a good reason to. HORI's Piranha Plant camera is on sale right now for only $40. That's $20 off and a good deal for anyone who wants to take advantage of the Switch 2's camera functionality in games like Mario Kart World. It even comes with a plant pot stand if you want to use it not directly plugged into the Switch 2.
If you buy something through a link in this article, we may earn commission.
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Tom's Guide
2 hours ago
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Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 vs. Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold: Which will be the better foldable?
We could have told you right at the start of the year that it would come down to the Galaxy Z Fold 7 against the Pixel 10 Pro for the best foldable phone of 2025. And while we've yet to see the Pixel in the proverbial flesh, the new folding Samsung has shown it has a high bar to clear. Since it arrived a few weeks ago, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 has dazzled the tech world by showing Samsung is capable of making a foldable phone on a par with the exciting models made by Chinese companies who don't sell in the U.S. directly. The Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold is still not fully confirmed, but from what Google has shown us, and from what leakers from around the internet have said, it appears it could stand a chance even against the mighty Z Fold 7. Things will of course get shaken up by the time the Pixel 10 Pro Fold launches, and we will update this face-off once things are confirmed. But for now, here's what we know about the Pixel 10 Pro Fold compared to the official specs for the Galaxy Z Fold 7. We know that Pixel 10 series, including the Pro Fold, will be arriving as part of August 20th's Made by Google event. While the price was not confirmed by Google as part of its pre-announcement, there are rumors suggesting that the Pixel 10 Pro Fold could be cheaper than the Pixel 9 Pro Fold it will replace, dropping to $1,600 rather maintaining the current $1,800 pricing. Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 7 made its debut in July, and is the company's most expensive foldable ever, starting at $1,999 / £1,799 / AU$2,899. If Google does drop the price of its foldable, any performance difference between it and the Z Fold could be easily forgiven by users wanting a good deal. Samsung astonished the tech world with just how big a leap it made over the Galaxy Z Fold 6 with the Galaxy Z Fold 7. 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Perhaps more notably, Google could manage to give the Pixel 10 Pro Fold an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, something we've not yet seen a foldable phone manage. The Galaxy Z Fold 7's IP48 rating is pretty good, but provides less protection against dust intrusion than an IP68 rating, achieved by the vast majority of regular premium smartphones, signifies. Google may only sell the Pixel 10 Pro in two color options once again, this year going for Moonstone blue/grey and Jade green according to the rumors. Samsung offers double that number of colors, with a base selection of Blue Shadow, Silver Shadow and Jet Black, plus a Samsung Store-exclusive Mint color. Samsung made two major upgrades to the Galaxy Z Fold 7's photography abilities: a new 200MP main camera, and a new punch-hole 10MP camera in the main display, replacing the old under-display sensor of previous Z Folds. This has resulted in the most capable camera array on any Samsung foldable so far. That's bad news for Google, as there are no camera changes predicted for the Pixel 10 Pro Fold. This would land users with 48MP main camera, 10.8MP ultrawide, and 10.5MP 5x telephoto cameras on the back, and 10MP front-facing cameras inside and out, which is still a strong collection of sensor options. This makes the chance of the Z Fold 7 outperforming the new Pixel Fold with its camera a more likely possibility. Google's rumored Tensor G5 chips will power all its Pixel 10 devices, including the Pro Fold. We're hoping this chip has noticeably improved performance over the Tensor G4 in the current Pixels, thanks to it adopting the same 3-nanometer manufacturing process as the latest Qualcomm and Apple-designed chips. 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Tom's Guide
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ChatGPT-5 just got 4 new personalities — here's how to use them (and why you should)
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Forbes
3 hours ago
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ChatGPT As Your Bedside Companion: Can It Deliver Compassion, Commitment, And Care?
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Without accessing any private patient data, they use it to validate their assessments, much like patients seeking a digital 'second opinion' alongside their physician's advice. Even during leisure activities like hiking or camping, parents often rely on AI Chatbots like ChatGPT or Claude for quick guidance on everyday concerns such as treating insect bites or skin reactions in their children. This raises an important question: Can AI Companions Like ChatGPT, Claude, and Others Offer the Same Promise, Comfort, Commitment, and Care as Some Humans? As AI tools become more integrated into patient management, their potential to provide emotional support alongside clinical care is rapidly evolving. These chatbots can be especially helpful in alleviating anxiety caused by uncertainty, whether it's about a diagnosis, prognosis, or simply reassurance regarding potential next steps in medical or personal decisions. Given the existing ongoing stressors from disease management burden on patients, advanced AI companions like ChatGPT and Claude can play an important role by providing timely, 24/7 reassurance, clear guidance, and emotional support. Notably, some studies suggest that AI responses can be perceived as even more compassionate and reassuring than those from humans. Loneliness is another pervasive issue in healthcare. Emerging research suggests that social chatbots can reduce loneliness and social anxiety, underscoring their potential as complementary tools in mental health care. These advanced AI models help bridge gaps in information access, emotional reassurance, and patient engagement, offering clear answers, confidence, comfort, and a digital second opinion, particularly valuable when human resources are limited. Mustafa Suleyman, CEO of Microsoft AI, has articulated a vision for AI companions that evolve over time and transform our lives by providing calm and comfort. He describes an AI 'companion that sees what you see online and hears what you hear, personalized to you. Imagine the overload you carry quietly, subtly diminishing. Imagine clarity. Imagine calm.' While there are many reasons AI is increasingly used in healthcare, a key question remains: Why Are Healthcare Stakeholders Increasingly Turning to AI? Healthcare providers are increasingly adopting AI companions because they fill critical gaps in care delivery. Their constant availability and scalability enhance patient experience and outcomes by offering emotional support, cognitive clarity, and trusted advice whenever patients need it most. While AI companions are not new, today's technology delivers measurable benefits in patient care. For example, Woebot, an AI mental health chatbot, demonstrated reductions in anxiety and depression symptoms within just two weeks. ChatGPT's current investment in HealthBench to promote health and well-being further demonstrate its promise, commitment, and potential to help even more patients. These advances illustrate how AI tools can effectively complement traditional healthcare by improving patient well-being through consistent reassurance and engagement. So, what's holding back wider reliance on chatbots? The Hindrance: Why We Can't Fully Rely on AI Chatbot Companions Despite rapid advancements, AI companions are far from flawless, especially in healthcare where the margin for error is razor thin. Large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Claude are trained on vast datasets that may harbor hidden biases, potentially misleading vulnerable patient populations. Even with impressive capabilities, ChatGPT can still hallucinate or provide factually incorrect information—posing real risks if patients substitute AI guidance for professional medical advice. While future versions may improve reliability, current models are not suited for unsupervised clinical use. Sometimes, AI-generated recommendations may conflict with physicians' advice, which can undermine trust and disrupt the patient–clinician relationship. There is also a risk of patients forming deep emotional bonds with AI, leading to over-dependence and blurred boundaries between digital and human interaction. As LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman put it in Business Insider, 'I don't think any AI tool today is capable of being a friend,' and "And I think if it's pretending to be a friend, you're actually harming the person in so doing." For now, AI companions should be regarded as valuable complements to human expertise, empathy, and accountability — not replacements. A Balanced, Safe Framework: Maximizing Benefit, Minimizing Risk To harness AI companions' full potential while minimizing risks, a robust framework is essential. This begins with data transparency and governance: models must be trained on inclusive, high-quality datasets designed to reduce demographic bias and errors. Clinical alignment is critical; AI systems should be trained on evidence-based protocols and guidelines, with a clear distinction between educational information and personalized medical advice. Reliability and ethical safeguards are vital, including break prompts during extended interactions, guidance directing users to seek human support when needed, and transparent communication about AI's limitations. Above all, AI should complement human clinicians, acting as a navigator or translator to encourage and facilitate open dialogue between patients and their healthcare providers. Executive Call to Action In today's digital age, patients inevitably turn to the internet and increasingly to AI chatbots like ChatGPT and Claude for answers and reassurance. Attempts to restrict this behavior are neither practical nor beneficial. Executive physician advisors and healthcare leaders are therefore responsible for embracing this reality by providing structured, transparent, and integrated pathways that guide patients in using these powerful tools wisely. It is critical that healthcare systems are equipped with frameworks ensuring AI complements clinical care rather than confuses or replaces it. Where AI capabilities fall short, these gaps must be bridged with human expertise and ethical oversight. Innovation should never come at the expense of patient safety, trust, or quality of care. By proactively shaping AI deployment in healthcare, stakeholders can empower patients with reliable information, foster meaningful clinician-patient dialogue, and ultimately improve outcomes in this new era of AI-driven medicine.
