Google unveils Pixel 10 smartphones; Meta freezes AI hiring; Microsoft protests lead to 18 arrests

The Hindu

6 hours ago

Google unveils Pixel 10 smartphones
Google unveiled their new range of Pixel smartphones and gadgets and pushing AI integration even further into their devices. The launch was held during their annual 'Made by Google' event held in New York different from their usual format where they focus on mainstream consumer appeal ahead of technical details. The show was hosted by Jimmy Fallon, the Jonas Brothers and a bunch of other celebrities as they helped along with the demos. The system upgrades were minor however. CEO Sundar Pichai said that they will not be slowing down and will have more releases by 'fall.' However, in comparison with Apple, Google has shown consistent progress as it moves towards developing a universal AI assistant. Meanwhile, Apple has been visibly lagging behind after overpromising on delivering a revamped Siri. Google senior vice president of devices and services, Rick Osterloh said that Google's Gemini is the best AI assistant and has the best AI models. There was also new AI features rolled out with the Pixel 10 lineup including a 'coach' for the camera to help take better pictures and an assistant to show relevant information without users requesting for it. There was also a new real-time language translation function for phone calls. The new lineup however looked the same from the outside with prices starting at $799 for the base model and at $1,799 for the foldable model.
Meta freezes AI hiring
Meta has reportedly paused hiring for their AI division after going on a hiring spree where they brought on more than 50 researchers and engineers. A spokesperson for the company said that Meta now was doing basic organisational planning and building a 'solid structure' for their new superintelligence team which is led by Alexandr Wang. Last week, it was reported that Meta was going through a reorganisation into four new groups where the central piece will be TBD Labs while the other three parts will be focused on research, product development and infrastructure. Meta has been pouring massive financial resources into people to revamp their AI efforts in recent months. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been personally involved while poaching AI researchers from rivals including OpenAI, Anthropic and Google DeepMind.
Microsoft protests lead to 18 arrests
Police officers have arrested 18 Microsoft employees from their headquarters while the company said they will conduct an 'urgent' review into their partnership with the Israeli military for the war in Gaza. Around 35 employees from Microsoft protested for two days consecutively demanding the tech giant cut ties with Israel. However, on the third day, the employees refused to leave and 'became aggressive,' post which Microsoft complained to the police about trespassing. The protestors also threw red paint over a landmark sign of the company logo and were eventually taken into custody for 'multiple charges, including trespassing, malicious mischief, resisting arrest and obstruction.' Microsoft said they had asked a law firm to investigate allegations first reported by The Guardian that the Israeli Defense Forces were using Microsoft Azure to store phone call logs obtained from conducting mass surveillance of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. Similar reports had emerged earlier in February after which Microsoft said that Israel did employ military applications but denied that Azure was being used in any way. The company also fired an employee in May for disrupting CEO Satya Nadella's speech during an event.