Walmart broadens 10% staff discount to include most grocery products, WSJ reports
The 10% discount, previously available on products such as fresh produce and general merchandise, now extends to almost all grocery purchases at its stores and online, effective immediately, according to the report.
Walmart, the largest private employer in the country, did not immediately respond to a Reuters' request for comment.
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Geeky Gadgets
3 minutes ago
- Geeky Gadgets
Apple's New Plan for Artificial Intelligence : Smarter Devices, Seamless Experiences
What if the devices you use every day didn't just respond to your commands but anticipated your needs, adapted to your habits, and seamlessly worked together to simplify your life? This is the bold vision Apple is pursuing with its new approach to artificial intelligence. While the company has long been synonymous with innovation, its latest strategy aims to make AI the backbone of its product ecosystem, from iPhones to smart home devices. But in a tech landscape where competitors like Google and Amazon are racing ahead, can Apple's AI ambitions truly set it apart? The stakes are high, and the potential rewards—transforming how we live, work, and connect—are even higher. Below Bloomberg provides more insights into Apple's ambitious plan to integrate AI-driven intelligence across its hardware and software, creating a more intuitive and interconnected experience for users. From reimagining Siri as a smarter, more responsive assistant to developing new devices like foldable iPhones and AI-powered home security systems, Apple's roadmap is as daring as it is forward-thinking. Yet, challenges such as reliance on third-party AI providers and the complexity of building proprietary systems loom large. As we unpack Apple's vision, you'll discover how the company plans to navigate these hurdles and redefine the future of technology—one AI-powered innovation at a time. Apple's AI-Driven Future AI-Centric Ecosystem: Seamless Integration Across Devices Apple is transitioning from its traditional device- and cloud-centered ecosystem to one that revolves around AI. This shift involves embedding AI capabilities across its entire product lineup, including iPhones, iPads, Macs, Apple Watches, and even future devices like smart glasses. The goal is to create a seamless, interconnected experience where AI enhances every interaction you have with Apple products. Key to this vision is the integration of AI into everyday devices. For example: Smart Home Devices: Products like the HomePod and upcoming security cameras will use AI to deliver personalized automation and enhanced security features, making your home smarter and safer. Products like the HomePod and upcoming security cameras will use AI to deliver personalized automation and enhanced security features, making your home smarter and safer. Wearable Technology: Devices such as the Apple Watch will use AI to provide more accurate health insights, predictive analytics, and tailored user experiences, improving your overall well-being. By embedding AI into its ecosystem, Apple aims to make its products more intuitive, adaptive, and indispensable in your daily life. This interconnected approach ensures that your devices work together seamlessly, creating a unified experience. Transforming Hardware with AI Integration Apple's hardware roadmap reflects its commitment to showcasing the potential of AI-driven technology. Several innovative products are in development, each designed to highlight the integration of AI: Tabletop Robot (2027): Featuring an iPad-like display, sensors, and a robotic arm, this device is designed to assist with tasks and interact with users in real time, offering a glimpse into the future of personal robotics. Featuring an iPad-like display, sensors, and a robotic arm, this device is designed to assist with tasks and interact with users in real time, offering a glimpse into the future of personal robotics. HomePod with Screen (2024): A smart home device combining a display with advanced AI capabilities, serving as a precursor to the tabletop robot and enhancing home automation. A smart home device combining a display with advanced AI capabilities, serving as a precursor to the tabletop robot and enhancing home automation. Foldable Devices: A foldable iPhone is expected in 2024, followed by a foldable iPad/Mac hybrid later in the decade, blending portability with innovative display technology for versatile use cases. A foldable iPhone is expected in 2024, followed by a foldable iPad/Mac hybrid later in the decade, blending portability with innovative display technology for versatile use cases. Satellite Connectivity: The iPhone 17 and Apple Watch Ultra will feature satellite connectivity, making sure reliable communication in remote areas where traditional networks may fail. These innovations demonstrate Apple's focus on blending AI with advanced hardware to create products that are both functional and forward-thinking. By integrating AI into its devices, Apple is setting the stage for a new era of technology that adapts to your needs. Apple's New AI Plan For Apple Intelligence Watch this video on YouTube. Below are more guides on Artificial Intelligence (AI) from our extensive range of articles. Expanding into Smart Home and Security Apple is making significant strides in the smart home and security market, aiming to compete with established players like Ring and Nest. The company is developing a comprehensive home security camera system, including a smart doorbell, that integrates seamlessly with its ecosystem. This allows you to monitor and control your home through your iPhone or other Apple devices. AI-powered sensors will play a pivotal role in this initiative. These sensors will enable advanced home automation features, such as: Adjusting lighting and temperature based on your preferences and routines. Enhancing security by detecting unusual activity and notifying you in real time. Streamlining daily tasks through personalized automation. With AI at the core, Apple's smart home solutions aim to make your living space more secure, efficient, and tailored to your lifestyle. This focus on integration ensures that your devices work together to create a cohesive and user-friendly experience. Siri's Transformation: A Smarter Voice Assistant Siri, Apple's voice assistant, is undergoing a significant overhaul to keep pace with advancements in AI. The revamped Siri will feature enhanced visual and functional updates across devices like the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and HomePod. Apple is pursuing two parallel approaches to improve Siri's capabilities: Lynnwood: An internal initiative focused on upgrading Apple's foundational AI models to make Siri smarter, more responsive, and capable of handling complex queries. An internal initiative focused on upgrading Apple's foundational AI models to make Siri smarter, more responsive, and capable of handling complex queries. Glenwood: A collaborative effort with third-party AI providers, including Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google, to integrate advanced AI technologies into Siri for enhanced performance. These updates aim to make Siri more intuitive, allowing it to provide context-aware, accurate responses and handle more sophisticated tasks. The goal is to transform Siri into a more capable and reliable digital assistant, making sure it remains competitive in the rapidly evolving AI landscape. Challenges and Opportunities in AI Development Despite its ambitious plans, Apple faces significant challenges in AI development. The company has struggled to match the rapid advancements made by competitors in the AI space. To address these hurdles, Apple is exploring partnerships with external AI providers as a temporary solution while it works to strengthen its internal capabilities. This reliance on third-party AI models highlights the complexity of developing innovative AI technologies. However, Apple remains committed to building a proprietary AI ecosystem in the long term, making sure greater control, innovation, and security. By investing in research and development, Apple aims to overcome these challenges and solidify its position as a leader in AI-driven technology. The Future of Apple's AI Strategy Apple's ultimate vision is to make AI the foundation of its next-generation ecosystem. Prototypes and plans for advanced AI-driven hardware and software extend well into the 2030s, signaling a commitment to long-term innovation. By integrating AI into every aspect of its product lineup, Apple aims to create a future where technology anticipates your needs and adapts to your lifestyle. This AI-driven strategy represents a bold step toward redefining the role of artificial intelligence in consumer technology. While challenges remain, Apple's focus on innovation promises to deliver fantastic experiences that will shape the way you interact with technology for years to come. Media Credit: Bloomberg Filed Under: AI, Apple, Top News Latest Geeky Gadgets Deals Disclosure: Some of our articles include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, Geeky Gadgets may earn an affiliate commission. Learn about our Disclosure Policy.
Daily Mail
5 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
The race to link our brains with AI: Inside Elon Musk and Sam Altman's battle to be first to connect mind and machine
The tussles between billionaires have seen vast fortunes splashed on everything from rocket ships to social media empires. But now, two titans of big tech are taking their fight to a frontier: The race to link our brains with AI. Tesla and xAI CEO Elon Musk and Sam Altman of OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, are vying to be the first to connect mind and machine. The former allies are now both backing rival companies trying to build brain-computer-interface (BCI) chips and put them inside humans. These devices allow people to directly control computers with their thoughts by reading the electrical signals produced in the brain. As outspoken champions of the technology, both Mr Musk and Mr Altman claim that BCIs will one day allow humanity to merge with artificial intelligence. Elon Musk's Neuralink, widely seen as the leader in the BCI field, has already tested its brain chips on patients in the US and has secured plans for UK trials. However, as reported by the Financial Times, Mr Altman is now planning to back rival firm Merge Labs with a plan to make BCIs faster and more capable using AI. Not too long ago, Musk and Altman were close collaborators who co-launched OpenAI in 2015, with Musk providing the majority of the funds. However, the pair fell out three years later after Musk dramatically quit the board following an internal battle for control over the fast-growing firm. In the following years, Musk and Altman have waged an increasingly public rivalry. This culminated in Musk suing OpenAI to prevent the company from transitioning into a for-profit, alleging a 'deceit of Shakespearean proportions'. As Musk attempts to challenge OpenAI's supremacy in AI with his problem-plagued chatbot, Grok, the former colleagues are now shifting their rivalry into the world of BCIs. BCIs use AI to convert the patterns of electrical activity found in the brain into commands that a computer can understand. Advocates argue that they have the potential to help disabled people recover their independence by remotely controlling computers, bionic limbs, or mobility aids. This technology has even gained the attention of governments, with the UK's Advanced Research and Invention Agency exploring its potential as part of a mission to explore devices that could change the world. Likewise, the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has revealed its own BCI, used to restore hand movement in paralysed patients. Neuralink, which was founded in 2016, is leading the field for computer-brain connection research while rival startups, such as Precision Neuroscience, vie to compete. Neuralink uses a coin-sized computer chip containing 1,000 electrodes, separated into 128 tiny 'threads' each thinner than a human hair. Using a robotic surgeon, also being developed by Neuralink, the chip is placed on the surface of the brain, and the threads are inserted into the neural tissue. The chip, known as the N1, uses these electrode threads to record huge amounts of data on the brain's activity and uses AI to translate those signals. Neuralink began human trials in America last year, implanting a chip into its first human volunteer, Noland Arbaugh, who was paralysed from the neck down in a driving accident. Using the chip, Mr Arbaugh regained the ability to control a computer, enabling him to write, play chess, and even play complex video games. Since then, the company has implanted chips in a further six participants in the United States and recently received approval to recruit a further seven patients for a British study, the first of its kind in Europe. Neuralink has now implanted chips into seven patients in the United States, including Audrey Crews (pictured), who has been paralysed since she was 16 Recently, the company raised $650 million (£478m) in a funding deal, which gave it a valuation of $9 billion (£6.63bn). By contrast, very little is known about Mr Altman's rival firm, Merge Labs. Mr Altman reportedly plans to launch the company alongside his long-term collaborator Alex Blania, who runs the Altman-backed eyeball scanning digital ID project, Worldcoin. It is expected that Mr Altman will help found the company, but won't have a day-to-day role in its operations. The exact form of BCI technology Merge Labs plans to pursue remains a mystery; beyond the fact that it will make the most of recent AI advances to improve BCI function. Merge Labs is reportedly seeking $250 million (£184m) in initial funding, much of which is expected to be provided by OpenAI's ventures arm, giving the company an initial valuation of $850 million (£625m). However, despite their rivalry, both Mr Musk and Mr Altman appear to be pursuing BCI technology with a similar goal in mind. Mr Musk has said that his ambition is to make a 'general population device' that will allow for 'symbiosis with artificial intelligence'. Sam Altman wrote in a 2017 blog that merging with AI was the only way to avoid fading into an, 'evolutionary tree branch' as AI overtakes human intelligence The billionaire X owner has also insinuated that merging with computers is necessary to prevent super-intelligent AI from getting out of control. Similarly, Mr Altman wrote in a 2017 blog post titled 'The Merge' that humans and machines would become one between 2025 and 2075. In the blog, Mr Altman wrote: 'The merge can take a lot of forms: We could plug electrodes into our brains, or we could all just become really close friends with a chatbot. But I think a merge is probably our best-case scenario. 'My guess is that we can either be the biological bootloader for digital intelligence and then fade into an evolutionary tree branch, or we can figure out what a successful merge looks like.' Elon Musk's Neuralink is working to link the human brain with a machine interface by creating micron-sized devices. Neuralink was registered in California as a 'medical research' company in July 2016, and Musk has funded the company mostly by himself. It is working on what Musk calls the 'neural lace' technology, implanting tiny brain electrodes that may one day upload and download thoughts. The technology is initially planned to be used to help people suffering from severe degenerative brain disorders such as ALS, but it could have wider uses in years to come.
The Sun
5 minutes ago
- The Sun
Full list of Hobbycraft stores to shut after major retail chain confirms NINE more closures as big sales launched
HOBBYCRAFT shoppers are bracing for yet another blow as the major arts and crafts chain confirms NINE more store closures. The major retail chain has confirmed the closures as part of a restructuring effort, with big sales launched at branches. 2 Hobbycraft has already shut more than 18 stores across the UK this year, and further closures are expected. Some are pulling down the shutters on the stores this month and in September. Closing down sales have been launched at some of the branches, like Wigan and Stafford, as bosses look to clear remaining stock, offering up to 20% off. Why are they closing? It comes after Hobbycraft launched a strategic review of the business in May to look at balancing its books. As part of this review, it closed nine loss-making stores in June, with sites in Bristol, Dunstable, Borehamwood and Basildon shutting. Hobbycraft said the restructuring plan will secure the future of at least 99 stores and 1,800 jobs. Bosses are also negotiating rents with landlords at a number of other branches. Alex Wilson, Hobbycraft's chief executive officer, said: "Very sadly, the strength of our offering has not made us immune from the challenges faced by the retail sector in recent years. "Closing stores is always a last resort and this has been an extremely difficult decision. "Making these changes is sadly a necessary action to enable us to keep our doors open to crafters up and down the country.' Nostalgic 90's retailer files for bankruptcy after chain misses rent payments for June and July Full list of branches shutting down: Here is a full list of Hobbycraft branches announced so far that are closing down for good and when. Bromborough: August 4 Stratford-upon-Avon: August 6 Southport: August 7 Stafford: September Wigan: early September Maidenhead: September King's Lynn: September Chichester: September Crayford: September Locals and customers affected by the closures can find their nearest branch here by using Hobbycraft's store locator. Other store closures The high street has suffered in recent years, with a number of major chains and independent retailers closing shops. Shoppers are heading online more to get their weekly bits, while some chains have shifted towards opening new branches in retail parks outside of town and city centres and closing high street sites. Poundland, which was bought out by investment firm Pepco in June, is shutting 49 branches this month, with plans to shut a total of 68 by mid-October. River Island also had plans to shut 33 branches approved by the High Court as it looks to balance its books. The Original Factory Shop is also closing branches next month as it goes through a restructuring. Footasylum operated out of around 60 stores at the start of 2025, but has already shut several locations across the country since the start of the year. GAME - which operates around 240 stores across the UK - has slashed the prices of some of its products by up to 20 per cent across the closing outlets. The retailing giant announced the closure of six of its stores across the UK in August and September, including outlets in Eldon Square in Newcastle and at Galleries Shopping Centre in Bristol. Jewellery chain Claire's has collapsed into administration and stopped its online orders for customers. Why are retailers closing stores? RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis. High energy costs and a move to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going. However, additional costs have added further pain to an already struggling sector. The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs from April will cost the retail sector £2.3billion. At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40. The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has also warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year. It comes on the back of a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors for good, already a 28% increase on the previous year. Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the CRR said: "The results for 2024 show that although the outcomes for store closures overall were not as poor as in either 2020 or 2022, they are still disconcerting, with worse set to come in 2025." It comes after almost 170,000 retail workers lost their jobs in 2024. End-of-year figures compiled by the Centre for Retail Research showed the number of job losses spiked amid the collapse of major chains such as Homebase and Ted Baker. It said its latest analysis showed that a total of 169,395 retail jobs were lost in the 2024 calendar year to date. This was up 49,990 – an increase of 41.9% – compared with 2023. It is the highest annual reading since more than 200,000 jobs were lost in 2020 in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced retailers to shut their stores during lockdowns. The centre said 38 major retailers went into administration in 2024, including household names such as Lloyds Pharmacy, Homebase, The Body Shop, Carpetright and Ted Baker. Around a third of all retail job losses in 2024, 33% or 55,914 in total, resulted from administrations. Experts have said small high street shops could face a particularly challenging 2025 because of Budget tax and wage changes. Professor Bamfield has warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, predicting that as many as 202,000 jobs could be lost in the sector. "By increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer's household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020."
