logo
Meta delays release of its 'Behemoth' AI model

Meta delays release of its 'Behemoth' AI model

RTÉ News​16-05-2025

Meta Platforms is delaying the release of its flagship "Behemoth" AI model due to concerns about its capabilities, the Wall Street Journal has reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Company engineers are struggling to significantly improve the capabilities of its Behemoth large-language model, resulting in staff questions about whether improvements over earlier versions are significant enough to justify public release, the report said.
Early in its development, Behemoth was internally scheduled for release in April to coincide with Meta's inaugural AI conference for developers, but later pushed an internal target for the model's launch to June, according to the report.
It has now been delayed to fall or later, the report said.
Meta had said in April it was previewing Llama 4 Behemoth, which it called "one of the smartest LLMs in the world and our most powerful yet to serve as a teacher for our new models".
It released the latest version of its LLM Llama, called the Llama 4 Scout and Llama 4 Maverick, that month.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Succession creator says his new film is 'not an Elon Musk hit job'
Succession creator says his new film is 'not an Elon Musk hit job'

RTÉ News​

time2 days ago

  • RTÉ News​

Succession creator says his new film is 'not an Elon Musk hit job'

Succession creator Jesse Armstrong has said his new film, Mountainhead, is "not an Elon Musk hit job". The film will be Armstrong's first new project since comedy-drama series Succession concluded in 2023 and will see a group of billionaire friends working in tech gather together amid a series of international crises. Asked if he was able to avoid writing about the Tesla boss while making the movie by Matt Chorley on BBC Radio 5 Live, Armstrong said: "Musk's obviously been really present, I've done this really quickly, I didn't start writing it until January. "So, it's not about Elon Musk, we have a sort of richest guy in the world character, but I think people would find some flavours of Mark Zuckerberg (Meta chief executive) and Sam Altman (OpenAI chief executive), and other less well known tech people in there as well. "So, it's not sort of a Musk hit job, it's trying to be a portrait of a group of people, who are so powerful, and maybe (have) a particular way of talking, and a particular way of thinking." Armstrong was also asked about the similarities between the characters in his new film and Succession, and whether they were more about power than rich people. The 54-year-old British screenwriter and film producer replied: "People have been saying why are you writing about these bloody rich people again? "And maybe I've been seduced and I just like hanging around in… rooms that look like hotels, which is where most of the rich people, they seem to live. "We did a lot of research and a lot of scouting locations, it's surprising how similar the spaces are. "But I don't think I'm interested in the money as much as I am in the power of it, I didn't just want to write a rich people show in Succession. "It was about newspaper and news media, TV news power, and this is about tech power, about social media power, about AI power." Succession ended after four series of Scottish actor Brian Cox playing foul-mouthed global media tycoon and family patriarch Logan Roy, opposite Oscar nominee Jeremy Strong, Academy Award winner Kieran Culkin, Sarah Snook, and Alan Ruck as his children. It scooped 19 Emmys including outstanding drama series and nine Golden Globes during its run, along with drawing large audiences and being critically well received. Armstrong is also an Oscar nominee for co-writing The Thick Of It spin-off film In The Loop with Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci and Tony Roche, and has won TV Baftas for his work on Peep Show and Succession. Mountainhead will air for the first time on 1 June on Sky and streaming service Now.

Health regulator warns of 'increase' in false online content using official logo
Health regulator warns of 'increase' in false online content using official logo

Irish Daily Mirror

time2 days ago

  • Irish Daily Mirror

Health regulator warns of 'increase' in false online content using official logo

An Irish health products regulator has warned of a 'significant increase' in online content making false claims whilst promoting medicines, medical devices and cosmetics. The Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA) has highlighted a trend where 'dubious sites and social media posts' are using the HPRA logo to falsely claim featured products are endorsed by the HPRA. Alongside the body, other regulators internationally are being targeted in a similar way. The HPRA slammed the 'unacceptable use' of its logo and name in a way 'clearly designed to deceive and mislead consumers'. The HPRA is now urging members of the public not to buy such products online as they are likely to be from untrustworthy suppliers engaged in both illegal advertising and offering fake or unauthorised products that could pose a health risk. It stressed that as the independent regulator, the HPRA will never endorse or promote any specific health product or brand. In May alone, the HPRA observed a surge in misleading website activity. The websites, which are hosted outside of Ireland by the e-commerce platform Shopify, are being directly promoted to consumers via fake Facebook profiles and ads. To date, some 155 Shopify product listings, 124 Facebook profiles and 414 Facebook advertisements have been identified making false claims with many also fraudulently stating that the product or brand is endorsed by the HPRA. The HPRA has advised Shopify and Meta of this fraudulent activity and of the public health risks associated with illegal prescription medicines and other unregulated health products sold online. It has requested Shopify and Meta to intercede to proactively identify and remove product listings, fake profiles and adverts from their platforms. According to Grainne Power, Director of Compliance, HPRA, in recent weeks there has been an upsurge in fake and misleading online posts. In all cases, despite what is being claimed, these illegal products are manufactured and sourced outside of Ireland. 'We know that a lot of people are being duped into purchasing fake and illegal products via these sites. Working with Revenue's Customs Service, we have detained a significant number of products at point of entry to the country. A number of these purport to be genuine prescription medicines when in fact the products as presented do not exist as an authorised product in any market. 'One notable example are transdermal delivery microneedle patches which it is claimed contain semaglutide or tirzepatide and, featuring the Irish flag, are supposedly made in Ireland. In addition to references to the HPRA, there are also claims these products are endorsed nationally by charities, hospitals and individual healthcare professionals. All these claims are untrue. Microneedle patches containing semaglutide, tirzepatide or any GLP-1 type medicine are not available as approved medical treatments. 'The key message we are highlighting today is that the HPRA never endorses individual brands nor do we allow our logo to be used in the promotion of health products. "Our advice to consumers is that if online sources feature a HPRA logo or suggest a HPRA endorsement, then this is actually a clear sign you are engaging with a dubious site and seller. At best you are wasting your money with these online scams but at worst you could be seriously endangering your health. 'We are advising that when it comes to prescription medicines, ensure that the product is prescribed by a healthcare professional and sourced from a local pharmacy. All medicines, medical devices and cosmetics should be purchased through trustworthy, reliable and recognised sources,' she concluded. The HPRA continually monitors websites and social media channels for fake and illegal health product promotion. In 2024, 2,553 websites, e-commerce listings and/or social media pages were amended or shut down. It continually warns the public of the dangers of purchasing prescription only medicines online. It is illegal to sell prescription medicines online and there is no guarantee of the quality, safety or effectiveness of the medicines purchased from unauthorised sources.

Germany seeks to levy 10% tax on online platforms like Google
Germany seeks to levy 10% tax on online platforms like Google

RTÉ News​

time3 days ago

  • RTÉ News​

Germany seeks to levy 10% tax on online platforms like Google

Germany is considering a 10% tax on large online platforms like Alphabet's Google and Meta's Facebook, its new culture minister told magazine Stern, in a move likely to heighten trade tensions with the Trump administration. The proposal comes as Chancellor Friedrich Merz is expected to travel to Washington soon to meet with US President Donald Trump, although a trip has not yet been officially announced. Trump has in the past said he will not allow foreign governments to "appropriate America's tax base for their own benefit". Culture Minister Wolfram Weimer said his ministry was drafting a legislative proposal while also seeking talks with platform operators that he accused of "cunning tax evasion" to explore alternative solutions like voluntary contributions. "These corporations do billions in business in Germany with extremely high profit margins and benefit enormously from the country's media and cultural output as well as its infrastructure - but they pay hardly any taxes, invest too little, and give far too little back to society," he told Stern in an interview published today. Alphabet and Meta did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. Germany's ruling parties agreed in a coalition deal earlier this year to impose such a digital services levy. If the government goes ahead with the tax on sales revenue generated by digital services providers within its borders, it would join a raft of other countries to have done so such as Britain, France, Italy, Spain, Turkey, India, Austria and Canada. During Trump's first term, the US Trade Representative's office launched a Section 301 investigation into unfair trade practices against several of these countries, finding they discriminated against U.S. companies, paving the way for retaliatory tariffs on certain imports. In February, Trump ordered his trade chief to revive investigations aimed at imposing tariffs on imports from countries that levy digital service taxes on US technology companies. That does not, however, appear to have deterred the new German government, which took office earlier this month. Weimer accused the big digital platforms of building up "monopoly-like structures" that not only restrict competition but also concentrate media power too heavily", posing a risk for freedom of expression. "If Google, under pressure from Donald Trump, unilaterally renames the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America - and simply decrees this due to its enormous power to shape meaning in global communication - then we can see the kinds of problems that lie within the current structures," he said.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store