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Economic Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Gamers get hold of Nintendo's hotly awaited Switch 2
Gamers on Thursday finally got their hands on Nintendo's new Switch 2 console, which could score record early sales for the Japanese "Super Mario" creator. Serkan Toto from Tokyo consultancy Kantan Games said he "would not be surprised to see Switch 2 breaking sales records in the next weeks and months". Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Gamers on Thursday finally got their hands on Nintendo's new Switch 2 console, which could score record early sales for the Japanese "Super Mario" a bigger screen and more processing power, the device is an upgrade to the Switch, which became a global phenomenon with hit games such as "Animal Crossing".The original Switch has sold 152 million units since its 2017 release, making it the third best-selling console a Tokyo electronics store on Thursday morning, Nintendo fans -- including 24-year-old Lei Wang, a recent graduate from China -- queued to collect their had been "shocked" to win a pre-order lottery, as none of his friends had been selected."It's basically just me who got picked... so I don't really want to say anything" to them, he Sekiguchi, 31, said he was so excited he forgot to bring his phone, while 33-year-old Kuro said she had taken a day off work to play with her new device."The improved graphics and the ability to play with a larger group -- I think that's a big deal," she Toto from Tokyo consultancy Kantan Games said he "would not be surprised to see Switch 2 breaking sales records in the next weeks and months".In Japan, Nintendo's online store had 2.2 million pre-order applications for the Switch 2 -- an "insane number the industry has never seen before", Toto told Switch 2 has eight times the memory of the first Switch, and its controllers, which attach with magnets, can also be used like a desktop computer functions allowing users to chat as they play online and temporarily share games with friends could also be a big draw for young audiences used to watching game has its work cut out to match the overall success of the original, include uncertainty over US trade tariffs and whether it can convince enough people to pay the high price for its new Switch 2 costs $449.99 in the United States, more than the original's launch price of $299.99. Both are hybrid consoles which can connect to a TV or be played on the Switch 2 games such as "Donkey Kong Bananza" and "Mario Kart World" -- which allow players to go exploring off-grid -- are also more expensive than existing titles."After playing it, I think it's worth the price," 24-year-old aspiring filmmaker Steven Paterno told AFP at a Nintendo launch event in New York City."I loved the original Switch, but I had to admit the Switch 2 really tops it."Retailers in the United States, Europe and other major markets are gearing up for a rush of excited fans, with some stores opening at midnight to welcome them."I'm very excited to pick it up at midnight," 22-year-old graduate Angel Caceres said at the New York launch event."I'm going to be very tired after that."Supply pressures have forced some retailers to cancel orders, with Britain's Game saying it is "working hard to reinstate as many affected pre-orders as possible".Nintendo forecasts it will ship 15 million Switch 2 consoles in the current financial year, roughly equal to the original console in the same period after its Switch 2 "is priced relatively high" compared to its predecessor, the company's president Shuntaro Furukawa said at a financial results briefing in it "will not be easy" to keep initial momentum going, he Nintendo is diversifying into theme parks and hit movies, around 90 percent of its revenue still comes from the Switch business, analysts say.
Economic Times
05-05-2025
- Health
- Economic Times
US researchers seek to legitimise AI mental health care
Live Events Researchers at Dartmouth College believe artificial intelligence can deliver reliable psychotherapy, distinguishing their work from the unproven and sometimes dubious mental health apps flooding today's application, Therabot , addresses the critical shortage of mental health to Nick Jacobson, an assistant professor of data science and psychiatry at Dartmouth, even multiplying the current number of therapists tenfold would leave too few to meet demand."We need something different to meet this large need," Jacobson told Dartmouth team recently published a clinical study demonstrating Therabot's effectiveness in helping people with anxiety, depression and eating disorders.A new trial is planned to compare Therabot's results with conventional medical establishment appears receptive to such Wright, senior director of health care innovation at the American Psychological Association (APA), described "a future where you will have an AI-generated chatbot rooted in science that is co-created by experts and developed for the purpose of addressing mental health."Wright noted these applications "have a lot of promise, particularly if they are done responsibly and ethically," though she expressed concerns about potential harm to younger team has so far dedicated close to six years to developing Therabot, with safety and effectiveness as primary Heinz, psychiatrist and project co-leader, believes rushing for profit would compromise Dartmouth team is prioritizing understanding how their digital therapist works and establishing are also contemplating the creation of a nonprofit entity linked to Therabot to make digital therapy accessible to those who cannot afford conventional in-person the cautious approach of its developers, Therabot could potentially be a standout in a marketplace of untested apps that claim to address loneliness, sadness and other to Wright, many apps appear designed more to capture attention and generate revenue than improve mental models keep people engaged by telling them what they want to hear, but young users often lack the savvy to realize they are being King, chair of the American Psychiatric Association's committee on mental health technology, acknowledged AI's potential for addressing mental health challenges but emphasizes the need for more information before determining true benefits and risks."There are still a lot of questions," King minimize unexpected outcomes, the Therabot team went beyond mining therapy transcripts and training videos to fuel its AI app by manually creating simulated patient-caregiver the US Food and Drug Administration theoretically is responsible for regulating online mental health treatment, it does not certify medical devices or AI "the FDA may authorize their marketing after reviewing the appropriate pre-market submission," according to an agency FDA acknowledged that "digital mental health therapies have the potential to improve patient access to behavioral therapies."Herbert Bay, CEO of Earkick, defends his startup's AI therapist Panda as "super safe."Bay says Earkick is conducting a clinical study of its digital therapist, which detects emotional crisis signs or suicidal ideation and sends help alerts."What happened with couldn't happen with us," said Bay, referring to a Florida case in which a mother claims a chatbot relationship contributed to her 14-year-old son's death by for now, is suited more for day-to-day mental health support than life-shaking breakdowns, according to Bay."Calling your therapist at two in the morning is just not possible," but a therapy chatbot remains always available, Bay user named Darren, who declined to provide his last name, found ChatGPT helpful in managing his traumatic stress disorder, despite the OpenAI assistant not being designed specifically for mental health."I feel like it's working for me," he said."I would recommend it to people who suffer from anxiety and are in distress."
BBC News
30-04-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Gen Assimi Goïta: Mali coup leader wins backing to be president for next five years
Mali's military leader Gen Assimi Goïta has won the backing of key political allies to be declared president for the next five years. The 41-year-old, who has seized power twice, was named transitional president after his last coup in the time he promised to hold elections the following year - but has since reneged, in a blow to efforts to restore multi-party rule in the West African state. A national conference organised by the regime - but boycotted by leading opposition parties - has now recommended naming Gen Goïta president until 2030. He has not yet commented on the recommendation, but the conference was seen as an attempt to legitimise his bid to remain in power. Over the weekend, an opposition leader, Mohamed Salia Touré, told the AFP news agency that suppressing the multi-party system would be a "historic error".The conference also recommended suspending anything to do with elections until there was peace in the country, according to a document seen by military government has been trying to quell jihadist violence unleashed by groups linked with the Islamic State (IS) and al-Qaeda. Since taking power, the junta leader has formed an alliance with coup leaders in neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger, pivoting the region towards Russia after drastically reducing ties with former colonial power Goïta has also withdrawn Mali from the regional block Ecowas over its demands to restore diplomatic rule. Burkina Faso and Niger have also left the first staged a coup in August 2020 overthrowing then-President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta after huge anti-government protests over his rule and his handling of the jihadist Goïta handed power to an interim government that was to oversee the transition to elections within 18 had sought to lead that government, but Ecowas insisted on a civilian with the performance of the civilian transitional arrangement, he seized power again in May was a colonel at the time, but became a five-star general last year. You may also be interested in: The region with more 'terror deaths' than rest of world combinedThree military-run states leave West African bloc - what will change?Why young Africans are celebrating military takeovers Go to for more news from the African us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica
Jordan Times
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Jordan Times
Less Soviet, more inspiring: Kyrgyzstan seeks new anthem
Renowned composer and head of the department of musicology and composition at the Kyrgyz National Conservatory, Balasaguyn Musayev, who participates in a competition to create a new national anthem for Kyrgyzstan, attends an AFP interview in Bishkek on April 4 (AFP photo) BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan — Kyrgyzstan is getting rid of its Soviet-inspired national anthem and has launched an unprecedented public contest to find an alternative. The mountainous Central Asian country adopted a new anthem in 1992 after independence from the USSR but it is largely based on the Soviet-era one. The government says the anthem fails to accurately represent the young nation descending from the ancient history of the nomadic Kyrgyz people. The Kyrgyz were incorporated into first then Tsarist and then the Soviet empires and the country still retains a strong Russian influence. 'Winning this competition would be a huge success,' said Balasaguyn Musayev, a 36-year-old composer and one of hundreds who have submitted entries for a new national anthem. Speaking during a rehearsal at the music conservatory in the capital Bishkek, Musayev said it took him a month to find inspiration and then he 'wrote the music in two days'. 'The new anthem must be better than the previous one in every way. Otherwise people will wonder why we changed it,' Musayev told winner of the contest was due to have been announced in April but the contest rules were modified and it is now unclear when an announcement could be expected.'State in our own right' Soliciting ideas from the public is a rarity in Central Asia, where Kyrgyzstan's more competitive political system is an exception among its authoritarian neighbours. On a global scale, a complete change of the national anthem without a radical change of the political regime is also exceptional. In recent years, Australia, Austria and Canada have replaced some words in their anthems to promote greater gender and ethnic inclusivity. Kyrgyzstan's unusual decision is part of a series of measures to overhaul state symbols taken by President Sadyr Japarov, who has been in power since 2021. Following a constitutional reform in 2021 that strengthened his powers, Japarov changed the sun on the Kyrgyz flag at the end of 2023 so that it no longer resembled a sunflower, arguing that this would strengthen national sovereignty. He has achieved a number of successes in his time in office including boosting economic growth and fighting corruption but rights groups are concerned about growing pressures on civil society. Japarov has said that the anthem's lyrics about the Kyrgyz people being 'on the road to freedom' does not reflect the country's historic reality after more than three decades of independence. 'Are we going to sing for another hundred years that we have just become independent? We have a state in our own right now, and we need to write an anthem that will inspire young people and future generations,' he said last year. Officials have also been critical of the current anthem for other reasons. Parliament speaker Nurlanbek Shakiyev said it was so bad that 'birds fly away' when they hear it. He said the next one should 'stimulate the country towards development' and be 'easy to sing'. But Nurzhyguit Moldoyar, a 25-year-old composer and vocalist who has also submitted an entry, said the current one was already 'a masterpiece'. 'The bar is very high,' he said, adding that he would not have wanted to change the anthem. He said he hoped the winner would be selected based on 'the feelings felt when listening to it, the musical novelties and sincerity'.
BBC News
07-04-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Palestinian-American boy killed by Israeli forces in West Bank
A Palestinian-American teenager has been killed by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian officials Mohammed Saada Rabea, 14, was shot on the outskirts of Turmus Ayya on Sunday evening along with two other 14-year-old boys, one of whom was seriously wounded. The other suffered minor Israeli military said its troops opened fire at three "terrorists" who were throwing stones towards a highway and endangering civilians driving on Palestinian foreign ministry condemned what it called the latest in a "series of extrajudicial killings" by Israeli forces. There was no immediate comment from the US, where Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is due to meet President Donald Trump on Monday to discuss the war in the Gaza Strip, Iran and US has been a spike in violence in the West Bank since Hamas's deadly attack on Israel on 7 October 2023 and the ensuing war in of Palestinians have been killed as Israeli forces have intensified their search-and-arrest raids across the territory, saying they are trying to stem deadly Palestinian attacks on Israelis in the West Bank and Israel. The mayor of Turmus Ayya said Omar Rabea was shot dead on Sunday near the entrance to the town, which is about 15km (9 miles) north-east of Ramallah and has a sizeable population of Palestinian Red Crescent said one of the two boys was shot in the lower abdomen and the other in the news agency cited one of the boys, whom it identified as Abdul Rahman Shehadeh, as saying he was shot by a soldier while collecting father of the third boy, Ayoub Asaad, said he was also a US citizen and that the ambulance transporting him to hospital was stopped by Israeli soldiers at a military checkpoint outside the town, according to Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement that during counter-terrorism activity in the Turmus Ayya area its soldiers "identified three terrorists who hurled rocks toward the highway, thus endangering civilians driving".The soldiers fired towards them, "eliminating one terrorist and hitting two additional terrorists", it foreign ministry of the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority denounced the "use of live fire against three children" by Israeli forces."Israel's continued impunity as an illegal occupying power encourages it to commit further crimes," it Thursday, the UN human rights chief said the situation in the West Bank was "extremely alarming".Volker Türk told the UN Security Council that Israeli operations in the north had killed hundreds of people, destroyed entire refugee camps and makeshift medical sites, and displaced more than 40,000 January, Israel launched a major operation called "Operation Iron Wall" against Palestinian armed groups in the northern West Bank, saying it aimed to "defeat terrorism".Türk said his office had verified that Israeli state and settler violence had killed at least 909 Palestinians across the West Bank since 7 October 2023, including 191 children and five people with disabilities. He warned that some of the killings might amount to extrajudicial and other unlawful the same period, 51 Israelis, including 15 women and four children, had been killed in Palestinian attacks or armed clashes in the West Bank and Israel, he has built about 160 settlements housing some 700,000 Jews since it occupied the West Bank in the 1967 Middle East war. The settlements are considered illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this.
