Tag Archives: celebrities

NVIDIA’s AI team reportedly scraped YouTube, Netflix videos without permission

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In the latest example of a troubling industry pattern, NVIDIA appears to have scraped troves of copyrighted content for AI training. On Monday, 404 Media’s Samantha Cole reported that the $2.4 trillion company asked workers to download videos from YouTube, Netflix and other datasets to develop commercial AI projects. The graphics card maker is among the tech companies appearing to have adopted a “move fast and break things” ethos as they race to establish dominance in this feverish, too-often-shameful AI gold rush.

The training was reportedly to develop models for products like its Omniverse 3D world generator, self-driving car systems and “digital human” efforts.

NVIDIA defended its practice in an email to Engadget. A company spokesperson said its research is “in full compliance with the letter and the spirit of copyright law” while claiming IP laws protect specific expressions “but not facts, ideas, data, or information.” The company equated the practice to a person’s right to “learn facts, ideas, data, or information from another source and use it to make their own expression.” Human, computer… what’s the difference?

YouTube doesn’t appear to agree. Spokesperson Jack Malon pointed us to a Bloomberg story from April, quoting CEO Neal Mohan saying using YouTube to train AI models would be a “clear violation” of its terms. “Our previous comment still stands,” the YouTube policy communications manager wrote to Engadget.

That quote from Mohan in April was in response to reports that OpenAI trained its Sora text-to-video generator on YouTube videos without permission. Last month, a report showed that the startup Runway AI followed suit.

NVIDIA employees who raised ethical and legal concerns about the practice were reportedly told by their managers that it had already been green-lit by the company's highest levels. “This is an executive decision,” Ming-Yu Liu, vice president of research at NVIDIA, replied. “We have an umbrella approval for all of the data.” Others at the company allegedly described its scraping as an “open legal issue” they’d tackle down the road.

It all sounds similar to Facebook’s (Meta’s) old “move fast and break things” motto, which has succeeded admirably at breaking quite a few things. That included the privacy of millions of people.

In addition to the YouTube and Netflix videos, NVIDIA reportedly instructed workers to train on movie trailer database MovieNet, internal libraries of video game footage and Github video datasets WebVid (now taken down after a cease-and-desist) and InternVid-10M. The latter is a dataset containing 10 million YouTube video IDs.

Some of the data NVIDIA allegedly trained on was only marked as eligible for academic (or otherwise non-commercial) use. HD-VG-130M, a library of 130 million YouTube videos, includes a usage license specifying that it’s only meant for academic research. NVIDIA reportedly brushed aside concerns about academic-only terms, insisting their batches were fair game for its commercial AI products.

To evade detection from YouTube, NVIDIA reportedly downloaded content using virtual machines (VMs) with rotating IP addresses to avoid bans. In response to a worker’s suggestion to use a third-party IP address-rotating tool, another NVIDIA employee reportedly wrote, “We are on [Amazon Web Services](#) and restarting a [virtual machine](#) instance gives a new public IP[.](#) So, that’s not a problem so far.”

404 Media’s full report on NVIDIA’s practices is worth a read.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/nvidias-ai-team-reportedly-scraped-youtube-netflix-videos-without-permission-204942022.html?src=rss

The Morning After: Meta is reportedly offering millions to get Hollywood voices into its AI projects

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According to Bloomberg and The New York Times, Meta is in talks with the likes of Keegan-Michael Key, Awkwafina and Dame Judi Dench, among others, for its AI projects. The company apparently intends to incorporate their voices into a conversational generative AI-slash-digital assistant called MetaAI, which is rumored to be like Siri and Google Assistant, which could live within Facebook, Meta hardware, and all the other parts of the multimillion-dollar social network company.

The actors’ representatives are still negotiating for stricter limits, though SAG-AFTRA has reportedly agreed on terms with Meta. SAG-AFTRA, if you recall, fought for provisions to protect actors from the threat of job loss due to AI.

Didn’t Meta already do something like this? Yes. During its Connect event last year, the company also introduced a chatbot platform with 28 “characters” voiced by celebrities, including Snoop Dogg, Paris Hilton, Dwyane Wade and Kendall Jenner. However, those celebrity chatbots’ pages have since disappeared, and The Information reports that Meta has just quietly scrapped that project.

This appears to be more central to Meta’s AI ambitions.

— Mat Smith

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Payments relating to a class action lawsuit filed in 2018 over Apple’s butterfly MacBook keyboards have reportedly begun. The settlement website now states that payments for approved claims will go out in August, and claimants will receive checks. For some, it could mean a check of up to $395.

After Apple introduced the butterfly keyboard in 2015, complaints arose over “sticky” and unresponsive keys. A lawsuit filed in 2018 accused Apple of knowing its keyboards had problems and concealing this from consumers. While Apple denied the lawsuit’s allegations of defective keyboards, it agreed to pay $50 million as part of a settlement. It also started phasing out the keyboard design in 2019.

Continue reading.

A guest who appeared on a podcast to boast about a hack-and-payback scheme involving his victims’ social media accounts is now facing the wrath of the FBI. It received a tip about Qibaa’s alleged extortion scheme on April 1, pointing to his appearance on the No Jumper podcast. Qibaa outlined a financial scheme using over 200 victims’ social media accounts, in which he would lock them out of their pages and charge them to regain access. He added he made about $600,000 a month.

Continue reading.

TMA
Game Informer

Game Informer announced its parent company, GameStop, is shutting the magazine after 33 years in the business. The entire website and its archives are gone, redirecting to the magazine’s final statement of thanks to its readers. The publication’s content director, Kyle Hilliard, said on X the bad news about the mass staff layoffs landed right when they were in the middle of creating an issue. Game Informer launched in August 1991 with Sonic the Hedgehog sprinting across its cover.

Continue reading.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-meta-is-reportedly-offering-millions-to-get-hollywood-voices-into-its-ai-projects-111549125.html?src=rss

Meta is reportedly offering millions to use Hollywood voices in AI projects

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A future artificial intelligence product by Meta could have you chatting with celebrities. According to Bloomberg and The New York Times, the company is in talks with Awkwafina, Judi Dench and Keegan-Michael Key, among other celebrities from various Hollywood agencies for its AI projects. The company apparently intends to incorporate their voices into a conversational generative AI-slash-digital assistant called MetaAI, which is similar to Siri and Google Assistant. 

Meta plans to record their voices and to secure the right to use them for as many situations as possible across Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp and even the Ray-Ban Meta glasses. Bloomberg says negotiations have started and stopped many times, because both sides can't seem to agree with the terms for use. For now, they seemed to have settled on a time limit, meaning any voice the company records can only be used over a set period. However, the deals with the actors could be renewed or extended by the time their contract is up. 

The actors' representatives are still looking to negotiate for stricter limits, though SAG-AFTRA has reportedly reached an agreement with Meta on terms. SAG-AFTRA, if you'll recall, fought for the establishment of provisions to protect actors from the threat of job loss due to AI when it went on strike last year. Under those terms, a company will have to pay actors and obtain their consent before it can use their AI-generated likeness. If Meta reaches a deal with the actors it's talking to, it could pay them millions of dollars in fees. 

Meta is looking to finalize deals before its Connect conference in September, The Times says, where it's expected to launch a bunch of AI products. During the same event last year, the company also introduced a chatbot platform with 28 "characters" voiced by celebrities, including Snoop Dogg, Paris Hilton, Dwyane Wade and Kendall Jenner. The Information reports that Meta has just quietly scrapped that project, and the celebrity chatbots' pages on Facebook and Instagram are no longer available. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/meta-is-reportedly-offering-millions-to-use-hollywood-voices-in-ai-projects-121019385.html?src=rss

SiriusXM is launching a standalone podcast subscription service

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SiriusXM just announced a standalone podcast subscription service called SiriusXM Podcasts+. The platform will be available via Apple Podcasts starting August 5 and will offer a “premium listening experience” for some of the “biggest shows across the SiriusXM Podcast Network.”

Subscribers will enjoy an ad-free experience, bonus content and early access to new episodes of popular shows. None of the content is exclusive, however, as you’ll still be able to check out these podcasts via numerous other platforms.

At launch, the platform will be home to some of the bigger names in the space. There’s Smartless, the one with Jason Bateman and Will Arnett, and other programs from the same production team. Other included podcasts include Literally! with Rob Lowe, Andy Cohen’s Daddy Diaries Podcast and Last Podcast on the Left. The company says that more programs will join the platform later this year.

Though tied to Apple Podcasts at first, the company says it expects the “subscription will expand to other platforms in the coming weeks.” At launch, it’ll be available in over 60 countries. SiriusXM Podcasts+ will cost $6 per month or $45 per year.

SiriusXM has become a major player in the podcast space, which makes sense given that satellite radio talk shows are basically podcasts by another name. This move could continue that trend.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/siriusxm-is-launching-a-standalone-podcast-subscription-service-152534504.html?src=rss

Senators introduce bill to protect individuals against AI-generated deepfakes

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Today, a group of senators introduced the NO FAKES Act, a law that would make it illegal to create digital recreations of a person's voice or likeness without that individual's consent. It's a bipartisan effort from Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), fully titled the Nurture Originals, Foster Art, and Keep Entertainment Safe Act of 2024.

If it passes, the NO FAKES Act would create an option for people to seek damages when their voice, face or body are recreated by AI. Both individuals and companies would be held liable for producing, hosting or sharing unauthorized digital replicas, including ones made by generative AI.

We've already seen many instances of celebrities finding their imitations of themselves out in the world. "Taylor Swift'' was used to scam people with a fake Le Creuset cookware giveaway. A voice that sounded a lot like Scarlet Johannson's showed up in a ChatGPT voice demo. AI can also be used to make political candidates appear to make false statements, with Kamala Harris the most recent example. And it's not only celebrities who can be victims of deepfakes.

"Everyone deserves the right to own and protect their voice and likeness, no matter if you’re Taylor Swift or anyone else," Senator Coons said. "Generative AI can be used as a tool to foster creativity, but that can’t come at the expense of the unauthorized exploitation of anyone’s voice or likeness."

The speed of new legislation notoriously flags behind the speed of new tech development, so it's encouraging to see lawmakers taking AI regulation seriously. Today's proposed act follows the Senate's recent passage of the DEFIANCE Act, which would allow victims of sexual deepfakes to sue for damages. 

Several entertainment organizations have lent their support to the NO FAKES Act, including SAG-AFTRA, the RIAA, the Motion Picture Association, and the Recording Academy. Many of these groups have been pursuing their own actions to get protection against unauthorized AI recreations. SAG-AFTRA recently went on strike against several game publishers to try and secure a union agreement for likenesses in video games.

Even OpenAI is listed among the act's backers. "OpenAI is pleased to support the NO FAKES Act, which would protect creators and artists from unauthorized digital replicas of their voices and likenesses," said Anna Makanju, OpenAI's vice president of global affairs. "Creators and artists should be protected from improper impersonation, and thoughtful legislation at the federal level can make a difference."

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/senators-introduce-bill-to-protect-individuals-against-ai-generated-deepfakes-202809816.html?src=rss

OpenAI rolls out advanced Voice Mode and no, it won’t sound like ScarJo

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OpenAI has started rolling out its advanced Voice Mode feature. Starting today, a small number of paying ChatGPT users will be able to have a tete-a-tete with the AI chatbot. All ChatGPT Plus members should receive access to the expanded toolset by the fall of this year.

In an announcement on X, the company said this advanced version of its Voice Mode "offers more natural, real-time conversations, allows you to interrupt anytime, and senses and responds to your emotions."

Support for voice conversations arrived last September in ChatGPT and the more advanced version got a public demo in May. ChatGPT-4o uses a single multimodal model for the voice capabilities rather than the three separate models used by its previous audio solution, decreasing the latency in conversations with the chatbot.

OpenAI drew a lot of criticism at the May demo for debuting a voice option that sounded uncannily like Scarlett Johansson, whose acting career included voicing AI character Samantha in Spike Jonze's film Her. The release date for advanced Voice Mode was delayed shortly after the backlash. Even though the company insisted that the voice actor was not imitating Johansson's performance, the similar-sounding voice was since taken out.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/openai-rolls-out-advanced-voice-mode-and-no-it-wont-sound-like-scarjo-200426358.html?src=rss

What to read this weekend: Keanu Reeves wrote a book with ‘weird fiction’ author China Miéville

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New releases in fiction, nonfiction and comics that caught our attention.

The cover for The Book of Elsewhere showing neon purple text on a space background with a link line drawing

A few years ago, Keanu Reeves took a dive into the world of comics with a series called BRZRKR, which he wrote with longtime comic creator Matt Kindt. The limited series, which played out over 12 issues, follows a half-mortal, half-God warrior known as B who lives a violent existence but cannot die. And after 80,000 years of being alive, he really wants to. Eventually, he ends up working as a killing machine for the US government.

Netflix has plans for a film and anime spinoff of the series, and the BRZRKR universe is still growing even beyond that. This week, Reeves and author China Miéville — known for his works of “weird fiction” that blend sci-fi, fantasy and other genres — released The Book of Elsewhere, a novel that returns to the story of B in a pulpy, blood-soaked epic. It’s written with a unique style, starting off choppy in the prologue before shifting into something else entirely. If there’s one thing reviewers seem to agree on, it’s that this book is not afraid to get weird.

The book cover for Why Machines Learn: The Elegant Math Behind Modern AI

AI is all around us, and these days, conversations about the Big Tech race to build better and better systems sometimes feel almost escapable. But how often do we on the outside stop and take a look at how we got here in the technical sense, down to the math that made it all possible?

In Anil Ananthaswamy’s new book, Why Machines Learn: The Elegant Math Behind Modern AI, the award-winning science journalist and author explains the history and mathematics underlying machine learning as we know it today. It’s not exactly light reading, but sometimes it’s nice to put your brain to work a little. You don’t need to be a math whiz to keep up with it — Ananthaswamy has said a basic understanding of calculus should be enough.

The cover for the new Teenage Mutant Ninja turtles, showing the brothers in black-and white with their face masks in color, against a city background that is tinted green

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are back in another new comic series from IDW, written by Jason Aaron (Batman: Off-World, Thor, Scalped), with art by Joëlle Jones (Lady Killer, Catwoman). The first issue was released this week — and it finds Raphael behind bars.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2024) celebrates the 40th anniversary of the franchise that we as a society just cannot seem to get enough of (no complaints here). In it, the turtles have all split off on their own and left New York, and it looks like the first few issues will each focus on one of the brothers. But, they’ll eventually be brought back together to do what they do best — fight bad guys and eat pizza. It’s meant to be something that even people who haven’t kept up with the many series over the years will be able to get into without feeling lost.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/what-to-read-this-weekend-keanu-reeves-book-of-elsewhere-ai-math-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-173909519.html?src=rss

What to read this weekend: Keanu Reeves wrote a book with ‘weird fiction’ author China Miéville

Posted on by

New releases in fiction, nonfiction and comics that caught our attention.

The cover for The Book of Elsewhere showing neon purple text on a space background with a link line drawing

A few years ago, Keanu Reeves took a dive into the world of comics with a series called BRZRKR, which he wrote with longtime comic creator Matt Kindt. The limited series, which played out over 12 issues, follows a half-mortal, half-God warrior known as B who lives a violent existence but cannot die. And after 80,000 years of being alive, he really wants to. Eventually, he ends up working as a killing machine for the US government.

Netflix has plans for a film and anime spinoff of the series, and the BRZRKR universe is still growing even beyond that. This week, Reeves and author China Miéville — known for his works of “weird fiction” that blend sci-fi, fantasy and other genres — released The Book of Elsewhere, a novel that returns to the story of B in a pulpy, blood-soaked epic. It’s written with a unique style, starting off choppy in the prologue before shifting into something else entirely. If there’s one thing reviewers seem to agree on, it’s that this book is not afraid to get weird.

The book cover for Why Machines Learn: The Elegant Math Behind Modern AI

AI is all around us, and these days, conversations about the Big Tech race to build better and better systems sometimes feel almost escapable. But how often do we on the outside stop and take a look at how we got here in the technical sense, down to the math that made it all possible?

In Anil Ananthaswamy’s new book, Why Machines Learn: The Elegant Math Behind Modern AI, the award-winning science journalist and author explains the history and mathematics underlying machine learning as we know it today. It’s not exactly light reading, but sometimes it’s nice to put your brain to work a little. You don’t need to be a math whiz to keep up with it — Ananthaswamy has said a basic understanding of calculus should be enough.

The cover for the new Teenage Mutant Ninja turtles, showing the brothers in black-and white with their face masks in color, against a city background that is tinted green

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are back in another new comic series from IDW, written by Jason Aaron (Batman: Off-World, Thor, Scalped), with art by Joëlle Jones (Lady Killer, Catwoman). The first issue was released this week — and it finds Raphael behind bars.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2024) celebrates the 40th anniversary of the franchise that we as a society just cannot seem to get enough of (no complaints here). In it, the turtles have all split off on their own and left New York, and it looks like the first few issues will each focus on one of the brothers. But, they’ll eventually be brought back together to do what they do best — fight bad guys and eat pizza. It’s meant to be something that even people who haven’t kept up with the many series over the years will be able to get into without feeling lost.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/what-to-read-this-weekend-keanu-reeves-book-of-elsewhere-ai-math-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-173909519.html?src=rss

Amazon is giving The Boys the prequel treatment

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The Boys may be one season away from ending but it’s not done caking your screens with blood and torn muscle tissue. Cast member Jensen Ackles who plays Soldier Boy on The Boys revealed at the San Diego Comic-Con that Amazon will produce a prequel of the superhero show called Vought Rising.

The new prequel will take place in the 1950s during the early days of the evil Vought empire, the mega conglomerate that runs the entire superhero industry in The Boys’ universe. The new series will show the early exploits of characters like Soldier Boy and the almost-immortal Nazi supe Stormfront played by Aya Cash. The story will revolve around some kind of “twisted murder mystery about the origins of Vought,” according to executive producer Eric Kripke and showrunner and executive producer Paul Grellong.

Vought Rising sounds like a reimagining of Watchmen without the brooding and self-importance. That’s not to say Watchmen is bad. Those things and its brutal honesty about the nature of its characters are what makes it great but would it kill Rorschach to make just one curse-laden pop culture reference?

The Boys has become Amazon’s Game of Thrones. Even when the main series ends, it won’t be the last we hear from it. The same Comic-Con panel also revealed its college themed spinoff Gen V is getting another season, according to GamesRadar+. There’s also another spinoff in development called The Boys: Mexico with Diego Luna, Gael García Bernal and Blue Beetle writer Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer, according to Deadline.

There’s also The Boys Presents: Diabolical, the animated anthology series in which some of the original series’ writers and producers like Garth Ennis and Seth Rogen and special guest stars like Awkwafina and Andy Samberg penned original stories about supes and presented them in different animation styles. Not to sound ungrateful but when are we gonna get another season of that?

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazon-is-giving-the-boys-the-prequel-treatment-201058614.html?src=rss

Warner Bros. Discovery sues the NBA in a last-ditch effort to block Amazon’s new streaming package

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Warner Bros. Discovery followed through on its threat to “take appropriate action” against the NBA for rejecting its broadcasting rights offer. Variety reported on Friday that the media company sued the league in the New York State Supreme Court after the NBA turned down its bid to match Amazon’s streaming package that kicks in starting in the 2025-26 season.

The conflict stems from Warner’s belief that its current contract gives it the right to match any offer that would replace Warner’s TNT as a home for NBA games (and the iconic Inside the NBA) in the upcoming deal. As for the league’s stance, The Athletic reported that since the current agreements were signed when streaming was “on the horizon, but not part of the deals,” the NBA disagrees with Warner’s matching claim.

The lawsuit was expected as soon as the league announced its new broadcasting and streaming package, which also includes Disney (ABC and ESPN) and Comcast (NBC). The NBA reportedly told Warner it rejected its matching offer because it wanted to put all its games on its streaming service, Max, in addition to TNT. Amazon also allegedly offered to pay its first three years in full, whereas Warner offered a three-year line of credit. Finally, the NBA reportedly believed Amazon’s reach was simply greater.

“Warner Bros. Discovery’s most recent proposal did not match the terms of Amazon Prime Video’s offer and, therefore, we have entered into a long-term arrangement with Amazon,” the NBA’s statement on Wednesday read.

Charles Barkley sitting in a studio chair, a look of disbelief on his face.
Charles Barkley
TNT / Warner Bros. Discovery

Unless Warner can force the NBA’s hand, the new agreement will almost certainly mean the end of Inside the NBA. The decades-old sports show, starring Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal, has harnessed a rare blend of comedy, chemistry and (sometimes taking a backseat to the first two) sports analysis. The beloved program, which has won 19 Sports Emmy Awards, began in 1989 as a Johnson solo effort before fleshing out its tight-knit cast through the following years and (in the case of Shaq) decades.

Turner has partnered with the NBA since the 1984-85 season, which coincided with Barkley’s (and Michael Jordan’s) entrance into the league out of college.

Barkley lashed out at the NBA after hearing about the new rights package, accusing it of wanting to “break up with us from the beginning” in a statement on X. Adding, “I’m not sure TNT ever had a chance,” the Hall of Famer described it as “a sad day when owners and commissioners choose money over the fans.”

“It just sucks,” Barkley wrote before thanking Turner’s fans for the last 24 years he’s been on the show. Inside the NBA will return next season, perhaps its last, along with the network’s standard lineup of NBA games, before the new deal begins in the 2025-26 season.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/warner-bros-discovery-sues-the-nba-in-a-last-ditch-effort-to-block-amazons-new-streaming-package-183352404.html?src=rss