Tag Archives: region|US

Apple and A24 are developing a Sam Bankman-Fried movie written by Lena Dunham

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Apple and art house film company A24 are in early development on a film about convicted crypto scammer Sam Bankman-Fried with a script written by Lena Dunham, Variety reported. The project will be based on the Michael Lewis book Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon that many critics found overly deferential to Bankman-Fried. 

The book describes the dizzying rise and equally vertiginous fall of Bankman-Fried and his FTX crypto exchange and Alameda hedge fund. However, it paints the FTX founder as a benevolent prodigy and glosses over the fact that he embezzled billions of dollars from customers and spent it on things like celebrity endorsements, political donations and high-end real-estate purchases.  

FTX was worth billions at its peak, but the exchange eventually collapsed and Bankman-Fried was convicted of fraud and sentenced to 25 years in prison. Most FTX customers will get their original investments back, plus interest, but that's based on a bitcoin price of around $17,000 — and the current price is nearly five times that.

Basing the film on Lewis's fawning hagiography isn't a promising start. Hopefully, Dunham or other writers will also draw on far better books (like Numbers Go Up by Zeke Faux) that show the dark, scammy side of crypto promoters like Bankman-Fried and the entire industry in general.

Apple Original Films and A24 have announced other collaborations recently, including the Spike Lee and Denzel Washington film High and Low. Other scripted FTX projects are also in the works, including a limited Amazon Prime series from the Russo brothers based on the 2022 FTX collapse. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/apple-and-a24-are-developing-a-sam-bankman-fried-movie-written-by-lena-dunham-133022680.html?src=rss

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory is laying off 325 more workers

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The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA's research center responsible for robotic space missions, will lay off more workers before the year ends due to budget constraints. JPL Director Laurie Leshin has announced in a memo addressed to employees that the reduction will affect 325 people, or about five percent of its whole workforce. Leshin explained that the lab took various measures to meet its budget allocation for the 2025 fiscal year and to minimize the adverse effects of a limited budget on its workers. In the end, though, JPL "reached the difficult decision" to make "one further workforce reduction."

The lab already cut 530 employees and cut over 100 contractors from its roster earlier this year because of uncertainty over the final budget that the Congress will give NASA for 2024. It also froze hiring in response to the dilemma. The main reason why the lab had to implement those measures was because the Mars Sample Return Program was allocated a much smaller budget than it needed. NASA had requested $950 million for the mission, but only $300 million was allocated for it. 

NASA's original plan was to bring home the samples collected by the mission in 2040. But its budget ballooned from $7 billion to $11 billion, and as The Washington Post notes, the government found the return date "unacceptable." For the 2025 fiscal year, NASA only requested $200 million for the project that could go through significant changes. The agency is now looking for ways to alter the mission and is even considering proposals from private companies. 

Leshin said that the layoffs will affect all areas of the lab, including its technical, business and support divisions. "[W]e had to tighten our belts across the board, and you will see that reflected in the layoff impacts," she said. JPL's director also said that the US presidential election results have nothing to do with the reduction that the "action would be happening regardless" of its outcome. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/nasas-jet-propulsion-laboratory-is-laying-off-325-more-workers-130001669.html?src=rss

The Morning After: LG’s new twisty display tech can stretch up to 50 percent

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LG Display’s new free-form screen technology can expand from 12 to 18 inches, with a resolution of 100ppi. The display also uses a micro-LED light source smaller than 40 micrometers, so it can apparently be stretched over 10,000 times. While this probably isn’t your next smartphone, we could see the tech in clothing, car panels and more.

LG Display has pushed the boundaries of screen tech for a while, revealing folding screens before foldable phones appeared, roll-up TVS before roll-up TVs went on sale and transparent displays before they appeared in fancy stores, theme parks and elsewhere. So expect to see this Bop-it of displays somewhere, eventually.

— Mat Smith

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Netflix is crowing that its ad-supported tier now boasts 70 million global users. Amy Reinhard, president of advertising at Netflix, says the company continues “to see steady progress across all countries’ member bases.” But there isn’t any information about existing customers. It’s very possible a lot of people downgraded from a premium tier to an ad-supported tier.

Continue reading.

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Fujifilm

Fujifilm is developing a medium-format, 102-megapixel cinema camera, the company said in a surprise announcement. Due next year, the GFX Eterna will carry a boxy, modular design reminiscent of Sony’s FX6. The new camera will have a medium format GFX 102-megapixel (MP) CMOS II HS sensor, the same one used on the GFX100 II. That sensor is 43.8mm x 32.9 mm in size — that’s 1.7 times larger than the full-frame sensor on the FX.

The benefits will be extra dynamic range, potentially high resolution and a very shallow depth of field, which should enable cinematic shots with the right lens. Having said that, Fujifilm currently has no GFX glass designed specifically for film production. It’s working on it, though.

Continue reading.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-lgs-new-twisty-display-tech-can-stretch-up-to-50-percent-121552798.html?src=rss

Elon Musk will lead a new ‘Department of Government Efficiency,’ Donald Trump says

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President-elect Donald Trump has named Elon Musk as the leader of a new “Department of Government Efficiency," that will “dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies.” The Tesla CEO and owner of X will spearhead the effort along with former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, Trump announced in a statement on Truth Social.

The scope of the role isn’t exactly clear. Trump’s press release said that “the Department of Government Efficiency will provide advice and guidance from outside of Government, and will partner with the White House and Office of Management & Budget to drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before.” It also stated that “their work will conclude no later than July 4, 2026.”

Musk shared the news on X, but didn’t indicate how the role might impact his obligations at his various other companies. Musk, who poured millions of dollars into Super Pac boosting Trump’s campaign, has previously talked about his desire to work with Trump to cut government spending. He did, however, joke about potential "merch" for the operation. "Republican politicians have dreamed about the objectives of 'DOGE' for a very long time," Trump's statement said. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/elon-musk-will-lead-a-new-department-of-government-efficiency-donald-trump-says-015521217.html?src=rss

Amazon sunsets Freevee platform for ad-supported streaming video

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Amazon is closing down Freevee, its free ad-supported video on demand service. This platform was home to original programming as well as more than 100 originals from the Prime Video roster. Freevee will be phased out over the coming weeks, and its content will become available as part of Prime Video. The ad-supported tier of Prime Video is included as part of Amazon's Prime membership for $15 a month.

"To deliver a simpler viewing experience for customers, we have decided to phase out Freevee branding," an Amazon spokesperson told Variety. "There will be no change to the content available for Prime members, and a vast offering of free streaming content will still be accessible for non-Prime members, including select originals from Amazon MGM Studios, a variety of licensed movies and series, and a broad library of FAST channels – all available on Prime Video."

The free viewing platform went through several rebrands since its original launch as IMDb Freedive in January 2019. It entered its final phase as Freevee in April 2022.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/amazon-sunsets-freevee-platform-for-ad-supported-streaming-video-000614080.html?src=rss

PS5 exclusive Stellar Blade is coming to PC

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This year's action RPG Stellar Blade has been a solid win for Sony as a PlayStation 5 exclusive. Developer Shift Up revealed in a recent quarterly earnings report that sales "have remained steady even as the initial surge has calmed" following its spring launch. But there may be a second boost coming for the game, because the studio is planning a PC port of Stellar Blade some time next year.

"Given recent trends like Steam’s growing presence in the AAA games market and the global success of Black Myth: Wukong, we are expecting the PC version to perform even better than the console version," the Korean company said when asked about their PC plans during the presentation.

The title referenced, Black Myth: Wukong, was able to set a new record for concurrent players in a single-player game on Steam when it launched on the platform in August. That's a lofty goal for any game to reach, so we'll have to see how successful Shift Up can be in reaching an international audience on PC.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/ps5-exclusive-stellar-blade-is-coming-to-pc-231625263.html?src=rss

Discord leaker Jack Teixeira gets 15-year sentence for sharing classified documents

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Massachusetts Air National Guard member Jack Teixeira received a 15-year sentence in federal prison for leaking classified military documents on Discord in a Boston federal court, according to The Washington Post.

Teixeira appeared before the court earlier today and asked the judge for leniency. He also issued a statement apologizing for “all of the harm that I’ve caused, to my friends, family and those overseas.”

Defense attorney Michael Bachrach also claimed that Teixeira was subjected to bullying in high school and his military unit as an adjudicating factor for his actions. Judge Indira Talwani didn’t buy the defense’s bullying claims stating that the Air Force has already disciplined 15 other members connected to Teixeira for not taking more actions “that might have stopped him from doing this.”

Teixeira shared classified military documents as far back as late 2022 on a Discord server dedicated to the pixelated sandbox game Minecraft. The leak included information about the Ukrainian and Russian troop movements and military equipment used in the war in Ukraine and Russia's attempts to obtain more weapons from Egypt and Turkey. The documents eventually found their way to other Discord servers as well as 4chan and Telegram.

FBI officials arrested Teixeira at his home in April of last year. Teixeira originally agreed to a plea deal with federal prosecutors in March that included a 16-year prison sentence for pleading guilty to six counts of willful retention and transmission of national defense information and violating the Espionage Act. If he stuck with his not guilty plea and received a guilty verdict, Teixeira faced a much steeper maximum prison term of 60 years.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/discord-leaker-jack-teixeira-gets-15-year-sentence-for-sharing-classified-documents-231319586.html?src=rss

Apple could launch a smart home control center next year

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Apple is rumored to be working on a new smart home product. Mark Gurman at Bloomberg reported that the company is developing a wall-mounted display for controlling appliances, interacting with Siri and videoconferencing. The tablet is said to look "like a square iPad" with "a roughly 6-inch screen." It would have a camera at the top as well as internal speakers and a built-in rechargeable battery. His sources said this smart home display could be officially announced as soon as March following three years in development.

This description sounds a lot like the Google Home Hub, which came out in 2018, or the Echo Show, which is already up to its eighth iteration. If Apple wants to be a serious competitor in this smart home space, it'll have to prove to customers that it has something to offer that these more established brands and products don't.

Right now, the only distinguishing feature is likely Apple Intelligence, which finally began rolling out to users in late October, and the upcoming App Intents system for controlling software programs with AI. But Apple may be looking farther ahead toward something more extravagant than just a smart device control panel. Gurman reported that Apple is already working on a version with a robotic arm that could move the tablet around. It should be interesting to see exactly what Apple does formally launch and when.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/apple-could-launch-a-smart-home-control-center-next-year-222136073.html?src=rss

23andMe is laying off 40 percent of its staff

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More than 200 employees of 23andMe are being laid off as part of the company’s ongoing cost-cutting measures. The layoffs will impact 40 percent of the genetic testing company’s workforce.

23andMe CEO and co-founder Anne Wojcicki said in a statement released on Monday that the staff reduction would save the beleaguered company more than $35 million. She called the layoffs “difficult but necessary actions as we restructure 23andMe and focus on the long-term success of our core consumer business and research partnerships.”

The company also announced it will start to shut down its therapeutics clinical programs that used its genetic database to research and develop new drugs. The therapeutics division housed two “immuno-oncology programs” that investigated therapeutic antibodies “designed to restore the ability of the body’s immune cells to kill cancer cells,” according to the division’s website.

The San Francisco-based company has not had an easy year. Hackers hit the genetics giant in April of last year and leaked information of 6.9 million customers. The data breach went unnoticed for a year and a half, leading to a $30 million settlement of a class action lawsuit and resignations from the company’s entire board.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/23andme-is-laying-off-40-percent-of-its-staff-221207302.html?src=rss

Channel 4 in the UK now has a dedicated app for Apple Vision Pro

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The initial buzz for Apple’s mixed-reality headset has died down, but new apps and experiences are still arriving for consumers who plunked down $3,500. The UK broadcaster Channel 4 just dropped a dedicated streaming app for the headset, which lets users watch stuff in “ground-breaking cinema-style.”

Channel 4 is the first UK broadcaster to take this step. The app leverages the tech inside the headset to overlay streaming content on the real world, which allows for a “full-screen viewing experience” of stuff like The Great British Bake Off and Taskmaster, in addition to multi-screen view.

Speaking of Taskmaster, the broadcaster also announced an environment based on the comedy game show. Environments on the AVP transform the world around the user, so people can watch Taskmaster while sitting in a room inspired by Taskmaster (cue that Xzibit Yo Dawg meme.) Other streaming apps have their own environments. Paramount+ offers one based on SpongeBob Squarepants and Disney+ now includes one set in Iceland.

This app doesn’t feature access to the recently-released Taskmaster VR experience. That one’s still tied to Steam VR and Meta Quest. By most accounts, it’s a pretty bad game, so the Vision Pro isn’t missing much.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ar-vr/channel-4-in-the-uk-now-has-a-dedicated-app-for-apple-vision-pro-200027166.html?src=rss