Nvidia-backed startup Perplexity AI is challenging Google with a new AI-powered web browser called Comet that is built on the company’s proprietary AI search engine. The new browser is initially available to those paying $200 per month to subscribe to the Perplexity Max plan and by invitation to those who register online for the company’s waitlist. The browser also comes with Comet Assistant, an agent that automates routine tasks such as summarizing emails and navigating webpages. Comet Assistant can be opened as a sidebar on any webpage to answer questions about the content being presented. Continue reading Perplexity Launches Comet AI Web Browser for Premium Subs

New ultra-slim Galaxy Z Flip7 and Galaxy Z Fold7 smartphones, three new models of smartwatches, and the debut of One UI 8 were among the highlights of Samsung’s summer Galaxy Unpacked event yesterday. The Galaxy Z Fold7 is just 8.9mm thick when folded (and 4.2mm unfolded, less than three pennies stacked) and features a larger main screen than its predecessor at 8 inches (up from 7.6 inches) as well as a bigger 6.5-inch outer display. A big change to the Galaxy Z Flip7 is the fact that its 4.1-inch cover screen extends around the two camera lenses. Meanwhile, Google has introduced AI updates to Android, delivering new Gemini capabilities for Samsung’s mobile lineup. Continue reading Samsung Reveals Galaxy Phones, Watch 8, AI Features, More

Netflix is taking steps aimed at upgrading the viewer experience, rolling out AV1 Film Grain Synthesis (FGS) streams to the majority of its subscribers. While FGS has been part of the AV1 standard since the Alliance for Open Media introduced the format in 2018, Netflix began to apply it to a limited number of titles in 2021 and is is now enabling it at scale. The streamer says the open-source FGS compression system “revolutionizes video streaming” and will “preserve the artistic integrity of film grain” — a feature generally considered essential to achieving a cinematic look — while also optimizing data efficiency. Continue reading Netflix Is Implementing AV1 Film Grain Synthesis Tech at Scale

Google is making it easier to access its Gems customizable Gemini chatbots by bringing them to the side panel in Google Workspace apps, including Google Docs, Slides, Sheets, Drive, and Gmail. The task-specific Gems AI assistants are meant to help with common tasks and eliminate what Google calls “repetitive prompting.” Now they’ll be usable without even prompting Gemini to open. While Google offers pre-made Gems, they can also be customized or individually created to meet specific needs. Both custom and templated Gems can be installed in side panels, leveraging capabilities like @-mentioning or accessing files and folders. Continue reading Google Makes Gems Chatbots Available via Workspace Apps

China’s Baidu has added AI and voice features to its Ernie search engine and as of June 30 officially made its generative Ernie large language model open source in a direct challenge to OpenAI and Anthropic as well as local Chinese rival DeepSeek. “This isn’t just a China story. Every time a major lab open-sources a powerful model, it raises the bar for the entire industry,” University of Southern California Associate Professor of Computer Science Sean Ren told CNBC. Baidu is also giving the Ernie mobile app more chatbot-like functionality, enabling it to help with drawing, writing and travel tasks. Continue reading Baidu Delivers AI Updates to Search, Open-Sources Ernie 4.5

AI startup Runway has a new tool called Game Worlds that lets users generate simple video game worlds using images and text-based prompts. At the moment, Runway Game Worlds can only help generate simple text-based interactive adventures that include pictures, but the company has plans to enable more complex game creation by the end of the year. Runway CEO Cristóbal Valenzuela says the company is interested in partnering with video game companies who are willing to provide game data that can be used to train the company’s models in exchange for generative capabilities. Continue reading Runway AI Intros Game Worlds Generator in Limited Preview

Meta Platforms is expanding AI support for WhatsApp, adding voice calling to customers for enterprise accounts, a feature that’s been available to small businesses for years. “In the coming weeks, larger businesses using the WhatsApp Business Platform will be able to receive a call from a customer when they want to talk to someone live or call a customer directly” on request. Meta announced in Miami at its fourth annual Conversations business messaging conference, saying the move “paves the way for AI-enabled voice support in the future.” The company also added WhatsApp to centralized marketing across Facebook and Instagram. Continue reading Meta Is Increasing WhatsApp Ad Capabilities and AI Support

Cloudflare, which spent the past year introducing tools to help content providers prevent unwanted AI scraping, is launching a marketplace that lets websites charge for the privilege of using a “pay-per-crawl” model. The Internet infrastructure and security company says it is the first to enable blocking AI crawlers by default, providing access only with permission and, if wanted, compensation. As of July 1, AI companies can use Cloudflare’s marketplace to “clearly state their purpose — if their crawlers are used for training, inference, or search — to help website owners decide which crawlers to allow.” Continue reading Cloudflare Pay-per-Crawl Lets Publishers Monetize Scrapes

Amazon warehouses and fulfillment centers will soon have as many robots as human employees reading destination labels, packing orders and loading conveyor belts. Amazon serves 310 million customers worldwide, using various robot configurations to aid 1.56 million employees to process and deliver inventory and handle other businesses. Now the company has delivered its one millionth robot, to a facility in Japan. With artificial intelligence making a beeline toward white-collar work and warehouse robots poised to elbow aside manual laborers, global economics could shift on the practices of this company alone. Continue reading Amazon Deploys Millionth Factory Robot, Workforce Shrinks

Google is launching Offerwall, which is designed to help publishers monetize by letting them offer their customers options as to how they would like to pay for content. “People might decide to watch a short ad, complete a quick survey or pay in micropayments,” Google explains, adding that “publishers can even add their own options, like newsletter sign-ups.” The choices aim to both empower audiences while supporting publishers to help ensure diverse content remains available to everyone. After testing Offerwall with more than 1,000 publishers, it is now available in Google Ad Manager. Continue reading Google Launches Offerwall Ad Manager to Support Publishers

Anthropic has updated its Claude AI chatbot with the ability to build, host and share AI-powered apps directly in Claude. Launching in beta, the new function builds upon the Artifacts feature Anthropic introduced last year, allowing users to see and interact with what they asked Claude to create. “Now developers can iterate faster on their AI apps without worrying about the complexity and cost of scaling for a growing audience,” according to Anthropic. The San Francisco-based AI startup adds that millions people have already used Claude to create more than 500 million artifacts — from productivity tools to educational games. Continue reading Anthropic’s Claude Chatbot Is Now a No-Code App Developer

Meta Platforms has announced new generative AI features developed for marketers that produce video advertisements. Announced as part of Meta’s Advantage+ ad suite, marketers can now use up to 20 product stills to create multi-scene video ads with music and text overlay. The company has also added generative AI voices and virtual try-ons to its Advantage+ marketer toolkit. The upgrades were announced at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, where the topic of Meta using AI not only to create ads but to algorithmically serve them to target audiences was a topic of conversation. Continue reading Meta Unveils New AI Advertising Tools as Part of Advantage+

Meta Platforms has debuted a new “performance AI” smart glasses line with Oakley, the sports brand owned by global eyewear giant EssilorLuxottica. The move builds on Meta’s existing partnership with Ray-Ban, another EL brand. Starting at $400, the Oakley Meta HSTN glasses are targeting athletes with 3K video recording for POV capture — kind of like the GoPro of eyewear. Promising eight hours of battery life, the glasses also play music and provide notifications. A limited-edition $400 version of the Oakley Meta HSTN is available for preorder on July 11 with the rest of the collection dropping “later this summer.” Continue reading Meta and Oakley Target Athletes with AI Smart Glasses Line

Avid is deploying its popular Media Composer and Avid NEXIS tools at Amazon MGM Studios via the cloud using Amazon Web Services (AWS). The integration will enable the studio’s customers to use Avid’s editing and storage solutions via the cloud in a way that fits their specific production needs. Avid has been collaborating with Amazon MGM Studios for the past three years, and at the NAB 2025 show expanded the partnership to include the Avid on AWS production framework, offering studios, broadcasters, and streaming services cloud access to Avid’s post-production solutions on AWS. Continue reading Amazon MGM Studios Offering AWS Cloud-Based Avid Tools

Netflix has struck a first-of-its-kind deal to carry live TV in France. Beginning in the summer of 2026, subscribers in France can view TF1 Group live channels as well as on-demand content from TF1+ on Netflix as part of their existing subscriptions. TF1 and Netflix have long worked together on co-productions including “Les Combattantes” and “L’Agence.” “This new kind of partnership will provide audiences in France with exciting new ways to enjoy TF1 programming and offer Netflix members in France even more variety and choice,” Netflix said. The agreement will see Netflix carrying all five of TF1’s broadcast channels in addition to some 30,000 hours of on-demand content. Continue reading Netflix Expanding into Live TV in France with TF1 Group Deal