OpenAI has updated the editor for DALL-E, the artificial intelligence image generator that is part of the ChatGPT premium tiers. The update, based on the DALL-E 3 model, makes it easier for users to adjust their generated images. Shortly after DALL-E 3’s September debut, OpenAI integrated it into ChatGPT, enabling paid subscribers to generate images from text or image prompts. The new DALL-E editor interface lets users edit images “by selecting an area of the image to edit and describing your changes in chat” without using the selection tool. Desired changes can also be prompted “in the conversation panel,” according to OpenAI. Continue reading OpenAI Integrates New Image Editor for DALL-E into ChatGPT

Meta Platforms has updated its Facebook video player to offer a consistent vertical view for Reels, Facebook Live and long-form content, making vertical the default view. The upgraded player adds controls including fullscreen mode for horizontal videos, a slider to parse through longer videos, and “tap” functionality to bring up additional options, like “pause,” or jumping back or forward in 10-second increments. The new video player will roll out first on iOS and Android in the U.S. and Canada, then globally in the coming months. Continue reading Facebook Updates Video Player to Take On TikTok, YouTube

Messaging app Telegram has added business account features to create a custom start page, listings, maps, hours of operation, chatbot support and more. Anyone can turn their Telegram account into a Telegram Business account, and users don’t need coding skills. Public channels with 1,000 or more subscribers can receive 50 percent of the revenue from ads shown in their channels. Based in Dubai, Telegram says the channels of its global users generate over 1 trillion monthly views. In February it unveiled an ad program that adopted the TON blockchain’s Toncoin as its native currency. Continue reading Telegram Adds Business Features to Challenge Meta, Google

Google is beginning to extend YouTube TV’s multiview functionality to mobile platforms, with iPhones and iPads added in time for March Madness and Android coming in the months ahead. During early access, some users will see an option to simultaneously watch up to four different, though pre-selected, streams in their “Top Picks for You” section. After selecting multiview, viewers will be able to toggle audio and captioning between streams and can jump in and out of a particular game’s full screen view. YouTube TV announced multiview last month “on all devices that support multiview.” Continue reading YouTube TV Begins Offering Multiview for iPhones and iPads

Since Epic Games debuted the Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN) and Creator Economy 2.0 tools in March 2023, the company says creators have published more than 80,000 UENF islands, and Epic has rewarded creators with more than $320 million in engagement payouts. Now Epic is adding more core features to UEFN: MetaHuman Creator and MetaHuman Animator, which enable the creation and animation of non-playable MetaHuman characters. Epic’s UEFN 2024 roadmap, presented at this week’s Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, includes more camera options for the player-made game platform, including a first-person perspective. Continue reading MetaHuman and Animator Now Available to Fortnite Creators

Perplexity is a year-old AI startup whose conversational “answer engine” has gained attention as a potential challenger to conventional search. Two months ago the venture raised $73.6 million in Series B funding from investors including Nvidia and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos via his Bezos Expeditions, resulting in a valuation of about $520 million. Now the company is said to be finalizing another cash infusion that is predicted to double its valuation to roughly $1 billion. The current financing round is reportedly being led by former Y Combinator partner Daniel Gross through his own investment fund. Continue reading AI Startup Perplexity Targets $1B Valuation with New Funding

Having fended off challenges in the short-form video sphere since its late 2016 launch, it now appears TikTok is playing offense, laying the groundwork for a photo-sharing app that has drawn comparisons to Instagram and Pinterest. Avid TikTok users are probably familiar with a feature that lets them post still images as moving images that can be examined by advancing frame-by-frame. Now TikTok seems to want to improve that approach by building a separate TikTok Photos app to which users of the primary platform can export and showcase their still images to Android and iOS. Continue reading TikTok Updates Its Code to Sync to Separate ‘TikTok Photos’

Bluesky — Jack Dorsey’s alternative to X (formerly Twitter) — has been quietly ramping up, recently opening for general public sign-ups while adding hashtag support and the ability for users to host their own servers. The company last month appointed Aaron Rodericks to the newly created position of head of trust and safety, a title he held at Twitter before Elon Musk purchased it and decimated the division (which he now co-heads with X CEO Linda Yaccarino). The technical updates will make it easier for users to sort threads for topics of interest and takes a big step toward federation and allowing users to freely move their accounts. Continue reading Bluesky Opens to the Public Ahead of the Presidential Election

ZTE has launched what it calls the world’s first AI-powered, eyewear-free 5G 3D tablet, the Nubia Pad 3D II. The 12.1-inch LCD display supports 2,560 x 1,600 resolution and 144Hz refresh rate. Powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, the Nubia Pad 3D II is equipped with an AI eye-tracking engine that utilizes “high-speed visual sensors and eye-detection algorithms” to enhance response speed and enable accurate synchronization with the users’ eyes in real-time “for a more natural and realistic 3D display experience,” ZTE says. The device also converts 2D to 3D with Neovision 3D Anytime technology. Continue reading ZTE Unveils Glasses-Free Android Tablet, the Nubia Pad 3D II

Users appear to prefer Meta Platforms’ Threads to Elon Musk’s social platform X, based on the disparity between the number of downloads, which is widening. Globally, Meta’s Instagram spinoff — which has many of the same features as the app formerly known as Twitter — has recently been seeing three times as many daily downloads as X on iOS devices, and more than twice as many from the Google Play app store for Android. The analysis is from intelligence firm Appfigures, which this week lists Threads as No. 2 among all free app downloads, and X at No. 40. As Threads introduces new features, it is also testing a new in-app camera. Continue reading Threads Surpasses X in Downloads, Tests an In-App Camera

Motorola and Lenovo have teamed up on Smart Connect, a Windows 11 app that aims to make moving between devices and sharing content across digital ecosystems a seamless experience. The software solution is designed to make workflows “uninterrupted,” a goal of busy multitaskers. “Smart Connect eliminates disruptions when transitioning between compatible devices by seamlessly connecting core devices like phones, tablets and PCs,” the companies said, explaining it will allow users to “easily amplify everything displayed on their phones onto a bigger screen.” For example, games, movies and TV shows can be moved from phones to TVs. Continue reading MWC: Motorola and Lenovo Demonstrate Smart Connect App

Qualcomm raised the curtain on a variety of artificial intelligence, 5G, and Wi-Fi technologies at Mobile World Congress Barcelona, which runs through Thursday. The San Diego-based chip designer unveiled an AI Hub it says will help developers create voice-, text- and image-based applications using pre-optimized AI models. Qualcomm’s flagship AI chips — the mobile Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor and the PC-centric Snapdragon X Elite — were announced last year. With the first splash of products now heading to market the company is promising to push the boundaries of 5G and 6G. Continue reading MWC: Qualcomm Unveils AI Hub and Promotes 5G, 6G Tech

Yelp is introducing more than 20 new updates to improve the experience for community members and business owners. Included are AI-powered summaries that make it easier to find businesses, an updated Yelp Elite badge for reviewers who are passionate about specific subjects, and a new visual home feed and search experience geared toward discovery. For those seeking services, the new “Request a Quote” and “Projects” features are available. Artificial intelligence will also power market and competitive insights for business owners, while AI-powered smart budgets provide recommendations to optimize ad spend, “helping local businesses grow.” Continue reading Yelp Adds 20 Features Plus AI to Help Users and Businesses

Qualcomm reported revenue of $9.9 billion for the quarter ending in December, a 5 percent increase year-over-year. The company tallied $6.69 billion in sales of handset chips during the three-month period, up 16 percent over the prior year’s $5.7 billion, marking a turnaround after two years of declines. The quarter marked the beginning of shipments of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, designed for mobile generative AI, and its adoption by OEMs and manufacturers including Samsung for its new Galaxy S24 lineup. Qualcomm also announced it will continue selling 5G modem chips to Apple. Continue reading Qualcomm Earnings: All-In on XR, Smartphone Chips Rebound

Instagram’s Threads app, an X competitor designed for sharing text updates and joining public conversations, is now gaining traction after an inconsistent 2023. New data from app intelligence firm Appfigures reveals that Threads is growing, tripling its number of downloads month-over-month in December, positioning it as one of the Top 10 most downloaded apps for Apple’s App Store and the Google Play Store. Ahead of Threads in downloads for December were popular apps such as Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and WhatsApp (Instagram took over the No. 1 spot from TikTok). Meanwhile, X continues to decline. Continue reading Instagram Threads Reaches the Top of App Store Downloads