The Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) is releasing an update to its smart home connectivity standard. Matter 1.2 adds nine new device types, including robot vacuums, washing machines, refrigerators and dishwashers. New certification and testing tools and core improvements to the specification and SDK are also rolling out in this major new release for the standard, which debuted a little over a year ago for things like door locks and light switch controls. In theory, Matter-compliant devices will be able to be controlled by smart home platforms like Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, Samsung SmartThings and Google Home. Continue reading Matter Adds Major Appliances with 9 New Device Categories

The Federal Communications Commission has issued a formal Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for the U.S. Cyber Trust Mark labeling program for smart devices announced in July with the Biden administration. The voluntary program to provide certification for baseline cybersecurity standards is designed to help consumers make informed purchase decisions regarding Internet of Things (IoT) products. The FCC, which proposes to own the new Cyber Trust trademark and administer it in conjunction with third parties, is now officially soliciting comments from industries and the public on the scope of the proposed program. Continue reading FCC Advances ‘U.S. Cyber Trust Mark’ to Foster IoT Security

After announcing a partnership with OpenAI last month, the Associated Press has issued guidelines for using generative AI in news reporting, urging caution in using artificial intelligence. The news agency has also added a new chapter in its widely used AP Stylebook pertaining to coverage of AI, a story that “goes far beyond business and technology” and is “also about politics, entertainment, education, sports, human rights, the economy, equality and inequality, international law, and many other issues,” according to AP, which says stories about AI should “show how these tools are affecting many areas of our lives.” Continue reading AP Is Latest Org to Issue Guidelines for AI in News Reporting

Led by Pixar Animation Studios, a consortium of tech companies has formed the Alliance for OpenUSD to promote an open 3D computer graphics standard for the metaverse and other 3D projects. Adobe, Apple, Autodesk and Nvidia are also founding members along with the Linux Foundation’s Joint Development Foundation. The group will promote the development and standardization of Pixar’s Universal Scene Description tech, a 3D platform that is interoperable across a variety of tools, data and workflows. The goal is to make it easier to describe, compose and simulate large-scale 3D imaging projects and services across industries and platforms worldwide. Continue reading Tech Firms Join Pixar in Group Promoting OpenUSD Standard

Threads released an iOS update this week that automates the ability to translate posts into foreign languages. The Instagram spinoff also added a follows tab to the activities feed, where replies and mentions are displayed. Also new to iOS is the ability to access a list of any user’s Instagram followers, to subscribe to “unfollowed” users, and tappable repost labels. While Threads has prompted shock and awe by hitting 100 million downloads within five days of its July 5 launch, and is now at about 150 million, there are reports of dips in user activity. Meanwhile, the new platform has followed Twitter in introducing tighter rate limits. Continue reading Meta’s Threads Adds Updates, Aims to Suppress Bot Attacks

Leaders at the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan, are calling for discussions that could lead to global standards and regulations for generative AI, with the aim of responsible use of the technology. The chief executives of the world’s largest economies — which in addition to the host nation include Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the UK, the U.S. (and additionally the EU) — expressed the goal of forming a G7 working group to establish by the end of the year a “Hiroshima AI process” for discussion about uniform policies for dealing with AI technologies including chatbots and image generators. Continue reading G7 Leaders Call for Global AI Standards at Hiroshima Summit

The National Association of Broadcasters will lead a new public-private transition to ATSC 3.0 from ATSC 1.0, an initiative known as “the Future of Television.” Also known as NextGen TV, ATSC 3.0 will bring 4K Ultra High Definition images, two-way interactivity, greater accessibility options, and multi-screen applications to televisions via over-the-air broadcast signals working in tandem with broadband. FCC chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announced the Future of TV onstage in Las Vegas Monday at the 100th NAB Show. The FCC will work with NAB to bring together industry, government and public interest stakeholders to establish a roadmap for NextGen TV. Continue reading NAB to Lead ATSC 3.0 Transition Working with FCC, Industry

The U.S. and a coalition of international government agencies have issued joint guidance that aims to get software companies to heighten security for their products. “Shifting the Balance of Cybersecurity Risk: Principles and Approaches for Security-by-Design and -Default” takes the position that today’s software is insecure by default and it is the customer’s burden to take steps to make it safe. Manufacturers should make their products safe before they ship by taking steps including deprecating the “default password,” writing their programs using only secure coding languages, providing free patches and setting up vulnerability reporting programs. Continue reading U.S. Agencies Join Global Coalition in Secure Software Push

While smart home technologies have often made a strong showing at CES, adoption has been hampered by issues of interoperability. This year at CES saw the widespread reveal of Matter (originally known as Project CHIP), a new smart home standard designed to support interoperability. Matter was originally announced in 2019 as a partnership between Apple, Google and Amazon to create an open-source smart home standard. Today, if CES 2023 is any indication, the standard is becoming more prevalent across a wide variety of connected devices and different product sectors. Continue reading CES: Matter Smart Home Protocol Marks Major Trend in 2023

Samsung Electronics announced its new $60 SmartThings Station, which the company describes as “an easy-to-use, affordable smart home hub and fast charging pad.” The product is designed to provide consumers with “simple control and interoperability of multiple connected devices.” SmartThings Station is one of numerous solutions touted at CES that are compatible with a growing collection of smart home products, including those that are labeled as Matter devices. The Matter home automation standard, which helps connect devices built with the Thread low-power mesh networking protocol, had a significant presence at CES. Continue reading CES: Samsung Introduces an Easy-to-Use Smart Home Hub

Both the European Parliament (the EU’s law-making body) and the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) were represented on a CES panel on “AI Rules and Tools,” moderated by CTA vice president of emerging technology policy Doug Johnson. Also on the panel were executives from Facebook parent Meta Platforms and insurance provider Elevance Health, for a robust discussion on how to arrive at standards and regulations for the powerful — but often industry-based — AI technologies that will also be accepted by countries around the world and industries with competing interests. Continue reading CES: Addressing Challenges to Creating Global AI Standards

At a CES panel, CISA director Jen Easterly sounded the alarm on the current state of cybersecurity in the U.S. “We cannot accept that ten years from now it will be the same or worse than it is now,” she said. “All the critical infrastructure we rely on is underpinned by a technology base that was created in an insecure way.” As head of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Easterly is in a position to assess the coming damage, projected to be $8 trillion this year. Moderator Rajeev Chand, Wing Venture Capital partner led Easterly and CrowdStrike chief executive George Kurtz in a discussion on how to halt the increase of cyber-insecurity. Continue reading CES: As Risks Rise, Experts Reimagine Path to Cyber Safety

The Biden administration is implementing a cybersecurity labeling program designed to protect consumers using Internet of Things devices from “significant national security risks.” Beginning in the spring of 2023, IoT smart hardware will begin carrying a “label for products that meet U.S. government standards and are tested by vetted and approved entities,” according to the White House. The program will start with high-risk devices like routers and cameras. To jump-start the initiative, the White House hosted an IoT Cybersecurity Summit attended by national security officials, hardware manufacturers and representatives from consumer product associations. Continue reading Cybersecurity Labeling System Coming to IoT Devices in 2023

The Connectivity Standards Alliance has announced the release of the Matter 1.0 specification, a global connectivity standard for the Internet of Things, simultaneously opening the product certification program, administered through authorized test labs. Member companies “now have a complete program for bringing the next generation of interoperable products that work across brands and platforms to market with greater privacy, security, and simplicity for consumers,” said CSA. The Matter standard was developed so the devices from companies including Google, Apple and Amazon can communicate with each other via a local controller device. Continue reading CSA Releases Global Connectivity Spec for Internet of Things

The Entertainment Technology Center at the University of Southern California (ETC@USC) is pleased to announce the addition of the RoninX Foundation to its executive board. The Japan-based foundation is pursuing a camera metadata interoperability standard and a new 8K streaming protocol for innovative use cases for the open multiverse. The RoninX Foundation is guided by its community of camera manufacturers, storage providers, Internet service providers, infrastructure providers, 5G operators and studios. Continue reading ETC@USC Announces RoninX Foundation as Board Member