World's broadcasters urge EU to tighten rules for big tech in smart TV battle
Services such as Google TV and Amazon's Fire TV have recommendation systems, as well as search functions, that may prioritise some content over others. Services such as Google TV and Amazon's Fire TV have recommendation systems, as well as search functions, that may prioritise some content over others. World's broadcasters urge EU to tighten rules for big tech in smart TV battle The world's largest broadcasters have pushed for the EU to enforce its toughest regulations against virtual TVs and smart assistants built by Google, Amazon, Apple and Samsung . The call came in a letter from the Association of Commercial Television and Video on Demand Services in Europe (ACT), whose members include Canal+, RTL, Mediaset, ITV, Paramount+, NBCUniversal, Walt Disney, Warner Bros Discovery, Sky and TF1 Groupe. The letter argues that big tech companies have growing control over the operating systems of smart TVs and voice assistants, allowing them to act as "gatekeepers" funnelling users towards some content and away from others.
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There Aren't a Lot of Reasons to Get Excited About a New Amazon Smartphone
There Aren't a Lot of Reasons to Get Excited About a New Amazon Smartphone The company is reportedly building a new AI-powered mobile device. If Amazon follows through on the plan, experts warn it would be next to impossible to break into a crowded market. Reuters reports that Amazon's Devices and Services unit is working on a smartphone--dubbed Transformer--with Amazon's Alexa+ AI assistant and shopping as a major focus of the experience. It's unclear what this smartphone would cost, how much Amazon is spending to develop Transformer, and what operating system it will run. There's no word on when it will launch, and there's still also a chance the project could be scrapped altogether.
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The Hypocrisy at the Heart of the AI Industry
Tech companies believe in intellectual property, but not yours. In April 2024, Eric Schmidt, the former Google CEO and a current AI evangelist, gave a closed-door lecture to a group of Stanford students. If these young people hoped to be Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, Schmidt explained, then they should be prepared to breach some ethical boundaries. Yet Schmidt told the students to go ahead and download whatever they need to build an accurate "test" version of their AI product. If the product takes off, "then you hire a whole bunch of lawyers to go clean the mess up," he said.
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Google is reportedly testing a Gemini app for Mac
A feature called Desktop Intelligence would let the AI pull context from open apps and your desktop. Google is testing a version of its Gemini app for macOS, reports . The app would bring the AI assistant to uncharted territory, and in more direct competition with OpenAI's ChatGPT and Anthropic's Claude, both of which offer standalone Mac apps. Gemini remains accessible through the web, and it sounds like the macOS app offers the same set of features, with the ability to respond to prompts, search the web and generate text, images and code. The major differentiator of the Mac app could be a feature called Desktop Intelligence, which gives Gemini a new source of information and context for its responses.
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Google is testing Search Live in more markets
The company had originally planned to announce global availability. A few hours after this story was published, Google reached out to retract the news. Given that the company says it is testing in more markets, it seems entirely possible that the global Search Live release will happen sooner than later. After rolling out Search Live to all US Google app users last September, Google is now bringing the feature to every place where it offers its AI Mode chatbot. Search Live, if you need a reminder, allows you to point your phone's camera at an object or scene and ask questions about what you see in front of you.
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Google expands Search Live globally
The tool is now available in every place where the company offers its AI Mode chatbot. After debuting in the US, Search Live is now available globally. After rolling out Search Live to all US Google app users last September, Google is now bringing the feature to every place where it offers its AI Mode chatbot. Search Live, if you need a reminder, allows you to point your phone's camera at an object or scene and ask questions about what you see in front of you. Google debuted the tool at I/O 2025 before it began rolling it out to users.
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Google Intelligence is now asking for all of your data
Google is integrating its AI assistant Gemini with all personal Google services, allowing the AI to access user data across accounts for enhanced search results. PCWorld reports this opt-in feature enables Gemini to answer complex queries by collating personal information, though it's unavailable for business accounts. While offering improved functionality in Google AI Search and Chrome, this integration raises significant privacy concerns about Google's expanded data access. Google is now offering you the ability to link all of your Google services to the company's AI services for better results, looping in Google Intelligence, Gemini, with Gmail and your other data. It's a classic tactic used from Microsoft to Google and others: Connect your sources of data, and the service will become more adept at predicting what you want.
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Google makes Gemini personalization available to free users
After AI Pro and Ultra subscribers first got to first try the feature, now anyone in the US can enable it. Gemini's Personal Intelligence feature is now rolling out to more users in the US. At the start of the year, Google introduced Personal Intelligence, a Gemini feature that allows the chatbot to pull information from the user's other Google apps and services to generate personalized responses. After making the feature first available to Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers, the company is expanding availability to more users in the US. Google is kicking off the expansion with AI Mode.
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