The Framework Desktop DIY Edition is a thoughtfully engineered small-form-factor desktop PC that is both an entry point into enthusiast computing as well as a powerful AI desktop in its own right. The Framework Desktop DIY Edition is unique: a do-it-yourself desktop without the complexity of building from scratch, forming a compact, personalized "AI workstation." If you're nervous about a less-familiar brand, don't be. Multiple photos show how to tighten a thumbscrew–that's how comfortable they want you to be. I can point to a few things that I thought needed improvement: soldered memory, a beta driver bundle that should be finalized by the time you buy it, and a top panel which didn't clip in as easily as I would have liked. Inserting the SSD stressed me out a bit, too. But Framework's eye for customization (colored tiles you can design and install yourself, plus your choice of I/O) lends itself to fun and productivity. The AMD Ryzen AI Max (Strix Halo) chip inside is slightly out of the ordinary, with its do-everything design. I have high praise for the Framework Desktop, and think you will too.

Earlier this month, Microsoft revamped the Copilot for Windows app. Now, the AI assistant is getting a different kind of facelift--in the form of a brand-new interface, reports Windows Latest. The new Copilot interface may seem familiar to anyone who's been using OpenAI's ChatGPT, with the chat history now moved to a side panel on the left instead of as a pop-up window alongside the convo. There's also a button to hide the side panel and give more space to the convo itself. Microsoft has also chosen to start using the same icons as ChatGPT for the "expand" and "conversation" buttons.

Google's AI assistant Gemini has now started appearing as a dedicated sidebar in Google Calendar. The feature is still being tested in Workspace Labs and hasn't yet been made available to all standard users. The new Gemini sidebar button appears in the horizontal menu above the calendar itself, between the Calendar/Tasks toggle and the Google Apps menu button. With the Gemini sidebar open, you can give instructions using natural language prompts, such as asking the AI assistant questions about your schedule or commanding it to create a new calendar event. You can also click on suggested prompts provided by Gemini.

Google is making Gemini more easily accessible in its Workspace apps, if you're a paying customer. The company is rolling out Gemini side panels for Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive and Gmail, and it has also launched Gemini for the Gmail app on Android and iOS. When Google announced the Gemini side panels at I/O this year, it called the feature "the connective tissue across multiple applications with AI-powered workflow." The side panel in Docs will help you refine and rephrase what you're writing, summarize information, suggest improvements and create new content based on other files. In Sheets, it can help you create tables, generate formulas and demystify various Sheets functions by teaching you how to do certain tasks.

Google is adding Gemini-powered AI automation to more tasks in Workspace. In its Tuesday Google I/O keynote, the company said its advanced Gemini 1.5 Pro will soon be available in the Workspace side panel as "the connective tissue across multiple applications with AI-powered workflows," as AI grows more intelligent, learns more about you and automates more of your workflow. Gemini's job in Workspace is to save you the time and effort of digging through files, emails and other data from multiple apps. "Workspace in the Gemini era will continue to unlock new ways of getting things done," Google Workspace VP Aparna Pappu said at the event. The refreshed Workspace side panel, coming first to Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Slides and Drive, will let you chat with Gemini about your content.

I would've stabbed the man's hand had he not jerked it away--this is what I usually say toward the end of the story. I've told for almost twenty years, I'm a junior in college towelling my wet hair as I walk from my bathroom through the hall, headed to my bedroom, at two in the morning. I see you, motherfucker, and the hand jerks back. When I call 911 and reach, incredibly, a busy signal, I phone Ed instead, who will drive over, remove his old A.C. unit, take it to his new place. I would've stabbed the hand that tried to steal my A.C.

Google's self-driving car spin-off Waymo has patented a self-driving vehicle that'softens' when it is about to hit a person. The patent, awarded to the firm last week, describes a flexible car shell material that lowers its rigidity before crashes to cushion its impact on pedestrians or cyclists. The patent states the material's design will limit the damage caused by vehicles during collisions. Google's self-driving car spinoff Waymo has patented a'softening' self-driving car shell. The design uses several'tension members' (horizontal lines above) - such as cables - that keep the car's exterior rigid under normal conditions.