| Here’s a look at today's tech briefing: - 'Apple Intelligence' coming to iPhones, iPads, and Macs.
- Microsoft to launch disc-less Xbox Series X.
- More Tesla investors oppose Musk pay package.
- Nokia makes first phone call with 3D spatial sound.
- Cognizant to acquire Belcan for $1.3B.
- Microsoft reworks 'Recall' after backlash.
Beth
p/beth-duckett | |
| 1 | | Apple is bringing "Apple Intelligence," its branded generative AI system, to iPhones, iPads, and Macs. AI took center stage during today's keynote at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference. Here are some of the top announcements: - "Apple Intelligence" will launch across apps, including Siri.
- The AI software will use technology from both Apple and its new partner OpenAI, which is bringing ChatGPT to Apple users.
- In iOS 18, users will experience more natural interactions with Siri, which will be able to execute tasks in apps, like editing photos or deleting emails.
- Apple's privacy-focused AI will also manage notifications, summarize texts and web pages, improve writing across apps, and generate images.
- The company announced an AI image generator called Image Playground and a "Genmoji" feature that creates custom emojis based on text prompts.
- Apple Intelligence is free and will launch beta as part of iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia this fall.
- It will be available on the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and iPad and Mac with M1 and later chips.
Non-AI announcements: |     | |
| 2 | | Microsoft plans to launch three new Xbox models in late 2024. The lineup includes a disc-free version of the Xbox Series X. More: - The consoles were revealed during Sunday's Xbox Summer Games Showcase.
- This holiday season, Microsoft will launch the digital-only white Xbox Series X with 1TB of storage ($450), a white version of the 1TB Series S ($350), and a special edition black Series X with 2TB storage ($600).
- Microsoft also confirmed it's working on next-gen Xbox consoles.
Zoom out: - The Xbox Showcase also revealed upcoming games from Activision, Blizzard, Xbox Game Studios, Bethesda, and others.
- Activision's "Call of Duty: Black Ops 6" will release on Oct. 25, while id Software's "Doom: The Dark Ages" is due out in 2025.
- Both games will debut on Xbox Game Pass from day one.
- The updates could bolster Xbox sales as it competes with Sony's PS5. Both companies have faced declining sales and studio layoffs and closures.
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| 3 | | Norway's sovereign wealth fund and the California State Teachers' Retirement System said they will vote against Tesla CEO Elon Musk's $56B pay package. Tesla shareholders will vote on Musk's revised pay package this Thursday. More: - Tesla will ask shareholders to reapprove the pay award after it was struck down by a Delaware judge in January.
- Musk does not receive a salary from Tesla. The package includes performance-linked stock options valued at around $50B.
- So far, major Tesla shareholders are split on endorsing the pay plan.
Zoom out: - Norway's $1.7 trillion wealth fund, Tesla's eighth-largest shareholder, will oppose the package due to concerns over its size, structure, and risk.
- The head of the California State Teachers' Retirement System said the pension fund will also vote no, calling the plan "ridiculous."
- However, Scottish asset manager Baillie Gifford, a long-time Tesla shareholder, will support the package, citing its "ambitious" targets.
- Tesla is also seeking support from retail investors, who are a part of the "public and other" category that holds 43% of Tesla stock, the highest among top S&P 500 companies.
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| 4 | | Nokia completed the first audio and video call using 3D spatial sound over a cellular network. CEO Pekka Lundmark showed off the "immersive audio and video" technology, which makes phone calls sound more lifelike with three-dimensional sound. More: - Spatial audio divides sound into multiple channels for directional effect.
- Nokia has expanded it to calls using the 3GPP Immersive Video and Audio Services (IVAS) codec, supporting "sound spatially in real-time."
- The real-time 3D audio is an improvement over the current flatter-sounding "monophonic" calls on traditional cell networks.
Zoom out: | | | |
| 5 | | IT services giant Cognizant will acquire Belcan for $1.3B in cash and stock. Belcan provides digital engineering solutions across sectors such as aerospace, defense, space, marine, and industry. More: - Cognizant is buying Belcan from its current owner, the private equity firm AE Industrial Partners.
- Belcan counts 10,000 employees and clients including GM, NASA, the U.S. Navy, and Boeing.
- The deal is expected to improve Cognizant's engineering R&D, especially in IoT and digital engineering.
Zoom out: - Cognizant CEO Ravi Kumar said Belcan's faster-growing aerospace and defense sector offers Cognizant a chance to capitalize on that growth.
- Belcan, under CEO Lance Kwasniewski, will operate as a unit of Cognizant post-acquisition.
- Cognizant expects the acquisition will generate over $800M in annual revenue.
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| 6 | | To ease privacy concerns, Microsoft will make its upcoming "Recall" feature for AI PCs opt-in rather than default. The "photographic memory" feature captures screen snapshots every few seconds, allowing users to search past computer activity. More: - Microsoft faced criticism from privacy advocates concerned Recall could give hackers easy access to private data.
- To ease concerns, Microsoft announced Recall will be off by default. If turned on, Recall will require a biometric login like a PIN, fingerprint, or facial recognition.
- Microsoft is also adding data protection by encrypting the search index database of screenshots, which will only be decrypted after user authentication.
- Recall will also save snapshots locally on the PC, where AI processes the data to make it searchable.
Zoom out: - A Recall preview will be available on Microsoft's AI-powered "Copilot+ PCs," which start shipping in mid-June.
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| 7 | | Quick Hits: - Intel is reportedly pausing plans for a $25B chip factory in Israel.
- Meta is expanding Messenger with a new "Communities" feature that allows up to 5,000 people to chat without needing a Facebook Group.
- The tech industry opposes a California bill requiring AI companies to report safety tests and add a "kill switch" to their advanced AI models.
- Google Play issued new guidelines cracking down on AI apps that generate restricted sexual content.
*This is sponsored content. | | | |
 | AI and technology writer | | Beth is a contributing editor and writer of Inside's AI and Tech newsletters. She has written for publications including USA Today, the Arizona Business Gazette, and The Arizona Republic, where she received recognition with a Pulitzer Prize nomination and a First Amendment Award for collaborative reporting on state pension cost increases. You can reach her at Beth.Duckett@yahoo.com. | | This newsletter was edited by Beth Duckett | |
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