
Paris Hilton announces handbag and sportswear collection with 'the perfect vibe'
Socialite and reality star Paris Hilton is launching her own collection of sportswear and handbags alongside IHL Group.
2023-09-21 17:58

Tottenham is thriving after selling Kane. Now it faces biggest test so far against rival Arsenal
There was little to suggest Tottenham would make an unbeaten start in the Premier League this season
2023-09-21 17:58

Who is Charles Q Brown? Senate confirms Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff amid Tommy Tuberville's obstruction
Charles Q Brown, who was nominated by President Joe Biden, became the first Black chief of the US military in 2020
2023-09-21 17:57

Amazon Alexa gets new AI powers, with the same kind of brain as ChatGPT
Amazon is adding the same kind of brain that powers ChatGPT into Alexa. The new technology is intended to allow the virtual assistant to be more powerful and able to speak with its owners in more natural conversations. The announcement were part of a wide array of new devices launched by Amazon this week. It also revealed new tablets and Echos, including those with screens, as well as plans to use generative artificial intelligence to create art to show on those screens. Every year, Amazon announces a number of Alexa devices, which have in the past included everything from soundbars to microwaves. This year, much of its focus was on artificial intelligence. While Alexa was one of the first virtual assistants of its kind to go mainstream, Amazon has lagged behind rivals such as Microsoft and Google in integrating new large language models into those systems. The sudden rise of such technology has sparked greater scrutiny of AI from regulators, given its explosion into general use and concerns over its potential impact on human life as well as industry, jobs and education. During a live event to unveil its latest range of Alexa-powered devices, Amazon looked to reaffirm its position as a market leader in AI by showing off an update to the assistant that will allow for more natural conversations with Alexa, rather than just the transactional request fulfilment it currently runs on. In a live demonstration of Alexa’s new large language model (LLM), Amazon devices boss Dave Limp showed how the new version of the assistant will be able to be more expressive in its responses - for example sounding happier when returning a positive sporting result for a user’s favoured team. Based within a new section of the service called “Let’s Chat”, Alexa will respond without the use of a wake word first, be able to pick up a conversation after a break and still understand the context, as well as understand inferences and more vague prompts in a way that Limp said is “like talking to a friend”. For example, the new Alexa will respond to the prompt “I’m cold” by turning on the heating in a connected home. Amazon has not confirmed a general release date for the new version of Alexa, instead focusing on an early preview programme in the US to try out the new capabilities among some users. Technology expert Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, said it was “little surprise” to see Amazon discussing the power of its AI assistant in this way. “It undoubtedly knows that it needs to keep pace with rivals such as Google and Microsoft so articulating what it is doing in this area was essential for this event,” he said. “The upgraded way to talk to Alexa certainly makes it a more personal experience but success will depend on Amazon being able to get consumers to engage with the Echo devices in a very different way to the transactional and basic requests used today. “Some users may find it a little intimidating, but if successful it could make interactions a lot more conversational.” Elsewhere at its hardware event, Amazon unveiled a string of new hardware products, including several new Alexa-powered Echo smart speakers and smart home hubs, as well as new Fire tablets and updated Fire TV Stick devices. Read More Neuralink’s monkeys may have died due to brain implants contrary to Musk’s claims Facebook changes logo to ‘make F stand apart’ – but can you tell the difference? What is ‘Rumble’, where Russell Brand is posting videos? Neuralink’s monkeys may have died due to brain implants contrary to Musk’s claims Facebook changes logo to ‘make F stand apart’ – but can you tell the difference? What is ‘Rumble’, where Russell Brand is posting videos?
2023-09-21 17:57

South Africa World Cup cricket blow as Nortje, Magala ruled out
Fast bowlers Anrich Nortje and Sisanda Magala have both been ruled out of the Cricket World Cup because of injury, Cricket...
2023-09-21 17:57

Grief author accused of killing husband with fentanyl cocktail claims damning letter is merely a book excerpt
A grief author accused of poisoning her husband with a fentanyl-laced cocktail has claimed a damning letter found in her jail cell is merely an excerpt from her new book. Kouri Richins, 33, is facing charges of aggravated murder and three counts of drug possession with intent to distribute over the March 2022 death of her husband Eric Richins. Ms Richins allegedly killed her husband of seven years and father of her children by slipping a lethal dose of fentanyl into a Moscow Mule he later drank. Before her arrest earlier this year, Ms Richins self-published a children’s book about grief based on her children’s experiences after they lost their father. Last week, the 33-year-old was charged with witness tampering after a letter was found in her cell in which she allegedly asked her brother to “falsely” testify that her husband died after ordering drugs and pills from Mexico. But now, in a phone call to her mother, Ms Richins has claimed the incriminating letter was simply part of a fictional book she is writing about her stay in a Mexican prison, according to court documents. “When I first got in here I was telling you how I was writing a book … those papers were not a letter to you guys, they were part of my freaking book … I was writing this fictional mystery book,” Ms Richins says in the call, according to a court filing. “I go to Mexico and I’m like trying to find these drugs … I’m writing about Dad … like me and Dad went to Mexico to find these drugs … you can very much tell that the whole thing is very much a story … then I get in the Mexican prison … I said have Skye sneak me in some white strips because my teeth are getting yellow because all we do is drink coffee in the Mexican prison.” In the jailhouse letter, Ms Richins told her mother to instruct her brother, Ronald Darden, to testify that her husband got fentanyl from Mexico. “Here is what I’m thinking but you have to talk to Ronney,” Ms Richins wrote in the letter. “A year prior to Eric’s death, Ronny was over watching football and Eric and Ronny were chatting about Mexico trips. Eric told Ronny he gets painkillers [and] fentanyl from Mexico.” Ms Richins went on to write that Mr Darden “would probably have to testify to this but it’s super short not a lot to it”. She also said in the letter Mr Darden could take some liberties with the narrative as long as he got the point across. Prosecutors have previously said there is no evidence suggesting Mr Richins bought the fentanyl that killed him. In a request to the court filed on Tuesday, prosecutors said Ms Richins’ motion about the letter “contains factual errors and legal misunderstandings, rendering it unpersuasive at best”. Prosecutors have claimed that Ms Richins had previously tried to poison her husband after he consulted a divorce attorney on learning that his wife was $2m in debt. Ms Richins had also reportedly taken out at least four life insurance policies on her husband before allegedly poisoning him. Ms Richins has denied all the allegations against her. If convicted, she faces between 25 years to life in prison. Read More Grief author accused of killing husband with fentanyl allegedly asked brother to lie in letter found in cell Mother accused of killing husband with fentanyl-laced cocktail ‘misses her children’ in prison, lawyer says Utah woman who allegedly sold author Kouri Richins fentanyl used to poison husband appears in court
2023-09-21 17:57

Kyiv warns of 'difficult' winter as Russia hits Ukraine cities
Ukraine on Thursday warned that difficult winter months lay ahead after a "massive" Russian missile barrage targeted civilian infrastructure, leaving several dead and wounded...
2023-09-21 17:56

Former Elon Musk employee speaks out on 'ridiclous' death of Neuralink's monkeys
A new report from Wired has alleged that Elon Musk's Neuralink - a neurotechnology company developing a brain-computer interface - euthanised the company's macaque subjects after they suffered various complications from the implant. The report comes after human-test subjects were recently approved for Neuralink's clinical trial. Elon Musk had claimed earlier this month that "no monkey has died as a result of a Neuralink implant, but public documents obtained by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) and seen by Wired, suggest that the primate subjects suffered complications including "bloody diarrhoea, partial paralysis, and cerebral edema." Musk had acknowledged the deaths on September 10 on Twitter/X, denying the deaths were "a result of a Neuralink implant", and that researchers had selected subjects who were already "close to death." However an anonymous former employee called this "ridiculous" if not a "straight fabrication." However, the public records reviewed by Wired suggest a different story. The PCRM, a nonprofit aiming to abolish live animal testing, claim that Musk knew his comments about the primate subjects deaths "to be false". They write that investors deserve to hear the truth about the safety, "and thus the marketability," of Neuralink's product. A December 2019 experiment outlined in one of the documents mentioned a subject known as Animal 15. The documents said that the subject "began to press her head against the floor for no apparent reason" just days after receiving the implant. Her condition only worsened as she "began to lose coordination" and "would shake uncontrollably when she saw lab workers." Staff finally euthanised her months later. Last year, the PCRM filed a complaint with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) alleging that Neuralink's practices violate the Animal Welfare Act. The US Department of Transportation is also investigating Neuralink over allegations contimanted devices that were removed from monkeys' brains were illegally transported. Indy100 have reached out to Neuralink for comment. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
2023-09-21 17:55

Who is Omar Drabick? North Carolina man accused of killing wife, tossing her body off a bridge into Jordan Lake
Omar Drabick faces a first-degree murder charge and is currently held in the Chatham County Detention Center without bond
2023-09-21 17:54

Big 12 newcomers BYU, Cincy and UCF play 1st league games. Cougars take 7-game win streak to Kansas
Big 12 newcomers BYU, Cincinnati and UCF all play their first league games this weekend
2023-09-21 17:53

Why David Raya started instead of Aaron Ramsdale in the Champions League
Mikel Arteta reveals his reasons for picking David Raya over Aaron Ramsdale for Arsenal's 4-0 win over PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League.
2023-09-21 17:52

How tall is Hulk Hogan? WWE legend reveals he lost height due to multiple surgeries
Hulk Hogan says his illustrious wrestling career, spanning nearly four decades, has taken its toll on his body and height
2023-09-21 17:52