theverge--2020-01-07--Boeing and NASA are forming an investigation team to figure out cause of spacecraft mishap

Boeing plans to work with NASA to figure out why the company ’ s newest passenger spacecraft , the CST-100 Starliner , suffered a mishap during its first uncrewed launch to space at the end of December .
The two organizations will form a joint “ independent investigation team , ” according to a NASA blog post , which will spend about two months figuring out the root cause of the failure .
The Starliner is Boeing ’ s space capsule , designed to carry future astronauts to and from the International Space Station as part of NASA ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fly on board the vehicle , Boeing hoped to perform a dress rehearsal mission with Starliner , sending the capsule to dock with the ISS without a crew .
After years of development , the Starliner launched this debut mission on December 20th , successfully taking off on top of an Atlas V rocket from Florida .
the Starliner never made it to the space station But the Starliner never made it to the space station .
A glitch with the capsule ’ s internal clock prevented the Starliner from burning its engines @ @ @ @ @ @ @ As a result , the capsule ultimately got into the wrong orbit and didn ’ t have enough fuel to meet up with the ISS .
The test mission , meant to last about a week , lasted just two days , as Boeing decided to bring the Starliner home early to demonstrate its landing capabilities .
On December 22nd , the capsule used its onboard parachutes to touch down in White Sands , New Mexico .
Though NASA and Boeing seem to have a preliminary understanding of what went wrong , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ couple of months diving into all of the data collected during the mission , and they will determine if there were any other “ contributing factors ” that led to the accident .
Once complete , they may recommend design changes to the capsule , according to NASA .
In the meantime , NASA officials must figure out how Boeing will move forward .
The uncrewed flight test was meant to test Starliner ’ s performance and safety , including the critical ability to autonomously dock to the space station .
Boeing was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but we still haven ’ t seen the capsule ’ s docking abilities in action .
NASA ’ s other Commercial Crew provider , SpaceX , performed its own uncrewed flight test in March 2019 , demonstrating that its capsule , the Crew Dragon , could dock autonomously and then return to Earth safely .
“ Although docking was planned , it may not have to be accomplished prior to the crew demonstration.
” It ’ s possible that NASA may require Boeing to perform a second uncrewed flight test before people ride @ @ @ @ @ @ @ needs to look at the data that was collected during the December flight to determine if there ’ s enough information to assess the full performance of the capsule .
But NASA also hinted that there may be other ways for Boeing to demonstrate Starliner ’ s docking capabilities that don ’ t involve sending the capsule to space again .
“ Although docking was planned , it may not have to be accomplished prior to the crew demonstration , ” NASA ’ s blog post states .
“ Boeing would need NASA @ @ @ @ @ @ @ flight test with astronauts onboard.
” NASA said a decision on the next steps for Boeing could come in the next “ several weeks.
” While that ’ s happening , Boeing is transporting the Starliner from New Mexico to the company ’ s facilities in Florida where it will undergo additional checks and be readied for its next flight in the future .
This particular vehicle received the nickname “ Calypso ” from NASA astronaut Suni Williams , who is set to command the vehicle when it flies to space after the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for those next flights are still very fluid .

Boeing plans to work with NASA to figure out why the company’s newest passenger spacecraft, the CST-100 Starliner, suffered a mishap during its first uncrewed launch to space at the end of December. The two organizations will form a joint “independent investigation team,” according to a NASA blog post, which will spend about two months figuring out the root cause of the failure.
The Starliner is Boeing’s space capsule, designed to carry future astronauts to and from the International Space Station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Before any people fly on board the vehicle, Boeing hoped to perform a dress rehearsal mission with Starliner, sending the capsule to dock with the ISS without a crew. After years of development, the Starliner launched this debut mission on December 20th, successfully taking off on top of an Atlas V rocket from Florida.
the Starliner never made it to the space station
But the Starliner never made it to the space station. A glitch with the capsule’s internal clock prevented the Starliner from burning its engines at the right time during flight. As a result, the capsule ultimately got into the wrong orbit and didn’t have enough fuel to meet up with the ISS. The test mission, meant to last about a week, lasted just two days, as Boeing decided to bring the Starliner home early to demonstrate its landing capabilities. On December 22nd, the capsule used its onboard parachutes to touch down in White Sands, New Mexico.
Though NASA and Boeing seem to have a preliminary understanding of what went wrong, the new investigation team will spend the next couple of months diving into all of the data collected during the mission, and they will determine if there were any other “contributing factors” that led to the accident. Once complete, they may recommend design changes to the capsule, according to NASA.
In the meantime, NASA officials must figure out how Boeing will move forward. The uncrewed flight test was meant to test Starliner’s performance and safety, including the critical ability to autonomously dock to the space station. Boeing was able to demonstrate launch and landing, but we still haven’t seen the capsule’s docking abilities in action. NASA’s other Commercial Crew provider, SpaceX, performed its own uncrewed flight test in March 2019, demonstrating that its capsule, the Crew Dragon, could dock autonomously and then return to Earth safely.
“Although docking was planned, it may not have to be accomplished prior to the crew demonstration.”
It’s possible that NASA may require Boeing to perform a second uncrewed flight test before people ride inside the Starliner. NASA says it needs to look at the data that was collected during the December flight to determine if there’s enough information to assess the full performance of the capsule. But NASA also hinted that there may be other ways for Boeing to demonstrate Starliner’s docking capabilities that don’t involve sending the capsule to space again. “Although docking was planned, it may not have to be accomplished prior to the crew demonstration,” NASA’s blog post states. “Boeing would need NASA’s approval to proceed with a flight test with astronauts onboard.”


theverge--2020-01-07--Samsung copied Apple’s Face ID logo in its CES keynote

It ’ s not the worst press conference mistake we ’ ve seen at CES this year , but Samsung revisited a classic during its keynote last night : copying Apple ’ s work , continuing a seemingly endless pattern of Samsung ( and other companies ) cloning Apple , intentionally or otherwise .
In this case , Samsung presented an icon for facial recognition that is almost indistinguishable from Apple ’ s Face ID icon .
As iMore indicates , they ’ re not exactly the same — the lines all seem a bit thicker and closer together , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ less rounded — but we ’ re basically looking at Apple ’ s Face ID icon , which is seemingly slightly adjusted to fit in with the art on the rest of the slide .
The icon came up about 50 minutes into Samsung ’ s press conference — titled , for whatever reason , “ Age of Experience ” — while H.S .
Kim , head of the company ’ s consumer electronics division , was talking about its investment into cybersecurity .
“ We ’ ll stay ahead by investing in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ favorite websites and mobile apps through Samsung Pass , ” Kim said .
The icon was up for all of 15 seconds .
This seems like it was probably a mistake on the part of whoever made this portion of the slideshow .
Samsung doesn ’ t appear to use this icon in its software or packaging ; its actual facial recognition icon appears to be an outline of a face , which looks kind of generic .
That would make for the second major error of the show .
Yesterday , AMD @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Xbox Series X before admitting that it had used a fan-made render of the console and had not , in fact , shown new details about what ports the machine will include .
There ’ s a long history of companies borrowing , often very directly , from Apple .
Samsung is the most infamous , having been involved in a pair of years-long lawsuits over claims that it had copied the iPhone ’ s design .
More recently , the clones have largely come from Chinese brands .
There was a wave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ came out .
Xiaomi last year almost completely ripped off Apple ’ s dynamic wallpaper and Memoji avatars , and Huawei and its sub-brand Honor have also taken a crack at versions of Apple ’ s AirPods .

It’s not the worst press conference mistake we’ve seen at CES this year, but Samsung revisited a classic during its keynote last night: copying Apple’s work, continuing a seemingly endless pattern of Samsung (and other companies) cloning Apple, intentionally or otherwise.
In this case, Samsung presented an icon for facial recognition that is almost indistinguishable from Apple’s Face ID icon. As iMore indicates, they’re not exactly the same — the lines all seem a bit thicker and closer together, and the corners are perhaps a touch less rounded — but we’re basically looking at Apple’s Face ID icon, which is seemingly slightly adjusted to fit in with the art on the rest of the slide.
Left: Apple’s Face ID icon. Right: Whatever Samsung decided to do.
The icon came up about 50 minutes into Samsung’s press conference — titled, for whatever reason, “Age of Experience” — while H.S. Kim, head of the company’s consumer electronics division, was talking about its investment into cybersecurity. “We’ll stay ahead by investing in identity protection and secure access to your favorite websites and mobile apps through Samsung Pass,” Kim said. The icon was up for all of 15 seconds.
This seems like it was probably a mistake on the part of whoever made this portion of the slideshow. Samsung doesn’t appear to use this icon in its software or packaging; its actual facial recognition icon appears to be an outline of a face, which looks kind of generic.


theverge--2020-01-07--Watch Mobileye’s self-driving car drive through Jerusalem using only cameras

When it comes to self-driving cars , the general axiom for sensors is “ the more the merrier.
” The safest systems are the ones that use a multiplicity of sensors , such as cameras , radar , ultrasonic , and LIDAR .
Having these redundant sensors is the whole point : if one fails , the remaining sensor suite can help navigate the car to safety .
Mobileye , a company that specializes in chips for vision-based autonomous vehicles , believes in redundancy , but it also believes in the power of its camera-based system .
At the Consumer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the Intel-owned company demonstrated how one of its autonomous test vehicles navigated the complex streets of Jerusalem using cameras only .
The vehicle ’ s sensor suite includes 12 cameras ... and that ’ s it !
The vehicle ’ s sensor suite includes 12 cameras ... .
and that ’ s it !
No radar , no ultrasonic , and no LIDAR .
LIDAR , which stands for light detection and ranging , are laser sensors that most tech and car companies see as an essential component for self-driving cars .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of autonomous vehicles as well as the sides and grilles where they send out thousands of laser points to map the surrounding environment .
But for Mobileye , it ’ s all about the cameras .
In the video , a Mobileye employee says that the two-dimensional information coming from the cameras is extracted into a 3D model of the environment using “ a chain of algorithmic redundancies based on multiple computer vision engines and deep networks.
” That 3D environment is displayed during the video alongside a shot of the safety driver @ @ @ @ @ @ @ well as a bird ’ s-eye view of the car from a drone overhead .
The car navigates complex driving situations , such as a non-signaled four-way intersection , traffic merges , and an unprotected left turn into heavy traffic — all while hitting speeds of up to 40 mph ( 64 km/h ) .
Of course , there ’ s a lot we don ’ t know about this drive , such as how many times Mobileye has driven this exact route and what , if any , remote assistance is being @ @ @ @ @ @ @ impressive to see an autonomous vehicle navigate such complex environments using just camera data .
there ’ s a lot we don ’ t know about this drive Mobileye isn ’ t the only company that ’ s bullish on cameras .
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has made his disdain for LIDAR widely known .
Laser sensors are a “ fool ’ s errand , ” he said at an event for investors last year , and “ anyone relying on LIDAR is doomed .
Doomed .
Expensive sensors that are unnecessary .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ bunch of expensive appendices.
” Musk has argued that a camera and radar-based system , coupled with a powerful AI software , can compensate for the lack of laser sensing .
Mobileye used to supply its computer vision hardware to Tesla for use in the automaker ’ s Autopilot system .
But the two companies parted ways in 2016 after a Florida man was killed when his Tesla vehicle ran into a tractor-trailer while using Autopilot .
Tesla claimed Mobileye was trying to block the carmaker ’ s in-house efforts to develop its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cites concerns with the safety of Autopilot .
Since it was acquired by Intel in 2017 , Mobileye has announced partnerships with other automakers , including Volkswagen and China ’ s NIO and SAIC .
The company is testing a self-driving taxi service in Israel , and just announced plans to deploy its robot taxis in South Korea .

When it comes to self-driving cars, the general axiom for sensors is “the more the merrier.” The safest systems are the ones that use a multiplicity of sensors, such as cameras, radar, ultrasonic, and LIDAR. Having these redundant sensors is the whole point: if one fails, the remaining sensor suite can help navigate the car to safety.
Mobileye, a company that specializes in chips for vision-based autonomous vehicles, believes in redundancy, but it also believes in the power of its camera-based system. At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week, the Intel-owned company demonstrated how one of its autonomous test vehicles navigated the complex streets of Jerusalem using cameras only.
The vehicle’s sensor suite includes 12 cameras... and that’s it!
The vehicle’s sensor suite includes 12 cameras.... and that’s it! No radar, no ultrasonic, and no LIDAR. LIDAR, which stands for light detection and ranging, are laser sensors that most tech and car companies see as an essential component for self-driving cars. The sensors are placed on the roofs of autonomous vehicles as well as the sides and grilles where they send out thousands of laser points to map the surrounding environment.
But for Mobileye, it’s all about the cameras. In the video, a Mobileye employee says that the two-dimensional information coming from the cameras is extracted into a 3D model of the environment using “a chain of algorithmic redundancies based on multiple computer vision engines and deep networks.”
That 3D environment is displayed during the video alongside a shot of the safety driver with his hands in his lap as well as a bird’s-eye view of the car from a drone overhead. The car navigates complex driving situations, such as a non-signaled four-way intersection, traffic merges, and an unprotected left turn into heavy traffic — all while hitting speeds of up to 40 mph (64 km/h).
Of course, there’s a lot we don’t know about this drive, such as how many times Mobileye has driven this exact route and what, if any, remote assistance is being offered. But it’s certainly impressive to see an autonomous vehicle navigate such complex environments using just camera data.
there’s a lot we don’t know about this drive
Mobileye isn’t the only company that’s bullish on cameras. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has made his disdain for LIDAR widely known. Laser sensors are a “fool’s errand,” he said at an event for investors last year, and “anyone relying on LIDAR is doomed. Doomed. Expensive sensors that are unnecessary. It’s like having a whole bunch of expensive appendices.” Musk has argued that a camera and radar-based system, coupled with a powerful AI software, can compensate for the lack of laser sensing.
Mobileye used to supply its computer vision hardware to Tesla for use in the automaker’s Autopilot system. But the two companies parted ways in 2016 after a Florida man was killed when his Tesla vehicle ran into a tractor-trailer while using Autopilot. Tesla claimed Mobileye was trying to block the carmaker’s in-house efforts to develop its own image recognition software, while Mobileye cites concerns with the safety of Autopilot.


theverge--2020-01-07--Samsung’s Odyssey G9 is the most extreme ultrawide gaming monitor

Samsung ’ s Odyssey G9 gaming monitor is an incredible thing to behold in person .
It ’ s on the show floor at CES 2020 , and pretty much everyone who sat in front of the 49-inch 1440p display was dazzled .
You ’ re going to have an impossible challenge trying to find a rig that can push the latest PC games at 240Hz .
But if you ’ re a competitive e-sports player who specializes in older titles , this display could be a dream .
Those not running it at 240Hz can still take advantage of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ curvature that pretty much envelops your whole field of vision .
The back is very sci-fi , with a clear cutout in the center that reveals a round LED that shifts colors .
It looks like Iron Man ’ s arc reactor .
Does anyone need that in a monitor ?
Nope .
Does it look cool , especially for the crowd the G9 is marketed toward ?
Oh , most definitely .
Listening to the crowd of onlookers here in Las Vegas , I heard some confess that the Odyssey G9 is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they ’ d have a hard time following along with everything happening on-screen in Fortnite .
To me , there ’ s really no such thing as too much monitor .
Give me two of these things side by side .
Surround me with like five or six of them , even .
With a 1ms response time and support for both AMD FreeSync 2 and Nvidia ’ s G-Sync , the G9 is likely to come with a very hefty price tag when it ships later this year .
It ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s worth the cost compared to other ultrawide or 1440p monitors on the market .

Samsung’s Odyssey G9 gaming monitor is an incredible thing to behold in person. It’s on the show floor at CES 2020, and pretty much everyone who sat in front of the 49-inch 1440p display was dazzled.
You’re going to have an impossible challenge trying to find a rig that can push the latest PC games at 240Hz. But if you’re a competitive e-sports player who specializes in older titles, this display could be a dream. Those not running it at 240Hz can still take advantage of its sharp resolution and that immersive 1000R curvature that pretty much envelops your whole field of vision.
The back is very sci-fi, with a clear cutout in the center that reveals a round LED that shifts colors. It looks like Iron Man’s arc reactor. Does anyone need that in a monitor? Nope. Does it look cool, especially for the crowd the G9 is marketed toward? Oh, most definitely.
Listening to the crowd of onlookers here in Las Vegas, I heard some confess that the Odyssey G9 is too much monitor for them and that they’d have a hard time following along with everything happening on-screen in Fortnite. To me, there’s really no such thing as too much monitor. Give me two of these things side by side. Surround me with like five or six of them, even.
With a 1ms response time and support for both AMD FreeSync 2 and Nvidia’s G-Sync, the G9 is likely to come with a very hefty price tag when it ships later this year. It’s easy to quibble over whether it’s worth the cost compared to other ultrawide or 1440p monitors on the market.


theverge--2020-01-07--A massive telecom union just launched a new campaign to unionize game developers

The Communication Workers of America ( CWA ) , one of the largest unions in the US formed initially by telecom workers , has launched a new campaign to help unionize the game and technology industries .
Called The Campaign to Organize Digital Employees ( CODE ) , the initiative is working with grassroots organizing efforts around the US and in Canada to improve working conditions among video game developers and tech workers .
The news was first reported on Tuesday by the Los Angeles Times .
For years , game developers have complained of brutal working hours , including @ @ @ @ @ @ @ overwork known as crunch .
Workers in the industry have also suffered from a culture and economic structure in the game industry that incentivizes studios to rapidly hire and lay off workers unless deadlines are properly met or funding and sales milestones help keep a studio and its workforce afloat .
Churn at certain studios can be high , and workers have little to no protection outside federal unemployment if a studio shutters or mass layoffs strike their department .
The CWA ’ s new campaign is building on previous efforts to address @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leaders of the new campaign is Emma Kinema , who co-founded Game Workers Unite ( GWU ) two years ago amid renewed conversations among developers and in the media regarding game studio working conditions and cyclical layoffs .
The new campaign was formed after discussions between CWA and GWU , but it is a distinct effort and the first of its kind for the game and tech industries .
“ Companies in the technology and game industries have gotten away with avoiding accountability for far too long , ” CWA president Chris Shelton @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in these industries are exposing the reality behind the rhetoric .
This initiative will help tech and game workers reach the next level in their efforts to exercise their right to join together and demand change.
” “ Companies in the tech and game industries have gotten away with avoiding accountability for far too long.
” The structure of game development makes these efforts difficult .
Unlike television or film , both of which have been properly unionized for decades , game development is largely consolidated among a handful of large corporations that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The rest of the industry is composed of medium-sized or small studios that secure deals with publishers or do contract work for larger companies .
Beyond that exists small teams making independent games for direct sale on digital storefronts .
In none of these sectors of the game industry are there proper unions that protect creatives and other workers , save voice actors who fall under the SAG-AFTRA union .
And yet , it ’ s those creatives who often face the direct repercussions of missed sales expectations or other misfires , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to perform layoffs , sell itself off , or , in extreme situations , shut down completely .
This has made programming , art , game writing , and other roles in the game industry much more economically fraught than screenwriting , film production , costume designing , and the dozens of other union-protected roles that make up Hollywood ’ s vast film and TV ecosystem .
The partnership with the CWA may heighten the pressure on larger game companies to take unionization seriously and meet with workers who want to begin negotiating @ @ @ @ @ @ @ self-organizing in the game industry , people are very bottlenecked by the lack of resources and lack of legal know-how and a lack of funding — it ’ s very tough , ” Kinema told the LA Times in an interview .
“ The decades of experience and resources that come from partnering with an organization like CWA can take it to the next level.
” CWA also hopes to use CODE to help unionize technology companies along similar lines .
The goal right now is to help employees organize most realistically as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the industrial model , as opposed to a craft model that would unionize distinct roles across the industry , which may be more difficult ( although CWA says it will support whatever model employees may want to pursue ) .
CWA is also helping a group of fired Google employees with a complaint of unfair labor practices filed with the National Labor Relations Board after the search giant allegedly fired them for labor organizing activities .
Google is now under federal investigation for the firings .
“ We believe workers are strongest when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in one union , so the disciplines can ’ t be pitted against each other — none of that ’ s good for the workers , ” Kinema , who CWA hired to help run the CODE , told the LA Times .
“ I think in games and tech , the wall-to-wall industrial model is the best fit .
”

The Communication Workers of America (CWA), one of the largest unions in the US formed initially by telecom workers, has launched a new campaign to help unionize the game and technology industries. Called The Campaign to Organize Digital Employees (CODE), the initiative is working with grassroots organizing efforts around the US and in Canada to improve working conditions among video game developers and tech workers. The news was first reported on Tuesday by the Los Angeles Times.
For years, game developers have complained of brutal working hours, including expected and even planned-for periods of extreme overwork known as crunch. Workers in the industry have also suffered from a culture and economic structure in the game industry that incentivizes studios to rapidly hire and lay off workers unless deadlines are properly met or funding and sales milestones help keep a studio and its workforce afloat. Churn at certain studios can be high, and workers have little to no protection outside federal unemployment if a studio shutters or mass layoffs strike their department.
The CWA’s new campaign is building on previous efforts to address these issues. One of the central leaders of the new campaign is Emma Kinema, who co-founded Game Workers Unite (GWU) two years ago amid renewed conversations among developers and in the media regarding game studio working conditions and cyclical layoffs. The new campaign was formed after discussions between CWA and GWU, but it is a distinct effort and the first of its kind for the game and tech industries.
“Companies in the technology and game industries have gotten away with avoiding accountability for far too long,” CWA president Chris Shelton said in a statement. “Workers in these industries are exposing the reality behind the rhetoric. This initiative will help tech and game workers reach the next level in their efforts to exercise their right to join together and demand change.”
“Companies in the tech and game industries have gotten away with avoiding accountability for far too long.”
The structure of game development makes these efforts difficult. Unlike television or film, both of which have been properly unionized for decades, game development is largely consolidated among a handful of large corporations that act as studio parent companies and publishers. The rest of the industry is composed of medium-sized or small studios that secure deals with publishers or do contract work for larger companies. Beyond that exists small teams making independent games for direct sale on digital storefronts.
In none of these sectors of the game industry are there proper unions that protect creatives and other workers, save voice actors who fall under the SAG-AFTRA union. And yet, it’s those creatives who often face the direct repercussions of missed sales expectations or other misfires, which then result in a studio deciding to perform layoffs, sell itself off, or, in extreme situations, shut down completely. This has made programming, art, game writing, and other roles in the game industry much more economically fraught than screenwriting, film production, costume designing, and the dozens of other union-protected roles that make up Hollywood’s vast film and TV ecosystem.
The partnership with the CWA may heighten the pressure on larger game companies to take unionization seriously and meet with workers who want to begin negotiating a contract. “In my experience self-organizing in the game industry, people are very bottlenecked by the lack of resources and lack of legal know-how and a lack of funding — it’s very tough,” Kinema told the LA Times in an interview. “The decades of experience and resources that come from partnering with an organization like CWA can take it to the next level.”
CWA also hopes to use CODE to help unionize technology companies along similar lines. The goal right now is to help employees organize most realistically as single groups within companies, known as the industrial model, as opposed to a craft model that would unionize distinct roles across the industry, which may be more difficult (although CWA says it will support whatever model employees may want to pursue). CWA is also helping a group of fired Google employees with a complaint of unfair labor practices filed with the National Labor Relations Board after the search giant allegedly fired them for labor organizing activities. Google is now under federal investigation for the firings.


theverge--2020-01-07--Facebook’s deepfake ban isn’t winning over critics

For months , Facebook has struggled with deceptively altered videos , but late Monday evening , the company cracked , announcing that it would ban deepfakes as part of a new policy on manipulated media .
But while Facebook ’ s new policy bans many of the most egregious examples of manipulation , the new push has been bogged down by concerns over the new rules ’ limitations and some unusual confusion about exactly what the policy covers .
Most ominously , the new policy has been met with harsh criticism from members of Congress — the very people Facebook @ @ @ @ @ @ @ congressional hearing about online deception that ’ s scheduled for Wednesday morning .
“ The real problem is Facebook ’ s refusal to stop the spread of disinformation.
” In the initial blog post outlining the change , Facebook ’ s vice president of global policy management , Monika Bickert , said videos that have been edited “ in ways that aren ’ t apparent to an average person and would likely mislead someone ” and were created by artificial intelligence or machine learning algorithms would be removed under the new policy .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ criticized altered videos — one edited to make House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sound drunk and another clipping a statement from former Vice President Joe Biden , suggesting he made racist remarks — were likely created using widely available editing software similar to iMovie or Photoshop .
Because those videos weren ’ t edited to make Biden or Pelosi say new words , they probably wouldn ’ t be covered by Facebook ’ s new policy .
If Facebook ’ s fact-checkers reported them as false or misleading , the company could still add @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but it would likely leave them up .
That ’ s what happened in the case of the Pelosi video last November , and it looks to be the company ’ s plan for future cases .
Not surprisingly , many members of Pelosi ’ s staff are unimpressed with the new rules .
In a statement to The Verge responding to the updated policy , Pelosi ’ s deputy chief of staff Drew Hammill acknowledged the change , but said , “ Facebook wants you to think the problem is video-editing technology @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s refusal to stop the spread of disinformation.
” Even Biden ’ s campaign railed Facebook for doing the bare minimum when it comes to fighting disinformation online .
Biden ’ s campaign spokesman , Bill Russo , echoed the Pelosi team ’ s statement , saying , “ Facebook ’ s announcement today is not a policy meant to fix the very real problem of disinformation that is undermining face in our electoral process , but is instead an illusion of progress.
” “ Banning deepfakes should be an incredibly low @ @ @ @ @ @ @ continued .
“ Banning deepfakes should be an incredibly low floor in combating disinformation.
” In the hours after the new policy was announced , even Facebook officials seemed confused about whether the company was banning deepfakes in political ads .
After some flip-flopping with reporters over whether politicians could pay to promote deepfakes , Facebook landed on prohibiting them from being used in advertising .
“ Whether posted by a politician or anyone else , we do not permit manipulated media content in ads , ” a Facebook spokesperson told The Verge @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of what Facebook and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg said last year about moderating political speech .
Last October , President Donald Trump ’ s reelection campaign ran an ad on Facebook making misleading claims about Joe Biden and his son Hunter ’ s relationship with the Ukrainian government .
That ad set off a debate over whether social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter should allow politicians to lie in digital advertisements .
Weeks after the false Biden ad was posted , Twitter announced that it would be banning all political advertisements .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , decidedly allowing politicians across the globe to unjustifiably smear their opponents online .
That decision to allow politicians to say whatever they want in ads started to chip away on Tuesday after Facebook said it wouldn ’ t allow deepfakes anywhere on its platform .
But since 2016 , Facebook has given itself a newsworthiness exemption for deciding whether to remove posts that violate its community standards .
According to a September blog post , Facebook ’ s newsworthiness exemption doesn ’ t apply to advertising , but feed posts .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it comes to posting manipulated videos .
If Facebook deems a future deepfake or shallowfake as “ newsworthy ” it could be left up for people to like and share across the platform .
One thing ’ s for sure : lawmakers are paying attention .
Tomorrow , the House Energy and Commerce Committee will be holding a hearing on deepfakes and synthetic media .
Bickert , who authored Monday ’ s blog post , will be representing Facebook and taking questions from lawmakers .
“ As with any new policy , it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is implemented and particularly whether Facebook can effectively detect deepfakes at the speed and scale required to prevent them from going viral , ” House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff ( D-CA ) said in a statement on Tuesday .

For months, Facebook has struggled with deceptively altered videos, but late Monday evening, the company cracked, announcing that it would ban deepfakes as part of a new policy on manipulated media. But while Facebook’s new policy bans many of the most egregious examples of manipulation, the new push has been bogged down by concerns over the new rules’ limitations and some unusual confusion about exactly what the policy covers.
Most ominously, the new policy has been met with harsh criticism from members of Congress — the very people Facebook was hoping to impress ahead of a congressional hearing about online deception that’s scheduled for Wednesday morning.
“The real problem is Facebook’s refusal to stop the spread of disinformation.”
In the initial blog post outlining the change, Facebook’s vice president of global policy management, Monika Bickert, said videos that have been edited “in ways that aren’t apparent to an average person and would likely mislead someone” and were created by artificial intelligence or machine learning algorithms would be removed under the new policy. Yet, two of the most hotly criticized altered videos — one edited to make House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sound drunk and another clipping a statement from former Vice President Joe Biden, suggesting he made racist remarks — were likely created using widely available editing software similar to iMovie or Photoshop.
Because those videos weren’t edited to make Biden or Pelosi say new words, they probably wouldn’t be covered by Facebook’s new policy. If Facebook’s fact-checkers reported them as false or misleading, the company could still add links to news articles debunking them, but it would likely leave them up. That’s what happened in the case of the Pelosi video last November, and it looks to be the company’s plan for future cases.
Not surprisingly, many members of Pelosi’s staff are unimpressed with the new rules. In a statement to The Verge responding to the updated policy, Pelosi’s deputy chief of staff Drew Hammill acknowledged the change, but said, “Facebook wants you to think the problem is video-editing technology, but the real problem is Facebook’s refusal to stop the spread of disinformation.”
Even Biden’s campaign railed Facebook for doing the bare minimum when it comes to fighting disinformation online. Biden’s campaign spokesman, Bill Russo, echoed the Pelosi team’s statement, saying, “Facebook’s announcement today is not a policy meant to fix the very real problem of disinformation that is undermining face in our electoral process, but is instead an illusion of progress.”
“Banning deepfakes should be an incredibly low floor in combating disinformation,” Russo continued.
“Banning deepfakes should be an incredibly low floor in combating disinformation.”
In the hours after the new policy was announced, even Facebook officials seemed confused about whether the company was banning deepfakes in political ads. After some flip-flopping with reporters over whether politicians could pay to promote deepfakes, Facebook landed on prohibiting them from being used in advertising. “Whether posted by a politician or anyone else, we do not permit manipulated media content in ads,” a Facebook spokesperson told The Verge.
This decision is a slight reversal of what Facebook and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg said last year about moderating political speech. Last October, President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign ran an ad on Facebook making misleading claims about Joe Biden and his son Hunter’s relationship with the Ukrainian government. That ad set off a debate over whether social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter should allow politicians to lie in digital advertisements. Weeks after the false Biden ad was posted, Twitter announced that it would be banning all political advertisements. Facebook didn’t announce any changes, decidedly allowing politicians across the globe to unjustifiably smear their opponents online.
That decision to allow politicians to say whatever they want in ads started to chip away on Tuesday after Facebook said it wouldn’t allow deepfakes anywhere on its platform. But since 2016, Facebook has given itself a newsworthiness exemption for deciding whether to remove posts that violate its community standards.
According to a September blog post, Facebook’s newsworthiness exemption doesn’t apply to advertising, but feed posts. This could give politicians some wiggle room when it comes to posting manipulated videos. If Facebook deems a future deepfake or shallowfake as “newsworthy” it could be left up for people to like and share across the platform.
One thing’s for sure: lawmakers are paying attention. Tomorrow, the House Energy and Commerce Committee will be holding a hearing on deepfakes and synthetic media. Bickert, who authored Monday’s blog post, will be representing Facebook and taking questions from lawmakers.


theverge--2020-01-07--These are the best deals on gaming laptops and Xbox titles right now

Only the best deals on Verge-approved gadgets get the Good Deals stamp of approval , so if you 're looking for a deal on your next gadget or gift from major retailers like Amazon , Walmart , Best Buy , Target , and more , this is the place to be .
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These do not influence editorial content , though Vox Media may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links .
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If you ’ re excited about all of the new gaming laptops and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t want to drop a ton of money or you can ’ t wait for them to launch , here are some gaming deals to hold you over in the meantime .
Best Buy is offering deals on several gaming laptops and desktops .
The Asus ROG Gaming Laptop ( 15 inches , Intel Core i7 , 8GB RAM , 512GB SSD , Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 ) is currently on sale for $ 849.99 , which is $ 150 lower than its list price .
If you want something with more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the thin and light MSI G Series Stealth Gaming Laptop ( 15 inches , Intel Core i7 , 16GB RAM , 512GB SSD , Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660Ti ) is $ 200 off , bringing the price down to $ 1,499.99 .
Best Buy is also offering $ 150 off of the HP Omen gaming desktop ( Intel Core i7 , 16GB RAM , 1TB Hard Drive and 256GB SSD , Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti ) for a price of $ 1,099.99 .
The Acer Nitro 5 gaming laptop ( 8GB RAM @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , AMD Radeon RX 560X ) is on sale for $ 599.99 , which is $ 70 off of the list price .
You can also save $ 100 on the Alienware gaming laptop ( 17 inches , Intel Core i7 , 16GB RAM , 1TB Hard Drive and 256GB SSD , Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 ) , which is now priced at $ 2,599.99 .
If you ’ re looking for games to play , Microsoft is having a sale on select titles for the Xbox .
This sale is only going @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you might want to act quickly if you want to get one of these deals .
Here are some of the titles : • Borderlands 3 is $ 38.99 ( originally $ 59.99 ) .
It ’ s going for a similar price at Walmart .
For additional games options , Walmart is selling discounted PS4 and Xbox game titles .
Here are some of the games you can get on sale : • Madden NFL 20 is $ 39.88 ( originally $ 59.99 ) for PS4 and Xbox • FIFA 20 is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for PS4 and Xbox • Need for Speed : Heat is $ 39.88 ( originally $ 59.99 ) for Xbox

If you’re excited about all of the new gaming laptops and PCs announced this week but you don’t want to drop a ton of money or you can’t wait for them to launch, here are some gaming deals to hold you over in the meantime.
Best Buy is offering deals on several gaming laptops and desktops. The Asus ROG Gaming Laptop (15 inches, Intel Core i7, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650) is currently on sale for $849.99, which is $150 lower than its list price. If you want something with more power and a high-refresh 144Hz screen, the thin and light MSI G Series Stealth Gaming Laptop (15 inches, Intel Core i7, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660Ti) is $200 off, bringing the price down to $1,499.99.
Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge
Best Buy is also offering $150 off of the HP Omen gaming desktop (Intel Core i7, 16GB RAM, 1TB Hard Drive and 256GB SSD, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti) for a price of $1,099.99. The Acer Nitro 5 gaming laptop (8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, AMD Ryzen 5, AMD Radeon RX 560X) is on sale for $599.99, which is $70 off of the list price. You can also save $100 on the Alienware gaming laptop (17 inches, Intel Core i7, 16GB RAM, 1TB Hard Drive and 256GB SSD, Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070), which is now priced at $2,599.99.
HP Omen gaming desktop. Image: AP
If you’re looking for games to play, Microsoft is having a sale on select titles for the Xbox. This sale is only going until Thursday, January 9th, so you might want to act quickly if you want to get one of these deals. Here are some of the titles:
For additional games options, Walmart is selling discounted PS4 and Xbox game titles. Here are some of the games you can get on sale:


theverge--2020-01-07--Cooler Master has a NUC PC case that’s bigger than Intel’s but smaller than Razer’s

Earlier today , Intel announced its new initiative for tiny modular gaming PCs that let you swap out modular CPU cartridges ( what Intel calls a “ NUC Element ” ) , and some PC component makers are already throwing their support behind the initiative .
Razer today announced its new Tomahawk enclosure , and Cooler Master has announced its take , called the NC100 .
The NC100 enclosure comes with the baseboard that ’ s designed to let you plug in an Intel NUC Element , and Cooler Master is throwing in one of its SFX-sized power supplies as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ re getting is a computer case , a place for the computer ’ s brain , and a power supply for the computer .
That means if you want to make a full-fledged gaming PC , you ’ ll have to get the rest of the parts on your own — including that NUC Element .
Fortunately , it looks like the enclosure is big enough that you ’ ll have space to fit the full-length graphics card of your choice .
( If you were curious , the case is 7.5L in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rep , which means the NC100 splits the difference in size between Intel ’ s 5L NUC 9 Extreme enclosure and Razer ’ s 10L Tomahawk enclosure . )
The NC100 will cost $ 199.99 when it ships in Q2 2020 ( tentatively April , Cooler Master tells The Verge ) .
If you just want to buy a turnkey solution for the NC100 case , though , CyberPowerPC will offer custom configurations that you can purchase .
Those will have a CPU , a discrete graphics GPU from AMD or Nvidia , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and up to 32GB of RAM .
However , CyberPowerPC hasn ’ t shared pricing or expected availability for those yet .
You can buy a turnkey solution for the NC100 case What Cooler Master is offering with the NC100 is pretty similar to what Razer is offering with the Tomahawk .
Razer also plans to sell the Tomahawk enclosure on its own , though we don ’ t know what that will cost just yet .
There is one key difference in Razer ’ s plans , though : when the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Razer will only sell you the case — with the NC100 , you also get a power supply and a baseboard where you can slot in the CPU — leaving it up to you to source everything else for the PC .
Razer says that , this June , it will ship a full PC in the Tomahawk enclosure , like what Cooler Master and CyberPowerPC are offering with their turnkey computer .
Razer is aiming for a starting price of just over $ 2,000 for that .

Earlier today, Intel announced its new initiative for tiny modular gaming PCs that let you swap out modular CPU cartridges (what Intel calls a “NUC Element”), and some PC component makers are already throwing their support behind the initiative. Razer today announced its new Tomahawk enclosure, and Cooler Master has announced its take, called the NC100.
The NC100 enclosure comes with the baseboard that’s designed to let you plug in an Intel NUC Element, and Cooler Master is throwing in one of its SFX-sized power supplies as well. Basically, all you’re getting is a computer case, a place for the computer’s brain, and a power supply for the computer. That means if you want to make a full-fledged gaming PC, you’ll have to get the rest of the parts on your own — including that NUC Element.
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Fortunately, it looks like the enclosure is big enough that you’ll have space to fit the full-length graphics card of your choice. (If you were curious, the case is 7.5L in volume, according to a Cooler Master rep, which means the NC100 splits the difference in size between Intel’s 5L NUC 9 Extreme enclosure and Razer’s 10L Tomahawk enclosure.)
The NC100 will cost $199.99 when it ships in Q2 2020 (tentatively April, Cooler Master tells The Verge).
If you just want to buy a turnkey solution for the NC100 case, though, CyberPowerPC will offer custom configurations that you can purchase. Those will have a CPU, a discrete graphics GPU from AMD or Nvidia, up to three M.2 PCIe storage slots, and up to 32GB of RAM. However, CyberPowerPC hasn’t shared pricing or expected availability for those yet.
You can buy a turnkey solution for the NC100 case
What Cooler Master is offering with the NC100 is pretty similar to what Razer is offering with the Tomahawk. Razer also plans to sell the Tomahawk enclosure on its own, though we don’t know what that will cost just yet.
There is one key difference in Razer’s plans, though: when the Tomahawk enclosure does go on sale, Razer will only sell you the case — with the NC100, you also get a power supply and a baseboard where you can slot in the CPU — leaving it up to you to source everything else for the PC.


theverge--2020-01-08--Google’s Project Zero is now being more considerate with how it discloses security vulnerabilities

Google ’ s Project Zero cybersecurity team is trialling a new policy where it won ’ t make security vulnerabilities public early after a fix has been issued .
“ Full 90 days by default , regardless of when the bug is fixed , ” is the team ’ s new policy , which it will trial for a year before deciding whether to adopt it permanently .
Under the old system , Project Zero ’ s researchers would give vendors 90 days to fix an issue before making the problem public .
However , if a patch was issued @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would disclose the vulnerability early .
This can be a problem , because it means users have to rush to patch a vulnerability before hackers can exploit it .
A vulnerability might be fixed by the company , but that doesn ’ t matter if the patch hasn ’ t been widely adopted .
Users are only secure once they ’ ve installed the patch So now , regardless of whether a patch is issued 20 days or 90 days after Project Zero makes a vendor aware of the problem , it will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ issue public .
There are a couple of exceptions , though .
One is when there ’ s “ mutual agreement ” between the two companies to disclose early , and Project Zero may also extend the deadline by 14 days if it ’ s taking longer for a vendor to put together a patch .
The seven day deadline for vulnerabilities that are being exploited in the wild will remain unchanged .
As well as giving patches more time to be adopted , Project Zero says it hopes the new policy will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ idea of when a vulnerability will be made public .
It also says it ’ s eager to see more iterative and thorough patches issued , thanks to the time vendors will now have between a patch initially being issued and the vulnerability it addresses being made public .
Despite the changes , the Project Zero team says it ’ s broadly happy with how its disclosure period has worked until now .
In 2014 , when the team started its work , it says that bugs were sometimes not fixed six months @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the issues it ’ s identified ( of which there have been many ) , it says 97.7 percent are patched within its 90 day window .

Google’s Project Zero cybersecurity team is trialling a new policy where it won’t make security vulnerabilities public early after a fix has been issued. “Full 90 days by default, regardless of when the bug is fixed,” is the team’s new policy, which it will trial for a year before deciding whether to adopt it permanently.
Under the old system, Project Zero’s researchers would give vendors 90 days to fix an issue before making the problem public. However, if a patch was issued within that 90 day window, it would disclose the vulnerability early. This can be a problem, because it means users have to rush to patch a vulnerability before hackers can exploit it. A vulnerability might be fixed by the company, but that doesn’t matter if the patch hasn’t been widely adopted.
Users are only secure once they’ve installed the patch
So now, regardless of whether a patch is issued 20 days or 90 days after Project Zero makes a vendor aware of the problem, it will still wait 90 days to make the issue public. There are a couple of exceptions, though. One is when there’s “mutual agreement” between the two companies to disclose early, and Project Zero may also extend the deadline by 14 days if it’s taking longer for a vendor to put together a patch. The seven day deadline for vulnerabilities that are being exploited in the wild will remain unchanged.
As well as giving patches more time to be adopted, Project Zero says it hopes the new policy will improve consistency, giving vendors a better idea of when a vulnerability will be made public. It also says it’s eager to see more iterative and thorough patches issued, thanks to the time vendors will now have between a patch initially being issued and the vulnerability it addresses being made public.


theverge--2020-01-08--Sonos said what every smaller tech company was thinking: working with big tech sucks

Share All sharing options for : Sonos said what every smaller tech company was thinking : working with big tech sucks It ’ s the first “ official ” day of CES , when glitzy keynotes are replaced with grungy , sweaty crowds shuffling from booth to booth set up on the hideous carpets of the Las Vegas show floor .
I love it .
I intentionally kept my calendar as open as possible so I could go experience the full spectrum of what ’ s on tap here this year .
I saw everything from the neon-lit horde in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ massive booth ) to the locker-room-smelling funk of “ Eureka Park , ” where the tiniest of businesses rent the tiniest of kiosks , all crammed together by the thousands .
Employees from every part of that spectrum are out tonight and I feel very confident in saying that many of them are raising a toast in thanks to a company that isn ’ t here : Sonos .
As often happens at CES , the biggest news of CES didn ’ t happen at CES and yet was nevertheless custom designed for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sued Google for allegedly stealing smart speaker tech .
The New York Times story that broke the news contains many eye-popping details if you ’ ve followed the saga of getting the Google Assistant working on Sonos speakers .
It was a process that took seemingly forever , and despite asking many , many times why it took so long , nobody could give a satisfactory answer for why .
I asked Google for comment on the Sonos suit and got the same one as before , however this time with a new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ line is Google explicitly saying it didn ’ t copy Sonos ’ technology , but it doesn ’ t address Sonos ’ claims that it told Google it was infringing Sonos ’ patents four times since 2016 .
And not copying something on purpose doesn ’ t mean you haven ’ t infringed the patents , especially if the patent owner keeps telling you there ’ s a problem .
Nilay Patel has pointed out that Sonos has already won a case against Denon with at least two of these patents .
So @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or Sonos to stand down quickly on this lawsuit .
I am very far from qualified to talk about the merits of the lawsuit itself , but I think the reason the news hit so hard is that it tonally feels right .
Likely because it could affect the proceedings , Sonos executives weren ’ t directly quoted in the NYT outside of a prepared statement from CEO Patrick Spence .
They seem to have spoken bluntly with Jack Nicas and Daisuke Wakabayashi about what ’ s been going on , however .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ me : This ( in addition to some off-the-record comments from another company ’ s executive from that were relayed to me ) is why I am quite confident that a lot of people are thanking Sonos for forcefully saying ( forcefully suing ? )
what they ’ ve all been thinking for a long time .
This all relates to the theme I wrote about earlier this week : that CES is seen to not matter because only smaller companies bother trying to make a splash here anymore .
Over the course @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of gadgets have become vassals of an ecosystem run by a bigger company .
This trend has only accelerated with the rise of digital assistants .
Where before the gadgets that were beholden to big platforms tended to be phone accessories , everything is now supposed to work with Alexa , the Google Assistant , and Siri .
So CES is , in some ways , a convention where tens of thousands of people from thousands of companies meet to show off how they intend to survive in a world ruled by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s less relevant than ever .
Most gadgets have become vassals of an ecosystem run by a bigger company Will this open a floodgate of other companies coming out and saying publicly what they ’ ve felt privately , that they ’ re increasingly spending their time thinking about Amazon and Google instead of their customers ?
In some places , smaller tech companies already are .
They ’ re just speaking in places with stronger regulatory protections to curb Big Tech , places like the European Union .
Spotify ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ tax ” comes to mind .
Here in the US , the step before going public is likely all of those people talking to each other about it , probably over drinks in Las Vegas .
Sonos perfectly timed its announcement so that it would be the talk of the show , one hour before the doors opened .
Usually at CES , the awkward thing you say when you don ’ t know what to say is “ How is the show for you ?
Seen anything good ?
” Yesterday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the news about Sonos ?
Whoa.
” The other thing that rings true in the NYT story is the detail that Google told Sonos it would pull Google Assistant support if Sonos enabled simultaneous wake words .
That ’ s the feature which lets speakers listen for both “ Alexa ” and “ Okay Google ” at the same time .
Google really comes off looking like a bully .
Amazon doesn ’ t come out of this story cleanly , either .
Apparently Amazon also threatened to pull support at one point @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the only reason Sonos didn ’ t also sue Amazon was that it can ’ t afford to take both companies on at once .
It all could put a radically different spin on Amazon ’ s motivations for forming an alliance to get companies to make their assistants to interoperate .
An alliance Google hasn ’ t joined , by the way , and neither have Apple or Samsung .
In an interview with Chris Welch of The Verge last night , Amazon hardware boss Dave Limp said that “ we would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But he dodged a bit when asked if Echoes hurt Sonos ’ chances in the market , saying : Chris ’ full interview with Dave Limp will be up on The Verge later this morning , keep an eye out for it .
Four years ago I wrote a piece warning that the move to digital assistants would mean that a lot more of what we see “ online ” ( if that term even applies to talking to a smart speaker ) would be determined by backroom deals .
It turns out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those same deals are also determining what kind of gadgets get made and what they ’ re allowed to do in the first place .
It ’ s no wonder so many of the people here at CES feel like they need a drink .
└ Listen to The Vergecast ’ s first CES 2020 episode We ’ ll do a couple of Vergecast chat shows this week -- this was the first and only one we did live .
Always love doing a podcast in front of a live audience .
Thank @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : I know I promised category roundup and they ’ re coming , but have decided to leave them to our reporters who are best suited to each one .
In the meantime , here ’ s what happened yesterday .
Well , not me .
Liz Lopatto and Becca Farsace did .
Apparently it ’ s pretty accurate but really salty .
Don ’ t miss the video .
Intel is taking two different ideas it ’ s been working on for awhile and crammed them together to make something genuinely interesting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CPU and motherboard as easily replaceable as any other part .
Intel has some other manufacturers on board with the idea , too .
└ Razer ’ s first desktop gaming PC is the stunning modular Tomahawk ... like Razer , for example .
└ The best part of the OnePlus Concept One isn ’ t the disappearing camera Add another concept to the pile I wrote about yesterday .
Really happy with how this video turned out .
└ Delta will add a ‘ binge button ’ to its inflight entertainment screens @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that dozens of people trying to pair Bluetooth headphones to their seatback entertainment systems will be a disaster .
But what if it just sort of turns out to not be that bad ?
It ’ s not like Bluetooth pairing is a wonderful experience anyway .
└ The Google Assistant will be able to read articles out loud in 42 languages and will finally let you schedule actions for later └ Insta360 ’ s One R shape-shifts between a 360 and an action camera Becca Farsace has been using this completely modular @ @ @ @ @ @ @ little while .
You can swap out camera modules , adjust the screen to face the direction you want , and take it underwater to boot .
Pretty much every modular gadget in recent memory has been a bust .
For whatever reason , I feel like this one makes enough sense that it could have a shot .
It ’ s really quite clever .
Becca has full impressions of what it ’ s like to use .
└ Razer made another Switch-like mobile gamepad , but this one works with Android @ @ @ @ @ @ @ phone have until recently felt like weird curiosities .
They still are in some ways , but with Apple Arcade , Microsoft xCloud , PlayStation Remote Play , and Google Stadia maybe that could change .
└ PopSockets made its own wireless charging pad so you don ’ t have to take the PopSocket off your phone I know know if this will get me to become a PopSocket person , but I do know that the wireless charging hassles was blocking me from becoming one before today .
Really good idea and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t boring .

It’s the first “official” day of CES, when glitzy keynotes are replaced with grungy, sweaty crowds shuffling from booth to booth set up on the hideous carpets of the Las Vegas show floor. I love it.
I intentionally kept my calendar as open as possible so I could go experience the full spectrum of what’s on tap here this year. I saw everything from the neon-lit horde in Samsung City (what we call its massive booth) to the locker-room-smelling funk of “Eureka Park,” where the tiniest of businesses rent the tiniest of kiosks, all crammed together by the thousands.
Employees from every part of that spectrum are out tonight and I feel very confident in saying that many of them are raising a toast in thanks to a company that isn’t here: Sonos.
As often happens at CES, the biggest news of CES didn’t happen at CES and yet was nevertheless custom designed for maximum impact at CES: Sonos has sued Google for allegedly stealing smart speaker tech.
The New York Times story that broke the news contains many eye-popping details if you’ve followed the saga of getting the Google Assistant working on Sonos speakers. It was a process that took seemingly forever, and despite asking many, many times why it took so long, nobody could give a satisfactory answer for why.
You are reading Processor, a newsletter about computers, software, and tech by Dieter Bohn. Dieter writes about consumer tech, software, and the most important tech news of the day from The Verge. You can read an archive of Processor newsletters here and subscribe to all of The Verge’s great videos here! Subscribe
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I asked Google for comment on the Sonos suit and got the same one as before, however this time with a new line, emphasized below:
Over the years, we have had numerous ongoing conversations with Sonos about both companies’ IP rights and we are disappointed that Sonos brought these lawsuits instead of continuing negotiations in good faith. Google’s technology was developed independently by Google — it was not copied from Sonos. We dispute these claims and will defend them vigorously.
That new line is Google explicitly saying it didn’t copy Sonos’ technology, but it doesn’t address Sonos’ claims that it told Google it was infringing Sonos’ patents four times since 2016. And not copying something on purpose doesn’t mean you haven’t infringed the patents, especially if the patent owner keeps telling you there’s a problem.
Nilay Patel has pointed out that Sonos has already won a case against Denon with at least two of these patents. So I wouldn’t expect either Google or Sonos to stand down quickly on this lawsuit. I am very far from qualified to talk about the merits of the lawsuit itself, but I think the reason the news hit so hard is that it tonally feels right.
Likely because it could affect the proceedings, Sonos executives weren’t directly quoted in the NYT outside of a prepared statement from CEO Patrick Spence. They seem to have spoken bluntly with Jack Nicas and Daisuke Wakabayashi about what’s been going on, however. This paragraph in particular rings true to me:
Like many companies under the thumb of Big Tech, Sonos groused privately for years. But over the past several months, Patrick Spence, Sonos’s chief executive, decided he couldn’t take it anymore.
This (in addition to some off-the-record comments from another company’s executive from that were relayed to me) is why I am quite confident that a lot of people are thanking Sonos for forcefully saying (forcefully suing?) what they’ve all been thinking for a long time.
This all relates to the theme I wrote about earlier this week: that CES is seen to not matter because only smaller companies bother trying to make a splash here anymore. Over the course of years, more and more types of gadgets have become vassals of an ecosystem run by a bigger company.
This trend has only accelerated with the rise of digital assistants. Where before the gadgets that were beholden to big platforms tended to be phone accessories, everything is now supposed to work with Alexa, the Google Assistant, and Siri.
So CES is, in some ways, a convention where tens of thousands of people from thousands of companies meet to show off how they intend to survive in a world ruled by the big tech companies. No wonder it’s less relevant than ever.
Most gadgets have become vassals of an ecosystem run by a bigger company
Will this open a floodgate of other companies coming out and saying publicly what they’ve felt privately, that they’re increasingly spending their time thinking about Amazon and Google instead of their customers?
In some places, smaller tech companies already are. They’re just speaking in places with stronger regulatory protections to curb Big Tech, places like the European Union. Spotify’s lawsuit against Apple’s App Store “tax” comes to mind.
Here in the US, the step before going public is likely all of those people talking to each other about it, probably over drinks in Las Vegas. Sonos perfectly timed its announcement so that it would be the talk of the show, one hour before the doors opened. Usually at CES, the awkward thing you say when you don’t know what to say is “How is the show for you? Seen anything good?” Yesterday, it was “Did you see the news about Sonos? Whoa.”
The other thing that rings true in the NYT story is the detail that Google told Sonos it would pull Google Assistant support if Sonos enabled simultaneous wake words. That’s the feature which lets speakers listen for both “Alexa” and “Okay Google” at the same time. Google really comes off looking like a bully.
Amazon doesn’t come out of this story cleanly, either. Apparently Amazon also threatened to pull support at one point, and according to the NYT, the only reason Sonos didn’t also sue Amazon was that it can’t afford to take both companies on at once.
It all could put a radically different spin on Amazon’s motivations for forming an alliance to get companies to make their assistants to interoperate. An alliance Google hasn’t joined, by the way, and neither have Apple or Samsung.
In an interview with Chris Welch of The Verge last night, Amazon hardware boss Dave Limp said that “we would never ask any company for exclusivity.” But he dodged a bit when asked if Echoes hurt Sonos’ chances in the market, saying:
As long as they and others continue to differentiate, customers will find them. It’s not about at any given time, a price point or a set of features. It’s about how do you define your brand and what your brand stands for and how it’s differentiated. And I’m very optimistic that Sonos can navigate that path.
Chris’ full interview with Dave Limp will be up on The Verge later this morning, keep an eye out for it.
Four years ago I wrote a piece warning that the move to digital assistants would mean that a lot more of what we see “online” (if that term even applies to talking to a smart speaker) would be determined by backroom deals. It turns out I wasn’t pessimistic enough: those same deals are also determining what kind of gadgets get made and what they’re allowed to do in the first place.
It’s no wonder so many of the people here at CES feel like they need a drink.
Verge Deal of the day Apple’s AirPods Pro are $30 off at Amazon Normally $250, the Apple AirPods Pro wireless earbuds are down to $220 at Amazon. Compared to the standard AirPods, these feature better sound quality and noise cancellation. We’ve seen these drop a bit lower in price before, but that’s a pretty rare occurrence. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These do not influence editorial content, though Vox Media may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links. For more information, see our ethics policy . Prices displayed are based on the MSRP at time of posting.
CES News
We’ll do a couple of Vergecast chat shows this week -- this was the first and only one we did live. Always love doing a podcast in front of a live audience. Thank you to all who came!
Also: I know I promised category roundup and they’re coming, but have decided to leave them to our reporters who are best suited to each one. In the meantime, here’s what happened yesterday.
Well, not me. Liz Lopatto and Becca Farsace did. Apparently it’s pretty accurate but really salty. Don’t miss the video.
Intel is taking two different ideas it’s been working on for awhile and crammed them together to make something genuinely interesting. The idea is to make your CPU and motherboard as easily replaceable as any other part. Intel has some other manufacturers on board with the idea, too.
...like Razer, for example.
Add another concept to the pile I wrote about yesterday. Really happy with how this video turned out.
Everyone, including me, is assuming that dozens of people trying to pair Bluetooth headphones to their seatback entertainment systems will be a disaster. But what if it just sort of turns out to not be that bad? It’s not like Bluetooth pairing is a wonderful experience anyway.
Delta recently started retrofitting its planes with new wireless seatback screens, which frees up more room underneath each seat. These new screens will also allow passengers to use Bluetooth headphones during their flights. ... The screens will also be able to mirror your smartphone, and Delta says other new features will be added at a quicker pace than in the past.
Phone accessories are still a thing
Becca Farsace has been using this completely modular and completely endearing camera system for a little while. You can swap out camera modules, adjust the screen to face the direction you want, and take it underwater to boot.
Pretty much every modular gadget in recent memory has been a bust. For whatever reason, I feel like this one makes enough sense that it could have a shot. It’s really quite clever. Becca has full impressions of what it’s like to use.
Gamepads you attach to your phone have until recently felt like weird curiosities. They still are in some ways, but with Apple Arcade, Microsoft xCloud, PlayStation Remote Play, and Google Stadia maybe that could change.


theverge--2020-01-08--Facebook’s deepfakes ban has some obvious workarounds

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We ’ re used to social networks waiting until the damage has already been done before announcing a cleanup effort .
When it comes to the synthetic media known as “ deepfakes , ” they ’ ve been notably ahead of the curve .
In November , Twitter announced a draft policy on deepfakes and began soliciting public input .
And on Monday night , Facebook announced that it would ban certain manipulated photos and videos from the platform .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Monika Bickert , Facebook ’ s vice president of global policy management : Going forward , we will remove misleading manipulated media if it meets the following criteria : - It has been edited or synthesized – beyond adjustments for clarity or quality – in ways that aren ’ t apparent to an average person and would likely mislead someone into thinking that a subject of the video said words that they did not actually say .
And : - It is the product of artificial intelligence or machine learning that merges , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , making it appear to be authentic .
This policy does not extend to content that is parody or satire , or video that has been edited solely to omit or change the order of words .
The move comes ahead of a planned hearing Wednesday about misinformation at which Bickert is scheduled to speak .
The change represents a significant step forward at a time where anxieties over deepfakes , and their potential role in shaping the 2020 election , are running high .
The technology is improving at a steady clip @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but convincing ) people to populate dating apps .
It ’ s not hard to imagine an unscrupulous campaign posting synthetic videos on Facebook or Instagram of their opponent saying or doing something they didn ’ t .
As of today , that ’ s officially against policy .
Notably — and contra to what Facebook initially said — the policy will apply to advertisements as well as regular posts .
Create a phony video of your opponent clubbing a baby seal and Facebook will make ( yet another ) exception to its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and remove anything found to be fake .
Still , some doubts lingered .
Nina Jankowicz , who has a book coming out this year on Russian disinformation operations , said she is “ still more worried about cheap fakes than deep fakes .
Crudely edited , deliberately misleading videos and images are still effective , and they ’ re still allowed on most platforms.
” What ’ s a cheap fake ?
Something like this video of campaign workers doing a corny dance in support of presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ campaign workers at all — they ’ re audience members at an improv show filming a bit for a comedian , who shared it on a Twitter profile he had edited to make it appear as if he worked for Bloomberg .
The ruse was exposed relatively quickly , but plenty of people still fell for it .
There are all sorts of ways to trick people like this .
You can also grab an old video and put a new date on it , or just tweet it as if it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
You don ’ t need a state-of-the-art media lab to wreak havoc .
That ’ s one reason why , even as the technology improved , information operations haven ’ t yet seemed very interested in deepfakes , as my colleague Russell Brandom wrote last year .
“ Uploading an algorithmically doctored video is likely to attract attention from automated filters , while conventional film editing and obvious lies won ’ t , ” Brandom wrote .
“ Why take the risk ?
” There ’ s one last workaround to Facebook @ @ @ @ @ @ @ For good reason , Facebook permits people to post satire and parody .
Unfortunately , this rule is often exploited by fake-news purveyors and other sites adept at straddling the line between comedy and misinformation .
Last week , in the wake of the military strike in Iran , an article titled “ Democrats Call For Flags To Be Flown At Half-Mast To Grieve Death Of Soleimani ” was posted to a site called the Babylon Bee .
From there , it was shared more than 660,000 times on Facebook .
Surely some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ knew that the Babylon Bee is a satirical site .
But read the comments in the original Facebook post and you ’ ll see that just as many seem to believe the article is real .
In the flattened design of the News Feed , where every shared article carries equal weight , it can be hard to tell .
All these many asterisks help explain why Democratic politicians seem mostly unimpressed with Facebook ’ s deepfakes ban .
“ Facebook wants you to think the problem is video-editing technology , but the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to stop the spread of disinformation , ” said a spokeswoman for Rep. Nancy Pelosi , the unwitting star of a famously misleading ( though not deepfaked ) viral video last year .
Joe Biden ’ s campaign struck a similar note : “ Facebook ’ s policy does not get to the core issue of how their platform is being used to spread disinformation , but rather how professionally that disinformation is created.
” Still , Monday ’ s action doesn ’ t preclude the company from addressing some of these nuances @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we see this sort of thing in 2020 , I suspect that it will .
In the meantime , one of the big platforms has established at least a partial bulwark against the infocalypse — though its strength will depend entirely on how strongly Facebook defends it .
Policy , as ever , is what you enforce .
Before the break , I reported here that Pinterest had cut contractors ’ vacation benefits , forcing them to work over the holiday if they wanted to be paid during Christmas week .
After I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and the company reversed course .
Contractors got their paid week off after all , just like Pinterest ’ s full-time employees .
“ We realized our communication of this change may have come too late in the year for people to plan accordingly for this holiday season , ” a spokesman told me.
” Not much more to say here , other than that journalism is the best job in the world and don ’ t let nobody ever tell you different .
Today in news that could affect public perception @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up : Facebook fundraisers have generated $ 37 million for fire relief in Australia , the company says .
Actor Celeste Barber ’ s fundraiser alone raised $ 30 million from 1.1 million people , and is now the largest fundraiser in Facebook history .
Trending sideways : Facebook is setting up a new engineering team in Singapore to focus on its lucrative China ad business .
The news comes as CEO Mark Zuckerberg has ramped up criticism of the country over human-rights issues .
Trending sideways : Shares of Google hit an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ $ 1,397.81 per share .
Apparently , investors are unfazed by the ongoing antitrust investigation into the company , as well as employee unrest .
⭐ The FBI asked Apple to help unlock two iPhones linked to a shooting at Naval Air Station in Pensacola , Florida last month .
Apple said it has been cooperating with the government and had already handed over all the data in its possession .
Here ’ s what the company told Pete Williams at NBC : ⭐ A leaked Facebook memo shows longtime executive Andrew “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ company has a moral duty not to tilt the scales against President Trump in the 2020 election .
Kevin Roose , Sheera Frenkel and Mike Isaac from The New York Times have the scoop : Boz then shared the memo in its entirety from his own Facebook page .
Read it .
The White House unveiled 10 principles that federal agencies should consider when devising laws and rules for the use of artificial intelligence in the private sector , but stressed that a key concern should be limiting regulatory “ overreach.
” ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2020 election is likely the most anticipated event in US history when it comes to digital security .
Russia still poses a massive threat , as do Iran and China .
Experts are also warning that it ’ s not just the general election that is at risk — the primaries will be a target , too .
( Joseph Marks / The Washington Post ) Experts warn that the United States needs to be prepared for cyber retaliation from Iran , which employs different tactics than Russia .
Iran has spent years @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fake websites and articles meant to mimic real news and disappear quickly .
( Sara Fischer / Axios ) Sonos sued Google , seeking financial damages and a ban on the sale of Google ’ s speakers , smartphones and laptops in the United States .
Sonos accused Google of infringing on five of its patents , including technology that lets wireless speakers connect and synchronize with one another .
( Jack Nicas and Daisuke Wakabayashi / The New York Times ) A researcher dove into the narratives surrounding the death of Qassem @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on one of Iran ’ s most popular social media platforms , Telegram .
As Taiwan gears up for a major election this week , officials and researchers worry that China is experimenting with social media manipulation to sway the vote .
Voters are already awash in false or highly partisan information , making such tactics easy to hide .
( Raymond Zhong / The New York Times ) Violence erupted at Jawaharlal Nehru University in India last week , after members of a student group — apparently coordinating through WhatsApp — attacked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into the group revealed who the attackers were and how they coordinated the violence .
( Meghnad S , Prateek Goyal and Anukriti Malik / Newslaundry ) ⭐ Politicians , parties , and governments , are hiring dark-arts public-relations firms to spread lies and misinformation .
One firm promised to “ use every tool and take every advantage available in order to change reality according to our client ’ s wishes.
” Craig Silverman , Jane Lytvynenko and William Kung have the story : Also — the threat isn ’ t limited to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pictures of computer-generated faces that appear to be real people .
They offer companies a chance to “ increase diversity ” in their ads without needing human beings .
They ’ ve also signed on dating apps that need more images of women .
( Drew Harwell / The Washington Post ) The new trick to going viral on Instagram is making an Instagram filter , as seen by the bewilderingly popular “ What Disney Character Are You ?
” sensation .
This story breaks down how it works .
( Chris Stokel-Walker @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Instagram video series about students navigating their first year of college .
The former First Lady partnered with digital media company ATTN : to launch a video series on IGTV , Instagram ’ s video platform .
( Sara Fischer / Axios ) The CES gadget show in Las Vegas is all-in on surveillance technology , from face scanners that check in some attendees to the cameras-everywhere array of digital products .
( Matt O ’ Brien / Associated Press ) Woe unto the big tech executive who uses an extended metaphor about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ facts .
Here ’ s Chaim Gartenberg on the Boz memo : Send us tips , comments , questions , and Lord of the Rings analogies casey @ theverge.com and zoe @ theverge.com .

Going forward, we will remove misleading manipulated media if it meets the following criteria: - It has been edited or synthesized – beyond adjustments for clarity or quality – in ways that aren’t apparent to an average person and would likely mislead someone into thinking that a subject of the video said words that they did not actually say. And: - It is the product of artificial intelligence or machine learning that merges, replaces or superimposes content onto a video, making it appear to be authentic. This policy does not extend to content that is parody or satire, or video that has been edited solely to omit or change the order of words.
The move comes ahead of a planned hearing Wednesday about misinformation at which Bickert is scheduled to speak.
The change represents a significant step forward at a time where anxieties over deepfakes, and their potential role in shaping the 2020 election, are running high. The technology is improving at a steady clip: see these companies selling synthetic (but convincing) people to populate dating apps. It’s not hard to imagine an unscrupulous campaign posting synthetic videos on Facebook or Instagram of their opponent saying or doing something they didn’t. As of today, that’s officially against policy.
Notably — and contra to what Facebook initially said — the policy will apply to advertisements as well as regular posts. Create a phony video of your opponent clubbing a baby seal and Facebook will make (yet another) exception to its policy against fact-checking political speech in advertisements, and remove anything found to be fake.
Still, some doubts lingered. Nina Jankowicz, who has a book coming out this year on Russian disinformation operations, said she is “still more worried about cheap fakes than deep fakes. Crudely edited, deliberately misleading videos and images are still effective, and they’re still allowed on most platforms.”
What’s a cheap fake? Something like this video of campaign workers doing a corny dance in support of presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg. In reality, they aren’t campaign workers at all — they’re audience members at an improv show filming a bit for a comedian, who shared it on a Twitter profile he had edited to make it appear as if he worked for Bloomberg. The ruse was exposed relatively quickly, but plenty of people still fell for it.
There are all sorts of ways to trick people like this. You can also grab an old video and put a new date on it, or just tweet it as if it’s brand new. You can Photoshop. You don’t need a state-of-the-art media lab to wreak havoc. That’s one reason why, even as the technology improved, information operations haven’t yet seemed very interested in deepfakes, as my colleague Russell Brandom wrote last year. “Uploading an algorithmically doctored video is likely to attract attention from automated filters, while conventional film editing and obvious lies won’t,” Brandom wrote. “Why take the risk?”
There’s one last workaround to Facebook’s new rule: comedy. For good reason, Facebook permits people to post satire and parody. Unfortunately, this rule is often exploited by fake-news purveyors and other sites adept at straddling the line between comedy and misinformation. Last week, in the wake of the military strike in Iran, an article titled “Democrats Call For Flags To Be Flown At Half-Mast To Grieve Death Of Soleimani” was posted to a site called the Babylon Bee. From there, it was shared more than 660,000 times on Facebook.
Surely some of the people who shared the article knew that the Babylon Bee is a satirical site. But read the comments in the original Facebook post and you’ll see that just as many seem to believe the article is real. In the flattened design of the News Feed, where every shared article carries equal weight, it can be hard to tell.
All these many asterisks help explain why Democratic politicians seem mostly unimpressed with Facebook’s deepfakes ban. “Facebook wants you to think the problem is video-editing technology, but the real problem is Facebook’s refusal to stop the spread of disinformation,” said a spokeswoman for Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the unwitting star of a famously misleading (though not deepfaked) viral video last year.
Joe Biden’s campaign struck a similar note: “Facebook’s policy does not get to the core issue of how their platform is being used to spread disinformation, but rather how professionally that disinformation is created.”
Still, Monday’s action doesn’t preclude the company from addressing some of these nuances down the road. And the more we see this sort of thing in 2020, I suspect that it will. In the meantime, one of the big platforms has established at least a partial bulwark against the infocalypse — though its strength will depend entirely on how strongly Facebook defends it. Policy, as ever, is what you enforce.
Update
Before the break, I reported here that Pinterest had cut contractors’ vacation benefits, forcing them to work over the holiday if they wanted to be paid during Christmas week. After I published that piece, employees were upset, and the company reversed course. Contractors got their paid week off after all, just like Pinterest’s full-time employees. “We realized our communication of this change may have come too late in the year for people to plan accordingly for this holiday season,” a spokesman told me.”
Not much more to say here, other than that journalism is the best job in the world and don’t let nobody ever tell you different.
The Ratio
Today in news that could affect public perception of the big tech platforms.
🔼 Trending up: Facebook fundraisers have generated $37 million for fire relief in Australia, the company says. Actor Celeste Barber’s fundraiser alone raised $30 million from 1.1 million people, and is now the largest fundraiser in Facebook history.
🔃 Trending sideways: Facebook is setting up a new engineering team in Singapore to focus on its lucrative China ad business. The news comes as CEO Mark Zuckerberg has ramped up criticism of the country over human-rights issues.
🔃 Trending sideways: Shares of Google hit an all-time high yesterday, closing out at $1,397.81 per share. Apparently, investors are unfazed by the ongoing antitrust investigation into the company, as well as employee unrest.
Governing
⭐ The FBI asked Apple to help unlock two iPhones linked to a shooting at Naval Air Station in Pensacola, Florida last month. Apple said it has been cooperating with the government and had already handed over all the data in its possession. Here’s what the company told Pete Williams at NBC:
“We have the greatest respect for law enforcement and have always worked cooperatively to help in their investigations,” Apple said in a statement. “When the FBI requested information from us relating to this case a month ago, we gave them all of the data in our possession and we will continue to support them with the data we have available.” A law enforcement official said there’s an additional problem with one of the iPhones thought to belong to Alshamrani, who was killed by a deputy during the attack: He apparently fired a round into the phone, further complicating efforts to unlock it.
⭐ A leaked Facebook memo shows longtime executive Andrew “Boz” Bosworth told employees that the company has a moral duty not to tilt the scales against President Trump in the 2020 election. Kevin Roose, Sheera Frenkel and Mike Isaac from The New York Times have the scoop:
In a meandering 2,500-word post, titled “Thoughts for 2020,” Mr. Bosworth weighed in on issues including political polarization, Russian interference and the news media’s treatment of Facebook. He gave a frank assessment of Facebook’s shortcomings in recent years, saying that the company had been “late” to address the issues of data security, misinformation and foreign interference. And he accused the left of overreach, saying that when it came to calling people Nazis, “I think my fellow liberals are a bit too, well, liberal.”
Boz then shared the memo in its entirety from his own Facebook page. Read it.
The White House unveiled 10 principles that federal agencies should consider when devising laws and rules for the use of artificial intelligence in the private sector, but stressed that a key concern should be limiting regulatory “overreach.” (James Vincent / The Verge)
The 2020 election is likely the most anticipated event in US history when it comes to digital security. Russia still poses a massive threat, as do Iran and China. Experts are also warning that it’s not just the general election that is at risk — the primaries will be a target, too. (Joseph Marks / The Washington Post)
Experts warn that the United States needs to be prepared for cyber retaliation from Iran, which employs different tactics than Russia. Iran has spent years building an online influence apparatus that uses fake websites and articles meant to mimic real news and disappear quickly. (Sara Fischer / Axios)
Sonos sued Google, seeking financial damages and a ban on the sale of Google’s speakers, smartphones and laptops in the United States. Sonos accused Google of infringing on five of its patents, including technology that lets wireless speakers connect and synchronize with one another. (Jack Nicas and Daisuke Wakabayashi / The New York Times)
A researcher dove into the narratives surrounding the death of Qassem Soleimani, a top Iranian commander, on one of Iran’s most popular social media platforms, Telegram.
As Taiwan gears up for a major election this week, officials and researchers worry that China is experimenting with social media manipulation to sway the vote. Voters are already awash in false or highly partisan information, making such tactics easy to hide. (Raymond Zhong / The New York Times)
Violence erupted at Jawaharlal Nehru University in India last week, after members of a student group — apparently coordinating through WhatsApp — attacked fellow students and teachers. An investigation into the group revealed who the attackers were and how they coordinated the violence. (Meghnad S, Prateek Goyal and Anukriti Malik / Newslaundry)
Industry
⭐ Politicians, parties, and governments, are hiring dark-arts public-relations firms to spread lies and misinformation. One firm promised to “use every tool and take every advantage available in order to change reality according to our client’s wishes.” Craig Silverman, Jane Lytvynenko and William Kung have the story:
If disinformation in 2016 was characterized by Macedonian spammers pushing pro-Trump fake news and Russian trolls running rampant on platforms, 2020 is shaping up to be the year communications pros for hire provide sophisticated online propaganda operations to anyone willing to pay.
Also — the threat isn’t limited to the US:
Most recently, in late December, Twitter announced it removed more than 5,000 accounts that it said were part of “a significant state-backed information operation” in Saudi Arabia carried out by marketing firm Smaat. The same day, Facebook announced a takedown of hundreds of accounts, pages, and groups that it found were engaged in “foreign and government interference” on behalf of the government of Georgia. It attributed the operation to Panda, an advertising agency in Georgia, and to the country’s ruling party.
AI start-ups are selling pictures of computer-generated faces that appear to be real people. They offer companies a chance to “increase diversity” in their ads without needing human beings. They’ve also signed on dating apps that need more images of women. (Drew Harwell / The Washington Post)
The new trick to going viral on Instagram is making an Instagram filter, as seen by the bewilderingly popular “What Disney Character Are You?” sensation. This story breaks down how it works. (Chris Stokel-Walker / Input)
Michelle Obama launched an Instagram video series about students navigating their first year of college. The former First Lady partnered with digital media company ATTN: to launch a video series on IGTV, Instagram’s video platform. (Sara Fischer / Axios)
And finally...
Woe unto the big tech executive who uses an extended metaphor about Lord of the Rings without checking his facts. Here’s Chaim Gartenberg on the Boz memo:
As part of his argument, Boz makes the comparison by citing none other than J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings to explain his decision. Facebook, Boz argues, is akin to Sauron’s One Ring, and wielding its power — even with noble intent — would only lead to ruin. [...] In Tolkien’s books and the film adaptations, Galadriel is concerned about the power of the Ring corrupting her — as it does all, save the Dark Lord himself. But not once does she contemplate using its power for good. “In place of the Dark Lord you will set up a Queen. And I shall not be dark, but beautiful and terrible as the Morning and the Night!.. All shall love me and despair!” Tolkien writes.
Later, nerds.
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