alphabet inc – The News Desk

25Oct

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Fake placenames with anti-Israel messages flood Google Maps’ depiction of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt

CNN — When Google Maps users navigated to the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Tuesday, they might have seen placenames that included, “F**k Israel,” and “May god curse Israel’s Jerusalem.” Cyber activists appeared to have targeted the service to post anti-Israel messages, likely by taking advantage of a feature on Google Maps that allows people to create and contribute information about businesses and landmarks that appear on the service. CNN found dozens of anti-Israel placenames created in Arabic and English, including one in Arabic that read, “Palestine is free, may god forgive us.” There is no evidence that any Google systems were breached or compromised as part of ...

Microsoft, Google post strong quarterly sales growth as Big Tech continues its comeback

25Oct

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Microsoft, Google post strong quarterly sales growth as Big Tech continues its comeback

New York CNN — Big tech companies are continuing a turnaround from last year, as Alphabet, Microsoft and Snap kicked off earnings season with strong sales results for the quarter ended in September. Google parent company Alphabet on Tuesday reported quarterly sales of $76.69 billion, up 11% from the same period in the prior year. The company also posted profits of $19.69 billion for the quarter. Meanwhile, Microsoft posted 13% year-on-year sales growth to $56.5 billion, also beating expectations. Microsoft’s quarterly profits hit $22.3 billion, up 27% from the year-ago period. Snapchat parent Snap on Tuesday reported a return to sales growth in the September quarter, after two consecut...

Google Maps and Waze temporarily disable live traffic data in Israel

24Oct

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Google Maps and Waze temporarily disable live traffic data in Israel

New York CNN — Google is temporarily disabling live traffic conditions on its mapping service apps, Google Maps and Waze, in Israel, the tech company confirmed Monday, as the country prepares for a potential ground invasion into Gaza. “As we have done previously in conflict situations and in response to the evolving situation in the region, we have temporarily disabled the ability to see live traffic conditions and busyness information out of consideration for the safety of local communities,” a Google Maps spokesperson said. Google did not say whether the tools would be disabled in Israel, Gaza or both. It also did not say whether the action was at the request of the Israel Defense Forces. CNN has...

14Oct

By adminNo Comments

Technology

EU officials warn Google and YouTube about Hamas-Israel disinformation and graphic content

Washington CNN — The European Commission sent a warning letter Friday to Google and its subsidiary YouTube over disinformation and graphic content linked to the Hamas-Israel conflict, in the European Union’s latest effort to scrutinize Big Tech’s handling of the war. The letter from European Commissioner Thierry Breton, addressed to Google CEO Sundar Pichai and also sent to YouTube CEO Neal Mohan, reminded the company about its content moderation obligations under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA). Breton shared the letter on X. Breton highlighted legal requirements for Google to keep graphic content such as hostage videos away from underage users; to act swiftly when authorities flag content tha...

13Oct

By adminNo Comments

Technology

How to block graphic social media posts on your kids’ phones

New York CNN — Many schools, psychologists and safety groups are urging parents to disable their children’s social media apps over mounting concerns that Hamas plans to disseminate graphic videos of hostages captured in the Israel-Gaza war. Disabling an app or implementing restrictions, such as filtering out certain words and phrases, on young users’ phones may be sound like a daunting process. But platforms and mobile operating systems offer safeguards that could go along way in protecting a child’s mental health. Following the attacks on Israel last weekend, much of the terror has played out on social media. Videos of hostages taken on the streets and civilians left wounded continue to circulate ...

Pixel 8: Google unveils new phones built for ‘the generative AI era’

6Oct

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Pixel 8: Google unveils new phones built for ‘the generative AI era’

CNN — There’s nothing particularly new about Google’s latest-generation Pixel 8 smartphone hardware. That’s why the company is pushing hard to tout its AI-powered new software, which Google says was built specifically for the “first phone of the generative AI era.” At a press event in New York City, Google (GOOG) showed off the new Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro devices, which largely look the same as the year prior, albeit with more rounded edges. But inside, its new G3 Tensor chip unlocks an AI-powered world aimed at simplifying your life, from asking the device to summarize news articles and websites to using Google (GOOG) Assistant to field phone calls and ...

Apple rejected opportunities to buy Microsoft’s Bing, integrate with DuckDuckGo

6Oct

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Apple rejected opportunities to buy Microsoft’s Bing, integrate with DuckDuckGo

CNN — Since 2017, Apple has turned down multiple opportunities to chip away at Google’s search engine dominance, according to newly unsealed court transcripts, including a chance to purchase Microsoft’s Bing and to make the privacy-focused DuckDuckGo a default for users of its Safari’s private browsing mode. The previously confidential records, unsealed this week by the judge presiding over the US government’s antitrust lawsuit against Google, illustrate the challenges that have faced Google’s rivals in search as they’ve tried to unseat the tech giant from its pole position as Apple’s default search provider on millions of iPhones and Mac computers. It’s a privilege for which Google has paid Apple at least $10...

Antitrust Trial: Microsoft CEO warns of impact of Google’s search monopoly on AI

3Oct

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Antitrust Trial: Microsoft CEO warns of impact of Google’s search monopoly on AI

CNN — Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella warned on Monday of a “nightmare” scenario for the internet if Google’s dominance in online search is allowed to continue, a situation, he said, that starts with searches on desktop and mobile but extends to the emerging battleground of artificial intelligence. Nadella testified on Monday as part of the US government’s sweeping antitrust trial against Google, now into its 14th day. He is the most senior tech executive yet to testify during the trial that focuses on the power of Google as the default search engine on mobile devices and browsers around the globe. Taking the stand in a charcoal suit and tie, Nadella painted Google as a technology giant that has block...

AI feature Dream Screen unveiled for Youtube Shorts

23Sep

By adminNo Comments

Technology

AI feature Dream Screen unveiled for Youtube Shorts

CNN — YouTube on Thursday unveiled a slew of new artificial intelligence-powered tools to help creators produce videos and reach a wider audience on the platform, as companies race to incorporate buzzy generative AI technology directly into their core products. “We want to make it easier for everyone to feel like they can create, and we believe generative AI will make that possible,” Neal Mohan, YouTube’s CEO, told reporters Thursday during the company’s annual Made On YouTube product event. “AI will enable people to push the boundaries of creative expression by making the difficult things simple,” Mohan added. He said YouTube is trying to bring “these powerful tools” to the masses. ...

Google rolls out a major expansion of its Bard AI chatbot

20Sep

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Google rolls out a major expansion of its Bard AI chatbot

New York CNN — Google’s Bard artificial intelligence chatbot is evolving. The company on Tuesday announced a series of updates to Bard that will give the chatbot access to Google’s full suite of tools — including YouTube, Google Drive, Google Flights and others — to assist users in a wider variety of tasks. Users will be able, for example, to ask Bard to plan an upcoming trip, complete with real flight options. Or a user could ask the tool to summarize meeting notes made in a recent Google Drive document. The connections to Google’s other services are just some of the improvements to Bard coming Tuesday. Other updates include the ability to communicate with the chatbot in multiple languages, new fa...