Webtagr - Technology News Summarizer

The Regret of ChatGPT's Godfather: Has the Democratization of AI Failed?

2025-03-29

In 2017, Jeremy Howard's breakthrough in natural language processing laid the groundwork for tools like ChatGPT. He achieved a leap in AI's text comprehension by training a large language model to predict Wikipedia text. However, this technology fell under the control of a few large tech companies, leading Howard to worry about the failure of AI democratization. He and his wife, Rachel Thomas, gave up high-paying jobs to found fast.ai, dedicated to popularizing machine learning knowledge. Yet, they watched as AI technology became monopolized by a few corporations, becoming a tool for capital competition, leaving him deeply frustrated and anxious.

(www.abc.net.au)

AI Tech Democratization

Bio-Computer Plays Pong: A New Era of Biological AI?

2025-03-05

Australian startup Cortical Labs unveiled CL1, a biological computer powered by hundreds of thousands of living human neurons. Accessible via a cloud-based "Wetware-as-a-Service" system, CL1 boasts low power consumption and rapid learning capabilities, promising applications in disease modeling, drug testing, and biological AI. While CL1's learning abilities currently lag behind traditional AI, its unique biological properties offer advantages in specific applications; it has already taught neurons to play Pong. However, ethical concerns have been raised, prompting the team to collaborate with bioethicists to ensure safety and responsible development.

(www.abc.net.au)

AI Biocomputer Biological AI Neurons

Shocking: Nearly 1 in 10 People Use the Same Four-Digit PIN

2025-01-28

Analysis of 29 million PINs reveals that nearly one in ten people use the same four-digit PIN, with '1234' being the most popular. Researchers found people favor birthdays, repeating digits, or sequential numbers on the keypad, making these PINs easily guessable. The findings highlight a widespread security vulnerability in PIN selection, urging users to adopt stronger PINs for enhanced personal data protection.

(www.abc.net.au)

Tech PIN

NZ Opens Doors to Digital Nomads with Relaxed Visa Rules

2025-01-27

New Zealand is loosening its visitor visa rules to attract digital nomads, particularly high-skilled IT professionals from the US and Asia. This move, announced by Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis, aims to boost the country's economy by bringing in high-value tourists. While the changes apply to all visitor visas, allowing remote work for foreign companies, those working over 90 days may need to declare themselves as tax residents. The government acknowledges potential risks, such as increased infrastructure strain, but believes the benefits outweigh them.

(www.abc.net.au)

Startup digital nomad visa policy

Rule-Breaking Neutron Star Spins Once Every Six Hours

2025-01-16

Australian scientists have discovered a neutron star, ASKAP J1839-075, with an incredibly slow rotation period of 6.5 hours – thousands of times slower than expected. This challenges our understanding of neutron star evolution, as it's believed pulsars stop emitting radio waves as they slow down. This one, however, continues to emit. The discovery, made using the ASKAP radio telescope, was a lucky find, and future telescopes like SKA-Low are expected to reveal more about these extreme objects.

(www.abc.net.au)

Tech Neutron Star Pulsar Radio Telescope

Carnarvon's NASA Dish Receives First Signal in Nearly 40 Years

2025-01-14

A 29-meter-wide satellite dish in Carnarvon, Australia, once used by NASA, has received its first signal in almost 40 years. After a 20-year lease by Canadian aerospace company ThothX and extensive refurbishment, including cleaning decades of pigeon droppings and manually rotating the massive dish, the team successfully received a signal. The dish will now be used to track orbital traffic and "adversary" spacecraft, becoming a key component of ThothX's global satellite tracking network.

(www.abc.net.au)

Tech Space Satellite

Pulitzer Winner Quits Washington Post After Bezos-Trump Cartoon Rejected

2025-01-05

Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Ann Telnaes resigned from the Washington Post after the newspaper refused to publish her cartoon satirizing owner Jeff Bezos bowing to Donald Trump alongside other tech CEOs. The Post cited prior coverage of the topic as the reason for rejection, but Telnaes viewed it as censorship and a threat to press freedom. The incident sparked controversy, with the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists accusing the Post of 'political cowardice'.

(www.abc.net.au)

Misc cartoon censorship Jeff Bezos