Deutsche Telekom partners with Perplexity for AI-powered smartphone

Deutsche Telekom has announced plans to release an “AI Phone” developed in collaboration with Perplexity, the AI search company. According to Ingrid Lunden at TechCrunch, the device will launch in 2026 at under $1,000, initially targeting European markets. The phone will feature AI capabilities integrated into the lock screen, with Perplexity’s technology enabling proactive assistance …

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Google Gemini adds video and screen-sharing features

Google is introducing new capabilities to its AI assistant Gemini, allowing users to interact with videos and share their screens in real time. According to Ivan Mehta at TechCrunch, the “Screenshare” feature enables users to show Gemini what’s on their phone screen and ask related questions. For example, shoppers can get recommendations on what clothes …

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GPT-4.5: A different kind of intelligence with high costs and mixed reception

OpenAI’s latest language model, GPT-4.5, has generated significant discussion in the AI community since its release. While it represents OpenAI’s largest and most knowledgeable model to date, its practical value remains contested among experts and users. A costly advancement GPT-4.5 comes with a steep price tag: approximately 10 to 20 times more expensive than Claude …

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OpenAI to integrate Sora video generator into ChatGPT

OpenAI plans to incorporate its AI video generation tool Sora directly into ChatGPT, according to company leaders during a Friday Discord session. As reported by Maxwell Zeff, Sora is currently only available through a dedicated web app launched in December. Rohan Sahai, OpenAI’s product lead for Sora, indicated that while the ChatGPT integration is being …

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Microsoft brings Copilot app to Mac with new features

Microsoft has launched a native Copilot app for macOS users in the US, UK, and Canada. According to Tom Warren from The Verge, the app provides access to Microsoft’s web-based AI assistant, allowing users to generate images and text or upload images. The Mac version includes dark mode support and can be activated with Command …

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These diffusion-based language models run 10 times faster than current LLMs

Inception Labs has unveiled Mercury, a new family of diffusion-based large language models (dLLMs) that can generate text up to 10 times faster than conventional autoregressive LLMs. According to the company, Mercury models can process over 1,000 tokens per second on NVIDIA H100 GPUs, speeds previously achievable only with specialized hardware. The company’s first publicly …

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You.com’s AI research tool processes 400+ sources simultaneously

You.com has unveiled a new AI research tool called Advanced Research & Insights agent (ARI) that can analyze more than 400 sources at once. According to CEO Richard Socher, interviewed by Michael Nuñez for VentureBeat, the tool aims to transform market research by producing comprehensive reports in minutes instead of weeks. ARI features direct source …

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ElevenLabs launches Scribe with record 96.7% accuracy for English speech-to-text

ElevenLabs has released Scribe v1, a new speech-to-text model achieving record accuracy rates across 99 languages. According to Carl Franzen of VentureBeat, the model outperforms competitors from Google, OpenAI, and Deepgram with a 96.7% accuracy rate for English. Scribe can distinguish up to 32 different speakers in a single audio file and detect non-verbal elements …

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IBM Granite 3.2 introduces conditional reasoning for enterprise AI

IBM has released its Granite 3.2 large language model family featuring a new approach called conditional reasoning. According to Sean Michael Kerner of VentureBeat, this update embeds reasoning capabilities directly into core models rather than creating separate reasoning models. The system allows users to activate reasoning only when needed, improving efficiency for complex tasks. Granite …

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Alibaba’s video and image AI model Wan 2.1 now open source

Alibaba Group has made its video and image generation AI model Wan 2.1 publicly available as open source. Reuters reports that four variants of the model are now accessible globally through Alibaba Cloud’s ModelScope and HuggingFace platforms for academic, research, and commercial use. The most powerful variants can process up to 14 billion parameters, enabling …

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