Latest news with #AppleWWDC
Miami Herald
24-06-2025
- Miami Herald
Analyst sends Alphabet warning amid major market shakeup
Do you trust Google? Would Google lie to you? I just "googled" pizza. Now lying hidden behind the tools section is what used to be front and center: a ridiculous estimate of 2,030,000,000 search results. I clicked on the last page of search results, and voilà, it now says: Page 18 of about 179 results. What a lie. But if you are making an estimate it is OK. You can estimate whatever you want. All's fair in love and war, and business I guess. Related: OpenAI makes shocking move amid fierce competition, Microsoft problems But what about the measly 179 pages it found? Am I living the Truman Show? I guess my island is just a little bit bigger than Truman's, and that is why I got 179 results. I hope you will agree that it is extremely improbable that there are only 179 web pages containing word pizza on the internet. We all trust Google. We have to. There is no better search engine available yet, sadly. We are all stuck inside these hideous bubbles. Little prison islands. Things are changing and not for the better. Many people now do their searches with in the search query, to find the information they are looking for on Reddit. They are replacing one bubble with another. When Google launched the artificial intelligence overview feature last year, it quickly turned into a scandal. AI was giving "amazing" advice to people, like telling them to use glue to stick cheese to pizza. Eating rocks is fine, as long as you stick with one a day. The problems were quickly patched, but the issue is that the number of potentially dangerous hallucinations is infinite. You have to keep patching the damned thing ad infinitum. Does that sound like a good and viable plan to you? In their National AI Opinion Monitor: AI trust and knowledge in America, Katherine Ognyanova, and Vivek Singh from Rutgers University, write: "Americans across all demographic groups trust information produced by mainstream media journalists more than AI-generated information. Overall, 62% trust journalistic content "some" or "a lot", compared to 48% who trust AI content." Related: Apple WWDC underwhelms fans in a crucial upgrade This statistic tells me that people have a short memory, and that the previously mentioned incident is now ancient history. Google is faced with a new kind of competition, which now doesn't have to crawl the "whole" internet to provide search results. The agentic AI era has led us to internet scraping of a lesser scale being able to provide the answers to user's queries in the form of chatbots. For some users (perhaps the 48% mentioned before) these answers are good enough. The company is pushed into providing the same service. But there is a negative side effect that will slowly unravel. More Tech Stocks: Amazon tries to make AI great again (or maybe for the first time)Veteran portfolio manager raises eyebrows with latest Meta Platforms moveGoogle plans major AI shift after Meta's surprising $14 billion move AI powered search services are causing "zero-click" searches. Users get their answers directly on the search page, they don't need to visit any website. Websites that create valuable content get less traffic. This will result in fewer websites offering good content, and in turn, make the search worse. That is the serpent eating its tail. Bank of America analysts, Justin Post and Nitin Bansal, shared their opinions on the Alphabet (GOOGL) / (GOOGL) stock. "The starting point for access to information and transactions will shift from browser based to mobile O/S [and] app based, with at least 5 tech titans (Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, OpenAI) targeting the opportunity. This shift will erode Google's long-standing competitive moats and reduce usage share," said analysts. Related: Popular AI stock inks 5G network deal Analysts noted three important threats for Google: OpenAI is well-funded for the near term. It is scaling rapidly and is likely to introduce could launch Agentic AI capabilities to its 1 billion assistant has built an agent that can shop across other sites. They set the price objective of $200/$200, retaining the buy rating, based on 18 times the estimate for core Google GAAP earnings per share plus cash per share estimate for 2026. Alphabet has traded at an average multiple of 22 times GAAP price-to-earnings ratio over the last ten years. Analysts concluded that their multiple is reasonable compared to history given expectations for double-digit revenue growth, cloud margin expansion, and opportunity to capitalize on strong AI assets. However, it remains to be seen how AI will transform search, and whether Alphabet's Google will be able to maintain its dominance. Related: Amazon's latest big bet may flop The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Miami Herald
22-06-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
OpenAI makes shocking move amid fierce competition, Microsoft problems
A blind man once told me, "I wish I knew what a beautiful woman looks like". He started losing his sight from birth and lost it completely while he was still just a child. What do the engineers trying to make artificial intelligence know about intelligence? To me, they look like a bunch of blind men, trying to build a "living" statue of a beautiful person. The worst part is, they don't even know they are blind. Do you remember the scandal when an engineer from Google claimed that the company's AI is sentient? When I saw the headlines, I didn't even open the articles, but my conclusion was that either Google made a terrible mistake in hiring him or it was an elaborate PR stunt. I thought Google was famous for having a high hiring bar, so I was leaning toward a PR stunt-I was wrong. Related: Apple WWDC underwhelms fans in a crucial upgrade What is amazing about that story is that roughly six months later, ChatGPT came out and put Google's AI department into panic mode. They were far behind ChatGPT, which was not even close to being sentient. Engineers from OpenAI, were the ones to start a new era, the era in which investors are presented with a statue that sort of has a human face, and has a speaker inside playing recordings of human speech, expecting that the "blind" men working on it, will soon make it become alive and beautiful. Of course, investors are also ignorant of the fact that engineers are "blind". OpenAI is now faced with many rivals, and the developing situation is starting to look like a bunch of bullies trying to out-bully each other instead of offering a superior product. Meta's recent investment of $15 billion in Scale AI seems to have hit OpenAI quite hard. OpenAI will phase out work with Scale AI, said the company spokesperson for Bloomberg on June 18th. According to the same source, Scale AI accounted for a small fraction of OpenAI's overall data needs. It looks like Meta's latest move angered OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman. In a podcast hosted by his brother, he revealed that Meta Platforms dangled $100 million signing bonuses to lure OpenAI staff, only to fail. "None of our best people have decided to take them up on that," he said, writes Moz Farooque for TheStreet. Related: Popular AI stock inks 5G network deal Unless Altman shows some evidence, this can also be a way to mislead Meta's engineers into believing they aren't compensated fairly. Not that Zuckerberg wouldn't do such a thing, but only the people involved know the truth. As if OpenAI's competition is closing in, buying partner companies and trying to poach its staff by offering ridiculous bonuses aren't enough, the company has even more problems. It is bleeding money, and has issues with a big stakeholder. More AI Stocks: Veteran fund manager raises eyebrows with latest Meta Platforms moveGoogle plans major AI shift after Meta's surprising $14 billion moveAnalysts revamp forecast for Nvidia-backed AI stock OpenAI lost about $5 billion in 2024. There are no estimates on how much the company will lose this year, but according to Bloomberg News, the company does not expect to become cash flow positive until 2029. Latest developments will likely push that date farther into the future. Microsoft has invested about $14 billion in OpenAI; however, the relationship has turned sour since then. OpenAI has considered accusing Microsoft of anticompetitive behavior in their deal, reported the Wall Street Journal on June 16th. On June 19th The Financial Times reported that Microsoft is prepared to abandon its negotiations with OpenAI if the two sides cannot agree on critical issues. Meanwhile, OpenAI has started shockingly discounting enterprise subscriptions to ChatGPT. This had angered salespeople at Microsoft, which sells competing apps at higher prices, reported The Information. Related: Amazon's latest big bet may flop "In my experience, products are only discounted when they are not selling because customers do not perceive value at the higher price. If someone loses copious amounts of money at the higher price, how will the economics work at a lower price?" wrote veteran hedge fund manager Doug Kass in his diary on TheStreet Pro." OpenAI's price cuts could kick off a price war, with a race to the bottom even as OpenAI, Microsoft, Meta, and Google continue plowing tens of billions into developing it. "My suspicion, although those guys might be good (in theory) at technology, they are not good at business. I think they will find much less in the way of elasticity than they hope, because the problem is the quality of the output more than it is the price," said Kass. What will happen to OpenAI's cash flow positive plan after 2029? I doubt it is reachable with the now slashed prices. Will the company even live to see 2029? I think that is a better question. Related: Elon Musk's DOGE made huge mistakes with veterans' programs The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
The Citizen
17-06-2025
- Business
- The Citizen
Trump launches new gold smartphone ‘made entirely in US'
The Trump Organisation claims the new gold smartphone is built entirely in the United States. What do you think of the new Donald Trump T1 smartphone? Picture: Trump Mobile US President Donald Trump has unveiled a new gold smartphone that he claims is built entirely in the United States (US). Trump phone The new device, called the T1 Phone 8002 (gold version), costs $499, with reservations available for a $100 deposit. According to the website, the phone is expected to be available in September. The announcement comes amid an effort to entice Trump's supporters away from major telecom providers and wireless network services. Dubbed the 47 Plan, the service will cost consumers $47.45 a month and will offer '5G service through all three major cellular carriers' – T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T. According to the statement, it will offer telemedicine, unlimited texting plans with 100 countries, and roadside assistance. ALSO READ: Apple WWDC: Everything Apple announced including Liquid Glass 'Change the game' The eponymous Trump Mobile was announced in a Monday statement issued by The Trump Organization, which is led by President Donald Trump's son, Eric. 'Trump Mobile is going to change the game, we're building on the movement to put America first, and we will deliver the highest levels of quality and service. Our company is based right here in the United States because we know it's what our customers want and deserve,' said Executive Vice President of The Trump Organization, Donald Trump Jr. 'Sloppy' The 'T1 Phone' is advertised as 'proudly designed and built in the United States'. The Verge questioned the viability of building a phone in the US so quickly. 'All we have is a website that was clearly put together quickly and somewhat sloppily, a promise that the phone is 'designed and built in the USA' that I absolutely do not believe, a picture that appears to be nearly 100% Photoshopped, and a list of specs that don't make a lot of sense together. 'The existence of a 'gold version' of the phone implies a not-gold version, but the Trump Mobile website doesn't say anything more about that,' David Pearce at The Verge reported. Targeting Apple? The T1 announcement coincides with increased tension between the Trump administration and Apple in particular. In May, Trump threatened Apple with a 25% tariff for any iPhone sold but not made in the United States, putting new pressure on CEO Tim Cook to move manufacturing out of Asia. 'I have long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhone's that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or any place else,' Trump in a Truth Social post. 'If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the US. Thank you for your attention to this matter!' China However, the US president later expanded the threat to include all smartphone makers. While Apple designs its products in Cupertino at the company's headquarters in the United States, most iPhone assembly occur at the Foxconn factory in China. Apple has announced plans to shift some production to other countries, including India, but Trump said this would not satisfy his demands. ALSO READ: [REVIEW] Huawei Mate XT: No tri-fold gimmick smartphone, but it's pricey
CNET
14-06-2025
- CNET
Liquid Glass Looks Great, but I'm More Hyped for These Low-Key iOS 26 Features
The next version of iPhone software is iOS 26 -- and no, that's not a typo. Apple announced the new name and new Liquid Glass look at WWDC 2025 earlier this week. The update to iOS 26 comes with a lot of features and improvements that I've wanted for some time, including call screening. Last year, we got Apple Intelligence, and the year before that, the company unveiled the Vision Pro. This year, Apple renamed all of its software and made it look more unified. It might not sound as big a deal as previous WWDCs, but if you hoped Apple would talk more about software and less about AI, then this was your year. Instead of getting iOS 19, Apple released iOS 26. Typically, a new version of iOS comes out in the fall, but it can receive smaller updates through the following spring and summer. So iOS 26 is a reference to the fact that it will get minor updates through 2026. The biggest update wasn't the iOS name change. It was Liquid Glass, a design overhaul that adds transparency and is aimed at reducing distraction. However, some people's instant reaction was less than favorable to the new look. I am fascinated by what I saw with Liquid Glass and look forward to testing it as part of the iOS 26 beta version. But Liquid Glass didn't get me as hyped as some of the other features Apple included in iOS 26, like the Camera app redesign. The theme at this year's WWDC is consistency -- consistency in terms of the overall experience an Apple device owner has. iOS 26 is a great example of this because it brings a sophisticated and contemporary feel to the iPhone's software. Check out my iOS 26 video above, in which I walk you through all the big features in the new iOS and show you a couple of smaller ones (some might find them mundane) that I'm excited about. iOS 26 will launch this fall and is available now as a developer beta. The public beta version will be available in July. You need an iPhone 11 or newer to use iOS 26. If you want to give it a spin before it's released, I recommend waiting for the public beta version and even then not running it on your main iPhone.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Apple WWDC underwhelms fans in a crucial upgrade
Apple WWDC underwhelms fans in a crucial upgrade originally appeared on TheStreet. Do you know about Asch conformity experiments? Solomon Asch performed them in the 1950s. He invited individuals into the lab and asked them to judge the length of a line. He also placed 6 actors in the same room who were assigned to give the wrong answers so that the ignorant subject could hear them before he provided his own answer. On average, 35% of the subjects followed the opinions of the actors even if their answer was obviously wrong. That is horrifying. What is even worse is that the study has been replicated numerous times. Now, imagine a scenario in which the actors are given money immediately after giving the wrong answer, and the subject can see that too. What would be the percentage of subjects that gave the wrong answer then?That study hasn't been done, but I think we are witnessing something similar unfolding in the tech space. Marketing is everything. If artificial intelligence were called "pattern matching and transformation," it would not sound so cool, would it? Alas, there is precisely zero intelligence in AI. It is just pattern matching and transformation. This is why it hallucinates so much. The farther away from its training data the query you give to the AI is, the crazier the reply you'll get. Public companies don't do marketing just for consumers; they also need to attract investors. And when everyone around you starts hyping AI to attract investors, you may find yourself in a dilemma - is it OK to promise something you probably can't deliver? Apple () seems stuck in this dilemma but also faces significant pressures outside AI. President Trump's threat of a 25% tariff on iPhones not manufactured in the U.S. put Apple under pressure. The company expects tariffs to add $900 million to its costs for the current quarter. I've already written why large language models can't become sentient. But Apple can't afford to say that. They carefully dance around it by occasionally releasing a research paper on AI's limitations, but that usually looks like a jab at the competition. The company's management probably feels like a person in Asch's experiment, except that the actors are the competitors. Rivals promise stuff from science fiction, but that is still attracting investors. Chaos created by unrealistic marketing is real. Microsoft recently invested in an AI company that went bankrupt. The company had no AI but a huge number of humans doing the launched its AI blog in June, seemingly planning to show that AI can replace writers. They killed this project after just one week. It looks like AI companies are playing a game of telephone on the inside, and that is how that project got greenlit. More Tech Stocks: Palantir gets great news from the Pentagon Analyst has blunt words on Trump's iPhone tariff plans OpenAI teams up with legendary Apple exec Apple is held to a much higher standard by consumers than other companies. The company can't afford the luxury of delivering subpar products. In a world full of people with crippled attention spans from watching TikTok and YouTube shorts, Apple delivered an hour and a half of pure boredom. I don't have a problem watching long informative videos, but this one wasn't that. Thank you, YouTube, for the video speed settings—a lifesaver. Apple has veered off course due to pressure. Their new design language, Liquid Glass, isn't original. Windows Aero was trendy in 2006. The Linux desktop environment KDE Plasma has featured numerous transparent/glass themes over the last 17 Apple did it with more polish. But transparency and monochrome icons ruin accessibility. They are cool-looking only if you are a child. You don't have time for distractions if you have work to do. As for the big AI reveal that some people were hoping for, there wasn't one. The best feature they presented was a call translator. I am not sure how many people need it, but those who do will greatly appreciate it. Long-time fund manager Chris Versace, wrote on TheStreet Pro "It is hard to disagree, at least for now, that Apple is taking, as some have called it, a 'gap year' on Apple Intelligence, but one of the great advantages the company has is its developer community and that's the core audience for WWDC." Apple used to have a slogan, "Think different." Well, if the company thinks differently, it ain't showing WWDC underwhelms fans in a crucial upgrade first appeared on TheStreet on Jun 12, 2025 This story was originally reported by TheStreet on Jun 12, 2025, where it first appeared. Sign in to access your portfolio
