In 1964, science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke predicted that computers would overtake human evolution.“Present-day electronic brains are complete morons, but this will not be true in another generation,” he told the BBC. “They will start to think, and eventually, they will completely out-think their makers.”
Tech
AI is not the end of the world
Daniel Roher opens his new documentary The AI Doc: Or How I Became An Apocaloptimist (2026) with this cheerful prophecy. And in the hundred-some minutes that follow, he tries to make sense of a technology that, by his own admission, he does not understand — and a world that is rapidly being changed by it. Explaining that he conceives of AI as a “magic box floating in space,” he enlists the help of experts to provide him with a crash course in what, exactly, AI is.
Roher’s real concern, however, isn’t so much about the workings of AI — though some of his subjects do attempt to explain them for him — but whether it might displace us, as Clarke’s prediction suggests it will.
While making the film, Roher learns that his wife Caroline is pregnant with their first child. He tracks his wife’s pregnancy and the birth of his son in parallel with the advent of AI. It’s a smart choice that builds on a fear all parents share: What sort of world are we making for our children? And behind that question is another, vibrating in anxious silence: What happens after our offspring replace us? This twinned existential angst drives his efforts to hear from the doomers, the techno-optimists, and the in-between “apocaloptimists” whose ranks he ultimately joins.
The AI Doc, as its sweeping title suggests, wants to shape and lead the narrative around AI. It’s certainly set up to do that — Roher is fresh off an Oscar win for his documentary Navalny, and the film opened in nearly 800 theaters, which counts as wide-release for a nonfiction title. The final product is indicative of the ways that public attitudes around AI are in massive flux. Roher hopes to reach people of my grandmother’s generation who conflate AI with smartphones and spellcheck, as well as people who don’t seem to care whether a video was AI-generated.
But I think that this documentary has come too late to steer the conversation, something the film itself acknowledges. For all its transformative potential, AI isn’t actually unique among emerging technologies yet — it has not been cataclysmic or ushered in a golden age of prosperity — but Roher and many of those he interviews tend to treat it as a radical break with all that has come before. As a result, they tend to fixate on the binary extremes of doom or salvation. It’s an approach that reinforces our own helplessness in the face of AI-driven change, while also muddying our understanding of what we might yet be able to do as we seek to adapt, mitigate harm, and shape the world that AI could otherwise truly start remaking.
Roher, contemplating his child’s future, opts to hear the bad news first. Tristan Harris, the cofounder of the Center for Humane Technology, doesn’t mince words: “I know people who work on AI risk who don’t expect their children to make it to high school.”
Many of the film’s other interviewees are similarly gloomy. Geoffrey Hinton, the “godfather of AI,” for example, argues that as AI becomes smarter, it will become better at manipulating humanity. But no one is more pessimistic than Eliezer Yudkowsky, the well-known AI doomer and co-author of the controversial book If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies. As the title suggests, Yudkowsky believes that superintelligent AI would wipe out humanity — a position that he stands by and lays out for Roher.
Turning his back on these storm clouds — and taking the advice of his wife, Caroline, who tells him that he needs to find hope for the future — Roher tunes into the chorus of AI optimists. They tell him, variously, that there are more potential benefits than downsides to AI; that technology has made the world better in every way; that this will be the tool that helps us solve all our greatest problems. Not to mention: AI will bring the best health care on the planet to the poorest people on Earth, extend our healthspan by decades, and enable us to live in a postscarcity utopia free of drudgery. Oh, and: We will become an interplanetary species, all thanks to AI.
These promises initially reassure Roher, perhaps because he seems easily led by whomever he’s spoken to most recently. It is Harris who ultimately convinces him that we can’t separate the promise of AI from the peril it presents. The conclusions that result will be obvious to anyone who’s thought about these issues for more than a moment or two: If AI automates work, for example, how will people make a living?
It doesn’t help that many of the most invested players reflect on these questions superficially, if at all. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman tells Roher that he’s worried about how authoritarian governments will use AI — a claim that is followed in the film by a cut to images of Altman posing with authoritarian leaders. Other tech CEOs fall back on PR pleasantries in response to the filmmaker’s questions, and Roher too often goes easy on them, never diving deeper when they admit that even they aren’t confident that everything will go well. That these are the leaders of AI companies racing against each other to make the technology more and more advanced does little to inspire confidence.
(Some of the techno-pessimistic people interviewed for the documentary have expressed their strong displeasure with the final result.)
“Why can’t we just stop?” Roher asks these tech CEOs. He’s told that a moratorium is a pipe dream: Many groups around the world are building advanced AI, all with different motivations. Legislation lags far behind the rate of technological progress. Even if we could pass laws in the US and EU that would stop or slow things down, says Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, we’d have to convince the Chinese government to follow suit.
If we don’t create it, the thinking goes, our enemies will. It’s best to get ahead of them.
This is, of course, the logic of nuclear deterrence: If we don’t mitigate the risk of ending the world through mutually assured destruction, there’s nothing stopping someone else from pressing the button first.
An apocalypse in every generation
The atomic comparison is apt, if only because Roher sees the stakes in similarly stark terms. “Will my son live in a utopia, or will we go extinct in 10 years?” he wonders aloud. It’s a question that’s central to the film. But he never really sits with the more likely scenario that AI will neither lead to human extinction nor end all disease and drudgery. Every generation faces the specter of its own annihilation — and yet the ends of days keep accumulating, no matter how close the doomsday clock gets to apocalypse.
The point, then, isn’t that AI won’t be bad for us, but that by framing the question in strictly utopian or dystopian terms, we miss the messy reality that lies between hell on earth and heaven in the stars. Although The AI Doc tries to chart an “apocaloptimist” course between two extremes, it doesn’t grasp the real stakes. AI doesn’t really create new risks as such — it’s a force multiplier for existing ones like the threat of nuclear warfare and the development and use of biological weapons. The chief existential risks of AI are human-made and human-driven. And that means, as Caroline says in the film’s ending narration, “We get to decide how this goes.” She’s right, but her husband never seems to understand how she’s right.
Like too many Big Issue Documentaries, Roher’s film is heavy on problems and light on solutions. It does offer some, calling for international cooperation, transparency, legal liabilities for companies if something goes wrong, testing before release, and adaptive rules to match the speed of progress. But just as this is a strictly introductory course in AI — one that will probably irritate those who’ve already moved on to AI 102 — these recommendations are only a starting point. For Roher, they offer reason to be hopeful. For the rest of us, they’re just the beginning of an opportunity to meaningfully steer the course of our future.
Continue Reading
Seattle customer engagement startup Ambassador has acquired the operating assets of Tacoma-based programmatic ad platform Humming, part of a roll-up strategy that anticipates a larger shakeout among startups as major AI platforms expand their capabilities.
The deal will bring Humming’s technology for automatically buying and placing digital ads into Ambassador’s platform, which uses AI to manage and act on customer referrals, loyalty programs, surveys, and other feedback. Ambassador said the addition will improve its attribution capabilities, connecting ad spending to purchases, leads, and other customer actions.
It’s the latest in a series of acquisitions for the 22-person Seattle company, which has raised about $11 million.
The AI shakeout: Ambassador CEO Geoff McDonald said he sees more opportunities for deals in the future as AI startups that essentially built wrappers around large language models struggle to hold onto customers as Anthropic, OpenAI and others add similar capabilities.
The companies that will succeed, in McDonald’s view, are the ones sitting on years of proprietary customer data that can’t be quickly reproduced, what he calls the context layer.
Ambassador has been accumulating that data since well before the current AI wave, bolstered by its 2021 acquisition of a referral marketing platform from an Apollo Global Management subsidiary. It has since rebuilt the platform around AI.
Customers of relatively nascent AI startups are increasingly saying, “Oh, well, Claude just came out with this tool. I’m just going to build it internally,” McDonald said, referring to Anthropic’s popular AI assistant. “And I think that’s where we differentiate.”
Latest acquisition: The Humming deal, structured as an asset purchase, closed last week. Financial terms were not disclosed. Humming, founded in 2018, built a platform for buying and managing ad campaigns across websites, apps, and streaming services.
Based in Tacoma, the company was co-founded by Bill Herling and Jill Nealey-Moore, a psychology professor at the University of Puget Sound, and raised more than $5 million, according to Herling’s LinkedIn profile.
The company had more than 30 employees at its peak. Herling stepped down as CEO in 2023 and has since launched a new ad tech startup called Atrium, focused on TV advertising. He is not joining Ambassador, and Humming’s standalone product will be discontinued.
Ambassador expects to integrate Humming’s technology into its platform within 60 days, an accelerated timeline that McDonald attributed to Ambassador’s use of AI in its own engineering process. Chief Operating Officer Mark Steffler said the team has been shipping new features to customers every two weeks, crediting the company’s use of AI coding tools.
Business model: Ambassador has also shifted its approach away from traditional software subscriptions toward what McDonald calls “Results as a Service,” or RaaS — charging customers based on consumption credits tied to outcomes rather than flat fees for seats or contacts.
The model is designed so that customers pay more when the platform delivers more value, and less when it doesn’t. McDonald said he plans to apply the same pricing approach to Humming’s programmatic ad capabilities, which he described as a first for the space.
Zipwhip connection: Ambassador’s chief strategy officer and co-founder is John Larson, who co-founded Seattle-based business texting startup Zipwhip, which Twilio acquired for $850 million in 2021. He spent three years at Twilio after the deal before joining Ambassador full-time in mid-2024.
He was part of a $7 million funding round in December that included other former Zipwhip execs, calling the company the biggest personal investment of his career.
M&A: Larson said this week that he believes the current environment will produce more acquisition targets. While the “graveyard” of failed AI startups may not be as dire as headlines suggest, many companies with solid teams and technology simply can’t raise money, he said.
Before Humming, the company acquired Predictive Solutions, a Seattle customer data platform, and ChalkLabs, a Spokane-based semantic search startup, before buying the Ambassador referral marketing platform from Intrado, a subsidiary of Apollo Global Management, in 2021.
McDonald, who previously co-founded Seattle startup Element Data, a decision intelligence platform, launched the company as i2H in 2019. The holding company began doing business under the Ambassador name after completing the acquisition from the Apollo Global subsidiary.
Customers: Ambassador says it works with more than 200 companies, listing customers including Visible by Verizon, Canadian bank CIBC, and HR software company Rippling on its website. Its customers are primarily in telecom, financial services, and B2B software.
Financials: The privately held company is approaching cash-flow neutral, McDonald said, distinguishing it from many startups that are burning through their funding as they grow.
The Batman: Part II is now set for an October 1, 2027 release, following multiple delays that pushed the sequel well beyond its original 2025 window. The extended timeline reflects a longer development cycle for director Matt Reeves’ follow-up, with the script only recently completed and production now expected to begin in spring 2026.
The sequel continues Reeves’ grounded take on Gotham, which began with The Batman in 2022. That film earned over $770 million globally and established a more detective-driven version of Bruce Wayne, set within what Reeves has described as an “epic crime saga.” Part II is expected to build directly on that foundation, exploring the aftermath of Gotham’s collapse and Bruce’s evolving role within it.
The delays have been tied to both industry-wide disruptions and Reeves’ deliberate approach to the script. DC Studios co-head James Gunn has confirmed that a completed draft is now in place, allowing the project to move forward after a prolonged development phase. With production finally on the horizon, the sequel is shifting from uncertainty to execution.
Robert Pattinson will return as Bruce Wayne/Batman and there are details with regards to the other cast as well. In a recent interview to French reality show C à vous, Pattinson shared that “The new script is so, so good, I’m very excited about it.” However, that is not all there is to update about this much-talked about film and thus, here is a complete rumor roundup.
When is The Batman Part II releasing?
The Batman: Part II has seen several release date changes. The Batman Part II was initially supposed to premiere on October 3, 2025. Unfortunately, nothing is guaranteed in the world of filmmaking.
The Batman Part II‘s release date was pushed by nearly a year to October 2, 2026. The film was then delayed again by almost another year. The Batman Part II is now scheduled to premiere on October 1, 2027. Oof.
Yes, the world will have to wait even longer to see Pattinson suit up again, marking a five-year span between the original film and the sequel. The delays stem from a combination of factors. The writers’ and actors’ strikes slowed development across Hollywood, while Reeves took additional time to finalize the script. Given the scale and expectations surrounding the sequel, the extended timeline appears to be a deliberate choice rather than a production setback.
The result is a five-year gap between the first film and its sequel — longer than typical superhero franchise timelines, but not unusual for director-driven projects of this scope.
What’s the plot of The Batman Part II?
Plot details remain tightly under wraps, but the sequel is expected to continue directly from the events of The Batman.
The first film ended with Gotham flooded and its institutions exposed as deeply corrupt. Bruce Wayne, having begun his transformation from a symbol of vengeance into a figure of hope, now faces a city in deeper chaos. Crime is likely to rise in the power vacuum left behind, setting the stage for a more complex and unstable Gotham.
My money is on Batman facing Thomas Elliot, a.k.a. Hush. Once a childhood friend of Bruce Wayne, this villain is famous for teaming up with the Riddler in the comics, as well as recruiting multiple other villains to battle and torment Batman with his knowledge of the hero’s true identity. At one point, Batman was even forced to fight a brainwashed Superman because of Hush.
The Batman did have the Riddler reveal that Bruce’s father inadvertently caused the death of a reporter named Edward Elliot. Given his surname, Edward may very well be Hush’s father. Combined with online rumors, it seems likely that the sequel will feature Hush as the main villain, seeking vengeance against Bruce for his father’s role in Edward’s murder.
Reeves also revealed that Bruce Wayne is going to have trouble being the hero Gotham needs.
“This was a time of great turmoil in the city, it’s literally the week after what happened,” he explained to Digital Spy. “Much of the city is in desperation, so police can’t get everywhere, there’s crime everywhere, it’s a very, very dangerous time. [Batman’s] out there trying to grapple with the aftermath of everything that happened, which to some degree he blames himself for.”
Even in the recent interactions, Reeves has indicated that the sequel will explore that instability, focusing on how both Batman and Bruce Wayne evolve in response to the city’s changing conditions.
Who is in the cast of The Batman Part II?
When Warner Bros. announced The Batman Part II in April 2022, only Pattinson was confirmed to return as Bruce Wayne/Batman. This seemed pretty obvious, given he plays the franchise’s lead character. Regardless, we’re almost 100% sure these core cast members will return: Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon and Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth.
Reeves confirmed to SFX magazine that Colin Farrell’s character, Oz Cobb/The Penguin, will be part of the movie. Farrell also starred in HBO Max’s spinoff series, The Penguin, which chronicled Cobb’s rise to the top of Gotham’s criminal underworld.
Farrell already shared his expectations for the sequel and what his contract with the franchise entails. “I signed up for three Batman films, but I didn’t know if I’d be in the second film,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “Matt Reeves is a brilliant writer and an extraordinary filmmaker, and what I’m most excited-slash-nervous about in the second film is not what Oz does – or what predicaments he finds himself in, or what moments of success he gets to experience – but what his voice is.”
“I was told I have five or six scenes. I don’t have any hopes or any expectations. I’m really an open book, and that’s the way I get excited by shit or not,” he continued. “I think sometimes actors, if they have a career that has a certain length of time, they sometimes get to make too many decisions. Which isn’t to say I won’t push back or argue or fight in Oz’s corner – I do believe I know him better than anyone now.”
Zoë Kravitz could return as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, but it’s also possible that Reeves will hold off on her return to give Bruce a new love interest.
Barry Keoghan had a brief cameo as The Joker in The Batman, hinting at an alliance with Paul Dano’s Riddler. While it isn’t official yet, Keoghan neither confirmed nor denied that his Clown Prince of Crime will appear, implying there is still more to come from him.
Harvey Dent/Two-Face was rumored to be the main antagonist of The Batman Part II, with actor Boyd Holbrook (Logan) hired to portray the iconic villain. However, James Gunn has since debunked those rumors on Threads. This seems to be for the best, as DC already featured a top-tier Two-Face as a core villain in 2008’s The Dark Knight.
Filming and production timeline
After an extended development period, Reeves confirmed in mid-2025 that the script for The Batman: Part II was complete. DC Studios has since indicated that filming will begin in spring 2026, giving the production a full year for shooting and post-production ahead of its 2027 release.
This timeline aligns with the film’s scale and the technical demands of Reeves’ grounded but visually detailed approach to Gotham.
Is there a trailer for The Batman Part II?
No. In fact, now that the film has been delayed to late 2027, audiences likely won’t see a trailer until mid-2026. The first trailer for 2025’s Superman was released seven months before its premiere. If The Batman Part II follows a similar marketing schedule, the world may not get a glimpse of the film until around March 2027.
How The Penguin connects to Part II
HBO’s The Penguin series serves as a direct continuation of The Batman, taking place shortly after the events of the film.
The series follows Oz Cobb’s rise within Gotham’s criminal hierarchy, filling the power vacuum left behind after the Riddler’s attack. That progression is expected to feed directly into The Batman: Part II, positioning Penguin as a more significant force within the city.
Reeves has emphasized that while the series adds context, the sequel will still function as a standalone story.
What’s the status of The Batman Part II’s script?
After years of waiting, Reeves finally revealed on Instagram that the script for The Batman Part II was complete on June 27, 2025. DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn has also revealed that he had received a finished draft of the script. “It’s great,” he said, without offering any additional detail on the film or who would be in it.
When is The Batman II going into production?
In a letter to shareholders, Warner Bros. confirmed that The Batman II would start filming in spring 2026. This aligns with the October 2027 release date and would give the movie more than a year for post-production and visual effects. Just don’t be surprised if there are more delays.
Matt Reeves was planning an entire trilogy
A lot has changed at DC since The Batman debuted in theaters. But back in 2024, Reeves was pretty insistent that he would make an entire trilogy.
“Yes, that is still the plan,” Reeves told Collider about making The Batman trilogy. “I mean, it’s sticking very closely to the path we envisioned.”
Will there be more TV spinoffs from The Batman?
Reeves has previously mentioned two other spinoffs from The Batman: one centered on the Gotham City Police Department and the other on Arkham Asylum. Although no other shows are currently lined up, Reeves told Collider: “We are talking about doing more — I think it would be really fun.”
What villains are rumored to be in The Batman Part II?
When talking to SFX magazine, Reeves shot down fans’ hopes of the supervillain Gentleman Ghost appearing in the sequel, stating that the character wouldn’t fit the franchise’s world.
“What was important to me was to find a way to take these pop icons, these mythical characters that everybody knows, and translate it so that Gotham feels like a place in our world. We might push to the edge of the fantastical, but we would never go into full fantastical. It’s meant to feel quite grounded,” Reeves said.
There are other rumors that the villains Clayface, Professor Pyg, and Scarecrow will show up in the sequel, along with Batman’s young ward, Dick Grayson/Robin. Despite these claims, Gunn took to Threads to deny the rumor that Pyg and Scarecrow will join Hush, Clayface, and Robin in Part 2. However, this statement implies the latter three characters will make their debut in the franchise.
Will Barry Keoghan be back as the Joker?
Keoghan’s cameo as the Joker was one of the most-talked-about moments of The Batman. But since Keoghan’s face was obscured in the film, it wouldn’t be hard for Reeves to recast the role if he wanted to. Keoghan was recently asked about coming back during a feature with Variety, and his answer was elusive at best.
“I can’t say much,” Keoghan said. “The camera is looking right at me. We’ll see where that goes. Again, it was an incredible experience … and yeah, I can’t say.”
Andy Serkis shares filming update on The Batman Part II
In an interview with Popverse, Serkis said he hasn’t seen a script for The Batman Part II. However, Serkis believes the sequel’s screenplay will be “brilliant” because of his affinity for Reeves. Serkis then predicted The Batman Part II’s start date for filming and when fans can expect it in theaters.
“Basically, I know nothing about the movie other than that I’ve just found out that we’re probably likely to be starting filming early next year,” Serkis said. “Therefore, if you do the math, it’ll be a year and a half after that.”
What to expect from the sequel?
While specific story details remain under wraps, The Batman: Part II is expected to deepen the tone established in the first film.
The sequel will likely place greater emphasis on Bruce Wayne’s personal evolution while continuing to explore Gotham as a city shaped by corruption, power struggles, and shifting alliances. Rather than expanding outward, the story is expected to become more focused, building on the grounded approach that defined Reeves’ first film.
Will the sequel connect to James Gunn’s DC Universe?
No. The Batman: Part II exists separately from the main DC Universe being developed by James Gunn and Peter Safran.
Reeves originally revealed to Entertainment Weekly that The Batman, its sequels, and its spinoffs will exist in a separate universe called “The Batman Epic Crime Saga.” That means Robert Pattinson’s Batman is not expected to intersect with the broader franchise, which includes its own version of the character.
This separation dates back to before Gunn and Safran took over DC Studios, when The Batman was developed as a standalone project. Reeves has since reiterated that his films and related spinoffs are designed to exist within their own self-contained universe.
That said, Gunn has acknowledged that the idea of bringing Pattinson’s Batman into the wider DCU has been considered, even if no plans are currently in place. For now, The Batman: Part II remains firmly positioned outside the shared universe.
What about that other Batman movie, The Brave and the Bold?
The recent delay of The Batman Part II to 2027 coincided with the delay of director Andy Muschietti’s Batman film, The Brave and the Bold, which is set in the DCU. This may lead one to wonder if Gunn will integrate The Batman Part II into the DCU after all. Gunn himself admitted on the Happy Sad Confused podcast that he floated the idea but still wishes to keep both franchises separate.
“I’ve contemplated it, yeah. I contemplate everything,” Gunn said. “I talk about everything… I’d be an idiot not to think of how can this go or how can this go, but I’m committed to both telling stories in the DCU and telling Elseworlds stories.”
Hey, DC, if Marvel could make two Spider-Man franchises at the same time, DC could do the same with two different Batmen.
The Hollywood Reporter has questioned whether the movie even exists or whether there’s someone actively working on it. Muschietti confirmed in October 2025 that the movie was still happening, but he couldn’t discuss it further for at least another two months.
Malwarebytes recently uncovered a new malicious campaign targeting the Windows Update service. Focused on French-speaking users, the campaign uses layered obfuscation techniques to deliver multiple malicious payloads built with legitimate tools. The malware’s primary goal is to steal passwords and other sensitive user data.
Read Entire Article
Source link
Bellevue, Wash.-based Humanly, a startup that makes AI-powered interviewing tools for employers, announced it has acquired Anthill, a platform that uses AI to help companies connect with and support frontline employees.
It’s the latest acquisition for Humanly, which scooped up three recruiting technology companies last year — Sprockets, Qualifi, and HourWork.
Humanly said Tuesday that the Anthill acquisition adds “post-hire engagement capabilities” to its offerings, which include helping organizations attract, screen, and interview job candidates.
Humanly will continue operating the Anthill platform as it explores how to integrate its capabilities into the broader Humanly platform. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Founded in 2018, Humanly is led by CEO Prem Kumar. The startup, ranked No. 152 on the GeekWire 200, just announced a $25 million Series B funding round last week, and has raised $52 million to date.
Founded in 2020 by Muriel Clauson Closs, Young-Jae Kim, and Laura Silvester, Chicago-based Anthill built technology designed to help frontline managers and distributed teams stay connected through messaging, feedback, and operational support. Anthill raised approximately $10 million in funding.
Ising models are designed to help perform quantum error correction and calibration.
Nvidia has announced a new family of open-source quantum AI models on World Quantum Day (14 April).
‘Ising’, the “world’s first” open models for building quantum processors, joins a growing list of Nvidia open-source models including ‘Alpamayo’ for autonomous vehicles, ‘Nemotron’ for agentic systems and ‘Cosmos’ for physical AI.
Ising models are designed to help researchers and enterprises perform quantum error correction and calibration.
The family includes Ising Calibration, a vision language model that can interpret and react to measurements from quantum processors, and Ising Decoding, two variants of a 3D convolutional neural network model that can perform real-time decoding for quantum error correction.
Ising Decoding can deliver up to two and a half-times faster performance and three-times higher accuracy than current open-source industry standards, Nvidia said. The models are available for download on GitHub, Hugging Face and Nvidia.
The Ising models are already in use at the Harvard John A Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, IQM Quantum Computers, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s Advanced Quantum Testbed, the UK National Physical Laboratory and the University of California San Diego, as well as a list of other prominent names disclosed by the company.
“AI is essential to making quantum computing practical,” said Jensen Huang, the founder and CEO of Nvidia. “With Ising, AI becomes the control plane – the operating system of quantum machines – transforming fragile qubits to scalable and reliable quantum GPU systems.”
Ising joins other Nvidia quantum-specific products, including the CUDA-Q quantum software platform, and the NVQ Link that connects GPU computing with quantum processors.
With major funding rounds, and a strong focus on research and development, the quantum sector is expected grow to more than $11bn in value by 2030.
In Ireland, home-grown start-up Equal1, which announced a $60m round in January, is working towards bringing its rack-mounted quantum processing units to the enterprise market.
Don’t miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic’s digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.
We’re sliding into developer conference season and one of the biggest events on the upcoming calendar is Google I/O. This year’s edition is taking place on May 19 and 20. As usual, the in-person element will happen in Mountain View, California, though many of the keynotes and sessions will be livestreamed. Google will surely make its biggest announcements during the opening keynote, which will start at 1PM ET on May 19. A developer keynote will take place later the same day.
As ever, the rumor mill will pick up speed in the leadup to Google I/O. We do have some ideas about what Google will discuss at the event. So let’s take a look at what to expect at Google I/O 2026 (we’ll update this story as we hear more credible rumors).
What’s officially on deck
Google I/O logo (Google)
When it confirmed the dates for this year’s I/O, Google revealed a little bit about what it has in store for us. As you might imagine, AI will be a major focus of the event. Google plans to share its “AI breakthroughs and updates in products across the company, from Gemini to Android, Chrome, Cloud and more,” it wrote in a blog post in February.
There will be news on Gemini model updates as well as agentic coding. Google will have some product demos too.
The company has released its initial schedule of keynotes and sessions, but it doesn’t provide us with a lot of specifics as yet. It has lined up discussions on what’s new in the likes of Google Play, Firebase (a mobile and web app development platform), the Gemma open model family and the open-source app development framework Flutter. Interestingly, there isn’t a dedicated session for Android XR on the schedule just yet.
What to expect
Leaked image of Google’s Aluminium OS (9to5Google)
There haven’t been many credible leaks ahead of Google I/O as yet, but we can make some educated guesses about what to expect from the event. It’s all but certain that we’ll get more details about Android 17 at I/O. Developers need time to tweak their apps ahead of the next major version of the operating system rolling out to everyone if they want to take advantage of new features as soon as possible, and they invariably get a heads up about those at I/O every year. (That said, Google has been moving away from a big annual release approach in favor of juicier Pixel Drops/Android updates, so we may not see some of the new features it unveils at I/O for some time.)
As for other operating systems, Google is planning to meld ChromeOS and Android into a unified platform. This seems to be the project that’s being referred to as Aluminium OS, which we got a first glimpse of earlier this year thanks to some leaks. I/O seems like the perfect venue for Google to start showing that off to the public.
On the AI front, a reveal of Gemini 4 could be on the docket, along with details of the latest Veo text-to-video model. Maybe we’ll hear more about Project Astra, Google’s pitch for a universal AI assistant.
If Google has some consumer hardware to show off at this year’s event, I suspect it’ll be an Android XR device or devices, rather than a Pixel phone or watch. There is a chance that we’ll get a tease of the Google Pixel 11 lineup. But don’t be surprised if we don’t see that or the Pixel Watch 5 until Google’s dedicated hardware event, which has taken place in August or October in recent years (Google will want to stay well away from Apple’s iPhone event, which will likely take place in September as usual).
Here’s hoping for a big surprise or two
Sure, Android updates are all well and good. If Google insists on cramming Gemini and other AI tools into all of its tools and services, we’ll at least listen to what they have to say about all that.
But I have my fingers crossed for some cool surprises. Give us something new from Google X (Alphabet’s moonshot factory, not the thing that was once Twitter), an idea that could be a net benefit for humanity and boost the company’s bottom line at the same time. These events are always more fun when there’s something for us to get genuinely excited about, even if it’s something relatively niche but out there, like the Google Beam 3D video conferencing tech.
Susan Kelly discusses Technology Ireland ICT Skillnet’s tech leadership master’s programme, which is celebrating 20 years in operation.
Last week, Technology Ireland ICT Skillnet announced its plans to award four fully funded places on its MSc in Leadership, Innovation and Technology programme to celebrate 20 years since the programme’s inception.
The funding – called the ‘Big 20 Giveaway’ – is valued at €20,000 per annum per place and will cover all tuition fees of the two-year programme for four candidates.
“The Big 20 Giveaway is a celebration of the programme’s 20-year impact, but also a very practical initiative to support future talent,” says Susan Kelly, network director at Technology Ireland ICT Skillnet.
“What we’re really celebrating is the impact the programme has had with over 300 graduates who have gone on to lead teams, functions and transformation initiatives across Ireland’s technology landscape and beyond.
“For us it is not just about looking back, it’s about investing in what comes next.”
The programme
But what is the course actually about?
The programme, which is delivered at Technological University Dublin, is a part-time, applied master’s designed specifically for experienced professionals working in technology and innovation-led environments.
“Its core objective is to help people move beyond technical expertise and develop the capability to lead, whether that is leading teams, driving innovation or shaping strategy at an organisational level,” says Kelly.
She tells SiliconRepublic.com that the programme focuses on three key areas: leadership capability, innovation and transformation, and business and strategic thinking.
“What really differentiates it is that it is applied, not theoretical,” she says. “Participants work on real challenges from their own organisations, so the learning is immediately relevant and delivers tangible value both to the individual and their employer.”
The programme has been in operation since 2006, and in the 20 years since then, technology has advanced considerably.
Kelly explains that a course such as this is more important than ever today because “the challenge right now isn’t access to technology, it is the ability to lead with it effectively”.
“Organisations are dealing with rapid change driven by AI, digital transformation and global competition,” she says. “The professionals who will stand out are those who can connect technology, strategy and people.”
She adds that the biggest benefit of the programme is that it enables participants to make the shift “from being the person who delivers technology to the person who shapes how and why it’s used”.
“It gives them the language of business and strategy, the confidence to operate at senior levels, and the ability to lead transformation and not just contribute to it.
“For many, it’s the difference between continuing to grow technically and actually stepping into leadership roles with broader organisational impact.”
Who it’s for
With four fully funded places on the programme up for grabs, what constitutes an ideal candidate for the course?
Kelly says the programme is designed for what she calls the “strategic technologist”, which she explains refers to someone who is already established in their career but is ready to take the next step.
“Typically, participants are mid- to senior-level professionals working in roles like software engineering, architecture, product, project management, cybersecurity or IT leadership,” she says. “They are already technically credible but looking to expand into broader leadership or strategic roles.”
She says course participants are often “at a career inflection point”, where they may be leading teams or projects already but “they recognise that technical expertise alone won’t get them to the next level”.
“Many are experiencing a technical ceiling, where they are highly capable but they don’t yet have the strategic, commercial or leadership toolkit to move into senior decision-making roles. This programme is designed specifically to help them break through that barrier.”
For anyone considering applying for one of the funded positions, Kelly says the organisation is looking for motivated, ambitious people who have strong technical or functional expertise and are already operating at a high level in their organisation, and who want to have a greater impact, “not just within their team but across their organisation”.
An important criteria that she emphasises is that they’re not looking for people at the start of their careers or those looking for purely academic study.
“This is for professionals who are already doing significant work and want to elevate their influence and capability,” she clarifies. “We’re also looking for people who will apply what they learn in real time by bringing challenges from their workplace into the programme and using it as a platform to drive meaningful change.
“Ultimately, the strongest candidates will be those who recognise that they’ve outgrown a purely technical role and are ready to take on the responsibilities and opportunities of leadership.”
Don’t miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic’s digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.
Tech
AI is speeding up and improving production, driving millions of creators to invest in better cameras and accessories
- Smartphone limits drive creators toward microphones, lenses, gimbals, and dedicated cameras
- Accessory spending rises as creators invest hundreds and thousands into gear upgrades
- AI-driven production growth exposes capture weaknesses and boosts hardware demand worldwide
Smartphones still dominate video creation, but growing evidence suggests their physical limits are driving a new spending wave on dedicated gear among millions of creators, experts have said.
A new report from Futuresource Consulting estimates the global population of online video creators reached 246 million in 2025 and could grow to 267 million by 2030. That growth is only part of the story, however, as spending patterns and equipment upgrades appear to be the real commercial driver behind the next phase.
The research draws on responses from more than 16,000 people across the USA, UK, Germany, France, Spain, Brazil, China, and India, and combines survey data with creator population sizing, forecasts, and analysis of device preferences and purchasing behavior.
Article continues below
Smartphones have physical limitations
“Smartphones remain the primary video acquisition device for the vast majority of creators,” said Helen Matthews, Senior Market Analyst at Futuresource. “But the number of users progressing towards dedicated hardware is growing at a significant rate. The closest dedicated alternative, vlogging cameras, falls far behind smartphones in our survey, underscoring how wide the gap remains, and how much runway exists for manufacturers to capture spend.”
She said that progression becomes harder to ignore as creators increase their output.
“And although smartphones present almost no barrier to entry for online content creation, they have physical limitations. As creators grow in ambition and production volume, the penalty for weak capture becomes more visible. That’s where the opportunity for dedicated camera products lies.”
Growth in accessory ownership suggests that move is already happening, with the number of creators using more than just a smartphone rising 17% year over year.
Nearly half of creators with additional accessories reported spending over $1,000 on gear, while 70% said they had spent more than $500.
Microphones, smartphone lenses, gimbals, and compact action cameras similar to GoPro-style devices are among the most commonly planned purchases.These add-ons offer incremental upgrades without requiring creators to abandon smartphones entirely.
Three creator groups appear throughout the data — hobbyists, aspirational creators, and professionals — each with different priorities when spending on equipment. Aspirational and professional creators together account for around 35% of creators today and are expected to approach 38% by 2030.
Artificial intelligence is now widely used by four in five creators, largely speeding up editing, idea generation, and visual effects. Faster production cycles boost output volume, which in turn places pressure on capture quality at the start of the process.
“As post-production becomes faster and more automated, the volume of content produced rises,” Matthews said. “As a result, the penalty for poor capture quality becomes more visible. We expect this dynamic to drive sustained demand for higher-specification cameras, audio equipment and accessories as creators who produce regularly seek to differentiate their output.”
Regional differences affect how that spending unfolds, with India accounting for 28% of the global creator base and showing strong momentum in dedicated hardware adoption.
The USA continues to lead in equipment spending and upgrade pathways, while European markets show uneven growth tied to cultural attitudes around monetization and creator income.
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can also follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form, and get regular updates from us on WhatsApp too.
Google has planted its flag on Windows territory. The Google app for desktop is now globally available in English for Windows users, graduating from its experimental phase on Search Labs.
The browser tab we reflexively open to use Google every five minutes now has a faster, more efficient replacement sitting on the desktop.
What Does The App Actually Do?
The centerpiece, mind you, is a keyboard shortcut: Alt + Space. It summons a floating search bar over whatever is on the screen, similar to how Cmd + Space summons the Spotlight search on Macs.
Once you summon the search bar, you can search across local computer files, installed apps, Google Drive documents, and the internet in general, all from one place.
If I were a Windows user (which I was until about three years ago), I would have installed the Google app for the Spotlight-like search experience alone, but my Mac’s Spotlight has been working fine for the same amount of time.
What else can it do?
Quite a bit, actually. Google Lens, the company’s native image-based search tool, is built directly into the new Google app for Windows. It lets users click and search for anything that’s visible on their screen.
From translating on-screen text to solving a maths problem, you can do such things without copying anything. The app also supports screen sharing within a search session, so users can keep a document or webpage open while asking follow-up questions.
Of course, the new Google apps come with AI Mode embedded. So, answers go beyond blue links, responses are conversational, contextual, and connected to the internet with accurate information, along with appropriate citations.
Google’s global Windows app rollout signals something bigger than convenience; it’s a direct challenge to Microsoft’s dominance over your desktop search experience. Copilot is already embedded in Windows, so Google’s presence is also making itself felt. In the future, we might get to see a dedicated Gemini app for Windows.
While Meta partnered with Ray-Ban to position its smart glasses as more lifestyle-oriented than experimental, Apple’s design philosophy remains distinctly in-house. In his Power On newsletter, Gurman notes that Apple is taking an independent approach, choosing to develop the product internally rather than collaborate with an established eyewear brand. Each…
Read Entire Article
Source link
NewsBeat15 seconds ago
I’m a Celebrity South Africa viewers ‘in tears’ over Seann Walsh mistake
Business1 minute ago
Odyssey Marine Exploration and American Ocean Minerals announce proposed merger
Crypto World2 minutes ago
Coinbase Reportedly Courts Anthropic to Bolster Exchange Security Infrastructure
-
Politics4 days agoUS brings back mandatory military draft registration
-
Sports4 days agoMan United discover Nico Schlotterbeck transfer fee as defender reaches Dortmund agreement
-
Fashion4 days agoWeekend Open Thread: Veronica Beard
-
Politics5 days agoMalcolm In The Middle OG Turned Down ‘Buckets Of Money’ To Appear In Reboot
-
Politics2 days agoWorld Cup exit makes Italy enter crisis mode
-
Crypto World5 days agoCanary Capital Files SEC Registration for PEPE ETF
-
Business4 days agoTesla Model Y Tops China Auto Sales in March 2026 With 39,827 Registrations, Beating Cheaper EVs and Gas Cars
-
Crypto World1 day agoThe SEC Conditionalises DeFi Platforms to Be Avoided for Broker Registration
-
Crypto World24 hours agoSEC Signals Exemption for Crypto Interfaces From Broker Registration
-
Crypto World6 days agoBitcoin recovers as US and Iran Agree a Ceasefire Deal
-
NewsBeat2 days agoPep Guardiola and Gary Neville agree over Arsenal title problem that benefits Man City
-
Business4 days agoOpenAI Halts Stargate UK Data Centre Project Over Energy Costs and Copyright Row
-
Business3 days agoIreland Fuel Protests Enter Day 5 as Blockades Spark Shortages and Government Prepares Support Package
-
Politics5 days agoLBC Presenter Mocks Trump Over Iran War Failures
-
Crypto World4 days agoFederal judge blocks Arizona from bringing criminal charges against Kalshi
-
NewsBeat3 days agoJD Vance announces ‘no agreement’ with Iran over nuclear weapons fear
-
Tech5 days agoA version of Windows 10 released a decade ago is now eligible for additional security patches
-
Crypto World16 hours agoSEC Proposes Certain Crypto Interfaces Don’t Need to Register as Brokers
-
Business4 days agoIMF retains floor for precautionary balances at SDR 20 billion
-
NewsBeat12 hours agoTrump and Pope Leo: Behind their disagreement over Iran war
You must be logged in to post a comment Login