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Battery-like device made from water and clay could be used on Mars

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New Scientist. Science news and long reads from expert journalists, covering developments in science, technology, health and the environment on the website and the magazine.
New Scientist. Science news and long reads from expert journalists, covering developments in science, technology, health and the environment on the website and the magazine.

The new supercapacitor could be assembled from Martian materials

NASA

When pushed into the smallest of cracks, water can be used in unexpected ways. A new battery-like device that relies on tiny amounts of water confined within layers of clay could eventually offer sustainable power in places as extreme as Mars.

Vasily Artemov at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and his colleagues built the supercapacitor, a type of battery-like energy storage device, with components similar to those of conventional batteries, including two electrodes, one with a negative and one with a positive charge. But instead of making these electrodes out of…

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This 24-inch gaming monitor is under $100 at Walmart

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This 24-inch gaming monitor is under $100 at Walmart
An Onn. 24-inch gaming monitor on a white background.
Onn.

Monitor deals are rarely this inexpensive: Walmart just knocked $50 off the Onn. 24-inch FHD Gaming Monitor. Usually priced at $149, it’s down to $99, which is a steal of a deal for a gaming monitor with some great specs. If that instantly sounds appealing to you, keep reading while we take you through what the Onn. 24-inch FHD gaming monitor has to offer for the price. The deal is proving popular already, so don’t count on it sticking around for much longer.

Why you should buy the Onn. 24-inch FHD gaming monitor

While you might not think of Onn. as making some of the best monitors, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the Onn. 24-inch FHD gaming monitor. It’s a 24-inch 1080p/full HD monitor with an impressive refresh rate of 165Hz. That means even if you’re playing action-packed games that are moving quickly, you won’t have to worry so much about motion blur as your monitor will be able to keep up with it.

Alongside that, the Onn. 24-inch FHD gaming monitor uses adaptive sync technology so it works well with your graphics card. There’s a 1ms response time so input lag won’t be a negative factor here. It also has low blue light adjustments, and you can change the height, pivot, swivel it, and tilt the monitor through the adjustable stand. One of the best gaming monitors? Maybe in this price range, given how affordable the Onn. 24-inch FHD gaming monitor is.

On the back, the Onn. 24-inch FHD gaming monitor has two HDMI ports and a DisplayPort, so you can easily hook up your PC or your console to it. Eight different gaming modes also add to the potential of the Onn. 24-inch FHD gaming monitor — tweak things just how you like them. It all comes together to make the Onn. 24-inch FHD gaming monitor surprisingly feature packed for the price.

Usually $149, the Onn. 24-inch FHD gaming monitor is down to the bargain price of $99 right now at Walmart. This is a fantastic price for a gaming monitor that has all the key tech specs you need. Check it out now by tapping the button below before the deal ends very soon.

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Sony has patented a controller with a rewind feature

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Sony has patented a controller with a rewind feature

Sony made some honest to god advancements to the game controller when it released the PlayStation DualSense alongside the PS5, and now it’s apparently looking to add some more innovation with the inclusion of a rewind feature.

The company has patented a new type of controller that comes with a rewind button. This would allow users to rewind gameplay with “user-triggered bookmarks.” The patent was discovered on Patentscope by Tech4Gamers (via TechRadarGaming). It appears to have been published as of October 31, 2024. The patent was applied for back in April of 2023. That might suggest that Sony is already working on this type of controller. Since the patent was applied for more than a year ago.

That does not, however, mean that Sony actually plans to release it. Sony could also just be securing the patent in case it ever wants to start developing a controller with such a feature.

Sony controller with a rewind feature would allow you to rewind gameplay

You can technically rewind a game now, although it depends on the game and it doesn’t really work like this feature that the patent is describing. However, any number of games will allow you to reset at a checkpoint after death. So in a sense, this would be a more advanced version of that perhaps.

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The difference may lie in the ability to immediately hit the rewind button and go back to a very specific point of the player’s choosing. According to the patent, when the rewind button is pressed, it captures a series of frames and places them in sequential order. From there, users can pick out a frame and re-enter live gameplay from that point.

“The user is able to enter the rewind mode from the live gameplay using one or more controller inputs to view recent gameplay (e.g. rewinding, fast-forwarding, playing, etc.), and returning to live gameplay afterward,” the patent says.

The button could also allow for fast-forwarding

In addition to the rewind feature, the new button would also allow players to fast-forward. This could potentially let players skip past a particularly difficult portion or area of the game. It’s also noted that the button would be in the same location as the current share button on the DualSense. So it seems this would take the place of the share button. However, the rewind button would incorporate the share button features, so nothing would presumably be lost here.

The patent also describes additional features like a Highlight Reel mode. It’s unclear if this controller will ever make it into consumer’s hands. But, if it did it would be a nifty feature that could enhance gameplay on PlayStation consoles even further.

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Affirm (AFRM) earnings report Q1 2025

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Affirm (AFRM) earnings report Q1 2025


Block and Affirm slide on earnings

Affirm, the provider of buy now, pay later loans reported better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results.

Here’s how the company did, compared to analysts’ consensus estimates from LSEG.

  • Loss per share: 31 cents adjusted vs. a loss of 35 cents expected
  • Revenue: $698 million vs. $664 million expected

Affirm reported gross merchandise volume (GMV) of $7.6 billion, topping the average estimate of $7.28 billion, according to StreetAccount. GMV, a key metric that helps gauge the total value of transactions, increased by 35% from a year earlier.

Revenue in the fiscal first quarter rose 41% from $496.5 million a year earlier.

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Revenue less transaction costs (RLTC) came in at $285 million, ahead of earlier guidance of $265 million to $280 million.

Affirm said it expects to achieve profitability on a GAAP basis in its fiscal fourth quarter of 2025. Last quarter, CEO Max Levchin said in a note to shareholders that the company had set a new goal of hitting operating profitability on a GAAP basis by the end of its fiscal year.

The company sees second-quarter revenue of between $770 million and $810 million, or $790 million in the middle of the range, versus the average estimate of $785 million, according to LSEG. Affirm is guiding to GMV in the range of $9.35 billion to $9.75 billion. Analysts polled by StreetAccount called for GMV of $9.48 billion.

Affirm shares were about flat for the year as Thursday’s close, but have been trending higher lately, up more than 70% since the end of August.

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The company’s new relationship with Apple plus other partnerships with Amazon and Shopify are helping results. In June, Affirm and Apple announced plans for U.S. Apple Pay users on iPhones and iPads to be able to apply for loans directly through Affirm.

“Affirm’s growth story has continued, particularly as they add new strategic distribution partners,” Kevin Kennedy, an analyst at global research firm Third Bridge, said in an email.

Kennedy added that the quality of Affirm’s underwriting, specifically for higher-priced orders and interest-bearing BNPL purchases, sets the company apart from the growing list of competitors.

“The payments space is constantly facing commoditization risk, and BNPL, while nascent, is facing the same challenge,” he wrote. “However, large ticket interest bearing purchases, which are becoming more accessible through Affirm, are better protected” compared with offerings from peers, he added.

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Square parent Block, which also reported earnings after the bell, acquired BNPL firm Afterpay for $29 billion in 2021.

Affirm’s quarterly earnings call starts at 5:00 P.M. eastern.

WATCH: Affirm CEO on consumer behavior

Affirm CEO on consumer behavior: 'shopping is back on and people are buying'



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Google’s November Pixel update is rolling out

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Google’s November Pixel update is rolling out

The November update for Google Pixel devices running Android 15 is rolling out now. This batch doesn’t include exciting new features, like the AI-powered theft protection in the October update, but it has bug fixes and the latest security patches to tighten things up.

The new software includes fixes for known intermittent issues with Bluetooth range, camera tilt when zooming between cameras and unexpected flashing or flickering of white dots or screen brightness. It also has fixes for adaptive brightness not activating, the keyboard dismiss button not working correctly and the performance and stability of some UI transitions and animations.

Android 15 arrived last month for Pixel devices, following the Pixel 9 lineup’s debut in August. The annual software jump focuses on security and privacy, like AI-powered theft detection lock and extra authentication requirements for removing SIMs and deactivating Find My Device.

Google says the November Pixel update is rolling out today and will continue in phases over the next week. You should see a notification when it’s ready for your device and carrier.

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Block (SQ) earnings Q3 2024

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Block (SQ) earnings Q3 2024


Block shares tumbled 11% in extended trading on Thursday after the company reported third-quarter revenue that trailed Wall Street expectations.

Here is how the company did, compared to analysts’ consensus estimates from LSEG.

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  • Earnings per share: 88 cents adjusted vs. 87 cents expected
  • Revenue: $5.98 billion vs. $6.24 billion expected

Block, formerly known as Square, posted $2.25 billion in gross profit, up 19% from a year ago. Analysts tend to focus on gross profit as a more accurate measurement of the company’s core transactional businesses.

The company reported net income of $283.7 million, or 45 cents per share, after losing $88.7 million, or 15 cents a share, a year earlier.

The Cash App business, the company’s popular mobile payment platform and a significant contributor to overall profitability, reported $1.31 billion in gross profit, a 21% year-over-year jump. Block, run by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, said its Cash App Card monthly active users increased 11% year over year to more than 24 million.

The company said gross profit for the fourth quarter will increase 14% to $2.31 billion.

Block’s third-quarter earnings call starts at 5 P.M. Eastern time.

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Mistral AI takes on OpenAI with new moderation API, tackling harmful content in 11 languages

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Mistral AI takes on OpenAI with new moderation API, tackling harmful content in 11 languages

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French artificial intelligence startup Mistral AI launched a new content moderation API on Thursday, marking its latest move to compete with OpenAI and other AI leaders while addressing growing concerns about AI safety and content filtering.

The new moderation service, powered by a fine-tuned version of Mistral’s Ministral 8B model, is designed to detect potentially harmful content across nine different categories, including sexual content, hate speech, violence, dangerous activities, and personally identifiable information. The API offers both raw text and conversational content analysis capabilities.

“Safety plays a key role in making AI useful,” Mistral’s team said in announcing the release. “At Mistral AI, we believe that system level guardrails are critical to protecting downstream deployments.”

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Mistral AI’s new moderation API analyzes text across nine categories of potentially harmful content, returning risk scores for each category. (Credit: Mistral AI)

Multilingual moderation capabilities position Mistral to challenge OpenAI’s dominance

The launch comes at a crucial time for the AI industry, as companies face mounting pressure to implement stronger safeguards around their technology. Just last month, Mistral joined other major AI companies in signing the UK AI Safety Summit accord, pledging to develop AI responsibly.

The moderation API is already being used in Mistral’s own Le Chat platform and supports 11 languages, including Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish. This multilingual capability gives Mistral an edge over some competitors whose moderation tools primarily focus on English content.

“Over the past few months, we’ve seen growing enthusiasm across the industry and research community for new LLM-based moderation systems, which can help make moderation more scalable and robust across applications,” the company stated.

Performance metrics showing accuracy rates across Mistral AI’s nine moderation categories, demonstrating the model’s effectiveness in detecting different types of potentially harmful content. (Credit: Mistral AI)

Enterprise partnerships show Mistral’s growing influence in corporate AI

The release follows Mistral’s recent string of high-profile partnerships, including deals with Microsoft Azure, Qualcomm, and SAP, positioning the young company as an increasingly important player in the enterprise AI market. Last month, SAP announced it would host Mistral’s models, including Mistral Large 2, on its infrastructure to provide customers with secure AI solutions that comply with European regulations.

What makes Mistral’s approach particularly noteworthy is its dual focus on edge computing and comprehensive safety features. While companies like OpenAI and Anthropic have focused primarily on cloud-based solutions, Mistral’s strategy of enabling both on-device AI and content moderation addresses growing concerns about data privacy, latency, and compliance. This could prove especially attractive to European companies subject to strict data protection regulations.

The company’s technical approach also shows sophistication beyond its years. By training its moderation model to understand conversational context rather than just analyzing isolated text, Mistral has created a system that can potentially catch subtle forms of harmful content that might slip through more basic filters.

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The moderation API is available immediately through Mistral’s cloud platform, with pricing based on usage. The company says it will continue to improve the system’s accuracy and expand its capabilities based on customer feedback and evolving safety requirements.

Mistral’s move shows how quickly the AI landscape is changing. Just a year ago, the Paris-based startup didn’t exist. Now it’s helping shape how enterprises think about AI safety. In a field dominated by American tech giants, Mistral’s European perspective on privacy and security might prove to be its greatest advantage.


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