This is todays edition ofThe Download,our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of whats going on in the world of technology.How the Pentagon is adapting to Chinas technological riseIts been just over two months since Kathleen Hicks stepped down as US deputy secretary of defense. As the highest-ranking woman in Pentagon history, Hicks shaped US military posture through an era defined by renewed competition between powerful countries and a scramble to modernize defense technology.Over the past three decades, Hicks has watched the Pentagon transformpolitically, strategically, and technologically. In this conversation with MIT Technology Review, Hicks reflects on how the Pentagon is adaptingor failing to adaptto a new era of geopolitical competition. She discusses Chinas technological rise, the future of AI in warfare, and her signature initiative, Replicator, a Pentagon initiative to rapidly field thousands of low-cost autonomous systems such as drones. Read the full story.Caiwen ChenThe must-readsIve combed the internet to find you todays most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.1 Donald Trumps trade war could trigger a global recessionInvestors are sounding the alarm as markets struggle to react to his tariffs. (Economist $)+ Unsurprisingly, the President has doubled down on his tariffs. (BBC)+ Its all part of his plan to reset global trade. (Politico)+ Trumps tariffs will deliver a big blow to climate tech. (MIT Technology Review)2 The White House was just hours from announcing a TikTok dealUntil the Chinese government insisted on tariff negotiations first. (WP $)+ The two countries now seem likely to descend into tit-for-tat restrictions. (WSJ $)+ The President has extended the sale deadline by another 75 days. (NBC News)3 DeepSeek is working on self-improving AI modelsIts working with Tsinghua University to reduce its models training needs. (Bloomberg $)+ China is narrowing the AI dominance gap between it and the US. (Wired $)+ How DeepSeek ripped up the AI playbookand why everyones going to follow its lead. (MIT Technology Review)4 X is flourishing under the Trump administrationElon Musk appears to be positioning the platform as a new media outlet. (NYT $)+ X is cracking down on parody accounts. (BBC)5 A shingles vaccine could help lower the risk of developing dementiaWe might have to overhaul the way we treat neurodegenerative diseases. (Vox)+ It may help to treat them like viruses. (NYT $)+ Dementia content gets billions of views on TikTok. Whose story does it tell? (MIT Technology Review)6 San Franciscos mayor is trying to convince tech leaders to come backHe may be willing to offer tax breaks as an incentive. (TechCrunch)+ Some of his supporters arent in favor of his new upzoning plan. (SF Standard)7 TikToks algorithm promotes live streams of begging childrenWhile taking fees and commission of up to 70%. (The Guardian)8 Chinas EV makers are locked in intense competitionAnd consumers are spoilt for choice. (FT $)+ Argentina has lifted tariffs on EVs. (Rest of World)+ Chinas EV giants are betting big on humanoid robots. (MIT Technology Review)9 This version of video game Quake was created using AIMicrosoft has opened a demo up to Copilot users. (The Verge)+ How generative AI could reinvent what it means to play. (MIT Technology Review)10 Tracking celebrity heights is an internet obsessionIs anyone actually 511? (The Guardian)Quote of the dayWed like to put this chapter behind us.Sean Murphy, executive vice president of policy at trade group the Information Technology Industry Council, tells the Washington Post how the tech industry is desperate to see the tariffs that affect it reversed as quickly as possible.The big storyThe messy quest to replace drugs with electricityIn the early 2010s, electricity seemed poised for a hostile takeover of your doctors office. Research into how the nervous systemthe highway that carries electrical messages between the brain and the body controls the immune response was gaining traction.And that had opened the door to the possibility of hacking into the bodys circuitry and thereby controlling a host of chronic diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, and diabetes, as if the immune system were as reprogrammable as a computer.To do that youd need a new class of implant: an electroceutical. These devices would replace drugs. No more messy side effects. And no more guessing whether a drug would work differently for you and someone else. In the 10 years or so since, around a billion dollars has accreted around the effort. But electroceuticals have still not taken off as hoped.Now, however, a growing number of researchers are starting to look beyond the nervous system, and experimenting with clever ways to electrically manipulate cells elsewhere in the body, such as the skin.Their work suggests that this approach could match the early promise of electroceuticals, yielding fast-healing bioelectric bandages, novel approaches to treating autoimmune disorders, new ways of repairing nerve damage, and even better treatments for cancer. Read the full story.Sally AdeeWe can still have nice thingsA place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line or skeet em at me.)+ The internet is hating on the Beatles biopics before theyre even outbut why?+ Do you know the last time all of humanity was on Earth?+ The new Naked Gun film looks suitably unhinged.+ Heres some simple bits of advice to help make each day that little bit happier.

On the latest episode of the HomeKit Insider Podcast, more rumors swirl about delays for Apple's smart display, Google narrows the Nest brand, and your host reviews the Knog Scout luggage tag with Find My.HomeKit Insider PodcastThis week, a new report yet again points to delays in Apple's upcoming smart display. Now, 2026 seems more likely as the company waits for more Apple Intelligence and next-gen Siri features to launch.The news comes on the heels of the launch of iOS 18.4 which contained a number of new features, including robotic vacuum cleaner support for Apple Home. We talk through the availability of this feature and which models currently support it, and what models will be arriving soon. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Following our previous visit toDumican Mosey Architects, we are moving ourMeet Your Next Employer seriesto New York City this week to explore the work ofCRME / Jun Aizaki Architecture & Design.Founded in 2004 by Jun Aizaki, the Brooklyn-based creative firm spans architecture, interior, graphic, and custom furniture design services. We take a holistic approach to design where every element speaks to each other creating a strong sense of a whole, the firm says about its approach. We are storytellers and experience builders in a sense that our exploration does not begin nor does it end at the completion of a building, space or an object, but rather when a person interacts with the space and the experience enters someones lifestyle.Over on Archinect Jobs, the firm iscurrently hiringfor several positions to join their New York City team. For candidates interested in applying for a position or anybody interested in learning more about the firms output, we have rounded up fi...

The Duskbloods director Hidetaka Miyazaki has revealed that the creature we see at the end of the games reveal trailer will be the players main companion in the games hub. In an interview with Nintendo, Miyazaki compared the characters role to that of the fire keepers in Dark Souls and the Maiden in Black from Demons Souls.That character shares a similar role with the fire keepers from the Dark Souls series. They remain in the hub area, providing the player with advice and guidance, said Miyazaki.As for why the creature looks like it could end up being some sort of mascot character for The Duskbloods, Miyazaki said that it was something new that FromSoftware was trying as part of its partnership with Nintendo in making the game. I suppose you could say we tried doing something a little Nintendo-esque in the spirit of the partnership, he said.We tried something cute for a change. Although I will say this character is actually an elderly gentleman.For more context about the role that the unnamed creature will likely play in The Duskbloods, traditionally, FromSoftwares titles have featured a character that accompanies the players in their adventures, either by actively traveling alongside them like in Elden Ring, or taking care of the players main home base, like in Dark Souls 2 or Bloodborne.This character is often the one players have to interact with in order to do various things like spending Souls, Runes, or Blood Echoes to level up their stats. The characters also often form an integral part of their games stories. The fire keepers from Dark Souls, for example, have been the last few creatures that have been keeping the flames from dying out.Having a character like that be a part of the home base in The Duskbloods would indicate that the title will feature some form of meta-progression outside of matches. While FromSoftware hasnt confirmed too many details about the game yet, the fact that it will be a match-based PvPvE title where players take on AI-based enemies as well as other players would indicate that each match would have them starting from scratch.The Duskbloods was originally announced during Nintendos Switch 2 Direct last week. The game doesnt yet have a solid release date. FromSoftware, however, has confirmed that it is aiming for a 2026 launch window. The game will feature more than 12 playable characters, and players will get to define their relationships with other players through the roles they pick.Each match will feature a group of 8 players that might end up being friends or foes, as they also try to take on environmental hazards and AI enemies throughout the match. Players will also get to pick between characters depending on their unique abilities and preferred playing styles.The studio has also stated that, while it has been working on more multiplayer-centric games recently, it is still committed to making more single-player games in the future. In the meantime, also check out reports that FromSoftware is the owner of the IP for The Duskbloods.

Photo credit: Design VictoriaVancouver Islands premier design festival,DesignVictoria, will be returning next month to celebrate the City of Victoria and the islands growing design community.The four-day festival, organized by Design Victorias partners, will take place from May 1 to 4, 2025, and feature events across the city and beyond including special installations, exhibitions, events, open houses, tours and workshops, and the official launch party.Launched in May 2023, Design Victoria is the first festival to celebrate Greater Victorias growing design community, and one of the first of its kind in BC.At the time, the festival worked collaboratively with designers and design businesses to generate ideas for special installations, exhibitions, events, open houses, tours and workshops, which resulted in a variety of programming that reflected the expertise, innovation and unique style of individual designers. The inaugural festival exceeded expectations with 3,000 attendees to 35 individual events.Design Victoria was conceived by Carla Sorrell, director of Design Victoria, and Will Sorrell, director of the the Interior Design Show. Both were involved in the UKs creative sector before moving to Victoria in 2020.The following is a lineup of events revolving around architecture that will be taking place at Design Victoria this year.Open House: hcma architectureOn May 2, hcma is hosting an open studio for Design Victoria. This year, theyre celebrating 20 years in Victoria, 20 years dedicated to maximizing positive impact in communities across Vancouver Island and beyond. Stop by their Victoria studio to learn more about the work they do, meet people, and explore their new space on Courtney Street.Architectural Walk & Drawing TourOn May 3 and 4, attendees are invited to join the Architecture Foundation of British Columbia (AFBC) for a walking tour where attendees will sketch some of the citys architectural highlights. This event welcomes anyone interested in sketching or architecture. Over a 1km walk, a guide will lead attendees to four locations, sharing key concepts to inspire sketches at each stop.Biophilic Design CharretteJoin Christine Lintott Architects for Park It + Plant It: a biophilic design charrette, where creativity meets nature. This interactive, hands-on event invites participants to reimagine how our public infrastructure can foster connections within community and to the natural world. Focusing on the Johnson Street Parkade, this charrette asks community members what future they envision for this site.Workshop: Missing MiddleProvincial and City policy is now encouraging infill housing in urban neighbourhoods. Termed Gentle Density, the new policy enables homeowners to build small multi-family buildings with four to 12 homes in place of one house. Join Fold Architects for a collaborative design workshop where theyll guide you through the exercise of creating, siting and programming a project, on a typical city lot.Exhibition & Talk: Architectural PhotographyJoin Wentworth Villa for a talk about Knights Fort Street, their soon-to-be-released self-guided historic walking tour of Victorias much loved street. The talk and tour will coincide with their new feature exhibit, Knights Victoria: The Architectural Photography of Harry Upperton Knight. They will also have a small exhibition of local architectural photographer John Taylors photos of the restoration of the Union Club Building, overseen by Victoria architect Shiv Garyali.Movie and Talk: Arthur Erickson: Beauty Between the LinesDirected and written by Danny Berish and Ryan Mah, Beauty Between the Lines delves into the life and work of Arthur Erickson, a visionary architect first in Canada and ultimately throughout the world. With intimate interviews, unseen archival footage, and an exploration of his architectural masterpieces, the film weaves together the complexities of Ericksons personal and professional life.The post Design Victoria returns to celebrate islands growing design community appeared first on Canadian Architect.

html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"Blackmagic Designs NAB 2025 livestream announcing its latest product updates. The new features in Fusion are shown at 2:26:15, shown here in the Fusion page inside DaVinci Resolve.Blackmagic Design has released the first public beta of Fusion Studio 20.0, the latest version of its 3D compositing software.Its a sizeable update, adding a complete new deep compositing toolset, and support for multi-layer EXR workflows, 180 VR formats, and Cryptomatte matte ID data.Also available inside DaVinci Resolve 20A version of the Fusion toolset is included in DaVinci Resolve, Blackmagic Designs colour grading, editing and visual effects software, version 20 of which has also just been released.DaVinci Resolve gets more promotional support than Fusion Studio at the time of writing, the Fusion Studio 20 product webpage still lists features from version 17 so the video above shows the Fusion page within DaVinci Resolve 20.0, but the new features should be the same.Fusion Studio 20.0: complete new deep compositing toolsetThe main change in Fusion Studio 20.0 is support for deep compositing.Deep compositing, long supported in VFX-focused apps like Nuke, makes use of depth data encoded in image formats like OpenEXR to control object visibility.It simplifies the process of generating and managing holdouts, and generates fewer visual artifacts, particularly when working with motion blur or environment fog.Fusion Studios implementation makes it possible to import deep images and inspect them in a viewer or by converting them to point clouds within the 3D environment.For manipulating deep image data, a new set of nodes, shown in the screenshot above, make it possible to merge, transform, resize, crop, recolor and generate holdouts.It is also possible to convert between deep and standard images, and to convert deep images to points.For exporting data, it is now possible to render deep images from the 3D environment.Support for multi-layer workflows and Cryptomatte dataThe update also introduces full support for multi-layer workflows, with all of Fusions nodes now supporting multi-layer images such as PSDs or layered EXRs.Users can preview image layers in the viewer, and access and manipulate layers independently inside any node, removing the need to generate multiple separate renders of a source file.Fusion also now natively supports Cryptomatte ID matte data in EXR files.Supported as standard in other VFX tools, Cryptomatte data makes it possible to isolate individual objects or sub-objects in rendered images, and manipulate them independently.New optical-flow based vector warping toolsetOther new features include a vector warping toolset, for image patching and effects like digital makeup or mapping an image onto a deforming surface: for example, a logo onto clothing.The toolset is optical-flow-based, so it can also be used for more general tasks: other suggested uses include motion-vector-based noise reduction.Support for 180 VR workflows for virtual reality contentUsers creating virtual reality content get support for 180 VR workflows.Key tools, including PanoMap, the spherical stabilizer, LatLong patcher, 3D VR camera and the 3D viewers have been updated to support 180 as well as 360 angles of view. It is also now possible to render 3D scenes to VR 180.Other changes: new 3D dome light, updated text tools and performance improvementsOther changes include a new 3D scene Dome Light, making it possible to use 360 HDRI images as background environments and to light scenes more realistically.The text tools have been extended, with the release adding a new MultiText tool and updating the Text+ tool to make it possible to control the layout of on-screen text more precisely.Workflow improvements include the option to set a start frame for compositions, and to search for tools based on effects category.Performance improvements include GPU support in the PanoMap and spherical stabilizer tools.For pipeline integration, the update moves Fusion Studio to ACES 2.0 and OpenColorIO 2.4.2, newer versions of the color-management standards.Pricing and system requirementsFusion Studio 20.0 is available in public beta for Windows 10+, Rocky Linux 8.6 and macOS 14.0+. Blackmagic Design hasnt announced a final release date yet.Blackmagic Design has just raised the prices of its products in the US to take account of the new US import tariffs, so new perpetual licenses now cost $399 in the US, up from $295.In other countries, the price is currently unchanged.The Fusion toolset in the free edition of DaVinci Resolve has a maximum image resolution of 16k x 16k and lacks network rendering capabilities. See a feature comparison table.Read a full list of new features in Fusion Studio 20.0 in the online release notesHave your say on this story by following CG Channel on Facebook, Instagram and X (formerly Twitter). As well as being able to comment on stories, followers of our social media accounts can see videos we dont post on the site itself, including making-ofs for the latest VFX movies, animations, games cinematics and motion graphics projects.

A Minecraft Movie grosses $157m at US box office over opening weekendWarner Bros. adaptation surpasses expectations, reportedly estimated to earn between $70 million to $90 millionImage credit: Warner Bros. Pictures News by Sophie McEvoy Staff Writer Published on April 7, 2025 Warner Bros. Pictures' A Minecraft Movie has grossed $157 million at the US box office during its opening weekend and $301 million globally.According to Variety, the film was estimated to earn between $70 million and $80 million. Debuting last Friday (April 4), it had a budget of $150 million.A Minecraft Movie has also become the highest grossing debut of 2025 domestically, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.In comparison, Illumination's Super Mario Bros. Movie earned $146 million during its three-day opening weekend in the US. This makes Minecraft the highest-grossing video game adaptation domestically in terms of opening numbers.However, the Super Mario adaptation was released on a Wednesday (April 5, 2023). When taking its five-day debut into account, The Super Mario Bros. Movie earned $204.6 million domestically and $377 million globally."We're absolutely overjoyed A Minecraft Movie has been so warmly received by audiences around the world," said Warner Bros. studio co-heads Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy."A Minecraft Movie's decade long journey to the screen was overseen with great care by Warner Bros. Pictures' Jesse Ehrman and his team, and we are thrilled their efforts have resulted in such a tremendous response."Warner Bros. first announced a Minecraft movie adaptation in 2014. A year later, Minecraft developer Mojang chose It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia co-creator and cast member Rob McElhenney to direct.By 2019 this choice was changed to Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist director Peter Sollett.In the end, A Minecraft Movie was directed by Jared Hess, known for Napoleon Dynamite and Nacho Libre.

Petras helped define the visual style of major franchises such as World of Warcraft and Overwatch.

Nintendo hasnt confirmed what joystick technology the Switch 2 is using, but its not Hall effect sensors.After several days of not providing a direct answer about the technology used in the Switch 2s Joy-Cons, Nintendo has finally confirmed that the new consoles controllers do not employ anti-drift Hall effect joysticks.When asked about the technology inside the Switch 2s Joy-Cons that feels so different to the original Switchs analog stick during a recent interview, Nate Bihldorff, the Senior Vice President of Product Development & Publishing at Nintendo of America, told Nintendo Life that the Joy-Con 2s controllers have been designed from the ground up. Theyre not Hall Effect sticks, but they feel really good.Following Nintendos Switch 2 presentation last week, the company shared an Ask the Developer discussion with the consoles designers that touched on technical aspects of its upgraded controllers. According to Switch 2 producer Kouichi Kawamoto, the company redesigned everything from scratch for Joy-Con 2 Compared to the Joy-Con controllers for Switch, the control sticks are larger and more durable, with smoother movement. Weve also made Joy-Con 2 bigger to match the larger console.However, while Nintendo has confirmed that the Switch 2s Joy-Cons arent relying on anti-drift Hall effect sensors, it has yet to confirm exactly what technology is in use.Is the console still using the same potentiometer-based joysticks that contributed to the original Switchs notorious joystick drift problems, or has it found a way to improve that technology to extend the longevity of the Joy-Con hardware? And if Hall effect joysticks arent in use, has Nintendo adopted tunneling magnetoresistance joystick technology that could solve joystick drift once and for all while offering several benefits over Hall effect sensors?Well either find out from Nintendo itself, or have to wait until the Switch 2 finally ships and gets dissected to reveal whats inside those controllers.

Reinforcement Learning RL has become a widely used post-training method for LLMs, enhancing capabilities like human alignment, long-term reasoning, and adaptability. A major challenge, however, is generating accurate reward signals in broad, less structured domains, as current high-quality reward models are largely built on rule-based systems or verifiable tasks such as math and coding. In general applications, reward criteria are more diverse and subjective, lacking clear ground truths. To address this, generalist reward models (RMs) are being explored for broader applicability. However, these models must balance input flexibility and scalability during inference, particularly in producing reliable, high-quality rewards across varied tasks and domains.Existing reward modeling approaches include scalar, semi-scalar, and generative techniques, each with flexibility and inference-time performance trade-offs. For instance, pairwise models are limited to relative comparisons, while scalar models struggle with producing diverse feedback. Generative reward models (GRMs) offer richer, more flexible outputs, making them more suited for evaluating various responses. Recent work has explored training GRMs through offline RL, integrating tools and external knowledge to improve reward quality. However, few methods directly address how RMs can scale efficiently during inference. This has led to research on methods like sampling-based scaling, chain-of-thought prompting, and reward-guided aggregation, aiming to co-scale policy models and reward models during inference. These developments hold promise for more robust, general-purpose reward systems in LLMs.DeepSeek-AI and Tsinghua University researchers explore enhancing reward models RM for general queries by improving inference-time scalability using increased computing and better learning techniques. They employ pointwise GRM for flexible input handling and propose a learning methodSelf-Principled Critique Tuning (SPCT)which helps GRMs generate adaptive principles and accurate critiques during online reinforcement learning. They apply parallel sampling and introduce a meta RM to scale effectively and refine the voting process. Their DeepSeek-GRM models outperform existing benchmark methods, offering higher reward quality and scalability, with plans for open-sourcing despite challenges in some complex tasks.The researchers introduce SPCT, a method designed to enhance pointwise GRMs by enabling them to generate adaptive principles and accurate critiques. SPCT consists of two stages: rejective fine-tuning for initializing principle and critique generation and rule-based RL for refinement. Instead of treating principles as preprocessing, they are generated dynamically during inference. This promotes scalability by improving reward granularity. Additionally, inference-time performance is boosted through parallel sampling and voting, supported by a meta reward model (meta RM) that filters out low-quality outputs. Overall, SPCT improves reward accuracy, robustness, and scalability in GRMs.Using standard metrics, the study evaluates various RM methods across benchmarks like Reward Bench, PPE, RMB, and ReaLMistake. DeepSeek-GRM-27B consistently outperforms baselines and rivals strong public models like GPT-4o. Inference-time scaling, especially with voting and meta reward models, significantly boosts performanceachieving results comparable to much larger models. Ablation studies highlight the importance of components like principle generation and non-hinted sampling. Training-time scaling shows diminishing returns compared to inference-time strategies. Overall, DeepSeek-GRM, enhanced with SPCT and meta RM, offers robust, scalable reward modeling with reduced domain bias and strong generalization.In conclusion, the study presents SPCT, a method that improves inference-time scalability for GRMs through rule-based online reinforcement learning. SPCT enables adaptive principle and critique generation, enhancing reward quality across diverse tasks. DeepSeek-GRM models outperform several baselines and strong public models, especially when paired with a meta reward model for inference-time scaling. Using parallel sampling and flexible input handling, these GRMs achieve strong performance without relying on larger model sizes. Future work includes integrating GRMs into RL pipelines, co-scaling with policy models, and serving as reliable offline evaluators. Check outthe Paper.All credit for this research goes to the researchers of this project. Also,feel free to follow us onTwitterand dont forget to join our85k+ ML SubReddit. Sana HassanSana Hassan, a consulting intern at Marktechpost and dual-degree student at IIT Madras, is passionate about applying technology and AI to address real-world challenges. With a keen interest in solving practical problems, he brings a fresh perspective to the intersection of AI and real-life solutions.Sana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/Reducto AI Released RolmOCR: A SoTA OCR Model Built on Qwen 2.5 VL, Fully Open-Source and Apache 2.0 Licensed for Advanced Document UnderstandingSana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/Scalable Reinforcement Learning with Verifiable Rewards: Generative Reward Modeling for Unstructured, Multi-Domain TasksSana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/Meet GenSpark Super Agent: The All-in-One AI Agent that Autonomously Think, Plan, Act, and Use Tools to Handle All Your Everyday TasksSana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/UB-Mesh: A Cost-Efficient, Scalable Network Architecture for Large-Scale LLM Training