Unreal Fest Bali 2025 is coming! Get your tickets and buckle up for over 40 inspiring sessions across two days, hosted on the beautiful Indonesian island of Bali. 

Elon Musk’s popularity with the American public is waning, according to the latest polling average from Nate Silver’s Silver Bulletin. The billionaire CEO of multiple companies wears many hats, but the most visible one of late has been as the face of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an organization that has been tearing through the US government administrative state. Silver Bulletin’s average shows that 53.5 percent of Americans have an unfavorable view of Musk, and only 39.6 percent of Americans see him favorably. His unpopularity is way up since the beginning of 2024 when only 38 percent of people disliked him, according to the site’s tracker. Silver writes that his process for tracking Musk’s ratings is similar to how he tracks President Trump’s, but with “slightly more conservative settings as Musk is polled less often than Trump.” According to Silver Bulletin, negative views of the billionaire have been especially trending upwards in the wake of his heavy support — in part by paying voters — for Trump’s second Presidential campaign and, not long after, the beginning of his work at DOGE. That work has seen widespread federal agency layoffs as DOGE’s operatives access, or attempt to gain access, to sensitive areas of the government, including IRS records, the US Treasury’s payments system, and the US Social Security Administration. However accurate Silver Bulletin’s average is, the site is not alone in noting Musk’s unpopularity. Outlets like Fox News, Politico, and Axios have all recently pointed to polls showing a growing distaste for the billionaire. That may have already had electoral consequences for Republicans in Wisconsin, where Musk’s attempt to bolster a conservative Supreme Court candidate this month — using the same voter-paying tactics he used during Trump’s campaign — appear to have backfired. More than half of voters in the state disapproved of his involvement, and about a third said it made them less likely to vote for the conservative justice, according to pollster information published by The Washington Post. In the end, Democrat-backed candidate Susan Crawford won by 10 points, preserving Wisconsin’s highest court’s 4-3 liberal majority.

In case the continuously evolving tariff news hasn’t been confusing enough, there’s now another twist to the story. According to the Trump administration, the exemption from the 125% reciprocal tariff is only temporary, and a tariff will apply to smartphones, laptops, and more in “a month or two.” On Friday night, the US Customs and Border Protection published some exclusions for Trump’s new 125% reciprocal tariff on China, as well as the baseline 10% global tariff. These exclusions include “smartphones, laptop computers, hard drives and computer processors and memory chips.” It’s worth noting that Apple still would’ve been subject to a 20% “fentanyl tariff”, which President Trump emphasized in a post on Truth Social today. In short: the total tariff on China specifically would’ve been 145% (125% reciprocal + 20% fentanyl) – but now it’s just 20%. However, the exemption from the reciprocal tariff isn’t a “permanent sort of exemption”, according to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. In an interview with ABC News, he said that the tech sector would be subject to a “special focus type of tariff” (via The Verge). Lutnick emphasized that this “special focus type of tariff” would include products like the iPhone. Trump echoed a similar sentiment on Truth Social, where he said that the administration would be “taking a look at” semiconductors and the “whole electronics supply chain” in an upcoming tariff investigation. So… I suppose the ultimate conclusion for now is that a special tech tariff will be determined at a later date. Ideally it’d be less than the 125% “reciprocal tariff.” We’ll find out in a month or two. Realistically, any tariff on China probably means Apple will shift US imports to India and Vietnam as much as possible. Recent Mac models, like the M4 MacBook Air and M3 Ultra Mac Studio, have been manufactured in Vietnam. However, we have no real insight on the level of capacity outside of China. It might not be viable for every Apple product sold in the US to be manufactured outside of China. Things will ideally turn out alright, but I wouldn’t wait and see. If you need a new Apple product, you should buy it now. Nobody will be “off the hook” from tariffs, according to Trump. My favorite Apple accessories on Amazon: Follow Michael: X/Twitter, Bluesky, Instagram Add 9to5Mac to your Google News feed.  FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.You’re reading 9to5Mac — experts who break news about Apple and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Mac on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Don’t know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel

Image by Peter Dazeley via Getty / FuturismTreatmentsA high-end medical practice is offering clients the purported service of scrubbing their blood of microplastics.In an interview with Wired, Clarify Clinics CEO Yael Cohen said that her London facility's bespoke blood-filtering service — which is otherwise known as apheresis and generally used for plasma donation or other so-called therapeutic plasma exchange procedures — is so comfortable that some patients doze off during it."Once it’s running, you feel nothing. It’s very comfortable," Cohen told the magazine of its Clari procedure, which costs more than $12,000 per session. "Patients take calls, do Zooms, watch movies, sleep. The ones who sleep are my favorite."People who come to the facility located off Harley Street, home to London's storied high-end district, reportedly seek reprieve from everything from chronic fatigue and brain fog to long COVID and Lupus.Though Cohen and her clinic claim the ability to help ease those ailments, the jury is still out as to how bad microplastics actually are for the human body. While studies in recent years have established links between microplastics and damage to human cells and hearts, that research was all, as Wired notes, observational. Thus far, the only thing we know definitively is that these mysterious particles have been found nearly everywhere researchers have looked, from our blood and guts and brains to archaeological digs and Mount Everest.While there don't appear to be any studies about the effectiveness of the Clari procedure, there's a pretty strong body of evidence suggesting that therapeutic plasma exchange in general is a safe and effective treatment for some autoimmune and neurological disorders.In a similar vein, the desire to get those foreign and synthetic particulates out of one's blood, and to clean one's blood in general, makes some degree of sense. According to Cohen, longevity influencer Bryan Johnson's interest in so-called "total plasma exchange" — a more extreme apheresis procedure he used to get his son's blood filtered into his own — where all of the body's plasma is removed and replaced with proteins and antibodies, has been a big boon for her business."He’s a big platform, and he is spending a lot of time and energy finding the things that move the needle the most," the CEO said of Johnson, a former Futurism investor who's no longer involved with the site.Though it doesn't appear that Wired shelled out for its reporter, Matt Reynolds, to get his blood scrubbed, the journalist did get his microplastics levels tested to see what the fuss was about. In a fingerprick sample of blood, Reynolds had about 190 microplastic particles per millimeter, which is apparently on the lower end of the scale.Pleased with the results, the reporter emailed Cohen. In response, she pointed out the stark truth: that he still has "around a million particles in [his] circulatory system!"More on microplastics:  Chewing Gum Is Flooding Your Mouth With MicroplasticsShare This Article

Here are hints -- and the answer -- for today's Wordle No. 1,395 for April 14.

submitted by /u/ControlCAD [link] [comments]

In Brief Posted: 4:43 PM PDT · April 13, 2025 Image Credits:Getty Images UK founders grow frustrated over dearth of funding: ‘the problem is getting worse’ According to Dealroom data cited by the Financial Times, British start-ups raised just £16.2 billion last year, far less than the more than £65 billion raised by their counterparts in Silicon Valley during the same period. In fact, the U.S. appears to be pulling further ahead each year. In 2024, 57% of global venture capital funding went to U.S. startups — the first time that share has exceeded 50% in over a decade, per Dealroom. This widening gap is part of a years-long trend that U.K. founders have taken note of, the FT reports, and it’s prompting many to consider relocating abroad. “Recognizing that most venture funding comes from the U.S., we set up as a Delaware corporation, the preferred and familiar structure for American investors,” said Mati Staniszewski, co-founder of the London-based AI company ElevenLabs, in an interview with the FT. Barney Hussey-Yeo, founder and CEO of the AI start-up Cleo, told the FT that he already spends four months a year in San Francisco and is seriously considering a permanent move. “You get to a certain size where there is no capital in the U.K. And the problem is getting worse,” he said. “Honestly, the U.K. is kinda f***d if it doesn’t address [the problem].” Topics Venture

The Canterbury Green has been home to four congregational churches in its history. Originally established in 1711, a modest frame church was built here and in 1736, a new meetinghouse was constructed as a more permanent building. The rustic structure was deemed insufficient for a wealthy rural community, so in 1805, a stately, Federal style edifice was built. Designed by Thomas Gibbs, a local architect/builder who also designed other nearby high-style Federal homes, the building was destroyed by fire in December, 1963. Within a year, this church was constructed on the ground of its 1805 building. While designed and constructed during the mid-20th century, the town clearly wanted its new church to contribute to the village’s Colonial character, having this Colonial Revival style church serve as the new anchor to the green.

Looking for help with today's New York Times Wordle? Here are hints, clues and commentary to help you solve today's Wordle and sharpen your guessing game.

Table of Contents Table of Contents Making sense of the world around you  Unlocking a knowledge bank Excels in surprising spots  A few familiar pitfalls  It’s somewhat unnerving to hear an AI talking in an eerily friendly tone and telling me to clean up the clutter on my workstation. I am somewhat proud of it, but I guess it’s time to stack the haphazardly scattered gadgets and tidy up the wire mess.  My sister would agree, too. But jumping into action after an AI “sees” my table, recognizes the mess, and doles out homemaker advice is the bigger picture. Google’s Gemini AI chatbot can now do that. And a lot more.  Recommended Videos The secret sauce here is a recent feature update called Project Astra. It has been in development for years, and finally started rolling out earlier this month. The overarching idea is to serve an all-seeing, all-hearing, and overtly intelligent AI on your phone.  Related Google hawks these superpowers under a rather uninspiring name: Gemini Live with camera and screen sharing. Developed at the company’s DeepMind unit, the company began its development as a “universal AI assistant.” It’s a shame the final name isn’t as aspirational.  Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends. Let’s start with the access situation. The capability is now available for Pixel 9 and Galaxy S25 users. But if you have an Android phone with a Gemini Advanced subscription to go with it, you can access the new toolkit.  That would be a $20 per month, by the way. I tried it on the two aforesaid phones and now have it ready to roll on my OnePlus 13, as well. The nicest part? You don’t have to go through any technical hoops to access it.  A power/volume button combo, or screen corner swipe to summon Gemini is all you need. Doesn’t matter what app you are running, you can access the new camera and screen-sharing chops as an overlay in every corner of the OS. Making sense of the world around you  I started by pointing the camera at a painting, and asked about it. Gemini Live was able to accurately detect it as a Madhubani style painting, decoding the bold use of colors and depiction of animals.  Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends. It then proceeded to give me a brief history lesson and the variations that have developed over the years. The information was accurate, down to the most granular level. Thankfully, you can also choose to have a text-based back-and-forth with Gemini, if you’re in a place where voice conversations could be awkward.  What I like the most about Gemini Live’s new camera and screen sharing avatar is that it’s not exceedingly chatty. You can interrupt it at any given moment, which only adds to the “natural” appeal of the conversations.  I tried Gemini in a variety of scenarios. I was not prepared for it. The answers it provides are usually succinct, as if it wants to give you a chance (or even nudge) to ask a follow-up question instead of giving an overwhelmingly long answer. It excels in a whole range of topics and visual scenarios, but there are a few pitfalls. Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends. It can’t use Google Lens yet, which means Gemini can’t compare the images it sees on your phone’s screen against matching results on the web. Moreover, it can’t access information in real-time if you ask Gemini to look up the latest developments around a topic or personality. I asked it about plant species, restaurant listings, picking up data from notice boards, and making sense of my medical prescription for a recent bout of flu. Gemini fared pretty well, more so than I’ve ever experienced the AI chatbot perform so far.  Unlocking a knowledge bank Next, I pushed Gemini to make sense of complex academic material. I put a book on Machine Learning in the camera frame. Gemini Live not only recognized it, but also proceeded to give me an overview of the book’s contents and its core subjects.  Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends. Curiously, I started flipping through the pages and landed on the chapter list. The AI recognized the progress, stopped talking, and asked me whether I was interested in any particular chapter now that I was checking out the topic list.  I was taken aback by surprise at this moment. I asked it to break down a few complex topics, and the AI did a respectable job, even going beyond the scope of on-page material and pulling information from its expansive knowledge bank.  For example, when I asked it about the contents of the introductory page on Bhisham Sahni’s seminal novel, Tamas, the AI correctly picked up the mention of the Sahitya Akademi Award. It then went on to mention details that were not even listed on the page, such as the year it won the prestigious literary honor and what the book is all about.  On the flip side, the Hindi language readout by Gemini Live was horrible. It was not just the poor accent, but the fact that Gemini was uttering pure gibberish and no-words repeatedly. While trying to read Urdu, Persian, and Arabic, it did a considerably better job, but often mixed up words from random lines.  Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends.  On my first attempt with Urdu poetry, it recognized not only the Urdu text, but also gave an accurate summary of the poem. The biggest challenge, once again, was narration. Hearing an anglicized version of Urdu really hurt my ears.  Excels in surprising spots  AI is a fantastic problem-solving tool, and there are numerous benchmarks to prove it. I tested it against physics problems dealing with thermodynamics, electrochemical equations, and statistical problems appearing in a handwritten notebook. Gemini Live did a fantastic job at such tasks.  It even excelled at creative chores, too. My sister, who is a fashion designer, presented one of her sketches in the camera view, and asked for feedback as well as improvements. Gemini Live started with praising the design, drew parallels with a few fashion brands’ design ideology, and made a handful of recommendations.  Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends. When prodded further, the AI also advised my sister on the best tools for converting hand-drawn sketches into digital concepts. It followed those words of guidance by providing helpful information on the software stack and where one could find learning material.   When I put a couple of Duracell batteries in the camera view, it not only recognized them accurately, but also told me the hyperlocal e-commerce platforms that can deliver them to me within minutes. The services – named Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart — are only available in India and mostly reserved for urban locales. Even in a dimly lit room, it was able to identify a pair of wired earphones in the first attempt. Situation awareness is its strong suit.  Compared to your usual Gemini chat or what you find in the AI overviews section of Google Search,  the Gemini Live conversations take a more cautious approach to doling out knowledge, especially if it’s sensitive in nature. I noticed that topics such as food recommendations and medical treatment are handled with an increasingly cautious approach, and users are often nudged to find the right expert resource. A few familiar pitfalls  Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends. My overwhelming takeaway is that Gemini’s “Project Astra” makeover is mighty impressive. It’s a glimpse into the future of what smartphones can achieve. With a few improvements, integrations, and cross-app workflows, it can make Google Search feel like an outdated relic. But for now, there are a few glaring flaws. On a few occasions, I did notice that the memory system goes haywire. When asked the AI to identify a fitness band in the camera view, it correctly recognized it as the Samsung Galaxy Fit 3. But when I pushed a follow-up question, it erroneously perceived the device as a fitness band from Huawei.  It can also blatantly lie. And quite confidently, I might say. For example, when I told it to summarize my review of the wearable device, the AI responded that Digital Trends hasn’t reviewed it yet. In reality, the article was published a week ago.  Next, I asked it to go through a few articles on my author page after I enabled screen sharing. Gemini did a decent job at explaining the stories, but occasionally stumbled at contextual understanding. For example, it incorrectly mentioned that only Intel and AMD can make NPUs that qualify for the Copilot+ badge.   Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends. The article, on the other hand, clearly mentions that Qualcomm was the first to meet that criteria, ahead of the competition. And that it was only late last year that AMD and Intel could finally level up and meet that AI chip baseline with a new portfolio of processors.  Midway through the conversation about an article, it again ran into a memory issue. Instead of summarizing the story that was being discussed, it went back to talking about the first article that it saw via screen sharing. When I interrupted it mid-way through the narration, Gemini fixed its mistake.  Another issue I noticed with narration of non-English languages is that Gemini Live randomly changed the voice and pace midway through the narration. It was quite jarring, and the pronunciation was absolutely mechanical, far different from its human-like English conversational skills.  Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends. The machine vision struggles are also apparent against stylistic fonts. On a few occasions, it confidently spat out wrong information, and when asked to correct itself, the AI expressed inability to find the latest information on that topic. Those scenarios are rare, but the Gemini errors are here to stay.  To sum it all up, I think Gemini Live with camera and screen sharing is one of the biggest leaps AI has made so far. It is one of the most practically rewarding implementations of generative AI so far. All it needs is a dash of diversity and a fix for its “confident liar” syndrome.  Things are definitely on the right track now, and overwhelmingly so, but still a few crucial milestones away from being the perfect AI companion of techno-futuristic dreams. Editors’ Recommendations