Google's Gemini-Exp-1114 AI model tops key benchmarks, but experts warn traditional testing methods may no longer accurately measure true AI capabilities or safety, raising concerns about the industry's current evaluation standards.Read More

CONTRIBUTOR CONTENT: Nearly 28% of the global workforce works remotely, and 38% of the global workforce are freelancers who dont commute to traditional office spaces: remote work is here to stay. While it offers a number of advantages both for employers and employees, it isnt without its drawbacks, including a plethora of distractions and an incrRead More

New York Game Awards to honour Sam LakeRemedy's creative director will receive the Andrew Yoon Legend Award following two decades at the developerImage credit: Remedy News by Sophie McEvoy Staff Writer Published on Nov. 15, 2024 Remedy's creative director Sam Lake will receive the Andrew Yoon Legend Award at the 14th annual New York Game Awards.The Andrew Yoon Legend Award is presented to those who have made a significant mark on the industry.Last year, Naughty Dog's Neil Druckmann received the accolade. Past winners include Hideo Kojima, Phil Spencer, and Tim Schafer."You know a Remedy game when you see it, largely due to Sam Lake's impact on the worlds he creates," said New York Video Game Critics Circle president and founder Harold Goldberg."It's really cool to see how his 20-year career at Remedy has touched so many of our members and interns at the Circle, and we are thrilled to have him join the roster of esteemed game changers previously recognised with the Andrew Yoon Legend Award."Lake joined Remedy in 1995 as a writer on the studio's first game, Death Rally. He had several roles in Max Payne's development, including lead writer and being the face model for the titular character.He created the Alan Wake franchise, which launched in 2010. Lake was lead writer and co-director on its 2023 sequel and provided motion capture for the character of Alex Casey, voiced by the late James McCaffrey.Lake also co-directed Quantum Break and wrote Control.The 14th annual New York Game Awards will be held at the SVA Theatre on January 21, 2025.

WASD expo cancelled, organiser enters liquidationEvent co-founder says "increasing costs and less demand" led to decisionImage credit: WASD News by Sophie McEvoy Staff Writer Published on Nov. 15, 2024 The organiser of UK indie games expo WASD has gone into liquidation, resulting in the show's cancellation.As reported by BBC News, co-founder David Lilley said "increasing costs and less demand for stand space means running events is just not viable for us anymore."WASD first opened in 2022 following the closure of the standalone EGX Rezzed event. The indie-based show was held alongside the London Games Festival in April.There was speculation of the expo's closure following the disappearance of its website after the conclusion of this year's event.Earlier this year, the long-running Insomnia Gaming Festival was shut down following layoffs at its organiser, Player1 Events.EGX is the last major consumer show remaining in the UK. This year's expo ran alongside MCM Comic-Con instead of EGX being a singular event.

Justin Carter, Contributing EditorNovember 15, 20241 Min ReadAt a GlanceKrafton and Hypergryph were among the firms that provided funding to Ruckus to develop its co-op RPG-shooter.Indie developer Ruckus Games recently secured $19 million in funding for its unannounced debut project.Two years ago, the studio secured $5.5 million in a round led by Transcend Fund to build its "high-quality prototype." This new round was led by Krafton, with additional contributions from Transcend, BitKraft, and Hypergryph.In its statement, Ruckus highlighted that prototype as proof its development costs "remain much lower than triple-A, while the team still delivers that same level of quality and fun of titles with exponentially bigger budgets."Speaking to its contribution, Krafton's Maria Park said it "believes in the future of co-op games, and the Ruckus team has demonstrated incredible progress with a small team in a short period of time. Theyve crafted something so on-trend, with stylish action and humor, that it not only entertains but also connects players in memorable ways - a vision that strongly resonates withKrafton."Ruckus was founded in 2021 by former Riot and Gearbox developers, including Borderlands 3 creative director Paul Sage. The studio's debut titledubbed "Project Bobcat" by Hypergryph's investment headis described as a session-based co-op RPG-shooter it hopes to "disrupt the multiplayer landscape [...] anddeliver a unique blend of style, humor, and explosive action."Both Park and Transcend GP Andrew Sheppard sit on the board of directors for Ruckus, and Sage said the contributing firms "bring not only a global reach, but as developers themselves, they bring a unique perspective to our team. [...] This level of support is a great show of confidence that bodes well as we search for the right publishing partner going forward."Development on "Project Bobcat" is said to be continuing "at a rapid pace," and Ruckus Games is currently hiring for various positions.Read more about:FundingAbout the AuthorJustin CarterContributing Editor, GameDeveloper.comA Kansas City, MO native, Justin Carter has written for numerous sites including IGN, Polygon, and SyFy Wire. In addition to Game Developer, his writing can be found at io9 over on Gizmodo. Don't ask him about how much gum he's had, because the answer will be more than he's willing to admit.See more from Justin CarterDaily news, dev blogs, and stories from Game Developer straight to your inboxStay UpdatedYou May Also Like

Justin Carter, Contributing EditorNovember 15, 20242 Min ReadImage via Ubisoft.At a GlanceThe Splinter Cell adaptation was first announced back in 2005, and saw little progress.The Splinter Cell movie has been quietly terminated, according to a producer on the would-be film.During a recent promotional event for John Wick (and spotted by TheDirect), producer Basil Iwanyk said production company New Regency "just couldn't get it right, script-wise, budget-wise. [...] We had a million different versions of it, but it was going to be hardcore and awesome. That's one of the ones that got away, which is really sad."Ubisoft announced a film adaptation for the stealth game series back in 2005, then re-announced it in 2013, this time with actor Tom Hardy locked in to play series lead Sam Fisher. In the years since, the project saw no substantial progressHardy has spent the past decade playing Venom or starring in dramas, and the only director attached was Doug Liman, who was hired in March 2014 and exited the project a year later.Video game adaptations in development hellBefore transmedia ventures became a major fixture of entertainment, game adaptations often got locked into development hell. Some notable examples include Gears of War, BioShock, Infamous, and fellow Tom Clancy sub-series The Division. In some cases, those adaptations managed to push forward, others remain unmade to this day, often with no real confirmation on their status.Previously, Ubisoft appeared to ditch its transmedia plans after the critical and commercial failure of the 2016 Assassin's Creed movie. More recently, it teamed with Netflix on the animated Captain Laserhawk serieswhich brought various Ubisoft properties together into a single universeand plans to release a Watch Dogs film that wrapped production in September.Outside of the film, Ubisoft plans to bring back Splinter Cell with a remake of the original 2002 game. It will be the first installment in the franchise since 2013's Splinter Cell: Blacklist.Read more about:UbisoftTransmediaAbout the AuthorJustin CarterContributing Editor, GameDeveloper.comA Kansas City, MO native, Justin Carter has written for numerous sites including IGN, Polygon, and SyFy Wire. In addition to Game Developer, his writing can be found at io9 over on Gizmodo. Don't ask him about how much gum he's had, because the answer will be more than he's willing to admit.See more from Justin CarterDaily news, dev blogs, and stories from Game Developer straight to your inboxStay UpdatedYou May Also Like

Half-Life 2 is getting a major update in celebration of the classic titles 20th anniversary. In addition to Steam Workshop support directly within the game, Valve has fixed bugs and restored some content, added new graphics settings, updated gamepad controls, and a whole lot more. Youll also be able to get the game for free on Steam through November 18th at 1PM ET. After that, it will cost $9.99.Valve is also now including the Episode One and Episode Two expansions with the base game. Theyll be accessible from the Half-Life 2 menu, and Valve says that you will automatically advance to the next expansion after completing each one. Youll also be able to access the Steam Workshop within the Extras menu, which means youll no longer have to leave the game to enable mods.Valve says it also made massive updates to Half-Life 2s maps, which will fix longstanding bugs, restore content and features lost to time, and improve the quality of a few things like lightmap resolution and fog. Theres a new option to play with the original launch day blood and fire effects as well, and Valve has updated Half-Life 2s gamepad controls to match last years Half-Life 1 anniversary update.If you want to access the older version of Half-Life 2, thats still an option: youll just have to roll back to a publicly visible Beta branch named steam_legacy and grab the Pre-20th Anniversary Build, Valve says.Like with the 25th anniversary celebration for the original Half-Life, Valve has also released a free documentary about Half-Life 2 that you can watch for free on YouTube. Heres what you can expect, according to the documentarys YouTube description: weve gotten members of the HL2 team back to talk about the games development, how we almost ran out of money, what it was like when we were hacked, what happened when we were sued by our publisher, the birthplace of Steam, and much more.In addition to the documentary, Valve has shared videos of old demos of the game including one that it planned to bring to E3 2022 but decided not to show at the last minute. Valve added 3.5 hours of new developer commentary within the game, too.And the company is printing an expanded second edition of the Raising the Bar book about the games development, which includes the Half-Life 2 development story, with never-before-seen concept art from Episode One and Episode Two, along with ideas and experiments for the third episode that never came to be. The book will return to print in 2025.Maybe soon well get Half-Life 3? Maybe?

ESPN is testing an AI-generated avatar with the Saturday college football show SEC Nation. Dubbed FACTS, its going to be ...promoting education and fun around sports analytics with information drawn from ESPN Analytics, which includes data like the Football Power Index (FPI), player and team statistics, and game schedules. We havent seen the avatar in action, but it sounds like a bot-ified version of stats encyclopedia Howie Schwab, who was ESPNs first statistician and eventually the star of a mid-2000s game show, Stump the Schwab.ESPN has already brought generative AI to its website with AI-written game recaps. FACTS is still in development, and theres no word on when it could make its first appearance on the network. FACTS uses Nvidias ACE (Avatar Cloud Engine), an Azure OpenAI integration to power language processing, and ElevenLabs for its text-to-speech capabilities.In the announcement from its ESPN Edge Innovation Conference, the network claims FACTS is absolutely not made to replace journalists or other talent. FACTS is designed to test innovations out in the market and create an outlet for ESPN Analytics data to be accessible to fans in an engaging and enjoyable segment, the company writes.

In recent years, generative AI has surged in popularity, transforming fields like text generation, image creation, and code development. Its ability to automate and enhance creative tasks makes it a valuable skill for professionals across industries. Learning generative AI is crucial for staying competitive and leveraging the technologys potential to innovate and improve efficiency. This article lists the top generative AI courses that provide comprehensive training to help you master this technology, enhance your professional skill set, and stay ahead in the rapidly evolving job market.Introduction to Generative AI Learning Path SpecializationThis course offers a comprehensive introduction to generative AI, covering large language models (LLMs), their applications, and ethical considerations. The learning path comprises three courses: Generative AI, Large Language Models, and Responsible AI.Generative AI for EveryoneThis course provides a unique perspective on using generative AI. It covers how generative AI works, its applications, and its limitations, with hands-on exercises for practical use and effective prompt engineering. It aims to empower everyone to participate in an AI-powered future.Introduction to Generative AIThis beginner-friendly course provides a solid foundation in generative AI, covering concepts, effective prompting, and major models. It includes hands-on examples and practical exercises and explores use cases across various domains like text, images, and code.Generative AI with Large Language ModelsThis course teaches the fundamentals of generative AI with large language models (LLMs), including their lifecycle, transformer architecture, and optimization. It covers training, tuning, and deploying LLMs with practical insights from industry experts.Generative AI Fundamentals SpecializationThis specialization offers a comprehensive introduction to generative AI, covering models like GPT and DALL-E, prompt engineering, and ethical considerations. It includes five self-paced courses with hands-on labs and projects using tools like ChatGPT, Stable Diffusion, and IBM Watsonx.ai.Generative AI for Data Scientists SpecializationThis specialization by IBM is designed for data professionals to learn generative AI, including prompt engineering and applying AI tools in data science. It features hands-on projects like text, image, and code generation, as well as creating prediction models.Generative AI for Data Analysts SpecializationThis specialization covers generative AI use cases, models, and tools for text, code, image, audio, and video generation. It includes prompt engineering techniques, ethical considerations, and hands-on labs using tools like IBM Watsonx and GPT. Suitable for beginners, it offers practical projects to apply AI concepts in real-world scenarios.Generative AI for Software Developers SpecializationThis IBM specialization teaches software developers to leverage generative AI for writing high-quality code, enhancing productivity and efficiency. It includes three self-paced courses covering generative AI basics, prompt engineering, and tools like GitHub Co-pilot and ChatGPT, with hands-on projects to apply skills in real-world scenarios.IBM: Developing Generative AI Applications with PythonThis course teaches generative AI modeling through hands-on projects using Python, Flask, Gradio, and frameworks like Langchain. Youll build applications with LLMs like GPT-3 and Llama 2 and explore retrieval-augmented generation and voice-enabled chatbots.AI: Generative AI and LLMs on AWSThis course teaches deploying generative AI models like GPT on AWS through hands-on labs, covering architecture selection, cost optimization, monitoring, CI/CD pipelines, and compliance. It is ideal for ML engineers, data scientists, and technical leaders, providing real-world training for production-ready generative AI using Amazon Bedrock and cloud-native services.Using GenAI to Automate Software Development TasksThis course teaches how to streamline development workflows with generative AI, use AI pair programming tools like CodeWhisperer, master prompt engineering, and understand the role of Rust and Python in MLOps. It includes hands-on experience with AWS services like Code Catalyst, SageMaker, and Lightsail.AI Prompt Engineering for BeginnersThis course focuses on prompt engineering for AI language tools like ChatGPT. It offers hands-on practice and guidance to frame effective prompts.Generative AI for Business LeadersThis course equips business leaders with essential knowledge of generative AI and its tools to adapt and implement this transformative technology. By the end, youll understand how generative AI can revolutionize business operations and gain the skills needed for successful implementation.We make a small profit from purchases made viareferral/affiliate links attached to each course mentioned in the above list.If you want to suggest any course that we missed from this list, then please email us atasif@marktechpost.comThe post Top Generative Artificial Intelligence AI Courses in 2024 appeared first on MarkTechPost.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been making significant strides over the past few years, with the emergence of Large Language Models (LLMs) marking a major milestone in its growth. With such widespread adoption, feeling left out of this revolution is not uncommon. One way an individual can stay updated with the latest trends is by reading books on various facets of AI. Following are the top AI books one should read in 2024.Deep Learning (Adaptive Computation and Machine Learning series)This book covers a wide range of deep learning topics along with their mathematical and conceptual background. It also provides information on the different deep learning techniques used in various industrial applications.Python: Advanced Guide to Artificial IntelligenceThis book helps individuals familiarize themselves with the most popular machine learning (ML) algorithms and delves into the details of deep learning, covering topics like CNN, RNN, etc. It provides a comprehensive understanding of advanced AI concepts while focusing on their practical implementation using Python.Machine Learning (in Python and R) for DummiesThis book explains the fundamentals of machine learning by providing practical examples using Python and R. It is a beginner-friendly guide and a good starting point for people new to this field.Machine Learning for BeginnersGiven the pace with which machine learning systems are growing, this book provides a good base for anyone shifting to this field. The author talks about machine intelligences historical background and provides beginners with information on how advanced algorithms work.Artificial Intelligence: A Modern ApproachThis is a well-acclaimed book that covers the breadth of AI topics, including problem-solving, knowledge representation, machine learning, and natural language processing. It provides theoretical explanations along with practical examples, making it an excellent starting point for anyone looking to dive into the world of AI.Human Compatible: Artificial Intelligence and the Problem of ControlThe book discusses the inevitable conflict between humans and machines, providing important context before we advocate for AI. The author also talks about the possibility of superhuman AI and questions the concepts of human comprehension and machine learning.The Alignment Problem: Machine Learning and Human ValuesThis book talks about a concept called The Alignment Problem, where the systems we aim to teach, dont perform as expected, and various ethical and existential risks emerge.Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial IntelligenceThe author of this book talks about questions like what the future of AI will look like and the possibility of superhuman intelligence becoming our master. He also talks about how we can ensure these systems perform without malfunctioning.The Coming Wave: Technology, Power, and the Twenty-First Centurys Greatest DilemmaThis book warns about the risks that emerging technologies pose to global order. It covers topics like robotics and large language models and examines the forces that fuel these innovations.Artificial Intelligence Engines: A Tutorial Introduction to the Mathematics of Deep LearningArtificial Intelligence Engines dives into the mathematical foundations of deep learning. It provides a holistic understanding of deep learning, covering both the historical development of neural networks as well as modern techniques and architecture while focusing on the underlying mathematical concepts.Neural Networks and Deep LearningThis book covers the fundamental concepts of neural networks and deep learning. It also covers the mathematical aspects of the same, covering topics like linear algebra, probability theory, and numerical computation.Artificial Intelligence for HumansThis book explains how AI algorithms are used using actual numeric calculations. The book aims to target those without an extensive mathematical background and each unit is followed by examples in different programming languages.AI Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, and the New World OrderThe author of this book explains the unexpected consequences of AI development. The book sheds light on the competition between the USA and China over AI innovations through actual events.Hello World: Being Human in the Age of AlgorithmsThe author talks about the powers and limitations of the algorithms that are widely used today. The book prepares its readers for the moral uncertainties of a world run by code.The Master Algorithm: How the Quest for the Ultimate Learning Machine Will Remake Our WorldThis book talks about the concept of the Master algorithm, which is a single, overarching learning algorithm capable of incorporating different approaches.Applied Artificial Intelligence: A Handbook for Business LeadersApplied Artificial Intelligence provides a guide for businesses on how to leverage AI to drive innovation and growth. It covers various applications of AI and also explores its ethical considerations. Additionally, it sheds light on building AI teams and talent acquisition.Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, StrategiesThis book asks questions like whether AI agents will save or destroy us and what happens when machines surpass humans in general intelligence. The author talks about the importance of global collaboration in developing safe AI.We make a small profit from purchases made via referral/affiliate links attached to each book mentioned in the above list.If you want to suggest any book that we missed from this list, then please email us atasif@marktechpost.com Shobha Kakkar+ postsShobha is a data analyst with a proven track record of developing innovative machine-learning solutions that drive business value. LinkedIn event, 'One Platform, Multimodal Possibilities,' where Encord CEO Eric Landau and Head of Product Engineering, Justin Sharps will talk how they are reinventing data development process to help teams build game-changing multimodal AI models, fast