Bryant Francis, Senior EditorDecember 18, 20244 Min ReadImage via Activision/Microsoft.At a GlanceActivision has recast some actors in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6' Zombie mode without making any public announcement.The recasting seemed to take place after SAG-AFTRA went on strike in July 2024.Black Ops 6 isn't a "struck" production as work on it began before the strike. The causes for the change are complicated.Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 developer and publisher Activision has acknowledged that it recast several characters in its "Zombies" mode in the wake of the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike.Questions over the recasting began swirling as updates to Black Ops 6 rolled out new missions with returning characters suddenly sounding quite different. Players noticed that the characters William Peck and Samantha Maxispreviously voiced respectively by Zeke Alton and Julie Nathansonappeared by be played by new actors (Samantha Maxis appears in this game as an A.I character called "S.A.M.").Alton does not appear in Black Ops 6's credits. Nathanson is listed, but she and the other named performers are not credited by their individual characters, making it difficult to pin down where their voices appear in the game. It's unclear if the voices behind characters from prior Zombies campaigns have also been recast.Activision and Alton both acknowledged the recasting in statements to Game Developerbut careful language from both parties surrounding the "hows" and "whys" of the recasting speaks to the complicated reality of the SAG-AFTRA strike."To the best of my knowledge, that performance is not [mine]," Alton said when Game Developer asked if he reprised the role of Peck in Black Ops 6. "It's their character and they can do with it what they please. My only concern is for my brand as a performer. Fans of the game have reached out to me because the lack of crediting [of the replacement actor] implies that it may still be me which unfairly represents my abilities as a performer," he added.Related:"I have no issue with Activision's actions with a character and IP that they own. I absolutely adore the creative team and the opportunity I've had to collaborate with them in the past. I sincerely hope to collaborate in the future once all performers are protected against generative AI abuse."In response to a request for comment, an Activision spokesperson provided the following statement: "We respect the personal choice of these performers. Out of respect for all parties, we wont add new commentary about the ongoing negotiations with SAG-AFTRA. We look forward to a mutually beneficial outcome as soon as possible."Though these comments offer some confirmation about the sudden voice swap in the long-running PvE zombie-slaying mode, it's fair to acknowledge come confusion here and ask what drove the change. Breaking down what might be going on begins with one fact: Call of Duty Black Ops 6 is not a struck production.Why can't voice actors strike on Call of Duty: Black Ops 6?The ongoing SAG-AFTRA voice actors strike is more complicated than the film and television actors strike that preceded it in 2023. Under the terms of the film and television contract, actors on strike are legally able to stop work on an in-production shoot and not return to set. The Interactive Media Agreement signed in 2020 contains a unique clause known as "Side Letter Six" that allows actors to continue work on games under union contract so long as the game began production before the strike was called.Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 was in development before July 25, 2024. That means it is exempt from the strike under Side Letter Six, and striking it would be in violation of the IMA. However SAG-AFTRA notes that members working under "daily contracts" on exempt productions may choose to "not sign a new contract" to show solidarity with striking union members. If they do so, recasting their characters would not be same as hiring replacement labor on a struck production (informally known as "scabbing").Activision's referral to the "choice" of the performers may be alluding to their deciding to not sign a new daily contract after the strike began. The company may also not have chosen to offer a contract for other reasons.Daily contracts on in-production games aren't the only ways developers can retain union talent. They can also sign what is known as the "Interim Interactive Media Agreement," which includes terms contained in the union's last offer to its bargaining partners. Over 80 game developers have signed the Interim Agreement since the strike began.It is possible Activision chose to recast Peck, S.A.M, and other characters long before the strike began, but there's reason to think this isn't what took place. The most visible evidence of a mid-production recasting comes in the form of the intro cinematic for the level "Terminus." Reddit user "Heenix_" noticed that Peck's voice performance in the scene has changed between when Activision released the cinematic as a trailer in August before the release of Black Ops 6, and when it appeared in-game in November after it launched.Game Developer independently reviewed the audio from both videos and confirmed Peck's voice sounds different between the two versions, and that the former version closely matches Alton's prior work.But to repeat what Alton said above: the voice heard in the second scene from in Black Ops 6, to the best of his knowledge, is not his own.Game Developer has reached out to Julie Nathanson and SAG-AFTRA for comment and will update this story when a response is issued.Read more about:Top StoriesUnionization[Company] Activision BlizzardAbout the AuthorBryant FrancisSenior Editor, GameDeveloper.comBryant Francis is a writer, journalist, and narrative designer based in Boston, MA. He currently writes for Game Developer, a leading B2B publication for the video game industry. His credits include Proxy Studios' upcoming 4X strategy game Zephon and Amplitude Studio's 2017 game Endless Space 2.See more from Bryant FrancisDaily news, dev blogs, and stories from Game Developer straight to your inboxStay UpdatedYou May Also Like

Sega of America is being taken to court by Johnny Gioeli, a musician for the rock band Crush 40. The band is best known for creating Sonic Adventure 2's theme, "Live & Learn," and he alleges Sega is in breach of contract over the iconic song. In addition to seeking financial compensation from Sega, he wants the court to "conclusively establish" who owns it.In the December-filed suit, Gioeli claims to have the "master recording and composition of the song," which he reportedly created and produced in his own home without any involvement from Sega. He further accuses the publisher of "exploiting and licensing" the song to over two dozen games, shows, and live performances without his knowledge.Gioeli states he was first made aware of the song's presence in other media earlier this year. Game-wise, "Live & Learn" has been featured in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U versions of Super Smash Bros. 4, and Yakuza 4 and 5. Its inclusion in non-Sonic Adventure 2 titles is as recent as 2021's Monster Hunter Rise from Capcom.Since 2001, Crush 40 has become commonly associated with the Sonic franchise and made songs for later Sonic games like Sonic Heroes and Shadow the Hedgehog. However, he argued that in those instances, he and Sega reached "specific agreements" that addressed those songs' rights or master recordings, which did not happen with "Live & Learn."The lawsuit acknowledges that "Live & Learn" may be jointly-owned by the two parties. Should that be the case, it argues Sega's ownership would be "expressly limited to the lyrics themselves.""Without a direct claim for authorship of the master, no control or direct involvement in the process of creating the final master recording, and no clear written transfer of the master, [Sega] has no basis to claim sole ownership of the copyright in this sound recording," the suit reads. It further cited a prior statement from a Sega attorney which noted the song's rights are Gioeli's "and not Sega's, and we have no rights to these materials."Despite that and a letter from a separate Sega lawyer who called the song a "joint work" in April, Gioeli claims Sega refuses to name him an owner or give him 50 percent of the song's profits he is entitled to.Johnny Gioeli's full lawsuit against Sega of America can be read here.

Justin Carter, Contributing EditorDecember 18, 20242 Min ReadImage via 11 Bit Studios.Frostpunk 2 developer 11 bit Studios is laying off staff after it pulled the plug on the unannounced game, Project 8. The studio elected to "discontinue its development" after it was started years ago under "very different market conditions," said president Przemysaw Marsza.According to him, Project 8's development started back in 2018, when "narrative-driven, story-rich games held stronger appeal." As of this past September, its total production costs came to 48.4 million PLN (or $11.8 million).While specific team numbers were not provided, he added that half the current Project 8 team would be offered roles on other existing 11 Bit teams or "new, as-yet-unannounced initiatives...that will help fill the gap left by Project 8." One of those "highly promising" teams is working on the 2025 survival game The Alters.Despite putting Project 8 game to bed, Marsza indicated assets from the would-be game could be used elsewhere for other projects.Why cancel it? He explained the project had "breakthroughs and setbacks," including growing delays and several critical parts of its development that were said to be "problematic." The tipping point came with Project 8's most recent milestone, whose evaluation showed "unresolved issues...that would require further extensions of the production timeline and corresponding budget increases to address."As such, management reportedly "lost confidence" and ultimately opted to end the project. Had it been released, Project 8 would have been 11 bit's first game designed specifically for the console audience. While the studio has released its games for consoles in the past, those versions have typically come a year or later after their initial launches on PC. Frostpunk 2, for example, is coming to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S sometime in 2025 after its PC release back in September.This past October, it was revealed 11 Bit quietly eliminated eight roles toward the end of 2023. Those developers were working on an unnamed project the studio said underwent "production changes," which resulted in staff being let go or switching to other teams, similar to what's happening with Project 8's staff.Read more about:LayoffsAbout 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

Honda teased the reveal of the first two Honda Zero prototypes, which will be making their official debut at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January. The company also said it would have a new proprietary operating system for the global electric vehicle series to show off.Honda announced Honda Zero at CES 2024, describing it as a new global EV series that would be lighter and more space-age than the current crop of heavy, boxy electric SUVs and trucks. The three defining principles of Honda Zero were thin, light, and wise. And the company would use its learnings from F1 and its robotics work to introduce a new lineup of vehicles that were distinctly of the future. At the upcoming CES, Honda says it will expand on its wise principle by releasing more details about its new OS, automated driving technologies, and an overview of its system-on-a-chip that will support its Honda Zero vehicles. The teaser image features rear profiles of the two concept vehicles first revealed earlier this year: the Saloon and the Space-Hub. The Saloon has a sloping fastback shape with unique rectangular lights in the front and rear that resemble avintage Black & Decker Dustbuster. The Space-Hub resembles a minivan with minimal overhangs and a rear light that has a similar look toRivians electric delivery vans for Amazon.Honda says it will expand on its wise principleEarlier this year, Verge contributor Abigail Bassett flew out to Japan to get up close with Hondas new global EV series. She drove a prototype CR-V equipped with Honda Zero tech and found it to be lighter and more nimble than a Honda Prologue. The new Honda Zero platform feels similar to other EV platforms on the market in terms of acceleration and handling. Because the weight is low in the floor, the prototype CR-V cornered quickly and flat as you approached the limit. The powertrain is quick and responsive, and on the short, front straight that the engineers set up for our test laps, I hit 110km (just shy of 70mph) in a relatively short distance.It will be interesting to see more production-ready versions of the Saloon and Space-Hub in the flesh, especially with all the chatter about Honda in the background (working on solid-state batteries, collaborating with Sony on the Afeela EV, potentially merging with Nissan).

Intels new Arrow Lake CPUs came out in October promising high performance at lower power levels, but reviews, including ours, noted surprisingly lackluster gaming performance. Tom Warren said of the Core Ultra 9 285K, ...in many titles, it provides worse performance than the 14th Gen chips it was designed to replace.Now, the troubled chipmaker says it has been gradually releasing updates that fixed most of the issues it identified, as reported earlier by Toms Hardware.At the end of the day, there were four root issues that we needed to address, and fixes for those are actually already in the field right now, Robert Hallock, Intels VP and GM of client AI and technical marketing said during an interview with HotHardware. Theyve been coming out over the last two weeks or so in drips and drabs, as update schedules allow.One issue stemmed from a mistimed update that was supposed to optimize Windows processor power management (PPM) system for Intels Core Ultra 200S-series processors. (PPM adjusts the performance of a CPU based on the current power plan, such as Balanced, High Performance, Power Saver, etc). RelatedWhat happened to Intel?Instead of releasing the PPM update before reviewers got their hands on the processors, Intel says it scheduled the update to go out when it became widely available, which may have caused reviewers to see worse-than-expected performance. Due to the missing PPM update, Intels performance-boosting Application Performance Optimizer (APO) also couldnt take effect in games, while misconfigured performance settings also had a negative impact on reviewers benchmarks. Image: IntelA fix was already applied for these issues inWindows 11 build 26100.2161. Intel also says Epic Games resolved a driver compatibility issue causing the blue screen of death when running games with Easy Anti-Cheat, such as Star Wars Outlaws.Intel is planning to release another set of performance upgrades for Arrow Lake CPUs in January, and it will provide a comprehensive performance update at CES. For now, Intel recommends updating Windows and applying the latest BIOS update to your motherboard if you havent already. Otherwise, you can wait until the final performance update next year.

Even Congress cant stop talking about the drones.But theyre not passing anything yet, after Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) blocked Chuck Schumers (D-NY) attempt at drone investigation legislation:The Biden administration keeps saying, well, its all normal stuff, he said. Why dont we actually get to the truth of the matter of what actually exists and what the threat is before we propose legislation?

Speech synthesis technology has made notable strides, yet challenges remain in delivering real-time, natural-sounding audio. Common obstacles include latency, pronunciation accuracy, and speaker consistencyissues that become critical in streaming applications where responsiveness is paramount. Additionally, handling complex linguistic inputs, such as tongue twisters or polyphonic words, often exceeds the capabilities of existing models. To address these issues, researchers at Alibaba have unveiled CosyVoice 2, an enhanced streaming TTS model designed to resolve these challenges effectively.Introducing CosyVoice 2CosyVoice 2 builds upon the foundation of the original CosyVoice, bringing significant upgrades to speech synthesis technology. This enhanced model focuses on refining both streaming and offline applications, incorporating features that improve flexibility and precision across diverse use cases, including text-to-speech and interactive voice systems.Key advancements in CosyVoice 2 include:Unified Streaming and Non-Streaming Modes: Seamlessly adaptable to various applications without compromising performance.Enhanced Pronunciation Accuracy: A reduction of pronunciation errors by 30%-50%, improving clarity in complex linguistic scenarios.Improved Speaker Consistency: Ensures stable voice output across zero-shot and cross-lingual synthesis tasks.Advanced Instruction Capabilities: Offers precise control over tone, style, and accent through natural language instructions.Innovations and BenefitsCosyVoice 2 integrates several technological advancements to enhance its performance and usability:Finite Scalar Quantization (FSQ): Replacing traditional vector quantization, FSQ optimizes the use of the speech token codebook, improving semantic representation and synthesis quality.Simplified Text-Speech Architecture: Leveraging pre-trained large language models (LLMs) as its backbone, CosyVoice 2 eliminates the need for additional text encoders, streamlining the model while boosting cross-lingual performance.Chunk-Aware Causal Flow Matching: This innovation aligns semantic and acoustic features with minimal latency, making the model suitable for real-time speech generation.Expanded Instructional Dataset: With over 1,500 hours of training data, the model enables granular control over accents, emotions, and speech styles, allowing for versatile and expressive voice generation.Performance InsightsExtensive evaluations of CosyVoice 2 underscore its strengths:Low Latency and Efficiency: Response times as low as 150ms make it well-suited for real-time applications like voice chat.Improved Pronunciation: The model achieves significant enhancements in handling rare and complex linguistic constructs.Consistent Speaker Fidelity: High speaker similarity scores demonstrate the ability to maintain naturalness and consistency.Multilingual Capability: Strong results on Japanese and Korean benchmarks highlight its robustness, though challenges remain with overlapping character sets.Resilience in Challenging Scenarios: CosyVoice 2 excels in difficult cases such as tongue twisters, outperforming previous models in accuracy and clarity.ConclusionCosyVoice 2 thoughtfully advances from its predecessor, addressing key limitations in latency, accuracy, and speaker consistency with scalable solutions. The integration of advanced features like FSQ and chunk-aware flow matching offers a balanced approach to performance and usability. While opportunities remain to expand language support and refine complex scenarios, CosyVoice 2 lays a strong foundation for the future of speech synthesis. Bridging offline and streaming modes ensures high-quality, real-time audio generation for diverse applications.Check out the Paper, Hugging Face Page, Pre-Trained Model, and Demo. All credit for this research goes to the researchers of this project. Also,dont forget to follow us onTwitter and join ourTelegram Channel andLinkedIn Group. Dont Forget to join our60k+ ML SubReddit. Asif RazzaqAsif Razzaq is the CEO of Marktechpost Media Inc.. As a visionary entrepreneur and engineer, Asif is committed to harnessing the potential of Artificial Intelligence for social good. His most recent endeavor is the launch of an Artificial Intelligence Media Platform, Marktechpost, which stands out for its in-depth coverage of machine learning and deep learning news that is both technically sound and easily understandable by a wide audience. The platform boasts of over 2 million monthly views, illustrating its popularity among audiences. [Download] Evaluation of Large Language Model Vulnerabilities Report (Promoted)

Name: Towards AILegal Name: Towards AI, Inc.Description: Towards AI is the world's leading artificial intelligence (AI) and technology publication. Read by thought-leaders and decision-makers around the world.Phone Number: +1-650-246-9381Email: [emailprotected]228 Park Avenue SouthNew York, NY10003United States Website: https://towardsai.net/Publisher: https://towardsai.net/#publisherDiversity Policy: https://towardsai.net/aboutEthics Policy: https://towardsai.net/aboutMasthead: https://towardsai.net/about Name: Towards AI Legal Name: Towards AI, Inc. Description: Towards AI is the world's leading artificial intelligence (AI) and technology publication. Founders: Roberto Iriondo, Website, Job Title: Co-founder and Advisor Works for: Towards AI, Inc. Follow Roberto: X, LinkedIn, GitHub, Google Scholar, Towards AI Profile, Medium, ML@CMU, FreeCodeCamp, Crunchbase, Bloomberg, Roberto Iriondo, Generative AI Lab, Generative AI LabDenis Piffaretti, Job Title: Co-founder Works for: Towards AI, Inc.Louie Peters, Job Title: Co-founder Works for: Towards AI, Inc.Louis-Franois Bouchard, Job Title: Co-founder Works for: Towards AI, Inc.Logo:Areas Served: WorldwideAlternate Name: Towards AI, Inc.Alternate Name: Towards AI Co.Alternate Name: towards aiAlternate Name: towardsaiAlternate Name: towards.aiAlternate Name: taiAlternate Name: toward aiAlternate Name: toward.aiAlternate Name: Towards AI, Inc.Alternate Name: towardsai.netAlternate Name: pub.towardsai.net5 stars based on 497 reviews Frequently Used, Contextual ReferencesTODO: Remember to copy unique IDs whenever it needs used. i.e., URL: 304b2e42315eResourcesTake our 85+ lesson From Beginner to Advanced LLM Developer Certification: From choosing a project to deploying a working product this is the most comprehensive and practical LLM course out there!PublicationHomeData Analysis10 No-Nonsense Machine Learning Tips for Beginners (Using Real-World Datasets)10 No-Nonsense Machine Learning Tips for Beginners (Using Real-World Datasets) 0 like December 18, 2024Share this postLast Updated on December 18, 2024 by Editorial TeamAuthor(s): Mukundan Sankar Originally published on Towards AI. Stop Overthinking and Start Building Models with Real-World DatasetsThis member-only story is on us. Upgrade to access all of Medium.Photo by Mahdis Mousavi on UnsplashDo you want to get into machine learning? Good. Youre in for a ride. I have been in the Data field for over 8 years, and Machine Learning is what got me interested then, so I am writing about this! More about me here.But heres the truth: Most beginners get lost in the noise. They chase the hype Neural Networks, Transformers, Deep Learning, and, who can forget AI and fall flat. The secret? Start simple, experiment, and get your hands dirty. Youll learn faster than any tutorial can teach you.These 10 tips cut the fluff. They focus on doing, not just theorizing. And to make it practical, Ill show you how to use real-world datasets from the UCI Machine Learning Repository to build and train your first models.Lets get started.Forget deep learning for now. Its crucial to start with small, simple models. You're not ready for neural networks if you cant explain Linear Regression or Decision Trees. These simple models work wonders for small datasets and lay a solid foundation for understanding the basics.Were using the Boston Housing Dataset. The goal? Read the full blog for free on Medium.Join thousands of data leaders on the AI newsletter. Join over 80,000 subscribers and keep up to date with the latest developments in AI. From research to projects and ideas. If you are building an AI startup, an AI-related product, or a service, we invite you to consider becoming asponsor. Published via Towards AITowards AI - Medium Share this postPost navigationBeyond A/B Testing: How Contextual Bandits Revolutionize Experimentation in Machine Learning Related posts

Author(s): Mukundan Sankar Originally published on Towards AI. Stop Overthinking and Start Building Models with Real-World DatasetsThis member-only story is on us. Upgrade to access all of Medium.Photo by Mahdis Mousavi on UnsplashDo you want to get into machine learning? Good. Youre in for a ride. I have been in the Data field for over 8 years, and Machine Learning is what got me interested then, so I am writing about this! More about me here.But heres the truth: Most beginners get lost in the noise. They chase the hype Neural Networks, Transformers, Deep Learning, and, who can forget AI and fall flat. The secret? Start simple, experiment, and get your hands dirty. Youll learn faster than any tutorial can teach you.These 10 tips cut the fluff. They focus on doing, not just theorizing. And to make it practical, Ill show you how to use real-world datasets from the UCI Machine Learning Repository to build and train your first models.Lets get started.Forget deep learning for now. Its crucial to start with small, simple models. You're not ready for neural networks if you cant explain Linear Regression or Decision Trees. These simple models work wonders for small datasets and lay a solid foundation for understanding the basics.Were using the Boston Housing Dataset. The goal? Read the full blog for free on Medium.Join thousands of data leaders on the AI newsletter. Join over 80,000 subscribers and keep up to date with the latest developments in AI. From research to projects and ideas. If you are building an AI startup, an AI-related product, or a service, we invite you to consider becoming asponsor. Published via Towards AI

The Batman director confirmed that the long-awaited sequel will begin shooting next year in 2025.In a conversation for Variety between director Matt Reeves and actress Zoe Kravitz, who worked together on The Batman where Kravitz played Catwoman, the two briefly discussed the status on the sequel. "We're finishing the script. We're going to be shooting next year," confirmed Reeves.This is good news for anyone waiting for any updates on The Batman sequel. The first movie, which starred Robert Pattinson as Batman, was a gritty new take on the superhero and tonally split the difference between the grounded realism of the Christopher Nolan movies, while playing up some of the more gothic elements seen in the Tim Burton films. It was also released in 2022, meaning it's been quite the long wait for a sequel.PlayWe did get some Batman related goodness this year thanks to the Max spinoff series The Penguin starring Collin Ferrell. Focusing on the rise of the mobster who will become known as The Penguin, the miniseries was well-received, and it sounds like based on the conversation between Reeves and Kravitz there may be a possibility for more seasons in the future."We're talking to [showrunner] Laurnce [LeFranc] about doing another season," exclaimed Reeves when asked about the reception to The Penguin's first season. "That was a special experience. I just feel really fortunate. These characters don't belong to me; they belong to the world. It comes down to whether you can approach them in a way that expresses something personal."The Penguin was an honorable mention in IGN's Best TV Show of 2024 award while IGN awarded The Batman a perfect score of 10 when it first premiered. You can read our Batman review here.Matt Kim is IGN's Senior Features Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.