The boss of Black Myth: Wukong developer Game Science has pointed the finger at the Xbox Series S over the lack of an Xbox version of the game.In a post on Chinese social media website Weibo, Game Science co-founder and CEO Feng Ji celebrated PC and PlayStation 5 action game Black Myth: Wukongs Game of the Year win at the 2024 Steam awards, and in doing so lamented the lack of an Xbox version of the game, which he blamed on optimization trouble with the Xbox Series S.The only thing missing is the Xbox, he said, per machine learning translation, which somehow feels a bit wrong, but that 10GB of shared memory without years of optimisation experience is really hard to make work.Thats a reference to the Xbox Series S power relative to the Xbox Series X. The Series S has 4TF of GPU compute compared to the Xbox Series Xs 12.2TF, but the killer is the drop in memory allocation, from 16GB down to 10GB.Microsofts Xbox release policy means publishers and developers must release their games across Xbox Series X and S. They are unable to release a game for Xbox Series X only, for example. This has caused difficulty for some studios in the past, perhaps most notably Baldurs Gate 3 developer Larian. Baldur's Gate 3 was originally released on PC and PS5 only, with the Xbox version delayed due to issues with the Xbox Series S specifically struggling to perform splitscreen co-op. In the past, Xbox had committed to parity between Xbox Series S and X for all games, but it ultimately made an exception for Baldur's Gate 3 so the game could launch later in 2023.In 2023, Remedy communications director Thomas Puha talked openly about the challenge the studio faced getting Alan Wake 2 running well on the Xbox Series S, saying the consoles GPU is an issue and having less memory is a pretty big problem. Before then, a VFX artist who had worked on an Xbox Series X and S game said in a now-deleted tweet that many developers have been sitting in meetings for the past year desperately trying to get Series S launch requirements dropped.Studios have been through one development cycle where Series S turned out to be an albatross around the neck of production, and now that games are firmly being developed with new consoles in mind, teams do not want to repeat the process, the developer said.In interviews with press including IGN, Xbox boss Phil Spencer has deflected questions about whether Xbox Series S is holding developers back, and rejected calls for developers to be allowed to release their games on Xbox Series X only. In an interview with Eurogamer, Spencer said: "Having an entry-level price point for a sub-$300 console is a good thing for the industry. I think it's important. The Switch has been able to do that, in terms of kind of the traditional plug-into-my-television consoles. I think it's important. So, we're committed."The situation with Black Myth: Wukong, however, is further muddled by Microsofts insistence that the games delay on Xbox has nothing to do with development issues. In a number of statements issued to IGN, Microsoft has suggested an exclusivity deal with Sony was the cause of the delay."As we have said before, were excited for the launch of Black Myth Wukong on Xbox Series X and S and are working with Game Science to bring the game to our platforms, Microsoft has told IGN.We'd prefer not to comment on the deals made by our partners with other platform holders but we can confirm that the delay is not due to Xbox platform limitations that have been raised to us."Black Myth: Wukong launched on August 19 and sold an eye-watering 18 million copies in just two weeks across PC and PS5, reportedly making over $700 million in revenue in the process. That was enough to put Black Myth: Wukong up there with Grand Theft Auto 5 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 as one of the fastest-selling games of all time, and is an astonishing return for a game that had a reported budget of $70 million over six years of development. It did so well that Sony pointed to Black Myth: Wukong as making a significant contribution to revenue during its last financial quarter, making up for the Concord disaster.DLC is set to follow. In September, Game Science investor Hero Games confirmed plans to release an Elden Ring-style expansion for Black Myth: Wukong ahead of any sequel.IGNs Black Myth: Wukong review returned an 8/10. We said: Despite some frustrating technical issues, Black Myth: Wukong is a great action game with fantastic combat, exciting bosses, tantalizing secrets, and a beautiful world.While youre here, IGN has plenty more Black Myth: Wukong guides to help you out, including Essential Tips and Tricks, Things Black Myth: Wukong Doesn't Tell You, and our Boss List and Guides.Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

In 2017, Brendan Greene (aka PlayerUnknown) pioneered the Battle Royale genre of games with the early access release of PlayerUnknowns Battlegrounds. The game has since gone on to become a massive hit, spawning countless more games like it, including some of the most successful games of all time.Next year, 2025, Greene wants to pioneer something new. He wants to make a metaverse. No, not the one youre thinking of. Greene doesnt think those count as actual metaverses.I hesitate to talk about this, because it's just such a dirty word, but I want to build a metaverse because I don't think anyone else is, he tells IGN. I think everyone's building IP bubbles that might talk to each other at some stage in the future, maybe if we're lucky, but it's not the metaverse. See, the Metaverse is a 3D internet. You should be able to create your own worlds and just have them all operating on the same protocol, like HTTP. So a world is a page, and that's what I'm trying to do with Artemis.Artemis, aka Greenes metaverse, is actually the third of three games hes currently cooking up at his studio, PlayerUnknown Productions. The first two are testing grounds for the technology Greene eventually wants to use to build his metaverse. Theyll each be games in their own right, but their real purpose is to work out the kinks in Greenes most ambitious ideas before they hit primetime in Artemis.Final Chapter PrologueThe first game, Prologue, is already being tested by players in Greenes Discord (in an early format Greene refers to as Preface) and is planned for a wider release in 2025. Its a fairly basic survival game, Greene says, with a simple loop of trying to reach an objective while dealing with typical survival mechanics. Theres weather, hunger, crafting, discoverable loot, and other such elements to deal with, but the real meat of Prologue is its terrain generation tech. Thats what Prologue is really about: testing high-tech terrain generation at a small scale, before implementing it more broadly in Artemis.Greene calls the terrain generation tech used by his studio Melba, and its basically a world generation machine. Melba uses machine learning, and is trained on NASA data of real-world Earth terrain. With that information, Melba is able to spit out entire maps, or even worlds, that have realistic geological features, and is able to do so either randomly or based on instructions, such as a request for a world with tons of mountains. These worlds are then filled with textures, assets, and other elements designed by actual artists, and are able to be customized in a similar fashion to have more forests, rivers, or whatever other elements are desired.PlayIGN's Twenty Questions - Guess the game!IGN's Twenty Questions - Guess the game!To start:...try asking a question that can be answered with a "Yes" or "No".000/250There's a new terrain every time you press play, Greene explains. The seed system gives us, I think 4.2 billion possible maps, but maybe millions of those would be interesting, I'm not sure yetBut this kind of tech is really cool because we're seeing it shaped day to day with the artists. They're going, Let's try this, let's update the masks we use for the river to this so we generate that slightly differently. And they're learning how to use this tech along with us, which is just great to see.It's more an emergent space to test our terrain tech, and we're going to work with the community to try to figure out: how can we make this test interesting? How can we make this game mode fun? What can we add to it that's systemic, and then will help us moving forward going into game two, and three, and building these bigger systems using the foundations we built in Prologue?Building the World MachinePrologue is just game one. Game two, which is currently unnamed, will come once the terrain tech is solidified. For Game Two, Greene wants a world thats 500 million square kilometers, earth scale to test a different sort of tech ahead of the release of Artemis: gameplay with a whole awful lot of characters all in one space together.Greene wont say much about this one. He tells me about his end goal for Artemis, which is to fit not thousands, but millions of players in a space together and have everything still work. In Game Two, Greene will test that via both multiplayer gameplay as well as AI character interaction. Youll be controlling an army, basically, is all I can really get out of him. Game Two will focus on multiplayer while controlling lots of assets...which, when combined with Melba, will lead to the massive, multiplayer metaverse that Greene is dreaming up for Artemis.The internet was empty when it first started, and it was just the way of sharing data, and I look at this the same.The metaverse has to have millions of people, and server client-side, you'll never get that. You'll maybe get a few thousand, maybe 10,000 if you're lucky, but it's attacking the problem at the wrong end, which is to solve the simulation locally, which we've done with Preface and then you can scale to hundreds of thousands, millions of people, hopefully.As for what all those millions of people will be doing in Greenes metaversethats largely up to them, he says. He compares it at one point to a Star Trek Holodeck, and then later to Minecraft Survival. In the tradition of the latter, Artemis will have a sort of basic game experience everyone can play, but then those users will be able to go off and make their own worlds, freely mod them, share them with others, and essentially treat them like 3D webpages and experiment, build, and create totally new things within these spaces. He says hes already seeing some of the beginnings of that within his Discord community as they tool around with and mod the early release of Prologue.The internet was empty when it first started, and it was just the way of sharing data, and I look at this the same, he says. This is probably going to be empty for the first few years, but then eventually you'll start to see the possibility of what you can do with this kind of world generator that it's like a multiverse of worlds.Critically, Greene wants Artemis to eventually be like the open internet in the sense that no one can really control whats on it, not even him. I ask him how content moderation will work in that case, and while Greene believes Artemis will need moderation, he wants that power to stay in the hands of the users.Prologue: Go Wayback! ScreenshotsI've been thinking a lot about this and what I want to do within this multiverse of digital spaces, you give the power to the community, that if someone acts like an asshole then they're locked out of spaces. And it comes down to identity. We have to solve the identity problem because anonymity online kind of breaks the social construct. But if on our network or on our system, it's tough for you to reenter it or to create an identity twice, you could still be anonymous, but at least there will be consequence to action.Greene also suggests that instead of outright banning people who cause issues, one path might be to turn miscreants into ghosts that cant interact with anyone. They can see everything happening and browse the world, but they are incapable of speaking or otherwise engaging with anything in it. If you look at Covid, there were 12 people that generated something like 96% of the misinformation that was online. [Authors note: The actual number was 65% of disinformation posts on Facebook, and 72% of all anti-vaccine content.]...If you shut out this small group of people that really actively try to upset the information space and deliver propaganda, then you've solved the problem kind of holisticallyI think that the future will be local. Everything will be local. You will have your identity locally and you will share it as you see fit, and it won't be stored by people across the world. At least I hope.I press Greene on this - what if people are doing illegal things in this metaverse? What about copyright violations, or worse, everything Roblox has been accused of? At what point does he become responsible? Greene admits he doesnt have an answer yet.That's where we're going to have to figure it out. As I said, I want to build games with the community, rather than for them, and I think with their help and finding out what tools they need to better do this, then we can figure out how to do this in a way better way for everyone. Thankfully we have good AI regulation in the EU as well so there are checks and balances there already, at least this side of the planet to help with this, right? I mean, let's see how long they last, but at least there are people smarter than me thinking about it already. So I'm happy to follow guidance, and work with the community to figure this out because it's important to get right.Long Road AheadGreenes vision is incredibly technically complex, and he mentions several times that he doesnt expect well see its final form Artemis for ten, maybe even 15 years. Hes already highlighted a number of the challenges ahead of the team, but I ask him about another one he hasnt yet mentioned: is Artemis going to be PC-only? No, he says. Itll be on everything, eventually.It has to. I mean, the device is just an access point to the world. It has to be. Kids in Africa on their mobile phones have to be able to access it the same as gaming PCs on the West Coast. The experience of the world might be slightly different, but because it's not a game, that's okay. It just has to run on every device.And theres another technological issue I need to raise with Greene: NFTs. Previously, its been reported that Artemis will implement them, but Greene says that was a misunderstanding stemming from an interview he did with Hit Points back in 2022.We need a platform where people can just create and not worry that you've got an exec team shooting it.[Nathan Brown] asked me about blockchain because it was the hype thing at the time, Greene says. And I explained that blockchain, I thought, was an interesting financial instrument, as a layer within a digital world. But that was it. I said maybe some future iteration of blockchain or hashgraph or that tech is interesting. Ultimately it's a digital ledger and if we can use a digital ledger, we'll find the best one and use it. But that's really it. The next day after I did that interview, [headlines were] PUBG Guy Making Blockchain Game, and that's not what I said. It's an interesting tech and I think it can be used if it's useful, but otherwise we'll use what is the best at the time.So hes not currently thinking about NFTs in Artemis, then?No, not even thinking about it. Our concern is about getting the engine to a state that we can make things in it and then as I said, Game Two, we'll test ideas then, but really now not even thought about it. More just getting some fun games made.Between the length of time Greene needs to build Artemis and the sheer amount of questions still looming about its final form, Greene and his studio have a difficult road ahead. Hell need time and personpower, which also means money, and the games industry is currently going through a funding drought amid layoffs, closures, and project cancellations. Greene says his project is fine, having gotten funding for Prologue early on and used it thoughtfully thus far. But that doesnt mean Artemis is guaranteed. He says theyll still need people to buy Prologue so they can sustain development long-term.Still, Greene isnt daunted by the fact that hes basically claiming he wants to build an entire second internet in a time of mass game and tech instability. In the same way that PUBG started out as a fairly barebones game but became a smash hit that launched a genre, he believes his new vision can grow to something massive with the help of a creative community. And maybe, he suggests, a successful Artemis could even help prevent the current games industry situation from happening again.Games are driven a lot by data points on Excel spreadsheets rather than making fun games and it's a little depressing, he says. So that's why I want to stick to my vision because I think we need a platform like this. We need a platform where people can just create and not worry that you've got an exec team shooting it.I want to find the next PlayerUnknown. I was really lucky to have been given this chance and providing people with a platform that can help do that, why wouldn't I do that? And yes, it's a big vision, but I've got a good team of industry professionals and they don't think it's that crazy. So yeah, I'm filled with confidence.Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.

Earlier this year we announced were giving you more options than ever before when it comes to joining console gaming with Xbox and now is the best time yet to dive in and experience everything Xbox has to offer!Available now, you have the choice of a variety of storage and design options with the Xbox Series S 512GB, Xbox Series S 1TB (White), Xbox Series X 1TB Digital Edition, Xbox Series X 1TB, and Xbox Series X 2TB Galaxy Black Special Edition (console availability will vary by country).These consoles offer the best way to enjoy the diverse experiences crafted by game creators with console gaming with Xbox!Each of these consoles support many unique elements that make gaming with Xbox great, like access to thousands of Xbox One, Xbox 360, and Original Xbox games through Backward Compatibility. Theyre also the first game consoles to support gaming in Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos and contain powerful features like Quick Resume, letting you seamlessly switch between different titles instantly; faster load times thanks to their powerful SSD drives; and framerates up to 120 FPS.There have also been an exciting slate of game launches on Xbox this year like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred, andSenuas Saga: Hellblade II, as well as several amazing experiences on the way like Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl, and Avowed this is one of the best times ever to jump in and experience Xbox gaming to its fullest with these new Xbox Series X|S console options !Xbox Series X 2TB Galaxy Black Special EditionExperience the fastest, most powerful Xbox with the new Xbox Series X 2TB Galaxy Black Special Edition. Featuring the same speed and performance of the Xbox Series X, the console also comes with an optical disc drive and double the storage with a 2TB SSD.Drawing inspiration from constellations and the spirit of exploration and adventure that outer space evokes, the special edition console in Galaxy Black features a silver, grey, and green celestial effect representing thousands of games and millions of gamers playing on Xbox.It also includes a matching Xbox Wireless controller with a Galaxy Black D-pad and Velocity Green back case only available with this special edition console. Xbox Series X 2TB Galaxy Black Special Edition is available now in limited quantities in select markets for $599.99 USD ERP.Xbox Series X 1TBThe Xbox Series X, with its 1TB SSD in Carbon Black, offers an immersive gaming experience with true-to-life characters, brighter worlds, and sharper details in 4K. More time gaming and less time waiting with features like Quick Resume, lightning-fast load times and gameplay up to 120 FPS. Plus, the ultra-low latency improves your controllers response time, making every second count. Included is the Xbox Wireless Controller, designed for ultimate precision and comfort. The Xbox Series X 1TB is available now in select markets for $499.99 USD ERP.Xbox Series X 1TB Digital Edition in Robot WhiteThe new Xbox Series X 1TB Digital Edition in Robot White, features the same speed and performance of the Xbox Series X with a 1TB SSD, now all-digital. Just like all Xbox Series X|S console options, it includes a matching Xbox Wireless Controller, featuring our highest level of precision with a dedicated Share button and enhanced ergonomics. The Xbox Series X 1TB Digital Edition in Robot White is now available in select markets for only $449.99 USD ERP.Xbox Series S 1TB / 512GB in Robot WhiteThe Xbox Series S console line-up offers the best value in gaming, offering access to thousands of digital games across four generations of gaming. The Xbox Series S comes with an Xbox Wireless Controller and features Quick Resume and speeds of up to 120 FPS, all in a sleek, compact design. Available in Robot White, the Series S comes in two storage options: the Xbox Series S-512GB for $299.99 USD ERP and the Xbox Series S-1TB, which offers double storage, for $349.99 USD ERP. Both the Xbox Series S-512GB and Xbox Series S-1TB are now available in select markets.

A leaker with a mixed track record has claimed that this years iPhone SE will be getting an upgraded name to reflect its new design: the iPhone 16E.We are expecting the budget model to get its biggest ever upgrade this year, finally dropping the large chin with Home button for a modern form factor based on the iPhone 14 The iPhone SEThe iPhone SE was conceived by Apple as a more affordable entry point into the companys ecosystem. The first model back in 2016 was based on the iPhone 5s, a classic design which stood the test of time well.While the company was focused on the affordability of the model, some of us technically downgraded to it from flagship iPhones because we preferred either the compact size, the slab-sided design (at a time when Apple was in its rounded edges phase), or both.The 2020 model was based on the iPhone 8, the last flagship device to have a Home button. The 2022 version was a very minor update on this, and is still on sale today. But more than seven years after Apple changed its iPhone design language with the iPhone X, the iPhone SE 3 now looks very dated.The iPhone SE 4, or iPhone 16EThis years model is set to change that. Based on the iPhone 14, it will for the first time offer a design which looks far more in keeping with current and recent flagship models. While it will have a notch rather than a Dynamic Island, it will be a night-and-day difference from its predecessor.Leaker Majin Bu is now suggesting that the new look may be accompanied by a new name: the iPhone 16E, perhaps styled as the iPhone 16.Based on what my source has reported, it seems that the new iPhone that Apple will unveil in 2025 will not be called iPhone SE4, but iPhone 16E. It should feature a design similar to the iPhone 14, with an OLED display and an action button. The available colors will be white and black.9to5Macs TakeMajin Bu was right about the Desert Titanium color of the iPhone 16 Pro, and also about the vertical alignment of the base model iPhone 16 camera layout though the latter had already reported on by other sources by that time.But theyve also been wrong on other things, like other iPhone colors and interchangeable magnetic tips for the Apple Pencil.The design has of course been so widely-reported that its effectively a given at this point, and the colors indicated simply reflect the existing model (which also has a PRODUCT(RED) version).One could certainly argue that such a big update should be reflected in a new name, but iPhone 16 branding for a somewhat older design might be confusing especially when launching after the rest of the line-up. For now, then, were viewing this with a fairly large pinch of salt.Image: 9to5Mac collage of images from Apple and Pawel CzerwinskionUnsplashAdd 9to5Mac to your Google News feed. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.Youre 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. Dont know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel

Apple has launched a rare Chinese New Year discount promotion in China, running from January 4 through January 7. This includes up to ~$70 savings on the iPhone 16 Pro Max, as well as discounts on other iPhone 16 models, iPhone 15, iPhone 14, MacBook Air, iPad Pro, iPad Air, Apple Watch, AirPods and Apple Pencil.The atypical sales promotion on the latest iPhone 16 lineup arrives as investors question the stability of iPhone demand in the region. It may be interpreted as Apple feeling the pressure from domestic phone manufacturers like Huawei. The discounts are available when customers buy through Apple using select payment methods, like WeChat or Alipay. The promotion is notable as Apple generally doesnt advertise discounts on the latest iPhone models, if it can help it. For instance, in the US, the Black Friday promotions exclude the new iPhone models altogether from the gift card promotion. However, Apple has run similar New Year promotions intermittently in China in the past.Apple has been facing a weakening grip on the Chinese smartphone market for a while, with local Chinese brands taking hold. This impact has also reflected in its financials. Apples total reported revenues in China were down 3% year-over-year last quarter. Apple will officially announce earnings results for the just-gone holiday quarter in about a months time, which will give investors a clearer picture about how well the iPhone 16 is faring in the marketplace.Add 9to5Mac to your Google News feed. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.Youre 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. Dont know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel

Jan 02, 2025The Hacker NewsCloud Security / Threat IntelligenceIn the past year, cross-domain attacks have gained prominence as an emerging tactic among adversaries. These operations exploit weak points across multiple domains including endpoints, identity systems and cloud environments so the adversary can infiltrate organizations, move laterally and evade detection. eCrime groups like SCATTERED SPIDER and North Korea-nexus adversaries such as FAMOUS CHOLLIMA exemplify the use of cross-domain tactics, leveraging advanced techniques to exploit security gaps across interconnected environments. The foundation of these attacks is built around the exploitation of legitimate identities. Today's adversaries no longer "break in"; they "log in" leveraging compromised credentials to gain access and blend seamlessly into their targets. Once inside, they exploit legitimate tools and processes, making them difficult to detect as they pivot across domains and escalate privileges.The Current State of Identity SecurityThe rise in cross-domain and identity-based attacks exposes a critical vulnerability in organizations that treat identity security as an afterthought or compliance checkbox rather than an integral component of their security architecture. Many businesses rely on disjointed tools that address only fragments of the identity problem, resulting in visibility gaps and operational inefficiencies. This patchwork approach fails to provide a cohesive view or secure the broader identity landscape effectively. This approach creates gaps in security tools, but also can create a dangerous disconnect between security teams. For example, the divide between teams managing identity and access management (IAM) tools and those running security operations creates dangerous visibility gaps and exposes weaknesses in security architecture across on-premises and cloud environments. Adversaries exploit these gaps to perpetrate their attacks. Organizations need a more comprehensive approach to defend against these sophisticated attacks.Transforming Identity Security: Three Essential Steps To protect against cross-domain attacks, organizations just move beyond patchwork solutions and adopt a unified, comprehensive strategy that prioritizes identity security:1. Identity at the Core: Laying the FoundationModern security begins with consolidating threat detection and response across identity, endpoint and cloud within a unified platform. By placing identity at the core, this approach eliminates the inefficiencies of fragmented tools and creates a cohesive foundation for comprehensive defense. A unified platform accelerates response time and simplifies security operations. It also reduces cost by improving collaboration across teams and replacing disconnected point solutions with a streamlined architecture that secures identity against cross-domain threats.2. Identity Visibility: Seeing the Whole PictureRobust identity protection requires end-to-end visibility across hybrid environments spanning on-premises, cloud and SaaS applications. Unifying security tools eliminates blind spots and gaps that adversaries like to exploit. Seamless integration with on-premises directories, cloud identity providers like Entra ID and Okta, and SaaS applications ensures a complete view of all access points. This full-spectrum visibility transforms identity systems into fortified perimeters, significantly reducing adversaries' ability to infiltrate.3. Real-Time Identity ProtectionWith identity as a focal point of unification and visibility, organizations can pivot to real-time detection and response. A cloud-native platform, like the AI-native CrowdStrike Falcon cybersecurity platform, uses cross-domain telemetry to secure identity, endpoints and cloud environments by identifying, investigating and neutralizing threats. Features like risk-based conditional access and behavioral analysis proactively protect identity systems, blocking attacks before they escalate. This unified approach ensures faster responses than fragmented systems and a decisive edge against modern adversaries.Putting Identity into Practice: CrowdStrike Falcon Identity ProtectionWhen it comes to comprehensive protection against cross-domain attacks, CrowdStrike sets the industry standard with the Falcon platform. It uniquely combines identity, endpoint and cloud security with world-class threat intelligence on adversary tradecraft and real-time threat hunting for a holistic defense against identity-based attacks. CrowdStrike's approach relies on:Unification: The Falcon platform enables security teams to oversee all layers of security identity threat detection and response (ITDR), endpoint security, cloud security, and next-gen security information and event management (SIEM) all through a single agent and console on one unified platform. With the Falcon platform, CrowdStrike customers on average realize up to 84% improvement in operational efficiency in responding to cross-domain threats.24/7 Visibility with Managed ITDR: Many organizations facing resource constraints turn to managed service providers to handle security operations. CrowdStrike provides the best of both worlds pairing top-tier ITDR capabilities with industry-leading expert management to implement a robust and mature identity security program without the work, cost and time required to develop one internally.Real-Time Protection: With CrowdStrike Falcon Identity Protection, organizations can detect and stop identity-driven breaches in real-time across entire hybrid identity landscapes. CrowdStrike's industry-leading team of elite threat hunters monitor 24/7 for suspicious activity across customers' environments and proactively scour the dark web for stolen credentials. CrowdStrike customers on average get up to 85% faster threat responses driven by full attack path visibility.The Future of Identity SecurityAs adversaries exploit the seams between identity, endpoint and cloud environments, the need for a unified security approach has never been greater. The CrowdStrike Falcon platform delivers the integration, visibility and real-time response capabilities necessary to combat cross-domain threats head-on. By combining cutting-edge technology with world-class threat intelligence and expert management, CrowdStrike enables organizations to fortify their defenses and stay ahead of evolving attack tactics. Found this article interesting? This article is a contributed piece from one of our valued partners. Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn to read more exclusive content we post.SHARE

Water, power, sewage, banking, education, you name it -- all these life essentials have something in common: they rely on information technology. Increasingly complex andinsecuretechnology. Meanwhile, threat actors have the means to launch ever-rising numbers of attacks on critical applications. The revelation this past August of the huge data breach at National Public Data of Americans Social Security numbers, and other personal data, is a stunning Exhibit A.The number of reported vulnerabilities has skyrocketed over the last 10 years. In fact, the number of new software vulnerabilities cataloged in the federal National Vulnerability Database has increased an average of 29% per year over the last seven years.Every year sets a record high, and with the introduction of malicious code-writing and security hole-finding AI models, theres no reason to think that trend will reverse.The federal government's contribution to cybersecurity has thus far been through guidance and influence or by wielding its purchasing power as a huge IT consumer. Those have some value but clearly aren't having much impact.The public is quite unaware of how low the bar is presently set in software security. Modern software is never written entirely from scratch. Instead, developers use an assembly approach that pulls together existing code packages, often using open-source software built and maintained by developers not beholden in any way to the company making the final product.Related:As security vulnerabilities and active malware become increasingly common, all companies find themselves shouldering increasing security risk. Such government organizations as the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) have spent a great deal of time, money, and effort over the last few years trying to convince software vendors to adopt basic security practices and Software Bills of Materials (SBOMs).A vendor's SBOM tells the customerwhatis in the software -- but not whether the contents are secure.CISAs actions have not moved the needle at stopping breaches. US cybercrime costs reached an estimated $320 billion as of last year.Between 2017 and 2023, costs grew by over $300 billion.Companiessaythey're doing more about cybersecurity, but breaches continue, and the private market is not correcting poor behavior. Stock charts barely register a blip when companies report breaches now. Congress has not yet stepped in, hampered, perhaps, by an inadequate understanding of the issue.Related:Urgent action is, consequently, needed.Government stepped in to protect our food and medicine by establishing the Food and Drug Administration, intervened to make our automobiles safer by establishing the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and acted to ensure job safety by establishing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.When new technology or industrial development has threatened public health and safety, the government has created new regulatory bodies to protect that health and safety.And according to public polling, while Americans may be largely dissatisfied with the federal government in broad terms, they still desire it to help keep the populace safe, including providing protection from unsafe products.The upshot is that Congress should establish a new regulatory body to evolve the guidance currently provided by CISA and presidential executive orders, coupled with oversight powers based on an expanded definition of critical software and hardware. What specifically defines critical here will of course need to be determined, but the current definition in use by CISA simply does not provide a sufficient scope to ensure Americas cybersecurity. The current patchwork of industry self-regulation -- with each federal department doing their best to oversee their respective industry areas -- leaves too many gaps and will not even scale to the challenges we already face.The new regulatory bodys charter should establish enforceable minimum standard security practices for private companies that are deemed critical to the nation. Those standards should go beyond CISAs currently used definition of critical infrastructure, which doesnotinclude companies essential to our everyday lives, such as Microsoft, Google, payment providers, and cybersecurity firms like CrowdStrike. Related:This new regulator will also need the power to audit companies against those standards, selectively publish findings publicly, share findings with other regulators such as the SEC, establish fines, and in egregious cases, be able to pull products from the market. These powers follow the established scope of current agencies, such as the FDA and NHTSA. Without these powers of regulation over essential software, any new agency will be reduced to providing guidance and our nation will continue to be at risk.As CISA is already under the Department of Homeland Security, the above could be accomplished either through expanding their jurisdiction and giving them the above powers and responsibilities, or through the establishment of a new agency.The need for robust cybersecurity regulation and oversight has become essential if we are to protect American citizens, companies, and governments from cyberattacks. Our unpredictable technological and geopolitical environments will demand no less.

Inhabitants of the Marshall Islandsa chain of coral atolls in the center of the Pacific Oceanrely on sea transportation for almost everything: moving people from one island to another, importing daily necessities from faraway nations, and exporting their local produce. For millennia they sailed largely in canoes, but much of their seafaring movement today involves big, bulky, diesel-fueled cargo ships that are heavy polluters. Theyre not alone, of course. Cargo shipping is responsible for about 3% of the worlds annual greenhouse-gas emissions, and at the current rate of growth, the global industry could account for 10% of emissions by 2050. Marshallese shipping represents just a drop in the ocean of global greenhouse-gas pollution; larger, more industrially developed countries are responsible for far more. But the islands have been disproportionately experiencing the consequences of human-made climate change: warming waters, more frequent extreme weather, and rising sea levels. All this has created a sense of urgency for people like Alson Kelen, who lives and works in Majuro, the islands capital. Hes the founder of Waan Ael, a Marshallese canoeing organization that is focused on keeping the regions ancient and more environmentally sustainable maritime traditions alive. In doing so, he hopes to help his nation fully decarbonize its fleets. Efforts include training local youths to build traditional Marshallese canoes (to replace small, motor-powered speedboats) and larger sailboats fitted with solar panels (to replace medium-size cargo ships). He was also an advisor on construction of the Juren Ae, a cargo sailboat (shown at right) inspired by traditional Marshallese vessels, which made its maiden voyage in 2024 and can carry 300 metric tons of cargo. The Marshall Islands Shipping Corporation hopes it offers a blueprint for cleaner cargo transportation across the Pacific; relative to a fuel-powered cargo ship, the vessel could decrease emissions by up to 80%. Its a beautiful big sister of our little canoes, says Kelen. Though hyperlocal, Kelens work is part of a global project from the International Maritime Organization to reduce emissions associated with cargo shipping to net zero by 2050. Beyond these tiny islands, much of the effort to meet the IMOs goals focuses on replacing gasoline with alternatives such as ammonia, methane, nuclear power, and hydrogen. And theres also what the Marshallese people have long relied on: wind power. Its just one option on the table, but the industry cannot decarbonize quickly enough to meet the IMOs goals without a role for wind propulsion, says Christiaan De Beukelaer, a political anthropologist and author of Trade Winds: A Voyage to a Sustainable Future for Shipping. If you take time into consideration, wind is indispensable, he says. Studies show that deploying wind power on vessels could lower the shipping industrys carbon dioxide emissions by 20%. What wind does is it effectively cuts out a few uncertainties, says De Beukelaervariables such as the fluctuation of fuel prices and the costs from any carbon pricing scheme the industry may adopt. The IMO is technology agnostic, meaning it sets the goals and safety standards but lets the market find the best ways to attain them. A spokesperson from the organization says wind propulsion is one of many avenues being explored. Sails can be used either to fully power a vessel or to supplement the motors as a way of reducing fuel consumption for large bulk carriers, oil tankers, and the roll-on/roll-off vessels used to transport airplanes and cars worldwide. Modern cargo sails come in several shapes, sizes, and styles, including wings, rotors, suction sails, and kites. If weve got five and a half thousand years of experience, isnt this just a no-brainer? says Gavin Allwright, secretary-general of the International Windship Association. Older cargo boats with new sails can use propulsive energy from the wind for up to 30% of their power, while cargo vessels designed specifically for wind could rely on it for up to 80% of their needs, says Allwright, who is still working on standardized measurement criteria to figure out which combination of ship and sail model is most efficient. There are so many variables involved, he saysfrom the size of the ship to the captain steering it. The 50th large vessel fitted with wind-harnessing tech set sail in October 2024, and he predicts that maritime wind power is set to boom by the beginning of 2026. COURTESY OF OCEANBIRD Hard wings One of the more popular designs for cargo ships is a rigid saila hard, winglike structure that is placed vertically on top of the vessel. Its very much like an airplane wing, says Niclas Dahl, managing director of Oceanbird, a Swedish company that develops these sails. Each one has a main and a flap, which creates a chamber where the wind speed is faster on the outside than the inside. In an aircraft, that discrepancy generates lift force, but in this case, says Dahl, it propels the ship forward. The wings are rigid, but they can be swiveled around and adjusted to capture the wind depending on where its coming from, and they can be folded and retracted close to the deck of the ship when it is nearing a dock. One of Oceanbirds sailsthe 40-meter-high, 14-meter-wide Wing 560, made of high-strength steel, glass fiber, and recycled polyethylene terephthalatecould help cargo ships reduce fuel use by up to 10% per trip, according to the companys calculations. Oceanbird is installing its first set of wings on a cargo vessel that transports cars, which was scheduled to be ready by the end of 2024. Oceanbird, though, is just one manufacturer; by late 2024, eight cargo vessels propelled by hard wings were cruising around the world, most of them generalized bulk carriers and oil tankers. COURTESY OF CARGOKITE Kites Other engineers and scientists are working to power cargo vessels with kites like those that propel paragliders. These kites are made from mixtures of UV-resistant polyester, and they are tethered to the ships bow and fly up to 200 to 300 meters above the ship, where they can make the best use of the constant winds at that altitude to basically tug the boat forward. To maximize lift, the kites are controlled by computers to operate in the sweet spot where wind is most constant. Studies show that a 400-square-meter kite can produce fuel savings of 9% to 15%. The main reason for us believing in kites is high-altitude winds, says Tim Linnenweber, cofounder of CargoKite, which designs micro cargo ships that can be powered this way. You basically have an increasing wind speed the higher you go, and so more consistent, more reliable, more steady winds. COURTESY OF BOUND4BLUE Suction sails Initially used for airplanes in the 1930s, suction sails were designed and tested on boats in the 1980s by the oceanographer and diving pioneer Jacques Cousteau. Suction sails are chubby metal sails that look something like rotors but more oval, with a pointed side. And instead of making the whole sail spin around, the motor turns on a fan on the inside of the sail that sucks in wind from the outside. Cristina Aleixendri, cofounder of Bound4Blue, a Spanish company building suction sails, explains that the vent pulls air in through lots of little holes in the shell of the sail and creates what physicists call a boundary layera thin layer of air blanketing the sail and thrusting it forward. Bound4Blues modern model generates 20% more thrust per square meter of sail than Cousteaus original design, says Aleixendri, and up to seven times more thrust than a conventional sail. Twelve ships fitted with a total of 26 suction sails are currently operating, ranging from fishing boats and oil tankers to roll-on/roll-off vessels. Bound4Blue is working on fitting six ships and has fitted four alreadyincluding one with the largest suction sail ever installed, at 22 meters tall. COURTESY OF NORSEPOWER Rotor sails In the 1920s, the German engineer Anton Flettner had a vision for a wind-powered ship that used vertical, revolving metal cylinders in place of traditional sails. In 1926, a vessel using his novel design, known as the Flettner rotor, crossed the Atlantic for the first time. Flettner rotors work thanks to the Magnus effect, a phenomenon that occurs when a spinning object moves through a fluid, causing a lift force that can deflect the objects path. With Flettners design, motors spin the cylinders around, and the pressure difference between the sides of the spinning object generates thrust forward, much like a soccer player bending the trajectory of a ball. In a modern upgrade of the rotor sail, designed by the Finnish company Norsepower, the cylinders can spin up to 300 times per minute. This produces 10 times more thrust power than a conventional sail. Norsepower has fitted 27 rotor sails on 14 ships out at sea so far, and six more ships equipped with rotor sails from other companies set sail in 2024. According to our calculations, the rotor sail is, at the moment, the most efficient wind-assistive power when you look at eurocent per kilowatt-hour, says Heikki Pntynen, Norsepowers CEO. Results from their vessels currently out at sea suggest that fuel savings are anywhere between 5% to 30% on the whole voyage. Sofia Quaglia is a freelance science journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Times, National Geographic, and New Scientist.

Luton Borough Councils development management committee granted detailed planning consent for the arena five years after a smaller scheme by AndArchitects received outline consent.The scheme, dubbed Power Court, will see a stadium and associated fan and media facilities, conference rooms and food and drink space built on an 8ha site opposite St Marys Church in the centre of the Bedfordshire town. Outline consent was also granted for a music venue and hotel and associated works under the same application.Battersea-based AndArchitects secured approval in 2019 for a 23,000-seat stadium, which would have started smaller and been delivered in phases.AdvertisementSince then, however, the club has risen from League One to the Premier League before dropping back to the Championship this year with a far healthier bank balance than when the original scheme was drawn up.Build costs have also changed considerably in the wake of the Covid pandemic, while the retail element of an associated scheme at Newlands Park in the town had to be rethought in the light of changing shopping habits.Aecom was brought in alongside Hertfordshire-based arena specialist SISA to revamp the plans, which now feature a 25,000-capacity stadium to be delivered in one chunk. The practice is working alongside London and Prague-based architects Klaska and sports consultants Trivandi.Their brief, as well as considering the shifting economics of the club and its operating environment, included ensuring Power Court embodied the atmosphere, intimacy and intensity of Luton Towns current 119-year-old home at Kenilworth Road.Luton Town Football Club chief executive Gary Sweet said when plans were submitted in September: Once our lives changed 16 months ago with promotion at Wembley, concurrent to the gargantuan task of getting Kenilworth Road Premier League ready which naturally dominated our workload for most of last year we decided to reassemble a design team to take a fresh look at the whole Power Court project from foundations upwards.AdvertisementWe reassembled a design team to take a fresh look at the whole projectWe hand-picked and structured an elite design team of architects, engineers and technicians, who have been working with us, crafting every floor and corner of our new stadium to a detailed stage such that it can now be submitted, publicly aired and presented as a well-prepared detailed design instruction for contractors.Sweet said the team working on the approved proposals had pushed the boundaries beyond the norm in order to remain loyal to our original desired look and feel, and have incorporated more unique cultural characteristics that will make this a familiar home for us all.Aecom director Jon Leach said in September that submission of plans was a significant milestone for Luton Town, which was playing in the fifth tier of English football just a decade ago.The club has enjoyed historic success in recent seasons, and the new Power Court Stadium will reflect its ambitions both on the pitch and in being a key catalyst for the sustainable regeneration of the town and community, he added.Luton Towns plans for Power Court were subject to a long planning saga, including objections to development on the Newlands Park light industrial site by Historic England, Milton Keynes Council and shopping centre management company Capital & Regional.But they received a major boost in 2019 when James Brokenshire, communities secretary at the time, declined to call in the consented plans.AndArchitects managing director Manuel Nogueira told the AJ that year that Lutons plans could create a blueprint for clubs taking stadiums back into town centres after decades of selling off sites at the heart of communities for their housing values and moving to remote locations.This is the way forward for football clubs, he said. Creating mixed-use facilities so the stadium can be used by different groups, and restaurants can stay open all week and create vibrant town centres. Having the football club as the developer is the key thing because it has a long-term interest in the town centre.Luton Town sit 19th in the Championship after a rocky start to the season, leaving them flirting with a return to League One before construction begins.AndArchitecure's early Luton Town FC plans from 2016Project dataStructural engineering AKT IIMechanical & electrical engineering and sustainability consultants Max FordhamPlanning consultants WSPCost consultancy & project management Atkins RealisHighways & transport consultants KMCCrowd and pedestrian analysis Buro HappoldSite civils engineering Civic EngineersFire consultants OFRHeritage & archaeology consultants Cotswold ArchaeologyEcology and biodiversity consultants JW ConsultantsLandscaping consultants AecomPlanning legal advisers Pinsent MasonsContractor and commercial legal advisers CMS

The spa is part of a wider restoration of the Grade II*-listed, 18th century country home in the village of Hotham.Hotham Hall was built in 1720 and sits within 47.3ha of land. Its restoration, led by entrepreneur owners David and Linda Kilburn, who bought the estate in 2020, will ready it to open up to the public for the first time in 300 years.In addition to the spa, brown + company has also designed a new new members club, events venue, and lodging within the Grade II*-listed stable block of the Georgian and Victorian estate.AdvertisementThe practice submitted a planning application for its heritage-led scheme in December 2023, in collaboration with Purcell, Gallagher Planning, Alan Wood and Partners and SBA design. It was commissioned with the imaginative repurposing of the estates historical structures and grounds.The proposal was approved by East Riding of Yorkshire Council in November, including detailed planning and listed building consent.Planning officers had recommended the scheme for approval, concluding that any harm to the estates listed buildings was clearly and convincingly justified and sufficiently outweighed by the tangible social, economic and environmental public benefits of the wider scheme of works to convert the Hall and Stable Block to event space with ancillary uses, thereby securing the buildings optimum viable use. Source:Brown + CompanyBrown + Company's Hotham Spa Public Yard - CGIBrown + company says the project primarily centres on bringing new use to the stable block, which was constructed in 1770, and demands meticulous attention in its refurbishment.The practices design repurposes the existing spaces within the stable block as characterful hospitality and retail areas.AdvertisementThe stable design was amended earlier this year following an objection from Historic England. The public body said the revised design [responded] more sympathetically to the historic layout of the building, and retained more of its historic fabric, and would cause less than substantial harm to the Grade II*-listed building.Meanwhile, a light-touch approach to the new-build spa is designed to avoid harming the mature trees which surround it and to allow its potential relocation or removal in the future.The building, which will sit south of the stable block, draws inspiration from traditional Japanese homes, which are made with natural materials and have a temporary nature, often being rebuilt every 20 years, according to brown + companyThe proposals also include new landscaping in the Hotham Hall grounds, designed in collabration with landscape designers SBA design including to the inner and outer courtyards to the stable block. Source:Brown + CompanyBrown + company's Hotham Spa Events Space - CGI