Lords of the Fallen publisher CI Games publicly shuns "DEI", says it won't "embed social or political agendas""Our games are developed to maximise player enjoyment and commercial success."Image credit: Hexworks News by Vikki Blake Contributor Published on Jan. 11, 2025 Lords of the Fallen publisher CI Games confirmed it would not "embed social or political agendas" in its games due to the "high risk it can present".According to Strefa Inwestorw (thanks, PC Gamer), global marketing director Ryan Hill told investors the studio would focus on "excellent user experience with compelling thematics and characters created specifically for core and adjacent audiences" following perceptions "a number of high profile releases underperform[ed] commercially during the last year" due to what he believed to be "social or political agendas.""We remain committed to producing player-first video games that prioritise an excellent user experience with compelling themes and characters created specifically for core and adjacent audiences," Hill said when asked for the studio's position on "DEI [diversity, equity, and inclusion - more commonly known as EDI in the UK] in gaming"."While some video games have recently taken the opportunity to embed social or political agendas within their experiences, it is clear that many players do not appreciate this, and as a result, we have seen a number of high profile releases underperforming commercially during the last year alone."Our games will always be developed to maximise player enjoyment and commercial success, and as such, we will not be integrating any social or political agencies into these experiences going forward having observed the high risk this can present."Hill did not expand on his definition of "social or political agencies", nor defined what "high risk" meant to him and studio leadership. He also didn't exemplify what games he considered had "underperformed commercially" or, indeed, clarify what commercial success looked like to him.CI Games declined to comment further on Hill's statement to investors.The action-RPG is currently sitting on a "mixed" Steam user score, and received just two stars in Eurogamer's Lords of the Fallen review. A sequel is currently in development.

By Thomas Maxwell Published January 10, 2025 | Comments (16) | A new startup is using computer-use agents to bring automated marketing spam to Reddit. Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images The internet is becoming flooded with AI-generated content, and one of the few places where humans can still go to talk with other humans has been Reddit. Unfortunately, a new marketing automation startup called Astral wants to change that and bring LinkedIn-tier marketing slop to the discussion board site. The startups founder Savannah Feder published a video on X Thursday demonstrating how using AI agents in a browser window, her tool can navigate through Reddit and automatically write comments promoting whatever it is a marketer might be trying to sell.Like other computer-use agents recently demoed by the likes of Anthropic and Google, Astral can take over a local browser and complete tasks by first capturing screenshots of a page and analyzing them using AI to figure out what to do next based on a prompt, ultimately sending commands back to the mouse. Look how Astral finds the right places to click, Feder says as the bot starts logging into Reddit. Its honestly really fascinating to see how it navigates the site just like a human would. The video goes on to show how the bot navigates to the subreddit /r/productmanagement, searches for posts about user research, and then writes a reply that promotes the product without sounding too sales-y.The dream for these bots is that they will help grandma navigate her computer by herself, not create marketing automation spambots to flood social media. Certainly, this has to be why so many people show disdain for AI: It is being deployed by the worst people you know. Announcing Astral an AI marketer that works 24/7 to grow your startup. Astral navigates websites, creates content, and runs marketing across socials. Watch Astral automate Reddit in real-time: pic.twitter.com/XbpKt0lZqd Savannah (@SavannahFeder) January 9, 2025 This should be further evidence that AI is about to create a sea of undifferentiated mediocrity, and bland content as far as the eye can see. Anyone who has spent enough time on LinkedIn or X has seen generic, soulless posts that are obviously written with AI, and now someone has excitedly built a tool to bring this to Reddit. Imagine being proud of this, like being proud of peeing in someones pool.What is perhaps most disheartening is that the people creating tools like Astral genuinely seem to believe AI and humans are interchangeable, and that machine will be far better than human can ever be.Incredibly, after someone asked Feder why Astral uses an AI agent running in a local browser rather than a Reddit API, she explains that is because Reddit and other social media sites restrict using their APIs for automated tasks. There is a reason for that: Because it is spammy and annoying. She even excitedly explains to another person that the bot can successfully bypass CAPTCHAs. Alexis Ohanian, a co-founder of Reddit, replied to the post with a GIF of Patrick from SpongeBob starting to cry.It will be interesting to see how platforms like Reddit implement anti-bot measures to combat the slop.Daily NewsletterYou May Also Like By Isaac Schultz Published January 10, 2025 By Todd Feathers Published January 10, 2025 By Matt Novak Published January 9, 2025 By AJ Dellinger Published January 6, 2025 By Thomas Maxwell Published January 3, 2025 By Matthew Gault Published January 3, 2025

Welcome back to Week in Review. I missed you! This week, were diving into all the gadgets and announcements out of this years CES, Metas decision to roll back its fact-checking program, TikToks response to employees affected by the California wildfires, and more! Lets do this.CES 2025 came and went this week. The event featured keynotes from the big players in tech like Nvidia, Samsung, Toyota, and more. In addition to that, there were, of course, the expected gadgets, gizmos, and interesting AI claims out on the show floor. Our team of reporters were on the ground, and you can catch up on everything that caught our eye at this years show right here.Meta is overhauling its content moderation policies that it created in response to criticism that it had helped spread political and health misinformation. The company is getting rid of its third-party fact-checking program in favor of an X-like Community Notes model, which critics see as an attempt to cater to the incoming Trump administration. The backlash has been swift, with interest in searches related to deleting Meta accounts soaring.OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the company is losing money on its $200-per-month ChatGPT Pro plan because people are using it more than the company expected. Launched late last year, ChatGPT Pro grants users access to an upgraded version of OpenAIs o1 reasoning AI model and lifts rate limits on several of the companys other tools, like its Sora video generator.This is TechCrunchs Week in Review, where we recap the weeks biggest news. Want this delivered as a newsletter to your inbox every Saturday? Sign up here.NewsImage Credits:Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg (opens in a new window) / Getty ImagesWildfires vs. the horrors of capitalism: TikTok told members of its LA staff who were affected by wildfires to use personal/sick hours if they are unable to work from home. The companys LA office remains closed as wildfires devastate the greater Los Angeles area. Read moreHello, Project Digits: At CES 2025, Nvidia unveiled Project Digits, a personal AI supercomputer designed for AI researchers, data scientists, and students that provides access to the companys Grace Blackwell hardware platform in a compact form factor. Read moreMore copyright woes for Meta: A new filing claims that Mark Zuckerberg gave a green light to the team behind Metas Llama AI models to use a dataset of pirated e-books and articles for training, including works from authors like Sarah Silverman and Ta-Nehisi Coates. Read moreA robot cat that cools down your tea: The latest adorable gadget from Yukai Engineering is the Nkojita FuFu, a tiny robotic cat that can be mounted on a mug or bowl and will blow air to help cool off your coffee or soup. Read moreX clarifies its stance on parody accounts: X said it will begin to label parody accounts on the platform. Users have mistaken posts from parody accounts as authentic statements since X rolled back traditional verification badges in favor of paid verification. Read moreAI that simulates the real world: Google is forming a new team to work on AI models that can simulate the physical world. The team will be led by Tim Brooks, who was one of the co-leads on OpenAIs Sora. He left for Google DeepMind in October. Read moreCannabis brand hit by cyberattack: Popular Los Angeles-based cannabis brand Stiiizy confirmed that hackers accessed sensitive customer data, including government-issued documents and medical cannabis cards, during a November cyberattack. Read moreThis electric spoon could make your food taste better: Why add more salt to your meal when a $127 spoon could do it for you? Kirin Holdings showed off an electronic spoon that uses a weak electric current to concentrate sodium ion molecules in your food. Read moreThats a lot of cash: A Delaware judge has approved a settlement that will see Tesla directors return up to $919 million to the automaker, officially resolving allegations that they overpaid themselves. Read moreThe weirdest gadgets at CES 2025: It wouldnt be CES without some truly audacious products, claims, and keynote moments. We rounded up the most eyebrow-raising examples from the show floor.Read more

I did not go to CES 2025 with the goal of getting drenched by Lake Meads chilly January waters. But when I discovered Los Angeles-based boat startup Arc had brought its new sport boat to Las Vegas, I figured it was worth the risk. It was. The Arc Sport was a joy to drive, even for a 30-minute outing on a choppy lake. It maneuvered like a heavy jet ski weight that helped it feel stable. Ive driven plenty of heavy electric cars, trucks, and SUVs where the weight felt like a drag. In this case, I was happy to have a little heft beneath us.Like its boats, Arc has moved fast as a startup. Arc, which was founded by former SpaceX engineers, came out of stealth in 2021 with backing from Andreessen Horowitz and Chris Saccas Lowercarbon Capital. It raised a $30 million Series A a few months later, led by Eclipse Ventures partner and former Tesla executive Greg Reichow. The startup shipped its first $300,000 Arc One boats in early 2023, raised another $70 million that same year, and set to work on the $258,000 Arc Sport.image credits: sean okaneIn keeping with that pace, Arc delivered its first Sport boat to a customer late last year. Thats a really fast development time, founder and CEO Mitch Lee told TechCrunch as we zipped around Lake Mead. And it was only possible because Arc took the time to learn how to make the limited-run One boat before moving on to something with a bit more mass appeal, according to Lee.The Arc One for us was that [Tesla] Roadster. First step was, lets go manufacture this boat. Lets do it at a small scale, and lets learn from what its like to have these boats in the field with customers, he told TechCrunch in an interview in November. Weve had boats go through hurricanes now. Weve had boats get launched on 95 degree water. Those learnings are incredibly valuable.When I arrived, Lee was shivering in the winter breeze next to Lake Mead, but clearly still happy to show off the Arc Sport and what it can do. We climbed aboard and hit the water.Its an impressive boat before you even hit the throttle. The fit and finish on the boat I piloted, which was still technically a production-intent vehicle, was striking, especially since CES is not known as a venue for polished prototypes.There are elements that might make people wonder, though. There was a Tesla-style horizontal touchscreen with smart, fluid software that didnt scream legacy manufacturer. A second screen sat behind the wheel on the helm, showing speed, battery level, and a view from the forward-facing camera.Image credits: Sean OKaneThe Sport is much quieter than a typical gas boat. Its not silent. I could still hear the motor working underneath our feet; but it was easy to hear Lee, his two co-workers, and another journalist on board. It was no louder than the wind and the sound of the wake being thrown off behind us a distinguishing feature of Arcs boats compared to the many other hydrofoil-based electric boat startups.When you combine that with the other quality-of-life improvements the Sport offers over some other gas competitors like no fumes, robust software that updates over-the-air, twin thrusters that make it easy to rotate and park the boat, a solid canopy that lowers to guard from the elements, and the lack of winterization required it makes sense why watersports lovers might pay a premium for this boat.Boats arent necessarily hard to drive. The real learning curve comes from knowing how to navigate and behave on the water. Driving the Sport on an empty Lake Mead, even in choppy waters, was no challenge. Put a hand on the wheel, lift the lock on the throttle knob, and push it forward to have 500 horsepower of fun.The 226 kWh battery pack kept the boat planted, and also helped the relatively short 23-foot frame make quick pivots as I turned the wheel. These turns were the most fraught part of the experience with the wind and the chop. Sure enough, we got slapped with a wave, spraying us with the icy blue water the Colorado River supplies to Lake Mead.It was worth it, though. Everyone should be able to have that much fun.Image credits: Sean OKaneOn the way back to the dock, while toweling off, it was hard not to notice Lake Meads depletion. A potent combination of seemingly endless drought and human activity has lowered the reservoir to just 27% of its total capacity, according to NASA. In every direction I could see where the water line used to be, a phenomenon colloquially known referred to as the bathtub ring.This has had a direct impact on boaters who use the lake for recreation exactly the kind of people Lee hopes to sell to. Lake Mead has had to close multiple boat launches and ramps over the last few years, according to the National Park Service, and extend the ones that remain in order to reach the lakes newer, lower level.I didnt ask him if the evaporation of freshwater lakes is a risk for Arcs addressable market thats a grim idea Ill be sure to raise next time. What I do know is Lee has said his goal is that every watercraft switches to electric. That includes looking beyond powersports, perhaps even to government and defense an idea that seed investor Andreessen Horowitz is quite fond of these days.When I asked Lee about this in November, he demurred, but left the door open.We cant afford to get distracted too early, because if we do, we will fail as a company, he said. The reason we were able to develop the Arc Sport so quickly is because of the work that we did on the Arc One. I could go down this long list of all the carryover and IP, but the same thing applies to going to commercial, going into government sectors, and our aspirations as a business definitely carry over to that. Were just not quite ready to discuss anything there yet.

Automattic CEO and WordPress co-creatorMatt Mullenweg has deactivated the accounts of several WordPress.org community members, some of whom have been spearheading a push to create a new fork of the open source WordPress project.While community criticism of WordPresss governance isnt new, the latest brouhaha kicked off back in September when Mullenweg publicly chastised WP Engine, a commercial hosting company built atop WordPress, for profiteering without giving much back. Things soon escalated (read all about it here), with WP Engine filing a lawsuit after it was banned from accessing key WordPress resources, and then a court ordered WordPress to restore access.In amongst all this, key figures from within the wider WordPress community have stepped forward. Joost de Valk creator of WordPress-focused SEO tool Yoast (and former marketing and communications lead for the WordPress Foundation) last month published his vision for a new WordPress era, alluding to a potential fork in the form of federated and independent repositories. Karim Marucchi, CEO of enterprise web consulting firm Crowd Favorite, echoed these thoughts ina separate blog post.WP Engine indicated it was on standby to lend a corporate hand. Mullenweg, for his part, has publicly supported the notion of a new WordPress fork a term that describes when someone takes the code from an open source project and creates a copy, which can take on a life of its own, with a separate community of contributors. (Its also possible to merge such contributions back into the original project.)Get forkedEarlier this week, Automattic announced it would reduce its contribution to the core WordPress open source project to align with WP Engines own contribution, a metric measured in weekly hours. This spurred de Valk to take to X on Friday to indicate that he was willing to lead on the next release of WordPress, with Marucchi adding that his team stands ready. Collectively, de Valk and Marucchi contribute around 10 hours per week to various aspects of the WordPress open source project. However, in a sarcasm-laden blog post published this morning, Mullenweg said that to give their independent effort the push it needs to get off the ground, he was deactivating their WordPress.org accounts.I strongly encourage anyone who wants to try different leadership models or align with WP Engine to join up with their new effort, Mullenweg wrote. At the same time, Mullenweg also revealed he was deactivating the accounts of three other people, with little explanation given: S Reed, Heather Burns, and Morten Rand-Hendriksen. Reed, its worth noting, is president and CEO of a newly established non-profit called the WP Community Collective, which is setting out to serve as a neutral home for collaboration, contribution, and resources around WordPress and the broader open source ecosystem.Burns, a former contributor to the WordPress project, took to X this morning to express surprise at her deactivation, noting that she hadnt been involved in the project since 2020. Over on Bluesky, Rand-Hendriksen suggested that Mullenweg was targeting him and Burns because of their prior objections to governance at WordPress. He wrote:So why is he [Mullenweg] targeting Heather and me? Because we started talking about the need for proper governance, accountability, conflict of interest policies, and other things back in 2017. We both left the project in 2019, and apparently he still holds a grudge.Its worth noting that deactivating a WordPress.org account prevents affected users from contributing through that channel, be it to the core project or any other plugins or themes they may be involved with. However, as its hosted on GitHub too, anyone is able to fork the project. In what was seemingly a tongue-in-cheek suggestion, Mullenweg said that any new fork could be called JKPress, and they could hold a joint WordPress + JKPress summit next year.Joost and Karim have a number of bold and interesting ideas, and Im genuinely curious to see how they work out, Mullenweg added. The beauty of open source is they can take all of the GPL code in WordPress and ship their vision. You dont need permission, you can just do things. If they create something thats awesome, we may even merge it back into WordPress, that ability for code and ideas to freely flow between projects is part of what makes open source such an engine for innovation.

Bazzite "Convergence" artUniversal BlueThis week, Valve took another step toward reaching the SteamOS endgame. After Lenovo unveiled the Legion Go S Powered by SteamOS, Valve clearly signaled its intent to officially expand SteamOS to other PC handhelds beyond the Steam Deck and Legion Go. All of this is incredible and welcome news. And all of this leads to an uncomfortable but inevitable question: What happens to Bazzite now?As you may or may not know, Bazzite is the Linux darling of the handheld gaming space. Because while SteamOS provides that smooth, responsive, and elegant experience on Steam Deck, Bazzite currently brings it to many other devices. From a variety of GPD and OneXPlayer units, to the Legion Go and ROG Ally X.Calling it a SteamOS clone doesnt remotely do it justice, but thats a more approachable way of describing it. In reality, Bazzite incorporates the best of projects like Fedora and GloriousEggrolls Nobara (various gaming and performance tweaks), Chimera (Gamescope implementation) and other gaming-centric Linux distributions. In turn, Bazzite contributes its own improvements upstream to the rest of the Linux ecosystem. Thats the beauty of open source.I would argue that Bazzite has played a critical role in driving demand for SteamOS to appear on other handhelds. Sure, the Steam Deck makes you imagine what SteamOS might feel like on Windows-based devices. But Bazzite shows you how sublime a device like the Legion Go or ROG Ally becomes when you replace Windows 11 with a user-friendly UI actually optimized for gaming.Sites like The Verge, Ars Technica, and Eurogamer have all heaped praise onto Bazzite, and popular YouTube channels like Linus Tech Tips and Digital Foundry have shown its smooth, console-like experience in action.Read More: Nintendo Finally Comments On Leaked Switch 2 HardwareThe Future Of Bazzite In A Post-SteamOS FutureDespite all the attention Bazzite has attracted recently, there are fears of it going away following Valve and Lenovos recent announcements. Bazzite Creator Kyle Gospodnetich has received a lot of questions about the projects future, and he wants to assure you that Bazzite isnt going anywhere.This is my Asus ROG Ally running Bazzite. Jason EvangelhoIn a PSA this week, Gospodnetich wrote:The Bazzite team is extremely excited for the upcoming expanded launch of Steam OS. Obviously, none of us would be here if not for Valve lighting the way. That being said, we strongly believe Bazzite has a continued role to fill in a post-Steam OS future. A desktop release of Steam OS appears to still be a long way away, and handheld support is almost surely going to be focused on partnered devices first and foremost, and not on the breadth of devices we support today.This is an excellent point. We all know Valves approach to software development can be excruciatingly slow. And it may never officially support the abundance of SKUs from the likes of GPD, OneXPlayer, and Ayaneo. Or more obscure ones like the Ayn Loki. But Bazzite supports many of those today.The PSA continues:Bazzite was born out of supporting users with Steam OS in the Steam Deck Discord, and is designed to make up for some of the shortcomings of Steam OS, such as immutability preventing package installs when needed, lack of printing, lack of secure boot, lack of drive encryption, and so on. We also ship a number of helpers and extra packages to make non-Steam gaming easier and faster to get up and running, and are in a position to more quickly work with the community on improvements all of which will continue to differentiate us.Today I learned SteamOS doesnt actually have any printer support, meaning one less potential reason to use its desktop side as a daily driver!Anyway, wading through the fairly technical language above, a simple truth emerges: Bazzite holds a ton of appeal for power users. It might help to picture is as a sort of modded version of SteamOS, with more features and functionality. Plus, as Gospodenitich mentions, the Bazzite team is more nimble and can implement these things quickly.He concluded the PSA by saying We will continue to build Bazzite out long into the future.You can learn more about Bazzite and join its developer and gaming community on their Discord.

Assetto Corsa Evo is almost here. Credit: KUNOS SimulazioniAssetto Corsa Evo looks set to be one of the biggest releases of the year when it comes to racing simulators, and promises to be of the most advanced we have ever seen with some brand-new tech and, eventually, a giant open world.After months of hype, the first Early Access release for Assetto Corsa Evo is just around the corner, and we are finally starting to get a look at what content the initial release will have. So, heres just about everything you need to know about Assetto Corsa Evo.Assetto Corsa Evo Release Date: January 16, 2025The first Early Access build of Assetto Corsa Evo will launch in less than a week, giving fans an early opportunity to play the game and experience how it feels to drive, but with significantly less content than the full release is expected to have.Assetto Corsa Evo Platforms: PC (Steam)Assetto Corsa Evo will initially only be on PC, and the Steam store. However, given other games in the franchise have eventually made their way to consoles after PC, it wouldnt be a surprise to see Evo end up on Xbox and PlayStation in the next few years.Assetto Corsa Evo Developer: KUNOS SimulazioniThe studio behind both previous Assetto Corsa games is, of course, back at the helm for Evo and has been working on this game for years. While some of the developers have been keeping the previous games going, a big part of the studio has been working on Evo and perfecting the tech behind it.MORE FOR YOUAssetto Corsa Evo Tracks: Laguna Seca (USA), Brands Hatch (UK), Imola (Italy), Mount Panorama (Australia) and Suzuka (Japan)Assetto Corsa Evo will launch in Early Access with five tracks across four continents. Theres a good amount of variety here, so it should keep you entertained for a while. However, we also know that the Nrburgring Nordschleife will also be making an appearance further down the line.Assetto Corsa Evo Cars: Ferrari, BMW, Alpine and moreThe Early Access build of Assetto Corsa Evo will launch with 20 cars, which are in the process of being revealed. So far we know the following cars will be available on launch day: Volkswagen Golf 8 GTI Clubsport, Abarth 695 Biposto, Alfa Romeo Giulia GTAm, Alpine A110 S, BMW M2 CS Racing, BMW M4 CSL, Ferrari 296 GTB, Ferrari 488 Challenge EVO, Ford Escort RS Cosworth, Hyundai I30 N Hatchback, Mazda MX5 ND Cup and the Toyota GR86.Assetto Corsa Evo Game modes: Quick Race and PractiseSomewhat disappointingly, the first Early Access release will only feature single-player practise and quick race modes. More modes, such as online play and the open world, are expected to launch in the months following the initial release.Assetto Corsa Evo Open world: Coming summer 2025The highly anticipated open world that mimics the area around the famous Nrburgring in Germany will not be a part of the initial release, and is instead expected to arrive later this summer.Assetto Corsa Evo VR support: Available at launchVR fans will be pleased to hear that full VR support will be available from day one, although no specifics have been announced just yet. You would assume all major headsets would be supported, so providing you have a relatively recent setup, you should be good to go.Assetto Corsa Evo 1.0 release: Late 2025While getting an Early Access release gives fans a chance to play Assetto Corsa Evo much earlier than they normally would, some will likely want to wait until a full 1.0 release to play the new game. Fortunately, they won't have long to wait, as a full 1.0 release is expected before the end of 2025.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is on sale once again. gettySamsung is gearing up to release the Galaxy S25 in a couple of weeks. Before that, the company is looking to shift its current Galaxy S24 stock with some of the biggest discounts the device has received yet.Samsungs current sale is the holy grail of promotions, combining enhanced trade-in prices and money off the devices headline price. As it stands, buyers can get a straight $250 off the Galaxy S24 Ultra and a further $100 off in select colors (green, blue and orange). A total of $350 off the smartphone.The $250 discount can only be claimed if there is no other handset to trade in. If shoppers do have a phone to trade in, Samsung has once again upped its valuations for old devices. These figures dont match up to some of Samsungs other recent trade-in valuations in separate sales, but there are still decent prices to be found.Galaxy S21 Ultra - $500Galaxy Note 20 Ultra - $400Apple iPhone 13 Pro - $300Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max - $200Despite the more muted trade-in prices, this is still one of the better deals Samsung has launched since the Galaxy S24 Ultra landed last year. It makes sense that the Korean company would save its best prices for when the successor is days away from being announced.MORE FOR YOUIf youre set on buying the Galaxy S24 Ultra, this is a solid deal. But it might be worth waiting to see what Samsung does after the Galaxy S25 releases, because prices for the 2024 flagship will only go down from here. Samsung will also announce some aggressive pre-order pricing for the Galaxy S25 Ultra.Whatever you decide to do, please do not throw away your old phone or sell it on the secondary market.This sale follows a huge freebie promotion in the U.K. that gave away a Chromebook Go to Galaxy S24 Ultra buyers. The British arm of Samsung has a habit of throwing in free tech with select Galaxy phones, such as a Galaxy Watch FE or a Galaxy Tab. U.S. customers arent so fortunate, but American trade-in prices far outstrip those offered in the U.K. and Europe.

Through the looking glass: Since Team Fortress 2 implemented one of the earliest microtransaction markets in 2010, the game has captivated economists and observers alike, as millions of dollars have flowed through its community. Remarkably, the game's player count continues to grow 17 years after its launch, and traded items are only increasing in value. Prolific Team Fortress 2 player and organizer Vytal recently completed the largest trade in the 14-year history of the game's microtransaction economy. The deal far surpasses the previous record set in January 2024, indicating that the market within Valve's free-to-play shooter is thriving as its player base appears healthier than ever.The exact value of the trade for an ultra-rare Level 84 "Masterpiece" Crone's Dome varies across trading platforms. However, all estimates agree the transaction was unprecedented.In an interview with PC Gamer, Vytal revealed that he acquired the hat, along with a few additional items, for 24,000 keys. In the Team Fortress 2 economy, common supply crate keys function as a de facto currency, with their dollar value fluctuating similarly to foreign exchange rates.Currently, keys sell for just over $2 on platforms like Steam and Backpack.tf, making the Crone's Dome worth approximately $50,000. Using the Marketplace.tf valuation of $1.78 per key, the estimate falls closer to $42,000. // Related StoriesEven at the lower valuation, this trade more than doubles the previous record from January 2024, when a similar Crone's Dome was traded for 10,000 keys, or about $18,000. Instances of the Crone's Dome with various effects are extremely rare, as the item originally appeared during brief special events in 2013, 2014, and 2017. With no plans to reintroduce it, the supply is unlikely to increase.Notably, the Crone's Dome acquired by Vytal boasts multiple rare effects and a glitched killstreak, elevating its uniqueness. The buyer insists, it is the best hat in the game.It remains unclear how long Vytal's record will stand. Originally released in 2007, Team Fortress 2 is something of an ancient predecessor to popular hero shooters like Overwatch, Apex Legends, and Marvel Rivals, but it remains one of Steam's most popular titles.Recent traffic peaks have seen over 150,000 players logged into the game, while Valve has responded to its growing community by releasing significant updates over the last two years.Technical upgrades have fixed longstanding bugs, introduced 64-bit support, and raised the framerate cap to 400fps. Content updates have added around two dozen new maps and numerous cosmetic items, fueling record-breaking player counts that have exceeded 200,000 more than 15 years after the game's original launch.

Over the past couple of years, AI has made a solid impact in the field of medical sciences. From enhancing cancer detection to supercharging the discovery of drugs, we are seeing new breakthroughs at a rapid pace.Now, an AI-powered app is making life easier for parents concerned about infant jaundice, which is fairly common. Developed by Singapore General Hospital (SGH), SingHealth Polyclinics (SHP), and national HealthTech agency Synapxe, it lets parent screen their newborn babies for neonatal jaundice (NNJ).Recommended VideosThe underlying machine learning model, which is a first for Asian skin tones in this scenario, delivered impressive results. The team found that the app gave similar results when compared to existing methods of NNJ testing, with 100 percent sensitivity, claims Polyclinics SingHealth.Please enable Javascript to view this contentThe app was developed following two clinical studies over a span of two years, involving multiple rounds of validation on infants under 21 days of age. Named BiliSG, it employs a machine-learning model that analyzes the skin color in various regions, such as the chest, forehead, and abdomen. The app is named after bilirubin, a yellow chemical that originates from the breakdown of red blood cells and also happens to be an essential component of the digestive fluid produced by the liver.In a person suffering from jaundice, bilirubin imparts a yellow tint to the skin due to the leakage of the chemical in skin tissue. BiliSG makes it easier for parents to look for signs of neonatal jaundice (NNJ) from the comfort of their home instead of going through the ordeal of frequent hospital visits.NNJ is a condition that affects 60% of infants, but the number is even higher for pre-term babies. Body systems usually regulate the high levels of bilirubin in the bloodstream, but if that doesnt happen, jaundice complications can lead to permanent brain damage, development delays, and motor disabilities.SGHIt will transform the way we protect the brain health of babies by ensuring their jaundice is monitored closely by their parents in a convenient setting and with the safeguard and supervision of their family doctors via telemedicine, medical research experts who were a part of the project were quoted as saying.Parents only have to capture a picture of the skin area enclosed within a color calibration sticker. The color calibration sticker you see in the pictures above was designed to minimize reflection, perform light intensity corrections, and accommodate temperature variations. The team is now looking to fine-tune the app with expanded validation.The tests were conducted with the app running on an iPhone 12. The research team is hoping to expand the pool to more smartphone models (including Android), a process that would entail a lot of work, with camera-related factors (such as resolution) and the lighting situation being some of the core variables.The team is aiming to make the BiliSG app more robust and reliable in real-world scenarios beyond clinical setups. They are also focusing on making the app easier to use, especially for parents and caregivers who dont have as much experience using medical tools.You can read the full research paper here.Editors Recommendations