Soul Assembly cuts 15% of workforce"This step was necessary to position the company for future success during a challenging time for the gaming industry," says CEO David SolariImage credit: Ubisoft/Soul Assembly News by Sophie McEvoy Staff Writer Published on Jan. 16, 2025 Just Dance VR developer Soul Assembly has laid off 15% of its staff.As reported by UploadVR, employees across its QA, marketing, and animation departments have been affected."This decision was taken to ensure the studio is aligned with the requirements of our upcoming projects," said Soul Assembly CEO David Solari. "We are providing support to the affected team members as they transition to new opportunities and thank them for their contributions."This step was necessary to position the company for future success during a challenging time for the gaming industry."Employees affected have been sharing the news on LinkedIn, including 3D artist Kristina Jonaityte, QA technician Simon Kent, QA team lead Jamie Keys, and senior character artist Jonathan Pearmain."It seems I've once again been caught in the ups and downs of the industry," wrote Pearmin. "I've been made redundant, effective from the end of this week."Based in Leamington Spa, Soul Assembly was formed in 2022 after being spun out of Pixel Toys. As of 2023, the studio has over 70 employees.It has developed titles including Drop Dead: The Cabin, Warhammer 40,000: Battle Sister, and Last Stand.

VR studio Soul Assembly has laid off 15 percent of its workforce.Studio CEO David Solari confirmed the news in a statement to UploadVR. "We can confirm a reduction in our team by 15 percent. This decision was taken to ensure the studio is aligned with the requirements of our upcoming projects," he wrote."We are providing support to the affected team members as they transition to new opportunities and thank them for their contributions. This step was necessary to position the company for future success during a challenging time for the gaming industry.Soul Assembly recently partnered with Ubisoft to work on Just Dance VR and has released a litany of other VR titles including Warhammer 40,000: Battle Sister and Drop Dead: The Cabin.Last year, it launched spatial puzzler Soul Spire exclusively for Apple Vision Pro.The layoffs at Soul Assembly come months after UK-based VR studio nDreams announced it would be cutting up to 17.5 percent of roles to renew its "strategic focus."Analysts believe the consumer VR industry has entered a "challenging period." Consumer VR market researched published by Omdia in December 2024 indicated that headset sales had declined by 10 percent year-over-year to 6.9 million units.Omdia senior principle analyst George Jijiashvili said the market is expected to decline further in 2025."The consumer VR market continues to face significant challenges, with several indicators highlighting a lack of momentum and adoption," wrote Jijiashvili on Game Developer last year."The highly anticipated Apple Vision Pro debut has failed to deliver the resurgence the industry hoped for, with limited developer enthusiasm and fading momentum ten months post-launch. Meanwhile, Metas recent entry-level Quest 3S has yet to spark a notable sales boost."Omdia and Game Developer are sibling companies under InformaTechTarget.

Realme just launched its 14 Pro phones in India, and they come with a party trick: the phones can change color in the cold. Thats in addition to a triple camera flash and a triple IP rating that should protect the phone from extreme water conditions.Both the Realme 14 Pro and 14 Pro Plus share the color-sensitive tech, though its limited to the pearl white versions, with purple and gray models stuck on one lousy color. Co-designed with Danish studio Valeur Designers, the pearlescent phones include thermochromic pigments that start out as white, but pick up blue hues when the temperature drops below 16 degrees Celsius (about 61 degrees Fahrenheit), reversing as it warms up again. Image: RealmeRealme says that the colder the temperature, the faster the phone will change. Its even possible to create short-lived patterns by only cooling specific spots, which Indian YouTubers are already enjoying putting to the test. It does come with one meaty caveat in the small print though: The cold-sensitive color-changing function will gradually lose effect due to daily use and is not a quality issue. How long it will last remains to be seen, but even Realmes own website only promises the effect during initial use.The color-changing design isnt the only oddity to the 14 Pro series. The rear cameras include three separate flash modules, a design which Realme says automatically restores natural skin tones in low-light conditions. On the 14 Pro Plus those flashes sit in between three camera lenses, though the 14 Pro pulls a bit of a fast one, including two rear cameras and a third circle that only looks like a lens, but is in fact empty.The Realme 14 Pro looks like it has three rear cameras, but looks can be deceiving. Image: RealmeThis is also the latest phone to feature an IP69 rating for protection against dust and jets of water at high temperatures and pressure, joining the OnePlus 13, Moto G Power, and Honor Magic 7 Pro in adopting the stringent standard, which until recently was limited to the bulkiest rugged phones. The 14 Pro is also rated IP68 for submersion in water and IP66, which also applies to jets of water but for higher water volume at lower pressures and longer distances.Otherwise, the two Realme phones are typical midrangers. They both feature 50 megapixel main cameras and middle-of-the-line chipsets, with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 in the Pro Plus model and a MediaTek Dimensity 7300 in the Pro. The large 6,000mAh batteries and 80W charging speeds are still impressive, though. Both phones are out in India now, and start at 22,999 (about $265).

Video understanding has long presented unique challenges for AI researchers. Unlike static images, videos involve intricate temporal dynamics and spatial-temporal reasoning, making it difficult for models to generate meaningful descriptions or answer context-specific questions. Issues like hallucination, where models fabricate details, further compromise the reliability of existing systems. Despite advancements with models such as GPT-4o and Gemini-1.5-Pro, achieving human-level video comprehension remains a complex task. Accurate event perception and sequence understanding, coupled with reducing hallucination, are crucial hurdles to overcome.ByteDance researchers have introduced Tarsier2, a large vision-language model (LVLM) with 7 billion parameters, designed to address the core challenges of video understanding. Tarsier2 excels in generating detailed video descriptions, surpassing models like GPT-4o and Gemini-1.5-Pro. Beyond video descriptions, it demonstrates strong performance in tasks such as question-answering, grounding, and embodied intelligence. With an expanded pre-training dataset of 40 million video-text pairs, fine-grained temporal alignment, and Direct Preference Optimization (DPO) during training, Tarsier2 achieves noteworthy improvements. For example, on the DREAM-1K dataset, it outperforms GPT-4o by 2.8% and Gemini-1.5-Pro by 5.8% in F1 scores.Technical Innovations and BenefitsTarsier2 integrates several technical advancements to enhance performance. The models architecture includes a vision encoder, vision adaptor, and a large language model, combined in a three-stage training process:Pre-training: A dataset of 40 million video-text pairs, enriched with commentary videos that capture both low-level actions and high-level plot details, provides a solid foundation for learning.Supervised Fine-Tuning (SFT): Fine-grained temporal alignment during this stage ensures the model accurately associates events with corresponding video frames, reducing hallucination and improving precision.Direct Preference Optimization (DPO): This phase employs automatically generated preference data to refine the models decision-making and minimize hallucinations.These advancements not only improve the generation of detailed video descriptions but also enhance the models overall versatility across video-centric tasks.Results and InsightsTarsier2 achieves impressive results across multiple benchmarks. Human evaluations reveal an 8.6% performance advantage over GPT-4o and a 24.9% improvement over Gemini-1.5-Pro. On the DREAM-1K benchmark, it becomes the first model to exceed a 40% overall recall score, highlighting its ability to detect and describe dynamic actions comprehensively. Furthermore, it sets new performance records on 15 public benchmarks, including tasks like video question-answering and temporal reasoning. In the E.T. Bench-Grounding test, Tarsier2 achieves the highest mean F1 score of 35.5%, underlining its capabilities in temporal understanding. Ablation studies further underscore the critical role of the expanded pre-training dataset and DPO phase in enhancing performance metrics like F1 scores and accuracy.ConclusionTarsier2 marks a significant step forward in video understanding by addressing key challenges such as temporal alignment, hallucination reduction, and data scarcity. ByteDance researchers have delivered a model that not only outperforms leading alternatives in key metrics but also provides a scalable framework for future advancements. As video content continues to dominate digital media, models like Tarsier2 hold immense potential for applications ranging from content creation to intelligent surveillance.Check out the Paper. 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 our65k+ ML SubReddit.(Promoted) Aswin Ak+ postsAswin AK is a consulting intern at MarkTechPost. He is pursuing his Dual Degree at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. He is passionate about data science and machine learning, bringing a strong academic background and hands-on experience in solving real-life cross-domain challenges. Meet 'Height':The only autonomous project management tool (Sponsored)

Video game piracy has entered a new era as Japanese police have arrested, for the first time, someone accused of modifying Nintendo Switch hardware.As reported by NTV News and translated by Automaton, a 58-year-old Japanese man was arrested on January 15 on suspicion of violating the Trademark Act. He is suspected of modifying Switch consoles to run pirated games before selling them.This was allegedly done by welding modified parts to the circuit boards of second-hand consoles that allowed them to run pirated games. The man is accused of loading the hardware with 27 illegally accessed games and selling the consoles for 28,000 (around $180) each.He has admitted to the charges and is currently being investigated for other possible violations, according to police.Video game companies like Nintendo have long battled with piracy. A takedown request in May 2024, for example, saw Nintendo target 8,500 copies of Switch emulator Yuzu after the emulator itself was taken down two months prior. Its initial lawsuit against creator Tropic Haze said the $70 game The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Nintendo's premiere video game release of 2023, had been pirated one million times before it was even released.Legal action like this is becoming more and more common in an attempt to thwart piracy, however. Other successful lawsuits include those against game file sharing website RomUniverse, which was ordered to pay $2.1 million in damages to Nintendo in 2021, while a similar case saw it receive more than $12 million in damages in 2018. It also blocked GameCube and Wii emulator Dolphin from releasing on PC game platform Steam.This week, a patent lawyer representing Nintendo lifted the lid on the companys approach to piracy and emulation, discussing how the propagation of emulators could lead to software piracy. Nintendo's Assistant Manager of the Intellectual Property Division, Koji Nishiura, said: To begin with, are emulators illegal or not? This is a point often debated. While you cant immediately claim that an emulator is illegal in itself, it can become illegal depending on how its used.Image Credit: NintendoRyan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

The latest Apple store opens on Saturday, and the company has shown off a few photos ahead of time. It has the same curved frontage weve seen in a couple of earlier mall stores.Apple has previously aimed for a relatively seamless transition between the exterior and interior of these stores, and the latest example in Hefei, China, continues this trend Third mall store with curved, seamless frontageWe first saw this design in India back in 2023 (below), with Apple describing it at the time as a unique feature.Apple Saket welcomes customers through a uniquely designed curved storefront with white oak tables displaying Apples products and accessories, as well as a feature wall manufactured in India.You can see the gently curved frontage here, on the opening day with both CEO Tim Cook and retail head Deirdre OBrien in attendance:The uniqueness didnt last long, with the same design seen at a second mall store in Shenzhen, China, just a week later.The latest iteration (top photo) has been shown off by Apple in preview photos of Apple MixC Hefei, in Chinas Anhui province. In this example, there are no pillars obstructing the exterior, so it feels like an even more subtle transition from outside to inside.As is now usual, locally sourced materials have been incorporated.Located near Swan Lake and in a prominent business and financial district, Apple MixC Hefei features a wide, curved glass storefront, seamlessly blending the inside and outside, and inviting customers into the store. The new store features sustainably and locally sourced materials, reflecting Apples commitment to design excellence and the environment.Given the proximity of the opening to the lunar new year, Apple is marking the occasion in several ways.In celebration of the upcoming Chinese New Year, customers can purchase a pair of special-edition AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation that have been engraved for the Year of the Snake. They can also sign up for a special Chinese New Year workshop that teaches fresh ways to capture and relive memories using iPhone 16 and Apple Vision Pro, Apples first spatial computer which transforms the way people work, collaborate, and connect. Customers at Apple MixC Hefei can also enjoy festive window decals and decorative elements inside the new store that create a celebratory atmosphere.The store opens at 10am on Saturday, January 18.Photos: AppleAdd 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

Businesses everywhere face pressures to enhance their security postures as cyberattacks across sectors rise. Even so, many organizations have been hesitant to invest in cybersecurity for a variety of reasons such as budget constraints and operational issues. The EUs new Network and Information Security Directive (NIS2) confronts this hesitancy head on by making it mandatory for companies in Europe and those doing business with Europe to invest in cybersecurity and prioritize it regardless of budgets and team structures.What Is NIS2?The first NIS Directive was implemented in 2016, which was the EUs endeavor to unify cybersecurity strategies across member states. In 2023, the commission introduced the NIS2 Directive, a set of revisions to the original NIS. Each member state was required to implement the NIS2 recommendations into their own national legal systems by October 17, 2024.The original NIS focused on improving cybersecurity for several sectors, such as banking and finance, energy and healthcare. NIS2 expands that scope to other entities, including digital services, such as domain name system (DNS) service providers, top-level domain (TLD) name registries, social networking platforms and data centers, along with manufacturing of critical products, such as pharmaceuticals, medical devices and chemicals; postal and courier services; and wastewater and waste management.Related:Organizations in these industries are now required to implement more robust cyber risk management practices like incident reporting, risk analysis and auditing, resilience/business continuity and supply chain security. For example, member states must ensure TLD name registries and domain registration services collect accurate and complete registration data in a dedicated database. The new regulations also strengthen supervision and enforcement mechanisms, requiring national authorities to monitor compliance, investigate incidents and impose penalties for non-compliance.The goal of these new measures is to ensure the stability of societys infrastructure in the face of cyber threats. Entities in the EU will benefit from adopting these security measures over the long run, better preventing a devastating cyberattack. In doing so, they will also avoid the NIS2 penalties, which are significantly more punitive and clearly defined than those created under the original directive.Impact on OrganizationsMuch like how the European Unions General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) reset the standard for privacy globally, NIS2 sets clear requirements for businesses to establish stronger security defenses, but not without a cost. Failing to comply can lead to severe financial penalties and legal implications.Related:The official launch of NIS2 in October was met with mixed reactions. While some organizations could testify, they had been preparing all along, many others had left NIS2 on the backburner. In addition, as a result of the new sectors covered by NIS2, there were businesses that did not initially believe they would be impacted and therefore had not laid their own groundwork.All this said, it will be interesting to see how penalty enforcement plays out in 2025. If organizations dont demonstrate compliance early in the new year, or at least show progress toward becoming compliant, I predict we will start to see consequences, though it may be too soon to tell which sectors will face them first.To those still grappling with NIS2 implementation, it may understandably seem like a daunting task, but it does not have to be. Here are three actions organizations can take today to ensure a more seamless NIS2 implementation:1. Evaluate your business partners. NIS2 is not just about strengthening one business security; It also demands businesses thoroughly evaluate every entity they engage with in their supply chain. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link, and the same can be said for businesses and their partners security postures. It is essential for organizations to audit their partners to ensure every entity they do business with meets NIS2 requirements. Evaluating any security gaps now can help to avoid overlooked issues down the road.Related:2. Consolidate your domains. We have heard anecdotally that some businesses are not fully aware of their domain registrars or who is responsible for managing and securing the domains within their organization. This lapse in knowledge creates more than siloed work environments; it can cause major repercussions when it comes to secure domain management and NIS2 compliance. Taking a more consistent, consolidated approach to managing and securing domains helps strengthen an organizations overall domain security and checks one more task off the teams compliance checklist.3. Stay security-minded, organization-wide. With new NIS2 requirements, businesses must report cybersecurity incidents within 24 hours. This demand requires an organization-wide culture shift to a more security-minded approach to the way they do business. For example, businesses may need to evaluate what cybersecurity protocols they have in place to secure the way they interact with their customers and their supply chain. Without security being top-of-mind, businesses may miss NIS2 requirements that could lead to revenue loss, loss of customers and even dents in their reputation. This shift doesnt happen overnight but working with partners that are security-minded helps organizations stay a step ahead in their security.As cybercriminals become more elusive in targeting reputable organizations, and as global geopolitical tensions leave many companies in the crossfires of nation-state attacks, adhering to NIS2 standards becomes all the more critical. These three strategies are guiding principles for organizations to contribute to a safer, more secure enterprise environment in Europe and around the world.

Job SummaryWe are seeking a Digital Marketing Specialist to manage and optimize our paid digital marketing efforts across the US and UK markets, while supporting country-specific onboarding initiatives as we expand globally. This role is hands-on and will involve close collaboration with the Global Marketing Director to execute campaigns that drive measurable results. The ideal candidate will have experience in paid media, email marketing, and working within a dynamic, multinational environment. About You You are a results-driven digital marketer with a strong background in paid media and more than 3 years of experience in the field. Experience in an agency setting is a significant plus. You thrive in a collaborative environment and are comfortable managing campaigns across multiple platforms and markets. You are detail-oriented, adaptable, and passionate about using data to optimize performance. In addition to hands-on expertise with paid platforms, you bring solid knowledge of GA and GTM to track and measure performance effectively. You are also familiar with CRM platforms and understand how they integrate into marketing workflows. You excel in dynamic, fast-paced environments and are fluent in English, with the ability to work effectively with remote teams. Responsibilities Paid Media ManagementPlan, execute, and optimize paid marketing campaigns across platforms such as Google Ads, Meta, Bing and others for the US and UK marketsAnalyze campaign performance and provide actionable insights to improve ROIExecute A/B tests for landing pages to improve conversion ratesCollaborate on strategies to open/restructure paid marketing in new countries during onboarding phasesProduce weekly reports on the results of marketing effortsEmail MarketingDevelop and manage email marketing campaigns, including segmentation, A/B testing, and performance trackingWork with the Global Marketing Director to create and refine automated email workflows for lead nurturing and retentionCountry-Specific Marketing SupportAssist with onboarding new countries by evaluating and supporting their marketing effortsProvide hands-on support to establish paid marketing campaigns where neededEnsure all campaigns align with global brand guidelines and messagingCollaboration and ReportingReport to and with the Global Marketing Director to align strategies and goalsGenerate regular reports on campaign performance, identifying trends and opportunities for growthStay updated on industry trends and recommend innovative strategies to stay ahead of the competitionSkills and QualificationsProven experience in paid digital marketing across platforms such as Google Ads, Facebook Ads, Bing and LinkedIn, etcStrong analytical skills with experience in campaign tracking, optimization, and reportingProficiency in email marketing tools (e.g., Mailchimp, HubSpot, Drip, or similar) and CRM platformsExcellent communication and organizational skillsExperience working in a global non-profit, working with a remote team or in a multinational organization preferredAgency background is a strong plusFluency in English (written and verbal)IIf you are passionate about this work but do not have all the skills listed, we are still interested in speaking with you and encourage you to apply! Pay and benefits Our pay levels are set according to a formula that combines above-median market rate data for the role (we pay 55th percentile of New York market rate for this role, based on Payscale data) adjusted for your local cost of living based on Numbeo data. We take the issue of equitable pay very seriously, and we apply our pay formula to all workers who work 80% or more of full-time hours with us. Diversity and inclusion We care about diversity - we strive to ensure all of our team feel included and can bring their whole selves to work but we also know that this work is never done or complete, and that we can always improve.Our team is fully remote, living and working across 20 countries across the world, and wed love to hear how you can add to our special culture at MFI.

This article is from The Spark, MIT Technology Reviews weekly climate newsletter. To receive it in your inbox every Wednesday, sign up here. Lately, the vibes have been good for nuclear power. Public support is building, and public and private funding have made the technology more economical in key markets. Theres also a swell of interest from major companies looking to power their data centers. These shifts have been great for existing nuclear plants. Were seeing efforts to boost their power output, extend the lifetime of old reactors, and even reopen facilities that have shut down. Thats good news for climate action, because nuclear power plants produce consistent electricity with very low greenhouse-gas emissions. I covered all these trends in my latest story, which digs into whats next for nuclear power in 2025 and beyond. But as I spoke with experts, one central question kept coming up for me: Will all of this be enough to actually get new reactors built? To zoom in on some of these trends, lets take a look at the US, which has the largest fleet of nuclear reactors in the world (and the oldest, with an average age of over 42 years). In recent years weve seen a steady improvement in public support for nuclear power in the US. Today, around 56% of Americans support more nuclear power, up from 43% in 2020, according to a Pew Research poll. The economic landscape has also shifted in favor of the technology. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 includes tax credits specifically for operating nuclear plants, aimed at keeping them online. Qualifying plants can receive up to $15 per megawatt-hour, provided they meet certain labor requirements. (For context, in 2021, its last full year of operation, Palisades in Michigan generated over 7 million megawatt-hours.) Big Tech has also provided an economic boost for the industrytech giants like Microsoft, Meta, Google, and Amazon are all making deals to get in on nuclear. These developments have made existing (or recently closed) nuclear power plants a hot commodity. Plants that might have been candidates for decommissioning just a few years ago are now candidates for license extension. Plants that have already shut down are seeing a potential second chance at life. Theres also the potential to milk more power out of existing facilities through changes called uprates, which basically allow existing facilities to produce more energy by tweaking existing instruments and power generation systems. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved uprates totaling six gigawatts over the past two decades. Thats a small but certainly significant fraction of the roughly 97 gigawatts of nuclear on the grid today. Any reactors kept online, reopened, or ramped up spell good news for emissions. Well probably also need new reactors just to maintain the current fleet, since so many reactors are scheduled to be retired in the next couple of decades. Will the enthusiasm for keeping old plants running also translate into building new ones? In much of the world (China being a notable exception), building new nuclear capacity has historically been expensive and slow. Its easy to point at Plant Vogtle in the US: The third and fourth reactors at that facility began construction in 2009. They were originally scheduled to start up in 2016 and 2017, at a cost of around $14 billion. They actually came online in 2023 and 2024, and the total cost of the project was north of $30 billion. Some advanced technology has promised to fix the problems in nuclear power. Small modular reactors could help cut cost and construction times, and next-generation reactors promise safety and efficiency improvements that could translate to cheaper, quicker construction. Realistically, though, getting these first-of-their-kind projects off the ground will still require a lot of money and a sustained commitment to making them happen. The next four years are make or break for advanced nuclear, says Jessica Lovering, cofounder at the Good Energy Collective, a policy research organization that advocates for the use of nuclear energy. There are a few factors that could help the progress weve seen recently in nuclear extend to new builds. For one, public support from the US Department of Energy includes not only tax credits but public loans and grants for demonstration projects, which can be a key stepping stone to commercial plants that generate electricity for the grid. Changes to the regulatory process could also help. The Advance Act, passed in 2024, aims at sprucing up the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in the hopes of making the approval process more efficient (currently, it can take up to five years to complete). If you can see the NRC really start to modernize toward a more efficient, effective, and predictable regulator, it really helps the case for a lot of these commercial projects, because the NRC will no longer be seen as this barrier to innovation, says Patrick White, research director at the Nuclear Innovation Alliance, a nonprofit think tank. We should start to see changes from that legislation this year, though what happens could depend on the Trump administration. The next few years are crucial for next-generation nuclear technology, and how the industry fares between now and the end of the decade could be very telling when it comes to how big a role this technology plays in our longer-term efforts to decarbonize energy. Now read the rest of The Spark Related reading For more on whats next for nuclear power, check out my latest story. One key trend Im following is efforts to reopen shuttered nuclear plants. Heres how to do it. Kairos Power is working to build molten-salt-cooled reactors, and we named the company to our list of 10 Climate Tech Companies to watch in 2024. Another thing Devastating wildfires have been ravaging Southern California. Heres a roundup of some key stories about the blazes. Strong winds have continued this week, bringing with them the threat of new fires. Heres a page with live updates on the latest. (Washington Post) Officials are scouring the spot where the deadly Palisades fire started to better understand how it was sparked. (New York Times) Climate change didnt directly start the fires, but global warming did contribute to how intensely they burned and how quickly they spread. (Axios) The LA fires show that controlled burns arent a cure-all when it comes to preventing wildfires. (Heatmap News) Seawater is a last resort when it comes to fighting fires, since its corrosive and can harm the environment when dumped on a blaze. (Wall Street Journal) Keeping up with climate US emissions cuts stalled last year, despite strong growth in renewables. The cause: After staying flat or falling for two decades, electricity demand is rising. (New York Times) With Donald Trump set to take office in the US next week, many are looking to state governments as a potential seat of climate action. Heres what to look for in states including Texas, California, and Massachusetts. (Inside Climate News) The US could see as many as 80 new gas-fired power plants built by 2030. The surge comes as demand for power from data centers, including those powering AI, is ballooning. (Financial Times) Global sales of EVs and plug-in hybrids were up 25% in 2024 from the year before. China, the worlds largest EV market, is a major engine behind the growth. (Reuters) A massive plant to produce low-emissions steel could be in trouble. Steelmaker SSAB has pulled out of talks on federal funding for a plant in Mississippi. (Canary Media) Some solar panel companies have turned to door-to-door sales. Things arent always so sunny for those involved. (Wired)

The Architects Company has announced I.M. Pei: Life Is Architecture as the overall winner of the 2024 Architecture Book of the Year Award. The accolade will be formally presented at the companys annual banquet on 29 January at Merchant Taylors Hall.The publication, a collaboration between Thames & Hudson and the M+ museum in Hong Kong, also won the Practice category. The judges described it as a must for any architectural library, praising its accessible format and strong visual presentation. .This is the second year of the awards, which are organised by the Worshipful Company of Chartered Architects. Winners in other categories also reflected a wide spectrum of architectural discourse, ranging from detailed historical studies to technical and practical guides.Andy Foster reviewsa new book byGill Hedley that explores theearly eighteenth century world of architects, clients and building.Gill Hedleys biography The Ingenious Mr Flitcroft: Palladian Architect 16971769 was named the winner of the Biography category. Judges described the book as both learned and engaging, noting its thorough archival research and the accessible way in which it brings to life Flitcrofts career and personal story. The books structural clarity, complemented by high-quality illustrations and its framing of Flitcrofts work in a contemporary context, was particularly commended.>> Caruso St Johns Collected Works, Volume 2: A genuine insight into their motivations and interestsGiles Heather finds that this latest volume of collected works sheds fresh light on the practices profound interest in history and alternative modernisms.Another commendation in the Practice category went to Caruso St John: Collected Works, Volume 2, 20002012. Judges noted the depth of the work in explaining the roots of Caruso St Johns architectural philosophy, supported by substantial cultural and historical references.The winner of the Building category was Upper Lawn, Solar Pavilion, Alison and Peter Smithson, a revised edition of the Smithsons study of their Wiltshire weekend house. Originally published in 1986, the book includes new material framed by a contextual essay by Paul Clarke. Judges described the work as a calm, poetic evocation of the projects conception, construction, and inhabitation.>> Modern Buildings in Blackheath and Greenwich: London 1950-2000Ana Francisco Sutherlands new bookdemonstrates compellingly how the architecture that now characterises the area is deeply rooted in the place and its history, writes Nicholas de Klerk.Ana Francisco Sutherlands Blackheath and Greenwich Modern Buildings 19502000 won the Guide category. This comprehensive account of mid-20th-century architecture in the area was praised for its clarity, detailed plans, and ability to contextualise the buildings design and their relationships to the communities they serve.In the History category, Dublin Creation, Occupation, Destruction by Niall McCullough was recognised as an astonishingly original appreciation of Dublin. The posthumous publication intertwines architectural history with literary references and evocative photography. Judges noted its emotional depth and unique contribution to architectural historiography, describing it as a fitting tribute to McCulloughs career as an architect and writer.Jeanne Gangs The Art of Architectural Grafting was awarded the Technical category prize. The book uses the metaphor of tree grafting to explore low-carbon architectural adaptation and reuse. Judges noted its charming illustrations and practical insights, highlighting its relevance to contemporary challenges in sustainable design.>> Housing Atlas: Europe 20th CenturyThis timely publication offers a reminder that the value ofinnovation is not in being different, but in imagining and creating new models from which others can learn, writes Bob Allies.The Typology category was won by Housing Atlas: Europe 20th Century, authored by Orsina Simona Pierini, Carmen Espegel, Dick van Gameren, and Mark Swenarton. This meticulously produced volume examines 87 key housing projects across Europe, accompanied by specially drawn plans, sections, and elevations to consistent scales. The judges commended its ability to encourage proper understanding of these works, including their relationship to programme and place.The awards also recognised several special publications, including Srgio Ferro, Architecture From Below, a translated collection of essays offering critical perspectives on architecture and labour. Judges remarked on the works value in introducing English-speaking readers to Ferros ideas, which challenge architectural cultures neglect of building labour.Thomas Heatherwicks Humanise: A Makers Guide to Building Our World also received recognition as a best-selling polemic intended to provoke public discussion on architectures role in shaping the built environment. Judges noted its visual impact and success in sparking wider debate.>> Also read:Elain Harwood given posthumous recognition at inaugural Architecture Book of the Year Awards>> Also read:Best of 2024: Building Designs book reviews of the year