Key TakeawaysDeepSeek, a Chinese AI app, temporarily halted new user sign-ups due to large-scale cyberattacks. Existing users remained unaffected during this period.It recently surpassed ChatGPT to become the most downloaded free app on the U.S. Apple App Store.The success of DeepSeek has led to significant disruptions in the global tech industry, raising questions about the necessity of large investments in AI infrastructure.On Monday, 27th January 2025, the newest strong rival of AI models, DeepSeek, temporarily stopped taking new user registrations due to large-scale cyber attacks. While existing users could still log in and use the app, new users were left waiting for the next update on these malicious activities to use the newly popular AI assistant.On Monday, the status page said that an investigation is being conducted to identify the issue. After about two hours of monitoring, the company concluded that it was a victim of large-scale malicious attacks and limited registrations.The app is now allowing registrations again, indicating that the issue mustve been resolved. However, theres a note on the page that says, Registration may be busy. Please wait and try again. so its possible that logins might be slow.The Chinese AI app recently dethroned ChatGPT to become the most downloaded free app in the US Apple App Store.The company has been in the spotlight since then, leaving tech analysts, investors, and developers in shock with its generative AI systems and the advanced technology that it has been using.The fact that DeepSeek is developed at a fraction of the cost of its rivals makes it a shocking and extraordinary development in AI. Jefferies analysts estimate the R1 models training cost at only $5.6 million, which is far less than competitors models like ChatGPT 4, which cost more than $100 million to develop.The success of this company puts a question mark on whether the gigantic funding rounds and exceptionally high valuations for AI are really justified.The Rapid Rise of DeepSeekFounded in 2023 by a Chinese hedge fund high flyer Liang Wennfeng, DeepSeek is a free AI tool like Gemini or ChatGPT that provides structured explanations and step-by-step problem-solving methods.The R1 model sent shockwaves through the AI industry quickly after its release, becoming a hot favorite among the masses for its impressive performance and reasoning capabilities. This R1 is a so-called reasoning model, which is a tweaked version of the V3 with a technique called reinforcement learning.Several reviews highlight that while ChatGPT is great for creative content, DeepSeek is better at problem-solving and mathematical reasoning than most AI tools in the market today.DeepSeek R1 is AIs Sputnik moment, the investor Marc Andreessen wrote on XTrump said the emergence of DeepSeek should be a wake-up call for US companies, as he announced a new $500B AI infrastructure project called Stargate last week. The venture will be taken forward in collaboration with OpenAI, Softbank, and Oracle, and Trump apparently has a lot of expectations from this.Itll be interesting to see how the biggest investment ever in the field of AI competes with this Chinese AI app, Deepsake.Add Techreport to Your Google News Feed Get the latest updates, trends, and insights delivered straight to your fingertips. Subscribe now! Subscribe now Vlad is Tech Report's Executive Editor. With over a decade of experience in tech content, he's passionate about computer hardware, an advocate of online privacy, and strongly believes in the open-source, scarce-money nature of cryptocurrency.When hes not working, hes traveling with his partner and their cat, learning Python, or reading good books. He never owned a PC he did not build. View all articles by Vlad Melnic Our editorial processThe Tech Reporteditorial policyis centered on providing helpful, accurate content that offers real value to our readers. We only work with experienced writers who have specific knowledge in the topics they cover, including latest developments in technology, online privacy, cryptocurrencies, software, and more. Our editorial policy ensures that each topic is researched and curated by our in-house editors. We maintain rigorous journalistic standards, and every article is 100% written byreal authors.

What just happened? NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission has unveiled discoveries from the analysis of samples collected from asteroid Bennu that shed new light on the potential origins of life in our solar system. The findings, published in Nature and Nature Astronomy, reveal the presence of key molecular building blocks for life and evidence of an ancient aqueous environment. The sample analysis detected 14 out of the 20 amino acids used by life on Earth to create proteins, as well as all five nucleobases essential for genetic information storage and transmission. Additionally, scientists found an unexpectedly high concentration of ammonia approximately 100 times greater than natural levels in Earth's soils."NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission already is rewriting the textbook on what we understand about the beginnings of our solar system," said Nicky Fox, associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate. "Asteroids provide a time capsule into our home planet's history, and Bennu's samples are pivotal in our understanding of what ingredients in our solar system existed before life started on Earth."The research team also identified traces of 11 minerals associated with salt deposits formed through water evaporation, suggesting a history of brine environments on Bennu or its parent body. This discovery provides insights into the potential for life-supporting conditions in the early solar system."The clues we're looking for are so minuscule and so easily destroyed or altered from exposure to Earth's environment," Danny Glavin, a senior sample scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, said. "That's why some of these new discoveries would not be possible without a sample-return mission, meticulous contamination-control measures, and careful curation and storage of this precious material from Bennu."While these findings do not provide direct evidence of life, they suggest that the necessary conditions for life's emergence were widespread across the early solar system. This increases the possibility that life could have formed on other planets and moons."Our odds of finding life elsewhere are increasing," Glavin told the New York Times. // Related StoriesThe Bennu samples also present an intriguing puzzle regarding the chirality of amino acids. Unlike life on Earth, which predominantly uses left-handed amino acids, the Bennu samples contain an equal mixture of both left- and right-handed varieties. This raises questions about how and why life on Earth "turned left" in its amino acid preference.NASA launched the OSIRIS-REx mission to asteroid Bennu in 2016 to gain insights into the early solar system's formation. Bennu, like other asteroids, is believed to contain primordial materials from the solar system's birth approximately 4.5 billion years ago.The mission's primary objective was to collect and return a pristine sample from Bennu's surface, which could provide unaltered evidence of the solar system's original ingredients. This sample was expected to offer more accurate information than meteorites, which undergo significant changes during their passage through Earth's atmosphere and while on the ground. OSIRIS-REx successfully collected a sample from Bennu on October 20, 2020, and returned it to Earth on September 24, 2023.

Optimize games and applications with a new unified GPU control center, capture your favorite moments with powerful recording tools through the in-game overlay, and discover the latest Nvidia tools and software.FeaturesUnified GPU Control CenterThe Nvidia app integrates GeForce Experience's Optimal Game Settings and Nvidia Control Panel's 3D Settings into a unified interface. This becomes a centralized place to review or modify optimizations while adjusting driver settings. You can customize it on a per-applications basis, or use a global profile across all games and applications.Improved Driver InformationWhen it comes to your favorite games or applications, Game Ready Drivers and Studio Drivers ensure the ultimate experience for gamers and creators. A popular request from GeForce Experience users is for a quicker, more straightforward way to understand what's included in the latest driver updates.In the new Driver page, we've introduced easy-to-scan bullet points of "what's new" and "what's fixed," alongside quick callouts on game support. All driver related articles are accessible on a single carousel so you can read about game announcements or technologies associated with the driver.Redesigned In-Game OverlayOur In-Game Overlay has undergone a comprehensive redesign. As before, use the convenient "Alt+Z" hotkey to swiftly access Shadowplay recording tools, Freestyle Game Filters, Nvidia Highlights, photo mode, and performance monitoring tools.In the Nvidia app, we've improved the user interface, enabling quick access to features while playing your favorite game or using an application. And your captured content is now readily available in the gallery through user-friendly thumbnails.We've also enhanced performance monitoring with a new statistics overlay. Gamers can now customize how the performance overlay is displayed during their gaming session with options to minimize the footprint of the HUD.Additionally, gamers can now customize which performance metrics they would like to see during their gaming session. Simply hit Alt + R to toggle performance monitoring statistics.Nvidia app also introduces Shadowplay 120 FPS video capture which enables a new level of smoothness in recorded content.New AI Freestyle FiltersNvidia Freestyle empowers you to personalize the visual aesthetics of your favorite games through real-time post-processing filters. This feature boasts compatibility with a vast library of more than 1,200 games, and now NVIDIA app offers AI-powered filters, accelerated by Tensor Cores on GeForce RTX GPUs.RTX Dynamic Vibrance is an AI-powered Freestyle filter that improves upon the beloved Digital Vibrance feature in the Nvidia Control Panel. RTX Dynamic Vibrance enhances visual clarity on a per app basis, providing players with a flexible and convenient way to tune their visual settings for each game. Colors pop more on screen, with perfect balance to minimize color crushing, preserving image quality and immersion.RTX HDR, a new AI-powered Freestyle filter seamlessly brings the vibrant world of High Dynamic Range (HDR) to games that were not originally equipped with HDR support. Remarkably, only 10 of the top 50 most-played GeForce games offer HDR support and there are thousands of games that only support SDR. However, with the RTX HDR filter, you can now take advantage of your HDR-compatible monitor for a broad spectrum of games running on DX12, DX11, DX9, and Vulkan platforms.Redeem GeForce Bundles & RewardsNvidia app users get access to rewards, such as in-game content, exclusive GeForce Now premium membership offers, and more. Simply start the Nvidia app and visit the Redeem tab to check out the latest rewards.For a limited time, users of the Nvidia app beta can redeem the GeForce Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III and Call of Duty: Warzone reward. Experience DLSS 3 in either game with a free 1 hour Double XP Boost and 1 hour Double Weapon XP Boost.Nvidia App System RequirementsOperating System: Windows 10, Windows 11RAM: 2GB system memoryDisc Space Required: 600 MBDriver: GeForce 551.52 Driver or laterSupported HardwareCPU: Intel Pentium G Series, Core i3, i5, i7, or higher, AMD FX, Ryzen 3, 5, 7, 9, Threadripper or higherGPU: GeForce RTX 20, 30, 40 and 50 Series GPUs, GeForce GTX 800, 900, 1000, 1600 Series GPUs, GeForce MX100, MX200, MX300, 800M, and 900M GPUsWhat's NewNvidia App Beta updated to 11.0.2.312:New UpdatesDLSS Multi Frame Generation, Transformer Models, and moreUpdate your DLSS titles with the latest AI models with a single click. With your GeForce RTX 50 Series GPU, enable DLSS Multi Frame Generation in compatible DLSS Frame Generation titles. And with any RTX Series GPU, enable the new Transformer model, DLAA, or Ultra Performance modes in compatible titles with DLSS Super Resolution or Ray Reconstruction. Access these DLSS features under Graphics > Program Settings > Driver Settings > DLSS Override.NVIDIA Broadcast Update Adds New AI EffectsThe latest NVIDIA Broadcast release features two new effects the new Studio Voice, which upgrades your mic to deliver premium audio quality, and Virtual Keylight, which automatically relights your face for even lighting throughout your livestreams. Eye contact and background noise removal get a quality improvement, plus an updated user interface lets users combine even more effects. Download Nvidia Broadcast from the Discover section on the Home tab.Nvidia Smooth MotionNvidia Smooth Motion is a new driver-based AI model that delivers smoother gameplay by inferring an additional frame between two rendered frames. Nvidia Smooth Motion is available for DirectX 11, and DirectX 12 titles on GeForce RTX 50 Series GPUs. Enable this feature via Graphics > Program Settings > Driver Settings.RTX Video ImprovementsThe latest release of RTX Video Super Resolution now enhances HDR content and reduces GPU usage by 30%. NVIDIA App now lets users prioritize GPU utilization, lowering quality when GPU intensive apps, like games, are running at the same time. Additionally, there's a new on-screen indicator to show if the feature is enabled, and which video is being enhanced with AI. Enable these features via System > Video > Super Resolution.New Control Panel Display FeaturesAdvanced Optimus Modes and Manage Displays is now available under System > Display.Updated Default Shadowplay Bitrate SettingsDefault Shadowplay settings are now configured based on your resolution, frame rate, and codec. Manually configure from the in-game overlay in Settings > Video Capture.Optimal Settings Support Added For 7 New Games:Delta Force (GLOBAL)Farming Simulator 25Indiana Jones And The Great CircleMarvel RivalsMicrosoft Flight Simulator 2024Path of Exile 2S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of ChornobylSquashed bugs!Fixed an issue with driver rollback not working after changing the language setting.Fixed an issue where Instant Replay temporary recordings are not saving at the selected directory.Fixed an issue where windowed-mode screenshots are incorrectly saved to the desktop folder.Fixed an issue with video synchronizing through OneDrive.Resolved an issue that prevented the microphone from being selected or properly captured.Various stability fixes.Nvidia App Beta updated to 11.0.2.308:New Control Panel Display Features Advanced Optimus Modes and Manage Displays is now available under System > Display.Updated Default Shadowplay Bitrate Settings Default Shadowplay settings are now configured based on your resolution, frame rate, and codec. Manually configure from the in-game overlay Settings > Video Capture.Optimal Settings Support Added For 7 New Games: Delta Force (GLOBAL)Farming Simulator 25Indiana Jones And The Great CircleMarvel RivalsMicrosoft Flight Simulator 2024Path of Exile 2S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of ChornobylSquashed bugs! Fixed an issue with driver rollback not working after changing the language setting.Fixed an issue where Instant Replay temp recordings are not saving at selected directory.Fixed an issue where windowed-mode screenshots are incorrectly saved to the desktop folder.Fixed an issue with video synchronizing through OneDrive.Resolved an issue that prevented the microphone from being selected or properly captured.Various stability fixes.Previous Release Notes:Welcome to the official release of the new Nvidia app, an essential companion for users with Nvidia GPUs in their PCs, laptops, and workstations.Whether you're a gaming enthusiast or a content creator, the Nvidia app simplifies the process of keeping your PC updated with the latest Nvidia drivers, and enables quick discovery and installation of Nvidia applications like GeForce NOW, RTX Remix, and Nvidia Broadcast.Featuring a unified GPU control center, Nvidia app allows fine-tuning of game, program, and driver settings from a single place, while introducing a redesigned in-game overlay for convenient access to powerful gameplay recording tools, performance monitoring overlays, and game enhancing filters, including innovative new AI-powered filters for RTX users.The Nvidia app incorporates many of the top features from GeForce Experience and RTX Experience, includes an optional login to redeem bundles and rewards, and introduces new RTX capabilities to elevate your gaming and creative experiences.Previous Release Notes:Nvidia app is the essential companion for users with Nvidia GPUs in their PCs and laptops. Whether you're a gaming enthusiast or a content creator, Nvidia app simplifies the process of keeping your PC updated with the latest GeForce Game Ready and Nvidia Studio drivers, and enables quick discovery and installation of Nvidia applications like GeForce NOW and Nvidia Broadcast.Featuring a unified GPU control center, Nvidia app allows fine-tuning of game, program, and driver settings from a single place, while introducing a redesigned in-game overlay for convenient access to powerful gameplay recording tools, performance monitoring overlays, and game enhancing filters, including innovative new AI-powered filters for RTX users.The Nvidia app incorporates many of the top features from GeForce Experience and RTX Experience, includes an optional login to redeem bundles and rewards, and introduces new RTX capabilities to elevate your gaming and creative experiences.Nvidia app is designed to be fast and responsive. When compared to GeForce Experience, it installs in half the time, offers a modernized UI that is 50% more responsive, and includes numerous features via easily navigated sub-sections:Home: Access every element of Nvidia app with a few clicks, load and configure your most recently used programs, view the latest Nvidia announcements, and download other Nvidia applicationsNvidia Overlay: Redesigned and enhanced, now boasting 4K 120 FPS AV1 video capture, AI-powered RTX game filters, a new Gallery to sort and view your videos and screenshots, and a highly customizable statistic overlay for viewing hardware stats on the desktop and during gameplayDrivers: Redesigned with bullet points to call out "what's new" and "what's fixed," single carousel to access driver-related articles on games and technologies, and ability to rollback to previous drivers.Graphics: Optimal Playable Settings and relevant NVIDIA Control Panel options are now accessible in a unified interface.System: Configure your displays, enable G-SYNC, enhance local and streamed videos with our AI-powered Video Super Resolution and High Dynamic Range features, tune your GPU's performance for faster frame rates, and view rig detailsRedeem: Claim GeForce Rewards for your favorite games and apps, including our newly-launched GeForce Reward for the game THRONE AND LIBERTYSettings: Change Nvidia App's language, adjust app options, configure notifications, and more.Complete release notes can be found here.

If this winter has felt particularly chilly in your house, you might want to take a look at space heater deals. If you want one thats portable and budget-friendly, check out the Dreo DR-HSH006, which is currently on sale from Walmart with a $36 discount that drops its price from $70 to just $34. Theres probably not much time remaining before this flash deal expires, so if youre interested in buying this heating device for less than half-price, you need to proceed with the transaction right now.While there are space heaters that are huge and bulky, the Dreo DR-HSH006 is a portable model with a handle that you can carry to different rooms around the house, so you can use it wherever you are. It only takes a few seconds to warm up and provide heat, with temperature settings between 41 and 95 degrees Fahrenheit that you can adjust in increments of 1 degree. Since its powered by a brushless DC motor and its equipped with a winglet fan, the device operates silently at just 34dB, so it wont disturb you while it works in the background.Our guide on everything you need to know before buying a space heater prioritizes safety features, with a tip-over switch that shuts down the device when its knocked over as the most important consideration. The Dreo DR-HSH006 space heater has it, alongside flame-retardant materials, additional overheating protection, a safety plug, and a child lock. Other features found in the space heater include a 12-hour timer and a memory function.RelatedKeep yourself warm through the rest of the winter season with the Dreo DR-HSH006 space heater, which is available from Walmart in a flash deal that more than halves its price. From $70, it will be yours for just $34 for huge savings of $36, but you better act fast. Theres no telling when this bargain will get taken down or when the stocks that are up for sale run out, so if youre already looking forward to using the Dreo DR-HSH006 space heater, you should complete your purchase immediately to make sure you enjoy the discount.Editors Recommendations

The Super Bowl is less than two weeks away, which means youll be seeing TV sales everywhere you look and shop. Unfortunately, many of these models arent built for the long haul, but reliable manufacturers like TCL have plenty of great sets you can grab for the big game. In fact, one of the best TCL TV deals also happens to be for an enormous TV:For a limited time, when you purchase the TCL 98-inch QM7 Series (2024) through Best Buy or Walmart, youll only pay $2,000. The full MSRP on this model is $4,000.The TCL 98-inch QM7 Series is a terrific 4K QLED TV that punches well above its weight class. Thanks to mini-LED lighting, TCLs AIPQ Pro Processor, and class-leading HDR support, the TCL QM7 delivers high peak brightness, rich colors, and incredible contrast levels. Highlights stand out nicely when watching or playing HDR content, though the TV does a great job with SDR content, too.RelatedWhen it comes to gaming features, the TCL QM7 boasts a 144Hz variable refresh rate on top of AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and ALLM. Expect fast response times and minimal input lag from this model, along with HDMI 2.1 connectivity on ports 1 and 2. Lets just say your PS5 and Xbox games will look and perform better than ever.The TCL QM7 also uses Google TV for app streaming and content mirroring via AirPlay 2 and Chromecast. Score the TCL 98-inch QM7 Series (2024) while this discount is still in effect at Best Buy and Walmart. You may also want to check out our lists of the best TV deals and best QLED TV deals for more markdowns on top sets!Editors Recommendations

The shift occurs after many brands cut their advertising on the digital platform over hate-speech concerns.

SoftBank would lead $40 billion round for the ChatGPT maker, some of which would go to Stargate AI infrastructure venture.

A few of the lower-calorie/lower-alcohol wines our columnist tastedthe Sauvignon Blancs in particularproved pleasant. But when a quality dry Champagne or Vinho Verde proves just as light, are we falling too hard for the hype?

Jack Quaid and Sophie Thatcher star in a wickedly clever horror film about a man and his AI girlfriend.

touring the stacks VGHF opens free online access to 1,500 classic game mags, 30K historic files Come for the classic GamePro, stay for the raw Myst film footage. Kyle Orland Jan 30, 2025 3:22 pm | 0 This early Sonic concept art is just a taste of what the VGHF digital archive has on offer. Credit: VGHF / Tom Payne This early Sonic concept art is just a taste of what the VGHF digital archive has on offer. Credit: VGHF / Tom Payne Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreThe Video Game History Foundation has officially opened up digital access to a large portion of its massive archives today, offering fans and researchers unprecedented access to information and ephemera surrounding the past 50 years of the game industry.Today's launch of the VGHF Library comprises more than 30,000 indexed and curated files, including high-quality artwork, promotional material, and searchable full-text archives over 1,500 video game magazine issues. This initial dump of digital materials also contains never-before-seen game development and production archival material stored by the VGHF, such as over 100 hours of raw production files from the creation of the Myst series or Sonic the Hedgehog concept art and design files contributed by artist Tom Payne.A labor of loveIn a blog post and accompanying launch video, VGHF head librarian Phil Salvador explains how today's launch is the culmination of a dream the organization has had since its launch in 2017. But it's also just the start of an ongoing process to digitize the VGHF's mountains of unprocessed physical material into a cataloged digital form, so people can access it "without having to fly to California."The VGHF doesn't require any special credentials or even a free account to access its archives, a fact that might be contributing to overloaded servers on this launch day. Despite those server issues, amateur researchers online are already sharing crucial library-derived information about the history of describing games as "immersive" or that one time Garfield ranked games in GamePro, for instance. Just a few of the magazines that have been fully digitized by the VGHF library team. Credit: VGHF Library Just a few of the magazines that have been fully digitized by the VGHF library team. Credit: VGHF Library "Anyone studying video game history is a researcher," Salvador writes. "Our library is for anyone who wants to study video game historywhether youre a scholar who wants to supplement your academic resources, or a YouTuber making a video about the story of your favorite game."In the intro video, Salvador talks about looking through their archives and stumbling on the existence of Pretzel Pete, a little-remembered early 3D driving/platform game. Despite its extreme obscurity, the game is nonetheless mentioned in the 1999 E3 catalog and an old issue of PC Gamer, both of which are now memorialized forever in the VGHF digital archives.Getting this kind of obscure information into a digitized, easily searchable form was "a lot harder than it sounds," Salvador said. Beyond getting archival-quality scans of the magazines themselves (a process aided by community efforts like RetroMags and Out of Print Archive), extracting the text from those pages proved difficult for OCR software designed for the high-contrast, black-text-on-white-background world of business documents. "If you've ever read a '90s video game magazine, you know how crazy those magazine layouts get," Salvador said. VGHF Head Librarian Phil Salvador talks about the digital library launch. To get around that problem, Salvador said VGHF Director of Technology Travis Brown spent months developing a specially designed text-recognition tool that "handles even the toughest magazine pages with no problem" and represents "a significant leap in quality over what we had before." That means it's easier than ever to find 81 separate mentions of Clu Clu Land from across dozens of different issues with a single search.Unfortunately, the vast wealth of video game information on offer here does not include direct, playable access to retail video games, which libraries can't share digitally thanks to the limitations of the DMCA. But the VGHF and other organizations "continue to challenge those copyright rules every three years," leaving some hope that the digital libraries like this may soon include access to the source material being discussed.Kyle OrlandSenior Gaming EditorKyle OrlandSenior Gaming Editor Kyle Orland has been the Senior Gaming Editor at Ars Technica since 2012, writing primarily about the business, tech, and culture behind video games. He has journalism and computer science degrees from University of Maryland. He once wrote a whole book about Minesweeper. 0 Comments