A new startup founded by a former Google DeepMind scientist is exiting stealth with $50 million in funding.Latent Labs is building AI foundation models to make biology programmable, and it plans to partner with biotech and pharmaceutical companies to generate and optimize proteins.Its impossible to understand what DeepMind and its ilk are doing without first understanding the role that proteins play in human biology. Proteins drive everything in living cells, from enzymes and hormones to antibodies. They are made up of around 20 distinct amino acids, which link together in strings that fold to create a 3D structure, whose shape determines how the protein functions. But figuring out the shape of each protein was historically a very slow, labor-intensive process. That was the big breakthrough that DeepMind achieved with AlphaFold: it meshed machine learning with real biological data to predict the shape of some 200 million protein structures.Armed with such data, scientists can better understand diseases, design new drugs, and even create synthetic proteins for entirely new use-cases. That is where Latent Labs enters the fray with its ambition to enable researchers to computationally create new therapeutic molecules from scratch.Latent potentialSimon Kohl (pictured above) started out as a research scientist at DeepMind, working with the core AlphaFold2 team before co-leading the protein design team and setting up DeepMinds wet lab at Londons Francis Crick Institute. Around this time, DeepMind also spawned a sister company in the form of Isomorphic Labs, which is focused on applying DeepMinds AI research to transform drug discovery.It was a combination of these developments that convinced Kohl that the time was right to go it alone with a leaner outfit focused specifically on building frontier (i.e., cutting-edge) models for protein design. So at the tail-end of 2022, Kohl departed DeepMind to lay the foundations for Latent Labs, and incorporated the business in London in mid-2023.I had a fantastic and impactful time [at DeepMind], and became convinced of the impact that generative modelling was going to have in biology and protein design in particular, Kohl told TechCrunch in an interview this week. At the same time, I saw that with the launch of Isomorphic Labs, and their plans based on AlphaFold2, that they were starting many things at once. I felt like the opportunity was really in going in a laser-focused way about protein design. Protein design, in itself, is such a vast field, and has so much unexplored white space that I thought a really nimble, focused outfit would be able to translate that impact.Translating that impact as a venture-backed startup involved hiring some 15 employees, two of whom were from DeepMind, a senior engineer from Microsoft, and PhDs from the University of Cambridge. Today, Latents headcount is split across two sites one in London, where the frontier model magic happens, and another in San Francisco, with its own wet lab and computational protein design team.This enables us to test our models in the real world and get the feedback that we need to understand whether our models are progressing the way we want, Kohl said.Latent Labs London team (L-R): Annette Obika-Mbatha, Krishan Bhatt, Dr. Simon Kohl, Agrin Hilmkil, Alex Bridgland and Henry Kenlay.Image Credits:Latent LabsWhile wet labs are very much on the near-term agenda in terms of validating Latents technologys predictions, the ultimate goal is to negate the need for wet labs.Our mission is to make biology programmable, really bringing biology into the computational realm, where the reliance on biological, wet lab experiments will be reduced over time, Kohl said. That highlights one of the key benefits to making biology programmable upending a drug-discovery process that currently relies on countless experiments and iteration that can take years.It allows us to make really custom molecules without relying on the wet lab at least, thats the vision, Kohl continued. Imagine a world where someone comes with a hypothesis on what drug target to go after for a particular disease, and our models could, in a push-button way, make a protein drug that comes with all of the desired properties baked in.The business of biologyIn terms of business model, Latent Labs doesnt see itself as asset-centric meaning it wont be developing its own therapeutic candidates in-house. Instead, it wants to work with third-party partners to expedite and de-risk the earlier R&D stages.We feel the biggest impact that we can have as a company is by enabling other biopharma, biotechs and life science companies either by giving them direct access to our models, or supporting their discovery programs via project-based partnerships, Kohl said.The companys $50 million cash injection includes a previously unannounced $10 million seed tranche, and a fresh $40 million Series A round co-led by Radical Ventures specifically, partner Aaron Rosenberg, who was formerly head of strategy and operations at DeepMind. The other co-lead investor is Sofinnova Partners, a French VC firm with a long track-record in the life sciences space. Other participants in the round include Flying Fish, Isomer, 8VC, Kindred Capital, Pillar VC, and notable angels such as Googles chief scientist Jeff Dean, Cohere founder Aidan Gomez, and ElevenLabs founder Mati Staniszewski.While a chunk of the cash will go toward salaries, including those of new machine learning hires, a significant amount of money will be needed to cover infrastructure. Compute is a is a big cost for us as well were building fairly large models I think its fair to say, and that requires a lot of GPU compute, Kohl said. This funding really sets us up to double-down on everything acquire compute to continue scaling our model, scaling the teams, and also starting to build out the bandwidth and capacity to have these partnerships and the commercial traction that were now seeking.DeepMind aside, there are several venture-backed startups and scaleups looking to bring the worlds of computation and biology closer together, such as Cradle and Bioptimus. Kohl, for his part, thinks that were still at a sufficiently early stage, whereby we still dont quite know what the best approach will be in terms of decoding and designing biological systems.There have been some very interesting seeds planted, [for example] with AlphaFold and some other early generative models from other groups, Kohl said. But this field hasnt converged in terms of what is the best model approach, or in terms of what business model will work here. I think we have the capacity to really innovate.Topics

Reddit CEO Steve Huffman said the online forum site plans to launch an upgraded search experience in 2025 designed to help users navigate the social network and be able to answer subjective hard, [and] interesting questions.The company plans to achieve this by integrating Reddit Answers a feature that allows visitors to ask questions and receive curated summaries of relevant responses and threads from across its platform into its existing search.[In Reddit] conversations, for 20 years, our users have left this absolutely massive corpus of information, so were starting to unlock that with Answers, Huffman said during Reddits Q4 2024 earnings call on Wednesday. Well continue to iterate on this product.Reddit CFO Drew Vollero added during the call the company is recruiting engineers to build a small search team focused on these capabilities.Reddit has embraced AI as it seeks to grow. Last year, the platformbroughtAI-powered translation to dozens of new territories, with more planned for this year, and rolled out AI-powered insights for brands. Reddit also began testing AI-powered search results pages, which summarize and recommend content across different Reddit communities.Investors were disappointed in Reddits fiscal Q4 results, which were impacted in part by changes to Googles search algorithm. Daily active unique users on Reddit were up 39% year-over-year to 101.7 million users, missing investors estimates of 103.1 million uniques.Huffman hinted at making Reddit search a part of the platform onboarding process to drive growth, retention, and ultimately revenue.I think helping the user be able to search directly on Reddit, refine their queries on Reddit, eventually come directly to Reddit for those types of queries, and even integrating search into something like onboarding over time I think [these are] really interesting things, he said. Its amazing for us to pick up on that signal [] and of course, that signal [has] incredible monetization potential.

Of Human Feelings installation view. All images courtesy of the artist and Volume Gallery, shared with permissionAn Otherworldly Garden of Lights Emerges from Hemp and Resin by Ross HansenFebruary 12, 2025ArtDesignKate MothesEvoking marigolds, prairie clover, and milk thistle, Ross Hansens ongoing series of ethereal lighting fixtures dissect assumptions about design and function. The Los Angeles-based artist and designers unique sculptural forms combine hemp, bio-resin, and aluminum to create otherworldly floor lamps.Hansen draws on a background in landscape design, inspired by organic textures and forms found in nature. In his recent exhibition Of Human Feelings at Volume Gallery, clusters of lights resemble larger-than-life fungi or microscopic organisms. Strips of cloth are enrobed in plant-based resin for rigidity, and the illuminated bulbs diffuse within the fabric.Volume Gallery will present Hansens work at Felix Art Fair in Los Angeles next weekend. Find more on the artists website.Detail of Milk ThistleOf Human Feelings installation viewDalea (2024), hemp, bio-resin, wood, epoxy resin, paint, and lighting components, 70 x 16 x 16 inchesOf Human Feelings installation viewOf Human Feelings installation viewMarigold (2024), hemp, bio-resin, aluminum, and lighting components, 85 x 18 x 18 inchesDetail of MarigoldBase detail of DaleaMilk Thistle (2024), hemp, bio-resin, aluminum, and lighting components, 81 x 18 x 18 inchesNext article

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Don't google your way into trouble.NurPhoto via Getty ImagesSometimes love can be dangerous and thats certainly the case as Valentines Day approaches. And while we cant help you dodge forgotten cards and gifts, unrequited love, or simple heartbreak, we can help keep your bank balance intact.As the big day approaches, many of us will search for last minute flowers, cards and gifts. And well turn to Google (in the main) or other search engines to do so. Dont.The cyber sleuths at Check Point warn that in January alone, they observed over 18,000 new Valentines/love-related websites, marking a 5% increase compared to the previous month. Of these, 1 in 72 newly registered websites were identified as malicious or risky. Specifically focusing on Valentines-related websites, there was a 123% increase in newly registered websites in the past month.Thankfully, many of these new phishing websites are not that hard to spot, as proven by one domain monitoring team promoting its services. @whoisxmlapi says it used its toolkit to detect newly registered domains themed around Valentines Day. This was done primarily by stringing key words together. Valentine plus day plus deal, being an example given, and listing out the newly registered domains they found.Check Points advice to avoid a Valentines Day phishing trip is as follows:Do not engage with emails from unknown senders or even familiar brands where the email is unsolicited. Certainly dont click links or attachments.Delete emails and texts that might be malicious or at best spammy.Never share credentials.Beware of offers that seem too good to be true they are.If you want to shop a brand, go to a website you know, dont click through on a promotion of any kind.Avoiding all these Valentines Day websites is not the only trap to dodge. Those not in relationships or playing by flexible rules need to be very wary of romance scams. Just as with phishing, thats a threat thats getting worse and harder to detect.MORE FOR YOUThe FBI warns that romance scammers are working to be your 'perfect match; what might begin as a seemingly innocent connection can quickly turn sinister as criminals cash in on those looking for companionship.Again, the rules to staying safe are largely common sense. Dont overshare on social media, it just helps scammers craft an attack. Don t be talked into leaving well known dating sites and moving to private messaging, stick to dating brands you know, and never send financial gifts or believe that a family member of the person youre messaging is unwell or stuck overseas and needs your help. Thats always a scam.Americans tend to lose around $1 billion a year on romance scams. Its a big and rewarding business, and one that benefits from reluctance on the part of those defrauded to report the crime. Dont join the stats. As the FTC says, love stinks when a scammer is involved," warning that anyone can be targeted if theyre on a dating app or if they just have a social media presence and respond to a message from someone they dont know. Remember, scammers do this for a living. Theyre good at it.

Examples from HPE's just-launched ProLiant Compute Gen12 server lineupHPEHewlett Packard Enterprise just unveiled the 12th generation of its ProLiant server platform, which the company says focuses on delivering security, manageability, operational and power efficiency and, of course, performance in the datacenter. Over the past couple of years, messaging and focus for datacenter infrastructure vendors have shifted almost exclusively to AI enablement and partnerships with AI market leaders. The unintentional result has been a somewhat commoditized view of these hardware platforms.HPE is countering this trend with its messaging for ProLiant Compute Gen12, which marks HPEs first major generation launch since 2022. The company seems intent on doubling down on its silicon and hardware design and tying that to performance and security up the operating stack. Lets dig into the state of the market today, what HPE has delivered in Gen12 and whether these features and capabilities are likely to resonate with enterprise IT.Mapping The Needs Of Enterprise IT Everythings Different NowEnterprise IT is stretched too thin. The needs of modern businesses, the evolving threat landscape, the diversity of their compute farms and shrinking power budgets have IT organizations scrambling. Add to that the looming impact of AI moving from the cloud to on-prem and how to support and manage these environments and its enough to send many IT executives over the edge, so to speak.As attention-getting and intimidating as AI is, we have to keep in mind that it is only one category among many of the workloads running the modern business. Todays virtualized and cloud-native environments support everything from desktops to databases to mission-critical applications, which means they require more relevant performance which means not simply more cores and more memory, but the right amounts of memory, compute and acceleration, all delivered at the right time and for the right workload.The security threats keeping CISOs up at night have also become more sophisticated. In this context, AI is both a friend and a foe. Worse yet, advances in quantum computing mean that the ability to break many of the public-key encryption algorithms that are the foundation of the most popular cryptographic systems is right around the corner.MORE FOR YOUMeanwhile, IT organizations often discuss having bespoke architectures for bespoke workloads. The discussion should be about bespoke architectures for bespoke datacenters. This implies a compute platform that can support a wide range of applications with contradicting performance characteristics running simultaneously at the server, rack and datacenter levels. Complementing this architecture should be an AI-assisted management platform that delivers automation. This platform ought to handle the tedious and mundane tasks on IT organizations to-do lists and free them up to focus on the big-ticket items, such as enabling AI across the business.To sum up the problem statement, enterprise IT requires a server platform that can support any workload at any time in the most performant yet efficient manner. Oh, and this server platform must have a security profile designed for tomorrow while managing itself today. Just for kicks, throw in a cloud operating model as a way to view and monitor all of the servers spread across the globe.The HPE ProLiant Compute Gen12 portfolio of datacenter servers HPESimple enough? HPE has attempted to deliver all of this and then some with its ProLiant Compute Gen12 platform.Built-In Security And Post-Quantum CryptographyHPE is leaning heavily into security for this release, so its worthwhile to set some context. Before an OS boots, the millions of lines of code that make up the OS kernel, drivers and so on run with unfettered access; as such, they are ripe targets for hackers who want to install malware in what is known as a rootkit attack. These attacks can run undetected and with full system access for months, even years.In response to this threat, HPE deployed silicon root of trust as a key element of its Integrated Lights Out management technology in its 10th generation of ProLiant back in 2017. (More specifically, that was iLO 5.) In simple terms, silicon root of trust creates an immutable fingerprint for the boot environment that is monitored as a server boots. Any deviation during the boot process is detected, and the server reverts back to the last known good (and clean) boot image. Soon, silicon root of trust was taken up across the industry, and it became a standard capability for all server vendors. Unsurprisingly, HPE has also included it in the release of iLO 7 for the ProLiant Gen12.Here in 2025, quantum computing is the next significant threat looming. In response, HPE has built a dedicated security processor that stores passwords and keys in a quantum-resistant fashion. In fact, the company claims to be the only major server vendor to meet the rigorous standard of the U.S. and Canadian governments Federal Information Processing Standard 140-3. For any company that is working with the government or in a regulated environment, FIPS certification is important. As HPE launches ProLiant Gen12, I have to assume that securing this official validation will be a high priority. (For context, note that previous generations of ProLiant have achieved FIPS 140-2 validation.)The IT and service provider community may be more familiar with NIST the National Institute of Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework. ProLiant Gen12 also meets these standards. In fact, meeting these standards, which includes FIPS validation, has been part of ProLiants edict since its Gen10 release.While this is all good, it is more important to state what this should mean for ProLiant customers: the foundation for a zero-trust architecture rooted at the lowest levels and delivered in a handshake fashion up the stack. This should give enterprise IT the confidence to run any workload, anywhere with confidence in its security posture today and tomorrow.AI-Driven Insights And ManagementHPE is also using the launch of Gen12 to promote updates to its Compute Ops Management platform. Heres the setup: IT organizations spend an inordinate amount of time on the mundane deploying and taking care of servers throughout their lifecycle. While there is no single study of this that I feel comfortable citing, I do know from past experience in IT that a significant chunk of an IT admins time in some cases up to 50% is spent on server monitoring, management, tuning and so on.HPE claims that with COM, organizations can cut up to 75% of the time spent managing servers and up to $152,000 in costs (travel, software) over three years. What sticks out to me is the 75% figure. Even if the actual number turned out to be somewhat less than that, it represents a big shift from spending hours of each working day reacting to problems and routine headaches to being productive and making progress on the initiatives that really matter.In this connection, I would love to see two things. First, I want to see HPE lean more into AIOps. Based on what I am seeing from HPE, the company can already make this claim it just seems to be more cautious in its use of the term. However, the company already has the IP and software portfolio (including OpsRamp, Morpheus and much more) to take a market leadership position in this area. Its a matter of integrating all of these discrete parts.Second, Id like to see HPE be bolder in its storytelling about datacenter management. While it might not be as cool as AI, managing the modern IT estate from the edge to the clouds to the core datacenter is a huge responsibility and a major focus for the typical enterprise IT organization. HPE has all the pieces to address this, and I dont doubt it has the vision. Now Id like to see it do more to help the market see what the future looks like and how COM and its other products and IP drive the autonomous datacenter.The Impact Of EfficiencyThe final area of focus with Gen12 has been efficiency, across two vectors. The first is efficiency from the perspective of hardware refresh. When comparing Gen10, which is still widely deployed, to Gen12, HPE claims a server consolidation ratio of 7:1, along with 65% power savings. This is impressive streamlining whether were talking about physical footprint, operating cost or electricity budget.HPE claims significant consolidation advantages for its ProLiant Gen12 servers.HPEHeres what I like about HPE's claim. It's based on a realistic assessment of the hardware currently sitting in the enterprise datacenter. It hasn't taken the top bin and highest-core-count processors to deliver the most impressive consolidation ratios. It is looking realistically at what gets deployed in a datacenter to provide more real quantifications to its IT customers.Where Is AMD?One of ProLiants curious elements is its processor lineup. At launch, the only x86 processors available for Gen12 are Intel Xeon 6. The lineup today includes traditional Intel-based Xeon servers, with the blade and four-socket DL580 options shipping later. Noticeably absent from the lineup are any AMD EPYC models.I suspect this is because Xeon 6 may have required physical changes to the motherboard for support. Xeon 6 is not pin-compatible with 5th Generation Xeon processors, meaning that a server manufacturer cant simply put one CPU in the socket of the other.I think the absence of EPYC is also a matter of pin compatibility. Because the 5th Generation EPYC is pin-compatible with the previous generation, HPE was able to use its ProLiant Gen11 servers to support these new processors when they launched. So while HPE customers deploying EPYC will have to wait for Gen12 support, they are able to fully leverage the capabilities of the latest EPYC CPUs using other HPE gear.Given that security is perhaps the biggest differentiator for Gen12 and that additional security comes through iLO 7, it is important to see AMD EPYC support stated as a plan of record. I hope HPE will clarify this soon.Has HPE Differentiated These Servers?Has HPE done enough to differentiate Gen12 from the competition? Are servers simply commoditized at this point? Are they just vessels for the AI accelerators that sit inside? I suspect many pundits look at server infrastructure this way, but frankly, its a bit of a simplistic view.In my estimate, HPE has delivered a differentiated platform from both hardware and software perspectives, as touched on above. And based on what it announced at HPE Discover in June 2024, the company also differentiated how it partnered with Nvidia on the AI front and its private cloud offerings (see my coverage here).This is the reality of the datacenter market. Differentiating from a hardware perspective is increasingly difficult for server manufacturers. However, I believe that HPE has maximized its opportunity to differentiate ProLiant Gen12 with security and iLO 7.Still, the biggest differentiation is in software the operating stacks, manageability and workload enablement. Over the years, HPE has created this differentiation through in-house development and acquisition. So, when it does things like striking a partnership with Nvidia for its AI factory, the result is not just HPE hardware with Nvidia acceleration and software. Its HPE leveraging its IP to make Nvidia AI solutions more easily deployed, consumed and managed. If Im running an enterprise datacenter, thats a much more appealing proposition.The challenge for HPE is delivering a vision and message that gets this across to its partners and the IT consumer. This means cutting through AI hype and making its value known and this is not a time and not the market for messaging modesty.Ill check back on ProLiant Gen12 and its market traction around the Discover 2025 event in June to see where things stand regarding the dynamics and challenges Ive outlined here.

Sam Jacobs, Editor-in-Chief of TIME, (L) moderates a panel titled Can we innovate our way to a more connected world? with panelists Margherita Della Valle, CEO of Vodafone, Mickey Mikitani, CEO of Rakuten Group, and Hatem Dowidar, CEO of e&.Courtesy of the World Governments SummitBy Ayesha JavedFebruary 12, 2025 5:53 PM ESTImproving connectivity can both benefit those who most need it most and boost the businesses that provide the service. Thats the case telecom industry leaders made during a panel on Feb. 11 at the World Governments Summit in Dubai.Titled Can we innovate our way to a more connected world?, the panel was hosted by TIMEs Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs. During the course of the conversation, Margherita Della Valle, CEO of U.K.-based multinational telecom company Vodafone Group, said, For society today, connectivity is essential. We are moving from the old divide in the world between the haves and the have-nots towards a new divide, which is between those who have access to connectivity and those who don't.The International Telecommunications Union, a United Nations agency, says that around 2.6 billion peoplea third of the global populationdont have access to the internet. Della Valle noted that of those unconnected people, 300 million live in remote areas that are too far from any form of connectivity infrastructure to get online. Satellites can help to bridge the gap, says Della Valle, whose company plans to launch its commercial direct-to-smartphone satellite service later this year in Europe.While digital access is a social issue, companies dont need to choose between what is best for consumers and whats best for business, Hatem Dowidar, group CEO of UAE-based telecom company e&, formerly known as Etisalat Group, said. At the end of the day," he said, "in our telecom part of the business, when we connect people, [theyre] customers for us, it makes revenue, and we can build on it. He noted that part of e&s evolution toward becoming a tech company has involved enabling customers to access fintech, cybersecurity, and cloud computing services.Mickey Mikitani, CEO of Japanese technology conglomerate Rakuten Group, advocated for a radical transformation of the telecommunications industry, calling the existing telecoms business model obsolete and old. Removing barriers to entry to the telecom sector, like the cost of accessing a wireless spectrumthe range of electromagnetic frequencies used to transmit wireless communicationsmay benefit customers and society more broadly, he said.The panelists also discussed how artificial intelligence can improve connectivity, as well as the role of networks in supporting the technologys use. Mikitani noted that his company has been using AI to help it manage networks efficiently with a fraction of the staff its competitors have. Della Valle added, AI will need strong networks, emphasizing that countries where networks have not received sufficient investment may struggle to support the technology.Dowidar called on attendees at the summit from governments around the world to have a dialogue with industry leaders about legislation and regulations in order to overcome the current and potential challenges. Some of those hurdles include ensuring data sovereignty and security within borders, and enabling better training of AI in languages beyond English, he noted. It's very important for everyone to understand the potential that can be unleashed by technology, Dowidar said, emphasizing the need to train workforces. AI is going to change the world.More Must-Reads from TIMEInside Elon Musks War on WashingtonIntroducing the 2025 ClosersColman Domingo Leads With Radical LoveWhy, Exactly, Is Alcohol So Bad for You?The Motivational Trick That Makes You Exercise Harder11 New Books to Read in FebruaryHow to Get Better at Doing Things AloneColumn: Trumps Trans Military Ban Betrays Our TroopsWrite to Ayesha Javed at ayesha.javed@time.com

Table of ContentsTable of Contents10. Joe Versus the Volcano (1990)9. Snowden (2016)8. Lord of the Flies (1990)7. Limitless (2011)6. Side Effects (2013)5. Frank (2014)4. American Psycho (2000)3. The Devils Advocate (1997)2. Jackie Brown (1997)1. Heat (1995)There arent as many free streaming sites as there used to be, but Plex is flexing its muscles with a lineup of films that are often overlooked by other streamers. Admittedly, Plex doesnt have access to the most recent box-office hits, but it has some great movies and some pretty awful ones.To help you get started on this streamer, weve put together our ranking for the most watchlisted movies on Plex. All of these films are among Plexs top-ranked movies as of February 12, but the number of films available on Plex may change before the end of the month.Recommended VideosLooking for something else? Weve also rounded up the best new movies to stream, the best movies on Netflix, the best shows on Hulu, and the best shows on Amazon Prime.RelatedWarner Bros. PicturesBefore Youve Got Mail and Sleepless In Seattle, Joe Versus the Volcano was the first rom-com to feature Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan as the co-leads. Hanks plays Joe Banks, a former firefighter whose depression and physical decline are seemingly explained when he is diagnosed with a rare condition that will kill him in a few months.Ryan has multiple roles in the film, including Patricia Graynamore, a woman hired to take Joe to his final destination. Because Joe doesnt have anything to live for, he agrees to jump into a volcano as a human sacrifice for a superstitious island tribe. After Joe and Patricia form a close romantic bond, he may have trouble completing his end of the bargain with the tribe.Watch Joe Versus the Volcano on Plex.Open Road FilmsTo some, Edward Snowden (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is an American hero for exposing the governments ability to spy on its citizens. But others consider him to be a traitor who is hiding out in Russia, potentially for the rest of his life. In director Oliver Stones Snowden, the fateful meeting between Edward and a reporter is just the beginning of the story.Through jumps in time, viewers witness Edwards on-and-off-again relationship with Lindsay Mills (Shailene Woodley), as well as the reasons why he became so disgruntled with Americas surveillance tactics against its citizens and allies that he burned down the life he knew in order to take that classified intel to the public.Watch Snowden on Plex.Columbia PicturesWilliam Goldings Lord of the Flies is getting a new adaptation from the BBC, but the 1990 film still holds up nearly 35 years later. Two dozen military academy students including Ralph (Balthazar Getty), Jack (Chris Furrh), Piggy (Danuel Pipoly), and Simon (James Badge Dale) survive a plane crash on a remote island with no direct way of getting home.Ralph attempts to rally the survivors to stick together and wait for rescue, while Jack has a mental breakdown and goes savage in the jungle. More of the kids gravitate towards Jack and embrace their inner beasts. By the time anyone locates these boys, it may be too late to save their souls or their lives.Watch Lord of the Flies on Plex.Relativity MediaThe premise of Limitless is pretty irresistible to anyone who has ever wanted more out of life. With the help of an experimental drug, Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper) has such a dramatic increase in cognitive abilities that hes almost superhuman when hes using the drug.Unfortunately for Eddie, the side effects are severe, and someone has been murdering the other people who were using the drug. Eddie is also hunted by a loan shark, Gennady (Andrew Howard), who took a single pill from Eddies stash and became obsessed with getting more. As the walls close in on Eddie, hell have to figure out how to survive without his miracle drug.Watch Limitless on Plex.Open Road FilmsDirector Steven Soderbergh goes to some unexpected places in Side Effects, a crime drama that revolves around Emily Taylor (Rooney Mara). After Emily displays symptoms of severe depression over the impending release of her imprisoned husband, Martin Taylor (Channing Tatum), her psychologist, Jonathan Banks (Jude Law), consults with her previous doctor, Victoria Siebert (Catherine Zeta-Jones), to find a solution.Victoria suggests an experimental drug that puts Emily in an altered state when she kills her husband. Now, Emily faces a murder trial for her actions, and Jonathans reputation will be irreparable unless he determines what really happened the night Martin died.Watch Side Effects on Plex.Artificial EyeIt may seem counterintuitive to hide Michael Fassbenders face under a papier-mch mask, but thats kind of the point of his title character in Frank. Hes a mentally ill band leader who can only function in society if hes covering up his face with this mask. Frank is actually a gifted singer who has gathered Clara Wagner (Maggie Gyllenhaal), Don (Scoot McNairy), Nana (Carla Azar), and Baraque (Franois Civil) to play with him, even if they dont know much about how to actually be a band.Thats where Jon Burroughs (Domhnall Gleeson) comes in. The bands eccentricities stun Jon, but he sees real potential in this group and starts exerting his influence on Frank, much to the anger of Clara.Watch Frank on Plex.LionsgateFive years before he was Batman, Christian Bale was Patrick Bateman in American Psycho. The story is set in the late 80s, and Bateman is an investment banker living in New York with a beautiful fiance named Evelyn Williams (Reese Witherspoon). It would almost be a perfect life, except Bateman hates Evelyn, and hes so jealous of his colleague, Paul Allen (Jared Leto), that he murders him.That one little murder is just the tip of the iceberg of Batemans depravity, and he draws the attention of a private investigator, Donald Kimball (Willem Dafoe), who is looking into Pauls disappearance. The bodies start piling up as Batemans double life comes under enormous pressure, but there may be more to his mental illness than meets the eye.Watch American Psycho on Plex.Warner Bros. PicturesAl Pacino looks like hes never had more fun than when hes hamming up The Devils Advocate as John Milton. Keanu Reeves stars as Kevin Lomax, a hot-shot lawyer recruited by Milton to move from Florida to New York and join his high-profile law firm.As Kevin follows through on the offer, he neglects his wife, Mary Ann (Charlize Theron), and knowingly represents guilty clients who belong behind bars. The film broadly hints that Miltons true nature is demonic and that Kevin is endangering everyone around him by staying in the law firm. He just doesnt take the warning signs seriously until its too late.Watch The Devils Advocate on Plex.Image via MiramaxQuentin Tarantinos third film, Jackie Brown, tends to be overlooked in his credits. But this adaptation of Elmore Leonards Rum Punch is just as good as any of Tarantinos other films. Foxie Brown actress and Blaxploitation icon Pam Grier had her comeback role as Jackie, a stewardess who helps a local crime boss, Ordell Robbie (Samuel L. Jackson), smuggle drug money into the country.When ATF Agent Ray Nicolette (Michael Keaton) catches Jackie with Ordells cash, she plays a dangerous game by engineering a final con to get a large sum of money from Ordell and play him and the feds off each other while she escapes the consequences of her actions. She may even have an ally in bail bondsman Max Cherry (Robert Forster), but it would be a mistake for Jackie to overlook Ordells fury when he discovers her true intentions.Watch Jackie Brown on Plex.Warner Bros.Al Pacino and Robert De Niro are both cinematic icons, which is why their face-to-face scene in Heatcarries so much power beyond the film itself. De Niro plays Neil McCauley, a thief whose best days are behind him, and hes considering getting out of the game. Pacino plays Lieutenant Vincent Hanna, the man who has to bring Neil in however he sees fit.Director and screenwriter Michael Mann adapted his own novel, L.A. Takedown, for this film. Its one of the greatest movies Mann ever made, and its our pick for the best movie among Plexs most watchlisted selections.Watch Heat on Plex.Editors Recommendations

Table of ContentsTable of ContentsWhy does this study matter?The key takeawayEarlier today, Apple announced plans for its next health study that aims to connect information collected by wearables with all major types of wellness markers. The idea is to build atop the massive corpus of data provided by users and develop new digital health tools, covering both sensor and software-based solutions.But are we relying too much on these digital health tools, despite not getting any meaningful benefits? Experts at the Technical University of Munich have just published their findings in a research paper, and it says the positive impact of telemedicine and exercise apps is minimal for at-risk people.Recommended VideosAs part of their study, which was conducted across 11 sites in Germany, the team focused on people living with type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease. These are both serious health conditions, but with appropriate lifestyle changes, exercise, and diet, the risk factors can be contained to a healthy extent.Andy Boxall / Digital TrendsBut when it comes to making an impact, digital interventions such as apps, failed them. Around a quarter of the participants never started training as per the prescribed regimen, which they were supposed to follow via apps. Nearly half of the participants failed the meet the exercise goals even once per week.Please enable Javascript to view this contentThe current hype surrounding medical apps needs to be put into perspective, explains Martin Halle, Professor of Preventive Sports Medicine and Sports Cardiology at the German institute.As per the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, coronary heart disease (CHD) was responsible for roughly 0.3 million deaths in 2022 in the United States. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says it is the most common type of heart disease, which means the stakes are as high as it gets.Type 2 diabetes, on the other hand, is prevalent in middle-aged and older folks. Notably, obesity and sedentary behavior are two of the main causative agents for this condition. Moreover, it has been known to worsen heart-related problems.As per the CDC, which runs the National Diabetes Prevention Program, lifestyle changes can reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes by a 71% margin. This can be achieved through a mix of workouts and calorie intake reduction, both of which can get a push from apps.Andy Boxall / Digital TrendsSo, why did the patients volunteering for the latest study not derive any of those benefits, hawked by the likes of Apple, Fitbit, and Google?The study was conducted across two phases. In the first stage, participants got personalized health guidance through apps, and also phone call sessions asking about their progress.During the second phase, the participants were asked to follow the prescribed guidance independently. And thats where the cracks started to appear. After the end of the second phase, there were no more benefits, writes the team.According to the experts, getting used to modern technology is a challenge for older people, which is also one of the reasons why they couldnt derive the supposed benefits.The study, which has been published in the Nature Medicine journal, notes that over two-thirds of the patients found it rather difficult to understand and follow technical advice given by a health app. A recurring element is also the lack of human presence, and the in-person nudge that can make a real difference.Andy Boxall / Digital TrendsNumerous patients may have been overwhelmed by the demands of initiating lifestyle changes at home using multiple telemedical devices, despite repeated and continuous individual instructions and feedback, the paper explains.The team adds that an exclusively home-based lifestyle intervention using apps and other such telemedicine solutions may not be practical, clinically effective or cost-effective.The overarching conclusion is that for people living with conditions such as type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease in the advanced stages of life, health apps will only work when human caretakers intervene on a timely basis.When individualized feedback is discontinued, the effects of a telemedicine-supported lifestyle intervention are not superior to usual care, concludes the paper.In my recent conversation with an expert at the American Heart Institute, they also highlighted that these digital tools are complementary, at best, and that we need expert intervention for the best care.Editors Recommendations