Obviously, as we have these massive advances in technology, entrepreneurs and business leaders are looking at how to use them for business.Im not going to go over 111 of these thats just a turn of phrase to highlight how Infinite the possibilities are with artificial intelligence today. The set of capabilities are expanding, as Im going to point out a bit later. That has big ramifications for business.But lets lay out some of the fundamental ways that businesses are achieving more with artificial intelligenceEngagement and ProductionThese are two fundamental pillars of how AI is transforming business. One is engagement sales, customer service, outreach, AI helping the business to interact with its target audience.The other is production - productivity, employee capability, efficiency, etc.Both of these have a big role to play in terms of how we use AI to our advantage in business. For instance, these resources looking at customer service efficiencies focus on the first set of metrics, while so many other programs are more tuned to insider statistics, like how much product people can crank out in a day.Interview of Andrew NgJohn WernerMORE FOR YOUWith the help of AI, companies can gather insights into individual customers' behavior, preferences, and needs in real time, writes an unnamed analyst at Radar27. This allows for targeted messaging and offerings that are more likely to resonate with each customer.Thats more on the engagement side, but the productivity is obviously important, too.So look out for both of these in AI applications to business.Human-Centered ApplicationsSome business experts also point out that you need to have these systems focused on how to support people. Human-centered design is important, because so many of these types of AI innovations are assistive to business people. Theyre not replacing people. Theyre helping people to work smarter, not harder. Theyre decision support tools, not automatons that will build their own companies.We should all keep that in mind as deployment happens.The Value of a Pilot ProgramTheres also the value of building things experimentally, to see what works.This came up in a conversation I had recently with Andrew Ng about applying AI to business.The cost of experimentation has plummeted, because AI assisted prototyping is actually very efficient, Ng said. I was interviewing him in a segment of our Imagination in Action conference at Davos, where so many people were getting together to come up with solutions to global issues. So I'm seeing a lot of businesses reorganize themselves to run many experiments and then, in a systematic way, to get the resources to then grow to scale. But I think this is an important process (for) many businesses to go through.I also wrote earlier this week about two pilot projects that Davos panelists talked about in a recent discussion moderated by Katie Rae of the Engine, and attended by an impressive set of MIT-affiliated people. Leah Ellis from Sublime talked about a pilot plant for green cement production, and Ally Yost from CFS talked about a pilot plant for fusion energy.Both of these illustrate that concept that, as Ng also pointed out, prototypes are more possible now with AI, and digital twins can help us forecast whats going to happen when we build something.Other ROI DriversNg had more to tell us about the business context of AI.Intel is using AI to help retailers with pricing analytics, helping increase profitability . helping with legal compliance using (AI for) cross-border trade, but all around Davos, I'm seeing a lot of these valuable discussions of implementations of AI that are already starting to drive positive business ROI, he said.We talked about how AI can either double revenue, or cut it in half, which reminds me of the age-old axiom, that new tech should help, not hinder, a workforce, and that design is important.Its also important, Ng noted, to figure out what a competitor will do, and to think about what your companys moat is, as things change quickly.A lot of this will be hard work, to figure out for your business, with your data, with your customer relations, with your assets, what are the unique things you could do that will build sustainable advantage because the landscape has shifted, it also creates these competitive threats. So I've seen all the smart CEOs thinking through how to run internal processes to come up with ideas.I thought was an astute look at some of the conversation thats happening in business.Two Great InstitutionsAt the end of our talk, I suggested that MIT and Stanford should both be involved in a collaborative effort to move the ball forward.Ng agreed.I think this has been an amazing event, he said. And having Stanford and MIT, both institutions that were privileged to have ties (to), seems like a wonderful thing to me.This was one of the more interesting moments at our IIA event in January, in looking at what the business impact of AI is likely to be soon.

Editor's take: Sony tightened its grip on this generation's console war, with PlayStation 5 sales soaring to over 75 million. Meanwhile, Xbox Series X|S sales remain somewhat stagnant at 28.3 million units. Substantial gaming revenue helped prop up weaker performances in Sony's film and financial services divisions, keeping the company solid. Sony's third-quarter earnings for fiscal year 2024 look great, largely thanks to the PlayStation 5's continued success. The PS5 had its best-ever holiday period in 2024, shipping 9.5 million units only a hair behind PlayStation 4's best quarter in FY2017. With total shipments topping 75 million, the PS5 is closing in on the PS4's 76.5 million units set at the same stage of its lifecycle. Sony has shipped 15.7 million PS5 consoles so far this fiscal year and aims to hit 18 million by the end of March. This surge in hardware sales has driven the company's growth across the board.In fact, Sony posted a solid 18-percent jump in revenue, hitting 4.41 trillion ($28.97 billion US), with operating income creeping up by a percentage point, totaling 469.3 billion ($3.08 billion). As expected, the gaming division is leading the charge, with PlayStation 5 sales continuing to push the momentum, along with boosts from software and PlayStation Network subscriptions. The positive results caused an early morning boost to company shares, rising from $21.97 to $23.91 an 8.8-percent spike.Even though the hardware market has been sluggish, the PlayStation 5 is still going strong. Demand is steady, and Sony has blown past expectations with third-party software sales. The PlayStation Network also beat expectations, hitting 129 million monthly active users up 10 percent from last year. PlayStation Plus growth helped to keep recurring revenue from services solid. The shift to live services and digital games is also helping Sony maintain the lead in the gaming sector.However, it's not all about gaming. Sony Music is doing well, with streaming revenues climbing and some major albums making waves. Conversely, Sony Pictures took a hit. The Hollywood strikes in 2023 caused production delays and fewer big releases in FY2024, so revenue dropped. Thankfully, streaming and licensing deals helped ease the pain.Sony's Imaging & Sensing Solutions segment is holding steady. With smartphone cameras getting more advanced and AI-powered sensors becoming the norm, Sony is still a major player in smartphone supply chains. Unfortunately, its Financial Services division didn't do as well, with a dip in operating income thanks to some of the market turbulence we've seen lately. // Related StoriesLooking ahead, Sony is optimistic. It has raised its forecast for operating profits to 1.34 trillion ($8.7 billion) for the fiscal year ending in March 2025. Sony is driving momentum forward with the PlayStation ecosystem in full swing and a lineup of games set to drop soon. Furthermore, the company appears ready to keep pushing into live-service games, cloud gaming, and acquisitions to stay ahead of the curve. If everything goes according to plan, PlayStation will keep running the show through at least this generation.

In brief: The James Webb Space Telescope has been "recruited" to take a closer look at asteroid 2024 YR4. The giant space object, composed of rock, dust, and possibly other materials, now has a 1-in-48 chance of impacting Earth by December 2032, but we still have time to get ready and brace for impact. Discovered on December 27, 2024, asteroid 2024 YR4 is currently rated as a three on the Torino scale. Space agencies around the world are closely monitoring the situation, with the European Space Agency set to use the James Webb Space Telescope to provide a more precise risk assessment.Researchers at the ESA are updating the most relevant data about asteroid 2024 YR4 on a daily basis. Today's assessment confirms that the asteroid has a diameter between 40 and 90 meters, and a two percent probability of impacting Earth on December 22, 2032. Currently, astronomers studying asteroid 2024 YR4 are limited to using instruments that detect visible light reflected from the Sun.As a general rule, the brighter the asteroid, the larger it is. However, things can get complicated if the asteroid has a highly reflective surface. It could either be 40 meters across and very reflective, or 90 meters across and much less reflective.A precise estimation of the asteroid's size will be crucial for properly assessing the threat, as a 90-meter, high-speed body could cause significantly more damage than a 40-meter one.Webb will be particularly useful for studying asteroid 2024 YR4. The orbiting observatory operates in the infrared portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, which allows for more accurate estimates of the asteroid's size based on the heat it emits. // Related StoriesESA scientists recently published a paper highlighting the telescope's ability to detect very small bodies (less than 10 meters across) within the asteroid belt, which lies between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars.Astronomers will rely on two specific JWST instruments: the Mid-InfraRed Instrument (MIRI) and the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam). By combining data from MIRI and NIRCam, ESA scientists hope to obtain more precise measurements of the asteroid's size and position. The NIRCam will be particularly useful for tracking the asteroid's position when it is out of reach of Earth-based telescopes.The European Space Agency plans to conduct three separate observation campaigns using the JWST. The first will take place in March, when asteroid 2024 YR4 will be at its brightest and within the telescope's range. The second round is scheduled for May, to track changes in the asteroid's temperature. The final round of observations will occur in 2028, aimed at studying the asteroid's orbit around the Sun.

Table of ContentsTable of ContentsFunny Woman Season 2Nature Museum Alive with David AttenboroughSecrets of the Dead Plunderer: The Life and Times of a Nazi Art ThiefPBS rarely disappoints when it comes to original programming. After all, who can complain when the Public Broadcast Service offers so many free options? Although theres only one fresh British drama/comedy to enjoy in February, we can recommend two other special episodes for discerning viewers like you.Theres still plenty of time to catch the other new shows on PBS in February. You can even go back and revisit the great PBS shows to watch in January as well. For now, here are our recommendations for the three PBS shows you should watch in February.Recommended VideosWhen youre done here, check out the best new movies to stream this week, as well as the best shows on Netflix, the best shows on Hulu, the best new shows on Max, the best shows on Amazon Prime Video, and the best shows on Disney+.RelatedSky MaxWhats a Bond girl like Gemma Arterton supposed to do in the next stage of her career after starring in films like The Kings Man? She went off to headline Funny Woman, a series that kind of plays like a British version of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.In the 1960s, Barbara Parker (Arterton) adapted her stage persona, Sophie Straw, to break into Londons comedy scene in the first season of Funny Woman. Now that season 2 has arrived, Sophie has to figure out how to handle her increasing fame while pursuing love with Dennis (Arsher Ali). Sophie may want to have it all, but there are no guarantees in life or show business, not even for a funny woman.Watch Funny Woman on PBS.PBSIn the Jurassic Park movies, the late Richard Attenborough played a man who wanted to bring history back to life literally! Now, his younger brother,Sir David Attenborough, is doing just that in Museum Alive with David Attenborough. And we can practically guarantee that no one will be eaten in this Nature special.Through CGI, the long-dead animals in Londons Natural History Museum come back to life and interact with Attenborough as he shares insights about them to educate viewers. And like his brothers Jurassic Park character, Attenborough is a natural showman.Watch Nature Museum Alive with David Attenborough on PBS on February 19.Secrets of the Dead: Plunderer-Life and Times of a Nazi Art ThiefUnless youre a student of art history, the name Bruno Lohse probably wont mean much to you. But in the world of art, Lohse was one of the Nazis who looted priceless artwork in Europe before and during World War II. Lohse was so good at what he did that he was called the Plunderer.Plunderer: The Life and Times of a Nazi Art Thief offers an in-depth look at Lohses life and crimes, including a rare video of Lohse as well as interviews with his friends and the descendants of Nazi art theft victims. Even after the war, the stolen artwork was traded and sold through an unscrupulous network of dealers and collectors. The effects of their actions are still felt in the present.Watch Secrets of the Dead Plunderer: The Life and Times of a Nazi Art Thief on PBS on February 19.Editors Recommendations

Samsung is reportedly making a major stylus input change for its next book-style foldable device as it moves forward in pursuit of slimmer phones. According to a report from ET News, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 will switch the stylus input to a format similar to that of the Apple Pencil.Citing industry sources, the Korean outlet mentions that Samsung has decided to remove the digitizer element from the upcoming phones display assembly. The digitizer is a pressure-sensitive layer that converts the physical input from a stylus and converts those strokes into digital information.Recommended VideosRemoving the digitizer layer has reportedly allowed Samsung to shave 0.6 millimeters from the phones cross section. The report mentions that the thickness profile of Galaxy Z Fold 7 will be under 10 millimetres, and that it has been modeled after the Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition.Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 with the Fold Edition stylus. Ajay Kumar / Digital TrendsThe latter is slimmer than the current-gen Galaxy Z Fold 6, and packs a larger inner display. For the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, the company is eyeing a slightly bigger 8-inch inner foldable screen, but one without a digitizer element to trim the phones waistline.Please enable Javascript to view this contentSo, how is a stylus going to factor in the equation without a digitizer? Samsung is reimagining the entire stylus stack, it seems, and will reportedly adopt the active electrostatic (AES) system.Instead of a digitizer layer, the AES tech requires specialized sensors integrated within the display to produce an electrostatic grid. These grids interact with the stylus, which comes fitted with its own transmitting unit, among other innards.This is what the Galaxy Z Fold 7 could look like. SamsungHere is Wacoms explanation of the interaction process for an AES stylus:One sensor grid and the pen act as the transmitting unit that generates an electrical field; the other grids act as receiving units. The pens position is identified based on differences in the charge amount detected on each sensor grid receiving unit.This approach reduces input latency to milliseconds, without sacrificing input accuracy or niceties such as pressure sensitivity. On the flip side, the stylus gets heavier.Thats not necessarily a bad sign, as the likes of Apple Pencil work just fine for basic note-taking as well as advanced sketching. It has found widespread acceptance in the creative community that uses an iPad on a daily basis.SamsungThe only major hassle is that the stylus will have to be charged on a regular basis to top up the battery inside. How Samsung manages that, remains a mystery. Apples stylus options rely either on magnetic charging, or use a wired USB-C format to juice up the battery pack fitted inside their cylindrical chassis.So far, Samsung has sold a custom stylus under the Fold Edition label for the Galaxy Z Fold series phones, which is thicker and more rounded than the one it offers with the Galaxy S series, or the erstwhile Galaxy Note series phones.It would be interesting to see what design language (and pricing model) Samsung implements for its new foldable-friendly stylus. And yeah, its quite likely that a price hike is in the pipeline.Editors Recommendations

The Palantir CEO thinks that tech companies have lost their way, focusing on diversions for consumers rather than on defending the nation that made their rise possible

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Marco Bellocchios riveting six-part series dramatizes the kidnapping of former prime minister Aldo Moro in 1978 by the revolutionary Red Brigades.

Light-bodied. Brisk. Bright. Something to spur the appetite. Who wouldnt want to kick off a meal with a wine like that? An aperitif might not be the most complex or even wholly satisfying option, but thats precisely the point.

Streaming shift Streaming used to make stuff networks wouldnt. Now its seeking safer bets. Opinion: Streaming gets more cable-like with new focus on live events, mainstream content. Scharon Harding Feb 13, 2025 3:08 pm | 6 A scene from The OA. Credit: Netflix A scene from The OA. Credit: Netflix Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreThere was a time when it felt like you needed a streaming subscription in order to contribute to watercooler conversations. Without Netflix, you couldnt react to House of Cards latest twist. Without Hulu, you couldnt comment on how realistic The Handmaids Tale felt, and you needed Prime Video to prefer The Boys over the latest Marvel movies. In the earlier days of streaming, when streaming providers were still tasked with convincing customers that streaming was viable, streaming companies strived to deliver original content that lured customers.But today, the majority of streaming services are struggling with profitability, and the Peak TV era, a time when TV programming budgets kept exploding and led to iconic original series like Game of Thrones, is over. This year, streaming companies are pinching pennies. This means they're trying harder to extract more money from current subscribers, through ads and changes to programming strategies that put less emphasis on original content.What does that mean for streaming subscribers, who are increasingly paying more? And what does it mean for watercooler chat and media culture when the future of TV increasingly looks like TVs past, with heightened focus on live events, mainstream content, and commercials?Streaming opened up swathes of new types of shows and moviesfrom the wonderfully weird to uniquely diverse storiesto anyone with a web connection and a few dollars a month. But more conservative approaches to original content may cause subscribers to miss out on more unique, niche programs that speak to diverse audiences and broader viewers' quirkier interests.Streaming companies are getting more stingyTo be clear, streaming services are expected to spend more on content this year than last year. Ampere Analysis predicted in January that streaming services programming budgets will increase by 0.4 percent in 2025 to $248 billion. Thats slower growth than what occurred in 2024 (2 percent), which was fueled by major events, including the 2024 Summer Olympics and US presidential election. Ampere also expects streaming providers to spend more than linear TV channels will on content for the first time ever this year. But streaming firms are expected to change how they distribute their content budgets, too.Peter Ingram, research manager at Ampere Analysis, expects that streaming services will spend about 35 percent on original scripted programming in 2025, down from 45 percent in 2022, per Amperes calculations.Amazon Prime Video is reportedly buying fewer film and TV projects than they have in the past, according to January reporting from The Information citing eight unnamed producers who are either working with or have worked with Amazon in the last two years.The streaming service has made some of the most expensive original series ever and is reportedly under pressure from Amazon CEO Andy Jassy to reach profitability by the end of 2025, The Information said, citing two unnamed sources. Prime Video will reportedly focus more on live sports events, which brings revenue from massive viewership and ads (that even subscribers to Prime Video's ad-free tier will see).Amazon has denied The Informations reporting, with a spokesperson claiming that the number of Prime Video projects grew from 2023 to 2024 and that Prime Video expects the same level of growth in 2025. But after expensive moves, like Amazon's $8.5 billion MGM acquisition and projects with disproportionate initial returns, like Citadel, its not hard to see why Prime Video might want to reduce content spending, at least temporarily.Prime Video joins other streaming services in the push for live sports in order to reach or improve profitability. Sports rights accounted for 4 percent of streaming services content spending in 2021, and Ampere expects that to reach 11 percent in 2025, Ingram told Ars:These events offer services new sources of content that have pre-built fan followings, (helping to bring in new users to a platform) while also providing existing audiences with a steady stream of weekly content installments to help them remain engaged long-term.Similarly, Disney, whose content budget includes theatrical releases and content for networks like The Disney Channel in addition to whats on Disney+, has been decreasing content spend since 2022, when it spent $33 billion. In 2025, Disney plans to spend about $23 billion on content. Discussing the budget cut with investors earlier this month, CFO Hugh Johnston said Disneys focused on identifying opportunities where were spending money perhaps less efficiently and looking for opportunities to do it more efficiently.Further heightening the importance of strategic content spending for streaming businesses is the growing number of services competing for subscription dollars.There has been an overall contraction within the industry, including layoffs, Dan Green, director of the Master of Entertainment Industry Management program at Carnegie Mellon Universitys Heinz College & College of Fine Arts, told Ars. Budgets are looked at more closely and have been reined in.Peacock, for example, has seen its biggest differentiator come not from original series (pop quiz: whats your favorite Peacock original?) but from the Summer Olympics. A smaller streaming service compared to Netflix or Prime Video, Peacock's spending on content went from tripling from 2021 to 2023 to an expected 12 percent growth rate this year and 3 percent next year, per S&P Global Market Intelligence. The research firm estimated last year that original content will represent less than 25 percent of Peacocks programming budget over the next five years.Tyler Aquilina, a media analyst at the Variety Intelligence Platform (VIP+) research firm, told me that smaller services are more likely to reduce original content spending but added:Legacy media companies like Disney, NBCUniversal, Paramount, and Warner Bros. Discovery are, to a certain degree, in the same boat as Netflix: the costs of sports rights keep rising, so they will need to spend less on other content in order to keep their content budgets flat or trim them.Streaming services are getting less originalData from entertainment research firm Luminate's 2024 Year-End Film & TV Reportfound a general decline in the number of drama series ordered by streaming services and linear channels between 2019 (304) and 2024 (285). The report also noted a 27 percent drop in the number of drama series episodes ordered from 2019 (3,393) to 2024 (2,492).Beyond dramas, comedy series orders have been declining the past two years, per Luminates data. From 2019 to 2024, the number of total series has declined by 39 percent, while the number of episodes/hours is down by 47 percent, Luminates report says.And animated series have been pummeled over the past few years to an all-time low with the volume of cartoons down 31 percent in 2024 compared to 2023, per the report. The expected number of new series releases this year, per Luminate. Credit: Luminate Film & TV Aquilina at VIP+, a Luminate sister company, said:As far as appealing to customers, the reality is that the enormous output of the Peak TV era was not a successful business strategy; Luminate data has shown original series viewership on most platforms (other than Netflix) is often concentrated among a small handful of shows." While Netflix is slightly increasing content spending from 2024 to 2025, it's expected that "less money will be going toward scripted originals as the company spends more on sports rights and other live events," the analyst said.Streaming services struggle to make money with original contentThe streaming industry is still young, meaning companies are still determining the best way to turn streaming subscriptions into successful businesses. The obvious formula of providing great content so that streamers get more subscribers and make more money isnt as direct as it seems. One need only look at Apple TV+'s critically acclaimed $20 billion library that only earned 0.3 percent of US TV screen viewing time in June 2024, per Nielsen, to understand the complexities of making money off of quality content.When it comes to whats actually being viewed on streaming services, the top hits are often things that came out years ago or are old network hits, such as Suits, a USA Network original series that ended in 2019 and was the most-streamed show in 2023, per Nielsen, or The Big Bang Theory, a CBS show that ended in 2019 and was the most binged show in 2024, per Nielsen, or Little House on the Prairie, which ended in 1983 and Nielsen said was streamed for 13.25 billion minutes on Peacock last year.Theres also an argument for streaming services to make money off of low-budget, (often old) content streamed idly in the background. Perceived demand for background content is considered a driver for growing adoption of free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels like Tubi and the generative AI movies that TCLs pushing on its FAST channels.Meanwhile, TVs arent watched the way they used to be. Social media and YouTube have gotten younger audiences accustomed to low-budget, short videos, including videos summarizing events from full-length original series and movies. Viral video culture has impacted streaming and TV viewing, with YouTube consistently dominating streaming viewing time in the USand revealing this week that TVs are the primary device used to watch YouTube. Companies looking to capitalize off these trends may find less interest in original, high-budget scripted productions.The wonderfully weird at riskStreaming opened up the door for many shows and movies to thrive that would likely not have been made or had much visibility through traditional distribution means. From the wonderfully weird like The OA and Big Mouth, to experimental projects like Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, to shows from overseas, like Squid Game, and programs that didn't survive on network TV, like Futurama, streaming led to more diverse content availability and surprise hits than what many found on broadcast TV.If streaming services are more particular about original content, the result could be that subscribers miss out on more of the artistic, unique, and outlandish projects that helped make streaming feel so exciting at first. Paramount, for example, said in 2024 that a reduced programming budget would mean less local-language content in foreign markets and more focus on domestic hits with global appeal.Carnegie Mellon Universitys Green agreed that tighter budgets could potentially lead to less diverse storytelling being available.What will it take for a new, unproven storyteller (writer) to break through without as many opportunities available? Instead, there may be more emphasis on outside licensed content, and perhaps some creators will be drawn to bigger checks from some of the larger streamers, he added.Elizabeth Parks, president and CMO at Parks Associates, a research firm focused on IoT, consumer electronics, and entertainment, noted that many platforms are shifting focus toward content creation rather than new curated, must-watch originals," which could create a"more fragmented, less compelling viewer experience with diminishing differentiation between platforms.As streaming services more aggressively seek live events, like award shows and sporting events, and scripted content with broader appeal, they may increasingly mirror broadcast TV.The decision by studios to distribute their own content to competitors shows how content is being monetized beyond just driving direct subscriptions, Parks said. This approach borrows from traditional TV syndication models and signals a shift toward maximizing content value over time, instead of exclusive content.Over the next couple of years, we can expect streaming services to be more cautious about content investments. Services will be less interested in providing a bounty of original exclusives and more focused on bottom lines. They will need to ensure that spend does not outpace revenues, and platforms can maintain attractive profit margins, Amperes Ingram explained. Original hit shows will still be important, but its likely well see fewer gambles and more concerted efforts toward safer bets at mainstream appeal.For streaming customers who are fatigued with the number of services available and dissatisfied with content quality, its a critical time for streaming services to prove that theyre an improvement over other traditional TV and not just giving us the same ol, same ol.The streaming services that most appeal to customers host robust libraries of content that people want to watch, and as long as that's the case, they'll continue to do so. That's why Netflix and Disney are still the top streamers, Ingram said.Scharon HardingSenior Technology ReporterScharon HardingSenior Technology Reporter Scharon is a Senior Technology Reporter at Ars Technica writing news, reviews, and analysis on consumer gadgets and services. She's been reporting on technology for over 10 years, with bylines at Toms Hardware, Channelnomics, and CRN UK. 6 Comments