In 2025, one interior design trend is standing out not just for its visual appeal, but for the sense of peace and purpose it brings into the home: Zen Japanese Interior Design. As our lives become increasingly busy and digitized, people are seeking refuge in spaces that calm the mind, soothe the senses, and promote intentional living. Zen Japanese design, rooted in centuries-old traditions of simplicity, nature integration, and mindfulness, offers a lifestyle as much as an aesthetic. This design philosophy embraces natural materials, neutral tones, open spaces, and a “less is more” approach to decorating. In the following sections, we explore 20 compelling reasons why this design approach is not only trending, but transforming how people live, feel, and connect within their homes. 1. Minimalism with Warmth Image Source: Home Designing Unlike the often sterile vibe of Western minimalism, Zen Japanese Interior Design offers a softer, more livable approach to minimalism. It eliminates excess without sacrificing comfort. Natural materials, earthy colors, and soft lighting bring warmth and depth to a room. To apply this, consider removing overly decorative items and replacing them with one or two handcrafted pieces. Use neutral wall paint, avoid over-accessorizing, and integrate simple wooden or ceramic items that serve both aesthetic and practical purposes. This way, your space feels minimal yet full of life and intention. 2. Open and Airy Layouts Image Source: Lena Monroe Zen design principles emphasize the importance of spatial flow and openness. In 2025, many homes are shifting toward open-concept layouts that prioritize movement and air circulation. Zen Japanese Interior Design naturally fits into this evolution, as it values unobstructed spaces that feel light and breathable. To recreate this in your home, start by removing unnecessary partitions or bulky furniture that blocks light.  Use low-profile furniture like floor cushions and coffee tables, and leave walkways clear. Mirrors can help reflect light and make a space feel larger. Consider using light-colored rugs or tatami mats to define areas without cluttering them. 3. Seamless Connection with Nature Image Source: Awedeco Zen Japanese Interior Design deeply values harmony with the natural world. This is achieved through the thoughtful use of materials like bamboo, raw wood, stone, and linen, and through the incorporation of natural light and indoor greenery. In today’s urban environments, where daily interaction with nature is limited, this style helps bridge that gap.  Practically, you can bring nature inside with potted plants like bonsai, ferns, or snake plants. Use furniture made of raw or reclaimed wood, and keep windows uncovered or lightly draped to allow in natural light. Consider installing a small indoor water feature or pebble tray to evoke the soothing sounds and visuals of nature. 4. Soft, Neutral Color Palettes Image Source: Amelia Hallsworth In 2025, bold colors and loud patterns are giving way to the calming embrace of neutral tones. Zen Japanese Interior Design uses a soft, harmonious color palette to create tranquil environments that soothe the senses. Practically speaking, you can adopt this by repainting your walls in shades like ivory, warm beige, or muted gray.  Use textiles such as taupe curtains, off-white bedding, and linen or cotton throws in subdued colors. Avoid glossy or flashy finishes, and opt instead for matte textures and natural surfaces. Even your choice of art should reflect this palette, consider watercolor prints, minimalist ink paintings, or pressed botanical artwork. 5. Shoji Screens and Tatami Mats Image Source: J-Life International Traditional Japanese architectural elements like shoji screens and tatami mats add more than aesthetic charm, they contribute to the function and feel of a space. Shoji screens, often made of wood and rice paper, allow for light diffusion and flexible space separation.  Tatami mats, made from woven straw, provide comfort underfoot and a grounding connection to the earth. To use them in your home, consider replacing doors with sliding panels or using freestanding shoji screens to section off areas. Add tatami mats in reading corners or bedrooms. These features are not just culturally rich, they are practical, lightweight, and perfect for minimalist homes. 6. Understand the Significance of Lighting Image Source: Home Designing Lighting plays a key role in Zen Japanese Interior Design. The goal is to create soft, ambient lighting that promotes relaxation and presence. Instead of harsh overhead lights, use paper lanterns, floor lamps with linen shades, and wall sconces that diffuse warm light.  Natural light should be maximized during the day with sheer curtains or bamboo blinds. At night, use dimmable bulbs and indirect lighting to maintain a peaceful atmosphere. You can even incorporate candles or LED lights that mimic candlelight for added tranquility. The right lighting enhances the minimalist aesthetic and helps shift the mood of your space from stimulating to serene. 7. Select Furniture with Sleek Lines Image Source: Decorilla Furniture in Zen Japanese Interior Design is known for its clean, understated lines and low-profile form. Pieces are designed to blend seamlessly into the space rather than dominate it. To incorporate this, look for sofas, chairs, and tables with simple shapes and minimal ornamentation.  Avoid bulky, ornate furniture in favor of pieces with natural wood finishes or light upholstery in neutral tones. Low seating options like floor cushions or platform beds help foster a closer connection to the earth, which is central to the Zen philosophy. Functional and modest, this furniture style supports a clutter-free and peaceful environment. 8. Sustainable & Vintage-Inspired Elements Image Source: Ana Maria Design Sustainability continues to be a major influence on interior design trends in 2025. Zen Japanese interiors naturally align with this ethos by emphasizing longevity and craftsmanship. Integrating vintage or second-hand pieces not only reduces waste but also adds character and soul to your space.  Look for refurbished wooden benches, antique chests, or heirloom ceramics that match your neutral palette. Choose furniture made from sustainable sources like bamboo, rattan, or reclaimed wood. Mixing the old with the eco-friendly gives your home depth without disrupting its serene essence. 9. Keep Technology Discreet Image Source: Decorilla In 2025, technology is everywhere, but Zen Japanese Interior Design encourages us to keep it behind the scenes. Visible wires, bulky electronics, and flashing lights disrupt the calming ambiance. Instead, look for minimalist tech solutions: Bluetooth speakers that double as art pieces, wall-mounted televisions that disappear into a panel, or hidden cable systems for desks and entertainment areas. Keep smart home devices tucked away or integrated into natural materials. This approach helps your space maintain its serene look while offering all the functionality of a modern home. 10. Embrace Asymmetry and Irregularity Image Source: Decorilla Zen Japanese Interior Design values asymmetry and irregularity as part of its wabi-sabi philosophy. This aesthetic finds beauty in imperfection and avoids forced symmetry. You can integrate this by selecting decor and arrangements that aren’t perfectly aligned or balanced.  Try placing an uneven group of vases on a table, using mismatched ceramic cups, or hanging art slightly off-center to create visual interest. Asymmetry brings a natural and relaxed feel, mirroring the way things appear in nature. In 2025, when overly curated and symmetrical spaces can feel artificial, embracing irregularity offers a refreshing and humanizing touch to interiors. 11. Textured Surfaces for Depth and Warmth Image Source: Vogue Texture plays a significant role in making Zen-inspired spaces feel welcoming and layered. Instead of relying on color or pattern, use texture to create visual and tactile richness. You can achieve this through woven textiles, rough plaster walls, untreated wood furniture, and handmade pottery.  Choose fabrics like linen, cotton, or wool, and incorporate elements such as tatami mats, rattan baskets, or bamboo panels. Mixing these textures subtly ensures a space that feels natural and inviting without appearing busy. 12. Use Water Features for Serenity Image Source: Japandidecor Incorporating water into your Zen-inspired home enhances tranquility and introduces a meditative sensory element. Water is symbolic of renewal and purity in Japanese design. Practical ways to include water features include tabletop fountains, indoor ponds, or stone water basins in entryways or gardens. The sound of flowing water masks background noise and promotes relaxation. Choose minimalist designs that blend with your decor, using natural materials like stone or ceramic. In compact apartments, even a small fountain on a shelf can have a calming effect. 13. Create a Zen Meditation Space Image Source: Indonesiandesign In 2025, many people are seeking ways to integrate wellness into their daily routines. A dedicated Zen meditation space is a practical and transformative addition to your home. Start by selecting a quiet corner with natural light. Add a tatami mat or meditation cushion, a low wooden table for incense or a small sculpture, and soft lighting.  Keep the area free of distractions and visual clutter. Include calming elements like a plant, a stone bowl, or a small bamboo fountain. This minimal setup supports regular mindfulness practice and encourages stillness, making your home a place for both rest and self-discovery. 14. Simple and Functional Storage Solutions Image Source: Making a Green Life By Lily Storage in Zen Japanese Interior Design is subtle, seamless, and always purposeful. Clutter disrupts the flow and calm of a room, so the goal is to keep belongings hidden but accessible. Choose furniture with built-in storage like benches, low cabinets, or under-bed drawers.  Use natural materials such as wood or rattan for storage baskets, and avoid plastic or overly decorative containers. Labeling or color-coding isn’t necessary; simplicity is key. Shoji-style closets or sliding doors are ideal for small spaces, and folding screens can conceal shelves or workspaces. 15. Incorporate Japanese Art and Calligraphy Image Source: Lena Monroe Art in Zen Japanese Interior Design is minimal, meaningful, and often steeped in cultural heritage. Japanese calligraphy (shodo) or sumi-e ink paintings are perfect for bringing intentional beauty into your space. Choose one or two pieces that resonate with a personal value or emotional message.  You can display them in entryways, meditation areas, or above low furniture like benches or consoles. Use traditional hanging scrolls or frame them with natural wood for authenticity. This form of art adds a cultural and spiritual layer to your interiors, reminding you to embrace simplicity, grace, and mindfulness in your daily life. Final Thoughts: Bringing Zen into Your Home Zen Japanese Interior Design is more than an aesthetic, it’s a way of living that brings clarity, calm, and connection into our everyday environments. In today’s fast-paced world, designing a home isn’t just about choosing furniture or color palettes; it’s about creating a space that supports your well-being, reflects your values, and enhances your lifestyle. Home Designing is dedicated to making design both inspiring and accessible. Our platform shares ideas that help you visualize your space, discover new products, and turn inspiration into action, making it easier to create a home that truly reflects you.

If Letters Had Pants, Would They Wear Them Like This? makes clever use of enhancing pants as you pick out words in the dirt. This game has a lot going on beneath its simple Word Search appearance. Although you will be searching for words as a start. The goal of the game is to locate groups of letters that form a word and to gather them up by highlighting them with your mouse. This can be done in lines or squares, so you’re free to get a little creative with where you see a word. As you create words, they leave open spaces in the field of letters. You can freely ignore these and connect letters that are separated by these spaces, creating words that are spread father apart. It’s not only a good way to clear more of the board, but you get a greater score if the word is spread over a bigger area. If you can get a solid score within the time limit, you’ll be given fabulous roguelite rewards in the form of pants. These pants can be slapped on specific letters so that they offer multipliers on your words, are just worth more in general, or have some wild effects on the game. Pants that let you blow up useless letters are pretty handy in a Word Search gone wild, right? Or you could lean more into the outdoorsy feel of the game and plant turnips instead of explosives. They’re worth points as well. Plus your letters will look good in their new colored pants. Also, If Letters Had Pants, Would They Wear Them Like This? is really about digging for fossils and relics to fill a museum. And the museum can also alter the game. So, like I said, a lot going on. It’s quite the loop, offering something silly, compelling, and creative all at once, and I am finding it increasingly hard to put this game down. If Letters Had Pants, Would They Wear Them Like This? is available now on itch.io. It is projected to release on Steam in the future, so you can add it to your Steam Wishlist as well. About The Author

Buildner Announces Winners of the 5th Annual Last Nuclear Bomb Memorial CompetitionSponsored ContentSave this picture!Courtesy of BuildnerBuildner has announced the results of its competition, the In recognition of this treaty, Buildner invites conceptual designs for a memorial to be located on any known decommissioned nuclear weapon testing site. The conceptual memorial is intended to reflect the history and ongoing threat of nuclear weapons, aiming to promote public awareness of nuclear disarmament. The challenge is intended to bring attention to the history and dangers of nuclear weapons. Participants are tasked with designing a space that commemorates nuclear warfare victims and conveys the need for a nuclear-free future. As a 'silent' competition, submissions are not allowed to include any text, titles, or annotations.The next edition of this competition, the , has been launched with an early bird registration deadline of June 12, 2025.The briefThis competition invites designers to conceive a memorial that meaningfully engages the public with the critical issue of nuclear disarmament. Memorials play a crucial role in capturing history and facilitating collective reflection, shaping how future generations understand and respond to global challenges. The proposed memorial will specifically address the legacy of nuclear warfare, emphasizing the urgency of diplomatic solutions and international solidarity in preventing nuclear conflict.Design proposals are encouraged to consider the following core principles: Vision of Peace: Proposals should embody the aspiration for a world free of nuclear threats, incorporating symbolic or abstract representations that inspire unity and harmony. Reflection and Remembrance: Designs must foster a thoughtful and enduring dialogue, offering visitors a contemplative environment where they can reflect upon the consequences of nuclear weaponry. Educational Impact: The memorial should provide visitors with accessible insights into the historical realities and ongoing dangers of nuclear arms, actively promoting public knowledge and awareness. Emotional Engagement: Successful memorials will create a powerful emotional connection, provoking personal and collective introspection on peace, responsibility, and the human cost of nuclear conflict. Sustainable Stewardship: Designs must embrace environmental sustainability, reinforcing the memorial's overarching message of responsible stewardship and enduring peace. Save this picture!Jury PanelThis year's submissions were reviewed by a distinguished jury panel featuring experts from architecture, urbanism, and the arts:  Olha Kleytman, founder of Ukraine-based SBM Studio, brings expertise in architecture and urban design, alongside her humanitarian work through the NGO "Through the War."  Flora Lee, Associate Partner at MAD Architects, has contributed to major international projects including the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.  Peter Newman, a London-based artist, explores humanity's relationship with space and modernity, with exhibitions spanning Trafalgar Square, the Hayward Gallery, and the Guggenheim Museum in Venice.  Vincent Panhuysen, co-founder of KAAN Architecten, integrates contextual sensitivity into large-scale projects, such as the Netherlands American Cemetery Visitor Center.  James Whitaker, founder of Whitaker Studio, is an architect known for his widely published Joshua Tree Residence.  Wu Ziye, co-founder of China's Mix Architecture, has received international acclaim for his studio's exploration of spatial consciousness, materiality, and integration with nature. Buildner's other ongoing competitions include: the 10th edition of MICROHOME competition, in collaboration with Kingspan and Hapi Homes; the Mujassam Watan Urban Sculpture Challenge aimed at finding innovative sculptures reflecting Saudi Arabia's heritage, modern achievements, and future ambitions; and the Howard Waterfall Retreatcompetition, which invites architects to propose designs for a multi-generational family retreat at the scenic and historically significant Howard Falls in Pennsylvania, USA. Each of these competitions aims to build the winning designs.Projects:First Prize Winner + Buildner Student AwardProject title: Urbs AeternaAuthors: Alessia Angela Sanchez, Erminia Cirillo and Adele Maria Saita, from ItalyThe project presents a memorial using sand and metal to depict a post-apocalyptic vision of what appears to be Rome reduced to an archaeological remnant. The design evokes the destruction and preservation paradox, allowing viewers to observe the site from above or navigate its fractured streets leading to a central void. A ghostly wireframe reconstruction of a vanished temple stands as the focal point, symbolizing loss and memory. The restrained material palette reinforces themes of impermanence and time. While conceptually strong and visually compelling, its cost and environmental impact raise questions. The experience unfolds gradually, inviting contemplation.Save this picture!Save this picture!Second Prize WinnerProject title: The Rainbow Of RenewalAuthors: Chen Yang, Ruijing Sun and Chao Li, from the United StatesThe project envisions a memorial for the last nuclear bomb through a landscape intervention that transforms destruction into renewal. A circular water installation generates mist, evoking the image of an explosion while simultaneously creating rainbows, symbolizing hope. The design's ephemeral quality enhances its poetic impact, making it a striking presence on the horizon. The intervention integrates with the natural environment, fostering an evolving atmospheric experience.Save this picture!Save this picture!3rd Prize Winner + Buildner Student AwardProject title: Projected DestructionAuthors: Marco Moreno Donohoe of Washington University in St. Louis , WUSTL, the United StatesThis project envisions a memorial set within a cratered landscape. A striking linear structure cuts through the void, acting as both a bridge and a viewing platform, inviting visitors to experience the vastness of destruction. The interplay of light and shadow within the perforated walls creates dynamic spatial effects, offering different perspectives from above and within. The scale and placement evoke a sense of isolation and reflection.Save this picture!Save this picture!Highlighted ProjectsProject title: Mycelial Rebirth: Fungi Restoring Nuclear Wounds Authors: Shengfeng Gao, Zhuohan Zhou and Shengnan Gao from the United StatesThis project envisions a memorial landscape where fungi serve as agents of ecological healing in a post-nuclear context. A dense forest setting is activated by a grid of ultraviolet lights that stimulate mycelial growth, enhancing the fungi's capacity to absorb and break down radioactive contaminants. As the soil regenerates, the design allows for gradual ecological succession, beginning with mushrooms and pioneering vegetation. The illuminated ground plane forms a quiet, immersive field that marks both decay and recovery. Over time, the site transforms into a living testament to resilience, where nature's unseen networks remediate and renew.Save this picture!Save this picture!Project title: Nuclear Living ForceAuthors: Luis Manuel Carcamo Cura of company LUIS CARCAMO ARQUITECTOS, from MexicoThis project responds to the atomic age by offering a message of harmony over despair, using the human eye as a central metaphor for awareness and reflection. A series of monumental, petal-like structures rise from a crater-shaped void, recalling both the iris and the bomb site in Santa Fe. Surrounding this core, the Flower of Life geometry guides the masterplan, symbolizing universal patterns and organic regeneration. The design emphasizes nature's resilience, referencing ecosystems like Chernobyl where life has returned unaided. Rather than mourning destruction, the project celebrates life, order, and the potential for collective transformation.Save this picture!Project title: The Illusion of ChoicesAuthors: Ruiqi Yao, University of Edinburgh from the United KingdomThis project explores the illusion of choice within the existential tension between nuclear war and peace. Set inside a vast crater, visitors begin their journey in a monumental spherical chamber, where a singular path ends abruptly, symbolizing unreachable goals and the false promise of nuclear power. Descending into a subterranean network, seven red-lit paths depict ruin and inevitability, while one blue-lit path offers a narrow route toward peace and introspection. The final space contrasts confinement with openness, guiding visitors through mirrored walls toward a hopeful exit. Through spatial transitions and stark lighting contrasts, the project stages a powerful moral journey.Save this picture!Save this picture!Project title: Möbius Elegy: Red Warning and Green ReturnAuthors: Daii Shimada, Mai Nakano and Midori Watanabe, from JapanThis project imagines a regenerative forest emerging from the scars of nuclear devastation. Set within a vast desert crater, a radial pattern of multicolored vegetation radiates outward, suggesting seasonal cycles and ecological diversity. The planting strategy appears gradual and deliberate, with craters used as microclimates for reforestation—each acting as a node in a larger ecological system. A lone figure stands before the transformed landscape, underscoring the scale and ambition of the intervention. Through time-lapse-like sequences, the imagery suggests the forest's steady expansion, turning the desert into a sanctuary of life. The memorial becomes a living archive of resilience and renewal.Save this picture!Project title: Soft FalloutAuthors: Louis Bourdages and Cedric Harvey, from the Université Laval School of Architecture, CanadaThis project proposes an immersive memorial defined by a luminous, amorphous structure suspended over a crater. From the outside, the glowing yellow form evokes a captured sun or lingering explosion, radiating both warmth and unease. Inside, visitors enter a soft, undulating landscape of quilted fabric that molds to the human body, allowing for stillness, reflection, or playful interaction. Light filters through the translucent skin, creating a surreal atmosphere suspended between comfort and disquiet. The form's biomorphic geometry contrasts the rationality of war, transforming the site into a sensorial space of pause and presence.Save this picture!Project title: "Used to be there"Authors: Hữu Nhân Hoàng, Hoàng Kỳ Lê and Anh Khoa Huỳnh, VietnamThis project constructs a memorial as a collective reflection on memory, identity, and everyday life disrupted by nuclear war. Set in a radial formation across a barren landscape, semi-transparent glass panels display ghosted historical photographs—scenes of people, architecture, and ordinary moments—layered over the present. Visitors navigate between these life-sized images, encountering echoes of the past embedded in space. The transparent surfaces blend time periods and dissolve boundaries, inviting viewers to see themselves within the continuity of human experience. Rather than focusing on devastation, the project quietly honors what stands to be lost: ordinary lives, familiar places, and shared memories.Save this picture!Visit the website for the recently launched , to take part and learn more, before the early bird registration deadline of June 12, 2025. Image gallerySee allShow less Cite: "Buildner Announces Winners of the 5th Annual Last Nuclear Bomb Memorial Competition" 21 May 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1030195/buildner-announces-winners-of-the-5th-annual-last-nuclear-bomb-memorial-competition&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save世界上最受欢迎的建筑网站现已推出你的母语版本!想浏览ArchDaily中国吗?是否 You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream

The Procurement Analyst is responsible for supporting procurement and finance teams in negotiating contracts and enhancing Paymentology’s purchasing processes. This role plays a key part in improving Paymentology’s commercial position and financial performance by identifying cost-saving opportunities, ensuring compliance with internal and external procurement policies, and implementing structured purchasing procedures.Contract Negotiation and Procurement Management:Assist in the negotiation of new contracts and contract renewals, ensuring optimal commercial terms for Paymentology.Identify cost-saving opportunities by analysing procurement data and monitoring expenditure.Maintain accurate and up-to-date records of supplier agreements, procurement activities, and savings opportunities.Financial and Data Analysis:Monitor and analyse procurement data to track expenditure trends and highlight efficiency opportunities.Develop dashboards to visualise spend, assess supplier performance, and identify key cost-reduction strategies.Compliance and Vendor Onboarding:Work closely with legal, compliance, and cybersecurity teams to onboard vendors in accordance with Paymentology’s internal policies, PCI regulations, and client requirements.Ensure that all procurement processes align with regulatory standards and risk management protocols.Cross-Functional Collaboration:Collaborate with internal stakeholders to proactively manage purchases and secure the best commercial deals.Support the rollout and continuous improvement of procurement processes, including the implementation of a third-party risk management system and purchase order process within the current ERP system.Outcome: A structured, data-driven procurement process that enhances financial performance, mitigates risk, and ensures Paymentology secures the best value in supplier agreements.What it takes to succeed:Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret and compare complex, multi-layered commercial proposals.Excellent interpersonal skills, with the ability to engage and influence internal and external stakeholders.Proficiency in Microsoft Office, particularly Excel, for procurement data analysis and reporting.High attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple concurrent tasks in a fast-paced environment.Experience in technology procurement, particularly in SaaS-based agreements.Understanding of legal contract review and negotiation.Familiarity with ERP systems is preferred.Years of Experience2–3 years of experience in a procurement or commercial-based role.Proven track record of contract negotiation, supplier management, and cost-saving initiatives.Experience in technology and SaaS procurement is highly desirable.Apply NowLet's start your dream job Apply now Meet JobCopilot: Your Personal AI Job HunterAutomatically Apply to Remote All Other Remote JobsJust set your preferences and Job Copilot will do the rest-finding, filtering, and applying while you focus on what matters. Activate JobCopilot

Reading Time: 7 minutes The way brands look at data has changed over the past few years. While in the last decade, brands may have focused on data collection (the more data, the merrier), over the passage of time, marketers are dawning upon the realization that unless data is actionable, it’s not really usable. Marketers have struggled for years to draw actionable insight from fragmented customer data that exists in silos across countless tools.  Rather than adding yet another tool to their tech stack to mitigate this silo problem, marketers are re-evaluating their entire tech stack. As a result, forward-thinking brands realize that to unlock truly personalized, real-time customer experiences requires tapping into the single source of truth: their data warehouse. Let’s explore why this shift is happening and how a CDEP like MoEngage is the perfect partner in this new paradigm. From Passive to Active: The Evolution of The Modern Data Warehouses Data warehouses aren’t new. Traditionally, many businesses relied on on-premise warehouses, which were powerful but often rigid, expensive to scale, and sometimes siloed.  The game-changer has been the advent of cloud data warehouses (such as Snowflake, Google BigQuery, Databricks, Amazon Redshift, and Azure Synapse). Cloud data warehouses offer consumer brands the following advantages: Scalability: Easily handle vast and growing datasets without massive upfront infrastructure investment. Flexibility: Integrate structured and semi-structured data from teams like sales, customer support, finance, marketing, etc. Performance: Process complex queries rapidly, enabling faster insights. Accessibility: Democratize data access for various teams (with appropriate governance). Gone are the days when data warehouses were merely passive repositories of data. Today, they often contain the most complete, up-to-date, and trustworthy business view. Benefits of the Warehouse-First Approach for Campaigns Real-time data: Data warehouses often provide real-time data, enabling marketers to understand the pulse of the customer and make decisions based on timely and accurate information rather than the slightly-dated information that ends up in a CDP (customer data platform). Real-time analytics: A warehouse-first approach helps marketers to understand the current state of the business (as in ‘what is happening right now’. This real-time analytics also helps them spot deviations in key performance indicators (KPIs), detect problems proactively, and make faster decisions. Real-time segmentation: Traditional segmentation relies on slightly stale data (hours or days old). By automatically moving customers into or out of segments based on their latest actions/changes in attributes, marketers can personalize the customer experience in real time, thereby becoming more relevant and timely. Data consistency and quality: Loading data into a warehouse involves data cleansing, validation, standardization, and transformation, which improves the quality of data in the warehouse. Speed, scalability, and cost-effectiveness: Data warehouses offer scalable storage and processing power, allowing businesses to adapt to their evolving needs rapidly. Compared to storing and processing data within multiple tools, data warehouses are a more cost-effective way for businesses to manage massive amounts of diverse data. Faster time-to-value (Potentially): Once set up, activating new data points or segments can be quicker if the data already resides in the warehouse. This also means that campaigns can be launched faster vs. when data needs to be copied into a CDP before being sent to an email platform or an SMS automation tool. Improved data governance: By consolidating all data into a central repository, data warehouses ensure that data governance policies, standards, and procedures are standardized across the board.   Benefits of a Warehouse-First Approach For B2C Consumer Brands CDEP and the Warehouse-First Approach Forward-thinking consumer brands have realized that customer data management and customer engagement cannot exist in silos.  This is how a data-driven marketer is thinking in 2025: I have all the information about my customer consolidated in a data warehouse. The data combines customers’ past purchase history, product interactions, customer support history, marketing-related data, and many other pivotal data points. I want to use this data warehouse information directly to drive contextual, relevant, and personalized experiences through my campaigns in real-time. I don’t want to spend time copying the data into another tool and then into a marketing automation or a customer engagement platform. Any data latency will prevent me from providing real-time personalized experiences, and will negatively impact my engagement, retention, and monetization campaigns.   For consumer brands that need to respond to the pulse of the customer in real-time, the martech stack needs to be warehouse-native.  This is where a CDEP (Customer Data and Engagement Platform) fits in like a glove. What is a CDEP? A customer data and engagement platform (CDEP) is an integrated, all-in-one platform that combines robust data management capabilities with best-in-class engagement, AI, and analytical capabilities.  A CDEP can: Unify data to build a single customer profile with real-time data ingestion Segment your customers based on behavior, demographics, or propensity Hyper-personalize communications in real-time, at scale Automate campaigns via advanced AI functionalities Analyze campaign performance and customer behavior to unlock deep customer insights What Makes MoEngage the Perfect Warehouse-Native CDEP? A CDEP helps consumer brands leverage warehouse as the central system without creating new data silos.  A warehouse-native CDEP like MoEngage minimizes data duplication and data movement, leverages the warehouse’s processing power, enhances security, and can lower costs in the long run. To evaluate why a CDEP (Customer Data and Engagement Platform) like MoEngage shines in a warehouse-first marketing approach, we need to understand these three pillars: 1) Capabilities of a CDEP Data Ingestion, Unification, and Management Capabilities Instead of extensive data storage, a warehouse-native CDEP connects directly to your data warehouse. It allows marketers to build segments using rich data in situ within the warehouse environment, leveraging the warehouse’s processing power and data freshness. Side note: A CDEP can also double down as a data management platform if you do not have a data warehouse or do not wish to connect it with your warehouse.  Data Ingestion: A CDEP comes equipped with flexible and robust data management capabilities that can capture a complete view of customer interactions. Sources of data ingestion include event streaming, batch data uploads, platform integrations (via connectors and APIs), and data warehouse integrations (Snowflake, BigQuery, RedShift, etc). Data Storage: A CDEP would leverage your existing data warehouse as the primary, persistent storage location for comprehensive customer data. Data Unification: CDEPs can unify data from various sources into a 360-degree customer view for each individual, resolving identity across devices and channels. CDEPs do this by ingesting and recognizing identifiers (email, phone, user ID, device ID etc) and applying deterministic matching rules to stitch identifiers and associated data together. Data Governance, Privacy & Security: CDEPs have best-in-class data governance, privacy and security features like Data Access Management, Data Encryption, PII Masking and Tokenization, and Data Retention Policies. These measures ensure that data remains protected at all costs. Integrated Engagement Capabilities A CDEP seamlessly combines data processing with built-in omnichannel campaign orchestration and delivery across multiple channels. These best-in-class engagement capabilities are further augmented with AI capabilities that can help consumer brands improve the customer experience. Omnichannel Messaging Capabilities With over 11 channels, including email, SMS, push notification, WhatsApp, etc., a CDEP like MoEngage can help your brand build and optimize personalized customer journeys across channels and devices. AI Capabilities Generative and predictive AI capabilities offered by a CDEP can easily learn from the warehouse data and use AI agents to suggest the ideal customer journeys, decisions that help brands optimize campaigns, and generate segments. Segmentational Capabilities A CDEP can generate actionable segments in real time based on demographics and attributes, behavioral and transactional data, and propensity. A CDEP uses fresh and comprehensive data in the warehouse, allowing marketers to build customer segments based on demographics, attributes, behavior, transactions, or propensity scores. Analytical Capabilities After unifying data from different sources, a CDEP can help marketers make sense of the data through the power of its analytical capabilities. Be it identifying trends and patterns in customer behavior, segmenting the audience, predicting the likelihood of certain actions in the future, or informing future strategy, CDEP’s robust analytical capabilities can help marketers with actionable insights in real time. Reporting and Dashboards: Built-in data visualization capabilities can help marketing, growth, and product teams across consumer brands track key business metrics like campaign engagement rates, conversion rates, churn rates, DAUs, and MAUs. Behavioral Analytics: Features like funnel, RFM, and cohort analysis can help consumer brands analyze behavioral trends of customers. 2) Scalability, Reliability, and Elasticity Reliability offered by a CDEP means that the platform is consistently available without any downtimes or disruptions. A reliable CDEP ensures high availability, fast response times, and stable performance for brands like yours. A reliable CDEP is built on elastic infrastructure, which means that the platform’s capabilities will be available to you even during periods of extensive and high usage by other customers. 3) Customer Support  If you’re planning to migrate to a warehouse-native CDEP, you might have some concerns about the amount of effort, developer bandwidth, friction, and migration costs that you could incur while making the switch. MoUpgrade program by MoEngage accelerates migration timelines and delivers faster time-to-value (TTV) in weeks instead of months or years.  The program allows for a smooth migration to a warehouse-native CDEP without any disruptions to ongoing campaigns, data collection cadences, or your brand’s existing data pipelines. Conclusion: This shift towards warehouse-first marketing marks a pivotal change, moving beyond fragmented data collection to leveraging the data warehouse as the single source of truth. A warehouse-native CDEP like MoEngage emerges as the ideal solution. By integrating data management, engagement, and analytics directly with the warehouse, CDEPs empower brands to deliver truly contextual, real-time experiences, driving better results and faster time-to-value in 2025 and beyond. Talk to our team to understand how a CDEP can help your brand better harness the power of your data warehouse.   The post Warehouse-First Marketing: Why Brands in 2025 Are Choosing a CDEP appeared first on MoEngage.

The world’s leading storage and server manufacturers are combining their design and engineering expertise with the NVIDIA AI Data Platform — a customizable reference design for building a new class of AI infrastructure — to provide systems that enable a new generation of agentic AI applications and tools. The reference design is now being harnessed by storage system leaders globally to support AI reasoning agents and unlock the value of information stored in the millions of documents, videos and PDFs enterprises use. NVIDIA-Certified Storage partners DDN, Dell Technologies, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Hitachi Vantara, IBM, NetApp, Nutanix, Pure Storage, VAST Data and WEKA are introducing products and solutions built on the NVIDIA AI Data Platform, which includes NVIDIA accelerated computing, networking and software. In addition, AIC, ASUS, Foxconn, Quanta Cloud Technology, Supermicro, Wistron and other original design manufacturers (ODMs) are developing new storage and server hardware platforms that support the NVIDIA reference design. These platforms feature NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell Server Edition GPUs, NVIDIA BlueField DPUs and NVIDIA Spectrum-X Ethernet networking, and are optimized to run NVIDIA AI Enterprise software. Such integrations allow enterprises across industries to quickly deploy storage and data platforms that scan, index, classify and retrieve large stores of private and public documents in real time. This augments AI agents as they reason and plan to solve complex, multistep problems. Building agentic AI infrastructure with these new AI Data Platform-based solutions can help enterprises turn data into actionable knowledge using retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) software, including NVIDIA NeMo Retriever microservices and the AI-Q NVIDIA Blueprint. Storage systems built with the NVIDIA AI Data Platform reference design turn data into knowledge, boosting agentic AI accuracy across many use cases. This can help AI agents and customer service representatives provide quicker, more accurate responses. With more access to data, agents can also generate interactive summaries of complex documents — and even videos — for researchers of all kinds. Plus, they can assist cybersecurity teams in keeping software secure. Leading Storage Providers Showcase AI Data Platform to Power Agentic AI Storage system leaders play a critical role in providing the AI infrastructure that runs AI agents. Embedding NVIDIA GPUs, networking and NIM microservices closer to storage enhances AI queries by bringing compute closer to critical content. Storage providers can integrate their document-security and access-control expertise into content-indexing and retrieval processes, improving security and data privacy compliance for AI inference. Data platform leaders such as IBM, NetApp and VAST Data are using the NVIDIA reference design to scale their AI technologies. IBM Fusion, a hybrid cloud platform for running virtual machines, Kubernetes and AI workloads on Red Hat OpenShift, offers content-aware storage services that unlock the meaning of unstructured enterprise data, enhancing inferencing so AI assistants and agents can deliver better, more relevant answers. Content-aware storage enables faster time to insights for AI applications using RAG when combined with NVIDIA GPUs, NVIDIA networking, the AI-Q NVIDIA Blueprint and NVIDIA NeMo Retriever microservices — all part of the NVIDIA AI Data Platform. NetApp is advancing enterprise storage for agentic AI with the NetApp AIPod solution built with the NVIDIA reference design. NetApp incorporates NVIDIA GPUs in data compute nodes to run NVIDIA NeMo Retriever microservices and connects these nodes to scalable storage with NVIDIA networking. VAST Data is embedding NVIDIA AI-Q with the VAST Data Platform to deliver a unified, AI-native infrastructure for building and scaling intelligent multi-agent systems. With high-speed data access, enterprise-grade security and continuous learning loops, organizations can now operationalize agentic AI systems that drive smarter decisions, automate complex workflows and unlock new levels of productivity. ODMs Innovate on AI Data Platform Hardware Offering their extensive experience with server and storage design and manufacturing, ODMs are working with storage system leaders to more quickly bring innovative AI Data Platform hardware to enterprises. ODMs provide the chassis design, GPU integration, cooling innovation and storage media connections needed to build AI Data Platform servers that are reliable, compact, energy efficient and affordable. A high percentage of the ODM industry’s market share comprises manufacturers based or colocated in Taiwan, making the region a crucial hub for enabling the hardware to run scalable agentic AI, inference and AI reasoning. AIC, based in Taoyuan City, Taiwan, is building flash storage servers, powered by NVIDIA BlueField DPUs, that enable higher throughput and greater power efficiency than traditional storage designs. These arrays are deployed in many AI Data Platform-based designs. ASUS partnered with WEKA and IBM to showcase a next-generation unified storage system for AI and high-performance computing workloads, addressing a broad spectrum of storage needs. The RS501A-E12-RS12U, a WEKA-certified software-defined storage solution, overcomes traditional hardware limitations to deliver exceptional flexibility — supporting file, object and block storage, as well as all-flash, tiering and backup capabilities. Foxconn, based in New Taipei City, builds many of the manufacturing industry’s accelerated servers and storage platforms used for AI Data Platform solutions. Its subsidiary Ingrasys offers NVIDIA-accelerated GPU servers that support the AI Data Platform. Supermicro is using the reference design to build its intelligent all-flash storage arrays powered by the NVIDIA Grace CPU Superchip or BlueField-3 DPU. The Supermicro Petascale JBOF and Petascale All-Flash Array Storage Server deliver high performance and power efficiency with software-defined storage vendors and support use with AI Data Platform solutions. Quanta Cloud Technology, also based in Taiwan, is designing and building accelerated server and storage appliances that include NVIDIA GPUs and networking. They’re well-suited to run NVIDIA AI Enterprise software and support AI Data Platform solutions. Taipei-based Wistron and Wiwynn offer innovative hardware designs compatible with the AI Data Platform, incorporating NVIDIA GPUs, NVIDIA BlueField DPUs and NVIDIA Ethernet SuperNICs for accelerated compute and data movement. Learn more about the latest agentic AI advancements at NVIDIA GTC Taipei, running May 21-22 at COMPUTEX.

The BLUETTI Apex 300 isn’t meant to sit idle between emergencies. It fits into daily routines, powering everyday essentials without rewiring or installing. This review focuses on how it performs with real products in familiar settings. That includes household appliances during outages, coolers and fans during weekend camping, and portable gear on long tournament days. There are no solar arrays or panel integrations. Just plug and use. PROS: Exceptional 6,000+ charge cycle lifespan offers 17 years of reliable operation, doubling industry standards. Impressive 3,840W output and 120/240V dual voltages for handling multiple high-demand appliances simultaneously without faltering. Efficient 20W AC idle drain extends runtime significantly during extended outages. Modular design with B300K expansion battery allows customized scaling without replacing initial investment. Compatible with 120/240V gas generator (11,520W in parallel connection) for extended power outage. Massive 6,400W solar input capacity enables rapid renewable charging with potential two-year payback and over 30kW of solar input for whole-home backup. Low upfront cost at just $0.36/Wh for those who need serious power. CONS: 2.7kW capacity may limit portability, making it less suitable for those with lower power needs. Lacks dedicated DC ports (requires the optional Hub D1 accessory, which offers 700W DC output), but this trade-off helps keep the price more affordable. RATINGS: AESTHETICSERGONOMICSPERFORMANCESUSTAINABILITY / REPAIRABILITYVALUE FOR MONEYEDITOR'S QUOTE:The Apex 300 transforms uncertainty into confidence, delivering power when everything else fails. Peace of mind has never been so tangible. Designer: BLUETTI Click Here to Buy Now: $1199 $2399 ($1200 off). Hurry, deal ends soon! With 2,764.8Wh of capacity and 3,840W of output, the Apex 300 handles a refrigerator in the kitchen, a portable AC near the tent, or a Typhur air fryer at the courts. It doesn’t need a permanent location. You can roll it into the laundry room to run a washer or dryer in an emergency, or drop it under a canopy to keep drinks cold and phones charged. While the unit supports advanced configurations through expansion hubs and bypass systems, those features are outside the scope of this review. The goal here is practical performance with common products, powered directly from the main unit or its optional DC hub. From prolonged blackout prep to match-day support, the Apex 300 demonstrates the potential of a high-capacity portable power station, especially when paired with a fuel generator, all without leaving the average user behind. Design & Ergonomics The Apex 300 has a compact, squared chassis with reinforced edges and no cosmetic finishes. It weighs just under 84 pounds. While the mass is noticeable, it’s not difficult to move. A recessed top handle sits flush and centered for balance. Two side handles are molded into the body, one on each side. This lets you lift using proper form without needing to twist or overcompensate. The handle spacing and weight distribution make it possible to load in and out of a trunk or reposition in tight spaces without tipping. The casing is matte composite. No gloss, no soft-touch. It’s built to resist fire and impact, with corner protection and stiff panels that don’t flex. There’s no padding, no shiny accents. This is a working product for flinching in harsh environments or heavy-duty use, not something designed for display. The front panel consolidates all standard AC outputs. What stands out most on the front panel is the 120/240V voltage selector—a rare feature in this category. With a simple toggle, the Apex 300 can switch between standard 120V and powerful 240V split-phase output, all from a single unit. There’s no need for dual machines, external inverters, or bulky adapters. Just press the 240V button, and the side port activates 240V output while the front-facing 120V outlets remain fully functional. Even better, it supports simultaneous charging and discharging in both voltage modes, making it one of the most flexible power solutions out there. There are four 120V/20A outlets arranged in a horizontal line. Above the sockets, the integrated digital display shows live system status. Remaining battery is presented both numerically and visually via a segmented arc. Directly below, the estimated charge or runtime is shown in hours and minutes. Along the sides of the screen, AC and DC power input and output are broken down in watts. System icons flank the upper corners, indicating ECO mode, connectivity status, and fan operation. Alerts appear in the lower corners with a flashing indicator. The display is not touch-sensitive, and there are no layered menus. Everything is presented in one view. Visibility holds up in bright conditions without overwhelming in low light. The left side houses dual cooling vents and serves as a passive intake for airflow. The 120/240V 50A AC input/output port and high-capacity outputs, including the 120V/30A TT-30R and 120V/240V 50A NEMA L14-50R outlets, are well located. The 50A AC input also supports charging from a 120/240V gas generator, making it ideal for extended power outages. These ports are clearly labeled. Rubberized flaps protect these areas. A grounding screw is located near the input ports. Vents positioned near these ports help manage thermal output. During charging or peak load, the integrated fans remain active but quiet, operating at around 40 to 50 dB under standard use. The right side is used for expansion. This is where the Apex 300 connects to the B300K battery via a shorter, more manageable cable. Compared to the previous longer cable version, this design saves space and improves efficiency with a more compact setup. That link locks securely and routes downward. A sealed accessory port sits next to the connector. The upper portion includes additional ventilation similar to the left side. There’s no interference between ports, and stacking doesn’t block airflow. The B300K adds 2764.8Wh to the total system capacity. At nearly 79 pounds, it’s only slightly lighter than the main unit. Each side of the B300K includes a top-mounted handle for lifting. When docked, the battery aligns flush with the Apex 300 and maintains overall balance. Up to four B300K modules can be stacked, but extra securing is recommended when exceeding two levels. Cooling is managed through a dual fan system located behind the side grills. These stay active during higher loads or rapid charging. Fan noise remains even, with no distracting pitch or rattle. This makes the Apex 300 usable near sleeping areas or indoor workspaces without disturbance. DC output is delivered through the optional Hub D1. This hub adds USB-C, USB-A, DC5521, a 12V auto socket, and a 50A Anderson connector standing out as a high-power DC port designed for safety and stability. It attaches vertically and doesn’t expand the unit’s footprint. If you rely on DC or USB-based devices, the hub becomes essential. The Bluetti app mirrors much of what’s shown on the Apex 300’s physical display. Once paired via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, it displays a central battery status ring with remaining percentage, real-time breakdowns of AC and DC input/output wattage, and estimated time until full charge or depletion. Users can toggle AC and DC outputs, track solar contribution, and review historical usage. The interface uses strong visual cues with all major controls accessible directly from the home screen. Charging modes, notifications, and system alerts are accessed without diving through submenus. The layout prioritizes quick access and clarity over aesthetics. Everything about the Apex 300 centers on performance. It’s a modular, high-output power system designed for actual use, not showroom aesthetics. Whether keeping food cold during blackouts or running appliances off-grid, it stays focused on delivering energy where it’s needed most. Performance This review centers on standalone use without any home integration. When the power goes out, whether from weather, an accident, or a grid failure, you plug in what you need and the Apex 300 just runs. No rewiring. No fuss. All testing here used the onboard AC ports directly. In one overnight “staged” outage, the unit powered a full-size refrigerator, router, lights, and a breathing machine. Output stayed steady, and the digital panel clearly showed remaining time and load. The app mirrored this from another room. Power usage was easy to track, and the fridge didn’t cycle off. On a long weekend of stay-at-home glamping, the Apex 300 handled a Typhur air fryer, a drip coffee machine, and a portable AC without blinking. The 3,840W output had no problem handling the startup surge. The fans kicked on but didn’t become a distraction. Nothing tripped, nothing overheated. On another occasion, it powered backyard lighting, a portable fridge, and charged phones during an overnight glamping setup. Later, during a neighborhood blackout caused by a downed transformer, the Apex 300 powered a microwave, a drip coffee maker, and several LED lanterns while also recharging phones and two-way radios. It helped keep things calm without dragging out a gas generator. During another outage, it kept two fans and a portable AC unit running through the night in a hot upstairs office. While I don’t rely on a CPAP device, anyone who does can rest assured knowing the Apex 300 can power one continuously without issue. The ports are spaced well enough to plug in multiple devices without overlap or cord clutter. If your fridge runs on AC power, as most home units do, you don’t need anything extra. Just plug it into one of the four 120V outlets or the larger NEMA sockets, and it works. The Apex 300 delivers clean, reliable AC power for standard appliances. However, if you have a 12V DC fridge like those used in vans or campsites, limitations appear. The Apex 300 doesn’t have native DC output for those loads without an accessory. Everything here was tested without tying into a breaker panel or generator loop. This is power where you need it, when the wall socket doesn’t exist. The Apex 300 isn’t just spec sheets—it held up during real blackouts, heatwaves, and extended unplugged days. It powered what mattered, and didn’t get in the way. Emergency Runtime Scenarios In a blackout with no charging, the Apex 300 offers 2,764.8Wh. Adding the B300K doubles that to 5,529.6Wh. A basic emergency load including a fridge, laptop, router, phone, lights, and a CPAP draws about 1,950 to 2,200Wh daily. The Apex 300 alone powers this for roughly one day. Stretch it to 1.5 days by cutting nonessential loads. With the B300K, expect 2 to 2.5 days. Focus on the fridge and communication gear to reach 3 days. Cycle loads instead of running everything at once. Run the fridge during the day. Charge devices one at a time. Use lights only when needed. Sustainability While I haven’t personally tested the Apex 300 with solar panels, the sustainability potential here deserves serious attention. The system’s solar integration capabilities transform it from the category of home battery backup to a genuine renewable energy solution with remarkable long-term value. The Apex 300’s most impressive feature is its exceptional solar input capacity. When paired with BLUETTI’s SolarX 4K Solar Charge Controller, a single unit can process up to 6,400W of solar input. This represents a quantum leap beyond typical portable power stations that max out around 1,000-2,000W. For perspective, this means you could potentially recharge the entire system in just a few hours of good sunlight rather than waiting all day or longer. Most foldable solar panels might have inherent limitations in efficiency and are dependent on weather conditions, which is why a high input capacity for energy storage is so crucial. The Apex 300 maximizes every minute of sunshine, capturing significantly more energy during peak daylight hours. This efficiency accelerates the system’s potential payback period to approximately two years according to BLUETTI’s calculations. Few renewable energy investments offer such a rapid return. The Apex 300 avoids the usual tradeoff between portability and long-term value. At its core are BLUETTI’s automotive-grade LFP batteries, rated for over 6,000 charge cycles. That translates to around 17 years of daily use, nearly doubling the lifespan of many competing systems that typically last 3,000 to 4,000 cycles. This added durability cuts down on the frequency of replacements, which in turn reduces electronic waste and long-term costs. BLUETTI reinforces this commitment to longevity with rigorous validation. The larger Elite 200 V2 Solar Generator has passed 33 CNAS-certified automotive-grade tests, underscoring the brand’s approach to building quality and environmental responsibility across its ecosystem. This solar integration capability creates genuine resilience for regions prone to extreme weather events like Texas and Florida. The system’s dual MPPT controllers enable remarkably fast charging, reaching 80% capacity in just 40 minutes under optimal conditions. When fully expanded, the Apex 300 system can scale to deliver over 11kW of output with 58kWh of storage capacity, providing enough power to maintain essential home systems for a week without grid access. The AT1 Smart Distribution Box completes the sustainability equation by intelligently managing power flow between solar panels and the grid. This allows homeowners to create a customized, automated whole-home backup system that prioritizes renewable energy usage while maintaining grid connectivity when needed. The entire ecosystem works together through BLUETTI’s smartphone app, making sustainable energy management accessible even to those without technical expertise. Value The Apex 300 represents a significant investment. What truly matters isn’t only the initial cost but the long-term value proposition. This portable power station delivers exceptional returns through its versatility, durability, and advanced capabilities that go far beyond emergency backup. The system’s true value emerges when you consider how it integrates into everyday life and critical situations without compromise. The system’s exceptional efficiency further enhances its value proposition. With remarkably low 20W AC idle drain, the Apex 300 preserves power when not actively running devices. This translates to 24 additional hours of refrigerator runtime, 2.5 times longer AC standby, and 2.5 more days of CPAP operation compared to competing systems with higher idle consumption. During extended outages, this efficiency becomes invaluable, potentially meaning the difference between maintaining power for essential devices and running out at critical moments. The 0ms UPS switching ensures absolutely seamless power transitions, protecting sensitive electronics and providing peace of mind for those relying on medical equipment. Perhaps most impressive is how the Apex 300 scales with your needs without forcing unnecessary complexity. The base unit delivers substantial capability on its own, while the modular expansion system allows growth without replacing your initial investment. The optional Hub D1 adds comprehensive DC output options, the B300K batteries multiply capacity, and solar integration unlocks renewable energy potential. This flexibility means the system grows with your needs rather than becoming obsolete when requirements change. Few products in any category offer this combination of immediate utility, long-term durability, exceptional efficiency, and adaptable design. For anyone serious about energy independence, weather resilience, or sustainable power solutions, the Apex 300 delivers value that extends far beyond its price tag. The Bottom Line This review set out to evaluate the Apex 300 as a practical power solution for real-world scenarios, from blackouts to outdoor adventures. The results speak for themselves after extended testing with everyday appliances and devices. The Apex 300 delivers on its promises with exceptional performance, remarkable durability, and thoughtful design choices that prioritize user experience. Its 17 years lifespan (nearly double the industry standard), ultra-efficient 20W idle drain, and seamless expandability create a system that grows with your needs rather than becoming obsolete. While we didn’t test solar integration, the potential 6,400W solar input capacity through the SolarX 4K could transform this from merely a backup solution into a comprehensive renewable energy system with a potential two-year payback period. Whether you’re preparing for power outages or planning off-grid adventures, the Apex 300 offers a flexible solution with support for battery, solar, and even gas input. It’s designed to handle real-world energy needs with surprising ease. Among the available options, the one we’re reviewing, the Apex 300 + B300K expansion battery bundle, stands out because it costs just $0.36 per watt-hour, with tax and shipping already included. The offer is limited by both time and availability, with installment payments now available for added flexibility. There are other bundles designed for different needs, so it’s worth checking which one fits your setup. The Apex 300 campaign is now live on Indiegogo until July 19. Click Here to Buy Now: $1199 $2399 ($1200 off). Hurry, deal ends soon!The post BLUETTI Apex 300 Review: The All-in-One Solar, Gas, and Battery Solution for Blackouts and Beyond first appeared on Yanko Design.

Facepalm: Like many electric vehicles, Teslas feature fully electric doors with emergency manual release mechanisms in case the car loses power. However, enough owners find Tesla's manual door openers insufficiently accessible that a market for custom escape latches has emerged. Numerous deadly incidents have occurred in which Tesla drivers and passengers were trapped inside their vehicles following a crash or fire. In many cases, survivors were rescued only after bystanders or first responders broke the windows, as power loss had rendered the doors inoperable. As a result, cautious Tesla owners have turned to various DIY solutions to make the vehicles' emergency release systems easier to access or more visible. These modifications have become so popular that some companies now mass-produce and sell them, highlighting a widespread concern over the accessibility of Tesla's emergency exits. Electric vehicles often use buttons to operate doors via electric motors, keeping the handles flush with the body. Although eliminating analog door handles increases the risk of being locked in or out of the vehicle, multiple manufacturers have told Consumer Reports that the design offers several advantages. Flush, motorized door handles improve aerodynamics and reduce weight, which enhances overall performance. Additionally, electronic safety systems can automatically open doors after a crash or prevent them from opening into the path of oncoming objects. However, users may struggle to open the doors due to software glitches or unfamiliarity with the technology. Many Tesla owners also complain that the emergency latches are too well hidden. While locations vary by model, users can consult the owner's manual for guidance. For instance, the Model Y's front door release mechanism is located beneath an unmarked tab in front of the driver-side window switches. The rear door latches are even more obscure, tucked behind a small access door underneath the mat at the bottom of the door pocket. // Related Stories Owners often address the issue by tying ripcords to the manual release handles, sometimes attaching clearly marked eject tabs for visibility. One company, EV Dynamics, sells a cable with Velcro and snap-on attachments for $22. In contrast, some other vehicles with electric doors offer more intuitive emergency release systems. For example, models from Audi, Ford, Fisker, and others allow the doors to open when users pull the handles forcefully or pull them twice. Entering a vehicle with fully electric doors can also become difficult if the car loses power or the handles freeze. Manufacturers differ in how they address this problem. Some include traditional manual keys, while Tesla advises owners to use the mobile app to force the handle open.

Language models (LMs) have great capabilities as in-context learners when pretrained on vast internet text corpora, allowing them to generalize effectively from just a few task examples. However, fine-tuning these models for downstream tasks presents significant challenges. While fine-tuning requires hundreds to thousands of examples, the resulting generalization patterns show limitations. For example, models fine-tuned on statements like “B’s mother is A” struggle to answer related questions like “Who is A’s son?” However, the LMs can handle such reverse relations in context. This raises questions about the differences between in-context learning and fine-tuning generalization patterns, and how these differences should inform adaptation strategies for downstream tasks. Research into improving LMs’ adaptability has followed several key approaches. In-context learning studies have examined learning and generalization patterns through empirical, mechanistic, and theoretical analyses. Out-of-context learning research explores how models utilize information not explicitly included in prompts. Data augmentation techniques use LLMs to enhance performance from limited datasets, with specific solutions targeting issues like the reversal curse through hardcoded augmentations, deductive closure training, and generating reasoning pathways. Moreover, synthetic data approaches have evolved from early hand-designed data to improve generalization in domains like linguistics or mathematics to more recent methods that generate data directly from language models. Researchers from Google DeepMind and Stanford University have constructed several datasets that isolate knowledge from pretraining data to create clean generalization tests. Performance is evaluated across various generalization types by exposing pretrained models to controlled information subsets, both in-context and through fine-tuning. Their findings reveal that in-context learning shows more flexible generalization than fine-tuning in data-matched settings, though there are some exceptions where fine-tuning can generalize to reversals within larger knowledge structures. Building on these insights, researchers have developed a method that enhances fine-tuning generalization by including in-context inferences into the fine-tuning data. Researchers employ multiple datasets carefully designed to isolate specific generalization challenges or insert them within broader learning contexts. Evaluation relies on multiple-choice likelihood scoring without providing answer choices in context. The experiments involve fine-tuning Gemini 1.5 Flash using batch sizes of 8 or 16. For in-context evaluation, the researchers combine training documents as context for the instruction-tuned model, randomly subsampling by 8x for larger datasets to minimize interference issues. The key innovation is a dataset augmentation approach using in-context generalization to enhance fine-tuning dataset coverage. This includes local and global strategies, each employing distinct contexts and prompts. On the Reversal Curse dataset, in-context learning achieves near-ceiling performance on reversals, while conventional fine-tuning shows near-zero accuracy as models favor incorrect celebrity names seen during training. Fine-tuning with data augmented by in-context inferences matches the high performance of pure in-context learning. Testing on simple nonsense reversals reveals similar patterns, though with less pronounced benefits. For simple syllogisms, while the pretrained model performs at chance level (indicating no data contamination), fine-tuning does produce above-chance generalization for certain syllogism types where logical inferences align with simple linguistic patterns. However, in-context learning outperforms fine-tuning, with augmented fine-tuning showing the best overall results. In conclusion, this paper explores generalization differences between in-context learning and fine-tuning when LMs face novel information structures. Results show in-context learning’s superior generalization for certain inference types, prompting the researchers to develop methods that enhance fine-tuning performance by incorporating in-context inferences into training data. Despite promising outcomes, several limitations affect the study. The first one is the dependency on nonsense words and implausible operations. Second, the research focuses on specific LMs, limiting the results’ generality. Future research should investigate learning and generalization differences across various models to expand upon these findings, especially newer reasoning models. Check out the Paper. All credit for this research goes to the researchers of this project. Also, feel free to follow us on Twitter and don’t forget to join our 95k+ ML SubReddit and Subscribe to our Newsletter. Sajjad AnsariSajjad Ansari is a final year undergraduate from IIT Kharagpur. As a Tech enthusiast, he delves into the practical applications of AI with a focus on understanding the impact of AI technologies and their real-world implications. He aims to articulate complex AI concepts in a clear and accessible manner.Sajjad Ansarihttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sajjadansari/Salesforce AI Researchers Introduce UAEval4RAG: A New Benchmark to Evaluate RAG Systems’ Ability to Reject Unanswerable QueriesSajjad Ansarihttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sajjadansari/Google Researchers Introduce LightLab: A Diffusion-Based AI Method for Physically Plausible, Fine-Grained Light Control in Single ImagesSajjad Ansarihttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sajjadansari/DanceGRPO: A Unified Framework for Reinforcement Learning in Visual Generation Across Multiple Paradigms and TasksSajjad Ansarihttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sajjadansari/Reinforcement Learning, Not Fine-Tuning: Nemotron-Tool-N1 Trains LLMs to Use Tools with Minimal Supervision and Maximum Generalization 🚨 Build GenAI you can trust. ⭐️ Parlant is your open-source engine for controlled, compliant, and purposeful AI conversations — Star Parlant on GitHub! (Promoted)

Google has officially rolled out the NotebookLM mobile app, extending its AI-powered research assistant to Android devices. The app aims to bring personalized learning and content synthesis directly to users’ pockets by introducing new features that combine mobility, context-awareness, and interactive capabilities. NotebookLM, which first launched in 2023 as a web-based experimental tool, is designed to help users organize and interact with their own documents and media using a fine-tuned version of Google’s Gemini 1.5 Pro model. With the new mobile release, Google is positioning NotebookLM as more than just a passive summarization tool — it’s evolving into an on-the-go research companion. Expanding Contextual AI to Mobile One of the core capabilities of NotebookLM is its source-grounded AI assistance. Users can upload documents—such as PDFs, Google Docs, or links—and the assistant will generate summaries, answer questions, and synthesize information based strictly on the materials provided. This grounded approach ensures transparency and relevance, reducing the hallucination risks common in general-purpose LLMs. The new Android app brings this paradigm to mobile in a more seamless, integrated way. Users can now add sources directly from their mobile device, whether browsing a web page, reading a PDF, or watching a YouTube video. A simple tap on the “Share” button in any app lets users send content to NotebookLM, which will ingest it as a new source. This makes it easier for users to build and maintain their research libraries without needing to manually upload files later. Offline and Background Audio Overviews NotebookLM’s Audio Overviews were introduced earlier this year to make content more accessible through auditory summaries. The mobile app enhances this feature significantly by enabling offline downloads and background playback. Users can now listen to these overviews while commuting, exercising, or multitasking — even without an internet connection. This supports a broader range of learning contexts, particularly for users who prefer audio-first experiences or have limited screen time. Importantly, audio playback continues in the background, aligning with typical media consumption behaviors on mobile. Interactive Audio Conversations with AI Hosts In a move to blend passive listening with interactivity, NotebookLM’s mobile app introduces Interactive Audio Overviews. These allow users to engage in real-time conversations with the AI “hosts” that narrate their overviews. By tapping “Join”, users can interrupt the playback to ask questions, request clarifications, or guide the summary in a new direction — a feature that adds conversational depth to the learning experience. This marks a departure from static, pre-recorded summaries and moves toward adaptive audio interfaces powered by LLMs. While many AI tools offer Q&A-style interactions, combining them with ambient audio and voice-first navigation is relatively new and signals Google’s intent to create more naturalistic AI assistants. Conclusion With the NotebookLM mobile app, Google is bridging the gap between context-rich AI research tools and real-world mobile usability. Features like offline Audio Overviews, universal source sharing, and interactive playback demonstrate a clear step toward personalized, context-aware AI that’s accessible anywhere. As AI tools continue to evolve beyond chatbots and simple prompts, NotebookLM stands out by focusing on what users already know and want to learn — organizing their own knowledge sources rather than relying solely on web-scale data. The mobile release pushes this philosophy forward, turning everyday moments into opportunities for exploration and deeper understanding. Check out the APP on both Android and iOS. All credit for this research goes to the researchers of this project. Also, feel free to follow us on Twitter and don’t forget to join our 95k+ ML SubReddit and Subscribe to our Newsletter. NikhilNikhil is an intern consultant at Marktechpost. He is pursuing an integrated dual degree in Materials at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. Nikhil is an AI/ML enthusiast who is always researching applications in fields like biomaterials and biomedical science. With a strong background in Material Science, he is exploring new advancements and creating opportunities to contribute.Nikhilhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/nikhil0980/This AI Paper from Microsoft Introduces a DiskANN-Integrated System: A Cost-Effective and Low-Latency Vector Search Using Azure Cosmos DBNikhilhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/nikhil0980/LLMs Struggle to Act on What They Know: Google DeepMind Researchers Use Reinforcement Learning Fine-Tuning to Bridge the Knowing-Doing GapNikhilhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/nikhil0980/LLMs Struggle with Real Conversations: Microsoft and Salesforce Researchers Reveal a 39% Performance Drop in Multi-Turn Underspecified TasksNikhilhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/nikhil0980/Salesforce AI Releases BLIP3-o: A Fully Open-Source Unified Multimodal Model Built with CLIP Embeddings and Flow Matching for Image Understanding and Generation 🚨 Build GenAI you can trust. ⭐️ Parlant is your open-source engine for controlled, compliant, and purposeful AI conversations — Star Parlant on GitHub! (Promoted)