Meta has acquired Play AI, a startup that uses AI to generate human-sounding voices. A Meta spokesperson has confirmed the acquisition, according to Bloomberg, which also reports that an internal memo stated that the “entire PlayAI team” will be joining the company next week. (TechCrunch has also reached out to Meta for confirmation.) Meta’s memo reportedly said that PlayAI’s “work...
A research institute connected to the United Nations has created two AI-powered avatars designed to teach people about refugee issues. 404 Media wrote about an experiment conducted by a class at the United Nations University Center for Policy Research that resulted in the creation of two AI agents or avatars — Amina, a fictional woman who fled Sudan and is...
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said Friday the company is delaying the release of its open model, which was already pushed back a month earlier in this summer. OpenAI had planned to release the model next week, however Altman said the company is pushing it back indefinitely for further safety testing. “We need time to run additional safety tests and review...
Human cerebral organoids inside a flask. Scientists have grown hearts, liver and lung organoids with blood vessels.Credit: National Institutes of Health/Science Photo LibraryResearchers are making ever more sophisticated mini organs in the lab — and now they can grow their own blood vessels. The structures, which mimic the heart, liver, lungs and gut, are some of the most complex models...
Nomia IqbalBBC NewsReporting fromKerr County, TexasWatch: 'We're filled with grief' - President Trump visits Texas after deadly floodsUS President Donald Trump reassured residents of Kerrville, Texas, that the government would help rebuild after floods hit the central part of the state last week, killing 120 people. The president and First Lady Melania Trump met on Friday with local officials on...
RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Richmond authorities have decided not to move forward with existing charges against Alonzo Ellis, the man accused of shooting and killing his daughter while holding a child. The Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office decided to "nolle prosequi” -- or drop -- the original charges, meaning they will not proceed with the ones initially filed. Ellis, who was initially...
AUSTIN, Texas (RNS) — Sandy Davis Kirk woke at 5 a.m. on July 4 to a roaring sound outside her window. “I heard people shrieking from the waters,” said Davis Kirk, whose backyard is bordered by the Guadalupe River. “It was hard to even believe it was real.” Like most Kerr County, Texas, residents, Davis Kirk did not receive any...
Pain isn't just a physical sensation -- it also carries emotional weight. That distress, anguish, and anxiety can turn a fleeting injury into long-term suffering. Researchers at the Salk Institute have now identified a brain circuit that gives physical pain its emotional tone, revealing a new potential target for treating chronic and affective pain conditions such as fibromyalgia, migraine, and...
In the last year, there has been a surge in proteins developed by AI that will eventually be used in the treatment of everything from snakebites to cancer. What would normally take decades for a scientist to create -- a custom-made protein for a particular disease -- can now be done in seconds. For the first time, Australian scientists have...
