Saturday, January 27, 2024

CES 2024 news in review: AI, spatial computing, robots and more


The following is a roundup of my coverage of the CES 2024 technology trade show in Las Vegas.

Arm elbows into new arenas as chip designer takes on AI, auto, cloud, other markets. (Jan. 26, 2024)

Powerfoyle becoming “Intel Inside” for light-powered gadgets. (Jan. 19, 2024)

Robot barista looks to fill labor shortage. Say hello to Adam. (Jan. 19, 2024)

Apple isn’t the only player in spatial computing. Rivals populated CES 2024. (Jan. 17, 2024)

Garmin targeting niche markets in smartwatches for women, kids. (Jan. 12, 2024)

Dolby cranks up volume of licensing deals in autos, TVs, PCs. (Jan. 12, 2024)

Qualcomm in catbird seat for edge AI shift, CEO says. (Jan. 11, 2024)

Smart TV platform battle rages at CES 2024. Amazon, Roku make waves. (Jan. 11, 2024)

Automotive chipmakers squeezed by “accordion effect.” (Jan. 10, 2024)

L’Oreal adds glamour to CES 2024 with beauty tech gadgets. (Jan. 9, 2024)

Dell, HP join Intel push for AI PCs. Microsoft Copilot called “marquee” feature. (Jan. 9, 2024)

Nvidia steps up generative AI game with new chips. (Jan. 8, 2024)

AMD rounds out AI PC chip lineup with new desktop processors. (Jan. 8, 2024)

Consumers set to upgrade pandemic-era tech purchases. (Jan. 8, 2024)

“AI is the story of the show”: What to expect from CES 2024. (Jan. 6, 2024)

Photos: CES 2024 outside the West Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center (Patrick Seitz); LG Electronics WebOS tunnel at CES 2024 (LG)


Saturday, January 20, 2024

Celebrities at CES 2024: Robert Downey Jr., Eva Longoria, Will.i.am and more

Celebrities turned up at CES 2024 on the show floor, at conference events and for after-hours concerts.
Actor Robert Downey Jr. spoke at a conference panel at the C Space Studio.
Actress and model Eva Longoria, a L’Oreal brand ambassador, appeared at the L’Oreal keynote presentation.
Rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer Will.i.am came out to promote his sound system for Mercedes-Benz.
Media personality Paris Hilton also spoke at CES 2024.
South Korean rapper G-Dragon toured the CES exhibit floor and visited mostly Korean companies, including LG, Samsung and SK Group.
Businesswoman and media personality Martha Stewart took to the kitchen stage at Samsung’s CES booth to craft her “Martha-tini” and smashed potatoes using the company’s SmartThings technology.
Top-name music acts were featured at corporate evening events at CES 2024.
Green Day rocked the Virgin Theater for Harman, a unit of Samsung.
Wu-Tang Clan performed at Voltaire at the Venetian for Yahoo. (See article by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.)
Nelly rapped for a club party at the Allegiant Stadium for TCL.
Ludacris rapped at the Jewel Nightclub at Aria for Amazon Ads.
Finally, Weezer performed a concert for iHeartMedia and MediaLink.

Photos: Eva Longoria (top) and Will.i.am. (CES)

















Friday, January 19, 2024

CES 2024: The most talked-out companies and products at the massive tech show


CES 2024 unleashed a tsunami of exciting new products and technologies across a diverse range of industries and markets. For a general interest journalist, such as me, it was pretty overwhelming.
This week, the Social Media Analytics Platform of GlobalData provided a list of the most-mentioned companies and products showcased at the consumer electronics show, which ran Jan. 9-12 in Las Vegas. GlobalData is a leading data and analytics company.
Samsung ranked first on social media (both the X platform and Reddit) during CES 2024, based on the volume of discussions about its products at the show. Those products included its S95D OLED TV, folding-screen smartphones and transparent micro-LED TV displays.
Other top-mentioned companies at CES 2024 included Rabbit, Nvidia, LG, Sony, Intel, Microsoft, Qualcomm, Honda Motor and Walmart.
Artificial intelligence device startup Rabbit was the biggest surprise. The Santa Monica, Calif.-based company introduced a pocket-sized consumer AI gadget at CES 2024.
The Rabbit R1 is a walkie-talkie-like device with a built-in camera. It offers smartphone-free solutions to simplify tasks like booking a flight, getting an Uber or ordering a meal.
GlobalData said its analysis is based on online discussions from Jan. 7 through Jan. 15.

Photo: Word cloud showing the most talked-about subjects at CES 2024. (GlobalData)

Sunday, January 14, 2024

CES 2024 buzzword of the show: AI


For the last 15 years after the CES tech trade show, I’ve chosen the buzzword of the show. This year, for the first time, the buzzword was a repeat.
The overwhelming choice for the buzzword of CES 2024 was AI, or artificial intelligence. Excitement this year was driven by generative artificial intelligence and edge AI devices.
AI was also the buzzword of the CES 2018 show. Back then, AI was in vogue because of the rise of autonomous vehicles, smart devices, and voice-response personal assistants.
At this year’s show, consumer electronics firms, PC makers, semiconductor companies and others touted AI features of their new products.
CES 2024 was the coming-out party for AI PCs, with new chips for running AI applications locally instead of in the internet cloud.
Plus, the most talked-about gadget at the show was the Rabbit R1 pocket AI device from Santa Monica, Calif.-based startup Rabbit. It’s a small device that works with voice commands and interacts with your smartphone to simplify tasks.
LG Electronics tried to make artificial intelligence seem less scary by calling their approach to AI “affectionate intelligence.”
Runners up for buzzword of CES 2024 included “spatial computing” and “software-defined vehicle.”

CES buzzwords through the years:

2010: Green
2011: Smart
2012: Ultra
2013: Super
2014: Curved
2015: Wearable
2016: HDR (high dynamic range)
2017: Voice
2018: AI (artificial intelligence)
2019: 5G
2020: Streaming
2021: Pandemic
2022: Metaverse
2023: Augmented reality
2024: AI

Photos: Samsung CEO JH Han speaking at CES 2024 press conference (Consumer Technology Association; LG Electronics press conference at CES 2024 (Patrick Seitz); and Rabbit R1 AI Assistant (Rabbit).


Monday, January 1, 2024

Top 20 celebrities and public figures predicted to die in 2024


With the death of game show host Bob Barker last year, former President Jimmy Carter moves up a notch in the dead pool rankings at Stiffs.com to become the public figure most likely to die in 2024.
Carter has been in the top five of the Stiffs.com dead pool competition for the last five years. Will this be the year the grim reaper finally catches up with him?
Of the top 20 public figures marked for death in 2023 by Stiffs.com, seven bought the farm. They included Barker, former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, singer Tony Bennett, cartoonist Al Jaffee, sitcom writer and producer Norman Lear, singer and actor Harry Belafonte and former first lady Rosalyn Carter.
In last year’s Stiffs.com competition, two people correctly picked actor Matthew Perry, 54, to die in 2023. Also, two people correctly forecast the death of singer Sinead O’Connor, 56.
What follows are the top 20 public figures (with their ages) predicted to die in 2024, according to Stiffs.com.
  1. Jimmy Carter, 99, former U.S. president
  2. Dick Van Dyke, 98, actor
  3. Mel Brooks, 97, comedian, writer, actor, director
  4. Glynis Johns, 100, British actress
  5. Eva Marie Saint, 99, actress
  6. Shannen Doherty, 52, actress
  7. Bob Newhart, 94, actor and comedian
  8. Alan Greenspan, 97, former chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve
  9. Gene Shalit, 97, film critic for NBC’s “The Today Show”
  10. June Lockhart, 98, actress
  11. David Attenborough, 97, broadcaster and naturalist
  12. Ethel Kennedy, 95, widow of U.S. senator Robert F. Kennedy
  13. Joanne Woodward, 93, actress
  14. Marv Levy, 98, pro football coach
  15. Buzz Aldrin, 93, U.S. astronaut
  16. Clint Eastwood, 93, actor and director
  17. Gene Hackman, 93, actor
  18. Yoko Ono, 90, Japanese multimedia artist and peace activist
  19. Willie Nelson, 90, country music singer and songwriter
  20. Doc Severinsen, 96, jazz trumpeter and band leader
Here are some notable younger public figures predicted to die this year by multiple Stiffs.com dead-pool players:

25. Celine Dion, 55, singer
26. Val Kilmer, 64, actor
63. Michael J. Fox, 62, actor
96. Toby Keith, 62, country music singer and songwriter
116. Britney Spears, 42, singer
128. Michael Schumacher, 54, Formula One racecar driver
137. William “The Refrigerator” Perry, 61, former football player
141. Charlie Sheen, 58, actor
149. Artie Lange, 56, comedian
150. Bam Margera, 44, skateboarder, “Jackass” stuntman
164. Madonna, 65, singer
167. Sir Mix-a-Lot, 60, rapper
174. Amanda Bynes, 37, actress

Photo: Britney Spears dancing with knives in social media video (TMZ)

Sunday, December 31, 2023

The most controversial foreign magazine covers of 2023


Artificial intelligence played a role in two of the most controversial foreign magazine covers of 2023.

German magazine Die Aktuelle ran a cover story “interview” with Formula One racecar driver Michael Schumacher that was generated using artificial intelligence software. Schumacher has not been seen in public since December 2013 when he suffered a serious brain injury in a skiing accident in the French Alps.
The publishers of magazine fired the editor and apologized to Schumacher’s family for the stunt. (See articles by Reuters, the Guardian, the Daily Mail, Sports Illustrated and Deadline.)

Glamour magazine in Bulgaria sparked controversy with the publishing industry’s first-ever AI-generated magazine cover photo “shoot.”
The magazine used an AI image generator to create a Barbie-inspired cover with the likeness model and swimsuit designer Lisa Opie.
(See articles by Creative Bloq, Trend Hunter, Peta Pixel and New York Post.)


French government minister Marlene Schiappa got tongues wagging when she posed for the cover of men’s magazine Playboy in France. Schiappa, a feminist author-turned-junior social economy minister, appeared in a low-cut white bodysuit exposing her cleavage and spread legs in the April/June issue.
(See articles by the Daily Mail, New York Post, CNN and BBC.)


Critics roasted the Times magazine in Britain for treating ISIS bride Shamima Begum like “some sort of celebrity,” instead of the terrorist defector that she is.
(See articles by the Express, Sky News and Dominique Samuels on X.)


Turkey criticized London-based magazine the Economist for its cover story that warned of “Turkey’s looming dictatorship” under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. (See articles by the Greek Reporter and Daily Sabah.)


Turkey also didn’t like the cover of German magazine Stern that referred to Ergogan as an “arsonist.” The magazine said he is stoking dangerous conflicts in other countries, including Germany.
(See articles by the Stockholm Center for Freedom and Turkish Minute.)


Plus, Turkey slammed the cover of French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo for its May 17 cover, which featured a cartoon of the Turkish president being electrocuted in a bathtub. (See article by Al Jazeera.)


China shut down Chinese literary magazine Selected Essays after 35 years when the publication printed a cover that appeared to lampoon President Xi Jinping.
(See articles by China Digital Times, Bitter Winter, Tibetan Review and German politician Reinhard Buetikofer.)


Glamour U.K. magazine featured a pregnant transgender man on its June digital cover. Critics were quick to point out that only women can get pregnant, regardless of gender dysphoria issues and body-changing procedures a person might go through.
(See articles by Fox News, NBC News, the Independent, American Greatness, OutKick and Zero Hedge.)


A bridal magazine in India, Brides Today, divided readers by putting a hairy, bearded non-binary model wearing a dress on its April cover. (See articles by the Daily Mail and New York Post.)


Finally, supermodel Giselle Bundchen shocked fans with her unrecognizable makeover for Vogue Italia’s March cover. (See articles by the Daily Mail, Page Six and Loudwire.)


Actresses, pop stars and models who flashed skin for magazine covers in 2023


A bevy of beauties took off their clothes or wore revealing outfits to sell magazines in 2023. Here’s the skinny.

Spanish actress Penelope Cruz went topless for the cover of Dust magazine’s spring-summer issue. (See article by Giant Freakin Robot.)

Singer and actress Janelle Monae posed topless for the June issue of Rolling Stone. (See articles by the Daily Mail, the Independent and Page Six.)


Model Winnie Harlow posed in the buff for Women’s Health magazine. (See articles by Yahoo Style and People.)


Model Paulina Porizkova bared her boobies while covered in silver paint for the cover of Elle Czech. (See articles by Parade, Page Six and Women’s Health.)


Singer and rapper Doja Cat freed the nipple for the cover of V magazine. (See article by Bustle.)


Model Leni Klum showed off her barely covered buns on the cover of Flaunt magazine. (See articles by Parade, Page Six and Flaunt.)


Actress Lily-Rose Depp went topless for i-D magazine. (See articles by Hollywood Life, Cosmopolitan and i-D.)


Actress Bella Thorne flashed underboob for Flaunt magazine. (See article by the Daily Mail.)


Model Amelia Gray Hamlin posed topless for Harper’s Bazaar France. (See article by Parade.)


Filipina television host and model Bianca Gonzalez posed topless for Mega magazine. (See article by ABS-CBN News.)


Finally, model and actress Julia Fox displayed a lot of skin for the cover of Rollacoaster magazine. (See articles by Rollacoaster, Cosmopolitan and Sports Illustrated Swimsuit.)