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Rob Dunwoody (1:14)
These are the daily tech headlines for Thursday, February 20, 2025. I'm Rob Dunwoody Microsoft claims a major breakthrough in quantum computing with the unveiling of its first quantum processor, the Majorana One, which could enable quantum computers to tackle industrial scale problems. After 17 years of research, the company has developed a new material and architecture centered around Majorana particles, first theorized in 1937 by physicist Etor Majorana. Unlike traditional qubits, which are highly sensitive to noise and errors, Majorana1 leverages what Microsoft calls the world's first topo conductor to observe and control these particles, potentially making qubits more reliable. This innovation could allow a million qubits to fit onto a single chip comparable in size to modern CPUs, marking a significant step toward practical quantum computing. Amazon will shut down its Android app store on August 20, 2025, preventing developers from submitting new apps and discontinuing its Amazon Coins digital currency, which was used for app and game purchases. The company stated that users will lose access to the App Store on Android devices after this date, but assured it that it will remain functional on Amazon's own devices, including Fire TV and Fire Table. Additionally, Amazon confirmed that it will refund any remaining coins balances to users as of the shutdown date. A report by Australia's online safety regulator revealed that children in the country can easily bypass social media platforms minimum age restrictions. Just as the government prepares to enforce a landmark ban on access for those under 16 by the end of 2025. The study combined a national survey of children aged 815 with responses from major platforms including YouTube, Facebook and Twitch. While most social media platforms prohibit users under 13, Australia's new regulation sets a global precedent in restricting access for younger users under the age of 16. Google is pushing iOS users to get its standalone Gemini app by removing the AI assistant from the main Google app. This move is all about making Gemini a stronger competitor against other AI chatbots like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity. But there's a risk that this could backfire and make Gemini less accessible, as many users might not bother downloading it as a separate app. Google sent emails to users about the change, letting them know that Gemini was no longer available in the Google app and pointing them to the App Store to download the standalone Gemini app. Even though the standalone Gemini app launched late last year, Gemini had still been hanging out on the main Google app up until now. Muse, an innovative generative AI model developed by Microsoft Research, can generate game environments based on visuals or player actions. The AI model understands 3D game worlds and physics and can dynamically react to player interactions, creating consistent and diverse gameplay rendered entirely by AI. According to Fatima Cardar, Microsoft's corporate vice president of gaming AI, this marks a significant step toward AI driven tools that can empower game developers. Microsoft has showcased examples of its Muse model generating gameplay and allowing players to load visual elements as prompts, emphasizing that while it can assist in early game development, it is not intended to fully create games or replace developers. Twitch has introduced new changes to its violation enforcement system, allowing most minor infractions to expire after 90 days, while more serious offenses, such as hateful conduct remain for one to two years, with the most severe violation still resulting in immediate suspension. The update benefits longtime creators by preventing minor infractions from accumulating indefinitely, which previously led to suspensions. Additionally, users indefinitely suspended due to multiple violations can now apply for reinstatement after six months. However, Twitch is also increasing penalties for repeated violations within the same policy category, ensuring that each recurring infraction results in a longer suspension even if its severity remains unchanged to reinforce adherence to its community guidelines. Hoopla, a digital service providing e books at public libraries, has pledged to take stronger measures against low quality AI generated books after a 404 Media investigation revealed their prevalence on its platform. While specifics of its plan remain unclear, Hoopla informed librarians on February 14 about steps already taken, including revising its collection development policy to align with industry best practices, improving catalog management options for librarians, and removing all summary titles from vendors, except for select publishers like HMH Books, which produces Cliff notes. TikTok is laying off employees in its Trust and Safety unit, which handles content moderation as part of its global restructuring, according to three sources familiar with the matter. Two sources stated that Adam Presser, the app's operations head who oversees the unit, informed staff of the decision in a memo on Thursday. Lay layoffs begin the same day, affecting teams across Asia, Europe, the Middle east and Africa. And finally, Nvidia, the American Society for Deaf Children and the Creative agency hello Monday have developed Signs, an interactive web platform designed to support ASL learning and advanced, accessible AI applications. The platform features a validated ASL sign library, a 3D avatar that demonstrates signs, and an AI tool that provides real time feedback by analyzing webcam footage. Additionally, users of all skill levels can contribute by signing specific words that help Build an open source video Data set for ASL. Nvidia aims to expand this data set to 400,000 video clips covering 1,000 signed words with validation by fluid ASL users and interpreters to ensure accuracy, creating a high quality visual dictionary and a teaching tool. For more analysis of the tech news of the day, subscribe to dailytechnewshow.com and if you enjoy the show, remember to tell a friend to check us out. 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