The name Google is synonymous with online searches, but over the years the company has grown beyond search and now builds multiple consumer products, including software like Gmail, Chrome, Maps, Android, and hardware like the Pixel smartphones, Google Home, and Chromebooks. Its name can also be found on internet services such as Google Fi, Flights, Checkout, and Google Fiber. Here is all of the latest news about one of the most influential tech companies in the world.
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Epic v. Google: everything we’re learning live in Fortnite court
In a redux of a case against Apple and iOS, Epic aims to dismantle barriers that could spell higher fees for app makers — and, Google argues, keep Android safe and competitive.
The people who ruined the internet
SEO experts got very rich filling the web full of garbage. But are they to blame, or is Google?
Could be a really useful tool for sharing video presentations. Read more about it on Google’s Workspace blog.
Wix CEO Avishai Abrahami on why the web isn’t dying after all
The co-founder of website builder Wix is embracing generative AI, and he’s not too worried that it might destroy the business models of the web.
The change is being tested in version 14.48.26.29.arm64 of the Google app so it’s not widely available yet. The bar remains at the bottom when displaying search results, meaning users with larger phones don’t have to stretch their thumbs so far when typing.
The Chrome app on iOS introduced a similar update for the URL bar last month.
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Pixel 8 and 8 Pro review: in Google we trust?
These might just be the Pixel phones we’ve been waiting for, but it all depends on how much trust you’re willing to put into Google.
Users have been reporting the outage on Google’s forums since around November 15th. A Google community manager replied, saying some 2nd gen Nest Protects are losing connection, and it’s working on a fix.
Some members have posted today that they’ve gotten the devices back online but that there are still issues. The Nest status page doesn’t reflect an outage as of this writing.
[www.googlenestcommunity.com]
An upcoming change spotted by TheSPAndroid shows a big “unsubscribe” button at the very top of promotional emails. Hopefully, that means no more scrolling to the bottom of lengthy spam messages just to unsubscribe.
Earlier this year, Google combined two AI teams into one group which is working on a new model to compete with OpenAI’s GPT-4. Its leader, Demis Hassabis, discussed the combo on Decoder:
And we’re already feeling, even a couple of months in, the benefits and the strengths of that with projects like Gemini that you may have heard of, which is our next-generation multimodal large models — very, very exciting work going on there, combining all the best ideas from across both world-class research groups. It’s pretty impressive to see.
Now, The Information cites two sources saying its launch is expected in Q1 of 2024, not this month as they were previously told. It also reports Google co-founder Sergey Brin has been spending “four to five days a week” with the developers.
[The Information]
Inside Google’s big AI shuffle — and how it plans to stay competitive, with Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis
Google invented a lot of core AI technology, and now the company’s turning to Demis to get back in front of the AI race for AI breakthroughs.
Today is the deadline for Apple to argue to EU regulators that iMessage shouldn’t be designated as a core platform service.
It’s therefore extremely likely it revealed the iPhone will support RCS to please regulators, and not as a response to Nothing’s blue-bubble-on-Android news from yesterday. That’s not stopping CEO Carl Pei from taking a victory lap, earned or unearned. Never change, Carl.
It’s not as slick as the fully reflective, Daft Punk-like helmet Lewis Hamilton had at Suzuka earlier this year, but as Formula 1 drivers take to the improvised racetrack in Las Vegas this week, McLaren rookie Oscar Piastri will be wearing a *Google Chrome helmet, that matches the sponsor’s wheel covers on his car.
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Google Pixel Fold review: closing the gap
The Pixel Fold is a powerful device with an entertainment-friendly inner screen, but it feels like it’s at least one generation away from greatness.
Almost four years after the search giant stopped letting people buy digital magazines through Google News, the company is removing its magazine-reading feature entirely. After December 18th, you’ll no longer be able to access magazines purchased via the Google News apps or news.google.com, meaning you’ll have to export them if you ever want to read them again. Consider this your PSA.
[support.google.com]
Google’s Vertex AI Search tool is now generally available, the company announced on Wednesday, and Starz is using it for personalizing content recommendations. Google’s Albert Lai confirmed to The Verge that Newsweek is using the tool, too.
[Google Cloud]