Consumer & Gadgets news

Consumer & Gadgets

Even when AI behaves just like us, people still rate it as less conscious than humans

Stories about AI systems deceiving users, cooperating with one another or pursuing their own goals increasingly invite us to talk about them as if they had minds of their own. But do people really believe that AI is conscious? ...

Consumer & Gadgets

The electric car myths Australians can't shake

Electric cars are dangerous, bad for the environment and impossible to use in the outback. These are just some of the claims circulating among Australians skeptical of the switch to EVs, new research finds.

Consumer & Gadgets

Is it safe to charge your phone overnight?

It's bedtime. You set your alarm, notice your phone is down to 23% battery, plug it in beside the bed and go to sleep. By morning, it's been connected to the charger for seven to eight hours—much longer than it needed to ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Misleading AI-generated summaries can distort human memory

AI-generated summaries are becoming increasingly prevalent—from news article previews to workplace meeting transcriptions to high-stakes settings like police body camera footage—despite studies showing that AI can generate ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Meta launches camera-free AI glasses amid privacy pushback

Meta unveiled several new wearables powered by its AI models Wednesday, including an audio-only, camera-free version of its smart glasses, amid global concerns about privacy and the filming of women and girls without their ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Meta leans into AI, smart glasses amid privacy pushback

Meta has spent billions to stay competitive in artificial intelligence, but the tech giant faces growing pushback as CEO Mark Zuckerberg prepares to announce new products built for the AI era Wednesday.

Consumer & Gadgets

How to know if you can trust an AI's answer to your question

I recently typed a simple question into Google Search: How much screen time is too much for teenagers? Instead of presenting links, as Google had been doing for many years, it gave me an AI-generated answer. The artificial ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Could empathic digital humans transform creative learning?

Research originating at Georgia State University's Creative Media Industries Institute (CMII) into empathic digital humans and human-centered artificial intelligence continues to evolve, with a new publication, international ...

Consumer & Gadgets

AI can sound empathetic and human—but not at the same time

AI-generated texts are increasingly perceived as human, but people can still recognize human writing as such. However, this distinction becomes much more difficult once AI is explicitly instructed to come across as human. ...

Consumer & Gadgets

New Apple CEO to unveil latest iPhone lineup

Apple is unveiling its latest generation of iPhones, widely expected to include a foldable version, on Wednesday at an event headlined by new CEO John Ternus, who took over from Tim Cook on Sept. 1.

Consumer & Gadgets

More grip on smart devices? Why legislation falls short

From smart vacuum cleaners and doorbell cameras to complex medical equipment in hospitals, many devices around us are connected to the internet. But are we adequately protected against the risks this poses? Legal scholar ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Wearable patch vibrates when it detects environmental hazards

Researchers have created a wearable patch that can detect hazards in the environment—such as dangerous gases or heavy metals in water—and then notify wearers by vibrating against their skin. The researchers have also extended ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Pocket-size AI: Powerful phones star at China show

Tech firms are racing to roll out advanced smartphones that use artificial intelligence to do everything from ordering food to composing messages with a simple voice command.

Consumer & Gadgets

AI job rejections felt least fair when avatars shared just one trait

Companies are increasingly using artificial intelligence in their hiring processes. It's not just CVs that are evaluated automatically. AI tools can also conduct job interviews—usually in the form of avatars, which are animated ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Almost half of Australian adults have used generative AI

Almost half of Australian adults have used generative artificial intelligence (GAI), with most users reporting it improves how they do their jobs or study, according to new research by the Australian National University (ANU) ...