Author: IQ TIMES MEDIA

Verily, Alphabet’s life sciences company, has cut staff and closed down its long-running devices program, Business Insider has learned.The cuts were announced internally on Monday, according to a memo sent to staff by CEO Stephen Gillett and obtained by Business Insider.Verily, which began life as a moonshot inside Google’s X lab, has been on a journey to cut costs and streamline projects. The group has refocused its strategy around AI and developing infrastructure for other companies to lean on, Business Insider previously reported.Gillett told staff that a “significant part” of the changes were due to a decision to wind down…

Plainly, people seeking a single-line phone plan should avoid major carriers like Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile and opt for mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs). From a value standpoint, MVNOs like Mint Mobile, Visible Wireless, and others offer the best cell phone plans for one person.As detailed below, major carriers’ prepaid and postpaid plans are significantly less cost-effective for single-line users than comparable MVNO plans that provide essentially the same data allotments, data speeds, and coverage. Major carrier plans generally only make sense when you have three or more lines in an account.From extensive testing, our top pick among the best…

Anthropic is launching a research preview of a browser-based AI agent powered by its Claude AI models, the company announced on Tuesday. The agent, Claude for Chrome, is rolling out to a group of 1,000 subscribers on Anthropic’s Max plan, which costs between $100 and $200 per month. The company is also opening a waitlist for other interested users. By adding an extension to Chrome, select users can now chat with Claude in a sidecar window that maintains context of everything happening in their browser. Users can also give the Claude agent permission to take actions in their browser and…

Emma Heming Willis is sharing new details about her journey as caregiver for her husband, actor Bruce Willis, who was diagnosed more than two years ago with frontotemporal dementia, known as FTD.Heming Willis, 49, is the author of a new book, “The Unexpected Journey: Finding Strength, Hope and Yourself on the Caregiving Path,” out Sept. 9. She told ABC News’ Diane Sawyer she hopes the book helps give caregivers a roadmap and not feel as alone as she did when her husband was diagnosed with FTD, a type of dementia that impacts one’s personality and ability to communicate and may…

A Florida woman has been arrested after police say she performed unlicensed dental work, even allegedly using nail glue on the teeth of an unsuspecting customer.Emely Martinez, 35, of Pinellas County was arrested on Aug. 20 after multiple victims filed complaints with Pinellas Park police, alleging that they endured pain, infection and complications after they visited her for veneer treatments, according to arrest records obtained by USA TODAY. Some victims were forced to undergo emergency dental procedures and surgery after receiving her services, court documents said. Multiple customers told police that they were unaware that Martinez, operating out of Tapp…

Anthropic has settled a class action lawsuit with a group of fiction and nonfiction authors, as announced in a filing on Tuesday with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Anthropic had won a partial victory in a lower court ruling, and was in the process of appealing that ruling. No details of the settlement were made public, and Anthropic did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Called Bartz v. Anthropic, the case deals with Anthropic’s use of books as training material for its large language models. The court had ruled that Anthropic’s use of the books qualified as…

NEW YORK (AP) — Venus Williams will compete in women’s doubles at the U.S. Open after receiving a wild-card entry with 2021 singles runner-up Leylah Fernandez on Tuesday.The 45-year-old Williams is appearing at her first Grand Slam tournament in two years after making a comeback to pro tennis in July following 16 months away from the tour.She competed in mixed doubles last week, then in singles on Monday night — both also via wild-card invitations from the U.S. Tennis Association.Williams exited in the first round each time, but was thrilled to be back out on court after dealing with injuries…

The Trump administration made an unprecedented, and confusing, move last week when it announced plans to convert money Intel was supposed to receive through Joe Biden-era government grant programs into a 10% equity stake.While it remains unclear if converting those government grants into equity is even possible — that’s up for debate — it’s even less obvious how this move will solve Intel’s biggest problem, its waffling foundry business. Even Intel is unconvinced. Intel Foundry, which manufactures custom semiconductors for outside customers, has not been fruitful for the company. The business division lost out on potential big contracts, like one with…

Library e-book and audiobook app Libby is adding AI, much to the disappointment of some readers and librarians, who would prefer not to have AI inserted into their favorite apps. The new feature, “Inspire Me,” allows users to get book recommendations by using prompts or from their previously saved titles in Libby. To use the feature, readers tap on the “Inspire Me” options on Libby’s home page, where they can ask for fiction or nonfiction, then narrow down the suggestions by other factors, like age range, type of content, and more. For instance, you might tap on suggestions like “spine-tingling”…

Meta plans to launch a super PAC to support California candidates favoring a light-touch approach to AI regulation, Politico reports. The news comes as other Silicon Valley behemoths, like Andreessen Horowitz and OpenAI’s Greg Brockman, pledge $100 million for a new pro-AI super PAC.  Meta will pour tens of millions into its new group, dubbed Mobilizing Economic Transformation Across California, according to Politico. Brian Rice, Meta’s VP of public policy and head of the new PAC, has argued that Sacramento’s regulatory environment “could stifle innovation, block AI progress, and put California’s technology leadership at risk.” Meta’s lobbying force earlier this…