Author: dailyguardian.ae
In a neuro-robotics lab at the University of Southern California, a small mechanical hand heard a melody for the first time and played it back in a single attempt, without any sheet music, pre-loaded scores, or weeks of supervised training and practice (via USC Viterbi). The system is called the Musician Hand. It has four fingers, each moved by a tendon connected to a small electric motor, mirroring how muscles actually pull tendons in a human hand. It was built by doctoral candidate Hesam Azadjou under the direction of Professor Francisco Valero-Cuevas. How did the robot actually learn? Through a…
BYD just delivered another blow to Tesla. The company’s new self-driving package just dropped with a price tag that basically embarrasses Tesla’s driver-assistance service. The Chinese EV giant announced a new service package dubbed God’s Eye, with chairman Wang Chuanfu claiming BYD’s first goal is to achieve “zero traffic accidents.” In a recent press conference, he announced that BYD will fully cover compensation and repairs for accidents that happen while drivers are using its City Navigation function, without affecting the user’s insurance premiums the following year. BYD is confident in its self-driving tech BYD’s new coverage applies to its God’s…
HBO has never been shy about building suspense, so it came as a surprise when the final trailer for House of the Dragon season 3 casually revealed one of its biggest moments up front. The outcome of the much-anticipated Battle of the Gullet, the centerpiece naval clash that opens the season, is effectively out in the open. Rhaenyra Targaryen wins the battle and takes over King’s Landing. For fans of George R.R. Martin’s source material, Fire and Blood, this was inevitable. For everyone else, it is a bittersweet spoiler they might have preferred to discover on screen themselves, though the…
Shift is offering to clean homes for free, but there is one important condition. The company will record those chores to build training data for future home robots. The New York-based startup is currently offering free cleaning services, in which a vetted operator visits a home and wears a camera-equipped device while performing routine household work. The footage can then help AI systems understand how people clean homes outside controlled lab settings. Your messy home is valuable AI training data AI companies have already used text, images, and videos from the internet to train software models. But robots need a…
One of my favorite things about macOS is its support for Menu Bar apps. These apps are small, live in your Menu Bar, and help you perform tasks without launching a full-blown app. Since there’s only a limited number of Menu Bar apps you can install, before it becomes a cluttered mess, I treat it is a prime real estate. Every app wants to park itself up there, but only a few actually earn their spot. After years of installing and uninstalling apps, I have settled on five that I genuinely use every day. There are a few more apps…
Phone camera partnership had a very rocky start. These collaborations, while bringing big names, felt vague sometimes. Simply slapping a logo on the camera module and making a few color tuning changes will have you wondering how much of it actually changes the photos you take, especially when the price of a phone takes a hike. Such partnerships have been bringing great results in the last couple of years, and a device that really made it apparent was the Xiaomi 17T Pro. I spend a day shooting with it, moving between outdoor portraits, cafe shelves, product displays, and dimly lit…
Copilot Health is now in preview, and Microsoft’s ambition for it is clear, an AI assistant that knows your health history, understands your fitness data, and can help you make sense of your medical records, all in one place. Copilot Health is a dedicated space within the Copilot chatbot at copilot.microsoft.com/health where you can get answers to your health-related questions. You have questions. Copilot Health has clarity. Copilot Health is a new safe and secure place where you can ask health questions, connect the dots between your wearable data and health records, and get personalized insights.Now available in preview for…
Apple gave Windows laptop makers a serious headache when it launched the MacBook Neo in March at $599. Powered by the A18 chip, it quickly became one of the easiest laptops to recommend for students and casual users who did not specifically need Windows. Acer is now trying to push back with the Swift Air 14, a 14-inch laptop announced just ahead of Computex 2026. It starts at $699 and uses Intel’s new Core Series 3 chips, also known as Wildcat Lake. On paper, it looks like one of the first serious attempts to build a cheaper Windows laptop that…
Dual-mode gaming monitors have been around long enough that the novelty has worn off. MSI has decided that two modes simply aren’t enough and has unveiled the MPG OLED 322URDX36 ahead of Computex 2026. It is the world’s first Triple Mode gaming monitor, and if the execution is as good as it sounds, it could be one of the few gaming monitors that I’d be genuinely interested in. What is Triple Mode and why does it matter? The MPG OLED 322URDX36 lets you switch between three resolution and refresh rate combinations: 4K at 360Hz, 2K at 520Hz, and FHD at…
Dell released a wave of new laptops on May 29, 2026, just four days before Computex 2026 opens in Taipei on June 2. Amid a loaded spec sheet, nearly every flagship model in the new batch offers optional 5G cellular connectivity. While the capability has traditionally been reserved for ultraportable or enterprise-grade devices, Dell is signalling that always-connected laptops are no longer a niche requirement. Which Dell laptops now offer 5G in the US? There are three models in this batch that ship with optional 5G cellular connectivity, all from the Pro 7 Series family. First, there’s the Pro 7…