This week, there were some huge leaks about the future of Google’s Pixel device lineup, Adobe released the beta of their Firefly Generative AI, and reports surfaced that Samsung might dump Google for Bing on their Android devices. Also, there’s some more news about Google. there’s lots of space news, the interesting things of the week and more in the other news section. ^8c2198
Samsung might dump Google for Bing
The New York Times reported on Sunday that Google staff had discovered Samsung’s potential plan to switch the default search engine on its devices to Bing. The reason behind this decision could be Bing’s increasing popularity, driven by its new AI search capabilities, or it may simply be a strategic maneuver in negotiations.
Pixel Leaks
On Monday, a lot of information and photos were released about the upcoming Pixel Tablet and Pixel Fold. The Pixel Fold will be a horizontal foldable device and will cost $1799. The Pixel Tablet is expected to feature a Tensor G2 chip and 8 GB of RAM. An Amazon listing for the Pixel Tablet stand was also found, priced at $129. Both devices are expected to be announced at Google I/O on May 10th, with preorders becoming available on that day.
Google News
There are a few other Google stories, first off Google announced in a press release that they are adding an unlimited plan to Google Fi and also rebranding it to Google Fi Wireless. They also announced that DeepMind will be merged with Google Brain. Additionally, Google published a blog post on Wednesday proposing how Google Play alternative billing might work after the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) antitrust intervention.
Space News
Following a scrub on Monday, SpaceX achieved its inaugural Starship launch successfully. However, during stage separation, Starship suffered a rapid unscheduled disassembly (RUD). Additionally, Rocket Lab introduced its suborbital test rocket, Haste, on Monday and announced the first-ever refly of Electron on Thursday.
Interesting Things of the Week
- ActivityPub is the next big thing in social networks – The Verge
- Crooks’ Mistaken Bet on Encrypted Phones | The New Yorker
Other News
In other news, Apple has recently unveiled its new Apple Pay Savings Account, while Niantic is reportedly developing a Monster Hunter game. Additionally, BlueSky, has been released on Android. Stability AI has announced the release of its new LLM tool, and Polestar has revealed plans for its new electric vehicle, the Polestar 4.
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