Posts Tagged: create
Google can create the perfect Pixel phone — if it changes one thing
The Pixel 7a is a great phone. But with a few smart tweaks, Google could easily create a perfect Pixel. Here’s how.
Digital Trends
Google AI can create music in any genre from a text description
Never mind ChatGPT — music might be the next big frontier for AI content generation. Google recently published research on MusicLM, a system that creates music in any genre with a text description. This isn't the first AI music generator. As TechCrunchnotes, projects like Google's AudioML and OpenAI's Jukebox have tackled the subject. However, MusicLM's model and vast training database (280,000 hours of music) help it produce music with surprising variety and depth. You might just like the output.
The AI can not only combine genres and instruments, but write tracks using abstract concepts that are normally difficult for computers to grasp. If you want a hybrid of dance music and reggaeton with a "spacey, otherworldly" tune that evokes a "sense of wonder and awe," MusicLM can make it happen. The technology can even craft melodies based on humming, whistling or the description of a painting. A story mode can stitch several descriptions together to produce a DJ set or soundtrack.
MusicLM has its problems, as with many AI generators. Some compositions sound strange, and vocals tend to be incomprehensible. And while the performances themselves are better than you'd expect, they can be repetitive in ways human works might not. Don't expect an EDM-style drop or the verse-chorus-verse pattern of a typical song.
Just don't plan on using the tech any time soon. As with other Google AI generators, the researchers aren't releasing MusicLM to the public over copyright concerns. Roughly one percent of the music produced at the time of publication was copied directly from the training songs. While questions regarding licensing for AI music haven't been settled, a 2021 whitepaper from Eric Sunray (now working for the Music Publishers Association) suggested that there's enough "coherent" traces of the original sounds that AI music can violate reproduction rights. You may have to get clearances to release AI-created songs, much like musicians who rely on samples.
AI already has a place in music. Artists like Holly Herndon and Arca have used algorithms to produce albums and museum soundtracks. However, those are either collaborative (as with Herndon) or intentionally unpredictable (like Arca's). MusicLM may not be ready for prime time, but it hints at a future where AI could play a larger role in the studio.
How to create and share iPhone photo albums with ease
With iCloud album sharing, you can create an online gallery and invite others to contribute their own media to it. Even those without an iPhone can play a role.
Digital Trends
Discord server owners in the US can now create their own subscriptions
After a year of testing, Discord is ready to let more creators offer subscriptions. The community platform has enabled Server Subscriptions for all eligible server owners in the US. Your favorite streamer or social media star can now offer exclusive content and features at multiple price tiers they set themselves. You might get bonus videos, early access to merch or voting rights for influential polls, for instance.
Discord stresses that creators will get 90 percent of their subscription fee. They can also use a newly launched promo webpage feature to promote their paid options. Any server owner qualifies as long as they’re based in the US, agrees to policies and doesn’t have any “recent” violations.
The long testing period reflects Discord’s caution around launching Server Subscriptions. As company marketing manager Jesse Wofford told Engadget last year, the feature is meant to allow sustainable businesses on the platform — theoretically, a creator can generate meaningful profit (even if it’s purely supplemental) from their Discord community.
Whether or not this represents a good value may depend on the services a creator is already using to charge for Discord access. Patreon asks for as little as 5 percent of monthly income before payment processing, but membership tiers and some other perks aren’t available until a creator gives up 8 or 12 percent. Moreover, server owners still have to split their attention between two services — Discord’s move potentially simplifies subscriptions.
How to create a Smart Playlist in Apple Music
Wouldn’t you love a playlist that updates automatically as your favorite music changes? We’ll show you how to create a Smart Playlist in Apple Music on Mac.
Digital Trends
Court OKs lawsuit by woman who says she helped create Pinterest
Pinterest must now face a lawsuit from a former friend of one of its founders who claims she helped create the platform. Bloombergreported that Alameda County Superior Court Judge Richard Seabolt on Thursday denied the company’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit. Christine Martinez, the plaintiff, claims she was asked by co-founder Ben Silbermann to help revive the app. The digital market strategist claims to have developed features tied to Pinterest’s Boards and created a marketing plan to enlist bloggers to promote the platform, among other contributions.
Martinez filed a lawsuit against the company in September, and Pinterest filed the motion to dismiss in December. The company argued that Martinez’s claims are too old to fall within the statute of limitations. Seabolt disagreed with this and said Martinez “sufficiently alleges” that she and the Pinterest founders agreed to deferred compensation. Pinterest went public in 2019, an event that Seabolt deemed “transformative” and in his view sealed the company's obligation to pay Martinez.
In a statement to Engadget, Pinterest's chief communications officer LeMia Jenkins Thompson noted that the court dismissed several of Martinez's claims. Thompson also stated that, "as the facts come out, we are confident the evidence will confirm that Plaintiff’s claims are meritless and that the rest of this baseless lawsuit should be dismissed."
According to the New York Times, Martinez was never formally employed at nor did she ever sign a written contract with the San Francisco-based company. Instead, Martinez argues that the agreement was implied, based on her discussions with Sciarra and Silbermann.
Martinez, who is a former lifestyle blogger and founder of an eccomerce startup, told the Times she was eager to help friends. “[…The Pinterest co-founders] had no marketing background or expertise in creating a product for women.”
Scientists think the next big solar storm could create an ‘internet apocalypse’
Scientists say that our existing internet infrastructure — namely undersea cables — isn’t equipped to weather the next big solar storm. Here’s why.
Emerging Tech | Digital Trends
1Password team-up with Privacy.com lets you create burner cards
1Password has announced its partnership with Privacy.com, which is a service you can use to create virtual credit cards to make shopping online a lot safer. The team-up integrates Privacy.com’s capabilities into 1Password, giving you a way to generat…
Engadget RSS Feed
Grubhub sells itself to Just Eat to create a food delivery giant
The food delivery world is about to get a bit smaller. Just Eat Takeaway.com (Just Eat to most people) is buying Grubhub in a deal worth $ 7.3 billion. The merger will create the largest online food delivery outlet outside of China, according to the c…
Engadget RSS Feed
Project Witness: Can VR create empathy?
“We’ve allowed our most vulnerable children to be thrown away, to be traumatized and to be locked up in these jails and prisons, and we’ve got to change this narrative that some children aren’t children.” — Bryan Stevenson
As a human rights lawyer, I spent much of my time visiting girls behind bars. Many were arrested for child prostitution, even though they’d only lived 13 or 14 young years of life — not even close to the age of consent. They were not “child prostitutes,” but victims of child rape and trafficking. In prison, many of the girls were isolated for weeks, spending 23 hours a day in solitary confinement.
It was impossible for the struggles of these girls — and more broadly, the 48,000 U.S. children who are behind bars — to be witnessed. Their stories go unseen and unheard. So, to help these girls be more visible, I came to Google in 2015. And as Senior Counsel on Civil and Human Rights, I wanted to wield technology for the greater humanitarian good. YouTube and Google have always been a tool for people to change their own narratives.
YouTube and Google have also long supported efforts to improve our criminal justice system. Over the last four years, we’ve given over $ 30M in grants to criminal justice reform organizations, and partnered on projects like Love Letters, helping children send digital love letters to their incarcerated parents on Mother’s and Father’s Day. Through our philanthropy, and use of our platform, we’ve supported the work of those who are trying to do what’s right.
That work continues today, with the launch of a project that uses immersive storytelling tools to build empathy through proximity.
Today, YouTube and Google, in partnership with the Campaign for Fair Sentencing of Youth (CFSY), are launching Project Witness — a campaign that allows us to learn from formerly incarcerated children using Virtual Reality.
It works like this: The VR film anchors the viewer in the experience of an incarcerated child. You’re able to see and hear the experience of being in solitary confinement from the viewpoint of a child in an adult prison. YouTube is a powerful platform for so much more than entertainment — from advocacy to education and awareness — that is open and accessible by everyone. VR is a unique format to pull the viewer into the story.
The film is available to everyone on YouTube, and can be watched on desktop or via a VR headset. We will also feature Project Witness at a number of YouTube Spaces and events throughout the year.
Project Witness is one part of YouTube’s ongoing criminal justice initiatives. On February 6, we released an episode of BookTube featuring Bryan Stevenson, based on his best-selling memoir “Just Mercy,” which is now also a feature film. And in the next few weeks we will release a documentary that explores the challenges of the cash bail system.
YouTube is a platform that seeks to give everyone a voice, and we’re proud to support the voices who are changing the way formerly incarcerated children are perceived. That’s why I came here, and I haven’t looked back ever since.
Malika Saada Saar, YouTube Social Impact
MIT scientists accidentally create the blackest material ever
Engadget RSS Feed
Scientists create contact lenses that zoom on command
Engadget RSS Feed
Reddit subreddits can now create their own community rewards
Engadget RSS Feed
Overcast can create clips from any public podcast
Engadget RSS Feed
Airbnb may create original shows to spark the travel bug
Engadget RSS Feed
Luxury resort bans gadgets at swimming pool to create guest ‘haven’
Engadget RSS Feed
Every View Can Create Change: Introducing the 50+ new Creators for Change Impact Films
In anticipation of the International Day for Tolerance on November 16th, we are proud to celebrate the creators who are using the power of one view to open minds, inspire understanding, celebrate culture, and make a difference. From a beauty vlogger in California to a rapper in Sudan, a painter in Germany to a comedy collective in India, YouTube’s Creators for Change program brings together storytellers from around the world to share moments of hope, humanity, and acceptance. At YouTube, we believe that the world is a better place when we listen, share and build community through our stories. YouTube Creators for Change is a critical part of this mission and we are incredibly proud of the continued momentum of the creators from around the world who are using their voices to overcome divisiveness and hate.
Today, YouTube’s Creators for Change Ambassadors came together to release over 50 new films that aim to promote tolerance, encourage empathy, and spark dialogue, locally and globally.
In May we announced that 47 Global Ambassadors joined the Creators for Change program, a global initiative dedicated to amplifying and multiplying the voices of YouTube creators who are using their platforms to spread messages of positivity, hope and acceptance. Since the announcement, they’ve been working with mentors like award-winning filmmaker Eliot Rausch, the Founder of The Nzinga Effect, Eliza Anyangwe, and Anthony Robinson, the Director of Training & Public Engagement at the Truman National Security Project on persuasive storytelling and bridge-building to create inspiring Impact Films. Some highlights from this year’s films include:
- US-based singer-songwriter MILCK composed “A Little Peace” in response to violence globally. As part of her project she created a music video where multiple singers harmonized with one another in the name of peace.
- Australian-based YouTube Creator and rapper, L-FRESH the LION created a project that follows his work with Manbir SIngh (Akaal Fauj – kirtan teacher) trying to preserve Sikh culture through hip-hop and traditional music.
- UK-based skin-positivity Creator Em Ford created a follow-up video to her 2015 viral video “You Look disgusting” called “Redefine Pretty;” a short film detailing how beauty standards psychologically affect young women.
- India’s biggest female comedy YouTube creator, MostlySane’s video “No Offence” is a funny yet timely follow-up rap video to “Shameless”, focused on dealing with various kinds of hate speech – both online and in real life.
- Dentist by day, YouTube creator by night, Maha AJ created the “Salimmik” music video as a way to pay homage to her home country of Sudan. This love-letter to Sudan aims to show a side of Sudan that is not typically portrayed in media
Driving impact locally
In addition to the global program, creators around the world are using their voices to stand for positivity through our local chapter efforts in 9 countries. Through a combination of creator-led videos that opens minds to educational workshops that inspire critical though, local initiatives span 9 markets and continue to inspire local communities. For example:
- in Asia, Creators for Change joined forces with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and social change agency Love Frankie to support emerging YouTube creators committed to tackling tough social issues in their videos through a regional Creators for Change Fellows program. Following a series of kick-off Boot Camps across Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand, a committee selected 15 regional Fellows from these 5 countries, collectively representing an audience of over 2 million fans. Armed with production funding and opportunities to work with civil society organizations, these up-and-coming voices have created over 15 inspiring videos.
- Be Internet Citizens, the United Kingdom’s local Creators for Change chapter, is on target to reach 20,000 students you the end of the year with content about responsible Internet use and empowering young adults to be positive voices online.
- Israel hosted almost 100 top creators for a Tolerance Summit in connection with the local chapter initiative, #Ovdim_Al_Ze. The 2018 Tolerance Challenge was announced, an invitation for local creators to share meaningful and heartfelt videos for release on the International Day for Tolerance taking place on November 16th, 2018.
- The German chapter of Creators for Change, #NichtEgal, kicked off a nation-wide roll-out of school-focused workshops in October. Targeting 61 schools in all 16 German states, this program aims to train 200 teachers and 1,500 mentor students, who are forwarding their knowledge to 10,000+ students within the program until the beginning of December. These workshops are supported by our local YouTube creators who share their experiences and advise the students on how to have a positive impact in their communities.
- So far this year, 35 000 youth have benefited from anti fake-news and hate speech related workshops in France as part of the Toi-même Tu filmes program, working closely with partners like Les Petits Débrouillards and Génération Numérique to deliver trainings all over France. Additionally, YouTube Creators for Change has partnered with the United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner to sponsor the 2018 Mobile Film Festival, encouraging youth around the globe to create short films that celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights.
To all the creators who participated in this year’s program: thank you. We are grateful for your passion and dedication.
— Juniper Downs, Head of YouTube Public Policy
Samsung and Google are teaming up to create a better Android RCS messaging experience
Samsung has shown some fairly tepid interest in RCS messaging on Android, opting to stick with Samsung Messages as the default app on Galaxy devices instead of Android Messages. That’s pretty much removed Samsung phones from the new enhanced messaging features that Google has been rolling out. But RCS messaging is really cool, especially if […]
Come comment on this article: Samsung and Google are teaming up to create a better Android RCS messaging experience
AI-enabled Guess store helps you create an ensemble
You can try Amazon's Echo Look if you want AI to offer fashion advice at home. But what if you're at the store, and would rather not hem and haw while you decide if that top goes with those jeans? Guess and Alibaba think they can help. They've wor…
Engadget RSS Feed
Snap didn’t learn their lesson, will try to create Spectacles 2.0
Remember Snap’s Spectacles? No? It’s okay, they weren’t very good. They were so bad, actually, that Snap ended up with tons of excess parts and materials laying around that they couldn’t do anything with. You’d think that would be a pretty clear sign that the market doesn’t want your idea, but Snapchat’s parent company is […]
Come comment on this article: Snap didn’t learn their lesson, will try to create Spectacles 2.0
Tesla will create ‘virtual power plant’ with 50,000 Australian homes
Tesla isn't done bolstering Australia's power grid just because its giant battery farm is up and running. South Australia premier Jay Weatherill has unveiled a partnership that will provide 5kW solar panels and Tesla Powerwall 2 batteries to "at lea…
Engadget RSS Feed
Researchers create flexible battery that can run on salt water
Engadget RSS Feed
Technology is failing to create transparent supply chains
During the early days of globalization, it was relatively easy for corporations to either hide, or be ignorant of, human rights and environmental atrocities committed along their supply chain. Factories and producers were shifting manufacturing or so…
Engadget RSS Feed
Going public will give Razer the funds it needs to create a phone
Razer wants in on the thriving mobile industry. Bloomberg reports that the company is eyeing an initial public offering for sometime around October. The value of Razer is expected to be $ 3 billion to $ 5 billion, and the money raised would be heavily allocated towards the development of a mobile device. Intel and Temasek Holdings […]
Come comment on this article: Going public will give Razer the funds it needs to create a phone
Lenovo challenged developers to create new Moto Mods — here is what they built
Lenovo is running a competition with developers for creating a new generation of Moto Mods and there are some interesting finalists. For example, one Mod will give your Moto Z solar-charging capabilities.
The post Lenovo challenged developers to create new Moto Mods — here is what they built appeared first on Digital Trends.
Snapchat lets businesses create custom Snapcodes that launch their websites
Snapchat is adding a new feature to its website that could make the app very useful for businesses and website owners — custom Snapcodes that launch websites within the Snapchat app.
The post Snapchat lets businesses create custom Snapcodes that launch their websites appeared first on Digital Trends.
Tough as scales: Researchers create protective material inspired by fish skin
In a bid to build flexible and durable protective wear, researchers from McGill University turned to nature for inspiration and frequented a fish market to find test subjects.
The post Tough as scales: Researchers create protective material inspired by fish skin appeared first on Digital Trends.
BAE Systems wants to use lasers to create energy-scattering deflector shields
BAE Systems’ Laser Developed Atmospheric Lens (LDAL) project plans to temporarily and reversibly alter the Earth’s atmosphere to turn it into a range of different optic tools. Energy deflector shields, here we come!
The post BAE Systems wants to use lasers to create energy-scattering deflector shields appeared first on Digital Trends.
Create a 3D model of your home in mere minutes with Canvas app for iOS
Canvas is a new iOS app that lets iPad users with a 3D-scanning Structure Sensor easily capture scans of entire rooms in their (or other people’s) homes, complete with accurate measurements.
The post Create a 3D model of your home in mere minutes with Canvas app for iOS appeared first on Digital Trends.
YouTube VR: A whole new way to watch… and create
We’re inspired every day by the videos people share on YouTube. The idea that anybody, from any part of the globe, can create something that all of us can watch, laugh at, cry to, or relate to. Not only has this turned YouTube into a home for just about any idea imaginable, it’s made it the place where new video formats, new ways to connect, and new ways to tell stories are born.
We want to continue to provide you with new ways to engage with the world and with your community, and we believe virtual reality will play an important role in the future of storytelling. More than just an amazing new technology, VR allows us to make deep, human connections with people, places and stories. That’s why we’re committed to giving creators the space and resources they need to learn about, experiment with, and create virtual reality video. In fact, we’ve already started working with some awesome creators, recording artists, and partners who are producing VR videos across a wide variety of genres and interest areas on YouTube.
Want to spend some time with beauty vlogger Meredith Foster? Check out an immersive tour of her apartment. More of a foodie? Tastemade’s VR cooking videos breathe new life into learning new recipes. Rooster Teeth reimagines their gaming comedy “Red vs. Blue” for some fresh laughs. You can even watch breaking news in VR from HuffPost RYOT.
We’ve also been working to allow you to have experiences or visit places you might not be able to (or might not dare to!) in real life. Go swimming with sharks thanks to Curiscope, get a first-hand look at a living, breathing dinosaur at the Natural History Museum in London, travel to Belize with StyleHaul, hike a trail a thousand miles away with Daniel and Kelli at Fitness Blender, or watch Tritonal in concert no matter where you are.
And today you can experience all of this amazing content in a more immersive way with the brand new YouTube VR app, available first on Daydream. This new standalone app was built from the ground up and optimized for VR. You just need a Daydream-ready phone like Pixel and the new Daydream View headset and controller to get started. Every single video on the platform becomes an immersive VR experience, from 360-degree videos that let you step inside the content to standard videos shown on a virtual movie screen in the new theater mode. The app even includes some familiar features like voice search and a signed in experience so you can follow the channels you subscribe to, check out your playlists and more.
Small furry mammals inspired researchers to create groundbreaking wetsuit material
Could your next wetsuit be fashioned after the fur of hairy, semiaquatic mammals like beavers and sea otters? Quite possibly yes, if these researchers have anything to say about it. Here’s why their work is exciting.
The post Small furry mammals inspired researchers to create groundbreaking wetsuit material appeared first on Digital Trends.
Everyone will be able to create Twitter Moments in a few months
Today Twitter announced that it was was opening Moments creation to more brands, media outlets, partners and individuals like activist DeRay Mckesson. That's great and all, but the real news is that in the "coming months" everyone will be able to cre…
Engadget RSS Feed
Ultimate Ears adds Google Now to create smart speakers
Ultimate Ears has announced a unique new addition to their UE BOOM 2 and UE MEGABOOM Bluetooth speakers. The latest firmware update for these devices adds a new push-to-talk feature that can trigger Google Now, or Siri, directly from the speakers. The concept is to make it so that users can “say it to play […]
Come comment on this article: Ultimate Ears adds Google Now to create smart speakers
Google+ Create program will highlight experts in their field
Google+ has launched a new program called "Create" that puts makers, artists, influencers and experts in their field in front of a bigger audience. If you'll recall, Mountain View redesigned its social network last year to focus on Communities and Co…
Engadget RSS Feed
Awesome Jony Ive soundboard lets you create soothing sentences using ‘aluminium’
Fans of Jony Ive’s dulcet tones can now have him say what they want thanks to a new soundboard that’s just hit the Web. The current list of vocabulary includes an abundance of Ive’s carefully selected adjectives and, of course, the word “aluminium.”
The post Awesome Jony Ive soundboard lets you create soothing sentences using ‘aluminium’ appeared first on Digital Trends.
These bladeless wind turbines create electricity without spinning
Instead of capturing energy through the circular motion of a propellor, Vortex turbines take advantage of a physical phenomenon known as vorticity — an aerodynamic effect that creates a pattern of spinning vortices or whirlwinds.
The post These bladeless wind turbines create electricity without spinning appeared first on Digital Trends.