On episode 67 of Digital Trends Live, DT’s live morning show, hosts Greg Nibler and Parker Hall journeyed deep into the mines of tech news, hunting for the biggest stories. The big story of the day? Images of Samsung’s upcoming products leaked as part of an app update, giving the world an authentic look at, among other things, the long-rumored Galaxy Buds, which appear to lack silicone earhooks. We expect to hear much more about the Galaxy Buds at Samsung’s Unpacked event on February 20.
Every day brings exciting news for cryptocurrency fans, whether that news be good or terrible. This week brought some very good news for crypto enthusiasts, as JP Morgan has launched its own cryptocurrency, JPM Coin. For now, the bank will be using JPM Coin for a limited number of transactions, and “only big institutional clients of J.P. Morgan that have undergone regulatory checks, like corporations, banks and broker-dealers, can use the tokens,” according to CNBC. Still, this trial run shows that large institutions are interested in the possibilities offered by blockchain tech.
Is there any job machines aren’t coming to steal? OpenAI’s new artificial intelligence project, GPT2, is a text generator that can write convincingly, staying on topic and maintaining sensible syntax. It’s an interesting development, and for now OpenAI is refusing to release its research on GPT2 for fear of misuse.
Speaking of machines, later on in the show, Greg spoke to Will Huff, founder of Robomodix, who brought a special guest along with him: Alena, a robotic bust that is meant to make interacting with digital assistants like Alexa a little more natural. Alena sports a camera on her forehead, so she can track the user’s movement and make eye contact as she talks.
Alena is designed to be a feminine personality, while those who want a male digital assistant can opt for Robomodix’s other robot, Alan.
Digital Trends Live airs at 9 a.m. PT from Monday through Friday, with highlights available on demand after the stream ends. For more information, check out the DT Live homepage, and be sure to watch live for the chance to win occasional prizes.