A SpaceX capsule carrying a former NASA astronaut and three paying customers returned from the International Space Station, marking the conclusion of a historic weeklong mission for the crew. From a report: The Crew Dragon spacecraft departed the space station Tuesday morning and the crew spent nearly 12 hours in orbit as the capsule maneuvered back toward Earth. After a fiery reentry, the Crew Dragon and passengers made a safe splashdown off the coast of Panama City, Florida, in the Gulf of Mexico at 11:04 p.m. ET. This mission, dubbed Axiom Mission 2, or AX-2, launched from Florida on May 21. AX-2 was put together by the Houston-based company Axiom Space and marked the second all-private mission to the orbiting outpost, meaning solely commercial companies, rather than a government agency, have been leading the mission.

This mission was also a milestone in the history of spaceflight as stem cell researcher Rayyanah Barnawi became the first woman from Saudi Arabia to travel to space. The AX-2 mission is one in a lineup of commercial missions designed to spur private sector participation in spaceflight -- particularly in low-Earth orbit, where the International Space Station orbits. Former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, 63, led the AX-2 crew. Whitson, now an Axiom Space employee, also became the first woman to command a private spaceflight. One of the three paying customers joining Whitson was John Shoffner, an American who made his fortune in the international telecom business and founded the hardware company Dura-Line Corp. Saudi Arabia also paid to fly two of its citizens: Barnawi and Ali AlQarni, a fighter pilot in the Royal Saudi Air Force.

During the mission, Barnawi led stem cell research suited for the microgravity environment aboard the space station. The orbiting laboratory has long been a key venue for various scientific experiments, as the lack of gravity can give researchers a better fundamental understanding of the topic at hand. Barnawi and AlQarni also engaged in outreach projects, including testing out a kite in microgravity and capturing video for viewers back home. The AX-2 crew spent about eight days working alongside astronauts representing NASA, Russia's Roscomos space agency and the United Arab Emirates Space Agency aboard the space station, though they operated on different schedules. The AX-2 crew worked through a lineup of more than 20 investigations and science projects -- including stem cell and other biomedical research. "Late tonight, at 11:02 pm local time in California (06:02 UTC Wednesday), SpaceX has a chance to reach 200 successful launches [of the Falcon 9 rocket] with a Starlink mission lifting off from Vandenberg Space Force Base," reports Ars Technica. "Such a performance is in uncharted territory for any orbital rocket, ever. [...] SpaceX is setting itself up to double the record for the number of consecutive successes by an orbital rocket."

You can view a livestream of the launch here.

In 2021, YouTube made the controversial decision to hide dislike counts on its platform, citing the aim of protecting creators from harassment. While this removed a valuable metric for viewers, alternatives have emerged, such as the browser extension Return YouTube Dislike and the new site Favoree. The latter is being hailed as "the Rotten Tomatoes of YouTube," where users can rate and review YouTube channels. BGR reports: Earlier this week, one user disappointed with the removal of YouTube's dislike counts took to Reddit to promote their new site Favoree. Rather than simply giving a channel a thumbs up or thumbs down, you can give it a rating out of five stars and even write a review. That way, you can actually see why people like or dislike a given channel.

This is a new site, so only a small handful of YouTube channels are currently represented (much less have many ratings or reviews) [...]. For example, Summoning Salt is a stellar channel a friend turned me on to a few years ago, which features long-form documentary-style videos about the history of speedrunning video games. The channel page on Favoree features a short description, a list of relevant keywords, embedded videos, and several written reviews.

Obviously, this is only going to work if Favoree really picks up steam and thousands of users start writing reviews and submitting new channels. That said, it's an interesting project, and the creator is accepting feedback on Reddit and acting on many of those suggestions rather quickly. It will be interesting to track Favoree to see how it develops.

"An independent report looking into the development of NASA's new moon rocket has found significant cost overruns and delays that could harm the agency's plans to put astronauts back on the moon," reports Space.com.

Their article cites specifically "increases in costs related to contracts awarded to Aerojet Rocketdyne and Northrop Grumman for SLS's propulsion systems," citing a 50-page report published Thursday by NASA's Inspector General: Altogether, the four contracts for the rocket's booster and engine were initially projected to cost $7 billion over a span of 14 years, but are now projected to cost at least $13.1 billion over nearly 25 years. "NASA continues to experience significant scope growth, cost increases, and schedule delays on its booster and RS-25 engine contracts, resulting in approximately $6 billion in cost increases and over 6 years in schedule delays above NASA's original projections," the report found.

These significant increases were caused by a variety of long-standing, interrelated management issues impacting both the SLS development campaign and the wider Artemis program, the report notes, including "some of which represent potential violations of federal contracting requirements." The use of heritage RS-25 engines and boosters from the space shuttle and Constellation programs for the new SLS rocket was intended to bring significant cost and schedule savings over developing new systems. But the "complexity of developing, updating, and integrating new systems along with heritage components proved to be much greater than anticipated," according to the report.

To remedy this, the report makes a number of recommendations to NASA management to increase transparency, accountability and affordability of the SLS booster and engine contracts, including switching from "cost-plus" awards towards a fixed-price contract structure. However, the assessment still finds the enormous cost of SLS hard to manage for NASA and damaging to its long term "Moon to Mars" plans. "Without greater attention to these important safeguards, NASA and its contracts will continue to exceed planned cost and schedule, resulting in a reduced availability of funds, delayed launches, and the erosion of the public's trust in the Agency's ability to responsibly spend taxpayer money and meet mission goals and objectives — including returning humans safely to the moon and onward to Mars."
Long-time Slashdot reader schwit1 shared the article along with a YouTube video with excerpts from recently released high-resolution video of the rocket's last launch.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Tom's Hardware: YouTuber Jeff Geerling recently flew over to the UK to sit down with Raspberry Pi CEO Eben Upton for a chat about shortages, predictions, the Raspberry Pi Pico and other hot topics. The short of it is that stock levels are improving, close to Upton's 2022 prediction and that we are now seeing better stock levels than 2022 as Raspberry Pi slowly catches up with the backlog. Upton explained the reasoning behind prioritizing OEM customers over consumers, and addresses some of the negativity that was levied on Raspberry Pi by a minority of the passionate and vocal community.

The video starts with Geerling candidly explaining that his trip to the UK was not funded by Raspberry Pi, rather it was funded via sponsorship and Patreon supporters. With that out of the way Geerling covers a series of topics with Upton, and we've been through the video and pulled out the key points, with timestamps for you to listen to. In regard to the company's product and shipment progress, Upton said: "So quarter one this year was our worst quarter in terms of production and shipment. [...] We did about 750 to 800,000 units in Q1 this year [due to shifting production during the Christmas period]."

With progress being made on filling backlog and availability, Upton said the company expects to move two million units in the second quarter, with the third and fourth quarters of 2023 being "unconstrained."

In a 10-minute video called "I'm Stepping Down..," Canadian YouTuber Linus Sebastian announced that he's stepping down as CEO of Linus Media Group, the company that runs Linus Tech Tips (LTT) as well as companies like Creator Warehouse and Floatplane Media. Slashdot reader thesinfulgamer writes: Linus talked about resigning from LTT on a livestream 3 years ago. He announced today that he is stepping down as CEO and changing to "Chief Vision Officer" to focus on just the content and community with zero business administration duties. His former boss from NCIX, Terren Tang, will be taking over as CEO on July 1st. In the video, Linus also mentions Linus Media received an offer of $100 million to "sell out" but turned it down, "citing a combination of factors like the fact they liked working with the company as it was and that, to be real, they were already super rich already," adds Kotaku.

An anonymous reader shares a report: If you watch YouTube videos primarily on your TV, you may soon come across 30-second ads you won't be able to skip, just like commercials on traditional TV channels. The video platform has announced during its Brandcast event for advertisers that it's bringing 30-second unskippable ads to connected TVs. It will make the option available through YouTube Select, which is a targeting option open to eligible clients who want to reach the audiences of the website's most popular channels. YouTube says 70 percent of Select impressions land on TVs, so the new format will give advertisers the chance to show more of their services or products in a way that allows "for richer storytelling." If you already regularly see two 15-second ads consecutively, then the new format wouldn't make that much of a difference for you -- unless they show up more frequently, of course. The format is now generally available in the US and Canada and will expand worldwide later this year.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Google's new inactive account policy already has people up in arms. The company announced on Tuesday that accounts that have gone unused for two years will be deleted, and a lot of people are asking what exactly this means for YouTube content. There are probably millions of videos out there from dead and inactive YouTube creators -- would Google's new data policy mean deleting nearly two decades of online history?

A day later, Google now says there will be no digital burning of Alexandria. YouTube's creator liaison, Rene Ritchie, clarified on Twitter that Google has "no plans to delete accounts with YT videos." 9to5Google heard the same statement from a Google spokesperson.

That is great news, but that's also very vague and runs contrary to what all of Google's current documentation says, including the blog post. Can people keep a Google account alive forever with a single video? [...] It seems like the company is still figuring this out. "It doesn't make sense to delete old YouTube content," adds Ars' Ron Amadeo. "While inactive data for things like Gmail and Google Photos are nothing but a money pit, YouTube content is available to the public, and Google runs ads on those videos, so those videos make money. If there's no creator to share revenue with, that's even better! Culling old videos would not just damage YouTube as a platform, it would also hurt Google's bottom line."

Designers are using Unreal Engine to create virtual renditions of architectural projects that were never fully realized, such as the Hillside Sample Project by Neoscape and Safdie Architects, showcasing Moshe Safdie's original vision for Montreal's Habitat 67 housing complex. The interactive 3D models offer exceptional detail of the structures and highlight the potential of real-time 3D renditions for pitching architectural concepts. Engadget reports: A young Safdie designed Habitat 67 for Montreal's 1967 World's Fair, also known as Expo 67. It was meant to combine the advantages of suburbia (such as gardens and multi-level housing) with the affordability and density of apartments. The affordability didn't pan out, and Safdie ended up producing a smaller-scale version for the fair. Habitat 67 ultimately launched Safdie's career, though, and it's still one of the better-known landmarks in the city.

You have a few options for exploring the complex. You can watch a video if you just want a quick overview, but you can also navigate a 3D space using either Google Chrome or a downloadable app. The interactive models let you either roam freely or have Safdie guide you through the project with narration at key points.

TV providers in the U.S. collectively lost 2.3 million customers in the first quarter of 2023. "With the Q1 decline, total pay-TV penetration of occupied U.S. households (including for internet services like YouTube TV and Hulu) dropped to 58.5% -- its lowest point since 1992," reports Variety, citing a report from MoffettNathason. "As of the end of Q1, U.S. pay-TV services had 75.5 million customers, down nearly 7% on an annual basis." From the report: Cable TV operators' rate of decline in Q1 reached -9.9% year over year, while satellite providers DirecTV and Dish Network fell -13.4%. In addition, so-called "virtual MVPDs" (multichannel video programming distributors) lost 264,000 customers in Q1, among the worst quarters to date for the segment. "The picture is not one that suggests that a plateau in the rate of decline is coming any time soon," Moffett wrote.

Comcast, the largest pay-TV provider in the country, dropped 614,000 video customers in Q1 -- the most of any single company -- to stand at 15.53 million at the end of the period. Asked about dwindling video business on the company's earnings call, David Watson, president and CEO of Comcast Cable, acknowledged the reality of cord-cutting and said the operator's approach is "to not subsidize unprofitable video relationships." He added, "We'll fight hard, whether it's acquisition, base management or retention. So it's important to us, but we have figured out a way to manage it financially."

Google's YouTube TV was the only provider tracked by MoffettNathanson that picked up subs in Q1, adding an estimated 300,000 subscribers in the period (to reach about 6.3 million) and netting 1.4 million subscribers over the past year. Hulu, meanwhile, has barely grown over the past three years (and loss about 100,000 live TV subs in Q1), Moffett noted, while FuboTV lost 160,000 subscribers in North America in the first quarter to mark its worst quarterly loss on record. MoffettNathason argues that the "pay TV floor" is between 50 million and 60 million U.S. homes. "As things stand, we expect cord-cutting to grow even worse and the long-theorized 'floor' to be breached."

Longtime Slashdot reader UnknowingFool writes: YouTuber Trevor Jacob has pled guilty to felony federal obstruction of an investigation for removing and destroying wreckage of his airplane that he intentionally crashed in November 2021 for online YouTube views. Maximum sentence is 20 years.

On November 24, 2021 Jacob was flying solo from Lompoc City Airport to Mammoth Lakes, California. He reported to the FAA that he had engine trouble and had to abandon the plane using a parachute. After the FAA launched an active investigation, Jacob lied about not knowing the location of wreckage for the next several weeks despite his video footage that he found the wreckage shortly after landing on the ground. On December 10, 2021 Jacob and a friend lifted the wreckage away from the national forest crash site using a helicopter. Jacob transported the wreckage back to Lompoc City Airport with a truck. He then cut up and disposed of the wreckage over then next several days using the airport's trash bins.

On December 23,2021 Jacob posted a YouTube video titled, "I Crashed My Airplane" which showed his account of engine trouble and the crash. Keen viewers were immediately skeptical of Jacob's account of a flight "emergency" noting he had multiple cameras recording the event including a selfie stick and that Jacob was wearing a parachute before the engine trouble occurred. Pilots commented how Jacob failed to follow basic procedures like attempting to restart the plane or contacting air traffic control with a mayday before ditching the plane. Largely based on the his YouTube video, the FAA revoked his pilot's license in April 2022.

A new web portal allows "Star Trek" fans to explore the iconic bridge of the starship Enterprise through 360-degree, 3D models and learn about its evolution throughout the franchise's history. Smithsonian Magazine reports: The site features 360-degree, 3D models of the various versions of the Enterprise, as well as a timeline of the ship's evolution throughout the franchise's history. Fans of the show can also read detailed information about each version of the ship's design, its significance to the "Star Trek" storyline and its production backstory. Developed in honor of the "Star Trek: Picard" series finale, which dropped late last month on Paramount+, the portal is a collaboration between the Roddenberry Estate, the Roddenberry Archive and the technology company OTOY. A group of well-known "Star Trek" artists -- including Denise and Michael Okuda, Daren Dochterman, Doug Drexler and Dave Blass -- also supported the project.

The voice of the late actress Majel Roddenberry, who played the Enterprise's computer for years, will be added to the site in the future. Gene Roddenberry died in 1991, followed by Majel Roddenberry in 2008; the two had been married since 1969. The portal's creators also released a short video, narrated by actor John de Lancie, exploring every version of the Enterprise's bridge to date, "from its inception in Pato Guzman's 1964 sketches, through its portrayal across decades of TV shows and feature films, to its latest incarnation on the Enterprise-G, as revealed in the final episode of 'Star Trek: Picard,'" per the video description. Accompanying video interviews with "Star Trek" cast and crew -- including William Shatner, who played Captain Kirk in the original series, and Terry Matalas, a showrunner for "Star Trek: Picard" -- also explore the series' legacy.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from ZDNet: When you think of digital entertainment, your mind might turn first to online video-streaming services, such as Sling TV or YouTube TV, and video-on-demand services, including Netflix or Acorn TV. However, consultant Deloitte's 17th annual "Digital Media Trends" survey suggests traditional television shows and movies are no longer the only forms of entertainment. Younger generations, often called Gen Zs and Millennials, are increasingly turning to user-generated content (UGC) -- which relies on unpaid contributors rather than traditional media professionals -- and video games to find personal fulfillment, value, and meaning. These younger users are creating a vibrant, immersive, and social tapestry of experiences with UGC, video games, music, and social media all playing significant roles. And that move towards UGC and gaming could have big implications for everyone.

Deloitte's survey found that about a third (32%) of consumers view online experiences as meaningful substitutes for in-person interactions, with that proportion increasing to 50% among Gen Zs and Millennials. Almost half (48%) of these younger generations engage more with others on social media than in the physical world, and 40% of them socialize more in video games than offline. Of course, it's not only younger people who view online experiences as meaningful substitutes for in-person interactions. [...] Yet those born after 1981, the usual dividing line between Generation X and Millennials, are much more inclined to live their lives online.

The news-rating group NewsGuard has found dozens of news websites generated by AI chatbots proliferating online, according to a report published Monday, raising questions about how the technology may supercharge established fraud techniques. From a report:The 49 websites, which were independently reviewed by Bloomberg, run the gamut. Some are dressed up as breaking news sites with generic-sounding names like News Live 79 and Daily Business Post, while others share lifestyle tips, celebrity news or publish sponsored content. But none disclose they're populated using AI chatbots such as OpenAI's ChatGPT and potentially Alphabet's Google Bard, which can generate detailed text based on simple user prompts. Many of the websites began publishing this year as the AI tools began to be widely used by the public.

In several instances, NewsGuard documented how the chatbots generated falsehoods for published pieces. In April alone, a website called CelebritiesDeaths.com published an article titled, "Biden dead. Harris acting President, address 9 a.m." Another concocted facts about the life and works of an architect as part of a falsified obituary. And a site called TNewsNetwork published an unverified story about the deaths of thousands of soldiers in the Russia-Ukraine war, based on a YouTube video. The majority of the sites appear to be content farms -- low-quality websites run by anonymous sources that churn-out posts to bring in advertising. The websites are based all over the world and are published in several languages, including English, Portuguese, Tagalog and Thai, NewsGuard said in its report.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Motherboard: Palantir, the company of billionaire Peter Thiel, is launching Palantir Artificial Intelligence Platform (AIP), software meant to run large language models like GPT-4 and alternatives on private networks. In one of its pitch videos, Palantir demos how a military might use AIP to fight a war. In the video, the operator uses a ChatGPT-style chatbot to order drone reconnaissance, generate several plans of attack, and organize the jamming of enemy communications. In Palantir's scenario, a "military operator responsible for monitoring activity within eastern Europe" receives an alert from AIP that an enemy is amassing military equipment near friendly forces. The operator then asks the chatbot to show them more details, gets a little more information, and then asks the AI to guess what the units might be.

"They ask what enemy units are in the region and leverage AI to build out a likely unit formation," the video said. After getting the AI's best guess as to what's going on, the operator then asks the AI to take better pictures. It launches a Reaper MQ-9 drone to take photos and the operator discovers that there's a T-80 tank, a Soviet-era Russia vehicle, near friendly forces. Then the operator asks the robots what to do about it. "The operator uses AIP to generate three possible courses of action to target this enemy equipment," the video said. "Next they use AIP to automatically send these options up the chain of command." The options include attacking the tank with an F-16, long range artillery, or Javelin missiles. According to the video, the AI will even let everyone know if nearby troops have enough Javelins to conduct the mission and automate the jamming systems. [...]

What Palantir is offering is the illusion of safety and control for the Pentagon as it begins to adopt AI. "LLMs and algorithms must be controlled in this highly regulated and sensitive context to ensure that they are used in a legal and ethical way," the pitch said. According to Palantir, this control involves three pillars. The first claim is that AIP will be able to deploy these systems into classified networks and "devices on the tactical edge." It claims it will be able to parse both classified and real-time data in a responsible, legal, and ethical way. According to the video, users will then have control over what every LLM and AI in the Palantir-backed system can do. "AIP's security features what LLMs and AI can and cannot see and what they can and cannot do," the video said. "As operators take action, AIP generates a secure digital record of operations. These capabilities are crucial for mitigating significant legal, regulatory, and ethical risks in sensitive and classified settings.

When the U.S. Supreme Court decides in the coming months whether to weaken a powerful shield protecting internet companies, the ruling also could have implications for rapidly developing technologies like artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT. From a report: The justices are due to rule by the end of June whether Alphabet's YouTube can be sued over its video recommendations to users. That case tests whether a U.S. law that protects technology platforms from legal responsibility for content posted online by their users also applies when companies use algorithms to target users with recommendations.

What the court decides about those issues is relevant beyond social media platforms. Its ruling could influence the emerging debate over whether companies that develop generative AI chatbots like ChatGPT from OpenAI, a company in which Microsoft is a major investor, or Bard from Alphabet's Google should be protected from legal claims like defamation or privacy violations, according to technology and legal experts. That is because algorithms that power generative AI tools like ChatGPT and its successor GPT-4 operate in a somewhat similar way as those that suggest videos to YouTube users, the experts added.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Motherboard: A man sitting in the driver's seat of a Toyota is repeatedly tapping a button next to the steering wheel. A red light flashes -- no luck, the engine won't start. He doesn't have the key. In response, the man pulls up an usual tool: a Nokia 3310 phone. The man plugs the phone into the car using a black cable. He then flicks through some options on the 3310's tiny LCD screen. "CONNECT. GET DATA," the screen says. He then tries to start the car again. The light turns green, and the engine roars. This under 30 second clip shows a new breed of car theft that is spreading across the U.S. Criminals use tiny devices, sometimes hidden inside innocuous looking bluetooth speakers or mobile phones, to interface with the vehicle's control system. This allows thieves with very little technical experience to steal cars without needing the key, sometimes in just 15 seconds or so. With the devices available to buy online for a few thousand dollars, the barrier of entry for stealing even high-end luxury cars is dramatically reduced.

The video showing the man using a Nokia 3310 to start a Toyota is just one of many YouTube videos Motherboard found demonstrating the technique. Others show devices used on Maserati, Land Cruiser, and Lexus-branded vehicles. Multiple websites and Telegram channels advertise the tech for between 2,500 Euro and 18,000 Euro ($2,700 and $19,600). One seller is offering the Nokia 3310 device for 3,500 Euro ($3,800); another advertises it for 4000 Euro ($4,300). Often sellers euphemistically refer to the tech as "emergency start" devices nominally intended for locksmiths. Some of the sites offer tools that may be of use to locksmiths, but legitimate businesses likely have no use for a tool that is hidden inside a phone or other casing. Some of the sites even claim to offer updates for devices customers have already purchased, suggesting that development of the devices and their capabilities is an ongoing process. "At the moment, impacted vehicles are generally wide open to these sorts of attacks," says Motherboard. "The only proper fix would be to introduce cryptographic protections to CAN messages [...] via a software update."

Video editors are flocking to DaVinci Resolve in droves, marking a major paradigm shift in the editing landscape that we haven't seen since the dreadful launch of Final Cut Pro X drove users to Adobe Premiere Pro. PetaPixel reports: Resolve has taken a convoluted path to becoming the main rival of the world's biggest non-linear editing (NLE) tool. More a conglomeration of tools than a single program, Resolve came through some acquisitions Blackmagic made when creating a broadcast and cine ecosystem. Comprised of an editing tool, a color correction tool, an audio editor, and an effects tool, Resolve is essentially multiple programs that all integrate so seamlessly that they function as a single application. The color correction tools in Resolve are particularly well regarded, and many films and shows were color graded in Resolve even if they were edited in another program. The same applies to Fairlight, the audio component of Resolve, the go-tool tool for many of Hollywood's most prominent audio engineers.

In 2011, Blackmagic decided to release Resolve as both a paid and a free version. The free version had fewer features than the full version (as it still does), but instead of being crippled, the free version works well enough for most users, with the paid version feeling like a feature upgrade. In the dozen years since Resolve became free, it has picked up an ever-growing number of users, and the YouTube emphasis on the creator market has only increased the pace of adoption. The fact that most successful YouTube channels take years to become successful means a free editing tool is valuable.

Blackmagic has never hesitated to put a feature into Resolve. The program has many options in contextual menus, user interface choices, menu items, keyboard shortcuts, and more. There is so much here that it can be overwhelming. [...] Blackmagic also releases dot-versions (like 18.1) that sometimes add enough features that it acts like a full number upgrade would if it were released by Adobe or Apple. Some of the features in Resolve 18.1, for example, unleashed the wave of recent switchers. Two significant features are buried in a list of around 20 new features in that update. The first is AI-driven Magic Mask tools that make masking people or objects a matter of drawing a line. The other prominent feature is voice isolation, another AI-based feature that removes noises from dialog tracks. Magic Mask alone is worth the price of admission. This tool makes it easy to color-correct significant portions of a shot without doing endless mask adjustments, and it also allows for instant alpha channel creation, allowing for items like text, graphics or even people to be superimposed on the same scene without needing a green screen. You can read the full article here.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from TorrentFreak: Last year, a U.S. federal court handed a 40-month prison sentence to Gary Bowser. The Canadian pleaded guilty to being part of the Nintendo hacking group "Team Xecuter" and has now served his time. In part due to his good behavior, Bowser got an early release from federal prison. [...] In a recent video interview with Nick Moses, Bowser explains that he was released from federal prison on March 28th. He is currently in processing at the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Washington, to prepare for his return to Canada.

What his life will look like in Canada remains uncertain. However, in federal prison, Bowser has shown that he doesn't shy away from putting in work and helping other people in need. Aside from his prison job, he spent several nightly hours on suicide watch. The prison job brought in some meager income, a large part of which went to pay for the outstanding restitution he has to pay, which is $14.5 million in total. Thus far, less than $200 has been paid off. "I've been making payments of $25 per month, which they've been taking from my income because I had a job in federal prison. So far I paid $175," Bowser tells Nick Moses.

If Bowser manages to find a stable source of income in Canada, Nintendo will get a chunk of that as well. As part of a consent judgment, he agreed to pay $10 million to Nintendo, which is the main restitution priority. "The agreement with them is that the maximum they can take is 25 to 30 percent of your gross monthly income. And I have up to six months before I have to start making payments," Bowser notes. At that rate, it is unlikely that Nintendo will ever see the full amount. Or put differently, Bowser will carry the financial consequences of his Team-Xecuter involvement for the rest of his life.

VC firm Andreessen Horowitz believes the industry most affected by generative AI will be videogames. But they're not the only ones, reports the Economist: Games' interactivity requires them to be stuffed with laboriously designed content: consider the 30 square miles of landscape or 60 hours of music in "Red Dead Redemption 2", a recent cowboy adventure. Enlisting ai assistants to churn it out could drastically shrink timescales and budgets....

Making a game is already easier than it was: nearly 13,000 titles were published last year on Steam, a games platform, almost double the number in 2017. Gaming may soon resemble the music and video industries, in which most new content on Spotify or YouTube is user-generated. One games executive predicts that small firms will be the quickest to work out what new genres are made possible by AI. Last month Raja Koduri, an executive at Intel, left the chipmaker to found an AI-gaming startup.

Don't count the big studios out, though. If they can release half a dozen high-quality titles a year instead of a couple, it might chip away at the hit-driven nature of their business, says Josh Chapman of Konvoy, a gaming-focused VC firm. A world of more choice also favours those with big marketing budgets. And the giants may have better answers to the mounting copyright questions around AI. If generative models have to be trained on data to which the developer has the rights, those with big back-catalogues will be better placed than startups

. Trent Kaniuga, an artist who has worked on games like "Fortnite", said last month that several clients had updated their contracts to ban AI-generated art.

AI now "automates creative impulses," writes New Yorker staff writer Kyle Chayka — then wonders where that will lead. Chayka's first example is a Berlin-based photographer using AI tools to create a viral video showing Harry Potter characters as fashion models for the upscale French label Balenciaga: A.I. tools were involved in each step of Alexander Niklass's process, and in each element of the video. He created the basic static images with Midjourney, evoking the Harry Potter actors and outfits through text prompts such as "male model, grotesque, balenciaga commercial." Then he used ElevenLabs — a "voice-cloning" tool — to create models of the actors' voices based on previously recorded audio. Finally, he fed the images into a service called D-ID, which is used to make "avatar videos" — subtly animated portraits, not so far off from those that appear in the newspapers of the Potter world. D-ID added the signature lip synchs and head nods, which Niklass explained were a reference to fashion models tilting their chins for the cameras.

The combination of child-friendly film and adult luxury fashion held no particular symbolism nor expressed an artistic intent. It's "entertainment," Niklass said. Yet the video's most compelling aspect might be its vacuity, a meaningless collision of cultural symbols. The nonsense is the point.
The article also cites a song where the French group AllttA performs with an AI-generated simulation of Jay-Z. Chayka marvels at a world where "The A.I. content has the appearance of realism, without actual reality — reality solely as a style.... it seems that a Rubicon has been crossed: It doesn't matter that these artifacts are generated by A.I.; we can just enjoy them for what they are. It happened faster than I thought possible, but now that A.I.-generated pop culture has entered the mainstream, it seems unlikely that we'll ever get rid of it."

Chayka asked ChatGPT how AI-generated imagery is changing our perceptions, and "It responded that there has been a 'blurring of the lines between real and artificial.'"

The article ultimately ponders the possible implications of "a world in which every style, every idea, and every possible remix is generated as fast and frictionlessly as possible, and the successful ones stick and get attention." But at the same time, Chayka believes the final output's quality still depends on the humans involved (arguing that the Harry Potter fashion video was still more "appealingly odd" than later AI-generated videos copying the idea, like "Matrix by Gucci," "Star Wars by Balenciaga," and "The Office by Balenciaga".) A.I. tools may have been able to replicate actors' faces and generate fashionable outfits, but only Niklass could have come up with the concept, which required keen observation of both high fashion and the wizarding world — and also a very specific, extremely online sense of humor. With tools like Midjourney publicly available to anyone online, "everybody can create something visually appealing now," he said. "But A.I. can't generate taste yet," he continued....

To put it another way, execution may have been democratized by generative A.I., but ideas have not. The human is still the originator, editor, and curator of A.I.'s effects.