Mark Gurman from Bloombergrecently reported that Apple will be redesigning the – for the first time since its introduction in 2009. In the mouses fifteen-year history, the design has remained mostly the same, besides the switch from AA batteries to Lightning in 2015, and Lightning to USB-C in 2024.
iOS 18 introduced an “Enhanced Visual Search” toggle for the Photos app. | Screenshot: iOS 18 Settings app
Apple occasionally makes choices that tarnish its strong privacy-forward reputation, like when it was secretly collecting users’ Siri interactions. Yesterday, a blog post from developer Jeff Johnson highlighted such a choice: an “Enhanced Visual Search” toggle for the Apple Photos app that is seemingly on by default, giving your device permission to share data from your photos with Apple.
Sure enough, when I checked my iPhone 15 Pro this morning, the toggle was switched to on. You can find it for yourself by going to Settings > Photos (or System Settings > Photos on a Mac). Enhanced Visual Search lets you look up landmarks you’ve taken pictures of or search for those images using the names of those landmarks.
To see what it enables in the Photos app, swipe up on a picture you’ve taken of a building and select “Look up Landmark,” and a card will appear that ideally identifies it. Here are a couple of examples from my phone:
Screenshots: Apple Photos
That’s definitely Austin’s Cathedral of Saint Mary, but the image on the right is not a Trappist monastery, but the Dubuque, Iowa city hall building.
On its face, it’s a convenient expansion of Photos’ Visual Look Up feature that Apple introduced in iOS 15 that lets you identify plants or, say, find out what those symbols on a laundry tag mean. But Visual Look Up doesn’t need special permission to share data with Apple, and this does.
A description under the toggle says you’re giving Apple permission to “privately match places in your photos with a global index maintained by Apple.” As for how, there are details in an Apple machine-learning research blog about Enhanced Visual Search that Johnson links to:
The process starts with an on-device ML model that analyzes a given photo to determine if there is a “region of interest” (ROI) that may contain a landmark. If the model detects an ROI in the “landmark” domain, a vector embedding is calculated for that region of the image.
According to the blog, that vector embedding is then encrypted and sent to Apple to compare with its database. The company offers a very technical explanation of vector embeddings in a research paper, but IBM put it more simply, writing that embeddings transform “a data point, such as a word, sentence or image, into an n-dimensional array of numbers representing that data point’s characteristics.”
Like Johnson, I don’t fully understand Apple’s research blogs and Apple didn’t immediately respond to our request for comment about Johnson’s concerns. It seems as though the company went to great lengths to keep the data private, in part by condensing image data into a format that’s legible to an ML model.
Even so, making the toggle opt-in, like those for sharing analytics data or recordings or Siri interactions, rather than something users have to discover seems like it would have been a better option.
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are wrapping up the holiday season in style.
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It’s official: 2024 was the year when a lot of people realized celebrity kids were no longer, well, kids.
From the Jolie-Pitt brood to Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner’s eldest daughter, Violet Affleck, and Kate Hudson’s son Ryder Robinson, the celebrity babies of yesteryear are now full-blown young adults making names for themselves.
Take Suri Cruise: the 18-year-old daughter of Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise graduated high school in June. She is now reportedly attending Carnegie Mellon University.
“I’m proud of my daughter,” Holmes, 46, told Town & Country magazine in August of being an empty nester. “Of course, I will miss the close proximity, but I’m really proud of her and I’m happy.”
For her birthday on December 18, Holmes shared a photo of a bouquet of purple roses seemingly sent to her by Suri. “I am so grateful for all of my blessings especially my daughter ,” the actress shared via Instagram Stories.
Below, see more celebrity kids who grew up this year:
Affleck and Garner’s 19-year-old daughter, Violet, has been stepping out on her own recently. After making a rare public appearance at a White House state dinner in 2022, she advocated for mask availability and free COVID-19 testing in front of the L.A. County Board of Supervisors in July.
"One in 10 infections leads to long COVID, which is a devastating neurological [and] cardiovascular illness that can take away people's ability to work, move, see and even think," she said. "To confront the long COVID crisis, I demand mask availability, air filtration and far-UVC light in government facilities, including jails and detention centers, and mask mandates in county medical facilities."
Violet ended her comments by opposing mask bans, saying, "They do not keep us safer, they make vulnerable members of our community less safe and make everyone less able to participate in Los Angeles together.”
She’s now a student at Yale University.
Suri was spotted attending her prom and graduating from high school in 2024 before she darted off to college in the fall.
"I remember being this age, this time of beginnings,” Holmes told Town & Country in August. “It’s exciting to learn about yourself, and I loved that time, so it makes me happy to think about it like that.”
Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin’s kids, Apple and Moses, are now 20 and 18, respectively. Apple is reportedly enrolled at Vanderbilt University, while Moses reportedly attends Brown.
Apple also made her debut into society at a grand debutante ball in Paris in December. Of Le Bal des Débutantes, her Coldplay frontman dad told Rolling Stone it’s “so not something I ever thought I’d do, but because I’m so in love with her, I’m like, ‘OK.’”
Martin also admitted that he likes his children “very much” before joking that “they’re not biologically” his.
“My favorite new thing to embarrass my son is, if we’re walking down the street and someone comes up to us and they say, ‘I’m sorry to disturb you while you’re with your son,’ I say, ‘That’s not my son. That’s my partner,’” Martin told the mag with a laugh.
Kate Hudson’s son Ryder, whose father is Black Crowes frontman Chris Robinson, turns 21 in January 2025. He is a student at New York University.
The actress recently opened up about writing the 2024 song “Live Forever” for her debut album, Glorious, which she composed when Ryder was getting ready to go off to college.
“I was like, ‘Oh, my God, my whole adult life I’ve had this incredible partner and now I have to say goodbye,’” she told CBS Sunday Morning of being 24 when she welcomed her first child. (Hudson also shares son Bingham, 13, with ex Matt Bellamy and daughter Rani Rose, 6, with fiancé Danny Fujikawa.) “So, that’s really all of the things I was thinking about for this song, like, you and I will be forever. Like, go and just thrive and take everything on. Have fun. And, I’m right here.”
Jessica Alba and Cash Warren‘s 16-year-old daughter looked all grown up in a photo Alba shared via Instagram on Thanksgiving.
“Happy Thanksgiving from me and mine to you and yours,” she captioned the post. “Sending lots of love and light.”
Alba shared that she and Honor started going to therapy together when her eldest child was 11 to figure out solutions to silly arguments.
“As her mother, when I say something, she’s going to hear it as an argument or as me trying to control her. I wanted there to be someone who could explain things in a way I couldn’t. What I said to Honor was, ‘I want to be a better parent to you, and this is your forum to basically talk about everything that gets on your nerves that I do,’” Jessica told Real Simple in January.
She continued: “It put me in check. Like, ‘Yeah, I totally do that. And I’m sorry. I’m going to work on that.’ It gave her a little bit of perspective too — that I’m not the bad guy; I’m just being a parent.”
Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban’s daughters are now 16 and 14, respectively.
At the 49th AFI Life Achievement Award Gala in April, the girls made a rare red carpet appearance in celebration of their mom’s career. Sunday donned a floral strapless gown, while Faith rocked a strapless coral dress.
“My daughters have never been anywhere publicly with me on a red carpet, tonight was their first night, so they’re here, Sunday and Faith,” Kidman said at the event.
Sunday also turned heads in October after walking in Miu Miu's spring/summer 2025 show at Paris Fashion Week.
Naomi Watts’ kids with her ex Liev Schreiber made a surprise social media appearance during her wedding celebration to fellow actor Billy Crudup in June.
Sasha, 17, walked his mom down the aisle in a black suit and tie, while Kai, 16, was a member of the wedding party.
Watts recently celebrated Kai’s 16th birthday in December, sharing pictures via Instagram and writing, “Happy sweet sixteen🎈🎈🎈Your sweetness is pure and I'm the luckiest mommy in the world and that world is SO lucky that you are here!! You blow me away with your wild spirit, strength and yes your soft sweetness too. You even let me post a baby picture!! I thank my lucky stars i get to be your mom. I Love you to the moon 🌙 💕.”
Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe’s kids are 25 and 21, respectively, with Deacon recently walking the red carpet with his mom at the Blink Twice premiere in Los Angeles in August.
On Christmas Day, Witherspoon shared some photos of the family’s holiday celebrations, which included her son Tennessee, 12, with ex Jim Toth. In one photo, Ava and Deacon tower over their mom in front of a Christmas tree.
“Wishing all of you a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! 🎄💫❤️,” Witherspoon wrote via Instagram.
Jennifer Lopez’s twins with ex Marc Anthony turned 16 this year. To celebrate, J.Lo took them on a trip to Japan, where they ate yummy meals, enjoyed a traditional tea ceremony and visited an art museum.
"They're becoming adults," she told Today anchors of her kids in May 2023. "They are challenging everything in life. They're looking at everything. And these kids have so much information, so much more than we had. They're thinking and talking about things and about life in a different way than I did when I was 15 or 16 years old."
"I think they're gonna change the world," she continued, "and make it so much better, so much better than what we did."
Kate Moss and Jefferson Hack’s daughter is now 22 and following in her mom’s modeling footsteps.
After the mother-daughter duo attended the 2023 Met Gala together, the pair posed together for Fendi's new campaign in April. They were photographed by Craig McDean wearing neutral colors and holding the brand's iconic Peekaboo bags. Along with the photo shoot, they also appeared in a 30-second spot where they showed off the bags.
Padma Lakshmi’s daughter is 14 and making her mark.
Aside from appearing in her mom’s Instagram Stories and cooking videos, she recently joined Padma at the 75th annual Emmy Awards in Los Angeles in January.
Krishna dazzled in a strapless black gown with a thigh-high slit and feather details, while Padma turned heads in a bright green Marchesa dress.
Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick’s eldest child recently celebrated his 15th birthday by receiving his first car: a mini version of the Mercedes-Benz G-Class Wagon.
“Happy birthday big boy! Felt like it was only fair 4 you 2 get your first G wagon even if it’s a mini g wagon it’s still a wagon! Love u son!!!!!! Let the good times roll,” Disick wrote via his Instagram Story on December 14 alongside a photo of the new car with a big black bow on it.
“So special to me it hurts my heart,” Kardashian wrote of her son in a birthday tribute.
Heidi Klum’s daughter with ex Flavio Briatore is 20 and following her mom’s passions.
The models shared a sweet mother-daughter moment on the Cannes amfAR Gala red carpet in May, posing together in eye-catching gowns.
"Happy 20th Birthday Leni Olumi," the Project Runway alum wrote in celebration of her daughter’s birthday that month. "Time flies. This feels like it was just yesterday. I love you with all my heart. Keep shining your beautiful light."
Heidi’s 19-year-old son with ex-husband Seal graduated from high school in June.
The America's Got Talent judge shared rare photos and videos of Henry at his graduation via Instagram.
"CONGRATULATIONS HENRY," the proud mom wrote. "We are all sooo proud of you. You did it my beautiful boy. College here we come. SHINE BRIGHT."
Heidi also shares daughter Lou, 15, and son Johan, 18, with Seal.
Julianne Moore and Bart Freundlich’s daughter is now 22 and her mom’s look-alike.
In 2017, she made her modeling debut for J.Crew and later starred in a campaign for Hourglass cosmetics with Moore in 2022. She also posed for another mother-daughter campaign for jewelry brand Bulgari that same year.
Liv graduated from Northwestern University in June, with Moore sharing via Instagram, "This smart, wonderful, beautiful and insightful young woman graduated from @northwesternu. We are bursting with pride @livfreundlich - congratulations on your accomplishment #wildcat. We love love love you.”
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s kids are stepping into their own spotlights as young adults.
Maddox and Pax have worked as production assistants on some of Jolie’s projects, while her daughter Vivienne was a volunteer assistant and coproducer on Jolie’s Tony-winning Broadway musical The Outsiders.
Meanwhile, Shiloh has taken up dance and has appeared in a few videos posted to social media, while Zahara is attending Spelman College.
"It's my happiness," Jolie said of motherhood during a November interview on Good Morning America. "You can take everything else away from me. Nothing else matters."
NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport floated two veterans who could compete for the Cleveland Browns’ starting quarterback job in 2025.
The Browns and Deshaun Watson restructured the quarterback’s contract on Friday to create cap flexibility for the 2025 and 2026 seasons, according to multiple reports. It also made it so that Watson, who signed a five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract in 2022, will be back in Cleveland next season.
But whether he enters Week 1 as QB1 is still up in the air. Rapoport said Sunday there might be a competition held.
"I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s veteran competition. Aaron Rodgers, if he’s not on the Jets, would be one potential option, Kirk Cousins another," Rapoport said.
Rapoport added that Rodgers’ future with the New York Jets could hinge on whether they trade Garrett Wilson. He said that Wilson might want off the Jets if Rodgers is brought back for the 2025 season.
Rodgers’ short stint with the Jets has been nothing but tumultuous. He has 3,511 passing yards and 24 touchdown passes this year.
Cousins’ time with the Atlanta Falcons appeared to be over as well. The team replaced Cousins with Michael Penix Jr. following a narrow victory over the Las Vegas Raiders. Cousins went on a streak of zero touchdown passes and eight interceptions over the course of four games.
Cleveland will have some options at quarterback. They could choose to go the rookie quarterback route, since they will likely have a high draft pick in 2025.
Going into Week 17, the Browns are currently fourth in the draft order.
New England Patriots fans seem to have had enough of Jerod Mayo as the head coach’s first season at the helm winds down.
Reporters in Foxborough, Massachusetts, who took in the Patriots’ 40-7 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday night heard "Fire Mayo" chants coming from the stands at Gillette Stadium.
New England fell to 3-13 with the loss. If the Patriots lose next week, three wins would be their lowest total since they finished 2-14 in 1992. The team was 4-13 last season – the last year Bill Belichick was at the helm. Mayo took over for Belichick in January.
Mayo was asked about the chants after the game.
"You hear those things. But at the same time, they paid to sit in the seats, and we've got to play better," Mayo told reporters, via ESPN. "If we play better, we don't have to hear that stuff."
The offense has been among the heavily scrutinized issues for the Patriots.
Patriots president Jonathan Kraft appeared to get caught on camera complaining about the play-calling during the team’s loss against the Arizona Cardinals two weeks ago. The offense hasn’t gotten much better since then.
Behind rookie quarterback Drake Maye, the Patriots are 30th in the league in points scored and 31st in yards gained. Mayo’s defense is 25th in points allowed and 23rd in yards allowed.
Deatrich Wise Jr., who has been with the Patriots since 2017, and Davon Godchaux each backed Mayo after the loss to the Chargers.
Wise said he thought he and his teammates should keep believing in Mayo.
"The guy's in his first season. It's not going to be golden. We didn't expect to win a Super Bowl this year. I get it, nobody wants to get beaten 40-7, but the chant is ridiculous," Godchaux added.
"Everybody plays a part in this. It isn't just Jerod Mayo. Players, coaches, front office. We just have to get better as a whole organization," he said. "I believe in this organization.
"We just had probably the best team in the NFL right now on the ropes last week [in Buffalo]. I don't believe in all that other ridiculous stuff. The guy is in his first year. It's just ridiculous."
The Lakers have agreed to trade D'Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis and three second-round picks to the Nets for Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton, sources told ESPN.
