It was a swing and a miss for the first private attempt at an asteroid mission, but the company is still chalking it up as a win. California startup AstroForge launched a spacecraft dubbed Odin on February 26, but the team lost communication with it shortly after its launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

"The chance of talking with Odin is minimal, as at this point, the accuracy of its position is becoming an issue," the company said in its extensive debrief of the mission. Technical issues occurred at its primary ground station in Australia, but AstroForge said that other problems also could have occurred on Odin to further prevent establishing contact.

Although the launch was a bust, AstroForge maintained optimism about the project as a valuable learning experience for its eventual goal of creating and operating an asteroid mining vehicle. The company is targeting the asteroid 2022 OB5, with the aim of eventually landing on its surface and extracting potentially valuable resources. Odin was built in 10 months for $3.5 million, a sliver of the money and time federal space projects have taken to complete.

AstroForge CEO Matt Gialich had several quotes in the debrief, all peppered with expletives, and he summed up the company ethos as, "At the end of the day, like, you got to fucking show up and take a shot, right? You have to try."

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/the-first-private-asteroid-mission-probe-is-probably-lost-in-deep-space-224803775.html?src=rss

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© Intuitive Machines

1Password has added a new feature that allows users to tag their entries with physical locations. That way, when the user is close by a credential's location, that information will be surfaced in the password manager's mobile app. This 'nearby items' feature makes the most relevant information quickly available to 1Password customers and cuts out the need to search for the correct details or remember exactly what you'd named an account.

Location information can be added to any new or existing item in a 1Password vault. The app has also been updated with a map view for setting and viewing the locations of your items. In the blog post announcing the feature, the company cited examples such as door codes for a workplace, health records at a doctor's office, WiFi access at the gym and rewards membership information for local shops as potential uses for location data.

Privacy and security are paramount for a password manager, and 1Password confirmed that a user's location coordinates are only used locally and do not leave the device. Nearby items is available to 1Password customers starting today.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/1password-introduces-nearby-items-tying-passwords-to-physical-locations-140040723.html?src=rss

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© 1Password (modified)

The latest chapter in the troubled tale of Cities: Skylines II won't be ending any time soon. The game has still not launched on consoles, despite an initial launch date of October 2023 for the PC version. Developer Colossal Order delayed the console version to spring 2024, but the latest post on the forums for publisher Paradox Interactive revealed that the city-building sequel still isn't ready for its PlayStation and Xbox debut.

"We know many of you are eagerly awaiting the console release, but to set expectations clearly: we will not have a release before summer. We want to avoid any premature estimates and instead commit to providing you with reliable information when we’re closer to a launch-ready state," the team said in the official notice. "Our goal remains unchanged: to bring Cities: Skylines II to console in the best possible shape."

In addition to the console port needing more time, the planned asset editor for Cities: Skylines II is also not ready yet. The studio is working to resolve technical issues that are impacting game performance and stability with this editor.

After creating a strong and mostly positive community around the original Cities: Skylines game, tensions have run high between the players and the studio surrounding this sequel. The community was vocal in their disappointments about technical issues and a rough first DLC rollout. On the side of the developers, those disappointments devolved into personal attacks on team members. The toxic situation will hopefully calm on both sides once the game reaches a more stable state.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/cities-skylines-ii-will-not-have-a-release-before-summer-on-console-team-says-214053248.html?src=rss

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© Colossal Order

YouTube has introduced a new subscription option for viewing with reduced ads compared with its pricey but ad-free Premium plans. This Premium Lite plan is rolling out in the US starting today. It costs $8 per month, compared with $14 per month for Premium. All users in YouTube's pilot markets of Australia, Germany and Thailand will gain access to Premium Lite in the coming weeks. 

Most videos will be available without ads under this subscription, such as podcasts, gaming, fashion, beauty and news content. But the company is treating music content differently since its YouTube Music service is baked into the full YouTube Premium offering. There will still be ads on music and music videos, as well as on Shorts. 

"When we talk to our users what we found is there's a whole swath of people who want an ad-free, uninterrupted streaming service but they don't necessarily want a music service. That's where we got the idea of Premium Lite," YouTube's chief product officer, Johanna Voolich, said in a video regarding the news. "It's really cool because it allows us to give these kinds of viewers more choice, but it also unlocks a new revenue stream for our creators."

You'll likely see ads as you browse and search YouTube as well. Downloads and background play, two other key features of the Premium plan, won't be available to Premium Lite subscribers.

YouTube began testing a lower-cost subscription plan in several markets in October 2024. Similarly, during that trial, the company offered users most content without advertisements, although it did show "video ads on music content and Shorts, and non-interruptive ads when you search and browse."

The platform is still treating Premium Lite as a pilot. YouTube plans to expand the tier to more countries later this year. It will also "introduce more ways for our users to get the most from their subscriptions."

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/youtubes-new-premium-lite-offers-ad-free-viewing-on-most-videos-for-8-per-month-153142844.html?src=rss

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© YouTube

Roku is continuing its relationship with Phillips, with the launch of a new cross-branded television. The Phillips OLED Roku TV is available starting today and retails starting at $1,299 online and in stores at Sam's Club.

The 65-inch screen has a 4K UHD display and OLED technology, which has become pretty standard for a premium TV model. It's also equipped with Dolby Vision IQ, which adjusts picture quality settings based on the current lighting setup. And this Phillips OLED Roku TV includes a potential audio upgrade with the addition of a built-in Dolby Atmos 2.1 speaker system. The announcement highlighted the screen's gaming potential, with a native 120Hz refresh rate and AMD FreeSync Premium to prevent screen-tearing.

Roku started making its own brand of televisions last year with the Pro Series, but it's also still maintaining collaborations with more established hardware manufacturers. The Phillips model will support all the latest Roku features, such as Backdrops.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/home-theater/phillips-expands-its-roku-tv-range-with-a-1300-65-inch-oled-140047071.html?src=rss

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© Phillips

Apple has introduced its latest update to the MacBook Air, bringing the M4 chip to its lightweight laptops at long last. Even though the Air lineup is getting more powerful, it's also getting cheaper. The smaller base model of the M4 MacBook Air will retail at $999, down $100 from the previous starting price. Pre-orders begin today, and the machines will be available starting on March 12.

Last year's Air models were quite good but didn't do anything revolutionary, and the same seems true for the 2025 versions. There are still two size choices, 13-inch and 15-inch. RAM for the M2 and M3 laptops is 16GB by default, and the M4 model matches that standard. Apple is promising up to 18 hours of battery life, and the Airs will have support for Apple Intelligence. There's also a new look in the lineup, with the addition of a sky blue color to the now-familiar choices of silver, midnight and starlight. 

The company's current chip has been available in MacBook Pros, the Mac mini and the iMac for awhile now, so the power levels of the M4 have been pretty well established. But the boost for Apple's ultralights is still welcome. Apple says the new chip can make the latest Airs up to twice as fast as the M1 versions. The M4 is kitted out with a 10-core CPU and a GPU with up to 10 cores. It supports up to 32GB of unified memory.

The new prices might be the most exciting part of today's Air announcements. The 13-inch M4 Air starts at $999, or $899 for buyers in education, while the 15-inch model starts at $1,199, or $1,099 for education. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/apple-unveils-the-m4-macbook-air-with-a-price-drop-140012109.html?src=rss

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© Apple

PC players of Grand Theft Auto V have at long last reached parity with their console brethren. Following an announcement last month, today Rockstar Games has released a PC update with features that for several years had only been available to the latest console generation.

It's a free update for anyone who already owned a copy of the hugely popular game. The original version of GTA V has been delisted from PC storefronts in favor of the new Expanded & Enhanced iteration of the game, which includes a copy of the old Legacy edition. Both Story Mode and Online progress can be migrated to the most recent version. The update includes technical improvements that debuted on the consoles, as well as some PC-specific ray tracing features if the recommended specs are met. There are also some minor additions on content, such as ambient wildlife, photography challenges, new vehicles and access to the GTA+ subscription service.

Rockstar Games has been spiffing up several entries in its GTA franchise over the years. It released a trilogy of remasters for Grand Theft Auto III, GTA: Vice City and GTA: San Andreas in addition to providing these upgrades to GTA V and Grand Theft Auto Online. And while fans of the series might enjoy all the nostalgia, it's safe to say that expectations are sky high for the upcoming Grand Theft Auto VI.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/gta-v-finally-gets-its-next-gen-update-on-pc-three-years-after-consoles-234614209.html?src=rss

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© Rockstar Games

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has dropped its lawsuit over peer-to-peer payment system Zelle, the latest in a series of dismissals from this department under President Donald Trump's administration. The agency had only just announced the suit — filed against Zelle's operating entity Early Warning Services and partner banks JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo – in December. According to the initial action, the CFPB said that customers of the three banks had lost more than $870 million during the seven years Zelle has been active.

A spokesperson for Zelle said the company welcomed the CFPB’s decision, and reiterated that it believes the lawsuit was “without merit, and legally and factually flawed.” A JPMorgan Chase representative called scam prevention and consumer education “a national security problem” and stated the bank’s commitment to working "across the public and private sectors" toward solutions.

The CFPB made several moves to increase oversight on the financial products offered by tech companies under its previous director, Rohit Chopra. However, the agency is now overseen by Acting Director Russell Vought, who ordered the CFPB to cease all "supervision and examination activity" last month. While employees of the bureau have sued to try to keep the CFPB alive, there have been conflicting messages from government leadership about the agency's status.

Since taking office, Trump and ally Elon Musk have taken sweeping actions to control and close federal government departments. Agencies that have historically regulated Musk's business activities have been among those with reduced powers, as have federal operations for cybersecurity, digital services and personnel management.

Update, March 5, 2025, 4:41PM ET: Added official statements from Zelle and JPMorgan Chase.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/cfpb-drops-zelle-lawsuit-in-latest-reversal-under-trump-administration-204639032.html?src=rss

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© REUTERS / Reuters

Microsoft is making its Copilot AI assistant available as a Mac app. The native macOS app will offer access to the web-based version of the Microsoft tool. It's rolling out today in the US, the UK and Canada. In practice, the apps functionalities sound pretty much identical to the experience of going to the web version of Copilot. The real distinction is that the Mac app includes a keyboard shortcut for activating the AI assistant with Command + Space and it can be viewed in dark mode.

Earlier this week, Microsoft announced that it would make the Copilot features Voice and Think Deeper, which taps into OpenAI's o1 model, available to any users for free. Both moves seems aimed at broadening the company's audience for Copilot.

Big tech companies have a rocky history of trying to make their software available on rival hardware. Sometimes, it can take years for a service to be optimized for a different brand's exact specs. The arrival of a dedicated macOS app for Copilot, which is already out as an iPhone and iPad app, might be about as quick as Microsoft has ever brought a service to the Apple ecosystem.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/microsoft-launches-native-mac-app-for-copilot-235945829.html?src=rss

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© Microsoft

Video game preservation scored a win today with EA's decision to make four Command & Conquer games open source. The company has released the source code for Command & Conquer, Command & Conquer: Red Alert, Command & Conquer: Renegade and Command & Conquer: Generals through a GPL license. All four projects are available to the public on Github.

In addition, EA is adding Steam Workshop support to more contemporary entries in the real-time strategy franchise, including a modding support pack with assets from the series titles on the SAGE engine, such as Command & Conquer Red Alert 3. This game genre has fallen out of vogue in recent years. But the C&C series still has a lot of fans, so a fresh boost of modder interest could bring new players to the franchise. (Plus, never forget that Red Alert 3 also contains the single best line delivery in all of video game history.)

EA released meticulous remasters of the first two installments of Command & Conquer in 2020, which included the release of those games' source code. In December, the company made several of its patents for accessibility open source as well.

It's also encouraging to see EA taking a positive action around a beloved franchise, especially when its recent efforts to remaster The Sims and The Sims 2 was riddled with technical issues at launch that required heavy-duty patches to fix.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/ea-releases-source-code-for-four-command--conquer-games-223425774.html?src=rss

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© EA

Amazon announced that it has created its own quantum computing chip, joining Microsoft and Google in a push to take this potentially transformative technology from the theoretical to the practical. Ocelot is a prototype that's intended to test the effectiveness of Amazon Web Services' quantum error correction architecture. Compared with other chip methods, the company claims Ocelot can reduce the cost of implementing quantum error correction by up to 90 percent.

Quantum computing could solve complicated problems exponentially faster than standard computers by using quantum bits, or qubits, rather than traditional bits that store a computer's information as 1s and 0s. Rather than representing only a 1 or a 0, qubits can represent a proportion of both 1 and 0 at the same time. Ocelot takes this a step farther with its use of "cat qubits," named for the famous Schrödinger's cat thought experiment, which can "intrinsically suppress certain forms of errors," according to Amazon.

Error rate is one of the key limitations of current quantum computing, because the qubits are so sensitive to minute changes in their environments. Electromagnetic interference from a WiFi network can be enough to disturb a qubit and cause it to make mistakes. Adding more qubits to a chip means faster calculations, but also more mistakes.

Ocelot consists of five data qubits (the cat qubits), five "buffer circuits" to stabilize them and four qubits for detecting errors on the cat qubits. "We selected our qubit and architecture with quantum error correction as the top requirement," said Oskar Painter, director of quantum hardware at AWS. "We believe that if we're going to make practical quantum computers, quantum error correction needs to come first."

Google claimed that its Willow chip, announced in December, was able to reduce errors as more qubits were added. Ocelot is another step toward reducing errors and making useful quantum computers a reality.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/amazon-joins-the-quantum-computing-race-with-a-chip-designed-for-error-correction-201501075.html?src=rss

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© Amazon

It sometimes feels like everybody and their dog has a podcast. (Engadget does!) But why not jump on the trend when the interest in this type of content has grown for years? Video platform YouTube may not seem like the most obvious choice for tuning in to an audio-driven format, but the company has actually become a major player for podcast consumption. Today, YouTube announced that as of January 2025, it has surpassed 1 billion monthly active viewers of podcasts.

People aren't just playing YouTube podcasts to their headphones, either. The company's year-in-review showed that more than 400 million hours of podcast content was played on "living room devices" during 2024. Data from Edison Research found that YouTube was the most-used platform for nearly a third of weekly podcast listeners age 13 and up.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/youtube-passes-1-billion-monthly-active-podcast-viewers-225223309.html?src=rss

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© ozgurdonmaz via Getty Images

The FDA has granted clearance to a potentially lifesaving feature for Google's Pixel Watch 3. The smartwatch will start offering "loss of pulse detection" for US customers at the end of March. Once this aspect of the watch is enabled, the Pixel Watch 3 can automatically place a call to emergency services if it detects that the wearer's pulse has stopped. That could help a user receive critical medical attention even if they are responsive in situations such as cardiac arrest, respiratory or circulatory failure, overdose or poisoning.

Loss of pulse detection was announced last year and is already available to Pixel Watch 3 owners in select EU markets. We luckily didn't have cause to put the feature through its paces in our positive review of the wearable, which particularly impressed on battery life, brightness options and workout detection. 

Smartwatch manufacturers have been developing a suite of tools designed to assist wearers in different kinds of potentially life-threatening situations. For instance, the Pixel Watch 3 also offers features such as a safety check that shares your location with a chosen contact, fall detection that alerts first responders and car crash detection that notifies emergency services. Apple also introduced similar features for the iPhone and Apple Watch a few years ago.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/wearables/pixel-watch-3-receives-fda-clearance-for-loss-of-pulse-detection-210458883.html?src=rss

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© Sam Rutherford for Engadget

Microsoft announced that it is making some features available for free in its Copilot AI assistant. Everyone now has unlimited access to Voice and Think Deeper, which is powered by OpenAI’s o1 model.

Copilot got the Voice feature, which allows users to have conversations with the AI assistant, in October 2024. Think Deeper is intended to parse complicated queries, such as assessing the pros and cons of major home purchases, taking cost and long-term value into account.

"We are working hard to scale unlimited access to advanced features to as many people as possible, as quickly as possible," the blog post noted. Microsoft noted that users could experience delays or interruptions during times of high usage for these newly free Copilot applications. Members of the Copilot Pro subscription will still have preferred access to the company's latest AI models at those peak usage times, as well as to new features that are still in the experimental stage.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/microsoft-copilot-offers-voice-and-o1-powered-think-deeper-for-free-232723768.html?src=rss

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© Microsoft

The Federal Aviation Agency has started testing Starlink terminals for upgrades to the networks that manage airspace, creating the latest conflict of interest between the US government and Elon Musk. The FAA posted (fittingly on the social network Musk also owns) that it is testing a Starlink terminal in Atlantic City, NJ, and two terminals in Alaska. The post claims that the department had been considering using the SpaceX tech since the prior presidential administration.

The agency, which oversees all areas of civil aviation, has levied fines and required reviews over the years related to various SpaceX operations. Most recently, the agency ordered SpaceX to investigate what caused a mid-flight explosion with its Starship rocket last month.

A source told Bloomberg that Musk had approved a shipment of 4,000 Starlink terminals to the FAA last week. The agency has an existing contract with Verizon Communications, worth $2 billion, for supporting and maintaining its infrastructure. Bloomberg's sources were unsure how the Starlink tests would impact the Verizon deal.

This isn't the first time a Musk-owned business has benefited since the South African billionaire inserted himself into the US political landscape. He and his so-called DOGE group has been leading cuts within the federal ranks, including at the FAA and at other departments that oversee his companies. For instance, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration saw about a 10 percent reduction to its staff this month, including cuts to the small division overseeing autonomous vehicles such as those from Tesla.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/amid-a-musk-led-overhaul-the-faa-starts-doing-business-with-spacex-221900620.html?src=rss

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Warner Bros Discovery made sweeping cuts to its games division today, closing three studios and ending development on its planned Wonder Woman project. Monolith Productions, Player First Games and WB Games San Diego will be shuttered due to a “disappointing 2024” for WB's gaming business, according to an internal memo from JB Perrette, the company's CEO and president of global streaming and games. Bloomberg broke the news of the restructuring.

Monolith Productions made two well-regarded Lord of the Rings games, Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor and Shadow of War. The studio was going to apply its popular Nemesis system from those titles to a Wonder Woman game, which was announced back in 2021.

WB acquired Player First Games last year. The team was responsible for MultiVersus, a platform fighting game that reached 20 million players in its early days before dwindling to a planned shutdown of the online services when its fifth season ends this May.

WB Games San Diego was working on AAA free-to-play gaming. In December, Warner Bros Games also announced that it would lay off employees at WB Games Montreal as well as pulling back on the studio's game Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.

According to the internal email from Perrette, WB's gaming efforts will be focused on four of its properties: Harry Potter (including Hogwarts Legacy), Mortal Kombat, the DC universe and Game of Thrones. "We need to make some substantial changes to our portfolio/team structure if we are to commit the necessary resources to get back to a ‘fewer but bigger franchises’ strategy," Perette said.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/warner-bros-discovery-slashes-gaming-business-closing-three-studios-204344213.html?src=rss

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© Monolith Productions

Upheavals within the US government continued today as a group of technology experts announced their resignations. These federal employees had originally worked for the United States Digital Service, a tech-focused department created under the Obama administration. About 40 people from the original Digital Service staff were fired by the Elon Musk-led team known as DOGE earlier this year, and the remaining 65 employees were incorporated into his unit. Today, 21 of those people resigned.

"We will not use our skills as technologists to compromise core government systems, jeopardize Americans’ sensitive data, or dismantle critical public services," the former employees wrote in a resignation letter obtained by the Associated Press. "We will not lend our expertise to carry out or legitimize DOGE’s actions."

The Digital Services director, Anne Marshall, also resigned from her post last week, stating in a public letter that "This is not the mission I came to serve."

Both Marshall and the participants in today's group resignation raised concerns that people from Musk's outfit do not have the knowledge or desire to continue Digital Services' mission of developing and maintaining digital resources for Americans.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/doge-workers-quit-rather-than-help-musk-dismantle-critical-public-services-194237479.html?src=rss

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© Pacific Press via Getty Images

We learned in December 2022 that a production company had signed on to turn Sloclap's excellent martial arts game Sifu into a film. Today, the news dropped that Netflix is involved with the project, which seems to have caused some personnel shuffling behind the scenes.

The initial announcement saw Story Kitchen, which has since amassed a huge catalog of video game adaptations, securing a treatment of Sifu with John Wick creator Derek Kolstad attached as the writer. Story Kitchen is still working on the film, but Kolstad is no longer serving as the screenwriter and T.S. Nowlin has instead been tapped for that role. Nowlin's past credits include the screenplays for the Maze Runner adaptations and most recently he was a writer for Netflix's splashy Ryan Reynolds vehicle The Adam Project.

However, there is still a John Wick connection with Sifu. The director for all four John Wick films, stunt performer Chad Stahelski, has joined the producer team, as have members of Stahelski's 87Eleven Entertainment company. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/netflix-hops-aboard-sifu-movie-adaptation-assigns-a-screenwriter-225324526.html?src=rss

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© Sloclap

Samwise Gamgee said, "It's the job that's never started as takes longest to finish." But then, he hadn't been exposed to the world of video game development. Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game, a cozy take on the most idyllic pocket of Middle Earth, has been delayed. The new launch date is July 29. According to a post from the devs at Wētā Workshop Game Studio, this delay is about ensuring that all the project's supported platforms "can enjoy the same cozy experience." It is currently slated to launch on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Steam and Xbox Series X.

This project has taken a couple tough hits over the past several months. The release date had already been pushed back in September, and it was axed from Netflix's planned game lineup earlier this month. Will there be more hurdles before we can finally enjoy our happy hobbit alternate lives? As a wise wizard once said: "Who knows? Have patience."

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/cozy-lord-of-the-rings-game-tales-of-the-shire-is-delayed-to-july-213500109.html?src=rss

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© Wētā Workshop Game Studio

ChatGPT has surpassed 400 million weekly active users. "We feel very fortunate to serve 5 percent of the world every week," OpenAI COO Brad Lightcap said on X about the new audience stat. This figure is twice the weekly active user count reported by the company in August 2024, which was double the figure it posted in November 2023.

The latest milestone for the AI assistant comes after a huge uproar over new rival platform DeepSeek earlier in the year, which raised questions about whether the current crop of leading AI tools was about to be dethroned. OpenAI is on the verge of a move to simplify its ChatGPT offerings so that users won't have to select which reasoning model will respond to an input, and it will make its GPT-4.5 and GPT-5 models available soon in the chat and API clients. With GPT-5 being made available to OpenAI's free users, ChatGPT seems primed to continue expanding its audience base in the coming months.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/chatgpt-reaches-400m-weekly-active-users-203635884.html?src=rss

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© Igor Bonifacic for Engadget