This week witnessed the introduction of fresh Microsoft AI and laptop revelations, the debut of Sonos’ inaugural headphones, and the unveiling of the new Sonos Roam 2 speaker.
For a recap of these developments and more, we’ve curated the top seven technology news stories from the past seven days.
Dive into the content below, and stay tuned for another swift tech news roundup next week.
1. Panasonic took on the Fujifilm X100VI with its full-frame Lumix S9
This week, Panasonic unveiled the Lumix S9, a lively and compact new full-frame mirrorless camera explicitly crafted for social media influencers.
Its compact size (it’s Panasonic’s smallest ever full-frame L-mount camera) makes it convenient to carry on your next trip, and it pairs with a dedicated Lumix Lab app so you can directly share your photos to your phone and with your audience.
If you wish to buy one, it’ll cost $1,499 / £1,499 / AU$2,699 for the body and then $219 / £219 / AU$349 for the new 26mm f/8 pancake lens. So far, it appears to offer numerous advanced video features in an enjoyable package. We do have some criticisms, which we delve into thoroughly in our Panasonic Lumix S9 review.
2. ChatGPT lost its Sky voice
Last week, when OpenAI showcased its new Sky voice for ChatGPT, many people – us included – noted it sounded a lot like Scarlet Johansson’s AI character in Her. It turns out Johansson thought the same thing, and she’s apparently annoyed about it.
She told NPR that she was “shocked, angered and in disbelief” that OpenAI would seemingly use “a voice that sounded so eerily similar to mine,” especially as she had apparently declined a deal to license her voice to them – having been asked twice, with one request coming very soon before last week’s showcase.
OpenAI, for its part, has rejected claims that Sky is based on Johansson. But that hasn’t stopped it from pulling the voice from the platform due to pressure from Johansson’s lawyers, and their statement might be a little undermined by a Sam Altman tweet made after the showcase that simply said “her.”
Some users took to social media to beg OpenAI to return the Sky voice to ChatGPT, though that’ll likely depend on how this dispute between OpenAI and Johansson continues.
3. Microsoft’s controversial Recall feature could already be in trouble
Also announced at Build 2024, Copilot+ PC users (with powerful enough hardware) can access a tool called Recall. This allows their computer to track everything they do – even taking screenshots every minute or so – so it can remember something they were doing earlier.
Billed by Microsoft as a handy assistant, many users are terrified by the privacy implications of this software, and in the UK, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) (which oversees data privacy and related regulations) is reportedly investigating the feature.
Microsoft has said it’s taken several precautions, like only storing this data locally, and saying it won’t be used to train its AI. Still, these promises haven’t assuaged many people’s fears. We’ll just have to wait and see what ICO and others make of the situation.
4. Copilot got an upgrade
As part of Build 2024, Microsoft followed the recent trend of software showcases by demoing new AI-powered features for its Copilot assistant.
Copilot is being integrated into the Windows 11 operating system, and ChaGPT-4o will be added, too. This will allow you to ask the AI to help you navigate an app or game you’ve not tried before – kind of like an interactive walkthrough tutorial. We saw it guide someone through Minecraft… and it was actually surprisingly helpful (though take these curated AI demos with a pinch of salt).
It also announced some new Copilot+ features that’ll be exclusive to powerful hardware. Unfortunately, not everyone is a fan of some new tools, cough Recall’s potentially disastrous privacy implications.
