Welcome, my friends, to Week in Review (WiR), TechCrunch’s weekly news recap. The weather is getting hotter – but not as hot as the generative AI space, which saw a slew of new models released this week, including Meta’s. Llama 3.
In other AI news, Hyundai-owned robotics company Boston Dynamics revealed electrically powered humanoid tracking to her longtime robot Atlas, which she recently retired. As Brian writes, the new robot – also called Atlas – has a softer, gentler design than the original Atlas and more contemporary robots like Figure 01 and the Tesla Optimus.
Turning our attention to YouTube for a moment, Dom and Amanda explained how renowned gadget reviewer Marques Brownlee (MKBHD) we shouldn’t blame for the fate of AI startup Humane AI, whose Ai Pin product Brownlee gave a scathing review of earlier this week. They point out that Humane is a well-funded company with plenty of money in the bank to spend, and find that Brownlee’s critics — who accuse him of being unfairly harsh — have misplaced their anger.
Many other things happened. We recap it all in this edition of WiR — but first, a reminder to register to receive the WiR newsletter in your mailbox every Saturday.
News
X publication costs: X CEO Elon Musk is considering charging new X users a small fee to enable posting on the social network, in a bid to reduce what he describes as a “bot problem.”
Change ransomware: An extortion group has released part of what it claims are the private and sensitive records of millions of Americans stolen during the war. ransomware attack on Change Healthcare in February.
Tesla adjusts its prices: In other Tesla news, the automaker has abandoned price discounts on electric vehicle inventory in what CEO Elon Musk called a move to “streamline” sales and delivery. Tesla too lowered the price of its advanced driver assistance package, Full Self-Driving, at $99 per month in the United States
Mars on the loose: Devin reports that space startups are licking their lips over NASA’s decision to convert its 15-year, $11 billion mission to collect and return samples from Mars into a free commercial mission.
Waymo issues: Six Waymo robo-taxis blocked traffic on an on-ramp in San Francisco on Tuesday. This isn’t the first time Waymo vehicles have caused a roadblock, Rebecca notes, but it is the first documented incident involving a highway.
Analysis
Google Cloud is banking on generative AI: Ron writes about how Google Cloud is investing heavily in generative AI, as evidenced by a series of announcements at Google’s Cloud Next conference earlier this month.
Generative AI in health: Generative AI is coming to healthcare, but not everyone is excited. Some experts don’t think the technology is ready for prime time.
Airchat, to speak: Anthony shuts down the hype around Airchat, an app launched by former AngelList founder Naval Ravikant and former Tinder chief product officer Brian Norgard that focuses on voice, not text.
