The latest IT news, articles and advice from Astaris

The new Swedish-made Polestar 4 will be the first car on UK roads to replace a rear window (and traditional rear-view mirror) with a high-definition screen showing a real-time roof-mounted camera feed. Two Digital Cameras With Feed Displayed In ‘Mirror’  In fact, instead of a traditional rearview mirror, the Polestar 4 has a high-resolution rear-view […]

Google has announced that it is trying out generative AI within Google Maps as a way for users to discover new places based on their questions. How?  What Google means is that if users, for example, are visiting a town or city, they can simply tell Google Maps what they’re looking for and AI will […]

With more companies using AI to screen CVs and candidates’ body language during interviews, we look at what this could mean for today’s job applicants. Widely Used  IBM research from November last year shows that 4 out of 10 companies now use AI to improve recruiting and human resources. Also, in June last year, IBM […]

In a recent experiment where AI was taught to behave maliciously and then taught to stop, the bad behaviour continued despite efforts to stop it, giving a chilling reminder of the potential threats of AI. The Experiment  The Cornell University experiment was documented in an online paper entitled “Sleeper Agents: Training Deceptive LLMS That Persist Through […]

Following news that Google may need to pay $5 billion over tracking millions of people who thought they were browsing privately through incognito mode, we look at what incognito mode actually does. Incognito Mode  Different browsers have different names for ‘private browsing mode’ including ‘InPrivate browsing’ (Edge), ‘Private’ for Firefox (Mozilla) and Safari, and ‘Incognito’ […]

Amazon has announced that from 5 February 2024, its Amazon Prime Video customers in the UK and Germany will see “limited” ads unless they pay £2.99 per month to remove them. Why?  Amazon says that in view of the fact it won’t be making changes in 2024 to the current price of Prime membership, and […]

UK Transport Secretary, Mark Harper, said in a recent radio interview that driverless cars could be on some UK roads by the end of 2026. 2026  Following the November announcement of the new Automated Vehicles (AV) Bill, in an interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr Harper said: “Probably by as early as 2026 people […]

It’s been reported that The New York Times has sued OpenAI and Microsoft, alleging that they used millions of its articles without permission to help train chatbots. The First  It’s understood that the New York Times (NYT) is the first major US media organisation to sue ChatGPT’s creator OpenAI, plus tech giant Microsoft (which is […]

In the first change to Microsoft keyboards in 30 years, an AI key is to be added to Microsoft Windows 11 PC keyboards from February. Copilot Key  In a move that Microsoft says will make “2024 the year of the AI PC” and to mark a “shift toward a more personal and intelligent computing future where AI will […]

With January 1 being ‘Public Domain Day’, we look at what ‘public domain’ actually means in relation to works of literature, music, art, and science. Public Domain Day New Year’s Day each year is called ‘Public Domain Day’ because it’s the day that the copyright protection on a wide range of creative works such as […]

Following the news that Volkswagen (VW) is to add ChatGPT to the IDA voice assistant in its cars and SUVs, we look at what this could mean for the direction of technology for cars. Adding ChatGPT  At the current CET in Las Vegas, VW announced that starting in Europe in the second quarter of this […]

Cyber security is a big concern for many businesses and it should be on your radar, a lot of companies don’t realise they are making mistakes when it comes to preventing cyber incidents… We’re breaking them all down today. Ignoring Cyber Threats One of the biggest IT risks is neglecting cybersecurity. With the increasing sophistication […]