Columbus, OH

Welcome to ZDNET's Innovation Index, which identifies the most innovative developments in tech from the past week and ranks the top four, based on votes from our panel of editors and experts. Our mission is to help you identify the trends that will have the biggest impact on the future.

Qualcomm's AI dreams and Microsoft's built-to-last laptops lead the Innovation Index

Microsoft’s partnership with OpenAI and Google’s deal to install its generative AI (GenAI) capabilities on Samsung devices attracted fresh antitrust scrutiny from the European Commission (EC). EC EVP for competition policy Margrethe Vestager (pictured) stated it will send Microsoft and OpenAI follow-up questions under antitrust rules “to understand...

Microsoft, Google AI deals draw EC antitrust scrutiny

Mustafa Suleyman, the AI CEO at Microsoft, argues that anything that's accessible on the open web is "freeware," and anyone can freely use the content. As for the websites that have clear disclaimers about not using their content without permission, Suleyman says that it's a "gray area," and he thinks "that's going to work its way through the courts."

Microsoft AI CEO says using open web content to train AI models isn't wrong

Microsoft has upgraded its AI-powered graphic design tool, Microsoft Designer, introducing support for diverse image sizes along with some new creative functionalities. The tool, aimed at facilitating the creation of professional-grade graphics, is now freely available to the general public. The launch was announced by Derek Johnson, Director of Product for Microsoft Designer, on X.

Microsoft Designer Adds New Image Sizes and Creative Tools

Public opinion is turning against AI on certain topics. Some people have been dubious about the practical benefits of all the power and money spent on developing and operating AI for some time, but recently, leadership at multiple companies has gone completely "mask off" with regard to how they feel about the impact of AI on society and its denizens, and it's not a good look.

Microsoft AI Chief Says It’s OK To Scrape And Steal Content On The Web

Business Insider

Elon Musk said that his Grok 3 AI is being trained on 100,000 Nvidia H100s. If purchased outright, that would cost billions.

Elon Musk reveals how many Nvidia H100 chips his AI chatbot will be trained on

Android Central

Motorola debuted the new "Moto Tag" Bluetooth tracker, available for Google's Find My Device network.

The new Moto Tag joins Google's Find My Device as a do-it-all tracker for $29.99

Fortune

Elon Musk has aired a raft of privacy concerns following Apple's partnership with OpenAI. Formerly the world’s richest man, Musk is developing his own artificial intelligence models at EV maker Tesla and startup xAI. xAI has already released a large language model named Grok. But not only is ChatGPT...

Elon Musk says he’ll lock iPhones in an electromagnetic cage at all his businesses after Apple announces OpenAI partnership

We've known for a while that is . While the company says it has been integrating that into various aspects of the voice assistant, it's also working on a more advanced version of Alexa that it plans to charge users to access. Amazon has reportedly dubbed the higher tier "Remarkable Alexa" (let's hope it doesn't stick with that name for the public rollout).

Amazon reportedly thinks people will pay up to $10 per month for next-gen Alexa

BGR.com

We’ve talked for months about how Apple will put its own spin on AI features for the iPhone via iOS 18. More recently, we learned that all the new AI features Apple plans to unveil at WWDC 2024 will be branded as “Apple Intelligence.”
That’s a brilliant and lucky way to turn “AI” into an Apple-branded product, and it’s something Apple’s rivals can’t match. However, most people will probably not use “Apple Intelligence” as much when discussing the iPhone’s AI capabilities. “AI” will continue to mean artificial intelligence for all of us.
That said, what’s clear from all these reports is that...

3 futuristic products that’ll be powered by ‘Apple Intelligence’ AI

Missouri State

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CJ Coombs

According to Shakey's website, this pizza parlor is only in California, North Carolina, and Washington state in the U.S. now. This was my family's go-to pizza joint when my father was stationed with the Air Force outside of Omaha, Nebraska. We liked it so much, that when we were transferred again, it was hopeful we'd find another one.

Shakey's Pizza Parlor and nostalgia: the first franchised pizza restaurant also landed in Missouri

The first time my family walked into a Ponderosa Steakhouse was in the late 1960s. It was new and the experience was great. Like other new restaurants, if the management doesn't stay on top, the quality of service can decline. The location we went to did change through the years, but in the beginning, it was great.

The 1960s: the Ponderosa and Bonanza Steakhouses are still around in some states

New Jersey State

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Morristown Minute

NEW JERSEY - Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and the Division of Consumer Affairs announced today that Walmart has agreed to pay $1.64 million to settle allegations of unlawful unit pricing practices across its 64 New Jersey retail stores. The settlement, which includes a $1.61 million civil penalty, marks the largest ever obtained by the Division’s Office of Weights and Measures (OWM).

Walmart Pays $1.64M Settlement for Unlawful Pricing in NJ

Kentucky State

Northern Kentucky Tribune

Kentucky’s medical cannabis program has taken significant steps toward ensuring those with qualifying conditions have access to medical cannabis as soon as possible, said Gov. Andy Beshear this week.

State to open licensing applications for medical cannabis businesses beginning July 1

Alibaba's stand at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai on July 6, 2023. China’s chip industry may have found a way to make an advanced chip that can power a 5G smartphone, but it can’t yet make a chip powerful to run AI applications. And that dependence on chip imports, restricted by a U.S. ban, could now be putting China’s tech sector at a disadvantage in the race to dominate AI.

China’s AI companies are reportedly rationing the use of their services because they don’t have enough chips

New York City, NY

Newark, NJ

NEWARK, N.J. – Joshua Goltry, 30, of New York, admitted today to defrauding investors out of millions of dollars through a fraudulent investment scheme, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced. Goltry pleaded guilty to one count of securities fraud before U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden in Newark federal court.

Fund Manager's Multimillion-Dollar Fraud Scheme

The demand for TSMC's chip manufacturing capabilities is increasing as more chipmakers are looking to cash in on the AI boom. Stronger earnings growth and healthy spending on AI chips over the next decade are going to be tailwinds for this foundry giant. This semiconductor stock is at the center...

1 Incredible Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock to Buy and Hold for the Next 10 Years

Seattle, WA

Bellevue, WA

Cloud computing and data giant Snowflake confirmed that it will move into a new office in Bellevue, Wash., next year to support growth plans for its Seattle-area engineering center. The company is leasing more than 326,000 square feet of space at the Block 6 building from Meta in the Spring...

Snowflake moving into larger office in Bellevue to support growth plans

Georgia State

DeanLand

Georgia's population grew beyond the 11 million mark in 2023, reaching 11,029,227 residents according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau. With a robust population increase of 2.9% from 2020 to 2023, 315,456 new residents arrived in the state. Georgia was the 10th fastest-growing state in the US by percentage during the reporting period.

Georgia's Population Surges Past 11 Million, Fueled by Migration

Maine State

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Idaho State

Shop with Me Mama

Why Idaho Ranks in the Top 10 States Americans Are Flocking To in 2024. A lot of Idahoans are saying 'Idaho is FULL! Go find somewhere else to live!'. With that said, MANY people and their families are flocking to this state and calling it home.

Why Is Everyone Relocating To Idaho?

NewsBreak

Tech Moves: Tomo co-founder steps down; Usermind co-founder joins Ironclad; ex-Google director back at Microsoft

— Carey Schwaber Armstrong, the former Zillow exec who co-founded real estate startup Tomo four years ago, has stepped down from the company. “Leaving your startup...

Tech Moves: Tomo co-founder steps down; Usermind co-founder joins Ironclad; ex-Google director back at Microsoft

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