Latest Stories from Jamie
Facebook’s ‘Deep Fake Detection Challenge’ returns worrying data
As the 2020 US presidential election looms, social media sites are having to prepare for the inevitable onslaught of political discourse, and detecting defamatory content is high on the agenda. If you keep up to date with Thred, then this definitely won’t be the first time you’ve heard of deepfakes. This AI face manipulation technology began with innocuous memes of Nicholas Cage several years ago, but has slowly evolved...
Could llamas hold the key to curing Covid-19?
If this works out, the llama may pip the unicorn to the title of Most Magical Animal. As you will have heard a thousand times before, mostly on morning news shows, Covid-19 has all of us navigating through ‘unprecedented times’. Social distancing regulations may be easing worldwide, but getting back to living the way we once were will depend heavily on finding a vaccine. To that end, we’ve invested millions...
Can gaming become an arm of educational discovery?
In conjunction with ever improving tech, Ubisoft continues to bring historical periods to life with unerring accuracy in its games. But has its latest development opened a door to educational discovery that we never knew was there? As gaming technologies become more intricate and advanced, so too do the digital worlds created by the industry’s top studios. Raising the bar for immersive entertainment is unequivocally the priority for the next...
AR lenses to cure the visually impaired?
These days most of us wake up to the sight of a smartphone screen, so why not cut out the middle man completely? Thanks to the likes of Elon Musk and Drew Perkins, I can scarcely remember a time where nutty human tech projects weren’t ‘close’ to commercialisation. Nowadays, stories are leaking out of Silicon Valley and NASA almost as frequently as celebrity gossip in the tabloids. While convenience with technology...
Robot baristas help customers social distance in South Korea
South Korea is showing the rest of the world how to social distance in style. The lengths people go to for coffee... You know that awkward moment when you’re approached by a needy waiter at a local café and have to reassure them that your order is ‘delicious’ through a mouthful of carrot cake? Well, that’s no longer an issue at a nifty joint in Daejeon, South Korea. As the nation loosens its...
Indie developers can now use Unreal Engine for free
Yesterday’s demo of the Unreal Engine 5 was certainly something wasn’t it? And small indie devs will get a taste of the new cutting-edge technology for free. Consider yourself an avid gamer? the chances are you’ve already played several titles developed using one of the constantly improving iterations of the Unreal Engine. Whether we’re talking Mass Effect, Bioshock, Borderlands, Mortal Kombat, or owners Epic Games’ in-house projects Fortnite and Gears of War, a hefty chunk of the most popular franchises...
SoundCloud and Twitch change the game for aspiring artists
You didn’t think SoundCloud was going to be underground forever, did you? SoundCloud is one of the worst kept secrets in the music industry in recent years, having propelled indie creators like Lil Peep, 21 Savage, XXXTentacion, and Post Malone from bedroom rappers to global stars seemingly overnight. And the music sharing platform is ready to permeate the mainstream on a whole other level with its latest coup. Yesterday, SoundCloud announced...
Animal Crossing: New Horizons gains a dark underbelly
Just what is wrong with you people?! Will anyone ever play Animal Crossing: New Horizons the way it was intended ever again, or will we have to out you lot every single week? On the surface, Animal Crossing: New Horizons is as unassuming and frothy as games come. The painterly villages are filled with adorable creatures and smiley low fidelity avatars who potter around fishing, gathering seashells, and chasing butterflies – that is until they’re...
Is cross platform marketing the new key to owning the charts?
Call it sheer dumb luck or a stroke of marketing genius, either way Travis Scott may have given us a peak at the future of clout chasing in the music industry. With more registered players than the entire US population, it’s safe to say Fortnite was no flash in the pan. Developers Epic Games continue to grow the franchise into something of a mega conglomerate, and rapper Travis Scott is the latest beneficiary. The two joined...
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla: a definitive next gen title?
After a two-year stint away, Ubisoft is finally ready to show us the fruits of their labour with a first gameplay reveal of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Well, that trailer reveal was certainly something wasn’t it? Vikings... we did tell you so, though ‘Ragnarök’ was a ways off. Instead, the 12th instalment of the franchise will be called Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, and will follow the story of a Nordic warrior under siege from an aggressive Anglo Saxon regime who’ve branded the Vikings as ‘savages’. Your clan head...
