‘The Day Before’ shuts down four days after launching
Our hunch was correct. After five years of so-called development, post-apocalyptic MMO ‘The Day Before’ has vanished from stores four days into release. Its studio, Fntastic, has also liquidated. All signs point to a scam. A few hundred days late, and more than a buck short. RIP ‘The Day Before’...
Current in Tech
What’s behind Gen Z’s love for ‘dumb phones’?
Dumb phones offer many of the more essential features we expect from our handheld devices (such as the ability to call and text) but you won’t find yourself browsing Instagram or checking TikTok on them. As consumers become more clued-up on the downsides of smartphone use — with negative impacts...
Will AI-generated influencers dominate social media’s future?
If Instagram is the place where the world’s most beautiful people can easily garner global attention, followers, brand deals, and immense wealth – is it not the perfect playground for influencers generated by AI to succeed? Would you buy a product promoted by a person who wasn’t real? It’s possible...
UAE’s ‘low carbon’ blue ammonia debunked by experts
Hydrogen is heralded by many as the key to decarbonising energy, but the UAE’s ‘low carbon’ way of transporting it through blue ammonia is drawing scepticism from experts. When the president of the world’s leading climate conference is simultaneously the chief of a top 10 oil production empire, it’s understandable...
Flip is a ‘shopping social network’ which could crack Gen Z
Those of us who purchase products on TikTok almost habitually have Trustpilot open in another tab. Can emerging ‘shopping social network’ Flip cut out the middleman by combining authentic video reviews and in-app ecommerce? When you’ve a captive audience boasting $360bn in spending power but markedly declining attention spans, what...
Employee pressure sees Sam Altman reinstated as OpenAI chief
Having been ousted by board members late last week, Sam Altman is already due to be reinstated as OpenAI CEO. The tech tycoon has his workforce to thank. Well, this is awkward. Cast your mind all the way back to last Friday (November 17th), when the surprising news broke that OpenAI...
‘Lapse’ emerges as the latest Gen Z photo-sharing platform
Stepping onto the digital scene with the slogan ‘friends, not followers’, can the new photo and status-sharing app Lapse hold our attention in a way that BeReal couldn’t? It’s starting to feel like the reign of social media is collapsing. Twitter’s engagement is at its lowest ever after rebranding to X under Elon Musk. Facebook – um, what even is that? Instagram has become a marketplace / TikTok rip-off where our...
Omegle shuts down after 14 years over sexual abuse controversy
The once-hyped social site is shuttering after years of controversy. Its death is a sign of the times. Long before the advent of Instagram or TikTok, socialising online meant updating your Facebook status or booting up Omegle. Launched in 2009, the latter was unique in that it allowed users to engage in anonymous, one-on-one video or text chats with strangers no matter their age or location. While many teens dreamt of stumbling...
PlayStation’s ‘India Hero Project’ to cultivate the nation’s gaming talent
The ‘India Hero Project’ is a scheme which will allow the nation’s indie developers to pitch to a committee of nine Sony employees. Financial, technical, and marketing support will be offered to the best demos and Sony may even publish games directly. The gaming market in India is currently worth an estimated $868m which is expected to double by 2027, according to data from analytics firm Niko Partners. As of...
OpenAI’s custom ‘GPTs’ take generative AI to another level
ChatGPT Plus subscribers can now utilise OpenAI’s flagship generative AI to create custom programs. Mere days into launch, the results are incredibly impressive. Having gone from strength to strength since its inception, ChatGPT has taken arguably its greatest step forward this week by leveraging the boundless creativity of its users. OpenAI’s first developer conference in San Francisco revealed that ChatGPT already boasts 100 million weekly users, while over 2 million...
