Cesar Cadenas/ZDNETI’ve never really been an Apple guy. Most of the tech I have owned has either been Windows- or Android-related. I’ve never had an iPhone, and outside of a few instances, I never used a Mac for an extended period of time. However, writing for ZDNET has given me opportunities to try out hardware I may never have touched. And after trying out Apple’s new M4 Max Mac Studio More
Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images For years, Pinterest has been dubbed the go-to social media site for seeing inspirational mood boards, tracking lifestyle, fashion, and beauty trends, and finding niche and popular consumer-based products. However, the site has recently been plagued with an onslaught of AI slop, making it difficult for users to decipher what’s […] More
Kerry Wan/ZDNETOnePlus just made a business decision that took a lot of courage. At least that’s how its CEO, Pete Lau, framed it in his Monday community post. After years and years of fielding a physical alert slider on its phones, the company is moving away in favor of a customizable function key, similar in behavior to the iPhone’s Action Button.Also: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra vs. OnePlus 13: I compared the best Android phones, and it was very closeThe change is in response to a recent demand for more customizability in smartphones, particularly regarding the alert slider, which could only toggle between sound modes (silent, vibrate, and sound). Lau said that this left OnePlus with two choices: “Leave it as it was or evolve it into something even more powerful.”The result is a smart button that adapts to the user’s needs, whether adjusting specific settings, firing up apps at will, or remaining as the good old mute switch. The latter is non-negotiable, says Lau, as users still prefer OnePlus devices for the burdenless capability. More
Kerry Wan/ZDNETAT&T and its partner AST SpaceMobile have successfully completed a video call using an unmodified smartphone connected via satellite, showcasing the potential of space-based cellular networks to bridge connectivity gaps in remote and underserved areas.Also: AT&T and Verizon users can try T-Mobile’s Starlink satellite service now – here’s howThe call, conducted on AT&T’s spectrum, used AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird satellites launched in September 2024. Originating from Midland, Texas, the video call was made using a standard WhatsApp application on an everyday smartphone, demonstrating how seamlessly integrated the satellite technology was with existing mobile devices. “It’s transparent to the phone,” John Wojewoda, AVP at AT&T Mobility, tells ZDNET. “It just looks like another wireless network.” More
fotograzia/Getty Images The second you start watching a video on YouTube, the site begins building an algorithm of your likes. While the goal of that is to show you content you want to see, it means you’ll miss out on so much. A new tool lets you see YouTube without the algorithm, and it feels […] More
J Studios/Getty Images Almost one in eight college students would use AI agents to help with school processes, and 83% of administrators would welcome AI agent support in their roles, according to Salesforce and YouGov research. Also: Employers want workers with AI skills, but what exactly does that mean? The survey of more than 500 college […] More
akinbostanci/Getty Images As more AI models show evidence of being able to deceive their creators, researchers from the Center for AI Safety and Scale AI have developed a first-of-its-kind lie detector. On Wednesday, the researchers released the Model Alignment between Statements and Knowledge (MASK) benchmark, which determines how easily a model can be tricked into knowingly […] More
ZDNETWith the ever-growing reliance on AI in the workplace, more employers are seeking employees with the necessary experience and skills. Employment data cited by The Wall Street Journal found that almost one in four US tech jobs posted so far this year are looking for people with AI skills. But what precisely does that mean?Also: 10 key reasons AI went mainstream overnight – and what happens nextIn some cases, companies are looking for developers who can build and design the required AI tools and platforms. In other cases, they want IT professionals who can manage and support their AI systems. And in other cases, organizations need people who can incorporate AI into their regular job duties. Whatever the specific need, it’s been growing. AI-related tech positions have doubled in a few yearsThe information sector, for example, includes many major tech players heavily involved in AI development and deployment. Here, 36% of the IT jobs posted in January were related to AI, according to data from UMD-LinkUp AI Maps, a collaborative effort to map the creation of AI jobs. In the areas of finance and professional services, banks, consulting firms, and other companies are seeking employees who know how to build or use AI algorithms and models. Also: The most critical job skill you need to thrive in the AI revolutionAmong other industries, open IT jobs have become more focused on AI. As an example cited by the WSJ, only a small number of open healthcare positions are considered tech jobs. But the volume of new tech positions seen in January that are AI-related was almost double that of a few years ago. Before the recent AI boom, jobs that involved work with artificial intelligence and machine learning naturally existed. But the demand started to rise following the debut of ChatGPT at the end of 2022. Created by the people behind UMD-LinkUp AI Maps, a white paper titled “Diffusion of AI Jobs Across Economic Sectors” illustrates the shift in job postings, both in general and in AI. More
