Robotics

OpenAI / ZDNETOpenAI’s new Codex agent is essentially a vibe-coding environment based on a ChatGPT-like comment interface. As much as the vibe-coding idea seems like a meme for wannabe cool-kid coders, the new Codex agent is impressive as heck.Also: What is AI vibe coding? It’s all the rage but it’s not for everyone – here’s whyOpenAI described Codex as a research preview still under active development. Right now, it’s available to Pro, Enterprise, and Team-tier ChatGPT users, but it’s expected to release to Plus and Edu users “soon.” According to the recording of OpenAI’s announcement livestream, the Codex name has been applied to an evolving coding tool since as far back as 2021. That said, when I refer to Codex in this article, I’m talking about the new version being announced now. What is Codex?I haven’t had the opportunity to get hands-on with Codex yet, so I’m taking everything I’m sharing with you from information provided by OpenAI. When I watched the announcement, I noticed that even the engineers seemed a little shocked at how capable this tool is. Codex lives on OpenAI’s servers and interacts with your GitHub repositories. If the demo is to be believed (and OpenAI has repeatedly proven that unbelievable demos are real), Codex basically acts like another programmer on your team. Also: 10 professional developers on vibe coding’s true promise and perilYou can tell it to fix a series of bugs, and it will go off and do just that. It asks you to approve coding changes, although it looks like it can also just go ahead and modify code. You can ask it to analyze and modify code, look for specific problems, identify problem areas and room for improvement, and other coding and maintenance tasks. Each assignment spawns off a new virtual environment where the AI can go all the way from concept and design to unit testing. More

<!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The Asus Zenbook A14 with 16GB of memory is on sale at Best Buy for $799. Asus’ new ultraportable is a fantastic balance of innovation and value with a brilliant OLED display, competitive hardware, and a satisfying physical form. While its use case is clearly defined, the laptop has its limits […] More

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNETWhen I first picked up the Asus Zenbook A14 More

Kerry Wan/ZDNETWelcome back to another busy week of health tech news. I’m rounding up some of the most notable news to come out of the health wearables space every week. There’s a lot to talk about, so let’s dive in.  Two years of Apple Watch shipment declineAmid growing global smartwatch shipments from competitors, Apple is seeing two years of smartwatch shipment declines, according to a report by Counterpoint Research. In 2024, shipments declined by 19%. Counterpoint says that a lack of a new SE model option, that is, Apple’s most budget-friendly smartwatch, drives part of this decline. Also: I switched to the Apple Watch after a four-year hiatus – here’s why it’s near perfect nowCould the release of an updated SE model alongside feature improvements across the Apple Watch lineup turn things around? We’ll have to wait for Apple’s September event, where it debuts the latest wearable hardware to see. That said, I’m interested in what our ZDNET readers would like to see in an Apple Watch update, so leave a comment below if you have some ideas on your Apple Watch wishlist. Speaking of Apple Watch, Apple released watchOS 11.5 this week, and while there aren’t many groundbreaking features hitting this update, you should still get around to updating your Apple Watch when you can. Software updates like watchOS 11.5 keep everything running smoothly and ensure that features and bugs are optimized or fixed for long-term use. Acer’s FreeSense Ring takes on Oura More

Last year’s Garmin Forerunner was one of my favorite smartwatches. Matthew Miller/ZDNETRegular readers know that I always wear a Garmin with an LED flashlight on one of my wrists, and I use it daily. It’s exciting to see, for the first time, that Garmin now has a Forerunner model with this flashlight, which serves as an important safety feature for runners.Garmin’s new Forerunner 570 More

<!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The CMF Buds 2 Plus are the most premium pair of earbuds from the Nothing sub-brand. At $69, they’re one of the best-sounding and most feature-rich earbuds in the price segment. The way these earbuds are designed makes them not ideal for side sleepers. –> The new Nothing CMF Buds 2 […] More

<!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways A Shine Turbine kit, which includes a turbine, stand, guy lines, and pegs, costs $399, while the Essentials Kit, which adds a few more bits such as a wind speed meter, costs $488 – though both are on sale right now The kit includes everything you need to turn wind into […] More

David Gewirtz / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNETA few days ago, I showed you an amazing new ChatGPT feature available to paying users. Plus, Pro, and Team tier users can now point Deep Research at an entire GitHub repo and get back analysis reports. Also: I test a lot of AI coding tools, and this stunning new OpenAI release just saved me days of workAs I showed, this capability helps speed up the process of coming up to speed on existing codebases. You might need to do this if you acquire a product from another developer or if you’re brought onto a project and need to learn the codebase quickly. It’s also good for reviewing your own codebase and refreshing yourself on how sections work — especially if you’ve moved on to other things for a while and are now coming back to the original code. I promised I’d show you how to bring a codebase into GitHub specifically for analysis by Deep Research. That’s what we’re about to do in this article. Moving my code into GitHub To demonstrate this, I’m moving My Private Site into GitHub. My Private Site is a freemium WordPress plugin with about 20,000 active users I’ve been working on for about a decade. WordPress, for historical reasons, uses SVN instead of GitHub as a code repository, so I haven’t really had a need to put My Private Site into GitHub. Also: I put GitHub Copilot’s AI to the test – its mixed success at coding baffled meBut given the opportunity to perform deep analysis on it, I decided to set it up. I’ll go through that process with you here. Getting started with GitHub Desktop Before we start, let’s clarify some things. Git is a distributed version control system that runs on a programmer’s local computer. GitHub is a cloud-based service that stores an enormous library of open-source and proprietary coding projects. Those projects are moved into GitHub (the cloud service) using Git (the tool). Real programmers only use Git on the command line, where it’s known as git. No real programmer would dare to capitalize git. Real programmers command git via a range of options, creating specialized command lines that do their bidding. Failure to use git on the command line will result in your real-programmer card being revoked by the International Society of Programmers Who Are Smarter Than You. Also: How I used GitHub Spark to build an app with just a one-sentence AI promptI am apparently not a real programmer. I might as well get that out of the way before the comments erupt in disdainful RPs (real programmers) mocking my lack of command-line acuity. I don’t use Git via the command line. I don’t like it. I believe humans left the cave long ago and adopted graphical user interfaces as tools of civilized society. I, therefore, prefer using GitHub Desktop, which is a point-and-click version of Git for those not worthy of the title real programmer. And yes, my official real-programmer card has been revoked. I can live with it.  You can download GitHub Desktop here. More