LG Unveils South Korea’s First Open-Source AI

LG unveiled Exaone 3.0, South Korea's first open-source AI model, entering the competitive AI field dominated by Western companies. The 7.8 billion parameter model excels in Korean and English tasks, aiming to accelerate local AI research. This represents a strategic shift for LG into AI innovation from consumer electronics. By open-sourcing Exaone 3.0, LG gains technical prestige while positioning itself for cloud and AI services revenues.

Exaone 3.0 competes with leading open-source models from China and the Middle East that have gained significant traction. LG improved efficiency over prior versions, which is crucial in this landscape where capabilities drive cost savings and user experience gains for organizations. The model was extensively trained on various professional data to be versatile.

LG's entrance into open-source AI could reshape the AI landscape beyond deep-pocketed players and demonstrate South Korea's advanced modeling capabilities on a global scale. Success would support LG's diversification and open new revenue sources while attracting investment and talent to South Korea. Broadly, proliferating open-source options may democratize advanced AI access worldwide, spurring cross-industry innovation. However, catalyzing a vibrant ecosystem will determine whether LG's ambitious move pays off in the long run.

Stability AI Introduces Stable Fast 3D

Stability AI introduced Stable Fast 3D, a new AI model that can rapidly generate high-quality 3D images from single photos in under half a second. This represents a significant advancement over Stability AI's previous SV3D model, which took up to 10 minutes per image. Stable Fast 3D leverages an enhanced Transformer network and optimized techniques to efficiently reconstruct dense 3D meshes while maintaining quality. It will have many practical applications for industries like design, games, and more.

The model builds on Stability AI's previous work with TripoSR to evolve 3D generation capabilities. Key aspects include a material estimation network using novel probabilistic methods for improved image quality and consistency. Stable Fast 3D can also combine mesh, textures, and material properties into compact 3D assets ready for use. It demonstrates innovative methods detailed in a research paper.

While initially known for 2D image generation with Stable Diffusion, Stability AI has been advancing its 3D capabilities since late 2022. Prior versions like Stable 3D and SV3D improved speeds and quality. The company also recently launched Stable Video 4D to add a time dimension to short 3D videos. Stability AI continues pushing the boundaries of generative AI across an increasing number of dimensions.

Elon Musk Sues OpenAI Again

Elon Musk has refiled a lawsuit against OpenAI and its cofounders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman. The suit alleges they breached the company's original mission to develop beneficial AI for humanity. It claims Altman and Brockman deceived Musk by presenting OpenAI as a safer, more transparent nonprofit alternative to for-profit options. However, Musk's lawyer stated this new lawsuit is "more forceful," accusing OpenAI of violating federal racketeering laws through a conspiracy to defraud Musk.

The refiled case takes issue with OpenAI's deal with Microsoft, arguing its terms would revoke Microsoft's rights to the technology once artificial general intelligence is attained. Previously, Musk had withdrawn a similar lawsuit against OpenAI without explanation, which focused on claims the company broke its agreement to keep technologies open-source. However, Musk is now doubling down with renewed legal action containing more severe allegations regarding OpenAI's structure and partnerships.

• Amazon upgrades its AI image generator and adds new AI feature to Amazon Music
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• OpenAI-backed startup Figure teases new humanoid robot ‘Figure 02’
• Palantir partners with Microsoft to sell AI to the government

• Reddit to test AI-powered search result pages
• Sam Altman stokes rumors of new OpenAI foundation model ‘Strawberry
• Samsung starts mass production for memory chips for on-device AI

Game Informer Shuts Down After 3 Decades

GameStop shut down Game Informer after 33 years of publication, suddenly laying off the entire staff. Employees were called into a meeting and informed of the closure and that severance packages would be provided.

The Game Informer website was immediately taken down, preventing staff from backing up their work. The former video lead noted the site was replaced with a statement sharing the news. Reports indicated the team had nearly finished their next issue before facing shutdown and losing their jobs.

GameStop had owned Game Informer since 2000 but had taken steps to wind down the publication in recent years. It shuttered Game Informer's Australian version in 2019, followed by staff layoffs later that year. The abrupt closing of the historic magazine marks the end of an era and the loss of many industry jobs, surprising employees and fans of its long-running coverage of video games. GameStop's decision to immediately remove content from the site along with the team points to an unprepared and unfortunate way of handling the closure.

Microsoft and Activision Blizzard Form New Studio to Develop Smaller Franchise Spinoff Games

Microsoft has formed a new team within Blizzard comprised of former King employees and others tasked with developing smaller games based on Blizzard's franchises. Sources indicate this includes developing mobile games to support Xbox's mobile gaming plans, although projects may also target other platforms. The goal is to better leverage franchises like StarCraft, Warcraft and Overwatch. By exploring games from smaller, more nimble teams integrated into the larger organization, Microsoft hopes to cut costs as AAA development budgets balloon.

Taking a page from agile indie hits, Microsoft sees an opportunity in innovative games from smaller groups. This comes as large live-service publishers face difficult transitions and workforce cuts as player habits change. Microsoft has also restructured some internal studios like 343 Industries and relocated teams to streamline communication after past issues. The new King-led Blizzard team fits this focus on collaborative, cost-efficient development through cross-studio mobile expertise.

Success will depend on execution quality and the choice of franchises. But by exploring a Nintendo-like model of tight cross-studio collaboration on existing IPs through nimbler teams, Microsoft aims to sustain flagship series profitably across an evolving games market facing rising costs and falling engagement windows for expensive blockbusters.

Prison Architect 2 Gets Delayed Indefinitely

The developers of Prison Architect 2 announced an indefinite delay to the game's scheduled September 3rd release date. Through internal reviews and beta testing, performance and content issues were highlighted that need further improvement to meet quality standards.

While the core ideas and new features are promising, more work is required before launch to honor the franchise's legacy. All pre-orders will be refunded as development continues without a new timeline. The decision allows the team to focus fully on addressing feedback and thoroughly developing the sequel.

In Q&A the developers provided more context. Prison Architect 2 features complex, interconnected systems that necessitate extensive testing and fixes. Enhancing performance has proven challenging. While the game is not canceled, refining its scope and building confidence in a new timeline are priorities above early access or continuous communication.

The development process takes precedence over deadlines to ensure delivering a stable, high-quality experience as the franchise deserves. Players will be updated as more specific information becomes available on progress resolving issues and solidifying plans.

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• MixRift raises $1.6m for mixed reality games
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Ubisoft’s ‘Captain Laserhawk’ Game to Launch on Arbitrum

Ubisoft announced the development of Captain Laserhawk: The G.A.M.E based on the Netflix series and set in the same universe. It will integrate characters from franchises like Assassin's Creed and Rayman and be built on the Ethereum scaling solution Arbitrum. However, details on the gameplay format are scarce as the announcement refers to it as a "transmedia experience" and teaser footage is cinematic rather than showing in-game play. Ubisoft aims to give players influence over the story, content, and evolution through innovative web3 mechanics like governance. The goal is an unprecedented degree of community involvement in crafting the game.

The developers partnered with Arbitrum Foundation and Horizon's Sequence to take advantage of their networking capabilities. Ubisoft VP Nicolas Pouard commented that Arbitrum would enable them to empower the community by providing ways to shape the lore, gameplay features, and side experiences in a transparent and collaboratively created manner. As one of the largest traditional game companies exploring crypto, Ubisoft has invested heavily in multiple experiments, but Captain Laserhawk represents their most ambitious web3-native title integrating community participation to date.

Pump.fun Introduces Free Coin Creation and Will Reward Coin Creators For Successful Coin Launches

Meme coin platform Pump.fun has introduced updates removing creation fees and rewarding developers of successful tokens. Previously, launching a coin required a 0.02 SOL payment, but creators can now do so for free. If their token reaches a $69,000 market cap to complete liquidity generation, they will earn 0.5 SOL. This incentivizes continued work on projects rather than immediate dumps. However, some are concerned this could enable "free rug pulls" and exploitation through purchasing one's tokens repeatedly. There are also worries of faster meme coin saturation in the space.

The changes have garnered mixed reactions. Supporters argue it motivates developers while criticisms cite potential downsides. A point of contention is whether incentives will spur more abandoned projects or revive activity around launched coins. Concerns include facilitated rug pulls and the potential for gaming the rewards system. Skeptics argue it could accelerate the meme coin supply without oversight on project quality or sustainability. The impacts of Pump.fun's economic model adjustments remain to be seen in terms of effects on both platform and broader memetic DeFi ecosystem dynamics.

Bitcoin Briefly Tops $62,000 as Global Recession Fears Subside

Bitcoin's price climbed above $62,000 after fears of a global recession eased with lower-than-expected US unemployment claims data. After dipping as low as $49,781 on Monday due to market turbulence, Bitcoin rebounded over 6% as recession concerns subsided. However, analysts caution the top cryptocurrency has lost bullish momentum and remains below its 200-day moving average, advising traders to take profits on long positions more aggressively. The sell-off earlier in the week was painful for traders and locked in $1.38 billion in realized losses.

Institutions have been seen buying the dip to take advantage of lower prices. The long-term outlook for cryptocurrencies from an institutional perspective remains positive despite short-term volatility. Strong Bitcoin ETF inflows of $201.5 million on August 8th, the highest since late July, indicate growing institutional demand. While the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust saw outflows, funds from Blackrock, ARK Invest, and others rose, demonstrating flows are rotating to ETF vehicles. The buying is underpinning Bitcoin's price recovery from recession scares as institutional appetite remains robust.

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