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When Microsoft and OpenAI announced their renewed partnership in January, the two companies also revealed that Bing search would soon boast AI-enhanced lookup capabilities. Little did we know at the time, that Bing search has been powered for the past five weeks, not by the existing then-state-of-the-art GPT-3.5 model but by its even more robust successor, GPT-4.

Microsoft envisions Bing — and really Google is doing much the same with Bard — serving as a pseudo-gatekeeper to the rest of internet's information, not unlike what AOL's early America Online service once did. Rather than direct users to other websites where they can find the information and context they seek on their own, these companies are looking to have generative AI systems (Bard and Bing) automatically summarize and display that information without ever leaving the branded search page. Any additional relevant context that the user might have stumbled across during their independent research will similarly be deigned by the algorithm. Users can give GPT-4 a spin — and experience our new, algorithmically-dictated reality firsthand — by signing up for the Bing Preview waitlist. 

For the first time, the US government plans to regulate the presence of “forever chemicals” in drinking water. PFAS, or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are ubiquitous in the modern world. They’re found in many household items, including non-stick Teflon pans and dental floss, and can stay in water and soil for generations. What’s more, PFAS exposure has been linked to a whole host of health problems, including cancer, liver damage, asthma and developmental issues among children.

On Tuesday, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a proposed drinking standard that would require public utilities to monitor drinking water for PFAS contamination and notify the public if the levels of those chemicals exceed the new standard. The proposal calls for classifying Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) as individual contaminants that water utilities would be mandated to detect at a level of four parts per trillion. Under an Obama-era recommendation, the agency previously recommend that water contain no more than 70 parts per trillion of PFAS chemicals. The EPA estimates the new guidelines will prevent “thousands” of deaths and “tens of thousands” of illnesses that are attributable to PFAS poisoning.

“EPA’s proposal to establish a national standard for PFAS in drinking water is informed by the best available science, and would help provide states with the guidance they need to make decisions that best protect their communities,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a statement. “This action has the potential to prevent tens of thousands of PFAS-related illnesses and marks a major step toward safeguarding all our communities from these dangerous contaminants.”

With today’s announcement, the EPA will accept public comment on the proposal for 60 days before it takes effect. A handful of states, including New Jersey, Vermont, Michigan and New York, already regulate the chemicals on their own. That said, PFAS water contamination is a national problem. One 2020 study estimated that as many as 200 million Americans have been exposed to the chemicals through their tap water. More recently, scientists have found polyfluoroalkyl substances in human breast milk.

Hot on the heels of Google's Workspace AI announcement Tuesday, and ahead of Thursday's Microsoft Future of Work event, OpenAI has released the latest iteration of its generative pre-trained transformer system, GPT-4. Whereas the current generation GPT-3.5, which powers OpenAI's wildly popular ChatGPT conversational bot, can only read and respond with text, the new and improved GPT-4 will be able to generate text on input images as well. "While less capable than humans in many real-world scenarios," the OpenAI team wrote Tuesday, it "exhibits human-level performance on various professional and academic benchmarks."

OpenAI, which has partnered (and recently renewed its vows) with Microsoft to develop GPT's capabilities, has reportedly spent the past six months retuning and refining the system's performance based on user feedback generated from the recent ChatGPT hoopla. the company reports that GPT-4 passed simulated exams (such as the Uniform Bar, LSAT, GRE, and various AP tests) with a score "around the top 10 percent of test takers" compared to GPT-3.5 which scored in the bottom 10 percent. What's more, the new GPT has outperformed other state-of-the-art large language models (LLMs) in a variety of benchmark tests. The company also claims that the new system has achieved record performance in "factuality, steerability, and refusing to go outside of guardrails" compared to its predecessor.

OpenAI says that the GPT-4 will be made available for both ChatGPT and the API. "GPT-4 is more reliable, creative, and able to handle much more nuanced instructions than GPT-3.5," the OpenAI team wrote. 

Developing...

Microsoft is still hard at work convincing antitrust regulators that its planned Activision Blizzard purchase won’t hurt competition in the gaming industry. Today, the company announced a 10-year agreement with Boosteroid for the cloud gaming provider to stream Activision’s PC titles if the deal goes through.

It’s Microsoft’s latest attempt to demonstrate to EU, UK and US regulators that it won’t use the deal to muscle out competitors and stifle competition. Similarly, it recently struck 10-year deals with Nintendo and Nvidia to bring the Call of Duty franchise to platforms like the Switch and GeForce Now. Microsoft has said it offered Sony a similar agreement for PlayStation licensing (which Sony hasn’t agreed to) and committed to supporting Steam availability at the same time as Xbox. Sony expressed its concerns about the deal earlier this month, including the prospect of Microsoft shipping buggy versions of Call of Duty on PlayStation, diminishing gamers' trust in playing the immensely popular shooter on Sony consoles.

“If the only argument is that Microsoft is going to withhold Call of Duty from other platforms, and we’ve now entered into contracts that are going to bring this to many more devices and many more platforms, that is a pretty hard case to make to a court,” Microsoft President Brad Smith toldThe Wall Street Journal. “The reason we want to buy Activision Blizzard is to round out our titles to have a fuller library, especially to have more mobile titles where we don’t have a strong presence, and build a stronger gaming business.”

Activision Blizzard

Boosteroid is the biggest independent cloud-gaming service in the world. Like GeForce Now, it supports multi-device streaming access but requires purchasing paid games on other platforms (including Steam, Epic Games, Battle.net and Origin). Boosteroid's current library includes Fortnite, Grand Theft Auto V, Red Dead Redemption 2 and Activision’s Call of Duty: Warzone (among many others). It can stream games in web browsers and offers native apps for Windows, macOS, Android, Android TV and Linux. (iOS is missing because it doesn’t allow native cloud-gaming apps without clunky workarounds.) Boosteroid has servers in Romania, Ukraine, Italy, Slovakia, France, Spain, the UK, Sweden, Serbia and the US.

The European Commission, in charge of EU competition regulation, was reported earlier this month to be satisfied enough with Microsoft’s commitments to “likely” give the go-ahead. However, the commission hasn’t said so publicly and has until April 25th to decide. UK regulators’ decision is expected the following day. Meanwhile, the US Federal Trade Commission sued Microsoft to block the deal in December out of concerns it could raise prices or cut off access for non-Microsoft hardware, something Microsoft has denied it would do. The company has until July to satisfy the FTC, or it will need to renegotiate the deal or abandon the purchase, putting it on the line for up to a $3 billion breakup fee.

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority, which favors structural changes over behavioral promises like licensing deals, recently suggested Microsoft could divest itself of Activision’s publishing unit, which Microsoft has indicated it has no interest in doing; deals like the Boosteroid one are part of its fight to avoid that fate.

The long-awaited System Shock remake at last has a precise release date, but it's one that marks yet another delay. Publisher Prime Matter previously planned to release the game sometime this month. "We had hoped to bring the game to market by the end of March, but that turned out to be just beyond our reach; we are after all merely human (unlike Shodan!)," it said.

Now, the game is scheduled to hit Steam, GOG and the Epic Games Store on May 30th. It will cost $40. Early buyers will get a copy of System Shock 2: Enhanced Edition at no extra cost when Nightdive Studios' port of that game arrives.

However, there's more disappointing news for those who've been waiting for the System Shock remake to come to consoles. It will land on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S sometime after May. Prime Matter says it will reveal more details when they become available.

The remake of the 1994 first-person RPG has been a long time coming. Nightdive first announced it in 2015 and we got our first look at it the following year. In early 2021, the studio said System Shock would arrive that summer, which obviously didn't come to pass.

According to Prime Matter, the latest version will retain the gameplay of the influential original game while upgrading the visuals, audio, controls and interface. Nightdive is overhauling the hacking feature and introducing fresh enemies, while the revamped combat includes a dismemberment system. You can check out a slice of System Shock now, as there's a PC demo available.

One of our biggest complaints about Fitbit products for years is the fact that you'll need to pay the $10 monthly fee to see your historical data. For example, you could only see up to seven days' worth of your breathing rate, resting heart rate and heart rate variation, and just 90 days of everything else if you didn't shell out. It was one of the biggest drawbacks of devices like the Pixel Watch, especially when you consider that competing products from Apple and Samsung don't lock your own data behind a paywall. Today, Google announced that it's making "more of the insightful data from Fitbit's Health Metrics Dashboard available without a subscription to all of its users."

This includes breathing rate, heart rate variability, skin temperature, oxygen saturation and resting heart rate. "Now, even without a Premium subscription, users will now be able to see 30-day and 90-day views of their data to track trends over time," the company said in a statement. To be clear, more-basic metrics like step count, miles traveled, calories burned and heart rate have always been free, while the information listed above were presented in the Health Metrics dashboard as daily, weekly, monthly or 90-day summaries. 

While there is still a 90-day limit to how far back you can see your historical activity for those metrics, this at least brings Fitbit products closer to the competition. The company does have industry-leading health and sleep-tracking features, including the ability to see how much time you spend in zones like REM, deep and light sleep throughout the night. For now, though, it appears that information like sleep stages is still something you'll need to pay to see. 

It's a shame, and a detriment to Fitbit that this is still paywalled, since Apple recently added the same feature to watchOS, while Samsung has offered it for years. And both competitors grant this to users without an extra charge. We've reached out to Fitbit to confirm if Sleep Stages remains behind Premium and will update this post when we hear back.

Amazon has rolled out another sale on smart home devices from its Blink brand, bringing a range of video doorbells and security cameras back down to, or at least near, their lowest prices to date. If you're comfortable with the idea of having an Amazon camera outside of your home, one highlight is the Blink Video Doorbell for $35. That matches the device's all-time low, coming in $15 below Amazon's list price and about $10 off the average street price we've seen in recent months. If you're thinking of picking up a Blink cam for the first time, note that a bundle that pairs the Video Doorbell with the company's Sync Module 2 — which lets you view the camera's live feed on-demand and utilize local storage — is down to $59, which is about $15 off its usual going rate and $5 more than the best price we've tracked.

Blink is essentially the budget counterpart to Amazon's other major smart home subsidiary, Ring. Its Video Doorbell is much more basic than a pricier option like Arlo's Essential Video Doorbell, the top pick from our guide to the best smart home devices, but it still delivers serviceable 1080p video, night vision and the ability to see and speak to people at your door regardless of where you are. The whole thing is relatively easy to install, and it can run off wired power or a couple of AA batteries. Blink says the device can get up to two years of juice, depending on how hard it's put into use.

That said, the camera's field of view (135 degrees horizontal, 80 degrees vertical) isn't as wide as higher-end options, and it only works with Amazon's Alexa assistant, not alternative platforms like Apple HomeKit, Google Assistant or IFTTT. And while you don't need any add-ons, the doorbell's storage and live view options are limited without the Sync Module or one of Blink's subscription plans. Without the Module, you'll only receive alerts and a live view when the doorbell senses activity or someone presses its button. Still, this is a worthy option for those looking to install a competent, battery-powered doorbell cam for as little money as possible. 

Beyond the Video Doorbell, other notable deals include a two-camera kit of Blink's Outdoor security cam, another pick from our best smart home device guide, for $104. That's $5 more than the lowest price we've seen. The sale includes several bundles that mix and match various camera options as well.

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The selection committees have made their picks and the brackets are set. Another installment of arguably the best sports weekend of the year is about to tip off. March Madness or the NCAA basketball tournaments begin today with two First Four games on the men’s side. Thanks to the NCAA’s partnerships with Warner Bros. Discovery for the men’s tournament, and Disney (ESPN) for the women’s, you can stream every game and some will even be available for free. Here's your guide on how to stream March Madness 2023, from where to watch to when the games begin.

When does March Madness start?

Depending on who you ask, the 2023 NCAA Tournament either begins Tuesday or Thursday. On March 14th and 15th, the March Madness schedule includes First Four or four “play-in” games take place. These allow four more teams to “make the tournament” than if the selection committee just filled the two 16-seed and two 12-seed slots with one school in each spot. Some people argue the entire event doesn’t really start until Thursday and Friday, March 16th and 17th, when the First Round officially tips off.

No matter which side you land on, the First Four games will start at 6:40PM ET each night on truTV while Thursday and Friday games begin at 12:15PM ET, with the first game on CBS. These two days are the busiest and some of the most popular of the tournament as 16 games take place on each. Yes, these are two of the least productive days of the entire year in the US. It’s also the most popular time to schedule a vasectomy. Action continues with the Second Round on Saturday and Sunday, March 18th and 19th, before a break until next Thursday. This is when the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight rounds are played over the course of the second four-day weekend of the tournament. The Final Four is set for Saturday, April 1st while the National Championship Game will go down on Monday, April 3rd.

How to stream the 2022 Men’s NCAA Tournament

Lance King via Getty Images

Unlike during the regular season when you need to know which network your team’s conference has a broadcast deal with to find most of the games, Warner Bros. Discovery Sports holds the rights to the entire Men’s NCAA Tournament. This means you’ll be able to watch all 67 games, including the First Four, on CBS, TBS, TNT and truTV. If you have cable, you’re all set. If you pay for a live TV streaming service like YouTube TV or Hulu, you’re also in good shape. If you don’t have either, don’t worry, you can still watch a good chunk of the tournament.

Warner Bros. Discovery Sports will allow anyone to watch the games broadcast by CBS on the web and mobile devices without a TV provider log-in. Paramount+ users will be able to do the same through that streaming app. If you do have credentials from your TV plan, you can stream everything through March Madness Live that’s available on a host of devices. You can find it on Android and iOS for mobile and macOS and the web on the desktop. For streaming devices, it’s on Apple TV, Fire TV, Google TV, Roku and Xbox as well as some LG smart TVs.

With some of those home entertainment devices, Warner Bros. Discovery Sports will give you a very handy feature. On Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Google TV and Xbox One, the March Madness Live app will allow you to stream two games at once. On the web, however, is where you’ll find the best option. Starting this year, the broadcaster has added the ability to stream up to four games simultaneously. If you opt for mobile or tablet versions, you’ll get picture-in-picture viewing while you browse away from the main game. The company has also expanded its Fast Break whiparound broadcast beyond mobile and web for 2023, adding the real-time analysis of big plays to its apps for streaming devices, consoles and smart TVs.

NCAA/WBD Sports/CBS Sports

YouTube TV has also added multiview streaming just in time for the tournament, but the platform is only offering preselected groupings – you won’t have the ability to pick which games you follow on your own right now. YouTube TV’s version is also only available to selected subscribers in early access, but it will be available on any smart TV or streaming device that supports the service.

Warner Bros. Discovery Sports has also added CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility this year, giving you easy access to live radio broadcasts in the school pick up line. On iOS, the March Madness Live app now supports Live Activities, so you can get live updates right on your lock screen should you be burdened with a meeting during a game you’re interested in.

You can certainly use your cable interface or streaming TV service of choice, but Warner Bros. Discovery Sports has made March Madness Live a centralized hub for the tournament. If you have log-in credentials that get you access to everything, using those will allow you to jump from game to game much faster than scrolling through a guide. And the broadcaster also gives you all of the alerts and stats you could ask for, including the ability to easily follow picks from your March Madness bracket if you filled it out on NCAA.com.

Streaming the 2022 Women’s NCAA Tournament

USA TODAY USPW / reuters

As if one National Championship tournament in March wasn’t enough, the Women’s edition takes place at the same time. It’s March Madness, after all. The First Four is scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday, March 15th and 16th, with the March Madness schedule consisting of the First and Second rounds playing out between Friday, March 17th and Monday, March 20th. Sweet Sixteen and Elite 8 runs Friday to Monday again, starting March 24th, and the Final Four and National Championship Game are set for March 31st and April 2nd.

If you notice there are some scheduling differences so that there are only women’s games on Mondays and both the Final Four and championship are slotted between the same events for the men. So when it comes down to crunch time, you can watch the conclusion of both tournaments live without having to sacrifice viewing the other.

ESPN has the rights to the Women’s NCAA Tournament, so you can expect games to show up on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPNEWS. The first two of the First Four games will be broadcast at 7PM ET and 9PM ET on ESPNU Wednesday night with the second pair on ESPN2 Thursday evening. First Round matchups begin at 11:30AM ET on Friday and Saturday on ESPN2, with subsequent games on those days expanding to the other networks.

Once again, if you have a cable plan or streaming TV service with Disney’s sports channels you’re all set. However, the best place to watch all of the action will be the ESPN app. Here, you’ll get access to a multicast feature that will give you up to four games at once (YouTube TV didn’t specify if it would include women’s games in its multiview trial). Multicast will be especially handy during those first four days of the tournament when there’s lots of action happening at the same time. However, it's only available on Apple TV and Xbox One.

Google has been scrambling to catch up to to OpenAI for months, ever since the latter dropped its conversational bot, ChatGPT, and took the generative AI industry by storm. Google's first attempted response with the release of its Bard AI (which immediately misquoted easily verifiable stats about the JWST) was tepid at best so the company has announced a new tact: they're packing every single product they can with AI — just like they did in the Google+ era with social features.

The new features will be coming to virtually all of Google's Workspace products. According to the company users will be able to "draft, reply, summarize, and prioritize" emails, "brainstorm, proofread, write, and rewrite" text documents, autogenerate images and even video with Slides, have Sheets create formulas autonomously, automate transcription notes in Meet and "enable workflows for getting things done" in Chat. 

For example, in Docs, users will simply need to type the subject of their assignment into the page to have Google's generative AI suite quickly gin up additional text. The system can also rework (hopefully improving) what the user has already drafted, even if they're just bullet points, using the Rewrite function. There's also a new “I’m feeling lucky” option in Gmail which your company's HR department is just going to adore.

Following the Bard debacle, Google doubled down on its commitment to ensuring that its AIs don't turn out like Miucrosoft's. "AI is no replacement for the ingenuity, creativity, and smarts of real people," Johanna Voolich Wright, VP of Product at Google Workspace, wrote on Tuesday. "Sometimes the AI gets things wrong, sometimes it delights you with something offbeat, and oftentimes it requires guidance." To that end the company is building its products within the bounds of its AI Principles, which are as legally binding as the company's old "Don't be evil" motto. The new AI-enabled Workspace suite is expected to roll out to English language users in the US by the end of the month with additional languages and regions arriving in the near future.     

Nearly a year after it was first announced, Hyper Light Breaker finally has a gameplay trailer. Developer Heart Machine shared the long-awaited first look through IGN. The studio promised Breaker would be a departure from its predecessor, 2016’s Hyper Light Drifter. The trailer reiterates that, showing how just how much will change with the series switching to 3D.

Where Hyper Light Drifter pulled most directly from early Legend of Zelda entries like A Link to the Past, its sequel shows obvious Breath of the Wild influences, with nods to Dark Souls and PlatinumGames titles like Bayonetta 3. Judging from the trailer, traversing Breaker’s open world, a domain known as the “Overgrowth,” will be a highlight, thanks to the hoverboard and glider your character will have at their disposal. The trailer also promises “endless loadouts” and “endless deaths.” In other words, expect tough enemies that will push you to learn the ins and outs of the weapons you find throughout the game. Oh, and you can see how the optional co-op play will allow players to band together to take on some of Breaker's more difficult challenges. 

With the gameplay reveal, Heart Machine also announced a new release date for the game. Hyper Light Breaker will now arrive on Steam early access this fall, instead of the spring as previously announced.