You might not hem and haw the next time you're choosing a soundtrack for a Snapchat video. Snap has introduced automatic Sounds features that help you produce clips faster. Sounds Recommendations, for instance, suggests music relevant to the augmented reality Lens you're using. Try a bread Lens and you'll see plenty of toast-related songs alongside the most popular overall tracks.

Sounds Sync, meanwhile, creates montage videos in sync to the beat of tunes in the Sounds collection. You'll need between four and 20 photos or videos, but this could help you summarize a vacation or social outing without stressing about suitably-timed songs.

Both features are available now for iOS users in the US, and are rolling out worldwide. Android users can also use Sounds Recommendations right away, but they'll have to wait until March to try Sounds Sync.

Snap isn't shy about its goals. The easier it is to create videos, the more likely you are to post on Snapchat. This is also as much about helping artists as it is users — Snap music strategy lead Manny Adler claims this is a "unique opportunity" for musicians to reach listeners who'll (hopefully) play full songs after hearing them in someone's video.

The introductions come at a good time for Snap. The company's audience is growing after a turbulent 2022, having reached 750 million monthly active Snapchat users despite laying off roughly 1,300 workers last summer. While it's still much smaller than rivals like Instagram, which had two billion monthly active users as of last fall, it's enduring competition that is frequently mimicking features. Small additions like Sounds Recommendations and Sync may help Snap maintain that growth.

Apple's long-running quest to bring blood glucose monitoring to the Apple Watch appears to be moving forward. Bloombergsources claim the company's no-prick monitoring is now at a "proof-of-concept stage" and good enough that it could come to market once it's smaller. The technology, which uses lasers to gauge glucose concentration under the skin, was previously tabletop sized but has reportedly advanced to the point where an iPhone-sized wearable prototype is in the works.

The system would not only help people with diabetes monitor their conditions, but would ideally alert people who are prediabetic, the insiders say. They could then make changes that prevent Type 2 (adult onset) diabetes.

Apple declined to comment. The project has supposedly been in development for a long time. It began in 2010, when an ailing Steve Jobs had his company buy blood glucose monitoring startup RareLight. Apple is said to have kept the effort secret by operating it as a seemingly isolated firm, Avolonte Health, but folded it into a previously unknown Exploratory Design Group (XDG). CEO Tim Cook, Apple Watch hardware lead Eugene Kim and other top leaders have been involved.

Any real-world product is likely years away, according to Bloomberg. The industry also doesn't have a great track record of bringing no-prick monitors to market. In 2018, Alphabet's health subsidiary Verily scrapped plans for a smart contact lens that would have tracked glucose using tears. Even major brands with vast resources aren't guaranteed success, in other words, and it's not clear how accurate Apple's solution would be.

There are strong incentives to bring this tech to wearables. The Apple Watch is frequently marketed as a health device and can spot signs of atrial fibrillation, low blood oxygen levels and (as of Series 8) ovulation cycles. Non-intrusive glucose monitoring could make it an indispensable tool for those with diabetes — you wouldn't need a dedicated device that invades your skin, such as a continuous glucose sensor that sends info from an electrode-equipped thin needle to an external receiver. That painless approach could give the Apple Watch an edge over competing smartwatches.

Amazon's months-long effort to acquire One Medical is finished — for now, at least. The company has officially completed its $3.9 billion purchase, giving it a primary healthcare provider with in-person and virtual treatment as well as lab tests. The successful buyout isn't leading to any immediate changes in One Medical's services beyond a temporary $55 discount on a one-year membership (now $144), but Amazon said last July that it planned a "reinvention" of healthcare with the takeover.

The completion comes just a day after the Federal Trade Commission said it wouldn't contest the buyout. However, the regulator also says it's still investigating the deal to explore potential anti-competitive effects and privacy concerns raised by Amazon's access to health data. An FTC official toldCNN the agency will warn Amazon it's closing the purchase at its own risk, and might still face a government challenge later.

Amazon has spent years making deeper forays into healthcare. It bought PillPack in 2018 and used the provider to launch an in-house pharmacy service. The online shopping heavyweight also introduced an app-based health service for employees in 2019 that it later offered to other companies. In 2021, the company introduced a custom Alexa for healthcare. The One Medical move theoretically completes the picture by letting Amazon handle everything from minor doctor's appointments through to prescriptions.

Whether or not Amazon could endure an FTC challenge isn't clear. Commission chair Lina Khan is known to be wary of Big Tech, and her stance even prompted Amazon to ask for her recusal from antitrust cases. There's no certainty the FTC might succeed, though, and it recently lost an effort to block Meta's purchase of Within. One Medical is considerably larger than Within, though, and its healthcare focus brings up privacy concerns that aren't always present in tech acquisitions.

You might not have to send messages to a group chat to keep your WhatsApp friends updated. WABetaInfo has discovered that code in a recent WhatApp beta for Android includes references to an unannounced "Newsletter" feature. While its exact workings aren't clear, it's a private space in the Status tab that lets you share content with many followers. Names and other contact details are hidden by default.

We've asked WhatsApp parent company Meta for comment. This is the first beta to mention the Newsletter feature, so it may not be ready to test for a while. There's also no guarantee WhatsApp will release newsletters as a finished product.

If this does go ahead, it won't be surprising. WhatsApp is as much a source of information as it is a messaging service, with users frequently forwarding messages and receiving news through group discussions. Newsletters would effectively streamline some of that info delivery. Meta has also spent years pivoting toward privacy-oriented services, including communities that can link multiple group chats. The addition could expand WhatsApp's functionality without turning it into a Facebook-style social network.

Uber has given its app a major redesign for the first time in a long while, and the new version reflects the massively expanded range of services in recent years. The updated Android and iOS apps center around a new home screen that puts ridesharing and Uber Eats deliveries in one place, with fewer steps needed to book trips or order food. There's also a dedicated tab for all the services available in your city, so you won't have to wonder which options are available.

The revamp promises more personalization as well. Tap the usual "where to?" button and you'll now see both saved locations as well as recommendations for destinations and ride types based on your habits. If you normally reserve rides instead of booking on the spot, you may see other scheduled options. An activity hub shows all your past and future Uber uses.

The upgrade also brings some long-expected Live Activities features to iPhone users. Anyone using iOS 16 can now see live ride progress on their phone's lock screen. And if you happen to have an iPhone 14 Pro or Pro Max, you'll see those ride updates around the Dynamic Island (read: front camera cutout) while the device is unlocked. You won't have to wait for notifications to know when it's time to head out the door.

The app is available today. Uber tells Engadget the Eats app "isn't going anywhere," and that the iPhone-specific upgrades will reach that software in the "coming months." The unified experience in the main app isn't exactly a shock, though. Uber now handles bikes, scooters, package deliveries, groceries and many other services beyond basic car hailing and restaurant orders. The app redesign might help you discover offerings you didn't realize were available, or encourage you to try features that previously felt like too much of a hassle.

A rework like this might be necessary. While Uber touted higher bookings and profit margins in 2022, its delivery business grew just six percent over the year. The harmonized app isn't guaranteed to improve Uber's bottom line, but it might encourage delivery orders from customers who otherwise wouldn't have tried a feature like Eats.

Microsoft was quick to limit Bing's AI chats to prevent disturbing answers, but it's changing course just days later. The company now says it will restore longer chats, and is starting by expanding the chats to six turns per session (up from five) and 60 chats per day (up from 50). The daily cap will climb to 100 chats soon, Microsoft says, and regular searches will no longer count against that total. With that said, don't expect to cause much havoc when long conversations return — Microsoft wants to bring them back "responsibly."

The tech giant is also addressing concerns that Bing's AI may be too wordy with responses. An upcoming test will let you choose a tone that's "precise" (that is, shorter and more to-the-point answers), "creative" (longer) or "balanced." If you're just interested in facts, you won't have to wade through as much text to get them.

There may have been signs of trouble considerably earlier. As Windows Centralnotes, researcher Dr. Gary Marcus and Nomic VP Ben Schmidt discovered that public tests of the Bing chatbot (codenamed "Sidney") in India four months ago produced similarly odd results in long sessions. We've asked Microsoft for comment, but it says in its most recent blog post that the current preview is meant to catch "atypical use cases" that don't manifest with internal tests.

Microsoft previously said it didn't completely anticipate people using Bing AI's longer chats as entertainment. The looser limits are an attempt to strike a balance between "feedback" in favor of those chats, as the company says, with safeguards that prevent the bot from going in strange directions.

Samsung has started shipping its 2023 Neo QLED TV line, and it won't surprise you to hear that you'll pay a premium for its ultimate models. The company's 8K, Mini LED-based QN900C (shown above) starts at $5,000 for a 65-inch set, while a 75-inch variant costs $6,300. The 85-inch version has yet to be priced. If you value 8K but don't need the full feature set, the QN800C begins at $3,500 for a 65-inch screen and tops out at $6,000 for an 85-inch panel. The 75-inch edition also hasn't received pricing.

You're more likely looking at a 4K TV, and you'll be glad to hear those are considerably more affordable. At the high end, the QN95C ranges from $3,300 for a 65-inch display to $5,800 for an 85-inch beast. The lowest-priced sets are in the mid-tier QN90C series, however — that starts at $1,200 for a compact 43-inch design, with five other sizes that culminate in a $4,800 85-inch set. If you're looking for (relative) value for money, the QN85C is available for $1,500 in 55-inch form and climbs to $3,800 for the QN85C. Samsung hasn't yet shared details of the 4K-capable QN935C, which offers thinner bezels and top-firing speakers that enable Dolby Atmos without external speakers.

All 2023 Neo QLED TVs fit better into your smart home. They include both Matter Thread and SmartThings-friendly Zigbee hubs that coordinate compatible devices. 

The QN900C's hook isn't just its 8K resolution. It's extremely bright at 4,000 nits, and it boasts improved contrast as well as HDR "remastering" for older content. All the QN-series TVs boast Mini LED as well, although they're poised to be iterative upgrades compared to their 2022 counterparts. Like last year, the standout is arguably the OLED model — the S95C is your pick if you demand perfect black levels and minimal lag. 

The FBI is dealing with another attack on its digital infrastructure, although the severity isn't yet clear. The law enforcement agency tellsCNN it has "contained" a recent cybersecurity incident on its network. The bureau isn't commenting on the perpetrator, scope or damage, but says it's gathering "additional information."

Sources speaking to CNN claim the intruders targeted a system used to investigate child sexual abuse material (CSAM). The incident involved the high-profile New York Field Office, according to the insiders. Investigators are said to still be investigating the origins of the breach.

This isn't the first such incident in recent memory. In November 2021, an attacker compromised FBI email servers and sent thousands of messages falsely claiming recipients were victims of data breaches. The campaign tried to blame the imaginary attacks on dark web security firm operator Vinny Troia. The FBI never named a culprit, but did patch the flaw that allowed the intrusion.

This may not necessarily be a serious violation. Other campaigns, such as the 2020 Treasury breach and the SolarWinds hack, are known to have exposed sensitive email contacts for officials. Still, the data reportedly at risk makes the attack concerning, even if the impact may be relatively limited.

Microsoft has spent years teaching AI to play Minecraft, but it's apparently making enough progress that the game needs very little human involvement. Semaforsources claim Microsoft has produced an internal demo that lets you control Minecraft simply by telling AI what to do. You may only have to ask the computer to build a structure and watch as it completes the task by itself.

The developer doesn't have any known plans to release the AI control as part of an official Minecraft release, the insiders say. Microsoft declined to comment. It's not clear what AI model the company is using, though the demo reportedly isn't running on the Prometheus AI technology used in Bing. While the company's frequent partner OpenAI trained a model to play Minecraft using videos last year, that technology isn't necessarily involved here.

Past public demos have been relatively limited. At last year's Build conference, Microsoft showed off a Minecraft assistant that used OpenAI's Codex model to perform relatively straightforward tasks, like having a character approach the player or craft items. Based on the description, the private demo may be considerably more sophisticated.

Don't count on Microsoft and other developers using AI to largely replace conventional gameplay. Minecraft is appealing precisely because you put in much of the construction work yourself, after all. However, the reported demo hints at a future where games might offer bots to handle mundane tasks, or even titles where the challenge revolves around finding the right instructions.

It's not just international police trying to hold Terraform Labs accountable for a collapse that took $40 billion from investors. The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Terraform and its CEO Do Kwon with securities fraud for allegedly running a "multi-billion dollar" crypto asset scheme. The blockchain startup purportedly misled investors by falsely claiming that its TerraUSD asset was a stablecoin pegged to the US dollar, with high yields (up to 20 percent). The firm also fooled people by claiming its Luna token would gain value thanks to a Korean mobile payment app that used the Terra blockchain to settle transactions.

Terraform and Do Kwon didn't provide "full, fair and truthful disclosure" for their crypto asset securities, SEC chair Gary Gensler says. The charges include registration and anti-fraud violations of the Securities Act and Exchange Act.  

TerraUSD and Luna lost their peg to the US dollar in May 2022, with the prices of both plunging to near-zero. Investors lodged complaints accusing Terraform and Kwon of running a Ponzi scheme, and the freefall contributed to the collapse of the crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital. The crypto exchange Binance quickly faced a lawsuit over claims it incorrectly marketed TerraUSD as a safe asset. While Kwon insisted that he wasn't evading capture, he left his native South Korea, refused to face investigators' questions and was put on Interpol's "red notice" list.

The SEC's charges join a string of efforts to crack down on reported fraud among some of the crypto industry's biggest names. Authorities have most notably pursued FTX and its founder Sam Bankman-Fried over that exchange's downfall, while former Celsius Network chief Alex Mashinsky is also accused of defrauding investors. While crypto may still have a future, it's clear government bodies want stricter enforcement of financial laws in this arena.