Yelp, like many other companies recently, has been coming out with more and more new AI features. Its latest ones include the new Yelp Assistant, which the company says can help you find the right contractors or service provider for your needs. The idea is to point you in the right direction without having to do a search on your own, which sounds especially useful if you have a very specific job in mind that requires specialists in their field. 

It "alleviates the guesswork on the type of specialists you may need," Yelp claims. You just need to let Assistant know what your project is and then type in your own replies or choose from a selection of one-click responses. In the sample above, for instance, Yelp Assistant created a personalized conversation with one-click responses based on the customer's initial inquiry about wanting to have their bathtub replaced. It suggested different types of bathtubs, which the customer could then choose from so that Yelp could conjure a list of providers that are capable of doing the job. 

The company says its new Assistant can efficiently anticipate your needs and identify service providers on the website, because it uses a large language model that's trained on Yelp's vast dataset, including providers' business information and the website's "Request a Quote" feature, on top of OpenAI's. At the moment, though, it's only available to iOS users under the Projects tab and won't be out on Android until later this summer. 

In addition to Yelp assistant, the company also released the Yelp Fusion AI API, enabling third-party partners to create conversational AI experiences for their own services. It released a new suite of features for the Yelp Guest Manager, as well, to help restaurants manage server shifts better, monitor table status in real time and automate credit card holds for reservations. 

The latest generation of Apple's eternally popular AirPods Pro are back down to their all-time low price of $180 at Amazon. The deal takes $10 off the typical sale price of $190 and a solid $69 off the $249 MSRP. The last time we saw this price tag was during Amazon's spring sale in March. Apple updated the charging case when the iPhone 15 came out last year to give both devices a more universal USB-C port (both can also charge wirelessly). If you have an iPhone, we think these are one of the better bits of audio gear you can stick in your ears. 

The second-generation AirPods Pro (with the Lightning case) came out towards the end of 2022 — the case refresh didn't alter the buds themselves too much, other than adding some improved dust resistance. That makes these a little older at this point, but new AirPods are not one of the things we're expecting to see announced at Apple's upcoming "Let Loose" event in May (we're mostly anticipating iPad news). A more likely time for a new AirPods reveal is during the company's annual iPhone event in September. But if you don't want to wait around to see if such a debut materializes, this deal is a decent time to get your first pair. Or replace the pair you left on the train.  

We gave the AirPods Pro a score of 88 when they came out. Engadget's Billy Steele praised the effective active noise cancellation (ANC) and called the ambient sound mode one of the best on the market. Plus they work fairly seamlessly with all your Apple devices, offering quick pairing, fast device switching and hands-free Siri support. The audio itself is richer with more depth and clarity than with previous Pro generations. 

All of that lead us to name them the best wireless earbuds for iPhones in our buying guide. Of course, they don't work with non-Apple devices. Our current top pick from our guide for Android phones are the Google Pixel Buds Pro, which are currently down to $140 at Amazon after a 30 percent discount. 

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Apple’s iPad has been added to the list of tech products that must abide by the EU’s DMA rules, as reported by Bloomberg. The European Commission has officially designated iPadOS as a gatekeeper under the DMA, alongside the Safari web browser, the iOS operating system and the App Store. The organization states that users are basically “locked-in” to Apple’s iPadOS ecosystem and that it disincentivizes people from switching to competitors. The company has six months to comply with various preemptive measures.

This follows a months-long investigation into iPadOS to decide whether or not it qualifies as gatekeeper software. “iPadOS constitutes an important gateway on which many companies rely to reach their customers”, wrote Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President in charge of competition policy at the European Commission. “Today’s decision will ensure that fairness and contestability are preserved also on this platform.”

What does Apple have to do to ensure iPadOS compliance? According to the DMA, gatekeepers are prohibited from favoring their own services over rivals and from locking users into the ecosystem. The software must also allow third parties to interoperate with internal services, which is why third-party app stores are becoming a thing on iPhones in Europe. The iPad, presumably, will soon follow suit. In other words, the DMA is lobbing some serious stink bombs into Apple’s walled garden.

In a statement published by Forbes, Apple said it “will continue to constructively engage with the European Commission” to ensure its designated services comply with the DMA, including iPadOS. The company isn’t exactly pleased, however, and has accused the legislation of creating “new privacy and data security risks.” To that end, Apple has issued a legal challenge to the EU’s General Court in Luxembourg, with hearings set to take place later this year.

In happier tablet news for Apple, the company recently announced an event for May 7 to showcase new iPads. We're likely to see an OLED iPad Pro and new iPad Air, in addition to updated peripherals.

Walmart's Discovered experience started out last year as a way for kids to buy virtual items for Roblox inside the game. But today, that partnership is testing out an expanded pilot program that will allow teens to buy real-life goods stocked on digital shelves before they're shipped to your door. 

Available to children 13 and up in the US, the latest addition to Walmart Discovered is an IRL commerce shop featuring items created by partnered user-generated content creators including MD17_RBLX, Junozy, and Sarabxlla. Customers can browse and try on items inside virtual shops, after which the game will open a browser window to Walmart's online store (displayed on an in-game laptop) in order to view and purchase physical items. 

Furthermore, anyone who buys a real-world item from Discovered will receive a free digital twin so they can have a matching virtual representation of what they've purchased. Some examples of the first products getting the dual IRL and virtual treatment are a crochet bag from No Boundaries, a TAL stainless steel tumbler and Onn Bluetooth headphones. 

According to Digiday, during this initial pilot phase (which will take place throughout May), Roblox will not be taking a cut from any of the physical sales made as part of Walmart's Discovered experience as it looks to determine people's level of interest. However, the parameters of the partnership may change going forward as Roblox gathers more data about how people embrace buying real goods inside virtual stores. 

Unfortunately, while Roblux's latest test may feel like an unusually exploitative way to squeeze even more money from teenagers (or more realistically their parent's money), this is really just another small step in the company's efforts to turn the game into an all-encompassing online marketplace. Last year, Roblox made a big push into digital marketing when it launched new ways to sell and present ads inside the game before later removing requirements for advertisers to create bespoke virtual experiences for each product. 

So in case you needed yet another reason not to save payment info inside a game's virtual store, now instead of wasting money on virtual items, kids can squander cash on junk that will clutter up their rooms too. 

DJI’s latest product is another Mini drone. It can capture 4K video at up to 30 fps and 60 fps footage at 2.7K resolution, with increased video bitrates up to 100Mbps, which should ensure higher quality video at both settings. While those specs may not excite, maybe the price will.

Not to be confused with the Mini Pro series, which is several hundred dollars more, the $299 Mini 4K weighs less than 249g, is foldable and requires no FAA registration.

The specifications won’t move the Mini series forward, but they cover all the essentials for beginner drone pilots, including 2x digital zoom while recording in 4K, a 3-axis gimbal and electrical image stabilization. DJI says it can transmit 1080p video up to 10km away. There’s also level-5 wind resistance, once again, and it can fly for up to 31 minutes (or up to 93 minutes with DJI’s $449 Fly More bundle.)

The Mini 4K will also include one-tap movements and features like helix, dronie and panoramic shooting support. If you’re a total rookie, DJI’s companion app has flight tutorials and one-tap takeoff and landing.

A lot of this will sound familiar to anyone following DJI’s ever-growing drone family over the last 10 years, but it’s probably not aimed at you — this is for newcomers. The Mini 4K is priced substantially less than its Mini Pro iterations, and it’s actually less than the rest of the Mini drones from DJI. It’s available to order now for $299 / £269.

Apple Vision Pro headset production is reportedly being cut, sales are reportedly “way down.” But but but wait: Wasn’t the Vision Pro meant to change the world of VR/AR, ushering in an era of spatial computing? Is the dream over?

Hah, no. As Sam Rutherford laid out just before the weekend, while reports and rumors can’t nail exact numbers, based on financial figures from Apple’s last earnings, Vision Pro sales likely equate to around one percent of the company’s revenue. It’s almost as if early Vision Pro sales numbers don’t matter. Remember: The first iPhone wasn’t great either.

— Mat Smith

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Drake deletes his AI-generated Tupac track after legal threat

He deepfakes Shakur and Snoop Dogg’s voices to diss Kendrick Lamar.

Drake has deleted an X post with his track “Taylor Made Freestyle,” which used an AI-generated recreation of Tupac Shakur’s voice to needle Kendrick Lamar. The takedown came after an attorney representing the late hip-hop legend’s estate threatened to sue the Canadian rapper for his “unauthorized” use of Tupac’s voice. Drake used Snoop Dogg’s voice too, but… he’s still alive.

Continue reading.

Aaron Sorkin is working on a Social Network sequel focused on January 6

He blames Facebook for the Capitol attack.

Sony Pictures

Aaron Sorkin has announced he’s writing a follow-up script to The Social Network, once again about Facebook / Meta but with a fun, miserable focus on the January 6 insurrection attempt. Sorkin is cagey on the actual details of the new script but pretty much lays the blame for the attack at Meta’s feet. Sorkin hasn’t announced a partnership with any studio to make the film, but my big question: Who’s going to play Trump?

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Nikon’s Z8 is a phenomenal mirrorless camera for the price

A cheaper alternative to Sony’s A1.

Engadget

Nikon is arguably the world’s most famous camera brand, but with the decline of DSLRs, it has struggled. In 2022, it released the Z9, a flagship mirrorless camera that could finally hold its own against rivals, but the $5,500 price tag put it out of reach for most. Now, we’re testing the Z8, which has the same sensor and specs for $1,700. The Z8 may also be better than Sony’s A1 for many hybrid shooters, particularly for video. But don’t ask me: Check out Steve Dent’s full test-shoot right here.

The popular Nintendo emulator, Delta, that arrived on the App Store for iPhone to much fanfare a few weeks ago is now getting a version that’s optimized for the iPad. Developer Riley Testut shared an update on Threads this weekend revealing that an iPad app has been in the works, and is now being prioritized since Apple changed its tune on game emulators. The iPad app is “near completion,” and subscribers to Testut’s Patreon can get it now through the AltStore, an alternative marketplace the developer created a few years back for sideloading iOS and iPadOS apps. Otherwise, you can wait a little while for it to come with Delta’s next big update, version 1.6.

In the post, Testut also shared a little preview of how it'll run on iPad. Delta was released as the successor to Testut’s Game Boy Advance emulator, GBA4iOS, and supports a slew of other Nintendo systems, including NES, SNES, N64, and DS. It shouldn’t be long before the iPad version is finished — Testut wrote that the team just needs to “finish up controller skins [and] fix some last bugs.” They’re also working on device-to-device multiplayer, Testut wrote (but that’s still a couple of items down on the checklist). And, as an added treat, he said a SEGA Genesis emulator is on the way too. That’s still in beta, but will become available “soon-ish.”

Apple’s “Let Loose” iPad event is just over a week away, and the rumors in the leadup are starting to get interesting. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the much-anticipated OLED iPad Pro may arrive not with the new M3 chip as we’ve all been expecting, but the next-gen M4. In the Power On newsletter on Sunday, Gurman wrote that he’s “hearing there is a strong possibility” that this will be the case. And, he says it’ll herald Apple’s official entry into AI.

“I believe Apple will position the tablet as its first truly AI-powered device — and that it will tout each new product from then on as an AI device,” Gurman wrote. Doing it this way for the May 7 event would set the stage for Apple to go all-in on AI at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June. This all builds on Gurman’s previous reports that Apple has been in talks with OpenAI and Google to potentially tap their AI tech for new features with iOS 18.

The “Let Loose” product showcase is also expected to bring updates to the iPad Air and iPad accessories like the Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil. According to Gurman, the upcoming Apple Pencil may introduce haptic feedback.

Something is up with Apple ID this weekend. As reported by 9to5Mac, Apple users started complaining online last night that they’d been logged out of their Apple IDs on all of their devices without explanation. Upon trying to log back in, some say they were locked out of their accounts despite entering the correct details, and had to reset their passwords. Engadget has reached out to Apple for more information.

Apple hasn’t said anything publicly about what’s going on, and its System Status page makes no mention of problems with Apple ID or any other systems in the last 24 hours. In a Mastodon post spotted by The Verge, one person said Apple support told them only that “sometimes random security improvements are added to your account.” It’s unclear how many users have been affected, though people have piled onto social media threads about the issue to say they’ve experienced it too. According to 9to5Mac, some of the publication’s own team have run into the problem.

While the issue seemed to have heightened on Friday night, there have been sporadic reports of similar problems in the recent past. Software developer Michael Tsai published a blog post about it the latest incident and referenced a time just last fall when the same thing happened.

Apple has resumed conversations with OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, to power some AI features coming to iOS 18, according to a new report in Bloomberg. Apple is also building its own large language models to power some iOS 18 features, but its talks with OpenAI are centered around a “chatbot/search component,” according to Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman. 

Apple is also reportedly in talks with Google to license Gemini, Google’s own AI-powered chatbot, for iOS 18. Bloomberg reports that those talks are still on, and things could still go either way because Apple hasn’t made a final decision on which company’s technology to use. It’s conceivable, Gurman says, that Apple could ultimately end up licensing AI tech from both companies or none of them.

So far, Apple has been notably quiet about its AI efforts even as the rest of Silicon Valley has descended into an AI arms race. But it has dropped enough hints to indicate that it’s cooking up something. When the company announced its earnings in February, CEO Tim Cook said that Apple is continuing to work and invest in artificial intelligence and is “excited to share the details of our ongoing work in that space later this year.” It claimed that the brand new M3 MacBook Air that it launched last month was the “world’s best consumer laptop for AI,” and will reportedly start releasing AI-centric laptops and desktops later this year. And earlier this week, Apple also released a handful of open-source large language models that are designed to run locally on devices rather than in the cloud.

It’s still unclear what Apple’s AI features in iPhones and other devices will look like. Generative AI is still notoriously unreliable and prone to making up answers. Recent AI-powered gadgets like the Humane Ai Pin released to disastrous reviews, while others like the Rabbit R1 have yet to prove themselves valuable.

We’ll find out more at WWDC on June 10.