All posts tagged: direct

Chinese Workers Horrified as Bosses Direct Them to Train Their AI Replacements

Chinese Workers Horrified as Bosses Direct Them to Train Their AI Replacements

Published by José Betancourt

Sign up to see the future, today Can’t-miss innovations from the bleeding edge of science and tech For years, a buzzy Silicon Valley startup called Mercor has been hiring an army of desperate job-seekers — often including educated and underemployed experts — to train AI models to replace them in the workforce. It’s a grim facet of an AI-dominated future in which the business world continues to push for automation, hoping to wean itself off relying on pesky and expensive human labor once and for all. As MIT Tech Review reports, an eerily similar situation is now playing out in China. Workers told the publication that their bosses are directing them to painstakingly document their workflows with the eventual goal of automating specific tasks using AI agents, such as OpenClaw, an open-source piece of software that has become immensely popular in the country. Chinese employees already got an early glimpse of what an AI agent-led future could look like. A GitHub project called Colleague Skill, which was originally set up as a joke, went viral …

Germany summons Russian ambassador, citing ‘direct threats’ | Russia-Ukraine war News

Germany summons Russian ambassador, citing ‘direct threats’ | Russia-Ukraine war News

Published by Sam Flores

Berlin calls undefined threats ‘an attempt to undermine support for Ukraine and test our unity’. Published On 20 Apr 202620 Apr 2026 Berlin has summoned the Russian ambassador to condemn what it calls “direct threats” against “targets in Germany”. The threats, which were not detailed, are aimed at undermining Germany’s support for Ukraine in its war with Russia, Berlin’s Federal Foreign Office said in a statement on Monday. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list “Our response is clear: we will not be intimidated. Such threats and all forms of espionage in Germany are completely unacceptable,” the foreign ministry said in a social media post. The Russian embassy provided no comment. Last week, Russia’s Ministry of Defence published a list of 21 companies that Moscow believes are subsidiaries of Ukrainian defence companies or suppliers of key components. At least three German firms were among those listed as supplying drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), to Ukraine. The post included a vague suggestion that those locations could be targeted. “The European public should …

Meta finally adds direct messages to the web version of Threads

Meta finally adds direct messages to the web version of Threads

Published by skeptic

Meta is adding a feature to the web version of Threads that, honestly, probably should’ve been there a while ago. As spotted by Engadget, Threads executive Connor Hayes posted an image showcasing a new redesign for the web browser version of the Twitter-like social network. It’s a pretty substantial redesign, including a bunch of new elements on the left sidebar such as the ability to easily switch between different feeds. Eagle-eyed viewers will also undoubtedly notice the addition of a direct message inbox. That feature has been available in the Threads mobile app since last June, but web users have been without it for almost an entire year. That, seemingly, will change soon. Mashable Light Speed SEE ALSO: Threads has overtaken X in daily users, but only on mobile Hayes’ post didn’t include a specific timeframe for when this new redesign will go live, so don’t get too excited just yet if you’re a web-based Threads user who wants to send and receive DMs. The only hint Hayes gave is that users can expect to …

Bradley Cooper to Write, Direct ‘Oceans’ Prequel

Bradley Cooper to Write, Direct ‘Oceans’ Prequel

Published by Daniella Wilson

Bradley Cooper has officially lined up his next directing gig, taking the helm of the upcoming Ocean’s prequel, which he will also star in alongside Margot Robbie. The news had long been in the ether, and during Warner Bros.’ CinemaCon presentation on Tuesday, studio heads Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy confirmed the news. The film does not yet have a title, but has been dated for June 25, 2027. Cooper — who most recently directed Is This Thing On? — will also produce alongside Robbie’s LuckyChap banner. Robbie also made a virtual appearance earlier in the presentation, telling the Las Vegas room, “Before Danny Ocean ever stepped foot in Vegas, two masterminds taught him everything he knows: his parents. You’ll see them in all their prime in our new movie, pulling off an epic heist at the 1962 Monaco Grand Prix.” Warner Bros. released a slew of release dates as well, including: horror sequel The Revenge of La Llorona (April 9, 2027); Evil Dead Wrath (April 7, 2028); Final Destination 7 (May 12, 2028); …

Brian Cox never thought he’d direct a film “in a million years” before Glenrothan

Brian Cox never thought he’d direct a film “in a million years” before Glenrothan

Published by Daniella Wilson

In his long acting career, Brian Cox has appeared in a very impressive array of films and TV shows. But despite having previously directed for the stage, it’s taken him until now – at the ripe old age of 79 – to step behind the camera and helm a screen project. His directorial debut is Glenrothan, a sentimental, Scotland set drama about two estranged brothers, played by Cox himself and Alan Cumming, who are reunited after several decades apart. Cox stars as Sandy, the owner of a whisky distillery who has never moved away from his (fictional) home town, while Cumming is Donal, who has been residing in Chicago for the past 35 years but – after a disaster – decides the time is finally right to return to Scotland and possibly even make amends with his brother. Ahead of release, Radio Times spoke exclusively to Cox about what drove him to direct – and it turned out it wasn’t something that had been especially high on his own bucket list. “Blame that man over …

Israel, Lebanon agree to direct negotiations after DC meeting, US says

Israel, Lebanon agree to direct negotiations after DC meeting, US says

Published by Sam Flores

15/04/2026 – 01:35 Female Iranian student arrives in Iran after release in France, state TV reports Iranian student ​Mahdieh Esfandiari arrived in Iran after being released in France, ​Iranian ‌state TV reported ⁠on Wednesday, after two French ‌nationals facing security charges were ⁠allowed to leave Iran following three-and-a-half years in ​detention. Esfandiari, who was ‌convicted at the end of February for glorifying terrorism ‌in anti-Israel social media posts, ​was released after serving almost a year in prison. “I think ​it’s clear for ​everyone that there ​is no freedom of speech, at ​least not in France where I was. The court’s ruling was very unjust,” ⁠Esfandiari told state television 15/04/2026 – 01:11 Treasury chief says US growth may exceed 3% or 3.5% this year despite Iran war Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday the ​underlying U.S. economy remained strong and that growth could still exceed 3% or 3.5% this year despite the impact of the ​U.S.-Israeli war ‌on Iran. Bessent has cast cuts ⁠in global growth forecasts and higher inflation projections by the International Monetary …

Emerald Fennell shoots down claim she’s ‘in negotiations’ to direct major movie reboot

Emerald Fennell shoots down claim she’s ‘in negotiations’ to direct major movie reboot

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter British director Emerald Fennell has denied that she is in negotiations to helm Amazon’s planned reboot of the 1992 erotic thriller Basic Instinct. In a new interview with The Guardian, Joe Eszterhas — who wrote the screenplay for the original cult classic directed by Paul Verhoeven, starring Sharon Stone as a crime novelist suspected of murdering a rock star — claimed that Fennell was “in negotiations” to direct his nearly completed screenplay for the remake. “The producers are negotiating with a really interesting director — a Brit, Emerald Fennell — who did Promising Young Woman and Wuthering Heights,” the 81-year-old writer said. “Her sensibility is exactly right. She’s someone who is not afraid of controversy and sexuality. So I’m thrilled by that. I hope it works out.” However, Fennell’s representative quickly told Variety that “there is no truth” to Eszterhas’s claims, …

Microsoft launches 3 new AI models in direct shot at OpenAI and Google

Microsoft launches 3 new AI models in direct shot at OpenAI and Google

Published by skeptic

Microsoft on Wednesday launched three new foundational AI models it built entirely in-house — a state-of-the-art speech transcription system, a voice generation engine, and an upgraded image creator — marking the most concrete evidence yet that the $3 trillion software giant intends to compete directly with OpenAI, Google, and other frontier labs on model development, not just distribution. The trio of models — MAI-Transcribe-1, MAI-Voice-1, and MAI-Image-2 — are available immediately through Microsoft Foundry and a new MAI Playground. They span three of the most commercially valuable modalities in enterprise AI: converting speech to text, generating realistic human voice, and creating images. Together, they represent the opening salvo from Microsoft’s superintelligence team, which Suleyman formed just six months ago to pursue what he calls “AI self-sufficiency.” “I’m very excited that we’ve now got the first models out, which are the very best in the world for transcription,” Suleyman told VentureBeat in an exclusive interview ahead of the launch. “Not only that, we’re able to deliver the model with half the GPUs of the state-of-the-art competition.” …

First direct comparison of MDMA and MDA reveals distinct psychedelic differences

First direct comparison of MDMA and MDA reveals distinct psychedelic differences

Published by José Betancourt

Researchers have directly compared the physical and psychological effects of the psychoactive drug MDMA with its chemical cousin MDA in human volunteers for the first time. The results show that MDA produces a longer lasting therapeutic experience with more visual distortions and adverse reactions. These outcomes suggest MDA may be less suited than standard MDMA for therapeutic uses. The study was published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology. MDMA is a widely known synthetic compound that promotes strong feelings of empathy, trust, and interpersonal connection. Because it reliably induces these emotional states, medical professionals are investigating the substance as a medication for psychotherapy in patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. When a person consumes MDMA, their body breaks the molecule down into several secondary chemicals. One of these breakdown products is a molecule called MDA. MDA is psychoactive in its own right and has a history of limited psychiatric exploration. Both substances fall into a broad category of drugs known as entactogens, which roughly translates to touching within. Pharmacologically, both drugs work by releasing signaling chemicals in …