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On-chain data indicates the U.S. government is moving its massive stockpile of Bitcoin it seized from James Zhong, the hacker who infiltrated the Silk Road marketplace.

A Bitcoin address named "The U.S. Department of Justice" moved a total of 9,825 BTC to various addresses, which equates to a staggering $302 million dollars. Notably, the U.S. government announced back in March that the 51,351 BTC that it seized from James Zhong, following his infiltration into the notorious online black market. Authorities seized the Bitcoin from Zhong at his home in Georgia in November 2021, and at the time, the stack of BTC was worth $3.6 billion. Reports indicate that Zhong pleaded guilty to wire fraud.

Furthermore, while the U.S. government was moving its multi-million stack of BTC, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York announced that Roger Thomas Clark, a senior adviser to the Silk Road marketplace, was being sentenced to 20 years in prison. These events, funnily enough, occurred on the same day. According to the Department of Justice website, Clark was sentenced for "conspiring to distribute massive quantities of narcotics, arising out of his role as the top adviser to Ross Ulbricht, a/k/a "Dread Pirate Roberts," the owner and operator of the "Silk Road".

A newly published paper has explored the implications of feeding an AI model content that was created by another artificial intelligence model. The results were fascinating and illustrate the importance of AI models being trained on authentic data.

A team of researchers from Rice and Stanford University fed an AI model content that was AI-generated and discovered that over time the quality of the model's output would diminish. AI models are trained on specific data sets, and according to the researcher's results, which were published in a new paper, if the model is trained on data that is generated from an AI, the model will begin to break, or as the researchers call it, drive the AI "MAD".

The researchers write that this new "MAD" term, which stands for "Model Autophagy Disorder," can happen for any type of AI: text, image, or video-based models. It should be noted that the paper is yet to be peer-reviewed, which means readers should take the results with a healthy amount of skepticism until the results are reviewed and replicated at a larger scale.

31-year-old Suumit Shah, the CEO of e-commerce platform Duukan, a Bengaluru-based company that assists businesses in setting up their online storefronts, has recently put himself in the online firing line for letting go 90% of his customer support staff.

Shah took to Twitter with his announcement, writing that "we had to lay off 90% of our support team because of this AI chatbot". Shah's post, which has been viewed more than 2 million times goes on to say that the while the decision was "tough" it was "necessary," and the AI chatbot has dramatically reduced customer support response times, resolution times, and running costs.

According to Shah, customer support costs were reduced by 85% when layoffs began in September 2022. Notably, Duukan, which currently employs 60 people, fired 23 of the 26 customer support team members, resulting in the company reducing its monthly budget for customer support to just $100.

If you use Apple's iCloud Keychain password manager but also find yourself using third-party web browsers like Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge, we have good news for you. The upcoming macOS Sonoma update will add third-party web browser support for iCloud Keychain and it's already live in the latest beta release.

The iCloud Keychain password manager is built into all iPhones, iPads, and Macs and allows passwords and usernames to be stored securely in iCloud. Unfortunately, that means that accessing those passwords in apps like Chrome isn't currently possible, but that's changing when macOS Sonoma arrives this fall. Now, it's been confirmed that the latest macOS Sonoma beta already has the feature enabled which means those on the developer and public betas can now test it out.

The way this all works is by installing an Apple extension that is already available for Chrome and Edge and it's that extension that handles everything. The iCloud Passwords browser extension hooks into iCloud Keychain on your Mac and then pulls out the required credentials when they're needed.

Rock samples acquired by Perseverance, which is stationed in the Jezero Crater, have been analyzed, and the results indicate organic matter is present.

According to astrobiologist Sunanda Sharma of Caltech, who led the research and spoke to ScienceAlert, the Jezero Crater samples acquired by Perseverance indicate evidence of hydrocarbon molecules in various rock formations, leading researchers to suspect that organic matter may be widespread across the planet and not localized in specific locations around Mars. These building blocks of life were detected in different abundances along with different types of molecules.

It should be noted that one of Perseverance's main objectives is to look for signs of past life on Mars, and while carbon chemistry is certainly an interesting find, it doesn't confirm that life was once on the Red Planet. More data needs to be acquired. However, carbon is essential for life to exist, and as pointed out by ScienceAlert, if you want to assess a location's habitability looking for carbon-containing molecules is a great place to start.

Apple has now had another try and releasing its Rapid Security Response update for iOS 16.5.1 and macOS Ventura 13.4.1. The update was previously released in an attempt to fix a security flaw that Apple said may have been actively exploited in the wild.

However, that update also had the unfortunate effect of preventing some websites from loading properly on some devices including iPhones and Macs. Apple later pulled that Rapid Security Response and advised users that they could also remove it from their devices if they wanted to. Now, an updated version of the Rapid Security Response has been released, hopefully with this website loading issue also patched out.

Rapid Security Responses are normally there to allow Apple to push out new security updates without the need for users to download entire iOS updates. It also means that the updates can be issued automatically to all devices and without the need for users to do anything or restart their devices. However, this is the first time that such an update has caused an issue that required further interaction because it introduced a bug.

NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) are celebrating one year of observations from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the world's most powerful space telescope.

Webb has been scouring the universe with its extremely powerful infrared instruments, piercing through thick clouds of dust to see objects beyond what humans were initially capable. Webb is truly unfolding the universe one observation at a time, and NASA has taken to its blog to celebrate its numerous achievements, such as spotting the oldest supermassive black hole discovered so far, spying on sand storms on an exoplanet, and analyzing the atmosphere of numerous exoplanets in an effort to uncover the building blocks of life.

The above image was taken by the JWST, and it showcases a star-forming region in the Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex located approximately 390 light years away from Earth within the constellation Ophiuchus. Webb's image showcases approximately 50 young stars that all have a similar mass to the Sun, or smaller. NASA explains that the darkest areas of the image contain the densest amount of dust are "thick dust cocoons still-forming protostars".

In what seems to be one of the most alarming geologic phenomena, a sinkhole in Florida has reopened for the third time in 10 years.

Reports indicate that a sinkhole in Seffner, Florida has reopened for the third time in 10 years, sparking major concern from residents within the area. Hillsborough County Fire Rescue, along with County engineers and Code Enforcement officials, were sent to the property where the sinkhole reopened on Monday, and according to officials, the sinkhole measures 12 feet by 12 feet and has an unknown depth.

Notably, this same sinkhole swallowed Jeffery Bush, who at the time was asleep in his bedroom when it opened up for the first time. Furthermore, officials at the time determined that the ground around Bush's property was dangerously unstable, resulting in Bush's home and two neighboring homes being demolished.

If you are after a new high-end TV, Samsung has an incredible offer for you, and while it isn't the biggest OLED TV on the market, it comes in a very close second.

Samsung is after LG's crown for having the biggest OLED TV available to purchase as the company has just announced the QN83S90C, an 83-inch display that comes with bold contrast, dramatic sound, and, of course, gorgeous colors thanks to the OLED pixel technology. Samsung has priced the QN83S90C at $5,400, and according to the company's website, it will become available in July.

For those that don't know, OLED displays are renowned as providing the best picture quality compared to any other pixel technology on the market, hence the leap in price. Notably, LG offers OLED TVs in sizes from 42 inches up to 97 inches, with the 92-inch model costing a whopping $25,000. As for Samsung's OLED offerings, buyers can pick up a Samsung OLED TV between 55 and 83 inches.

A Diablo IV Barbarian player has recorded a 35 undecillion damage Critical Hit, a number with 36 zeroes, taking the idea of insane damage to a whole new level. The exact damage recorded was 35,248,198,783,801,730,000,000,000,000,000,000,000, and overpowered doesn't even begin to cut it, as most high-end damage numbers in the game sit at around a few hundred-thousand points of damage compared to this silliness.

If you're rocking a Barbarian in Diablo IV, you're undoubtedly sitting there waiting for a full list of the gear and skills used so you can give it a shot before this specific Barbarian build gets nerfed by Blizzard. It all comes down to the interaction between key Legendary Aspects - the Aspect of Berserk Ripping, Skullbreaker's Aspect, and the Aspect of Anemia.

And it's all about Bleed damage, with Rob2628 recording the insane damage number, the first player in the world to hit Level 100. He outlines the build and what it's doing in the following video.

Elon Musk has announced a new company that will be focused on developing artificial intelligence designed to understand reality.

Musk, who owns Twitter, is the CEO of both SpaceX and Tesla, seems to have a few spare hours in his already extremely busy day to announce another company. Introducing, xAI, a company that Musk says will be dedicated to "understanding reality", which is further backed up by the new company's first tweet that calls for "the most fundamental unanswered questions". Top suggestions so far are, "Can AI become conscious?", which is certainly a big question that many AI developers and not to mention the general population, are curious to find out.

According to the new company's website, the team will be led by Musk and staffed by executives that have worked at previous AI-based companies such as Google's DeepMind, Microsoft, and Tesla. Moreover, Musk has recruited minds from the University of Toronto. For those that don't know, Musk was one of the original founders of OpenAI, but left the company in 2018 when his offer to lead the company was refused by the board. Since then, Musk has been critical of OpenAI's direction, saying that the company is "effectively controlled by Microsoft".

Cyberpunk 2077 is set in a dystopian future where corporations run everything, and technology has advanced to a point where body modification and cybernetic implants have become as routine as putting on some shades when it's sunny. So, adding ChatGPT support to the game makes a lot of sense, with modder 'tomatojuice' adding the OpenAI API into the game with the new CyberAI mod.

What does it do? Well, it's merely a way to call OpenAI API methods from Lua or Redscript and hasn't been used to add or change anything within the game... yet. The mod creator notes that the scripting could generate AI-NPC dialogue, generate quests or dialogue, generate plots for side quests, or even direct enemy AI tactics in combat.

It looks like a mod that other modders can use to create brand-new AI-driven content for Cyberpunk 2077. The mod opens up numerous gameplay opportunities within Cyberpunk 2077, and we're excited to see where it leads. "Use OpenAI to generate unique storylines or side quests based on in-game events or player actions," the CyberAI mod's official description reads. Very cool.

Valve's Team Fortress 2 is still going strong, with the free-to-play multiplayer shooter being a Steam staple since it first launched in 2007. The team-based shooter where players take on various roles is iconic and one of the main inspiration points for games like Overwatch from Blizzard.

And Team Fortress 2 just got one of its most significant updates in years, with the Summer 2023 update bringing 14 new community maps to the game, 25 new community-contributed cosmetic items, and a bunch of general fixes.

Valve noted that Team Fortress 2 was set to receive a major update in February, though a lot of the credit here definitely goes to the community that helped create all the new content. And if you're wondering just how popular a multiplayer game from 2007 can be, right now (as of writing), 192,249 people are playing Team Fortress 2 - with the all-time peak concurrent player count of 207,533 recorded in the past 24 hours, too, per SteamDB.

There's a potential issue with the ROG Ally's thermal design and cooling, at least in terms of its configuration, with owners reporting problems with microSD cards. ASUS has confirmed the issue with a statement on Discord noting that "under certain thermal stress conditions, the SD card reader may malfunction."

They are overheating to the point of no longer working or potentially ruining any cards that might be inserted into the microSD card reader on the ROG Ally gaming handheld. ASUS added that the issue falls within the RMA process and that the affected units will be repaired.

The issue points to a potential design flaw on the ROG Ally, which is highlighted in this YouTube video by CPPC TEK that points out that the SD card reader is located right next to where all of the power delivery happens on the PCB, one of the hottest spots on the board.

Linux has never been as popular as Microsoft Windows or Apple's macOS; that has been true for decades. But according to StatCounter's latest data, the open-source operating system hit a 3% market share in the desktop PC space in June 2023 - pointing to a growing audience enjoying Linux's lightweight, bloatware-free, and customization-friendly approach.

Naturally, 3% is a small figure compared to Windows commanding 68% of the desktop OS market share, and it even falls behind Google's ChromeOS, which is sitting on a 4% market share. This is a good news story for Linux (and Linux fans out there) because Linux's share has doubled since 2018. However, the macOS market share has also doubled in the same timeframe, growing to over 21%.

Linux is mainly seen as an operating system for the server space due to its open-source nature and customization-friendly design. It's a situation where you might find that two Linux setups look and behave very differently, thanks to different desktop environments like GNOME, KDE, Xfce, and others.

The flagship RDNA 3-powered AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX is currently available at its lowest price yet, USD 799 - and yes, it comes with a free copy of Starfield per AMD's new game bundle deal for Ryzen and Radeon products.

The model in question is the ASRock Phantom Gaming Radeon RX 7900 XTX 24GB, which features the company's Polychrome SYNC lighting, Phantom Gaming 3X Cooling System, and metal backplate. It also features an out-of-the-box factory overclock with max clocks up to 2615 MHz - so it should deliver better performance than AMD's reference model.

The discount represents an impressive USD 200 or 20% discount from the USD 999 MSRP. As a 4K gaming card, its direct competitor is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 - which only features 16GB of VRAM compared to the 24GB seen here.

The AMD FidelityFX Software Development Kit (SDK) is now available for developers to download. It gives them an easy one-stop solution for adding AMD FidelityFX tech into games like FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR 1.1 and FSR 2.2.1) and AMD FidelityFX CACAO (AMD FidelityFX Ambient Occlusion).

"The AMD FidelityFX SDK is the result of our aim to bring simplicity, structure, and consistency into all our great AMD FidelityFX technologies," writes AMD in the announcement, which also introduces three brand new FidelityFX tech for developers (and gamers) to play with.

The first is AMD FidelityFX Blur 1.0, a hardware-based "gaussian blur technique" for creating more cinematic visuals. The second is AMD FidelityFX Depth of Field 1.0, which is about recreating the "bokeh depth of field effect produced by camera lenses." Finally, there's AMD FidelityFX Lens 1.0, which also adds access to cinematic tools like chromatic aberration, vignette, and film-grain effects to in-game visuals.

UPDATE: Shortly after publication, FTC lawyer James Weingarten has filed a notice to appeal Judge Corley's decision in the Microsoft-Activision merger case.

Original article below:

The race is on as the FTC weighs decision on whether or not to file an appeal that could thwart the Microsoft-Activision merger from closing, sources tell Bloomberg.

An FTC spokesperson gives a statement on a recent federal decision that effectively greenlit the Microsoft-Activision merger in the U.S.

Yesterday, a federal judge denied the FTC's preliminary injunction request on the $68.7 billion Microsoft-Activision merger. Citing anti-competitive effects in multiple markets, the FTC sought the injunction to prohibit the two gaming firms from combining until after its Phase III administrative proceedings had concluded. If the FTC got its way, both Microsoft legal counsel and Activision CEO Bobby Kotick indicated that the order would have effectively killed the merger--the FTC's administrative case could last multiple years, and it was likely that Microsoft and Activision would walk away from the deal.

Judge Corley denied the FTC's preliminary injunction request on the grounds that the Commission was unable to properly or substantially prove that the anti-competitive effects of the merger would outweigh its benefits to consumers. Absent the merger, Activision would not have immediately brought its games to Xbox Game Pass or the cloud; with the merger, games like Call of Duty will be brought to the service.

NVIDIA has slightly altered the power connector design on its flagship Lovelace graphics cards, according to a fresh report.

This comes from a Redditor (as spotted by VideoCardz) who posted to show the purported design change on a new RTX 4090 Founders Edition, which theoretically has been made to ensure that the well-publicized instances of cable meltdown no longer happen.

You surely can't have missed the fracas around melting cables after the RTX 4090 was launched, with NVIDIA admitting that if the power cable isn't properly plugged into the graphics card, such a loose connection could cause overheating issues.