Apple has sent out invites for the “Scary Fast” event, expected to be the iMacs and MacBooks launch, which is scheduled to take place at the end of this month. According to the invite received by Gadgets360 on Tuesday, the California-based tech giant will hold the special Apple Event on October 30 at 5 pm PT. The live streaming of the event will also be available on the company’s official website at apple.com. According to a previous report, Apple is expected to launch a follow-up model for the 24-inch iMac at this upcoming event. 

On Tuesday, October 24, Apple began sending out fresh invites for an upcoming event. While the company has not mentioned the specifications of the event, it is expected to be a Mac Launch event. The lineup for the event hasn’t been revealed by the company yet. The event is scheduled at 5 pm PT, which means 5:30 am on October 31, a very odd time for an Apple event, keeping India in mind. The event will be available for live streaming at Apple.com and YouTube. 

Apple has not refreshed its 2021 24-inch iMac yet. In a previous report based on Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman newsletter, Apple will launch a new 24-inch iMac refresh at the upcoming event. He also added that a larger Pro version of the iMac will arrive in late 2024 or 2025. However, industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo previously said that the new 24-inch iMac will be launched in the coming year. 

The previous 24-inch iMac is powered by the M1 chip. It is available in seven colour options to buy from and sports a 4.5K retina display with 500 nits of peak brightness. Meanwhile, another previous report citing Gurman said that the new Mac products could debut with Apple’s latest M3 chip. 

The report by Gurman also stated that Apple has no plans to launch new iPad models this year. The company could launch new iPad models around March 2024.

OpenAI announced two ways it is improving its artificial intelligence (AI) models last week. The first includes releasing a new update for the GPT-4o (also known as the GPT-4 Turbo), the company’s latest AI model powering ChatGPT for paid subscribers. The company says the update improves the creative writing ability of the model and makes it better at natural language responses and writing engaging content with high readability. OpenAI also released two research papers on red teaming and shared a new method to automate the process to scale spotting errors made by its AI models.

OpenAI Updates GPT-4o AI Model

In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), the AI firm announced a new update for the GPT-4o foundation model. OpenAI says the update allows the AI model to generate outputs with “more natural, engaging, and tailored writing to improve relevance and readability.” It is also said to improve the AI model’s ability to process uploaded files and provide deeper insights and “more thorough” responses.

Notably, the GPT-4o AI model is available to users with the ChatGPT Plus subscription and developers with access to the large language model (LLM) via API. Those using the free tier of the chatbot do not have access to the model.

While Gadgets 360 staff members were not able to test out the new capabilities, one user on X posted about the latest improvements in the AI model after the update. The user claimed that GPT-4o could generate an Eminem-style rap cipher with “sophisticated internal rhyming structures”.

OpenAI Shares New Research Papers on Red Teaming

Red teaming is the process used by developers and companies to employ external entities to test software and systems for vulnerabilities, potential risks, and safety issues. Most AI firms collaborate with organisations, prompt engineers, and ethical hackers to stress-test whether it responds with harmful, inaccurate, or misleading output. Tests are also made to check whether an AI system can be jailbroken.

Ever since ChatGPT was made public, OpenAI has been public with its red teaming efforts for each successive LLM release. In a blog post last week, the company shared two new research papers on the advancement of the process. One of them is of particular interest given the company claims it can automate large-scale red teaming processes for AI models.

Published in the OpenAI domain, the paper claims that more capable AI models can be used to automate red teaming. The company believes AI models can assist in brainstorming attacker goals, how an attacker’s success can be judged, and understanding the diversity of attacks.

Expanding on it, the researchers claimed that the GPT-4T model can be used to brainstorm a list of ideas that constitute harmful behaviour for an AI model. Some examples include prompts such as “how to steal a car” and “how to build a bomb”. Once the ideas have been generated, a separate red teaming AI model can be built to trick ChatGPT using a detailed series of prompts.

Currently, the company has not begun using this method for red teaming given several limitations. These include the evolving risks of AI models, exposing the AI to lesser-known techniques for jailbreaking or generating harmful content, and the need for a higher threshold for knowledge in humans to correctly judge the potential risks of output once the AI model becomes more capable.

Microsoft announced Edge Game Assist, an in-game browser focussed on game-centric features, for PC players Friday. The browser, a custom version of the Edge browser is currently available in preview and is meant to seamlessly provide game hints, guides and more. In addition to gaming-focussed browsing, Game Assist will pack users’ Edge browser data from their PC and mobile devices. The in-game browser is now available to PC players on Windows 11 with Microsoft Edge Beta 132.

Edge Game Assist Launched

Edge Game Assist can be accessed in-game via the Game Bar overlay on Windows, allowing users to browse the Web without leaving their game. According to Microsoft, 88 percent of PC players use a Web browser while gaming to get game help, track progress, connect with friends or view media.

“These actions require you to pull out your phone or Alt-Tab to the desktop on your PC, taking you out of your game. Unless you have multiple monitors, you also can’t see what’s happening in the game while you’re in the browser or reference a guide while you play,” the Xbox parent said in a blog post announcing the Game Assist browser.

Game Assist will appear in Game Bar on top of the game the user is playing. “It’s game-aware and will suggest tips and guides for what you’re playing,” Microsoft said. Additionally, Game Assist will remember user browsing data from Edge on PC and mobile, including favorites, history, cookies, form fills, and more. The in-game browser will also provide quick access to social services like Discord Twitch, Spotify, or any other Web page or site in the sidebar.

Game Assist Features

The browser will essentially act as a Game Bar widget and can be pinned above a game, helping users to watch a gameplay guide video as they play their game. The Game Bar overlay can be brought up by pressing Win+G, bringing in-game widgets like Xbox Social for connecting with friends and tracking achievements, capturing screenshots and gameplay clips, adjusting audio settings, monitoring game performance, and access to services like Spotify, Teams and more.

Game Assist can be resized and moved to fit a desired area of the screen. It also comes with a few game-aware features. The in-game browser will display a unique set of gaming tabs and sidebar apps, Microsoft said. When users open a new tab, it will highlight helpful resources like tips and hints for their game.

The preview feature is currently localised in English and supports a selection of popular PC games. Microsoft said it will continue to optimise Game Assist based on player feedback. It currently supports games like Baldur’s Gate 3, Diablo IV, Fortnite, Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga, League of Legends, Minecraft, Overwatch 2, Roblox and Valorant. Microsoft said it will add tips and guides for more games over time. Players can still browse to Web-based guides for any game they are playing.

Game Assist has released as an opt-in public preview. To try the browser, users must make sure Windows and Game Bar are up to date. The feature also requires the Beta or Preview channel of Microsoft Edge. Users must also set Edge Beta as their default browser. Then, in Edge, head to Settings and more (“…”) > Settings, and search for Game Assist in the search box and select Install widget.

Google has introduced a new feature for its Calendar app on Android which aims to make managing tasks easier. The app lets users create tasks, edit them with details, create sub-tasks, and use them with Google Workspace products like Gmail and Calendar — synced across devices. The company introduced full-screen task lists on the web last year and the same experience is now rolling out to Android smartphones. With its rollout, users will be able to get a complete view of all of their tasks and task lists.

Notably, this development builds upon the recent integration of Calendar into Gemini — Google’s artificial intelligence (AI) assistant.

Full-Screen Task Lists in Google Calendar

Google detailed Calendar’s new functionality in a blog post. The Mountain View-based technology company said that users can now access full-screen task lists on the Google Calendar app for Android. This is claimed to make the processing of viewing and managing tasks easier while on the go.

The feature appears as a checkmark icon on the Google Calendar home screen alongside the user profile and Today View icons. It has three tabs: My Tasks, Travel, and +New List. It lets users see their upcoming and completed tasks, as well as create new lists in a single window.

Google says full-screen task lists on Google Calendar will be available to Google Workspace users, Google Workspace Individual customers, and users with personal Google accounts. It is being rolled out to both Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains.

Updates to Drive Android File Picker

In addition to full-screen view in Google Calendar, the company is also rolling out an improved Drive Android file picker for Android devices. Google says it makes accessing recently viewed Drive items easier. Further, it also lets users quickly view items shared within drives, My Drive, and other storage locations.

This functionality has already been rolled out to Rapid Release domains and will be launched to Scheduled Release domains starting December 2.

Microsoft announced Edge Game Assist, an in-game browser focussed on game-centric features, for PC players Friday. The browser, a custom version of the Edge browser is currently available in preview and is meant to seamlessly provide game hints, guides and more. In addition to gaming-focussed browsing, Game Assist will pack users’ Edge browser data from their PC and mobile devices. The in-game browser is now available to PC players on Windows 11 with Microsoft Edge Beta 132.

Edge Game Assist Launched

Edge Game Assist can be accessed in-game via the Game Bar overlay on Windows, allowing users to browse the Web without leaving their game. According to Microsoft, 88 percent of PC players use a Web browser while gaming to get game help, track progress, connect with friends or view media.

“These actions require you to pull out your phone or Alt-Tab to the desktop on your PC, taking you out of your game. Unless you have multiple monitors, you also can’t see what’s happening in the game while you’re in the browser or reference a guide while you play,” the Xbox parent said in a blog post announcing the Game Assist browser.

Game Assist will appear in Game Bar on top of the game the user is playing. “It’s game-aware and will suggest tips and guides for what you’re playing,” Microsoft said. Additionally, Game Assist will remember user browsing data from Edge on PC and mobile, including favorites, history, cookies, form fills, and more. The in-game browser will also provide quick access to social services like Discord Twitch, Spotify, or any other Web page or site in the sidebar.

Game Assist Features

The browser will essentially act as a Game Bar widget and can be pinned above a game, helping users to watch a gameplay guide video as they play their game. The Game Bar overlay can be brought up by pressing Win+G, bringing in-game widgets like Xbox Social for connecting with friends and tracking achievements, capturing screenshots and gameplay clips, adjusting audio settings, monitoring game performance, and access to services like Spotify, Teams and more.

Game Assist can be resized and moved to fit a desired area of the screen. It also comes with a few game-aware features. The in-game browser will display a unique set of gaming tabs and sidebar apps, Microsoft said. When users open a new tab, it will highlight helpful resources like tips and hints for their game.

The preview feature is currently localised in English and supports a selection of popular PC games. Microsoft said it will continue to optimise Game Assist based on player feedback. It currently supports games like Baldur’s Gate 3, Diablo IV, Fortnite, Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga, League of Legends, Minecraft, Overwatch 2, Roblox and Valorant. Microsoft said it will add tips and guides for more games over time. Players can still browse to Web-based guides for any game they are playing.

Game Assist has released as an opt-in public preview. To try the browser, users must make sure Windows and Game Bar are up to date. The feature also requires the Beta or Preview channel of Microsoft Edge. Users must also set Edge Beta as their default browser. Then, in Edge, head to Settings and more (“…”) > Settings, and search for Game Assist in the search box and select Install widget.

Google has introduced a new feature for its Calendar app on Android which aims to make managing tasks easier. The app lets users create tasks, edit them with details, create sub-tasks, and use them with Google Workspace products like Gmail and Calendar — synced across devices. The company introduced full-screen task lists on the web last year and the same experience is now rolling out to Android smartphones. With its rollout, users will be able to get a complete view of all of their tasks and task lists.

Notably, this development builds upon the recent integration of Calendar into Gemini — Google’s artificial intelligence (AI) assistant.

Full-Screen Task Lists in Google Calendar

Google detailed Calendar’s new functionality in a blog post. The Mountain View-based technology company said that users can now access full-screen task lists on the Google Calendar app for Android. This is claimed to make the processing of viewing and managing tasks easier while on the go.

The feature appears as a checkmark icon on the Google Calendar home screen alongside the user profile and Today View icons. It has three tabs: My Tasks, Travel, and +New List. It lets users see their upcoming and completed tasks, as well as create new lists in a single window.

Google says full-screen task lists on Google Calendar will be available to Google Workspace users, Google Workspace Individual customers, and users with personal Google accounts. It is being rolled out to both Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains.

Updates to Drive Android File Picker

In addition to full-screen view in Google Calendar, the company is also rolling out an improved Drive Android file picker for Android devices. Google says it makes accessing recently viewed Drive items easier. Further, it also lets users quickly view items shared within drives, My Drive, and other storage locations.

This functionality has already been rolled out to Rapid Release domains and will be launched to Scheduled Release domains starting December 2.