Apple Intelligence began rolling out to users in the US earlier this week, as part of the company’s iOS 18.1 and macOS 15.1 software update. The most notable AI feature that is available on compatible iPhone and Mac computers is called Apple Writing Tools, and it allows users to proofread or summarise text on their device, make changes to tone and length, or simply rewrite it altogether. While the feature works with most apps designed for macOS, users can also access it on Windows apps running in a virtual machine on macOS.

Apple Intelligence Writing Tools Support for Windows Apps Introduced

Users with a Mac computer running on macOS Sequoia can use the new Apple Writing Tools feature that is part of the first Apple Intelligence feature rollout, while accessing Windows applications running inside a virtual machine, according to a support document shared by virtualisation software maker Parallels.

After updating to macOS 15.1, users who have a Parallels Desktop virtual machine on their Mac computer can begin using the new Apple Writing Tools feature while running Windows applications like Microsoft Word or PowerPoint. It’s worth noting that Apple Intelligence will need to be activated on the computer before support for Windows applications can be enabled via an update.

According to the virtualisation software firm, users will need to open the Parallels Desktop Control Center, start up their Windows virtual machine, then click on the following options in the menu bar at the top of the screen: Actions > Update Parallels Tools.

Apple Writing Tools running on the web version of Microsoft Word on Microsoft Edge
Photo Credit: Parallels

Once this process is complete, users can select a block of text inside an app like Microsoft Word running on their virtual machine on Parallels Desktop, then press the Shift + Command + W keyboard shortcut to access the Apple Writing Tools menu.     

Apple Intelligence is available to users in the US, on Mac computers that have an Apple Silicon chip. This means that if a user is running a MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, Mac mini, iMac, or Mac Pro with an M1, M2, M3, or M4 series chip, they will be able to access Apple Intelligence, as long as their system language is set to English (US). 

The sixth test flight of SpaceX’s Starship, the world’s largest rocket, was successfully conducted on November 19. The 400-foot (122 metres) rocket, developed by Elon Musk’s private space company, lifted off at 5:00 pm EST from the Starbase facility in South Texas. Despite high anticipation for a repeat of its previous booster catch using the launch tower’s “chopstick” arms, the Super Heavy booster was instead directed to a controlled splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico due to a safety parameter being triggered.

Booster Catch Attempt Deferred

The planned booster recovery had to be cancelled as per data assessed mid-flight, confirmed Dan Huot, a SpaceX representative during the live webcast. The booster splashed into the Gulf seven minutes after launch. A previous flight in October demonstrated a successful tower catch, marking a significant milestone for reusable rocket technology.

Milestones Achieved in Starship’s Upper Stage

The upper stage of Starship, known simply as “Ship,” followed a semi-orbital trajectory similar to that of the fifth flight. For the first time, the spacecraft carried a payload – a banana serving as a zero-gravity indicator. This flight tested modifications to its heat shield and new thermal protection materials while also performing an engine re-light during flight to validate re-entry manoeuvres critical for future orbital missions.

Enhanced Observations of Re-Entry

Unlike previous flights, this mission was timed for better visibility of the Ship’s descent. The spacecraft survived the intense re-entry process and executed a vertical splashdown in the Indian Ocean near Australia. Observers noted the craft’s resilience despite testing a less advanced heat shield.

Jessica Anderson, a SpaceX manufacturing engineering manager, described the results as remarkable during the live webcast. Co-host Kate Tice, a senior quality engineering manager, also acknowledged the significance of the successful descent amidst these challenges.

Political Attendance Highlights Interest

President-elect Donald Trump was among those present at the event, underlining his growing rapport with Elon Musk. Trump, who has recently appointed Musk to co-lead a government efficiency group, showed visible support for the Starship programme during this high-profile launch.

Intel and AMD on Tuesday announced a new partnership to create an x86 ecosystem advisory group to shape the future of the x86 architecture that it invented in the late 1970s, which has recently begun to face increasing competition from Cambridge-based Arm. While Intel and AMD are rivals, both chipmakers will work together with several partners including Lenovo, Dell, Google, HP, Microsoft, and Meta in order to ensure compatibility for x86 software across their processors, a benefit offered by Arm chips.

The formation of the x86 ecosystem advisory group was announced by Intel and AMD at the OCP Global Summit in California, as part of the chipmakers’ efforts aimed at “enabling compatibility across platforms” while easing the process of developing software for x86 platforms. The move comes as both firms are ceding market share to Arm over the past couple of years.

While x86 processors have dominated the PC and server sector for years after Intel released the first x86 processor four decades ago, more computers powered by Arm chips — such as Apple’s M-series and Snapdragon X-series — are easily accessible in 2024. The recent launch of the octa-core Snapdragon X Plus brought the cost of Arm-powered below the $800 (roughly Rs. 67,200) mark.

The formation of the advisory group comes as Arm continues to grow in popularity. Grand View Research estimates that the market size of Arm-based servers was around $5.84 billion (roughly Rs. 49,070 crore) in 2023, with a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.3 percent from 2024 to 2030.

Linus Torvalds and Tim Sweeney are members of the x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group
Photo Credit: Intel

Arm-based chips have a unique advantage — the UK firm makes it mandatory for all chipmakers include support for running Arm software — a key advantage when it comes to compatibility across hardware made by different manufacturers.

The new x86 ecosystem advisory group aims to deliver similar software compatibility across AMD and Intel processors through the use of a “more unified set of instructions and architectural interfaces”, based on input from the x86 hardware and software communities.  

Founding members include Dell, Broadcom, Lenovo, Google, Microsoft, HP, HP Enterprise, Oracle, and Red Hat. Linux kernel creator Linux Torvalds and Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney are also members of the advisory group.

If the initiative is successful, it could result in better software compatibility across x86 platforms used on PCs, data centres, cloud, client, edge, and embedded devices along with faster adoption of new features.

“We are on the cusp of one of the most significant shifts in the x86 architecture and ecosystem in decades – with new levels of customization, compatibility and scalability needed to meet current and future customer needs,” Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said in a prepared statement. 

“Establishing the x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group will ensure that the x86 architecture continues evolving as the compute platform of choice for both developers and customers,” said AMD Chair and CEO Lisa Su said.

Asus ROG Phone 9 is set for its global launch today (Tuesday), nearly a month after being officially announced. Ahead of its imminent debut, the AnTuTu benchmark scores of the upcoming handset have been revealed and it is claimed to have achieved the highest numbers of any smartphone to date. It also details information about the ROG Phone 9’s various specifications, such as its operating system (OS) version and chipset.

Asus ROG Phone 9 AnTuTu Benchmark Score  

In a post on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, AnTuTu detailed the benchmark scores of the Asus ROG Phone 9 with the model number ASUSAI2501A. The handset is said to have achieved a total number of 31,21,390 which is claimed to be the highest score of any smartphone to date. Its CPU, which is Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8 Elite SoC, has a score of 6,61,243, while its GPU score is listed as 12,56,559.

AnTuTu Benchmark Scores of the Upcoming Asus ROG Phone 9
Photo Credit: Weibo/AnTuTu

The processor features eight cores, comprising two Oryon prime cores clocked at 4.32GHz and six Oryon performance cores capped at 3.53GHz. It is paired with an Adreno 830 GPU.

The listing also reveals that the Asus ROG Phone 9 will feature up to 24GB of LPDDR5X RAM and up to 1TB of UFS 4.0 storage, helping it achieve a score of 6,72,974 in AnTuTu benchmarks. Further, it is expected to feature a refresh rate of 185Hz having a UX score of 5,30,614. As per AnTuTu, the smartphone will run on Android 15.

Asus ROG Phone 9 Specifications (Expected)

Previous reports suggest Asus ROG Phone 9 will be equipped with a 6.78-inch full-HD+ (1,080×2,400 pixels) LTPO AMOLED screen with Gorilla Glass Victus protection. For optics, it may sport a triple rear camera setup, comprising a 50-megapixel Sony Lytia 700 main camera with a 1/1.56-inch sensor size, a 13-megapixel ultra-wide camera, and a 5-megapixel macro camera. The handset is said to pack a 5,800mAh battery that can be charged at 65W along with support for wireless charging.

Microsoft Recall — the company’s upcoming feature for Copilot+ PCs — is facing yet another delay. The Redmond company was expected to roll out its Recall feature to Windows Insiders last month. However, it is unlikely to be available for another couple of months, according to the company. The feature is designed to run on Windows 11 Copilot+ PCs and captures screenshots of user activity, and it has faced a lot of criticism since it was first announced, due to privacy and security concerns.

Senior Product Manager Brandon LeBlanc confirmed to The Verge that the Recall feature will only roll out to Windows Insiders program members by December. “To ensure we deliver on these important updates, we’re taking additional time to refine the experience before previewing it with Windows Insiders,” the executive told the publication.

What is Microsoft’s Recall Feature?

Originally announced in May, the new Recall feature is an AI feature designed to run only on Copilot+ PCs. It can help users find things on their computer by taking screenshots of all their activities and allowing them to search the contents of that screenshot at a later date. The announcement of the feature was met with intense criticism from privacy advocates and security experts, who pointed out several flaws with the initial version of Recall.

After the backlash, Microsoft halted its plans to roll out Recall to Windows Insiders testers in June and revealed that it would arrive in October instead. Since then, the company has announced several sweeping changes to the Recall feature that are designed to improve its security.

For example, Recall for Windows will now store encrypted data, and the encryption keys are protected via the CPU’s trusted platform module (TPM). Microsoft says that the feature can only be used inside a secure environment, in order to protect user data from being accessed by other users.

Microsoft has also made some changes to Recall, in order to protect user data from being compromised by malware — the feature will include anti-hammering and rate limiting measures. Meanwhile, access to Recall and the feature’s settings can only be unlocked using Windows Hello authentication, with a PIN as a fallback method.

The company has also clarified that Recall will be opt-in for all users with a Copilot+ PC and that it can be completely removed. If the feature is rolled out to Windows Insiders by December, we can expect Microsoft to finally release it for all Copilot+ PC owners over the next year.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is expected to launch soon alongside the Galaxy S25 and Galaxy S25+ handsets. The phone will succeed the Galaxy S24 Ultra, which was unveiled in January this year. The top-of-the-line Galaxy S-series smartphone is expected to be powered by an octa-core Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset. Other key features of the upcoming flagship handset have been tipped in previous reports. A tipster now claims that the phone could launch at a higher price point than the preceding Galaxy S24 Ultra.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Price (Expected)

The bill of materials (BoM) for the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is at least $110 (roughly Rs. 9,300) more than that of the Galaxy S24 Ultra, according to a Weibo post by tipster Setsuna Digital (translated from Chinese). The tipster added that this might convince the manufacturers to increase the price of the upcoming handset in select markets and regions. 

The tipster noted that Samsung will not increase the price of the Galaxy S25 Ultra over that of the Galaxy S24 Ultra in China. The 12GB + 256GB option of the current top-of-the-line flagship handset starts in China at CNY 9,699 (roughly Rs. 1,12,900). The tipster said that the base Galaxy S25 Ultra variant will likely maintain the same price. 

However, a recent leak suggested that the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra could be priced in the US at $1,299 (roughly Rs. 1,09,600) for the 12GB + 256GB option, while the 12GB + 512GB and 16GB + 1TB variants will likely be marked at $1,419 (roughly Rs. 1,19,800) and $1,659 (roughly Rs. 1,40,000), respectively. This is similar to the price of the Galaxy S24 Ultra in the market.

The same leak claimed that Samsung is unlikely to increase the price of the Galaxy S25 series smartphones. This strategy is said to be influenced by Apple’s decision to not raise the price of iPhone 16 series phones and therefore, allegedly maintain competition.

Currently, the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is priced in India at Rs. 1,29,999 for the 12GB + 256GB option, while the 512GB and 1TB variants are listed at Rs. 1,39,999 and Rs. 1,59,999, respectively. 

Microsoft is launching a set of artificial intelligence tools designed to send emails, manage records and take other actions on behalf of business workers, expanding an AI push that intensifies competition with rivals like Salesforce Inc.

The Redmond, Washington-based software maker said Monday it would roll out 10 “autonomous agents” to complete tasks on behalf of people in areas such as sales, customer support and accounting. The agents will be available in “public preview,” beginning in December and continuing through early 2025. Microsoft also said that Copilot Studio, which lets companies build their own agents, will soon get the capability to have those agents act on their own initiative. That will be released in a preview version next month.

The agents are like smartphone apps for the AI age, said Jared Spataro, who oversees Microsoft’s workplace AI products. The AI tools, some acting autonomously and others in concert with a worker, can complete tasks like researching and sorting through sales leads or updating a customer support ticket after a phone call. 

“We have just found places where people spend tons of time and tons of money,” Spataro said. “They tend to be tasks and processes that they wish they didn’t have to do, but they have to do over and over again. There’s high yield if we can essentially automate that.”

Microsoft, thanks largely to its partnership with ChatGPT maker OpenAI, is at the forefront of the technology industry’s effort to infuse software with the ability to generate text and images and display humanlike reasoning. Since early 2023, Microsoft has focused on AI features that require a prompt from the user – a prominent example being the company’s Copilot, which it has deployed across Word, Outlook and other products.

The next phase is building agents — tools that can complete established tasks without human intervention by combining reasoning powered by generative AI with existing databases and software. ServiceNow Inc., Workday Inc., HubSpot Inc. and SAP SE are among the cadre of software companies now emphasizing AI agents.

Salesforce, the biggest maker of customer management software, spent much of its annual Dreamforce conference last month touting the new approach, saying its agents can handle tasks like customer service without supervision. Its tool — Agentforce — will become generally available later this month, with initial pricing of about $2 (roughly Rs. 168) per conversation, the company has said. 

While promoting Salesforce’s tools, Chief Executive Officer Marc Benioff has also taken repeated shots at Microsoft’s effort over the past few weeks. “When you look at how Copilot has been delivered to customers, it’s disappointing,” Benioff posted Wednesday on X.

Microsoft hasn’t announced pricing on its agents, which will be added to the company’s Dynamics 365 software. Copilot Studio, the custom agent-building tool, is included in Microsoft 365 Copilot, which it sells to business customers for $30 (roughly Rs. 2,522) a month per user. 

“All the competitive positioning will really come down to who’s really got product that real customers are using and what are they realizing,” Spataro said. 

© 2024 Bloomberg LP

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Vivo S20 series is set to launch in China soon. We’re still waiting for an official launch date from the Chinese smartphone maker, which has opened pre-orders for the new S series via its official online store in the country. The online listing reveals the rear design of the Vivo S20 family. The lineup is expected to include the base Vivo S20 and Vivo S20 Pro models, as a successor to the Vivo S19 and Vivo S19 Pro, respectively. Meanwhile, the standard Vivo S20 has been spotted on a benchmarking website.

Vivo S20 Series Pre-Reservation Offers

Vivo has begun accepting pre-reservations for the lineup through its official website in China. Customers pre-booking the phones will have a chance to avail of unspecified benefits worth CNY 278 (roughly Rs. 3,000). This offer will be limited to 2,500 customers, according to the company. Those who reserve can avail of the Vivo 44W charger and one-year extended warranty. Buyers will also have the opportunity to receive Vivo TWS 4 earbuds, Vivo Pad 3 or credit points.

The brand has released the first teaser image of the Vivo S20 series revealing the rear design of the handsets. They appear to feature a vertically aligned rear camera layout that is surrounded by a ring flash. One model has a glossy finish around its camera housing.

Separately, a Vivo handset has been spotted on the Geekbench benchmarking website with the model number V2429A. The listing, believed to be that of the vanilla Vivo S20, suggests that it may run on Android 15. It shows 1,223 points in single-core testing and 3,422 points in multi-core testing. As per the listing, the handset has 14.90GB of RAM, which means it could debut with 16GB of memory.

As per the listing, an octa-core chipset with the codename ‘crow’ and a base frequency of 1.80 GHz will power the Vivo V2429A. It shows a prime CPU core with a maximum clock speed of 2.63GHz. These CPU speeds and codename appear to be associated with the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 SoC. The Vivo S19 also has the same chipset under the hood.

As per past leaks, the Vivo S20 Pro will run on a MediaTek Dimensity 9300 SoC. It could boast a 6.67-inch display with a 1.5K (1,260×2,800 pixels) resolution and a 50-megapixel selfie camera. It is tipped to carry a triple rear camera unit comprising a 50-megapixel Sony IMX921 main camera, a 50-megapixel ultra-wide angle sensor, and a 50-megapixel Sony IMX882 periscope telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom. Vivo is expected to pack a 5,500mAh battery on the Pro model with 90W charging support.

Apple dropped its new MacBook Pro lineup last week with M4 chips and 14-inch or 16-inch display options. Now, details have emerged about the future MacBook Pro models Apple has supposedly been working on. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman expects Apple to update the current MacBook Pro again in 2025, but a major design refresh could happen in 2026. The MacBook Pro models will reportedly feature a new display technology and a 2nm M6 chip in 2026. 

In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Mark Gurman states that Apple won’t completely overhaul the MacBook Pro until 2026. The brand was previously targeting 2025 for the next MacBook Pro overhaul, but the plan was reportedly axed due to delays related to the display technology.

MacBook Pro Could Get  M5 Refresh Next Year

Gurman says we can expect a simple refresh for the MacBook Pro series next year with an M5, M5 Pro, and M5 Max chipsets and minimal to no design changes. He expects Apple to launch a ‘total redesign’ for the MacBook Pro in 2026 with an M6 chip. Apple’s M6 chip will likely be built on the new 2nm process. It could bring new display technology, fresh design, and a significant performance boost.

Apple’s 2026 MacBook Pro lineup is expected to feature an OLED screen, ditching the mini-LED display that Apple has included in old models. With the transition to OLED displays, the laptop will have a “thinner design.” Apple had previously made the MacBook Pro models slightly thicker with the introduction of the M-series chipsets and the company is expected to reverse this in 2026.

Meanwhile, Apple refreshed its MacBook Pro lineup last week with M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max chips. They are available in 14-inch and 16-inch display options and support ray tracing as well as Apple Intelligence. The price of MacBook Pro (2024) starts at Rs. 1,69,999 for the base model with an M4 chip and a 14-inch screen.