Author: Carter

Is a CNN-based model lighter just by picking a smaller version? For example, if ResNet-152 is too heavy, can we simply switch to ResNet-101? Or choose DenseNet-121 instead of DenseNet-169? — Yes, that works, but you’ll likely lose some accuracy. In short, reducing model size usually means accepting lower performance. But what if there were a model that’s lighter than its base version yet still matches it in accuracy? Enter CSPNet (Cross Stage Partial Network). Surprisingly, it cuts down computation without sacrificing accuracy — no compromises needed! In this article, we’ll explore how CSPNet works and how to build it…

The Pentagon announced on Friday that it has finalized agreements with seven technology firms to integrate their artificial intelligence tools into its classified networks, enabling the military to leverage AI-driven capabilities to support combat operations. Google, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, Nvidia, OpenAI, Reflection, and SpaceX will contribute their resources to “enhance warfighter decision-making in complex operational environments,” according to the Department of Defense. Notably missing from the list is AI firm Anthropic, following its public conflict and legal battle with the Trump administration over ethical and safety concerns regarding AI use in warfare. In recent years, the Defense Department has…

AWS has officially stepped into the HR technology space—though not with a full human capital management (HCM) platform, but rather with a focused AI-powered interviewing solution. Dubbed Amazon Connect Talent and currently in preview, this new tool blends agentic AI with advanced analytics to automate candidate interviews. It conducts conversations on behalf of recruiters, evaluates responses, and presents actionable insights via dashboards—enabling faster hiring decisions. Users also gain access to full transcripts and in-depth interview analyses whenever deeper review is needed. Originally launched nine years ago as Amazon Connect, the platform began as a suite of contact center technologies…

Lance Whitney/ZDNETFollow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.I usually rely on Siri as my go-to voice assistant while driving, especially when my iPhone is linked through Apple CarPlay. It handles everyday tasks quite well—like playing music, giving directions, setting reminders, and making calls or sending texts. However, Siri tends to struggle with more complex or nuanced questions—the kind you’d typically turn to an AI for.Thanks to Apple’s recent update allowing third-party voice assistants on CarPlay, you can now have direct, hands-free conversations with leading AI apps while on the road. Currently, you can interact by voice with…

Thanks to Physical AI, robots are now able to acquire new skills and adjust to environments at a much faster pace. Source: Fictiv Until recently, when people thought about AI, they mostly pictured large language models (LLMs) and chatbots. However, for many professionals in the field, leveraging AI to help source and produce complex mechanical components — especially those used in robotics — has been underway for more than ten years. Yet in today’s manufacturing and logistics environments, the focus has shifted to something far more tangible. We’ve entered the era of real-world physical AI. Humanoid robots, once purely the…

David Gewirtz / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNETStay updated with ZDNET: Mark us as a preferred source on Google. Key insights from ZDNET Photoshop can fabricate details that weren’t captured by the camera.The combination of Rotate Object and Harmonize works remarkably well.Achieving great outcomes still demands Photoshop expertise, judgment, and touch-up work.Adobe keeps rolling out impressive AI-powered tools for Photoshop. Last fall, I thoroughly enjoyed experimenting with the Harmonize feature, which automatically tweaks an object’s color, lighting, and shadows to blend seamlessly with a background. Now, it’s time for the Rotate Object feature, which twists a flat object in virtual…

In brief Apple CEO Tim Cook cautioned that Mac mini and Mac Studio units could face ongoing shortages for “several months,” as AI-fueled demand dramatically outpaced the company’s projections. OpenClaw—the open-source AI agent platform now supported by OpenAI—made Apple’s unified memory architecture the go-to hardware choice for running large AI models locally. Apple’s M4 Ultra chip supports up to 192GB of unified memory, enabling developers to run models that exceed the capacity of any single consumer Nvidia GPU, which tops out at 32GB of VRAM. The Mac mini has long been the unassuming, easy-to-overlook desktop tucked away in the corner…

Conversational AI has long faced a tough tradeoff: be fast or be smart. Real-time speech-to-speech (S2S) models — the ones behind natural-sounding voice assistants — start responding almost immediately, but their answers tend to lack depth. On the other hand, cascaded systems that pass speech through a large language model (LLM) deliver much richer responses, but the processing delay is long enough to make conversations feel awkward and mechanical. Sakana AI, a research lab based in Tokyo, has unveiled KAME (Knowledge-Access Model Extension), a hybrid design that preserves the near-instant response time of a direct S2S system while pulling in…

Terry Gerton It seems like we’ve been discussing market fluctuations for months now, whether driven by worries over war, interest rates, or various other uncertainties. Yet when you actually examine TSP performance, both stocks and bonds have gained this year. So let me pose a fundamental question that many federal investors might have. How does that happen? Art Stein Well, explaining how it happens is far more difficult than acknowledging that it did. The market rises and falls for numerous reasons, and in the short term, it may fluctuate due to current events. And one thing I’d tell TSP investors…

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes/ZDNETStay updated with ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. Key Points from ZDNET High temperatures significantly contribute to early battery deterioration.Charging your phone in a car creates ideal conditions for overheating.You can still charge your device in the vehicle, but certain precautions are necessary.I’ve been monitoring the battery condition of my primary iPhones for so long that it’s become almost automatic. It’s like an unusual hobby or routine I’ve developed. Every few days since I received my iPhone 17 Pro Max, I’ve been opening the Settings app and checking my battery statistics. I’m especially interested because,…