The Galaxy S24 FE is Samsung's next Fan Edition smartphone. While Samsung missed launching the Galaxy S22 FE, it looks like Samsung will continue to launch FE series smartphones every year. The company doesn't usually launch all its smartphones in the USA, but it seems like the Galaxy S24 FE will definitely be launched in the country.

Galaxy S24 FE confirmed to launch in the USA

A new and unannounced Samsung smartphone with model number SM-S721U was spotted (via 91Mobiles) in the Bluetooth SIG database. Going by the model number, the phone is the upcoming Galaxy S24 FE's carrier-locked variant for the US market. For reference, the model number of the Galaxy S23 FE's US carrier-locked variant is SM-S711U.

The Galaxy S24 FE's Bluetooth certification document doesn't reveal any details about its specifications. However, considering the phone will use the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 in the US, it will likely feature 5G, Wi-Fi 6E, and Bluetooth 5.3 (with LE Audio and LC3 codecs). The global version of the phone likely features the Exynos 2400 chip, which was also used in the global versions of the Galaxy S24 and the Galaxy S24+.

A few days ago, complete features and specifications of the Galaxy S24 FE were leaked, along with the phone's images and color options. According to that report, the phone features a 6.7-inch Super AMOLED screen with Full HD+ resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+, in-display fingerprint reader, and Gorilla Glass Victus+ protection. It uses the Exynos 2400 or the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 For Galaxy chip, depending on the market.

You can watch the performance of the Exynos 2400 chip in our Galaxy S24 review in the video below.

It will reportedly have an aluminum frame, glass back, and an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance. The phone will be available in five colors: blue, graphite, mint, silver, and yellow. The phone is said to feature a 50MP primary rear camera, a 12MP ultrawide camera, and an 8MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom. On the front, it has a 10MP selfie camera. It can record 4K 60fps videos from the front and rear cameras.

The report also claimed the Galaxy S24 FE has 12GB RAM and 256GB/512GB storage. It will run Android 14-based One UI 6.1 out of the box and get at least four major Android OS updates and five years of security patches. It is powered by a 4,565mAh battery, capable of lasting up to 78 hours of audio streaming or 29 hours of video streaming on a single charge.

The Galaxy S24 FE has GPS, 5G, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC, and a USB Type-C port. It also has 25W fast wired charging, 15W wireless Qi charging, and 4.5W reverse wireless charging.

The post Galaxy S24 FE to launch soon as its US variant gets spotted appeared first on SamMobile.

The guest list for YumeConUSA 2024 continues to grow and now it has been announced that Lizzie Freeman will be at the event.

The post Lizzie Freeman will be a Guest at YumeCon USA 2024 appeared first on 8Bit/Digi.

Japanese game company Marvelous has announced structural changes within its subsidiaries Marvelous USA and Xseed Games.

Xseed will continue to publish third-party titles including upcoming games The Big Catch and Moonlight Peaks, while Marvelous USA will focus on publishing Marvelous games such as Story of Seasons and the Rune Factor series.

Marvelous USA will also provide its parent company with business, operational, and marketing support to its arcade business unit which is expanding to the West with Naruto Emblem Battle.

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An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Hill: Births in the United States dropped again between 2022 and 2023, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The national birth rate has been steadily declining for the last 17 years, with a particularly steep drop in births between 2007 and 2009 during the Great Recession. Between 2007 and 2022, the U.S. birth rate fell by nearly 23 percent, according to CDC data. There were 3,596,017 registered births in 2023, about 2 percent fewer than in 2022, when there were 3,667,758 registered births, according to CDC data. The general fertility rate fell by nearly 3 percent last year to 54.5 births per 1,000 women between the ages of 15 and 44. That's down from the 2022 rate of 56 births per 1,000 women, CDC data shows. Teen births have declined almost every year since the 1990s and are continuing to fall. The teenage birth rate dropped by 4 percent between 2022 and 2023, from 13.6 to 13.1 births per 1,000 girls aged 15 to 19, according to the CDC. And the birth rate for teens between the ages of 15 and 17, specifically, declined by 2 percent from 5.6 to 5.5 births per 1,000 girls. In 2007, the general fertility rate reached a height not seen since the 1990s at 69.5 births per 1,000 women between the ages of 15 and 44, 1 percentage point higher than the year before, according to CDC data.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Samsung has started rolling out the first software update to the Galaxy Watch 7. The update was first released in South Korea last week. It could be released in other countries over the next few days. It might solve the battery drain issue seen on some Galaxy Watch 7 units.

Galaxy Watch 7 gets first software update in the USA

Samsung has released a new software update to the Galaxy Watch 7 in the US. The update comes with firmware version L315USQU1AXG2 and has a download size of around 165MB. According to the official changelog, the new update improves the battery charging stability and the battery stability. It should also improve the overall device stability.

Some Galaxy Watch 7 users were complaining about low battery life, and the new update should fix those issues. However, the update seems to have been released on only some network carriers in the US. The Bluetooth-only version of the Galaxy Watch 7 has already received the update.

If you have a Galaxy Watch 7 and live in the US, you should now check for the new software update on your smartwatch. You can check for the update by opening the Galaxy Wearable app and navigating to Watch settings » Watch software update » Download and install.

The story continues after our Galaxy Watch 7 hands-on video.

The Galaxy Watch Ultra seems to have started receiving its first software update as well, but very few people have received it in the USA. It should be available in the next few days in most countries worldwide.

The post Galaxy Watch 7’s first software update lands in the USA appeared first on SamMobile.

One of the worst things that can happen to a foldable phone is to suffer from a foldable display failure. Although they get tougher every year, foldable panels remain more susceptible to breakdowns and damage than standard non-foldable displays. It is one of the reasons why many people remain reluctant toward foldable phones and haven't bought one yet. That and the high costs associated with replacing a state-of-the-art foldable display.

Nevertheless, Samsung stands by its foldable phones with something called ‘Galaxy Z Assurance,' not to be confused with Samsung Care+ insurance.

Galaxy Z Assurance is a sort of stamp of approval and comes with a one-time discounted foldable screen replacement. It appears to be specific to the US market, where the following Galaxy Z Assurance render is featured on the online store's landing pages for the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6.

Samsung's stamp of approval claims that the latest phones are “Built to withstand” and are tested and verified for at least 200,000 folds or “10 years of approximate use.”

You'd have to fold the Galaxy Z Flip 6 or Z Fold 6 roughly 55 times a day to reach 200,000 folds in 10 years. Nevertheless, assuming you will need a foldable screen replacement, the Galaxy Z Assurance program could save you some money.

One-time $200 screen replacement for a limited time

Samsung's Galaxy Z Assurance policy states that you can get a cheap(er) one-time foldable screen replacement for your Galaxy Z Fold 6 or Galaxy Z Flip 6 should you need it. It will set you back only $200.

Without this policy, replacing the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6 inner screens would cost you $549 and $319, respectively. However, there is a caveat you'll need to keep in mind.

More details after our review video

What might disappoint you is that this Galaxy Z Assurance policy has an expiry date. So, if you planned on using your foldable phone for many years — maybe seven or so — and thought you could use this repair policy later, you won't be able to.

More specifically, Samsung states that the one-time discounted screen replacement must be claimed within two years of the date of purchasing the Galaxy Z Fold 6 or Galaxy Z Flip 6.

After that, you'll have to pay the full price for a screen replacement, should you need one, regardless of whether or not you used your Galaxy Z Assurance ticket within the first two years.

The post ‘Galaxy Z Assurance’ for Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Flip 6 explained appeared first on SamMobile.

The Galaxy A54 is costlier and more advanced than the Galaxy A53. As such, the former should get software updates before the latter. Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case with the June 2024 security patch. Samsung pushed the latest security update to the Galaxy A53 first, and now, the company is rolling it out to the Galaxy A54.

At the moment, Samsung is rolling out the June 2024 security patch to the carrier-locked variant of the Galaxy A54 for the United States, which has the model number SM-A546U. The new software update changes the phone’s firmware version to A546USQS7CXF3.

The story continues after the video…

There are two ways you can get the June 2024 security patch on your Galaxy A54. The first way is to get it by going to Settings » Software update » Download and install and the second way is to download the new firmware from our database and install it manually.

The June 2024 security patch fixes 59 security issues. You can read all about the latest security update here. Samsung will roll out the next major update to the Galaxy A54 later this year, which will bring Android 15-based One UI 7.0. Follow our channel on Telegram or WhatsApp to get the latest updates about everything that’s related to Samsung.

The post Samsung releases June 2024 security update to Galaxy A54 appeared first on SamMobile.

Samsung has started rolling out a new software update to the carrier-unlocked variant of the Galaxy A53 5G for the United States (SM-A536U1). It brings the June 2024 security patch to the smartphone, which fixes 59 security issues.

The latest software update carries the firmware version A536U1UES9EXF2. Apart from the June 2024 security patch, the new firmware doesn’t bring any change. You can get it by going to Settings » Software update » Download and install. The new firmware is also live in our database for you to download and install manually.

The story continues after the video…

For your information, Samsung has already rolled out the June 2024 security patch to the international, European, and carrier-locked variants of the Galaxy A53 5G, which carry model numbers SM-A536E, SM-A536B, and SM-A536U. The next major update for the phone will arrive later this year with Android 15-based One UI 7.0.

The post Unlocked Galaxy A53 5G gets June 2024 security update appeared first on SamMobile.

It's been a 1,000 years since there was a significant volcanic eruption from Mount Rainier, CNN reminds readers. It's a full 60 miles from Tacoma, Washington — and 90 miles from Seattle. Yet "more than Hawaii's bubbling lava fields or Yellowstone's sprawling supervolcano, it's Mount Rainier that has many U.S. volcanologists worried." "Mount Rainier keeps me up at night because it poses such a great threat to the surrounding communities, said Jess Phoenix, a volcanologist and ambassador for the Union of Concerned Scientists, on an episode of CNN's series "Violent Earth With Liv Schreiber." The sleeping giant's destructive potential lies not with fiery flows of lava, which, in the event of an eruption, would be unlikely to extend more than a few miles beyond the boundary of Mount Rainier National Park in the Pacific Northwest. And the majority of volcanic ash would likely dissipate downwind to the east away from population centers, according to the US Geological Survey. Instead, many scientists fear the prospect of a lahar — a swiftly moving slurry of water and volcanic rock originating from ice or snow rapidly melted by an eruption that picks up debris as it flows through valleys and drainage channels. "The thing that makes Mount Rainier tough is that it is so tall, and it's covered with ice and snow, and so if there is any kind of eruptive activity, hot stuff ... will melt the cold stuff and a lot of water will start coming down," said Seth Moran, a research seismologist at USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory in Vancouver, Washington. "And there are tens, if not hundreds of thousands of people who live in areas that potentially could be impacted by a large lahar, and it could happen quite quickly." The deadliest lahar in recent memory was in November 1985 when Colombia's Nevado del Ruiz volcano erupted. Just a couple hours after the eruption started, a river of mud, rocks, lava and icy water swept over the town of Armero, killing over 23,000 people in a matter of minutes... Bradley Pitcher, a volcanologist and lecturer in Earth and environmental sciences at Columbia University, said in an episode of CNN's "Violent Earth"... said that Mount Rainier has about eight times the amount of glaciers and snow as Nevado del Ruiz had when it erupted. "There's the potential to have a much more catastrophic mudflow...." Lahars typically occur during volcanic eruptions but also can be caused by landslides and earthquakes. Geologists have found evidence that at least 11 large lahars from Mount Rainier have reached into the surrounding area, known as the Puget Lowlands, in the past 6,000 years, Moran said. Two major U.S. cities — Tacoma and South Seattle — "are built on 100-foot-thick (30.5-meter) ancient mudflows from eruptions of Mount Rainier," the volcanologist said on CNN's "Violent Earth" series. CNN's article adds that the US Geological Survey already set up a lahar detection system at Mount Rainier in 1998, "which since 2017 has been upgraded and expanded. About 20 sites on the volcano's slopes and the two paths identified as most at risk of a lahar now feature broadband seismometers that transmit real-time data and other sensors including trip wires, infrasound sensors, web cameras and GPS receivers."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

So far, Google Wallet for Wear OS has allowed you to make payments using credit or debit cards. Well, Google is now adding a new payment option to its digital wallet app for wearables.

Google has announced that Google Wallet for Wear OS now supports PayPal. Currently, the feature is live only in the United States and Germany. Expect the company to extend the support for PayPal in Google Wallet for Wear OS to other regions over the next few months. That means you can now pay using PayPal through Google Wallet on your Galaxy Watch 4, Galaxy Watch 5, and Galaxy Watch 6 series models.

How to add PayPal as a payment method in Google Wallet on Galaxy Watch?

To add PayPal as a payment method in Google Wallet on your Galaxy Watch, open the Google Wallet app on your wearable. If you have not added any payment method to the app yet, it will show you the plus icon. If you have added a payment method, scroll down, and you should be able to see the plus icon. Tap on this icon.

The story continues after the video…

Your watch will then ask you to continue the setup on your phone. Once your phone brings up Google Wallet, tap on Add to watch, click on Payment card, and select PayPal. From there, follow the directions that the app shows. Once you complete the setup, you should be able to see PayPal as a payment option in Google Wallet on your Galaxy Watch.

The post Google Wallet on your Galaxy Watch now supports PayPal appeared first on SamMobile.

Samsung's next flagship foldable phone is now one step closer to launch. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 has picked up a few certifications over the last few weeks from regulatory authorities around the world, and it has now received blessings from the USA's FCC as well.

According to the FCC certification, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 doesn't have support for Wi-Fi 7. That is a little surprising as the Galaxy S24 Ultra is certified for Wi-Fi 7, and Samsung usually keeps its Galaxy S Ultra and Galaxy Z Fold smartphones on an equal footing when it comes to connectivity features. The Galaxy Z Flip 6's FCC certification doesn't mention Wi-Fi 7 support either.

Galaxy Z Fold 6 connectivity feature set not as high-end as expected

We have known for some time that the Galaxy Z Fold 6 will not be a substantial upgrade over the Galaxy Z Fold 5, but we didn't expect it to lack features like Wi-Fi 7 that are built into the Snapdragon chip that will power the phone.

Samsung's decision to keep the list of upgrades on the Galaxy Z Fold 6 limited may have something to do with its plans to launch an Ultra variant with higher-end specs. There's also a Fold 6 Slim that's supposedly larger, thinner, and costs around the same as the standard Fold 6, though we're assuming that model will also be unable to connect to Wi-Fi 7 networks.

Except Wi-Fi 7, the connectivity feature set on the Galaxy Z Fold 6 appears to match that of the Galaxy S24 Ultra. It will feature 5G (sub6 and mmWave), Ultra-wideband (UWB), Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e, NFC, and Bluetooth 5.3 support.

Samsung will officially announce the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6 at its Unpacked event in Paris on July 10. Samsung will also unveil new smartwatches, its first smart ring, and new wireless earbuds at the same venue.

The post Galaxy Z Fold 6 may not support Wi-Fi 7, FCC certification reveals appeared first on SamMobile.

Samsung has put the Galaxy A12 on a biannual security update schedule, which means that it offers two security updates to the smartphone every year. Now, the company is rolling out the first of the two software updates to the Galaxy A12 for this year. It brings the May 2024 security patch to the phone, which fixes 45 security issues.

So far, Samsung has made the May 2024 security patch only for the carrier-locked variant of the Galaxy A12 for the United States. However, we are sure that Samsung will expand the new software update to other variants of the smartphone and in other regions very soon. The new firmware has version A125USQS8CXE6.

The story continues after the video…

If you live in the United States but your carrier-locked Galaxy A12 hasn’t notified you about the new software update, you will have to check for it manually. You can do that by going to Settings » Software update » Download and install. The new firmware is also available in our database for you to download and install manually.

It is worth mentioning that Samsung will offer security updates to the Galaxy A12 for only one more year (till the end of 2025). After that, your smartphone will be more prone to security attacks and at that point, it is a good idea to get a new phone. If you are looking for an affordable one, you can’t go wrong with the Galaxy A35.

The post Galaxy A12 gets its first software update for this year appeared first on SamMobile.

So you want your company to begin using artificial intelligence. Before rushing to adopt AI, consider the potential risks including legal issues around data protection, intellectual property, and liability. Through a strategic risk management framework, businesses can mitigate major compliance risks and uphold customer trust while taking advantage of recent AI advancements.

Check your training data

First, assess whether the data used to train your AI model complies with applicable laws such as India’s 2023 Digital Personal Data Protection Bill and the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, which address data ownership, consent, and compliance. A timely legal review that determines whether collected data may be used lawfully for machine-learning purposes can prevent regulatory and legal headaches later.

That legal assessment involves a deep dive into your company’s existing terms of service, privacy policy statements, and other customer-facing contractual terms to determine what permissions, if any, have been obtained from a customer or user. The next step is to determine whether such permissions will suffice for training an AI model. If not, additional customer notification or consent likely will be required.

Different types of data bring different issues of consent and liability. For example, consider whether your data is personally identifiable information, synthetic content (typically generated by another AI system), or someone else’s intellectual property. Data minimization—using only what you need—is a good principle to apply at this stage.

Pay careful attention to how you obtained the data. OpenAI has been sued for scraping personal data to train its algorithms. And, as explained below, data-scraping can raise questions of copyright infringement. In addition, U.S. civil action laws can apply because scraping could violate a website’s terms of service. U.S. security-focused laws such as the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act arguably might be applied outside the country’s territory in order to prosecute foreign entities that have allegedly stolen data from secure systems.

Watch for intellectual property issues

The New York Times recently sued OpenAI for using the newspaper’s content for training purposes, basing its arguments on claims of copyright infringement and trademark dilution. The lawsuit holds an important lesson for all companies dealing in AI development: Be careful about using copyrighted content for training models, particularly when it’s feasible to license such content from the owner. Apple and other companies have considered licensing options, which likely will emerge as the best way to mitigate potential copyright infringement claims.

To reduce concerns about copyright, Microsoft has offered to stand behind the outputs of its AI assistants, promising to defend customers against any potential copyright infringement claims. Such intellectual property protections could become the industry standard.

Companies also need to consider the potential for inadvertent leakage of confidential and trade-secret information by an AI product. If allowing employees to internally use technologies such as ChatGPT (for text) and Github Copilot (for code generation), companies should note that such generative AI tools often take user prompts and outputs as training data to further improve their models. Luckily, generative AI companies typically offer more secure services and the ability to opt out of model training.

Look out for hallucinations

Copyright infringement claims and data-protection issues also emerge when generative AI models spit out training data as their outputs.

That is often a result of “overfitting” models, essentially a training flaw whereby the model memorizes specific training data instead of learning general rules about how to respond to prompts. The memorization can cause the AI model to regurgitate training data as output—which could be a disaster from a copyright or data-protection perspective.

Memorization also can lead to inaccuracies in the output, sometimes referred to as “hallucinations.” In one interesting case, a New York Times reporter was experimenting with Bing AI chatbot Sydney when it professed its love for the reporter. The viral incident prompted a discussion about the need to monitor how such tools are deployed, especially by younger users, who are more likely to attribute human characteristics to AI.

Hallucinations also have caused problems in professional domains. Two lawyers were sanctioned, for example, after submitting a legal brief written by ChatGPT that cited nonexistent case law.

Such hallucinations demonstrate why companies need to test and validate AI products to avoid not only legal risks but also reputational harm. Many companies have devoted engineering resources to developing content filters that improve accuracy and reduce the likelihood of output that’s offensive, abusive, inappropriate, or defamatory.

Keeping track of data

If you have access to personally identifiable user data, it’s vital that you handle the data securely. You also must guarantee that you can delete the data and prevent its use for machine-learning purposes in response to user requests or instructions from regulators or courts. Maintaining data provenance and ensuring robust infrastructure is paramount for all AI engineering teams.

“Through a strategic risk management framework, businesses can mitigate major compliance risks and uphold customer trust while taking advantage of recent AI advancements.”

Those technical requirements are connected to legal risk. In the United States, regulators including the Federal Trade Commission have relied on algorithmic disgorgement, a punitive measure. If a company has run afoul of applicable laws while collecting training data, it must delete not only the data but also the models trained on the tainted data. Keeping accurate records of which datasets were used to train different models is advisable.

Beware of bias in AI algorithms

One major AI challenge is the potential for harmful bias, which can be ingrained within algorithms. When biases are not mitigated before launching the product, applications can perpetuate or even worsen existing discrimination.

Predictive policing algorithms employed by U.S. law enforcement, for example, have been shown to reinforce prevailing biases. Black and Latino communities wind up disproportionately targeted.

When used for loan approvals or job recruitment, biased algorithms can lead to discriminatory outcomes.

Experts and policymakers say it’s important that companies strive for fairness in AI. Algorithmic bias can have a tangible, problematic impact on civil liberties and human rights.

Be transparent

Many companies have established ethics review boards to ensure their business practices are aligned with principles of transparency and accountability. Best practices include being transparent about data use and being accurate in your statements to customers about the abilities of AI products.

U.S. regulators frown on companies that overpromise AI capabilities in their marketing materials. Regulators also have warned companies against quietly and unilaterally changing the data-licensing terms in their contracts as a way to expand the scope of their access to customer data.

Take a global, risk-based approach

Many experts on AI governance recommend taking a risk-based approach to AI development. The strategy involves mapping the AI projects at your company, scoring them on a risk scale, and implementing mitigation actions. Many companies incorporate risk assessments into existing processes that measure privacy-based impacts of proposed features.

When establishing AI policies, it’s important to ensure the rules and guidelines you’re considering will be adequate to mitigate risk in a global manner, taking into account the latest international laws.

A regionalized approach to AI governance might be expensive and error-prone. The European Union’s recently passed Artificial Intelligence Act includes a detailed set of requirements for companies developing and using AI, and similar laws are likely to emerge soon in Asia.

Keep up the legal and ethical reviews

Legal and ethical reviews are important throughout the life cycle of an AI product—training a model, testing and developing it, launching it, and even afterward. Companies should proactively think about how to implement AI to remove inefficiencies while also preserving the confidentiality of business and customer data.

For many people, AI is new terrain. Companies should invest in training programs to help their workforce understand how best to benefit from the new tools and to use them to propel their business.

I should be further in than this. My supposed rebellion has thus far eked out a territory that could be described as "where?". My personal reputation is great only among people who love mushrooms and hate deer. It's been long enough that I should probably be a fierce warlord running a large chunk of the kingdom in opposition by now, but instead, I have the skillset of fifty peasants, and the outstanding work of fifty three. And I know why. Bellwright has taught me what I already knew in theory, but had not truly appreciated:

Good managers are rare and precious. And I'm not one of them.

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Samsung has released new software updates for the carrier-unlocked variants of the Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+, and Galaxy S24 Ultra. They bring the May 2024 security patch, which fixes 45 security vulnerabilities. The company rolled out the software update to the carrier-locked and the international variants of the three devices last week.

The new software updates for the Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+, and the Galaxy S24 Ultra carry the firmware versions S921U1UES2AXD3, S926U1UES2AXD3, and S928U1UES2AXD3 respectively. To get the update, go to Settings » Software update » Download and install. That is if your phone hasn’t already notified you about the new firmware.

The story continues after the video

Many people have been complaining that after installing the previous update on their Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+, and Galaxy S24 Ultra, the battery life of the three devices has decreased. Sadly, the latest update doesn’t seem to carry a fix for that issue. We expect Samsung to release this update in the remaining regions in the next couple of weeks.

The post More Galaxy S24 units get May 2024 security update in USA appeared first on SamMobile.

Last week, Samsung released the One UI 6.1 update for the Galaxy S21 in South Korea and Europe. Now, the company has released the update for unlocked Galaxy S21 units in the US. Other regions could get the update in the next few days.

Unlocked Galaxy S21 units get One UI 6.1 update in the USA

Samsung's newest One UI version is now available for the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S21+, and Galaxy S21 Ultra in the US. The update is available for factory-unlocked units and comes with firmware version G99xU1UEUAGXDE. This is a huge update, so we advise you to download the update via a Wi-Fi network. The new software doesn't include the May 2024 security patch.

Galaxy S21 One UI 6.1 features

The One UI 6.1 update brings several new features, some of which are powered by Galaxy AI. Those features include Circle to Search, AI-powered image editing recommendations, copying objects from one image and pasting to another, more accurate image clipping, improved search in the Gallery app, and the ability to change the playback speed of certain parts of a video. You can start editing videos, export the editing file to another Galaxy device, and continue editing there.

You can decorate wallpapers, add new widgets to the lock screen, customize alarm alerts, add personalized stickers to calendar entries, customize reminder alerts, and choose icons for reminder categories. One UI 6.1 lets you turn off/on Modes & Routines from the home screen. You can reorder Modes and set new Routines conditions.

The update also brings the new Quick Share feature, locate your devices from the dedicated Samsung Find app, share your location with others, and sync Samsung Internet tab groups with other devices. Samsung Cloud offers enhanced data protection, while Samsung Wallet now supports passkeys.

If you want to upgrade from your Galaxy S21, look at the Galaxy S23 or the Galaxy S23+ in our video below. Both phones offer brighter screens, faster processing, better cameras, and longer battery life than the Galaxy S21.

In Samsung Health, you can compete with yourself by comparing your workout results against your previous records. You can have more daily targets, including active hours and floors climbed. Women can record moods and physical symptoms while tracking their menstrual cycles in Samsung Health.

With One UI 6.1, Microphone Modes and Video Call Effects are easier to access. The Weather widget offers more information. You can open all minimized apps at once and input text using voice without leaving the keyboard. There are more ways to protect your Galaxy S21's battery while charging. The Finder screen now offers matching results from the web via Google Search. The update also adds the Google Messages app if it wasn't present.

Thanks for the tip, R. Scott Herron!

The post One UI 6.1 starts rolling out to Galaxy S21 in the US appeared first on SamMobile.

Earlier today, Samsung released the One UI 6.1 update to several high-end phones, including the Galaxy Z Fold 4, in Europe. Now, the company has announced the update's release in the US as well.

The update has also been released to the Galaxy S22, Galaxy Tab S8, and Galaxy Z Flip 4 in the USA.

One UI 6.1 update is now available for Galaxy Z Fold 4 in the USA

The One UI 6.1 update is now available for download on the Galaxy Z Fold 4 in the US. It is a major update, so we advise downloading it over a Wi-Fi network. You can check for the update by navigating to Settings » Software update » Download and install. The update brings several Galaxy AI features and minor One UI improvements.

One UI 6.1 update features for Galaxy Z Fold 4

You can watch our in-depth video about those features below. However, some AI features aren't available on the Galaxy Z Fold 4.

Galaxy AI features released to the Galaxy Z Fold 4 with the One UI 6.1 update are listed below.

• AI-Generated Wallpapers: Wallpapers are generated by the AI after certain inputs.
• Browsing Assist: Summarize webpages (with short and long options) in the Samsung Internet app.
• Chat Assist: Grammar correction, real-time language translation, and tone suggestions in the stock Messages app.
• Circle to Search with Google: Search for anything that matches the content circled on the screen.
• Edit Suggestions: Suggestions for image editing in the built-in Photo Editor.
• Generative Edit: AI-powered image editing in the built-in Photo Editor. You can move objects from one image to another.
• Interpreter Mode: Real-time two-way language translation during face-to-face interactions. You can access it via the Interpreter quick setting toggle.
• Live Translate: Real-time two-way language translation during regular voice calls.
• Note Assist: Summarization of notes in Samsung Notes, along with auto-formatting with templates.
• Transcript Assist: Voice transcription in the Voice Recorder app with the auto person tagging feature.

Other One UI 6.1 features available on the Galaxy Z Fold 4 include improved image clipping, ability to create custom stickers, improved search in the Gallery app, changing video playback speed, new widgets on the lock screen, custom alarm alerts, more stickers in the Calendar app, more categories in the Reminders app, and new Modes & Routines conditions.

The update also brings the new Quick Share, Samsung Find, Bluetooth Auracast improvements, childer accounts, support for Passkeys in Samsung Wallet, more daily targets in Samsung Health, more information in the Weather app, and voice input capability without hiding the keyboard.

One UI 6.1 also allows users to open all minimized apps at once. The new update brings Google Search results to the Finder menu (app drawer search section) and provides more battery protection options. Some One UI 6.1 features, like Instant Slo Mo and Super HDR, which debuted with the Galaxy S24, are unavailable on the Galaxy Z Fold 4.

The post Galaxy Z Fold 4 gets AI features with One UI 6.1 update in USA appeared first on SamMobile.

Right after releasing the One UI 6.1 update to the Galaxy Tab S8, Tab S8+, and Tab S8 Ultra in Europe, Samsung is now rolling out the same update to the three tablets in the United States too. The news comes directly from Samsung.

Samsung might be rolling out the One UI 6.1 update to the Galaxy Tab S8, Tab S8+, and Tab S8 Ultra in the US in phases. So, some people might get the update before others. It’s also possible that the company might be pushing the update only to the Wi-Fi-only variants of the three tablets initially, just like it’s doing in Europe. If your Galaxy Tab S8 hasn’t notified you about the latest update yet, you can check for it manually by going to Settings » Software update » Download and install.

One UI 6.1 brings many new features. However, the star of the show is Galaxy AI, a suite of AI-powered features that can make it easier for you to carry out many tasks, including researching something, writing messages, translating content, and transcribing voice notes. Along with that, the new software offers improved imaging editing, UI customization, content sharing, security, and health capabilities. You can check out all the new features One UI 6.1 offers in our video above.

The post One UI 6.1 update is now live for Galaxy Tab S8 in USA! appeared first on SamMobile.

Samsung has released the One UI 6.1 update to the Galaxy Z Flip 4 in the US. The company also released the update to the Galaxy S22, Galaxy Tab S8, and Galaxy Z Fold 4 in the country. Earlier today, the One UI 6.1 update was released to the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S22, Galaxy Z Flip 4, and Galaxy Z Fold 4 in Europe.

Galaxy Z Flip 4 gets One UI 6.1 update in the USA

Samsung announced the arrival of the One UI 6.1 update for the Galaxy Z Flip 4 in the USA. It is a major update that has a download size of around

The update brings the following Galaxy AI features to the foldable phone:

• AI-Generated Wallpapers
• Browsing Assist: Webpage summarization in the Samsung Internet app.
• Chat Assist: Real-time language translation in the Messages app.
• Circle to Search with Google
• Edit Suggestions
• Generative Edit: AI-powered image editing in the built-in Photo Editor.
• Interpreter Mode: Real-time language translation for face-to-face interactions.
• Live Translate: Live language translation during voice calls.
• Note Assist: Notes summarization and auto-formatting in Samsung Notes.
• Transcript Assist: Voice transcription and auto-tagging of speakers in the Voice Recorder app.

You can watch all those Galaxy AI features in our in-depth video below.

Apart from these features, there are minor One UI changes and additional customization features in the new update. If you have a Galaxy Z Flip 4 and live in the US, you can now check for the new update by opening the Settings app, navigate to Software update, and tap Download and install.

The post Galaxy Z Flip 4 gets One UI 6.1 update in USA appeared first on SamMobile.

Samsung has announced the release of the One UI 6.1 update to the Galaxy S22 series in the US. The update was first released in South Korea a few days ago. Earlier today, the update was released to the Galaxy S22 in Europe.

This update brings several Galaxy AI features and other minor new One UI features and improvements.

Galaxy S22 gets One UI 6.1 update with several AI features

Samsung has announced the release of the One UI 6.1 update to the Galaxy S22 series. The update seems to have hit devices on AT&T's network already, and we expect the update to be released on all other carrier networks later today or within the next few days. Since it is a major update, it would be wiser to download the update over a Wi-Fi network.

The update brings AI-Generated Wallpapers, Browsing Assist (webpage summarization), Chat Assist (real-time language translation in messages), Circle to Search with Google, Edit Suggestion, Generative Edit (AI-powered image editing), Interpreter Mode, Live Translate (during voice calls), Note Assist (notes summarization and auto-formatting), and Transcript Assist (in Voice Recorder app).

You can watch the video below to see all the features One UI 6.1 brings to the Galaxy S22 with the new update. However, not all AI features from the Galaxy S24 are available to the Galaxy S22.

 

If you live in the US and have a Galaxy S22 series phone, you can now check for the new update by navigating to Settings » Software update and tapping Download and install. Once the new firmrware is available in our database, you can download the file and flash it manually.

The post Galaxy S22 gets One UI 6.1 update in the US! appeared first on SamMobile.

Earlier today, Samsung released the One UI 6.1 update to several high-end phones, including the Galaxy Z Fold 4, in Europe. Now, the company has announced the update's release in the US as well.

The update has also been released to the Galaxy S22, Galaxy Tab S8, and Galaxy Z Flip 4 in the USA.

One UI 6.1 update is now available for Galaxy Z Fold 4 in the USA

The One UI 6.1 update is now available for download on the Galaxy Z Fold 4 in the US. It is a major update, so we advise downloading it over a Wi-Fi network. You can check for the update by navigating to Settings » Software update » Download and install. The update brings several Galaxy AI features and minor One UI improvements.

One UI 6.1 update features for Galaxy Z Fold 4

You can watch our in-depth video about those features below. However, some AI features aren't available on the Galaxy Z Fold 4.

Galaxy AI features released to the Galaxy Z Fold 4 with the One UI 6.1 update are listed below.

• AI-Generated Wallpapers: Wallpapers are generated by the AI after certain inputs.
• Browsing Assist: Summarize webpages (with short and long options) in the Samsung Internet app.
• Chat Assist: Grammar correction, real-time language translation, and tone suggestions in the stock Messages app.
• Circle to Search with Google: Search for anything that matches the content circled on the screen.
• Edit Suggestions: Suggestions for image editing in the built-in Photo Editor.
• Generative Edit: AI-powered image editing in the built-in Photo Editor. You can move objects from one image to another.
• Interpreter Mode: Real-time two-way language translation during face-to-face interactions. You can access it via the Interpreter quick setting toggle.
• Live Translate: Real-time two-way language translation during regular voice calls.
• Note Assist: Summarization of notes in Samsung Notes, along with auto-formatting with templates.
• Transcript Assist: Voice transcription in the Voice Recorder app with the auto person tagging feature.

Other One UI 6.1 features available on the Galaxy Z Fold 4 include improved image clipping, ability to create custom stickers, improved search in the Gallery app, changing video playback speed, new widgets on the lock screen, custom alarm alerts, more stickers in the Calendar app, more categories in the Reminders app, and new Modes & Routines conditions.

The update also brings the new Quick Share, Samsung Find, Bluetooth Auracast improvements, childer accounts, support for Passkeys in Samsung Wallet, more daily targets in Samsung Health, more information in the Weather app, and voice input capability without hiding the keyboard.

One UI 6.1 also allows users to open all minimized apps at once. The new update brings Google Search results to the Finder menu (app drawer search section) and provides more battery protection options. Some One UI 6.1 features, like Instant Slo Mo and Super HDR, which debuted with the Galaxy S24, are unavailable on the Galaxy Z Fold 4.

The post Galaxy Z Fold 4 gets AI features with One UI 6.1 update in USA appeared first on SamMobile.

Right after releasing the One UI 6.1 update to the Galaxy Tab S8, Tab S8+, and Tab S8 Ultra in Europe, Samsung is now rolling out the same update to the three tablets in the United States too. The news comes directly from Samsung.

Samsung might be rolling out the One UI 6.1 update to the Galaxy Tab S8, Tab S8+, and Tab S8 Ultra in the US in phases. So, some people might get the update before others. It’s also possible that the company might be pushing the update only to the Wi-Fi-only variants of the three tablets initially, just like it’s doing in Europe. If your Galaxy Tab S8 hasn’t notified you about the latest update yet, you can check for it manually by going to Settings » Software update » Download and install.

One UI 6.1 brings many new features. However, the star of the show is Galaxy AI, a suite of AI-powered features that can make it easier for you to carry out many tasks, including researching something, writing messages, translating content, and transcribing voice notes. Along with that, the new software offers improved imaging editing, UI customization, content sharing, security, and health capabilities. You can check out all the new features One UI 6.1 offers in our video above.

The post One UI 6.1 update is now live for Galaxy Tab S8 in USA! appeared first on SamMobile.

Samsung has released the One UI 6.1 update to the Galaxy Z Flip 4 in the US. The company also released the update to the Galaxy S22, Galaxy Tab S8, and Galaxy Z Fold 4 in the country. Earlier today, the One UI 6.1 update was released to the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S22, Galaxy Z Flip 4, and Galaxy Z Fold 4 in Europe.

Galaxy Z Flip 4 gets One UI 6.1 update in the USA

Samsung announced the arrival of the One UI 6.1 update for the Galaxy Z Flip 4 in the USA. It is a major update that has a download size of around

The update brings the following Galaxy AI features to the foldable phone:

• AI-Generated Wallpapers
• Browsing Assist: Webpage summarization in the Samsung Internet app.
• Chat Assist: Real-time language translation in the Messages app.
• Circle to Search with Google
• Edit Suggestions
• Generative Edit: AI-powered image editing in the built-in Photo Editor.
• Interpreter Mode: Real-time language translation for face-to-face interactions.
• Live Translate: Live language translation during voice calls.
• Note Assist: Notes summarization and auto-formatting in Samsung Notes.
• Transcript Assist: Voice transcription and auto-tagging of speakers in the Voice Recorder app.

You can watch all those Galaxy AI features in our in-depth video below.

Apart from these features, there are minor One UI changes and additional customization features in the new update. If you have a Galaxy Z Flip 4 and live in the US, you can now check for the new update by opening the Settings app, navigate to Software update, and tap Download and install.

The post Galaxy Z Flip 4 gets One UI 6.1 update in USA appeared first on SamMobile.

Samsung has announced the release of the One UI 6.1 update to the Galaxy S22 series in the US. The update was first released in South Korea a few days ago. Earlier today, the update was released to the Galaxy S22 in Europe.

This update brings several Galaxy AI features and other minor new One UI features and improvements.

Galaxy S22 gets One UI 6.1 update with several AI features

Samsung has announced the release of the One UI 6.1 update to the Galaxy S22 series. The update seems to have hit devices on AT&T's network already, and we expect the update to be released on all other carrier networks later today or within the next few days. Since it is a major update, it would be wiser to download the update over a Wi-Fi network.

The update brings AI-Generated Wallpapers, Browsing Assist (webpage summarization), Chat Assist (real-time language translation in messages), Circle to Search with Google, Edit Suggestion, Generative Edit (AI-powered image editing), Interpreter Mode, Live Translate (during voice calls), Note Assist (notes summarization and auto-formatting), and Transcript Assist (in Voice Recorder app).

You can watch the video below to see all the features One UI 6.1 brings to the Galaxy S22 with the new update. However, not all AI features from the Galaxy S24 are available to the Galaxy S22.

 

If you live in the US and have a Galaxy S22 series phone, you can now check for the new update by navigating to Settings » Software update and tapping Download and install. Once the new firmrware is available in our database, you can download the file and flash it manually.

The post Galaxy S22 gets One UI 6.1 update in the US! appeared first on SamMobile.

Samsung and Synopsys collaborated on the first production tapeout of a high-performance mobile SoC design, including CPUs and GPUs, using the Synopsys.ai EDA suite on Samsung Foundry’s gate-all-around (GAA) process. Samsung plans to begin mass production of 2nm process GAA chips in 2025, reports BusinessKorea.

UMC developed the first radio frequency silicon on insulator (RF-SOI)-based 3D IC process for chips used in smartphones and other 5G/6G mobile devices. The process uses wafer-to-wafer bonding technology to address radio frequency interference between stacked dies and reduces die size by 45%.

Fig. 1: UMC’s 3D IC solution for RFSOI technology. Source: UMC

The first programmable chip capable of shaping, splitting, and steering beams of light is now being produced by Skywater Technology and Lumotive. The technology is critical for advancing lidar-based systems used in robotics, automotive, and other 3D sensing applications.

Driven by demand for AI chips, SK hynix revealed it has already booked its entire production of high-bandwidth memory chips for 2024 and is nearly sold out of its production capacity for 2025, reported the Korea Times, while SEMI reported that silicon wafer shipments declined in Q1 2024, quarter over quarter, a 13% drop, attributed to continued weakness in IC fab utilization and inventory adjustments.

PCI-SIG published the CopprLink Internal and External Cable specifications to provide PCIe 5.0 and 6.0 signaling at 32 and 64 GT/s and leverage standard connector form factors for applications including storage, data centers, AI/ML, and disaggregated memory.

The U.S. Department of Commerce (DoC) launched the CHIPS Women in Construction Framework to boost the participation of women and economically disadvantaged people in the workforce, aiming to support on-time and successful completion of CHIPS Act-funded projects. Intel and Micron adopted the framework.

Quick links to more news:

Market Reports
Global
In-Depth
Education and Training
Security
Product News
Quantum
Research
Events
Further Reading

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Markets and Money

The SiC wafer processing equipment market is growing rapidly, reports Yole. SiC devices will exceed $10B by 2029 at a CAGR of 25%, and the SiC manufacturing tool market is projected to reach $5B by 2026.

imec.xpand launched a €300 million (~$321 million) fund that will invest in semiconductor and nanotechnology startups with the potential to push semiconductor innovation beyond traditional applications and drive next-gen technologies.

Blaize raised $106 million for its programmable graph streaming processor architecture suite and low-code/no-code software platform for edge AI.

Guerrilla RF completed the acquisition of Gallium Semiconductor‘s portfolio of GaN power amplifiers and front-end modules.

About 90% of connected cars sold in 2030 will have embedded 5G capability, reported Counterpoint. Also, about 75% of laptop PCs sold in 2027 will be AI laptop PCs with advanced generative AI, and the global high-level OS (HLOS) or advanced smartwatch market is predicted to grow 15% in 2024.

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Global

Powerchip Semiconductor opened a new 300mm facility in northwestern Taiwan targeting the production of AI semiconductors. The facility is expected to produce 50,000 wafers per month at 55, 40, and 28nm nodes.

Taiwan-based KYEC Semiconductor will withdraw its China operations by the third quarter due to increasing geopolitical tensions, reports the South China Morning Post.

Japan will expand its semiconductor export restrictions to China related to four technologies: Scanning electron microscopes, CMOS, FD-SOI, and the outputs of quantum computers, according to TrendForce.

IBM will invest CAD$187 million (~US$137M in Canada’s semiconductor industry, with the bulk of the investment focused on advanced assembly, testing, and packaging operations.

Microsoft will invest US$2.2 billion over the next four years to build Malaysia’s digital infrastructure, create AI skilling opportunities, establish an AI Center of Excellence, and enhance cybersecurity.

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In-Depth

New stories and tech talks published by Semiconductor Engineering this week:

• Multi-Die Design Pushes Complexity To The Max
• Design Considerations In Photonics
• Overlay Optimization In Advanced IC Substrates
• Fundamental Issues In Computer Vision Still Unresolved
• Sensor Fusion Challenges In Automotive

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Security

Infineon collaborated with ETAS to integrate the ESCRYPT CycurHSM 3.x automotive security software stack into its next-gen AURIX MCUs to optimize security, performance, and functionality.

Synopsys released Polaris Assist, an AI-powered application security assistant on its Polaris Software Integrity Platform, combining LLM technology with application security knowledge and intelligence.

In security research:

• UT Dallas, Intel, NXP, and TI published a framework for early anomaly detection in AMS components of automotive SoCs.
• The University of Central Florida said that LLMs can be harnessed to automatically rectify security-relevant vulnerabilities inherent in hardware designs within the semiconductor context.
• Western University leveraged hardware security modules for enhanced intra-domain security.
• A team in India proposed a post-quantum secure PUF-based cross-domain authentication mechanism for Internet of Drones.

U.S. President Biden signed a National Security Memorandum to enhance the resilience of critical infrastructure, and the White House announced key actions taken since Biden’s AI Executive Order, including measures to mitigate risk.

CISA and partners published a fact sheet on pro-Russia hacktivists who seek to compromise industrial control systems and small-scale operational technology systems in North American and European critical infrastructure sectors. CISA issued other alerts including two Microsoft vulnerabilities.

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Education and Training

The U.S. National Institute for Innovation and Technology (NIIT) and the Department of Labor (DoL) partnered to celebrate the inaugural Youth Apprenticeship Week on May 5 to 11, highlighting opportunities in critical industries such as semiconductors and advanced manufacturing.

SUNY Poly received an additional $4 million from New York State for its Semiconductor Processing to Packaging Research, Education, and Training Center.

The University of Pennsylvania launched an online Master of Science in Engineering in AI degree.

The American University of Armenia celebrated its 10-year collaboration with Siemens, which provides AUA’s Engineering Research Center with annual research grants.

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Product News

Renesas and SEGGER Embedded Studio launched integrated code generator support for its 32-bit RISC-V MCU. 

Rambus introduced a family of DDR5 server Power Management ICs (PMICs), including an extreme current device for high-performance applications.

Fig. 2: Rambus’ server PMIC on DDR5 RDIMM. Source: Rambus

Keysight added capabilities to Inspector, part of the company’s recently acquired device security research and test lab Riscure, that are designed to test the robustness of post-quantum cryptography (PQC) and help device and chip vendors identify and fix hardware vulnerabilities. Keysight also validated new conformance test cases for narrowband IoT non-terrestrial networks standards.

Ansys’ RedHawk-SC and Totem power integrity platforms were certified for TSMC‘s N2 nanosheet-based process technology, while its RaptorX solution for on-chip electromagnetic modeling was certified for TSMC’s N5 process.

Netherlands-based athleisure brand PREMIUM INC selected CLEVR to implement Siemens’ Mendix Digital Lifecycle Management for Fashion & Retail solution.

Micron will begin shipping high-capacity DRAM for AI data centers.

Microchip uncorked radiation-tolerant SoC FPGAs for space applications that uses a real-time Linux-capable RISC-V-based microprocessor subsystem.

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Quantum

University of Chicago researchers developed a system to boost the efficiency of quantum error correction using a framework based on quantum low-density party-check (qLDPC) codes and new hardware involving reconfigurable atom arrays.

PsiQuantum will receive AUD $940 million (~$620 million) in equity, grants, and loans from the Australian and Queensland governments to deploy a utility-scale quantum computer in the regime of 1 million physical qubits in Brisbane, Australia.

Japan-based RIKEN will co-locate IBM’s Quantum System Two with its Fugaku supercomputer for integrated quantum-classical workflows in a heterogeneous quantum-HPC hybrid computing environment. Fugaku is currently one of the world’s most powerful supercomputers.

QuEra Computing was awarded a ¥6.5 billion (~$41 million) contract by Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) to deliver a gate-based neutral-atom quantum computer alongside AIST’s ABCI-Q supercomputer as part of a quantum-classical computing platform.

Novo Holdings, the controlling stakeholder of pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk, plans to boost the quantum technology startup ecosystem in Denmark with DKK 1.4 billion (~$201 million) in investments.

The University of Sydney received AUD $18.4 million (~$12 million) from the Australian government to help grow the quantum industry and ecosystem.

The European Commission plans to spend €112 million (~$120 million) to support AI and quantum research and innovation.

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Research

Intel researchers developed a 300-millimeter cryogenic probing process to collect high-volume data on the performance of silicon spin qubit devices across whole wafers using CMOS manufacturing techniques.

EPFL researchers used a form of ML called deep reinforcement learning (DRL) to train a four-legged robot to avoid falls by switching between walking, trotting, and pronking.=

The University of Cambridge researchers developed tiny, flexible nerve cuff devices that can wrap around individual nerve fibers without damaging them, useful to treat a range of neurological disorders.

Argonne National Laboratory and Toyota are exploring a direct recycling approach that carefully extracts components from spent batteries. Argonne is also working with Talon Metals on a process that could increase the number of EV batteries produced from mined nickel ore.

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Events

Find upcoming chip industry events here, including:

Event	Date	Location
IEEE International Symposium on Hardware Oriented Security and Trust (HOST)	May 6 – 9	Washington DC
MRS Spring Meeting & Exhibit	May 7 – 9	Virtual
ASMC: Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Conference	May 13 – 16	Albany, NY
ISES Taiwan 2024: International Semiconductor Executive Summit	May 14 – 15	New Taipei City
Ansys Simulation World 2024	May 14 – 16	Online
NI Connect Austin 2024	May 20 – 22	Austin, Texas
ITF World 2024 (imec)	May 21 – 22	Antwerp, Belgium
Embedded Vision Summit	May 21 – 23	Santa Clara, CA
ASIP Virtual Seminar 2024	May 22	Online
Electronic Components and Technology Conference (ECTC) 2024	May 28 – 31	Denver, Colorado
Hardwear.io Security Trainings and Conference USA 2024	May 28 – Jun 1	Santa Clara, CA
Find All Upcoming Events Here

Upcoming webinars are here.

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Further Reading

Read the latest special reports and top stories, or check out the latest newsletters:

Systems and Design
Low Power-High Performance
Test, Measurement and Analytics
Manufacturing, Packaging and Materials
Automotive, Security and Pervasive Computing

The post Chip Industry Week In Review appeared first on Semiconductor Engineering.

The FBI cut its warrantless searches of American data in half in 2023, according to a government report released on Tuesday. From a report: According to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence's annual transparency report, the FBI conducted 57,094 searches of "US person" data under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act last year -- a 52 percent decrease from 2022. In a press briefing, a senior FBI official said that the drop was due to reforms the agency implemented in 2021 and 2022, The Record reports. Despite the drop in overall searches of Americans' data, the report also notes that the number of foreign targets whose data could be searched in the Section 702 database rose to 268,590, a 9 percent increase from the previous year. The number of "probable cause" targets also increased significantly, from 417 in 2022 to 759 in 2023. Of those, 57 percent are estimated to be "US persons," which includes US citizens and permanent residents.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

If you've been eager to watch the animated Ark: Survival Evolved TV series, but your attempts have so far been thwarted by your failure to live in the US or Canada, there's some good news: it's now officially available in 11 other countries, including the UK, via Paramount+.

Ark: The Animated Series follows the adventures of 21st century palaeontologist Helena Walker after she finds herself resurrected on a mysterious island populated by prehistoric beasts. "She must learn to survive with new allies from throughout time," explains the official blurb, "while trying to uncover the true nature of their strange new world."

Ark's animated series has somehow managed to secure itself an impressive cast (presumably that 'somehow' is 'several extremely large buckets of money'), with the likes of Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh, Russell Crowe, Gerard Butler, Jeffrey Wright, Elliot Page, Madeleine Madden, Karl Urban, and David Tennant all lending their vocal talents to proceedings. Vin Diesel is also on board - he's a big Ark fan, apparently - ahead of his appearance in the delayed Ark 2.

Read more

Samsung has released a new software update for the Galaxy Z Flip 5G—yes, the 2020-launched model. If you still have that phone, don't get your hopes too high, as the update doesn't bring a newer version of Android or One UI. It is just a security update.

Galaxy Z Flip 5G gets April 2024 update in the USA

The new software update is now available for the carrier-locked and factory-unlocked variants of the Galaxy Z Flip 5G in the USA. The update for the carrier-locked version comes bearing firmware version F707USQS7IXC1 and is available on Sprint's network in the country. The factory-unlocked version of the phone is getting updated with firmware version F707U1UES7IXC1. It, too, is getting the update on Sprint's network.

The new update brings the April 2024 security patch that fixes a few dozen security vulnerabilities. It doesn't bring new features, performance improvements, or stability enhancements.

If you have a Galaxy Z Flip 5G and live in the US, you can install the new update on your foldable phone. To do that, navigate to Settings » Software update, and tap Download and install. You can also download the new firmware file from our firmware database and flash it manually. For the manual process, you would need a computer running Windows OS and the Odin tool.

If you want to use a foldable phone that can run the latest version of Android and One UI, check out the Galaxy Z Flip 5 in our review video below. It runs Android 14-based One UI 6 and will get three more Android OS updates in the future. It has a huge cover screen on the front, better cameras, faster processing, higher reliability, and longer battery life.

The post Galaxy Z Flip 5G gets April 2024 update in the USA appeared first on SamMobile.

President Joe Biden travels to Triangle, Virginia, Monday to mark Earth Day, where he'll unveil $7 billion in grant funding for solar power under the Inflation Reduction Act and announce new steps to stand up his administration's American Climate Corps -- a program popular with youth climate groups. From a report: The announcements come days after the Biden administration made several significant conservation announcements, including barring oil drilling on nearly half of the national petroleum reserve in Alaska. Under the Environmental Protection Agency's Solar for All program, the administration will announce funding awards to states territories, tribal governments, municipalities and nonprofits "to develop long-lasting solar programs that are targeted towards the communities and people who need them most," EPA Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe told reporters. Per McCabe, the funding will enable nearly one million households in low-income and disadvantaged communities to benefit from solar power, saving more than $350 million in electric costs annually and more than $8 billion over the life of the program for overburdened households.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

If you've been eager to watch the animated Ark: Survival Evolved TV series, but your attempts have so far been thwarted by your failure to live in the US or Canada, there's some good news: it's now officially available in 11 other countries, including the UK, via Paramount+.

Ark: The Animated Series follows the adventures of 21st century palaeontologist Helena Walker after she finds herself resurrected on a mysterious island populated by prehistoric beasts. "She must learn to survive with new allies from throughout time," explains the official blurb, "while trying to uncover the true nature of their strange new world."

Ark's animated series has somehow managed to secure itself an impressive cast (presumably that 'somehow' is 'several extremely large buckets of money'), with the likes of Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh, Russell Crowe, Gerard Butler, Jeffrey Wright, Elliot Page, Madeleine Madden, Karl Urban, and David Tennant all lending their vocal talents to proceedings. Vin Diesel is also on board - he's a big Ark fan, apparently - ahead of his appearance in the delayed Ark 2.

Read more

"Workers installing a light pole in Missouri cut into a fiber line," reports the Associated Press, knocking out 911 phone service "for emergency agencies in Nebraska, Nevada and South Dakota, an official with the company that operates the line said Thursday." In Kansas City, Missouri, workers installing a light pole for another company Wednesday cut into a Lumen Technologies fiber line, Lumen global issues director Mark Molzen said in an email to The Associated Press. Service was restored within 2 1/2 hours, he said. There were no reports of 911 outages in Kansas City... The Dundy County Sheriff's Office in Nebraska warned in a social media post Wednesday night that 911 callers would receive a busy signal and urged people to instead call the administrative phone line. About three hours later, officials said mobile and landline 911 services had been restored. In Douglas County, home to Omaha and more than a quarter of Nebraska's residents, officials first learned there was a problem when calls from certain cellphone companies showed up in a system that maps calls but didn't go through over the phone. Operators started calling back anyone whose call didn't go through, and officials reached out to Lumen, which confirmed the outage. Service was restored by 4 a.m. Kyle Kramer, the technical manager for Douglas County's 911 Center, said the outage highlights the potential problems of having so many calls go over the same network. "As things become more interconnected in our modern world, whether you're on a wireless device or a landline now, those are no longer going over the traditional old copper phone wires that may have different paths in different areas," Kramer said. "Large networks usually have some aggregation point, and those aggregation points can be a high risk." Kramer said this incident and the two previous 911 outages he has seen in the past year in Omaha make him concerned that communications companies aren't building enough redundancy into their networks. South Dakota officials called the state-wide outage "unprecedented," with their Department of Public Safety reporting the outage lasted two hours (though texting to 911 still worked in most locations — and of course, people could still call local emergency services using their non-emergency lines.) America's FCC has already begun an investigation. The article notes that "The outages, ironically, occurred in the midst of National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week." Thanks to long-time Slashdot reader davidwr for sharing the article.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Late Friday night the U.S. Senate "reauthorized the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, a key. U.S. surveillance authority," reports Axios, "shortly after it expired in the early hours Saturday morning." The reauthorization came despite bipartisan concerns about Section 702, which allows the government to collect communications from non-U.S. citizens overseas without a warrant. The legislation passed the Senate 60 to 34, with 17 Democrats, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and 16 Republicans voting "nay." It extends the controversial Section 702 for two more years. The bill had already passed last week in the U.S. House of Representatives, explains CNN: Under FISA's Section 702, the government hoovers up massive amounts of internet and cell phone data on foreign targets. Hundreds of thousands of Americans' information is incidentally collected during that process and then accessed each year without a warrant — down from millions of such queries the US government ran in past years. Critics refer to these queries as "backdoor" searches... According to one assessment, it forms the basis of most of the intelligence the president views each morning and it has helped the U.S. keep tabs on Russia's intentions in Ukraine, identify foreign efforts to access US infrastructure, uncover foreign terror networks and thwart terror attacks in the U.S. An interesting detail from The Verge: Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) introduced an amendment that would have struck language in the House bill that expanded the definition of "electronic communications service provider." Under the House's new provision, anyone "who has access to equipment that is being or may be used to transmit or store wire or electronic communications." The expansion, Wyden has claimed, would force "ordinary Americans and small businesses to conduct secret, warrantless spying." The Wyden-Hawley amendment failed 34-58, meaning that the next iteration of the FISA surveillance program will be more expansive than before. Saturday morning the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill banning TikTok if its Chinese owner doesn't sell the app.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Samsung has released a new security update to the Galaxy S23 in the USA. The update was released earlier this week, and the Galaxy S24 was the first to get it. Now, older phones are getting new update.

Carrier-locked Galaxy S23 gets March 2024 security update in the USA

The newest security update for the Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23+, and Galaxy S23 Ultra comes with firmware version S91xUSQS2BXBD in the US. The update is currently limited to the carrier-locked units in the Galaxy S23 series. It brings the March 2024 security patch that fixes dozens of security flaws found in the previous software version.

If you have a Galaxy S23 series phone and if you live in the US, you can check for the new update on your device. You can do that by opening the Settings app, navigating to Software update, and tapping Download and install. You can also download the new firmware file from our database and flash it manually.

Samsung could soon release the new security update to the factory-unlocked version of the Galaxy S23 in the US. In South Korea, the Galaxy S23 could get One UI 6.1 update and that could include the March 2024 security update.

The post Samsung rolls out March 2024 security update to Galaxy S23 in the USA appeared first on SamMobile.

At the Capcom Highlights stream, the company announced it had released the Dragon's Dogma 2 character creator for players to download and use ahead of the game's launch on March 22, 2024. Additionally, players in the main game will be able to download official Pawns created by select streamers and influencers such as Snuffy, Maximilian Dood, and Salome Hyakumantenbara.

The full list of creators includes:

• FightinCowboy
• Krysta
• Snuffy
• Maximilian Dood
• Enako
• Otojya
• Salome Hyakumantenbara
• SHAKA
• Alodia
• Chuhe
• Shim Hyung-Tak
• C-chandesu
• Ellajaz
• Limealicious
• MissMikkaa
• Rurikhan

After the presentation, the presenters also used the character creation tools to creat a Pawn based on a real-life cat named Daisy, which is planned to be available as an official pawn. This also isn't the first time official Pawns have appeared, as the Switch version of the first Dragon's Dogma got an official Pawn of Travis Touchdown as part of a collaboration with the No More Heroes series.

You can find the announcement tweet for the Dragon's Dogma 2 character creator below:

https://twitter.com/DragonsDogma/status/1765893831520858558

You can also see the screencaps of the featured creators in the gallery below:

The Capcom Highlights event is set to go on for another day, with Day 2 to focus on games like Street Fighter 6, Monster Hunter Now, and Exoprimal. Earlier this week, game director Hideaki Itsuno revealed that the cooking cutscenes in Dragon's Dogma 2 used real meat instead of computer generated graphics.

Dragon's Dogma 2 will launch on March 22, 2024, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X. The Dragon's Dogma 2 character creator is available to download now on the same platforms, and the characters created can be imported into the main game.

The post Dragon’s Dogma 2 Character Creator Available Now appeared first on Siliconera.

An anonymous reader shares a report: In the 1960s, secret test flights of advanced government spy planes generated U.F.O. sightings. More recently, government and commercial drones, new kinds of satellites and errant weather balloons have led to a renaissance in unusual observations. But, according to a new report, none of these sightings were of alien spacecraft. The new congressionally mandated Pentagon report found no evidence that the government was covering up knowledge of extraterrestrial technology and said there was no evidence that any U.F.O. sightings represented alien visitation to Earth. The 63-page document is the most sweeping rebuttal the Pentagon has issued in recent years to counter claims that it has information on extraterrestrial visits or technology. But amid widespread distrust of the government, the report is unlikely to calm a growing obsession with aliens. Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder, a Defense Department spokesman, said the Pentagon approached the report with an open mind and no preconceived notions, but simply found no evidence to back up claims of secret programs, hidden alien technology or anything else extraterrestrial. The new report suggests that the public's belief that the government is hiding what it knows will probably continue. The report adds: Nevertheless the public is unlikely to be swayed. Many people dismiss the government's claims that nothing interesting is going on in Pentagon videos that appear to show strange objects, citing accounts by Navy pilots that they observed objects whose movements cannot be easily explained. The new report notes that in the past, particularly in the 1950s, there was interest in U.F.O.s, but today the attention on unexplained sightings is greater than ever before. Politico adds: The Pentagon has disclosed that the government once considered a program to recover and reverse-engineer any captured alien spacecraft, an effort that never came to fruition but fueled conspiracy theories about a cover-up.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

With the rapid proliferation of AI systems, public policymakers and industry leaders are calling for clearer guidance on governing the technology. The majority of U.S. IEEE members express that the current regulatory approach to managing artificial intelligence (AI) systems is inadequate. They also say that prioritizing AI governance should be a matter of public policy, equal to issues such as health care, education, immigration, and the environment. That’s according to the results of a survey conducted by IEEE for the IEEE-USA AI Policy Committee.

We serve as chairs of the AI Policy Committee, and know that IEEE’s members are a crucial, invaluable resource for informed insights into the technology. To guide our public policy advocacy work in Washington, D.C., and to better understand opinions about the governance of AI systems in the U.S., IEEE surveyed a random sampling of 9,000 active IEEE-USA members plus 888 active members working on AI and neural networks.

The survey intentionally did not define the term AI. Instead, it asked respondents to use their own interpretation of the technology when answering. The results demonstrated that, even among IEEE’s membership, there is no clear consensus on a definition of AI. Significant variances exist in how members think of AI systems, and this lack of convergence has public policy repercussions.

Overall, members were asked their opinion on how to govern the use of algorithms in consequential decision-making and on data privacy, and whether the U.S. government should increase its workforce capacity and expertise in AI.

The state of AI governance

For years, IEEE-USA has been advocating for strong governance to control AI’s impact on society. It is apparent that U.S. public policy makers struggle with regulation of the data that drives AI systems. Existing federal laws protect certain types of health and financial data, but Congress has yet to pass legislation that would implement a national data privacy standard, despite numerous attempts to do so. Data protections for Americans are piecemeal, and compliance with the complex federal and state data privacy laws can be costly for industry.

Numerous U.S. policymakers have espoused that governance of AI cannot happen without a national data privacy law that provides standards and technical guardrails around data collection and use, particularly in the commercially available information market. The data is a critical resource for third-party large-language models, which use it to train AI tools and generate content. As the U.S. government has acknowledged, the commercially available information market allows any buyer to obtain hordes of data about individuals and groups, including details otherwise protected under the law. The issue raises significant privacy and civil liberties concerns.

Regulating data privacy, it turns out, is an area where IEEE members have strong and clear consensus views.

Survey takeaways

The majority of respondents—about 70 percent—said the current regulatory approach is inadequate. Individual responses tell us more. To provide context, we have broken down the results into four areas of discussion: governance of AI-related public policies; risk and responsibility; trust; and comparative perspectives.

Governance of AI as public policy

Although there are divergent opinions around aspects of AI governance, what stands out is the consensus around regulation of AI in specific cases. More than 93 percent of respondents support protecting individual data privacy and favor regulation to address AI-generated misinformation.

About 84 percent support requiring risk assessments for medium- and high-risk AI products. Eighty percent called for placing transparency or explainability requirements on AI systems, and 78 percent called for restrictions on autonomous weapon systems. More than 72 percent of members support policies that restrict or govern the use of facial recognition in certain contexts, and nearly 68 percent support policies that regulate the use of algorithms in consequential decisions.

There was strong agreement among respondents around prioritizing AI governance as a matter of public policy. Two-thirds said the technology should be given at least equal priority as other areas within the government’s purview, such as health care, education, immigration, and the environment.

Eighty percent support the development and use of AI, and more than 85 percent say it needs to be carefully managed, but respondents disagreed as to how and by whom such management should be undertaken. While only a little more than half of the respondents said the government should regulate AI, this data point should be juxtaposed with the majority’s clear support of government regulation in specific areas or use case scenarios.

Only a very small percentage of non-AI focused computer scientists and software engineers thought private companies should self-regulate AI with minimal government oversight. In contrast, almost half of AI professionals prefer government monitoring.

More than three quarters of IEEE members support the idea that governing bodies of all types should be doing more to govern AI’s impacts.

Risk and responsibility

A number of the survey questions asked about the perception of AI risk. Nearly 83 percent of members said the public is inadequately informed about AI. Over half agree that AI’s benefits outweigh its risks.

In terms of responsibility and liability for AI systems, a little more than half said the developers should bear the primary responsibility for ensuring that the systems are safe and effective. About a third said the government should bear the responsibility.

Trusted organizations

Respondents ranked academic institutions, nonprofits and small and midsize technology companies as the most trusted entities for responsible design, development, and deployment. The three least trusted factions are large technology companies, international organizations, and governments.

The entities most trusted to manage or govern AI responsibly are academic institutions and independent third-party institutions. The least trusted are large technology companies and international organizations.

Comparative perspectives

Members demonstrated a strong preference for regulating AI to mitigate social and ethical risks, with 80 percent of non-AI science and engineering professionals and 72 percent of AI workers supporting the view.

Almost 30 percent of professionals working in AI express that regulation might stifle innovation, compared with about 19 percent of their non-AI counterparts. A majority across all groups agree that it’s crucial to start regulating AI, rather than waiting, with 70 percent of non-AI professionals and 62 percent of AI workers supporting immediate regulation.

A significant majority of the respondents acknowledged the social and ethical risks of AI, emphasizing the need for responsible innovation. Over half of AI professionals are inclined toward nonbinding regulatory tools such as standards. About half of non-AI professionals favor specific government rules.

A mixed governance approach

The survey establishes that a majority of U.S.-based IEEE members support AI development and strongly advocate for its careful management. The results will guide IEEE-USA in working with Congress and the White House.

Respondents acknowledge the benefits of AI, but they expressed concerns about its societal impacts, such as inequality and misinformation. Trust in entities responsible for AI’s creation and management varies greatly; academic institutions are considered the most trustworthy entities.

A notable minority oppose government involvement, preferring non regulatory guidelines and standards, but the numbers should not be viewed in isolation. Although conceptually there are mixed attitudes toward government regulation, there is an overwhelming consensus for prompt regulation in specific scenarios such as data privacy, the use of algorithms in consequential decision-making, facial recognition, and autonomous weapons systems.

Overall, there is a preference for a mixed governance approach, using laws, regulations, and technical and industry standards.

Ark: Survival Ascended developer Studio Wildcard has announced it's indefinitely delaying the release of the dinosaur survival remaster's enhanced The Center expansion, just days before its planned 28th February release.

Ark: Survival Ascended - the controversial full-price Unreal Engine 5 remaster of 2015's Ark: Survival Evolved - has been plagued with delays since its announcement last year. First, the remaster's launch was shifted from August to October - a release it eventually managed to hit on PC, albeit with the Xbox Series X/S version getting a last-minute delay to mid-November and the PS5 release arriving later still - while Ascended's various expansion remasters, originally due to launch alongside the base game, have now slipped a number of times.

In January, Wildcard announced its Scorched Earth expansion remaster, initially delayed to December 2023 and then moved to March 2024, would now be releasing in April, while its Aberration and Ragnarok map remasters - previously delayed to "Q1 2024" - were now on track to arrive in July and September 2024 respectively. Amid all this furious roadmap revision, there was a bright spot in that the enhanced version of Ark's The Center map would now be coming to Ascended a couple of months earlier than listed in December. The Center's release was later pinned down to 28th February, but once again it's all change.

Read more

An anonymous reader quotes a report from CBS News: Scientists and researchers are celebrating what they call a "dream" discovery after an exploratory drill confirmed a high concentration of helium buried deep in Minnesota's Iron Range. Thomas Abraham-James, CEO of Pulsar Helium, said the confirmed presence of helium could be one of the most significant such finds in the world. CBS News Minnesota toured the drill site soon after the drill rig first broke ground at the beginning of February. The discovery happened more than three weeks later at about 2 a.m. Thursday, as a drill reached its depth of 2,200 feet below the surface. According to Abraham-James, the helium concentration was measured at 12.4%, which is higher than forecasted and roughly 30 times the industry standard for commercial helium. "12.4% is just a dream. It's perfect," he said. Now that helium is confirmed to be underground in Babbitt, Abraham-James said the next phase of the project is a feasibility study by an independent third party to study the size of the well and whether it could support a full-service helium plant. "It's not just about drilling one hole, but now proving up the geological models, being able to get some really good data that wasn't captured in the original discovery," he explained. "It has the potential to really contribute to local society." The company said the feasibility study could take until the end of the year to complete.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

By now you know that Senator Richard Blumenthal has released a new version of KOSA, the misleadingly named Kids Online Safety Act, that he pretends fixes all the problems. It doesn’t. It still represents a real threat to speech online, and in particular speech from LGBTQ users. This is why Blumenthal, a prominent Democrat, is putting out press releases including supportive quotes from infamous anti-LGBTQ groups like the Institute for Family Studies and the “American Principles Project” (one of the leading forces behind anti-trans bills across the US). Incredibly, it also has an approving quote from NCOSE, formerly known as “Morality in Media,” a bunch of prudish busybodies who believe all pornography should be banned, and who began life trying to get “salacious” magazines banned.

When a bill is getting supportive quotes from NCOSE, an organization whose entire formation story is based around an attempt to ban books, you know that bill is not good for speech.

Why is a Democratic Senator like Blumenthal lining up with such regressive, censorial, far right nonsense peddlers? Well, because he doesn’t give a shit that KOSA is going to do real harm to LGBTQ kids or violate the Constitution he swore an oath to protect: he just wants to get a headline or two claiming he’s protecting children, with not a single care about how much damage it will actually do.

Of course, as we noted, the latest bill does make it marginally more difficult to directly suppress LGBTQ content. It removed the ability of state Attorneys General to enforce one provision, the duty of care provision, though still allows them to enforce other provisions and to sue social media companies if those state AGs feel the companies aren’t complying with the law.

Still, at least some of the MAGA crowd feel that this move, making it marginally more difficult for state AGs to try to force LGBTQ content offline means the bill is no longer worth supporting. Here’s Charlie Kirk, a leading MAGA nonsense peddler who founded and runs Turning Point USA, whining that the bill is no longer okay, since it won’t be used to silence LGBTQ folks as easily:

If you can’t read that, it’s Charlie saying:

The Senate is considering the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), a bill that looks to protect underage children from groomers, pornographers, and other predators online.

But the bill ran into trouble because LGBT groups were worried it would make it too easy for red state AGs to target predators who try to groom children into mutilating themselves or destroying themselves with hormones and puberty blockers.

So now, the bill has been overhauled to take away power from from state AGs (since some of them might be conservatives who care about children) and instead give almost all power to the FTC, currently read by ultra-left ideologue Lina Khan. Sure enough, LGBT groups have dropped all their concerns.

We’ve seen this pattern before. What are the odds that this bill does zero to protect children but a lot to vaguely enhance the power of Washington bureaucrats to destroy whoever they want, for any reason?

If you can get past his ridiculous language, you can see that he’s (once again, like the Heritage Foundation and KOSA co-sponsor Senator Marsha Blackburn before him) admitting that the reason the MAGA crowd supports KOSA is to silence LGBTQ voices, which he falsely attacks as “groomers, pornographers, and other predators.”

He’s wrong that the bill can’t still be used for this, but he’s correct that the bill now gives tremendous power to whoever is in charge of the FTC, whether its Lina Khan… or whatever MAGA incel could be put in place if Trump wins.

Meanwhile, if Kirk is so concerned about child predators and groomers, it’s odd you never see him call out the Catholic church. Or, his former employee who was recently sentenced to years in jail for his “collection” of child sexual abuse videos. Or the organization that teamed up with Turning Point USA to sponsor an event, even though the CEO was convicted of “coercing and enticing” a minor. It’s quite interesting that Kirk is so quick to accuse LGBTQ folks of “grooming” and “predation,” when he keeps finding actual such people around himself, and he never says a word.

Either way, I’m curious if watching groups like TPUSA freak out about this bill not being censorial enough of LGBTQ content will lead Republicans to get cold feet on supporting this bill.

At the very least, though, it’s a confirmation that Republican support for this bill is based on their strong belief that it will censor and suppress LGBTQ content.