Join our daily and weekly newsletters for the latest updates and exclusive content on industry-leading AI coverage. Learn More Meta made several major announcements for robotics and embodied AI systems this week. This includes releasing benchmarks and artifacts for better understanding and interacting with the physical world. Sparsh, Digit 360 and Digit Plexus, the three research artifacts released by Meta, focus on touch perception, robot dexterity and human-robot interaction. Meta is also releasing PARTNR a new benchmark for evaluating planning and reasoning in human-robot collaboration. The release comes as advances in foundational models have renewed interest in robotics, and AI companies are gradually expanding their race from the digital realm to the physical world. There is renewed hope in the industry that with the help of foundation models such as large language models (LLMs) and vision-language models (VLMs), robots can accomplish more complex tasks that require reasoning and planning. Tactile perception Sparsh, which was created in collaboration with the University of Washington and Carnegie Mellon University, is a family of encoder models for vision-based tactile sensing. It is meant to provide robots with touch perception capabilities. Touch perception is crucial for robotics tasks, such as determining how much pressure can be applied to a certain object to avoid damaging it.  The classic approach to incorporating vision-based tactile sensors in robot tasks is to use labeled data to train custom models that can predict useful states. This approach does not generalize across different sensors and tasks. Meta Sparsh architecture Credit: Meta Meta describes Sparsh as a general-purpose model that can be applied to different types of vision-based tactile sensors and various tasks. To overcome the challenges faced by previous generations of touch perception models, the researchers trained Sparsh models through self-supervised learning (SSL), which obviates the need for labeled data. The model has been trained on more than 460,000 tactile images, consolidated from different datasets. According to the researchers’ experiments, Sparsh gains an average 95.1% improvement over task- and sensor-specific end-to-end models under a limited labeled data budget. The researchers have created different versions of Sparsh based on various architectures, including Meta’s I-JEPA and DINO models. Touch sensors In addition to leveraging existing data, Meta is also releasing hardware to collect rich tactile information from the physical. Digit 360 is an artificial finger-shaped tactile sensor with more than 18 sensing features. The sensor has over 8 million taxels for capturing omnidirectional and granular deformations on the fingertip surface. Digit 360 captures various sensing modalities to provide a richer understanding of the environment and object interactions.  Digit 360 also has on-device AI models to reduce reliance on cloud-based servers. This enables it to process information locally and respond to touch with minimal latency, similar to the reflex arc in humans and animals. Meta Digit 360 Credit: Meta “Beyond advancing robot dexterity, this breakthrough sensor has significant potential applications from medicine and prosthetics to virtual reality and telepresence,” Meta researchers write. Meta is publicly releasing the code and designs for Digit 360 to stimulate community-driven research and innovation in touch perception. But as in the release of open-source models, it has much to gain from the potential adoption of its hardware and models. The researchers believe that the information captured by Digit 360 can help in the development of more realistic virtual environments, which can be big for Meta’s metaverse projects in the future. Meta is also releasing Digit Plexus, a hardware-software platform that aims to facilitate the development of robotic applications. Digit Plexus can integrate various fingertip and skin tactile sensors onto a single robot hand, encode the tactile data collected from the sensors, and transmit them to a host computer through a single cable. Meta is releasing the code and design of Digit Plexus to enable researchers to build on the platform and advance robot dexterity research. Meta will be manufacturing Digit 360 in partnership with tactile sensor manufacturer GelSight Inc. They will also partner with South Korean robotics company Wonik Robotics to develop a fully integrated robotic hand with tactile sensors on the Digit Plexus platform. Evaluating human-robot collaboration Meta is also releasing Planning And Reasoning Tasks in humaN-Robot collaboration (PARTNR), a benchmark for evaluating the effectiveness of AI models when collaborating with humans on household tasks.  PARTNR is built on top of Habitat, Meta’s simulated environment. It includes 100,000 natural language tasks in 60 houses and involves more than 5,800 unique objects. The benchmark is designed to evaluate the performance of LLMs and VLMs in following instructions from humans.  Meta’s new benchmark joins a growing number of projects that are exploring the use of LLMs and VLMs in robotics and embodied AI settings. In the past year, these models have shown great promise to serve as planning and reasoning modules for robots in complex tasks. Startups such as Figure and Covariant have developed prototypes that use foundation models for planning. At the same time, AI labs are working on creating better foundation models for robotics. An example is Google DeepMind’s RT-X project, which brings together datasets from various robots to train a vision-language-action (VLA) model that generalizes to various robotics morphologies and tasks. source

Whether you’re looking to change the direction of your career or expand your skillset as a programmer, the languages you chose to learn will significantly impact your time commitment and prospects. Some languages use familiar syntax, welcome minimum code commands for heavy-duty work, and are open-source with a helpful developer community that guides users in making the most of it. Others are complicated due to complex syntax, how the code is structured and organised, and not-so-seamless onboarding experiences. 5 hot roles hiring right now Test Engineer High Tech – Netherlands based only, Capgemini, Eindhoven Software Developer (C++), Artisans, Zwolle Senior Software Developer C#, Infarma-Pharmagest, Anagni Développeur .NET C# H/F, CONSORT GROUP, Nantes Python Developer, Alliander, Arnhem You’d be forgiven for thinking that languages which are difficult to learn are better compensated. As we’ll see, that’s not always the case. The hardest programming languages C++ The 💜 of EU tech The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol’ founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It’s free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now! Though C is regarded as a minimalist and somewhat straightforward language, C++ is considered the opposite. C++ is challenging to learn, and this is down to its multi-paradigm structure and tricky syntax. Although it is commonly known to be especially difficult for beginners, programmers who have never worked with low-level languages before also find it difficult to learn. In return for its complexity, this language offers unparalleled performance, and can power applications like real-time simulation engines, financial trading systems, and AAA video games. C++ salaries as disclosed in Stack Overflow’s annual survey, aren’t especially thrilling. The average annual compensation, including salary, bonuses and perks (before taxes and deductions), was $64,444 for C++ developers. Yet, through the House of Talent Job Board, you’ll see C++ salaries reaching highs of almost a quarter of a million in the US. Keep in mind that, if you decide to upskill, you’ll need to allow for a significant time investment to really learn the language. Whitespace You don’t need to be in any way technical to understand why learning Whitespace is so challenging. The language uses whitespace characters — specifically spaces, tabs, and line breaks, as its sole syntax elements. This means the source code of programmes written in Whitespace is invisible. Originally created 21 years ago by Chris Morris and Edwin Brady at the University of Durham, Whitespace is more an intellectual challenge than a practical tool. Enjoyable dinner party or interview fodder for sure, but not one to bank your professional development or next career move on. Cow Cow is another esoteric language designed as a cerebral challenge. With 12 commands, all of which are variations of the word “moo”, and a contrived syntax, it’s extremely difficult for most programming purposes. Again, it has limited practical application and isn’t used to build usable software, but its absurdist structure does create a talking point — or moo-ment — about language design and constraints. Easiest programming languages to learn Javascript An essential language for web development, JavaScript powers front-ends and modern web applications. It has an accessible syntax, immediate visual feedback, and an extensive library of documentation. And considering 84% of Stack Overflow’s 48,019 respondents said technical documentation was the top online resource to learn code from (83.9% of respondents), Javascript’s large library is very helpful. Survey respondents also used Stack Overflow (80.3%, of course), written tutorials (68.4%), blogs (61.4%), how-to-videos (54.2%), and video-based e-courses (49.9%). Additionally, JavaScript has long been the most popular programming language in the Slack Overflow survey, with the exception of 2013 and 2014, when SQL topped the charts. The average annual salaries for JavaScript developers in 2024 is $63,694 and the language works hand-in-hand with HTML and CSS. Python Python’s syntax closely resembles natural English, and its philosophy emphasises code readability, which makes it an accessible language for beginners. Data scientists, machine learning engineers, and back-end web dev all love it, and its expansive libraries and frameworks make it versatile for a wide range of applications. Experienced developers find it the perfect tool for automating repetitive tasks. It’s one of the four main languages deployed at Google, and is also used at Intel, IBM, Netflix, Facebook, and Spotify. For those strategically upskilling, Python is a smart move. Those who are proficient can expect an annual salary of $67,723, according to the same survey. Ruby Similarly, Ruby is known for its simple syntax and is also used for building web applications in plain English. Its main framework, Ruby on Rails, simplifies web development by handling many repetitive tasks involved in building websites, such as setting up web pages and databases. Because of this, Ruby is often used by startups and small businesses, though just 4.7% of Slack Overflow respondents said they completed extensive development work in Ruby over the last year, compared to Node.js (40.8%), and React (39.5%). That said, Ruby commanded the fifth spot when it comes to the top-paying technologies, with an annual average compensation of $90,221, after Erlang ($100,636), Elixir ($96,000), Clojure ($95,541), and Nim ($94,924). For complete beginners, Ruby is the perfect introduction to building real projects, without getting bogged down in complicated code, and it pays well. Win-win. Ready to find your next programming role? Check out The Next Web Job Board source

As a global B2B technology and services company, Fujitsu has long recognized the importance of customer experience (CX) in driving business success. But a few years ago, the company’s European division decided it was time to double down on CX as a strategic imperative because it saw an opportunity to differentiate with CX, especially in B2B, and aspired to become a long-term, trusted digital transformation partner to its customers. The results have been impressive. Fujitsu Needed A Tailored Approach To Scaling CX The need for this tailored approach was because of Fujitsu’s culture, ways of working, and customer relationships. To find out more about the team’s approach, we spent time with some of Fujitsu Europe’s CX team members. A big thank you to Ben Phillips for generously giving his time, together with Avril Durnan, Mercedes Cáceres Garmendia, Katie Stabler, Leila Clare, Roel van der Heiden, and François Caffi. We published the insights in the report, Case Study: How Fujitsu Europe Scaled Its CX Transformation. Find a summary of key points below — more details are in the report. Fujitsu Europe’s CX Transformation Was Built On Four Key Pillars Ensuring CX expertise, business alignment, and accountability. Fujitsu brought in seasoned CX professionals to lead the charge, forming a customer experience performance center. It created a dedicated “CX community” that worked closely with business experts to ensure that the CX approach was practical and effective. The CX team also established clear CX accountability across the organization. Making CX “real” for leaders and account teams. Fujitsu knew that “change happens where top-down and bottom-up meet,” so it focused on showing leaders and account teams how CX could make them more successful. The team created success stories, developed frameworks to communicate the “why and how” of CX, and worked to deeply understand the challenges faced by account teams. A crucial framework was a CX maturity staircase that showed leaders and all employees where Fujitsu was and where it wanted to go (see below). Using a standardized but customizable approach to scale CX. Fujitsu knew a “one size fits all” approach wouldn’t work, so it developed a common process, tools, and templates that could be tailored to the needs of specific account teams and customers. This allowed it to scale CX transformation across the region. Focusing on value by cocreating improvements with customers. Fujitsu moved beyond just conducting annual Net Promoter Score℠ (NPS) surveys, instead working closely with customers to understand their evolving needs and cocreate solutions. This helped it uncover actionable insights and build stronger, more valuable relationships.   The Results Speak For Themselves Fujitsu’s CX transformation shows that B2B companies can drive significant business impact by elevating the customer experience. From 2020 to 2024, Fujitsu Europe saw a nearly 30-point increase in NPS for its core ICT business, as well as a 42-point increase in NPS for its digital transformation services. It also experienced strong account performance, with contract renewals, extensions, and growth. Takeaways For Other B2B Organizations Fujitsu’s approach provides critical learnings for other B2B organizations: Invest in CX expertise and make it a cross-functional effort. Bringing in seasoned CX professionals and embedding them across the organization is crucial for driving real change. Engage leaders and frontline teams alike. CX transformation requires buy-in and ownership at all levels, from the C-suite to the account managers. Balance standardization and customization. Develop a common CX framework, but empower teams to tailor it to their specific customer needs. Put the customer at the center. Go beyond just collecting feedback to truly understanding customer needs and cocreating solutions. Watch out for more content — we will publish a CX Cast recording with Ben Phillips soon. source

Business Email Compromise (BEC) scams pose a growing threat to organizations of all sizes, and they are only increasing in sophistication and frequency. The attacks, in which criminals frequently leverage social engineering to impersonate company insiders, C-suite executives or trusted vendors to request urgent payments, can financially devastate organizations. It can be easy to fall victim to a BEC attack, especially for companies with limited resources and leaner teams handling payments. Many rely on a handful of people to manage tasks, who may feel tremendous pressure to respond quickly to seemingly urgent requests – especially if the request is from someone high up in the organization. It’s a practice that can lead to costly mistakes. Preventing BEC scams Implementing the right technology is critical in preventing BEC scams. Solutions like fraud detection tools, vendor portals and payroll management systems can help safeguard against unauthorized payments. Many businesses are now requiring employees to update payment information through secure portals rather than relying on email communications, which reduces the chance of falling victim to an attack. While AI can play a role in detecting fraudulent activities, BEC scammers are increasingly also using AI to craft more convincing emails that make it harder to identify fraud. This further emphasizes the importance of multi-layered defenses, such as dual approval processes for payments and consistent employee education and training on how to spot potential threats. Keys to recovering from a BEC attack For organizations or individuals who may have inadvertently sent money to a fraudster, time is of the essence. If you suspect fraudulent activity, immediately notify your banking partner. Quick action may stop unauthorized transactions before the funds transfer. We tell our clients, don’t be embarrassed. The sooner we know, the faster we can act. In cases where the victim cannot recover funds, it’s essential to have insurance policies in place to mitigate the financial loss. Many businesses overlook the importance of cybersecurity and fraud insurance, but as BEC scams increase, having this protection is key to reducing the damage should a fraud loss occur. Preventing BEC requires a combination of technology, training and internal processes. Here are four simple and immediate best practices to implement: Test and train employees: Regularly test employees with fake phishing emails to ensure they can recognize fraudulent activity. Those who fail should undergo additional training. Provide ongoing education: Consistently provide education to ensure employees are aware of the latest BEC tactics, such as supply chain attacks and multi-factor authentication (MFA) bypass. Also make sure employees understand internal controls around safeguarding potential points of vulnerability in processes related to sensitive data and money movement. Implement dual controls: Requiring dual approvals to verify and approve payments and changes to vendor information ensures no single employee can authorize a payment without verification. Avoid email for financial requests: Use secure portals to update payment information rather than relying on email, which is prone to phishing attacks. The role of a banking partner in preventing BEC A strong relationship with your bank can serve as a critical line of defense in preventing and mitigating BEC attacks. Most banks offer fraud mitigation solutions such as positive pay, which verifies checks and ACH payments before they are processed. Banking partners can also provide education and real-time updates on emerging fraud trends to help businesses stay ahead of potential threats. At the heart of the prevention strategy is collaboration between businesses and their banking partners. Banks can assist with monitoring suspicious activity, verifying requests for changes to vendor or employee payment information, and working with law enforcement in case of fraud. By adopting best practices, a sound risk management strategy, and by working closely with your banking partner, you can protect your organization from falling victim to a BEC scam and help ensure your financial operations remain secure. For more information on how Synovus can help your organization mitigate BEC fraud, complete a short form and a Synovus Consultant will contact you. source

By Andrew Karpan ( November 1, 2024, 8:53 PM EDT) — Fitbit and others defeated a pair of appeals on Friday in patent litigation over ideas involving programming automatic social media posts, with the Federal Circuit ruling to reject arguments that a California federal judge should have decided patent suits differently and should have recused herself anyway because of her husband’s ties to Fitbit parent Google…. Law360 is on it, so you are, too. A Law360 subscription puts you at the center of fast-moving legal issues, trends and developments so you can act with speed and confidence. Over 200 articles are published daily across more than 60 topics, industries, practice areas and jurisdictions. A Law360 subscription includes features such as Daily newsletters Expert analysis Mobile app Advanced search Judge information Real-time alerts 450K+ searchable archived articles And more! Experience Law360 today with a free 7-day trial. source

When you buy a phone number that uses Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) to make calls, you’ll have to decide between fixed or non-fixed VoIP. Put simply, fixed-VoIP is tied to a specific physical location. A non-fixed VoIP number is not tied to a place at all — it’s tied to a user. You may have also heard non-fixed VoIP numbers referred to by other common names like: Virtual phone numbers. Internet phone numbers. Cloud phone numbers. Unlike traditional phone numbers, which are linked to a landline or a specific geographic area, non-fixed VoIP numbers operate over the internet and can be used to make and receive calls from anywhere in the world with an internet connection. To get a fixed VoIP number, you’ll have to give a physical address for emergency services geolocation and meet additional regulatory requirements.  This makes fixed VoIP numbers a better option if you operate from a single location and must stick to local regulations or require access to emergency services. To get a non-fixed VoIP number, you just need an email address, the internet, a few bucks, and a tiny bit of ambition. You’ll be able to start making calls almost immediately. Five scenarios to use non-fixed VoIP I fall into the camp of people who think you should use non-fixed VoIP unless you absolutely need to have a fixed VoIP number for compliance. It’s cheap, it’s easy, it’s flexible, and in the scenarios I am about to cover, it’s just the better all around option for businesses and their customers. There are a ton of great business VoIP phone services to replace or upgrade an aging system, as well as free VoIP services for individuals. In both cases, you will have the option to select a fixed or non-fixed VoIP number. 1. Local presence in target markets Most people don’t pick up calls from numbers they don’t know, but if the area code is the same or close by, it increases the chances of someone picking up. With a non-fixed VoIP number, you can create a local presence in your target market by purchasing numbers with area codes in your target market. You don’t have to have a physical office in the area, but you can make it seem that way to customers and clients. You can probably see how this could be a scam tactic, not really that different from spoofing your caller ID number. That’s true, and scammers certainly use local area codes in order to get callers to pick up. But plenty of legitimate businesses use this tactic for perfectly good reasons. Let’s say a doctor’s office has outsourced after-hours communication to a virtual contact center. They want to set those customer service reps up with a local number so that patients pick up the call, don’t block the text message, or listen to the voicemail. When it comes to cold calling, using “local” non-fixed VoIP numbers is a way to increase contact rate. Potential customers are much more likely to pick up the phone if they see a call coming from a local number for all the same reasons we’ve discussed. 2. Remote and hybrid teams If you have remote work or teams distributed across different locations, non-fixed VoIP numbers are likely your best choice. Maybe you need a single fixed VoIP number for the office (or offices), but assigning non-fixed VoIP numbers to employees gives them a consistent business contact number, regardless of where they are located. This kind of flexibility can make a real difference. It ensures team members stay accessible to both clients and colleagues. With a lightweight VoIP solution like OpenPhone, employees can add a separate business line to their mobile phone. That means your team can maintain professional communications without disclosing their personal contact information. Also, your non-fixed VoIP numbers can easily come with you if your business ever needs to move to a new location. Not having to deal with regulations and location verification can allow for a smoother transfer of your operation to a new site without disrupting your communication system. 3. International calling If your team is based in the U.S. and makes a lot of calls outside North America, going with non-fixed VoIP numbers could save you a bundle. How much? You can save something like 80-90 percent on the cost of international calling by using VoIP instead of landline phones. Getting non-fixed VoIP numbers in the countries where you regularly do business is relatively easy. This lets you avoid the hefty costs associated with international calling minutes. Because you’re not concerned about running up a huge phone bill, your team can make more frequent outgoing calls to different countries. That kind of increased contact can help you progress faster on big goals like market penetration, improved service for international clients and more sales leads. For incoming lines like customer support, you can establish multiple local or toll-free numbers in each country where you work. That makes it easier for customers to reach out for support without paying long-distance charges. 4. Marketing campaign tracking For marketing campaigns, the ability to track your performance is critical to success. For call centers, non-fixed VoIP numbers make tracking possible by letting you monitor your campaign’s progress precisely. You can assign different non-fixed VoIP numbers to various campaigns and use the numbers to monitor their effectiveness. By analyzing call volume and origin for each number, you can get insights into which campaigns are performing well and which calling areas are most responsive. This information is critical for measuring which interactions truly contributed to revenue, and ensuring your efforts are targeted and efficient — key ingredients for maximizing the ROI of your campaigns. 5. IT failover solutions Non-fixed VoIP is ideal as a failover option because of its flexibility and ease of deployment. In the event of an outage, teams can access non-fixed VoIP numbers from any internet-connected device, whether they’re in the office, at home, or on the road. This flexibility allows for

Encryption secures information by translating it into computer code that’s unreadable to those who don’t have the means to access the information. These means of access can include passwords, credentials, and authentication of some form. Though encryption could still be broken or cracked, strong encryption is nearly impenetrable. SEE: Best Encryption Key Management Software (TechRepublic) Securing data both stored and in-transit through encryption is essential as part of an organization’s cybersecurity strategy. There are various encryption options out there. Here are our top picks. Semperis Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Enterprise (5,000+ Employees), Large (1,000-4,999 Employees) Enterprise, Large Features Advanced Attacks Detection, Advanced Automation, Anywhere Recovery, and more Top encryption software: Comparison table Product Name Price Offers Support Offers Password Manager On-the-Fly Decryption Enterprise-Grade Encryption VeraCrypt Free No No Yes No BitLocker Free with Windows OS Yes Unknown No Yes AxCrypt Premium $12.00 per month, per user for AxCrypt Business plan Yes Yes Yes Yes Trend Micro Endpoint Encryption Contact vendor but a license supporting 251 to 500 endpoints averages about $77-$83 per month Yes No No Yes NordLocker NordLocker Business for 1-year 2TB is priced at $29.99 per month Yes No Yes Yes Advanced Encryption Package Fully unlocked version: one-time fee of $49.95 No No Yes Yes ESET PROTECT Complete Contact vendor but can start at $462.16 for 5 devices, 1 year. Yes No Yes Yes Top encryption software VeraCrypt: Best overall Image: VeraCrypt VeraCrypt is my pick as my best overall encryption solution. It’s a free disk encryption software that you can use on Linux, macOS, and Windows systems. It’s also an open-source service, which forks off the TrueCrypt project, adding features to help with secrecy. VeraCrypt is my prime recommendation for privacy enthusiasts and tech-savvy consumers. I particularly like VeraCrypt due to it being open-source, wherein its source code is publicly available for easy spotting of vulnerabilities and points for improvement. Businesses that prioritize transparency and regular code audits in an encryption solution should have VeraCrypt high on its list. Why I picked VeraCrypt I chose VeraCrypt as my top solution for its easy hiding of encrypted data in sight, making internal resources more secure against prying eyes. In addition, it utilizes popular encryption algorithms and has wide support for multiple platforms. Pricing Free. Features Offers the ability to create encrypted containers. Can create hidden volumes. Supports nested encryption. Automatically protects files. Mounting a drive on VeraCrypt. Image: VeraCrypt Documentation VeraCrypt pros and cons Pros Cons Supports multiple encryption algorithms including Kuznyechik, AES and Serpent. Supports multiple platforms. Allows for easy hiding of encrypted data in sight. Dated GUI. No file-sharing option. Isn’t integrated for cloud storage. No formal support. BitLocker: Best for Windows environments Image: BitLocker For Windows-centric businesses, I recommend BitLocker. BitLocker is available on server and business editions and contains various encryption tools. The Redmond solution focuses on encrypting files and drives on a device right out of the box. I appreciate how you can set up recovery keys to retrieve data if you get firmware problems or errors. Personally, I think it’s an excellent choice for encryption software for Windows. As a Microsoft product, you’ll typically need a Microsoft account or will need to link a device to a Windows domain to use it. You can also configure it for a corporate environment using Group Policy. The settings help you decide which drives you want to encrypt and how to distribute your keys (certificates). Additionally, the computer must have a Trusted Platform Module that can support the encryption process. Why I picked BitLocker I chose BitLocker for its easy integration with Windows environments. This is on top of a user-friendly interface and full disk encryption. For users that are already deep into the Windows ecosystem or are planning to adopt a Windows-centered environment, BitLocker is my top recommendation. Pricing Free as part of Windows software. Features Encrypts full drives and other media. Supports Microsoft account-linking and domain-linking. Built into Windows software. Accessing a drive via BitLocker. Image: Microsoft Learn BitLocker pros and cons Pros Cons User-friendly. Comes built-in on Windows software. Offers whole-disk encryption of files and folders. Only works on Windows platform. AxCrypt Premium: Best for local storage encryption Image: AxCrypt If you plan to encrypt locally, I encourage you to try AxCrypt Premium. AxCrypt Premium allows users to encrypt files locally using the AES-256 encryption algorithm. Sharing is possible with its key-sharing option. The solution protects classified and sensitive information and provides access to a master password generator. SEE: Asymmetric vs Symmetric Encryption: What’s the Difference? (TechRepublic) Why I picked AxCrypt I selected AxCrypt for users that want to prioritize local storage encryption above all else. I also like that it uses the gold standard AES-256 encryption, has file and key-sharing support, and works well with the most popular operating systems and platforms. Pricing There’s a one-month trial period across its Password Manager, Premium, and Business subscriptions. But for organizations and businesses, AxCrypt’s Business plan is priced at $12.00 per month, per user. However, customers can get 20% off, or $10.42 per month per user, if they choose annual billing. Features Allows file and key sharing. Supports encryption and decryption of files on Android and iOS devices. Offers master password management. Using a master key in AxCrypt. Image: AxCrypt Info page AxCrypt pros and cons Pros Cons Good support options for enterprises. Compatible with Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows. Doesn’t support Windows and Linux phones by default. Locked files aren’t typically encrypted. Pricing A license supporting 251 to up to 500 endpoints averages about $77-$83 per month. Features Folder Lock allows for remote locking in case of stolen or lost devices. Provides transparent key management. Centralized encryption management. Automated enforcement of policy-based encryption. Encryption deployment. Image: Trend Micro Documentation Trend Micro Endpoint Encryption pros and cons Pros Cons Extends to user-owned devices. Offers pre-boot authentication. Recovery console available on Windows devices. Enforces the compliance requirements through detailed audits and more. Encrypts

By Andrew Karpan ( November 4, 2024, 10:10 PM EST) — The newspapers suing OpenAI and Microsoft Corp. over allegedly using copyright-protected news stories to train ChatGPT say they now have a “fundamental disagreement” with the tech companies “about who is responsible” for identifying which of their news stories were allegedly used by the artificial intelligence software…. Law360 is on it, so you are, too. A Law360 subscription puts you at the center of fast-moving legal issues, trends and developments so you can act with speed and confidence. Over 200 articles are published daily across more than 60 topics, industries, practice areas and jurisdictions. A Law360 subscription includes features such as Daily newsletters Expert analysis Mobile app Advanced search Judge information Real-time alerts 450K+ searchable archived articles And more! Experience Law360 today with a free 7-day trial. source

NordVPN and ExpressVPN both sit at the top of the food chain when it comes to modern VPN providers. Both VPNs are known for fast speeds, large server suites, and a strong reputation for quality. However, there are key differences between the two. NordVPN comes with impressive security and privacy-focused features, such as its Meshnet encrypted file-sharing system and Threat Protection against malware and ads. Meanwhile, ExpressVPN has a clean and easy-to-use interface and an impressive portfolio of third-party security audits. In this article, we figure out which VPN is best for you and your business. NordVPN: Best for most users that want a large server network and a variety of extra security features. ExpressVPN: Best for users that prioritize having a user-friendly interface and fast VPN download and upload speeds. Semperis Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Enterprise (5,000+ Employees), Large (1,000-4,999 Employees) Enterprise, Large Features Advanced Attacks Detection, Advanced Automation, Anywhere Recovery, and more ESET PROTECT Advanced Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features Advanced Threat Defense, Full Disk Encryption , Modern Endpoint Protection, and more NordVPN vs ExpressVPN: Comparison Table NordVPN ExpressVPN Our rating 4.7 out of 5 stars 4.6 out of 5 stars Security protocols OpenVPN, NordLynx (based on WireGuard) OpenVPN, Lightway No. of servers 6,200+ 3,000 (reported) VPN server locations 111 countries 105 countries Simultaneous device locations 10 8 Supported platforms Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Android TV, Apple TV, routers, game consoles Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Chromebook, Chrome, Firefox, Vivaldi, Brave, Edge, Amazon Fire tablet, routers, media consoles, game consoles Free trial 7-day free trial via Android (can sign in on other platforms afterwards) 7-day free trial for iOS and Android only Starting price(annual plan $4.99 per month $6.67 per month NordVPN and ExpressVPN: Pricing NordVPN pricing NordVPN’s paid plans have three subscription tiers, namely NordVPN Basic, Plus, and Ultimate. Take note, I noticed that in some regions, NordVPN Ultimate will sometimes be called NordVPN Complete or Ultra. This means the top plan may be different depending on your location. Below is an overview of pricing and feature differences with each tier: Basic Plus Ultimate Monthly $12.99 per month $13.99 per month $15.99 per month 1 year $4.99 per month $5.99 per month $7.99 per month 2 years $3.09 per month $3.99 per month $5.99 per month Features Main VPN service All Basic features plusThreat Protection against ads, malware, and trackers; access to NordPass password manager; data breach scanning capabilities All Plus features plus 1TB encrypted cloud storage; identity threat recovery; cyber extortion protection Out of NordVPN’s plans, I feel its Plus subscription for one year brings the best value. It provides a good balance between a reasonable monthly fee while having a healthy amount of NordVPN’s additional security features. Among these are its Threat Protection feature that protects against malware and ads, as well as its data breach scanner. SEE: The Top 7 NordVPN Alternatives for 2024 (TechRepublic) Meanwhile, I commend NordVPN for including Nord Security’s dedicated password manager, NordPass, to its Plus subscription tier. This is essentially a second service on top of the main VPN — all in a single subscription. To me, this is a meaningful value-add, especially for users that are also in the market for a password manager. While NordVPN doesn’t currently have a free version, it has a seven-day free trial via Android. Once you sign up for the trial, you’ll be able to try NordVPN on desktop as well. While I laud Nord for offering a trial, I hope it opens this up for iOS users as well. This would allow more users to try and test NordVPN out. Fortunately, NordVPN has a 30-day money-back guarantee for all its paid subscriptions. With this, you can pay for an initial plan and request a refund if you find it isn’t the right fit. Just make sure to request the refund within the allotted time period. If you want to learn more, read our full NordVPN review. ExpressVPN pricing Compared to NordVPN, ExpressVPN has more straightforward pricing that’s only divided depending on contract length. 1 month: $12.95 per month. 6 months: $9.99 per month. 1 year: $6.67 per month. As a consumer, I like this approach since it simplifies the whole buying process. However, this does mean that ExpressVPN carries less feature packages compared to NordVPN — a topic we’ll discuss more in-depth later. SEE: CyberGhost vs ExpressVPN (2024): Which VPN Is Better? (TechRepublic) Coincidentally, ExpressVPN also includes its own password manager, ExpressVPN Keys, to its paid subscriptions. While I find NordPass to be the more powerful password manager, I’m still happy that ExpressVPN bundles it with all the paid plans. Like NordVPN, ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee on all paid plan options. While ExpressVPN also has a seven-day free trial, this is only available for its mobile apps on Android and iOS. If you want to learn more, read our full ExpressVPN review. NordVPN vs ExpressVPN: Feature comparison Security protocols and encryption Winner: Tie Both NordVPN and ExpressVPN provide top-tier encryption and quality VPN protocols. In both services, we get the industry standard AES-256 encryption algorithm — well recognized as one of the most secure algorithms available. SEE: NordVPN vs Proton VPN (2024): Which VPN Should You Choose? (TechRepublic) For VPN protocols, NordVPN carries OpenVPN and its proprietary NordLynx protocol based on the speed-oriented WireGuard. On the flipside, ExpressVPN also offers the OpenVPN protocol and its own Lightway protocol, similarly built for speed. ExpressVPN’s VPN protocols. Image: Luis Millares I appreciate how, for both NordVPN and ExpressVPN, users have the option to choose from a security-focused protocol or one that provides more speed. For context, OpenVPN is known for its security as an open source protocol, while WireGuard is faster and more modern. In this way, you get the best of both worlds and aren’t confined to just prioritizing

Join our daily and weekly newsletters for the latest updates and exclusive content on industry-leading AI coverage. Learn More Of all the AI video models out there, arguably the one to see most success among mainstream creators and viewers — those outside the pro and amateur filmmaking community — is Pika. The Palo Alto, California-based startup co-founded by two Stanford AI PhD dropouts Demi Guo and Chenlin Meng and funded to the tune of $135 million so far, unveiled its new Pika 1.5 text-to-video and image-to-video AI generation model at the start of this month (October 2024) with a collection of six physics-defying special effects (Explode, squish, melt, crush, inflate and “cake-ify”) for its web app that users could add easily to their own photos, turning them into surreal and bizarrely captivating videos. Following this, brands with accounts on the social networks Instagram and TikTok — especially brands in cosmetics, skincare, and wellness — began using the effects, especially the “squish,” to advertise their services. It even sparked a whole trend of creators trying the “Squish It” effect — or Pikaffect, as the company calls its AI presents — on their own videos. Pika added four more Pikaffects two weeks later. Now, the company is hoping to continue building upon its success cracking through to the mainstream by releasing three new Pikaffects in time for Halloween: levitate, eye pop, and decapitate — all of which do what they sound like. They’re ALIIIIIIIVE! Our freaky new Pikaffects are ready just in time for spooky season. ??? Try levitating, eye-popping, and decapitating the whole family. pic.twitter.com/wx0fddcP91 — Pika (@pika_labs) October 29, 2024 “We’re trying to put fun at the forefront of AI—making it accessible not just for creators, but for anyone, from kids to grandparents,” said Matan Cohen-Grumi, Pika’s Founding Creative Director, in a video call interview with VentureBeat earlier this week. To use the new and prior Pikaffects, users of Pika follow the same simple steps: visit Pika.art, sign in with a Google Account, Discord Account, Facebook/Meta account or email address, and then navigate to the bottom menu bar to add a new image. After tapping the Image button marked with a paperclip icon (highlighted above in a screenshot) the user can take a new image or add a previously uploaded one from their device or cloud photo library. Then, tapping the Pikaffects button marked by a magic wand (encircled above in the annotated screenshot), the user can pull up all 13 preset Pikaeffects. Finally, the user can generate a video based on the screenshot by tapping the star button (encircled above in the annotated screenshot). “What I would suggest, is for everyone to go to our website and try it out,” advocated Cohen-Grumi. “It’s so, so accessible.” The creative director asserted that Pika’s effects only take a few seconds to generate a new video from a still image. However, in VentureBeat’s limited tests, the site appeared overloaded with traffic and stalled for a while with some images failing to generate videos so far on the company’s free tier, which offers 150 credits to the user each month — enough for 10 videos (1 video costs 15 credits on Pika’s scale). There are also Standard, Pro, and Unlimited tiers for $10, $35, and $95 per month (20% discount when paid annually) with gradually increasing numbers of credits. Asked about the time outs we experienced, Cohen-Grumi noted that Pika’s newfound success with Pikaffects had come with load bearing challenges. “We had a lot, a lot of traffic, more than created on the launch, but everything was resolved very quickly,” he told VentureBeat. And seeking to dispel notions Pika was competing on novelty over realism, he also asserted that Pika 1.5 “can deliver extremely realistic results with natural movement.” As for what’s next for Pika — more Pikaffects for every major holiday or season of the year? — Cohen-Grumi played coy. “We’re always working on the next thing, ensuring everything we release is fun and accessible for everyone,” he said. source