Johnathan Smith

Produces advice in a single day instead of two weeks – without job losses

The Australian arm of consultancy firm KPMG wrote a 100-page prompt to create an agentic system that prepares tax advice far faster than humans.…

Yesterday we reported on Windows 11 24H2 security update as part of the August 2025 Patch Tuesday cycle to counter the Lumma stealer and similar malware and exploits. The cumulative package KB5063878 included in the update caused SSDs to fail, possibly corrupting data. Community testing has since identified a reproducible pattern in which certain SSDs, when running sustained sequential writes of approximately 50 GB, become inaccessible and display unreadable SMART telemetry. Additionally, under 60% or higher controller load, most of the SSDs failed. This indicates that Microsoft's patch and some controller firmware may be disagreeing in the logic of operations. However, Phison, as one of the makers of the impacted controllers, has decided to be vocal about it and informed Tom's Hardware that the company is actively looking into the issue.

Phison for Tom's HardwarePhison has recently been made aware of the industry-wide effects of the 'KB5063878' and 'KB5062660' updates on Windows 11 that potentially impacted several storage devices, including some supported by Phison. We understand the disruption this may have caused and promptly engaged industry stakeholders. We are steadfast in our commitment to product integrity and the success of our partners and end users. At this time, the controllers that may have been affected are under review and we are working with partners. We will continue to provide updates and advisories to partners who may have been impacted to provide support and ensure any applicable remediation.

SoftBank will invest $2 billion in Intel at $23 per share, a move seen as both a vote of confidence in Intel’s U.S. chipmaking comeback and a strategic bet on an undervalued semiconductor maker.

Leaders in Washington, D.C., say they're striving to maintain calm as growing numbers of National Guard soldiers deploy to the city. President Trump hasn't said how he wants this "crisis" to end.

(Image credit: Tasos Katopodis)

Microsoft has done it again, report our colleagues at Wccftech: A current security update for Windows 11 – namely KB5063878 – apparently causes critical failures in certain SSD models as soon as large amounts of data are written. Initial reports indicate that drives with Phison controllers are particularly affected. It is particularly ironic that the […]

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Microsoft rolled out the August 2025 cumulative update for Windows 11 version 24H2, also known as KB5063878.The update was supposed to fix problems with game performance and some app slowdowns, which had been frustrating gamers for months.

Handy tool for when only a dedicated device will do

hands on  Timekettle's lightweight T1 interpreter has received the AI treatment and will now perform offline translations. But unless you have deep enough pockets, both figuratively and literally, for another device and a frequent need for translation, it's not for you.…

The law requires all users to verify their ages before using common social media sites ranging from Facebook to Nextdoor.

(Image credit: Andrew Harnik)

Normal Computing today announced the tape-out of CN101, a thermodynamic computing ASIC that the company calls the first of its kind. The chip targets AI and HPC in modern data centers and reflects Normal's Carnot architecture, which uses physical dynamics such as thermal fluctuations, controlled dissipation, and stochastic transitions to compute. Normal claims CN101 can deliver up to 1,000x better energy efficiency on specific matrix and sampling workloads than conventional accelerators. The tape-out moves the project into silicon characterization and benchmarking, where engineers will measure sampling convergence, metastability lifetimes, and mixing times to validate the claims. Normal plans include CN201 for 2026 and CN301 for 2028, to scale higher-resolution diffusion and video models. Executives envision heterogeneous racks combining CPUs, GPUs, and physics-based ASICs so each problem runs on the most suitable substrate.

Thermodynamic computing replaces standard Boolean logic with many interconnected analog elements that start in semi-random states and settle into an equilibrium that encodes a solution. CN101 links these elements and runs a lattice random walk sampler to steer the system toward useful distributions. Instead of fighting noise, the chip uses randomness to perform tasks like Bayesian inference, probabilistic simulation, and diffusion sampling. Engineers will measure how quickly the device reaches equilibrium, how long useful metastable states last, and how accurately it samples the target distribution, as these factors determine the speed and energy cost. Early tests will also check stability across different temperatures and manufacturing variations. If the results hold up, thermodynamic ASICs could give data centers a more energy-efficient way to scale AI as conventional silicon approaches its known limits.

Automaker's answer to spate of car thefts is to charge customers for extra

Hyundai is charging UK customers £49 ($66) for a security upgrade to prevent thieves from bypassing its car locks.…

Trump's 15% deal with Nvidia and AMD needs to go through some legal hoops.

We take a look at a 100% local AI workflow using Blender, Flux, and NVIDIA tools. NIMs and Blueprints simplify the initial setup, letting you focus on results. You can generate high-quality images from simple 3D scenes, all without sharing data or relying on cloud services.

Samsung Electronics America today announced the official launch of its Micro RGB TV, the world's first display to feature a micro-scale RGB LED backlight behind a super big and fully immersive 115-inch screen. This breakthrough display delivers brilliant brightness and hyper-realistic hues, allowing you to indulge in color like never before.

The category-defining TV is built with Samsung proprietary Micro RGB Technology, which arranges individually controlled red, green and blue micro LEDs—each less than 100 µm in size—in an ultra-fine pattern behind the panel. Unlike most conventional backlighting, the architecture enables precision control over each red, green and blue LED—resulting in an industry-first 100% color coverage of BT.2020, an international standard for color accuracy established by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

Grace Hopper and GitHub have more in common than capital letters

Opinion  Here are two snapshots of AI in coding in mid 2025. The CEO of GitHub, coding’s universal termite mound, says that AI is going to do all the coding and that’s a good thing. Meanwhile, real life AI coding tools make coders less productive while spreading the hallucination that they’re more so.…

Nvidia and AMD have reportedly agreed to pay the U.S. government 15% of China-sourced revenues to unlock export licenses for previously restricted chips.

Asher Watkins had been tracking a cape buffalo for the kill when the animal instead turned its attack on the hunter.

(Image credit: Denis Farrell)

Dial-up connectivity stalwart AOL has set a date for cutting off the remainder of its old-tech internet holdouts.

Yes, 2024 – the prizes in the 40th anniversary edition prizes were just awarded

The IOCCC, as it's familiarly known, is back after a four-year gap, giving the entrants more time to come up with some remarkably devious code.…

It is a rare instance to see US President Donald Trump directly involved in the management of technology firms, but today is a one-off. In his post on Truth Social, Donald Trump made a public remark that Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan must resign immediately. In a post, he stated: "The CEO of INTEL is highly CONFLICTED and must resign, immediately. There is no other solution to this problem. Thank you for your attention to this problem!" Yesterday, we reported that US Senator Tom Cotton sent a letter to Intel's independent Chair, Frank Yeary, for clarification on whether Intel's current CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, has divested from his China positions through his venture firm, Walden International. This includes over 600 investments in companies that directly work with the Chinese military, and Senator Tom Cotton demanded written proof that Intel's new CEO is not involved in these businesses.

The scrutiny over China investments comes in light of Intel's strategic importance to the US semiconductor supply chain, as well as Intel being the recipient of US government funds. In September, Intel was awarded $3 billion in direct funding from the Biden administration under the CHIPS and Science Act for the Secure Enclave program. Hence, the current US administration decided to investigate Lip-Bu Tan's investments and probe whether his position as CEO of Intel aligns with national interests. Intel stock, ticker INTC, is down 3% today on the news.

US President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that his administration will impose a 100% tariff on all imported semiconductors to encourage companies to build and expand chip manufacturing in the United States. Firms that establish or grow production on American soil will be exempt, although the White House has not yet specified exactly how much domestic investment qualifies. Thankfully, TSMC, being the largest and the most critical supplier of semiconductors, is already shielded from the tariff. TSMC shares jumped in early trading in Taipei after the announcement, reflecting confidence that its $65 billion Arizona fab project and an additional $100 billion US investment plan meet the exemption criteria.

Meanwhile in Tokyo, semiconductor stocks took a hit as investors weighed the prospect of higher export costs. Tokyo Electron fell over 5% at the open before paring losses to trade about 2.9% lower by mid-morning. Renesas Electronics dropped by roughly 4%, and Advantest slid 3.3%. South Korea's Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix bucked the downtrend on reports that their memory divisions would also avoid the full tariff. Samsung climbed 2.5% after Apple said it will source chips from Samsung's new Texas facility for its upcoming iPhones. Economists warn that without a clear implementation framework, the impact will remain uncertain. For companies that own production sites in the US, it would make economic sense to expand their presence, as the US is their largest client.

The Aalborg Zoo in Denmark said it would take certain surplus pets such as chickens, rabbits and guinea pigs to be "gently euthanized" and fed to its captive predators.

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Wondering why parts of Tom's Hardware now have a paywall? You can find all your questions answered right here.

The Department of Health and Human Services will cancel contracts and pull funding for some vaccines that are being developed to fight respiratory viruses like COVID-19 and the flu.

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According to exclusive information obtained by two sources close to Reuters, Intel is reportedly facing a challenging situation with the high-volume manufacturing of its next-generation PC processor, codenamed "Panther Lake." According to two anonymous sources, Intel's Panther Lake yields, manufactured on the company's promising 18A node, are reportedly so low that Intel may struggle to break into profit with the high-volume production. Typically, these yields begin low and gradually increase over time as Intel advances and optimizes its manufacturing processes. However, given Intel's financial situation and the massive net loss the foundry is producing, this is another challenging situation for Team Blue. In a statement on July 30, Intel's CFO, David Zinsner, told Reuters that Panther Lake is in its early ramp process, meaning the company will be able to deliver the chips; however, many fewer working chips are being produced from 18A production facilities than expected.

Typically, Intel aimed for 50% yields before sending a chip into high-volume production, but this case may be an exception. Intel's yield goal is between 70% and 80% for a profitable business, but launching a CPU with lower production yields is necessary to avoid falling behind in the PC market share grab race. Sources close to Reuters note that a significant breakthrough in chip yields is unlikely by the Q4 launch window of Panther Lake, but there is room for smaller improvements. Without massive improvements, Intel could resort to selling chips at a loss to keep up with the competition. While Intel management keeps reassuring that the company's products will be sustainable for the business, some speculators believe the opposite.

On Monday, Fitch, a global credit rating agency, lowered Intel's long-term rating from BBB-plus to BBB and assigned a negative outlook. That change puts Intel just two notches above junk status. Fitch analysts cited growing challenges in maintaining strong demand for Intel's chips amid fierce competition from AMD, Broadcom, and NVIDIA. While Intel still holds a solid position in the PC and enterprise server markets, the agency warned that the company's financial structure is weaker than that of similarly rated peers and faces significant risk. To reclaim its prior rating, Intel must deliver successful product launches and reduce its net debt over the next 12 to 14 months. Despite the downgrade, Fitch described Intel's liquidity as robust: as of June 28, the company held $21.2 billion in cash and short-term investments, had an unused $7 billion credit revolver, and carried an undrawn $5 billion facility due in January 2026. Analysts say the move serves as a wake-up call for Intel's leadership as they navigate the company's various hurdles.

Credit ratings matter because they influence the cost of borrowing for a public company and can impact investor confidence. A downgrade typically leads to higher interest rates on new debt and may unsettle creditors and shareholders. For a capital-intensive business like Intel, increased financing costs can lead to cuts in research, development, and fab investment, thereby slowing progress on next-generation technologies. A negative outlook also highlights the risk of further downgrades if performance does not improve, potentially affecting the stock price. Intel has already seen similar actions from other agencies: S&P Global cut its rating to BBB in December, and Moody's lowered its senior unsecured debt grade last August. Investors will be watching how Intel's management balances cash flow, debt repayment, and product innovation. If the company can strike the right mix of investment and financial discipline, it may reverse the trend and secure a stronger rating in the months ahead. As one of the most important companies in the US semiconductor supply chain, Intel will need to overcome numerous issues to maintain a healthy business.

The Trump administration has asked NASA staffers to draw up plans to end at least two satellite missions that measure carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, according to current and former NASA employees.

(Image credit: NASA TV)

Hasan Piker likes fitness, gaming, and progressive politics, and millions of young men flock to him for his opinions. Is he the Joe Rogan of the left that Democrats are looking for? Hasan says no.

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No way this will be abused

Microsoft has upgraded Azure AI Speech so that users can rapidly generate a voice replica with just a few seconds of sampled speech.…

Samsung has secured a $16.5 billion deal to produce Tesla's future AI6 self-driving SoC at its Texas fab, a major strategic win for Samsung Foundry.

Alphabet’s driverless darling taps Avis to manage the fleet for 2026 debut

With Tesla horning in on its Texas territory, robotaxi outfit Waymo has decided to expand to a new city in the Lone Star state: Dallas. …