###### January 7, 2025

Major announcements from the biggest tech companies have set the stage for an exciting week as the annual [CES technology convention](https://www.ces.tech/) begins in Las Vegas. Giants like Samsung, Nvidia, Toyota and Sony all unveiled cutting-edge products and launched major projects at this year's event, each contributing to the latest developments in consumer technology. Find below a detailed summary of the most recent discoveries and advances revealed at the event.

[**Nvidia**](https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/)**'s AI Innovations and Robotics** As he wrapped up the press day, CEO Jensen Huang revealed Project Digits, a scaled-down version of the Grace Blackwell superchip that would cost $3,000 in May. Along with the introduction of the Blueprint modality in robotics, which makes it easier to program robots using Apple Vision Pro, details of the World Models and Cosmos World Foundation models have also been highlighted.

[**Sony**](https://www.sony.com/en/)**’s Entertainment and Technology** During its entertainment-focused presentation, Sony revealed the $89,900 price tag of its Afeela EV and talked about its upcoming anime projects for Crunchyroll. There are also new tools for creative technology, such as producing XYN spatial content.

[**Consumer Technology Association**](https://www.cta.tech/)**'s Forecast** The Consumer Technology Association has warned that possible tariffs could reduce consumer spending by $90 billion to $143 billion, but it hopes tech consumption will hit a record $537 billion in 2025.

[**Anker**](https://www.anker.com/eu-en?utm_source=google\&utm_medium=search\&utm_campaign=eu_anker_charger_conversion_search_brand_purchase_ost_ankerbrand\&utm_content=Ankerbrand\&utm_term=%7B18217468779%7D_%7B138042004982%7D_%7B619410214225%7D\&gad_source=1\&gclid=Cj0KCQiAvvO7BhC-ARIsAGFyToVOg2ARIJjEGljuffJah2KUeDVzpg_lSy59Oq-kjL09v-ajlBp4dg8aAsHJEALw_wcB)**'s Innovative Charging Solution** This summer, Anker will launch a solar-powered beach umbrella that also works as a charger, offering 80 watts of power via USB-C.

[**Samsung**](https://www.anker.com/eu-en?utm_source=google\&utm_medium=search\&utm_campaign=eu_anker_charger_conversion_search_brand_purchase_ost_ankerbrand\&utm_content=Ankerbrand\&utm_term=%7B18217468779%7D_%7B138042004982%7D_%7B619410214225%7D\&gad_source=1\&gclid=Cj0KCQiAvvO7BhC-ARIsAGFyToVOg2ARIJjEGljuffJah2KUeDVzpg_lSy59Oq-kjL09v-ajlBp4dg8aAsHJEALw_wcB)**’s Future Plans and Innovations** Samsung talked about its home robot, Ballie, scheduled to launch in 2025, and hinted at its upcoming big mobile hardware announcements for the upcoming Samsung Unpacked event on January 22.

[**Yukai Engineering**](https://www.ux-xu.com/en)**’s Robotic Companions** Yukai Engineering unveiled Nekojita FuFu, a small robotic cat that helps cool heated liquids, and Mirumi, a robot designed to simulate human relationships.

[**LG**](https://www.lg.com)**’s Home AI Enhancements** LG demonstrated its “Affectionate Intelligence” AI capabilities, improving user engagement with home automation systems and expanding cloud gaming experiences in collaboration with Microsoft.

[**AMD**](https://www.amd.com/en.html)**’s New Gaming Chips** AMD has revealed its new series of gaming processors, which will appeal to both casual and hardcore gamers and promise an 8% performance improvement over previous models.

[**John Deere**](https://www.deere.com/en/index.html)**’s Automation Advances** Along with other autonomous agricultural equipment, John Deere has unveiled a new electric robot lawn mower for commercial landscaping, capable of operating alone for up to ten hours.

[**Toyota**](https://www.toyota.com/)**’s Ambitious Projects** Toyota indicated a desire for futuristic transportation and community planning by providing updates on its Woven City project and referencing the study of rocket technology.

**Samsung’s AI-Powered Culinary Feature** In a bid to improve home cooking, Samsung's new TV feature uses AI to recognize food on screen and suggest recipes.

_Courtesy of_ [_Code Labs Academy_](https://codelabsacademy.com/en) _– Shaping the Next Generation of Tech Innovators, One Bootcamp at a Time._


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CES 2025 Highlights: Major Announcements from Nvidia, Sony, Toyota, and Samsung Cody Corrall 

###### January 2, 2025

OpenAI failed to deliver on its promise to offer an opt-out option by 2025. The company said [in May](https://openai.com/index/approach-to-data-and-ai/) that it was working on the Media Manager tool, which would give creators the power to decide which of their creations are included in its AI training datasets. Seven months later, the tool supposed to help resolve intellectual property issues and appease critics has not been released.

According to insiders who spoke to [TechCrunch](https://techcrunch.com/2025/01/01/openai-failed-to-deliver-the-opt-out-tool-it-promised-by-2025/), internal development of the tool was not a top priority. A coordinator who works with OpenAI pointed out the lack of recent updates, and a former employee admitted that he had seen almost no progress. Fred von Lohmann, a member of the tool's legal team, even took up a part-time consulting position.

OpenAI did not provide any updates regarding the development or upcoming release of Media Manager, which was intended to help manage the complex intellectual property environment that AI models must navigate. These models, such as OpenAI's ChatGPT and Sora, learn from massive data sets and can generate content that closely resembles the original data, potentially leading to lawsuits from the producers.

Ad hoc opt-out techniques are already available through OpenAI, although developers criticize them as insufficient. The goal of the new tool was to expand these choices and offer a more comprehensive solution for opt-out procedures and content ownership.

Experts doubt whether Media Manager could successfully resolve these issues if introduced. They argue that the tool might not significantly reduce legal issues or meet content protection and payment requirements, implying that authors would be unfairly burdened with managing AI training.

The significance of Media Manager in legal circumstances is still unknown as OpenAI is still subject to [lawsuits](https://techcrunch.com/2023/01/27/the-current-legal-cases-against-generative-ai-are-just-the-beginning/) and dependent on fair use defenses. The tool is not intended to provide a complete answer to the intellectual property issues associated with training AI models; rather, it is a public relations attempt to establish OpenAI as a user of ethical content.

_Ignite your passion for AI: Learn how to transform data into powerful, scalable solutions with Code Labs Academy’s online_ [_Data Science & AI Bootcamp_](https://codelabsacademy.com/en/courses/data-science-and-ai)_._


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Delays at OpenAI: Media Manager Tool Still Missing as 2025 Deadline Passes


###### December 19, 2024

Although there is disagreement among German companies over whether AI will lead to the creation or replacement of jobs, many expect higher productivity through the integration of AI. It is still unclear what impact artificial intelligence will have on IT sector jobs in the long term. [Research by Bitkom](https://www.bitkom.org/Presse/Presseinformation/KI-ersetzt-IT-Jobs), a digital group, shows a complex situation where different companies have different opinions on the ramifications of AI. Depending on the role held, some are seeing job losses, while others are seeing a growing need for IT specialists.

According to the study, 15% of organizations expect to lose IT jobs to artificial intelligence. However, 38% predict that AI-related activities will lead to the creation of new jobs. Companies believe AI will fill vacancies, according to 20% of respondents. Ralf Wintergerst, chairman of Bitkom, sees AI as an opportunity to at least partially close the skills gap rather than as a danger to the labor market.

Everyone agrees that AI will change the nature of IT jobs. A third of companies anticipate the emergence of new professional positions such as those of rapid engineers or AI trainers. Meanwhile, 18% of them envision a future in which there will no longer be a need for IT professionals with AI skills, and 25% of them anticipate a reduction in certain professions. Because AI relieves workers of repetitive tasks, 44% of companies expect increased productivity.

Bitkom's survey, which examined how AI is changing the role of IT professionals, covered 852 German companies with three or more employees. The group defends the political and economic interests of its more than 2,000 members, the majority of whom come from the IT and telecommunications sectors. Additionally, according to a [recent Bitkom study](https://www.bitkom.org/Presse/Presseinformation/Haelfte-der-Berufstaetigen-trotz-Urlaub-erreichbar), half of the workforce is still available during the Christmas holidays.

_Build your future in tech with_ [_Code Labs Academy_](https://codelabsacademy.com/en)_’s top-rated bootcamps._


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Bitkom Study Reveals: The Impact of AI on Job Dynamics within Germany’s Tech Sector

[Waymo](https://waymo.com/), which is owned by Alphabet, will test its self-driving car technology in Tokyo in early 2025. This will be the first time the company has used its robotaxis on public roads outside the United States. Waymo's road trips project, which aims to adapt its technology to different locations around the world, each with distinct problems, includes expanding to Japan. It will be difficult to navigate left-hand traffic and crowded urban environments in Tokyo.

These experiments, previously targeted on certain weather and environmental conditions – such as the intense heat of Death Valley, California, or torrential rains in Miami – were carried out in a dozen American cities. Buffalo, Washington, D.C., Las Vegas and Seattle were all used as test cities. In each city, Waymo typically starts with a small fleet and maps the terrain by hand before moving to autonomous testing under human supervision.

Waymo is collaborating with local taxi operator Nihon Kotsu, which will oversee and maintain the Waymo fleet, and with taxi app GO for its trials in Tokyo. In order to map important parts of Tokyo, including Minato, Shinjuku, Shibuya, Chiyoda, Chūō, Shinagawa and Kōtō, Nihon Kotsu drivers will first drive the cars by hand. Additionally, Waymo and Nihon Kotsu are working closely to train their employees to drive Jaguar I-Pace self-driving cars.

This news follows [GM's statement](https://news.gm.com/home.detail.html/Pages/news/us/en/2024/dec/1210-gm.html) that its Cruise robotaxi development was ending, as well as the cancellation of a planned autonomous ride-sharing service in Japan with Honda. The cancellation comes after Honda, Cruise and GM jointly [announced in October 2023](https://techcrunch.com/2023/10/18/gm-cruise-and-honda-to-launch-robotaxi-service-in-japan/) that they would launch a robotaxi service in Tokyo in 2026 with Cruise's specially created robotaxis, The Origin.

_Embrace the future with tech insights from_ [_Code Labs Academy_](https://codelabsacademy.com/en)_._

__


CES 2025 Highlights: Major Announcements from Nvidia, Sony, Toyota, and Samsung Cody Corrall

Delays at OpenAI: Media Manager Tool Still Missing as 2025 Deadline Passes

Bitkom Study Reveals: The Impact of AI on Job Dynamics within Germany’s Tech Sector

Alphabet's Waymo to Begin Self-Driving Car Tests in Tokyo in 2025