The Silicon Valley giant has released the first two models of the Llama 3 family – one with 8B parameters and one with 70B. According to Meta, these models are significantly better than the Llama 2 models, offering a much lower false rejection rate, improved alignment, and greater diversity in model responses. The specific capabilities of the models such as, code generation and instruction following have also been greatly improved.

Llama 3 was pre-trained on more than 15T tokens from publicly available sources, therefore the training dataset of Llama 3 is seven times larger than the training dataset of Llama 2 and contains four times more code.

According to Meta, in developing Llama 3, a new human evaluation set for benchmarking was also developed that contains 1,800 prompts across 12 use cases. These include asking for advice, classification, answering a closed question, writing code, creative writing, extraction, answering an open question, reasoning, rewriting, summarizing, and more.

The 70B parameter model beat Claude Sonnet, Mistral Medium, GPT 3.5, and Llama 2 using this new assessment set.

Llama 3 is available on AWS, Databricks, Google Cloud, Hugging Face, Kaggle, IBM WatsonX, Microsoft Azure, NVIDIA NIM and Snowflake. In addition, some hardware vendors will also offer support for it, including AMD, AWS, Dell, Intel, NVIDIA and Qualcomm.

Over the next few months, the company plans to update Llama 3 with new features, longer context windows, and larger model sizes.

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The phones will use the built-in Gemini Nano, Google’s most efficient model for large languages, and gain access to Gemini Pro and Imagen 2 technologies for text-to-image conversion via the cloud.

“We will reshape the technology landscape, we will open a new chapter without barriers to unleash your potential,” TM Roh, the president of Samsung’s mobile experience division, told a crowd in San Jose, California.

Live Translate

Live Translate is one of the first features announced that will translate phone calls in real time in 13 languages and 17 dialects.

New New New

Users will have the capability to utilize AI-driven summariza tion and classification functions within Samsung’s native applications like Notes, Voice Recorder, and the keyboard.

The Imagen model will empower users to execute intricate photo editing operations within the Gallery app, offering a tool that can enhance photo quality but also raises concerns about the potential for creating deceptive images.

Chat Assist

Chat Assist is the next feature that Samsung has introduced. Chat Asyst takes on the editorial role when writing messages – both in formal and informal environments.

Circle To Search

Additionally, the upcoming phones will feature Google’s “Circle To Search,” enabling individuals to encircle text snippets, segments of images, or videos to promptly retrieve search results related to the highlighted content.

Anticipated to hit the market by the end of January, these new phones promise enhanced functionalities and a seamless user experience.

For more details about the new features visit here.

The company behind TikTok, ByteDance, is in the crosshairs of Western politicians who believe that user information could be given to bad actors.

ByteDance is based in Beijing, whose laws oblige companies in the country to share data with the government for national security reasons.

TikTok, however, has always been opposed to tracking its users or handing over any data to governments, saying Beijing’s laws do not apply to data stored overseas. Until Tuesday, users’ data was stored only on servers in the US and Singapore.

With the first European data centre in Europe, the entertainment platform is making another attempt to reduce the tension in politics and its skepticism.

A second such centre, which is in the process of being set up, will be located in Ireland, as well as another to be located in Norway.

TikTok chief executive Theo Bertram, the firm’s vice president of public policy in Europe, said this would create a “specifically hardened security environment around our European users’ data”.

The idea of protecting user data applies not only to users in EU countries, but also to the UK and Switzerland.

The figures are part of Apple’s second fiscal quarter earnings, which cover the first three months of the calendar year. The tech giant’s total revenue for the quarter was $94.8 billion, down 3% compared to the second quarter of 2022, and it cited lower electronics sales as part of the reason.

Apple, which so far hasn’t had massive employee layoffs, will report its first-ever decline in revenue across all product lines, even as demand and production for iPhones in China recovered from the disruption caused by last year’s pandemic.

The Difference
Apple’s sales of computers, phones, tablets, watches and other hardware fell to $73.9 billion in the quarter from $77.5 billion reported in 2022. The sales slowdown in the first three months is not unusual as consumers cut back on spending after the holidays.

Apple’s iPhone line is still the best-selling product with over $51.3 billion in sales in the second quarter of 2023, up from $50.7 billion last year. Mac sales declined to $7.12 billion, down about $3 billion from 2022.

“We are pleased to report an all-time record in services and a March quarter record for iPhone despite the challenging macroeconomic environment, and to have our installed base of active devices reach an all-time high. We continue to invest for the long term and lead with our values, including making major progress toward building carbon neutral products and supply chains by 2030”,

Said in a statement Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple.

Although the company posted the first revenue decline in its history, the forecasts and reactions are not black-eyed. Luca Maestri, who is Apple’s CFO, said there was an improvement in the company’s overall business performance compared to the December quarter. In the last three months, the company has been able to return over $23 billion to its shareholders.

Developers can download the latest versions by joining the beta testing program through Apple’s Developer Center. Public beta releases are released after their developer counterparts. They are available through the Apple Beta Software Program.

The first iOS 16.3 and iPadOS 16.3 betas have build number 20D5024e, replacing build 20C65. The first beta of watchOS 9.3 has build number 20S5626e, replacing build 20S361. The tvOS 16.3 build number and HomePod Software Version 16.3 build is 20K5626c, up from build 20K362.

In the iOS 16.3 update, which is currently only available to developers, there is support for a security key, a new feature that Apple announced just a few days ago and which provides better account protection.

Once installed, watchOS 9.3 can be downloaded from the dedicated Apple Watch app on iPhone by going to General and then selecting Software update. To update to the new software, the Apple Watch must have 50% battery life, be on the charger, and be within range of the iPhone it’s paired with.

AppleInsider and Apple advise users not to install beta operating systems or beta software in general on major devices because of the risk of problems that could lead to data loss. To be more secure and safe, testers should use secondary or non-essential hardware and make sure they always have sufficient backups of their critical data.

Polygon zkEVM** is fundamentally equivalent to the Ethereum Virtual Machine*** (EVM) itself and benefits from all of Ethereum’s ecosystem at full speed. EVM-equivalence is different from EVM-compatibility because it creates less user friction, removing the need for any kind of modification or re-implementation of code.

Up until recently, some of the greatest minds in Web3 believed that this technology would take up to 10 years to realize. This announcement represents a breakthrough in cryptographic research that empowers developers to build the future of Web3.

Polygon zkEVM, which stands for zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine, leverages the power of zero-knowledge (ZK) proofs to reduce transaction costs and greatly increase throughput, all while inheriting the security of Ethereum. The ZK proof technology works by batching transactions into groups, which are then relayed to the Ethereum Network as a single, bulk transaction. The ‘gas fee’ for the single transaction is then split between all the participants involved, dramatically lowering fees.

For developers of payment and DeFi applications, Polygon zkEVM’s high security and censorship resistance makes it a more attractive option than other Layer 2 scaling solutions. Unlike Optimistic roll-ups where users have to wait for as long as seven days for deposits and withdrawals, zk-Rollups offer faster settlement and far better capital efficiency.

The system also enables easy migration of decentralized applications (dApps) that exist on chains compatible with Ethereum Virtual Machine to zkEVM, where EVM equivalence and Ethereum network effects provide distinct advantages to developers. Using programming languages, such as Solidity and toolsets like Metamask, Hardhat, Truffle, and Remix, with which they are already familiar, developers can migrate dApps by simply switching nodes. This also makes Polygon zkEVM ideally suited for the seamless creation of NFTs, new gaming technologies and enterprise applications. Existing Polygon dApps can migrate very easily to zkEVM with minimal support.

“The holy grail of Web3 infrastructure should have three major properties: scalability, security and Ethereum-compatibility” said Mihailo Bjelic, co-founder of Polygon. “Until now, it has not been practically possible to offer all these properties at once. Polygon zkEVM is a breakthrough technology that finally achieves that, thus opening a new chapter of mass adoption.”

The introduction of Polygon zkEVM opens possibilities for the world’s most vibrant blockchain developer community to further innovate and build the future of Web3. They can continue to use the same code, tooling, apps and smart contracts that they use on Ethereum, but with much higher throughput and lower fees.

“Many believed that a zkEVM was years away, or not practical or competitive,'” Jordi Baylina, co-founder of Polygon Hermez, recalled the feedback after the team’s presentation at EthCC Paris in July 2021. “No one believed in us, but Polygon did.”

One month on from the presentation, Polygon published the Zero Knowledge Thesis and announced its merger with Hermez Network (now Polygon Hermez), embarking on a journey to become a ZK powerhouse. As part of its commitment to ZK-related initiatives, it announced Polygon Nightfall, a privacy-focused rollup built in collaboration with EY in August of 2021, adding Polygon Miden in November and Polygon Zero in December of the same year.

Now, Polygon estimates that its ZK ‘Rollup’ approach is able to reduce fees by 90% compared to current costs on the Layer 1 Ethereum chain. A future configuration of off-chain data availability will be able to reduce the fees further. With the proving system breakthroughs pioneered by Polygon Zero and with technical contributions from both Zero and Miden in its zkProver, Polygon zkEVM can now achieve full EVM equivalence and scalability with a speed that has never been accomplished before.

Polygon has released part of the source code and roadmap for zkEVM, with its public testnet expected later this summer and mainnet launch planned for early 2023.

Notes:

*Zero-Knowledge Proof or zk roll-up uses advanced cryptography, and this cryptography validates that computation is done in the correct way following certain rules.

**Polygon zkEVM is a Layer 2 scaling solution that enables developers to execute arbitrary transactions, including smart contracts off-chain rapidly and inexpensively while keeping all proofs and data provenance on the secure Ethereum blockchain.

***The Ethereum Virtual Machine, or EVM, executes smart contracts.

The Nexo Card is the first card in the world that allows users to spend without having to sell their digital assets. Nexo has teamed up with DiPocket, Nexo’s card issuer for the new offering in Europe, and Mastercard as the tech company and payment network, to offer various innovative features for the Nexo Card:

• Your Crypto Stays: The Nexo Card is linked to a Nexo-provided, crypto-backed credit line that starts and stays at 0% APR*. It allows cardholders to use their digital assets as collateral rather than selling them. The credit line is dynamic and can use multiple assets as collateral, including but not limited to Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tether.
• Zero Fees: The card requires no minimum repayments, monthly, or inactivity fees. There are no FX fees for up to €20,000 per month.
• 2% Crypto Rewards: Every Nexo Card transaction is equipped with instant crypto cashback, paid out in Bitcoin or in Nexo’s native NEXO Token. This means users not only can retain ownership of their digital assets, but they also earn up to 2% back in free cryptocurrency with each purchase, which becomes automatically available in their Nexo account.
• Seamless Access: Available both in virtual and physical form, the Nexo Card comes with direct Apple Pay and Google Pay integrations. Cardholders can add the Nexo Card to their preferred mobile wallet from the Nexo Wallet App with a few taps. Additional virtual cards come at no cost.

Thanks to the advanced infrastructure provided by DiPocket and Mastercard, the Nexo Card will be accepted by 92 million merchants worldwide where Mastercard is accepted, allowing investors to spend up to 90% of the fiat value of their crypto in seconds without selling any of it.

Antoni Trenchev, Co-founder and Managing Partner at Nexo, commented:

“Launching the Nexo Card in Europe in partnership with Mastercard and DiPocket is a big milestone for us and the latest proof of the immense synergy between the existing financial network and digital assets. This unique product will allow millions of people, first in Europe and then worldwide, to spend instantly without having to give up the potential of their cryptocurrencies, thus offering unprecedented everyday utility for the emerging asset class.”

Fedele Di Maggio, Co-founder and CEO at DiPocket, said:

“DiPocket is delighted to have been selected as the issuer of the Nexo Card, a truly innovative solution designed to fulfill the needs of millions of investors in digital assets. Our partnership in this project with Nexo and Mastercard is a distinctive example of how DiPocket’s embedded finance technology enables visionary companies to deliver value and convenience to their customers.”

Raj Dhamodharan, Mastercard’s Head of Crypto and Blockchain Products and Partnerships, said:

“Mastercard believes that digital assets are revolutionizing the financial landscape and we are leading in innovation with programs like our partnership with Nexo to deliver people new and one-of-a-kind choices in how they pay and activate their crypto holdings. We’re excited to continue to innovate in payments by making digital assets more accessible across the ecosystem.”

Earlier this year, Nexo completed a partial roll-out of the Nexo Card in select European countries, targeting a focus group that collectively generated extraordinary interest and transaction volume, proving there is high demand for this financial product. In the coming stages of the Nexo Card’s development, the company is planning to add a debit-type card functionality and expand the offering internationally, among many other upgrades.

The purpose of the broadening in Germany is to strengthen existing customer relations and also to promote OVES Enterprise services in the German-speaking markets from the DACH region. Mihai Filip, CEO of OVES Enterprise said:

“Currently, we have 20 clients outside Romania, 10 of them being in Germany. Hence the desire to set up an OVES Enterprise office in Munich. Also, 80% of last year’s turnover was generated by businesses from abroad, and with the international expansion we estimate that the share will be increased to 95%.”

The company has a team of consultants specializing in enterprise technologies such as Java, .net, Python, Big Data and Front End (Angular, React etc).

When it comes to the OVES Enterprise’s revenue – last year it has increased 4 times, reaching approximately 14 million lei.

Doubling the number of employees to support the company’s expansion on the international market and engaging in increasingly complex projects are part of the company’s development plans for this year.

POD is a Web3 project that collaborates and manages all metaverse data (metadata) in a single interface for developers, builders, and users.

Any object in the metaverse is essentially metadata. An address, identity, transaction, or NFT all comprise forms of metadata.

There are some pain points of Metadata Management. The key metadata pain points that POD solves are:

• Hard to Find – On-chain data is scattered in contracts on different networks. It’s not yet possible for contracts to obtain all data from one single common environment.
• Hard to Relate – Due to the non-relational storage, it’s hard to trace the relationship between two entities or associate entities with their metadata.
• Hard to Utilize – Each network or app is unique in data transmission methodology. Thus, data from different sources have to be pre-processed before they can work in tandem.

There are also benefits for Data Providers. They can increase data searchability; provide data conformity system; empower NFT with infinite expandability.

And benefits for Data Consumers as quick access to multi-chain data; easy data category definition and tags for data management.

POD’s goal is to bring different parties together and establish a collaborative dialogue to inspire the decentralized community. Together, POD can arrive at an agreed-upon data collaboration standard in an organic, bottom-up manner.

Norway is seeking to become the first nation to end the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2025.  Oil-producing countries exempt battery electric vehicles (BEVs) from taxes imposed on rivals using internal combustion engines (ICE).

Tesla grabbed an 11.5 per cent share of the overall car market, making it to the first positions for the first time on a full-year basis ahead of Germany’s Volkswagen with 9.4 per cent.

The company delivered more than 308,000 vehicles in the fourth quarter and saw deliveries surge about 87 per cent. In October, the electric-vehicle maker topped $1 trillion in market cap for the first time.