An engineering sample of the Ryzen 9 9950X processor has surfaced in AIDA64 benchmarks. Shared by Anandtech Forum userigor_kavinsky, the results reveal noticeable performance gains. The Ryzen 9 9950X demonstrates a 45% improvement in AES encryption and a 39% boost in FP32 and FP64 operations over its predecessor, the Ryzen 9 7950X. The results also suggest that the chip offers up to 55% faster performance compared to Intel’s Core i9-13900K, demonstrating notable gains in both floating-point and encryption tasks....

A senior data scientist atNetflixhas taught an artificial intelligence (A.I.) algorithm to be able to recognize smooches. Amir Ziai developed the tool, which is able to watch movies and recognize scenes in which the characters lock lips, as part of his work to obtain an A.I. graduate certificate from Stanford University. He selected kissing scenes because, he told Digital Trends, they can be tough to detect using traditional video-processing techniques. That’s because machines get easily confused and produce false positives when seeing other scenarios in which two people have their heads close to one another — such as talking scenes or ones in which characters walk in close proximity....

Amazon AlexaandApple Homeare two of the best smart home platforms around. Both support hundreds of devices, dozens of product categories, and offer a simple way to automate your smart home. However, there are some big differences between these two technologies, and choosing the wrong one could prevent you from syncing your favorite devices. Not all of the products that work with Apple Home (sometimes referred to as HomeKit) work with Alexa, meaning you need to be careful when choosing which to adopt....

Amazon certainly loves saving the best for last.Alexa Live 2021is in full swing, and while most of the stuff announced at the virtual event is primarily geared for developers, there was an unexpected nugget in the form of a product announcement. It looks like Verizon will soon be launching its own smart display complete with a brand new voice assistant that will channel all of Alexa’s abilities. But instead of saying “Alexa” to initiate a voice action, it’s going to be “hi Verizon....

AMP’s Agent00 reveals dream Twitch guest that would be “impossible” to get AMP co-founder Agent00 has revealed his dream Twitch guest that would be “impossible” to collaborate with during a podcast with Hasan, WillNeff, and QTCinderella. Although members of the organization have been creating content for many years before AMP, the collective formed in 2019 after Agent, Fanum, Duke Dennis, and ImDavisss joined together. Kai Cenat came along shortly after, and the group has skyrocketed to the top of both Twitch and YouTube with some of the most popular content across both platforms....

Apple is making final preparations for the highly anticipated launch ofthe Vision Pro, the $3,499 mixed-reality headset that it unveiled in June. As it’s a new product line for the tech giant, a crucial part of the preparations includes training Apple Store staff on how to present it and demonstrate it to potential customers. The seminars for staff are being scheduled now and will begin in January, according toa Bloomberg reporton Sunday by Apple tipster Mark Gurman....

Asmongold warns Twitch will regret allowing “unsafe” drinking streams Twitch streamer Asmongold is warning the Amazon-owned broadcasting platform to rethink its policies on drinking streams, calling them “unsafe.” In October, Twitchunveiled Enforcement Notes, a new feature designed to provide important context about what type of content is allowed in an attempt to quickly shut down any controversial metas that may arise. The Enforcement Notes have already resulted inpushback from VTubers, who aren’t happy with rules about how they must be covered, specifically on the hips, despite the fact that they’re digital avatars....

Security is a big concern when it comes to the military, and the powers that be have no shortage of impressive, cutting-edge technologies they can call into service to help achieve this goal. We recently wrote about the deployments ofdog robots to patrol Tyndall Air Force Basenear to Panama City, Florida. Now Travis Air Force Base in California is testing out autonomous drones to help keep the goings-on at the military site away from prying eyes....

Baldur’s Gate 3 director reveals scrapped Fugue Plane mechanic Baldur’s Gate 3 director Swen Vincke shares a scrapped idea that would give dying a completely new perspective. Larson Studios, the masterminds behind Baldur’s Gate, meticulously crafted every aspect of the game. Fromclothing-specific dialoguestodiabolic backstories, Baldur’s Gate is a treasure trove of exploration. There was even a planned Falug Plane that your Tav would have to explore to return to their companions....

Below Deck Med’s Captain Sandy calls out chef’s “red flag” move with guests Captain Sandy Yawn revealed why Chef Johnathan Shillingford’s decisions were a “red flag” after the guests complained about his food on Below Deck Mediterranean Season 9. Chef Johnathan Shillingfordwas in hot water onBelow Deck Mediterranean Season 9when he served primary charter guest Gigi Fernandez and her friends lackluster food during dinner service. However, things got worse the next day when the chef prepped his huevos rancheros dish for breakfast too early....

Black Ops 6 & Warzone Got Your Six event start date & rewards The latestCall of DutyEndowment event, Got Your Six, is coming to Black Ops 6 and Warzone, bringing plenty of free rewards for players to unlock. Season 3 has been packed with events to get stuck into, most of which have been stoner-themed likeBlaze of GloryandHigh Art. Now, withSeason 4on the horizon, the game is sobering up with the return of Call of Duty Endowment....

Doctor Who bundle collects adventures including Big Finish & RPGs Pick up the Doctor Who Humble book Bundle today and expand your collection with dozens of RPGs, comics, and more. Humble Bundle is often the place to be forTTRPGdeals, and right now is no different. Right now, a Humble Book Bundle is offering a huge collection ofDoctor Whobooks, including sourcebooks for the acclaimed Doctor Who TTRPG. While it may not have hit the heights of popularity that D&D and other mainstream RPGs enjoy, the Doctor Who TTRPG is a phenomenal way for Whovians and Sci-Fi fans in general to dive in and tell their own stories in The Doctor’s world....

To better train drones and reduce the risk of damage to itself and its surroundings,MIT engineers developeda training platform called “Flight Goggles” based on virtual reality. This enables a fast-flying drone to train within a virtual environment while speeding through empty physical space. Given the nature of VR, these drones can now safely train for any environment and condition. Without Flight Goggles, drone training typically includes a large enclosed area with nets to catch “careening” vehicles and physical props including doors and windows....