May 09, 2025 Skip the lines and meet Ella – your first-ever AI Robot barista in PH! A robot is any machine capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically, especially one that is programmable by a computer. It can be a simple arm (used in surgery), a spy drone, or even the automated guided vehicles that are used to transport materials around in a factory. Everything falls under the category termed “robotics”. Also, a robot doesn’t necessarily have to be in a humanoid form. A humanoid robot is a robot resembling the human body in shape. The design may be for functional purposes, such as interacting with human tools and environments, for experimental purposes, such as the study of bipedal locomotion, or for other purposes. In general, humanoid robots have a torso, a head, two arms, and two legs, though some humanoid robots may replicate only part of the body. Now, you can skip the lines with the country’s first-ever artificial intelligence (AI) robot barista that can make coffee in just two minutes. The robot barista which originated in Singapore can be found at a coffee shop in Bonifacio Global City in Taguig. It is part of the Internet of Things (IOT), which does not need human intervention to make coffee drinks; one can order them using an app. “It was conceptualized back in 2017 by our inventor Keith Tan. He had a problem with the shortage of manpower, which resulted in inconsistency in the quality of the drinks. Ella aims to solve those problems by automating everything and cutting out yung shortage of labor talaga,” said Gabriel del Rosario, business development head of Ella the Robot Barista PH. The robot barista can make 200 cups per hour of up to 20 expresso-based drinks such as lattes, cappuccinos and their special drink, the pandan tea latte. Since it is AI-powered, the robot barista can also recommend a beverage. “It’s a whole bunch of machines put together. It’s a state-of-the-art coffee machine, a state-of-the-art ice machine, an onboard computer, and of course the star of the show, the robot arm itself,” Del Rosario said. To get a drink, an app must be downloaded. And from the app, the customer can choose their preferred beverage, then click “buy now” and “pay.” Once you confirm your location, the payment will be successful, and the robot barista will create your drink. Early beginnings In 350 B.C., the Greek mathematician Archytas built a mechanical bird termed ‘The Pigeon’, which was propelled with the help of steam. In the 14th century, Leonardo Da Vinci designed a mechanical man that looked like an armored knight. The mechanisms inside the armored knight were designed to make the knight move as though there were a real person inside. With the arrival of programmable computers in the 1940s, the first real robots began to take shape. The earliest robots as we know them today were created by George Devol in the 1950s. Fast forward to 1985, the first robot, called Puma350, was used in the medical field for surgery. Its purpose was to orient a needle for a brain biopsy under computerized tomography guidance. 1997 was perhaps one of the most important years for robotics. It was the year of the Mars Pathfinder mission. In 2015, Nadine, the most human-like robot ever made, was created by the Nanyang Technological University. It currently operates as a university receptionist. Reference: First-ever AI Robot barista in PH can make coffee in 2 minutes

May 02, 2025 YouTube reaches milestone: 100M subscribers, 2.5 billion viewers in 2024 Popular video platform YouTube has hosted everything from concert clips and podcasts to political ads, tutorials and much more in the last 20 years. It says that it now sees an average of some 20 million videos uploaded daily. YouTube has become the world’s largest digital video service in terms of time spent by viewers and ad revenue, according to eMarketer analyst Ross Benes. Since the first clip debuted two decades ago, YouTube on Wednesday (April 23, 2025) celebrated more than 20 billion videos that have been uploaded to the platform. Over the next 20 years, the site expanded beyond what was imagined possible back in 2005. It was reportedly during a dinner party that PayPal colleagues Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim conceived YouTube in 2005. The domain YouTube.com launched on Valentine’s Day that year. The platform reached more than 2.5 billion viewers globally last year, and hit 100 million subscribers to its music and premium tier, according to market tracker Statista. YouTube is projected to surpass all US cable television services in paid subscribers within two years, according to Benes. Users worldwide watch more than a billion hours of YouTube content daily on television sets alone, Google reported. YouTube said it will upgrade its TV viewing experience this summer with improved features and “quality tweaks,” though it did not provide further details. Analyst Ross Benes said: “If you go back 20 years, it would have seemed laughable that this website with kids making parody videos would become a threat to Disney, ABC, and CBS.” He added: “That’s what they were able to accomplish.” Analysts consider Google’s 2006 purchase of YouTube for $1.65 billion in stock a pivotal moment, combining Google’s search and advertising expertise with a video-sharing platform that had passionate users. Google used its advertising know-how to build a successful model, sharing revenue with creators who attracted significant audiences. Meanwhile, YouTube adheres to a set of community guidelines. Videos that infringe on the platform’s rules and regulations were immediately taken down before they reached wide viewership. In a 2024 transparency report, 9.1 million videos, 4.8 million channels, and 1.3 billion comments were removed globally for various violations. Of these, about 80,000 were removed for violating misinformation policies. In Feb. 2025, it was reported that more than 181,000 videos related to the Philippines were removed in the 3rd quarter of 2024 alone after being flagged for misinformation or hate speech, a local official of tech giant Google said. Reference: YouTube says more than 20 billion videos uploaded in 20 years

April 30, 2025 SIM Card Act turns out ineffective; face-to-face verification proposed Guided by the lessons of the past three years since the landmark law was passed, an extensive review of the 3-year-old SIM Registration Act is in order to see how it can be tweaked, strengthened or more easily implemented. This way, it will be able to fulfill its promise to keep the country a step ahead of fraudsters and minimize the damage to the public. On October 10, 2022 President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. signed into law Republic Act No. 11934 or the SIM Card Registration Act. The law aims to provide accountability for those using SIM cards and aid law enforcement in tracking perpetrators of crimes committed through phones. However, scam attempts continue and many Filipinos still fall victim to phishing scams, for instance, through short messaging services hence the need to be vigilant against perpetrators. Wily fraudsters continue victimizing unsuspecting Filipinos who were lulled into the false sense of security. Some, for example, were still able to register SIM cards under false names using fake IDs. Others, on the other hand, chose to sell their registered their SIM cards to criminal elements for a handsome fee. These are clear violations of the SIM Registration Act that should therefore not go unpunished. Under this law, those found selling registered SIMs face up to six years in jail and as much as P300,000 in fines. The National Telecommunications Commission has called for face-to-face verification of identification cards before individuals can register the SIM cards on their mobile phone. The NTC noted that the current registration process that requires only a photo and submission of some personal information and a copy of a government-issued ID card may be too lax and therefore vulnerable to fraud. Unscrupulous individuals exploit the system to sell their identities to others, it said. However, telecommunications companies—which are key to the strict implementation of the SIM Registration Act—opposed the idea as they claimed requiring face-to-face verification will just add a layer of bureaucracy that will further delay registration and make it harder for Filipinos in remote and rural areas to comply with the law. It will also cost more, they said. The Global Anti-Scam Alliance pointed out in an October 2024 report that Filipinos lost as much as $8.1 billion or nearly P640 billion over the past 12 months due to the scams that were mainly launched via text messages that Filipinos receive regularly as they conduct more of their personal and business transactions online. The government and the private sector cannot just play catch-up with scammers. They need to do better in implementing the laws and plugging loopholes in the system to combat cybercrimes. Reference: Plugging loopholes in SIM card law

April 23, 2025 Children in England choosing ChatGPT over Parents for life advice Technology plays a huge part in our everyday lives. Most of us would suddenly switch to panic mode if we accidentally leave our phone at home. Modern technology comes with incredible benefits and improves our quality of life, but it can also leave a negative impact on our mental health and our relationships if we’re not on guard. With the coming of the internet, communication and conversation become digital and through online. The face to face concept became, well, a lost art. With the fast-paced advancement in technology, the emergence of AI or artificial intelligence, conversation is being taken yet again to another dimension. By this point, you’ve probably heard about ChatGPT, an AI-powered chatbot programmed to simulate human conversation. No software has ever been able to so convincingly provide human-like and detailed answers to inquiries before. At the inaugural “Festival Of Childhood” on April 3, 2025 in England, Dame Rachel de Souza who is Children’s Commissioner for England has warned that children are increasingly turning to online chatbots instead of their parents for answers to life’s biggest questions. She said that the “apathy” of many parents is causing a “crisis in childhood” that is leading to many children feeling “disconnected.” The Children’s Commissioner said: “Artificial intelligence such as Chat GPT could end up filling knowledge gaps for children unless parents can show they will respond quicker than online chatbots.” Her comments come amid a national conversation about how the internet and social media are affecting children, which has been prompted by the hit Netflix drama Adolescence. Dame Rachel warned that childhood must not be conflated with adulthood ‘because to do so abdicates us of our responsibility to making sure every child has all the things they should always have, and no child experiences the things they never should’. She said: “If we want children to experience the vivid technicolor of life, the joy of childhood, the innocence of youth, we have to prove that we will respond more quickly to them than Chat GPT.” She further said: “Some of these foundations of childhood are cracking. A different version of childhood is playing out — one that we are struggling to be honest about. A crisis developing in childhood.” Dame Rachel added: “There is a risk of inaction, of apathy — and the antidote to this is listening. Connecting. That is why we must listen to children, to engage them on the decisions about their lives.” The Children’s Commissioner has also carried out a new survey using her statutory powers to obtain responses from around 19,000 schools and colleges, representing almost 90% of schools in England. Reference: Children are turning to ChatGPT over their PARENTS for life advice

April 21, 2025 Hollywood’s biggest films in 2024 foray into AI technology In the medium of cinema, animated CGI or computer-generated imagery has provided stunning visuals that enhance the viewing experience of moviegoers. Well, those in SocMed are still images minus the movement but they are fast-becoming intriguing attractions the way CGIs have captured the viewers’ imagination. Hollywood is no stranger to technology. Some of the most iconic moments in cinema have only been made possible thanks to greenscreens and computer-generated imagery, or CGI. But that’s different from AI, which doesn’t require manual human inputs to create images or operate like CGI does. The ability of AI to supplant so many parts of the creative process was central to the 2023 actors’ and writers’ strikes — schisms that divided the entertainment industry. “AI” has become a two-letter dirty word in Hollywood in recent years, provoking pushback from creative types who believe that movie magic should be the product of primarily human — not digital — brains. That extends across everything from scriptwriting to voice dubbing. The results of the March 2 Oscars ceremony could also further the industry’s embrace — or distrust — of artificial intelligence.  Several big-ticket movies which won in the Oscars this year were created in part with AI, sometimes provoking fierce criticism online. Even their historic efforts to put parameters around AI’s use, however, haven’t been enough to halt its march. So long as investors, financiers, and production companies see money-making potential, Hollywood probably isn’t going to say farewell to AI. According to multiple reports, AI enhanced Karla Sofía Gascón’s voice in “Emilia Pérez.” An advanced form of machine learning is said to have helped give the Fremen their glowy, hypnotic blue eyes in “Dune: Part Two.” AI was also involved in the post-production of “A Complete Unknown.” In January, Dávid Jancsó, the editor of “The Brutalist” — which follows a Hungarian-Jewish architect and Holocaust survivor — said that AI helped perfect the lead actors’ accents in the film. “I am a native Hungarian speaker, and I know that it is one of the most difficult languages to learn to pronounce,” Jancsó told RedShark News, a publisher focused on film and television. His admission prompted scrutiny and online chatter, forcing the director to later clarify that AI was “used in Hungarian language dialogue editing only” and that the filmmakers strived to “preserve the authenticity” of the actors’ performances. These instances have generated enough noise that even the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences — the group behind the awards ceremony — is reportedly considering adding a requirement for filmmakers to disclose the use of such tools to its Oscars submission guidelines. Reference: Oscars win for films like ‘The Brutalist’ could accelerate AI’s march on Hollywood

April 16, 2025 AI enables brain implant to convert thoughts into speech Human augmentation is opening doors to a future where becoming superhuman is within reach. Since ancient times, people have strived to replicate lost human abilities. Common examples include glasses to restore vision, prostheses to enable walking or using arms, and hearing aids to enhance hearing. These early forms of human augmentation laid the groundwork for the advanced technologies we use today. The latest achievement using an implant linking brains and computers raised hopes that these devices could allow people who have lost the ability to communicate to regain their voice. A brain implant using artificial intelligence (AI) was able to turn a paralyzed woman’s thoughts into speech almost simultaneously, United States researchers said on March 31, 2025. However, the technology is still at the experimental stage. The experiment was performed on Ann, a 47-year-old former high school math teacher who has not been able to speak since suffering a stroke 18 years ago. The California-based team of researchers had previously used a brain-computer interface (BCI) to decode the thoughts of Ann and translate them into speech. But there was an eight-second delay between her thoughts and the speech being read aloud by a computer. This meant a flowing conversation was still out of reach for Ann. But the team’s new model, revealed in the journal Nature Neuroscience, turned Ann’s thoughts into a version of her old speaking voice in 80-millisecond increments. In an interview with Agence France-Presse (AFP), senior study author Gopala Anumanchipalli of the University of California, Berkeley, said: “Our new streaming approach converts her brain signals to her customized voice in real time, within a second of her intent to speak.” He added: “Ann’s eventual goal is to become a university counselor.” For the research, Ann was shown sentences on a screen — such as “You love me then” — which she would say to herself in her mind. Then her thoughts would be converted into her voice, which the researchers built up from recordings of her speaking before she was injured. Ann was “very excited to hear her voice, and reported a sense of embodiment,” Anumanchipalli said. The BCI intercepts brain signals “after we’ve decided what to say, after we’ve decided what words to use and how to move our vocal tract muscles,” study co-author Cheol Jun Cho explained in a statement. The model uses an AI method called deep learning that was trained on Ann previously attempting to silently speak thousands of sentences. Reference: Brain implant turns thoughts into speech in near real-time

April 14, 2025 PH Lawmaker pushes for regulation of social media content creators Bataan Rep. Geraldine Roman said at a press briefing in March 2025 that she was eyeing the creation of a Digital Council of the Philippines composed of stakeholders such as content creators, digital advertisers, public relations firms; the Department of Information and Communications Technology, National Bureau of Investigation; and representatives of social media platforms Facebook (Meta), Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and X (formerly Twitter). She said the inclusion of government agencies would toughen the council whose primary task is to regulate and fact-check online posts. She has also proposed the registration of social media influencers and vloggers. “And then this group will come up with their own Code of Ethics and standards that have to be followed. [The council] would also receive complaints from victims of fake news and they will fact-check [content],” Roman said. Meanwhile, the new head of the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) expressed support for the creation of a regulatory body to rein in online content creators or “vloggers” who spread fake news. In an interview, PCO chief Jay Ruiz said the government, as an alternative to the regulation of vloggers, may need to step up efforts to educate netizens about their responsibility to disseminate only the truth. “We are studying the possibility [of regulating social media content], and we hope it would somehow push through, especially in the case of those who are responsible for spreading false contents,” he added. “I believe it’s about time that we resort to regulation—or if not regulation, at least to notify the vloggers, the social media users about their responsibilities to the public,” Ruiz said. He noted there were no government agencies monitoring social media contents and their creators. In early February, a total of 40 social media personalities and representatives from various online platforms were invited to the House of Representatives tri committee’s first hearing. The panels on public order and safety; public information; and information and communications technology started looking into the spread of fake news and disinformation nationwide. The House inquiry was a chance to “refine ethical frameworks in the digital space” while maintaining safeguards against harmful content. Social media influencer and former Presidential Communications Office secretary Trixie Cruz Angeles on March 21, 2025 called the third hearing of the House of Representatives’ “Tricomm” committee as “interesting” after several of her peers were admonished by lawmakers over alleged misinformation spread on social media. However, Angeles also said that any regulation of social media may “run afoul” of the constitutional provision of free speech. Reference: Regulation of socmed content creators pushed

April 11, 2025 Filipinos continue to incorporate the internet into daily routines People between the ages of 16 and 64 spend an average of 8 hours and 52 minutes daily accessing the internet across all devices. 5 hours and 20 minutes are spent on the internet using mobile phones, while 3 hours and 32 minutes of the typical day are dedicated to using it on computers and tablets. It is worth noting that 60.1% of the total daily online time is spent on mobile devices, highlighting smartphones’ key role in Filipino digital habits. In light of the nation’s strong cultural focus on family and community, 79.6% of Filipinos use the Internet to remain in contact with friends and family. At 79.3%, nearly as many use the internet to find information, emphasizing the significance of the web as an invaluable source of knowledge. Furthermore, 71.5% said they explore how to do things online, demonstrating a proactive attitude to self-education and practical application of internet resources. Accessibility trends on the internet provide valuable insights on enhancing and tailoring online content to engage Filipinos. With a rise of 1.5% year-on-year, 98.8% of users still access online material using mobile phones, making them the primary method for Filipinos to use the internet. Despite a 4.6% decrease from the previous year, 61.8% of Filipinos use laptops and desktop computers to access the internet, with mobile choices following closely behind. Meanwhile, the percentage of Filipinos using tablets for this reason has dropped to 24.4%, a year-on-year fall of 13.2%, even though these devices are multipurpose tools for both productivity and enjoyment. In the same way, the percentage of connected televisions—devices that bring the internet to bigger displays ideal for video streaming and browsing—has fallen to 32.6%, a decline of 3.6% from the prior year. 1.8 million more Filipinos are now online in 2024, bringing the overall number of internet users in the Philippines to 86.98 million, up 2.1% from the previous year. Despite this rise, internet usage time is down, falling 3.8%, or an average of 21 minutes, suggesting that people have gotten increasingly selective with online browsing amidst social media content saturation. An increase of 0.6% over the previous year brings the Philippines’ internet penetration rate to 73.6%; this number indexed at 111.2 over the worldwide average, indicating an ongoing rise in digital accessibility, integrating more Filipinos within the global online community. The nation’s use trends reveal an affection for social interaction and ecommerce. Online communication is essential in people’s everyday lives, as 99.2% of Filipino internet users aged 16 to 64 are active on social networks, while 98.2% utilize chat and message services. 91.7% of Filipinos use search engines or web portals to navigate vast online information and data. Lastly, 84.1% of internet traffic goes toward online shopping, auctions, or classifieds, demonstrating the prosperous e-commerce scene and the Filipinos’ fondness for online markets. Sites like Lazada, Shopee, and Carousell have been important companions to Filipinos’ daily purchases and ecommerce habits for luxuries and essentials. When it comes down to it, Filipinos are very about keeping connected, getting their news, and enjoying all the perks of online shopping. Reference: Social Media Statistics in the Philippines [Updated 2024] (meltwater.com)

April 04, 2025 DICT urged to intensify efforts against text scams On October 10, 2022 President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. signed into law Republic Act No. 11934 or the SIM Card Registration Act. The law aims to provide accountability for those using SIM cards and aid law enforcement in tracking perpetrators of crimes committed through phones. However, scam attempts continue and many Filipinos still fall victim to phishing scams, for instance, through short messaging services hence the need to be vigilant against perpetrators. Progress in cyber defense programs brings benefits to everyone in today’s connected world. Everything from identity theft, to extortion attempts, to the loss of important data like family photos can be consequences of a cybersecurity attack. Living in today’s technology driven environment has made everyone to rely on critical infrastructure like power plants, hospitals, and financial service companies. Securing these and other organizations is essential to keeping our society functioning. Senatorial aspirant and former Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos called on the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to intensify efforts against new text scams. In a statement, Abalos emphasized the need for the government to stay vigilant as scammers find innovative ways to execute online text scams. ‘’I call on the Department of Information and Technology to look into this,” he said. Abalos added: “We have already started resolving cases of scams, but scammers continue to come up with new techniques to commit crimes.” The DICT recently reported an increase in scam messages imitating legitimate advisories from popular e-wallet services. According to the DICT, scammers use this tactic to deceive recipients and steal their personal and financial information. The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) also issued a warning on Wednesday about phishing scams disguised as e-wallet providers. CICC Executive Director Alexander Ramos urged the public to verify messages and avoid clicking on suspicious links to protect themselves from fraud. Ramos said: “We are appealing to the public to be more vigilant and never click links sent through text messages. We should always be suspicious when we receive such links through text messages.” In light of recent incidents, Abalos advised the public to remain cautious and avoid interacting with unfamiliar text messages. “Be vigilant and do not easily believe suspicious information you receive or read from text messages,” he said in Filipino. DICT spokesperson Assistant Secretary Aboy Paraiso underscored the importance of “cyber hygiene.” He said that two-factor or multi-factor authentication is the best way to protect yourself from any online scam. “Kasi hindi lang passwords ang kailangan. [May] OTP, yung biometrics natin i-input natin para po makagain access tayo sa financial records,” he said. (It won’t just need your password. There’s OTP, our biometrics, that we have to input so we can gain access to our financial records.) Reference: DICT urged to strengthen measures vs new text scams

April 02, 2025 Popular Internet Terms You Need to Know Part 2 The internet being a vast, confusing place is no longer something to wonder about. But it’s helpful to learn some of the technical terms to avoid confusion about acronyms like DOCSIS, the difference between “Wi-Fi” and “internet,” and so on. We still got you covered with Part 2 of a simple list of some of the most common home internet terms. Gateway: This is a modem and router combined into one device — your “gateway” to the internet, if you will. Many providers, including AT&T, Optimum and Xfinity, offer gateway devices in place of separate modems and routers. Verizon and other 5G home internet providers also use all-in-one gateway equipment. Geosynchronous orbit or geostationary orbit satellite internet: Satellite internet ISPs Hughesnet and Viasat use satellites positioned in high orbits to provide internet to their (mostly rural) clients. This type of satellite sits in the same spot above Earth. Hughesnet’s latest geostationary Jupiter 3 satellite, for example, hangs out 22,300 miles above the planet and covers much of North and South America. Viasat’s satellite fleet is also in a high Earth orbit and would appear to someone on the ground to stay in the same place. These satellites can each cover a large area with internet access. IP address: An internet protocol address is like a numerical fingerprint for internet devices and networks. Everything from your laptop to your router has an IP address for identification, so internet communications go to the right place. Your internet router has a unique public IP address, but you will also have private IP addresses assigned to devices like computers or televisions on your home network. ISP: This is shorthand for “internet service provider.” That’s the company you pay to get access to the internet. Different ISPs use different technologies to hook you up, so you might have a fiber, cable, DSL or fixed wireless ISP. Big names in the ISP world include Xfinity, Spectrum, Verizon, AT&T, Optimum, Cox and Frontier. LAN: This stands for local area network. When devices in the home, at school or in a work office are connected to the same network, that’s a LAN. A WLAN is also a local area network but wireless. Wi-Fi is a type of WLAN connection. Low Earth orbit satellite internet: We already discussed Hughesnet and Viasat and their geosynchronous satellites. Starlink does things a little differently with its low Earth orbit (sometimes called “LEO”) satellite constellation. Instead of using a few satellites that sit in one place in a high orbit (over 22,000 miles up), LEO employs thousands of small satellites that are on the move in relation to the planet’s surface. They orbit at a distance of about 342 miles above Earth. You can sometimes spot a Starlink satellite “train” trucking across the night sky under the right conditions. MAC address: This stands for media access control address. Each NIC (see below) has an identifier. This identifier is the MAC address. Mbps: Megabits per second (or Gbps for gigabits per second) is a measurement for data transfer over a network. Essentially, it’s your internet speed. For example, you might sign up for fiber internet that offers 1,000Mbps (1Gbps) downloads. You might get 10,000Mbps (10Gbps) speeds with fast fiber. Slow-poke DSL? You might max out at 100Mbps. Actual home internet speeds can vary, but it will help you compare plans. Mesh Wi-Fi: A mesh Wi-Fi system features a router and additional nodes that boost the signal from the router throughout your home. The benefit of a mesh system is that you can walk throughout your home with a wireless device, like your laptop or the new iPhone 16, and your device will automatically connect to the best signal output, whether that be your router or a node. Modem: The word “modem” is short for modulator-demodulator. It’s a piece of hardware that converts the data from your ISP into data your devices can use on your home network and vice versa. It acts like a translator that keeps your internet flowing. Modems are typically used for cable and DSL internet connections. If you sign up for 5G home internet from the likes of Verizon or T-Mobile, you will get a gateway device that combines the capabilities of a modem and a router. MU-MIMO: This acronym equates to multi-user, multi-input, multi-output. The majority of recent Wi-Fi routers have MU-MIMO capabilities, which divide the Wi-Fi signal into multiple streams. This accommodates multiple devices at once and potentially delivers extra bandwidth to those who need it. NIC: A network interface controller is a component in your computer or wireless device that enables it to communicate with a network. ONT: An optical network terminal isn’t the same as a modem but plays a similar role. It translates signals so your devices can use the internet. ONTs are used with fiber networks. You’ll still want a router to manage where the data goes. Reference: Top Internet Terms You Need to Know: From ACP to ZigBee

March 24, 2025 DepEd, Google join hands to equip educators with digital teaching tools The Department of Education (DepEd) is joining forces with Google to enhance its operations. They are rolling out one million “Google Workspace for Education Plus” accounts/licenses for educators and staff, aiming to boost efficiency, collaboration, and communication. This initiative ultimately benefits public school students across the nation. DepEd said the licenses would benefit 800,000 teachers and 200,000 non-teaching personnel, which would enable public school teachers to create lesson plans and adjust them based on areas where students are slow. The licenses also allow teachers access to coding tutorials, and school administrators to manage students’ school-issued Chromebooks. Education Secretary Sonny Angara said the technology provided by Google would help DepEd scale up its computerization program. Apart from partnerships with Google, the DepEd chief said the agency would be looking for other private sector collaborators to provide the necessary technologies for 28 million students. “How do you go from maybe doing it with a million people to doing it with 28 million students, 24 million students, the public system and another 3.5 million, the private schools also need our help. That’s the challenge,” he said. Angara added: “So, we’re looking forward to all our collaborations here.” Google for Education tools work together to transform teaching and learning so every student and educator can pursue their personal potential. Google Workspace for Education helps you enhance instructional impact, prepares students for the future, and puts your institution’s safety and security first. The following are key features/tools of Google for Education: Google Workspace for Education enables seamless collaboration with real-time editing, simple file sharing, and communication tools, boosting teamwork among students, educators, and staff. Chromebooks are fast, secure, and easy-to-manage devices that provide students and teachers with quick access to educational tools and resources. Google Classroom makes it easy to streamline assignments, use interactive tools, and foster collaboration, making learning more dynamic and accessible. Gemini’s advanced AI capabilities help personalize learning, automate administrative tasks, and deliver insights to empower educators and enhance student outcomes. References: DepEd partners with Google to equip educators with Google Workspace for Education Plus Google gives DepEd 1 million Workspace for Education licenses

March 14, 2025 Mobile World Congress 2025: Energy, mobile tech, AI take center stage Innovation is the name of the game in this era of digital technology. Our world today is constantly evolving and business enterprises need technology solutions to keep pace and get ahead of the game. On March 3 to 6, the Mobile World Congress was held in Barcelona, Spain with tech leaders coming together to explore the trends and technologies shaping the mobile industry in 2025. Each year, the event is a chance to see what’s next for mobile phones, laptops, and consumer tech, with a particular focus on artificial intelligence (AI) this time around. Here’s a round-up of the interesting highlights at MWC 2025: Deutsche Telekom gives a first look at its AI phone Germany’s Deutsche Telekom announced that it is launching a Perplexity chatbot-powered AI phone. The phone, which will be released sometime this year, will run “Magenta AI,” which will give users access to a pack of AI tools including Perplexity Assistant, Google Cloud AI, ElevenLabs, and Picsart. The company wrote in a press release that the phone will be able to order a taxi, reserve a table, translate in real time, and respond to a user’s questions. A preview of new Google AI features on Android Google tested two new AI features coming to Android phones later this month, the company said. A Gemini Live demo showed a user asking the AI to suggest a color for a vase based on the surrounding room’s decor and style. Another shows a user sharing their screen with Gemini Live to ask their AI assistant for outfit suggestions that would go with a pair of jeans they would like to buy. Phones focus on photography A few mobile phones at MWC had a higher focus on professional-grade photography. The Nubia Focus 2 Ultra, one of the latest designs from China’s ZTE, has what they call an AI Photography System that “lets you take high-quality photos anytime and anywhere,” the company wrote. The phone’s unique rotating dial at the back lets users choose between five focal lengths that will help them take wide-angle, street photos, portraits, and long-focus shots. It also includes AI features like an eraser that lets users edit their shots. Lenovo’s solar-powered laptop While not focused on phones, the Chinese company Lenovo unveiled potential AI-powered laptops at MWC this year. Among the featured is the Yoga Solar PC, a proof of concept laptop with a solar panel built into the cover that could power itself for up to one hour of video streaming when left in direct sunlight for just 20 minutes. The laptop would also keep track of the panel’s current and voltage and automatically adjusts the settings to maximize how the laptop can save energy, regardless of the light intensity in any workspace. Tech needs to ‘pick up the pace’ on decarbonizing AI production Energy and artificial intelligence (AI) leaders say that the tech industry needs to pick up the pace on building innovative new technologies to get artificial data centers away from using fossil fuels. “We have the technologies to solve this, we have the knowledge, the capital is willing to move in, but we have to pick up the pace. So, I think the direction is very clear, but the pace is not,” Anna Borg, CEO of energy company Vattenfall AB, told an audience at the tech conference. Security threats to smartphones also weigh heavy at this year’s meet Cybersecurity also has had top billing in some product announcements at the MWC. Keeping smartphone users safe from phishing, deepfakes and malicious software is top of mind for many manufacturers and network operators. Chinese smartphone maker Honor showed off a new tool ahead of MWC’s opening that it said would allow its smartphones to detect deepfakes — deceptive AI images and video based on the likeness of real people. The GSMA telecom operators’ association, which hosts MWC in Barcelona every year, has developed a tool called “Scam signals.” Built alongside Britain’s banking industry group, UK Finance, “Scam signals” is a service that applications can call on to detect signs of phone-based fraud, when scammers call up customers to push them to authorize transactions on their mobile banking apps. References: MWC 2025: Here is the new AI tech unveiled at Mobile World Congress Mobile World Congress: Tech needs to ‘pick up the pace’ on decarbonizing AI production