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Welcome to Tuesday. Intel has just spent over $15 billion shoring up its self-driving car tech, you'll be playing PS4 games, officially and legally, on your PC and we explain how a microwave works. Because it certainly isn't a camera.
Smart cars.
Intel buys self-driving tech firm MobilEye for $15.3 billion
MobilEye is one of the big players in autonomous cars and was an early partner with Tesla on its AutoPilot technology. Now Intel has snapped up the firm for $15.3 billion after the two teamed up on tech for BMW's iNext platform, expected to debut in 2021. MobilEye's expertise is in the computer vision and machine learning that helps self-driving cars figure out where to go, and Intel wants to make that a piece of its "automated driving solution."
PlayStation Now will add streaming PS4 games soon
Sony has been streaming games from the cloud with PlayStation Now since 2014, but so far, that has not included games for its latest console. Now, the company says PlayStation 4 games will join the subscription service, with a "private test" starting in the next few weeks. There's no word on which games will be available, but remember that Sony is pulling the plug on PS Now for all devices other than the PS4 and PC.
US Senate bill would require a warrant for border phone searches
Border Patrol agents searched 5,000 cell phones in February, up from 5,000 in all of 2015. Usually, authorities need a warrant to search your electronic devices. That rule does not apply for international border crossings, however, where searches of devices and demands for passwords to cloud and social media accounts have spiked. Senator Ron Wyden is introducing a new bill that would require a warrant for search and forbid border officials from asking for your passwords.
No, Kellyanne, microwaves cannot turn into cameras
Everyone's paranoid about cybersecurity and surveillance these days, and rightly so. Thanks to the increase in connected devices in our homes, there are more and more gadgets that can be hacked to spy on you. However, the basic laws of physics still apply. Yesterday, President Trump's senior counselor Kellyanne Conway told a reporter that microwave ovens can turn into cameras for surveillance. Nope.
Inside 'Infinity Room,' a dazzling SXSW art installation
Refik Anadol crafts alternate realities but not for VR headsets
Infinity Room is an enclosed cube measuring 12 feet in all three dimensions. Four laser projectors beam various animations that envelop the square room's walls, while the floor and ceiling are covered in mirrors. The result is an intense space, one that at once offers sensory deprivation and overload. So we put Aaron Souppouris inside it.
PlayStation VR horror title 'The Persistence' lets friends mess with your game
Firesprite's upcoming PlayStation VR sci-fi horror title The Persistence will include a mobile companion app that lets nearby friends see the game map. Your pals can make your life easier by steering you toward items, or create havoc by running you toward threats -- which probably the fun part. It'll make it one of the few horror games where the people on your couch may be as much of a threat as those virtual enemies. Friends indeed.
But wait, there's more...
- Oceans are warming faster, so expect more floods
- What's on TV this week: 'Fences' and 'Passengers' on Blu-ray, plus 'Iron Fist' on Netflix
- Luxury phone company Vertu gets sold for a third time
- Volvo's first EV will cost less than $40,000