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Posts tagged as “AI”

Google Limits Free Gemini Tier to Flash-Lite in New Update

Google recently updated its official support documentation regarding changes to Gemini model access and usage limits, formalizing a significant shift in how its AI tiers are structured:

According to the updated support page, Google is restricting model availability for personal accounts starting October 9. Free users will now be limited strictly to the lightweight Flash-Lite model for lightweight tasks like email rewrites or summaries, losing access to both Flash and Pro models. Meanwhile, AI Plus subscribers ($4.99/month) retain Flash-Lite and Flash but lose Pro tier access. Higher-tier subscribers—Google AI Pro and AI Ultra—maintain full model availability along with specialized features like Deep Think for maximum parallel reasoning. Google notes that rollout dates for paying subscribers will arrive via email.

Here’s a table on the different Gemini Model availability this October 9th.

Gemini Model
Google AI Plan Flash-Lite Flash Pro
Without a plan Checkmark
AI Plus Checkmark Checkmark
AI Pro Checkmark Checkmark Checkmark
AI Ultra Checkmark Checkmark Checkmark

Simultaneously, Google is rolling out free “Skills” tools that allow users to create reusable, stackable workflows directly inside chats for writing, research, or business tasks—effectively replacing the older Gems feature. The shift has sparked notable frustration among free users, who view the model restrictions as a severe downgrade and are openly weighing alternatives like ChatGPT.

ICYMI: Meta announces Muse: The World’s First Personal AI Agent Built for Everyone

From Meta;

Today, Meta is introducing Muse, a secure, private personal AI agent that proactively helps with people’s goals and suggests ideas. Because personal agents need a new kind of secure computer, Muse runs on Muse Secure VM, a dedicated, virtual machine (VM) that houses both the agent and a person’s data. Muse is designed around the way people already communicate, so talking to it works just like messaging another person, in the Muse app or directly in WhatsApp.

It’s simple to use. People just tell Muse what needs to get done, and it takes action, powered by Muse Spark, Meta’s most capable model to date, built for real-world agentic work like this.

Muse is designed for “non-tech” people, so anyone can use it out of the box, no technical experience needed. It handles tasks like sending an email or booking travel. Once a person shares a bigger goal, it builds a personalized plan, coordinates their time and resources, then advances the work on its own, including opening a browser, filling out forms and negotiating on their behalf.

For longer tasks, Muse keeps working after the app is closed. It returns when something changes or it needs approval, like before sending an email or making a purchase.

Checkout runs through Link by Stripe, and Muse is the first AI agent covered by Link’s purchase protections. A one-time-use card keeps real card details hidden. Shop Pay and 1Password support are coming soon.

Muse also remembers what matters to a person, like friends’ dietary restrictions before it sends invites.

Meta says Muse Secure VM brings protections no other agent offers. Muse runs on its own dedicated cloud computer, isolated from every other agent, where connected services’ data and credentials are stored.

A separate Sentinel agent on the same machine blocks anything from reaching the internet without its approval, and asks the person when needed. Muse never sees passwords or payment methods; it uses them from secure storage.

Sensitive actions, like sending an email or making a purchase, require the person’s confirmation, and a full audit trail shows what Muse has done and plans to do. People control each app’s access, can disconnect at any time, and can opt out of AI training. Conversations and VM data stay out of Meta’s ad systems, and Muse will forget anything on request.

Later this year, Muse Confidential VM will encrypt everything with a key only the person holds, so not even Meta can access it.

Meta Muse is rolling out in the US on iOS, Android, and muse.ai, and coming soon to AI glasses. It’s free for most of what people need but it will include a subscription plans for people who want to “do more.”

Siri AI, a profoundly more capable and personal assistant powered by the next generation of Apple Intelligence, is here  

Apple;

Siri AI is a completely reimagined version of Siri that is more personal and powerful. With detailed responses and rich, natural conversations, Siri AI helps users get more done than ever before.

Built on Apple Intelligence, this new version of Siri draws on personal context understanding to help users find what they need in the moment across messages, emails, photos, and more. And with even more systemwide app actions, Siri AI can help users with tasks such as drafting an email from scratch or editing and sharing a set of photos.

This is the Siri Apple always intended it to be.

In order to use Apple Intelligence, you need to be using iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and visionOS 27 is available on iPhone 16 models or later, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPad mini (A17 Pro), iPad models with M1 or later, MacBook Neo (A18 Pro), Mac models with M1 or later, Apple Vision Pro, Apple Watch Series 9 or later, Apple Watch Ultra 2 or later, and Apple Watch SE 3 when paired with an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone nearby.

Google Announces Gemini 3.8 Live and 3.8 Live Extended Thinking

Google has introduced Gemini 3.8 Live and Gemini 3.8 Live Extended Thinking, marking a major leap in real-time, audio-to-audio artificial intelligence. These models are built specifically to handle fluid, back-and-forth voice interactions while simultaneously processing complex underlying logic.

Core Capabilities

  • Gemini 3.8 Live: Optimized for low-latency, natural dialogue. It allows users to speak organically with the AI, supporting real-time interruptions, dynamic tone adjustment, and fluid conversational flow without typical voice-assistant delays.
  • Gemini 3.8 Live Extended Thinking: Tailored for complex tasks that require higher background reasoning. By leveraging parallel processing, the model executes multi-step logic and problem-solving “behind the scenes” while maintaining an uninterrupted, natural spoken conversation.

Key Benchmarks & Features

  • Audio Intelligence: Achieves 97.7% on Big Bench Audio, establishing a new benchmark for spoken instruction comprehension and context retention.
  • Continuous Audio Stream: Operates natively in an audio-to-audio framework rather than converting voice to text and back, drastically reducing response latency.
  • Parallel Reasoning: Extended Thinking actively resolves edge cases, coding problems, or computational questions mid-conversation without pausing the verbal output.

These updates transform voice agents from simple command-execution tools into active collaborative partners. Developers can deploy Gemini 3.8 Live for live customer support, conversational tutoring, or real-time translation. Meanwhile, the Extended Thinking variant enables complex hands-free workflows—such as debugging code via voice or working through multi-variable strategy problems during a call—making voice interaction far more versatile across technical and professional fields.

You can read the full text of Google’s announcement at Blog.Google.

Anthropic Publishes Its Most Comprehensive Threat Intelligence Report to Date

Anthropic released its most comprehensive threat intelligence report yet, outlining how the company identified and disrupted advanced efforts to misuse Claude for cyberattacks, covert influence operations, surveillance, biosecurity threats, and weapons risks.

Every operation highlighted in the report was intercepted before reaching its objective. Anthropic applied lessons from these incidents to harden its safeguards while sharing relevant threat data with peer institutions and authorities.

Though these high-severity incidents are rare, Anthropic published the data to shed light on emerging threat vectors, demonstrate where safety systems succeed, and pinpoint areas needing refinement. By sharing these findings, the company aims to help the broader tech ecosystem spot similar activity and provide the public with a clearer picture of emerging AI risks.

For more details, read the full report here or download the PDF version.

Anthropic announces Claude Fable 5.1 and Claude Mythos 5.1

Anthropic said in their announcement, “Claude Fable 5.1 and Claude Mythos 5.1 are the same model, but with different levels of safeguards. Fable 5.1 is generally available, while Mythos 5.1 is available only through our trusted access programs; its safeguards are specifically designed to support work in cybersecurity and the life sciences. Alongside its increased capabilities, Fable 5.1 takes important steps towards addressing the feedback we’ve received from customers on price, data retention, and safeguards.”

May be related to Anthropic’s previous announcement, “Fable 5.1 will cost an estimated 25% less than Fable 5 for typical workloads, wherever usage is billed by token. This is because we’re reducing our pricing on cache reads (where the model reads inputs that have already been processed and stored). For highly agentic work, the savings will often be much larger—up to approximately 45%.”

Key Upgrades & Technical Performance

  • Next-Level Coding & Benchmarks: Fable 5.1 sets new performance records, scoring 52.6% on the Terminal-Bench-Science 0.1 benchmark (compared to 24.7% for Fable 5) and reaching 73.4% on CursorBench 3.2.0. The model excels at finding root causes in complex codebases—in one instance identifying a rare bug in an external vendor library that had eluded human engineers for years.
  • Mythos 5.1 for Specialized Research: Available strictly through trusted access programs, Mythos 5.1 utilizes specialized, high-tier safeguards designed for advanced cybersecurity vulnerability discovery and scientific research in the life sciences.
  • Significant Cost Reduction: Typical token-based workloads will see an estimated 25% cost reduction compared to Fable 5 due to lower pricing on cache reads. Highly agentic workflows can yield total savings of up to 45%.
  • Enterprise Frontier Safeguards (EFS): Anthropic introduced EFS to deliver zero data retention capabilities by allowing enterprise users to store data directly within their own cloud infrastructure rather than on Anthropic servers.

Benchmark Comparison

Metric / Benchmark Claude Fable 5.1 Claude Fable 5 GPT-5.6 Sol
Agentic Coding (Terminal-Bench 4.0) 55.8% (60.9% for Mythos) 42.0% 37.3%
Scientific Research (Terminal-Bench-Science 0.1) 52.6% 24.7% 22.4%
Multidisciplinary Reasoning (Humanity’s Last Exam – with tools) 65.0% 63.8% —