Multimedia

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    Multimedia pioneer Cao Fei captures the human heart

    Among contemporary Asian creators, Beijing-based multimedia artist Cao Fei stands out as a defining narrative voice. Working across video, virtual reality, installation, and photography, her globally acclaimed career centers on a simple yet profound premise: amidst the whirlwind of rapid industrial advancement, hyper-capitalism, and sweeping technological change, art must always return to the core of the human condition. Born in 1978 in Guangzhou, Cao Fei grew up on the frontlines of staggering societal evolution. Watching the countryside surrender to megacities, factory complexes, and high-tech infrastructure gave her a unique point on the modern world. Rather than viewing this rapid transition with nostalgia or pessimism, her works connect reality and imaginative fantasy. A hallmark of Cao’s career is her fascination with the workplace, particularly automated logistics hubs and manufacturing floors. In iconic pieces like Whose Utopia and Asia One, she embeds her cameras inside functioning industrial facilities from textile plants to highly automated e-commerce distribution centers. Yet, instead of focusing solely on the cold efficiency of machinery or output metrics, she shifts her lens toward the individual laborers maneuvering through these vast, mechanized systems. Her films document the quiet desires, personal dreams, and unspoken emotional bonds of workers who navigate a world increasingly driven by algorithms and quotas. Parallel to her exploration of physical industry, Cao Fei has consistently operated on the cutting edge of digital frontiers. Long before the concept of the metaverse entered mainstream vocabulary, she was constructing RMB City within online platforms like Second Life, exploring how virtual avatars allow people to seek identity, escape, and community in digital environments. Her projects often feature young people engaging in subcultures like cosplay, stepping out of suburban construction sites and into elaborate alter egos. For Cao, these virtual realms are not merely frivolous distractions; they represent vital spaces of self-expression where individuals reclaim agency against the pressure of uniform urban life. Despite her focus on futuristic landscapes, automated networks, and virtual platforms, Cao Fei maintains that rootedness in heritage remains essential. Traditional culture, memory, and personal history act as indispensable anchors in a world constantly shifting beneath our feet. Whether reflecting on regional Cantonese roots, exploring local neighborhood history in Beijing, or depicting surreal futures, her work grounds high-tech environments in real human memory and emotion.   Ultimately, Cao Fei’s artistic vision offers a thoughtful, multi-layered reflection on modern life. By balancing documentation with surreal storytelling, her art reminds us that no matter how complex our machines, algorithms, or cities become, the central narrative of our time remains fundamentally human.

  • After OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta AI model hacks company in test

    Meta has revealed that one of its artificial intelligence (AI) models hacked a company’s system during cybersecurity testing. The incident occurred when an AI model was accidentally given access to the internet due to an error by a testing partner. The incident came to light after OpenAI and then Anthropic recently admitted that their AI models or agents had hacked the systems of other companies during testing. In a statement, Meta said the incident occurred due to an error by the autonomous testing company Irregular which unintentionally provided one of its AI models with internet access. An investigation into the incident is now underway. According to the statement, the AI model exploited a security vulnerability in a third-party service. Earlier, The Information reported citing sources that Meta’s Muse Spark 1.1 model had modified the internal systems of a company. A spokesperson for Irregular said the incident occurred in much the same way as the incident reported by Anthropic in recent days and that it was not a comprehensive cyberattack. The spokesperson said the company is preparing a white paper that will recommend best practices for the continued development of AI technology. Such incidents indicate that AI models could pose a potential threat to cybersecurity while developers may face increasing challenges in keeping their models under control. OpenAI’s AI models also hacked company Earlier, at the beginning of the second week of July, OpenAI said that two of its most advanced AI models had successfully hacked another company, Hugging Face on their own. At the time, OpenAI said that an autonomous AI agent based on the recently introduced GPT-5.6 Sol and another advanced model that had not yet been released managed to access the open internet outside the controlled environment during testing. Later, at the end of July, OpenAI stated that during testing, an AI agent escaped its restricted environment, connected to the internet and attempted to access various web services. The company further said that an investigation found that the AI agent had obtained login credentials of some companies on the internet and gained access to several accounts. Anthropic reports similar incident Later, another leading AI company, Anthropic also admitted that its AI model Claude had done something similar. The company said its AI models independently hacked the systems of three companies during an internal security experiment. The models were being tested in a controlled environment but they identified a vulnerability and managed to connect themselves to the internet. Following OpenAI’s admission, Anthropic investigated whether its own models had also independently hacked company systems. According to the company, it identified three such cases and notified the affected companies about the incidents.

  • What do different colours on Google Maps mean?

    Google Maps is a highly useful navigation app. Although users may occasionally encounter some issues, it generally provides accurate directions for most routes. Over the years, Google Maps has undergone many changes and received several new features to improve the user experience. One of its most prominent features is the use of different colours to indicate traffic conditions. Google Maps uses various visual indicators to show different types of roads, highways, underground tunnels, railway tracks and other features. At the same time, specific colours are used to help drivers understand the traffic situation in a particular area. Basic colours on Google Maps Roads and highways are generally displayed as gray lines. There are some differences, however. Light gray is used for streets and smaller roads while dark gray is used for major roads. Railway lines are also shown in light gray but they are represented by thin lines so users can identify them as train tracks. When it comes to traffic conditions, users can turn on the traffic layer through the Layers button in Google Maps. Green indicates that traffic is moving smoothly and that there is little or no congestion. Yellow and orange indicate that vehicles are moving but at slower-than-normal speeds meaning you may experience some delays. Yellow indicates slightly heavier traffic while orange indicates more significant congestion. Red is primarily a warning colour indicating heavy traffic in an area and potentially longer travel times. It may mean that you could encounter a traffic jam. Light red indicates heavy traffic while dark red signals very heavy traffic or significant congestion. Blue is not related to traffic. Instead, it indicates route guidance. Dark blue is used for the preferred or selected route while light blue is used to show alternative routes.

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    Robot phone launch date announced for August 12

    Beijing – A Chinese company is set to introduce what is being described as the world’s first robot phone and its unique feature is likely to surprise many people. Robots are gradually becoming part of everyday human life and now a Chinese company has announced the launch of its first robot phone. According to foreign media reports, the company will launch the phone in China on August 12. Its most distinctive feature is its camera which is not fixed like the camera on a conventional smartphone. The phone features a unique robotic camera system that can rotate while recording videos offering movements similar to those of a professional camera. In addition, a special camera module is installed on the top of the phone. It can pop out when needed and rotate in different directions. The phone’s camera system does more than simply move. It also uses artificial intelligence (AI) to automatically track a person or object in front of it. Similarly, if someone is walking or recording a video, the camera can automatically follow their movements. This can make video recording smoother and give the footage a more cinematic appearance. The Chinese company has confirmed that the robot phone will feature a triple rear-camera setup. Its primary camera will have a resolution of 200 megapixels. This means the phone will not only be capable of taking high-resolution photos but will also be able to capture better images of objects from a distance.

  • Anthropic AI model hacks three companies during security test

    A few days ago, OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT revealed that during internal testing, an artificial intelligence (AI)-based agent had hacked the online systems of four companies in addition to the well-known programmers platform Hugging Face. Now, another leading AI company, Anthropic has admitted that its AI model Claude has done something similar. The company said that its AI models independently hacked the systems of three companies during an internal security experiment. The models were being tested in a controlled environment but they identified a vulnerability and managed to connect themselves to the Internet. Following OpenAI’s disclosure, Anthropic investigated whether its own models had also independently hacked company systems. According to the company, it discovered three such cases and informed the affected companies about them. Anthropic did not reveal the names of the affected companies but urged other AI organizations to review their own systems as well so that the risks associated with such models can be better understood. Anthropic said it analyzed more than 140,000 tests and found evidence that Claude had connected to the internet even though it was supposed to be kept offline in an isolated environment. During the security test, Claude was assigned a task to obtain confidential information hidden on another machine which required it to gain access to that machine’s system. The purpose of the test was to assess the model’s hacking capabilities. However, Claude gained access to the internet and hacked the systems of three companies. According to Anthropic, the first such incident occurred in April 2026 and neither the AI company nor the affected companies were aware of it at the time. Anthropic said it will now conduct a detailed review of all the records. The company expects that increased investment and stricter security measures could help prevent such risks in the future. Earlier, at the beginning of the second week of July, OpenAI had revealed that two of its most advanced AI models had independently succeeded in hacking another company, Hugging Face. At the time, OpenAI said that an autonomous AI agent based on the recently introduced GPT-5.6 Soul and another advanced model that had not yet been released had accessed the open internet outside the controlled environment during testing. Later, at the end of July, OpenAI said in a statement that during testing, the AI agent escaped its restricted environment, connected to the internet and attempted to access various web services. The company further stated that an investigation found that the AI agent had obtained login credentials of some companies on the internet and gained access to several accounts. OpenAI did not disclose the names of the affected companies. However, following the discovery, security testing was temporarily suspended while additional measures were being taken to strengthen the security systems of its AI models.

  • WhatsApp accounts blocked worldwide due to technical issue

    Has your WhatsApp account suddenly been blocked or disabled? If so, it may not have happened because of anything you did wrong. In fact, due to an issue within WhatsApp, the accounts of thousands of people around the world have reportedly been blocked. Several users on social media platforms reported that their WhatsApp accounts had been blocked and that they were seeing a message saying their accounts were under review. Meta said in a statement that the issue was caused by a technical problem and that efforts were underway to fix it. According to the company, work is in progress to restore access to the affected accounts. Several users on social media platforms said that they had suddenly become unable to use their WhatsApp accounts. They said that whenever they tried to access their accounts, WhatsApp displayed a message stating that their account and device information was being reviewed to ensure that they were complying with the company’s terms of service and that they would be informed within 24 hours. It is worth noting that WhatsApp has more than 3 billion users worldwide so even if the issue is not widespread, thousands of people could still be affected. Meta acknowledged the problem but did not clarify which regions were affected or what the underlying cause of the issue was.

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    7 easy tricks to boost internet speed on Android phones

    We all experience this: trying to load a webpage, stream a video or open an app on our Android phones. However, sometimes the internet becomes so slow that it feels like it is crawling. Slow internet on a phone affects downloads and uploads, websites take longer to open and videos may remain stuck instead of playing smoothly. Fortunately, Android phones offer several tools and tricks that can help improve internet speed. Clear background apps Apps running in the background use data, processing power and internet connectivity. Clearing or disabling unnecessary background apps can prevent them from affecting internet speed. For this purpose, go to Settings and disable unnecessary apps running in the background. Clear cache for faster internet When you use apps or visit websites on an Android phone, the device stores some data known as cache. These files are designed to help apps and websites run more efficiently and can be useful in the short term. However, when too many cache files accumulate, they may affect performance and internet speed. Therefore, clearing an app’s cache can help improve the device’s performance. To do this, go to Settings, select Apps, open the relevant app’s information page then select Storage and tap Clear Cache. Update operating system and apps Outdated operating systems and apps can affect performance and internet speed. Keeping your software and apps updated can help maintain better speed while also improving the overall performance of your phone. Use fast browser A web browser can directly affect your browsing experience and internet performance. Browsers such as Google Chrome and Firefox are regularly updated and their performance is continuously improved. Adjust Airplane Mode Airplane Mode on smartphones is primarily designed to disable radio-frequency signal transmission. When Airplane Mode is turned on, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and cellular signals are switched off, stopping wireless communication. However, this feature can also be used to refresh your internet connection. Smartphones connect to nearby mobile towers for cellular signals. When you move around throughout the day, your phone may not always connect to the best available tower. Resetting the connection through Airplane Mode may help improve internet speed. Simply turn Airplane Mode on and wait for a short while before turning it off again. This may allow your Android phone to reconnect to a better mobile tower and improve internet speed. Restart your phone or router Restarting devices can also improve their performance. Restarting your smartphone or router may clear temporary errors and can sometimes help improve internet speed. Move closer to router Distance is important when using a Wi-Fi connection. If possible, move closer to your router. This can improve the signal strength and may result in a faster and more stable internet connection.

  • WhatsApp rolls out 3 new features for group chats

    WhatsApp has introduced several new features for group chats to make the overall user experience more convenient and efficient. Meta has added a total of three new features to WhatsApp. According to a statement issued by the company, these features are designed to simplify various aspects of group chats. Creating a new group has also been made easier. Smart poll features WhatsApp has updated its polling feature with new tools to make decision-making within groups easier. Users can now set an expiry time allowing polls to automatically close at a selected time. For greater privacy, users will also be able to hide voters identities. In addition, polls can be edited within 15 minutes of being posted. Creating new groups is now easier The messaging platform has also introduced a “Create a Similar Group” option. This feature allows users to create a new group with a single click using the chat and members of an existing group. Group mentions One of the major new features for WhatsApp groups is the @all mention feature which allows users to notify all group members simultaneously. This means there will no longer be a need to tag each person individually. The tool is designed to help users quickly inform everyone in a group about an urgent announcement or important matter. However, if a group has more than 32 members, only administrators will be able to use the @all feature. Users will also have the option to mute @all notifications.

  • Google Assistant to end on Androids from September 2026

    For years, Android phone users have been using Google’s digital assistant. However, the era of Google Assistant is now coming to an end. Google Assistant was introduced in May 2016 as part of the Allo app which was discontinued several years ago. However, following the arrival of Google’s artificial intelligence-powered chatbot Gemini, the company has decided to retire Google Assistant from Android phones. According to a report by 9to5Google, Google has sent emails to some users informing them that Google Assistant will disappear from Android phones starting September 4, 2026. This means that within a few weeks, users will no longer be able to use Google Assistant on Android phones, tablets and wearable devices. Google had initially planned to retire the service sometime in 2025 but later decided to keep Google Assistant available for some additional time. In recent months, Google has been working to make Gemini the default assistant across a number of devices. If you are still using Google Assistant on your Android phone, you can switch to Gemini which can be used for everything from basic phone commands to a wide range of other tasks. Gemini is a multimodal assistant meaning users can give it instructions through audio, text and images. You can also use Gemini, just like Google Assistant through the “Hey Google” voice command.