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Not content with stuffing Gemini into all of its own apps and services, Google wants you to adopt its AI assistant on desktops and laptops too. The company released a Gemini Windows app on Tuesday and it's following that up a day later with one for Macs.
Google says the macOS Gemini app is a "native desktop experience" that you can access with a keyboard shortcut. By default, pressing option and space will open a mini chat, while a combo of option, shift and space will open the full Gemini chat experience. You'll be able to adjust these bindings in the app settings.
Users will be able to share anything that's on their screen, including files they have saved on your system, with the chatbot and ask it questions about whatever they're seeing. This can include anything from images to documents, and data to code.
There's an option to share full web pages with Gemini, not just what's on your display. The Gemini app also supports image and video generation with Nano Banana and Veo, respectively. The app is available on Macs that are running macOS 15 (i.e. macOS Sequoia) or later in all countries and languages in which Gemini is supported.
"We're building the foundation for a truly personal, proactive and powerful desktop assistant, with more news to share in the coming months," Michael Friedman, group product manager for the Gemini app, wrote in a blog post. That's intriguing, given that Apple's long-delayed, generative AI revamp of Siri may
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A group of researchers from across the US and the UK have conducted a study on what AI does to our brains and the results are, in a word, grim. These results were published in a paper called "AI assistance reduces persistence and hurts independent performance" which kind of tells you everything you need to know.
"We find that AI assistance improves immediate performance, but it comes at a heavy cognitive cost," the study declares. Researchers went on to state that just ten minutes of using AI made people dependent on the technology, which led to worsening performance and burnout once the tools were removed.
The study followed people who use AI for "reasoning-intensive" cognitive labor. This refers to stuff like writing, coding and brainstorming new ideas, which are some of the most common use cases.
The researchers recruited 350 Americans, who were asked to complete some fraction-based equations. Half of the participants were randomly granted access to a specialized chatbot built on OpenAI's GPT-5 for help and the others had to go it alone. Halfway through the exam, the AI group had their access cut off.
This led to a steep decline in correct answers by the AI group and many instances of people simply giving up. This result, in which performance and perseverance both dropped, was repeated in a larger experiment with 670 people. Finally, the scientists performed one final experiment with reading comprehension questions, and not math. The results were more of the same.
"Once the AI is taken away from people, it's not that people are just giving wrong answers. They're also not willing to try without AI," Rachit Dubey, an assistant professor at the University of California and coauthor of the study,
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 Apple will bring OLED displays to its iPad Air models next year, according to a new report from Korea's ET News.
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Traeger gave backyard pit masters something more affordable last year with the Woodridge, but now the company is back with an even more budget-friendly option. With the Westwood series, the company offers very basic pellet grill functionality with a simplified controller and a no-frills design. You'll still get Wi-Fi connectivity that works with the company's app, and the Westwood grills are compatible with Traeger's rail-based accessories. As you might expect at the
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Amazon has today announced it is merging with satellite internet provider Globalstar Inc. to bolster Leo, its Starlink rival. Globalstar isn't a household name but you do know its work, as it provides Apple's emergency satellite connectivity for compatible iPhones and Watches. In a statement, Amazon says the deal will grow Leo's space-based footprint and enable direct-to-device service for its burgeoning satellite network.
An interesting wrinkle is Apple owns 20 percent of Globalstar, which it bought for $1.5 billion in 2024, but that didn't get a mention. Instead, the release says Amazon and Apple have agreed Leo will "power satellite services for supported iPhone and Apple Watch models." And that this support will continue as Leo's network evolves, as well as collaborating "with Apple on future satellite services using Amazon Leo's expanded satellite network."
The release adds Leo's direct-to-device service won't start until 2028, and the deal itself isn't expected to close until 2027. That is, of course, unless Amazon doesn't placate the FCC into extending its deadline to get more satellites into orbit before July 2026. At present, the company needs to have 1,600 satellites in orbit by that deadline, but only expects to have around 700 actually up in the heavens and working by then.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/amazon-buys-the-satellite-internet-company-behind-apples-sos-system-130150744.html?src=rss
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