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Another day, another publication contributes to the rise of AI. First, the likes of Time and Dotdash Meredith partnered with OpenAI to license their property, now Reuters is giving Meta's AI chatbot access to its news content for responses to current events and news questions, Axios first reported. Basically, the multi-year deal allows users in the US to now receive real-time news details from Meta's AI chatbot tool, with these answers citing and linking out to Reuters' relevant stories. This deal marks Meta's first AI news deal, but Reuter's has worked with the company as a fact-checking partner since 2020. "We're always iterating and working to improve our products, and through Meta's partnership with Reuters, Meta AI can respond to news-related questions with summaries and links to Reuters content," a Meta spokesperson said. The pair have not disclosed whether Meta will get access to Reuters' library to train its learning language model, Llama. The exact figures of the deal also aren't clear, but sources report that Reuters is receiving compensation for this access. Money isn't the only form of payment companies have made in such deals with the devil *coughs* AI (Lionsgate receives a custom AI model for production and editing in its agreement with Runway). This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/meta-ai-gains-access-to-reuters-news-content-in-multi-year-deal-142214611.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
Blumhouse wasnt going to publish a game in 2024. The studio, one of the leading names in horror films, announced in February 2023 that it was launching a video game publishing business and executives were scouting projects from independent teams with budgets under $10 million. The goal of Blumhouse Games was to support a few rad horror titles per year, with a tentative plan to start publishing them in 2025. But then, in September 2023, the Blumhouse folks stumbled across Fear the Spotlight. It was a moody, voxelized horror game about two friends sneaking around their haunted high school and communing with the ghosts of students that died in a fire in the 90s. Spooky shenanigans and mysterious puzzles ensued, all presented in third-person and with a gritty PS One aesthetic. Fear the Spotlight was a PC game made by Crista Castro and Bryan Singh of Cozy Game Pals, a husband-and-wife team with impressive professional credentials: Castro was an art director at Nickelodeon and the art lead on the Animaniacs reboot, and Singh was a programmer who worked on The Last of Us and Uncharted series and Journey. They left their corporate jobs and founded Cozy Game Pals during the pandemic, and Fear the Spotlight was their first major project together. Cozy Game Pals Fear the Spotlight didnt have a particularly buzzy debut, but a few weeks after it hit Steam, Blumhouse Games president Zach Wood and creative lead Louise Blain happened to spot it on Twitter. Castro told Engadget how it went down: Zach found it, and he and Louise Blain sat down and played it together and were like, oh my gosh, this is exactly the kind of game that we want to be publishing, this is really great. Let's reach out to them and see, do they need any help? Is there something here that we can work together on? Meanwhile, yes, we did need help, Singh added, laughing. We had released it, but we had no idea how to get people to know about it. The people that were finding it were saying very positive things, and we're like, OK, that's great, but now what do we do? We know how to make things, but we don't know anything else about marketing. Blumhouse signed Cozy Game Pals and asked how they could help improve Fear the Spotlight. At first, Castro and Singh suggested porting it to consoles and adding additional languages, basic things to get the existing game in front of more players. They were excited about the idea, but then they also offered more time, Singh said. They asked, what would you do if you had an extra year to work on it? The opportunity to expand Fear the Spotlight caught Castro and Singh by surprise. It also scared them, at first. Cozy Game Pals We had never really considered a significant addition to the game before that, Singh said. And we also had what we thought was a finished game that we were really proud of. So it was really, really difficult to figure out how to add to a thing that we felt was finished; we didn't want to ruin it. Part of it is our taste and our work, but also part of it feels like black magic. Like, if we mess with it, is it going to come out in a way that we're proud of? Castro and Singh took the chance. On October 26, 2023, about one month after Fear the Spotlights debut, they removed it from Steam with the promise that theyd add new gameplay, console versions and localization features. They didnt mention Blumhouse at the time. Behind the scenes, Blumhouse Games gave Cozy Game Pals one year to create the definitive version of Fear the Spotlight, with no creative restrictions. The revamped version of Fear the Spotlight came out on Steam, PS4, PS5, Switch and Xbox Series X/S on October 22, 2024, developed by Cozy Game Pals and published by Blumhouse Games. Its the first game in Blumhouses publishing roster, which includes future titles from EYES OUT, Half Mermaid, Perfect Garbage, Playmestudio and Vermila Studios. Cozy Game Pals used the year of extra development time well. Rather than messing with the black magic of the original, Castro and Singh added an entirely new segment, doubling the games run time and expanding on their initial ideas in sophisticated, extra-horrific ways. Fear the Spotlight, by the way, is an excellent horror experience. It has low-poly environments, low-res textures and grainy CRT effects, but its animations are smooth and the camera uses friendly third-person controls, nailing the nostalgia without compromising modern conveniences. The story revolves around two teenage friends, Vivian and Amy, and takes them on individual but connected journeys through twisted, spirit-infested versions of reality. Their dialogue and personalities feel authentic, and their emotions are incredibly relatable, whether in the face of unspeakable horrors or just when talking to a crush. It has a few good jump scares, too. Cozy Game Pals The first half of Fear the Spotlight is packed with satisfying puzzles, spooky phantoms and tense hide-and-seek mechanics. The second half, created after Blumhouses intervention, adds layers of emotional depth and introduces a truly terrifying foe. Vivian is the main playable character in the original version and Amy's story takes center stage in the expanded content. The first Vivian story was really us figuring out how to make this game, Castro said. But then by the time we were making Amy's, we had so many lessons learned. I feel like the monster is better, the puzzles are better, the storytelling is more streamlined. The second half wraps it up really nicely. On top of handling the art, Castro was the main writer on Fear the Spotlight, while Singh handled programming. Castro was the diehard horror fan in the relationship he was a Resident Evil boy, she was a Silent Hill girl (read to the theme of Avril Lavignes Sk8er Boi) and together, they wanted to capture the fun of being scared in video game form. Fear the Spotlight draws from their personal lives and memories of high school, when every emotion felt new, extreme and sometimes silly. From this lens, Fear the Spotlight also deftly handles serious topics like loss, death, prejudice and love. It's just such an impactful time in our, in most people's lives, Castro said. I grew up playing these games in the 90s or in the early 2000s, like Silent Hill one and two and three. So thinking back to high school and how I felt, writing the story was just like, I can only write from my own personal experience. Having a crush and feeling awkward, and when you actually bond with someone, how special that is. Singh continued the thread, saying, I think the home-life stuff we bond over a lot of our shared experience, which is also represented in the game. Families are complicated, family structures. Having a father that's not present in your life, or the loss of a very close family member, it just changes you and affects you. Those are just pulled from our lives. Castro and Singh lovingly described Blumhouse Games as a scrappy team of horror fans, with fewer than 10 people supporting a handful of projects at once, and doing so while trying to prove themselves in a new market. On top of handling trailers and press for Fear the Spotlights re-release, the Blumhouse crew helped Cozy Game Pals find a contractor to do a logo and key art, a porting company to help get the game on consoles, and a localization team. More than any of that, though, Castro and Singh said the people at Blumhouse Games seem to truly enjoy the projects theyve signed. They've just been the ideal partner, incredibly supportive, Castro said. They really let us decide everything for our game, the game is completely our vision. We would show them prototypes and level designs and of course, they had feedback and thoughts, but yeah They know our game really well, Singh said. They're genuine fans of the original release. They know our game intimately and can talk to us about our ideas from a very informed perspective. Castro concluded, They come from it from a support perspective. Like, how can we help you guys create your vision that you care about, that you're happy with. It's been amazing. Fear the Spotlight is available now for $20 on Steam, PS4, PS5, Switch and Xbox Series X/S. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/how-fear-the-spotlight-became-blumhouses-first-video-game-140044877.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
Though it disappeared over 40 years ago, International Harvester is a mythical brand in North America thanks in part to the Scout, one of the world's first SUVs. Now, Scout Motors is back under Volkswagen as an all-new marque and just revealed its first two models: the Terra pickup and Traveler SUV. Both use a brand-new EV platform and will start at under $60,000 before incentives when production launches in 2027. Scout motors says its "priority was to honor the spirit of the original Scout," sold by International from 1961 to 1980 in various forms. Though the Traveler and Terra clearly have modern designs, they use rounded contours and a "black mask" on the front and rear fascias to invoke the older models. They also come with separate bumpers and upward-sweeping side windows, again reminiscent of the classic Scout. ANDREW TRAHAN PHOTOGRAPHY LLC Other design elements are fully modern, like a thin LED strip around the "grill" and rectangular headlights bisected by slim daytime running lights. (The models shown here are 85 percent of what we'll see in final production vehicles, Scout said). The original Scout and International 150 pickup were practical and tough (we called it "Inter-smashable" back in the day), and the new models will keep some of those aspects. Both have body-on-frame construction with a solid rear axle, along with front and rear locking hubs for off-road use. They'll offer 2,000 pounds of payload along with 7,000 pounds of towing capacity for the Traveler and 10,000 pounds for the Terra pickup. Both will come with all-wheel drive via front and rear electric motors. ANDREW TRAHAN PHOTOGRAPHY LLC That should keep working and outdoorsy buyers happy, but the vehicles can also raise your hairs. Both will accelerate from 0-60 MPH in 3.5 seconds thanks to an estimated 1,000 pound-feet of torque and four-wheel-drive system, though Scout has yet to provide a top speed. The base trim package will offer up to 350 miles of range while the extended range version is effectively a hybrid that will go up to 500 miles using a gas-powered range extender. Charging times aren't mentioned, but they'll use an 800-volt architecture that supports up to 350 kW speeds. It will also feature bidirectional charging and vehicle-to-home capabilities, along with over-the-air updates and remote diagnostics. Scout Motors The cabin is as far as it can be from the spartan interior on the originals. It looks luxurious and high-tech with a digital cluster and large displays, along with a promised "responsive" infotainment system and high-resolution backup cameras. At the same time, it comes with toggles and dials for climate and other controls. The seats and panels are covered with a mix of brown leather, fabric and a wood-like material. Both have a frunk with 120-volt and USB-C outlets and can fit golf clubs, a gym bag and a small cooler, Scout says. The Terra's 5.5-foot bed will also contain a 120- and 240-volt outlets for tools, compressors and the like. The Traveler, meanwhile, will have a split tailgate and come with two roof options. The first is a Cabana top with panels that fold back for open-air motoring, while the second is a glass roof with a powered shade. Both vehicles will be available with a front bench seat to increase passenger capacity. ANDREW TRAHAN PHOTOGRAPHY LLC Much like Tesla, Scout will sell its vehicles directly to consumers without a dealership in the middle. Purchasing one will take "minutes" with the company promising full price transparency and handling sales, delivery and service. You'll be able to check them out in person at dedicated "Scout Workshop" retail and service locations. Both models are designed and engineered in Michigan and will be built at a new factory in Columbia, South Carolina by some 4,000 workers. Production starts in 2027 with vehicles arriving for the 2028 model year. Prices will start under $60,000, according to Scout Motors, and reservations are now open. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/vws-scout-ev-revival-starts-with-an-suv-and-a-pickup-120042790.html?src=rss
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