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Theres a good chance learning a new language is one of your New Years resolutions, unless youre hoping Google Translate will be enough for your next international adventure. Either way, youll need a reliable method to guide you through speaking and understanding the foreign language of your choosing. Fortunately, we're no longer confined to flashcards and textbooks as you can learn using your phone from the comfort of your couch.Many of the best language learning apps today offer a multi-tier approach, with AI-powered conversations, extensive vocab libraries and even podcasts you can listen to to help you master your target language. Whether you're just starting because you're just trying to understand what Bad Bunny means when he says "un verano en Nueva Yol," or you want to brush up on your Korean before that planned vacation, theres a language learning app to suit your needs. Best language learning apps for 2025 Others language learning apps we tested Memrise Memrise has a library of more than 200 languages to learn. From Spanish to isiXhosa, Memrise can teach you all the basics and dive into more regional differences. As a Spanish learner, I could choose to learn from Spain or Mexico and I enjoyed that Memrise didnt just teach me a more generalized version of the language. While Memrise could be great for polyglots, its hefty $60 monthly fee was too steep and prevented it from gleaning one of our top slots. Pimsleur Dr. Pimsleur believed speaking and listening were key to learning a new language. This app allows you to take its audio lessons offline, even going as far as integrating into Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. As a commuter, I appreciated having a lesson or two stored away for my journey to the office. However, I wanted more ways to practice reading and writing. With other apps offering podcasts for listening along and other forms of teaching, Pimsleur didnt offer enough to make our list. Rosetta Stone Gone are the large, yellow disc sets of yesteryear; now Rosetta Stone lives squarely in the digital age with its app. Using the same visual learning tools as the old-school Rosetta Stone, the app shows you pictures and terms to get you to understand what things mean. Users can repeat after voice recordings and match phrases to the images to learn slowly. Rosetta Stone could be great for beginners, but in order to get access to all 25 languages and a lifetime subscription, youd have to dish out $400. There are cheaper apps on this list that provide comparable experiences. HelloTalk Similar to Discord, HelloTalk provides voice and chat rooms to talk to folks from different countries. Its users can learn regional terms and talk about cultural differences. With a paid subscription, you can practice with a tutor or their AI chatbot. If youre looking to learn a new language outside of your inner circle, HelloTalk can be a great fit. I enjoyed connecting with others on the app, but, as always when meeting strangers online, beware some users treat it like a dating app. Fortunately, there are apps on this list that offer a similar AI learning approach without that added concern. How we test language learning apps As an intermediate Spanish learner, I was looking for an app that best catered to my needs, but I know everyone learns differently. So for each app, I assessed based on several factors. Can beginners use this to gain confidence? Will advanced speakers feel challenged? Are there enough opportunities to test reading and writing skills? How many ways can you learn vocabulary words? For those who want to have more conversations, what opportunities did each app provide to speak in that language? Bonus points if an app helped you learn a bit of the culture surrounding that language.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/best-language-learning-app-120001600.html?src=rss
Category:
Marketing and Advertising
While agencies and brands across industries debate whether to use AI influencers or actual people in their campaigns and product shoots, Amsterdam-based Moederannecasting offers a third option: AI-generated versions of human models. The casting agency's new initiative, DigiAnne, creates digital twins of IRL models to address one of the most persistent problems in generative AI: authentic representation of distinctive individuals.The technical limitations of generative AI become apparent whenever brands attempt to create diverse imagery. "Gen-AI is notoriously poor at prompting people with unique features. This is not because it is unwilling; it is because it wasn't trained on the right data," explains DigiAnne. Meanwhile, consumers are growing weary of homogenized beauty standards perpetuated by algorithms and AI. DigiAnne aims to break through the blandness.The joint initiative between Moederannecasting and Aigency Amsterdam invites models to sign up to have their digital twin constructed. AI is trained on photos that capture their distinct features and individuality, and a contract ensures their rights and earnings are safeguarded. Clients can then browse those digital twins, select individuals who fit their campaign needs and receive customized AI-generated content featuring the hybrid models allowing them to maintain authenticity and behave ethically while benefiting from AI's efficiency.Research shows that most shoppers are more likely to buy from brands that make efforts to represent people like themselves not algorithmic approximations. By training its AI tools on real, diverse individuals, DigiAnne taps into that consumer expectation. One to try out for your next campaign?
Category:
Marketing and Advertising
Gaming journalism stalwart Game Informer has risen from the ashes. More than thirty years after its debut issue back in August 1991, the media outlet was officially shut down by parent company GameStop in August 2024. Since then, the rights to Game Informer were acquired by Gunzilla Games and, in an all-to-rare win for today's media world, the entire team that worked for Game Informer at the time of its closure will return to their jobs. Editor-in-Chief Matt Miller posted the details about how the outlet was saved from the brink and noted that Gunzilla Games will be a hands-off boss. "The new owners insisted on the idea of Game Informer remaining an independent editorial outlet," he wrote. "They felt just as strongly as our team did that the only path forward was with an editorial group that made 100 percent of the decisions around what we cover and how we do so, without any influence from them or anyone else." We are proud to welcome the talented voices behind Game Informer in the Gunzilla Games family, and join their fight to preserve the heart of video game journalism in what has been a tumultuous time for the industry," Gunzilla CEO and Co-Founder Vlad Korolov said. The website and its back catalog of content have been republished online. Game Informer's staff have also published reviews of more than two dozen games that came out during the site's hiatus and belatedly compiled their requisite best games of 2024 list. The print magazine is also expected to resume activity, and Miller said more details will be forthcoming about subscription and membership options. Gunzilla Games, which counts Hollywood director Neill Blomkamp among its leadership, made a battle royale shooter called Off the Grid and also developed the GUNZ blockchain platform.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/game-informer-is-back-and-so-is-its-entire-team-210748358.html?src=rss
Category:
Marketing and Advertising
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