Newsbreaker

Images via H&M While we don’t claim to have synesthesia, or the ability to taste color, H&M Home’s new collaboration with PANTONE just about tingles the taste buds. After their debut collection last year, the brand and color authority have returned to energize your kitchen and dining space with two distinct color palettes: ‘Zesty & Fresh’ and ‘Spicy & Sweet’. Read full article

Video screenshot via VideoGigaGAN With high-res being the bare minimum these days, you might feel rather underwhelmed when you dig out old home videos to find an astonishingly grainy mess. Perhaps there’s a way to salvage them. Adobe has just introduced VideoGigaGAN, an artificial intelligence model that skillfully upgrades blurry videos to sharp, high-definition quality. Read full article

Images via LEGO LEGO has blasted two stellar sets into our peripherals that promise to take both starry-eyed enthusiasts and armchair astronauts on a miniature journey through the cosmos. Read full article

Photo 297011828 © Antonella865 | Dreamstime.com When you’ve stayed in the same spot for a while, there may come a time when it feels you’ve outgrown it. The Louvre in Paris is cooking up a new plan for its star exhibit, the Mona Lisa. Faced with relentless crowds and cramped viewing conditions, the museum is considering a move for the celebrated painting to a purpose-built room in its basement. Read full article

Image generated on AI It’s high time for a new technique for developing film. Dmitri Tcherbadji, a Canadian web developer with a penchant for quirky photography projects—including a gingerbread camera with a sugar lens—might have just blazed a new trail in alternative film processing. Read full article

Video screenshot via Synthesia Gone are the stiff mannequins of yesterday’s chatbots—Synthesia’s new artificial intelligence avatars have shed their poker faces and are learning to emote. Backed by tech giant Nvidia, Synthesia, an AI firm focused on avatar creation, has unveiled a new generation of avatars dubbed Expressive Avatars that can convey a whole spectrum of human emotions based on what you tell them. Read full article

Images via Hermès Luxury house Hermès hits home with the concept of “ground,” reflecting our connection to the natural world with its 2024 Home Collection, unveiled at Milan Design Week. Read full article

Photo 137583423 © Toxawww | Dreamstime.com Are AI-generated artworks the new “Live, Laugh, Love” posters? Walmart has drawn unwanted attention after it was found retailing art that many suspect isn’t created by a human artist. Read full article

Images via Disney and Taylor Swift It’s a small world, after all, and you’ll find Swifties even in the Disney universe. Read full article

Image via The Home Depot Home Depot is once again dusting off the skeleton in its closet—and this time, he’s got a sidekick. Read full article

Video screenshot via Auktionshaus im Kinsky A long-lost Gustav Klimt portrait has reemerged from the shadows, waltzing its way onto the auction block and fetching a cool €30 million (US$32 million). Titled Portrait of Fräulein Lieser, the unfinished masterpiece depicts a young woman with dark hair and is believed to be one of the Austrian symbolist master's final creations before his brush met its final rest in 1918. Read full article

Video screenshot via Meow.Camera For cat lovers across the globe, Meow.Camera may the purr-fect way to connect with strays through the power of technology. This curious project has quickly clawed its way out of China, where it started, into the hearts of internet users by inviting them to watch and interact with feline friends via live webcams strategically placed in specially designed shelters known as ‘Hello Street Cat Intelligent Stray Cat Management Houses’. Read full article

Photo 267749345 © Creatoroflove | Dreamstime.com For years, iPad users have relied on third-party apps or Spotlight search for their on-the-go calculations. But that may be changing, and soon, users could be counting themselves lucky! Apple is supposedly developing a dedicated Calculator app for the tablet, slated for release with iPadOS 18 sometime this year. Read full article

Video screenshot via Prime Video Outsourcing is a pretty common practice, and the animation industry is no stranger to it. However, it appears this involvement may spread even past closed doors. Read full article

Image via Xbox Microsoft and Marvel Animation have joined forces to create a limited-edition X-Men ’97 Xbox Series X that packs a wham, bam, and pow. Specifically, this mutant mashup comes wrapped in a brand-new, exclusive comic book. Read full article

Image generated on AI Not the Crocs we need: In a case that has drawn international attention, Colombian fashion designer Nancy Gonzalez has been sentenced to 18 months in prison by a Miami federal court. Gonzalez, known for her celebrity clientele and handbags featured on the Sex and the City television show, pleaded guilty in November 2023 to charges of conspiring to smuggle caiman and python skin handbags into the United States. Read full article

Image courtesy of Adobe Adobe has peeled back the curtain for the latest beta version of Photoshop, now enriched with advanced Generative Fill features including a Reference Image tool. Announced at MAX London, this update amplifies the creative capabilities available to users of all skill levels, effectively bridging the gap between a blank canvas and striking visual content. Read full article

Images 85528223 © Oliver Perez | Dreamstime.com and Kate Spade New York / PR TIMES Kate Spade New York has dipped into a new aesthetic for its Summer 2024 collection by squeezing with iconic condiment brand Heinz. The pieces, whimsically spilling ketchup themes, was first unveiled in Japan and is slated for release starting early July 2024. Read full article

Screenshots via Apple Apple skipped its March event this year, and it appears to have made up for it with six logos! To drum up anticipation for its first 2024 keynote, scheduled for May 7 and entitled Let Loose, the tech giant has strayed from its typical single-branding approach and has instead opted for half a dozen artistic interpretations. Read full article

Images via Google and 166321566 © Cateyeperspective | Dreamstime.com Struggling to communicate with your artificial intelligence assistant? Google’s Prompting Guide 101 can help. The tech giant has released a free resource designed to supercharge user productivity, most specifically with its Gemini for Workspace chatbot. Read full article

Image via Tomb Raider A recent update to Tomb Raider Raider I-III Remastered has removed pinup posters featuring Lara Croft in suggestive poses. The visuals, originally found in the game’s fourth level, were a relic of a bygone era in gaming, where female characters were often hypersexualized. Read full article

Video screenshot via Pixar Pixar’s beloved 2015 film Inside Out took audiences on a delightful yet abstract journey through the emotional rollercoaster of a young girl’s mind. With the highly anticipated sequel on the horizon, fans were curious to see which new emotions would join Joy, Sadness, Anger, Disgust, and Fear in navigating Riley’s adolescence. However, a recent interview with the film’s director, Kelsey Mann, reveals a surprising cut. Read full article

Video screenshot via Google Doodles Google’s reach stretches all over the planet, but that’s a different story for a different day. Today is about Earth Day, with the tech giant transforming its iconic logo into a collage of arresting aerial photographs on April 22. Each letter showcases a unique natural landscape, highlighting Earth’s remarkable biodiversity and ongoing conservation efforts. Read full article

Image generated on AI To help users click into eco-friendly habits without all the hassle, nonprofit search engine Ecosia launched the world’s first “energy-generating” browser on April 22, AKA Earth Day. Read full article

Image courtesy of NORD DDB Stockholm ChildX, a champion for children’s rights, has sounded the alarm on the hidden dangers lurking behind online gaming worlds. The child advocacy organization is calling upon developers to step up their game to protect young players from groomers, who appear to have taken on a different face. Read full article