Today's Hardware Pulse
Nvidia driver adds DLSS 5 profile options, hinting at next‑gen AI rendering
Nvidia's GeForce Game Ready driver 610.47 introduces three new profile settings—Enable DLSS NR override, Enable DLSS NR SL override, and Override DLSS NR presets—suggesting continued development of its upcoming DLSS 5 neural‑rendering technology. The earlier DLSS 5 reveal sparked debate over AI‑driven image alteration, after which Nvidia fell silent on the feature.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Cyient Semiconductors raises $30M Series A
Tactacam Reveal Pro 3.0 Trail Camera Review: A Do-It-All Trail Cam for Reliable Remote Scouting
The Tactacam Reveal Pro 3.0 is a mid‑tier cellular trail camera that combines automatic carrier selection, 8 GB of built‑in storage, GPS tracking and a robust mobile app. It delivers 4K‑scaled photos, 1080p video, fast trigger speeds and up to five months of battery life in hybrid mode. While the hardware is competitively priced, the device relies on a tiered subscription that can exceed $20 per month for heavy users. Reviewers praise its image quality, intuitive setup and responsive U.S.‑based support, positioning it as a solid all‑rounder for hunters and wildlife monitors.
Groove Quantum Secures €16 M and Unveils World’s Largest 18‑Qubit Spin‑Qubit Processor
Groove Quantum announced a €16 million ($18.7 M) funding round and showcased an 18‑qubit germanium spin‑qubit processor, the largest semiconductor spin‑qubit chip to date. The capital, split between a €10 million seed round and €6 million in EU grants, will fund a move toward...
Guatemala Deploys AI Sensors to Spot Illegal Deforestation in Real Time
Guatemala’s Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has begun a pilot that uses AI‑driven acoustic sensors to detect illegal deforestation and hunting in the Maya Biosphere Reserve. Funded by a $2 million grant from the Bezos Earth Fund’s $100 million AI for Climate and...
Amazon Ditches ‘Fire TV’ Name for Its Smart TVs — They’re Now All ‘Amazon Ember’ TVs
Amazon announced it will retire the Fire TV name for its smart televisions, rebranding the entire lineup as Amazon Ember TVs. The Ember name, first used for a high‑end framed series earlier this year, now covers all Amazon‑made TVs. Fire...
AI's Backbone: Must‑Own Data‑Center Stocks
Key stocks in the data centre value chain. Ai can’t run without them $AMD — CPU compute for AI training and inference $VRT — Cooling and power delivery for dense GPU clusters. $MU — HBM memory; feeds data to GPUs at speed. $SNDK...
Hybrid Infrastructure Powers University Research
R1 research universities are confronting surging AI workloads that strain on‑premises clusters and campus networks. Leaders are adopting hybrid infrastructures that blend cloud resources with local high‑performance compute, using unified schedulers and orchestration tools to place jobs where performance, cost,...
Apple Forecasts Sales Growth Amid Memory Shortage | Bloomberg Tech 5/1/2026
Apple announced a robust June‑quarter outlook, projecting 14%‑17% revenue growth despite a global memory‑chip shortage. iPhone sales surged 20% and the company reported gains in both mature and emerging markets. The shortage is expected to compress gross margins by roughly...
The U.S. Navy Rebooted a ‘Lethal’ Laser Weapon—And It Can Decimate Drone Swarms
The U.S. Navy has reactivated its 150‑kilowatt Solid State Laser Technology Maturation (SSL‑TM) on the amphibious ship USS Portland, successfully shooting down four drones during the 2025 Crimson Dragon exercise. The revival follows an earlier 2020 demo and a 2023...
QuantumCore Emerges From Waterloo’s IQC with $10.7M to Address Quantum Readout Challenges
QuantumCore, a spin‑out of Waterloo’s Institute for Quantum Computing, has secured CAD 10.7 million (≈ $7.8 million USD) in dilutive and non‑dilutive financing and listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange. The startup is developing a cryogenic‑to‑room‑temperature amplifier that boosts read‑out signals from superconducting quantum...
Gravity Media Taps Custom Consoles for Work on Production Center
Custom Consoles has outfitted Gravity Media’s West London Production Center with a large Module‑R master control room (MCR) desk and a 13.25‑meter MediaWall display array. The 38,000‑sq‑ft facility, one of Europe’s biggest, already hosts more than 50 Custom Consoles desks...
There's Already a Way to Mount Your Smartphone to a Steam Controller
Mechanism is launching the Basegrip for Valve's Steam Controller on May 4, a contoured attachment that lets users mount the controller to a smartphone and other existing accessories. Priced at $9, the Basegrip retains clearance for the controller's magnetic charging puck...
Samsung Is the Latest Tech Player to Bemoan Memory Chip Crunch. That's Good News for These Stocks
Samsung’s memory division disclosed a record‑low demand‑fulfillment rate as pre‑orders for DRAM and NAND are already being booked through 2027, signaling a widening supply gap. The shortage is hitting AI‑driven capex, which analysts expect could exceed $1 trillion by next year,...
Quantum Computing Weekly Round-Up: Week Ending May 2, 2026
The latest weekly roundup shows accelerating momentum in quantum computing across hardware, finance, and enterprise sectors. Venture capital poured fresh capital into both trapped‑ion and spin‑qubit platforms, while the Defiance QTUM exchange‑traded fund topped $4 billion in assets. Japan announced its...
Apple Signals Pricing as New Margin Tool Amid Supply Costs
I indicated this exact thing on @T_h_e_Circuit episode on Apple Dec Q results. Via MS and Apple's 10-Q: "Apple is explicitly flagging pricing as a margin-management lever for the first time in a decade. In its latest 10 Q filing, the...
Seeking Tenstorrent’s Real‑World Deployments Amid Compute Surge
I’m here in SF to attend the Tenstorrent event. My firm hasn’t researched the company extensively, so I’m here to learn. While previous TT events look like they’re more about architecture and the deep tech, this event name “Deploy” is...
Researchers Say This System of 7 Smart Rings Can Translate Sign Language
South Korean researchers have unveiled a wearable system of seven smart rings that captures finger and hand motions to translate American and International Sign Language into text. In tests the prototype recognized 100 distinct signs and could generate sentence‑level translations...
Battery-Free Skin-Conformal Wearable System Can Measure Electrocardiogram Signals
A research team led by Prof. Jerald Yoo at Seoul National University unveiled SkinECG, a skin‑conformal wearable that records electrocardiogram signals without a battery. The device uses an Orthogonal Energy Harvesting Network to wirelessly deliver power harvested from multiple on‑body...
Unlocking Smart Meter Insights with Smart Datastream
Smart Datastream is a cloud‑native platform that turns the UK’s flood of half‑hourly smart‑meter readings into ready‑to‑use energy data via secure APIs. It delivers up to 13 months of historical consumption, near‑real‑time streams, and portfolio‑level insights, allowing enterprises to bypass...
LG's 2026 Gram Laptop Lineup Starts at $1,150
LG announced its 2026 Gram laptop lineup with pricing starting at $1,150 for the 15.6‑inch Gram Book. The series introduces a proprietary aluminum‑magnesium alloy called Aerominum, delivering ultralight weight comparable to a 13‑inch MacBook Air while improving rigidity and scratch...
Massive Valve Shipment Rumor May Hint at the Steam Machine's Launch Window, but I Have My Doubts
A rumor circulating on X suggests Valve has received a large shipment of "Game Consoles" to its U.S. distribution warehouse, which some interpret as a sign that the long‑awaited Steam Machine could launch soon, possibly aligning with Valve's early 2026 target....
Apple's 20th-Anniversary iPhone Might Bend Light to Make the Display Look Futuristic
Apple is reportedly developing a special 20th‑anniversary iPhone for a September 2027 launch that could debut a “Liquid Glass” display. The design would feature a subtle quad‑curve screen and optical‑refraction layers that make ultra‑thin bezels virtually invisible. Leaks also hint...
Smart Shoe Reveals Hidden Injury Causes, Not Just Pace
OK, so here's a piece of tech I've been really enjoying-- Most running apps shows you pace and heart rate. This shoe shows you why you keep getting injured. The data it collects is kind of insane.
Plaud NotePin: Smart Wearable AI Boosts Meeting Notes
I review the Plaud NotePin Wearable AI Note Taker device and find that there's a lot to like with this smart little gizmo. It's particularly helpful for meetings and lectures, as I demonstrate in this detailed video: https://t.co/Q45YtD8M9E #ai #aiWearable...
Amazon Stuck with Months of Repairs After Drone Strikes on Data Centers
Amazon Web Services confirmed that Iranian drone strikes in March 2026 crippled three data centers in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, forcing a suspension of billing for the affected Middle East regions. AWS estimates the damage will require up...
Amazon Echo Show 11 Hits Record‑low Price
The Echo Show 11 is the largest smart home display from Amazon and it's dropped to a record-low price right now. https://t.co/oHLMuhYGTm
Retro PC Inside Burnt Monitor: IMac on Steroids
This retro PC build that uses a burnt-out old monitor as a case is like an iMac on steroids. https://t.co/N5ljC7GgKf
Bronco AI Webinar: Full-Chip SoC Debug in 15 Minutes
Bronco AI’s new platform promises to cut full‑chip SoC debug cycles from days to under 15 minutes by leveraging large‑scale AI reasoning models integrated with a proprietary EDA stack. The system automatically gathers logs, waveforms, code and specifications at regression...
Semiconductor Contracts Overhaul Memory and Storage Naming
Only if you have covered semis, and been through the scars of memory and storage, can you fully grasp how big of a change this is for mem and storage names. Really, the entirety of semis supply chain contracts are...
Scientists Overcome Telecom Wavelength Barrier for Long-Distance Quantum Communication
Scientists break the telecom wavelength barrier that previously blocked long distance quantum communication over existing optical fiber infrastructure. https://t.co/DIgMJ5QtJB
Nuclear AI Startup Fermi Promised Land and Ample Power. But It Couldn't Sign a Single Client
Fermi Inc., a nuclear‑AI startup co‑founded by former Texas governor Greg Abbott’s ally and a tech entrepreneur, announced plans to build atomic‑powered data centers on vast Texas panhandle tracts. The company touted virtually unlimited power and cheap land as a...
Rising Asian Conflict Threatens Overseas Tech Infrastructure Supply
I can’t help to wonder how much of this infra is created overseas and the potential risk of conflict rises in Asia. Chips. Servers. PCB. PCA. Power. Etc.
Boom Engineers Unveil AI-Powered DAQ-in-a-Box
During Innovation Week, a couple Boom engineers made DAQ in a Box: an AI-enabled data acquisition system. And their demo was epic. https://t.co/6Em7TEbkTi
Costa Rica's ICE Awards Ericsson $220m 5G Network Contract
Costa Rica’s state‑run Electricity Institute (ICE) has awarded Swedish telecom giant Ericsson a $220 million contract to build a nationwide 5G network. The deal includes a Stand‑Alone Open RAN architecture and a multi‑vendor approach, with Coasin‑Nokia providing base‑station equipment. ICE plans...
Big Tech's $700B AI Spend Equals Switzerland's GDP
Big Tech will spend $700 billion on AI infrastructure this year. That's $200B more than they planned just 90 days ago. In 2024, it was $200B total. We're building the equivalent of Switzerland's GDP in compute every single year. This...
OCP Members Tout DC Power in the Data Center to Meet Growing AI Power Demands
Open Compute Project members are rallying the data‑center ecosystem around low‑voltage direct current (LVDC) to power next‑generation AI racks. A joint working group of Google, ABB, Siemens and others released a 170‑page white paper outlining efficiency gains and standard‑setting pathways....
Blackstone's QTS Files Appeal To Save Massive Virginia Data Center Campus
Blackstone's data‑center arm QTS filed a last‑minute appeal to overturn a Virginia Court of Appeals ruling that blocked the rezoning of its 2,100‑acre PW Digital Gateway project in Prince William County. The appeal, lodged just under three hours before the...
John Deere Introduces Updated Sprayer Technology Delivering Advanced Precision, Mobility Improvements and Expanded Crop Coverage
John Deere unveiled its Model Year 2027 sprayer lineup, highlighted by See & Spray Gen 2, which adds variable‑rate dosing, night‑time lighting and dual‑tank flexibility. The updated platform expands targeted application to wheat, barley and canola and integrates a front‑frame camera for cleaner detection. Four‑wheel...
MusiBaby Speakers: Burger‑price, Budget‑sound Performance
The MusiBaby Portable Bluetooth Speaker costs less than a burger and fries at your local bar, but does it sound good? I checked out two - a stereo pair - and found them middling, but typical for their very budget...
AMD Signs Additional 25MW Data Center Lease with Riot in Texas
Riot Platforms announced that AMD exercised its option to lease an additional 25 MW at Riot’s Rockdale, Texas campus, bringing AMD’s total contracted capacity to 50 MW. The expansion will be delivered in phases, with the first 25 MW completed by May 2026 and...
Huawei Predicts 60% Revenue Boost From Sale of Its AI Chips in 2026
Huawei forecasts a 60% jump in AI‑chip revenue for 2026, targeting $12 billion versus $7.5 billion in 2025. The surge is anchored by strong orders for its Ascend 950PR processor, now in mass production, and an upcoming upgraded 950DT version slated for Q4....
Fiber Broadband Association Report Positions Fiber as the ‘Fourth Pillar’ of AI
The Fiber Broadband Association unveiled a report titled “The Fourth Pillar of the AI Era,” arguing that fiber optics are now a core component of hyperscale AI systems rather than just a connectivity layer. The paper highlights that modern AI...
Samsung S90H Holds Its Own Against LG C6
The Samsung S90H is the LG C6's rival and while the latter has set a high bar, my first impressions with the S90H suggest it's more than able to reach that bar. https://t.co/RNPefygBIU
Subnautica 2's Early Access PC System Requirements Are on the Punishing Side
Unknown Worlds announced Subnautica 2’s early‑access PC specifications, and they are unusually demanding. The low‑preset minimum calls for 12 GB of RAM to achieve 1080p at 30 fps, while the recommended tier bumps that to 16 GB RAM and an 8 GB graphics card. Pushing...
We Just Got a New Reason to Believe the Trump Phone Is Real(ish)
The Trump‑branded T1 handset has cleared a key regulatory hurdle by obtaining PTCRB certification, the North American standard required for carrier network compatibility. The certification, filed on March 9, applies to the SGG‑06 model from Smart Gadgets Global, the same device...
OnePlus Launches Pad 4 in India with Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 and 13.2‑inch 3.4K Display
OnePlus introduced the Pad 4 tablet in India, pricing the 8 GB/256 GB model at ₹59,999 (about $720) after bank discounts. The device packs a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset, a 13.2‑inch 3.4K LCD with 144 Hz adaptive refresh, a 13,380 mAh battery and a suite of...
Microsoft Rolls Auto SR Upscaling to Xbox Ally X Handheld for Docked Play
Microsoft has started previewing its Automatic Super Resolution (Auto SR) feature on the Xbox Ally X handheld, letting players boost frame rates and visual fidelity when the device is docked to a TV. The move extends Auto SR from Windows...
TSMC: The Chokepoint of the AI Economy
TSMC has shifted from a consumer‑silicon foundry to the core AI compute factory, a transition now confirmed by its record Q1 2026 results. Revenue jumped 40.6% to $35.9 billion and gross margin rose to 66.2%, reflecting monopoly‑style pricing. High‑performance‑computing wafers now make...
UK Parliament Approves £24 Million India‑UK Tech Security Initiative to Safeguard Supply Chains
The UK Parliament green‑lit the India‑UK Technology Security Initiative, committing £24 million (≈$30 million) to joint projects that secure critical supply chains and spur investment in AI, biotech, semiconductors and minerals. The pact, renewed under the India‑UK Vision 2035, aims to deepen bilateral...
Ubiquiti Introduces UniFi Dream Machine Beast with 25G Networking and NVR Support
Ubiquiti unveiled the UniFi Dream Machine Beast, a rack‑mount gateway that combines routing, security and storage for enterprise‑grade networks. Powered by an 8‑core Arm Neoverse N2 CPU, 16 GB RAM and a 128 GB SSD, the Beast delivers up to 25 Gbps of...
Tesla Launches Basecharger for Semi, Reveals $188,000 Megacharger
Tesla unveiled a "Semi Charging for Business" program offering two chargers: the ultra‑fast Megacharger, priced from $188,000 for a pair of 1.2 MW posts, and the lower‑power Basecharger, starting at $40,000 and delivering 125 kW for depot or overnight use. The Megacharger...