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
The Google TV Brand that Tried to Revive Chromecast Is on Ice
Google TV device maker Thomson revived a Chromecast‑style streamer last year, but its European operations have stalled after its sole licensed partner, StreamView GMBH, filed for bankruptcy. The German distributor owes roughly €36.6 million (about $40 million) and is ceasing activity, leaving Thomson without a sales channel in its biggest market. Thomson says it is seeking a new European partner to maintain after‑sales support and keep its product line alive. The pause threatens the availability of competitively priced Google TV hardware across Europe.
Why the Party for Intel and Other Chip Stocks Could Last a Long Time
Intel’s stock has surged 81% year‑to‑date and jumped another 25% after a surprise first‑quarter earnings beat that lifted gross‑margin and server‑chip revenue. The results pushed Intel’s forward price‑to‑sales ratio down to 7.1, making it cheaper than peers like Nvidia, Broadcom...
Is Starlink Turning Elon Musk Into a Star Lord?
Elon Musk’s Starlink suffered a global outage that left two dozen U.S. Navy unmanned surface vessels adrift, exposing a single point of failure in the military’s reliance on SpaceX’s MILNET satellite network. MILNET, a 480‑satellite subset of the 10,000‑satellite Starlink...
Blockware Intelligence Newsletter: Week 209
Blockware Intelligence will attend Bitcoin 2026 in Las Vegas from April 27‑29, showcasing its analytics platform at a central green booth. The company is running a giveaway for a free Antminer S21 XP, a Bitcoin mining rig valued at roughly $4,500,...
Pentagon Wants to Water Down Drone Program with Autonomous Subs
DARPA has launched the Deep Thoughts program to create compact, low‑cost autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) capable of full‑ocean‑depth operations. The initiative seeks novel materials, free‑form designs and rapid, weeks‑long development cycles, diverging from traditional, bulky AUVs. It aligns with the...
Cirrascale to Offer On-Prem Google Gemini Models
Cirrascale Cloud Services will deliver Google Gemini large‑language models on‑premise through Google Distributed Cloud, using Dell‑built appliances equipped with Intel CPUs and Nvidia GPUs. The offering supports fully air‑gapped or connected deployments, letting government, defense, finance, healthcare and education customers...
Navigating the Surge in Smart Building IoT Devices with Strategy, Security, and Scale in Mind
Smart‑building IoT deployments are exploding, with 500 million new devices added between 2022 and 2024 and an estimated 4.12 billion in use by 2030. Studies show the technology can trim energy consumption by roughly 10 % and slash chiller‑maintenance costs up to 67 %...
Lock In 3 Months of Apple TV for Free: Why Walmart’s Onn Google TV Devices Are Perfect for Your Spring...
Walmart is bundling up to three months of Apple TV+ at no charge with purchases of its onn Google TV streaming sticks. The devices range from a $19.88 Full HD model to a $44.73 4K Pro version, all featuring Google TV, voice control and, on...
X Square Robot Launches Wall‑B AI Model, Pledges Home Robot Rollout in 35 Days
X Square Robot unveiled Wall‑B, a new embodied AI foundation model for home robots, and said it will begin placing robots in everyday households within 35 days. Backed by major Chinese tech investors, the company highlighted its World Unified Model...
AI Smart Glasses Will Help Visually Impaired Runners Take on the London Marathon
Visually impaired runners are using AI‑powered Oakley Meta Vanguard smart glasses to navigate the London Marathon, receiving live audio cues about landmarks, distance and pace while still hearing their human guides. The glasses combine a front‑facing camera, AI analysis and...
EcoFlow River 3 Plus Delivers 600 W in a 10‑lb Portable Package
EcoFlow introduced the River 3 Plus portable power station, a 10‑pound unit that supplies 600 W continuous power and up to 1,200 W surge. The device uses GaN technology and a 286 Wh LiFePO4 battery, positioning it as a high‑output solution for home...
MaxLinear Q1 Revenue Jumps 43% as Enterprise Data Center Chip Demand Surges
MaxLinear reported first‑quarter 2026 revenue of $137.2 million, up 43% year‑over‑year, as infrastructure chip sales for enterprise networking surged 136%. The company lifted its 2026 optical data‑center revenue outlook by $30‑$40 million, citing strong visibility into hyperscaler program ramps.
AIs Hunt for Signs of Intelligent Life
Physicists are harnessing Nvidia GPUs and transformer‑based AI to sift through the massive data stream from telescopes like James Webb, rapidly uncovering faint, early‑universe galaxies that human analysts cannot process in time. UC Santa Cruz researchers adapted large‑language‑model architectures to enhance image reconstruction,...
Intel Shares Surge Nearly 20% After Blockbuster Q1 Earnings Beat
Intel reported Q1 revenue of $13.58 billion and EPS of $0.29, beating forecasts and propelling its stock up 19.9% to $80.10. The earnings beat fuels optimism across large‑cap stocks as the S&P 500 nears record highs.
Prusa Opens Orders for INDX Waste-Free 3D Printing Upgrade
Prusa Research has opened orders for an INDX upgrade kit that converts a stock CORE One or CORE One+ printer into a waste‑free, multi‑color system with up to eight independent toolheads. The kit is offered in a four‑nozzle version for...
Aitech Launches Rugged SBCs for Military, Aerospace AI
Aitech unveiled two rugged single‑board computers, the U‑C8600 and U‑C8601, built on Intel’s 14th‑generation Core Ultra platform. The boards combine a multi‑core x86 CPU, integrated GPU and a neural processing unit, delivering roughly 2.5× CPU and 2× GPU performance over...
Elon Musk Labels China's $8.4 B Orbital Data Center Push "Interesting"
Elon Musk posted a single word—"Interesting"—in response to news that Beijing‑backed startup Orbital Chenguang secured $8.4 billion in credit lines to build a gigawatt‑scale orbital data center by 2035. The reaction sparked a social‑media surge, highlighting the emerging U.S.–China rivalry over...
US Clarifies Mobile Hotspots Part of Foreign Router Ban Despite Rarity of American Made Consumer Kit
The FCC has clarified that its ban on foreign‑made consumer routers now also includes portable Wi‑Fi hotspots and LTE/5G customer premises equipment (CPE) used in homes. The restriction applies only to new models; existing devices already authorized can continue to...
Sony’s ‘Ace’ Robot Arm Beats Pro Table‑Tennis Players, Showcasing Real‑Time AI Speed
Sony unveiled its AI‑driven robot arm, Ace, which has begun regularly beating expert table‑tennis players. The system combines a mirror‑based camera, ultra‑low‑latency actuation and reinforcement‑learning algorithms, marking a first for human‑level performance in a mainstream sport.
Here's How to Reset Your AirPods
Apple’s AirPods, from the original 2nd‑generation model to the latest AirPods 4, can be revived with a simple factory reset. The process involves forgetting the device in Bluetooth settings, then holding the case’s button until the indicator flashes amber then white....
Overwatch System Requirements
Overwatch’s system requirements remain modest despite a decade of visual upgrades. The minimum spec calls for a Windows 10 64‑bit OS, an Intel i3 or AMD Phenom X3 CPU, 6 GB RAM, and a GTX 600/HD 7000‑class GPU, while the recommended tier upgrades to an i7/Ryzen 5, 8 GB...
Sony Xperia 1 VIII Leaks: Fresh Camera, Same Display
First look at the Sony Xperia 1 VIII from on leaks New camera design is here but the display remains the same design as the previous 7 generations
Quantum Computing Relies on Classical Co‑Processing, Not Just Shor
All quantum computers need classical co-processing. For Shor's, quantum is used for 1 step out of 5. Use quantum just for exactly what it's good for, use HPC for the rest. VQE, QAOA, similar, and NVIDIA and Cisco are building...
QumulusAI Secures $45m in Convertible Notes for AI Cloud Expansion
AI cloud provider QumulusAI secured a $45 million convertible note facility from ATW Partners, adding to its earlier $500 million blockchain‑backed financing. The capital will fund the purchase of GPUs and expansion of data‑center infrastructure, supporting a plan to deploy over 21,000...
AI Slashes Nvidia Chip Design From Months to Nights
Nvidia’s Chief Scienst Bill Dally at GTC explained how Nvidia uses AI to speed up the chip design process: ▫️trained an LLM on all proprietary internal Nvidia docs over past 30+ years (junior employees query it instead of interrupting senior designers) ▫️one...
360-Degree Cameras Have a New Superpower
Insta360 has teamed with UK startup Splatica to turn consumer 360‑degree cameras into tools for Gaussian splatting, a technique that creates photorealistic 3D scenes from video. Users simply adjust two camera settings, record a walk‑through, upload the footage, and receive...
3 Stocks to Buy From the Prospering Semiconductor Industry
The semiconductor sector is riding a wave of AI, generative AI, IoT and industrial‑4.0 adoption, delivering a 17.7% year‑to‑date gain that outpaces the S&P 500. Zacks ranks the industry in the top 35 % of more than 250 groups, with a forward...
Schneider Electric Innovation Summit
Schneider Electric released an eBook summarizing insights from its 2025 Innovation Summit, highlighting how AI‑driven data centers are being reshaped. The publication emphasizes megawatt‑scale racks and 800 VDC power architectures as a response to soaring compute loads. It also details the...
The System Architect’s Sketchbook: The Buildout Frenzy
Deepak Shankar, founder of Mirabilis Design, released a cartoon titled “The system architect’s sketchbook: The buildout frenzy” on EDN. The illustration spotlights the accelerating pressure on electronics design engineers to integrate ever‑more functions, components, and software into a single system....
Coros and Wahoo Partner to Give Athletes More Control over Their Training
Coros and Wahoo announced a two‑way API integration that links Coros wearables with Wahoo’s training apps, hardware and the Kickr Run treadmill. The sync lets activity files upload automatically to both platforms, eliminating manual data transfers. Wahoo will now sell...
ModRetro M64 Release Date Set for the Summer
ModRetro announced that its M64 FPGA‑based console, controller and launch games will ship from its Southern California warehouse at the end of July, putting the device in backers' hands by August. The console boasts a five‑second boot, fanless thermal design...
Japan Just Put a Weapon in Ukraine's War, and It Cost $2,500
Japan’s Terra Drone, in partnership with Ukrainian startup Amazing Drones, fielded the Terra A1 interceptor drone in Ukraine on April 17, 2026, marking Japan’s first direct weapon export. The low‑cost system, priced at roughly $2,500, is designed to hunt hostile...
NEO Semiconductor's Revolutionary 3D X-DRAM for AI Processors Has Passed Proof-of-Concept Validation — Company Secures Funding to Develop Next-Gen Memory...
NEO Semiconductor announced that its 3D X‑DRAM technology cleared a proof‑of‑concept stage, delivering sub‑10 ns latency, over‑1 second data retention at 85 °C, and endurance beyond 10¹⁴ cycles using existing 3D NAND fab lines. The company also secured a strategic investment led by Acer...
Lebanon's Gov't Plans to Transform Warehouse Into National Data Center
Lebanon’s Ministry of Telecommunications is converting a warehouse in Dekwaneh into a National Data Center, merging the existing Karantina and Sawwar facilities. Telecoms firm Touch, led by CEO Karim Salim Salam, is overseeing equipment installation and site clearance. A benchmarking study by...
Huawei Targets Lower LCOE Through Full-Lifecycle Solar Optimisation
Huawei Digital Power has launched the FusionSolar 9.0 smart PV solution, pairing its SUN2000‑506K string inverter with a new 3/7/11 MW smart transformer station to create the industry’s first kV‑AC grid‑forming inverter. Targeted at utility‑scale and large C&I projects, the system promises...
Intel Boosts Margins by Selling Salvaged Edge-Die Chips
Got some clarity from Intel IR on additional lift to margins. Intel got an unexpected margin lift from better yield salvage. Chips that would normally have been lower-value edge-die on the wafer were binned down and still sold into usable...
Nextorage Unveils Fresh New Gaming SSDs, but They only Come with a One-Year Warranty
Nextorage has launched a new line of QLC gaming SSDs, offering capacities from 1 TB to 8 TB with write endurance ranging from 400 TBW to 4,000 TBW. The 1 TB model is priced at ¥44,550 (about $280), positioning it as a premium‑priced option in...
VDURA CEO Sees the End of the All-Flash Array Era
VDURA CEO Ken Claffey argues that soaring SSD prices and supply constraints have ended the myth that all‑flash arrays will replace hard‑disk drives. He notes the price premium for SSDs over HDDs has ballooned from 4‑5× to 22.6×, making flash...
J&J Lands CE Mark for Surgical Stapler that Works with Ottava Robot
Johnson & Johnson has secured a CE mark for its Ethicon 4000 surgical stapler, enabling European surgeons to use the device in open and laparoscopic procedures now. The stapler is engineered to work with J&J’s upcoming Ottava robotic platform, which has...
Nvidia’s Integrated Rubin Slashes AI Inference Costs Tenfold
5 Chip Stocks at the Center of the AI Spending Boom 👇 $NVDA Nvidia benefits from AI more directly than any other company because it sells the integrated system, not just the chip. Vera Rubin combines CPU, GPU, NVLink, ConnectX-9, BlueField-4...
Xbox Accelerates OS Revamp with Daily Helix Meetings
Xbox chief Asha Sharma also mentioned during her all-hands yesterday that the teams are meeting daily on Project Helix, and that there will also be biweekly Xbox Series S/X console updates until end of the year. The reinvestment in Xbox...
CPU Requirements for AI Workloads Are Multiplying, Driving Intensifying Shortages and Price Hikes — Intel Already Shifting Production From Consumer...
Intel disclosed that AI workloads are driving a rapid shift from training to inference, tightening CPU‑to‑GPU ratios in data centers from roughly 1:8 to 1:4 and potentially to parity at 1:1. The surge in CPU demand has pushed server CPU...
New AI‑Powered Devices Will Quietly Redefine Workspaces
From AI whiteboards and smart monitors to mini edge workstations and wearables, the next wave of devices will quietly transform how and where work gets done. #FutureOfWork #AI https://t.co/rNDUA2uhNx
Magnetic Privacy Filter Shields MacBook From Shoulder Surfers
Tired of shoulder surfers seeing everything on your MacBook screen when working in public? Then you'll want to learn all about the Afterplug Magnetic Privacy Filter Screen, which I demo and test in my latest review video: https://t.co/dVTvZyG5WE #privacy #macbook...
The Microsoft Surface Pro Is Nearly 40% Off at Best Buy - and We Highly Recommend It
Microsoft’s 13‑inch Surface Pro, equipped with an OLED display, Snapdragon X Elite processor, 16 GB RAM and 1 TB storage, is now priced at $1,400 after an $800 discount at Best Buy—roughly a 40% markdown. The deal excludes the detachable keyboard, which must be purchased...
Solar-Powered Trash Cans Bring Night-Time Convenience in China
China’s Solar-Powered Smart Trash Can Turns Daylight into Nighttime Convenience by @XueJia24682 #Sustainability #RenewableEnergy #CleanEnergy #TechForGood https://t.co/3ZZSvc1tHb
Tenstorrent Accelerates Big MOE Models with V3/V4
This is cool. @tenstorrent is digging in. Big models are a passion project for us. May 1st we announce big numbers on V3, V4 results after that. Networked AI is a natural fit for big MOE models
AMD Likely to Use Intel Foundry Amid Capacity Crunch
I’m not going to die on this hill, for a ton of reasons lol but hard to see AMD not making CPUs at Intel Foundry before too long. Capacity is scarce, Intel is the floor space to ramp capacity.
Customers Demanding Every Graviton Chip, Says Andy J
I suppose this was one of the customers who wanted ALL the Gravitons, per Andy Jassy.
Lunar Gateway Corrosion Confirmed as Serious Issue
Both Northrop and European space officials have confirmed the Lunar Gateway corrosion issue is real and significant. https://t.co/Z8Alf6N3mn