Ferrari on self-driving cars: ‘We don't care'
The ultraluxury brand doesn't plan to make software that will take over for the driver but is working toward releasing an EV by 2025.
Don’t expect a self-driving car from Ferrari anytime soon—if ever.
The Italian marque seems completely disinterested in autonomous driving technology if recent comments by CEO Benedetto Vigna are anything to go by. In fact, it sounds like the brand has barely given the idea any thought at all.
The executive recently spoke at the Financial Times’s Future of the Car Summit when he addressed the possibility of building an autonomous vehicle, according to Insider. While Vigna discussed the different types of software that go into today’s vehicles, it became abundantly clear how he feels about the technology.
“In a cabin, there are four kinds of software. There is performance software, there is comfort software, there is infotainment software, and there is autonomous,” he said. “The last one, we don’t care.”
Vigna’s comments shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. He has been saying the same thing since taking over as the Prancing Horse’s chief executive back in 2021. Last year, while outlining the brand’s slow-and-steady electrification strategy, he said, “No customer is going to spend money for the computer in the car to enjoy the drive,” according to Road & Track.
Vigna’s and Ferrari’s lack of interest in autonomous driving technology is what most enthusiasts will want to hear, though. Sure, the Prancing Horse has built some of the most beautiful and powerful cars of the last century, but what really separates its vehicles from the rest of the premium pack is how exhilarating they are to drive. Automakers such as Tesla, Mercedes-Benz, and just about everyone else can spend their time and money on the race to develop a car that can drive itself. Ferrari, meanwhile, will continue to build the kind of vehicles people love to get behind the wheel of.
Of course, that doesn’t mean there won’t one day, far in the future, be a Ferrari that can take over at least some of the driving duties. There was once a time the brand said it would never build an SUV, after all—and look what happened.
Source- Robb Report
Rapper 2Pac to get star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
Tupac Shakur is to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, 26 years after the rapper's death.
The hip-hop star will be honoured with a ceremony on the prestigious Los Angeles walkway on 7 June.
The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce confirmed the rapper would receive the posthumous honour to the LA Times.
Shakur, whose star will be the Walk of Fame's 2,758th, was a New York-born rapper who heavily influenced hip-hop, particularly the West Coast rap scene.
Sekyiwa "Set" Shakur, Tupac's sister, will accept the honour on his behalf during the formal opening ceremony for the star.
Los Angeles radio presenter Big Boy will lead the ceremony, while director Allen Hughes and writer Jamal Joseph will be the guest speakers.
Shakur, whose stage name was stylised as 2Pac, released his debut album in 1991 and went on to enjoy chart success with hits including California Love, All Eyez on Me, Changes and I Ain't Mad at Cha.
He died on 13 September 1996 at the age of 25, after he was shot four times in Las Vegas.
In 2004, his posthumous single Ghetto Gospel, which features a sample from Elton John's Indian Sunset, reached number one in the UK singles chart.
Source- BBC
Lionel Messi set for decision on future - and it won't be Barcelona
Lionel Messi is expected to decide in the coming hours where he will be playing his football next season - the only thing that seems certain is that it will not be at Barcelona.
Messi would have liked nothing more than to return to the place that was his home since he left Argentina as a 12-year-old in pursuit of his footballing dream.
But his camp has told Barcelona the decision on his future is imminent and they cannot wait any longer for a proposal from them that has not arrived, despite promises the Catalan club would have something in place by now.
The 35-year-old World Cup winner wants to stay in Europe but, after it was decided he would leave Paris St-Germain this summer, the forthcoming offers from the continent have not been attractive enough.
In Saudi Arabia, there are government officials already working on his arrival. They have been told Messi has accepted a very lucrative offer from Al-Hilal and are preparing for the move. This could simply be his camp preparing for his decision - or it is the most attractive proposition for the player.
American side Inter Miami is another option, although a reported loan deal between them and Barcelona - where he would end up temporarily at the Catalan club - is not on the cards.
The proposal put forward by Inter Miami, while not as financially lucrative as the offer from Saudi Arabia, includes close collaboration from brands like Adidas and Apple that would help bump up the deal.
However, the initial reaction from the Messi camp was that that offer was too complex and they were unconvinced.
The timing and announcement of his decision will be decided by his new club.
Once again the Barcelona media machine has been mobilized to persuade anyone and everyone that their failure to secure a deal is the fault of the player and La Liga.
A melange of misinformation, half-truths and outright lies emanating from a friendly press ignore the fact Barcelona have at no point put any proposal to the player and that they cannot offer any guarantee they will be able to do so before the September 1 deadline.
The Financial Fair Play limitations that will be in place for next season also make any ambitious plan to bring him back an impossibility.
But, rather than admit this, Barcelona prefers to give the impression they are making tireless efforts to bring him home - only for them to be pushed back either by Messi or the allegedly 'draconian' limitations put on them by the league's governing body.
It is simply not true.
Manager Xavi said yesterday that 99% of what was required for the player to return to the club was down to Messi himself. Perhaps that is what Xavi has been told, but it is all words and putting the emphasis on his decision is based on an intentionally wrong reading of the affair.
These are the moments when teams start to put their plans in place. And with plans for his return seemingly now dead in the water, it is damage limitation time for Barcelona as they set about trying to show they did everything possible to bring him home.
Messi's team made it clear he was prepared to play for whatever wage that would have helped Barcelona stay on the right side of FFP regulations and he would even be prepared to play for free if asked - although that is neither acceptable to La Liga nor even legal under Spanish law.
The French newspaper L'Equipe said there was the possibility of Messi being signed by Inter Miami and then going on loan to Barcelona. This is an idea that has come from the American club but never had any chance of going past the talking stage.
How can Inter convince Messi to be signed by them and go on loan to Barcelona for a few months? The player, for many the best ever, would feel like a commodity.
In any case, despite being discussed by the two clubs, at no point has any proposal along those lines been made to the player himself.
The accusation La Liga is to blame is risible. They are followed by nonsensical accusations La Liga also has in place anti-Barcelona regulations. It is the exact opposite.
La Liga rules are in place to protect clubs, Barcelona included, from owners and directors financially ruining them.
The temptation when directors get money is to invest it in players when the reality is they should be as much or more concentrated on paying debts and improving infrastructure.
Due to the usage of 'financial levers' that allowed Barcelona to invest in the club last season, but won't be able to be used again, they presented a liquidity plan recently to La Liga. This was in addition to the budget plans that all clubs have to provide, to prove to the league they are living within their means.
The reason they have to provide these plans is to reassure the league that any extra incoming money will not be spent in a way that could jeopardize the future of the club.
The temptation of spending on players, rather than on much-needed repairs or debt repayments, is akin to buying prohibitively expensive designer furniture to place in a living room, while there is a massive hole in the roof.
Clubs present budget plans which show their income minus all non-sporting financial commitments and any outstanding debts that need to be serviced.
What is left is the money available to pay players. It is up to Barcelona if they want to use all that money to pay for Messi, but they have never indicated they want to do that, instead suggesting they need to register Ronald Araujo or Gavi with their new contracts first.
The reality is the club still have massive debts to cover and their spending capacity will be very limited.
That information will arrive officially from La Liga to Barcelona in the next few days, but the club is very aware of those limits, which will not be announced to the public until after the markets have closed to not affect transfers.
Meanwhile, you hear false stories in the Catalan media about how La Liga and Barcelona are holding meetings to talk about Messi, and there is only a shortfall of around 40m euros (£34.6m) between what the club have presented and what La Liga wants to resolve their FFP situation. This, again, is untrue.
The most worrying aspect is that, with the distraction of Messi, people are not realising since the arrival of president Joan Laporta, the debt is neither being reduced at the rate it needs to be, nor being reduced in sufficient quantities to allow them to have a budget for the players that will allow them to be competitive in Europe.
Source- BBC
Weekend robberies under investigation
Officers of the Serious Crimes Unit of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Force are investigating four separate incidents of robberies that occurred over the weekend in Providenciales.
Based on preliminary reports, at around 9:22 p.m. on May 27th, a call was placed to the Police Control Room informing officers of a robbery on Sandbar Street, Five Cays. The victims of the robbery – a male and female- reported they were inside a parked vehicle when a vehicle pulled alongside them and four armed men exited. The armed men proceeded to rob the victims of their valuables and vehicle.
Around 9:27 p.m., a report was received from a male victim who stated whilst driving his vehicle behind the Paradise Baptiste Church, he was stopped by three males who were all wearing ski masks and heavily armed. The robbers got inside the victim’s vehicle, pointed a gun at him, placed him in the back seat, and drove off. The victim managed to jump out of the moving vehicle and escaped.
At 9:50 p.m., the Police Control Room received a call of a robbery in progress at a Bar located along Academy Way, Downtown. RTCIPF officers were dispatched to the scene. Based on reports, two armed men entered the establishment and proceeded to rob the patrons. Two male victims were struck on the head with firearms by the robbers. The robbers escaped in a silver vehicle.
At 10: 07 p.m., RTCIPF officers responded to a report of a robbery along Aviation Drive. The male victim stated that sometime after 9 p.m. he went to Glass Shack to drop off someone and in doing so was approached by four armed males who proceeded to rob him of his vehicle.
The victim stated he was struck and placed to the back of the said vehicle and driven to a financial institution to withdraw money from his account. He managed to escape.
At this stage, the offences are being linked and a dedicated investigation team has been established.
The public is being advised to notify the closest police station and give any information regarding these robberies or any illegal activity anonymously.
Bolt celebrates 15-year anniversary of first world record
Usain Bolt set the world record in the 100 meters with a time of 9.72 seconds at the Reebok Grand Prix in New York.
Bolt’s time was .02 seconds faster than the old record held by fellow Jamaican, Asafa Powell.
It was just the start of the then 22-year-old’s sprint dominance, and he would go on to lower the 100m world record two more times - 9.69 seconds, just months later at the Beijing Olympics to win gold, and then 9.58 seconds at the 2009 World Championships, which still stands up to this day.
On Wednesday, Bolt acknowledged the anniversary on social media by posting a video of the race with the caption, “May 31, 2008 #FactsnotOpinion”.
In a follow-up post, he posted a photo of himself competing in the race with the caption, “Call me legend and me nuh pass 40 #History #FactsnotOpinion.”
Source- Jamaica Observer
Top Australian soldier loses war crimes defamation case
Australia's most-decorated living soldier Ben Roberts-Smith has lost a historic defamation case against three newspapers that accused him of war crimes in Afghanistan.
The outlets were sued over articles alleging he killed unarmed prisoners.
The civil trial was the first time a court has assessed accusations of war crimes by Australian forces.
A judge said four of the six murder allegations - all denied by the soldier - were substantially true.
These included:
- A handcuffed farmer the soldier had kicked off a cliff - a fall which knocked out the man's teeth before he was subsequently shot dead
- A captured Taliban fighter who was shot at least 10 times in the back, before his prosthetic leg was taken as a trophy and later used by troops as a drinking vessel
- Two murders were ordered by Mr Roberts-Smith to initiate or "blood" rookie soldiers.
- Justice Anthony Besanko found the newspaper had not proven two other murder allegations, nor reports Mr Roberts-Smith had assaulted a woman with whom he was having an affair; nor a threat against a junior colleague.
But additional allegations that he had unlawfully assaulted captives and bullied peers were found to be true.
Mr Roberts-Smith, who left the defence force in 2013, has not been charged over any of the claims in a criminal court, where there is a higher burden of proof. The 44-year-old was not present for Thursday's judgement.
After the decision, a Taliban spokesman said the case was proof of "uncountable crimes" by foreign forces in Afghanistan, but added he did trust any court globally to follow them up.
Australian troops were deployed to Afghanistan between 2001 and 2021. Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles declined to comment on the case, saying it was a civil matter.
An elite Special Air Service (SAS) soldier, Mr Roberts-Smith is Australia's most famous living war veteran.
He received the country's highest military award - the Victoria Cross - in 2011 for having single-handedly overpowered Taliban machine-gunners who had been attacking his platoon.
But his public image was shattered in 2018 when The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and The Canberra Times started publishing articles about his misconduct between 2009 and 2012.
The soldier argued five of the killings reported by the newspapers had occurred legally during combat, and the sixth did not happen at all.
His defamation case - dubbed by some "the trial of the century" - lasted 110 days and was rumoured to have cost up to A$25m ($16.3m, £13.2m).
More than 40 witnesses - including Afghan villagers, a government minister and a string of current and former SAS soldiers - gave extraordinary evidence about every facet of Mr Roberts-Smith's life.
But the case also exposed some of the secretive inner workings of Australia's elite special forces.
The trial heard from soldiers who said potential misconduct was rarely reported due to a "code of silence" within the regiment, and others defended their actions as necessary.
Many giving evidence were there unwillingly, having been subpoenaed, and three refused to speak about some allegations fearing self-incrimination.
Much of the evidence against Mr Roberts-Smith relied on eyewitness accounts and recollections of discussions among soldiers. Justice Besanko had to weigh the reliability of witnesses against each other, with the media outlets contending theirs had no reason to lie.
Speaking outside the Federal Court in Sydney, the news outlets called the judgement a "vindication" for their reporting.
"It's a day of justice for the brave men of the SAS who stood up and told the truth about who Ben Roberts-Smith is: a war criminal, a bully and a liar," said investigative reporter Nick McKenzie, who wrote the stories alongside Chris Masters and David Wroe.
"[And] today is a day of some small justice for the Afghan victims of Ben Roberts-Smith."
The Afghanistan Human Rights and Democracy Organisation also praised the role of investigative journalism in "uncovering the truth and raising public awareness" about what had taken place in the country.
Media magnate Kerry Stokes - who employs Mr Roberts-Smith at rival outlet Seven-West Media - said the judgement did "not accord with the man I know".
"I know this will be particularly hard for Ben, who has always maintained his innocence," said Mr Stokes, who had loaned the soldier money to fund his legal case. Mr Roberts-Smith had offered to hand in his Victoria Cross as collateral, local media reported.
The case comes three years after a landmark report found credible evidence that Australian forces had unlawfully killed 39 civilians and prisoners in Afghanistan from 2007 to 2013.
Accusations of war crimes have also been levelled at soldiers from the UK and US in recent years.
Local media say dozens of Australian soldiers are being investigated for their roles in alleged war crimes. But so far charges have only been laid against one, Oliver Schulz.
War historian Peter Stanley told the BBC ahead of the judgement that Mr Roberts-Smith's case was "a litmus test" for allegations of Australian wrongdoing in Afghanistan.
"The Ben Roberts-Smith episode is just a precursor to the major series of war crimes investigations, allegations, prosecutions, and possibly convictions that we'll see over the next few years."
Source- BBC
Air New Zealand weighing passengers before flying
Air New Zealand is weighing passengers before they board international flights, as part of a survey to determine average passenger weight.
The weight will be anonymously recorded in a database but not be visible to airline staff or other passengers, the firm said.
Air New Zealand said knowing average passenger weight would improve fuel efficiency in the future.
Participation in the survey is voluntary, the airline added.
The airline previously weighed domestic passengers in New Zealand in 2021.
"Now that international travel is back up and running, it's time for international flyers to weigh in," the airline said in a press statement.
Before the pandemic, the airline flew more than 17 million passengers every year, with 3,400 flights per week.
Knowing the weight of everything that goes on its aircraft is a "regulatory requirement", airline spokesman Alastair James explained in a video.
"We know stepping on the scales can be daunting. We want to reassure our customers there is no visible display anywhere," Mr James said. "By weighing in, you'll be helping us fly safely and efficiently every time."
Air New Zealand will be asking more than 10,000 customers traveling on its international network to take part in the survey.
Passengers will be weighed at the gates of certain flights departing from Auckland International Airport between 29 May and 2 July.
The airline said that everything that goes on its aircraft - from cargo and onboard meals to luggage in the hold - is weighed and that for customers, crew, and cabin bags it used average weights based on survey data.
Air New Zealand is the national carrier of the country and has 104 operating aircraft.
Source- BBC
AI 'godfather' Yoshua Bengio feels 'lost' over life's work
One of the so-called "godfathers" of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has said he would have prioritized safety over usefulness had he realized the pace at which it would evolve.
Prof Yoshua Bengio told the BBC he felt "lost" over his life's work.
The computer scientist's comments come after experts in AI said it could lead to the extinction of humanity.
Prof Bengio, who has joined calls for AI regulation, said he did not think militaries should be granted AI powers.
He is the second of the so-called three "godfathers" of AI, known for their pioneering work in the field, to voice concerns about the direction and the speed at which it is developing.
AI describes the ability of computers to perform tasks so complex, they have previously required human intelligence to complete.
A recent example has been the development of AI-powered chatbots, like ChatGPT, which appear to give human-like responses to questions.
But some fear that advanced computational ability could be used for harmful purposes, such as the development of deadly new chemical weapons.
Prof Bengio told the BBC he was concerned about "bad actors" getting hold of AI, especially as it became more sophisticated and powerful.
"It might be military, it might be terrorists, it might be somebody very angry, psychotic. And so if it's easy to program these AI systems to ask them to do something very bad, this could be very dangerous.
"If they're smarter than us, then it's hard for us to stop these systems or to prevent damage," he added.
Prof Bengio admitted those concerns were taking a personal toll on him, as his life's work, which had given him direction and a sense of identity, was no longer clear to him.
"It is challenging, emotionally speaking, for people who are inside [the AI sector]," he said.
"You could say I feel lost. But you have to keep going and you have to engage, discuss, encourage others to think with you."
The Canadian has signed two recent statements urging caution about the future risks of AI. Some academics and industry experts have warned that the pace of development could result in malicious AI being deployed by "bad actors" to actively cause harm - or choosing to inflict harm by itself.
Fellow "godfather" Dr Geoffrey Hinton has also signed the same warnings as Prof Bengio, and retired from Google recently saying he regretted his work.
The third "godfather", Prof Yann LeCun, who along with Prof Bengio and Dr. Hinton won a prestigious Turing Award for their pioneering work, has said apocalyptic warnings are overblown.
Twitter and Tesla owner Elon Musk has also voiced his concerns.
"I don't think AI will try to destroy humanity, but it might put us under strict controls," he said recently at an event hosted by the Wall Street Journal.
"There's a small likelihood of it annihilating humanity. Close to zero but not impossible."
Prof Bengio told the BBC all companies building powerful AI products needed to be registered.
"Governments need to track what they're doing, they need to be able to audit them, and that's just the minimum thing we do for any other sector like building airplanes or cars or pharmaceuticals," he said.
"We also need the people who are close to these systems to have a kind of certification... we need ethical training here. Computer scientists don't usually get that, by the way."
But not everybody in the field believes AI will be the downfall of humans - others argue that there are more imminent problems that need addressing.
Dr. Sasha Luccioni, the research scientist at the AI firm Huggingface, said society should focus on issues like AI bias, predictive policing, and the spread of misinformation by chatbots which she said were "very concrete harms".
"We should focus on that rather than the hypothetical risk that AI will destroy humanity," she added.
There are already many examples of AI bringing benefits to society. Last week an AI tool discovered a new antibiotic and a paralyzed man was able to walk again just by thinking about it, thanks to a microchip developed using AI.
But this is juxtaposed with fears about the far-reaching impact of AI on countries' economies. Firms are already replacing human staff with AI tools, and it is a factor in the current strike underway by scriptwriters in Hollywood.
"It's never too late to improve," says Prof Bengio of AI's current state. "It's exactly like climate change.
"We've put a lot of carbon in the atmosphere. And it would be better if we hadn't, but let's see what we can do now."
Source- BBC
Musk echoes Apple, Mercedes CEOs on importance of China ties
Tesla Inc.'s Elon Musk joined Apple Inc.'s Tim Cook, Mercedes-Benz Group AG's Ola Källenius, and other car and technology company bosses in emphasizing the importance of maintaining ties with China in his first visit to the country since before the pandemic.
Musk met with Foreign Minister Qin Gang in Beijing on Tuesday and said the interests of China and the U.S. are intertwined, according to a government statement. The release cited him saying that Tesla opposes decoupling from China and is willing to keep expanding in the country.
The remarks are reminiscent of Mercedes' Källenius telling a German newspaper last month that unbundling from China is "an illusion," and Apple's Cook emphasizing the symbiotic nature of the iPhone maker's relationship with the country during a visit in March. Just last week, General Motors Co.'s Mary Barra said China remains a key market for the company and that she was looking forward to continuing to develop clean cars with local partners.
The comments run counter to efforts by leaders including U.S. President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to gain a geopolitical upper hand over Chinese President Xi Jinping by exerting greater influence over the trade of key components, including electric-car batteries and semiconductors.
Musk also is expected to visit Tesla's Shanghai factory, people familiar with the matter said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. The Tesla chief executive officer potentially will meet Premier Li Qiang, as well, to discuss automated-driving technology that Tesla is seeking to introduce in China, one of the people said.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Mao Ning earlier Tuesday welcomed Musk and other business leaders, saying the government would like to see foreign investors "sharing in the dividends of the development of China."
Tesla didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Representatives from Shanghai's government press office and the State Council Information Office of China also didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
Bloomberg reported earlier this month that Tesla was nearing the start of trial production for its revamped Model 3 in Shanghai, which Musk is betting will compete more effectively with Chinese rivals. The refreshed sedan is slightly longer than the current version and sportier, with a sleeker interior design.
Tesla's Shanghai plant accounted for more than half its global production in 2022, and the facility can now produce as many as 1.1 million cars a year. Shipments from Tesla's Shanghai facility have been running well short of that pace, despite the company dropping prices and exporting to new markets including Canada.
The U.S. automaker accounted for almost one-quarter of Shanghai's total automotive production value last year. Local authorities pledged earlier this month to continue to boost ties with the company through automated driving and robot modules.
Source- Automotive News
Al Pacino, The Godfather, star expecting fourth child, aged 83
Actor Al Pacino is expecting his fourth child at the age of 83, his representatives have confirmed.
The Godfather star has announced his 29-year-old girlfriend Noor Alfallah is eight months pregnant.
According to US media reports, Pacino and Alfallah have been together since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Pacino already has three children - two with Beverly D'Angelo and one with Jan Tarrant.
In a career spanning more than five decades, Pacino has appeared in The Irishman, The Godfather, Scarface, and Scent of a Woman, winning an Oscar for best actor for the latter.
Alfallah works in the film industry and has produced films such as Billy Knight, Little Death, and Brosa Nostra.
She previously dated musician Mick Jagger in 2017.
Pacino's co-star from The Godfather Part II, Robert de Niro, recently announced he had welcomed his seventh child at the age of 79.
Source- BBC