Image: Amazon Amazon is testing a new Prime Video feature that recommends groups of content using AI rather than traditional algorithms. If you’re part of the test, you’ll see new “AI Topics” tailored to your interests, like “mind-bending sci-fi,” “fantasy quests,” or “thrilling character journeys.” Each category will have shows, movies, and linear channels that match these AI-generated labels. You can also continue refining recommendations further by selecting topics related to the category you’re looking at, which Amazon says allows you to “discover more content without hitting a dead end.” Image: Amazon Streaming services like Netflix have long used machine learning algorithms to spit out recommendations based on viewing history. But with this announcement, it seems like Prime Video is putting an extra AI spin on things — which isn’t very surprising given the hype surrounding the tech and Amazon’s own efforts to portray itself as an AI leader. For now, Amazon says AI Topics are rolling out to “select” living room devices in the US, such as the Fire TV. Last month, Prime Video also rolled out AI recaps you can use to summarize TV seasons, entire episodes, and even portions of episodes.

Toyota’s Urban Cruiser is a compact electric SUV coming to Europe. | Image: Toyota Toyota revealed its latest all-electric vehicle today as the Urban Cruiser compact SUV. The EV, which will be fully revealed at the Brussels Motor Show next month, is intended for the European market, first coming to the UK in the third quarter of 2025. Toyota says the wheelbase is only about 5 inches longer than the European-only Yaris Cross, making it another fun-sized electric EV slated for the continent like the recently revealed Ford Puma Gen-E or Hyundai Inster. The Urban Cruiser has clear design inspiration from last year's Urban SUV concept. It also shares its new EV platform built in conjunction with Suzuki, which announced its made-in-India E Vitara SUV last month. Toyota’s other EV, the bZ4X, also shares its EV platform with another automaker, Subaru, which has the Solterra EV. Image: Toyota Toyota Urban Cruiser features a side-by-side 10.25-inch cluster screen and a 10.1-inch infotainment system. Toyota’s Urban Cruiser has nearly match-for-match specs as the E Vitara, including a relatively small 49 kWh battery with an FWD drivetrain and a 61 kWh battery with an option for AWD. Toyota says power output can get as high as 135kW in the AWD version (with 40kW on the rear axel for “stable and secure performance on loose and slippery surfaces”) and up to 300 Nm of torque. While the official range is not announced, it’ll likely match the E Vitara’s expected 248 miles on a single charge. Additionally, the Urban Cruiser has downhill assist and trail modes for added control, and the FWD model includes a snow mode. All models come with a heat pump and include the ability to manually start preconditioning the battery to prepare for a DC fast charging session. Toyota has been slower in building and adopting EVs than other legacy manufacturers. The automaker has been focused on its outstanding hybrid technology as well as hydrogen vehicles. But the automaker isn’t done with EVs — it’s planning to have 15 EVs, including six models on a next-gen shared platform by 2026, and it just invested nearly another $1 billion in Kentucky for a paint facility to prepare for a three-row electric SUV for the US.

Remember your old friend 5G? | Image: The Verge Verizon is making good on one of the many unfulfilled promises of 5G with a new service called Enhanced Video Calling. According to the company’s website, it delivers “optimized video and sound quality on calling apps,” even in times of congestion. That may not sound exciting on its own. But under the hood, Verizon is using network slicing to boost video call performance, which is a new technology only possible on a standalone 5G network. Unlike remote robot banana surgery, network slicing is a real benefit of 5G technology that we can reasonably expect to see in more places in the next few years. Slicing lets network operators provide the right resources for certain kinds of demanding activities where a strong connection is critical. Right now, that means boosting performance for video calls, but in the future it could mean being able to prioritize the data needed to safely guide an autonomous vehicle through an intersection. The catch is that you need a standalone 5G network to pull this off, and much of the US’ 5G networks still operate on 4G cores. T-Mobile has been able to move quicker on this thanks to its Sprint acquisition, and it rolled out its first feature based on slicing this fall with a service that gives priority to first responders. Verizon has been testing slicing for the past year or so, but this is its first rollout of a consumer feature based on the technology. In order to try Enhanced Video Calling out for yourself, you have to meet a specific set of requirements. It’s available in “more than 150 metro areas” right now, with more to be added in 2025. But you also need to be on Verizon’s priciest plan, Unlimited Ultimate, which costs $90 per month for one line with autopay. And you’ll need an iPhone 14 or newer running iOS 18.2. Samsung Galaxy S23 and newer and Pixel 9 phones will be compatible too, but support for Android video calling apps on Android is arriving in 2025. If you meet the above prerequisites, you should see a setting in iOS that reads “Enhance 5G” if you go to Settings > Cellular, according to Apple’s documentation.

Republicans urged President Joe Biden to reject a proposal before the U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization's Council that the lawmakers say would "strengthen China's position in the organization, and weaken American agricultural leadership on the world stage."

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said during a public forum Thursday that she's "not attached to a label" and felt "more comfortable" with no party label than "an identity as a Republican," Politico reported.

It has been thirty years since Mariah Carey released her Christmas song “All I Want For Christmas,” which quickly became the universal theme song for the holiday. The classic has remained a chart-topper in the last few years; however, its fate might be changing with the rise of older classics making a comeback. Last FM recently released stats to prove that “All I Want For Christmas Is You” may be taking the back seat. The streams for the holiday classic dropped by 35% between last October and two months ago, and a 22% drop between December 2023 and the present month. ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ is facing competition from other Christmas songs All I Want For Christmas Is You/Instagram Though not always number one, “All I Want For Christmas Is You” has always appeared on the charts since its release in 1994, and it took nearly three decades to beat all others in the UK and US. For now, the classic has dropped to number two, right behind Wham!’s “Last Christmas” from 1984. “All I Want For Christmas Is You” comes right above Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree,” which is fast becoming a contender for the number one spot, having surpassed 1 billion streams. Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree/YouTube Mariah Carey and her team spruce up promotion efforts To revive the song, Mariah and her team went in on their campaign as early as October, encouraging fans to get into holiday cheer and begin streaming. She celebrated its 30th year of release with a reissue, posting the cover to Instagram alongside the Merry Christmas album. All I Want For Christmas Is You/Instagram She acknowledged the fact that the post came early, adding that she simply wanted her followers to have a glimpse of the anniversary cover art, noting that it will be available in four physical copies from December. Next up: 98-Year-Old Dick Van Dyke “Saved” From Wildfire Ahead Of Milestone 99th Birthday The post ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ Declining As Top Holiday Song – Which One Reigns Supreme? appeared first on DoYouRemember? - The Home of Nostalgia. Author, Peace A

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