ChatGPT’s enshittifcation has begun
The money-making meta in Silicon Valley these days is to lure customers in with a product that seems too good to be free, before the inevitable enshittification begins. The ‘free ride’ is officially over for ChatGPT as OpenAI announced that ads were headed to the platform after an initial trial phase in the US that kicked off this week.
This isn’t your typical 30-second ad that’ll unlock access to the chatbot. OpenAI’s model involves sticking ads at the end of answers, supposedly “when there’s a relevant sponsored product or service based on your current conversation.” These will, at least, be clearly marked as sponsored, even if it raises concerns that the chatbot steered the conversation in the direction of the highest-paying customer, rather than the most helpful answer.
OpenAI claims that isn’t the case for the ads displayed inside ChatGPT, but it would say that, wouldn’t it? The company also claims that its users’ conversation data will remain anonymous and will never be sold to advertisers. Again, it’s on you whether you believe the words of current world-leading grifter, Sam Altman.
When ChatGPT’s ads become more widely available, they’ll only be shown to “logged in adults” on the free and ‘Go’ tiers, and will decline to show ads to users who are under 18 — either by their own admission or if the chatbot suspects the user is underage, during this trial run. There’s currently no word on when the test will end.
Theatres aren’t going anywhere under the new Netflix deal… allegedly
When Netflix first announced its intent to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), it had theatres cowering in the corner. Netflix has proven that it isn’t all that keen on sending its films to the big screen, instead preferring to get as many eyes on them as possible with a straight-to-streaming release. And with more than 300 million paying customers, that’s a lot of eyeballs (about 600 million, give or take a few). Now, CEO Ted Sarandos has come out to put consumers’ minds at ease.
Speaking with The New York Times, Sarandos confirmed that the streamer, which will soon own a “theatrical distribution engine that is phenomenal”, was stepping into the business to win — like all other passionate art-lovers out there — and that a more traditional theatre window for WBD-made movies would help it get there.
“We will run that business largely like it is today, with 45-day windows. I’m giving you a hard number. If we’re going to be in the theatrical business, and we are, we’re competitive people — we want to win. I want to win opening weekend. I want to win box office.”
Whether you believe Sarandos is another thing entirely. Netflix may only support the theatre model for as long as it takes to get any opposition off its back, as it looks to subsume one of the largest legacy media corporations ever. There may even come a time when the streamer gets around the 45-day release window by releasing a film on Netflix before the window has properly closed, thereby drawing more eyes to the small screen.
Sony’s new buds are coming this week, but don’t get your hopes up yet
It’s no secret that Sony’s got something special in the works for audiophiles, and a new teaser posted to the company’s YouTube channel all but confirms that something is coming this Wednesday, 21 January. The only problem is that these won’t be the long-awaited WF-1000XM6 buds, but actually the new LinkBuds Clip.
Even if Sony doesn’t want to give the whole game away yet, the description teases “a new form of listening,” which puts us in mind of a new look that eschews the traditional bud design. That’s on top of Dealabs’ report (via GSMArena) claiming the company will officially reveal the LinkBuds Clip (WF-LC900), which will likely feature dual microphones, AI noise reduction for calls, and bone conduction sensors, while favouring a clip-on design.
The event is scheduled for this coming Wednesday, 21 January, at 16h00 UTC — or 18hoo for local watchers. If Sony’s take on the open-ear clip design still isn’t enough to satiate your appetite, a full reveal for the highly anticipated WF-1000XM6 is expected to get its start in mid-to-late February.
The Lego of Zelda
Nintendo, it seems, has discovered a new infinite money glitch — The Legend of Zelda, replicated in miniature plastic bricks. The new 1,003-piece set, which depicts the hero clad in green facing off against the Demon King from The Ocarina of Time, comes only a few months after Lego dropped the 2,500-piece Great Deku Tree set.
You might’ve expected the first proper Lego reveal since the Smart Brick to incorporate some of those elements into the set, but you’d be wrong. “The Final Battle”, as the set is called, will remain stationary on your shelf, silently judging you for this purchase. Because, as you’ve probably guessed, it isn’t cheap. Lego is demanding $130 (∼R2,100) for the privilege of building the Hero of Time’s final battle, despite the relatively low piece count.
Buyers are getting three minifigs to play with — Ganondorf, Link, and Zelda — though the bulk of the set is the giant, poseable Ganon that Lego reckons can be revealed at the push of a button. The set is currently available to pre-order from the US site, with an expected release date of 1 March 2026. We expect it’ll be along shortly in South Africa.
