Confirmation of a Surface event, the maker of ChatGPT reportedly marching toward bankruptcy, and a $5.4 billion Intel deal falling through are just some of the news stories that hit the headlines this week. With so much going on, it's easy to miss a few pieces. Don't worry, our weekly news roundup is here with all of the biggest stories from throughout the week in one convenient place.
ChatGPT at risk
ChatGPT has been the talk of the tech world throughout this year, but the chatbot may be in trouble. OpenAI, which makes ChatGPT, is reportedly approaching bankruptcy. It costs $700,000 per day to run ChatGPT and OpenAI has not found a monetization model that fully covers the cost. Microsoft and other organizations have invested heavily in OpenAI but that may not be enough.
Money problems aren't the only issues ChatGPT is facing. The tool is also getting dumber, according to a study.
We'll have to keep our eye on OpenAI to see if the company can figure out a path to profitability.
Surface event
Microsoft announces new Surface hardware each fall, so it wasn't surprising to see the company confirm its upcoming event. The special Microsoft event will take place on Thursday, September 21, 2023 in New York City. Microsoft did not share details about what will be unveiled at the event, but our Senior Editor Zac Bowden expects a focus on AI capabilities making their way to Surface devices and Windows.
Bowden's sources say to expect a Surface Laptop Studio 2, Surface Laptop Go 3, and Surface Go 4. There will likely be other announcements at the event, but those are the big ones on the hardware side of things.
Linux Surface clone
Perhaps you don't want to wait until later this year to get a new 2-in-1. Maybe you believe 2023 is the year of Linux. In either event, there's news for you as a new Linux-powered Surface-like device is now available.
StarLabs unveiled the StarLite this week. It's more budget-friendly than a Surface Pro, but it has the familiar 2-in-1 form factor that many love. The device has a 2880 x 1920 display, 16GB of RAM, and up to 2TB of storage. Its Intel N200 4-core processor is not that powerful, but can do some light computing, especially when the device has Linux as its operating system.
The StarLite starts at $498. It can ship without an OS or with your Linux distro of choice. You could also install Windows 11 onto it if you'd like.
New Xbox rules
Microsoft announced a major update to how community guideline violations are handled this week. Those who break Xbox community rules will receive a strike. Those strikes accumulate and result in more severe punishment. A second strike will result in a one-day suspension, but a sixth strike will cause a player to get suspended for 21 days. Someone can be suspended for an entire year if their account receives eight strikes.
Of course, these suspensions only apply to online play. Offenders can continue to game locally; they just can't continue to enjoy gaming with others through the web.
With the refreshed enforcement system in place, Microsoft will make it easier to see how many strikes an account has.
Our Zachary Boddy covered the news and shared his opinion on the changes earlier this week.
Intel purchase of Tower falls through
Intel was set to purchase Tower Semiconductor for $5.4 billion this week, but the companies have agreed to end the deal. The purchase was originally announced back in February 2022, but it ran into regulatory roadblocks. China's State Administration for Market Regulation never approved the deal. Intel and Tower extended the deadline to complete the purchase twice but ultimately had to cancel the deal entirely.
"After careful consideration and thorough discussions and having received no indications regarding certain required regulatory approval, both parties have agreed to terminate their merger agreement having passed the August 15, 2023 outside date," said Tower Semiconductor in a statement.
Intel will continue to move forward with its IDM 2.0 strategy, which includes producing chips for other companies. The tech giant will just have to do so without the resources and talent of Tower as part of Intel (though the companies will continue to work together).
Reviews & Editorials
We don't just write about when products get announced and ship. We go hands-on with hardware, test software, and run games through their paces as well. Here are all of our reviews from the past week, plus some insightful editorials:
- The world doesn't need an RTX 4090 Ti so I hope NVIDIA did cancel it
- Alienware Wireless Gaming Mouse (AW620M) review: A comfortable, reliable, no-frills RGB gaming companion
- F1 Manager 23 Review: Unrealised potential
- The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (Xbox, PC) review: Fun for The Family
- FlexiSpot E7Q standing desk review: Heavy weight champion
- Alienware x16 R1 review: Impeccable style, ultimate performance, lots of small issues
- Vulcan 2 Mini Air review: A wireless and agile mechanical keyboard that doesn't fade into the background
- Elgato Facecam Pro review: Large and in charge
- Lenovo Yoga 7i 16 (Gen 8) review: Good value, large screen, too many cut corners
Deals
Why spend more than you need to? Back-to-school season slashes prices on a wide range of devices, including laptops, PCs, and accessories. Here are all the best deals we covered this week:
Refurbished Surface deals
Generally, I put all the deals into one category, but I wanted to make sure you knew the deals below are on refurbished PCs. There are excellent discounts on a variety of Surface devices, but they aren't new. Our Zac Bowden explains what refurbished devices are and who would want them in a dedicated piece.
