CDI and CIC partner with select liberal arts institutions to strengthen dialogue skills among students, faculty, and staff CDI and CIC partner with select liberal arts institutions to strengthen dialogue skills among students, faculty, and staff

Philip Morris International (PMI), en partenariat avec l’Algeria Startup Challenge, annonce le lancement de la 4ᵉ édition des Harm Reduction Initiative Awards, un rendez-vous annuel […] L’article PMI Algérie et Algeria startup challenge lancent la 4e Edition du « Harm reduction Awards » est apparu en premier sur .

Over the past year, we’ve had the privilege of connecting with talented game developers from across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) through the PlayStation MENA Hero Project. This initiative was launched with a simple goal: to identify and support original voices and empower creators from emerging regions to tell their stories through games. Today, we’re thrilled to announce the first cohort of titles supported under the MENA Hero Project, each one a unique reflection of the creativity, and spirit of developers in the region. The First Cohort of MENA Hero Project Games Red Bandits | Developer: Team Agenda | Country: Saudi Arabia Red Bandits is a fast-paced robbery action game set in a hyper-capitalist age where one company rules the world through complete monopoly. In this world, a newly formed thieves organization known as the Red Bandits, emerges to challenge the system and spark a rebellion. You play as Stutt, a seasoned old thief with a stuttering condition and a mysterious past he can’t fully remember. Break into the company’s fortified floors, take down the powerful board of directors, and bring back a de-monopolized world order. With a dynamic cover system, evolving heists, and a vibrant comrades’ hideout, Red Bandits blends fast, stylish action with a deeply personal story of rebellion. Robbing its way to PS5 and PC. Enci’s Solution | Developer: Dark Emerald | Country: United Arab Emirates Exiled by humans centuries ago, the Aeons are confined to the desolate underground. Their village is safe, but beyond the gates, danger lurks at every corner, and not everyone can be trusted. No one has left the village before, except for Ji’we. Inspired by techno-dystopian aesthetics, Enci’s Solution is a hand-painted, 2.5D narrative platformer following the story of Ji’we, a young Aeon venturing out into the unknown in an attempt to save his dearest friend. Stumbling upon Enci, a lost encyclopedic robot who finds himself far from home, the two form an unusual bond and set out together to the surface of planet Regalia.  Play through 40+ levels with increasing difficulty and explore uncharted territories. Find collectibles and uncover the secrets they carry about the world and its odd inhabitants. Keep an eye out for hidden levels and challenge yourself to think outside the box. Will you find your solution on PS5 and PC? Play Video The Perfect Run | Developer: Lanterns Studios | Country: Tunisia Save the world or blow it up yourself, one loop at a time! The Perfect Run is an action-adventure RPG game where the player controls Quicksave, a time-traveling hero caught in an epic struggle between supervillain gangs, marketed superheroes, and a powerful mega corporation for the control of the city of New Rome. With three days to decide the city’s fate, the player can go back in time to decide their perfect ending… if they have the skill to do so! Interact with NPCs and unlock new dialogue options thanks to information collected in earlier loops, join a faction in one route and fight them the next, bend time itself in epic battle against superpowered bosses, collect the best upgrades before the reset, and unlock the city’s secrets in this memorable superhero adventure. Find the perfect run on PS5 and PC. A Cat’s Manor | Developer: Happiest Dark Corner | Country: Bahrain You awaken trapped in a house infested with spiders and inhabited by an eccentric family. At the end of your tail, you discover a crudely stitched hand. With no memory of who you are or how you got here, you let curiosity guide you forward. A Cat’s Manor is an atmospheric adventure that blends puzzles, combat, crafting, and rhythm-based music challenges. Use your wits to escape the manor. Investigate your surroundings, solve puzzles, fight your way through deadly encounters, or outsmart your foes and avoid trouble. Inspect, observe, listen, and feel your surroundings for clues and cues, immersing yourself with 3D audio and PS5 DualSense controller features. Uncover the secrets of the manor and unravel what the family is hiding. Creeping its way to PS5 and PC near you.  About the MENA Hero Project The MENA Hero Project is the newest chapter in SIE’s global Hero Project family, joining India and China in our mission to discover and nurture the next generation of original game creators. We believe that great games can come from anywhere. Through the MENA Hero Project, we’re committed to unlocking the region’s creative potential, supporting locally inspired experiences with the power to captivate players around the world.

gebbia will overseethe white house's national design studio, improving the usability and design of federal services. The post trump selects airbnb co-founder joe gebbia as inaugural US chief design officer appeared first on designboom | architecture

Japan is once again building a landmark high-performance computing system — not simply by chasing speed, but by rethinking how technology can best serve the nation’s most urgent scientific needs. At the FugakuNEXT International Initiative Launch Ceremony held in Tokyo on Aug. 22, leaders from RIKEN, Japan’s top research institute, announced the start of an international collaboration with Fujitsu and NVIDIA to co-design FugakuNEXT, the successor to the world-renowned supercomputer, Fugaku. Awarded early in the process, the contract enables the partners to work side by side in shaping the system’s architecture to address Japan’s most critical research priorities — from earth systems modeling and disaster resilience to drug discovery and advanced manufacturing. More than an upgrade, the effort will highlight Japan’s embrace of modern AI and showcase Japanese innovations that can be harnessed by researchers and enterprises across the globe. The ceremony featured remarks from the initiative’s leaders, RIKEN President Makoto Gonokami and Satoshi Matsuoka, director of the RIKEN Center for Computational Science and one of Japan’s most respected high-performance computing architects. Fujitsu Chief Technology Officer Vivek Mahajan attended, emphasizing the company’s role in advancing Japan’s computing capabilities. Ian Buck, vice president of hyperscale and high-performance computing at NVIDIA, attended in person as well to discuss the collaborative design approach and how the resulting platform will serve as a foundation for innovation well into the next decade. Momentum has been building. When NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang touched down in Tokyo last year, he called on Japan to seize the moment — to put NVIDIA’s latest technologies to work building its own AI, on its own soil, with its own infrastructure. FugakuNEXT answers that call, drawing on NVIDIA’s whole software stack —  from NVIDIA CUDA-X libraries such as NVIDIA cuQuantum for quantum simulation, RAPIDS for data science, NVIDIA TensorRT for high-performance inference and NVIDIA NeMo for large language model development, to other domain-specific software development kits tailored for science and industry. Innovations pioneered on FugakuNEXT could become blueprints for the world. What’s Inside FugakuNEXT will be a hybrid AI-HPC system, combining simulation and AI workloads. It will feature FUJITSU-MONAKA-X CPUs, which can be paired with NVIDIA technologies using NVLink Fusion, new silicon enabling high-bandwidth connections between Fujitsu’s CPUs and NVIDIA’s architecture. The system will be built for speed, scale and efficiency. What It Will Do FugakuNEXT will support a wide range of applications — such as automating hypothesis generation, code creation and experiment simulation. Scientific research: Accelerating simulations with surrogate models and physics-informed neural networks. Manufacturing: Using AI to learn from simulations to generate efficient and aesthetically pleasing designs faster than ever before. Earth systems modeling: aiding disaster preparedness and prediction for earthquakes and severe weather, and more. RIKEN, Fujitsu and NVIDIA will collaborate on software developments, including tools for mixed-precision computing, continuous benchmarking, and performance optimization. FugakuNEXT isn’t just a technical upgrade — it’s a strategic investment in Japan’s future. Backed by Japan’s MEXT (Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology), it will serve universities, government agencies, and industry partners nationwide. It marks the start of a new era in Japanese supercomputing — one built on sovereign infrastructure, global collaboration, and a commitment to scientific leadership. Image courtesy of RIKEN

The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative unveils rBio, a groundbreaking AI model that simulates cell biology without lab experiments to accelerate drug discovery and disease research.

 كشف وزير الخارجية المصري بدر عبد العاطي، في حوار مع شبكة “إن بي سي” الأمريكية، الثلاثاء، عن تفاصيل مبادرة جديدة لوقف إطلاق النار في قطاع غزة، تقضي بهدنة إنسانية تمتد لـ60 يوما

UAE’s Space42 Signs Agreement With Microsoft And Esri For Africa's Mapping Initiative

Chris Kerr, Senior Editor, News, GameDeveloper.comAugust 14, 20253 Min ReadLogo via Embracer Group / Kingdom Come Deliverance screenshot via Warhorse StudiosEmbracer Group—which is in the process of splitting into three standalone companies following an era of mass layoffs, project cancellations, and divestments—has confirmed it will explore "targeted cost initiatives" and look to streamline processes with the help of AI technology during what CEO Phil Rogers described as a "transition year" for the Swedish conglomerate.Addressing investors in the company's latest fiscal report, Rogers said Embracer's performance during the first quarter of the current financial year was "quiet" and said the company must now focus on "operational and strategic execution" to position itself for long-term growth.Consolidated net sales decreased by 31 percent to SEK 3,355 million ($350.5 million) during Q1. Breaking that total down by operating segment, PC/Console Games decreased by 38 percent to SEK 1,641 million; Mobile Games decreased by 63 percent to SEK 520 million; and Entertainment & Services increased by 41 percent to SEK 1,193 million."As we move forward, we are taking a conservative approach for this current year, reflecting a measured view on the timing and performance of our PC/Console release schedule in addition to potential continued softness in our catalog following Q1," said Rogers, who officially stepped up as CEO on August 1, 2025, to allow outgoing chief exec Lars Wingefors to take on the mantle of executive chair. Related:"This year is a transition period as we lay the foundations of Fellowship Entertainment and focus on building a business led by key IP and empowered teams, in a structure enabling focus and operational discipline. It is paramount that we concentrate on the quality and long-term value of our releases rather than chasing short-term gains."What does that mean for Embracer employees? According to Rogers, the company will implement "targeted cost initiatives" relating to underperforming business. Those initiatives could potentially result in more divestments. Game Developer has reached out to Embracer to clarify whether those plans could potentially include layoffs.Embracer CEO believes AI will become an "increasingly supportive force"Rogers claims Embracer is facing a "pivotal moment" and must double down on its biggest franchises. He explained the company has increased capital allocation to its core IPs, which include The Lord of the Rings, Tomb Raider, Kingdom Come Deliverance, Metro, Dead Island, Darksiders, and Remnant. He believes those franchises represent "one of the most exciting IP portfolios in the industry" but said Embracer must now "sharpen" its focus. The company currently has nine triple-A titles slated for release, excluding projects being financed by external partners. Related:"As previously noted, one or a couple of these games will most likely slip into FY 2028/29, but we do see a clear increase in release cadence as compared to our average of just over 1 AAA game per year in the past five years," said Rogers, discussing that release slate. "We expect the increased released pipeline in combination with lower fixed costs will notably improve free cashflow FY 2026/27 onwards."As Embracer prepares to evolve into Fellowship Entertainment, Rogers said the company must significantly rewire its business to create a "powerhouse unit" within its PC and console division. According to Rogers, leveraging AI technologies will be  integral part of that process. His predecessor had already suggested that ignoring AI tools could lead to it being "outrun" by its competitors. "This comes through smarter collaboration, increased streamlining, shared services and with AI as an increasingly supportive force," Rogers continued. "These factors will be key to unlocking value and expanding margins." As the table below shows, Embracer has already significantly reduced its workforce following a number of layoffs and key divestments. Related:Its entire workforce totaled 7,228 people (including 5,452 game developers) as of June 2025. That a notable decrease on the 13,712 workers (and 10,713 game developers) it employed at the end of June 2024. The company currently has 116 video games in development—down on the 127 projects it had in the pipeline this time last year, but actually up on the 108 titles it showcased in March.Read more about:Embracer GroupGenerative AI, Machine Learning, & LLMsTop StoriesAbout the AuthorChris KerrSenior Editor, News, GameDeveloper.comGame Developer news editor Chris Kerr is an award-winning journalist and reporter with over a decade of experience in the game industry. His byline has appeared in notable print and digital publications including Edge, Stuff, Wireframe, International Business Times, and PocketGamer.biz. Throughout his career, Chris has covered major industry events including GDC, PAX Australia, Gamescom, Paris Games Week, and Develop Brighton. He has featured on the judging panel at The Develop Star Awards on multiple occasions and appeared on BBC Radio 5 Live to discuss breaking news.See more from Chris KerrDaily news, dev blogs, and stories from Game Developer straight to your inboxStay UpdatedYou May Also Like

I'll level with you. I'm keeping this intro brief because I'm currently plonked in the middle of a Manchester cafe that presumably doesn't realize the words 'air' and 'conditioning' can be combined to create a majestic climate control device. Fear not, dear reader, it's only a heatwave.This will be my final Patch Notes for a couple of weeks. I'll be jetting off to Cologne next Tuesday for my annual pilgrimage to Gamescom in pursuit of industry insights, decadent hummus (if you know you know), and perhaps even a bit of juicy gossip.  I'll be taking a much needed vacation when I return, so the next couple of editions will be penned by another member of our talented Game Developer team. Who exactly? No spoilers yet (mainly because we haven't decided).Oho. You almost got me rambling. Nobody needs that today—least of all you. In fact, I suspect what you really need is a concentrated dose of NEWS, and as luck would have it we have just the thing...Embracer will deploy 'targeted cost initiatives' and AI tech to unlock more valuevia Game Developer // You might not realise it from the headline, but layoff connoisseur Embracer Group recently switched out its CEO, Lars Wingefors, for a new chief executive in Crystal Dynamics veteran Phil Rogers. Alas, it seems the apple hasn't fallen far from the tree. Rogers this week told investors that Embracer will deploy 'targeted cost initiatives' in relation to underperforming business. He confirmed that could mean additional divestments are in the offing. Will we also see layoffs? Who knows, but Embracer has been rather trigger happy in that regard previously. Rogers also explained that Embracer is keen to use AI technology to streamline its processes and support its teams. I'm sure they'll be thrilled.Related:Stripe Says Support Team Reps Were ‘Totally Wrong’ About LGBTQ Content Banvia Aftermath // Payment service provider Stripe has denied it is prohibiting the sale of LGBTQ+ content, including video game and media on platforms like Itch. The company spoke to Aftermath about the situation after its support team reportedly told anti-censorship campaigners that it won't be processing payments related to LGBTQ+ content. Stripe apologised for the conduction and claimed those employees were "mistaken." The full story is well worth a read, and comes after both Itch and Steam began heavily moderating the sale of adult content, reportedly at the behest of payment providers.Valve explain why using PayPal for Steam purchases isn't currently an option in a whole bunch of countriesRelated:via RockPaperShotgun // In related news, Valve recently told RPS that PayPal support for Steam has evaporated in some regions due to concerns over the type of content being sold on the platform. Valve previously confirmed that one of PayPal's acquiring banks axed support in some regions in early July, impacting consumers attempting to make Steam purchases via PayPal in currencies other than EUR, CAD, GBP, JPY, AUD and USD. On its support page, Valve said it is "uncertain" when the situation will be remedied. It then told RPS the withdrawal is "regarding content on Steam, related to what we’ve previously commented on surrounding Mastercard."Blizzard's Story and Franchise Development team has unionizedvia Game Developer // Another week, another union. We could get used to this. Blizzard's Story and Franchise Development (SFD) is the latest Microsoft-owned team to unionise in tandem with Communications Workers of America (CWA). SFD is the World of Warcraft maker's in-house cinematic, animation, and narrative department—and became the first union of its kind to form n North America. Parent company Microsoft has already recognised the union, whose members will join CWA Local 9510 in Orange County, Calif.  One member of the SFD organising committee said the unionised workers intend to preserve what makes Blizzard special. Related:Video games have a serious crediting problem, but unions can helpvia Game Developer // Speaking of unions, freelance reporter Nicole Carpenter this week laid out how the power of collective acton could enable the video game industry to address a longstanding miscrediting issue. It's not uncommon for developers (both in-house and external) to be omitted or improperly credited on projects they've worked on. It's a deeply harmful practice that can stall careers and create uncertainty as to who is actually making the games we play, but what is the solution? According to some people, unions might just hold the answer.'We would be in development for 30 years:' Krafton reiterates that Unknown Worlds founders 'abandoned' Subnautica 2via Game Developer // In what must be one of the game industry's most outrageous legal tit-for-tats, Krafton has responded to the lawsuit levelled against it by Unknown Worlds' former executive team with a series of claims that paint former studio leaders Charlie Cleveland, Max McGuire, and Ted Gill as cash-grabbing truants. The South Korean publisher once again insisted that all three downed tools as soon as it purchased Unknown Worlds and placed their own "monetary interests" over those of the development team and Subnautica 2 itself. We've done our best to summarise the scathing rebuttal, and we expect this saga is far from over. 'Microsoft has no place being accomplice of a genocide:' Arkane union workers demand Xbox maker sever ties with Israelvia Game Developer // A group of unionized Arkane Studios workers in France this week published an open letter to leaders at Xbox and Microsoft to lend their support to the Palestinian-led BDS movement and demand their parent company sever ties with Israel. The move follows extensive reporting that indicates Microsoft cloud and AI technology is being used by the Israeli regime to monitor Palestinians and even plan military action. Union workers at Arkane, known for producing titles like Dishonored and Deathloop, accused Microsoft of being an "accomplice" to genocide. "Microsoft has failed both its teams & its customers by being actively complicit of the invasion and war crimes happening in Gaza," they wrote in the open letter. Microsoft has yet to respond to our request for comment, but has previously denied that its products have been used to "target or harm people" in Gaza. Bandai Namco is still working on new in-house game engine, update revealsvia Automation Media // Tekken and Ace Combat maker Bandai Namco is still working hard to create a new in-house game engine capable of supporting large-scale projects and open worlds. You might not even be aware this project was even in motion, and that's because it's been around three years since the Japanese company last spoke about the initiative. This week, however, the company posted a series of photographs on X to reveal it has been training employees how to use the mystery engine. It's hard to glean much from the snaps, although we can see what appears to be an ecstatic snowman in one shot. 10/10. No notes.PUBG is finally bidding farewell to last-generation consoles via Krafton // Pour one out for PUBG: Battlegrounds players who've yet to make the leap to current-generation hardware. This week, Krafton announced it will be ending support for the battle royale shooter on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in November. The company said the shift will take place on November 13, 2025, and described it as a "necessary step toward aligning PUBG Console with current-gen consoles" and providing player with "more stable gameplay." Remarkably, the news comes around five years after both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X | S hit shelves, which shows just how blurred the lines between console generations have become in the current era. Even so, Krafton said the news is weighing heavily on the team and has requested a modicum of understanding during this trying time

NVIDIA is partnering with the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) to create an AI system that supports the development of multimodal language models for advancing scientific research in the United States. The partnership supports the NSF Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure project, called Open Multimodal AI Infrastructure to Accelerate Science (OMAI). “Bringing AI into scientific research has been a game changer,” said Brian Stone, performing the duties of the NSF director. “NSF is proud to partner with NVIDIA to equip America’s scientists with the tools to accelerate breakthroughs. These investments are not just about enabling innovation; they are about securing U.S. global leadership in science and technology and tackling challenges once thought impossible.” OMAI, part of the work of the Allen Institute for AI, or Ai2, aims to build a national fully open AI ecosystem to drive scientific discovery through AI, while also advancing the science of AI itself. NVIDIA’s support of OMAI includes providing NVIDIA HGX B300 systems — state-of-the-art AI infrastructure built to accelerate model training and inference with exceptional efficiency — along with the NVIDIA AI Enterprise software platform, empowering OMAI to transform massive datasets into actionable intelligence and breakthrough innovations. NVIDIA HGX B300 systems are built with NVIDIA Blackwell Ultra GPUs and feature industry-leading high-bandwidth memory and interconnect technologies to deliver groundbreaking acceleration, scalability and efficiency to run the world’s largest models and most demanding workloads. “AI is the engine of modern science — and large, open models for America’s researchers will ignite the next industrial revolution,” said Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of NVIDIA. “In collaboration with NSF and Ai2, we’re accelerating innovation with state-of-the-art infrastructure that empowers U.S. scientists to generate limitless intelligence, making it America’s most powerful and renewable resource.” The contributions will support research teams from the University of Washington, the University of Hawaii at Hilo, the University of New Hampshire and the University of New Mexico. The public-private partnership investment in U.S. technology aligns with recent initiatives outlined by the White House AI Action Plan, which supports America’s global AI leadership. “The models are part of the national research infrastructure — but we can’t build the models without compute, and that’s why NVIDIA is so important to this project,” said Noah Smith, senior director of natural language processing research at Ai2. Opening Language Models to Advance American Researchers  Driving some of the fastest-growing applications in history, today’s large language models (LLMs) have many billions of parameters, or internal weights and biases learned in training. LLMs are trained on trillions of words, and multimodal LLMs can ingest images, graphs, tables and more. But the power of these so-called frontier models can sometimes be out of reach for scientific research when the parameters, training data, code and documentation are not openly available. “With the model training data in hand, you have the opportunity to trace back to particular training instances similar to a response, and also more systematically study how emerging behaviors relate to the training data,” said Smith. NVIDIA’s partnership with NSF to support Ai2’s OMAI initiative provides fully open model access to data, open-source data interrogation tools to help refine datasets, as well as documentation and training for early-career researchers — advancing U.S. global leadership in science and engineering. The Ai2 project — supported by NVIDIA technologies — pledges to make the software and models available at low or zero cost to researchers, similar to open-source code repositories and science-oriented digital libraries. It’s in line with Ai2’s previous work in creating fully open language models and multimodal models, maximizing access. Driving U.S. Global Leadership in Science and Engineering  “Winning the AI Race: America’s AI Action Plan” was announced in July by the White House, supported with executive orders to accelerate federal permitting of data center infrastructure and promote exportation of the American AI technology stack. The OMAI initiative aligns with White House AI Action Plan priorities, emphasizing the acceleration of AI-enabled science and supporting the creation of leading open models to enhance America’s global AI leadership in academic research and education.