OpenAI and Uber create Virtual Petri Dish to find the best AI model for a task

Researchers affiliated with Uber AI and OpenAI proposed a new approach to neural architecture search (NAS), a technique that involves evaluating hundreds or thousands of AI models to identify the top performers. In a preprint paper, they claim their technique, called Synthetic Petri Dish, accelerates the most computationally intensive NAS steps while predicting model performance […]

Button signs up for Virtual Le Mans

Formula 1’s 2009 world champion Jenson Button has entered a team in June’s Virtual Le Mans 24 Hours. Button will drive for his Team Rocket outfit, which also competes in the GT World Challenge Europe series, in the virtual edition of the French endurance classic. The real-world Le Mans 24 Hours has been postponed to […]

Norris to make third virtual Supercars start

Formula 1 star Lando Norris will make his third straight start in the Supercars Eseries this Wednesday night. The McLaren driver has already made a pair of starts in the Supercars Eseries, a debut on the Spa-Francorchamps circuit two weeks back followed by a second outing at the Circuit of the Americas last Wednesday. The […]

Edward Saatchi on virtual beings: AI is the next great art form

Edward Saatchi, CEO of Fable Studio and maker of Emmy-winning virtual reality experiences, participated in a thoughtful conversation about “virtual beings” at our recent GamesBeat Summit 2020 event. I called the session “We are who we pretend to be,” after the moral of story in one of my favorite novels, Mother Night, by Kurt Vonnegut. […]

Norris takes first virtual Supercars win

Lando Norris took his first Supercars Eseries win in the second of two sprint races at the Circuit of the Americas, after Shane van Gisbergen won the opener. Red Bull Holden driver van Gisbergen was unstoppable in the first 11-lapper, the Kiwi taking a lights-to-flag victory. He wasn’t quite able to shake Anton De Pasquale, […]

Is virtual racing the motorsport fan’s panacea in a pandemic?

The Esports racing world has exploded as the coronavirus pandemic has forced real motorsport to shut down. But from the fan perspective, is it even a halfway satisfying alternative to the real thing? By David Malsher-Lopez. About three decades ago, I spent almost a whole day on a flight simulation game on a friend’s home […]

The 5 best virtual holidays in gaming – Reader’s Feature

Disenchanted with the summer holiday ritual, and worried by the coronavirus, a reader suggests the best video games to get away from it all with. ‘I’m ready for this, there’s no denying’… Jet2 would have you believe that a summer getaway is an impossibly romantic break with your other half, holding hands through days of […]