Technologies

The Absolute Best Anime You Should Stream in February 2023

Keep watching Vinland Saga, and check out these 13 other anime titles this month.

Love, Vikings and revenge are some of the most popular themes in anime this February. A limited screening of Kaguya-sama: Love Is War — The First Kiss That Never Ends hits theaters on Valentine’s Day, but you can indulge in plenty of adventure, action or lighthearted anime right at home.

Here’s a look at what to stream this month on Crunchyroll, Netflix and other streaming services.

Aggretsuko Season 5

Nothing says love like heavy metal and red pandas. Retsuko is back to complete her journey in this final installment of Aggretsuko. Who will she wind up with in the love department? Is she going to go into politics? Stream the last season on Netflix, and make sure to turn up the volume to catch the death metal vibes.

My Hero Academia Season 6

Shigaraki seems unstoppable on his latest rage-filled mayhem mission, and the stakes are high for our beloved Izuku «Deku» Midoriya, U.A. High and the pro superheroes. New quirks, new challenges and a new war will keep you glued to My Hero Academia. This season is a must-see, and the show airs on Hulu or Crunchyroll on Saturdays at 2:30 a.m. PT (5:30 a.m. ET) with the dubbed version dropping at 12 p.m. PT (3 p.m. ET). Watch the latest installment into March 2023.

NieR: Automata Ver1.1a

An adaptation based on the video game NieR: Automata, the new anime series takes viewers to the year 5012, when aliens nearly wiped out humans. Androids help mankind in their fight to reclaim the planet, which is full of curious and unusual phenomena. The series launched Jan. 7 at 9:30 a.m. PT (12:30 p.m. ET) on Crunchyroll and is made up of two parts that are 12 episodes each.

Vinland Saga Season 2

After leaving viewers with a cliff-hanger in season 1, Vinland Saga returned on Jan. 9. Follow Thorfinn on a new quest, where he seeks salvation and peace after Askeladd’s death. Praised for its dynamic characters and Viking-themed storytelling, the series streams new episodes on Netflix and Crunchyroll each Monday.

Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre

This anime anthology is adapted from Junji Ito’s popular horror manga, and landed on Netflix in January. Watch stories like Hanging Balloon come to life on the small screen, along with more than 15 other tales. If you missed it last month, stream all 18 episodes in season 1 now.

Tomo-chan Is a Girl!

If you want to check out a rom-com this month, get into Tomo-chan Is a Girl! on Crunchyroll. The story follows Tomo, a tomboy who’s crushing on her childhood friend Junichiro. He looks at her only like one of his bros, and she has trouble revealing her feelings. The series airs each Wednesday at 10 a.m. PT (1 p.m. ET) on Crunchyroll.

To Your Eternity Season 2

To Your Eternity comes back with more melancholy and compelling storytelling about Fushi’s struggles as a shape-shifting immortal. This time, he can’t keep his commitment to solitude when he faces the Nokkers and needs help to do it. To Your Eternity season 2 features 20 episodes and began streaming on Crunchyroll on Oct. 23 at 5:30 a.m. PT (8:30 a.m. ET). The series will wrap on March 5.

Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series Part 2

Ash and Pikachu head to the world championships while Goh gears up for the final stages of Project Mew. To see the beloved characters, stream part 2 when it drops on Netflix on Feb. 24.

Spy Classroom

One of the newest anime series to be adapted from its manga, Spy Classroom follows up-and-coming spy Lily, who’s motivated to show she has what it takes. It won’t be easy to be on Team Tomoshibi, and even harder to take down Impossible Mission. You can start streaming the show on Hidive on Jan. 5 and watch it each Thursday at 6:30 a.m. PT (9:30 a.m. ET).

The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague

Continuing with the rom-com theme this February, you can check out this budding-workplace-romance anime about Himuro and Fuyutsuki. Himuro is descended from a snow spirit and has supernatural powers that can create icy weather around him. He falls for his co-worker, Fuyutsuki, who has a natural ability to keep him calm. Their colleagues’ love lives are just as interesting. Stream the new series on Crunchyroll.

Technologies

You’ll Soon Be Able to Buy Walmart Products Through ChatGPT

OpenAI’s chatbot already connects to Etsy and Shopify. Now you can buy bananas too.

OpenAI and Walmart will soon offer shopping via AI through ChatGPT, the retail giant said in a press release on Tuesday.

While using ChatGPT’s Instant Checkout feature, customers can buy groceries, electronics or other essentials within the chatbot interface.

Walmart has its own AI assistant in its app named Sparky. With Sparky, customers can ask questions about products and get summaries of reviews to find the best item.

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«For many years now, e-commerce shopping experiences have consisted of a search bar and a long list of item responses. That is about to change,» Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said in a statement. «There is a native AI experience coming that is multi-media, personalized and contextual. We are running towards that more enjoyable and convenient future with Sparky and through partnerships including this important step with OpenAI.»

When asked for comment, Walmart referred to its press release. Walmart also said it wouldn’t discuss the financial terms of the agreement at this time.

«We’re excited to partner with Walmart to make everyday purchases a little simpler. It’s just one way AI will help people every day under our work together,» OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in a press release.

OpenAI referred to Walmart’s press release when asked for comment.

The latest deal with Walmart comes as OpenAI tries to make ChatGPT an all-in-one shopping experience. AI chatbots are increasingly being used as vehicles for online shopping. They can synthesize reviews from across the internet and give people direct answers to shopping questions. Already, ChatGPT connects with Etsy and Shopify with its Instant Checkout feature, allowing people to buy directly. OpenAI also added more shopping features in ChatGPT Search earlier this year.

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

Technologies

OpenAI Will Loosen ChatGPT’s Mental Health Guardrails and Allow Erotica for Adult Users

Sam Altman said the company will ease limits for adults after rolling out age verification.

ChatGPT is treading cautiously right now, but the chatbot may become more risqué by the end of the year.

In recent weeks, the generative AI chatbot has been operating under somewhat stringent limitations, as OpenAI tried to address concerns that it was not handling sensitive mental health issues well. But CEO Sam Altman said in a post on X Tuesday that the company would ease some of those restrictions because it’s «been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues.»

Though Altman didn’t elaborate on what tools are being used to address the problem, OpenAI recently announced new parental controls in ChatGPT.

CNET reached out to OpenAI for details, but the company did not immediately respond to a request for comment. (Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

Other changes are also expected. Altman said the company could allow «erotica» for verified adult users as it implements an «age-gating» system, or age-restricted content, in December. The mature content is part of the company’s «treat adult users like adults» principle, Altman said.

Altman’s post also announced a new version of ChatGPT in the next few weeks, with a personality that behaves more like the company’s GPT-4o model. Chatbot users had complained after the company replaced 4o with the impersonal GPT-5 earlier this year, saying the new version lacked the engaging and fun personality of previous chatbot models.

«If you want your ChatGPT to respond in a very human-like way, or use a ton of emoji, or act like a friend, ChatGPT should do it (but only if you want it, not because we are usage-maxxing),» Altman wrote.

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After OpenAI was sued by parents who alleged ChatGPT contributed to their teen son’s suicide, the company imposed an array of new restrictions and changes, including parental controls, alerts for risky behavior and a teen-friendly version of the chatbot. In the summer, OpenAI implemented break reminders that encourage people to occasionally stop chatting with the bot.

On Tuesday, the company also announced the creation of a council of experts on AI and well-being, including some with expertise in psychology and human behavior.

This comes as lawmakers and regulators are ringing the alarm on the risks AI tools pose to people, especially children. On Monday, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed new restrictions on AI companion chatbots into law. Last month, the Federal Trade Commission launched an investigation into several AI companies, including OpenAI.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for Oct. 15 #591

Here are hints — and the answers — for the NYT Strands puzzle for Oct. 15, No. 591.

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Strands puzzle is a fun one, once you understand the theme. Some of the answers are a bit tough to unscramble, so if you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Going up?

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Not an escalator, but…

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

ROTATE, LOBE, NOPE, RATS, STAR, SAME, LOSE, VOTE, BUTTE, SAMS, BAMS

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

ALARM, OPEN, CLOSE, LOBBY, GROUND, BASEMENT

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is ELEVATORBUTTONS. To find it, look for the E that’s three letters to the right on the bottom row, and wind straight up, and then straight down.