Technologies

The iPhone 17 Cameras Need Google’s Approach for Identifying AI Images

Commentary: Google is taking the correct stance on tagging both AI-generated images and photos straight out of the camera. Apple should join in and throw its weight in the right direction.

Nearly all of the new camera features of Google’s Pixel 10 Pro lean on artificial intelligence. When you use Pro Res Zoom to zoom in at 100x, for example, the Pixel Camera uses generative AI to recreate a sharp, clear version. Or when you’re taking photos of people, the Auto Best Take feature melds multiple shots to create an image where everyone looks good.

But Google added another low-level feature to the Pixel 10 line, C2PA content credentials, that isn’t getting much attention. C2PA, or the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity, is an effort to identify whether an image has been created or edited using AI and help weed out fake images. AI misinformation is a growing problem, especially as the systems used to create them have been rapidly improving — with Google among those advancing the technology.

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Apple, however, is not part of the coalition of companies pledging to work with C2PA content credentials. But it sells millions of iPhones, some of the most popular image-making devices in the world. It’s time the company implemented the technology in its upcoming iPhone 17 cameras.

Identifying genuine photos from AI-edited ones

C2PA is an initiative founded by Adobe to tag media with content credentials that identify whether they’re AI-generated or AI-edited. Google is a member of the coalition. Starting with the Pixel 10 line, every image captured by the camera is embedded with C2PA information, and if you use AI tools to edit a photo in the Google Photos app, it will also get flagged as being AI-edited.

When viewing an image in Google Photos on a phone, swipe up to display information about it. In addition to data such as which camera settings were used to capture the image, at the bottom is a new «How this was made» section. It’s not incredibly detailed – a typical shot says it’s «Media captured with a camera» — but if an AI tool such as Pro Res Zoom was used, you’ll see «Edited with AI tools.» (I was able to view this on a Pixel 10 Pro XL and a Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, but it didn’t show up in the Google Photos app on an iPhone 16 Pro.)

As another example, if you edit a photo after taking it using the Help me edit field to replace the background of an image, the generated version also includes «Edited with AI tools» in the information.

To be fair, AI has a role in pretty much every photo you take with a smartphone, given that machine learning is used to identify objects and scenes to better merge bursts of exposures that are captured when you tap the shutter button. The Pixel 10 flags those as «Edited with non-AI tools,» so Google is specifically applying the AI tag to images where generative AI is at work. So far, the implementation is inconsistent: A short AI-generated clip I made using the Photo to Video feature in Google Photos on the Pixel 10 Pro XL shows no C2PA data at all, though it does include a «Veo» watermark in the corner of the video.

What’s important is that the C2PA info is there

But here’s the key point: What Google is doing is not just tagging pictures that have been touched by AI. The Camera app is adding the C2PA data to every photo it captures, even the ones you snap and do nothing with.

The goal is not to highlight AI-edited photos. It’s to let you look at any photo and see where it came from.

When I talked to Isaac Reynolds, group product manager for the Pixel cameras, before the Pixel 10 launch, C2PA was a prominent topic even though in practical terms the feature isn’t remotely as visible as Pro Res Zoom or the new Camera Coach.

«The reason we are so committed to saving this metadata in every Pixel camera picture is so people can start to be suspicious of pictures without any information,» said Reynolds. «We’re just trying to flood the market with this label so people start to expect the data to be there.»

This is why I think Apple needs to adopt C2PA and tag every photo made with an iPhone. It would represent a massive influx of tagged images and give weight to the idea that an image with no tag should be regarded as potentially not genuine. If an image looks off, particularly when it involves current events or is meant to imitate a business in order to scam you, looking at its information can help you make a better-informed choice.

Google isn’t an outlier here. Samsung Galaxy phones add an AI watermark and a content credential tag to images that incorporate AI-generated material. Unfortunately, since Apple is not even listed as one of the C2PA members, I admit it seems like a stretch to expect that the company would adopt the technology. But given Apple’s size and influence in the market, adding C2PA credentials to every image the iPhone makes would make a difference and hopefully encourage even more companies to get on board.

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Feb. 5, #500

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Feb. 5, No. 500.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a tough one. As an old-school Minnesota Twins fan, I was excited to see the last name of our most legendary player on the grid. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: QB is another one.

Green group hint: Hit it out of the park.

Blue group hint: Great gridiron signal-callers.

Purple group hint: Half of a thousand.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Football positions, abbreviated.

Green group: Members of the 500-HR club.

Blue group: First names of QBs to throw 500 career TDs.

Purple group: ____500.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is football positions, abbreviated. The four answers are CB, OT, S and TE.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is members of the 500-HR club. The four answers are Banks, Bonds, Foxx and Killebrew.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is first names of QBs to throw 500 career TDs. The four answers are Aaron, Drew, Peyton and Tom.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ____500. The four answers are ATP, Daytona, Indy and WTA.

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Thursday, Feb. 5

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Feb. 5

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

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? The Across clues were kind of tricky today, but the Down clues helped me fill in the grid. Read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Battery warning from a smoke detector
Answer: CHIRP

6A clue: Word that can precede «book» or «tour»
Answer: AUDIO

7A clue: Extreme edge
Answer: BRINK

8A clue: Like a wobbly screw
Answer: LOOSE

9A clue: Type in
Answer: ENTER

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Alternative to streaming
Answer: CABLE

2D clue: One of the Great Lakes
Answer: HURON

3D clue: Dummy
Answer: IDIOT

4D clue: Wash under a tap
Answer: RINSE

5D clue: Game in which Paul Newman successfully cons a crime boss in «The Sting»
Answer: POKER

Technologies

Fitbit Launches Luffu, AI-Powered Health Tracking for the Whole Family

Soon, you may be able to access every family member’s health data in one place.

If you’ve ever wanted a way to keep all of your family’s health records in place, Fitbit may have come up with a solution. Fitbit, well-known for its fitness wearables, announced the launch of its own health care system on Wednesday.

Luffu, which translates to the Old English word for «love,» uses AI to create what it calls an «intelligent family care system.» The platform allows family members to share all their health information through an app.

It’s unclear when Luffu will be officially available, but you can sign up for the waitlist to get access to the limited public beta. Pricing or other details have not been announced.

Luffu will allow families to keep track of everyone’s doctor’s appointments, test results, vaccine records, medications, symptoms, diet and more. The platform uses AI to learn your family’s health history and patterns, and to alert you to any changes that should be addressed, such as missed medications or abnormal vitals. The AI function organizes the data submitted into the system. The app will also connect to third-party apps and wearables, such as the Fitbit.

Luffu is meant to lighten the mental load of family care by organizing all this health data in one place, its co-founder said.

«I was caring for my parents from across the country, trying to piece together my mom’s health care across various portals and providers, with a language barrier that made it hard to get a complete, timely context from her about doctor visits,» said Luffu co-founder James Park.

Luffu will include alerts and a space to log health and medication information via voice, text, photos, and other health portals and devices. The key medical information can be shared across the platform with spouses, caregivers and parents.

A representative for Fitbit did not immediately respond to a request for comment.