YearInReview
Latest
Shocking deaths top Google's trending searches in 2018
As is the annual tradition, Google has released its list of top trending searches for the year. If 2018 was dominated by anything, it was untimely and unexpected celebrity deaths. The top 10 trending searches included DJ and musician Avicii, rapper Mac Miller, legendary comics creator Stan Lee, celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain, controversial rapper XXXTentacion, theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, and fashion designer Kate Spade -- all of whom passed away during the year.
Twitter's 2018 was dominated by protests and K-pop
If you thought Twitter would settle down after the tumult of 2017, you might be in for a surprise. Twitter has posted its 2018 year in review, and there was an ample amount of passion both for superstars and social change. Korean pop dominated the landscape, with megagroup BTS (followed closely by Exo) earning some of the most liked and quoted tweets in addition to being the most-discussed celebrities and musicians. They even helped fuel one of the bigger memes of 2018, with one member taking up the "In My Feelings" challenge and dancing to Drake.
Blunders and blockbusters from the biggest names in tech
In many ways, the world in 2016 was defined by its mistakes. Companies let products languish, and when they did release updates, they often made questionable design choices. And of course, one of Samsung's most important phones literally went up in smoke. This year was a different story though. Some previous offenders learned their lesson while others set themselves up for success down the road. Not that everything was rosy. There were plenty of errors along the way, including glitchy products and misguided strategies. With that in mind, let's look at the hits and misses of 2017 -- and more importantly, consider how they'll affect what happens in 2018.
2017 laid the foundation for faster, smarter AI in 2018
"AI is like the Wild West right now," Tim Leland, Qualcomm's head of graphics, told me earlier this month when the company unveiled its latest premium mobile chipset. The Snapdragon 845 was designed to handle AI computing tasks better. It's the latest product of the tech industry's obsession with artificial intelligence. No company wants to be left behind, and whether it's by optimizing their hardware for AI processing or using machine learning to speed up tasks, every major brand has invested heavily in artificial intelligence. But even though AI permeated all aspects of our lives in 2017, the revolution is only just beginning.
This year we took small, important steps toward the Singularity
We won't have to wait until 2019 for our Blade Runner future, mostly because artificially intelligent robots already walk, roll and occasionally backflip among us. They're on our streets and in our stores. Some have wagged their way into our hearts while others have taken a more literal route. Both in civilian life and the military battlespace, AI is adopting physical form to multiply the capabilities of the humans it serves. As robots gain ubiquity, friction between these bolt buckets and we meat sacks is sure to cause issues. So how do we ensure that the increasingly intelligent machines we design share our ethical values while minimizing human-robot conflict? Sit down, Mr. Asimov.
Facebook’s Year in Review confirms 2017 was terrible
Yesterday, Facebook unveiled its annual Year in Review, which highlights the biggest moments of 2017. And, unsurprisingly, most of them are pretty depressing, confirming what we all already knew: The year 2017 was pretty terrible.
Change, tragedy and chicken nuggets ruled Twitter in 2017
It's been one heck of a year, and nowhere has that been more visible than Twitter. The platform became a bigger stage than ever given Trump's preference to introduce policy through tweets, turning the social network into even more of a political battleground. Today, Twitter released its year-in-review of the most impactful tweets that gave a balanced view of the year's events. The year's top tweets ranged from reacting to terrorist-caused tragedy to banding together for disaster relief -- with the most retweeted message coming from one man's quest to get endless chicken nuggets.
'Overwatch' turns one with another event and free weekend
Developer Blizzard keeps making frequent, regular updates to its popular team-shooter video game Overwatch. Players have gotten new battle arena maps, interesting new characters and various time-limited events to keep them coming back for more of what is, essentially, the same game over and over. To keep interest high, Blizzard is launching a one-year anniversary event from May 23rd to June 12th. You'll also be able to buy a new Game of the Year Edition when the event launches, which will include 10 bonus Loot Boxes, extra Hero skins, and various virtual trinkets for other Blizzard games.
The year of Yahoo's undoing
It's not often that we're able to quantify the crappiness of a particular year, but Yahoo's 2016 was so tragic that it ended with a hefty, widely publicized price tag: $1 billion. That's the size of the discount that Verizon requested on its purchase of Yahoo, just three months after the $4.83 billion acquisition went public. That deal (and the discount) is still in the works, and it's expected to close early next year, but Verizon clearly feels it has the upper hand in negotiations. And, after Yahoo's year of hacking disclosures, government spying and security issues, it's easy to see why.
2016: The year in winners and losers
2016 was an interesting one, that's for sure. To celebrate its quickly approaching end, we're going to spend the next two weeks looking back at the most important story lines of the year -- starting with the biggest winners of 2016. (Don't worry, next week we'll be taking shots at the biggest losers.) Over the next six days Engadget will take stock of who is entering 2017 in a much better position than in 2016. Facebook for one, has started to really pull away from its social media competitors, despite its struggles with fake news. And, after years of being promised that VR or AR would go mainstream, 2016 finally seems to have delivered. Oh, and we also saw emoji evolve from a bunch of silly pictures into a full-fledged language of its own -- one that represents the diversity of our society. So stay tuned through December 31st as we run down the biggest winners and losers of 2016. Check out all of Engadget's year-in-review coverage right here.
Google's 2016 was defined by 'Pokémon Go,' Olympics and Trump
Google's Year in Search summaries have a knack for capturing the cultural zeitgeist, and that's truer than ever in 2016. The company has published its top search trends for the year, and it clearly mirrors a tumultuous 12 months defined by the unexpected, the tragic and the rise of technology. Notably, the biggest global search trend was for Pokémon Go -- yes, the wildly popular mobile game did more to captivate the world's attention than political upheaval or sports triumphs. Apple's iPhone 7 was the runner up, followed by President-elect Donald Trump.
Facebook was dominated by the presidential election in 2016
As the year winds down, companies like Twitter, YouTube and others have made a habit of reminding us of all the stories that dominated the conversation over the last 12 months. Facebook does the same and today the social network revealed the most popular topics that hit your News Feed in 2016. As you might expect, the US presidential election took the top spot while Brexit was the hottest subject in the UK.
Nearly half of Flickr's photo uploads come from smartphones
It's no secret that Flickr is popular with phone-toting photographers, but it's now reaching a tipping point. The Yahoo-owned image service has posted its year in review, and it notes that 48 percent of photo uploads now come from smartphones. That's a big jump over the 39 percent from 2015 -- it's now clear that you're in the minority if you uploaded shots from a dedicated camera. The numbers for conventional cams aren't exactly pretty.
2015's big hacks, attacks and security blunders
The security breaches, blunders, and disasters of 2015 tanked our trust in health insurance providers, credit agencies, the IRS, car manufacturers, connected toys for kids, and even "adult" dating sites. These stories shaped 2015, and forever changed the way we see data privacy and security. Most importantly, these painful moments in computer security affected millions, shaped government policy and validated our paranoia.
Facebook's 2015 review video puts the year in perspective
One of the internet's greatest achievements is its ability to connect disparate global communities in discussion and, at times, compassion -- and a lot of that conversation takes place on Facebook. The company's Year in Review, a video and list released today, outlines the top 10 stories of 2015, including the US presidential election, Paris terrorist attacks, Syrian civil war and refugee crisis, Nepal earthquakes, Baltimore protests, and marriage equality. It's a snapshot of a year with extreme peaks and valleys, ultimate joy and devastation.
Twitter's 2015 was defined by activism and its own tough luck
Twitter has posted its year in review, and it's clear that some things are truer than ever in the social sphere... including for Twitter itself. More often than not, the 2015 trends were a continuation of what you saw in 2014: activism dominated tweets even more than in the past thanks to the Black Lives Matter, LGBT equality and pro-refugee movements. Straight-up politics mattered as well given crucial elections in countries like Canada, India and the UK.
Facebook says it 'can do better' with its 'Year in Review' slideshows
Facebook inadvertently opened a lot of old wounds with its automated "Year in Review" slideshow feature. While it was meant to highlight people's favorite moments, it also reminded many of deaths, divorces and other tragedies that they tried to leave in the past. The company is clearly ready to own up to its mistake, though. Product manager Jonathan Gheller has apologized to Eric Meyer (whose story about his daughter's death drew attention to the problem) for the insensitivity and declared that the "Year in Review" team "can do better" in the future. While it's not clear what those changes will involve, The Guardian notes that Facebook has already changed the ending of the slideshow from "it's been a great year" to "see you next year" to avoid making presumptions.
Facebook and Twitter say 2014 was about protests and the World Cup
The past year was a blur if you're a social networking maven, but don't worry -- both Facebook and Twitter are offering retrospectives that will help you remember how 2014 went down. Despite the differences between the two services, people on either were buzzing about many of the same things. Protests defined the year for many, whether it was about police violence in the US or the fight for democracy in Hong Kong. Sports played a big role, too, with the World Cup and the winter Olympics often dominating the conversation.
Kickstarter ends 2013 with $480 million in funding, proof that dreams came true
Kickstarter is now a relatively mature company, but that doesn't mean that it has stopped growing -- far from it. The crowdfunding pioneer says in its year-end review that it generated $480 million in pledges from three million people during 2013, a big jump from the $274 million and 2.2 million contributors that it attracted in 2012. It's also eager to show that the contributions of years past have led to real products. It notes that big-name 2012 projects like the Oculus Rift and Pebble reached backers last year, while more recent successes like the Veronica Mars movie are on the cusp of release. Not everything that Kickstarter touches will turn to gold, but its results suggest that crowd power is here to stay.
Google+ is automatically creating your own year in review video
If you're anything like us, the thought of sifting through mountains of media to create a year in review video is more than a little intimidating. However, it just got a lot easier for some Google+ members. The social network is now using Auto Awesome to create year in review clips for anyone who has been uploading enough photos and videos throughout 2013; if you're one of the lucky ones, the clip should be available in about a week. It won't be quite the same as a lovingly crafted highlight reel, but it could prevent a few headaches during the holidays.
