Technology

Considerations When Hiring IT Support

Published

4 years ago

November 1, 2021

When you are looking into new business opportunities or are trying to improve current services, you will be looking to enhance your information technology. Digital platforms provide unique opportunities to expand and access clients or serve them in new ways. And you can outsource these services, so you do not have to purchase the infrastructure and hire more staff. Call centers, customer support, data centers, and many other forms of data processing can be arranged from anywhere in the world. This is a good opportunity for everyone to explore new business and fine-tune their organization. But there are risks too. It would be best if you were careful when choosing IT partners.

Security: Information technology often involves sensitive data.For this reason, security needs to be one of your primary concerns when choosing IT support. Customer data, like credit card information, is your responsibility, and your reputation is on the line. Your intellectual property and records can also be stolen especially if you trust the provider with all your data or data security.
Experience: There is no limit to companies offering every kind of service, but just having a fantastic website does not make them good at what they do. When searching for an IT service provider, you should make sure to search for a company that has experience in your industry and does not have to learn everything from scratch. You can get recommendations from business associates, and you should ask for references and examples of their work.
Compatibility: Business ethics are different all over the world, as are customer service expectations. IT services are offered by providers all over the globe. When you consider a service that involves interaction with your customers, care needs to be taken that the customer experience will not be diminished through customer support, call center experiences, or any other interaction that can affect your company’s reputation.
Cost: We all know that you get what you pay for, but when it comes to IT services, some cost differences do not necessarily represent quality. It is much cheaper for vendors to operate in some countries due to low wages and overhead. So there are cases where you will find a great service and pay less than you would in North America, for example. But once again, it comes down to compatibility, experience, and security. Different practices can cause significant problems, and at the very least, you need to have precise service agreements to ensure that you will be getting the quality of interaction you are paying for.

Outsourcing IT support makes a lot of sense. We are all doing what we can to avoid high overhead and fixed costs. The digital platform has changed the way businesses operate, and it is so much easier to take advantage of leading-edge technology without needing to invest in equipment and training. As long as you do your due diligence, ask the right questions, and insist on good practices, there is no reason why you can’t find good IT partners to advance your company’s service profile.

Technology

Microsoft Expands Copilot Voice and Think Deeper

Published

2 months ago

February 25, 2025

Archana Suryawanshi

Microsoft Expands Copilot Voice and Think Deeper

Microsoft is taking a major step forward by offering unlimited access to Copilot Voice and Think Deeper, marking two years since the AI-powered Copilot was first integrated into Bing search. This update comes shortly after the tech giant revamped its Copilot Pro subscription and bundled advanced AI features into Microsoft 365.

What’s Changing?

Microsoft remains committed to its $20 per month Copilot Pro plan, ensuring that subscribers continue to enjoy premium benefits. According to the company, Copilot Pro users will receive:

Preferred access to the latest AI models during peak hours.
Early access to experimental AI features, with more updates expected soon.
Extended use of Copilot within popular Microsoft 365 apps like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

The Impact on Users

This move signals Microsoft’s dedication to enhancing AI-driven productivity tools. By expanding access to Copilot’s powerful features, users can expect improved efficiency, smarter assistance, and seamless integration across Microsoft’s ecosystem.

As AI technology continues to evolve, Microsoft is positioning itself at the forefront of innovation, ensuring both casual users and professionals can leverage the best AI tools available.

Stay tuned for further updates as Microsoft rolls out more enhancements to its AI offerings.

Technology

Google Launches Free AI Coding Tool for Individual Developers

Published

2 months ago

February 25, 2025

Archana Suryawanshi

Google Launches Free AI Coding Tool for Individual Developers

Google has introduced a free version of Gemini Code Assistant, its AI-powered coding assistant, for solo developers worldwide. The tool, previously available only to enterprise users, is now in public preview, making advanced AI-assisted coding accessible to students, freelancers, hobbyists, and startups.

More Features, Fewer Limits

Unlike competing tools such as GitHub Copilot, which limits free users to 2,000 code completions per month, Google is offering up to 180,000 code completions—a significantly higher cap designed to accommodate even the most active developers.

“Now anyone can easily learn, generate code snippets, debug, and modify applications without switching between multiple windows,” said Ryan J. Salva, Google’s senior director of product management.

AI-Powered Coding Assistance

Gemini Code Assist for individuals is powered by Google’s Gemini 2.0 AI model and offers:
Auto-completion of code while typing
Generation of entire code blocks based on prompts
Debugging assistance via an interactive chatbot

The tool integrates with popular developer environments like Visual Studio Code, GitHub, and JetBrains, supporting a wide range of programming languages. Developers can use natural language prompts, such as:
“Create an HTML form with fields for name, email, and message, plus a submit button.”

With support for 38 programming languages and a 128,000-token memory for processing complex prompts, Gemini Code Assist provides a robust AI-driven coding experience.

Enterprise Features Still Require a Subscription

While the free tier is generous, advanced features like productivity analytics, Google Cloud integrations, and custom AI tuning remain exclusive to paid Standard and Enterprise plans.

With this move, Google aims to compete more aggressively in the AI coding assistant market, offering developers a powerful and unrestricted alternative to existing tools.

Technology

Elon Musk Unveils Grok-3: A Game-Changing AI Chatbot to Rival ChatGPT

Published

3 months ago

February 19, 2025

Archana Suryawanshi

Elon Musk Unveils Grok-3: A Game-Changing AI Chatbot to Rival ChatGPT

Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI has unveiled its latest chatbot, Grok-3, which aims to compete with leading AI models such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and China’s DeepSeek. Grok-3 is now available to Premium+ subscribers on Musk’s social media platform x (formerly Twitter) and is also available through xAI’s mobile app and the new SuperGrok subscription tier on Grok.com.

Advanced capabilities and performance

Grok-3 has ten times the computing power of its predecessor, Grok-2. Initial tests show that Grok-3 outperforms models from OpenAI, Google, and DeepSeek, particularly in areas such as math, science, and coding. The chatbot features advanced reasoning features capable of decomposing complex questions into manageable tasks. Users can interact with Grok-3 in two different ways: “Think,” which performs step-by-step reasoning, and “Big Brain,” which is designed for more difficult tasks.

Strategic Investments and Infrastructure

To support the development of Grok-3, xAI has made major investments in its supercomputer cluster, Colossus, which is currently the largest globally. This infrastructure underscores the company’s commitment to advancing AI technology and maintaining a competitive edge in the industry.

New Offerings and Future Plans

Along with Grok-3, xAI has also introduced a logic-based chatbot called DeepSearch, designed to enhance research, brainstorming, and data analysis tasks. This tool aims to provide users with more insightful and relevant information. Looking to the future, xAI plans to release Grok-2 as an open-source model, encouraging community participation and further development. Additionally, upcoming improvements for Grok-3 include a synthesized voice feature, which aims to improve user interaction and accessibility.

Market position and competition

The launch of Grok-3 positions xAI as a major competitor in the AI chatbot market, directly challenging established models from OpenAI and emerging competitors such as DeepSeek. While Grok-3’s performance claims are yet to be independently verified, early indications suggest it could have a significant impact on the AI landscape. xAI is actively seeking $10 billion in investment from major companies, demonstrating its strong belief in their technological advancements and market potential.