Google has just announced an image compression method that is revolutionary in more ways than one. Basically it relies on an AI algorithm to invent the parts of the image that aren’t actually there.
AI upscaling or super-resolution is an interesting, and almost magical, technique that we have looked at before.
The basic idea is that images are highly redundant and, given a low resolution image, a human can perform a better upscaling than simply using image statistics. By knowing that the fuzzy blob is in fact a face, the human can make the features more distinct where most statistical interpolation methods improve the resolution but often blur the image even more.
You can see that the image on the right has more pixels, but it is blurred by comparison with the blocky low res image. You could probably do better by taking a tool that sharpens the obvious edges.
If a human can do it then so can AI. Google introduced an AI upscaling program called RAISR back in November 2016. It learns filters that essentially sharpen the image from a set of images and lower resolution images derived from them.
“With RAISR, we instead use machine learning and train on pairs of images, one low quality, one high, to find filters that, when applied to selectively to each pixel of the low-res image, will recreate details that are of comparable quality to the original. RAISR can be trained in two ways. The first is the “direct” method, where filters are learned directly from low and high-resolution image pairs. The other method involves first applying a computationally cheap upsampler to the low resolution image (as in the figure above) and then learning the filters from the upsampled and high resolution image pairs. While the direct method is computationally faster, the 2nd method allows for non-integer scale factors and better leveraging of hardware-based upsampling. “
For example starting from a low resolution image RAISR first upscales the image using a standard technique and then applies a learned filter to each pixel depending on its surroundings. You can see that it works fairly well:
Of course the computational complexity of the per pixel filter is much higher than the standard upscaling but it is well worth it.
While RASIR is useful, at first it seemed only to have limited application – i.e. to situations where you have a low resolution image that you want to show using a higher resolution display. For example, upscaling standard TV to 4K comes to mind as an obvious application.
However, Google has now found a devious way to make RASIR a key component in an image compression algorithm. Put simply, what happens is that you send a lower resolution version of the image, hence a smaller file, and then you use RASIR to restore the resolution. The example given is of a 1000×1500 image taking 100Kb. The compression works by only sending a 500×750 reduced quality image i.e. 25Kb and then using RASIR to restore the sharpness to an upscaled version.
Currently this only works on Google+, but the idea is to spread its use to other apps and services in the future.
This is a fun idea, but it is only a small step towards what AI-based compression could do for us. AI-based “in painting” and super resolution techniques can intelligently extrapolate what is visible in an image to what should have been visible if the camera was up to the job. By understanding what the image is of, AI can use its intelligence to fill in the missing detail of a face, say. Using this sort of approach you could get much higher compression ratios – but possibly open yourself to the accusation that resulting super resolution image was more a figment of the AI’s “imagination” than a reconstructed image.
Mozilla Wants To Take A Byte Out Of JPEGs
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At its Switch presentation yesterday , Nintendo showed off a variety of games that would be making their way to the company’s console. This included Super Mario Odyssey , Sonic Mania , ARMS , 1-2 Switch , Fire Emblem Warriors , and Xenoblade Chronicles 2.
The company has announced that Splatoon 2 is headed to the Switch hybrid console as well.
Splatoon 2 is the successor to the original Splatoon that was released for the Wii U back in 2015. The third-person multiplayer shooter tasked players with controlling characters called “Inklings” that could morph between squid and humanoid forms. The title offered a single player campaign as well as multiplayer modes, allowing players to battle each other with weapons filled with colored ink in rich environments. The game was well-received and currently sports a Metacritic score of 81/100.
For seasoned players of Splatoon , the second game in the series offers more of the same. New weapons and moves are being introduced to make gameplay more competitive with some weapons from the original Splatoon being “remixed”. Along with an online multiplayer mode that pits up to eight players against each other, gamers can also battle each other locally. Moreover, the company also promises the return of familiar characters along with new ones.
You can watch the trailer of the game below:
Nintendo also promises post-launch updates so that fresh content will be added on a regular basis. Additionally, it says that a smartphone application will also be released to “enhance matchmaking and allow for voice chat options”. Splatoon 2 for the Nintendo Switch is slated for a summer 2017 release.

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It appears that another Mario game will be making its way to Nintendo’s upcoming Switch console. Other games in the hybrid console’s lineup include Super Mario Odyssey , Sonic Mania , ARMS , 1-2 Switch , Fire Emblem Warriors , Xenoblade Chronicles 2 , Super Bomberman R , and Splatoon 2.
The company has revealed that Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is headed to its console as well.
The title is an overhauled version of the original Mario Kart 8 for the Wii U. With emphasis on competitive racing and multiplayer, the kart racing game was very well-received by gamers and reviewers alike. It currently boasts a Metacritic score of 88/100.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe appears to offer more of the same. Nintendo describes it as a “definitive” edition of the original game, saying that it offers a lot of new content. All race tracks from the Wii U version – including those from post-launch DLCs – will be available. Similarly, many familiar faces will be making their return to the game such as Bowser Jr., King Boo and Dry Bones, along with a few new ones, such as the Inklings from Splatoon .
Nintendo says that the “Battle” mode has been revamped. New race courses include Battle Stadium and Urchin Underpass. In addition, three new vehicles have also been added to the garage – two of which are inspired from Splatoon. Up to eight players can race against each other in local wireless multiplayer, and the company has also introduced a “Smart Steering” feature in order to aid younger players stay on the track. You can watch the trailer for the title below:
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe will be making its way to the Nintendo Switch on April 28, 2017; less than a month after the console’s launch.

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Users who dutifully downloaded the latest update to Adobe’s PDF Reader software have hit out at the software company after finding out that the security updates had surreptitiously installed an extension to the Google Chrome web browser – if they used it – without their express permission.
Adobe Acrobat and Acrobat Reader have new updates designed to fix a vulnerability that could enable miscreants to take control of a system infected with the relevant malware.
However, it appears that in order to combat this, Abode is now automatically adding a plug-in to Chrome’s browser when users update Acrobat Reader.
Adobe has been criticised in the past for being all-too-willing to try and push Chrome on users when they apply security updates for Acrobat Reader or Flash.
You do have to give permission for Adobe to “read and change all your data on websites you visit”, “manage your downloads” and “communicate with cooperating native applications”. That’s three big asks right there. And it’s not made clear that saying no won’t affect the bug fixes in the main programme.
Adobe isn’t exactly in a position to throw stones about security. This type of plug-in is fairly typically used in “bundleware” and adware scams. The company has long been criticised for bundling software in with the Java runtime package. And don’t get us started on Adobe Flash.
This new plug-in is apparently a way of saving web pages as PDFs. But that’s not fixing the problem at hand – that’s adding functionality – and optional functionality at that. It answers a question no-one actually asked, especially given that Chrome has a PDF reader built in any way.
Weirdest of all – it’s not even a new thing, it has been an optional extra for years, so why randomly start forcing people to bundle it now?
Adobe has stated in its teeny-weeny small print that any information about URLs isn’t sent to its servers, but then why ask for the permission. And indeed why suddenly make it part of the main update randomly one day?
The issue here is that this was a security fix. Microsoft tried a similar tactic last year when it hid the Get Windows 10 update that spewed ads for Windows 10 , inside a security update. Taking a highly partisan view: Security and functionality are two different things. Don’t use one to meddle with the other – you hear us Adobe?

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