The 2018 Winter Olympics: all the tech and updates from the world’s biggest games in Pyeongchang – The Verge

Russia was behind the cyberattack during the opening ceremonies for the 2018 Winter Olympics

2018-02-25T13:55:44-05:00

Russian hackers were responsible for a cyberattack against the 2018 Winter Olympic Games opening ceremony, and tried to make it appear as though North Korea was responsible, reports The Washington Post.

Citing officials from the US intelligence community, the Post says that Russia's Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU) gained access to around 300 computers, hacked routers, and distributed malware in the lead-up to and during the event's opening ceremonies. The contests themselves were unaffected.

Officials speculated that attack was in retaliation for the ban on Russian athletes in the wake of a systematic doping scheme. The Post says that …

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Robots compete in their own Olympics ski tournament, capture our hearts

2018-02-12T14:04:09-05:00

This year's Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang is working overtime to showcase Korean robotics technology, featuring robots to clean, guide visitors, drill through a wall to pass on the Olympic torch, and now, compete in ski tournaments.

In a tournament aptly called "Edge of Robot: Ski Robot Challenge," eight robotics teams from research universities, institutes, and a private company competed for a $10,000 prize to see which robot could ski down the slopes and race to the finish line the fastest while avoiding obstacles.

The tournament took place at an 80-meter alpine skiing course at Welli Hilli Ski Resort, an hour away from the games in Pye …

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Officials confirm that a cyberattack took place during the Winter Olympics opening ceremonies

2018-02-11T14:42:40-05:00

Olympic officials have confirmed that a cyber attack took place during the event's opening ceremonies in Pyeongchang, according to Reuters. The organizers say that while television and internet access was affected, it "it had not compromised any critical part of their operations."

According to reports, internet access and Wi-Fi shut down on Friday during the game's opening ceremonies. The website for the games also went down, preventing attendees from printing out tickets. Pyeongchang organizing committee spokesman Sung Baik-you confirmed that an attack took place, but that the issues have since been resolved. He also said that investigator …

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The internet can’t decide whether it loves or fears the Pyeongchang Olympics’ human-faced sacred bird

2018-02-09T16:34:36-05:00

NBC isn't even streaming the Winter Olympics opening ceremony until 8pm ET tonight, but in the time since the event happened live yesterday in Pyeongchang, Korean netizens have made enough fan art and memes out of the ceremony's man-faced bird that it's trending nationally on Twitter, and hitting #1 on Yahoo! Japan trending search results.

"인면조," or Inmyeonjo, literally translates to "human-faced bird." The trending tag "인면조 너무" translates to "Inmyeonjo is so," which is a partial sentence people have completed in different ways, including "Inmyeonjo is so scary," and "Inmyeonjo is so handsome." People feel very strongly about this animal on …

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Intel’s Winter Olympics light show featured a record-breaking 1,218 drones

2018-02-09T09:37:37-05:00

The Olympics opening ceremony is always a big show, and this year was no exception, with Intel joining in on the fun with a record-setting performance of 1,218 Shooting Star drones flying in sync to create huge light-up images of Olympic sports and the iconic Olympic rings in the skies over Pyeongchang.

Like the drones that flew at Lady Gaga's Super Bowl halftime show, the record-breaking 1,218-drone flight wasn't live at the opening ceremony - it was pre-recorded in advance - although a smaller group of 300 drones did make a live appearance at the ceremony.

Intel will also be showing a 300-drone live performance each night at the medal ce …

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How to watch the 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony

2018-02-08T12:00:05-05:00

The 2018 Winter Olympics have arrived, and things will kick off with the extravagant opening ceremony, which features the lighting of the Olympic flame, the introductions of the countries participating through the flag parade, and a showcase of the culture and history of host nation South Korea.

While the opening ceremony may claim to be the "official" start of the games, the Olympics actually started on Thursday afternoon in Korea (Wednesday evening in the US) with mixed doubles curling and ski jumping. They will be continuing throughout Thursday and Friday with other events, including figure skating, before the ceremony actually starts.

W …

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North Korean athletes can’t take Olympic-edition Samsung phones home with them

2018-02-07T18:36:15-05:00

Winter Olympics attendees from North Korea, as well as Iran, won't be able to take their Samsung Galaxy Note 8 phones back home due to United Nations sanctions, the event's organizers said today, as reported by AFP. This year, Samsung, for the second Olympics in a row, made a special version of the Galaxy Note 8 to distribute to athletes and organizers. It's not the only promotion of its flagship phone that the tech giant engages in - the Note 8 has also heavily appeared on Korean dramas over the past year, as actors on TV shows tend to all use Samsung devices.

"The IOC will provide mobile phones to all athletes and officials of all countri …

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How to stream the 2018 Winter Olympics

2018-02-07T17:37:13-05:00

The 2018 Winter Olympics officially get started tonight from Pyeongchang, South Korea with mixed doubles curling. This is a new event for the Olympics and comes in advance of Friday's opening ceremony and the lighting of the Olympic torch. More competition is scheduled for tomorrow including figure skating and freestyle skiing.

If you're like me and find the highs and lows of the Olympics irresistible, you're probably wondering about the best way to watch the games. After all, where else can you bounce around from seeing pure elation when someone achieves a lifelong dream to the embarrassment and anguish they show after totally blowing it w …

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The New York Times puts Olympic athletes in augmented reality

2018-02-06T15:00:55-05:00

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In one of its first mobile augmented reality experiences, The New York Times has launched an iOS-based visualization of four Olympic athletes. If you have a recent iPhone and the Times mobile app, you can see 3D models of figure skater Nathan Chen, speedskater J.R. Celski, ice hockey goalie Alex Rigsby, and snowboarder Anna Gasser overlaid on the real world. By moving close or turning the phone, you can bring up text around specific details, like Gasser's posture or the protective caps on Celski's gloves. An Android version is currently in development, and you can find more details on the Times augmented reality initiative here.

The project …

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The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 gets a Winter Olympics makeover

2018-01-17T06:36:41-05:00

During the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics, we're used to seeing athletes proudly parade with their phones out, recording videos and taking selfies while the entire world watches. Now Samsung wants to be part of that priceless exposure. The company has announced it will supply over 4,000 special edition Galaxy Note 8 devices to staff members and all Olympians competing in the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Games.

The PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Games Limited Edition Galaxy Note 8 features a white glass back (representing winter) emblazoned with gold Olympic Rings that are "inspired by the Olympic Torch." The phone features the same specs and functio …

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