Why Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) is Crucial for Modern Cloud-Native Applications

Amid the rapid evolution of the digital landscape, organizations are adopting cloud-native architectures to streamline operations, reduce costs, and accelerate scaling. The shift towards microservices and containers has become increasingly popular as businesses demand agility, resilience, and ease of deployment. This movement is central to Kubernetes's emergence as a go-to orchestration platform for containerized applications.

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However, managing Kubernetes clusters can be complex, which is where Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) enters the picture. AKS offers a fully managed service that simplifies Kubernetes operations, enabling developers to focus on innovation rather than infrastructure management. For those seeking additional details on how AKS fits into this evolution, it’s essential to understand why it’s a game-changer for modern cloud-native applications.

The Transition to Cloud-Native Environments

Cloud-native applications mark a new paradigm of how software is constructed, produced, and delivered. Cloud-native applications are a set of microservices, while in monolithic architectures, applications are created as a single block with interdependencies. Microservices are small and self-contained services that can be built, deployed, and even managed without having to worry about the other microservices. This affords immense flexibility because each microservice can change without affecting the whole system.

However, when it comes to managing microservices, some new challenges appear. Questions related to scaling, load balancing, network traffic, and state management of containers must be addressed. This is where Kubernetes comes into play, as it is an orchestration layer that handles the deployment, scaling, and management of containerized workloads.

Kubernetes is a mighty tool by itself, but configuring and managing clusters can be quite time-consuming and require extensive experience. Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) was designed to address these challenges by providing a fully managed service, enabling teams to take advantage of Kubernetes without the additional burden.

Simplified Kubernetes Management with AKS

Another critical reason AKS is necessary for current cloud-native applications is because it can help manage Kubernetes clusters properly. Previous methods of implementing Kubernetes required setting up the underlying environment, handling cluster nodes, networks, and fault tolerance. AKS also hides this complexity by providing a managed environment where Microsoft manages the underlying infrastructure, resources, and services such as provisioning, scaling, and monitoring.

AKS also works well with other Azure tools, such as Azure Active Directory for identity management, Azure Monitor for monitoring, and Azure Policy for compliance management. This tight integration minimizes interaction between the development and production environments and helps the developers sustain a strong, safe, and compliant environment. Furthermore, the fact that AKS is an Azure service means that organizations do not need to worry about updating, patching, or scaling clusters, as these are handled automatically.

In addition, AKS provides intrinsic security features like network policies, pod security policies, and Azure Security Center integration. These features assist in shielding applications from threats and maintaining compliance with various standards. With AKS, teams are free to concentrate on developing and deploying cloud-native applications and not worry about the details of Kubernetes management.

Scalability and Flexibility for Growing Applications

The fourth and final benefit of AKS is that it is highly scalable and very flexible, which makes it ideal for applications where the workload is expected to vary. Applications deployed in organizations should be scalable, meaning that as organizations get more significant, the applications have to accommodate this growth and not slow down. AKS is also capable of horizontal scaling, increasing or reducing the number of nodes in a cluster.

This flexibility is especially beneficial for busy platforms like online stores during the holiday season or streaming services during popular events. These changes are acceptable for AKS as it can quickly scale up the resources to meet the demands and keep the application up and running at all times.

AKS also supports hybrid and multi-clouds, which makes it possible for organizations to execute tasks in various locations or across multiple cloud service providers. This is particularly useful for companies with strict data sovereignty rules or those who want to avoid being tied down to a particular provider. AKS empowers developers to place the applications where they are most suitable for the company while ensuring that they receive standardized management and orchestration from Kubernetes.

Driving Innovation with DevOps and CI/CD Integration

Another reason why AKS is so vital in modern cloud-native applications is its integration with DevOps pipelines. AKS automates the whole software development process, which means that new features and updates can be delivered faster while remaining high-quality and reliable. AKS can consume various pipelines for continuous integration and continuous delivery, where developers can release changes to production rapidly and securely.

CI/CD platforms like Azure DevOps, Jenkins, GitHub Actions, and others natively support AKS and provide capabilities to test, deploy, and monitor applications running in Kubernetes. This minimizes the chances of making mistakes and shortens the development cycle while enhancing innovation.

Moreover, AKS offers rich tools for monitoring and observability, like Azure Monitor and Azure Log Analytics, to help developers gain insights into their applications. These tools assist the teams in easily flagging and addressing problems that may affect the execution of applications in production environments.

Conclusion

Regarding modern cloud-native development, AKS is a must-have technology for building modern applications. AKS helps businesses be more innovative while easing operations by scaling Kubernetes management, improving workloads, and integrating with pipelines. With the increasing popularity of cloud-native applications, AKS will remain an essential solution that enables the construction, deployment, and expansion of applications that address modern, digital-first environments.

by Asim BN via Digital Information World

A New Study Finds AI Text Detectors are Not as Accurate as Some Claim

A study by researchers from University of Pennsylvania finds that AI text detectors aren’t as reliable as people think. AI text detectors are used to analyze if a text is AI generated or not. But these AI text detectors are developed in a way that they only look out for some specific signs that can easily be written by humans too. Sometimes, AI detectors easily find the AI generated text but they do not do well when presented with some specific texts like news articles. Sometimes, these AI text detectors also mark completely human written text as AI generated content.

The researchers of the study proposed a new way to generalize an AI written text by giving these detectors a data set of 10 million documents from news articles to blogs and recipes, and benchmarking them. A public leaderboard will then rank AI detectors according to their performances based on those datasets. They said that they are trying to benchmark AI detectors so if someone comes up with a new idea, we can validate that their text is in fact human written.

Ever Since the release of GPT-2 in 2019 and GPT-3 in 2022, there have been so many problems regarding the text produced by AI text generators. Many teachers have also shown their concerns about their students using LLMs to write their assignments and academic papers. Many AI detectors claim 99% accuracy which is too good to be true. Some even claim that AI is hard to detect.

The researchers say that AI detectors are easy to deceive if we replace certain words and add British spellings on the words. Some detectors also work best on the AI text models they were trained on, so they sometimes cannot accurately detect text written by models like Anthropic’s Claude. Some AI detectors which were specifically designed to detect news may also struggle on recipes. All in all, as LLMs are getting better, AI detectors are struggling to detect AI written text accurately.

Image: DIW-Aigen

Read next:

• What’s the Best Tool for Detecting AI Generated Content?

• How To Use Google Docs Secret Feature to Detect AI Content Writing

• Survey by GitHub Shows Regional Variations in AI Usage Among Programmers and Developers
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

Study Shows Almost 23% People Are Going to Become Victims of Cyber Stalking by 2025

A new report by VPNRanks says that in the midst of increasing cyber crimes, almost 23% of the internet users are going to experience cyber stalking by 2025. Out of ten Americans, almost three will be affected with nine million people overall affected by 2025. As the internet is getting available to almost all people around the world, it is natural that cyber stalkers are also going to increase. The simple definition of cyber stalking is using SMS, emails or social media to harass, threaten or stalk someone. Baby Reindeer, a Netflix show, portrays cyber stalking in a very descriptive way.

Most people may think that cyber stalking is not that common, but it has been going on for years. In 2021, there were 7% to 40% cyber stalking victims across different studies. If a person is experiencing stalking in real life, there is also a high chance that he or she can become the victim of cyberstalking. VPNRanks reports that 70% of the cyber stalking victims know their stalkers are afraid of them in case they harm them physically.

In 2019, almost 1.5 million people were victims of cyberstalking, with most being 16 years or older. There are some reasons why cyberstalking is becoming so common and easy. As the internet is becoming accessible, many bad actors are using it negatively. There are also hacking tools that these cyber stalkers use to harass and threaten their victim.

Another big reason is that many people are not aware of cyber stalking and the laws that conclude it as a crime. Authorities should take measures to raise awareness about digital security among people. It is important for every internet user to know about cyber bullying so they can take action if they ever experience cyber bullying.

Image: DIW-Aigen

Read next: Survey by GitHub Shows Regional Variations in AI Usage Among Programmers and Developers
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

AI Startup Perplexity All Set To Run Ads On Its Search App

Perplexity is ready to monetize its search app through the addition of ads on the platform.

The embattled company just rolled out a pitch deck that spoke about the reach and use of the app, delineating its growth in recent times. Today, the userbase has 230M monthly users while downloads crossed the 2 million mark.

In April, a new funding round saw its value estimate hit $1 billion and that was a more than twofold rise, highlighting a massive growth.

The company's great popularity is on the rise but many do put the app in the spotlight with concerns related to its content. Media outlets Forbes and Wired called the app out for plagiarizing its articles.

Since the start of that dilemma, it has worked on bettering itself and now uses a different technique to publish stories and cite references. This made a huge difference and now the app is doing great in the world of search.

Industry experts have highlighted the significant role of AI in enhancing search capabilities on the app. They emphasize the need for continuous optimization of AI algorithms to maintain a competitive edge in today's fierce market.

Many calls by expert SEO firms have repeatedly mentioned that AI Overviews need to display the entire experience and not just focus on rankings. So more FAQs, feedback and details have to be highlighted. Only then can they expect to rank high on search engines and make readers want more.

According to various reports, the world of AI is transforming how users search for content online. The focus is increasingly on personalization and matching the right content, rather than merely aligning with keywords.

This is one reason why AI search tools are so much in demand today. They use natural language and machine learning with data from users to give the best results. Similarly, the future of search was outlined as mostly AI-related. They would need to better comprehend and anticipate the needs of all clients. This goes above and beyond usual keyword engines that fail to get the correct matching.

So much has changed in search when you compare it to what it was 10 years ago and this app for AI Search hopes to offer the best in terms of tailored demands.

Read next: Apple Rolls Out New Set Of Changes To Its EU App Store And iPhone Policies Including Default App Controls
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Apple Rolls Out New Set Of Changes To Its EU App Store And iPhone Policies Including Default App Controls

iPhone maker Apple has yet again made changes to its policies and App Stores across the EU.

The company is now working on an expansion of default app controls, allowing for first-party app removal, and updates for users’ browser screens.

While we did see the browser choice screen included in the EU during this year’s start, we now see another update. Users get to choose which default browser they want on their browser screen across different devices.

The feature comes into play when users install the update and launch Safari. However, this choice screen will not apply to those who have another browser set as their default choice. It will be on display only once per device and therefore has nothing to do with users.

If users are switching to new devices, they get the feature if their former default browser is Safari. Meanwhile, Apple also shared some changes to the browser screen design. This includes no detailed data on the page of the App Store for the browser. Apple highlighted a host of other changes related to browser screens as well which can be found on its website

Users can also expect to see changes made to default app settings. The new update for iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 will entail Default Apps where users manage default settings. Before, it was restricted to mailing apps, a marketplace, and a few contactless platforms. Now, the features are being expanded to calls, messages, keyboards, filters for call spam, and more. Similarly, Apple hopes to add more support for navigation and translation apps as well.

Apple will also enable another new change that gives users the chance to delete apps. This includes Camera, Safari platforms, Photos, Messages, and even its App Store. It will be possible after a new software update arrives during the latter part of this year.

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Read next: DeepMind Employees Urge Google to Halt Military AI Projects, Highlight Ethical Issues
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

DeepMind Employees Urge Google to Halt Military AI Projects, Highlight Ethical Issues

The workforce at Google’s AI division, DeepMind has united for an important cause. They want the company to drop its military contracts that they feel are unjustified and spreading evil.

Workers united to sign an internal letter that was sent to Google, as reported in a recently published article by Time. It features 200 signatures and was sent in May of this year. This figure is equivalent to 5% of the company’s workforce who demand fast action.

DeepMind is the Android maker’s AI division and as per workers in the department, such contracts go against the firm’s own rules and regulations. It specified serious concerns related to AI labs and its technology was sold to leading military groups, thanks to AI cloud agreements in place.

Another report by Time specified how several contracts were held with the American military and those in Israel. The goal was to give the latter access to Google’s top service through cloud technology. There is no specific name of any group mentioned in the letter. Furthermore, the letter fails to delineate any kind of geopolitics linked to the war or any other conflict. It was a neutral stance.

Clearly, this is not the first time that we’ve seen the company be accused of this act. Since the start of 2021, many shed light on how tech provided by Google to Israel’s military was set into place. The controversial contract Project Nimbus was said to be the main reason here.

This happens to be far from the initial instance of workers at Google who protested openly. They did not wish to see their hard work and efforts be used for this cause. Similarly, we saw dozens of employees protest against Project Nimbus this year too. Some were suspended while others terminated.

The letter published recently explained how contracts with these forces mean direct involvement with the military. This includes helping them irresponsibly produce weapons through AI that is used irresponsibly. Did we mention how Google’s slogan from day one is ‘Don’t be evil?’ Clearly, the company might need to rethink that, as per employees.

Additionally, the letter asks the heads of the DeepMind division to say no to military access to AI technology. Instead, they want a new in-house body set up that regulates the issues and stops the tech from getting misused by other military groups in the future.

So far, Google is silent on the matter and no response has been generated. They do hope a meaningful reply does arrive soon but until then, the frustration on the workers’ part can be felt.

Google did however generate a reply to the article published by Time. It clearly says that the company is following all AI principles and therefore complies with all of its policies. They want the world to know that the agreement with Israel’s government isn’t linked to any sensitive military operations like weapons production or even intelligence services.

That’s shocking because this deal has been called out for months and is constantly scrutinized.

Google’s DeepMind division became a part of the organization in 2014 but it did vow to never utilize it to cause harm to others. This includes no use in military operations and for any surveillance endeavors.

For years, DeepMind operated far from Google’s interference but the current AI race may have altered that. While the heads of this division did wish to get more independence from Google’s leadership, it was far from what it hoped for.

Image: DIW-Aigen

Read next: Google AI Overview Sources Align With Its Top 10 Organic Search Results 99% Of The Time
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

New Report Shows Meta Has the Highest Share of Time Spent on its Platforms as Well as Highest Digital Ad Spending

A new survey by Emarketer shows that Meta is far ahead of other apps in terms of digital time spent on the platform and total digital ad spending. What’s interesting is that Meta’s digital ad spend is nearly three times the total time spent on the platform. The survey shows that time spent with digital on Meta apps is 7.5%, while its total digital ad spending is 21.3%, as of June 2024 forecast. Meta has the highest ad spend on Instagram, with the number of users growing by 7% on all Meta platforms with 10% increase in impressions and price per ad.

On the other hand, YouTube has the second highest time spent on digital (7.4%) and total digital ad spending(5.6%). Netflix reported 7.3% of time spent on digital, with only 0.3% digital ad spending. Netflix and YouTube aren’t keeping up with the consumer shift from linear to digital because of Connected TV (CTV).

The reason why Meta has the highest time spent on digital and highest ad spending is probably its strategies to facilitate easy ad placements and trackable ROI. Ad industry isn’t growing much on connected tv because they are slow to meet consumer time spent.

TikTok also showed some good progress in digital time spend and ad spending. It reported 3.6% of the time spent with digital, and 3.4% total ad spending on the platform. Spotify and Hulu were good at spending time with digital, but couldn’t get noticeable ad spending. Spotify has 0.3% total digital ad spending, while Hulu has 1.3% ad spending.

Read next: Meta’s Ad Business Earnings Reach New High Thanks To AI-Driven Improvements
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World