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Showing posts with the label SD Times

New open source tools to detect, defend against malicious code

Application security posture management company Apiiro today has released two open-source tools to help organizations defend against malicious code in their applications. The action comes on the heels of Apiiro’s security research that shows thousands of malicious code instances in repositories and packages. According to the company, its focus in the research was deep code analysis and analyzing malicious samples for patterns to find ways to defend against malicious code. “Malicious code is one of the most accessible and easy-to-execute attack vectors,” the company wrote in a blog about the research. “The security of dependency managers and source code hosting platforms is still evolving, with large gaps in areas like human-to-digital identity verification, source and release validation, and more. Major security gaps also exist in build systems, artifact managers, and pipeline tools.” Malicious code is introduced via anti-patterns, the research found, and obfuscated code is a key a...

New tech, new problems: Why application development needs a big-picture view

Technology continues to rapidly advance, particularly with the ongoing evolution of generative AI, the growing emergence of innovative methods for leveraging data, and new platforms that enable companies to rapidly develop SaaS offerings.  However, many organizations have approached innovation without a comprehensive strategy or holistic view of their applications, simply focusing on adding the latest features or trendy tools. As a result, they are facing challenges related to application performance, scalability, efficiency, and security. To ensure the success of application innovation, enterprises must maintain a big-picture view of their applications. They should understand how integrating new technologies will require them to scale their compute and storage resources, the impact these technologies will have on end users, the architectures required, and the maintenance support that will be necessary. As part of this, enterprises also need to set attainable interim goals that g...

DeepSeek Unpacked: Security, Innovation, and What’s Next

DeepSeek has taken the tech world by storm for the past month after it was revealed that the company’s models were trained for a fraction of the cost of other top models while still delivering competitive performance in many areas. Not only were they cheaper to train, but they’re also cheaper to run, making DeepSeek’s models an attractive option for developers looking to reduce AI expenses. DeepSeek was created in China, and some companies and government have expressed concerns about where their data is being stored and how it’s being used, with some even banning its use. However, the models are open source, so anyone can download them and run them offline locally on their own devices, which can mitigate some of the security and privacy concerns. To explore the implications of DeepSeek for developers, Jenna Barron, news editor of SD Times, spoke to a panel of industry. Watch now to hear insights from Melissa Ruzzi , director of AI at AppOmni ; Bratin Saha , chief product and technolo...

Boomi launches new API management solution to help companies deal with API sprawl

The integration company Boomi today announced a new API management solution that empowers organizations to control API sprawl. Organizations that are utilizing generative AI have about five times as many APIs as those who aren’t, according to IDC’s API Sprawl and AI Enablement report from December 2024.  “APIs have become the backbone of AI-driven innovation, enabling seamless interaction between AI models, agents, and enterprise systems,” said Shari Lava, senior research director, AI and Automation at IDC. “Effective API management is no longer optional — it is critical for organizations to ensure security, scalability, and governance while reducing complexity and API sprawl. Without a robust APIM strategy, businesses risk losing control over their AI initiatives and missing out on their full transformative potential.” The new solution provides automated discovery and centralized inventory management, helping to ensure that APIs are properly cataloged, monitored, and controll...

The AI app gold gush: Move fast and build smart

The AI gold rush is here. Unlike past tech booms, this isn’t just about who has the best technology—it’s about who can move fast, build efficiently, and iterate on the fly. Companies that thrive in this era are the ones mastering a tricky balancing act: building transformative AI products while moving at a blistering pace. It’s a tough standard, but it’s the cost of entry in an industry where speed and quality are equally critical. Take Synthflow as a case study. In 2023, co-founders Hakob and Albert Astabatsyan launched their first version in two weeks. Within months, the company scaled to over 6,000 users and secured $9.1 million in venture capital funding. Their rapid rise wasn’t just about moving fast; it was about building a sophisticated platform that allowed users to create task-specific AI agents without writing a single line of code. This example exemplifies what’s possible when companies prioritize speed without sacrificing quality. The Speed of Innovation This AI applic...

Feb 14, 2025: Development tools that have recently added new AI capabilities

Software companies are constantly trying to add more and more AI features to their platforms, and it can be hard to keep up with it all. We’ve written this roundup to share updates from 10 notable companies that have recently enhanced their products with AI.  Google announces public beta for Gen AI Toolbox for Databases Gen AI Toolbox for Databases is an open-source server that lets developers connect generative AI applications to databases.  According to Google, the toolbox can help streamline creation, deployment, and management of generative AI tools that are capable of querying databases. Currently the toolbox provides connectivity to self-managed PostgreSQL and MySQL as well as managed databases AlloyDB, Spanner, Cloud SQL for Postgres, Cloud SQL for MySQL, and Cloud SQL for SQL Server. JetBrains AI Assistant can now use local LLMs JetBrains has announced an update to its AI Assistant that enables it to use local models so that developers under strict data privac...

accessiBe Launches accessFlow, Comprehensive Tool for Driving Native Accessibility in Web Development Projects

accessiBe , the leader in web accessibility solutions, today announced the launch of accessFlow 2.0, the newest addition of its AI-powered web accessibility management solutions that empower developers to address accessibility barriers at the code level. Building on the robust foundation of accessFlow 1.0, accessFlow 2.0’s newest features simplify accessibility management, from site inception to production, by identifying issues, delivering actionable insights, and implementing fixes through its integration directly into development workflows and CI/CD pipelines. Compatible with frameworks including ReactJS, Angular, and more, accessFlow 2.0 works with existing processes to ensure accessible code is deployed consistently. By embedding accessibility within the software development lifecycle (SDLC), developers can achieve lasting accessibility improvements at a native level across web projects in alignment with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and compliance with regulato...

Second beta of Android 16 is here

The Android development team has announced the second beta of Android 16 , adding updates to the camera and media, along with several behavior changes.  One of the camera updates is the ability to use hybrid auto exposure, where the user controls some aspects of exposure and the auto-exposure (AE) algorithm handles the rest. Users will be able to control ISO + AE and exposure time + AE. Currently, users have to either fully control it manually or fully rely on the AE algorithm. Other camera updates include the ability to make fine color temperature and tint adjustments, the addition of motion photo capture intent actions, and support for UltraHDR images in the HEIC file format.  Android 16 will also add RuntimeColorFilter and RuntimeXfermode, which allows users to add graphic effects to draw calls, such as Threshold, Sepia, and Hue Saturation.  Some of the behavior changes in this beta include that developers can no longer opt-out of edge to edge, new API targets for...

mabl launches mabl GenAI Test Creation, mabl Tools for Playwright

The testing company mabl has announced two new tools designed to improve the software testing process: mabl GenAI Test Creation and mabl Tools for Playwright.  Mabl GenAI Test Creation uses generative AI to automatically create tests based on existing assets. The tests it generates are designed to be easy to maintain in order to cut down on technical debt in the testing process.  “mabl’s GenAI Test Creation is changing how we approach and execute work,” said Randall Morse, senior principal software engineer at Barracuda Networks. “It allows us to generate test cases from just a few words and automatically create a test plan with assertions, accelerating our development and testing cycle. Its ease of use helps our junior engineers extend their reach while freeing up senior developers to tackle more complex challenges.” The other new tool is mabl Tools for Playwright, which provides capabilities for testing using the open source testing framework Playwright .  Mabl T...

JetBrains AI Assistant can now use local LLMs

JetBrains has announced an update to its AI Assistant that enables it to use local models so that developers under strict data privacy and compliance rules can work with it.  To enable this feature, users will need to enable LM Studio under “Third-party AI providers” in the AI Assistant settings. LM Studio provides an interface for managing and running AI models on a local machine. This latest release also provides access to the latest models from Anthropic and OpenAI, including Claude 3.5 Sonnet and Claude 3.5 Haiku , and OpenAI’s o1, o1-mini, and o3-mini . According to JetBrains the o3-mini and o1-mini models are ideal for users who need faster and cost-efficient reasoning capabilities. “These compact OpenAI models offer faster processing than o1 and are tailored for coding, scientific, and mathematical tasks,” JetBrains wrote in a blog post .  JetBrains’ AI Assistant is integrated into JetBrains IDEs and can do things such as autocomplete lines, functions, or blo...

More than machines: The inner workings of AI agents

In my past experience designing conversational systems, I saw firsthand the limitations of traditional AI. The system I worked with could reliably detect entities, but its rigid logic made scaling these solutions impossible. Conversations followed preprogrammed paths: if the user said X, respond with Y. Any deviation broke the flow, highlighting how inflexible these systems were. Agents, powered by foundation models, change this. They’re autonomous systems capable of handling unpredictable scenarios and collaborating seamlessly. An agent can plan a trip, gather real-time data, or manage a customer account, adapting to changes on the fly. Agents aren’t just users of tools; they’re tools themselves. Like modular components, they work independently or integrate with others to solve complex problems. Predictive models brought precision forecasting. Generative models redefined creativity. Now, Agentic AI takes intelligence into autonomous action. In this article, we’ll dissect the anato...

The future of embedded analytics and how it’s shaping decision making

Embedded analytics is poised for significant transformation, driven by advancements in AI, data visualization, and the increasing demand for data-driven decision-making. The growing emphasis on data-driven strategies has put embedded analytics in a central role for improving operational efficiency, customer experiences, and overall business performance. The future of embedded analytics will be defined by its increasing intelligence, accessibility, and integration into everyday business processes. With the help of AI, real-time insights, and personalized experiences, embedded analytics will empower more users to make data-driven decisions and more informed choices. Here are key trends shaping the future of embedded analytics: 1. AI and Machine Learning Integration Predictive and Prescriptive Analytics : Embedded analytics will increasingly leverage AI and machine learning to not just analyze historical data but to predict future trends and provide prescriptive insights. This will e...

Harness and Traceable Announce Merger to Shape the Future of AI-Driven Software Delivery

Harness , the AI-Native Software Delivery Platform company, and  Traceable , the next-generation API Security Platform, today jointly announced they have entered into a definitive merger agreement, creating the world’s most advanced AI-native DevSecOps platform.  Together, Harness and Traceable will enable software teams to seamlessly develop, deploy, and secure applications, ensuring security is embedded at every stage of the software lifecycle. Harness and Traceable both originated from BIG Labs, a  San Francisco -based technology startup studio founded by  Jyoti Bansal , who is CEO and co-founder of both companies. Harness was launched in 2017 with a mission to simplify software delivery for software developers around the world, and has since grown into a full-fledged suite of industry-leading product modules that span the entire software delivery lifecycle. Traceable was launched in 2020 to secure trillions of lines of code and millions of APIs that modern soft...

Anthropic releases dataset that provides insight into how AI is influencing labor market

Anthropic has published the Anthropic Economic Index in an attempt to understand how AI is impacting labor markets.  The report details how AI is actually being used by workers today, which tasks it’s being used for, and how worker salary influences AI use.  Anthropic decided to group AI use by occupational tasks rather than occupations, as multiple jobs often share the same tasks, such as visual pattern recognition being used by designers, photographers, security scanners, and radiologists.  “Certain tasks lend themselves better to being automated or augmented by a new technology than others. We’d therefore expect AI to be adopted selectively for different tasks across different occupations, and that analyzing tasks—in addition to jobs as a whole—would give us a fuller picture of how AI is being integrated into the economy,” Anthropic wrote in a post .  Computer and mathematical tasks — which include things like software modification, code debugging, and netw...

Feb 7, 2025: Development tools that have recently added new AI capabilities

Software companies are constantly trying to add more and more AI features to their platforms, and it can be hard to keep up with it all. We’ve written this roundup to share updates from 10 notable companies that have recently enhanced their products with AI.  Google announces Gemini 2.0 Flash, Flash-Lite, and Pro Gemini 2.0 Flash is generally available and offers features like native tool use, a 1 million token context window, and multimodal input. Gemini 2.0 Flash-Lite is a cost-optimized model ideal for large scale text output, and Gemini 2.0 Pro is an update to the company’s strongest and most-performant model.  All three models are now available in the Gemini API via Google AI Studio and Vertex AI.  GitHub Copilot introduces agent mode, next edit suggestions (both in preview) Agent mode is a new feature that allows Copilot to iterate on its own output. This allows it to complete a request in one go, recognize and automatically fix errors, suggest terminal comm...