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OM System's OM-5 II is a modest upgrade of the OM-5Available in three colorways, including a limited edition Sand BeigeBody only price is £1,099 (US / Australia pricing TBC)I'm a fan of OM System's Micro Four Thirds cameras. They're compact, travel-friendly, compatible with a huge range of superb lenses, deliver incredible image stabilization for easy handheld shooting, plus their computational photography modes are addictively fun.OM System cameras hit the mark on many fronts. But what they have also hit, it seems, is a ceiling. Case in point – the new OM System OM-5 II. It comes two and a half to three years after the OM-5, but you wouldn't know it – there's so little to differentiate between the two cameras.That's no bad thing per se, we still rate the OM-5 as a top travel camera. But where Panasonic is adding meaningful improvements to its Micro Four Thirds cameras, especially for video capture in the Lumix GH7 and Lumix G9 II, in the OM-5 II we get USB-C charging, some video color profiles, and a rejigged menu. That's just about it.I can't say I'm surprised. Ever since OM Digital Solutions acquired Olympus, the most notable updates we've seen in new cameras is OM System rebranding. I was still hoping for something bigger in the OM-5 II, though. If OM System was properly investing in the Micro Four Thirds system, there has been enough time since the acquisition for it to have started introducing new tech.The OM-5 II is a highly rugged camera, ideal for travel and the outdoors (Image credit: OM System)Instead, what we get is the same 20MP MFT sensor with 5-axis image stabilization, a modest 1.04m-dot touchscreen and run of the mill 2.36m-dot EVF, albeit packaged in a retro and rugged body. The OM-5 II still looks the part, and I'm a fan of the limited edition Sand Beige – it looks fab.At least the legendary Olympus brand hasn't been killed off altogether, and continues to live on under a new name, because I still believe there's a place for such cameras.Micro Four Thirds cameras, especially the inherited Olympus design ethos, hit a certain quality / portability sweet spot. I just wish OM System was giving fans a little more to be excited about going forward.Can we ever expect meaningful upgrades again? The glass-half-empty types of have preaching a doom and gloom for Mirco Four Thirds for some time now.'The system isn't dead', comes the response from fans who love what the camera system represents; superb build quality, a wide range of optics for specialist interests such as wildlife, birding and more, all in a lightweight system which weighs a fraction of full-frame.But the fact remains, perhaps more specifically for OM System rather than Panasonic – we haven't seen any decent updates to its new cameras for years.It's part of the Micro Four Thirds system, with many compatible lightweight lenses, such as the 12-45mm PRO, above, with which it is available as a kit (Image credit: OM System)If OM System was indeed investing in future MFT cameras, I think we would have started to see it this year. Earlier in the year it launched the OM-3 – the first in a series with a slightly different retro styling. It was a delight to shoot with, but not because of big technological improvements, but because Micro Four Thirds remains a really fun and versatile system to shoot with.I'm glad MFT is here to stay for another few years until the next update cycle lands. However, at that point I'm slightly concerned that we'll discover the system has sung its final song, to live on only through its fans.Do you love Micro Four Thirds photography? What do you think of its future? Let me know in the comments below.You might also likeThe best travel camera for 2025: the finest choices for your adventuresOM System OM-3 vs OM System OM-5: is the OM-3 really worth upgrading for?OM System OM-1 II review: the pint-sized powerhouse

Artificial Intelligence (AI) touches virtually every industry, but it’s become a foundational element in today’s customer experience (CX) strategies. Contact centers, customer support platforms, and digital engagement tools rely on AI to enable faster response times, more personalized interactions, and to uncover valuable insights from massive amounts of customer data. Conversational AI, real-time voice analytics, and intelligent routing are just a few of the innovations transforming how organizations connect with their customers.While there are plenty of benefits to AI, one thing remains true: AI will never be entirely free from bias. This is because AI is only as accurate as the data it was trained on - which is ultimately created, trained, and maintained by humans - humans, who unconsciously bring their own assumptions and blind spots into the AI systems they build.This doesn’t mean AI can’t be trustworthy, responsible or fair. It simply means organizations need to implement strong guardrails and standards for monitoring and refining AI models to ensure fairness, inclusion, and neutrality. Mitigating bias is essential across industries, but is especially important in CX - not just for stronger performance and efficiency, but to build and maintain long-term customer trust and regulatory compliance.Reducing AI bias improves agent performance and efficiency When using AI to automate customer service tasks or assist human agents, even the smallest of biases in data can lead to low-quality experiences. For example, speech recognition tools might struggle to understand different accents and dialects, leading to frustrating customer experiences. Sentiment analysis might misread emotional cues, resulting in inaccurate responses or escalation to the wrong agent. Intelligent routing workflows can unintentionally prioritize certain customer profiles over others if historical training data skews unfairly.These inconsistencies don’t just impact customers, but agents as well. Human agents may have to step in more often to correct AI mishaps or hallucinations, increasing their cognitive workload and decreasing employee morale, reducing the overall efficiency that AI-powered tools promise to deliver. Additionally, it decreases trust in the technology for agents, potentially leading to negative perceptions of how AI is used and how it is impacting their work.To address these challenges, organizations need to start by using diverse datasets to train AI models and ensure they can adapt to evolving inputs. From there, constantly auditing and refining data allows organizations to weed out biases before they creep into outputs, ensuring more fair, accurate results. Additionally, monitoring real-time customer feedback across multiple channels gives organizations a strong idea of where customer frustrations are occurring and allows them to take another look at the data feeding those interactions.Ethical AI builds customer loyalty and supports complianceToday’s consumers are more tech-savvy and privacy-conscious than ever. While recent data shows that more than half of consumers say AI alone doesn’t negatively impact their trust, how customer data is used with it can.Organizations can address these concerns by adopting privacy-first principles to maintain trust and show commitment to responsible AI practices. Taking steps like encrypting sensitive data, restricting access through strong identity controls, and anonymizing customer data used in AI training models are great examples of a privacy-first approach. Transcripts, voice recordings, and behavior patterns must be handled with care - not just to build trust, but to comply with privacy laws like the GDPR, CCPA and the EU AI Act.Transparency with consumers is equally as important, especially as it relates to how and what data is collected. Giving customers control over their data, ensuring transparent AI governance, clearly disclosing the use of AI chatbots or tools, and providing seamless escalation to human agents when needed, fosters a sense of trust among customers. Organizations that share how AI is used and decisions are made are likely to earn long-term customer loyalty.What is easily forgotten is that there is an entire industry segment called Workforce Engagement Management and part of that is coaching agents and getting customer feedback. The ethics of best practice are already in place. Whether it is a virtual agent or a real agent, the principle of improving and compliance still applies. What AI can bring is that the time between the potential error and the review of that mistake can be almost instantaneous. We can also use AI to check AI and compare the ethical answer with the actual answer. Just make your AI agents trainable as you would with your human agents.Responsible AI enables responsible innovationAI-driven innovation seems to move at the speed of light, but innovation doesn’t have to come at the expense of responsibility. Unsurprisingly, the most forward-thinking organizations are those that embed ethical principles into the innovation process from day one. Achieving this means fostering open collaboration between developers, data scientists, business stakeholders, and IT teams to ensure that both innovation and security are balanced.Establishing a clear AI governance framework or roadmap helps align stakeholders around a clear vision for ethical AI. When standards and processes are both clearly defined and consistently applied, organizations can scale innovation more responsibly and confidently.Bias in AI is a complex issue that nearly every organization has or will face - but it’s not an unsolvable one. Feeding diverse datasets into AI training models and then consistently auditing the data helps to mitigate bias. While truly bias-free AI may be difficult to achieve, understanding the challenges and continuously working to limit bias leads to stronger customer loyalty, enhanced compliance, and more opportunities to innovate at scale.I tried 70+ best AI tools.This article was produced as part of TechRadarPro's Expert Insights channel where we feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today. The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/news/submit-your-story-to-techradar-pro

The long-awaited Philips Hue AI assistant is now available in some countriesIt will be launched in the UK in July, and globally by the end of AugustThe Philips Hue Play Wall Washer light is on sale today in the US and UKIf you want to have more fun with your smart lights, there's good news – the long-awaited Philips Hue AI assistant is finally here, letting you pick lighting scenes or create brand new ones with simple voice commands. Signify, the company behind Philips Hue, first teased the assistant back in January, and last week a few iPhone users found themselves with early access, but the launch is now official.The assistant is available now for users in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg whose app is set to English, and will be rolling out to Hue users in the UK in July. According to Signify, the global rollout is planned for the end of August.With the AI assistant, you can either say or type what type of lighting effect you'd like to see, or what mood you want to set, and the app will either suggest something from its existing gallery of presets, or create something brand new if there's nothing that quite fits the bill.Clean sweepThat's not all – Signify has also launched a new lamp that bathes your walls with a gradient of light. We got our first peek at the Philips Hue Play Wall Washer earlier this month when it was listed on Amazon ahead of its official release date.Now it's available to buy, and despite measuring just 3.6 x 3 x 6.2 inches / 9.1 x 7.6 x 15.7cm (that's even smaller than the Philips Hue Play Light Bar), it promises to drench your whole wall with a smooth gradient of colored light that you can customize via a 3D drag-and-drop interface in the app, allowing you to set the direction and brightness of the light to suit your room.The Wall Washer works with the Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box or Hue Sync desktop app for PC, allowing you to synchronize lighting effects with movies, TV shows, and games.Alternatively, you can use it alone, or synced with other Philips Hue smart lights to help create a mood. It uses the same ColorCast light system as the Philips Hue Twilight lamp (one of the best smart lights we've ever tested), projecting a smooth gradient onto nearby surfaces. The video below gives you an idea of the overall effect.The Wall Washer also looks appealing when switched off. Unlike the Hue Play Light Bar, which has a plastic case, the Wall Washer is finished in black or white matt aluminum.The Wall Washer is available now in the US and UK, priced at $219.99 / £169.99 for a single light, or $384.99 / £299.99 for a pack of two. It's due to launch in Australia in September, but official pricing has yet to be announced.You might also likeNanoleaf's new indoor and outdoor smart lights are its funkiest designs to datePhilips Hue bulb types explained: choose the right lights for your homeThis Nanoleaf light strip adds Ambilight-style illumination to your gaming setup – and it's amazingly cheap