Open Horizon

Chinese AI lab StepFun has unveiled Step 5 Preview, a sparse mixture-of-experts model with roughly 600 billion total parameters and about 27 billion active per token. The model supports a one million token context window and is designed for long-horizon agent work, with open weights. Observers are noting the specifications and what the release means for competition among Chinese AI labs and open-weight model development.

The next major Xbox open world game coming to PlayStation 5 has been given a release date, according to reports. The title in question is Forza Horizon, marking one of Microsoft's biggest franchises arriving on a rival console as Xbox continues expanding its games beyond its own hardware. Fans are debating what this means for the future of Xbox exclusivity.

Cleveland State University's women's tennis team completed the first day of competition at the Fall Horizon League Championship. The Vikings, who compete in NCAA Division I athletics, opened play against other member schools from the Horizon League. No results or individual player performances were immediately available, and it is not yet clear how the team stands heading into the second day of the tournament.

Ivo, a legal AI company, has published what it describes as the first free open-source model post-trained for long-horizon contract work. The release makes the model publicly available for legal professionals and developers working on extended contract tasks. The announcement has drawn attention in the legal technology sector, where open-source releases from legal AI firms remain rare.

The Atlantic has published a piece titled 'Gaza’s Open Horizon', examining what lies ahead for Gaza as the conflict’s future remains uncertain. The article is drawing attention for its framing of Gaza’s fate as an open question — politically, territorially and for its displaced population — amid ongoing international debate over reconstruction, governance and ceasefire prospects.

The War of the Worlds: Red Horizon, a hardcore horror open world survival game, has received its store page ahead of release. The game places players in the middle of an alien extermination of mankind, tasking them with surviving long enough to find a way to bring down the alien machines. Gamers are sharing the news and discussing the H.G. Wells-inspired premise.

Playground Games has announced that Forza Horizon 6's first major expansion will launch in January. The open-world racer has settled into a familiar live-service routine of weekly challenges and a slow drip of content since release, and the expansion is expected to be its first big injection of new material. Fans are waiting for details on what the expansion will include, as Playground has yet to reveal pricing, content or a firm date.

The European Union's research and innovation commissioner has called for 'creative destruction' and a more open Horizon Europe programme, signalling ambitions to shake up EU research policy and widen participation in its flagship funding scheme. The remarks point to proposed reforms in how the bloc distributes research funding and approaches innovation.