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Enlarge / iRobot Roomba j7+ robot vacuum. (credit: iRobot)

Roomba launched the iRobot OS on Tuesday to signal its robotic household cleaners' advanced software capabilities. As of writing, it only rebrands the two-year-old Genius Home Intelligence AI platform, but the company aims for it to be a leading computer vision platform that differentiates its robot vacuums and mops and eventually moves to other products, like air purifiers.

iRobot OS doesn't include any new features yet but represents iRobot's focus on "superior software intelligence," Colin Angle, chairman and CEO of iRobot, said in a statement shared in Roomba's announcement.

As it stands, Roomba's iRobot OS-powered devices use computer vision to avoid, depending on the product, up to 80 "common objects," like cords, socks, and, oh so importantly, animal waste. The OS is pet-friendly by including features like "Keep Out Zones" so your dog doesn't start a fight with your robo vac when it's around the food bowl. It can also recommend cleaning schedules, including based on when your furry friend tends to shed. If you want to see all that iRobot OS offers, the strongest iteration is the Roomba J7-series. The device came out in September and uses a front-facing camera with computer vision to better understand its environment's layout than any other iRobot robot.

Enlarge / What's in the box? (credit: Getty / Aurich Lawson)

Blizzard's upcoming open beta launch of Diablo Immortal later this week will be skipping the Netherlands and Belgium, thanks to regulations in those countries that consider games with randomized loot boxes to be illegal gambling.

"Diablo Immortal will not be available in Belgium or the Netherlands, and will not appear on Battle.net or the Belgian and Netherlands App or Google Play Stores," an Activision Blizzard spokesperson told Eurogamer over the weekend. "This is related to the current operating environment for games in those countries. Accordingly, pre-registrations for the game are not accessible in those markets."

Activision Blizzard had reportedly let Belgian and Dutch players preregister for the game's public beta test and listed the game briefly on mobile app stores in both countries. But the company quietly changed course in recent months, as Dutch gaming news site Tweakers noticed over the weekend.

Enlarge (credit: Arm)

The US chipmaker Qualcomm wants to buy a stake in Arm alongside its rivals and create a consortium that would maintain the UK chip designer’s neutrality in the highly competitive semiconductor market.

Japanese conglomerate SoftBank plans to list Arm on the New York Stock Exchange after Nvidia’s $66 billion purchase collapsed earlier this year. However, the IPO has sparked concern over the future ownership of the company, given its crucial role in the global technology sector.

“We’re an interested party in investing,” Cristiano Amon, Qualcomm’s chief executive, told the Financial Times. “It’s a very important asset and it’s an asset which is going to be essential to the development of our industry.”