Redmi K30 is set to formally launch on December 10. But days ahead of its debut, the new Redmi phone has regularly been teased by Xiaomi. A fresh teaser image suggests an all-new matte colour finish for the Redmi K30. The smartphone is also confirmed to debut alongside some new Internet of Things (IoT) devices from the Chinese company. Separately, some renders suggesting the design of the Redmi K30 have surfaced on the Web. The renders showcase a dual selfie camera smartphone as well as a vertically-arranged camera setup at the back.

Through a Weibo post, Redmi General Manager Lu Weibing has teased one of the distinct colour options of the Redmi K30. The teased colour option isn’t likely to be in line with what we saw on the Redmi K20. Instead, it appears to come with a finish similar to what we saw on handsets such as the Realme X2 Pro Concrete Edition.

Weibing has also confirmed that the Redmi K30 will launch alongside a new list of IoT devices.

Alongside the official revelations, some renders tipping the design of the Redmi K30 have been posted on Weibo. The smartphone would come with a vertically-aligned quad rear camera setup. This could be featured on a circular-shaped finish at the back and accompanied by an LED flash module. Further, the phone appears to have an in-display fingerprint sensor since the renders don’t show any references for a fingerprint sensor available at the back of the device.

The leaked Redmi K30 renders also highlight the dual selfie camera. Xiaomi through an early teaser showed off its selfie camera and confirmed 5G support. Some live images also leaked last week showing the dual selfie camera module placed on the hole-punch display.

Additionally, Xiaomi-focussed tipster Xiaomishka has posted an image on Twitter that looks like an official teaser — showcasing the front panel of the Redmi K30. The handset seems to have thin bezels on top and sides, while a small chin appears on the bottom — similar to the Redmi K20 series.

The chamber hushed as the debate got underway at the Cambridge Union and the teams launched into their carefully crafted opening statements. The topic – whether artificial intelligence would do more harm than good – was something each side had a big stake in because both were using the technology to deliver their arguments. Cambridge University, home to the world’s oldest debating society, was the setting Thursday night for a demonstration of what the future might hold. IBM’s Project Debater, a robot that has already debated humans, was for the first time being pitted against itself, at least in the first round.

Artificial intelligence “will not be able to make a decision that is the morally correct one, because morality is unique to humans,” the computer system said in a synthetic and vaguely feminine voice.

“It cannot make moral decisions easily and can lead to disasters. AI can cause a lot of harm,” it continued. Artificial intelligence can only make decisions it has been programmed for and “it is not possible to program for all scenarios, only humans can.”

Then, the machine switched sides, delivering the opposing team’s argument.

Artificial intelligence “will be a great advantage as it will free up more time from having to do mundane and repetitive tasks,” it said, its voice embodied by a blue waveform on a screen set into a two-meter-tall sleek black monolith-like pillar.

Audience members at the society, which has hosted notable figures including British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, the Dalai Lama, and Microsoft founder Bill Gates over its 200-year history, were spellbound by its first non-human guest.

After first pitting the technology against a human last year, IBM challenged it to present opposing arguments, in a display of its latest advances.

Unlike its earlier debate, which relied on analysing a huge trove of newspaper and magazine articles for its replies, researchers this time crowd-sourced contributions from 1,100 Cambridge students and fed the answers to the computer.

They wanted to find out, “Can you use the technology to generate a compelling narrative that will help the decision maker to take a better decision?” said lead scientist Noam Slonim.

The system had to identify which side the crowd-sourced contribution was on, rank the best arguments, filter out spelling mistakes and bad grammar, then present a persuasive five-minute statement — a process IBM said took about a minute.

Potential applications for the technology include helping a company or government carry out surveys or gather feedback from clients.

The night wasn’t totally devoid of humanity.

Project Debater quipped, “Let’s move to an issue close to my artificial heart: technology,” drawing laughter from the crowd.

And then human debaters took over in the rebuttal and closing rounds, while also jokingly dubbing the computer “Debbie” and “Cybertronia the All-Knowing.”

At the end of the night, audience members sided with the argument that artificial intelligence does more good than harm.

Its future is assured, at least for now.

Redmi Note 8 Pro will go on sale later today at 12pm noon in India, and will be available from the Mi online store and Amazon. The Redmi Note 8 Pro packs a quad rear camera setup that is highlighted by a 64-megapixel main camera, assisted by a wide-angle snapper and a dedicated macro lens. The phone is powered by the octa-core MediaTek Helio G90T SoC coupled with up to 8GB of RAM. The Redmi Note 8 Pro comes equipped with a 4,500mAh battery that offers 18W fast charging support. To recall, the smartphone was launched in India last month, after being unveiled in China in August.

Redmi Note 8 Pro price in India, sale offers

Redmi Note 8 Pro starts at Rs. 14,999 for the 6GB RAM 64GB variant, while the phone’s 6GB RAM 128GB configuration will set buyers back by Rs. 15,999. The top-end 8GB RAM 128GB storage carries a price tag of Rs. 17,999. It comes in Gamma Green, Halo White, and Shadow Black colour options. Redmi Note 8 Pro’s sale starts at 12pm (noon) IST and will be conducted via Amazon India, Mi.com, and Mi Home stores across the country.

Also seeRedmi Note 8 Pro vs Realme XT: Which One Should You Buy? Cameras, Performance, Battery Life Compared

As far as sale offers go, the Redmi Note 8 Pro buyers will get 10 percent instant discount on purchases made using Axis Bank debit and credit cards. Moreover, Airtel customers can avail double data benefits if they opt for the Rs. 249 or Rs. 349 prepaid plan. No-cost EMI plans are on the table as well.

Redmi Note 8 Pro specifications, features

The dual-SIM (Nano) Redmi Note 8 Pro runs Android 9 Pie with MIUI 10 custom skin on top, but Xiaomi has promised an upgrade to MIUI 11 soon. It sports a 6.53-inch full-HD (1080 x 2340 pixels) HDR display with 19.5:9 aspect ratio and is powered by the octa-core MediaTek Helio G90T SoC ticking alongside up to 8GB of RAM.

In the imaging department, the Redmi Note 8 Pro packs a 64-megapixel main shooter with an f/1.89 lens, assisted by an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera, a 2-megapixel depth sensor, and a 2-megapixel macro lens. On the front sits a 20-megapixel camera with an f/2.0 aperture to handle selfies and video calls.

The Redmi Note 8 Pro comes equipped with up to 128GB of onboard storage. Connectivity options on the phone include Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth v5.0, GPS/ A-GPS, IR blaster, USB Type-C, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The Redmi Note 8 Pro packs a 4,500mAh battery with 18W fast charging support.