A series of devastating wildfires have ravaged Los Angeles, resulting in five fatalities and the destruction of over 1,100 structures. The fires have prompted mass evacuations, including among Hollywood celebrities, and led to the widespread cancellation of major entertainment events.

As a consequence, the announcement of Oscar nominations for the 97th Academy Awards, originally scheduled for January 17, has been postponed to January 19, with nomination voting deadlines also extended. However, the ceremony itself is still set to take place on March 2.

Academy CEO Bill Kramer expressed his condolences to those affected, highlighting the fires’ significant impact on the film industry, particularly in Southern California.

Events such as the Critics Choice Awards, along with other pre-Oscar functions like the AFI Awards luncheon and the British Academy of Film and TV Arts Tea Party, have been delayed. Significant industry events, including the Academy’s technical “bake-off,” have been canceled.

Prominent figures in Hollywood, including Paris Hilton, Billy Crystal, and Anthony Hopkins, have experienced personal losses, with their homes either destroyed or evacuated.

Premieres for films like Better Man and The Last Showgirl have been called off, while the Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations were released via press release instead of as a live event. Universal Studios Hollywood temporarily closed due to hazardous conditions, and filming for shows such as Ted Lasso and Grey’s Anatomy has been halted.

The wildfires, which began on Tuesday, have severely stretched firefighting resources and water supplies. Schools, including Palisades Charter High School—known for its roles in films like Carrie and Teen Wolf—have been damaged or destroyed. In response to the disaster, President Joe Biden has signed a federal disaster declaration, releasing funds for temporary housing, repairs, and recovery efforts.

Earlier, the announcement of the 15 films shortlisted for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2025 Oscars has reignited controversy among cinephiles, critics, and filmmakers in India due to Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies not being included in the list.

Following the announcement, strong online criticism of the Film Federation of India (FFI) emerged, led by voices like Hansal Mehta and Ricky Kej, who accused the organization of consistently poor judgment in its Oscar selections. For many, this omission serves as a reflection of deeper issues in how India presents itself on the global cinematic stage.

Laapataa Ladies, a charming satire about two brides swapped in rural India during the 1990s, received acclaim for its clever narrative. However, as Grammy-winning musician Kej bluntly stated, it was “absolutely the wrong choice” for an Oscar campaign.

The disappointment was further intensified by comparisons to Payal Kapadia’s Cannes-winning film All We Imagine As Light (AWIAL), which many believe to be India’s strongest contender for the international feature race. Kapadia’s portrayal of Mumbai’s working class has already garnered multiple accolades, including nominations at the Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards, and its triumph at Cannes, where it won the Grand Prize, has firmly established it as a critical favorite early in the competition.

California is grappling with a massive wildfire emergency, as fires continue to rage across Los Angeles and surrounding areas, claiming at least five lives and leaving tens of thousands displaced. A state of emergency has been declared, with the federal government stepping in to assist local authorities in managing the crisis. Retired firefighters with extensive firefighting experience have been called back to duty as part of the emergency response.

Over 70,000 people in Los Angeles and nearby regions have been forced to evacuate as multiple wildfires, fueled by high winds and extreme conditions, remain largely uncontrollable. The fires, which broke out in various parts of the city, have already destroyed more than 1,000 buildings, leaving a heavy blanket of smoke over the area. Among the hardest-hit neighborhoods is the upscale Pacific Palisades, home to many Hollywood celebrities, where flames consumed luxury homes at an alarming rate.

Struggle to contain the fires amidst strong winds

Firefighters are facing immense challenges as hurricane-force winds spread the flames across vast stretches of land. The fireball-like embers, driven by gusty winds, have ignited spot fires far faster than firefighters can contain them. The fire in Pacific Palisades alone has scorched approximately 16,000 acres, taking with it hundreds of homes. Another major fire burning in Altadena, north of the city, has ravaged suburban streets, consuming over 10,000 acres.

Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone admitted that local firefighting resources are overwhelmed by the magnitude of the disaster. “We’re doing the very best we can. But no, we don’t have enough fire personnel in LA County between all the departments to handle this,” Marrone said.

The death toll has risen to five, with authorities fearing the discovery of more victims as the situation remains fluid and the fires continue to spread uncontrollably. Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna confirmed the grim update and expressed concerns that the number of casualties could increase as more areas are searched.

Water shortage threatens firefighting efforts

As the fires ravage vast sections of Los Angeles, a significant shortage of water is complicating firefighting efforts. Hydrants in affected areas have been drying up, particularly in Pacific Palisades, exacerbating the challenge for firefighters. Janisse Quinones, CEO of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, urged residents to conserve water as the city’s water supply is stretched thin. “We’re fighting a wildfire with urban water systems, and that is really challenging,” Quinones explained.

Hollywood forced to pause as fires spread

The entertainment capital of the world has come to a standstill as wildfires threaten the very heart of Hollywood. Several high-profile events, including a major awards ceremony and a film premiere for Pamela Anderson, were cancelled as celebrities, actors, and musicians joined the thousands of residents fleeing the flames. In the Pacific Palisades area, multimillion-dollar homes, often owned by Hollywood elite, have been destroyed, leaving residents in shock.

Among those affected was singer and actress Mandy Moore, who shared on Instagram that she had to flee with her children and pets as the blaze devastated her neighborhood in Altadena. Moore expressed her devastation, writing, “I am devastated and gutted for those of us who’ve lost so much. I’m absolutely numb.”

Actor James Woods also took to social media, posting a video of flames threatening his Pacific Palisades home and recounting his frantic evacuation. “I couldn’t believe our lovely little home in the hills held on this long. It feels like losing a loved one,” Woods wrote.

Star Wars actor Mark Hamill and Oscar-winning actress Jamie Lee Curtis were also forced to evacuate their homes, with Hamill sharing on Instagram how he narrowly escaped the flames near his Malibu residence. Curtis, meanwhile, expressed relief that her home was safe, but lamented the destruction of the neighborhood.

Community faces challenges amid wildfire devastation

As the wildfires continue to rage, local authorities and emergency responders are working tirelessly to control the situation, with President Joe Biden visiting Los Angeles to assess the damage and offer federal assistance. Governor Gavin Newsom and Biden both expressed their commitment to providing all available resources to combat the wildfires.

In the entertainment industry, the upcoming Oscar nominations were delayed until January 19 to accommodate those impacted by the fires, ensuring affected members of the Academy have time to submit their ballots.

With no sign of containment in the immediate future, the residents of Los Angeles and surrounding areas remain on edge, as emergency crews continue their fight against the devastating fires.

At CES 2025 in Las Vegas, Nvidia introduced a groundbreaking innovation — the “Project Digits” mini PC, a device designed to deliver supercomputer-like power in a compact form that can easily fit in your bag. This new mini desktop offers an impressive one petaFLOP of processing power, enabling local artificial intelligence (AI) and data science tasks that once required cloud-based data centers.

A breakthrough in computing power

Project Digits is aimed at developers, researchers, students, and data scientists working with AI, promising to enhance their ability to run complex models without relying on remote servers. Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, showcased the mini PC, which, while still in the design phase, will be small enough to comfortably sit on a desk or be transported in a bag.

The device is powered by the Nvidia GB10 Grace Blackwell Superchip, an advanced processor that combines multiple components into a single chip. This innovation reduces the time needed to move data between components, enhancing efficiency. The superchip houses the Nvidia Blackwell graphics card and the Nvidia Grace processor, supported by 128GB of memory and 4TB of SSD storage.

In terms of raw power, Project Digits is approximately 1,000 times more powerful than the average laptop, setting a new standard for portable computing.

A new era for AI research

Nvidia’s new mini PC is expected to revolutionize the way researchers work with robotics, computer vision, and autonomous systems. “Nvidia’s Project Digits enables researchers to experiment, fine-tune, and scale solutions faster than ever — all while fitting on your desk,” said Raquel Urtasun, a computer science professor at the University of Toronto and founder of Waabi, a self-driving car company. Waabi, which utilizes Nvidia technology in its fleet of self-driving trucks, looks forward to the potential breakthroughs Project Digits could bring.

Supercomputing power is typically measured in floating-point operations per second (FLOPS). While the world’s most powerful supercomputers can achieve a little over 1,000 petaFLOPS, Project Digits offers a powerful 1 petaFLOP — far beyond the capabilities of most desktop PCs or laptops.

Unprecedented power for AI models

Thanks to its processing power, Project Digits can handle large-scale AI models, such as generative tools like ChatGPT, which require significant computing resources. It can run models with up to 200 billion parameters, and connecting two units could support models with up to 405 billion parameters. For comparison, GPT-3.5, which powered ChatGPT when it debuted in November 2022, had 175 billion parameters.

Availability and pricing

Though the product design is not yet finalized, Nvidia announced that Project Digits is expected to launch in May 2025, with a price tag of approximately $3,000. Those interested in purchasing the device can register in advance to secure their unit.

With the launch of Project Digits, Nvidia is pushing the boundaries of what is possible with portable computing, making powerful AI processing available on a much smaller scale. As more industries look to harness the power of AI, this device could play a significant role in accelerating research and development across various fields.