Huey
October 22, 2024

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Kevin Bacon, Kate McKinnon, and other creatives warn of ‘unjust’ AI threat

Thousands of creatives, including famous actors like Kevin Bacon and Kate McKinnon, along with other actors, authors, and musicians, have signed a statement warning that the unpermitted use of copyrighted materials to train AI models threatens the people who made those creative works. 11,500 names are on the list of signatories so far.Here is the one-sentence statement:“The unlicensed use of creative works for training generative AI is a major, unjust threat to the livelihoods of the people behind those works,...

19 minutes ago

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A satellite made by Boeing just fell apart in space

A communications satellite built by Boeing has fallen apart while in orbit, as reported earlier by Jalopnik. On Saturday, Intelsat said its 33e satellite stopped working due to an “anomaly” before confirming its “total loss” on Monday.“We are coordinating with the satellite manufacturer, Boeing, and government agencies to analyze data and observations,” Intelsat said. The company has since established a board to conduct a “comprehensive analysis of the cause of the anomaly.” The satellite’s breakup doesn’t have great timing for...

23 minutes ago

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It’s not just you: Amazon’s shopping app is trying a different look

Amazon Not long after injecting more artificial intelligence into its shopping experience, Amazon is now testing a new homepage for its shopping app on Android and iOS. Millions of users in the US will see changes starting today, with more slated to see them over the coming months. Fundamentally, the redesign seems to serve the same purpose as the current layout by surfacing personalized recommendations based on your purchase habits, browsing history, deals, and other signals based on your shopping...

about 1 hour ago

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The Joker sequel is heading home after less than a month in theaters

Warner Bros. Joker: Folie à Deux has been in theaters for less than a month, but Warner Bros. has already set a home release date for the box office bomb. Gizmodo reports that Joker: Folie à Deux will be available for purchase on digital platforms starting on October 29th, with a DVD / Blu-ray / 4K physical release to follow on December 17th. Though Warner Bros. envisioned Todd Phillips’ Joker sequel replicating the first film’s success, the DC Comics-inspired musical...

about 2 hours ago

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AT&T finally has a network test drive program

AT&T will let you try before you buy. | Image: The Verge T-Mobile and Verizon have been offering free network trials for a couple of years at this point; now, AT&T has finally introduced a trial program of its own. It’s a no-commitment way to give the AT&T network a try while still holding on to your current carrier, number, and device. Pretty cool! But you’ll need an unlocked phone, which might disqualify a lot of people who are still...

about 3 hours ago

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Tim Cook says he uses every Apple product every day — how does that work?

Tim Cook apparently uses a lot more than an iPhone in his daily life. | Photo by Justin Sullivan / Getty Images While discussing his daily routine, Tim Cook told Ben Cohen in this WSJ Magazine interview that “every day” he uses “every product.” In the story, he mentions using an iPhone, an Apple Watch, AirPods, and then, for work, two different MacBooks, an iMac, a Vision Pro, and an iPad Pro. But what would it look like to truly...

about 3 hours ago

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Google Messages is trying to tackle today’s most annoying messaging spam

Illustration: The Verge Google Messages is trying to banish spammy job-seeking and package-delivery texts from your inbox, and it’s also adding a content warning to blur images that might contain nudity. The Sensitive Content Warning feature is optional, and if enabled, it will show users a “speed bump” with “help-finding resources and options” before they can view an image with nudity detected via on-device scanning. If users try to share an image with nudity, the app will warn them about...

about 3 hours ago

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The best Nintendo Switch controllers to buy right now

Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge From the unbeatable Switch Pro and comfy Joy-Con alternatives to a dongle that lets you use your Xbox or PlayStation controllers with your Switch, these are the best Switch controllers you can get. Continue reading…

about 4 hours ago

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Now you can unlock your door from Ecobee’s app

Ecobee’s smart security system and smart doorbell camera will now work with smart locks from Yale and August. | Image: Ecobee In its ongoing quest to become a complete smart home system, Ecobee has added a new smart lock integration. The smart thermostat company is partnering with Yale and August to let you control your smart lock using the Ecobee app. If you have an Ecobee Smart Doorbell Camera, you should now be able to let someone in more easily...

about 4 hours ago

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Air taxis and other electric-powered aircraft cleared for takeoff with final FAA rules

Image: Joby The Federal Aviation Administration published highly anticipated final regulations for electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles that it says will chart the path for the “air travel of the future.” The FAA says these “powered-lift” vehicles will be the first completely new category of aircraft since helicopters were introduced in 1940. These aircraft will be used for a variety of services, including air taxis, cargo delivery, and rescue and retrieval operations. The final rules published today contain guidelines...

about 5 hours ago

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Anthropic’s latest AI update can use a computer on its own

Image: The Verge Anthropic’s latest Claude 3.5 Sonnet AI model has a new feature in public beta that can control a computer by looking at a screen, moving a cursor, clicking buttons, and typing text. The new feature, called “computer use," is available today on the API, allowing developers to direct Claude to work on a computer like a human does, as shown on a Mac in the video below. Microsoft’s Copilot Vision feature and OpenAI’s desktop app for ChatGPT...

about 5 hours ago

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Microsoft and OpenAI are giving news outlets $10 million to use AI tools

Image: The Verge Microsoft and OpenAI announced they’re offering a select group of media outlets up to $10 million ($2.5 million in cash plus $2.5 million worth of “software and enterprise credits” from each) to try out AI tools in the newsroom. This news comes while the two companies are still facing a slew of copyright lawsuits, including from The New York Times, The Intercept, Raw Story, AlterNet, the Center for Investigative Reporting, and Alden Global Capital, the hedge fund...

about 6 hours ago

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The best noise-canceling headphones to buy right now

Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge Get some peace and quiet with any of our top picks for noise-canceling headphones. Sony’s still the best overall, but there are reasons to go elsewhere, too. Continue reading…

about 6 hours ago

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Plugable’s new 10-port USB-C hub is exactly the overkill my nightstand needs

Plugable’s PS-10CC can deliver 100W to all 10 of its USB-C ports, but not simultaneously. | Image: Plugable Plugable has announced a new multi-port USB-C hub that can power or charge up to 10 connected devices using intelligent power distribution and an easy-to-understand priority-based charging system. The company is bringing its new PS-10CC hub to consumers through a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign. The earliest backers can get one for $59, while the hub’s full MSRP will be closer to $99, with...

about 6 hours ago

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Arkansas has enough lithium for the world’s EVs — but getting to it is the problem

Image: Hugo Herrera / The Verge Arkansas is sitting atop lithium reserves that could be vast enough to satisfy the entire world’s demand for EV batteries, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). It estimates that there could be 5 to 19 million tons of lithium under southwestern Arkansas. That would be enough to supply nine times the amount of the key material needed globally for car batteries in 2030, the USGS says. Lithium is a key ingredient for rechargeable...

about 6 hours ago

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The best smartwatches for Android

Photo illustration by William Joel / The Verge Wear OS is much better than it used to be, so there’s never been a better time to consider a smartwatch. Continue reading…

about 7 hours ago

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Hoto’s 25-piece electric screwdriver set is down to its lowest price yet

At just $40, Hoto’s electric screwdriver is a cool tool we’d recommend for anyone doing handiwork. | Image: Hoto ‘Tis the season for assemblies. With the holidays coming up, many will soon have their hands full with a bunch of new decorations and gifts to build. To take some pressure off, you can give Hoto’s electric screwdriver a try. It’s a perennial favorite in our various gift guides, and now you can get a whole kit with its magnetic carrying...

about 7 hours ago

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Netflix closes AAA game studio before it ever released a game

Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge The first cracks are starting to show in Netflix’s push into gaming. First reported in Game File and confirmed by Netflix, the streaming company has quietly closed of one of its studios, the first in the three years since the company began its foray into gaming. According to Game File, the shuttered studio was known as Blue. In 2022, Netflix announced it hired former Overwatch executive producer Chacko Sonny to run the studio....

about 7 hours ago

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WhatsApp is making a massive change to the way it saves your contacts

Illustration: The Verge WhatsApp is getting a built-in contact manager that lets you save contacts within the app so you don’t lose them if you switch phones. WhatsApp typically relies on the smartphone address book it runs on to hold and manage contacts. But that can be a problem for users who lose their device and fail to back up their phone’s contacts, people who share phones, or those who manage multiple accounts with separate contacts on one device. To...

about 7 hours ago

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The Juul class action lawsuit is paying people huge amounts of money

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Payouts from Juul’s $300 million class action settlement are finally getting distributed — and some people are getting a lot more money than they expected. If you scroll through the r/juul subreddit, you can see posts showing the thousands — or hundreds — of dollars hitting people’s Venmo accounts. One screenshot shows someone who said they received more than $9,000, while others report receiving $6,200 and $4,600. Judging by the comments on some...

about 7 hours ago

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I’ve given up on trying to predict what Nintendo will do — especially when it comes to the Switch 2

The Nintendo Museum in Kyoto. | Image: Nintendo In 2018, Nintendo invited me to a meeting in New York City to see a mysterious new initiative. It was teased as an “interactive experience for Nintendo Switch,” which sent my mind to all sorts of places. This is the company that made a weird dual-screen Game Boy and bongo controllers, after all. It could be anything. Even still, I did not guess that I would spend that meeting folding bits of...

about 7 hours ago

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Cruise lost $435 million this quarter, even with its robotaxis on hiatus

Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images Even with most of its autonomous vehicle fleet on ice, Cruise is still bleeding cash. The robotaxi company that is a wholly owned subsidiary of General Motors lost $435 million in the third quarter of 2024, GM reported this morning. That’s an improvement from the $791 million lost in the third quarter of 2023. It’s an instructive moment to check in with Cruise, because the company has been on hiatus since October 27,...

about 8 hours ago

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Microsoft’s refreshed Xbox Wireless Headset has a better mic and more battery life

Image: Microsoft Microsoft is refreshing its Xbox Wireless Headset today, adding an upgraded microphone and improving the battery life. The refreshed headset will also support Dolby Atmos at no extra cost and Bluetooth 5.3. This updated model has similar rotating ear cup dials to the original, letting you adjust volume and game / audio chat balance. Microsoft has tweaked the design slightly on the outside, removing the green accent in favor of an all-black look. Image: Microsoft The new all-black...

about 8 hours ago

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Canva has a shiny new text-to-image generator

Here are some of the AI tools that Canva is increasing prices for. | Image: Canva Canva has added a bunch of new AI features to its web-based design platform, including updates for generating text and video effects and a more powerful text-to-image app. The latter is called “Dream Lab” — a new image generator tool born from Canva’s acquisition of generative AI startup Leonardo.ai earlier this year. Dream Lab is powered by Leonardo’s Phoenix model (not be be confused...

about 8 hours ago

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AirPods are good for your (hearing) health

Image: Alex Parkin / The Verge For years, we’ve heard that over-the-counter hearing aids were about to be amazing. They’d look like headphones and seem totally socially inconspicuous; they’d be able to help you tune the sound around you to exactly your needs in every situation. It’s a nice idea, but we haven’t seen much product to back it up. With a new software update coming to Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 earbuds next week, it all might be starting to...

about 9 hours ago

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Democrats want DOJ to prosecute tax prep companies that allegedly shared user data with Meta and Google

A group of Democratic lawmakers are urging the Justice Department to prosecute tax prep companies accused of improperly sharing user information with Meta and Google through their advertising pixels. Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA), are calling on the DOJ to take action against tax prep companies that they say failed to protect taxpayer privacy. In a new letter shared exclusively with The Verge, the lawmakers advance their previous calls for...

about 9 hours ago

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Tech critics want a Google exec punished for deleted chats

Three advocacy groups are trying to amp up the pressure on Google for allegedly destroying company records. The American Economic Liberties Project, Check My Ads, and the Tech Oversight Project are urging the State Bar of California to investigate Kent Walker, Google’s President of Global Affairs and a member of the Bar. They claim Walker “coached” the company “to engage in widespread and illegal destruction of records relevant to multiple ongoing federal trials.” In a letter shared exclusively with The...

about 9 hours ago

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Spotify’s new playlist art maker gets that design is your passion

Spotify’s new cover art maker is fun, and surprisingly not AI. | Image: Spotify Spotify now has a new “Create cover art” option for playlists that lets you make custom collages to represent your playlists. The beta feature, which is available for both free and Spotify Premium members, is launching for English users in 65 markets. The company says it partnered with artists like Ugly Primo, who designed Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti album cover, and Cey Adams, who...

about 9 hours ago

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Apple iPad Mini 2024 review: missing pieces

Apple’s smallest tablet got an upgrade — but it won’t feel like much of one unless Apple Intelligence is better than it seems. Continue reading…

about 9 hours ago

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Insta360’s GoPro competitor now has a bigger screen and improved 8K capabilities

The Insta360 Ace Pro 2 can now capture 8K footage at 30fps. | Image: Insta360 Insta360 has announced its new Ace Pro 2 action camera, an upgraded version of its GoPro Hero-series competitor. The compact camera now has a larger screen on the back that flips up 180 degrees for framing selfie videos, and it debuts at $399.99 — $50 cheaper than Insta360’s original Ace Pro. The design of the Ace Pro 2 still closely resembles the GoPro Hero series...

about 9 hours ago

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Ozlo Sleepbuds hands-on: resurrected and I’ve slept so good

If they look like the Bose Sleepbuds, well, that’s by design. | Photo by Victoria Song / The Verge The Bose Sleepbuds are back. Kind of. After Bose decided to discontinue the product in 2023, three ex-Bose engineers decided to acquire the technology and relaunch the device under the name Ozlo. The buds have been around for a while via a crowdfunding campaign, but starting today, they’re officially available for $299. Fans of the Bose Sleepbuds will be happy to...

about 9 hours ago

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Meta brings back face scanning to combat scams and account hacking

Facebook is getting ready to scan your face again. | Image: Meta Facebook and Instagram are testing new facial recognition tools that could help users quickly restore compromised accounts and combat fake celebrity-endorsed scams. Meta announced its plan to roll out experimental features that can scan a user’s face to verify their identity by comparing it against profile pictures on Facebook and Instagram. The first usage of these tools aim to protect both celebrities and everyday people from so-called “celeb-bait”...

about 10 hours ago

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Epic’s ambitious digital asset shop is now open

Epic Games’ Fab marketplace, which is designed to serve as a unified place to get digital assets like environments and animations, is now live, the company announced today. The launch of the marketplace is an important step in Epic’s plans to make it easier for developers to acquire assets for developing games — and, maybe someday, to let them make content for an interoperable metaverse. The company first revealed its plans for Fab — which will combine offerings from the...

about 10 hours ago

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Celebrity jet-tracking accounts have vanished from Threads and Instagram

Jack Sweeney says that 38 of his jet tracking accounts have been suspended. | Illustration: The Verge Meta has suspended several Threads and Instagram accounts that track the private jets of celebrities such as Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Kim Kardashian, and former US president Donald Trump. Jack Sweeney, who gained notoriety for his @ElonJet account on X and maintained many of the suspended accounts, said on Threads that the development is “reminiscent of all my accounts getting suspended...

about 13 hours ago

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Disney Plus and Hulu won’t let you sign up through Apple anymore

Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge If you want to subscribe to Disney Plus or Hulu on your iPhone, you can’t do that anymore. Support documents for Disney Plus and Hulu now say that new and returning subscribers to those streaming services can’t sign up through Apple, as reported by MacRumors. I’m not currently paying for Disney Plus, so out of curiosity, I tried logging into my account through the iOS app to see what would happen. After entering...

1 day ago

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The best fitness trackers to buy right now

Photo illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge From simple fitness bands and rugged sports watches to rings, these are the best trackers you can get. Continue reading…

1 day ago

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Google’s taking the extra search box out of your search results

Image: Google For years, Google has included an extra search box within some search results, encouraging you to dig further and look only within a specific website. But now that sitelinks search box is going away because “usage has dropped.” Google: It’s been over ten years since we initially announced the sitelinks search box in Google Search, and over time, we’ve noticed that usage has dropped. With that, and to help simplify the search results, we’ll be removing this visual...

1 day ago

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Elon Musk sued for using AI-generated Blade Runner imagery at robotaxi event

A still from Blade Runner 2049. | Warner Bros. Though it remains very unclear whether any of the self-driving vehicles demoed at Tesla’s We, Robot presentation will ever actually make it to market, one of the production companies behind Blade Runner 2049 thinks Elon Musk ripped off their copyright for the event, and are taking him to court. Today, Alcon Entertainment — an LA-based production company behind Blade Runner 2049 — filed a lawsuit against Tesla, Elon Musk, and Warner...

1 day ago

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The best instant cameras you can buy right now

Image: Kristen Radtke / The Verge We found the best cameras for your budget and needs. Continue reading…

1 day ago

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iRobot’s budget-friendly Roombas add a self-emptying option

The Roomba Combo 2 Essential can clean and mop floors for up to two hours on a single charge. | Image: iRobot The new Roomba Combo 2 Essential and Roomba Vac 2 Essential include a dock for self-emptying their dirt bins — a feature missing from the budget-friendly Essential robovacs that iRobot introduced six months ago. The 2-in-1 Combo 2 features both vacuuming and mopping capabilities for $424.99 and is slightly more expensive than the Vac 2, which only sucks...

1 day ago

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Amazon says it ditched plastic air pillows

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Amazon says that it has gotten rid of plastic air pillows at its warehouses. “As of October 2024, we’ve removed all plastic air pillows from our delivery packaging used at our global fulfillment centers,” the e-commerce giant said in an October 9th blog post. It’s a welcome change following years of pressure from environmental groups to stop plastic pollution flooding into oceans. The company is still working to reduce the use of single-use...

1 day ago

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One-third of DHS’s border surveillance cameras don’t even work

Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos from Getty Images The House Committee on Homeland Security is looking into Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) surveillance network in the wake of a report that nearly one-third of the agency’s cameras along the US-Mexico border don’t work. Privacy advocates say this is just the latest instance of expensive border surveillance infrastructure not working as advertised. An internal Border Patrol memo obtained by NBC News said that “several technical problems” had contributed to...

1 day ago

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Streamer’s apology for racist rant exposes the rot in streaming culture

Image: YouTube / Asmongold TV Asmongold apologized for his racist comments regarding Palestinians, revealing that streaming culture has made him a ‘psychopathic version’ of himself. Continue reading…

1 day ago

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Qualcomm’s new mobile chip is the 8 Elite

The 8 Elite comes with a new Oryon CPU. | Image: Qualcomm Just a few years after changing its mobile chipset naming conventions, Qualcomm has gone and done it again. The Snapdragon 8 Elite is the company’s newest high-end smartphone SoC, and like the laptop chips it borrows its “Elite” name from, it comes with a new Oryon CPU. The company says that this shift enables faster performance and — lest we forget about AI — offers on-device support for...

1 day ago

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Tesla’s Cybertruck range extender just became an even worse deal

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Tesla has delayed the release of its range extender for the Cybertruck and downgraded the amount of mileage it will add for the dual-motor version of the truck, as noticed by Electrek. The reduced range and delay are just more ways that the Cybertruck, which saw some big changes from when it was first announced, has had trouble living up to its hype. Previously, Tesla said the range extender, which will take...

1 day ago

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The best Android phones for everyone

Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge Whether you want everything but the kitchen sink or top-tier performance for a midrange price, you’ve got options. Continue reading…

1 day ago

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News Corp sues Perplexity for ripping off WSJ and New York Post

Image: The Verge News Corp, the parent company of media outlets like The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post, is suing the AI search engine Perplexity for infringing copyrighted content. In a lawsuit filed on Monday, News Corp alleges Perplexity copies news articles, analyses, and opinions “on a massive scale.” Perplexity is an AI startup that trains its AI search models using content from around the web, allowing it to respond to user queries with a summary of...

1 day ago

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‘I woke up and had the whole idea in my head’: returning to Area X with Jeff VanderMeer

Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images The Annihilation author talks about jumping back into the Southern Reach series 10 years later and whether this is truly the end of the story. Continue reading…

1 day ago

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Tiger Woods’ new tech golf league brings big screens to the green in January

Image: TGL Tiger Woods is gearing up to debut TGL, a new “tech-infused, team golf league” he co-founded with fellow pro golfer Rory McIlroy next year. The first matchup at the SoFi Center in Florida will premiere on ESPN and ESPN Plus on January 7th, the league announced today. TGL is essentially a big-budget version of Top Golf that happens in a stadium setting. In matches, two teams of golfers will drive balls into a 3,400-square-foot screen until they get...

1 day ago

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Anker’s Solix C300 DC power station has hit a new low price for Verge readers

The Solix C300 DC, one of Anker’s latest power stations, provides a healthy balance of power and portability. | Anker Having an alternative power source ready for sudden outages or extended off-grid adventures is never a bad idea. Thankfully, the Anker Solix C300X DC Portable Power Station is a neat, affordable option that loads you up with enough power and USB ports to charge several devices concurrently. And right now, Wellbots is offering it to Verge readers for $148 (about...

1 day ago

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The GameCube’s retro styling lives on in this customized PS5 DualSense controller

Killscreen has taken inspiration from the Nintendo GameCube for its latest customized DualSense. | Image: Killscreen Following the 30th anniversary versions of the PlayStation 5 featuring an old-school gray colorway, Killscreen has announced a customized version of the PlayStation 5’s DualSense controller called the CubeSense, which comes with a purple shell and custom joysticks inspired by the Nintendo GameCube. Killscreen’s customized controllers are all based on a standard DualSense Wireless Controller, so while the CubeSense pairs a matte purple shell...

1 day ago

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The 2025 Ford Mustang Mach-E gets sportier and more affordable

Ford Ford is giving its flagship EV a makeover, a better price, and more efficient components, in a bid to maintain its spot as the second best selling electric vehicle in America. Say hello to the 2025 Mustang Mach-E. Unlike the 2024 model, this year’s Mach-E is not getting a range bump, but fortunately it doesn’t seem like it will be necessary. With an improved design, and some slick new tech, the refreshed Mach-E will likely stay popular among buyers...

1 day ago

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Vampire Survivors comes full-circle with Castlevania DLC expansion

Image: Poncle The world of Dracula and the Belmont family is coming to Vampire Survivors. The newly announced downloadable content for the auto-shooter survival game, Ode to Castlevania, promises a bunch of new stuff: 20 characters, 40 weapons, an extra-large stage, and over 30 music tracks. Developer Poncle said in its announcement post on X that the $3.99 expansion should contain more than 10 hours worth of gameplay — though it’s not clear if there will actually be any vampires...

1 day ago

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AMD’s highly anticipated 9000-series X3D desktop CPUs arrive on November 7th

Image: AMD AMD is officially announcing its first next-generation X3D desktop processors today, based on its latest Zen 5 architecture. I’d love to tell you which Ryzen 9000-series X3D chips are arriving next month, but AMD is strangely only teasing a release date of November 7th and providing no pricing or further details. AMD has only provided a single slide about this X3D announcement, ahead of Intel’s Core Ultra 200-series launch on October 24th. Rumors had suggested AMD would announce...

1 day ago

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Tropical Storm Oscar is making Cuba’s nationwide power outage even worse

A motorcycle lights a street under pouring rain during a nationwide blackout caused by a grid failure in Havana, on October 19, 2024. | Photo: Getty Images Tropical Storm Oscar is making it harder to restore power in Cuba after a massive, prolonged power outage that preceded the storm. The nation’s power grid failed on Friday after Cuba’s largest power plant went offline, leaving more than 10 million people without electricity. The grid reportedly collapsed four more times before Oscar...

1 day ago

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Intuit asked us to delete part of this Decoder episode

Photo by Rodin Eckenroth / FilmMagic We declined. Continue reading…

1 day ago

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Disney’s still looking for a new CEO — but not this year or next year

Image: The Verge Disney will announce a replacement for CEO Bob Iger in “early 2026,” according to an update from the company on Monday. The entertainment giant has been on the hunt for a new leader since Iger’s return to Disney in 2022. Last year Iger extended his contract with Disney until December 31st, 2026, and, as The New York Times notes, delayed retirement four times during his previous run as the company’s CEO before eventually handing control over to...

1 day ago

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Kwikset takes a smart approach with its new smart lock

The Halo Select smart lock is Kwikset’s first to support Matter. It works over Thread and can also be used as a Wi-Fi lock. | Image: Kwikset The Halo Select is Kwikset’s first new smart lock in five years, and its new features, updated design, and creative approach to connectivity could make the long wait worthwhile. The Halo Select is a ground-up redesign of the company’s Halo line and its first lock to support Matter. It works with the new...

1 day ago

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Apple’s AirPods Pro hearing health features are as good as they sound

The AirPods Pro 2 will soon offer more robust hearing protection and a new hearing aid feature. But it’s the hearing test that really hooked me. Continue reading…

1 day ago

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Nintendo’s mysterious Playtest begins to leak

Simply telling playtesters not to share any details hasn’t exactly worked out. | Image: The Verge Nintendo has updated the official website for its mysterious “Switch Online: Playtest Program” today, privately revealing more information to participants about what it entails. The playtest is running from October 23rd, 9PM ET until November 5th, 8PM ET, and is only available to the roughly 10,000 people who have already registered for the program. The test software is now available to download ahead of...

1 day ago

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Samsung’s Z Fold Special Edition flagship is here

The Special Edition model of the Galaxy Z Fold. | Image: Samsung Samsung just announced the Special Edition model of the Galaxy Z Fold. It’s thinner and a little lighter than the Galaxy Z Fold 6 that only recently went on sale, and includes slightly larger displays on the inside and out and a new banded pattern on the back. It also has more memory available for Galaxy AI and an upgraded 200 megapixel wide-angle camera. Great! Unfortunately, it’s only...

1 day ago

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Michelle Yeoh’s Star Trek spy movie has a release date

Michelle Yeoh is back in Trek. | Screenshot: YouTube Star Trek: Section 31 will premiere as a direct-to-streaming movie on January 24th on Paramount Plus, which revealed the date during a Trek panel at the New York Comic Con. Fans will finally see Michelle Yeoh’s Star Trek: Discovery character, Emperor Philippa Georgiou, put her Mirrorverse skills to use as a super secret space spy. When we last saw Emperor Georgiou (an alternate dimension version of Captain Georgiou Discovery’s first season)...

2 days ago

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Elon Musk is offering people $1 million to vote

Image: Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images Tech billionaire Elon Musk gave a $1 million check to an audience member at a rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where he’s been Trump-stumping, on Saturday. And he said he will continue to give that prize to one random voter per day until the Presidential election on November 5th. The move could very well break US election law. Only people who have signed a petition from Musk’s America PAC are eligible for the...

2 days ago

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Alien: Romulus is getting a VHS release

It’s time to dust off your VCR and clean the heads, because Alien: Romulus is coming to VHS as a limited edition on December 3rd alongside the other physical releases, director Fede Alvarez announced during “a special Beyond Fest-partnered screening” in Los Angeles yesterday. The “fully functioning VHS tape” is meant to celebrate 45 years since the Alien franchise first (chest) burst into theaters, 20th Century Studios wrote in a release emailed to The Verge. It’ll present the movie, appropriately,...

2 days ago

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The tech YouTuber who opened a coffee shop

Image: Samar Haddad / The Verge For the last eight months, David Cogen has been living a double life. By day: a YouTuber and creator, the face of TheUnlockr, reviewing phones and testing ebikes and explaining how food smokers really work. By night and morning and every single other available moment in between: a coffee shop entrepreneur, working to get a Brooklyn spot called Coffee Check up and running. The whole thing started late last year and escalated quickly. He...

2 days ago

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Apple’s macOS Sequoia lets you snap windows into position — here’s how

Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge For many a year, Windows users have been dragging their program windows over to the borders of the screen to snap them into position, splitting the screen up evenly into halves or quarters. Now, with the rollout of macOS Sequoia, Mac users can do the same. You can get a Spotify playlist up alongside your email inbox, for example, or a report you’re writing up alongside the online articles you’re reporting on. It...

2 days ago

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The Internet Archive hackers still have access to its internal emailing tools

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Early this morning, I received an email from “The Internet Archive Team,” replying to a message I’d sent on October 9th. Except its author doesn’t seem to have been the digital archivists’ support team — it was apparently written by the hackers who breached the site earlier this month and who evidently maintain some level of access to its systems. I’m not alone. Users on the Internet Archive subreddit are reporting getting...

2 days ago

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Time to upgrade your reading gadgets

Image: David Pierce / The Verge Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 57, your guide to the best and Verge-iest stuff in the world. (If you’re new here, welcome, happy Kindle Season to all who celebrate, and also you can read all the old editions at the Installer homepage.) This week, I’ve been reading about sports betting and designer proteins and the Ford Bronco, listening to Bon Iver’s new Sable and Brian Eno’s old Music for Airports on repeat, watching...

2 days ago

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Why are Instagram searches for ‘Adam Driver Megalopolis’ blocked for CSAM?

Image: Kristen Radtke / The Verge Update, October 20th: Meta representative Sophie Vogel tells The Verge via email that this issue has been fixed, which The Verge can confirm. Searches for “mega drive” still appear to be blocked. Our original story follows. When people search for “Adam driver Megalopolis” on Instagram or Facebook right now, instead of seeing posts about Francis Ford Coppola’s latest film, they’re shown a warning, titled, “Child sexual abuse is illegal.” That bizarre fact was pointed...

3 days ago

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Ford tells some EV customers to stop using its Tesla Supercharger adapter

Ford says some of its NACS adapters could cause issues. | Image: Ford Ford started offering free adapters for Tesla’s Supercharger network to owners of its EVs in February, and now it’s telling some of its customers to stop using them, reports InsideEVs. The company found a “potential issue” that could cause “reduced charging speeds over time” or even damage to the charge port itself, according to a service bulletin it’s sending to those affected. Ford EV owners should follow...

3 days ago

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iFixit’s Meta Quest 3S teardown reveals a Quest 2 ‘hiding inside’

What if I told you the Meta Quest 3S is in some ways just a more powerful Quest 2 with color passthrough? “Yes, of course it is,” someone who’s read our coverage might say, but iFixit shows just how true that is in the teardown video it published today. The first hint of that is the headset’s Fresnel lenses, which iFixit’s Shahram Mokhtari writes in a blog post are “100% compatible” with those used by the Quest 2. The headset...

3 days ago

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Ember’s temperature-controlled smart mugs are 20 percent off today

Let’s face it, no one likes room temperature coffee. | Image: Ember Fall has arrived, bringing cooler temperatures with it. Thankfully, Ember is running a sale through October 21st that takes 20 percent off many of its self-heating vessels — including the Ember Mug 2, a guilty pleasure of ours. The 10-ounce mug is available for about $104 ($27 off) with promo code SEASON20, while the 14-ounce version is down to about $120 ($30 off). The same code is good...

3 days ago

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At 21 years old, the iMac G4 is still down to party

I’ve never been so happy to use a computer that meets my state’s legal drinking age. | Photo: Wes Davis / The Verge It’s been 20 years since Apple discontinued the iMac G4, a unique computer with a funky half-globe base and a flatscreen LCD on a fancy hinge and adjustable arm. In its unaltered state, it’s a nice-to-look-at, nostalgic relic that’s unusable in modern contexts. I coveted it and never got to own one at the time, but thanks...

3 days ago

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Anora director Sean Baker writes the ending first

Image: Neon The director of Anora talks about representing sex work onscreen and how sticking the landing of a film means thinking about it first. Continue reading…

3 days ago

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DJI sues the US Department of Defense for labeling it a ‘Chinese Military Company’

The DJI Mavic Pro 3 drone. | Image: DJI DJI, the world’s largest drone company, is suing to avoid being seen as a tool of the Chinese government. On Friday, it sued the US Department of Defense to delete its name from a list of “Chinese Military Companies,” claiming it has no such relationship to Chinese authorities and has suffered unfairly as a result of that designation. Since DJI was added to that list in 2022, the company claims, it...

4 days ago

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Stoke Voltaics’ portable electric cookware review

The Stoke Voltaic Nomad Cooking System (left) and Joulle Kettle Pot. | Photo by Thomas Ricker / The Verge Sometimes you just need a portable electric cookset. Maybe it’s during a major power outage when everyone’s huddled together over the warm glow of the family power station. Or maybe it’s at a tailgate party or picnic. In my case, it’s anywhere I decided to park my van over the last few months while testing two cooking systems from Stoke Voltaics....

4 days ago

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The best smart locks you can buy right now

Illustration: The Verge Never get locked out again with a smart lock you can control from your phone, with your voice, or with just a touch of your finger. Continue reading…

4 days ago

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The best Garmin watches for training and everyday life

Garmins aren’t just multisport behemoths anymore. | Illustration by Will Joel / The Verge Garmin may be best known for its hardcore fitness watches, but it’s got an extensive line of lifestyle offerings, too. Continue reading…

4 days ago

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Penguin Random House books now explicitly say ‘no’ to AI training

Image: Hugo Herrera / The Verge Book publisher Penguin Random House is putting its stance on AI training in print. The standard copyright page on both new and reprinted books will now say, “No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner for the purpose of training artificial intelligence technologies or systems,” according to a report from The Bookseller spotted by Gizmodo. The clause also notes that Penguin Random House “expressly reserves this work from the...

4 days ago

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Cuba’s massive power outage extends into the weekend

People cross a street while a traffic light is off in Havana on October 18, 2024, during a nationwide blackout caused by a grid failure. | Photo: Getty Images Cuba lost power across the nation on Friday after a major power plant failed, according to the country’s energy ministry. Blackouts have been a recurring problem for Cuba’s aging power grid, the New York Times reported, noting the country has lacked fuel to run the gird fully for weeks. Its national...

4 days ago

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GM will start making money on EVs this year, says CEO

The Chevy Equinox is one of the cheapest EVs available. | Photo by Andrew Hawkins / The Verge GM is about to start making money on its electric vehicles by the end of this year, right on schedule, CEO Mary Barra told The New York Times. Barra also told the publication that GM will still phase out the sales of internal combustion engine vehicles by 2035, a goal it set in 2021 alongside a promise to be carbon neutral by...

4 days ago

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The best budget robot vacuums

Illustration: The Verge You don’t have to spend a fortune to have a robot clean your floors. Here’s our pick of the most cost-effective bots you can buy right now. Continue reading…

4 days ago

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In Shinichirō Watanabe’s Lazarus, parkour is the only way to go

Adult Swim Though Shinichirō Watanabe’s new animated series Lazarus still doesn’t have a solid release date, Adult Swim has just dropped a wild new clip from the project showcasing its parkour-friendly vision of the future. Along with giving New York Comic Con attendees a chance to see Lazarus’ first episode, Adult Swim revealed today that Koichi Yamadera and Megumi Hayashibara — the Japanese actors who voiced Cowboy Bebop’s Spike Spiegel and Faye Valentine — are part of the show’s cast....

4 days ago

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Spider-Man 2 is latest PlayStation exclusive coming to PC

Image: Sony Interactive Entertainment Yet another PlayStation blockbuster is making its way to PC. Sony announced that Spider-Man 2, one of the PS5’s biggest exclusives, will hit PC on January 30th. It’ll be available via both Steam and the Epic Game Store. The PC port will include the base game and all of its subsequent DLC, like New Game Plus mode and extra spider suits, along with PC-specific features like “keyboard and mouse controls, ultra widescreen support, and numerous graphical...

4 days ago

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Sam Altman’s eyeball-scanning crypto project has a new Orb and a new name

Image: World Worldcoin, the cryptocurrency / human identity network / UBI project co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, is now known as World. Along with the name change, World introduced an updated version of its eyeball-scanning Orb device which is designed to solve a problem that does not currently exist: authenticating that someone is human “in the age of AI.” People registered to the system get a World ID that they can use to “securely and anonymously” prove their humanness...

4 days ago

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The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is just $40 for first-time Woot buyers

Save me some money, Ultrahand. | Image: Nintendo If you’ve been waiting to pick up one of the all-time great games for the Nintendo Switch, you can do so now for as cheap as it gets. Woot is offering first-time customers the chance to buy a physical version The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom for $39.99 ($30 off) when you use code ZELDAWELCOME at checkout. If you’ve purchased from Woot before you can still buy the game for...

4 days ago

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Epic judge lets Google keep its Android app store closed to competitors — for now

Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge Google just netted a small but key victory in its Epic legal battle. Last week, the company asked Judge James Donato to press pause on his November 1st deadline to drastically alter its Android app store rules. Today, he did just that, Epic and Google confirm to The Verge, granting Google a temporary administrative stay on all but one specific piece of his ruling. That means Google may not have to open up...

4 days ago

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OnePlus might be ditching curved edges too

The future of phones is flat. | Image: Digital Chat Station on Weibo The next OnePlus flagship looks a little flat — and that’s a good thing. The alleged image of the unreleased OnePlus 13 was posted to Weibo and has been since removed, but not before it was spotted by 9to5Google. It shows the phone with flat sides rather than the curved edges featured by recent OnePlus phones. It’s a small shift, but it would make OnePlus the latest...

4 days ago

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Fans come to the rescue of popular Mario content creator

Image: Nintendo Fans of the popular Mario blog, Supper Mario Broth, have come together to remind us that the internet can still be a place where good things happen. Supper Mario Broth is one of the most wholesome Mario blogs on the internet. Since 2017, its owner has posted a regular stream of Mario-flavored tidbits he could dig up including interesting glitches, old advertisements and merchandise, screenshots, gifs, artwork, and more. If it’s obscure and has to do with Mario,...

4 days ago

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The FTC is trying to find out if John Deere’s repair policies broke the law

Photo by Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is probing whether John Deere used unfair practices related to the repair of its agricultural equipment that might violate the FTC Act. The investigation into John Deere’s restrictions on customers’ right to repair agricultural equipment was revealed by data analytics company Hargrove & Associates, Inc. (HAI), as it fights a subpoena-like civil investigative demand (CID) from the FTC to hand over sales data. As reported earlier by Reuters,...

4 days ago

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Google’s NotebookLM now lets you guide the hosts of your AI podcast

Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos by Getty Images Google’s NotebookLM now lets you customize its podcast-like Audio Overviews. Before you generate a discussion using the note-taking app, you can give your AI hosts instructions about what topic you’d like them to focus on, or even tailor their discussions for different audiences. Google launched NotebookLM’s Audio Overviews last month, with two AI hosts that offer a “lively” discussion of your research. The company notes that its Audio...

4 days ago

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FCC says all smartphones must be hearing aid-compatible

The AirPods Pro 2 recently received FDA authorization as OTC hearing aids. | Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge The Federal Communications Commission announced that, going forward, all mobile handsets in the US including smartphones will have to be compatible with hearing aids. It’s also established new rules around volume control and improved product labeling so people with hearing aids can make informed buying decisions. The gist is that the FCC is establishing a Bluetooth pairing requirement, thereby discouraging...

4 days ago

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Ploopy’s 3D-printed, open-source trackpad is thoroughly customizable

Ploopy’s trackpad can be purchased preassembled or in a DIY kit. | Image: Ploopy Ploopy is expanding its collection of mod-friendly peripherals with a new seven-inch trackpad that supports multi-finger gestures and features like palm rejection. Like Ploopy’s mouse and trackballs, its new trackpad runs on the QMK open-source firmware, further expanding how its functionality can be customized. The trackpad is powered by a Raspberry Pi RP2040, while finger tracking is handled by a Microchip ATMXT1066TD processor which can all...

4 days ago

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People are flocking to Bluesky as X makes more unwanted changes

Image: Bluesky A handful of changes coming to X may be pushing users to its competitor. Bluesky, the decentralized social platform, says it added 500,000 new users in a day this week. The new wave of signups could be related to several controversial changes on X in the last few days. This week, X users got a pop-up message notifying them that their posts will be visible even to users they’ve previously blocked. Those accounts still won’t be able to...

4 days ago

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WP Engine asks court to stop Matt Mullenweg from blocking access to WordPress resources

Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge WP Engine is asking a court to put a stop to Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg’s public campaign against the company. In a motion for a preliminary injunction filed against Automattic and Mullenweg on Friday, the third-party hosting platform requests that the court restore its access to WordPress resources and allow it to regain control of its plugin that had been taken over. In the filing, WP Engine claims it’s facing “multiple forms of immediate...

4 days ago

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Nintendo’s Alarmo is cute and cozy — but it’s still just an alarm clock

Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge I have always had an adversarial relationship with alarm clocks. They are gadgets designed to ruin my most precious time, and in order to work effectively, they must be as annoying as possible. Which is why I was intrigued by Nintendo’s surprise reveal of Alarmo. (Once I got over my surprise of it not being the long-awaited Switch 2 announcement.) What if getting up in the morning could be a little more playful?...

4 days ago

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Feds are investigating Tesla ‘Full Self-Driving’ crashes in reduced visibility

Image: Owen Grove / The Verge NHTSA is opening a preliminary evaluation into Tesla’s Full Self-Driving mode (FSD) over the possibility of crashes in reduced roadway visibility conditions. The agency is opening the investigation after noting four reports of incidents like that, including one last November in Rimrock, AZ, where a Model Y struck and killed a pedestrian, as reported by TechCrunch. The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has identified four Standing General Order (SGO) reports in which a Tesla...

4 days ago

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The future of the Kindle with Panos Panay

Image: Alex Parkin / The Verge Amazon launched four new Kindles this week, maybe the biggest single launch day in the 17-year history of the company’s wildly successful e-reader. One of them even comes in color! It is very much not a coincidence that the launch happened roughly a year after Panos Panay joined the company. Panay, a longtime Microsoft executive who was for years in charge of all things Windows and Surface, is now leading the devices and services...

4 days ago

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Google will once again ban election ads after the polls close

Illustration: The Verge Google is planning to ban advertisers from running ads related to the US presidential election after polls close on November 5th. Axios reports that this is the second time Google has decided to ban election ads once polls close, after first implementing the policy during the 2020 election. Google says it’s reenacting the policy again this year “out of an abundance of caution and to limit the potential for confusion, given the likelihood that votes will continue...

5 days ago

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Google is making it easier to use a password manager inside Chrome on Android

Image: The Verge Google is updating Chrome on Android next month to greatly improve how password mangers operate inside the mobile browser. Chrome on Android will allow third-party password managers to natively autofill forms on websites, improving the experience of apps like 1Password, Dashlane, and others. Google offers its own password manager in Chrome, alongside passkeys and autofill support for information like your address and payment card data. While you can set a preferred autofill service on Android, it uses...

5 days ago