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AI Summary

  • TikTok has reached an agreement to divest control of its U.S. business to a group of American investors, potentially ending a long-standing dispute with U.S. authorities.
  • Apple has introduced changes to its developer agreement, allowing it to act as a debt collector for any outstanding balances owed by developers using its App Store services.
  • Instacart has settled with the FTC for $60 million over allegations that it misled consumers regarding pricing and refunds, highlighting ongoing scrutiny of tech companies' marketplace practices.
  • OpenAI has launched an app store within ChatGPT, opening up opportunities for developers to create new user experiences and expanding the platform's functionality.
  • Uber and DoorDash are challenging a New York City law that encourages tipping on delivery platforms, raising questions about labor rights and compensation strategies in the gig economy.

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Engadget

  • The best DACs for Apple Music Lossless in 2026 2 hours ago by James Trew
    Speakers & Headphones, Audio Technology, Technology & Electronics, Handheld & Connected Devices, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|James Trew

    If you want to hear Apple Music’s lossless catalog the way it was meant to sound, you will need a little extra hardware. iPhones and most wireless headphones still have limitations when it comes to high-resolution audio, which means a good DAC can make a real difference in clarity and detail. Whether you listen through wired earbuds, studio headphones or a home speaker setup, the right DAC can bring out far more texture in your music. Lossless audio can be confusing at first, especially with different formats and file sizes to consider, but you do not need a complicated setup to

  • Sony is buying Peanuts 9 hours ago by Mariella Moon
    Investment & Company Information, Finance, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Mariella Moon

    Sony is paying approximately $460 milliion to purchase Peanuts [PDF] and its characters, including Snoopy and Charlie Brown, created by Charles M. Schulz. That’s a 41 percent stake Sony is buying from Canadian firm WildBrain. Since Sony bought 39 percent of the franchise back in 2018, this will give the company an 80 percent stake. The deal is still subject to regulatory approvals, but Peanuts will become Sony’s consolidated subsidiary once it’s closed. Schulz’s family still owns the remaining 20 percent stake in the franchise. Schulz launched the Peanuts universe in comic strips 75 years ago, back in 1950. The franchise

  • Trump's TikTok deal is another step closer to finally actually happening 11 hours ago by Karissa Bell
    Mergers, Acquisitions & Takeovers, Politics & Government, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Karissa Bell

    Remember back in September when President Donald Trump signed an executive order that seemingly finalized some of the terms of a deal to spin off TikTok's US business? Three months later, that same deal is apparently one step closer to being official. According to Bloomberg, TikTok CEO Shou Chew told employees that TikTok and ByteDance had signed off the agreement for control of TikTok's US business. It sounds like terms of the deal are roughly the same as what Trump announced earlier this year. A group of US investors, including Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX will control a majority of the

  • Steam Winter Sale discounts Clair Obscur, Silent Hill f and more 13 hours ago by Ian Carlos Campbell
    Video Games, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Ian Carlos Campbell

    Holiday shopping is in full swing, which means it's about time for the Steam Winter Sale. This go-around, Valve’s sale runs from December 18, 2025 through January 5, 2026, and includes discounts on some of this year's hit games, like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Silent Hill f and Assassin's Creed Shadows. Clair Obscur is available for $40, down from its normal $50, Silent Hill f is 40 percent off, bringing its price down to $42, and the normally $70 Assassin's Creed Shadows is selling for $35, a solid deal on what was somewhat of a comeback for the long-running Ubisoft series.

  • Google’s NotebookLM introduces Data Tables feature 13 hours ago by Anna Washenko
    Technology & Electronics, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Anna Washenko

    Google's latest addition to its NotebookLM artificial intelligence research platform is a feature called Data Tables. The tool can collect and synthesize information across multiple sources into a chart that can be exported to Google Sheets. All Pro and Ultra users will have access to the feature today, and Data Tables will roll out to all users over the coming weeks. In practice, Google suggested that Data Tables can be used to organize scattered notes, create price comparison charts or aggregate results from multiple research projects. The example of the interface shows the desired table components requested in natural language statements.   Last


The Verge

  • A Starlink satellite seems to have exploded 3 hours ago by Thomas Ricker
    News, Science, Space, SpaceX

    A Falcon 9 launched 29 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit on December 1st, 2025. | Image: SpaceX SpaceX says it has lost control of a Starlink satellite that's now falling back to Earth after suffering an anomaly. The sudden loss of communications, drop in altitude, "venting of the propulsion tank," and "release of a small number of trackable low relative velocity objects," suggests the anomaly was some kind of explosion. SpaceX says it poses no threat to the crew of the ISS and will burn up in the atmosphere "within weeks." This mishap comes a week after SpaceX reported a near miss

  • TikTok ban: all the news on the app’s shutdown and return in the US 10 hours ago by Verge Staff
    Creators, Law, Policy, Politics, Regulation, Tech, TikTok

    After briefly going dark in the US to comply with the divest-or-ban law targeting ByteDance that went into effect on January 19th, TikTok quickly came back online. It eventually reappeared in the App Store and Google Play as negotiations between the US and China continued, and Donald Trump continued to sign extensions directing officials not to apply the law’s penalties. Finally, in mid-December, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew told employees that the agreements to create TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, which includes Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX as part owners, have been signed, and the deal is expected to close on

  • The TikTok US sale is finally happening 12 hours ago by Emma Roth
    Apps, Creators, News, Policy, Politics, Tech, TikTok

    TikTok has finalized a deal to sell enough of its US business satisfy the divest-or-ban law, as initially reported by Axios, The Hollywood Reporter, and CNBC. According to a memo sent from CEO Shou Zi Chew to employees (included in full below) on Thursday, they are targeting a closing date of January 22nd, 2026. Once the deal is done, he writes that ownership stakes in TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC will break down as follows: > Specifically, the U.S. joint venture will be 50% held by a consortium of new investors, including Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX with 15% each; 30.1%

  • Threads wants to be the app you can’t wait to open in the morning 13 hours ago by Alex Heath
    Column, Social Media, Sources, Tech

    This is an excerpt of Sources by Alex Heath, a newsletter about AI and the tech industry, syndicated just for The Verge subscribers once a week. By all measures, Meta's Threads app had a very good year. The app was Apple's second-most-downloaded iOS app of the year, trailing only ChatGPT. Threads now has 400 million monthly and 150 million daily active users. > "There are consumers who are ravenous to consume the content." That growth is still coming mainly from Meta's other platforms. "We do a lot of work in Instagram and Facebook to show off what's going on in Threads," Connor Hayes,

  • Oh snap, I have a new favorite phone grip 13 hours ago by Sean Hollister
    Gadgets, Hands-on, Reviews, Tech

    The OhSnap Snap Grip 5 next to a Syncwire magnetic ring. | Photo by Sean Hollister / The Verge In 2022, we called a simple magnetic ring from Anker the best MagSafe phone grip, but things have evolved dramatically since then! You can buy two or even three magnetic rings joined at the hip these days to wield your iPhone, recent Pixel, or really any phone if you stick a magnetic case or included mounting ring on the back. But the best I've yet tried are the double-sided $15-$25 Syncwire Magnetic Phone Ring Holder - and, more recently, the $40 OhSnap Snap


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