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Tech

AI Summary

  • AI is really pushing into every corner of our lives, from personalized study guides and voice interfaces to advanced content creation, though we're clearly still figuring out how to make it reliable for high-stakes professional work and tackle issues like AI-generated harmful content or even cheating in job interviews.
  • Driverless cars are officially hitting more streets, with Tesla launching unsupervised robotaxi services in Austin and Waymo expanding its public offerings in Miami, marking a real step forward in autonomous transportation, albeit with ongoing discussions around safety and regulation.
  • We're seeing a ton of noise around data security and user privacy, with big names like Microsoft and Under Armour facing outages or breaches, and companies like Meta and Ring under intense scrutiny for their data handling practices, especially concerning child safety, potential surveillance, and AI-enhanced scams.
  • The tech giants are locked in some pretty high-stakes strategic plays, from Epic and Google's surprising settlement in their antitrust saga to ambitious fundraising for next-gen AI hardware and Elon Musk reportedly eyeing a SpaceX IPO to fuel his space-based AI data center dreams.
  • The digital content and entertainment landscape is constantly shifting, highlighted by Substack's dive into TV apps, a flurry of exciting new game announcements, and social media platforms like Threads integrating more ads, all pointing to a dynamic future where creators and platforms are vying for attention in new ways.

TechCrunch


Hacker News


Engadget

  • David Ellison extends deadline for Warner Bros. Discovery takeover offer 2 hours ago by Ian Carlos Campbell
    Mergers, Acquisitions & Takeovers, Media, Investment & Company Information, Arts & Entertainment, Finance, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Ian Carlos Campbell

    Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison is apparently still hopeful that investors will approve his $108.4 billion hostile takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery. Paramount Skydance announced Thursday that it's extending its all-cash offer to acquire the storied studio, and giving investors until February 20, 2026 to accept. The company's previous offer expired on January 21, but with a lawsuit in the works and a revised Netflix deal to compete with, Paramount Skydance wants to stay in the conversation. Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery originally announced their $82.7 billion acquisition agreement in December 2025. Netflix's deal is for a significant portion, but notably

  • Fable will let you be a heartless landlord this fall 2 hours ago by Igor Bonifacic
    Media, Video Games, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Igor Bonifacic

    After half a decade of waiting, Microsoft finally offered an extended preview of its long-awaited reboot of the beloved Fable RPG franchise on Thursday. During the company’s recent Developer Direct showcase, Playground Games, best known for its works on the Forza Horizon series, shared nearly 11 minutes of gameplay footage and commentary related to the upcoming title. The new game will feature a fully open world for players to explore, with locations from previous Fable games like Bowerstone making a return. Playground didn’t say exactly where the new game takes place in the Fable timeline. If you played 2010’s Fable 3,

  • Double Fine announces delightful-looking multiplayer pottery game Kiln 3 hours ago by Anna Washenko
    Video Games, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Anna Washenko

    Double Fine has been on a tear with its smaller projects lately. The popular indie game developer is following up last year's atmospheric adventure game Keeper with a new title in a totally different direction. As its Double Fine founder Tim Schaefer attempted to say five times fast during today's Xbox Developer Direct, Kiln is an "online multiplayer pottery party brawler" that boasts exactly the sort of colorful, clever fun that fans have come to expect from the studio.  Kiln is a game with two facets: creation and destruction. On the creation side, players get to design a ceramic vessel of

  • Substack now has a TV app 3 hours ago by Will Shanklin
    Software, Mobile Apps, Technology & Electronics, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Will Shanklin

    It was only 16 months ago that Substack expanded into live video. Since then, it's become a widely adopted medium on the platform, including by its ever-growing list of cable news expats. Now, the company has decided it's ready for a bigger screen. Starting today, you can install a new Substack TV app on Apple TV and Google TV devices. Substack describes the app's initial launch as focusing on "reliable, high-quality viewing" for the platform's long-form videos. It centers around video posts and livestreams from the creators and publications you follow. There's also a "For You" section that combines those videos

  • Elon Musk just told Davos that Tesla will sell humanoid robots next year, really, he swears 3 hours ago by Lawrence Bonk
    Robots, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Lawrence Bonk

    Elon Musk just took the stage at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland and announced that Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot will be sold to the public by the end of next year. Musk is the master of unrealistic timetables, but this may be the nuttiest one yet. These are humanoid robots that are supposed to be able to do just about any task a human can do. Musk, as usual, gave himself an out if the robots don't start rolling off the assembly line in 2027, saying that they'll only be released when Tesla is "confident that it’s very high


The Verge

  • Epic and Google have a secret $800 million Unreal Engine and services deal 44 minutes ago
    Antitrust, Google, Policy, Report, Tech

    A judge is questioning whether Epic Games and Google are settling their long-running antitrust fight partly because of a previously unannounced partnership involving the Unreal Engine, Fortnite, and Android. In a hearing in San Francisco today, the court revealed that Epic and Google have struck a new deal that apparently includes "joint product development, joint marketing commitment, joint partnerships." California District Judge James Donato expressed concerns that the agreement - which he indicated would involve Epic "helping Google market Android" and Google newly "using Epic's core technology" - could have led Epic to soften its demand … Read the full story

  • Sen. Markey questions OpenAI about ‘deceptive advertising’ in ChatGPT an hour ago by Emma Roth
    AI, Anthropic, Google, Meta, Microsoft, News, OpenAI, Policy, Politics, Tech

    Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) is pressing OpenAI about its move to bring ads to ChatGPT, and is asking several other companies whether they have similar plans. In letters to the CEOs of OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta, Microsoft, Snap, and xAI, Markey writes that embedding ads into AI chatbots "raises significant concerns for consumer protection, privacy, and the safety of young users." OpenAI will start testing ads for free ChatGPT users in the coming weeks, and they'll appear in the form of "sponsored" products and services at the bottom of conversations with the chatbot. The company says it will surface ads relevant

  • Tesla is finally doing unsupervised robotaxi rides an hour ago by Andrew J. Hawkins
    Autonomous Cars, Electric Cars, Elon Musk, News, Tech, Tesla, Transportation

    Tesla is finally doing unsupervised robotaxi trips in Austin, Texas, according to a video posted on X. Elon Musk reposted the video, congratulating Tesla's AI team for the milestone. For months, Tesla's robotaxis in Austin and San Francisco have included safety monitors with access to a kill switch in case of emergency - a fallback that Waymo currently doesn't need for its commercial robotaxi service. The safety monitor sits in the passenger seat in Austin and in the driver seat in San Francisco. Neither service is fully open to the public yet, relying instead on customer waitlists. Musk has said that the

  • Ring says it’s not giving ICE access to its cameras 2 hours ago by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
    Cameras, Gadgets, News, Smart Home, Tech

    Ring video doorbells and cameras are not sending footage to ICE, according to the company. Ring's partnership with Flock is sparking renewed online backlash this week, with influencers calling for people to smash their Ring cameras and claiming the company is part of the surveillance state amid heightened concerns over ICE actions. Flock is an AI-powered surveillance camera company that has reportedly allowed government agencies - including ICE - to access data from its nationwide camera network. Amazon-owned home security company Ring announced a partnership with Flock last year as part of its new Community Requests tool. This allows local law enforcement

  • Substack is launching a TV app, and not everyone is happy 2 hours ago by Mia Sato
    Creators, News, Podcasts, Tech

    Substack announced Thursday it's launching Apple TV and Google TV apps that audiences can use for videos and livestreams - and early reactions suggest not all users are thrilled. Subscribers can watch videos and livestreams from creators they follow, but the app will also have a recommendations-based "For You" feed that mixes in other creators' content. The TV app is available to both free and paid subscribers, and Substack says it will eventually add audio content and more discovery features. For many, it appears this was not welcome news. In the short time since the blog post went live, it's been flooded


Wired

  • Elon Musk Sure Made Lots of Predictions at Davos 2 hours ago by Aarian Marshall
    Gear, Gear / Gear News and Events, Big, Talk

    Humanoid robots, space travel, the science of aging—Musk weighed in on all of it at this week’s World Economic Forum. But his predictions rarely work out the way he says they will.

  • What Happens When a Chinese Battery Factory Comes to Town 2 hours ago by Zeyi Yang
    Business, Made, in, China

    Chinese firms are building battery plants from Europe to North America, promising jobs while prompting local concerns about the environment, politics, and who really benefits.

  • The 28 Best Movies on Apple TV, WIRED’s Picks (January 2026) 3 hours ago by Angela Watercutter
    Culture, Culture / Movies, Guides

    F1: The Movie, CODA, and Highest 2 Lowest are just a few of the movies you should be watching on Apple TV this month.

  • AI-Powered Disinformation Swarms Are Coming for Democracy 4 hours ago by David Gilbert
    Politics, Politics / Disinformation, Rise, of, the, Machines

    Advances in artificial intelligence are creating a perfect storm for those seeking to spread disinformation at unprecedented speed and scale. And it’s virtually impossible to detect.

  • How Claude Code Is Reshaping Software—and Anthropic 4 hours ago by Maxwell Zeff
    Business, Business / Artificial Intelligence, Model, Behavior

    WIRED spoke with Boris Cherny, head of Claude Code, about how the viral coding tool is changing the way Anthropic works.


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