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Tech

AI Summary

  • Flutterwave's acquisition of Nigerian startup Mono, valued between $25 million and $40 million, marks a significant consolidation in Africa’s fintech space, combining two major players in payment and open banking sectors.
  • At CES 2026, technology giants are showcasing innovative products, with a strong emphasis on AI integration in various gadgets including personal cinema glasses, smart home devices, and audio technology.
  • Concerns over AI misuse are prominent, with French and Malaysian authorities investigating Elon Musk's Grok AI for generating inappropriate deepfakes, alongside ongoing scrutiny from India to address obscene AI outputs.
  • In the automotive sector, Tesla's sales continue to decline as BYD surpasses it as the global leader in electric vehicle sales, signaling a shift in market dynamics amidst increased competition from Chinese manufacturers.
  • California has introduced a new tool enabling residents to demand data brokers delete their personal information, reflecting growing concern over privacy and data protection in an increasingly digital landscape.

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Engadget

  • L'Oréal’s CES 2026 beauty devices include a skin-like flexible LED mask 3 hours ago by Cherlynn Low
    Beauty, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Cherlynn Low

    Over the last ten or so years, L'Oréal has brought a taste of beauty tech to the masses at CES 2026. This time, it has three devices to show off: the “Light Straight + Multi-styler” as well as the helpfully named LED Face Mask and LED Eye Mask.  Don’t let the unassuming names mislead you. These three products actually harbor some unique traits. The Light Straight (and multi-styler, which I’m going to just call the Light Straight from here on), for instance, uses infrared light to help generate the heat required to style your hair. Meanwhile, the LED Face Mask is

  • Samsung’s Freestyle+ projector hands-on: Much brighter and impressively adaptable 4 hours ago by Mat Smith
    Technology & Electronics, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Mat Smith

    Samsung announced its newest portable projector ahead of its First Look showcase at CES 2026, but you might have been a little confused as to what’s changed. The company says the Freestyle+ is nearly twice as bright as the 2022 Freestyle projector, rated at 230 ISO lumens, which was pretty underwhelming. The new Freestyle+ can output at 430 ISO lumens. If this is the first you’re hearing of ISO Lumens, it’s an internationally standardized rating for projectors, intended to standardize manufacturers' claims of brightness. It still looks very similar to its predecessors, with 160 degrees of rotation that makes it easy

  • Samsung brought an absolute beast of a 130-inch Micro RGB TV to CES 2026 4 hours ago by Devindra Hardawar
    Technology & Electronics, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Devindra Hardawar

    Amid endless AI hype and a guest visit from the CEO of Hartford Steam Boiler (?!), Samsung had a big surprise for us tonight at CES 2026: A massive 130-inch Micro RGB TV. It’s so large, it’s suspended by a large metal stand that surrounds the entire screen, which also lets you tilt the screen just a bit. (For the Samsung diehards, it’s basically a reinvention of its “timeless gallery” stand from 2013.) I imagine bringing this TV home would be like Bart Simpson adopting his beloved elephant Stampy: Your pets would be terrified, and your family would probably be

  • Samsung Music Studio 5 and 7 hands-on: Unique speaker designs debut at CES 2026 5 hours ago by Billy Steele
    Music, Media, Speakers & Headphones, Audio Technology, Technology & Electronics, Arts & Entertainment, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Billy Steele

    In addition to its annual soundbar updates, Samsung debuted two new home speakers at CES 2026. The Music Studio 5 and 7 are Bluetooth and Wi-Fi units designed to blend in with your home decor thanks to their minimalist look. They certainly don’t look like your typical speakers, and Samsung has packed them with features that it says will ensure optimal sound quality from each one.  The Music Studio 5 has a four-inch woofer and two tweeters, and a sound profile that’s optimized by AI Dynamic Bass Control. The design is an interesting interplay between a circle and a square, but

  • Samsung HW-QS90H soundbar hands-on: Impressive bass performance without a subwoofer 5 hours ago by Billy Steele
    Technology & Electronics, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Billy Steele

    We’re used to Samsung updating its Q990 soundbar at CES every year, and 2026 is no different. However, the company also debuted the HW-QS90H: a new all-in-one option that Samsung says won’t require a standalone subwoofer due to its Quad Bass Woofer system. The QS90H offers 7.1.2-channel audio with 13 total drivers. Before the show properly kicks off, we got to listen to the new soundbar for a quick judge of its merits.  The first thing I noticed about the QS90H is its impressive bass performance. Most of the time when a company claims its soundbar doesn’t need a subwoofer, that


The Verge

  • This robot companion is a cameraman for your pet 3 hours ago by Dominic Preston
    CES, Gadgets, News, Robot, Tech, Toys

    Vex is a stubby little critter that comes in a few different colors. For a long time, tech companies have pitched pet cameras as a way to find out what your furball is up to when you're not home. Vex, a new robot companion launched at CES this week, takes that a step further: it follows your pet around, filming as it goes, and uses AI smarts to stitch together a video from the footage. Vex is a small white sphere that comes with cute, stubby limbs, ears, and accessories in a range of colors. It's compact enough to hold in one

  • Birdbuddy’s new smart feeders aim to make spotting birds easier, even for beginners 5 hours ago by Sheena Vasani
    CES, Gadgets, Tech

    The Birdbuddy 2 goes for $199. Birdbuddy is introducing two new smart bird feeders: the flagship Birdbuddy 2 and the more compact, cheaper Birdbuddy 2 Mini aimed at first-time users and smaller outdoor spaces. Both models are designed to be faster and easier to use than previous generations, with upgraded cameras that can shoot in portrait or landscape and wake instantly when a bird lands so you're less likely to miss the good stuff. The Birdbuddy 2 costs $199 and features a redesigned circular camera housing that delivers 2K HDR video, slow-motion recording, and a wider 135-degree field of view. The upgraded

  • I just want to keep unfolding the Samsung Z TriFold 6 hours ago by Allison Johnson
    CES, Gadgets, Mobile, Samsung, Tech

    A tablet wherever your phone goes. Holding the Z TriFold confirmed my suspicions: It's a tablet with a phone attached. And after spending an hour folding and unfolding it, I'm pretty much ready to trade in the single-hinge foldable I've been carrying for the past couple of weeks. I used the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold over the holidays as my daily driver and I can probably count on one hand the number of times I unfolded it. Nobody in my family even realized that it unfolded for at least the first 24 hours when I used it on a trip back

  • Shut the fridge door! 7 hours ago by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy
    CES, News, Smart Home, Tech

    Family Hub fridges are getting a new hands-free feature. Samsung's latest update to its Family Hub smart fridge line adds a feature I've always wanted - voice-activated door opening and closing. Using the device's built-in Bixby voice control, you will soon be able to say "Shut the fridge door," or "Open the door," and your machine will obey. According to a press release from Samsung at CES 2026 this week, the voice commands will open the door fully, not just a smidge - over 90 degrees. You can also tap the door with the palm or the back of your hand to activate

  • LG’s Wallpaper OLED TV returns to CES, and it’s wafer thin 7 hours ago by John.Higgins
    CES, Gadgets, News, Tech, TVs

    The LG OLED evo W6 Wallpaper TV. The amazingly thin wallpaper design from LG is back. The first Wallpaper TV was released back in 2017, and it's been six years since we saw the last one. But LG has revived the product line with the LG OLED evo W6, and I've seen it here at CES. The TV body is only 9mm thick (which is actually a bit more than the last model), thanks to a completely reengineered internal architecture. A new wall mount also allows the TV to sit completely flush against the wall, and the W6 uses the Zero Connect


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