Minimalist News

Fusion startups have raised $7.1 billion to date, with the majority of it going to a handful of companies.

This is it. Tonight is your last chance to lock in savings of up to $500 for your TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 pass. These discounts end at 11:59 p.m. PT.

Now that Meta released its Muse Spark model, more people are downloading the Meta AI app. And if you join the app, your friends will probably get an Instagram notification about it.

Specs has long been teasing the next version of its augmented reality glasses. A new partnership with Qualcomm promises some movement in that department.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier plans to investigate OpenAI for its alleged harm to minors, potential to threaten national security, and its possible link to a shooting at Florida State University last year.

OpenAI announced on Thursday something that power users have been asking for: a $100/month plan. Previously, subscriptions jumped from $20 to $200 per month.

The EFF follows the departure of various news organizations and others who no longer find X a viable source of traffic.

In 2021, Anjuna Security was growing fast, hiring aggressively, and chasing a market that seemed limitless. By the end of that year, the venture-backed cybersecurity company had scaled to around 75 employees, building out sales, customer success, and support teams in anticipation of continued hypergrowth. Then 2022 hit.

All resources at its U.S. factory are aimed at the upcoming Atlas SUV.

ChatGPT had reportedly been used to plan the attack that killed two and injured five at Florida State University last April. The family of one victim has said that they plan to sue OpenAI over the incident.

The consumer protection agency says the company violated the FTC Act and its Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees by "deceptively" advertising ticket prices on its website without clearly disclosing upfront what the total cost would be, including all mandatory fees.

After falling victim to a hacker, Mercor is facing lawsuits and reportedly losing big-name customers.

The app was ranking No. 57 on the App Store just before Meta AI's new model launched. Now it's No. 5 — and rising.

Anthropic said this week that it limited the release of its newest model, dubbed Mythos, because it is too capable of finding security exploits in software relied upon by users around the world. Are real cybersecurity concerns a cover for a bigger problem at the frontier lab?

The two tech giants are looking to co-develop custom chips, at a time when demand for CPUs is high due to a growing global shortage.

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After its history-making trip around the Moon, NASA's Artemis II mission is set to return to Earth later today. The Orion spacecraft carrying astronauts Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, Victor Glover and Jeremy Hansen is scheduled to splash down off the coast of San Diego at approximately 8:07PM ET. NASA will stream the landing on YouTube and its NASA+ website, as will Netflix and HBO Max. The official broadcast will begin at 6:30PM ET.   After leaving Earth on NASA's super heavy-lift SLS rocket and spending nine days in space, the most dangerous part of the Artemis II mission still lies ahead. It

Not everyone needs a $1,000 soundbar. It’s easy to argue the sonic superiority of those flagship models from Samsung, Sonos and Sony, but for some people a simple boost to their TV speakers can provide a world of difference. As part of its 2026 soundbar lineup, Sony debuted the Bravia Theater Bar 5: a $350 entry-level model that covers the basics and comes with a wireless subwoofer in the box. The real question here is how many features are you willing to live without.  THE GOOD: SOUND QUALITY, BASS PERFORMANCE AND SETUP The Theater Bar 5 is the most compact soundbar among

Another day, another subscription price hike, this time for YouTube Premium. Every plan for YouTube’s ad-free tier is going up, and depending on which one you have, you could be paying as much as $4 per month more. As reported by 9to5Google, YouTube has started emailing subscribers about the price changes, rather than announcing them publicly, and some Reddit users have posted screenshots of the emails they’ve received. The emails say that the increases will kick in during the June 2026 billing period. Individual plans are now $16 per month, up from $14, so a $2 hike. If you’re on a

Microsoft has rolled out a Notepad update for Windows Insiders that removes the Copilot branding and icon from within the app, Windows Central has reported. The old Copilot menu has been replaced with “writing tools,” but it’s worth noting that the tools are still powered by AI and are pretty much identical to the selection found in the old menu. Microsoft has just replaced the Copilot button with a pen icon. In addition, the company has removed mentions of AI in the Settings menu and has placed the option to disable the AI-powered writing tools within the “Advanced features” section. The

Amazon’s satellite-based internet service, Leo, will enter service by mid-2026, so says company CEO Andy Jassy. Writing in his annual letter, Jassy claimed Leo would offer download speeds of up to 1Gbps, far more than what Starlink presently offers. Sadly, Amazon declined to offer any more details about what that mid-2026 service would look like. But given select partners have already been kicking Leo’s tyres for a while, we can only hope. The mega-retailer is making some grand promises, including faster up and download speeds, cheaper cost and direct integration with Amazon’s other products. Of course, the company can also sell

Google has removed popular psychological horror game Doki Doki Literature Club! from the Play Store. According to Dan Salvato, who led its development team, and publisher Serenity Forge, Google told them the visual novel was removed because it violated its Terms of Service in its depiction of sensitive themes. The game is “widely celebrated for portraying mental health in a way that meaningfully connects deeply with players around the world,” they said in their announcement. Its free version, which came out first, has been downloaded at least 30 million times, while the paid “Plus” version has had at least one

OpenAI has closed a yawning gap in its ChatGPT subscription pricing with a new $100 per month Pro plan that slots between the $20 per month Plus plan and $200 per month Pro plan. Offering five times more Codex than the $20 option, it appears designed to challenge Anthropic's $100 per month Claude option. "Compared with Claude Code, Codex delivers more coding capacity per dollar across paid tiers," an OpenAI spokesperson told TechCrunch.  So what's the difference between OpenAI's two Pro plans? The $200 version does offer four times the Codex. However, you get the same advanced tools and models with

Apple is closing three of its retail stores this summer, including its first location to unionize. The tech company said it plans to permanently close Apple Store in Trumbull, CT, Escondito, CA, and Towson, MD. The Apple Store location in Towson, was the first where unionized workers and Apple reached a contract agreement back in 2024.  MacRumors published a statement from Apple confirming the closures. The company credited noting "the departure of several retailers and declining conditions" at the shopping centers where this trio of stores are housed as the reason for ending operations. "Our team members at Trumbull and North

A film adaptation of Metal Gear Solid is in the works again, this time from filmmakers Zach Lipovsky and Adam B. Stein, the directors of Final Destination: Bloodlines, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The duo are reviving the project at Columbia Pictures as part of a new first-look deal with Sony, the latest attempt in what's been multiple decades of work to turn the blockbuster stealth game into a blockbuster film. "Metal Gear Solid was nothing short of a groundbreaking cinematic masterpiece that forever revolutionized video games," Lipovsky and Stein said in a statement. "We are thrilled and honored to bring

You may already know that emulators can run Wii games on a Mac. But one developer has flipped the script. Bryan Keller now has an ancient version of the Mac's operating system running on Nintendo's 2006 game console (via Kottke). Why? Because they said it couldn't be done. The developer first had the idea in 2013 while a sophomore in college. However, they found renewed motivation five years ago when Redditor u/CussdomTidder posted, "There is a zero percent chance of this ever happening." Developer Bryan Keller took it personally. YouTube / ESPN / Netflix Keller used that as fuel to begin plugging away, "feeling

Meta is giving users the ability to edit Instagram comments they leave on posts, though only within a 15 minute window after they're posted. The setup is similar to how the social app handles editing messages, an option it first added in 2024, 11 years after direct messaging was introduced to Instagram in 2013. You're only able to edit comments you left with your own account, and the process of actually doing so is easy. Just tap on the word "Edit" under your comment to pull up a text box where you can tweak, rework or embellish what you've written, and

Thick as Thieves, the magical heist game from a crew of stealth legends at OtherSide Entertainment, is coming to Steam on May 20. OtherSide and publisher Megabit Entertainment announced the release date in a new gameplay trailer during today's Triple-i Initiative showcase (which was packed with cool indie games, as always). OtherSide was founded by Thief and System Shock 2 veteran Paul Neurath in 2013, and Deus Ex creator Warren Spector joined in 2016. These are two of the developers who shaped the stealth genre as we know it, so Thick as Thieves has a solid foundation. The new trailer showcases

Netflix has added a heavy hitter in party activities to its gaming lineup. The streamer announced that Jackbox Party Essentials is joining the Netflix Party Games collection. This move makes three of the popular Jackbox group games available for free to Netflix subscribers: Fibbage 4, Quiplash 3 and Drawful 2. Each one supports up to eight players.  Netflix has been refocusing its interactive strategy to highlight family-friendly and party games. The company has even offered tie-ins to its original content; for instance, playing Overcooked through Netflix will let you use a member of Huntr/x from Kpop Demon Hunters as your in-game

Developer Klei Entertainment has announced a follow-up to Don't Starve that adds a new sense of depth to the popular survival game. And that's in a literal sense: Don't Starve Elsewhere translates the game's resource gathering and sanity management to a world with three-dimensional terrain at different elevations, a first for the traditionally flat series. Don't Starve Elsewhere doesn't quite seem like the Super Mario 64 to Don't Starve's Super Mario Bros. but based on the trailer, having actual mountains, cliffs and plateaus does offer plenty of new opportunities to have your world rocked by an unfriendly goat. The game also

The hit mountain climbing simulation Cairn is getting a series of free DLC drops, under the banner On the Trail. The first will be released this summer and it's called Deep Water. The DLC introduces three new climbing areas and plenty of "fresh challenges." There's also a new avatar, as players can now climb as Aava or the game's original sidekick Marco. As the name suggests, there's some new water-based mechanics here. It looks like players will be able to fall into the water without automatically dying, though the developer hasn't shown how that works exactly. In the original game, a fall

Windrose was a hit in a recent Steam Next Fest event, with more than 850,000 people checking out the demo. More than 1.5 million people have wishlisted the pirate survival-adventure title on Steam as well. So, it’s safe to say this game has some wind in its sails, and it’ll be arriving very soon. During Thursday’s Triple-i Initiative showcase, developer Windrose Crew revealed that it’s charted a course for an early access release on Steam, the Epic Games Store and Stove on April 14 for $30. In Windrose, you can sail the high seas solo or explore the open world with

Tesla may be shifting strategy once again. Reuters reported that the company is working on a smaller and less expensive electric SUV. This would be a brand new vehicle rather than a variant of the existing Model 3 or Model Y, according to the publication's sources. The new EV would allegedly be about 14 feet long, shorter than the 15.7-foot Model Y. Reuters didn't have details about whether this would be an autonomous vehicle or a traditional one, but one source reportedly said that Tesla is generally looking to offer a driverless option in its vehicle lineup.  The company had previously

Razer just released the Hammerhead V3 HyperSpeed gaming earbuds, another entry in the recently-crowded field of gaming earbuds. These have been designed for low latency, which is a necessity when playing video games. To that end, the earbuds integrate with Razer's proprietary HyperSpeed 2.4GHz streaming platform, which allows for "gaming-grade lag-free" audio. This works with plenty of devices, including smartphones, tablets, PCs, the Steam Deck, the PS5 and more. The earbuds can also connect via Bluetooth for devices that don't support Wi-Fi-based streaming audio. The charging case includes a dongle that plugs into devices via USB-C, which doubles as a wireless transmitter.

Indie game studio Coldblood announced today that its debut project Neverway has been given a release window of October 2026. Billed as "nightmarish life-sim RPG," this is going right to the top of my spooky season game queue. It has a cozy-sounding premise, with protagonist Fiona starting a new life on an island, but things take a surreal turn when she becomes the immortal herald for a dead god. She'll be building relationships and making friends one minute and coping with psychological horrors the next.  This game has been on our radar since it was introduced at last year's Triple-I Initiative

Developer Sunset Visitor just revealed its follow-up to the fantastic 1000xResist. It's called Prove You're Human and looks to wade in similar sci-fi waters as the team's first title. Just like 10000xResist, the new game is a narrative adventure set in the far future. Prove You're Human tasks players with convincing an AI product that its not alive, but there's a rub. The protagonist is a digital clone of a person, so they aren't human either. This will no-doubt lead to all manner of ethical conundrums. "An AI dares to dream she is human," a tagline reads. "You've been hired to put

Amazon Leo (formerly Project Kuiper) will launch mid-2026, according to Andy Jassy. On Wednesday, the Amazon CEO dropped the news in his annual letter to shareholders. The company says Leo will support download speeds up to 1 Gbps. By comparison, Starlink’s download speeds typically range between 45 and 280 Mbps. Jassy didn't specify whether the mid-2026 launch date will include consumer availability. (An Amazon spokesperson told Engadget that the company doesn’t have more detail to add right now.) We do know that "select enterprise customers" began testing the high-speed satellite service late last year. Delta and JetBlue have already signed on

A large chunk of Nintendo’s 2026 plans remain a mystery (that is, unless you take the insiders and leakers at their word), but we have been waiting on release dates for a couple of previously announced first-party titles, including Rhythm Heaven Groove, which officially arrives July 2. Seemingly announced first on the Nintendo Today! app before making its way to the company’s various social channels, the first new entry in the Rhythm Heaven series in more than a decade is technically launching on the original Switch, but should also be fully playable on Switch 2. Currently the game’s Switch 2 compatibility

The Banana Ball World Tour is coming to Roku. The platform has signed a deal to stream free content from the Banana Ball Championship League. This, of course, includes Savannah Bananas games. If that last paragraph didn't make a lick of sense to you, here's a primer. The Savannah Bananas are a wacky baseball team, playing something called Banana Ball. The team has been called the Harlem Globetrotters of baseball, and that's a fairly apt name. Players dress in funny costumes, step into ridiculously tall stilts, perform dance routines and do all kinds of things that could frustrate traditional baseball fans

A new feature that lets you create an AI avatar with your likeness is now live on YouTube. First announced in a blog post earlier this year, avatars are designed to be used in Shorts (provided you still allow them to show up), allowing you to insert yourself into video content in a way that YouTube deems to be safe and secure. YouTube’s approach to combatting the AI sloppification of the internet and the proliferation of deepfakes appears to be adding more and more AI features to its platform, framing this latest addition as a tool that gives creators more control

Sometimes, you just want your dang music streaming app to play music. Spotify, which has increasingly incorporated video features through the years, is finally giving us the option to turn that mess off. Behold: universal video toggles. Spotify's video settings control several areas. First, the old Canvas toggle (videos on the Now Playing screen) is still there. But now you'll find two additional switches alongside it. One lets you control whether the app plays music videos. The other, "all other videos," covers video podcasts, vertically scrolling videos and artist clips. You'll find the controls under Settings > Content and display. Once you

JBL introduced two new headphones to its Live series lineup and both are fighting to live up to expectations. Don’t get me wrong, the JBL Live 780NC and 680NC are both a solid set of cans, but in a sea of noise-cancelling headphones, one of them definitely has more appeal. The biggest differences between these two headphones are the over-ear and on-ear cups, and surprisingly, their audio quality. Let’s get into what does and doesn’t make them so special. DESIGN AND COMFORT Outside of varying colors and cup sizes, the JBL Live 780NC and 680NC look practically identical. They have these hockey

OpenAI is putting the brakes on Stargate UK, according to Politico and Bloomberg. That’s the company’s AI infrastructure project with NVIDIA that’s meant to help the UK build out its sovereign computing capabilities. The company announced Stargate UK back in September, but it launched a strategic partnership with the UK government months before that. Stargate UK would enable the government to run top AI models locally from data centers inside the region, “particularly for specialist use cases where jurisdiction matters.” But now OpenAI is pausing the project due to high cost of energy and regulatory issues. In a statement provided to

Google has fully integrated NotebookLM, its AI-powered research tool, into the Gemini app. The company launched a standalone NotebookLM app last year, but as it said in its announcement, “keeping track of everything can be a challenge.” It added NotebookLM as a source in the Gemini app last year, but now you can create notebooks right inside the chatbot. You can now find the option to create a new notebook in Gemini’s side panel and then select “Add sources” that the tool can use, such as PDFs, documents, website URLs, YouTube videos and even copy-pasted text. NotebookLM will use information from

Dyson just announced its first-ever handheld fan, the HushJet Mini Cool. As the name suggests, it uses the company's proprietary HushJet air projection system. This tech first showed up on an air purifier that we found to be exceptionally quiet. Dyson promises the fan can deliver focused airflow of up to 25m/s, which works out to 55mph. The brushless motor spins up to 65,000 RPM. This thing looks like a legitimate cooling system, despite its size. It also weighs just 7.5 ounces.  It offers five speeds and a boost mode, which should be useful during that next heat wave. It charges via

If you missed your chance to pay Samsung $2,900 for a phone earlier this year, we have great news for you. Android Police reported that what may be the final shipment of the Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold will be arriving in the US on April 10. The unique foldable was discontinued a mere three months after it first went on sale, and it seems like Samsung is clearing out whatever inventory it has left. So if you have a spare $3,000 that you're just desperate to get rid of, bookmark the TriFold's page where Samsung has a countdown ticking away.  All

DoorDash and Wing have announced a new partnership that will allow users in metro Atlanta to have food delivered by drone. Besides working with DoorDash in select regions of Virginia, North Carolina and Texas, Wing, Alphabet's drone delivery subsidiary, also recently expanded its agreement to make deliveries for Walmart. Eligible customers near Tanger Outlets Locust Grove will be able to order food for drone delivery and receive it in "as little as 20 minutes," according to DoorDash. Orders are limited to a selection of restaurants including Molinos Mexican Grill, Koji Japanese Steakhouse and Sabrosos Mexican Restaurant, and eligibility for drone delivery

Microsoft is testing giving users more control over what games appear in their Xbox achievements and tweaking how achievements look when they're earned. The changes are being introduced via the company's free-to-join Xbox Insiders program, and will presumably roll out to all Xbox owners at some point in the future. Coming later in April, select Xbox Insiders will be able to hide games from their achievement list, whether they've completed them or not. Hidden games will still count towards users' Gamerscore, but the option should serve as another way to curate your public profile. Microsoft is also experimenting with changing how

The latest Triple-i Initiative Showcase is nearly upon us, as the indie-focused event returns for its third consecutive year on Thursday, April 9 at 12PM ET / 9AM PT. We’re being promised announcements for 40 games, including eight world premieres, so it’s well worth tuning in if you like your indies. You’ll be able to watch the stream on The Triple-i Initiative YouTube channel, as well as Twitch, bilibili, niconico and on Steam. Co-streaming partners IGN and Gamespot will also host their own streams. The showcase will run for 45 minutes, and nine featured studios will also have post-show deep dives

Following the icy reception to Llama 4, Meta is releasing the first in a new family of AI systems built by its recently formed Superintelligence team. The company is kicking off its new Muse era with Spark, a lightweight model geared toward consumer use. In the future, Meta plans to offer more capable versions of Muse, but for now, it's clear the company wants to nail the basics.  To that point, many of Spark's capabilities are table stakes for a new model in 2026. For instance, it offers both "Instant" and "Thinking" modes. With the latter engaged, the model will take

Greece will ban children under the age 15 from using social media starting next year. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis made the announcement in a video posted to TikTok, in which he referenced anxiety, sleep problems and addictive design features as reasons for the ban. Greece has been proactive in its approach to tackling excessive screen time for children, having already banned mobile phones in schools in 2024. While the PM chose not to name any platforms, he said he was concerned about children comparing themselves to others on social media and taking online comments to heart. "Greece will be among the first

Nintendo Switch 2 owners will have to wait a bit longer to check out IO Interactive's stab at a James Bond game on the console. The Hitman developer has delayed that version of 007 First Light until later this summer. The game is still slated to hit PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC on May 27, which itself is a delay from the previous March release date. "We're excited to see players discovering James Bond's reimagined origin story," IOI wrote on X. "[We] are looking forward to bringing you the best game experience possible across all platforms." Earlier this year, IOI suggested

The free No Man’s Sky updates are still flowing. With the latest one, dubbed Xeno Arena, Hello Games has added a completely original feature. Players have long been able to adopt wild animals as companions. But now these can be deployed in simulated, turn-based battles against rival teams. As you win more battles, you’ll increase your reputation and perhaps be invited to take on more difficult opponents.  Among other things, the creatures can launch powerful attacks, use healing abilities, dodge incoming salvos, power up their own abilities and turn enemies into more vulnerable forms. They can earn experience that allows them

GoPro will cut 23 percent of its global workforce by the end of this year, as the action camera pioneer looks to reverse its fortunes in a competitive market. 145 employees will be laid off, with the restructuring process commencing in the second quarter of 2026, the San Mateo company said in a Form 8-K filing. At the end of the first quarter, GoPro’s total number of employees stood at 631, and it expects the cuts to cost it between $11.5 million and $15 million. These charges include honoring severance packages and healthcare benefits. GoPro’s last reported round of layoffs took place

I've played a couple of hours of Forza Horizon 6, and so far I've enjoyed it in much the same way as its predecessor: by exploring and taking in the sumptuous world Playground Games has crafted. The preview build I played on my Xbox Series X was limited in terms of available activities — it was basically the game's prologue — but I was able to explore almost all of the open world.  The on-rails intro takes you through some of the Japanese countryside and past landmarks like Tokyo Tower and Shibuya Crossing on the way to a race through the

A new company needs to make a strong first impression. For Fender Audio, a new outfit owned by the legendary Fender Musical Instruments Corporation but operated by Riffsound, that introduction comes in the form of two speakers and a set of headphones. The Elie 6 ($300) and Elie 12 ($400) are portable Bluetooth speakers with sophisticated designs and unique features, offering similar functionality in two different sizes. These devices are essentially speaker/amplifier hybrids, since they both have ¼-inch/XLR combo inputs among their connections. Despite the unique mix of connectivity, the speakers still need to sound good and work well to

If you’re using an older Kindle, you may want to check what year it was released. Amazon has sent out emails to some of its users, with a warning that it’s discontinuing support for Kindle ereaders and Fire tables released in 2012 or earlier. You can still read books you’ve already downloaded on those devices, but you’ll no longer be able to purchase, borrow or download new ones, starting on May 20, 2026. In addition, if the device has an issue that can only be solved by a factory reset, doing so will brick it. Deregestering it will also render

Insta360, the company best known for its action cameras, just released the Snap selfie screen. It's a small display that connects via USB-C and sits on the back of your phone, helping you to use your rear camera for higher resolution vlogging or selfies. The 3.5-inch touchscreen allows you to adjust camera settings like zoom and focus and frame your selfies before you take them. The company has also released a model it co-developed with the beauty tech brand AMIRO that offers a built-in light with multiple color temperatures and brightness levels. The standard Snap costs $79.99, while the version with

If you live in Los Angeles, you may soon be able to hail a Volkswagen ID. Buzz robotaxi from the Uber app. The companies' previously announced "multi-year strategic partnership" is nearing a public launch, with on-road testing with a safety driver underway. The vehicles use tech from MOIA America, the US wing of Volkswagen's self-driving subsidiary. Uber and MOIA plan to deploy thousands of ID. Buzz vehicles across the US over the next decade. LA is the pilot city, and if all goes well, it will spread to "multiple US markets." The companies say they're still on track for rides (with

Meta has released a new version of WhatsApp for CarPlay that has much better integration that its previous version. As MacRumors and 9to5Mac report, the new app gives users access to a native interface. The old WhatsApp for CarPlay is mostly limited to Siri-operated features. Users can, for instance, ask Siri to compose messages or place calls for them. The new interface has a contact info section, where they can see the profiles of people saved in their account, as well as a favorite contacts section that makes it easy to find users they usually message or call. Users can also find

This year at CES 2026 everybody was pretty confused about the new "Micro RGB" and "RGB Mini LED" TVs that use similar technology but carry different names. Now, Sony has come up with another label for its own Mini LED TVs with RGB backlighting: True RGB. The idea is to emphasize that the individual red, green and blue LED backlights allow for "purer color, greater brightness, and the largest color volume ever achieved in Sony’s home TV history," the company said.  To be clear, this is not some new technology that Sony just came up with — it's the same Micro

A warrantless wiretapping authority that has facilitated surveillance for decades is up for renewal in Congress. Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), last reauthorized in 2024, is set to expire on April 20th. A bipartisan coalition of progressive Democrats and members of the hard-right Freedom Caucus say it's long overdue for reform. But they're up against powerful figures in both parties who want to deliver a "clean" reauthorization, even as critics warn the rule is allowing President Donald Trump's administration to spy on anyone - even Americans. Section 702, first enacted in 2008, formally allows for the surv

We saw a host of excellent Bose discounts during Amazon’s so-called Big Spring Sale last month; however, none of them were quite as steep as the current price drop we’re seeing on the latest Bose Soundlink Flex. Right now, the portable speaker is on sale at Amazon in select colors starting at $109 ($50 off), nearly matching its best price to date. It’s also available at Walmart, Best Buy, and directly from Bose in all eight hues, albeit for $119 ($40 off) instead of $109. BOSE SOUNDLINK FLEX (SECOND-GEN) WHERE TO BUY: * $159 $109 at Amazon * $159 $119 at Walmart

Where's the Trump phone? We're going to keep talking about it every week. We've reached out, as usual, to ask about the Trump phone's whereabouts. We're back to being ignored, but the company is showing signs of life. It's been nine months since Trump Mobile announced itself, seven months since the company updated any of its social media profiles, and two months since anyone replied to my emails. Based on that, you might think that everyone involved had given up on the whole idea, but this week we saw curious signs of life: a new trademark application. What's strangest about the application

Whoop is popular among congressional staffers. This is Optimizer, a weekly newsletter sent every Friday from Verge senior reviewer Victoria Song that dissects and discusses the latest gizmos and potions that swear they're going to change your life. Opt in for Optimizer here. Last week, our editor-in-chief Nilay Patel messaged me about his new Whoop band, which he'd gotten thanks to a generous yearlong offer from Chase. A few days later, he sent a cursed screenshot. The Whoop AI coach had recommended several ways in which he could dramatically improve his testosterone levels. Not because he was deficient, but because they were

Cloudflare, the cloud provider that connects millions of sites to the internet, wants to "fix" another digital giant: WordPress. It announced a new open-source system, called EmDash, that's supposed to address the "core problems that WordPress cannot solve" - and they want to do it by allowing AI agents to take control of your website. Though it's still in early access, EmDash is already causing a stir in the WordPress community, and not just because its interface looks like WordPress with a facelift. Cloudflare is calling EmDash the "spiritual successor" of WordPress - something WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg has already refuted

Škoda's DuoBell is designed to avoid collisions between cyclists and pedestrians preoccupied by their podcasts.

Onix is launching a “Substack of bots,” where digital twins of health and wellness influencers dispense advice 24/7. And maybe hawk their products.

Aventon’s latest electric mountain bike lets you bomb hills while avoiding the part where you get sweaty by pedaling back to the top.

From made-to-measure smart shades to retrofit curtain bots, these are our favorite WIRED-tested drapes for your windows.

WIRED sat down with Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman to talk politics, AI, and the future of media. A documentary about her rise hits theaters today.

Videos of fake relationship guru podcasters are reinforcing gender tropes and racking up millions of views, all the while driving sales to AI influencer schools.

The third release of Irrigreen’s “water printing” system is better than ever, but you’ll have to upgrade your whole irrigation infrastructure.

These wireless open earbuds are designed for mobile gamers.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s sweeping changes to federal vaccine guidance are paused for now. But even if they’re reversed, lasting damage has already been done.

Meta’s Muse Spark model offers to analyze users’ health data, including lab results. Beyond the obvious privacy risks, it’s not a capable stand-in for a real doctor.

Splashdown for the Artemis II crew is scheduled for Friday evening, and NASA will livestream the historic homecoming.

Save up to 87% with a Surfshark coupon code, 3 months of VPN free today, and more from WIRED.

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The ChatGPT-maker testified in favor of an Illinois bill that would limit when AI labs can be held liable—even in cases where their products cause “critical harm.”

As Beijing clamps down on fraud at home, researchers say crime syndicates are shifting their focus to victims elsewhere.

Black Forest Labs has long punched above its weight in the AI image generation space. Its next move? Powering physical AI.

Take your smartphone videos to the next level with impressive audio quality in a tiny package.

The tractor maker is paying for its years as the central opponent of right-to-repair. Consumer advocates say it’s still not enough.

“The online right wasn’t supportive and there wasn’t anything that was going to change that,” says one person familiar with the Republican influencer pipeline.

Messages sent to the FBI by an investigator with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension went ignored for at least two days, per records obtained by WIRED.

Since the beginning of the Iran war, the group Explosive Media has released over a dozen viral videos mocking Trump and the US.

This bare-bones, no-nonsense wallet has continuously impressed me since I started using it.

This tracker attaches to your pet’s collar to monitor location and activity, charting trends over time to better understand your pet’s health.

In Seattle, activists inside tech giants are leaning into grassroots fundraising and peer support as petitions and protests draw little response from executives.

Brandon Riegg tells WIRED he empathizes with the struggle to find “quality men” and that Love Is Blind has no MAGA agenda.

This low-cost art display can’t compete with the Samsung Frame Pro.

Political candidates are purchasing more home alarms, bulletproof vests, and other protections amid rising fears of political violence.

Two former Apple Vision Pro developers made an AI wearable that only listens when you tap it. They hope to win where other AI gadgets have fumbled: privacy.

The moon gets hit by space debris all the time, but some of it is so large that the impact generates light that can be seen thousands of kilometers away.

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