Top headlines from Engadget, the internet's original tech blog.
They singled out the behaviors of Meta's AI chatbots in their letter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
SpaceX has successfully launched the Starship for its 10th test flight after it was delayed a couple of times due to weather conditions and other issues. This time, the company was able to achieve its objectives without the vehicle and its booster exploding mid-test. In other tech news, Anthropic has settled a class-action lawsuit brought by a group of authors for an undisclosed sum. The move means the company will avoid a potentially more costly ruling if the case regarding its use of copyright materials to train artificial intelligence tools had moved forward. And, Meta is throwing its resources behind a new super PAC in California. According to Politico, the group will support state-level political candidates who espouse tech-friendly policies, particularly those with a loose approach to regulating artificial intelligence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Jetson AGX Thor developer kit retails for $3,499. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The US Attorneys General of 44 jurisdictions have signed a letter addressed to the Chief Executive Officers of multiple AI companies, urging them to protect children "from exploitation by predatory artificial intelligence products." In other news, Elon Musk's artificial intelligence company xAI is suing Apple and OpenAI, as reported by Reuters. The suit accuses the companies of illegally conspiring to stop rival AI companies from getting a fair shot on the App Store, alleging they have "locked up markets to maintain their monopolies and prevent innovators like X and xAI from competing." And, the 100,000-square-foot amusement centers will be centered around all things Netflix and will include a retail component, a restaurant called Netflix Bites and numerous "immersive story-driven experiences" based on the company's most successful properties. The Netflix House in Philadelphia will open November 12 at the King of Prussia Mall, and the Dallas location will open December 11 at Galleria Texas. A third location is planned for Las Vegas in 2027. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
xAI made the older Grok model available for all, while Elon Musk said the upcoming Grok 3 will follow suit. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apple is going after another one of its previous employees for allegedly sharing trade secrets with a new employer. Apple's lawsuit listed Chen Shi, a former employee who worked on the Apple Watch team, along with Oppo, as defendants, claiming they "conspired to steal Apple's trade secrets." In other news, Users with Mississippi IP addresses can no longer access the Bluesky app. The decentralized social media network has explained in a post that Mississippi's new age verification law for social networks "would fundamentally change" how it operates, and it wouldn't be possible to comply with its small team and limited resources. And Google is changing the way you confirm if contacts are legit. The company has begun rolling out a QR code to verify that the person you're communicating with is, in fact, who they say they are, 9to5Google reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
AI Mode will add agentic event and appointment finders soon, too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
AppleInsider spotted the latest bizarre wrinkle to this story, which is that the actual phone still does not exist. The publication noticed that promotional images for T1 all show different smartphones that appear to be tweaked in a photo editor to look gold. While the website shows a badly edited image of what appears to be a Revvl 7 Pro 5G phone, an Instagram ad seems to depict an iPhone 16 Pro Max, again with the company's branding overlaid. A third confusing image edit was posted on X earlier this week. That photo shows a Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra equipped with a case made by Spigen. The South Korean accessory company's logo can be seen behind the render of an American flag. In other news, Germany-based search engine and browser nonprofit Ecosia is the latest party to make an offer for Google's Chrome. Questions about Chrome's fate have been swirling since the news that the Department of Justice would push for Google to sell the browser after the ruling that the company's search engine business constituted a monopoly. And the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration just announced an investigation into Tesla regarding its Autopilot and Full Self-Driving systems. That's according to a report by Electrek. The road safety regulator says the probe involves inconsistencies with how the company reports crashes regarding the aforementioned systems. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
It's a battle of the foldables and we break down the differences between the two most popular folding phone brands. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
We've heard a lot this year about AI enabling new scams, from celebrity deepfakes on Facebook to hackers impersonating government officials. However, a new report suggests that AI also poses a fraud risk from the other direction — easily falling for scams that human users are much more likely to catch. The report, titled "Scamlexity," comes from a cybersecurity startup called Guardio, which produces a browser extension designed to catch scams in real time. In other news, Bloomberg has published a deep dive into operations at Oracle, chronicling the software giant's rise in cloud computing and current push into powering artificial intelligence projects. The publication reported that Oracle has promised to develop tens of billions of dollars in data centers, which have become a hot business. And more and more airlines think that Starlink is the solution. The latest company to sign with the SpaceX affiliate is Alaska Air Group, which announced that it will start offering Starlink Wi-Fi next year and expand the service to its entire fleet by 2027. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
They cost $230 and are available in two colorways. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The White House has joined TikTok, the social media app that President Trump wanted to ban during his first term. Its first post shows clips of Trump in various events with Kendrick Lamar's track playing in the background. The New York Times notes that it references a popular video edit of Creed, a boxing movie starring Michael B. Jordan, on the app. In the TikTok post, Trump could be heard saying "I am your voice," while the caption reads "America we are BACK! What's up TikTok?" In other news, an Oregon man has been charged in a federal complaint today on allegations of operating a botnet for hire that conducted cyberattacks beginning at least in 2021. Ethan Foltz has been accused of running Rapper Bot, also known as Eleven Eleven Botnet and CowBot, and using it to execute coordinated distributed denial of service or DDoS attacks; Meta rolled out its new voice dubbing feature globally. The Reels feature uses generative AI to translate your voice, with optional lip-syncing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
A plant in Oak Ridge, Tennessee will open in partnership with Kairos Power. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
UK officials will no longer compel Apple to create backdoor access to its users' data. That's according to US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. She wrote on X that the administration worked closely with the UK over the past months. As The New York Times noted, the UK government issued the secret order earlier this year after amending the Investigatory Powers Act of 2016. In other news, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has announced plans to investigate both Meta AI Studio and Character.AI for offering AI chatbots that can claim to be health tools, and potentially misusing data collected from underage users. Paxton says that AI chatbots from either platform "can present themselves as professional therapeutic tools," to the point of lying about their qualifications; and Substack now lets users subscribe to any paid publication via an in-app purchase from the official iOS app. The news comes after the company tested the feature with 30,000 creators. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Players can expect more age-based restrictions and a new tool that automatically detects inappropriate content. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Anthropic's latest feature for two of its Claude AI models could be the beginning of the end for the AI jailbreaking community. The company announced in a post on its website that the Claude Opus 4 and 4.1 models now have the power to end a conversation with users. According to Anthropic, this feature will only be used in "rare, extreme cases of persistently harmful or abusive user interactions." In other news, the first-ever World Humanoid Robot Games have come to a close with some new world records, but don't expect them to beat humans in a 100-meter dash any time soon. The three-day robotics event in Beijing, China that saw humanoid robots compete in everything from boxing to cleaning concluded this weekend. And Can-Am, part of the motorsports group BRP that recently introduced electric snowmobiles, has just launched its first electric all-terrain vehicle. The Outlander Electric is designed to be "whisper quiet" for chores like herding or hunting, but it can actually tow more than its gas-powered counterparts thanks to the high level of torque. Powered by BRP's modular Rotax E-Power drivetrain, the Outlander Electric makes up to 47 hp and 53 foot pounds of torque. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
They offer real-time text recognition, scene descriptions, facial recognition and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Supreme Court has decided not to weigh in on one of the many state-level age-verification laws currently being reviewed across the country. Today, the top court chose not to intervene on legislation from Mississippi about checking the ages of social media users, denying an application to vacate stay from NetChoice. Also, Intel has had some recent struggles in delivering results for its shareholders, but the company could soon be answering to an additional boss. The current administration is reportedly in talks to have the US government acquire a stake in the chipmaker. And, a Meta document on its AI chatbot policies included some alarming examples of permitted behavior. Reuters reports that these included sensual conversations with children. Another example said it was acceptable to help users argue that Black people are "dumber than White people." Here's the link to the Meta AI Chatbot policies: https://www.engadget.com/ai/an-internal-meta-ai-document-said-chatbots-could-have-sensual-conversations-with-children-191101296.html Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The FTC launched this complaint against the Tinder and Hinge parent company in 2019. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Sam Altman is preparing to co-found a new company funded by OpenAI that will go up against Elon Musk's Neuralink, The Financial Post reported. The startup, called Merge Labs, will use AI for its brain-computer interface and compete directly with Neuralink, along with other nascent companies in the field like Precision Neuroscience and Synchron. In other news, Apple is still hard at work on becoming a relevant player in AI. The latest missive from Mark Gurman at Bloomberg suggests that Apple is shifting its artificial intelligence goals to center on new device segments. Sources reportedly told the publication that Apple has a slate of new smart home products in the works that could help pivot its lagging AI strategy; and Amazon is expanding its same-day grocery delivery service with the addition of perishable food items in over 1,000 US cities. Shoppers can now add fresh grocery items like produce, dairy, meat, seafood and frozen foods to their orders. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
It will help you track your vital signs during both processes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apple has denied Elon Musk's accusation that it's favoring OpenAI in its App Store rankings and making it impossible for other AI companies to reach the top. In a statement sent to Bloomberg, Apple said the App Store is "designed to be fair and free of bias." In other news, Google is officially rolling out Preferred Sources, which lets you curate search results. The feature allows you to pick specific or "preferred" sources, like a certain blog or news outlet, and see them more prominently when you use Google Search; and databases used by US federal courts for sharing and managing case documents have been hacked. Politico first reported on the hack last week on August 6; yesterday, an investigation from The New York Times stated that Russia is suspected to be involved in the attack. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The company announced that it would discontinue dial-up service on September 30th. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The latest example of bias permeating artificial intelligence comes from the medical field. A new study surveyed real case notes from 617 adult social care workers in the UK and found that when large language models summarized the notes, they were more likely to omit language such as "disabled," "unable" or "complex" when the patient was tagged as female, which could lead to women receiving insufficient or inaccurate medical care. In other news, President Trump no longer thinks Intel's CEO should resign. Trump revealed on Truth Social that he met with Lip-Bu Tan and described it as "a very interesting one." Also, Revel Transit is shutting down its rideshare operation in NYC, as reported by Bloomberg. The company will instead focus its efforts on EV charging. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
DJI's ROMO robot vacuums are releasing in China first and overseas markets in the future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The debate over whether AI chipmakers should be allowed to sell their products to China has taken an unusual turn. The US government has reportedly given NVIDIA and Advanced Micro Devices permission to make the sales but for one big catch: 15 percent of the sales. In other news, AOL said it will discontinue its dial-up service on September 30, officially marking the end of an era in Internet history. It may come as a shock to most that AOL still runs its dial-up Internet service, but some thousands of users still rely on this outdated method as an affordable way to access the Internet in more rural areas. And it appears the movie version of the arcade game Space Invaders is back in the works. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The update also finally adds reposting features, as well. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Federal Communications Commission is planning a review of the US emergency alert systems. The announcement of this plan notes that the infrastructure underlying the EAS — which includes radio, television, satellite and cable systems — is 31 years old, while the framework underpinning the Wireless mobile device alert is 13 years old. Also, Meta previewed some of its latest virtual reality prototypes this week, with concepts that are compelling on the specs and long on the design. The company shared some details on its Tiramisu project, dubbing it "hyperrealistic VR." This set promises three times the contrast, 14 times the maximum brightness and 3.6 times the angular resolution of the Meta Quest 3. In actual stats, that's up to 1,400 nits of brightness and an angular resolution of 90 pixels per degree; and HBO Max will begin an "aggressive" messaging campaign about the practice beginning next month, according to an earnings report. Beyond stricter messaging, the company is looking to close any and all loopholes that allow users to share account passwords by the end of the year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Over 2 million civilian workers at dozens of agencies will have access for at least one year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apple plans to invest an additional $100 billion in the US, the company announced on Wednesday. The investment follows President Trump's announcement yesterday that he would impose a 100 percent tariff on chip imports, with an exemption for any companies "building in the United States." In other news, Google Search head Liz Reid penned a blog post that puts quite a different spin on things. The Google VP claims traffic from search to websites is "relatively stable" and that click quality has increased. Reid's framing boils down to everything is peachy, and AI is making things better — even for websites! And A new app called TeaOnHer has emerged that attempts to flip the script, with men sharing information about women they date. And a new app called TeaOnHer has emerged with men sharing information about women they date which flips the script on the app Tea. And while Tea drew scrutiny last month after a data breach revealed user information, including potentially identifying details such as phone numbers and personal anecdotes, the copycat app seems to be suffering from the same problem. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The new law may test the Trump administration's will to disallow state-level regulations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Elon Musk's chatbot is seldom out of the news. When it isn't vomiting antisemetic rhetoric or fixating on conspiracy theories without invitation, it's inviting you to romance its anime-inspired AI companions. Grok's NSFW credentials now extend to xAI's new image and video generator. In other news, AI startup Eleven Labs just announced a service called Eleven Music, which generates fake songs that are cleared for commercial use. It's a prompt-based affair, so it can create just about anything users dream up; also, Intel is reportedly still struggling with a chipmaking process crucial to its future. Reuters reports that the company's 18A process is still producing low yields and high defect rates. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Four crew members are joined by several strains of disease-causing bacteria for their journey to the ISS. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Web crawlers deployed by Perplexity to scrape websites are allegedly skirting restrictions, according to a new report from Cloudflare. Specifically, the report claims that the company's bots appear to be "stealth crawling" sites by disguising their identity to get around robots.txt files and firewalls. In other news, the Lunar Trailblazer mission to the moon officially ended on July 31, but it wasn't a complete journey. NASA said that its teams lost contact with the satellite shortly after its launch several months prior; Four years after Amazon's acquisition of podcast network Wondery, the tech giant is dismantling its $300 million purchase and reorganizing various audio properties into separate teams at the company. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In better news, merchants can now live-chat with customers too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apple reportedly has a 'stripped-down' AI chatbot on the way to compete with ChatGPT,' X has to prove it wasn't negligent when removing CSAM from its site, and the PS6 may have triple the performance as the PS5 for the same price. It's Monday, August 4th and here's a quick look at tech in the news this morning from Engadget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Plus, Brilliant Labs launches its second-generation smart glasses. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Steve Huffman wants Reddit to be a 'go-to search engine,' Apple is 'open to' acquisitions to boost its AI roadmap, and Uber Eats is stuffing AI slop into your meal. It's Friday, August 1st and here's a quick look at tech in the news this morning from Engadget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
It's a rare insight into how much AI companies are paying publishers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mark Zuckerberg shares a confusing vision for AI 'superintelligence', flickering lights could help fight misinformation, and Substack accidentally sent push alerts promoting a Nazi publication. It's Thursday, July 31st and here's a quick look at tech in the news this morning from Engadget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The feature arrives amid worries of rampant AI cheating at US colleges. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
TikTok is gamifying mindfulness with 'well-being missions', YouTube is turning over age verification to AI, and Opera takes its browser beef with Microsoft to Brazil in its antitrust complaint. It's Wednesday, July 30th and here's a quick look at tech in the news this morning from Engadget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Chinese premier Li Qiang said his country will share its AI tech with developing nations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
VPNs are booming in the UK after age restriction laws, but free options carry big risks, Jack Dorsey's Bluetooth messaging app is now on the App Store, and the new Warner Bros. and Discovery Global would like you to forget Warner Bros. Discovery. It's Tuesday, July 29th and here's a quick look at tech in the news this morning from Engadget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The clip shows James being loaded into an ambulance with Steph Curry by his side. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
People in the UK now have to take an age verification selfie to watch porn online, China called for the creation of a global AI organization, and DOGE is reportedly pushing an AI tool that would put half of all federal regulations on a 'delete list'. It's Monday, July 28th and here's a quick look at tech in the news this morning from Engadget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Leaked renders suggest Google is doing away with pogo pins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
$1 billion of NVIDIA AI chips were reportedly sold in China despite US bans, Itch.io removed NSFW games to comply with payment processors' rules, and the Sonos Ace is finally fulfilling its potential. It's Friday, July 25th and here's a quick look at tech in the news this morning from Engadget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
It's $20, and extra devices are an additional $6 per month. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
FDA employees say the agency's generative AI hallucinates entire studies, Trump's AI Action Plan targets state regulation and 'ideological bias', and Uber will help pair women riders and drivers in the US. It's Thursday, July 24th and here's a quick look at tech in the news this morning from Engadget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
It could also be a Pixel 10 Pro, but we won't know for sure until August 20th. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices