• Uber lawsuit alleges employees were misled on equity compensation

    Uber lawsuit alleges employees were misled on equity compensation
     An Uber employee has filed a lawsuit accusing the company of misleading employees about their equity compensation. Uber “devised a fraudulent scheme to recruit highly sought software engineers,” according to the case.   The lawsuit claims that Uber promised a more tax favorable type of options at the time employees were hired and then later changed the plan. The… Read More
  • Berkeley Institute has removed Peter Thiel’s “Heterodox Science” seminar from its website

    Berkeley Institute has removed Peter Thiel’s “Heterodox Science” seminar from its website
    Yesterday morning, The Verge broke the story that Peter Thiel appeared to be teaching a course on “heterodox science” at the Berkeley Institute starting in January. The Institute identified the course’s “guest instructor” as “Author and Founder of IMITATIO.” Of IMITATIO’s three founders, only Thiel is still living.Since the story’s publication, the “heterodox science” course has been deleted from the Berkeley Institute’s web
  • A flight was late because someone named their Wi-Fi hotspot ‘Galaxy Note 7’

    A flight was late because someone named their Wi-Fi hotspot ‘Galaxy Note 7’
    Airlines aren’t taking the ban against Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 lightly. A clever but highly irresponsible troll by a passenger aboard a Virgin America flight out of San Francisco nearly resulted in the plane being grounded and searched for the recalled smartphone. According to BBC News, someone switched the name of their portable Wi-Fi hotspot to “Galaxy Note 7_1097,” which gave other passengers (and the flight’s crew) the impression that Samsung’s device was
  • Tesla tops 2016 Consumer Reports’ customer satisfaction survey

    Tesla tops 2016 Consumer Reports’ customer satisfaction survey
     Tesla has claimed the top spot in Consumer Reports’ annual owner satisfaction survey, which polls subscribers about their cars and their feelings toward the brands that make them. Ninety-one percent of Tesla owners polled would buy another Tesla vehicle in the future, the survey found. Consumer Reports’ survey pool covered more than 300,000 different vehicles, and Tesla regained… Read More
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  • New emails reveal how Marc Andreessen courted Rahm Emanuel on Airbnb’s behalf

    New emails reveal how Marc Andreessen courted Rahm Emanuel on Airbnb’s behalf
    Lawsuits from the Chicago Tribune and Better Government Association have forced Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to release thousands of pages of email correspondence from a private account, and the documents are providing an unusual glimpse at how influential Silicon Valley figures get work done.
    A notable email from November 2015
    One notable email dates back to November 2015. At the time, Airbnb was facing the possibility of new regulatory scrutiny in the city, and was concerned about the possible e
  • How technology is merging with the human body

    How technology is merging with the human body
     The gulf between “human” and “machine” is closing. Machine learning has enabled virtual reality to feel more “real” than ever before, and AI’s replication of processes that were once confined to the human brain is ever-improving. Both are bringing technology into ever-closer proximity with the human body. Things are getting weird. And they are going to… Read More
  • Uber is moving its self-driving cars from San Francisco to Arizona

    Uber is moving its self-driving cars from San Francisco to Arizona
    Uber is relocating its San Francisco self-driving car fleet to Arizona, where it says it has the support of Arizona Governor Doug Ducey. The fleet of cars were hauled away on flat-beds towed by Uber’s Otto self-driving big rigs, though the trucks do not appear to have been autonomously driving to Arizona.
    “Our cars departed for Arizona this morning by truck,” said an Uber spokesperson in an email to The Verge. “We’ll be expanding our self-driving pilot there in the
  • The Man in the High Castle loses its political edge when we need it most

    The Man in the High Castle loses its political edge when we need it most
    Spoilers ahead for Man In The High Castle seasons one and two.
    The Man in the High Castle seemed like the perfect TV show for dark times. For anyone worried that the next four years will herald a crackdown on civil liberties or the empowerment of groups who believe only certain lives have value, Amazon’s alternate-history drama gave us a group of people trying to survive a world that seemed truly hopeless. But now that The Man in the High Castle has returned for a second season, it’s
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  • The top 7 trends in the auto industry for 2017

    The top 7 trends in the auto industry for 2017
     In an industry such as automotive where technology is pouring in at an unprecedented rate, incipient trends are multiplying like vehicles on the roadways at rush hour. Some trends for 2017 are inevitable given developments in recent years while others are more disruptive, bleeding into multiple areas. Consider how Uber disrupted the taxi market and fundamentally changed the transportation sector. Read More
  • Signal for Android update ducks censorship, adds stickers and doodles

    Signal for Android update ducks censorship, adds stickers and doodles
     As mainstream interest in online privacy expands, Signal wants to grow along with it. This week, the app added two features, one a serious response to international censorship and the other a light, fluffy feature set meant to make the app even more user friendly for those who might be new to this whole encryption thing. As detailed in a post on the Open Whisper Systems blog, the latest… Read More
  • Google hits the reset button

    Google hits the reset button
     This year, however, it moved it out (and outdoors) to an amphitheater in Mountain View, right next to its campus. Looking back, that move now feels symbolic. In many ways, 2016 was a year of change for Google: It was the first full year after the surprise Google/Alphabet reorg and the year that saw Google get serious about its own hardware, the cloud and the enterprise. Across the… Read More
  • BitTorrent's live video app is now available on iOS

    BitTorrent's live video app is now available on iOS
    Half a year after its initial release back in May, BitTorrent Live is finally making its way to iOS. BitTorrent Live is already available on the Fire TV, Apple TV, and macOS, and is now coming to its first mobile platform after a delay following plans to launch on iOS in June.And while the service still offers a somewhat lackluster offering of 16 channels — the highlights of which include NASA, One World Sports, and France 24 — it's the technology behind BitTorrent Live that makes it
  • Uber deploying self-driving cars from San Francisco pilot in Arizona instead

    Uber deploying self-driving cars from San Francisco pilot in Arizona instead
     Uber will be rolling out its third-generation self-driving test vehicles, which are sensor-lated Volvo XC90 SUVs, in Arizona following their loss of registration in California. An Uber spokesperson tells TechCrunch that the cars actually left for Arizona by truck on Tuesday morning, and that they will be deployed there “in the next few weeks” with the full support of state… Read More
  • The 15 best movies of 2016

    The 15 best movies of 2016
    A throwback musical, an erotic Korean drama, and many unique and stylish coming-of-age tales top the year’s listContinue reading…
  • ClusterHQ, an early player in the container ecosystem, calls it quits

    ClusterHQ, an early player in the container ecosystem, calls it quits
     ClusterHQ, an early player in the container DevOps ecosystem, today announced that it is shutting down operations immediately. “Unfortunately, it’s often the pioneers who end up with arrows in their backs. And sometimes, archery injuries are self-inflicted,” the company’s CEO Mark Davis writes in a blog post today. “For a confluence of reasons, the ClusterHQ board… Read More
  • How an Indonesian onomatopoeia became a dance-music sample and a meme

    How an Indonesian onomatopoeia became a dance-music sample and a meme
    Om Telolet Om. That three-word phrase is currently sprinkled across the Twitter mentions and Instagram comments of celebrities around the word. But what does it mean?As Billboard points out, Om Telolet Om doesn’t quite mean anything. It’s a noise. The onomatopoeia was created by kids in Indonesia. “Telolet” is meant to represent the sound city buses make when they honk: it’s a complex, carnival-like beep. And “Om” is an Indonesian word that loosely trans
  • LG takes the fun out of CES by announcing five phones ahead of time

    LG takes the fun out of CES by announcing five phones ahead of time
     That’s one way avoid the CES scrum – just go ahead and start making all of your announcements before the show even starts. LG will likely still have a few other tricks up its sleeve at Vegas in a few weeks, but the company picked Christmas week to start unloading its show announcements, including a quintet of new smartphones. The set it pretty uninspired – so maybe LG is… Read More
  • Twitter didn’t fix itself in 2016 and Wall Street isn’t happy

    Twitter didn’t fix itself in 2016 and Wall Street isn’t happy
     Layoffs, a borked acquisition and continued tepid user growth defined Twitter in 2016. And these are all things that make Twitter’s future uncertain, which we know Wall Street does not like. Jack Dorsey’s one-year tenure as CEO was more or less defined by a continue decline in its stock price and, amid all its attempts to try and re-make the service and make it more palatable,… Read More
  • Android Wear 2.0 debuts on two partner flagship smartwatches in early 2017

    Android Wear 2.0 debuts on two partner flagship smartwatches in early 2017
     Google will debut two “flagship smartwatches” running Android Wear 2.0 in the first quarter of 2017, according to a new report from The Verge, citing information direct from Android Wear product manager Jeff Chang. The two new watches won’t be Pixel devices, as some have speculated, but will sainted carry the branding of a company that Google is working with to manufacture… Read More
  • Pokémon Go is finally available on the Apple Watch

    Pokémon Go is finally available on the Apple Watch
    You can now hatch pokémon eggs on your wrist: today developer Niantic announced that the Apple Watch version of Pokémon Go is finally available. The smartwatch version of the game was first announced back in September.
    Naturally, the Apple Watch version of Pokémon Go isn’t the full game, but instead connects to the mobile game and lets you perform certain in-game activities without having to pull out your phone. You won’t be able to actually catch pokémon
  • Pokémon Go arrives on the Apple Watch

    Pokémon Go arrives on the Apple Watch
     Following an erroneous report claiming that Niantic’s plans to bring Pokémon Go to the Apple Watch were canceled, the company today put those rumors to rest with more than a mere statement: it has now launched the Apple Watch version of its popular game. The new smartwatch app lets you more easily play Pokémon without having to always pull out your phone. Instead, you can tap to… Read More
  • Google will launch two flagship smartwatches early next year

    Google will launch two flagship smartwatches early next year
    Google will be launching two new flagship smartwatches in the first quarter of next year, according to Jeff Chang, product manager of Android Wear at Google. In an exclusive interview with The Verge, Chang said that the new watches will be the flagship Android Wear 2.0 devices and will be the first ones to launch with the new platform.
    The new smartwatches had been rumored before, but Google confirmed the upcoming launch today as part of a larger effort to convince consumers that wearables &mdas
  • LG is launching five new phones at CES

    LG is launching five new phones at CES
    LG will expand its K Series smartphone lineup at CES with four new devices, and the debut of its LG Stylo 3, which features a new stylus. The phones really aren’t all that exciting, although some of the models do launch with Android Nougat, so that’s appreciated. The K Series phones’ displays range from 4.5 inches to 5.3 inches. The smallest device, while probably adorable, is lacking specs-wise: it has a two-megapixel front-facing camera, a five-megapixel rear-facing camera, a
  • Tesla’s new update restricts Autopilot to the speed limit on undivided roads

    Tesla’s new update restricts Autopilot to the speed limit on undivided roads
    Tesla cars are limited to the posted speed limit when Autopilot is engaged on an undivided road, thanks to an update now rolling out. Previously, Autopilot was limited to five miles per hour over the speed limit on roads where cars travel in both directions without a physical divider between them. The update was first reported by Electrek and confirmed by The Verge.
    The update is the latest in a series of tweaks Tesla has made to the Autopilot system following a fatal crash in May of a vehicle t
  • World’s first ‘solar panel road’ opens in France

    World’s first ‘solar panel road’ opens in France
    Forget solar roofs. The world’s first solar road is here, in the small village of Tourouvre-au-Perche in Normandy, France. The 1 kilometer road was opened yesterday by French Ecology Minister Ségolène Royal and could generate enough electricity to power the street lights.
    That might not sound very impressive for 30,000 square feet of solar panels — and it kind of isn’t, especially for its $5.2 million price tag. The panels have been covered in a silicon-based resi
  • Obama ending program that tracked Muslim travelers before Trump can use it

    Obama ending program that tracked Muslim travelers before Trump can use it
    President Obama will officially end a controversial Bush-era registration program that largely affected travelers from Muslim-majority nations, the Department of Homeland Security has announced. Donald Trump’s advisers have suggested the program could be revived under his administration, but the preemptive move by Obama may partially head off those efforts.
    The program was established in 2002
    The program, known as the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System, or NSEERS, was establi
  • The Walt Mossberg year in review

    The Walt Mossberg year in review
    In the beginning of the year, Walt wrote his column about what he thought the giants in tech should achieve in 2016. Now, with the year almost over, Walt revisits his original piece to take stock of where each company stands. On the Ctrl-Walt-Delete Holiday Spectacular, Walt and Nilay go over the 2016 hits and misses from companies like Google, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Facebook.
    We love your feedback on the topics of the show and suggestions on how to make our podcasts better and more fun f
  • UK Tesla prices to increase 5 percent following Brexit ‘currency fluctuations’

    UK Tesla prices to increase 5 percent following Brexit ‘currency fluctuations’
    The HTC Vive, the iPhone 7, and now the whole Tesla range — all products that have increased in price in the UK thanks to “currency fluctuations,” aka the pound losing value relative to the dollar following the Brexit vote.An internal email sent to Tesla’s UK showrooms and published by The Guardian says: “We have just received some information that we need to share with you — due to currency fluctuations we will be increasing our UK prices for custom orders by
  • Behind the scenes at Faraday Future, an electric carmaker on the brink of collapse

    Behind the scenes at Faraday Future, an electric carmaker on the brink of collapse
    “If you’re an investor, you’re fucked.”Continue reading…
  • Beats Solo 3 review: decent sound, better wireless

    Beats Solo 3 review: decent sound, better wireless
    If you want to condense Apple’s 2016 down to a pithy mission statement, it’s this: war on wires. Along with the traditional spec upgrades of iPhones and MacBooks, the Cupertino company this year ditched the headphone jack from its flagship smartphone and the equally universal USB port from its laptops. For any peripheral devices to survive in this brave new Apple world, they pretty much have to be wireless — which is where the $299.95 Beats Solo 3 come in.The new flagship headp
  • YouTube's biggest star is a 5-year-old that makes millions opening toys

    YouTube's biggest star is a 5-year-old that makes millions opening toys
    Blurring the line between playtime and businessContinue reading…
  • The Verge: 2016 Yearbook

    The Verge: 2016 Yearbook
    It was a long and memorable year, and we’re taking a moment to look back on the the stories that changed our world. Continue reading…
  • The design behind Hatchimals, the hit toy of the season — and YouTube

    The design behind Hatchimals, the hit toy of the season — and YouTube
    If you are not a child, don’t have a child, or don’t know anyone with kids, there’s a chance you’ve never heard of a Hatchimal, the must-have toy for Christmas this year.
    Allow me to introduce you: the Hatchimal is a plush little robot that comes trapped in a sealed, football-sized plastic egg. As soon as you take it out of its packaging, it comes to life — you can see its eyes glow through the shell, and hear it make cooing sounds. After you warm it up, move it aro
  • Death and Donald Trump were the most edited Wikipedia pages of 2016

    Death and Donald Trump were the most edited Wikipedia pages of 2016
    Death wins Wikipedia pretty much every year. Since 2007, the page on everyone’s favorite online encyclopedia listing annual deaths has topped its yearly ranking of most-edited articles. (Pre-2007, that spot was taken by such non-controversial topics as “George W. Bush” and “Creationism.”) This year was no different, and “Deaths in 2016” has been declared the most-edited page of 2016, followed, somewhat predictably, by the article for “Donald Trump.
  • 2016: the year in space

    2016: the year in space
    The year 2016 was a dynamic time for spaceflight and space science, marked by major technological achievements in rocketry and scientific discoveries that will completely alter our understanding of the Universe for decades to come. Scientists announced the first detection of gravitational waves and rockets landed after launching to space. New missions took off to learn more about the history of our Solar System and we’ve inched ever closer to answering that ultimate question: are we alone
  • Xplenty raises another $4 million to help you integrate all your data

    Xplenty raises another $4 million to help you integrate all your data
     The internet has changed a lot over the last two decades, but many companies are still using legacy technologies to extract, transform and load their data into warehouses. One new entrant, Xplenty, is hoping that its fresh approach, prioritizing cloud services, will provide a solid foothold in the massive market for data integration tools. Having grown to serve over 100 customers, Xplenty… Read More
  • What’s Inside the Secret Recipe for Scotch Magic Tape

    What’s Inside the Secret Recipe for Scotch Magic Tape
    3M keeps a tight seal on the recipe for its sandwich of polymers and chemicals. So we did our own research on what likely makes the tape stick. The post What's Inside the Secret Recipe for Scotch Magic Tape appeared first on WIRED.
  • Last-minute Amazon Prime gifts that will arrive in time for Christmas

    Last-minute Amazon Prime gifts that will arrive in time for Christmas
    Christmas is coming soon, and if you’re a little behind on any gift shopping, December 22nd (today) is the last day that anything ordered with Amazon Prime’s free two-day shipping will be guaranteed to arrive by end of day on December 24th.So whether you’re still scrambling for a last-minute present, need some holiday supplies, or just really would like to avoid the general chaos of the malls this week, today’s your final chance to get things on time with free shipping fr
  • First Click: The Verge guide to playing nice with other people

    First Click: The Verge guide to playing nice with other people
    It’s the most wonderful time of the year! You know, the time when the darkness lasts longest, the air is the coldest, and you’re forced to spend hours, days, even weeks with people you normally spend much of the year avoiding: your extended family.That might sound like a horrible ending to a horrible year, but all the festive free time you’re about to have does at least leave room for plenty of fun activities. If you can slip away from the family then you’ve got a surfeit
  • The Most Dangerous People on the Internet in 2016

    The Most Dangerous People on the Internet in 2016
    It used to be people who disrupted the establishment. Now? It's mostly the establishment. The post The Most Dangerous People on the Internet in 2016 appeared first on WIRED.
  • The Cloud Needs to Get a Whole Lot Greener in 2017

    The Cloud Needs to Get a Whole Lot Greener in 2017
    Last year, Greenpeace estimated that within two years, information tech will account for between seven and 12 percent of all electrical use. The post The Cloud Needs to Get a Whole Lot Greener in 2017 appeared first on WIRED.
  • Simple Tips for a Stress-Free Holiday at the Movies

    Simple Tips for a Stress-Free Holiday at the Movies
    Here's how to get the most out of hitting the multiplex over the holidays. The post Simple Tips for a Stress-Free Holiday at the Movies appeared first on WIRED.
  • Google’s Mesmerizing Game Turns Scribbles Into Satellite Images

    Google’s Mesmerizing Game Turns Scribbles Into Satellite Images
    Land Lines is a clever new tool that lets you search satellite images by drawing just a line. The post Google's Mesmerizing Game Turns Scribbles Into Satellite Images appeared first on WIRED.
  • A Farewell to Wii U, the Game System for Nobody

    A Farewell to Wii U, the Game System for Nobody
    Nintendo's ill-fated dual-screened home game console is barely four years old, and it's already dead. Sayonara! The post A Farewell to Wii U, the Game System for Nobody appeared first on WIRED.
  • 2016 Was the Year Self-Driving Cars Took the Wheel

    2016 Was the Year Self-Driving Cars Took the Wheel
    And made clear they're on the way to dominance. The post 2016 Was the Year Self-Driving Cars Took the Wheel appeared first on WIRED.
  • Review: LifePrint

    Review: LifePrint
    Print is not dead. At least, LifePrint is banking on it remaining alive for some time to come. The post Review: LifePrint appeared first on WIRED.
  • Canada declares ‘high-speed’ internet essential for quality of life

    Canada declares ‘high-speed’ internet essential for quality of life
    Canada has recognized the obvious and declared high-speed broadband internet access a “basic telecommunications service” that every citizen should be able to access. Previously, only landline telephone services had received this designation from the country’s national telecoms regulator, CRTC, and the change is supported by a government investment package of up to $750 million to wire up rural areas.“The future of our economy, our prosperity and our society — indeed
  • 13 Last-Minute Gift Ideas to Save Christmas

    13 Last-Minute Gift Ideas to Save Christmas
    Hey slacker, time to get shopping. The post 13 Last-Minute Gift Ideas to Save Christmas appeared first on WIRED.
  • This SNES-themed mechanical keyboard means even your typing will be nostalgic for the ‘90s

    This SNES-themed mechanical keyboard means even your typing will be nostalgic for the ‘90s
    Do you remember the ‘90s? Of course you remember the ‘90s. We had Friends. Tamagotchi. Grunge. Pogs. Everyone ran around in flannel shirts, bleaching each others’ hair and singing Spice Girls. And because the ‘90s were so great (you were young, your back didn’t hurt, you felt alive,), why not relive that decade every day of your damn life for ever and ever with this SNES-themed mechanical keyboard. Radical, right?Okay, so, ‘90s nostalgia is definitely overplay
  • Majestic Aerials of the Winter Wonderland That Is New Jersey

    Majestic Aerials of the Winter Wonderland That Is New Jersey
    Filip Wolak takes magical photos of winter landscapes ... while flying his plane at the same time. The post Majestic Aerials of the Winter Wonderland That Is New Jersey appeared first on WIRED.