Technology news

Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos by Getty Images OpenAI is preparing to release an autonomous AI agent that can control computers and perform tasks independently, code-named “Operator.” The company plans to debut it as a research preview and developer tool in January, according to Bloomberg.
This move intensifies the competition among tech giants developing AI agents: Anthropic recently introduced its “computer use” capability, while Google is reportedly

Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge Sonos is still trying to climb out from the hole it dug itself earlier this year by recklessly shipping an overhauled mobile app well before the software was actually ready. Today, just a couple weeks after the release of its latest hardware products — the Arc Ultra and Sub 4 — Sonos reported its fiscal Q4 2024 earnings. And the damage done by the app debacle is clear.Revenue was down 8 percent year over year, which Sonos attributed to “softer d

Google versus the bad guys. | Illustration: Alex Castro / The Verge Google is beefing up its malware detection with new protections designed to suss out ever-sneakier bad actors.Android’s Google Play Protect service is getting an update called live threat detection which seeks out potentially harmful apps on your phone by analyzing app behavior and alerts you in realtime if something looks fishy. The update was first announced at Google I/O earlier this year and is available now to Pixel 6

Image: The Verge The Wall Street Journal is experimenting with AI-generated article summaries that appear at the top of its news stories. The summaries appear as a “Key Points” box with bullets summarizing the piece. The Verge spotted the test on a story about Trump’s plans for the Department of Education, and the Journal confirmed it’s trialing the feature to see how readers respond.
The “Key Points” box has a message explaining that an “artificial inte

Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge; Getty Images If you want to preserve the existing version of Lil Jon’s “Get Low” in your brain, maybe don’t listen to this cover T-Pain made with Mark Zuckerberg — excuse me, Z-Pain. Their version transforms the “Get Low” I got down to at all my school dances into a song with a much slower tempo complete with an acoustic guitar.
Trust me, I may be scarred for life after hearing Zuckerberg’s autotuned voice serenade

PC game platform GOG has launched a new preservation program dedicated to keeping beloved older games playable, “now and in the future.”
“If a game is part of the Preservation Program, it means that we commit our own resources to maintaining its compatibility with modern and future systems,” the announcement blog reads.
The program is launching with 100 games including Diablo, System Shock 2, and Resident Evil 1-3, with GOG planning to add emore titles in the coming mont

Image: Reliant General Motors is teaming up with Reliant Energy to offer free nighttime charging to some Chevy electric vehicle owners in Texas.Chevy owners who enroll in Reliant’s EV charging plan will receive free nighttime charging through monthly bill credits that offset charges incurred between 11PM. and 6AM, the companies said. Customers must also designate an EV to receive the charging credit through GM Energy’s Smart Charging Portal. (GM Energy is the automaker’s home e

Cath Virginia / The Verge Spotify is going all in on video.
The company will soon begin paying creators based on how much engagement their videos receive from paid subscribers. Automated ad breaks in videos will also be turned off for paid Spotify subscribers to encourage more consumption. Both of these changes go into effect starting January 2nd, 2025 in the US, UK, Australia, and Canada.Paying video creators directly based on engagement puts Spotify on more of a collision course with YouTube,

Blizzard just released Warcraft Remastered Battle Chest for PC and Macs, which collects remasters of realtime strategy classics Warcraft I and II, as well as a 2.0 update for Warcraft III: Reforged. The company announced the collection, which is $39.99 on Battle.net, during today’s Warcraft 30th Anniversary Direct livestream.
The first two games have been updated much the same way that Starcraft was in 2017, replacing the original game sprites and maps with more detailed, high-res artwork

Image: The Verge Meta could bring ads to Threads as soon as next year, according to a report from The Information. As part of its plan, Threads will reportedly allow a small number of advertisers to make and publish ads in January.
That tracks with what my colleague Alex Heath reported about the rollout of ads in July. Instagram head Adam Mosseri has also confirmed that Meta is “definitely” planning to bring ads to Threads. “I get why people have concerns, but at the end of the

Image: Meta The YouTube app on Meta Quest is getting a nice upgrade: instead of only being a way to watch videos by yourself, the app will now let you co-watch videos with up to seven other people.
To turn on the feature, which is launching in beta, make sure you have the latest version of the YouTube app and look for the “Co-watch” icon at the top of the screen (it looks like three people grouped together). Select that, and then in the window that pops up, select “Invite peopl

SAVE $200: As of Nov. 13, the M2 iPad Air with 512GB and WiFi is down to just $899 at Amazon. That's 18% in savings and its lowest price to date.Opens in a new windowCredit: AppleApple iPad Air (M2, 512GB, WiFi)$899.00 at Amazon $1,099.00 Save $200.00Get DealThere's really no point in sitting around and waiting for Black Friday to score a good great deal on an iPad. On this random Wednesday in November, we're already seeing a record-low price on the 13-inch M2 iPad Air.Released earlier this year

Everyone online is "crashing out" all of a sudden. Well, not literally — though, plenty of people actually are crashing out. But, for one reason or another, the term "crash out" or "crashing out" is everywhere this week. For the unfamiliar, crashing out boils down to losing it. As Urban Dictionary puts it, to crash out is to "get really mad or upset; lose all your self-control." It can also mean that you're almost willingly entering a situation — or acting a certain way — that

Vogtle, a nuclear power plant located in Burke County, near Waynesboro, Georgia. | Photo: Getty Images The US has a new roadmap for massively ramping up how much electricity it gets from nuclear reactors.The Biden administration released the document on Tuesday, but with President-elect Donald Trump heading back into the White House, there’s no telling whether the plan will ever become a reality. That said, the nuclear industry has gained a fair amount of bipartisan support — not to

UPDATE: Nov. 13, 2024, 1:47 p.m. EST This post has been updated with the latest Apple deals leading up to Black Friday, including a new price drop on the Apple Watch Series 10 and the 13-inch iPad Air.The best early Black Friday Apple deals Best MacBook dealApple MacBook Air, 13-inch (M2, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD)$749.99 at Amazon(Save $249.99 with on-page coupon)Get DealBest iPad dealApple iPad Air, 13-inch (M2, WiFi, 512GB)$899 at Amazon(Save $200)Get DealBest Apple Watch dealApple Watch Series 10

Google’s Gemini AI might be on the verge of a major upgrade, bringing conversational capabilities directly to your files, photos, and recordings — similar to what we’ve seen from OpenAI's ChatGPT.SEE ALSO:Google Gemini app may be coming to iPhone soon — here's what we know
Gemini is Google’s latest answer to multimodal AI, letting users upload various media types — images, audio, and video — for analysis and interaction. And like ChatGPT’s Advanced

Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge Meta must face the Federal Trade Commission’s antitrust lawsuit that accuses the company of dominating the social media industry through its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp, a DC District Court Judge ruled on Wednesday.
The FTC filed a lawsuit against Meta in 2020, alleging the company bought up rivals — Instagram and WhatsApp — in an attempt to stifle competition. Judge James Boasberg initially dismissed the FTC’s lawsuit i

The Lightfoot scooter’s 120W solar panels can extend its range by up to 20 miles in the Summer, its creators claim. | Image: Otherlab Otherlab has announced a new electric scooter called the Lightfoot that can extend its range not by fast charging or quick battery swaps, but by soaking up the sun. The scooter is shrouded in two large solar panels that Otherlab says can extend its range by an extra three miles for every hour it’s left in the sun.
The company, which describes itse

UPDATE: Nov. 13, 2024, 12:15 p.m. EST This story has been updated with new information about Target's Black Friday sale and early holiday deals.After hosting a three-day Early Black Friday sale this month, Target has solidified its plans for the year-end shopping holiday. Its official Black Friday sale will run for a full week from Sunday, Nov. 24 to Saturday, Nov. 30, ushering in its "best planned prices of the season – and twice as many Black Friday weekend deals as last year."The retai

SAVE UP TO 50%: Espresso machines are on sale at Amazon and Target this week from top brands like De'Longhi, Nespresso, and more.Espresso machine deals to shop todayBest overall espresso machine dealDe'Longhi Magnifica Start espresso and coffee machine$499.95 at Amazon(save $500)Get DealBest espresso machine deal under $100Nespresso Vertuo Pop+$99 at Amazon(save $30.95)Get DealBest modern aesthetic espresso machine dealCafé Bellissimo semi-automatic espresso machine$449 at Target(save $13

SAVE $40: As of Nov. 13, get an Amazon Fire TV Cube at Amazon for $99.99, down from its usual price of $139.99. That's a discount of 29%. Opens in a new windowCredit: AmazonAmazon Fire TV Cube$99.99 at Amazon $139.99 Save $40.00Get DealThe holidays are on their way, and for many of us, that means some well-deserved time off. And even if you're still working through them, you probably have some downtime here and there. Why not fill it with your favorite shows and movies and get some real binge-wa

Image: Amazon Amazon has launched a store where every product costs $20 or less in a bid to take on popular low-cost shopping apps like Temu and Shein. The new “Amazon Haul” service is available in the US via Amazon’s app or mobile website, and offers a wide range of similar fashion, home, lifestyle, and electronics products that you’d expect to find on the rival Chinese platforms.
“Finding great products at very low prices is important to customers, and we continue

GET A $15 CREDIT: Get a $15 Amazon credit when you spend $50 on home goods at Amazon today.Opens in a new windowCredit: Cascade / HeftySpend $50 on home goods and get a $15 Amazon creditGet DealIt feels extra nice when you get a little back for shopping the essentials you need at home. Take advantage of a credit-back deal on home goods like soap and paper towels at Amazon today and save yourself a few bucks. As of Nov. 13, get a $15 credit when you spend $50 on home goods at Amazon today. That&r

No one is coming out stronger from the 2024 Presidential election than X owner and billionaire Elon Musk. And that success is not just due to the potentially lucrative federal contracts he's set to snag or the legal protections Musk's ventures are taking on from his Republican alignment — he's gaining political power, too. Announced by president-elect Donald Trump on Nov. 12, Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy — the pharmaceutical mogul and former Republican presidential hopeful — have b

SAVE UP TO $25 OFF: As of Nov. 13, Prime members can get a discount on select gift cards. Shop gift cards for Xbox, PlayStation, Roblox, and more. Our top picks: Best deal overall $250 PlayStation Store gift card$225(save $25)Get DealBest runner-up deal $50 Xbox gift card$45(save $5)Get DealBest budget deal Roblox 2,200 Robux gift card $22.50(save $2.50)Get Deal
The holidays are fast approaching, which means it's time to start thinking about gifts for friends and family. This year, your Amazon P

Image: Bethesda Softworks The members of ZeniMax Workers United-CWA, one of the largest video game unions in the United States, have gone on strike. The action involves workers in ZeniMax offices in Texas and Maryland, who do quality assurance work for games including Fallout and Elder Scrolls. Workers are striking over claims that ZeniMax leadership has failed to address employee issues regarding remote work and outsourcing.“Today, we are on strike,” ZeniMax Workers United posted on

Save up to $400 on 2-in-1 laptops on sale ahead of Black Friday.Early Black Friday 2-in-1 laptop dealsBest 2-in-1 laptop dealHP OmniBook Ultra Flip (Intel Core Ultra 7, Intel Arc Graphics, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD)$1,199.99(save $400)Get DealBest 2-in-1 Chromebook dealAcer Chromebook Plus Spin 714 (Intel Core i5, Intel Iris Xe Graphics, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD)$529.99(save $170)Get Deal
The countdown to Black Friday is well underway, and so are the early deals. That's right, the holiday shopping event has b

A former Air National Guard member will serve prison time because of his activities in a gaming-focused chat app.Jack Teixeira, who previously served in the Massachusetts Air National Guard, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for pilfering classified documents from the Department of Defense and sharing them to a Discord server, per NBC News. The sentence was slightly less than the roughly 17 years the U.S. attorney's office wanted, but the judge noted that Teixeira had specifically been trained

SAVE UP TO $500: Ahead of Black Friday, shop big markdowns on soundbars at Amazon and Best Buy. Shop the Samsung HW-Q850D/ZA Soundbar for $599.99, saving $500 for 45% off.Best soundbar dealsBest soundbar dealSamsung HW-Q850D/ZA Soundbar$599.99(Save $500)Get DealBest budget soundbar dealInsignia 2.0 Mini Soundbar$34.99(Save $15)Get DealRoku Streambar SE$79.99(Save $20)Get DealBest Bose SpeakerBose Smart Soundbar$399(Save $100)Get Deal
Getting ready for the holiday season means pulling out the str

Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photo from Getty Images The password manager NordPass has once again released its annual list of the world’s most popular passwords — and the lack of creativity is just a little disheartening. For the second year in a row, “123456” has been crowned the most common password.
The same numbers topped the chart five out of the six times NordPass has compiled its lists, only to be usurped by the famed “password” in 2022. But once you get

SAVE UP TO 49%: Lego sets like Minecraft The Sword Outpost and Lego Creator Expert Winter Village Fire Station are on sale at Walmart’s early Black Friday sale. Best Lego early Black Friday deals at Walmart:Best Lego gift setLego Minecraft The Sword Outpost Building Set$30.00(Save 33%)Get DealBest Lego set for adultsLego Technic Bugatti Bolide Race Car Model Building Set$25.00(Save 37%)Get DealBest Lego Creator dealLego Creator Expert Winter Village Fire Station$179.99(Save 23%)Get DealBes

A new leak from an unexpected source suggests Apple might be releasing iOS 18.2 on Dec. 9. Apple Intelligence is the tentpole of the latest iPhone software update. But Apple has been slow to release some of the flagship AI-powered features that come with iOS 18 like ChatGPT integration and the new and improved Siri. So far, iOS 18.1 has brought us some Apple Intelligence features like Writing Tools, audio transcriptions in Notes, and the Clean Up tool in Photos. But the splashier features, like

Sony designed its flagship headset to pair perfectly with a PlayStation household. | Image: Sony It’s inordinately rare to find the PlayStation Pulse Elite on sale, but Black Friday season is always a good opportunity for retailers to break the rules. Sony’s flagship wireless headset is discounted to $129.99 ($20 off) at Walmart right now as part of its early Black Friday sale. Although the discount doesn’t appear massive, that still represents the lowest price we’ve seen

UPDATE: Nov. 13, 2024, 11:05 a.m. EST This story has been updated with more info about Walmart's first Black Friday Deals event.Walmart is hosting a pair of "Black Friday Deals" events in November, taking full advantage of the shopping holiday's unusually late timing in 2024.The big-box store's staggered seasonal sales involve extra early access for paid Walmart+ members, new surprise deal drops, and an expanded beta test of its new generative AI shopping assistant this year. Annual Walmart+ su

SAVE $30: As of Nov. 13, get an Xbox wireless controller in three colorways for $34.99, down from $64.99, at QVC when you use promo code HOLIDAY30. That's a discount of 49%. Opens in a new windowCredit: QVCXbox wireless controller (Velocity Green)$34.99 at QVC $64.99 Save $30.00Use code HOLIDAY30Get DealIf you spend a lot of time gaming, there's one accessory you can never have too many of: controllers. There are tons of reasons why you might need more than one (or even two), including controlle

After spending several weeks in the shadows while the other big retailers duked it out for the early Black Friday announcement spotlight, Amazon finally announced dates for its end-of-November schedule on Nov. 13: Amazon's Black Friday event will start on Thursday, Nov. 21, and run through (Cyber) Monday, Dec. 2, with new deals dropping every day.SEE ALSO:Best Buy is already going hard with QLED TV deals ahead of Black Friday
As a refresher, actual Black Friday is on Nov. 29 in 2024. That two-we

UPDATE: Nov. 13, 2024, 10:45 a.m. EST This story has been updated with more info about Best Buy's early Black Friday deals.Black Friday is in full swing at Best Buy. Yes, already.The electronics retailer is stretching its holiday deals well beyond the 24-hour bounds of actual Black Friday, peppering them across multiple savings events and formats. Its official Black Friday sale will begin more than a week ahead of time. Here's what you should know before you shop.When does Best Buy's Black Frid

Image: Apple The first season of Silo ended on a truly great cliffhanger. The Apple TV Plus series, an adaptation of Hugh Howey’s trilogy of postapocalyptic novels, tells the story of the remnants of humanity, who live deep underground in silos designed to protect them from a poisoned planet. Season 1 had the feeling of a small-town mystery, as mechanic-turned-sheriff Juliette (Rebecca Ferguson) stumbled upon a secret that completely upended her worldview. Her quest to uncover that mystery