Artificial intelligence powers Egypt’s USD 27bn city project

Backed by Talaat Moustafa Group, the development aims to fuse digital twin infrastructure, edge AI and data-driven economic planning to create a scalable smart city model

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/6QqH7au

Global study reveals biggest risks of AI in finance sector

University of Cambridge study reveals the risks facing the finance sector as it adopts artificial intelligence

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/qMOCzpm

Microsoft explains value of E7 usage-based pricing

While the headline figure is its cloud growth, the company is making big changes to software licensing

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/U1JY3el

Cloud revenues up 35% YoY in a hot market that’s accelerating

Synergy Research figures put Q1 cloud revenues at $129bn. Meanwhile, AWS, Microsoft and Google have 63% of the world market, which shows an acceleration delta of 13%

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/nRtp2WJ

MPs call on UK government to learn from central bank’s IT project success story

Members of a parliamentary committee want the wider government to learn from success of Bank of England project

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/0Dfc9Sg

HSBC collaborates on noisy qubit real-world application

Researchers have demonstrated that usable results for financial modelling are achievable even on current noisy quantum computers

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/3RFU6bd

MP committees to double up on Capita’s civil service pension crisis

Parliamentary committees to hold joint hearing to investigate the problems experienced in Civil Service Pension Scheme

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/mC0o3gO

Vernon Building Society uses AI to amplify human touch

Century-old mutual society is using artificial intelligence to bring mortgage processing onto a single platform

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/mvNWlCA

Zero waste drives datacentre sustainability shift in UAE

Khazna’s DXB8 becomes the first datacentre globally certified for zero waste, highlighting how circular operations are emerging alongside power, cooling and AI infrastructure as a core design priority

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/87YWvGw

Lloyds Bank compensates another 1,625 customers after ‘alarming’ data breach

Bank pays out compensation to more customers and reveals expansion of affected group

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/JZhDEoi

Magic: The Gathering Arena developers intend to form a union with the CWA

Magic: The Gathering Arena developers at Hasbro subsidiary Wizards of the Coast are set to join the Communications Workers of America (CWA), the union announced. The CWA says it has secured a "supermajority" among workers in favor of unionization for the chapter, called United Wizards of the Coast (UWOTC-CWA). The CWA has filed for a formal election with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), but that will be withdrawn if Hasbro voluntarily recognizes the union by May 1st.

"At Wizards, we’re organizing for a say in layoffs, accountability that runs up and down the chain, and a living wage that actually lets people build a life," said UWOTC-CWA member and senior software engineer Damien Wilson. "I’m hopeful about what we can build here and being clear-eyed about why it’s necessary."

Workers have outlined several areas of concern including protections over layoffs and remote work, generative AI guardrails and mandatory crunch time, along with "increased transparency and equity" in the workplace. "This isn’t just something that affects Wizards of the Coast; it’s how most American workplaces are set up," Wilson added. "Unions are the missing counterweight to protect our craft."

The push to unionize was triggered back in 2023 following mass Hasbro layoffs that affected nearly 2,000 workers, software engineers told Kotaku. Developers were also concerned about issues like remote work, saying that Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast decisions "have not aligned with the values of their employees." 

The CWA has been involved in recent unionization drives across the games industry, with workers from Blizzard and ID Software, along with indie devs from publishers including Heart Machine recently joining. Over 4,000 workers have organized across the industry as part of CWA's CODE (Campaign to Organize Digital Employees), according to the union. "Every worker deserves job security, fair compensation, and a seat at the table," said CWA District 7 VP Susie McAllister. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/vL3FKlr

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/vL3FKlr

Union accuses Apple of unlawful discrimination against represented workers

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) union has accused Apple of unlawfully discriminating against the unionized employees of the company’s Towson, Maryland retail store. IAM has filed an unfair labor practice charge against Apple with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) after the company announced on April 9 that it was shutting down three of its US stores. One of those locations was the Towson retail outlet, which employed nearly 90 workers and became the first Apple Store in the country to unionize back in 2022.

In its complaint, IAM said that Apple didn’t offer the employees it represents the transfer opportunities it provided to non-unionized employees from its other stores. Unlike those non-represented employees, Towson personnel were allegedly told that they had to reapply for positions through the same process as external candidates. “Apple is denying union-represented workers the same opportunities it is giving to others — and doing so because these workers chose to organize,” the organization said. “That is discrimination, and it is exactly what federal labor law is designed to prevent.”

In addition to the Towson location, Apple also shut down its stores in Trumbull, CT, Escondito, CA. Back when the closures were announced, IAM said that “Apple’s claim that the collective bargaining agreement prevents relocation is simply false and raises serious concerns that [the] closure is a cynical attempt to bust the union.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/fKY062W

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/fKY062W

DSIT gets sums badly wrong on AI datacentre carbon footprint

Government revises July 2025 projections for AI-driven datacentre carbon footprint upwards by around 100x, but Carbon Brief suggests the numbers could be much higher still

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/hCekxKm

Ford's Mustang Cobra Jet sets a new EV quarter mile record at 6.87 seconds

Ford Racing's Mustang Cobra Jet 2200 just ran a quarter mile in 6.87 seconds at 221 mph at an NHRA event in Charlotte, setting a new world record for an EV. The run smashed Ford's own previous EV record of 7.62 seconds, set by the Cobra Jet 1800 last September, by an impressive 0.75 seconds.  

As the name suggests, Ford's Cobra Jet 2200 puts a massive 2,200 horsepower to the wheels thanks to a newly designed electric motor and inverter combo. Ford elected to use two motors and inverters instead of four of each as before to reduce complexity and boost efficiency to 98 percent. Overall power is up by 600 horsepower, but the motors and inverters weigh half as much as before. Everything runs on a 900-volt architecture and 32 kWh battery that charges in 20 minutes, easily enough for the NHRA's 45-minute turnaround rule.

It's official: The Ford Racing Mustang Cobra Jet 2200 has clocked a new record time of 6.87 at 221 mph - now the quickest electric car on the planet.#FordRacing pic.twitter.com/drmvH2XRp6

— Ford Racing (@FordRacing) April 25, 2026

The car has some unusual features for an EV like a clutch that lets the driver dump all the power to the road instantly for maximum acceleration. It also uses a multi-speed transmission that allows the car to run in its ideal power band through the duration of the run — reducing the quarter-mile time by up to a second, according to Ford. The battery design also allowed the team to tune weight distribution for optimal traction. Another racing touch is a pyrotechnic circuit breaker that can instantly break the high-voltage connection via a small explosive charge to align with NHRA safety rules. 

Some of this tech, like the high-efficiency motors and 900 volt system, could conceivably trickle down to consumer vehicles. Unfortunately, Ford and other US automakers have significantly reduced their investment in BEV technology of late. Ford recently announced that it would reboot the F-150 Lightning as an EREV with a gas generator, while last week GM delayed its next-gen full-size EV pickups and SUVs — all in the face of rapidly rising gasoline prices. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/JsrMt38

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/JsrMt38

Almost 90% of women leave tech industry within 10 years

Women aren’t staying in the tech sector for longer than 10 years, but may come back after leaving if the circumstances are right for their return

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/1jFVXB5

Forced Windows updates can now be paused forever

No more getting caught by a forced Windows 11 update while you're in the middle of a meeting or a match. Microsoft announced some major changes coming to Windows Update on its blog, including the ability to indefinitely pause Windows updates, 35 days at a time.

To give users more control, Windows Update introduced the option to extend update pauses as much as users want. Once you opted to pause updates for Windows 11, you won't be disturbed for 35 days at a time, but you can now reset this 35-day limit for as long as you want. You should eventually install these updates, as most of them are usually related to security upgrades and only sometimes require emergency fixes, but Microsoft is letting users decide when to do so. Microsoft's Aria Hanson wrote in the blog that these changes were a result of feedback that consistently mentioned "disruption caused by untimely updates and not enough control over when updates happen."

Beyond the update pauses, Microsoft is ensuring Windows 11 users always have the option to shut down or restart their devices without updating. These quality-of-life upgrades build on another recent change that allowed users to skip updates while setting up their new Windows devices. According to Microsoft, the latest Windows Updates features are currently rolling out to those enrolled in the Windows Insider program, specifically users in the Dev and Experimental Channels.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/skYiK45

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/skYiK45

Canadian premier wants to ban social media and AI chatbots for kids in Manitoba

Manitoba could be the first province in Canada to establish a social media ban for kids, but the proposal's details aren't very clear yet. The province's premier, Wab Kinew, announced during a fundraiser event on Saturday and on X that Manitoba would put in place a ban for social media and AI chatbots for its youth.

"They're doing these very awful things to kids all in the name of a few likes, all in the name of more engagement, and all in the name of money," Kinew said at the event. "Our kids will never be for sale and their attention and their childhoods should never be profited from."

Kinew didn't elaborate on the ban's crucial details, like the specific age restriction, when it will be introduced nor how it will be enforced. CBC reported that Kinew didn't speak to reporters after his remarks at the fundraiser.

Besides Manitoba, the Liberal Party of Canada recently voted in favor of proposals to restrict both social media and AI chatbot use for anyone under 16 during the party's national convention in Montreal. There are several efforts to restrict social media across Canada. One even seeks to limit those under 14 from accessing these platforms, an even younger cutoff than the ban recently enacted in Australia. However, a recent poll from the Molly Rose Foundation has cast some doubt on the effectiveness of such laws, which other countries have also adopted or are currently considering. The poll showed that a majority of teens still have accounts on banned social media platforms, or have found ways around the ban.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/8TkurIq

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/8TkurIq

Trump has terminated several members of the independent National Science Board

As reported by several outlets, the Trump administration dismissed members of the National Science Board (NSB), which is tasked with establishing policies for the National Science Foundation. It's not clear how many members have been dismissed. According to screenshots shared with The Washington Post, board members received a message that their position was "terminated, effective immediately.

The NSB establishes policies for the National Science Foundation (NSF), the independent US agency responsible for apportioning about 25 percent of federal support towards research conducted by the country's colleges and universities. The foundation has existed for over 75 years and has contributed to the development of MRIs and cellphones, among other breakthroughs. Up to 25 active members can head the NSB, however, the current board only has 22 members; the NSF's former director, Sethuraman Panchanathan, abruptly resigned last year.

In response, Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren called the latest decision a "real bozo the clown move" in a statement. "This is the latest stupid move made by a president who continues to harm science and American innovation," Lofgren, who also serves as the Ranking Member of the House's Science, Space and Technology Committee, added in the statement. "It unfortunately is no surprise a president who has attacked NSF from day one would seek to destroy the board that helps guide the Foundation."

It's unclear if the NSB's next scheduled board meeting for May 5 will take place. We've reached out to NSB for additional details and will update if we hear back.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/xwsrOzi

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/xwsrOzi

Tesla is giving away one year free Supercharging with Model 3 Premium and Performance purchases

Tesla completely ended its free lifetime Supercharging offer way back in 2018, but it has given customers the perk for certain promotions since then. It brought back free Supercharging for Model S and X a couple of times in 2019, for instance. The automaker’s latest offer is for new purchases for a Model 3 Premium or Performance vehicle in North America. On its website, Tesla has announced that it’s including one year of free supercharging with a Model 3 Premium or Performance, though the offer is “subject to change or end at any time.”

As Electrek notes, this is a nice freebie to have but most likely not a deciding factor for people who charge at home. For those who don’t have access to a home charger, however, this could represent significant savings.

The free Supercharging offer starts at delivery and cannot be postponed or redeemed for cash. Owners will also still have to pay certain fees, such as congestions fees that the automaker adds if a vehicle remains plugged into a Supercharger after its battery reaches 80 percent when a site is busy. The offer doesn’t apply to vehicles used for commercial purposes, such as ridesharing, taxi and delivery services, as well. As for those who traded in their gas vehicles to get the 2,000-mile Supercharging incentive, they can enjoy this freebie first and redeem those miles after their first year of ownership.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/64Ir0ht

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/64Ir0ht

Engadget review recap: DJI Osmo Pocket 4, Recteq X-Fire Pro and Alienware 27 QD-OLED

Vampire Crawlers, Peter Molyneux's return and other new indie games worth checking out

Welcome to our latest roundup of what's going on in the indie game space. If you're looking for something new to play this weekend, we've got a bunch of options for you. We've also got some interesting upcoming games to tell you about as well.

In a press release announcing that Playdate Season 3 is coming later this year, Panic included a line that I've been thinking about a lot this week. "Panic is currently relieved and happy that people can make amazing games for Playdate with just 16 megabytes of RAM," it said, a nod toward the ongoing RAM crisis.

The Playdate doesn't exactly have a lot of technical oomph, and I'm frequently delighted by what developers are able to do within its limitations. Restrictions foster creativity — many folks had to get pretty inventive on Twitter back when they only had 140 characters to play with. Here, Panic offered a welcome reminder that you don't necessarily need an ultra-powerful rig or console to have access to more great games than you'll ever actually be able to play.

For instance, my favorite game of the year so far, Titanium Court, works on Macs that are capable of running macOS 11 (the 2020 version of the operating system) or later. On PC, you'll need a graphics card that's compatible with OpenGL or DirectX 9, the latter of which was released in 2002. For what it's worth, the game would also fit on a CD-ROM. 

There are tons of other great indie games new and old that'll run just fine on lower-powered machines. Bear that in mind the next time a current-gen console or other gaming system gets a price increase because of the RAM shortage. The DLSS 5 debacle aside, you probably don't need a 50-series NVIDIA GPU either. Maybe just pick up a Playdate instead.

New releases

While many of the weapons, characters and enemies are the same, Vampire Crawlers is a fresh spin on Vampire Survivors. It's a turn-based roguelite deckbuilder. Instead of automatically firing whatever weapons you have at nearby enemies, you'll play cards to conquer the mob that you face in each fight. You can still modify and evolve your weapons and abilities.

Each card has a casting cost, so you’ll need to consider which ones to play in a given moment and the order in which you do so. As such, it’s a slower-paced, more strategic take on the original game, albeit with a similar level of visual chaos should you put together a particularly powerful build. 

I've played a ton of Vampire Survivors and the Vampire Crawlers demo lured me in too. Its approach to turn-based battles is working for me. I've only played a little of the full game so far, but there's every chance I could lose days of my life to it.

Vampire Crawlers — from Survivors creator Poncle and co-developer Nosebleed Interactive — is available now on Steam (for PC and Mac), Xbox for PC, Xbox Series X/S, PS5 and Nintendo Switch for $10. It's included with Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass. 

Fable creator Peter Molyneux and his studio 22cans are back with another god game. In Masters of Albion, you can construct and modify settlements as a literal hand of god. You'll design buildings (which are immediately constructed and usable) and manage workers. You can also assume control of a human or animal in the world to take on quests and hunt for treasure.

There's a tower defense element to this as well. You'll need to prepare your towns from nighttime attacks from various creatures. You can fend off these foes as the god or battle them on the ground as a hero. There's a lot going on here, but perhaps my favorite part is this apparent warning in the mature content description section of the Steam page: "Players are also able to use crude, adult hand gestures at will in the game." Yes, that means you can flip the bird while playing as the god hand. Yes, I am very mature.

Masters of Albion is now available in early access on Steam. It typically costs $25, but there's a 10 percent discount until April 29.

Snap & Grab caught our attention at last summer's edition of the Day of the Devs showcase. This is a cartoonish heist game in which you'll carry out your robberies in two parts. You play as Nifty, a famous fashion photographer. In the setup phase, you'll take advantage of your position to take snaps of loot, threats and opportunities and then use those to construct a plan. With the help of some henchman, you'll then try to execute the heist. 

The game’s developer No Goblin is taking an episodic approach to Snap & Grab as it's releasing the game in five parts over the course of this year. The first episode is available now on Steam (usually $8, though there's a 10 percent discount until May 1).

Snow Day Software's follow-up to Indoor Kickball is Indoor Baseball. It's an arcade game in which you play baseball inside buildings, funnily enough. You'll play 1v1 matches against the CPU or a friend in local multiplayer. You can also dive into a 14-game season or check out the story mode, in which you'll try to play your way back onto your school's baseball team (and maybe do some chores to make up for smashing too many things at home).

There are several different levels, each of which has a variety of ways for you to make a home run, from smashing a window to landing the ball in a toilet. It seems light and fun and as a burgeoning baseball guy, I dig the idea of this one.

Indoor Baseball is available now on Steam, Xbox for PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS5 and Nintendo Switch. It costs $15.

Upcoming 

I love Another Crab's Treasure very much and so I'll always be interested in whatever Aggro Crab is up to. Given that the studio also co-developed the smash hit Peak (alongside Landfall), I imagine many other folks feel the same way.

Crashout Crew is another multiplayer game from Aggro Crab. This one adopts the chaotic co-op formula of games like Overcooked. As a team of forklift drivers, you and your buds will work together to fill orders in warehouses while dealing with obstacles like blackouts, cacti, fire and bees.

It's coming to Steam, Xbox on PC and Xbox Series X/S on May 28. It'll be available on Game Pass on day one.

I'm very much here for slice-of-life games based around soccer (I still need to play Despelote!). Kick is another such title. This is a side-scrolling, anime-inspired game from solo developer nospacelost and publisher Shoreline Games, in which you dribble a ball as you make your way to school.

There are 23 levels with people to dodge and obstacles to overcome. You'll need to avoid damaging anything as you try to pull off tricks by kicking the ball at the correct angle, all while making sure you get to class on time (you can switch off the timer for a more relaxed experience). It looks pretty, and it never hurts a game's prospects to have a pup accompanying the main character.

No release date for Kick has been announced. It's coming to Steam at some point.

Elfie: A Sand Plan is a cozy sandcastle building game from Pressed Elephant and Sol's Atelier. There are more than 180 levels in which you'll build sand sculptures to match what Elfie, a small elephant, has in mind. There are three difficulty levels too.

It looks cute and I adore elephants (oops, I just started fostering another one), so I'm interested in checking it out. Elfie: A Sand Plan is coming to Steam for PC and Mac on May 12. It'll cost $7, and there'll be a 10 percent launch discount.

It took the team at Realmsoft 14 years to bring Clockwork Ambrosia to fruition and if this latest trailer is any indication, that long development cycle could have well been worthwhile. This is a side-scrolling action platformer in which you can customize half a dozen weapons using more than 150 modifiers. 

You play as an airship engineer who tries to survive on a steampunk island full of aggressive robots and creatures following a crash. I really dig the art direction here, which features lush hand-drawn pixel art and lovely animations. Realmsoft made the game using a custom engine the team built from scratch.

I'm looking forward to checking out Clockwork Ambrosia. It's coming to Steam on May 12.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/OxklTfe

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/OxklTfe

Engadget Podcast: Tim Cook’s Apple era and what lies ahead for John Ternus

The Apple rumors were true, once again. This week, the company announced that Tim Cook will be stepping down from his CEO role on September 1. Replacing him will be John Ternus, who currently serves as Apple's SVP of hardware engineering. In this episode, Devindra and Engadget's Nathan Ingraham discuss Cook's legacy as Apple's CEO, and pontificate about how Ternus may change things. We're going from Apple being led by a logistics guru, to Apple being driven by a product and engineering wizard. Surely, that will have some impact on future products.

Subscribe!

• iTunes

• Spotify

• Pocket Casts

• Stitcher

• Google Podcasts

Topic

• Tim Cook to step down as Apple CEO after 15 years, John Ternus will take his place on September 1 – 1:22

• Palantir woke up last Saturday morning and posted a comic book villain manifesto on X – 26:01

• DHS wants to make facial recognition smart glasses for ICE – 31:53

• A lot of people panic bought PCs to avoid RAMageddon – 36:25

• Meta faces a new lawsuit over running ads for outright scams –

• Employees at Meta will have they keystrokes and mouse moves recorded for AI training – 40:10

• Xbox Game Pass Ultimate price goes down, but it won’t include Call of Duty – 44:55

• Around Engadget: a great (expensive) Dyson vac with a silly name – 49:15

• Working on – 51:58

• Pop culture picks – 52:55

Credits

Hosts : Devindra Hardawar and Nathan Ingraham
Producer: Ben Ellman
Music: Dale North and Terrence O’Brien

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/uDmLZkN

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/uDmLZkN

The Morning After: Polymarket and a hairdryer

Although it’s one of the more inoffensive topics on Polymarket, this news typifies the Wild West of prediction markets and betting sites. A hairdryer was allegedly used to rig Polymarket bets on temperatures at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, according to a report by The Telegraph. French authorities noted that the official temperature readings at the airport spiked twice in the past month. On both occasions, gamblers betting on those temperature fluctuations on Polymarket appear to have walked away with thousands upon thousands of dollars.

There is no indication that Polymarket forced anyone to return winnings, but the temperature sensor has been moved to a new location. The site is also still running bets on the daily temperature in and around Paris.

In a more serious development, a US soldier was arrested for allegedly making over $400,000 on Polymarket using information he had about the plans to capture the former Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro.

Gannon Ken Van Dyke was arrested and charged with using classified military information to place bets on the prediction marketplace Polymarket. Van Dyke created a Polymarket account around December 26, 2025, and made 13 bets related to Maduro from December 27 to January 2.

The soldier has also been charged with one count of wire fraud, carrying a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, and one count of unlawful monetary transaction, carrying a maximum sentence of 10 years. It’s a lot heavier than hairdryer shenanigans.

— Mat Smith

The other big stories (and deals) this morning

• Here’s to the stable ones: In praise of Tim Cook

• Meta is downsizing by about 10 percent

• Hey Meta workers, are you getting paid for those keystrokes?

• Apple TV’s upcoming For All Mankind spinoff Star City oozes Cold War-era paranoia

---

DJI Lito 1 and Lito X1 drone review

High-quality aerial video at its most affordable.

Engadget

DJI is taking another stab at the budget drone market with the new Lito series. The Lito 1 and Lito X1 are both under $400 and weigh less than 249 grams — they’re ideal for beginners. Both replace DJI’s Mini series, but they offer things those models lacked, like LiDAR and 360-degree obstacle avoidance. After testing both models, I believe they offer unbeatable value and performance at these prices, by a long shot. However, due to DJI’s standing in the US, you might not see either.

Continue reading.

Xbox cuts Game Pass prices

But new Call of Duty games will no longer hit the service at launch.

Activision

As suggested by recent comments by the new boss of Xbox, Microsoft’s gaming arm is cutting the prices of both Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass, effective immediately, but there’s one big caveat. New Call of Duty games will no longer be available on Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass on day one. They’ll eventually hit those tiers about a year later, during the following holiday season.

Continue reading.

Accessory maker Anker made its own AI chip

Of course it did.

Anker, of battery-pack and cable fame, has announced its own AI chip that it will integrate into its future headphones and other devices. The company is planning to debut the chip, called Thus, on a new model of headphones to be unveiled at its Anker Day event in May.

Anker’s Thus chip integrates computing power directly into NOR flash memory cells, which offer faster read speeds than NAND. Anker says headphones are a particularly challenging environment to demonstrate what a new chip can do because “hardly any other device places higher demands on an AI chip.” Anker announced one particular feature to showcase its silicon. Clear Calls will cancel noise “with a large neural network running entirely on the device, supported by eight MEMS microphones and two bone conduction sensors.”

Continue reading.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/jBuUJnp

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/jBuUJnp

Porsche's new Cayenne Turbo Coupé Electric can do 0-60 mph in 2.5 seconds

Porsche has announced an electric version of its popular Cayenne Coupé and it could be the company's most powerful vehicle ever — either ICE or electric. Mechanically, the Cayenne Coupé Electric is nearly identical to the Cayenne Electric but the body is substantially sleeker for improved range and performance. 

While the front end of the Coupé looks much the same as the Cayenne Electric, the back is giving off BMW X-series vibes in a big way. Porsche says that bulbous rear makes the new model more aerodynamic and thus efficient, with a drag coefficient of just 0.23. It also sits nearly an inch lower than the standard SUV for a more race-ready look. It can haul four adults and comes with a 3.2 cubic foot frunk. 

Porsche

There are three versions: the Cayenne Coupé Electric, Cayenne S Coupé Electric and Cayenne Turbo Coupé Electric. All use the same 800-volt architecture that allows charging speeds up to 400 kW, for a 10-80 percent recharge in 16 minutes under ideal conditions. With a 113 kWh battery, range is estimated at 415 miles in the WLTP cycle, which equates to about 350 miles under EPA conditions. 

The main difference between the models is power. The base Cayenne Electric model produces a mere 408 hp (442 hp with overboost), while the Cayenne S takes that up to 544 hp (666 hp with overboost). However, the Cayenne Turbo Electric cranks things up to deranged with 857 hp (1,156 hp overboosted), letting you bring three guests and their cargo from 0-60 mph in just 2.5 seconds and hit a top speed of 162 mph.

Porsche

The interior is bound to have a bit less room than the regular Cayenne Electric due to the sloping roofline, but Porsche made things comfortable and high-tech. It comes with an optional electrochromic panoramic roof with adjustable tint and power operated doors, along with a choice of trims including leather upholstery. Physical controls are married with digital interfaces and a screen that stretches from the left edge of the middle console to the passenger side vent. As with other recent lux vehicles, it offers customizable graphics, an AR heads-up display and personalized app integration. 

Debuting at this year's Beijing Auto Show, the Cayenne Coupé Electric starts at $113,800 (minus the $2,350 delivery fee), while the base Cayenne S Coupe Electric is $131,200 and the Cayenne Turbo Coupe Electric costs $168,000. For a luxury sport electric SUV with 350 miles of range and 1,156 hp, that's actually... not bad? After all, you can easily pay six figures for a kitted-out Ford F-150 these days. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/pd9MUc8

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/pd9MUc8

DJI Lito 1 and Lito X1 drone review: High-quality aerial video at its most affordable

Chinese hackers using compromised networks to spy on Western companies, says Five Eyes

Companies urged to take countermeasures as Chinese hacking groups use networks of infected home and office devices ‘at scale’ to evade security monitoring systems

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/CK20Vt3

AI adoption is rapid but many stuck at basic levels, says AWS

The UK could unlock £35bn of productivity – equivalent to the economy of Manchester – if organisations can move from basic use of AI to productive, often agentic, modes of working

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/IyOThF8

Musk pledges to fix 2019-2023 Teslas that can't fully self drive

Tesla still doesn’t have a solid pathway for how to give Hardware 3 cars Full Self-Driving (FSD) capabilities, based on what Elon Musk said during the company’s latest earnings call. The automaker has known for quite a while that its vehicles equipped with Hardware 3 aren’t capable of unsupervised FSD, even though the company built the system specifically to give its cars the ability. Tesla used Hardware 3 on cars manufactured from 2019 until early 2023 before Hardware 4 shipped.

During an earlier earnings call back in January 2025, Musk admitted that the company was “going to have to upgrade people’s Hardware 3 computer for those that have bought Full Self-Driving.” At Tesla’s latest earnings call, Musk said that Hardware 3 “simply does not have the capability to achieve unsupervised FSD.” Tesla thought it would be able to at one point, but Hardware 3 apparently has 1/8th the memory bandwidth of Hardware 4. Musk explained that memory bandwidth is “one of the key elements” needed for unsupervised FSD.

Tesla will be offering to upgrade and replace the computers and cameras on older vehicles, but it doesn’t have a concrete plan in place yet. “I do think over time it’s going to make sense for us to convert all Hardware 3 cars to Hardware 4,” he said. To do so at service centers would be extremely slow, Musk has admitted. Around 4 million cars or so have Hardware 3, though not everyone has paid for FSD. Still, to be able to replace its vehicles’ hardware efficiently, Musk said Tesla is going to have to set up “microfactories or small factories in major metropolitan areas.” He didn’t give any indication that Tesla has already started building those microfactories, though, or even that construction is already scheduled to begin. He did say that in the meantime, the company is going to be releasing FSD version 14 for Hardware 3 around the end of June.

Musk also said during the same earnings call that Tesla’s Fremont factory will start manufacturing the company’s humanoid Optimus robots in late July or August. The Tesla CEO is known for announcing highly optimistic and aggressive timelines. Tesla made the decision to kill off its Model X and S cars earlier this year, so that it can convert its Fremont facility into an Optimus factory. The last Model S and X vehicles will be rolling off the production line in May, which gives the company just a few months to dismantle the facility’s current equipment and put new ones in place.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/2pqX1Bu

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/2pqX1Bu

A tsunami of flaws: When frontier AI and Patch Tuesday collide

Microsoft’s April Patch Tuesday drop was the second-largest in history, falling just shy of an October 2025 record. What is behind the spike in vulnerability disclosures, and is there a connection to Anthropic’s bug-hunting Claude Mythos AI model?

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/RQePW3p

X finally adds custom timelines

Nikita Bier, X’s head of product, has announced the launch of custom timelines, which lets you curate what you see on your feed based on your topics of interest. He called the update “one of the biggest changes to X” and a ”huge undertaking” that took the team “many months” to develop. The feature lets you pin specific topics to your home tab, so you can switch from one to the other to see the latest discussions about your interests and hobbies.

Bier said that X’s custom timelines is “powered by Grok's understanding of every post with the algorithm's personalization.” You have 75 topics to choose from, including food, art, photography, business, finance, movies and TV. As you’d expect, the personalization aspect of the feature works better if it’s a topic you already engage with regularly. X’s new feature is similar to Bluesky’s and Threads’ custom feeds, which also allow you to pin topic-based timelines to the home screens of the apps, and which their users have been enjoying since 2023 and 2024, respectively.

At the moment, X’s custom timelines is still in its early access phase and is only available to Premium subscribers on iOS. It will be rolling out to Premium users on Android “very soon,” as well. Bier has also announced that X has released a tool to snooze topics on the For You tab. With the tool, you’ll be able to hide certain topics, such as politics or sports, for 24 hours from your feed. It’s now available for Premium users on iOS and the web.

Ladies and gentlemen, today we're launching one of our biggest changes to 𝕏

Introducing Custom Timelines

This feature allows you to pin a specific topic to your home tab. With support for over 75 topics, you can dive deep into your favorite niche on X.

It's powered by Grok's… pic.twitter.com/9jkIEXvubj

— Nikita Bier (@nikitabier) April 21, 2026

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/mOwn4UG

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/mOwn4UG

Anthropic is investigating 'unauthorized access' of its Mythos cybersecurity tool

Anthropic is investigating potential "unauthorized access" to its Claude Mythos model that has been touted for its ability to find cybersecurity flaws, the company told Bloomberg. A group gained access to the model through a third-party contractor portal and by using internet sleuthing tools, according to the report. However, the group is only interested in trying the models and not using them maliciously, according to a person familiar with the matter. 

"We're investigating a report claiming unauthorized access to Claude Mythos Previous through one of our third-party vendor environments," Anthropic said in a statement. 

The Claude Mythos Preview arrived earlier this month as part of "Project Glasswing" with significant fanfare. Anthropic limited the preview release to a small number of trusted test companies including Amazon, Microsoft, Apple and Cisco. Another was Mozilla, which said the model helped it find and patch 271 Firefox vulnerabilities. A growing number of banks and government agencies have been seeking access as well in order to safeguard their own systems. 

However, several unauthorized users (who reportedly have a private chat on Discord), supposedly gained access to Mythos through a developer portal and by making an educated guess as to where the model might be located. That same group may also have access to other unreleased Anthropic models, according to the report. 

The new Mythos model has gained notoriety of late for its supposed ability to sniff out security flaws in operating systems and internet browsers. This has prompted some skepticism among security researchers but also fear that AI-generated cyber attacks could become a "real threat," CTO of cloud security firm Edera Alex Zenla recently told Wired. Anthropic was recently designated as a "supply chain risk" by the US Department of Defense, but has been in talks with the Trump administration of late to have that label removed. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/RdYPJl7

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/RdYPJl7

Yelp's AI chatbot can now make your dinner reservation

Every business seems to think that its customers want more AI. Yelp is the latest to add more artificial intelligence tools. The review site has upgraded its Yelp Assistant, an agentic AI chatbot, to work across all of Yelp's categories. Yelp Assistant was initially launched in 2024 with a limited scope and then expanded in 2025.

With the latest update to its chatbot, Yelp Assistant can handle natural language queries for finding a specific local business. It can also be used to take some additional actions, such as making a restaurant reservation or ordering takeout. Yelp's spring product updates introduced new third-party integrations with Vagaro, ZocDoc and Calendly. Yelp Assistant can also use these integrated services for booking appointments in related fields. The chatbot now has a dedicated Assistant tab in the iOS and Android apps, and it can also be accessed directly from business pages for certain fields, such as restaurants and retail shops. Support for all business types and a desktop version are planned for later in 2026.

Other AI features coming to Yelp include a personalized home page on mobile and extra photo discovery tools.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/jU2FgwE

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/jU2FgwE

Middle East CIOs move from cloud-first to sovereign-first in a high-risk digital era

As artificial intelligence scales and regulatory pressure intensifies, resilience – not cost – is becoming the defining metric of enterprise technology strategy, says Nischal Kapoor, chief revenue officer at e& enterprise

from ComputerWeekly.com https://ift.tt/CSA5ta8

Homeland Security reportedly wants to develop smart glasses for ICE

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is reportedly developing smart glasses that could be used to collect intelligence on immigrants and US citizens, journalist Ken Klippenstein reported. The devices would help ICE agents identify "illegal aliens" from a distance by capturing video and comparing it to biometric data like facial recognition and walking gait, according to budget documents seen by Klippenstein. The DHS wants to deploy the "ICE Glasses" by September 2027. 

"The project will deliver innovative hardware, such as operational prototypes of smart glasses, to equip agents with real-time access to information and biometric identification capabilities in the field," the document states. The glasses could allow agents to compare observed subjects against existing biometric databases and identify them in real time during interactions. 

Such devices could help make surveillance of US residents "ubiquitous," according to the report. "It might be portrayed as seeking to identify illegal aliens on the streets, but the reality is that a push in this direction affects all Americans, particularly protestors," a DHS lawyer speaking on the condition of anonymity told Klippenstein. 

The deployment of such devices is worrying to civil liberty groups, particularly in light of recent law enforcement activities under the Trump administration. The FBI was reportedly directed by the Department of Justice to "compile a list of groups or entities" who demonstrate "anti-Americanism," according to a previous Klippenstein investigation. 

It's not the first time smart glasses have come up in reports about the DHS. An investigation by The Independent last month found that ICE and Border Patrol agents in six states were using Meta's AI smart glasses of their own accord, in possible violation of DHS rules. Congress has reportedly been notified of the DHS's Ice Glasses project but has yet to comment publicly. 

 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/DdGEWmb

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/DdGEWmb

The Mandalorian and Grogu director used Apple Vision Pro to preview the film in IMAX

Director Jon Favreau (Iron Man, The Jungle Book) hasn't been shy about embracing new technology for filmmaking. While producing The Mandalorian for Disney+, he was one of the first filmmakers to use ILM's massive LED screens, AKA "The Volume," to produce more realistic lighting and backgrounds on studio sets. For the feature film The Mandalorian and Grogu, which hits theaters May 22, Favreau recently revealed that he had Disney build an Apple Vision Pro app to preview its full IMAX scope during filming.

"So I'm making an IMAX movie, and I'm looking at a TV screen, and no matter how big your TV screen is it's not an IMAX screen," Favreau said in a recent episode of The Town podcast. "We built software so that I can pop on my Apple Vision Pro and be sitting in an IMAX movie theater and see the full aspect ratio when we're lining a shot up. And I can watch that take and see what people will see."

Favreau isn't the first director to use the Apple Vision Pro — Wicked filmmaker Jon Chu also used it to handle post-production work — but he's the first to specifically mention using the headset for IMAX production. That's still a relatively limited use case for the Apple Vision Pro, but it's one that could be useful to future filmmakers. With its large field of view and sharp micro-OLED screens, the Apple Vision Pro is one of the only ways to replicate the experience of watching a large IMAX screen at home. (The Meta Quest 3 comes in as a close second.)

In general, Favreau says he's more excited about using existing consumer technology in the filmmaking process than AI. He mentions using the Unreal Engine to previsualize special effects on The Mandalorian and his previous films, and he believes the quality from game engines could be good enough to make it into final productions down the line.

"This is what the animation industry has understood from the beginning," he said. "Get it right before you ever paint a cel."

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/KDoEFTf

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/KDoEFTf

GoPro’s Mission 1 camera series will start at $600

We heard all about GoPro's new action camera series last week, but the company is now unveiling the pricing across its Mission 1, Mission 1 Pro and Mission 1 Pro ILS cameras. The entry-level Mission 1 ($600) features GoPro's new 50-megapixel 1-inch sensor, which the company says will offer a major leap in image quality and low-light performance over the Hero 13 line. While largely looking the same as the Hero series (and still waterproof), the Mission 1 can record 8K video at 30fps and 4K at 120fps. It lacks the higher frame rates of the other Mission 1 cameras, but supports 10-bit GP-Log2 color and 32-bit float audio.

The Mission 1 Pro ($700) is the flagship fixed-lens model this year, aimed at the professional (or semi-pro) videographer. It has upgraded frame-rate capture to 8K at 60 fps and 4K at 240 fps, along with an extreme "burst" slow-motion mode that hits 960 fps at 1080p. It also captures 4:3 "Open Gate" recordings at 8K/30fps and 4K/120fps, covering the entire sensor area, enabling more versatile editing and cropping across different screen sizes, including vertical video.

Steve Dent for Engadget

Then there's the beastly Mission 1 Pro ILS (Interchangeable Lens System). It swaps the standard GoPro lens for a Micro Four Thirds (MFT) mount lens. It otherwise shares the same 1-inch sensor and high-speed 8K/60fps video specs as the Pro model. It also matches the Pro model's $700 price, with an additional $100 discount for GoPro subscribers. However, it won't be launching until Q3 2026.

All of the Mission 1 Series accessories will be available on a rolling basis beginning May 28, with GoPro's own wireless mic system (take note, Rode and DJI) priced at $160. If you preorder a Mission 1 or Mission 1 Pro directly from GoPro now, you'll get the point-and-shoot grip bundled for free. The company still doesn't have an official release date for the cameras.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/FcWlaQs

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/FcWlaQs

Beijing's robot half-marathon is back for its second year with far less embarassing results

To make up for an incredibly laughable inaugural event, Beijing is running back its humanoid robot half-marathon. Fortunately, the event that pits humanoid robots made by Chinese companies against each other across 13 miles went a lot smoother this year.

This year's half-marathon hosted more than 100 competitors, with first place going to Honor, better known for its smartphones, and its red-clad robot named Lightning. Living up to the name, the gold medalist finished the race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds. That's several minutes faster than the human record that was recently set by Uganda's Jacob Kiplimo last month.

Honor swept the other podium spots, with the important caveat that they all navigated the course autonomously, according to the state-sponsored television news agency CCTV. That's a massive improvement over last year, where the fastest time among 21 robots was achieved by Tiangong Ultra with a record of two hours and 40 minutes. Last year's event saw many of the bipedal robots receiving assistance from human operators who ran alongside them, as well as some comical mishaps, like falling at the starting line.

However, the BBC reported that around 40 percent of the robots competed autonomously this year, while the rest were remote-controlled. Despite the rapid improvements, this year's event still had its fair share of crashes, even from Honor's robots.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/gtRDQSw

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/gtRDQSw

Palantir posted a manifesto that reads like the ramblings of a comic book villain

In case you haven't gotten around to reading Palantir CEO Alex Karp and Nicholas W. Zamiska's 2025 book, The Technological Republic, (because why would you do that to yourself?), the company best known for supplying AI-driven defense and surveillance software to the likes of the US Army, ICE and NYPD shared a 1,000-word X post this weekend covering its main points. The entire thing is both bizarre and deeply concerning. "The ability of free and democratic societies to prevail requires something more than moral appeal,” one of the 22 points states. "It requires hard power, and hard power in this century will be built on software."

The book is billed as "a passionate call for the West to wake up to our new reality," and other excerpts in the social media post include assertions such as: "Free email is not enough. The decadence of a culture or civilization, and indeed its ruling class, will be forgiven only if that culture is capable of delivering economic growth and security for the public"; "National service should be a universal duty"; "The postwar neutering of Germany and Japan must be undone"; and "Some cultures have produced vital advances; others remain dysfunctional and regressive."

The statement criticizes the West’s resistance to "defining national cultures in the name of inclusivity," as well as the treatment of billionaires and the "ruthless exposure of the private lives of public figures." It's a lot to take in, and it should make crystal clear what Palantir stands for to anyone who somehow didn't already know. Here's the post, in full:

Because we get asked a lot.

The Technological Republic, in brief.

1. Silicon Valley owes a moral debt to the country that made its rise possible. The engineering elite of Silicon Valley has an affirmative obligation to participate in the defense of the nation.

2. We must rebel against the tyranny of the apps. Is the iPhone our greatest creative if not crowning achievement as a civilization? The object has changed our lives, but it may also now be limiting and constraining our sense of the possible.

3. Free email is not enough. The decadence of a culture or civilization, and indeed its ruling class, will be forgiven only if that culture is capable of delivering economic growth and security for the public.

4. The limits of soft power, of soaring rhetoric alone, have been exposed. The ability of free and democratic societies to prevail requires something more than moral appeal. It requires hard power, and hard power in this century will be built on software.

5. The question is not whether A.I. weapons will be built; it is who will build them and for what purpose. Our adversaries will not pause to indulge in theatrical debates about the merits of developing technologies with critical military and national security applications. They will proceed.

6. National service should be a universal duty. We should, as a society, seriously consider moving away from an all-volunteer force and only fight the next war if everyone shares in the risk and the cost.

7. If a U.S. Marine asks for a better rifle, we should build it; and the same goes for software. We should as a country be capable of continuing a debate about the appropriateness of military action abroad while remaining unflinching in our commitment to those we have asked to step into harm’s way.

8. Public servants need not be our priests. Any business that compensated its employees in the way that the federal government compensates public servants would struggle to survive.

9. We should show far more grace towards those who have subjected themselves to public life. The eradication of any space for forgiveness—a jettisoning of any tolerance for the complexities and contradictions of the human psyche—may leave us with a cast of characters at the helm we will grow to regret.

10. The psychologization of modern politics is leading us astray. Those who look to the political arena to nourish their soul and sense of self, who rely too heavily on their internal life finding expression in people they may never meet, will be left disappointed.

11. Our society has grown too eager to hasten, and is often gleeful at, the demise of its enemies. The vanquishing of an opponent is a moment to pause, not rejoice.

12. The atomic age is ending. One age of deterrence, the atomic age, is ending, and a new era of deterrence built on A.I. is set to begin.

13. No other country in the history of the world has advanced progressive values more than this one. The United States is far from perfect. But it is easy to forget how much more opportunity exists in this country for those who are not hereditary elites than in any other nation on the planet.

14. American power has made possible an extraordinarily long peace. Too many have forgotten or perhaps take for granted that nearly a century of some version of peace has prevailed in the world without a great power military conflict. At least three generations — billions of people and their children and now grandchildren — have never known a world war.

15. The postwar neutering of Germany and Japan must be undone. The defanging of Germany was an overcorrection for which Europe is now paying a heavy price. A similar and highly theatrical commitment to Japanese pacifism will, if maintained, also threaten to shift the balance of power in Asia.

16. We should applaud those who attempt to build where the market has failed to act. The culture almost snickers at Musk’s interest in grand narrative, as if billionaires ought to simply stay in their lane of enriching themselves . . . . Any curiosity or genuine interest in the value of what he has created is essentially dismissed, or perhaps lurks from beneath a thinly veiled scorn.

17. Silicon Valley must play a role in addressing violent crime. Many politicians across the United States have essentially shrugged when it comes to violent crime, abandoning any serious efforts to address the problem or take on any risk with their constituencies or donors in coming up with solutions and experiments in what should be a desperate bid to save lives.

18. The ruthless exposure of the private lives of public figures drives far too much talent away from government service. The public arena—and the shallow and petty assaults against those who dare to do something other than enrich themselves—has become so unforgiving that the republic is left with a significant roster of ineffectual, empty vessels whose ambition one would forgive if there were any genuine belief structure lurking within.

19. The caution in public life that we unwittingly encourage is corrosive. Those who say nothing wrong often say nothing much at all.

20. The pervasive intolerance of religious belief in certain circles must be resisted. The elite’s intolerance of religious belief is perhaps one of the most telling signs that its political project constitutes a less open intellectual movement than many within it would claim.

21. Some cultures have produced vital advances; others remain dysfunctional and regressive. All cultures are now equal. Criticism and value judgments are forbidden. Yet this new dogma glosses over the fact that certain cultures and indeed subcultures . . . have produced wonders. Others have proven middling, and worse, regressive and harmful.

22. We must resist the shallow temptation of a vacant and hollow pluralism. We, in America and more broadly the West, have for the past half century resisted defining national cultures in the name of inclusivity. But inclusion into what?

Excerpts from the #1 New York Times Bestseller The Technological Republic: Hard Power, Soft Belief, and the Future of the West, by Alexander C. Karp & Nicholas W. Zamiska

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/TdGIbeZ

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/TdGIbeZ

The next Mac Studio and MacBook Pro releases could be postponed by several months

Anyone looking to upgrade to the next Mac Studio or MacBook Pro might have to wait a little longer, thanks to the ongoing global memory shortage. As reported by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, "at least two of the company's upcoming machines ... could debut a little later than the company initially planned," referencing the refreshes to Apple's desktop and its laptop that's expected to get a touchscreen.

Bloomberg reported that the upcoming Mac Studio, which follows up the current lineup in the M4 Max and M3 Ultra configurations, was first expected to release in the middle of the year. However, Apple is already dealing with shortages of its existing Mac Studio stock, likely due to the device being a popular choice for anyone running local AI models. With no stop to the shortage in sight, Gurman predicted that the refreshed Mac Studio's release could be postponed to around October instead.

It's not just Apple's desktop offerings being affected. Gurman also reported that the release of the next MacBook Pro could be delayed. While Gurman said the release timeline of the touchscreen MacBook Pro could be between the end of 2026 to early 2027, he's now predicting that it would arrive toward the later end of that timeline. Of course, Apple isn't the only consumer tech company heavily affected by the RAM shortage. However, Apple can at least take advantage of its successful MacBook Neo release amidst the memory shortage crisis affecting all laptop makers.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/ukrdxmJ

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/ukrdxmJ

Tesla is rolling out its Robotaxi service to Dallas and Houston

Tesla is expanding its Robotaxi footprint across Texas by introducing availability in both Dallas and Houston. As announced in a post on X, the EV maker is rolling out its Robotaxis to small sections of the Texas cities, as detailed by two maps of its new service areas. 

The first Robotaxi rides started in Austin, Texas where Tesla is headquartered, but the service's launch was paired with a "Tesla Safety Monitor," or a supervising human in the passenger seat. Earlier this year, Tesla began to transition away from including safety monitors, leaving its Robotaxis to operate unsupervised and fully autonomous. In the latest announcement on X, Tesla also showed off a 360-degree panning shot with no safety monitor, but the company hasn't stated if its Dallas and Houston service will have in-car human supervision. It's worth nothing that Tesla previously admitted that some of its Robotaxis are sometimes driven remotely by human operators.

With the Robotaxi expansion into Dallas and Houston, Tesla is encroaching on Waymo's autonomous ride-hailing service that entered the same markets in February of this year. Looking ahead, Tesla is also targeting the Bay Area market in California for its Robotaxi expansion. While the company has received approvals to operate a ride-hailing service in California, it still doesn't have authorization for autonomous taxis in the state yet.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/yVfiZGq

from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/yVfiZGq