Illustration: The Verge Just one day after 404 Media revealed that HarperCollins struck a three-year AI training deal with an unnamed company, Bloomberg now says Microsoft will use the publisher’s content to train a not-yet-announced AI model. HarperCollins said in a statement to 404 Media that its deal will include “select nonfiction backlist titles” and … Read more
Image: Warner Bros. A Minecraft Movie has a new trailer giving us a taste at the kind of story moviegoers can expect. The trailer predominately features Jack Black as Steve, the silent protagonist players embody in Minecraft. In the trailer, Black’s Steve is way more chatty, giving us his backstory as a child who quite … Read more
Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images for Netflix © 2024 Despite widespread issues with video quality and buffering, Netflix’s live-streamed Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul boxing match brought in an average of 108 million viewers, based on TVision data in the US and first-party data in global markets. With 65 million concurrent streams, Netflix says the … Read more
Image: Aqara Aqara’s Smart Valve Controller T1 is now available, bringing an interoperable Matter-compatible valve controller option to the smart home for the first time. The $69.99 T1 connects to your water shutoff valve so you can operate it remotely or shut it off automatically when a leak is detected. The Aqara hub lets this … Read more
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Google has given us a glimpse at what’s coming in the next major version of Android. The first preview release for Android 16 is available for developers starting today, which expands the photo library and medical data-sharing capabilities in apps. A change moving Android’s release timeline forward was … Read more
The original Steam Controller, and a prototype that preceded it. | Image: Sean Hollister / The Verge Two years ago, Valve told The Verge it wanted a successor to its cult classic Steam Controller, whose incredibly customizable buttons and touchpads paved the way for the Steam Deck handheld PC. Now, Valve watcher Brad Lynch claims … Read more
Illustration: The Verge Google Gemini can now “remember” certain things about you, such as your interests and personal preferences. The change is rolling out to subscribers with access to Gemini Advanced, and it will allow the AI chatbot to tailor its responses based on your needs, according to Gemini’s most recent release notes. As noted … Read more
Minecraft could soon be coming to a theme park near you. UK theme park company Merlin Entertainments has announced the completion of a $110 million deal with developer Mojang to open Minecraft-themed attractions in the US and the UK. The attractions are planned to open in 2026 and 2027 and will either be new additions … Read more
Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Bose has acquired the high-end audio brand McIntosh — a move that Bose says will “significantly” expand its product lineup. The acquisition, which also includes McIntosh subsidiary Sonus faber, also “opens new opportunities in the automotive sector,” as both companies plan to work together to expand their in-car … Read more
Image: Netflix Netflix is releasing a documentary next month about Ilya “Dutch” Lichtenstein and Heather “Razzlekhan” Morgan called Biggest Heist Ever — and the company’s timing couldn’t be better, as Lichtenstein and Morgan, a married couple, were both recently sentenced to prison for laundering stolen Bitcoin that would now be worth more than $11 billion. … Read more
British automaker Jaguar is changing its branding for “a new era” as it prepares to fulfill its plan to go all-electric for its lineup, with the first new model slated to launch in 2026. The automaker has revealed a new logo that changes the font, spaces out the letters, and uses lowercase letters on everything … Read more
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images Google is tightening its rules against “parasite SEO” content, or articles and pages that often have little to do with the site’s focus but that exploit the website’s Google ranking. An example of parasite SEO content is a news blog that publishes online shopping coupon codes in … Read more
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge; Getty Image Brazil and the United Nations launched a new international effort to combat disinformation on climate change. They announced the Global Initiative for Information Integrity on Climate Change during the G20 Leaders’ Summit taking place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It’s a collaboration between governments and international organizations … Read more
Nanoleaf’s smart ceiling lights are exceptionally bright and deliver some cool lighting effects perfect for setting the mood. | Image: Nanoleaf If you want to brighten up your home as the days get darker, Nanoleaf’s ceiling lights will bring a bit of the sun in. Normally $249.99, right now you can buy the three-pack Nanoleaf … Read more
Image: Microsoft Microsoft is creating a new companions experience for the Windows 11 taskbar that will surface important data with just a click. Microsoft 365 Companions will include contacts and people, files, or calendar appointments integrated into the taskbar of Windows 11. “We will bring Microsoft 365 People, Files, and Calendar to your taskbar so … Read more
Photo: Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge The holidays are expensive, but they don’t have to be. From fitness trackers to smart speakers, here are the best gifts under $50. Continue reading…
Image: Sony Sony announced its new A1 II pro-focused mirrorless camera during today’s livestream from its Creative Space event in New York City. The camera has various speed and performance improvements over its predecessor, plus a fast new zoom lens to accompany it. The $6,499 A1 II sports a 50.1-megapixel full-frame stacked sensor that’s capable … Read more
Illustration: The Verge Right now, text highlighting is broken for anyone using recent Chromium-based browsers on some websites. The cause appears to be a change to selection styling that doesn’t play nicely with Tailwind CSS. We’ve noticed it on our site, and so have several people posting about the issue in threads on Github and … Read more
Image: Amazon Amazon Music Unlimited subscribers can now get one free audiobook per month — similar to the freebie Spotify started tossing Premium listeners last year. The perk is available to Music Unlimited subscribers in the US, Canada, and the UK, offering access to Audible’s library of more than 1 million audiobooks. Amazon says individual … Read more
Control. | Image: Remedy Entertainment We already knew that the supernatural thriller Control was getting a sequel, but now Remedy has provided some more details on the game. Well, one major detail: Control 2 will be an action RPG, seemingly deviating from the action-adventure template set by the original. The news came during an investors … Read more
Image by: The Verge; Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images for Netflix The Paul / Tyson fight on Friday was very popular. Netflix streamed it into more than 60 million households, which is a huge number for any TV event, much less a streaming-only one. Whether the whole thing went well, though, is another matter. The … Read more
The update will first come to the Galaxy Watch 6 before arriving on previous Wear OS models. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge There’s good news if you’ve got an older Samsung Galaxy Watch: the company announced today that it’s finally begun rolling out One UI 6 Watch to its older Wear … Read more
Image: Google Google is introducing a new feature to Google Lens that aims to give users more information about products when they’re shopping in physical stores. Starting today for Android and iOS users in the US, using the Google app to snap a picture of an item on store shelves will bring up detailed information … Read more
Image: Nuro In the wake of pivoting its business strategy to include robotaxis and driver assist, Nuro is taking its fully autonomous vehicles to new geographic areas. The California-based company, which currently operates a small fleet of driverless vehicles in California and Texas, said it would grow its operational design domain and expand the deployment … Read more
Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge There are all kinds of reasons you might want to record what’s happening on your Android screen, from capturing your gaming exploits to trying to explain to a family member how to fix a problem they’re having with their favorite app. And when you do need this function, … Read more
Illustration: The Verge Microsoft Teams meetings are getting a new interpreter feature that lets each participant speak or listen in the language of their choosing. Interpreter in Teams uses real-time AI-powered speech-to-speech translation to simulate your speaking voice during meetings. A preview will be available in early 2025 that will include up to nine languages, … Read more
Image: The Verge Ignite is Microsoft’s big event to sell the future of Windows, AI, and Office to its biggest customers. Continue reading…
Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photo from Getty Images Microsoft is creating an in-person hacking event, Zero Day Quest, which it says will be the largest of its kind. The event will build upon Microsoft’s existing bug bounty program, and incentivize research into high-impact security flaws that can affect the software powering … Read more
The Verge At Microsoft’s Ignite conference today the software giant is introducing Copilot Actions, a new way for Microsoft 365 Copilot users to automate repetitive tasks. Microsoft is also adding AI agents to SharePoint, allowing PowerPoint to translate entire presentations, and improving how Copilot works in Outlook to find the best time for meetings. Copilot … Read more
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The CrowdStrike catastrophe that took down 8.5 million Windows PCs and servers in July has left many of Microsoft’s biggest customers looking for answers to make sure that such an event never happens again. Now, Microsoft has some answers in the form of a new Windows Resiliency Initiative … Read more