The Verge

Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos from Getty Images All US federal agencies will now be required to have a senior leader overseeing all AI systems they use, as the government wants to ensure that AI use in the public service remains safe.Vice President Kamala Harris announced the new Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance in a briefing with reporters and said that agencies must also establish AI governance boards to coordinate how AI is used within the agency. Agencies will also have to submit an annual report to the OMB listing all AI systems they use, any risks associated with these, and how they plan on mitigating these risks.We have directed all federal agencies to designate a chief AI officer with the experience, expertise, and authority to oversee all AI technologies... Continue reading...

Image: Getty New York City announced a new permitting system for companies interested in testing autonomous vehicles on its roads, including a requirement that a human safety driver sit behind the steering wheel at all times.As cities like San Francisco continue to grapple with the problems posed by fully driverless for-hire vehicles, New York City is trying to get ahead of the problem by outlining what it calls a rigorous permitting program" that it claims will ensure applicants are ready to test their technology in the country's most challenging urban environment safely and proficiently."This technology is coming whether we like it or not," Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement to The Verge, so we're going to make sure that we get it right."... Continue reading...

The Dbrand Ghost Case for the iPhone 15 Pro. | Image: Dbrand Dbrand is scrapping plans to fix its anti-yellowing Ghost Case, but not because it yellows - it's that it scratches very easily. The company had promised in November to ship free replacements with scratch-resistant coatings, but now it's telling customers via email they'll have to wait. Most of its production run of those ended up unshippable," the company says, so instead it's sending a redesigned Ghost 2.0" this summer. Essentially, it's a delay.The company says that its first test runs of the newly-coated cases looked good, but when it tried to manufacture them at scale, the coatings got all gloppy at the edges:

Image: Exputer Microsoft appears to be readying a white version of its Xbox Series X console without a disc drive. Exputer has published a series of leaked images of the white Xbox Series X, showing that it's a disc-less system with the same design on the exterior as the existing black Xbox Series X.The white coating appears to be identical to the Xbox Series S robot white" that Microsoft uses on its smaller $299 console. Exputer reports that this white Xbox Series X will have some internal components upgraded, including the heatsink used to cool the console. The Verge has seen additional documents detailing changes to this white Xbox Series X that suggest these leaked photos are genuine, but we've reached out to Microsoft to comment.Exputer claimed... Continue reading...

Oregon joins Minnesota, California, and New York in giving consumers and repair shops more control over device repairs. | Image: iFixit Oregon Governor Tina Kotek has now signed one of the strongest US right-to-repair bills into law after it passed the state legislature several weeks ago by an almost 3-to-1 margin. Oregon's SB 1596 will take effect next year, and, like similar laws introduced in Minnesota and California, it requires device manufacturers to allow consumers and independent electronics businesses to purchase the necessary parts and equipment required to make their own device repairs.Oregon's rules, however, are the first to ban parts pairing" - a practice manufacturers use to prevent replacement components from working unless the company's software approves them. These protections also prevent manufacturers from using parts pairing to reduce device... Continue reading...

The red Snapdragon X Elite reference design laptop Qualcomm used to show off the games. | Image: Qualcomm If you read my scoop last week, I bet you've been wondering - how well could a Snapdragon chip actually run Windows games? At the 2024 Game Developers Conference, the company claimed Arm could run those titles at close to x86/64 speed, but how fast is fast?With medium-weight games like Control and Baldur's Gate 3, it looks like the target might be: 30 frames per second at 1080p screen resolution, medium settings, possibly with AMD's FSR 1.0 spatial upscaling enabled.That's what Qualcomm has apparently been showing influencers, according to numerous videos from YouTubers, TikTokers, and Snapdragon Insiders," many of which were uploaded over the past week after they flew down to Qualcomm's San Diego headquarters for the company's ... Continue reading...

The first-gen Superlight isn't the latest model, but it remains a standout gaming mouse at $60 off. | Image: Logitech These days, there are ample options to consider when choosing a gaming mouse - we should know, having put together a detailed guide to some of the best available. That said, not everyone needs the latest and greatest gaming peripherals, which makes the current discount on the slightly older Logitech G Pro X Superlight all the more appealing. Right now, the first-gen mouse is on sale at Best Buy in white for an all-time low of $99.99 ($60 off) and in black at Amazon for $109.95 (about $50 off).Logitech's original G Pro X Superlight was designed as a step-down version of Logitech's popular G Pro Wireless. It's not the company's most advanced mouse - that would be the newer Superlight 2 - but the right-handed mouse remains a great option... Continue reading...

Photo by Ronald Martinez / Getty Images This is Hot Pod, The Verge's newsletter about podcasting and the audio industry. Sign up here for more.Hello! I know many of you are in LA for Podcast Movement Evolutions. I am not, so feel free to reach out with gossip.Today, New York Magazine publishes a polarizing profile of podcast star Andrew Huberman, Slate takes home the award for Podcast of the Year, and Bill Maher launches a new network.New York Magazine publishes lengthy feature on Andrew Huberman and his messy personal lifeI don't begrudge you if you haven't had the time to read New York Magazine's 8,000-word cover story on Andrew Huberman. While much of the piece focuses on how he juggled multiple affairs as he was in a long-term relationship (spoiler: all the women... Continue reading...

Illustration: The Verge Now, shoppers using Google's mobile website or apps can refine their searches with tools designed to help them narrow down exactly what kind of jacket or other item they're looking for. The Style Recommendations feature is rolling out now for signed-in shoppers in the US, and it lets users rate items in their searches so it can pick up on their preferences, kind of like Tinder or Netflix ratings but with shirts.After they've found clothes they like, shoppers can specify the brands they like, which will instantly bring up more apparel from those selections. Image: Google Google's new shopping feature lets people swipe on their favorite styles. Google previously tested AI tools that help people find more of... Continue reading...

Image: Polestar The Polestar 4 is going on sale next month, and when it does, the price will be slightly different than the electric crossover coupe was originally announced.Last year, Polestar said the 4 would start at around $60,000. Today, the Swedish (by way of China) automaker is adjusting that starting price down to $56,300 (including a $1,400) destination charge) for the long-range single-motor rear-wheel drive version. Meanwhile, a dual-motor Polestar 4 with standard Pilot pack will start at $63,400 (also including the destination charge).The Polestar 4 will go into production starting late April, with the first customer deliveries expected in the fourth quarter of the year.This follows Polestar also announcing the price of its upcoming... Continue reading...

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The question of who gets to regulate crypto has some answers, as a judge has ruled the Securities and Exchange Commission's securities lawsuit against Coinbase can continue. US District Judge Katherine Polk Failla ruled that under federal securities laws, the SEC has sufficiently pleaded that Coinbase operates as an exchange, as a broker, and as a clearing agency under the federal securities laws, and, through its Staking Program, engages in the unregistered offer and sale of securities."Despite arguments from some in the crypto community that existing laws are inadequate, the judge rejected those claims directly, writing, The crypto' nomenclature may be of recent vintage, but the challenged transactions fall comfortably within the... Continue reading...

Image: Funcom A survival game based in the world of Dune makes an awful lot of sense. Both the books and movies spend a lot of time explaining the mechanics of surviving on the harsh desert world of Arrakis, which made me pretty curious to learn more about Dune: Awakening during a recent hands-off gameplay preview from developer Funcom. The MMO does a lot of the standard survival stuff, as you craft gear, harvest resources, and explore dungeons. But what makes it interesting are the parts that are Dune-specific. That means forcing players to think a lot about water, heat, spice, and - of course - sandworms.The game puts you in the role of a prisoner aboard a transport ship that crashes onto the surface of Arrakis. Funcom is keeping the story largely... Continue reading...

Image: OnLeaks / 91Mobiles Google plans to shake up its smartphone strategy in 2024 by releasing three different models of the upcoming Pixel 9. That's according to 91mobiles, with the site now claiming that the renders published earlier this year (created by OnLeaks) were in fact of the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL" - and not the regular Pixel 9, which it's sharing for the first time in new images today.Google used the XL branding for its bigger Pixels until around 2019, but it went away with the one-size Pixel 5 and stayed gone when the company pivoted to the Pro" name starting in 2021. Now it sounds like Google will follow more of an iPhone strategy and split the Pro tier into two different sizes, and resurrecting the XL moniker makes sense in that case.T... Continue reading...

Affinity says subscriptions will only ever be as an option alongside the perpetual model, for those who prefer it." | Illustration: The Verge After Canva's acquisition of Affinity design software sparked concern regarding the future of its one-time purchase pricing model, both companies are now promising that users won't be forced into subscribing to the service - ever.On Wednesday, Canva and Affinity published a joint pledge promising to keep Affinity software fair, transparent, and affordable," including the perpetual licenses that have made Affinity special."Affinity's design software suite is considered to be one of the few viable alternatives to Adobe's subscription-based Creative Cloud software like Photoshop and Illustrator. When the Canva acquisition was announced on Tuesday, Affinity users locked in on some vague FAQ wording that said the Affinity pricing model... Continue reading...

Same Disney Plus, new logo. | Image: Disney Disney has been hinting at some big changes in the Disney Plus branding. In recent days, lots of users checked their TV, tablet, or phone to find the streaming app had a new logo - the iconic Disney blue replaced by a glowing green background. The new logo has been controversial: some people see it as a needless simplification of a familiar design; some people appreciate that it doesn't look like every other streaming service; some people find themselves wondering if the color really changed or if they've just been looking at their TV wrong all this time.Well, it did change. Permanently. That new green color is called Aurora," both in tribute to the aurora borealis and the protagonist of Sleeping Beauty. (I don't remember much of this... Continue reading...

It's Hulu. In Disney Plus. | Image: Disney As of today, Hulu is part of Disney Plus. Hulu still exists - it still even has its own app - but it's also being bundled into Disney's primary streaming service alongside all the company's other content. Even the Disney Plus logo changed to integrate that iconic green Hulu hue.From a product perspective, the Hulu integration is roughly what you'd imagine. Hulu is now a tile inside the app, next to Marvel and Pixar and National Geographic and the rest. The price hasn't changed; it's still US-only, and the app's not going away. Hulu shows and movies will also show up in search results and recommendations; if you're subscribed to Hulu, you'll get everything seamlessly, and if you're not, the app will try to convince you to sign up.... Continue reading...

Photo by Justin Sullivan / Getty Images Independent presidential candidate and notable anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has tapped Nicole Shanahan, a wealthy Silicon Valley lawyer, as his running mate. Shanahan previously contributed $4 million to Kennedy's super PAC, helping to bankroll a 30-second campaign ad during this year's Super Bowl.Shanahan, who was formerly married to Google co-founder Sergey Brin, has donated heavily to Democratic candidates in the past. In the campaign announcement speech, Kennedy called his running mate exactly the right person," as someone who shared my passion for wholesome healthy foods, chemical-free for regenerative agriculture, for good soils." He called her a technologist at the forefront of AI" who uses neural nets" to... Continue reading...

Image: Microsoft Intel, Microsoft, Qualcomm, and AMD have all been pushing the idea of an AI PC" for months now as we head toward more AI-powered features in Windows. While we're still waiting to hear the finer details from Microsoft on its big plans for AI in Windows, Intel has started sharing Microsoft's requirements for OEMs to build an AI PC - and one of the main ones is that an AI PC must have Microsoft's Copilot key.Microsoft wants its OEM partners to provide a combination of hardware and software for its idea of an AI PC. That includes a system that comes with a Neural Processing Unit (NPU), the latest CPUs and GPUs, and access to Copilot. It will also need to have the new Copilot key that Microsoft announced earlier this year. ... Continue reading...

Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos from Getty Images Productivity platform Airtable is bringing generative AI summaries, categorization, and translation to all of its users with the general availability of Airtable AI.Companies like Microsoft and Google have integrated AI features into their productivity offerings. But a recent survey from Slack, which also has AI features now available, found that most office workers use generative AI mainly for summarization and writing help. The new features would make Airtable the latest platform to see generative AI's potential as a productivity tool that can generate content based on information companies have on their workspaces.Airtable, already a repository of workflow data for its users, makes a good case study for AI as a productivity... Continue reading...

The all-electric SUV set a new record as the first globe-trotting EV. | Image: Ford Ford neglected to share the maximum range of its newest all-electric Explorer when it announced the Europe-only EV last year. We've gotten those details today, however, in an announcement Ford made detailing specs and availability. It came alongside word that it's set a new world record with renowned traveler Lexie Alford as the first to circumnavigate the globe with an electric vehicle.The Explorer EV's 375-mile range (602km) is above average for the American automaker and impressive for an SUV in general, even if it's calculated using the EU's more forgiving WLTP formula for testing and calculating total range. For comparison's sake, the company's all-electric F-150 Lightning tops out around 265 miles under the same testing standard.... Continue reading...

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Audible will co-develop and co-produce TV shows adapted from original podcasts and audiobooks with Amazon MGM Studios that it can pitch to Prime Video and MGM Plus, as well as buyers outside of Amazon. The news was first reported by Variety.Adapting recognizable podcast IP with a built-in audience is usually a safe bet for Hollywood. Chris Morrow, the head of audio at the production company Plan B, which signed a multi-project development with Audible last year, noted to The Verge that the goal was to use audio to help launch IP, and then ultimately find new life for it as scripted features or scripted documentaries."A number of originals from both of Amazon Music's podcast properties, Audible and Wondery, have turned into TV shows... Continue reading...

Photo by Perry Knotts / Getty Images The NFL will hold its first regular-season game in Sao Paulo, Brazil, later this year - but you'll need a Peacock subscription to tune in. Peacock will exclusively air the game on Friday, September 6th, featuring the Philadelphia Eagles and a not-yet-named opponent.This marks the third football game to stream only on Peacock, as the streaming service previously aired an NFL playoff match last January. It also aired an AFC Wild Card game last year that it says was the most-streamed event ever in the US."Peacock has other big games lined up, too, but it will stream them alongside NBC. There's the NFL kickoff game on September 5th, a Big Ten Saturday Night game on September 7th, and the season's first NFL Sunday Night Football game on... Continue reading...

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Microsoft is starting to preview mouse and keyboard support for Xbox Cloud Gaming today. Xbox Insiders will be able to start playing with their mouse and keyboard in Edge, Chrome, or the Xbox app on Windows PCs, nearly two years after Microsoft announced it was preparing to add mouse and keyboard support to its Xbox Cloud Gaming (xCloud) service.Not every game will be supported during the preview, but there's a large selection, including Fortnite, Sea of Thieves, and Halo Infinite. Microsoft warns that some games will display controller UI elements briefly before adapting to mouse and keyboard input after you start interacting with the game.If you're interested in trying games with mouse and keyboard in the browser version of Xbox... Continue reading...

Adobe is courting enterprise customers with its new GenStudio platform. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Adobe has announced a new AI-powered ad creation platform that aims to make it easier to use the company's generative AI tools for building marketing campaigns. The new GenStudio application was introduced on Tuesday during Adobe's Summit event, alongside an AI assistant for Adobe Experience and updates around Adobe's Firefly generative AI model.GenStudio effectively serves as a centralized hub for promotional campaigns, providing things like brand kits, copy guidance, and preapproved assets alongside a bunch of generative AI-powered tools that can generate backgrounds and ensure the overall tone remains on-brand. These tools also allow users to quickly create ads for emails and social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and... Continue reading...

The Wyze Cam v4. | Image: Wyze You might think twice before buying a Wyze camera. The company's security practices are questionable enough that I personally boycotted them in 2022, and since then, they've twice briefly let strangers peek into another Wyze owner's home. In fact, The New York Times and CNET don't recommend Wyze cameras anymore, and we haven't done so for a while.But some Verge readers have told us that if you're pointing them outside of your home and recording to a local SD card, there's no better bang for your buck. So, we figure some will appreciate Wyze's announcement today of the Wyze Cam v4, on sale now.The $36 camera is getting a big spec bump over the v3: it now captures 2.5K (2560 x 1440) video with what Wyze is sometimes calling HDR and... Continue reading...

Image: The Verge Google is releasing an optimized version of its Chrome browser for Windows on Arm this week, the search giant has announced alongside chipmaker Qualcomm. The official release comes two months after an early version of the browser was spotted in Chrome's Canary channel. Qualcomm says the release will roll out starting today."The release will be a big deal for any Chrome users with Windows machines powered by Arm-based processors, who'll now have access to a much faster native browser. That's in contrast to the x64 version of Chrome they've previously had to run in an emulated state with slow performance. Arm-based users have previously been able to turn to Microsoft's Edge, which is already available for Windows on Arm devices.Today's... Continue reading...

Photo by Larina Marina, Getty Images People bought 43 million vinyl records last year, according to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). That's 6 million more than the number of CDs sold in 2023, marking the second time since 1987 that's happened and reflecting the steady 17-year-running growth of vinyl sales.Vinyl, which tends to be pricier than the newer format, also far outstripped CDs in actual money made, raking in $1.4 billion compared to $537 million from CDs. The RIAA's report shows that CD revenue was up, too, but in terms of physical products sold, people actually bought about 700,000 fewer CDs in 2023 than the year before. (If you're curious, nearly half a million cassettes sold last year, too, according to Billboard.) Image:... Continue reading...

Lake Mead, formed by Hoover Dam on the Colorado River in the Southwestern United States, at 47 percent capacity as viewed on August 14, 2023 near Boulder City, Nevada. | Photo by George Rose/Getty Images The amount of hydropower generated in the Western US last year was the lowest it's been in more than two decades. Hydropower generation in the region fell by 11 percent during the 2022-2023 water year compared to the year prior, according to preliminary data from the Energy Information Administration's Electricity Data Browser - its lowest point since 2001.That includes states west of the Dakotas and Texas, where 60 percent of the nation's hydropower was generated. These also happen to be the states - including California, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico - that climate change is increasingly sucking dry. And in a reversal of fortunes, typically wetter states in the Northeast - normally powerhouses for hydropower generation - were the... Continue reading...

The Verge Microsoft is improving the way its AI-powered Copilot works in Microsoft Teams with new ways to invoke the assistant during meeting chats, summaries, and more.Copilot is already able to summarize Teams meetings, but in the coming months, it will combine spoken transcripts and written chats into a single view to make it easier to catch up on meetings you might have missed.Copilot in Teams is also getting improvements to composing messages in chat, allowing Teams users to rewrite a message in new ways. Copilot can adjust your message to add a call to action, or like how a pirate would speak," says Microsoft in a blog post. Soon, you will also be able to generate a new message based on the context in the Teams chat." I... Continue reading...

Image: Capcom The sequel to Capcom's action RPG is big and chaotic, but the companion characters are what make it all work. Continue reading...

Image: The Verge / Photo courtesy of University of Washington The world is a noisy place. High-end headphones are getting better at shutting it out; solid noise-canceling headphones from Sony, Bose, and others are increasingly a must-have for anyone who spends a lot of time on planes and trains, or in coffee shops full of people pitching AI startups. It's a sanity thing, really.But there are already people working on a giant leap in active noise cancellation. Instead of just blocking all the sound around you, the next generation of headphones might block all the sound you don't want - but let in all the things you do want to hear. And someday, it might even be able to do that automatically. Your headphones could block out your annoying friend but not your cool friend; could hush the vacuum but not... Continue reading...

The old Disney Plus icon logo (left) compared with the updated teal one (right). | Image: Disney Disney has made some slight but notable updates to the logo and splash screen for its Disney Plus streaming service that likely nod to its looming merger with Hulu. The biggest change is the new teal / seafoam background color, which appears to be a rough mix between its original blue background and the green that Hulu uses.At face value alone, the updated design - which can already be seen on the Disney Plus website and various app stores - makes sense for the corporate giant. Aside from the obvious unity with Hulu, the new color also makes it stand out more against the sea of blue and black logos used by other streaming services like Prime Video, Max, and Paramount Plus. But I am actually sad to see the old logo go. I... Continue reading...

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Sony is introducing a new Community Game Help feature on the PS5 later this year that is designed to automatically create clips that can help other players. PS5 players will be able to automatically upload gameplay to help contribute to hint videos provided by game developers.The opt-in experience will let your PS5 automatically capture a game clip when you complete an activity in supported titles. Then, it will be reviewed by a moderator, and if approved, your video will be published as a Game Help hint for PlayStation players to watch, learn from, and rate," explains Sabrina Meditz, senior director of product management for the PS5 platform experience. Image: Sony PS5 players will get a notification if their... Continue reading...

Illustration by Vincent Kilbride The AI search tools are getting better - but they don't yet understand what a search engine really is and how we really use them. Continue reading...

Affinity's professional design software could give Canva the edge it needs to seriously compete against Adobe. | Image: Canva Web-based design platform Canva has acquired the Affinity creative software suite, positioning itself as a challenger to Adobe's grip over the digital design industry. Canva announced the deal on Tuesday, which gives the company ownership over Affinity Designer, Photo, and Publisher - three popular creative applications for Windows, Mac, and iPad that provide similar features to Adobe's Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign software, respectively.Official figures for the deal have not been revealed, but Bloomberg reports that it's valued at several hundred million [British] pounds." Nevertheless, the acquisition makes sense as the Australian-based company tries to attract more creative professionals. As of January this year, Canva's... Continue reading...

Image: Nissan Nissan has laid out a new plan to electrify 16 of the 30 vehicles it produces by 2026, with the rest using internal combustion instead. For those of us in North America, the company says it plans to release seven new vehicles in the US and Canada, although it's not clear how many of those will be some type of EV.Nissan says the US is getting e-POWER and plug-in hybrid models" - each of those uses a mix of electricity and fuel for power. At the moment, the only all-electric EVs Nissan is producing are the Ariya SUV and the perhaps endangered (or maybe not) Leaf.In 2021, Nissan said it would make 23 electrified vehicles by 2030, and that 15 of those would be fully electric, rather than some form of hybrid vehicle. It's hard to say if... Continue reading...

Illustration: The Verge Microsoft is naming Pavan Davuluri as its new Windows and Surface chief today. After Panos Panay's surprise departure to Amazon last year, Microsoft split up the Windows and Surface groups under two different leaders. Davuluri took over the Surface silicon and devices work, with Mikhail Parakhin leading a new team focused on Windows and web experiences. Now both Windows and Surface will be Davuluri's responsibility, as Parakhin has decided to explore new roles."The Verge has obtained an internal memo from Rajesh Jha, Microsoft's head of experiences and devices, outlining the new Windows organization. Microsoft is now bringing together its Windows and devices teams once more. This will enable us to take a holistic approach to building... Continue reading...